Sentimental Stitches

I made this hair clip for my little sister's birthday. Her birthday was on the 7th but shhh whatever.

I was trying out new techniques- which by the way this weekend I got crazy with some new carnation style fabric flowers- photos to come soon!

I love the colors in this piece!

Not only will this be a gift of fashion for my sis it will also be a gift of sentiment. My nephew Oliver picked the flower I used in the center piece when they were out for a visit last summer so it will be extra special for his mommy ;)

Happy (late) birthday sister!

materializing an idea

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I often have ideas that come to me that I forget about before I get a chance to create them- but when I thought of this one last night I didn't wait to put it into action.

I wanted to incorporate my earth theme by bringing back some of my pressed flowers/leaves that I originally started out working with last year. For example, this piece.

 So I had the idea to put a pressed flower behind a circular glass tile to use as the center piece of the new line of brooches I've been working on.

A close up view of the pressed flower:

I got the creme colored embroidered fabric yesterday at Joanns. I love the vintage style of it. It reminded me of the fabric that I wore as a little girl.

Me :)

It also looked great on the waist line of the interesting vintage romper I got a few months ago and finally decided to wear today!

What do ya think about the pressed flower center piece?

Cheers,

Julie

Stitchy stitch...

I got my sewing machine working weekend before last (I think. Time has sort of been a blur lately!)

(yay!)

And since I have no current knowledge (you may remember me discussing this in a previous entry) and I am going off of some information in various books I am dying to take real lessons. I found out there is a place called Sew L.A literally on the bottom of the hill under my house along Silverlake Blvd. that offers lessons. I need to get that arranged!

                       

Until then I will continue practicing random stitches on random fabrics that I CAN'T STOP buying from Joanns. I am SO in love with textiles. Who knew?

I've pretty much been setting myself up a little factory little by little, ok I don't know if buying crap every other day is really little by little but whatever. I can't wait to really start sewing up some fun stuff!!

                 

And so I dont go through all of my fabric during my practice phase...

I started practicing on a few tissues the other day. It was actually quite fun! (I was playing with my pinking shears which is why the edges are cut that way)

                  

(my craft area becomes wrecked quite quickly)

For any of you readers who have basic sewing tutorials, please feel free to paste a link to them in the comments for me and everyone else ;)

Join the Colloquy!!!

So...as you may or may not have noticed- I changed the name of this blog. Not that Respect Your Mother was not a good name, it is after all the name of my business as well as an important statement- I just felt I needed to change the angle.

Alas, you are now visiting the Creative Colloquy blog. I chose the name because colloquy means a conversation, dialogue, or a conference and that is exactly what I would like this blog to be.

So, with that said, please DO feel free to comment and interact often, check in daily and email me with anything you think I may want to include or discuss in the blog. I would very much enjoy getting to know all of you out there with common interests!!

I also updated the design with the new options from blogger, not quite sure how I feel about it yet, any input?

The topic I would like to discuss tonight is something I'm currently struggling with. The medium war.

(Felt clip holder)

(Clay pendant)

(Fabric/Felt aromatheraputic hair clips)

(Glass tile pendant with vintage book text and felt)

No- my clay, fabric, felt, glass, etc... are not bombing one another. The war I speak of is purely internal and I'm thinking, completely useless and a waste of thought.

It's just that- sometimes I feel like "Am I betraying my clay right now?!?!" when I am playing with my fabric. And the fact that I started out making jewelry with my original Etsy shop. Oh my god I just realized TODAY is the 1 yr anniversary of my opening my Respect Your Mother shop on Etsy! Whoa. I should have totally had a sale or something. It kind of snuck up on me. Anyway. Interesting. So- I had never actually intended to do only jewelry when starting out with RYM but I think I sort of got addicted to making it so I stuck to it pretty seriously for a while. I remember always thinking, ok so when will I start working on the other things I have sketched out to make?? Some of the things I had made before opening my shop at the urging of others weren't even jewelry. They were shoes, well, altered shoes, and an altered shirt and some other things of that nature. As well as some clay pendants of course.

What I'm trying to say is, I haven't made jewelry in a while and I feel weird about it. Hahaha. But at the same time I'm starting to do a lot with fabrics and such and I am absolutely LOVING it and reallllly wanting to learn so much more on technique and skill.

For example, I whipped this up last night.

Another view...

I can't say I know what I am doing. But I recently learned about interfacing, fusible web, etc and got excited that there was a product to help stiffen the material. I have made 2 other pouch type things previously but this one is my favorite so far. I don't have the inside photographed but the problem is I just don't know how to finish off edges and what not!! The outside is linen, with a felt tree and a little polyfill inside of the tree for the dimensional feel. I think I will add something else to the opposite side. Maybe some poppies? I have a cute yellow gold floral fabric lining the inside, with the stiff interfacing fused in between.


I'm sort of going off a little internet researching, and the knowledge I gained as a little girl when my mother taught my sisters and I how to sew. So this was probably like 20 years ago or so. Oh and the Home Ec class I took freshman year of highschool. I got a second hand sewing machine for Christmas from my inlaws and when I pulled it out a while back I could NOT figure it out and it frustrated me so I put it away. I do think it might have an issue and need a repair, I SWEAR I was doing everything right but the thread would get tangled on the underside of the fabric. I need to take lessons. I ordered a used book on sewing technique online last night (only a dollar! heck yes!) from abe books.

Oh, and to continue with the dilema of "cheating" on certain mediums while spending time on others, I have the HippityClippity shop which is strictly hair clips, which by the way I can't even decide if I should sell ONLY childrens clips in their which was my original intention, and sell adult ones in my RYM shop or put all clips in HC?? But HC is such a kiddy name. Ahhh. See? I have decision making problems. Haha. Input is CERTAINLY welcome.

Anyway. Enough about that. There are HUGE problems going on and my internal war of mediums so completely trivial. Anyone living down near the gulf and have seen the oil spill first hand? I get so sad everytime I think about it. I feel so removed being all the way over here in California, but I am originally from and grew up in the Gulf area of Texas, between Houston and Galveston. Hey someone tell me what you think of this- I ran it by my husband and he said he didn't think it was good taste but I don't think he understands my point. I have earrings that I sell in my RYM shop, I Love the Earth Earrings, and a few weeks ago I thought about making a version of them that have an ugly black splash of paint in the area of the gulf, to really exaggerate on this terrible problem, like a political statement against the awful oil companies like BP, and donate ALL of the proceeds (minus the shipping cost) to the recovery down there. If I can't physically be there, I would atleast like to do my part. After all, the creation of RYM was not only to be inspired by the planet, but to help save it. I have been donating 1$ per sell to Greenpeace since the opening of my shop a year ago. It is my mission and passion to help this beautiful planet!! Anyhow- what do you think of that idea? Is it somehow in bad taste or do you understand my angle? Input please!!

Have a happy day/night!!


Julie