March screen saver - London cool

http://www.21centurydressmakers.com/Full%20pages/Freebies%20frame.html

Click on the above link and download the March screen saver.

I just returned from London and loved the casual, somehow effortless, Camden fashion scene - and that turned into the March screen saver sketch. The super short cropped jeans, layered over ink blackened tights, a rose tucked into a cap, and neon-toned shoes, it's a fresh cool that is happening right now only in London. It all works layered over a background of psychedelic daisies and butterfly images that came to mind when I visited friends across from Abbey Road. Anyway, whose influencing whom - Amy Winehouse or Camden Lock?

Satin bowed valentine pleasure

Valentine's Day inspires -- a mauvy-rose-tinted satin bow (cut a long bias strip, fold in half, stitch and turn inside out) -- sunk into a headband softly draped in a sheer savage silk chiffon (again on the bias with the bottom edges left naturally raw) -- finished with lavender cotton grograin on the inside. Isn't it all a bit romantic?

Young and hip designer style

I'm always bumping into wonderfully imaginative designers. I love how they are freely expressing themselves and their lifestyles through their clothes, illustrations and thoughts. Here are five, very young, hardly launched designers:

Carly is a knitter, artist and writer and her sketchbooks (of enormous dimensions) are diaries filled and patched with delightful girlish fantasies layered with her own politically correct thoughts and dreams. After we met I realized that I saw her socks on BBC on Sienna and Savannah Miller.
carly.juneau@alumni.rca.ac.uk

Helen's humor is reflected in her bag designs that are covered with images that fall into her funky, fifties-retro style. It's pink, sweet, sugary, and every bag has a tale, of friends, objects or chocolates. With their silver trim they really suit up for valentines. Her husband is so far only designing for himself, with collars up to there, and zoot suits and I can imagine how they dress-up their two year old as they buzz around London.
http://ww.helenrochfort.com/

Only 17 - Camille and Luna are two friends who have formed "MILK". Camille designs while Luna photographs and invents their site. The clothes, which seem to have tumbled out of their closets, are made from discarded fabrics and re-cycled clothes, all re-styled with their signature bows, baby doll, Courreges look, or whatever they feel, at that moment-look. It has a sincerity and sense that works in a refreshingly, crazy and uncommerical way.
http://www.myspace.com/milkcreation

Jean Michel, his must-have shoes - are neon-bright, wild, free-spirited and original -- his whole crew and style is a wanna-be look, full of positive energy, artistry and action that makes you want to hang out to not miss what's going to happen next.
http://www.myspace.com/espezial

When you meet someone like Laura, painted top to toe in her own wonderfully creative look - even her business card is brilliantly all hers – it's beauty, the Italian hip way, spun with lots of charm and personality.
laurapastrello@hotmail.com

February Wallpaper

February sketched for desktop wallpaper pleasure.

Upload it if you wish by clicking on this link: http://www.21centurydressmakers.com/Full%20pages/Freebies%20frame.html One of my inspirations, a dreamy treasure of pink reflections on mint and mauve as viewed by Hermes in Paris.

The other inspiration - the hand painted paper my sketch is set on. From Il Papiro, the Florentine handmade paper store, the colors, papers and products seem to have a more genuine beauty and texture than any others I have come across.

Valentine diy denim short-shorts

I'm starting to think about what to make for Valentine's Day and I found these denim short- shorts. Pairing them with black leggings and something like - Maryjane's, Converse or flat boots plus a too big sweater will bring them into February.

Simple to make - any imperfections in the doing or the denim is part of the charm --

Just cut off the waistband, cut the legs as high as you want and cut a heart from the denim. Machine wash and dry to get the nice frayed bits. Steam a strip of lime cotton grosgrain in a soft curve, and use it to face the waist, pinning it around the top edge. Using lemon embroidery thread finish the waist with blanket stitch around the top and running stitch about 1/2" below. Sew a skirt hook and eye at the front closure above the top button. Whip stitch the cuffs with pink embroidery thread. Embroider the heart accordingly to your ability or what you want to express and stitch it, a bit off center, on the back pocket. Knot well all threads so they don't unravel from wear and wash.

Karl Lagerfeld and Suzy Menkes online

Suzy Menkes draws out some interesting observations from Karl Lagerfeld, and both are wearing Schiaparelli sized fantasy brooches which you do not want to miss --and, Christian Lacroix tours her through the costume exhibit, another must-see.
http://www.iht.com/pages/style/index.php

January wallpaper

My New Year's resolution! Sketch up my fashion fantasies as a monthly wallpaper. Upload them if you wish: http://www.21centurydressmakers.com/Full%20pages/Freebies%20frame.html

More bikes !

