Tuesday, July 28, 2009

In Philly! and...

working on this for titwillo:


Pale pink satin with maroon feathers/lace and white tulle/fringe. Leather lining. 



And this for my love Mosh:



Last week I stopped into NYC for SpinExpo, which was both good and not so good. I wasn't impressed by many of the vendors (boring or outdated yarns/textiles) but the ones I was impressed by blew my mind. 

My hands down favorite was the Japan-based Sato Seni Co. and M. & Kyoko, who are making some extremely interesting and innovative pieces. Think weird fur, knit paisley print, knitted plastic mesh, and swatches that look like they were ripped right off moss-y trees. I was particularly glad to see that they thought of the whole concept- things were hung with hangers made from real branches and others were afixed to traditional Japanese fans. Love it! 

My other favorite had to be Meadowbrook Inventions's Angelina fibers. They are doing something I haven't seen before: metal (copper and aluminum) coated filament yarns! Amazing!! They are beautiful to behold- a basketful of the bright copper ones looks like some weird glob of sparkly space matter. I was immediately inspired by it and I have big plans for combining it with rubber. Stay tuned!

STOLL was also doing some groundbreaking rubber/heat sealed seams that worked perfectly with their current sportswear line. I'd love to learn more about the process and see how it could be done on a more fetish, avant garde level. Moral of the story: I need to go to Japan & Germany STAT!

What I was disappointed by the most was the fashion show. After seeing Giovanni Cavagna's booth I was super excited to see his show, yet it was such a let-down. I don't know who did the art direction for it but they are seriously lacking: the pieces were boring shapes and colors and the heavy, bronzed/dark lip make-up and gaudy gold jewelry were seriously outdated. Let's step it up for next year! 


I also got to meet up with Doe Deere, who I can honestly say is one of the coolest, most solid, and interesting people I've met in a long time. I did a fitting with her (the piece is going to be so sick!) and we had a lovely lunch as well as talked about some crazy make-up ideas that I'll be working on for her. It's gonna be very much a win-win situation. 


After the city I went back to Providence to see friends and screen print, which I'd never done before. First I got a little crazy and did an idea I've had in my head for a while, a bloody hand print dress:



I wound up absolutely hating it but it was fun while I was doing it (the clean-up, not so much). It doesn't feel deliberate, and it's too much, so I think I'll take the dress apart and use it as fabric for something else. We'll see. 

NOTE: I usually don't do gore-y stuff as a rule, as I do not support violence & torture. But I was feeling angry and since the title of the piece is "I was going to stab him just a little bit but got carried away," I think you can figure out why. 


I did like how this came out though:



Baby heads!!!

I bought the organza shirt at a thrift store & loved it but wanted to make it more unique. Jenna & Danielle helped me on it and it looks pretty awesome & creepy (a great combination) if I do say so myself. 


As always, check out my Etsy! New stuff will be added as soon as it's photographed. 


Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Fascinating

More fascinator hats = win! Wikipedia: "fascinator."
All made with hat frames from PatternStudio.com...they're awesome & have great customer service. Highly recommend. Hat frames are made from buckram, if you want to make them yourself. I haven't, since the process is too involved to be practical, but it could be fun. 

Sorry, these are not PETA friendly. I use real leather, not gonna apologize. But that's a whole 'nother post. 


Photography: Corwin Prescott 

I've been making a lot of these hats with hearts of different kinds...not sure why. Maybe I'm looking for love? Nah, I bet I just like shape :)

Go to Etsy & buy them!

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

July is a much better month

First and foremost: I got an apprenticeship in Chicago with Vex! I am insanely excited, I'm going to learn so, so much. It's not Europe, but I hope to go abroad after this one is done at the end of February. The focus will be on designers and artists who are using my other love, plastic. I'd like to also experiment with other unusual materials, and I have a few people in mind, but any thoughts? 


Etsy shop is now open! Only a couple things are up at the moment, but never fear more is forthcoming. I promise to try my best to make pricing both affordable and artist-sustaining. 

Corwin Prescott took some amazing photos of the hats, this is my fav so far:


model: Anna Evans

Keep it coming, honey bunny!


Philly was amazing. I sold 15 of my modified t-shirt dresses (halter neck):


Haha, Dragonforce! Priceless. 

Super fun, comfy, and cute! Will be photographing and posting the ones that didn't sell, and at only $20 a pop plus free shipping they're a steal! 

I will actually be moving up to Phila. for all of August because I have friends, old & new, there that I can collaborate and have fun with. DC gets mighty lonely sometimes :( 


Also, speaking of artists and deals, I'm offering something awesome that RedRum Collaboration & I cooked up. Buy an elaborate or custom piece from me, and they will shoot a portrait of you...absolutely free! Here's an awesome shot they did of Mosh: 



So you heard that right, you get rewarded for buying something you needed to have in your wardrobe anyways! Email me at vauntdesigns@hotmail.com for more information, or message me on ModelMayhem

Stop, TWITTER time! 

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Neu

I know it's been a long while...but back with a vengeance!


First order of business: 

As I'm sure some of you know, I was one of 10 recipients of the Windgate Fellowship, given by the Center for Craft, Creativity & Design (CCCD) at UNC! Without going into long winded depth about my proposal, the gist of it was to go abroad and study with latex & plastic designers as a way to further my skills when it comes to unconventional materials. 


However, as much as I hate to admit it, I have run into major stumbling blocks when it comes to doing what I've proposed. Latex companies are small, as the fetish industry is by its nature a niche market. While some have done a certain amount of crossover into mainstream fashion by supplying gloves & stockings to haute designers, it remains a small world. Because of this, I have found it extremely difficult to find a place to apprentice. Not because my work is not up to par, but simply because there is no space to be had in their workrooms. I have applied to 10 companies, both nationally and internationally, and out of those only 3 are maybes. Needless to say, this has been extremely depressing and disheartening. At the moment, all I can do is continue to work on my own projects, look for other venues to explore, and wait. 

And I am terrible at waiting. 


Alright, enough moaning and groaning! I will attempt to be happy goddamnit and at least I have my one true love: my work. In that vein, here are the pieces I am currently working on:



Inspired by a ferry's wake in NYC, I call this one "Nostalgia for Nothing" because that's what I was feeling at the time. I felt a yearning for something, but there wasn't anything to really yearn for. Sort of looks vaguely kabuki, although I'm not quite sure why I think that. 

Ingredients: Soft cotton, bamboo lining, polyester batting (stuffing), white stretchy mesh, & black polyester organza.




Thinking about the circus & ringleaders for Jessica LaBlanche.

I love buying thigs from thrift stores and DIY-ing it into something awesome and new. The pleated fushia bottom piece started out as a pair of polyeseter leggings, and is now slowing becoming a skirt with garters. The top is a cotton suit jacket that I cut & folded into a zombie-fied version of it's original self (polyester organza will be put in the shoulders and chest). 




Yellow secret for Doe Deere.




Orange furry & teal secret for Debbi.




All the parts for a high necked collar. I cannot even describe how long it took to make the pattern for it! You'd think it would be easy but oh no, to get that shit to lie flat is incredibly difficult. Reinventing the wheel sucks but that's what you have to do if you want an original pattern. 

Ingredients: vinyl, silk organza, blue gemstones from my grandma, and red lacing. 



Also, for your entertainment and my record, my fabric & knitting studio (my latex studio is in the basement and isn't finished being set up yet):



Lastly, two little photo treats:



My lovely friend Chelsea, shot with my brand new Canon 5D Mark II. Watch out for videos coming soon!!!!




And a friend of a friend, Zane, shot on Governor's island in a run-down house.

669 Polaroid.