I’m saving for one.

In case you do not know about Peter Lappin of malepatternboldness – you have to get started on reading his blog. Not only is he wildly funny but he also knows how to sew. Many of his experiences I also had. I admire his zest for learning how to tackle difficult problems and the resulting tutorials. His photoshoots are priceless.

Peter lives in New York, has a passion for flea markets, vintage sewing machines and only began sewing in 2009, the time he started writing the blog. He is pretty much self-taught and has mastered quite a few techniques beautifully!

A few days ago, he wrote about the Bernina sewing machines and Switzerland, which hits right home with me for a number of reasons.   In his post, he is asking readers about their opinion of the brand and whether or not it is worth the high price.  This entry must have gotten the most comments ever!  (most of them are positive, too)

I own a ‘Mercedes Benz’ of the overlock sergers and could not be happier.  It was worth every dollar I bled for it.

Maybe once in Switzerland, I should start saving for a Bernina.

Now go and read Peter!

 

 

by invitation.

Carol Anderson is not a brand I carry.  I have attended a few home parties and generally like the outfits.  So I was surprised to hold an actual Carol Anderson dress in my hands that a customer had left for me to alter.

this is what her label used to look like

My customer’s mother had worn this dress ‘back in the day’ and while it is made out of 100% Polyester it was also

made in the USA!

Since then Carol Anderson has changed directions. She no longer supplies retail outlets but sells exclusively through home sales ‘consultants’ (Carol Anderson by invitation).  On her website, it won’t tell you anything about her story but I found a blog entry that describes it pretty well.  A few years back I was constantly invited to attend a CAbi sales party and went a couple of times. Today, either the market has dried up a little or they just don’t invite me anymore. I haven’t had an invitation in ages.  The whole home party thingy is a bit difficult for me as I always feel like I NEED to be a good guest and buy something. Which I have done at a CAbi show because her clothes are really nice and beautifully detailed.

Linking to my earlier entry about the book Overdressed, I checked the labels of my CAbi clothing:

a jersey dress that I take EVERYWHERE

Carol Anderson also makes her clothing in China.

Jeans from my first CAbi party

This designer has been around for a long time. With companies bringing back work to the US, I wonder if she will be one of them.

rude awakening

A few days ago I finished this book:

I shall not give a book report here, there are good reviews out there like this one from the Huffington Post and a summary that I found on the author’s website.

Elizabeth Cline’s writing style did not really excite me but she sure gets her point across. And while I thought I knew a lot about the fashion industry, sewing and how seamsters are paid, I learned a LOT more.

Take for instance the amount of clothing that ends up in the landfill. I already knew that in Germany, when they are trying to ‘add’ more caskets to existing cemetery plots, they discover that more and more bodies haven’t decomposed the way they should have. This is due to the clothing the people are buried in.  More and more people are being buried wearing synthetic fibers and they take FOREVER  to decay. Here in the US burial practices are different (and we have way more room) , so this might not be an issue. However, the practice of donating used clothing to charities and thrift stores is very, very common. So much gets donated that it can’t possibly get sold, made into rags OR even be sent to developing countries.

Yes, you guessed right – it ends up in the landfill.  Where it doesn’t disintegrate. And pollutes the land.

The overabundance of ‘used’ clothing has much to do with the ‘overproducion’ of clothing, especially cheap clothing.

Most chain stores, especially stores like Target, H&M, Zara, Kohl’s, bring a constant flow of clothing into their stores. The sheer volume that gets sold at rock-bottom prices generates a nice profit for these stores. Cline interviews people in her book who confess to not even washing their clothing item – it was so cheap that they rather buy a new one.  Or they wash it a couple of times, it then falls apart and ends up in the trash, again. In addition, there is this thrill of owning something new, so these stores make sure that they turn over their stock every two weeks to a) make you come back often and b) buy something every time because it will be gone if you don’t.

Cline illustrates an aspect in the book that strikes home with me: sewing your own, caring for, mending and altering clothing.  She calls this the ‘slow clothes movement’. The point is that if you own something that is well made, out of nice fabric -  preferably wool, silk or cotton – you can have it for a long time. You may be able to alter an item into something more ‘trendy’, mend something that has a hole or re-fashion the entire garment into something new.

