Corn, Corn Everywhere

When I create a garment, I also have a specific idea of how I'd like to photograph it. As any artist will know, as frustrating as it can be, your art is only as good as your photography. When I jury my pieces for shows, the only thing that juror will see is a digital image. My art doesn't mean anything if that image doesn't accurately represent it. This was a really hard thing to learn early on in my days creating art, but I am so thankful for a couple of really helpful people who have made all the difference in the world. 

One of these people is my mother-in-law. She's been absolutely fabulous to be a fashion photographer with a very crazy artist here at the helm. My crazy ideas could get the best of me one of these days.....

I had only a few days to get this piece photographed before it left for a show. And I wanted to photograph it while standing in a field of golden corn with a stretching panorama of endless sky in the background, maybe even a sunrise. Sounds simple and straightforward, right? 

Did I mention this was in October? That time of the year where I'm from, there's combines running 24/7 to get those fields of golden corn harvested. So the corn field I was thinking of using actually got combined a few days before our photo shoot. Since plan A was foiled, we went for plan B- and ran from field to field looking for brighter colored corn, corn that didn't look weather-beaten and corn that was facing an eastern sky. 

It was a blustery fall day, as well, so the brisk wind made the dress dance and move.... sometimes not necessarily in the right ways! I had to hold the edge down with my toes on a few of the shots! It was a challenge, but you know me.... when I get an idea in my head, there's no turning back! 

My mother-in-law was gracious and captured some lovely images of the piece. I do love the idea of shooting in our beautiful rural surroundings. It brings to life the panorama that oftentimes inspired the piece in the first place. I hope to try more farmland-backdrops in the future. There is nothing quite like beautiful art in a beautiful place! 

Blue Skies and Silver Linings

Pictured above is one of my newest runway pieces, a gown titled "Silver Lining" . I completed the dress in October of 2015. My inspiration came from the fabric of the skirt. My mom actually dyed this beautiful shade of blue-gray that reminded me of dull skies. Skies that you don't whether they plan to dump big plitter-platters of rain on you, or plan to break open with a glorious sun beaming through their  thick cover. 

She offered me the fabric, which at one point was being considered for her mother-of-the-bride dress. Since it didn't get used for that, it was now free to be invented into something else! I had yards and yards of this mystery fabric, that shifted and changed colors with every rustle of it's wonderful crinkly drape. 

The top I created the fabric for, using my hand dyed habotai silk and then nuno felting a blend of merino wools into it. Like a lot of my recent pieces, I have been exploring using the silk side of my nuno felt as my featured side. The nuno process of fusing wool into the silk fabric creates this amazing texture. I added some pleating before felting to accentuate the texture. 

I really wanted to create strong diagonal lines on the corset-style bodice with my silk and feel I was able to accomplish that. I emphasized it  with the beading, a feature I love the look of, but always regret about 5 hours into the beadwork, when squinty eyes, a headache and at least 100 seed beads decorating my floor remind me not to put beads on my next piece! Yet I always do....

I love the asymmetry of the design. Creating designs has always been a favorite part of the process for me. I am excited to be working with Marilyn Donoho, an amazing seamstress who really understands me and works with me to take my sketches, fabrics and vision to completion. 

This dress fits a size 8 beautifully, comfortably and elegantly. Perhaps the greatest joy for me was to be able to try it on and wear my dream and feel it come to life! That is truly the impetus for creativity!