-
Buy Handmade for the Holidays
here’s where i can get preachy, and you probably realize my bias, but i have to say it: BUY HANDMADE FOR THE HOLIDAYS. we can all try and debate whether art has value in society, so let’s just assume that it does. myself, and most of the people i know make their livings by our hearts and hands. we are kind of old fashioned that way. if you have been following my career, you know that i try to make as much as i can on my own, and what i can’t make, i try to get from another local artisan or small business. times have been difficult for many…
-
Fixing the Holes
once in a while i will get a crazy idea born out of some twisted idea of necessity. part of this is a fixation with repairing much loved things. a good long time ago, i received a vintage faux fur coat as a gift. it became my primary winter coat. and one day there was a hole in the lining. i patched that hole with a crazy quilt fan block i pieced together from some random scraps. the outside of the coat was fine, but the lining was disintegrating. over the next couple of years as the lining continued to fall apart, i continued to patch up the holes. finally,…
-
some photos of the first incarnation
here are some photos of my new studio. i am still unpacking boxes, and trying to get into the swing of things. today i painted a screen that i have been meaning to finish for the better part of a decade (i know) and my a-board sign. i had help from my painter friend brent wear who is in charge of the art on the walls. i am still on the fence about having regular hours, but i am available by appointment if you want to come visit. i will be posting my *by chance* hours on my twitter page.
-
change your studio change your life
so if you hadn’t heard, i am moving my studio out of the egg. moving is always a bit scary, but i was bursting at the seams in my tiny space. as much as the egg has done for me, i am ready for something new. so i am moving. i will be back downtown tucked away in the back of the virtuoso gallery. it is a larger space that will be a work space and a permanent showroom. for those of you who live in portland, oregon (or just visiting), come see me in my new space! it is located at 323 nw sixth avenue between everett and flanders.…
-
dress, dress, dress a rambling state of my wedding season
dress, dress, dress; it is all i can think about. mentally working out the design that my brain is not so graciously giving up in tiny pieces as the deadline approaches. she has worked her way into all of my thoughts, my dreams, my whole being until she is finished sometime in the next couple of days. i have given up trying to think about anything else; it is an exercise in futility. such is how things are when i am nearing a deadline. my mind is hard-wired to solve design problems. i have a particular outcome that i am fixated on, a particular vision that requires all the tricks…
-
I WANT TO STOP WANTING part two
i just spent several hours last night with tracy draping her dress on her body. this is my preferred method of working in some cases. the elements of the design get to be tried out on the body, and we are guaranteed a perfect fit. i started out with some of the pieces cut out, some put together: the sleeves, the skirt. we spent the better part of the evening pulling and pinning, her trying out some movements very carefully (so she isn’t stabbed with pins) and chatting while i stitched the pieces together after we had them worked out. all that is left to do is make a couple…
-
My Hierarchy of Procrastination
on monday the sun was shining, so i wandered the opposite direction to the mountain to sit under a tree. on tuesday i knitted, because i didn’t feel like making hairpins. on wednesday morning, i made hairpins to put off going to my studio to inventory garters and hem pants. on wednesday afternoon, i made garters to avoid hemming pants. then i hemmed pants to avoid making dance costumes. on thursday morning, i typed on the computer to avoid making flowers. then, i made flowers to avoid going to my studio and drafting patterns. on thursday afternoon, i made garters to avoid drafting patterns. today i MUST draft patterns; that…
-
recession hairpins
i have been spending quite a bit of time wrestling with myself lately over this idea of the economy, and my lack of place in it. this is nothing new. i have been flying under the radar forever; doing my own thing, not paying much attention, until lately when no one will allow me to leave it alone. it is no secret that my life is a world of feast or famine; i put on the best face that i can at all times. i am always working no matter what, so the so-called ravaged economy shouldn’t make too much of a difference, but everyone is talking about it, asking…
-
I WANT TO STOP WANTING part one
photo of tracy broyles and meshi chavez in COCOON BIRD by jon springer in the spring of 2007 i met with tracy broyles of theory1:dance to discuss the possibility of costumes for her production of COCOON BIRD. she arrived with a couple of pages torn from a magazine, a bag full of paper leaves with little phrases written on them, and a list of words. we used this as the basis of the costumes for this performance. and this spring i have the privelege to work with tracy and meshi again in their upcoming performance of I WANT TO STOP WANTING that will be held at disjecta in portland at…
-
the process of a custom wedding from start to finish
at the dawn of my eleventh wedding season i have been puzzling over the internal conflict i have been having about doing weddings. my dilemma i had best spelled out to my painter friend after someone asked me how i made my wedding work sustainable. in fact weddings feel like the least sustainable thing i do. i asked him, “what if you were commissioned to make a large several thousand dollar painting that took you six months or more to complete, and the couple put it behind them at their wedding ceremony, hung it over their table at their reception, took all of their wedding party photos in front of…