Hooplah: The Art of Unexpected Embroidery

Some of you may know that I have a project in Leanne Prain's upcoming book Hooplah: The Art of Unexpected Embroidery. Leanne previously wrote Yarn Bombing: The Art of Crochet and Knit Graffiti with Mandy Moore (not the pop star). She is also one of my favorite people, so I'm especially stoked that she was the first person to agree to publish one of my designs.

I have a guest post about making my project on the Hooplah blog. You can read it here: http://www.unexpectedembroidery.com/2010/09/guest-post-subversive-mistakes/
It doesn't say what the project was -- it has to stay secret until the book is published next fall. Which is kind of killing me, because it was a really interesting project to design, with some funny unintentional effects. But you'll just have to wait to see it in print!

Model as (flat) canvas

The back-to-school season is a busy time for me. I don't have much time to make things right now, but I do have time to read a lot. During my lunch break yesterday, I read an article about Valentino Garavani, the famous Roman fashion designer, in a 2005 issue of The New Yorker. This part jumped out at me:

Most models are absurdly tall and freakishly thin, and couture gowns usually demand both qualities: the stitching is delicate, the fabrics--lace, taffeta, silk, panne velvet--are easy to rip. Karolina Kurkova, who has often modelled for Valentino, is one of the world's most famously alluring women. She even has hips and an ass. For gay designers, however, such features are horrifying. Two days before the show, when Kurkova took her practice walk in a long green chiffon dress, Giammetti just shook his head, like a pitcher sloughing off a bad sign from his catcher. Kurkova didn't notice, but Valentino did. "I use very slim models without bosoms, to be free to create," he once said. "Sometimes, if the model has a bosom or a little big hips, it gets in the way. That is important when I create something new. Later, it can be translated for women much larger." When I asked him about this, he shrugged. "They have to have a certain look, a special look," he explained. "That is why I like the Brazilian girls."

This is one of the reasons I'm not passionate about high fashion. It demands that the body be as fashionably shaped as the clothes, and that's not something that most humans can (or should) achieve. High fashion is unwilling to accept or adapt to the limitations of the average female body, so it just leaves these bodies out of the equation. It's less interesting to me as a result. Why not just design for Blythe dolls?

Michael Specter, who wrote this article, indulges in body snark that I don't agree with --"freakishly thin" is unkind to say, as unkind as calling someone "freakishly fat." But I do share his bewilderment at an industry that relies on one specific and uncommon body type. It seems lazy on the part of the designer, and oddly homogeneous for an industry built on novelty. It does seem freakish. And absurd.

Citation: Specter, Michael. "THE KINGDOM." New Yorker 81.29 (2005): 124-130.

Modern Lace is all done! And fall is almost here!

Rejoice! Fall very, very near. And some long days on set helped me finish my Triangel.



I'm all ready for fall now! The days have cooled down, but the skytrain is still full of people clinging to their summer uniforms of sandals and panty-length shorts. I, on the other hand, have broken out my old green canvas fitted jacket since millitary looks are supposed to be in for autumn, and it looks great with my new shawl-lett. Actually, military styles are always in as far as I'm concerned, but if fashion at large declares my much-worn 8-year-old jacket (from The Bay!) is on trend, who am I to object? I might even sew some new buttons on it, since the green plastic ones it came with have turned white around the edges with age.

Yes, I am a little over-warm when wearing a canvas jacket with an alpaca scarf. But only when the sun comes out.

Lifetime Achievement in Thriftscoring

I took a break during filming on Sunday and went for a walk in Kitsilano. I poked my head into the SPCA thrift store near Alma and Broadway because it's always been one of the better thrift shops in Vancouver. I spotted a pair of baby blue Fluevog boots in the window and instantly started jamming my foot into one of them. It didn't fit, but the presence of a pair of flashy, expensive boots made me think that someone had just dropped off a load of good stuff. I took a second, slower look at the assortment of shoes in the window, and saw an unassuming pair of shoes with a familiar shape. Could it be?



I snatched them up and examined them. They looked upworn. The crimson leather interiors were smooth and unwrinkled. I jammed my foot into one. Too small with the sock on. Would they be too small without? The bottom of the shoe said 36. I couldn't remember was 36 was in American sizes. I decided that I would buy them if they were $10 or less. I had a dim memory of an old roomate bringing a pair of Rocket Dogs to a shoe repair place to have the leather stretched out. Surely someone could do the same with a pair of Campers?



They rang it at $5.00. I felt a little giddy. Campers routinely cost between $200-$300. I really hope I can make them a little wider, since they're a perfect basic black shoe. Not flashy, but well-proportioned, cute and excellent quality.

Before I bring them to a shop, I'm going to try the ice method. I'll let you know if it works!