they stole my idea!

2.01.2008

Okay, so maybe they didn't technically steal MY idea. But I feel like they did. For years I've wanted to recreate this one particular dress that I fell in love with which Ginger Rogers wears in the film Carefree. It's one of the reasons I love that movie so much. (I know, silly reason to like a movie, but that's me for ya.) So the other day I was perusing Karen Walker's fall line when I noticed THIS...


Is it just me or does it look terribly similar to the dress Ginger wears in the 1938 movie? (Sorry I couldn't find a better image.)


Well, it doesn't stop me from making it. Although way back in my head I've always dreamed of making a line of clothing somewhat similar to vintage styles from the past. And well, this dress was thinking of finding its way in there. Then again, the idea wouldn't have been mine in the first place. So in a sense I'd also be stealing it too. I still like the original dress design better than the knock-off, though.

blog facelift

1.29.2008

cup+purse

Thought I'd play around a bit with fonts and headers. I don't know about the title. Still trying to figure that out. But I am sorta going back to the original "wildflowers are pretty." I swear I'm going to stick with something and not change it again.

Okay, back to work! It's so cold and windy today. It's been lovely out and all of a sudden we got a whoosh of cold air. But that's okay. I have a lot of mock-ups to make this afternoon. :)

some random photos for absolutely no reason

nouveauté

need to put these away

I guess this post is a reminder that my desk needs to be tidied once again. It's this never ending process of cleaning + cleaning + c l e a n i n g. . .

dyslexia

1.28.2008

My brother sent me this article from Business Week. Might be an encouraging read for those of you who can relate to it, as I can. (Though I will note I've never been tested for dyslexia.)

In another note, I saw the first fly of the year buzzing around my head this morning. gross.

this is what...

1.27.2008

scares me.

change

In many cases change can be a good thing and I realize that, but it also can be very hard for me to accept change in certain aspects of my life. Reading this is a good reminder to me that I need to learn to "accept change as inevitable." This kind of goes along with being scared of new situations. I couldn't think of a way to capture "new situations" on film and as I almost forgot to even TAKE a picture today, this is what I came up with. Believe me, there's lots and lots more I'm scared of...but we won't go there today.

If you are interested in joining the little game "this is..." find new themes each Wednesday on this blog.

purse::bag::handbag::whatever

1.26.2008

I've been compiling some pictures of bags that have caught my eye in the last week or so. As I mentioned in a previous post, I am in dire need of a new purse. I love the one I've got, but the seams are starting to rip open and I figured if I am ever going to take a pattern off of it, it's going to be the easiest if I take the whole thing apart. So before I do that I'd like to have a bag to take its place. Knowing me, I'd take the bag apart and then lose interest for a couple of weeks. Besides, I'm ready for a different style.

Here are some pictures of the purses that I may want to replicate. They aren't all high quality bags, but for some reason I like the shape or the fabrics used. I am really leaning towards the one made with the plaid wool, though I adore leather purses. I'm just not sure I have enough leather to make one fully of leather. Perhaps I will break and get one of those cheap imitation purses from forever21, only I know I'll regret it because there's a huge difference between faux leather and real leather. But I must say, they don't look that bad from the pictures.


Lovely handmade bag which was found on Simply Olive.





















Image from The Sartorialist. Love love love the bright red color. Wish I had some red leather sitting around. Or come to think of it, a nice green wouldn't be a bad idea either. Always need a bit of color to brighten my life. :)
















This is the bag I'm thinking will be the easiest to copy. Plus it sort of reminds me of those old carpet bags from the 19th century. Only problem is what fabric to use. I have some nice wool which I thrifted awhile back that may be a good candidate for this. There should be just enough wool for a bag, but I'm not sure I want to use this particular wool for this project. I rather thought it would make a nice jacket. It's made of two narrow woven stripes of dark and light gray. So it's not exactly as bright or colorful as this orangey plaid. I do have some burgundy/cream patterned wool that may actually work better. Oh, decisions decisions!



Another image swiped from the Sartorialist. I thought about doing a simple patchwork similar to this. I have some nice velvet in my stash that would work. I thought about using velvet for one color and maybe wool for another. Eh, but I'm not sure that I really really want a bag like this.














When it comes down to it, I do prefer an all-leather bag over cloth. Of course this is another one of those cheap imitations from forever21 and I think I do like the brown one up top a little better than this one. But my biggest fear is that if I were to get a cheap bag like this, I would regret not making my own bag with the materials that I've got. Thus saving me money and making me feel a heck of a lot better about using what I have (that includes these two hands here, which are blessed with the ability to handle a needle...) I've gotta say, there's something about making my own garments that give me great joy and satisfaction. I believe in today's society we buy far too much STUFF and forget about that which we have sitting around our house. I know I can make my own bag, it will just take a little bit of my time and patience. And what's so bad about learning a little patience?

Okay, enough ranting about that! I could go on forever on that topic. whew. I've got a cupping to go to in about an hour and lots to do before then. Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend. I know I sure am!

i'm in love

1.24.2008


Yesterday I discovered minä perhonen on Lena Corwin's blog. Wow. So much inspiration on that site. I'm absolutely in love with every single garment. The fabric is just wonderful. Last night I got out a little notebook and started sketching some ideas that popped into my head after perusing all the lovely images on that website. I'm thinking of adding some hand embroidery to garments I make for myself. Nothing too elaborate. I'm still thinking about what I really want to do. I'd love to screen print some small geometric designs on fabric as well. Hmm...I suppose it's all just a jumbled mess in my head. As per usual. :) Hope everyone is having a lovely week. Here are a few pictures I took this week.

afternoon repast

last cup

windowpanes

macchiato

1.19.2008


macchiato, originally uploaded by gracefullady.

This is my favorite drink to get when I go into the coffee shop. They recently acquired these lovely little cups and I think they're wonderful. Looking at it makes me think of dark chocolate. So much goodness in just one cup. mmmm...

Also, I noticed the cupping we did awhile ago has been blogged. Check it out on the Brewed Awakenings blog. That was so much fun. For those of you in the area who would like to participate, they're doing it again January 26th. For more information click on the link to the blog above. This is something not quite often done around these parts, so if you get the chance you really should try it out.