Last Laugh

Last April I mentioned:

I think the recent spate of fashion criticisms directed at women belonging to the polygamist sect in Texas to be distasteful. I'm not defending their religious practices but I think it's the height of tackiness to level superficial criticisms during what must be the most stressful event of their collective lives.

I am dismayed by people who feel compelled to kick people while they're down and over something that doesn't even matter. In that vein, John sent me a news piece today. Now who is having the last laugh?

Mothers say Texas raid forced them to market their clothing style. A new clothing brand may be born out of the Texas raid on a polygamous sect. FLDS women for the first time are offering their handmade, distinctive style of children's clothes to the public through the Web site fldsdress.com. Launched initially to provide Texas authorities with clothing for FLDS children in custody, the online store now is aimed at helping their mothers earn a living. The venture, which has already drawn queries from throughout the U.S., is banking on interest in modest clothes, curiosity and charity to be a success.

Personally, I'm thrilled. I wish them all the best. I'd send them a book if they'd think it'd help. They certainly have the patterns down and they've got the workforce. What an exciting experiment to witness; barn raising a manufacturing company overnight. I wish I were closer and had an invite.

High Drama!

A look from Bill Blass’ Fall 2008 ready-to-wear collection

Chanel Iman (in 3.1 Philip Lim), Eve (in Emanuel Ungaro) and Eva Longoria (in Marchesa) stop traffic in their dramatic outfits.

It’s not enough to just walk into a room looking fabulous. Nowadays your outfit has to shout it from the rooftops! The classic black dress is all good and well but when you really want to make a show, opt for something theatrical. Many of the Fall/Winter 2008 collections during New York Fashion Week were filled with high-neck collars, fanciful frills and dreamy chiffon ruffles. Bill Blass’ collection, for example, is the epitome of dramatic flair though if you’re not too sure you can get away with such an exuberant entrance look to Victoria Beckham and Charlize Theron who took this look to the streets. Try this Sheer Ruffle top by Wetseal.com. For those of you who love the attention, take a leaf out of Chanel Iman, Eva Longoria and Eve’s style books. They definitely know how to put on a show.

evintage blog tag - Sex & The City (sorry)

Its Blog Tag Wednesday at the eVintage Society!.
You can’t turn on the TV, walk past a magazine rack at the market or eavesdrop on ladies chatting at lunch (what, like you don’t do that?) without being assaulted with images and stories about the big screen debut of “Sex and the City” - Unfortunately. I'm sick of hearing about it. I'm one of the 9 people in the world who wasn't a fan of the show, but I'm playing along with this week's blog theme.

1)We know Carrie favors vintage, but let’s dress them all! Like cyber paperdolls. To kick it off, show us a piece you think the quirky, eclectic and whimsical Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) would look great in from your inventory.

Here is a bright and bold purple & Pink dress by Hanoe Mori, a sure attention getter -


2)Samantha (Kim Cattrall) works the vampy edge of fashion…what do you have in your inventory that can bring out the temptress in a woman?

Sexy and yet classy bright red fitted dress with tie shoulders -


3)Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) tends to play it safe, tending toward clean lines and classic silhouettes with the occassional sexy edge. What do you have in your inventory for her?

Batik print Oriental Style dress - Classic style but fitted and sexy


4)Charlotte (Kristin Davis) is often seen in more feminine, flirty and girlie pieces. What vintage dress or ensemble do you have that would work for her character?

Sweet and flirty, White full skirted eyelet dress -

5) Sex and the City Shoes. Stilettos? Of course! If you’ve got some vintage shoes to rival Carrie’s Jimmy Choos, show ‘em off here!
No Stilettos here, sorry

6)Love the show? Hate the show? Never seen it? Do tell. No spoilers if you’ve seen the movie!
Do you have to ask? I am not a fan of the show. I've seen a few episodes, but I don't really like shows about women talking to each other and relationship stuff. The clothing alone wasn't enough to keep me interested. Slutty girls who spend too much money on shoes - I can't relate. If I'm going to spend $500, I'd rather get 15-20 pairs of shoes rather than 1 pair.

Check out the eVintage Blog Tag every Wednesday. Follow the links to read the posts from all of the participating blogs. I was tagged by Vintage Joy and now I'm tagging Diary of a Mad Vintage Addict

Oversized Clutches and Utilitarian Handbags

Thank god for the death of the “It” bag. For a more modern look, you will want to peek into oversized clutches and utilitarian supple leather bags.

