chew on this…
“Beauty is power.”-me.
Fun Fact…
…I learned from someone at my Style Week Providence show: “Selah D’or” loosely translates to “forever light” in Hebrew.
It was an eventful and crazy week, to check out some of the media coverage visit my site here and look under all the links for June 2010.
Oldie but Goodie: Pure Wonder
Another one of my all time favorite editorials from Vogue Italia! Big surprise! I really need to just get a subscription. Craig McDean shot this back in 2008 for their April issue. These images are SO PAINTERLY. She looks like she’s a paint splatter, just thrown onto the wall. The gestures, the action, the energy…I die. I just die.
Hmmm, I seem to be into this watercolor, flowy, fluid, colorful aesthetic lately. This is my third post featuring it. Hmmm….
Artist To Know: Daniel Egnéus
Daniel Egnéus, an illustrator born in 1972 in Sweden, sees everyday life and art as an inseparable whole. To him, that includes the surroundings of Milan and Rome which have inspired this series of watercolor paintings titled: “Italian Rooms.” He has had no formal training and is the inventor of the style “Quotidiano Staordinario.”
This work reminds me of Egon Schiele. I love Egon Schiele.
To view more of Daniel’s work please visit www.danielegneus.com.
Artist To Know: Natalia Sanabria
I adore fashion illustration, but I haven’t come across anyone new and interesting lately. That is until I came across Natalia Sanabria. She is a talented artist, photographer, and designer based out of Costa Rica. I love her watercolors and collages-great colors. They make me want to paint again. If you’re reading this Natalia, I would love to collaborate on a lookbook project with you!
To view more of Natalia’s work check out her Flickr account.
My Secret Life As An Artist: First Born (the red dress pictures)
So I’ve been getting a lot of e-mails lately asking to see some of my artwork, before i focused all my energy into Selah D’or. These are an on-going series of photographs of my female friends, all pregnant with their first born children.
Christine, 9 months, 2004
This was the first one. I was inspired by the image of the Madonna Enthroned with Saints. It’s a popular image in Medieval and Renaissance painting. She’s always pictured seated, in her usual red gown and with a blue cloak, which usually had a star or group of stars embroidered on it.
She looks pissed because she was basically at the very early stages of labor and had the baby 3 days later. I didn’t make the dress. It’s actually a whole lot of satin pinned and tied on.
Amy, 7 months, 2008
Only I would throw a pregnant woman out into the snowy woods of Vermont! Amy used to live right next to the mountains and woods. The setting just suited her personality. Again, the “dress” was just tied on.
Meghan, 8 months, 2009
I love this picture! It was funny shooting it though. I was on a ladder, and Meghan’s boyfriend had to hold onto her to keep her from floating away. That’s his arm in the picture. Every once in awhile a wave would come and attack us. She lives by the beach, and again, it just suited her personality. This “dress,” like all the rest, was just tied on.
By the way, they all had girls. The women in my life all have girls. I wonder who’s next?
Trunk Show!
Come browse the Spring/Summer 2010 collection, try stuff on, check out Suneri’s new location on Newbury Street, and hang out with me!
designer to know: please+thankyou by Cody Nowell
I recently got the low-down from please+thankyou designer Cody Nowell.
SD: when and how did you start designing and making accessories?
CN: I’ve really been making stuff since I was a kid. It probably started as clothes and accessories for barbie, and as I got older, myself. In high school and college I would always alter my clothing and experiment with materials and making accessories. I am definitely that annoying person who says “I can make that.”
Making accessories “officially” started after I graduated from Umass Dartmouths Textile Design/ Fiber Arts Department. I started reworking vintage hats and making approachable yet fashion forward hair pieces. This then evolved into headbands and hair clips, which I still make, and get quite a few special orders for. I’ve been working on the necklaces since about last October. I enjoy making things and always have new ideas I want to experiment with.
 |
|
SD: what inspires your collections?
CN: I have always been into vintage and reusing materials, as I’m sure most broke, aspiring fashionistas are. I try to stay on top of trends, and push ideas and techniques to the next level. Statement necklaces have been a huge trend since last spring. I’ve seen work similar to mine around, but I’ve developed a technique of construction different from others and really focus on incorporating unique pieces into each necklace. Also the season. When I made the first collection it was the holidays, so everything was all rhinestones and sparkles. It’s always been important for me to make things that are one-of-a-kind, I want the wearer to feel special and know they have something that no one else ever will.
SD: can you describe your process for us? what happens in the studio from the initial concept of a piece until the end?
CN: First I search antique and thrift store, flea markets, and little old ladies for materials. Elissa (owner of Calico) also does a great job finding me stuff. Then I dump everything out and start making color stories. I like to incorporate something kitschy sometimes, like a pony or turtle. Once I have put together collections, I break off any pin or earring backs so everything will lay flat. I wire everything together and back it with vintage hat felt. I had a bunch left over from reworking hats, its such a nice high quality material, it really works well for finishing each piece. I would say it takes me about 2 hours to finish one necklace, sometimes longer or a few days if I’m not satisfied at first.
SD: who is your favorite designer? why?
