Wedding Bells

What is pictured here is an ascot/neck wrap that I made for friends celebrating their 1 year anniversary. It is a gift that validates my pack rat mentality....because I had these two bride and groom little dingy things that used to be filled with breath mints, that I had been keeping forever! I loved them because they were so kitsch, and I knew...one day I would be able to use them for something, and when I did use them it would be absolutely perfect. And it was!!!! What better way to celebrate both people in a relationship than with a neck wrap that brings a little white dress and a tuxedo together?

And then, if they get sick of the little symbols of matrimony then they can always remove them and they still have a stylish scarf.

This is what I want to look like!

This couple was found wandering the De Young Museum in SF. My friend took their picture and sent it to me because she knew I would enjoy seeing people so joyously dressed. And she was soooo right!
This couple really embody the idea of clothing as artistic expression! I am moved and inspired by this couple and hope you are too. And, yet, don't wait for your golden years to enjoy being an eccentric, you could start today....

The Leftover Dress

This is just a little draping brainstorm that has yet to be created. The idea behind this is that it would be the dress which is all the leftovers and mistakes of the "Varda's Women" gown collection. This dress ideally would be worn at my 'official' fashion-show runway event of the collection.

To see where the scraps came from...or in other words to see the "Varda's Women" collection click here

A Pineapple a Day

Sometimes we get sick of dressing humans and we decide we must start decorating our much ignored friends...fruit!

I decided to decorate a pineapple for a friend as an edible gift. It was a fun and eco way of using the present as the wrapping :-)))

From a design standpoint I must admit that pineapples are one of the most interesting fruits out there. I just adore the shape of the oval body juxtaposed to the jutting plumage of the stem. If I were to design clothing inspired by edibles, a pineapple would one of the first...followed next by a star fruit, then perhaps by deformed lemons!

In many ways this posting is much more of a Martha Stewart moment, but sometimes we must seek inspiration outside of our normal boundaries and seek it in prickly objects!

Underbelly Inspiration

Today I am displaying another example of unintentional beauty. The design of different colored threads are the backside of a new type of vest-like garment I am experimenting with. I like how the hand stitches create a simple, almost childlike expression on the back of this fabric.

The front side is very complex and busy, so it is a nice juxtaposition to think about what is created below the busyness!

Here is a pic of what the front-side texture is like. Although the pic here isn't actually the finished garment of the piece that is pictured above. But almost.....

Collage, Collage, Collage

Besides creating clothing, collage is probably my next favorite artistic medium. In many ways I approach clothing design much like making a collage....except that it must be made of materials that you want to put on the body. This creates fun constraints--for me! However,in the end the freedom allowed in collage is very rejuvenating.

A little side note about me is that I almost never--might I dare say NEVER---buy greeting cards. I have almost always made them myself, and use birthday, holiday greetings as a great excuse to get to collaging.

Therefore, I thought I would post one of my most recent letters. This one was made for the artist Nick Cave (one of my personal heroes) and I decided to finally write him to tell him how much I appreciate what he brings to the world.


Pictured here is the front and back of the card. I ended up writing on it, but I photographed it in its pure form.

I also had a great deal of fun creating the envelope. I used a pair of denim pants as the container and I used my sewing machine to embroider the addresses. It was a bit tedious, but I really like the result. For the name "Nick Cave" I used a freestyle sewing foot which allowed me to create the name in a more organic form, in comparison to the the programed address part.

If you like what you see click HERE to see other collages by me.

Inspiration in Texture and Color

I thought I would share some images I took from one of the projects I am working on. Every so often--or perhaps more often than I admit-- I get inspiration from a garment as it evolves. Or in other words, in the act of creating a garment, the garment itself takes on its own surprising identity. That is, you really never know how something will be until it "is". And often, it "is" very different than imagined, and often even better than originally designed.

If you haven't gotten the gist yet, I like to philosophize about the creation process!!!

Anyway, back to the images at hand. The first image is a picture of a an acordian sleeve of a mini bolero jacket. The fabric is hand dyed silk by Ana Lisa Hedstrom and it is backed by a blue metallic silk organza. As I sewing it I was so taken by the inside of the jacket that I had to take a photo. I love how the organza adds a hue and a stiffness to the silk below and gives it a painterly feel when seen up-close.

The second pic is a pile of seam allowances that were trimmed from the same jacket, and I love how all the colors blend together in this little pile.