Wedding Dress updates!

I've just had the first round of fittings with both of my brides in their final fabrics! It is really exciting to see the designs coming together and all of the color depth. Here are some pictures:


Sarah and her Techno wedding dress (with details obscured for surprise!):

I have been waiting four years to get into Susan Khalje's "Couture Sewing School" http://www.susankhalje.com/realindex.htm but could never get the time off and the tuition together until just recently and I have to say, this dress would be nothing without what Susan taught me!


Iggy and her Steam Punk wedding:


Here is a shot of the train in development. I crated a huge "blank canvas" from silk taffeta and sparkle tulle and then with Charles James in mind and a handful of safety pins went to sculpting some deep folds and layers to create an "avant-garde Victorian bustle". Iggy told me "Homegirl, I want a shelf back there", and I think we created it!


To back view of the corset and blouse, the pants here are still in muslin. The corset is being remade with new skills I just learned in Susan Khalje's "Couture Sewing School" at Apparel Arts in San Francisco and will lace up the back with large gold grommets!


The front shot: we went back to the drawing board and decided to go with a more Victorian style blouse rather than the camisol I had originally designed. It was the best decision we made and we both feel like the new blouse really ties the entire outfit together!

I'm really thrilled with the way these dresses are turning out! I couldn't be happier with the designs, fabrics and entire process. These are the most challenging garments I've ever made and the years of practice and education I put in are really paying off!

Lee Family Association Lion Dance Team

I have always LOVED the lion dancers and I am thrilled to announce that the Lee Family Association has asked me to make new feet for the lions to be worn in this years Grand Floral Parade. If you notice in the picture above the lions are wearing white sneakers, which seems to be common if you do a Google image search. What I'm making is a shoe cover that attaches with velcro on over top of the shoe, each foot has four golden claws (96 claws for the whole team!) with fur and will really make the costumes complete! I'm photographing the whole process, so check back for more details.

I was fortunate enough to be given a tour of the inside of the lion heads and costumes and I have to tell you that it really is a phenomenally intricate bamboo structure lashed together and then hand covered in paper mache and elaborately painted, again by hand. Even the pants, which seem simple are still fringed satin, and the fringe generally zigzags up and down around the legs. Look for these amazing costumes around town, they team is always performing!