Whenever I redesign a garment, I remove the labels. I’ve been saving them up for a while and wanted to make myself something with them. Today I used them to create a border on a vintage silk scarf. I have named it “Label Wh0re”.
Join us as we welcome Spring with our newest work. Art. People. Food Fun.
Clean out your closet and join us for our wardrobe swap on Sunday, March 30, 2008. Held at my home in Redlands. Email me for directions.
Why recycle?
Our culture glorifies the new. Trendy garments with built-in obsolescence quickly lose appeal when they appear on the “what’s not” side of the “what’s hot” fashion column. So they’re relegated to the back of the closet….stuffed into a bottom drawer… and, if they’re not dumped into the trash, they eventually find their way to thrift and consignment stores where they languish under the humiliation of multiple markdowns and overpopulated racks.
As every savvy recycler knows, treasure often hides between purple power suits and polyester broomstick skirts. And the thrill of finding a mustard dupioni silk blouse or a fine gauge British wool dress makes the sometimes exhaustive searches worthwhile. I am proud to say that I design all of my garments from recycled materials. They begin their lives in other forms. A skirt morphs into a dress… a dress is divided among three new dresses…an undergarment moves outside. I compare this redefining of garments to the joy of an unexpected adoption…. the designer dog abandoned by the socialite , then loved dearly by the little boy whose parents finds her at the pound. Under the right conditions, abandoned possessions live a fuller second life.
An email from flickr friend, becktress, got me feeling a little nostalgic recently. She knew someone who went to the same high school that I did and we were trying to figure out if we knew anyone in common. That got me to thinking about the fact that over the years I had lost all of my yearbooks. Moving away from home, renting storage units…who knows where they ended up? I have no idea. But it felt like there was this little hole in my personal history.
So I decided to go to ebay and see if I could replace them, or at least one. And would you believe that one was available from the Goodwill store in Tacoma, Washington? It was from my senior year and had belonged to someone who I had shared what we called "homeroom" with as a senior. We had the same last name..and in those days, for this one class, we were seated alphabetically. So…there it was on the internet and available for purchase. Of course I bid on it. I was the high (and only) bidder and it came in today’s mail, in pristine condition.
Only one person signed it. (That part is kind of sad.) As I looked through the pages, I was taken back to that year, to that time in my life that was not entirely pleasant. But not awful, either. Just not my "glory days" as some feel about their high school years. Then my thoughts moved to the prior owner. What had become of her? How did this yearbook end up at the Goodwill? And…how did they know her last name? She was addressed only by her first name in the signed comment.
I feel honored to have been chosen as the featured designer for Belle Armoire magazine. I received my copy in today’s mail and it should be in the stores shortly. It’s available in most Barnes & Noble bookstores. The article includes an interview by Rice Freeman-Zachary and eight page photo spread.
Spring/Summer 2008 (available at most Barnes & Noble bookstores)Rice Freeman Zachary and an eight page photo spread.
Congratulations to Becktress, a fellow Etsyier (and Flickrer) who was my 300th sale in my Lorimarsha Etsy store. I sent her a little package of goodies as a thank you. I opened my store on August 7, 2006 and I am really pleased with the venue. I encourage any of you creative types who are looking for an outlet for your work to investigate opening an Etsy store. http://www.etsy.com
When I was about 12 my mom sewed me a pair of tartan plaid knickers with a vest. I loved that outfit and there began my lifelong love of plaid. There’s something about the tartan plaid that rings happiness with me. So that’s what I was thinking when I redesigned a pair of stretch cotton toile pants this week. The muted fabric design had a bit of an “English hunt” theme so I added a bright splash of plaid at the cuffs with vintage button trim. I thought it looked nice with this vintage 1960s plaid jacket, French souvenir scarf and leather belt. The outfit was inspired by Vivienne Westwood…she is also admittedly “mad for plaid.”
I’m exploring some new genres since learning about Steampunk from an inquiry through Etsy. Although that particular commission doesn’t look like it will materialize, it opened my eyes to something that I find interesting. I would like to do some designs in this area but with my own spin.
Steampunk is a small subculture that is just starting to find its place in the world. It is a bit of an offshoot from the neo-Victorian movement, but focusing more on machinery, gears, and gadgets of the emerging industrial revolution. Also a lot of steampunks have a strong interest in the literature of H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, and Mary Shelly. Kind of like Cyber-punk but an alternate older reality that runs on steam as its main power source. The electricity wars between Tesla and Edison are also a small part.
Actors- Maggie Gyllenhall and Philip Seymour Hoffman
Album- Teddy Thompson “Separate Ways”
Appetizer- PF Changs Lettuce Wraps
Book- “The Year of Magical Thinking” by Joan Didion
Clothes built for comfort- Treehouse 28
Cookbook- “I Like You…Hospitality Under the Influence” by Amy Sedaris
Customer Service- Mountain Vista Optical
Comfort shoes- Keen shoes
Documentary- “God Grew Tired of Us”
Fragrance- Christian LaCroix “Tumulte”
Gadget- 32” PikStik Aluminum Reacher
Healthy habit- Tahiti Trader Bio-Noni
Hobby- Flickr
Holiday activity- Baking cookies with Ethan
Home store- JD Myers
Las Vegas show- Cirque du Soleil “Love”
Live performance- Bright Eyes at the Disney Concert Hall
Magazine- More
Movie- “No Country for Old Men”
Party Dress- Corey Lynn Calter
Quick pick me up- Blue nail polish
Shopping thrills- Sale racks at Anthropolgie
Technology- The iPhone little yellow notepad
Television- Andy Griffith reruns
Thrifty Finds- Deseret Industries
Value- Dollar store gift bags
Website- Etsy
Weekend getaway- Napa Valley
This year I’m having a hard time changing gears and moving from Thanksgiving to Christmas. I like the way the house looks…warm tones, rusty color candles, my little street fair pheasant with his sombrero….
So I look to flickr for inspiration. It seems so many of you have already jumped head first into the holiday season with your photos of decorations, cards, and beautiful displays. It has helped me to prepare for moving into what will be a special December.
My daughter and son-in-law are hosting Christmas day brunch for the first time. That is a milestone that makes me very happy. My grandson will be spending the weekend so I think this is the perfect time to pull down the boxes of decorations, set up his Lionel train and unwind the outdoor lights.
‘Tis the season.
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