One my favorite affordable oversized clutches right now is this vibrant orange Nine West purse available on piperlime.com. Then there is the pricier, but even more tasty Hobo International Farrah in a brilliant blue.

The best part about this type of purse, besides being incredibly stylish and attractive, is you can actually fit everything you need in it. My camera, keys, phone, money, cards and Kleenex can all come with me when cruising the fellas at the roof top bars I have been frequenting.

As for the utilitarian leather sacs, I spied some overpriced, but delicious brown and blue leather handbags in Urban Outfitters. A quality bag of good use in a beautiful color never goes out of style. Never.

Elle MacPherson Intimates Evoke Thong

We often talk about the imagery that a certain piece of lingerie evokes when we feature a product here at the Intimate Guide. For instance, last week's DKNY Classic Curves thong evoked imagery of the “chalice” symbol - which is good because the chalice symbol represents femininity.

So, we're not exactly sure why they call this thong the “evoke” thong (our calls to Elle MacPherson Intimates were not returned), but it does have an initial appearance of academia. The black and gold - sorry, “jet” and “biscotti” - color scheme coupled with tassels on the front brings to mind the pomp and circumstance of graduation. Since most academic regalia comes from medieval times when those who wore it were considered wizards, we can only assume that the designers use the word “evoke” here to refer to some type of conjuring. Indeed, we can envision Harry Potter's Hermione Granger wearing this thong underneath her dress robes to the Hogwart's Prom.

The thong is styled with a semi-sheer spot design featuring lace embellishments that curve to form the appearance of a Peter Pan collar. This faux collar is neatly tied with a delicate ribbon capped with golden tassels. The spot pattern continues to the rear where coverage is, of course, minimal. Everything comes together for a sophisticated, elegant look in the end - pun intended.

It's that time of year again . . .

Time for the rhododendruns to bloom. And time to drag Boris out there and try to get him to pose in front of them for a photo. There he is, Little Doggie, feeling perfectly fine now, no breathing trouble at all. Super engergetic and rarin' to go! My Dad had to sit next to him to keep him still long enough for a photo.

Robin Phillips Jewelry

Handmade Cloisonné and Champlevé Enamel Jewelry

Robin Phillips has a passion for designing and creating handmade enamel jewelry, as well as gold and silver jewelry. One of Robin's specialties is Cloisonné enamel and silver jewelry. Cloisonné is an enameling technique, in which the colored areas are separated by thin wires of either pure gold or fine silver. The wires also create a design within the piece of jewelry.





'Lily' Cloisonné & Champlevé Enamel Brooch/Pendant

This piece shimmers with depth of color. It comes with a handmade finding that slips over the pin so the piece can be worn as either a brooch or a pendant.

$950 AUD



Cloisonné and Champlevé Enamel

The term Cloisonné is derived from the French cloison, meaning partitioned cell. Champlevé refers to a technique where a recess is made in the silver either by incising, etching, or making a framework that is soldered onto a fine silver plate. In this process, thin metal wires of either fine silver or gold are first laid down to separate the enamels from one another. Wet enamels (finely ground glass and lead) are painted onto the plate of fine silver using the cloisons as dividers.



After the first layer of color is applied, the piece is ready to be kiln-fired at somewhere between 760 - 850 degrees Celsius. The enamels continue to be built up and fired repeatedly until the colors become vibrant, and there is a feeling of depth to the piece (each piece may be fired over twenty times).



Using a series of diamond files, the piece is then gently filed (from coarse to very fine) to remove any excess enamel and to reveal the cloisons. Then a series of diamond papers, up to 12,000 grit, is used. The piece is then cleaned with a glass brush, allowed to dry and placed near the kiln to warm up for its final firing.





'Tulip' Cloisonné Enamel Brooch/Pendant

The colors in this piece are vibrant! This piece is hand-engraved and set in Sterling Silver with 18k Gold 'bubbles'. It comes with a handmade finding that slips over the pin so the piece can be worn as either a brooch or a pendant.

$1100 AUD



Robin's handcrafted Cloisonné jewelry, and particularly her pendants, are vibrant with color and imagery. Much of her inspiration comes from natural imagery such as landscapes, light, movement, organic shapes, and often a specific theme or a certain gemstone. Her fine enamel gold and silver jewelry is available at high quality craft and jewelry stores, and select craft shows.





'Splash' Cloisonné & Champlevé Enamel Brooch

This little brooch was inspired by the ocean at dusk.

Materials: Fine silver and vitreous enamels.

