at the study hall

been studying the book and slowly learning some
new skills.i am sure that if geometry had been explained  in useful less abstract terms such as what i am dealing with now i would have understood everything. 

my first mumblings with pattern drafting. ambition has blinded me and i want to make a dress from this pattern. encountering difficulties  because i need to make the top with enough ease to fit the front. the front  is made of two pattern pieces,front and side, and  the bodice needs ease yet it has to be  shapely. and we are there right now.

more pattern drafting resourceshere  and here.

absolutely ecstatic because i found a tailor's ruler locally. yes, madrid counts as locally no matter what they say.

marriages come and go,but divorce is forever

nora ephron 1941-2012

 neki desu

on maxing out resources

one of the things that i admire most of the japanese culture is their using resources to their fullest potential.

rice for example. besides being totemic in the culture, is eaten,  turned into liquor, made into flour; from liquor they also make vinegar,  the flour made into wagashi, also a paste to be used as glue, and as  reserve for stencil printing. the list could go on this is just the edible part branching out. the remnants, rice straw, is used for making tatamis, ropes, fertiliser for the fields and much more. the same goes for bamboo. 

boro  which has become the craze of the western world  comes out of necessity and using everything to its fullest.

i try in my own modest way to find other uses for my tools and equipment because other than being gratifying and challenging storage space needs are kept under control.

during my trip to japan almost 13 years ago i hauled an assortment of shinshi. those where the happy days when a traveler was just a traveler not a suspect of some potential debacle therefore you could bring inside the plane things that would get you a holiday in guantanamo now.

my shinshi have served multi purposes , this one being the latest. instead of buying a blocking board they are used as one. they also create great fabric sculptures  ^_^




neki desu

on sewing

 since i have not sewn in ages and i am in the process of starting the sewing production i have been visiting sewing blogs. my beloved vogue patterns are unfortunately too small and i needed to learn ways of altering them to add those extra centimeters. useful digression- if you find yourself in that situation i recommend this  place full of useful tutorials. they cover almost all needs and then some more like taking good photos of your garments!

back to me, me,me : i was u.s. size 10 blindly, i would open the envelope , lay the pattern and cut away.the only alteration needed was shortening the patterns. now that my figure has changed i am in the middle of two sizes,but i have also noticed that patter sizing has also changed. me size 16??? NAH.

faced with having to choose between the current rtw which is  poorly made has minimum if not any styling and the fabrics used are cheap and awful 90% of the times, the diy alternative makes much more sense.especially now that i am in a yarn stash busting scenario weaving my own fabrics.

considering that i still have to alter whatever pattern i buy why not start from scratch and learn the basics of pattern drafting?  i found lots of very good but scattered information on line and  there was  a recurring mention of the book  modern pattern design by harriett pepin.everyone who mentioned it sang all the possible praises in praiseland . the book was first published in 1945 with 2 later reprints. it is a course book with simple, clear instructions and problems that serve as guidework for drafting your own patterns.

i tied locating it on line and was appalled by the prices ranging from $95 to $300! 

some people had even scanned it and are selling it as an e- book  making money on a book whose copyright has probably expired and should be now in public domain. sorry, no, i was not going to go that route.

but since i believe in fairies i do, i do (as you all peter pan readers will recognise) oh bliss! oh glory!! after much research i located these two sites that have the book on line.

•  scribd on line downloadable e- books. you have to register, but it's a free 7 day trial and you can download the book as pdf.caveat: the last three chapters on lingerie, coats and children's clothing are missing.don't forget to cancel the subscription or you'll get billed!
•  way back machine web archive the whole book is there.caveat: on line reading only. but you can do a screen capture and save it. the book is part of the vintage sewing info web a treasure trove of vintage sewing design resources.

 what can i say, i am absolutely taken by the book. it is full of charming styling; cowl necklines, katherine hepburn type trousers,  all sorts of  pleats, hollywood style gowns etc. 

it even instructs how to create patterns for those bulging, and drapey skirts that are so popular now.seems that the latest guru did not invent anything new after all  ;-)

"It has always been true: costumes individually created have that indefinable quality of charm that never fails to win interest and approval." 

unknown

neki desu

a different look

Maria Romero: Dulce de Reliquias on Nowness.com.

enjoy the first summer weekend!

neki desu

an award

 you vero for this award!
the questions:

Favorite number: ?? 5 maybe?
Favorite Non-alcoholic drink: homemade  watermelon fizz
Facebook or Twitter:  trying to phase out from facebook. never tweeted
My Passion:  textiles
Favorite pattern:  geometrics
Favorite Day of the Week:  friday.
Favorite Flower:  peonies and orchids

i won't be tagging anyone, but ya'll all tag along if you wish! and now here are some places i visit for inspiration and amusement:
the sartorialist    style bible
knitting on on the fastlane  not your regular knitting
musings from the big pink  a house husband's woes
gertie's new blog for better sewing  sewing tips that can save you
mud puddle madonna eye candy
french sampler all things french and beautiful photos
and happy solstice!


neki desu

the two year scarf

two years ago via joan lintault , another inveterate japanophile, i came in contact with the movie sakuran and the concept of oiran.it is carelessly signified along with geisha as prostitute. however as all things japanese it has many  nuances that for most western eyes go unnoticed and thus concepts get grossly mistaken.

i was taken by the lavishness of sakuran's costumes which kept popping back into my mind until i had to work on that and  create my own modest interpretation of such lavishness. 

color etiquette in japan follows very strict rules.

red of course, which carries connotations of sexual desire, flashy and vibrant for a tayu kimono.  red paired with white, Kohaku, means happiness and celebration in japanese eyes, not a bad start for a shibori scarf.nuances of red, using my then new peony brush.black, no mourning here, just contrast.

folding, dyeing, creating a subtle gradation in the red background, folding and dyeing again.

then a need for gold;lavish, opulent, flashy.a sakura flower printed with my already qualifying for vintage metallic pigments bought at  uematsu in tokyo.

cutting the stencil, finding a proportion of binder to pigment that would not alter the hand or at least not too much. stamping, curing.

this in a nutshell is the story of the oiran shibori scarf aka the two year scarf.

         

 will be in the shop on friday

neki desu

and now some cotton

two cotton skeins after their second dip. aiming for the wonderful midnight blue of the silk skein on the right.combined with kakishibu it will make  a nice warp for  winter weaving. maybe a crepe?

the silk is for an all silk warp in assorted blue values, some kakishibu and  sparse nubby white silk.

the stamping tests for the oiran scarf . think i'll be using the sakura, it is much crisper than the ume stencil. the good thing about sloppy tests is that they get much better when done properly :)

neki desu