Retro Wednesday - American Denim

My friend / former boss Annette at the Dragonfly (vintage clothing store) gave me this book years ago when I was in college and still working for her.

She knew my style well and would often set aside funky clothes or fabric she knew I'd like (she still does, actually). She picked out this book for me because she said it reminded her of the clothes I was making at the time. Like this:

That was the first thing I ever made on a sewing machine. It's composed of a pair of my jeans and a pair of jeans that belonged to my friend Jason Guthrie who died in a car accident my senior year of high school. Cutting them up and patching them together was cathartic for me and as sloppy as it was, I wore it proudly.

I also made these:

with bits of scraps from our leftover altered clothes at the store. Each piece was hand sewn on with tiny little Xs. Tiny little Xs used to be my thing. I did them here too:

and embroidered each patch while I oversaw the shop.

But enough about me, let's look in the book. . .

The author, Peter Beagle, waxes philosophic about the role of denim in society and the urge of the crafty to embellish it.

He claims (I'm paraphrasing here) that art of handmakery is a reaction against conformity, technology, and the alienation of war; that craftspeople create to add beauty and interest to objects that others take for granted. The book was published in 1975 but the movement lives on today. It may have gone underground in the 80's when acid wash was all the rage, but now it's back with a vengeance.

Enough talk. Check out the pictures!

Here's some painted denim:

That last one was painted with acrylic paint applied through a syringe. Wow.

Here are some embroidered ones:

So intricate! I love it. This one?

Not so much. I mean, I love Raggedy Ann and all, but every now and then one comes along and creeps me out. Like that one. Moving on. . .

Butts seemed to be a favorite canvas for the embroiderers:

Just like naked people were a source of inspiration for the appliquers:

Look! A sun barfing a rainbow with an elephant rollerskating on top!

Why didn't I think of that?

Now that, I want. For real. It's gorgeous.

Some people chose to embellish their denim in other ways:

Where were these pants when I attended the Glitter Rally last month?

Here's a crazy bird lady for you:

Here's another:

That one looks like a half-plucked chicken.

Check out this dude:

I imagine him walking that way wherever he goes.

I would like to encounter this lady:

just so I could tell her to "Zip it."

Check out this sparkly dude:

The caption says his name is Bill Shire from Los Angeles. Oh My God, could it be the Bill Shire, as in, owner of the coolest lowbrow art galleries in the area - Billy Shire Fine Arts gallery in Culver City and La Luz de Jesus in Los Feliz? I think it is. He looks vaguely familiar, like the Billy Shire I see in the back of Juxtapoz magazines. Ha! Who knew he was such a fan of the Bedazzler?

I want to know what that little metal container is. An ashtray? A bottle opener?

Something must be wrong with my eyes because it took me a while to figure out what this was:

That seems like a good way to end the post, wrapped up in a nice little bow (that looks like a butt). I hope you enjoyed the freakshow!

Studio Tuesday - Vintage it is.

It's not really a picture of my studio, it's a picture of something sitting outside my studio waiting to go in:
After much deliberation and weighing the feedback many of you offered, I went and got the vintage one. I just couldn't stop thinking about it. Maybe it was the ghosts inside beckoning me, but I have a feeling they're good ghosts and I'm going to put them to work in my sweatshop. The guy gave it to me for $60 too. Sweet! Now I just have to fix it up a little. Still, it's better than having to assemble the Ikea one, and this one is solid. I think it landed in my path for a reason.

I was talking to Erik's mom (hi there!) on the phone the other day and she said it reminded her of the one Erik had growing up, which now resides in Sage's room:

They bought it used nearly 40 years ago. With a little TLC every decade or so, wardrobes like these hold up quite nicely. Ikea stuff? Not so much.

Made by Monday - kokoleos

I've been slowly working on revamping my website. It's hard. I wish I could just stick it into my sewing machine and build it that way. Instead I have to make files and import images and move text around on layers with links and hope it will all upload as planned. I'm dumping the splash page and redesigning the homepage. I came to the conclusion that I'm tired of my old kokoleo sign:

So I made a new one, almost twice the size:

which I don't like either. It's fine for an extra booth sign, but not for a website header. This doesn't help it either:

Yeah, I wasted about an hour of my life pushing buttons around. A bucket of buttons is hypnotic like that.

Next, I decided to go back to my sewing roots and go small, hand embroidering x's around all the letters.

which I like better. It's in the running to be the one, unless of course I start from scratch and make another or just decide to stick with the original one. I don't know, is it too hard to read?

I also made these this week:

Come to think of it, these might be what inspired Sage to draw his own spool of thread last week for his kindergarten assignment. I distinctly remember him finding them in my studio and studying them intently.