$695 AUD



Robin Phillips received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, majoring in pottery, in America in 1973. She then worked for a number of years making pottery, and as a pottery teacher. Moving to Sydney influenced Robin's decision to study the art of jewelry design and jewelry making under a master jeweler. Her desire was to design and create original enamel gold and silver jewelry using her own individual style and skills.



Robin's fine handmade jewelry is created predominately from gold and silver, and consists of a collection of one-of-a-kind and limited edition pieces. Her clients have commented that the pieces they own will become family heirlooms, handed down from generation to generation.



Women have been wearing fine jewelry for personal adornment for centuries. Robin believes that women who love jewelry want it to be well designed and finely made, whether it is gold or silver jewelry, diamonds or pearls, emeralds, opals, or Cloisonné.



Artist Statement

I received my Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in the USA in 1973 majoring in pottery, and worked as a production potter and pottery teacher in the US for some years. After moving to Sydney, I studied under a master jeweler and made the transition to jewelry design and making.



Color, texture and three-dimensional form were what initially drew me to work with clay and it is these same qualities that translate so well to metal. Although these mediums have inherent differences, both lend themselves to fluidity of form.



Both can be colored, either by glazing for pottery, or enameling or introducing heat to color precious metals. Both are very tactile materials lending themselves to a variety of finishes such as texturing, burnishing, high gloss, or a subtle satin.



Natural imagery such as landscapes, light, movement, organic shapes and simplicity of form continually inspire my work. I enjoy designing and creating my jewelry around a specific theme or stone, and often the stone dictates the direction the piece will take.



Using a combination of gold and silver adds depth and dimension, enhancing style, and simplicity. Living in Australia allows me access to exquisite opals and pearls which I love using in my jewelry.



Many of the pieces I make are one of a kind, and I am always changing my designs. I become bored making the same thing over and over, and I am always happy to take on commission work. I hope you enjoy looking at my work as much as I've enjoyed making it.

See full article.





Related Entries:

Jewelry Career Resources - 08 August 2006

Robin Steele Jewelry - 26 August 2006

Native American Inlay Jewelry - 14 January 2008

Susan Marie Designs Jewelry - 04 July 2008

Contents of this feed are a property of Creative Weblogging Limited and are protected by copyright laws. Violations will be prosecuted. Please email us if you'd like to use this feed for non-commercial activities at feeds - at - creative-weblogging.com.

meretrix mehndi

Setting- Paying for newspapers at a market stand.

Guy: Hey, I like your mehndi.

Me: Thanks.

Guy: I tried it once. On my back.

Me: Cool.

Guy: It reminds me of what's-her-name... um... you know. Red hair. In the bible. Jesus's girlfriend.

Me: Mary Magdalene?

Guy: Yeah! You look like her.

Pattern Grading

Okay, some of you may have seen a weird version of this post, which I published accidentally. Sorry for the retcon ...

Anyway, Kate (who earlier had a question about Hawaiian dresses, which you all answered in record time), writes:

I recently acquired some AWESOME Vogue Special Designs dress patterns, but they are several sizes too small and about 10 inches too tiny for me in the bust/waist.

I am learning to redraft my own patterns, but in the meantime I would be happy to pay somebody for their expertise in resizing my small patterns into my size and tracing them onto pattern paper for use in my sewing room. Do you know of any companies or individuals who offer this type of service?

While I am in the mood to pay others to help with my sewing, are you aware of any companies that offer the service of cutting and marking patterns, then mailing the patters, fabric, and cut pieces back to the owner to complete the sewing?

I am so eager to sew that I am looking for shortcuts to speed up production time. Any advice is appreciated! Thank you.

I know nothing about grading but I found this nice post from Kathleen about grading machines. (I'm always in favor of more gadgets ...)

And this, from the Threads site, too.

And the pattern above? Is just an example of the kind of thing I'd grade if I could ...

Celebrate

It's that time of year again...fireworks, barbecues, flags waving, the 4th of July is here.
This year, instead of celebrating with just another red white and blue handbag, I thought why not focus on a moment of national pride?
Celebrating the American accomplishment of the first moon walk, this minaudiere from Kathrine Baumann is a miniature work of art.

The rear, which is the typical flag is a little been there seen that, but the front of the bag, a crystal mosaic of an astronaut on the moon's surface, with the flag waving in the background is pretty impressive. Even if it's not your thing (and honestly, other than maybe a rocket scientist, or space nut...suffice it to say, it;s a niche bag) the craftsmanship is impressive.
Now, say you are a space enthusiast, and you're thinking, "what a cute little novelty bag, I'll take 2..." you might want to check your bank account balance. This bag is a whopping $6250...but even astronauts can dream.
Available from Kathrine Baumann.