I’m all for that.

PS – this book is well worth the read, especially if you are a shopper.  Or a clothing horse like me.

The library has it.

I’m doing it!

Over, in the ‘old’ country, I encountered serious doubts about a particular dress I was eying.

so hippie, so 60ies…

Today, with the temperature hitting summer-like highs, I wanted to wear this dress and prove to the world that it can be done with the right attitude. I’m not wearing a skimpy sandal – I am wearing the heaviest boots I own. And so I will ride my horse bike into the sunset….

While on the subject, I threw on a few more dresses, mainly to see how they would look with the boots:

wild print, short skirt, Frye boots!

fake wrap dress, BIG boots!

With that, I shall now take a long walk and frolic in the sunshine!

 

 

2nd jacket – done!

My second big knitting project is done!

When the knitting bug hit me last fall, I actually wanted to knit a BROWN jacket… thinking that I want something to compliment this dress:

tight fitting jersey dress by Anni Kuan

Admittedly, this dress NEEDS something.  (also admittedly, the camera’s setting is all screwed up and I did not fix that…) When I was wearing the dress, I most often wrapped a colorful scarf around my neck or had loud tights on. It is very comfortable and nicely tailored… but a bit drab. Where I got the idea that a BROWN jacket would spice it up, I don’t remember anymore. Which is why I ended up buying green/blue yarn for my first project (picture here). That jacket did not work over the dress -  it is too long and bulky.

So off to the the yarn store I went again, still thinking about my dress project. The yarn I got is a Merino/Llama/Bamboo mix which does not itch (very important!). I was taking the pattern off a picture that I had seen and fit it to a cotton jacket I own. (see my Ravelry notes)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now I feel like a lady of the fifties… this combination can pass as retro!

 

Here is the true color. Me and my camera in a better mood!

why this works

… on certain body types.

the infamous bubble dress

The other day, I had a customer try on this dress.  It does not get a lot of play – mainly because it has a BUBBLE skirt.

It doesn’t matter that Europe seems to dig the bubble or that it looks fabulous on incredibly tall and skinny women. Around here – no such love affair. Also, most women are not incredibly tall and skinny.

The BUBBLE has been a mystery to me as well. Today, after some deliberation I think I might have figured it out.

The bubble shape basically mimics a woman’s body. Wider on top, tighter around the middle, wider in the hips and then again narrow at the legs.

If you are naturally curvy, pretty much any dress shape will work.  However, if your body is more angular – think no defined waist, slim hips and maybe a flat(ter)
tush – then the BUBBLE is THE ANSWER to a more hourglass-shaped look.

Even my flat-chested self gives off the impression of a rubenesque diva in this dress, don’t you think?  This dress actually hangs pretty loose while the cut defines chest, waist and hips.

Much of the same would be true for a bubble skirt. Combined with a loose top with a broad enough neckline and shoulders to match the proportions of the hip shape of the skirt, it may result in the same effect.

one last look at my curvy self

So, there you go – I have figured out what a bubble dress CAN DO.  For certain people.

intermission

For 23 seconds now, the rain stopped. The wind let up. It’s dripping fat drops form the eaves.

It stopped and there are faint sunbeams in the distance.

A few more days and it will be March.  This and the fact that I took the above picture earlier this week while visiting the Bay Area where it was pleasantly warm – makes me want to toss the sweaters and tights to the side and think about lighter clothing. Brighter colors. Soft fabrics.

Anni Kuan silk blouse

Look how the sun is playing with the fabric! I have the good fortune of looking directly into the sun from where I sit. When its out, that is.

Hazel knit/crochet cotton dress

The eyelet design of this airy dress makes me want to float through a breezy summer day.  The dress comes with a white slip, but I decorated it with a black one to show off the pretty design.  I then remembered that I have an orange one in my closet, which in turn made me take the dress home.

Anni Kuan jersey dress with turquoise piping

A last teaser for now because the sun is blinding me. (YEAH!)  These are only the first of many new items that will arrive shortly.

And then I will attend the apparel show next week to buy….Fall and Winter! I’ll never wrap my head around this schedule. I might go there in my down jacket, just because.