They were inspired by the random bits of thread I'm always finding stuck to me. I figure these are shirts only a seamstress would like, and a seamstress wouldn't mind having strings attached.

Happy Mother's Day!

Sage gave me this painting and poem for Mother's Day. It starts, "My mom looks prettiest when she wears clothes." Ha! I'll remember to do this next time I want to look pretty.

"My mom makes the best cookies." Shh, don't tell him it's a store-bought mix.

"I help my mom when she needs me to cleans things outside." The former copy editor in me is resisting the urge to fix that extra "s" there.

"I don't like it when my mom gets really really mad." Eek! Not just mad, mind you, but really really mad. Incredible Hulk mad. I turn green and burst through my clothes and then no longer look pretty.

"I like it when my mom plays with me." Awww, me too.

"Thank you mom for loving me!" No problem, kid.

Daughter of a Seamstress

Since I posted about the son of a seamstress the other day, I thought I'd show what I caught the daughter doing today:

Artsy Friday - Son of a Seamstress

Sage was asked to write and illustrate "th" words in kindergarten the other day and here's what he came up with:

and
Ha!

Retro Wednesday - Wacky Packages

Anyone who was cool in the 70s will remember these:

Wacky Packages! This is an uncut sheet I got off ebay way back in 1998 when Ebay was new and I had lots of time to scour it for random bits of nostalgia. I laid it over some swirly wrapping paper, framed it, and it's hung in every house we've lived in since Savannah. Inevitably, when someone from our generation sees it they say, "Oh my god, I had those!" and then they spend a while standing there reading them all and laughing.

When we moved to this house I hung it over Sage's bed and now that he can read he's really interested in them. A few months ago he started a tradition where we had to read a new one every night. He'll pick one out and read it and then ask me what it means. Some people may think the humor and subject matter are a little too mature for a kid his age, but I've turned it into a teaching tool. It's helped him learn not only new words and their definitions, but also about history, irony, the power of advertising, and pop culture. A typical conversation goes like this:

Sage: Chef-Girl-ar-dee
Haha, that says girl. It's supposed to be BOY-ar-dee
FEE. . . Fem. . . What's that word mom?

Me: Feminist

Sage: What's a feminist?

Me: Someone who stands up for the rights of women so that women and men will be treated the same when they do the same job.

Sage: Oh, O.K. Chef-Girl-Ar-Dee Feminist Spaghetti That's funny. She wants her spaghetti to be treated the same. And here it says Ahh...pproooo...ved by Women's Lib.
What's a Lib?

Me: Lib is short for Liberation. It means freedom.

Sage: Like the Statue of Liberty?

Me: Yes.

Sage: Was she a feminist?

Me: Yeah, I guess she was.

Also, it's taught him about cigarettes:

They say, "Take a Lucky Stride Away from these Cigarettes" and "Vicejoy - Fungus Tipped Cigarettes" and "Camals Jerkish Blend."

Sage has come to the conclusion that he's not going to smoke when he grows up.

Sometimes I have to explain certain products that he doesn't know about, like this:

Sage: Koduck Film for Ducks. What's film?

. . . says the boy from the digital generation.

Studio Tuesday

So, I've decided for this here blog that I'm going to try to make Tuesdays "Studio Tuesdays" where I show pictures of my bathroom. Just kidding! I'm going to show pictures of my studio - table tops, inspiration boards, works in progress, etc. I think it'll be interesting to see how this room evolves over time.

I'm really loving my new space, mainly because there's actually space to walk around. Storage is the only thing I've struggled with but once I get a wardrobe I'll be 100% content. So far I've been getting by with this dresser:


but it's not working for me. I need a closet with a clothing rack to hang my kokoleo ladies and guys clothes. Plus, I want to fix this dresser up and give it to McKenna, who up until now has been living with cheapy plastic drawers. It's about time the girl gets something a little more substantial. Same goes for me. I've been coveting this one for months at Ikea:


It's $299 and I was planning on getting it when that George W. Bush I'm-sorry-for-being-such-a-sucky-president check comes in. Last week, however, I got all excited to find someone selling it on Craigslist for $99. I immediately called her and told her I wanted it and I could come right away to get it. The lady asked, "Are you positive you want it?" and I said yes, absolutely. She then said, "Okay, you can come on Sunday to look at it." On Saturday I called to make sure we were still on to come pick it up and she informed me that she had "over 50 people" interested in it but I was one of the "top 3" she had chosen and How much was it worth to me to get it? Long story short, I didn't end up being the "chosen one" and now just looking at the wardrobe brings up bad feelings for me. People like her give Craigslist a bad name.

(I considered titling this blog post The Lying Bitch and the Wardrobe, but I resisted.)

Aaanyway, the other day I saw this outside our neighborhood thrift store.


