Sveta Bout Performance Gown

Recently I had the pleasure of making a dress for my friend and very talented performer Sveta Bout. She knew she wanted something long sleeve, to the floor and made of black velvet. I whipped up a sketch, she approved and I got to work.

I found some really great drippy stretch black velvet up in the garment district that I thought once finished would give the dress a fabulous sultry feel... it did.

I added a long waist tie which added to the shape of the dress and complimented her figure so well. I'm so please with the outcome, Sveta looked and sounded so beautiful. She gave me a shout out midway through her performance after which I received many nice compliments from other fans.

You all should check her music out, she is a true talent. www.svetabout.com

Photo courtesy of Svetabout.com

Boot Black

Found a great pair of boots at my fav thrift store here in Brooklyn. Ever the sucker for a cuban heel I couldn't resist the purchase (all $15) but I hated the color.

A few coats of india ink to get a good base stain followed by a few coats of acrylic paint for better coverage and topped off with a couple coats of setting medium and viola.. my new black boots!

Oh, and I may have painted the sole blue... why not!?

A Non-Fashion Update

After what seams like forever (2 years) of growing my hair out I finally cut it all off to donate to the Pantene Beautiful Lengths program to be made into a wig for someone living with Cancer.

I did this in honor of my godfather who is battling Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.

Rainy Day

Had some vinyl set aside with a project in mind that I finally got around to executing... a raincape... obviously!

Complete with hood, oversized buttons covering snap closures, and concealed arm slits. All trimmed in black grosgrain.

Can't wait to take this baby for a spin on the next rainy day!

And I'm Back...

Hiatus much... no excuses. Haha.

Anyway here's a shirt and matching bowtie I made for a childhood friend of mines wedding this past summer. The fabric was super inexpensive from from my neighborhood fabric store. I hand-stitched the contrasting blue and orange tuxedo ruffles which are made from china silk bias on the bus ride home.

And just for kicks I used contrasting blue and orange buttons in an alternating pattern.

On a Whim

As the title suggests, I whipped up this shirt for no particular reason. I used my self made basic shirt sloper as the base but made some major alterations. I draped a new two piece sleeve, moved the opening to the back, widened the neck and added a pintucked bib.

I wore it right after completion before taking pictures on a night out on the town so please forgive the wrinkles.


Front

Back

Sleeve Detail

Next up: Blazer for a childhood friend's wedding... stay tuned.

200th Post

200 posts, 1 new shirt.

I'm on a roll!

eBay

So I decided to put the hat on eBay, check it out here!

Special Thanks to my friend and roommate Abby for being my ever-patient model! The shots came out fabulous!

Bid Away!

Princess Beatrice's Hat... Sort Of

Let it be known, I feel Princess Beatrice's choice of headwear to the Royal Wedding was brilliant. The piece itself is genius, she was quite stunning head to toe. This is my tribute to her and her fearless approach towards fashion.

With just a day to go before my very best friend Brendan's birthday, I found myself without a look worthy of such an occasion. Princess Beatrice's hat was fresh on my mind, and as I am a sucker for a good head-piece, I decided to go for it. Being extremely busy at work I had my fabulous roommate Abby run out and gather supplies for my Royal Fascinator via text.

Later that night when I arrived home I got right to work. The entire piece is carved from styrofoam and is covered in nude felt which is hand-stitched together.

Once the base was completed I added the bow and tacked down the ruffles for desired effect.

The base again is hand-carved styrofoam from the original circle cutouts. Once the oval was mounted to the base I added an elastic and was ready to go.

Long story, short... I made quite the splash. I'm also thinking of putting it up on ebay, will decide in the next day or 2. Until then, a couple more pics:

Prolific Pattern

Here's another piece I made from the pattern I draped, used in the last 2 posts. This one is extra special because I finally used the vintage fabric I bought while in Paris circa 2007. I've literally been carrying it around since then, I'm pleased I finally have something to show for it.

This time around I raised the neckline, added a Peter Pan collar with a proper collar stand, and added cuffs to the sleeves. All seams are French and have been topstitched with a thicker thread. The green buttons are just something I had laying around from a menswear class I took at SCAD and if you look carefully you can see I again opted for the pink heart button at the collar.

Looks pretty dapper with a matching bowtie I had made previously.

I'll be wearing both tomorrow for sure!