I've been collecting photos of bikers in the city. Here are a few from last summer,

... in Parma, Italy, where the city center is closed to cars, and biking is the only way to get around, always beautiful shoes - flats or heels - on electric or manual bikes ...

or shopping in Israel, bikes parked in front of a wonderful T-shop (the perfect unisex shape, shades and small images subtly printed from photos of everyday objects,)

... a pink bike with turquoise and white polka dots in Paris,

...the most correct, though is the photo of the Parisian police on bikes, check it out on my Lacroix post from December '07.

2008, vintage finesse

...a wonderful winter splash of January style -- I am feeling very ornate, softly bowed rose gloves, one-of-a-kind embroidered and fringed bag, slim dressing with vintage sensibilities, dark overly painted eyes and raspberry streaked, mis-cut hair, caught with a ribbon. Colors and textures abound, tip to toe.

Lacroix mixes it up

Les Arts Décoratifs, Christian Lacroix: Histoires de Mode

(above, a sketch from my visit)

I've just left Angelina's and am walking along the rue de Rivoli, trying to arrive to the Lacroix exhibit, but I'm distracted along the way, for all the reasons that draws one to Paris...like the above bookshop, with windows stylishly overflowing with a tingling disarray of books on fashion icons, designers and sketches -- raising my heartbeat for what Lacroix is going to reveal... ...and the Parisian police -- decked out in their bicycle gear and bikes, ticketing the rows of illegally parked cars, snapped just before stepping into the museum...
the exhibit poster, just before entering...hardly a barometer for what is to come!
...and the exhibit-- an over-the-top- intoxicating-fashion-fantasy! Lacroix's inventive flair and dazzling creativity, in room upon room, spilled stimulating color, texture, shape, technique and style that leaves the viewer inspired with historic wonder and the possibilities of modern dressing. Filled with the madly sketching fashion students and the Parisian bourgeois crowd, it is a fashion happening on two sides. What I loved most --- the way he took his own clothes and topped them with beautiful hats from the archives, SMS-- express your uniqueness. I have started sketching my own Lacroix-Luxe-Mix -- the idea -- wear all your favorites, all together, when you want, break all rules -- play day and night and dreamy and practical side by side ... ex: jeans with precious couturier blouse, accessories new and vintage, mix Poiret and Cardin. The other key looks that are driving me are the hats or headdress, the feathers giving a lightness, also from shredded fabric edges, the gloves and the netting, touches of netting or tulle and also entire dresses made from black net; wearing light and fluttery with structured 60s equals Neo-Hip style.

My sketch is inspired from the "white" group which included exquisite Irish lace or delicately embroidered pieces depicting the feelings of late 18th century. The blouse is delicately embroidered with pearls, softly frayed edges in cotton batiste, paired with a white feathered headband with a pale pink band, white patent leather boots with pink buttons and trims, and a soft leather Poiret-style floral belt, black eyes, big, ratted white hair.

This sketch expresses the overall style mood of the exhibit. She is wearing stretch pants and a cape, striding with freer movement in the modern Luxe style. The cape is resplendent, with patchwork, feathers, quilting, light and airy, tied with silk tassels. The blouse is sheer, again cotton batiste, cinched with a wide green suede belt, leopard printed, stretch velvet pants with flared lace applique over decoratively embossed boots, all with big hair, pink headband and feathered bag. The hair is ratted high and tied in a tiny pony tail with a rose ribbon. It's opulent freedom.

Evening - an empire vintage Cardin-style dress, layered over a geometric printed knit T-neck, gold leggings, pink ornately bowed and trimmed 18th c mules, rose suede gloves, silver fan, black patent leather cap, pink hair.

Paris, fashion fun

Must see the DPV show and the Christian Lacroix exhibit, all good reasons to go to Paris for a day. Since Angelina is near the Musee, I will add that to my to-do list and see what else pops up. Dress all in black, black velvet pants, sweater, raincoat, bag and runners.

Denim, what's happening?!

"Les Docks" Paris, Denim by Première Vision, Spring 2009

Loved this example of the shine and glitter trend...

Cone Denim brought jeans from their historic archives, beautiful examples of folkloric home craft patchwork "Home", and also played a video (above) of vintage denim worn in it's time.

Above is the text from the "Imaginers" who inspire with their directional displays, and (below) a snap of one of the displays.