Prehnite: Misty and Romantic

Prehnite is one of those gemstones that no one has ever heard of until suddenly you start seeing it everywhere. Discovered in the 18th century in South Africa by a Colonel von Prehn, prehnite is usually a light green colour - a distinctive green not quite like any other although I have seen people confuse it with green tourmalinated quartz. It is also found in Namibia, Germany, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, India, Austria, and Canada as well as Scotland, Australia and France.
I like prehnite for its "misty" quality of green; some would say almost a milky quality although I disagree with that term. It does have black inclusions occasionally, but often these inclusions simply add to its beauty since the contrast with the pale green is quite beautiful. The prehnite bracelet above can be found on our Unique Gemstone Jewelry page, and the one below on the Unique Handmade Bracelets page. The prehnite bracelet above is simply two strands of prehnite blessed only with sterling silver for an accent, while the bracelet below also has the lovely lampwork beads of Suzette Celestin of Gaslite Lampwork. For those of you interested in the metaphysical aspects of gemstones, prehnite is best known for promoting lucid dreaming and is known as a protective gemstone with regenerative properties. It is also said to encourage energy flow through the body.
And here, because graduation is coming up, I've included a prayer box necklace with a difference: lampwork beads and genuine natural aquamarines. It's also loaded with sterling silver and would make a great graduation gift for a young girl who's special to you. Of course, the greatest part of the gift would probably be the prayer that you could write on a tiny piece of paper and put inside the prayer box so that it could accompany her on her journeys after graduation.

jewellery accessories jewelry fashion shopping braceletsbeads handmade beaded jewelry beading helmi gioielli smykker tak? juvelen lampwork beads The Jewelry Blog jewelry trends accessories jewelry prehnite unique bracelet handmade bracelet prayer box necklace

Up To My Neck

Sure, it might be summer time 'round these parts, but the hottest accessory right now is the scarf. What? Oh yes, dear readers, get ready to tie on one. But while every celebrity and her mother is wearing Sir Alistair Rai (yawn...so five months ago), the DCGF has rounded up the freshest, coolest scarves and wraps that will put you ahead of the fashion pack this season and beyond.

First up is Little Factory's laser-cut "Uppercase Scarf," at right. Look closely: the scarf is comprised of the letters of the alphabet. Get out!

The scarf comes in white or black, and also in "Numbers" and "Lowercase." Each measures 160cm by 10cm (or about 62" by 4") and are 100% microfiber suede. And with the lightweight, open design, they're perfect for hot weather.

Now don't get upset, but currently the Uppercase version is out of stock in both colors. I wanted you to see it, though, because it's my favorite of the three and I'm sure they'll have more very soon. I want, I want, I want!!

For a more colorful look, I like this Crocheted Beaded Silk Scarf from Manushi in Nepal. It's sold via Ten Thousand Villages, a fair trade organization that supports the work of artisans around the world.

Manushi - meaning "energetic woman" - is a women's collective in Kathmandu that designs and creates products, in addition to aiding in entrepreneurship and skills training. Sound familiar?

This vibrant scarf is woven from recycled loom-end silk with beads on the fringe, so it's environmentally friendly, too. And no two are alike. I think this would look amazing with a crisp white linen dress for daytime, or a black tee and denim pencil skirt for evening. You don't even need to add any jewelry! It's such a statement piece. Oh, and it only costs $20. Perfect.

And finally, the highest-tech and most expensive of the bunch is also the most likely to provoke strangers to stare at you and little children to point. In other words, you have to be a committed fashionista to pull off this one.

Check out the Color Changing Scarf by Yasuyuki Machida, available from the MoMA online store! The polyvinylidene fibers change color when exposed to heat or cold, including changes in one's body temperature. This version in green changes to yellow and there's a gray one that turns white when it comes into contact with skin.

Kinda reminiscent of the Generra Hypercolor tees of old, right? Only way cooler. And at $110, it's certainly not cheap, but think of all the fun you'll have! The only question is, green or gray?




Any purchase made at a Goodwill Retail Store or on eBay funds Goodwill's mission of training and employment programs for people with disadvantages or disabilities.

Goodwill’s fashion blog provides detailed knowledge and insight on vintage and contemporary clothing and accessories that are valuable to fashion shoppers. The facts and opinions shared present readers with entertaining, exciting and value based information on vintage and contemporary fashion and shopping trends.