Not bad. Not awesome either. The closet part is a little cramped, one drawer has a chip out of the corner, and the inside felt a wee bit haunted.


Erik said I could easily fix the flaws, paint it, and air all the ghosties out. For only $75, it might be worth it.

What do you think? Should I hold out for the nice sleek $300 Ikea one that we have to put together? Or should I get the used vintage slightly flawed $75 one that needs some fresh paint and possibly an exorcism? Please, help me decide!

Patchwork Show recap

It was awesome. I'm so glad I did it. Not only did I meet some cool people, see some old craft friends, get inspired by awesome art, and get a tan, but I also sold a bunch of kokoleo stuff and got lots of nice feedback on my work. Nicole, the organizer, rocks. We traded a necktie headband (mine) for a felt bird on a branch pin (hers). I'm honored that she likes my stuff because I think her stuff is pretty awesome too.

Here's my booth:

Well, that picture makes it kind of look like a big mess-o-chaos, but in person it was more inviting. I was right on the end too so customers had plenty of room to walk around. I sold a few toddler dresses, a bunch of tie stuff, some grocery totes, and more grownup clothes than any other show I've done before. Over the past few weeks I've been making some skirts to put on the website and I accidentally sold them all today. Oops! I guess that's a sign I should make more. This was the first to sell:

A reversible wrap-around made from the last of my Smokey the Bear fabric.

A week ago I didn't even know if I wanted to do the show and now I'm so glad I did. Did I mention I'm glad I did the show? I am. Seriously, I've been kind of down lately wondering why I spend so much time making all these crazy things, doubting that anyone will want them, comparing myself to others and feeling like a loser. I feel better now.

Ginghams-N-Things

Ahhh, gingham. I love it. I can never get enough gingham. It makes a nice background for my personalized items and it seems I'm always running out of it. When I saw this batch at an estate sale this morning, I scooped it up right away. That alone would have made my morning, but I also got these:

Which made me very happy too. Believe it or not, I'm pretty particular about my fabric choices. I tend to go for vintage, preferably 50s-70s, bright, bold, and unique. Wacky and odd is a plus in my book. Brittle or stinky is a deal-breaker. These are just a few things I've noticed about my fabric preferences.

I like:
cotton prints (sturdy, not flimsy)
bright colors (ones you can spot a mile away)
wacky animals (preferably psychedelic)
stripes, gingham, calico (paging Laura Ingles)
velvet (totally pettable)
fleece and faux fur (good for monster-making and fun to pet)
felt (for monster mouths)
tulle (for monster tutus)
naugahyde, vinyl (smooth and strong)
smooth nylon/polyester (especially with photorealistic prints)
vintage bedsheets that aren't faded (so smoooth)
patchwork, quilt tops (vintage and in good condition is a dream come true)
Ikea fabric (it's sturdy and bright)

I don't like:
JoAnn's novelty prints (hokey)
thick scratchy polyester (ick.)
linen (boring and wrinkly)
burlap (gives me heebie-jeebies)

There's probably more. I'll revise that list if I think of any.

I also got these (mostly) vintage notions today:

I don't really need 3 purse-size tape measures, all that iron-on fabric or even any more ric-rac for that matter (I have enough to ric-rac the world). However, while I was looking through all this stuff I realized what I'm going to do for my next giveaway. I'm going to give it away! I come across so many odd, cool, practical notions in my thrifty adventures, I really shouldn't hoard it all. So, over the next few months I'm going to keep an eye out for some more cool seamstressy things and put together a package or two. I'm sure someone could put these:

bias tape makers to good use. (Before today, I didn't know there was such a thing.) Same goes for this:

Now, friends, let me tell you about MAGIC STITCHER. . . It's an unusual and ideal gift that I'm going to give away!

KB in the O.C.

Come visit me this Sunday at the Patchwork Indie Arts and Crafts Festival in Santa Ana!
When the applications for this went out a few months ago I decided not to do it because I convinced myself it was too far away and I should probably just stay home and have family time. Then last week I started seeing postcards and announcements about it and I saw all the cool crafters who were participating and I got jealous. It looks like it's going to be a blast. I wrote to the organizer, Nicole, of Random Nicole asking if there was any room left and she said I could take the spot of a vendor who had dropped out. Sweet! I'm in! Even though it's about an hour away and I have to brave the freeway, I'm excited to set off solo on a crafty adventure. Mama needs to get out of this house!

So, in anticipation for the show, I made a whole new batch of necktie accessories, including these headbands:

plus some chokers and cuffs as well. They tend to sell well for me at shows. Also, I needed to use up a lot of the ties I'd been holding onto because there's just something not right when a grown woman hoards mens' ties. I need to prettify them and send them back out into the world.