I Say Ix-Nay the Oons-Kay

...artwork.  Yep, that's my unadulterated opinion.  

But for Style Imitating Art's inspiration it's great!  

Pink Bow by Jeff Koons

So let's put that behind us, shall we?  And style on...

Moi On Top of  Pink Bow

See more of what's really going on after the break...

Is it Almost Spring Yet?

I've been working and working and working on my new Spring Coat.  And tah-dah, here it is!
 

ooo, and check out those new-to-me ebay boots...

I'm so excited about it.  It's made from the endless scraps of fabric I have about the place - including the vintage drapery ( the sleeves).  The base is some of what I scored when the fabric store down the street suddenly went out of business and everything was 90% off.  Can you imagine?!!  It's embossed velveteen.  I worked from a Koos pattern.  I love them, always so exuberant and complicated.

I'm going to visit all the wonderful women at Patti's Not Dead Yet Style that I missed last week.  And the crowd at Monday Mingle, and, of course, Lakota's Ta-Dah Tuesday.  Oh, and don't forget the Pleated Poppy.  Come join us.

Ed. Note:  A year later I'm connected up with Sheila's Shoe Shine and Sacramento's Share-in-Style: Autumn.   My lovely boots never got the chance to shine on their own and my transitional coat gets such short air/ wear time between seasons, it was a great chance to show them off together again.  Hope you don't mind...

See more views of the amazing Spring coat, after the break!

The Artist Not Wearing Banksy or Hirst

I've been toiling away in my studio for the past week or so on a little something something.  Ready?  Oh, but first, let me show you the latest Style Imitating Art inspiration...

Roller Rat by Banksy

Everyone's probably familiar with England's (in)famous street artist, Banksy.  But perhaps you were like me and unaware of this particular piece which has a hilarious back story.  Given a museum show in Bristol, Banksy had several rooms of his work, plus he put things amongst the museum's regular collection.

Lo and behold, the art world's darling, Damien Hirst, had one of his ridiculously expensive spot paintings housed there.  And that is what it looks like now after Banksy painted over it adding his trademark rat.  hee hee hee.

Okay, now you're ready to see what I've done after the break!

Young Girl and Her Mother?

Style Imitating Art is here again!  And this is one I couldn't get into, I mean literally.  There just wasn't any room for me in the painting.  So rather than force the issue, I stepped aside, and I do mean literally.  Here's the inspiration:

painting by Tamara de Lempicka

You can see how I interpreted the "Young Girl in Green" after the break...

Some Bugs and Barbie

Alrighty then, we have a combo for you today.  Yesiree, step right up and see three of the most unusual  pieces...

artwork by Maurizio Anzeri

....yes, of Maurizio's embroidered photos, but also dah, dah, dah, dahhhh,...

(more after the break!)

From the Treasure Trove

I've been assembly bits and bobs together to make some jewelry lately.

painting by George Gower

Oh, and I received a Sunshine Award from the loverly Vivienne of Thrifted Shift: 

Thank you.  While I will always appreciate a bit of sunshine sent my way, I really do loath all the Q&A that tag along with those awards...so I shall make up my own rules and repeal that aspect.

I'm going to award some sunshine pick-me-ups to a couple of bloggers who could use it right now.  Vix of Vintage Vixen who has a bit of pnemonia and Lakota of Faith, Hope and Charity Shopping who is nursing a cold.  Enjoy your Sunshine Award and do with it what you will!

Now back to my treasure trove...after the break

Shoe Be Do Be Do...

what were the chances...I'd be re-do-ing shoes...before the night was through?...ah, yes.  I have had a serious case of shoe lust lately.

shoes designed and created by Lloraine Neithardt

So to keep myself in line, I've dived into the depths of my closet to reclaim some lost soles.  Surely no one needs sooo many pairs of black and/or brown shoes!  Where are all the beautiful colors I crave?!

Just check out these gems after the break, my dears...

Wearing It Out...

or In, as the case may be.  I'm speaking of the previously noted Downhome Funky Dress.  See?!

Shot live in the bed-sitting room, looking out into the museum/archives

I'm sporting that dress and that necklace along with an old stretch lace store-bought top and old cowboy boot clogs.  Click on the bold words to check out what the items look like up close and personal!

And without further ado, I'm linking up with Patti and all the Visibles at Not Dead Yet Style,  the Pleated Poppy,  Recycled Fashion Finds and Refashion Co-op.

My Downhome Funky Dress

Yep. That's what I have to call it, the poor old homely thing.  This is one of those pieces I kept working on and saying it was a flop, stopping, and then giving it another go, ad nauseum.  Well, the other day I went at it and didn't stop until I declared it was finished and boy was it funky.

artwork by Elisabeth Lecourt

So funky in fact, that I decided it needed a downhome funky homemade necklace to go with it.  And so there's that too.  I made it out of a bunch 'o junk that I painted with nail polish to boot!

The dress started out as a plain store-bought linen shift with short sleeves.   I added some length by taking the hem down and sewing crocheted lace to the bottom.  I ended up removing the sleeves after trying a bunch of different stuff to keep them.  And I added some floral print linen from my fabric stash as side inserts so it would fit me.  Check out the Clothes for Fall if you want to see it.

Linens and Things

Dug into my retired bedding for this one. 

~ painting by Antonio Macedo ~

The pillow cases had beautiful lace trim about 4 inches wide.  Made from 100% cotton, they had been laundered many, many times and were so soft.  

Referring to my Japanese Stylish Dress Book, I chose pattern X to create a top.  I must say, even though it's

T-Shirt Tunic Mod

I've been working on a bunch of losing propositions lately.  ah well.  This is one I can lounge around in anyway.