So you feel the atmosphere, below is a collage I put together of my photos of designers, weavers and displays.

At "Les Docks" on the edge of Paris, key weavers, denim treatment, trim and packaging people, gathered from the U.S. to Japan to show their Spring '09 collections. The offerings are inventive and gorgeous and the community is open and flexible to go even further with their designers. When you feel that kind of excitement in the air, that kind of creativity, you know that the denim world is going to continue to surprise and thrive. Key: the eco-friendly fabrics, everyone is doing it and is finding a way to be posh not only green; stretch; striped; shot with Lurex; and colors, either fresh like a daisy or hard like a rock star. The crowd was either in indigo and black or dressed colorfully ornate. Washed and ragged is as important as glossy and shiny, it just needs to be thought out, be driven by sincerity, by emotionally charged feelings from nature, music, icons, cosmo or posh style.

This is what I sketched up after the DPV - it's two directions, one is sleek, body conscious, darkly shaded, city slicker, and the other is Gurl-Billy, the hillbilly sensibility, all ragged, patched, oversized hand me downs. Both with caps, or hair wrapped, hair teased or cut in an unpolished manner, as if by a friend. Shoes are key, they are decorative, very important, highly colored, and individual.

Asian Red-Hot Art

Feng Zhengjie's 2007 portrait of a female, at the Houston Museum of Art...

"Red Hot : Contemporary Asian Art (collection from the Chaney family) I caught the exhibit on the last day! By chance in Houston with a long layover, just enough time to do one thing, so I decided to drag myself into the city and see what is happening art-wise, and stumbled, completely unexpectedly upon this futuristic and glorious exhibit. I arrived, thirsty, went down to the cafe for a drink and was mesmerized by the animated DVD film "City Glow" by Chiho Aoshima which was right at the door. Wonderful to enter her imaginary world and a perfect entree for what was to follow, upstairs, ... a comprehensive body of work from over 60 artists, a youth driven perception, that was shockingly bold, fresh, glossy, fun, flirty, sexy, idealized beauty, reality, fear, full of fantasy and Asian culture. The artists embrace state-of-the-art techniques and innovation without any old European world art influence. It was an unforgettable experience, and a wake up call to the creativity from the Far East, and the youth culture that binds the whole region. Bravo to the collectors and the curator.

Dressing-up!

Celebration in a gorgeous castle ----
-- part of the fun of the night is planning the outfit, deciding the mood ... my must list: to feel hip and daring AND to create something myself, as otherwise, it is just too boring -- remember --lots of titled with real bling, so must go in reverse and wear FAUX and the castle is enormous so must exaggerate or I will disappear.

With that in mind, I decided to build on a classic siren base, sheer chiffon white Chanel-style blouse, with black satin wrap skirt, hemmed just tooo long in the back.

Then from top to bottom, this is how I layered it on: Hair teased super big, my feathered Venus et Neptune headband (minus the pretty tulle net, possible mistake, oh well), exaggerated black eyes, over sized lemon Lucite hoops with black jet beads; made a pair of wide cuffs (chocolate fur layered with leopard printed chiffon woven through vintage horn buckles), snug on wrists; made a wide cinch belt, using the heavenly vintage double buckle with the hand dyed, black to smoke grey chiffon Roman silk; carried my Maud Frizon croc lipstick purse, black suede stilettos plus Stella. I felt just like the sketch. Wonderful evening, romantic and joyous, old friends and new friends.

The cuffs and belt are made from my pile of vintage finds, all recycled.

Journey into fashion wonderland

It's show and tell -- and I'm opening my sketchbook!! I will share with you the ideas, travels, images and projects that are inspiring my designs and filtering into my style. Watch my evolution, what triggers my stylish sensibilities, the push that ignites my urge to create and lets the unexpected fashion craze happen.
Key -- together let's bounce thoughts and ideas about fashion, designing and creating our own looks. The interchange of moods, in real time, is fashion fun, it's about our reaction to the realities of the world and it's now a global, Internet, happening.
Fashion, always at the tip of the pulse, adapts and flourishes in the new green world. I'm into searching for interesting cast-offs and re-inventing them in new campy mixes. I'm into handmade, adding details and personal finishes that can't be bought and consuming and recycling in different ways. I'm fashion crazy, and don't want to look like I'm wearing someone's cast-offs, I want to be sleek and daring, so I constantly mix it up to discover New-Now looks that are eco-politically-balanced. AND right now, I am for whatever reason, simply MAD for purple, plum and violet, anything in that family is just dreamy.