Friday, March 16, 2012

Rond, by Cloud

At right: Isabelline, Queen line. Ivory cotton, feathers and lace, smoke quartz pendant.

I am pleased to announce that I am now making and selling custom garters. My garters will soon be available with Emily West Lowry Designs; Emily designs magnificent feathered hair accessories, shoe clips, and jewelry, and creates custom bridal pieces, including birdcage veils.
Rond has several lines of garters: Empress, Queen, Duchess, Marquise, and Dame. At present, each garter is a wholly unique creation, but I am also able to craft sets if desired. Some garters are for very special occasions, but some are suitable for everyday wear. Some garters are the now-traditional elastic, but some come in pairs and tie with long ribbons.
Below are some of my current pieces, with their names and lines.















At left top: The Childlike Empress, Queen line. White satin, with pearl strands and a pearl and gold button.
At left middle: Petticoat Government, Duchess line. Blue pinstripe suiting with lace and white ribbons.
At left bottom: Ariadne, Duchess line. White cotton, pleated ribbon, blue tie ribbons, and Grecian beads.





At right top: Pavlova, Duchess line. Pink dupioni silk, with pink satin ribbon ties.
At right middle: Moon Child, Queen line. White, sparkly cotton, rhinestone moon, dotted with tiny rhinestones.
At right bottom: Bride-Lace, Duchess line. Ivory cotton with satin ribbon band. Lace square, feather, and vintage button embellishment.






At left top: Lady Maud, Marquise line. Paisley cotton, beaded and feathered embellishment.
At left middle: Morning Train to Brighton, Queen line. Paisley cottom, feathered and shell bead embellishment.




At right: Ten-Hut!, Duchess line. Green cotton and Gold lining, decorative stitching, and beaded badge embellishment.




At left top: Rajni. Burdundy satin, rhinestone starburst.
At left middle: Mrs. Wallce, Marquise line. Tartan with red ribbon band, leaves and gem embellishment.
At left bottom: Parvati, Queen line. Raspberry brocade, spray of raspberry feathers, gold coin pendant.




At right top: The Merry Shepherdess, Duchess line. Tapestry toile with cotton lining, grosgrain ribbon ties.
At right middle: Assignations in Vauxhall Gardens, Marquise line. Tapestry toile with cotton lining, locket brooch embellishment.
At right bottom: Wren, Marquise line. Grey satin, feathers and rhinestone button embellishment.

Saturday, March 10, 2012

PR: All Those Lights...Is This Pennsylvania?

That's a joke for Steve Edgehouse. Because I know he waits with bated breath for my PR update!
I'm behind, so bear with me. I haven't actually seen this past week's episode yet, but here is my commentary on the week before.

Once upon a time, we used to go to the circus in Lansing. One of my favorite items for sale there was a "fiber optics" light up wand thingy. Maybe it's because my father has done research with Optical Methods of Engineering Analysis. Maybe it was because it was completely frivolous. Maybe simply because it lit up with colored lights in a new and bizarre way, like it was exotic technology.
Whatever the reason, that is immediately what I thought of when I saw what the designers were supposed to do. Make something avant garde with fiber optic light wand thingies. And here's what they did:

Austin--I didn't think that Austin's lighting technique was particularly spectacular, really. The lights were pretty much ready to go, right? That being said, I like that he incorporated shape into his piece. That arc of light was dramatic and the blue with the black was mysterious. The piece as a whole was also classy, which is, I think, what the challenge was meant to produce.
Jerrell--I can't even say that I am over Jerrell, because I rarely respond well to his garments. His model looked like a lampshade. He was onto something with the use of the fiber optic dealies, but the shape was kind of goofy. Wouldn't a sweet, oversized shrug made out of those fiber optic thingies have been rad? I kept thinking, let's flip that part around her waist and bring it up to her shoulders and ditch that collar.
Kenley--I think Kenley turned out something pretty great. I liked the latticed top and the plaid that she invented. Her girl made a complete and engaging picture and she used color well to make the outfit's component's pop. You could see that in a magazine editorial, couldn't you? For summer. I don't know if it was avant garde so much, though I still am never sure I know what that means, either!
Michael--There was something risky about the shoulders, which I respect. That being said...I didn't like the shoulder thing. Giant shoulders with lights inside. I was thinking about that, and wondering if it wouldn't have been nice to have a structured hood with lights inside, that she could have up and then dramatically shake off to reveal something new. The other thing I didn't enjoy about M's look was that he taped on stripes...which is basically what they do on their mannequins to make a garment. Thus, most of the outfit was not risky at all.
Mondo--Mondo's look had an interesting level of ...sophistication? It was more cerebral than any of the other works...cerebrally burlesque. Is that possible? That being said, it was also hard to love if you love things that are classy. From the neck down it reminds me of a trippy poem I wrote in the voice of a dancer at the Moulin Rouge. I can't justify this, except that this is what I mean by cerebrally burlesque. And the more I try to explain this, the more I can't. I have that reaction to Mondo a lot.