Accessories links & updates

I just wanted to share a link with you. One of my school friends is a designer, and has collected a number of resources on accessories. She has a few I am really interested in looking into, so I thought I would share them. You can find the article on Queen of the Trailer Park. I really recommend her blog for some awesome ideas and tutorials, I always find it an interesting read.

There is one using drink can tabs which I found particularly interesting. Whenever I drink a Red Bull I wonder what I can do with the tabs, because they have the tab cut out. It is an interesting design, and mostly I have used it as a stencil or for interesting photo lenses. Anyway, I think it would be interesting to make one of these with Red Bull tabs. Although I am not sure if it would sit as well. And I would probably use a thinner black elastic rather than the wider white elastic on the example she shared. I guess I could always punch a hole on either side of the bull? I don’t know. I will have to collect some and have a play to see what would work best 🙂

Here is the example she shared, and below that is a Red Bull tab.

I also found an entry about Broomstick Lace a few weeks ago that I want to follow up. You can find out more about it at twoandsix.

In lest than two weeks is Lunarmorph! It is a fashion show for dark alternate culture, and it part of the Under The Blue Moon festival. In the hours before Lunarmorph, UTBM is also hosting a Steampunk Symposium. I am getting very excited! I may have mentioned that I am obsessed with steampunk, but I haven’t had a chance to go to any events as yet. Mostly it is me mooning around about blogs online, or sharing things I stumble across at Dystopian Treasures. This time I am going! And my brother is making me a steampunk gun! I am so excited! I am going scrounging at the markets, op shops and in the dark alternate stores of Enmore and Newtown on Saturday with a friend, looking for accessories etc. And on Sunday a friend is dying my hair purple for me. I am really getting hyped!! I will share my finds as I make them 🙂

In other news, I started an etsy and twitter account – mostly to save the name “Black Threads” for later LOL I haven’t updated either yet, and won’t until I start selling. At the moment I am just creating accessories to sell. I talked to some of my crafty friends who are also interested in selling some things when I start my market stall 🙂

Mask Ball Skirt Inspiration

I spent $75 at Lincraft on Monday (ed: last week). I had planned to go to Spotlight on the weekend (they are cheaper, have a bigger store, and had a 30% sale) but they closed just as I arrived there on Saturday. My friend Sarah is having a masked ball for her 30^th, and I after buying a corset and mask ($250 and $165 respectively) I realised I would have to make the rest of my outfit myself. I should state here that I have a loathing for patterns. I always end up messing them up. Maybe that is just a left over loathing of my Home Ec teacher at school LOL However, it is also because I am plus-sized and I need to expand the patterns from the skinny size up to something that would fit a real woman. Those patterns get distorted when you add a 5cm panel, etc. and they no longer sit well. So I gave up on patterns. I have always been fairly instinctual with designing and creative things anyway. I eventually want to take some short courses in dressmaking so I can overcome this issue, but until then, I go freehand. I have made skirts before, and I don’t use patterns. I love designing clothes in my head and on paper, and I have an instinctual approach to sewing. I love alternate cultures like steampunk, goth, rockabilly and psychobilly, and all the outfits are expensive unless you are a dab hand at a sewing machine. So one day I plan to take a more serious approach to sewing. For the now, I just dabble.

So, next Friday night is Sarah’s mask ball. My corset is a black brocade overbust, and my mask is a purple asymmetrical moulded leather mask. They are both gorgeous! So I need to organise something for the blouse and the skirt. I think I will just find a blouse either in my closet, or at Westfield, but the skirt I plan to make. I am not sure what look I am going for yet. Maybe Victorian, maybe a can can skirt, maybe a gothic tutu. I have no idea. I spent too much on fabric the other day, so I need to dig around in my rag bag and see what other fabric I have that will work. Wish me luck!

Here are some of the inspirations items I came across! They are either skirt patterns or skirts that I like.

• clairesanders.com
• gaiaonline.com
• wingsofsteam.net
• dracinabox.com
• madamemodiste.livejournal.com
• notacosplayer.wordpress.com
• livejournal.com/steamfashion
• katafalk.wordpress.com
• phoquess.livejournal.com
• cutoutandkeep.net
• books.google.com.au
• noblegarb.com
• livejournal.com/victoriansewing
• asiajam.com
• craftstew.com

I really love Yvaine’s gown from Stardust (yes, that is Claire Danes!) and plan to watch it again to pick up some ideas. Like I said, I am not planning a specific skirt, but brainstorming ideas.

Click on the thumbnails for larger images:

An Introduction

This blog is to be dedicated to some of my sewing, craft and other creative projects, as well as compiling fashion related items I come across on the web or in stores. I am moving out with friends at the end of the year, and as well are all crafty people we agreed that we can get a 5 bedroom place instead of a 4 bedroom house. That fifth bedroom will be our dedicated art/craft/sewing room (how would you describe it?) as well as a spare room (I don’t know if we will have a blow up mattress or a futon yet). I am really excited about this, as whenever I want to use my sewing machine I need to pack away my computer (with it’s massive monitor), and whenever I want to make art or craft I have to sit cross-legged on my bed. My current housemate has his name on our lease and we aren’t really allowed to use the other rooms – he gets very territorial. The thought of me using the dining room for sewing or painting would have him huffing and puffing, and we don’t have a veranda or anything for me to take over for a few hours. Basically I am limited in my creative space and I fucking hate it! So here I am clearing the air. The Lady Lair will have a dedicated room, and I decided I will have a dedicated blog! Hurrah!

So I decided to make yet another new blog for all my crafty –type posts. Currently they are going up all over the internet, as I don’t have one main blog or a specialised blog where they belong. I have a blogging addiction, and I had planned to just have the two blogs (books and music) but limiting myself has just meant that I have more specialised blogs occurring. I had another called Rage Against The Sewing Machine that I was fiddling with, but there weren’t many posts, and it was very disorganised and just sewing related. So I have deleted all the posts from it, and will delete it completely when I have imported some of the settings. I will bring across some of my newer posts because they are relevant to what I am planning to post about this week, but the rest can disappear into the ether. I want a new start all round!

My tastes tend to lean towards subcultures. Mostly goth, steampunk, psychobilly, rockabilly and vintage.

I am planning to eventually start a market stall with little sewn items (bags and purses etc), greeting cards and other crafty items. I may even take up making friendship bands again! If I can remember all the designs I used to make! LOL The only one I remember off the top of my head is the Mermaids Tail. It was a knot-work bracelet, and it used to do really well when I was selling them. Anyway, all the proceeds will end up going to my trip to Mexico. I don’t think I will make a lot of money, just a few dollars LOL The money isn’t the important thing. I have already promised some shoulder bags for my friends. I have an obsession with Spotlight and Lincraft. I love haberdashery stores, so I tend to stockpile fabric. Hopefully this will help me use some of it LOL