Tuesday, October 30th, 2007
random fold dress, UNIFORM Studio, Fall 2007
Here is another attempt at making an adult version of one of my little girl patterns. This time instead of making an exact copy only bigger, I decided to make the dress a little more sophisticated. I eliminated the neck elastic and added a few random folds instead, similar to the ones on this dress I made last spring. I also shortened the dress to just above the knee. I think the folds give it a more elegant drape and the shorter hem make it a bit more modern. (you can see the first one I did here)
random fold dress (neckline detail), UNIFORM Studio, Fall 2007
denim simple dress, UNIFORM Studio, Fall 2007
I like the idea of these being worn together as an updated version of mother/daughter dresses without the mother having to feel too cutesy. (I don’t know what’s up with the color of the denim in these photos -it’s the same denim in both but the adult version looks so blue compared to the little girl’s)
I will be making a small update to the shop this Thursday, November 1st, at 2pm (Central Standard Time). There will be some of these dresses and some of the little girl’s version, along with a few other items.
This year I also plan to open a Holiday Shop on November 15th. The Holiday shop will have scarves, hats and some other small accessories perfect for gift giving. Watch for an announcement here, or you can always send me an email and I will put you on the mailing list.
Oh, and the dressform was loaned to me by Eireann, right before she left to study in Europe. I love it! It’s great to have a form to drape and pin against, and it’s also really nice for taking photos. Now I really need invest in one of my own, both an adult and child sized version. And speaking of Eireann, this is really lovely.
Hope you are all enjoying the fall, or whatever season it is in your part of the world.
Saturday, October 27th, 2007
holiday dress, UNIFORM Studio, winter 2007
For a long time now I’ve been fascinated with the idea of combining knitting and sewing into one garment. Last year I started experimenting with the idea, trying to overcome my bad 1970’s associations with knit/sewn garments, but didn’t get very far. Now as the weather has started to turn cool, and I’ve been thinking about knitting again, I decided to revisit the idea.
I’ve also been thinking about making a non-traditional little girl’s holiday dress. I remember when I was growing up, my grandmother would send my brother and I a “holiday” outfit every year. They usually involved fancy fabrics like velvet and lace that were uncomfortable and that I wasn’t supposed to mess up.
This holiday dress combines a stretchy dark denim (I can’t get enough of this fabric) with a super-soft chunky wool. I’m thinking it would be paired with a long sleeve t-shirt or turtleneck. It’s sort of like getting to wear your favorite jeans and comfy sweater for a fancy party.
holiday dress, UNIFORM Studio, winter 2007
I really wish I had more time to knit because I’d love to make this scarf for a holiday gift, maybe in two shades of grey. The designer, Staceyjoy, is a knitwear design genius with what looks like an amazing shop in Brooklyn. Someday I hope to visit and maybe pick up something like this. You can see some of her other unique designs here.
Tuesday, October 23rd, 2007
volumetric scarf, UNIFORM Studio, Fall/Winter 2007
I’ve had an idea in my head I’ve been wanting to try for awhile: -a simple scarf that would have some volume to it, almost as if it were filled with a bit of air. Also some texture like this scarf, but not as much or as flat. A woven cotton that isn’t too heavy but not too light either and with a bit of sheen. I want to tweak this a bit more, but I think it’s getting there.
volumetric scarf, UNIFORM Studio, Fall/Winter 2007
volumetric scarf, UNIFORM Studio, Fall/Winter 2007
Wednesday, October 17th, 2007
I’ve been printing tags with my new color scheme (finally -see my first ideas here), and finding it difficult to get the exact grey I want. I want the lighter grey to be dark enough to read the white text, but light enough so that it is just subtly different from the darker grey. I also want it to be slightly warm, so that it doesn’t come across as blue, but not so warm that it’s brown. I still have a bit of nudging to do.
The other problem I’m having is getting the same grey color on different types of paper. The color on the tags, which is on a heavy bristol, is much different when printed on the paper for the mailing labels and stickers. This type of thing makes me crazy. Anyone have any tips?
I do love my new recycled grey tissue paper though, and the waxed linen thread.
Tuesday, October 9th, 2007
click on the image for credits
Some current flickr favorites. I seem to be drawn to grey (always) and mossy green, weathered surfaces and blurry images. Oh, and power lines.
Sunday, October 7th, 2007
I don’t have a lot of new work to show lately (I’m busy filling orders from my last shop update -thank you to everyone who placed an order!) so I thought I’d post a picture of what my students have been making. This is an image of a dry stacked concrete block wall. They are studying material this semester, and for this exercise they worked full scale, building multiple iterations of walls using block. Working in small groups outside in the sandlot, they were able to quickly assemble many walls, block by block, and get an idea of how material and structure work together in real life. They also were able to piece together something texturally beautiful with a very common material. You can see a few more images here and here.
I often work in a similar way when designing a garment. I use a particular material I’m interested in and pin or baste it together, testing out seams and draping and texture combinations. I rarely use muslin -it just doesn’t give me the whole idea of the garment. Material is so integral to how something is made.
In the scrap series I start by piecing fabric pieces together to make a new piece of fabric, and then cut the garment from this new fabric. I like working this way, without a plan and I like how each piece of fabric dictates its size and placement. Lately I’ve been working on some new scrap pieces that are a bit different -more textural. Hopefully I’ll have some photos soon. I was paging through the New York Times Sunday Style Magazine this morning and came across the work of Piet Hein Eek, who has a line of furniture and cabinets made from scraps. The pieces look as if this is the way he works as well, letting the material guide the design. This cabinet is especially beautiful.
And speaking of scraps and piecing, I’ve been thinking about making some sort of quilt. I’m not really a quilter and I honestly don’t think I have it in me to make a full sized pieced quilt. But I love the process of making a new fabric from pieces, and how textural it becomes from all the seams. Then I came across these (click on patchwork to see the blankets). The combination of the wool, colors and texture from the simple piecing is beautiful and modern but also reminiscent of something old and comforting. And the actual making looks like something I could accomplish, although it might take a lifetime to collect enough wool blankets to do it.