CN: I really admire the Olsens. Elizabeth and James and The Row are both beautifully current lines. I’m also OBSESSED with the Miu Miu spring collection. I really love high quality staples, anything drape-y, and anything sheer or cotton.
SD: what celebrity would you love to have wear one of your pieces?
CN: Mary-Kate Olsen, obviously–my fashion icon. And probably Lady Gaga, love her and her ability to start a trend.
SD: please + thankyou in the future?
CN: Right now I’m really into the statement necklace, and they have been selling really well. But I know I’m the type of person who gets bored easily and have been giving some thought to experimenting with leather bags. Also getting back into some new hair accessories, and maybe some garments. So who knows what I will be making next spring!
Cody rockin’ one of her gorgeous statement necklaces.
If you would like your own please+thankyou statement necklace, you’re in luck!
Enter to win the above necklace! A one-of-a-kind design from please+thankyou, featuring bold, neon pink flowers and a teeny rhinestone owl! Sooo cute for spring!
It’s EASY! Simply follow these steps:
-
- 1. Follow @shopcalico and @please_thankyou on Twitter
- 2. Tweet the following phrase: “RT this & follow @shopcalico & @please_thankyou for chance to win this please+thankyou necklace! http://tweetphoto.com/18369855“
- 3. Leave a comment on the blog entry at http://blog.shopcalico.com/ for an EXTRA chance to win!
- 4. Retweet the message above til Friday to increase your chances of winning (But please don’t SPAM)!
Don’t tweet? You can still enter: Sign-up for Calico e-news (sign-up form is located in the right sidebar of the blog) and leave a comment on the blog entry telling Calico and Please+ThankYou what outfit you’d rock this awesome necklace with.
Deadline: The contest begins Wednesday, April 14, at 2am EST and ends Friday, April 16, at 8pm EST. We will choose a winner at random on Friday night.
Open to US and international applicants!
*please+thankyou is available at Calico in New Bedford, MA and on-line at http://www.etsy.com/shop/shoppleasethankyou
David’s Bridal: initial ideas & the final sketch
I was recently commissioned to create a wedding gown for a Ms. Kaitlin O’ Donnell, of Boston, MA. Ironically, I’ve always wanted to make a wedding gown, and was going on and on about it a few weeks before I was commissioned. I didn’t want to make one just to make one. Yes it would be a great piece for my portfolio, but I wanted to have an actual bride for it. Then Kaitlin came along with this commission. (The universe listens if you harass it enough.)
When Kaitlin came to me, she had a few ideas in mind but was open to my ideas. She originally wanted something that was ivory and empire waisted, to show off her tiny waist or maybe a traditional ball gown, like something you’d see on a Disney princess-small corset, big full skirt. She also was unsure about a floor-length dress. She’s around 5′5″ so she was nervous that something long would make her look stunted. I pretty much disagreed with all of this. An empire waist would highlight the wrong part of her torso: the widest part of her ribs, instead of her waist. It would draw attention to her bust, but that could be done in many other ways. As for the traditional princess dress, I am not a fan. I’ve seen so many brides go with this silhouette. It’s not modern, it’s not exciting, and it’s a bit cliche. I felt that a strapless, fitted, mermaid shape, with a train would highlight her curves and figure, and still pack just enough drama in a classic, tasteful way. Thankfully, she trusted me.
(Side note: Future brides, if you approach a designer with a commission for your wedding dress please keep in mind that we are designers. If you know exactly what you want, or have a picture of exactly what you want, you obviously don’t need to hire a designer. It would probably be best if you bought that dress from the catalogue or store you saw it in, or find a seamstress. It’s blunt, but it’s true.)
Kaitlin had been trying gowns on at various bridal shops and sent me pictures of elements she wanted to include: a low corseted back, and a deep sweetheart neckline. I worked both of these ideas into my final sketch. As you can see, it’s a mermaid shape, but not a severe one. The skirt gradually drops lower in the back as it flares. I felt this would help extend her lines and create a more graceful shape. I wanted to do some sort of draping in the bodice that would correlate to the neckline. At the time, I was working on my SS10 collection and was obsessed with peplums. So I included these in my design. They are a simple and modern way to add a little “wow” factor to the dress, and emphasize the waistline.
I felt the final design was classic, tasteful, but still very modern.
The next step was drafting the patterns and making the first of many muslins. I’ll be posting pictures next week.
Visions of Selah
These photos are from a recent shoot featuring my S/S 2010 collecton. Aren’t they fabulous?! LOVE the glossy dark cherry lipstick. I might just do that for my Style Week Providence show.
Do you see the gold Please & Thank You cuff? Perfect right? Hey Cody! I want to do a collab…or at least let me use your stuff on the runway.
One reason why I love Johnny is that he always knows what to add to a look to make it polished, complete, but still keep it about the clothes. I would have never thought to add that black belt to this skirt. The leather peplums kind of act as a belt. It works so nice with the black bracelet and that lovely, lovely lipstick. I seriously can go on and on about that lipstick.
photographer: Natalia Borecka
hair and wardrobe stylist: John Alves
model: Sadie Rebello, Click Models-Boston
make-up artist: Alanna Digregorio