Here we are...

It's a modification from a tunic top I saw on Refashion Co-op by Love Flow Creations.  When I tried it out in the original format it was gigantic on me (and I'm not a little person by any means).  So I reconfigured a smaller version out of old t-shirts I didn't much care for - just to see what would happen.  I basically used half the amount of t-shirts as recommended and my tunic was still quite huge.  Maybe if I used really small ones, it would work out better.  We'll see, another time.

You'll be able to see it's kind of kimono-esque in shape, if you check out the Clothes for Summer page.  It's actually made from 2 shirts: 1 faded navy and 1 deep purple.  The short sleeves I removed have been turned into patch pockets.

Three's a Charm

It's that time of the month again Ladies...and luckily for us it happens twice a month:  Style Imitates Art!  So without further ado, may I present to you, today's work of inspiration:

Two Girls in Bed by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

To see what I did (heh, heh, heh) stay tuned after the jump...

Dot, Dot, Dot...

 ~ Lichtenstein painting and moi ~

Yes, that's me merging into the dots of a Lichtenstein landscape painting, one of 160 pieces in a retrospective now showing at the Art Institute of Chicago.  Don't you think we're both working the Japanese theme in a satisfying way?  yeah.

I'm wearing a kimono dress made from my fabric stash using the I Am Cute Dresses

In and Out of Focus

...or Dry brushed?

Diffused glow?

That is the ?

I'm wearing the tunic top I refashioned to fit several weeks ago and carrying a clutch bag I made out of a Modern Painters magazine awhile back.  I was on quite a kick with those things.  You can see a bunch of them on my art website under Oddments, and then Accessories.  The capris, clogs and sunglasses are all very old and originally store bought.  

Check out the Modern Painters clutch after the jump:

Let's Shift Again

wearing my renewed shift and shoes

Here's the dress I refashioned to fit this last week.  I had originally made it as a mini dress long, long ago.  For this time around, I opened up the side seams and removed the sleeves to recut them to fit.  I added some side inserts of another electric blue fabric scrap I had on hand.  (It was actually leftover from True Love's summer kimono...) Added some length to the sleeve hem and dress hem with the electric blue fabric, using it all.  But I still wanted pockets.  I spied, on top of my blue scrap pile, this perfect Hawaiian print!  (yes, I have my small scraps of fabric in bins by color).  I had just enough for two big ole patch pockets.  It made me very happy!

I paired the dress with khaki clam diggers that were store bought ages ago.   I'm sure they're called something else now days... and an old brooch worn as a necklace, plus old blue suede slip-ons that I refashioned with a coat of blue glitter glue.

I'm joining others at Patti's Not Dead Yet Style today and Monday Mingle too.  Join us.  Oh, and Recycled Fashion Finds!...

Making a Shift

I've been sewing nearly every day this week on a refashion to fit, made-from scratch shift.  Now there's a mouthful.  a RFMFS shift.  Better?

painting by Anita Dominoni.

It seemed to be tough going, but I am actually quite pleased with the final outcome.  It was the big patch pockets that did it for me.  Quite unexpected they were.  But that's how creative sewing is, you never know what's going to come out of the hat next - so to speak.  I'm going to wear it for the last day of my class tomorrow.

Tangerine with a Spot of Leopard

Finished a pair of re-modeled capris just in time for my birthday brunch.  Yesterday my true love and I walked to the nearby m. henrietta's for a scrumptious brunch in Chicago's record-setting 100+ degree weather.

~painting by Zurab Martiashvili~

I thought I was very cool in my outfit, but actually withered completely by the time we walked home again in all that heat.  It took just hours in our single room air conditioning to recover.

Later that night was the Sewing Rebellion

A Little Dab of Neon

~artwork by Mary Virginia Carmack~

Put patch pockets on an old linen/cotten shirt I had and painted the buttons to match.  yep.  I had a scrap of knock-your-eyes-out yellow broadcloth that was just the right size for pockets and I had the same color fluorescent acrylic paint to do the buttons.

My, my, once I got started...some old canvas tennis shoes that I have never worn came under the brush.  I painted them like saddle shoes and I think they look cute as a...button?

You can see me with my neon on the Clothes Collage page 

Less is More...

Ok just so you know, this is what I'm up for next Monday...this Picasso is the inspiration for the Style Imitates Art challenge, which is cool.   I have a blast doing it and I encourage you all to go for it!  But then I also signed on for This or That Trend:

~painting by Picasso~

~www.meganmaedaily.com~

I thought it sounded fun, but it happens every day this week!  I don't know if I will.  You know there's such a thing as too much...or too much of a good thing...whatevah.







 And of course, I'm way into sweet Patti's Not Dead Yet Style, meet-up every Monday:

~not dead yet style~

Some Summer in the City

All of a sudden it was so hot this Memorial Day weekend that the air conditioners went into action just like that (snap of the fingers).  And I whipped up a little something something to wear in all that heat.  wait til you see it...

painting by Alfred Galura.

Well, first off I rehabbed a semi-sheer camisole and matching pantaloons to fit me a little more comfortably.  I added some stretchy matching print fabric from my stash to the side seams of each item.  Once that was completed I felt I really needed a bit of a cover-up to wear over them since they were on the sheer side.

How about more semi-sheer fabric?!  I took a swatch of floral scrap fabric I had and wrapped it around my waist like a sarong, tying it at my hip - voila.  Then I found a beautiful bit of lacy-looking stretch fabric.  I just folded it in half and cut out a boat neckline and then sewed a tiny stitch in the middle of each side edge where the sleeve underarm would be.  Now I had a cool and breezy cropped top.  Check it out!