In the morning I'd gone with R to pick up her bridesmaid dress. There was a bargain box on the counter. The diamante star caught my eye and I decided that for only a few dollars it needed to come home with me. I have images of it adorning a simple black t-shirt. When it came to dressing up the basket, I ran to my room and brought out my bling contribution. Decorating the basket was fun, though way out of proportion to its priority status. Today on the other hand I've made myself a list of tasks. Tablecloths for the reception are high on the list, as are some skirts for my friend to wear. I'll have the challenge of getting to know a new sewing machine and overlocker to keep my mind focussed.
Showing posts with label wedding plans. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wedding plans. Show all posts
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Bling Thing
Here I am at the Bride's family home. The place is littered with pink and glittering finery in various stages of completion. Oddly enough, with so much to do, it was a rather insignificant basket which caught our attention yesterday afternoon. It needed prettying up and the name of the game is "bling".In the morning I'd gone with R to pick up her bridesmaid dress. There was a bargain box on the counter. The diamante star caught my eye and I decided that for only a few dollars it needed to come home with me. I have images of it adorning a simple black t-shirt. When it came to dressing up the basket, I ran to my room and brought out my bling contribution. Decorating the basket was fun, though way out of proportion to its priority status. Today on the other hand I've made myself a list of tasks. Tablecloths for the reception are high on the list, as are some skirts for my friend to wear. I'll have the challenge of getting to know a new sewing machine and overlocker to keep my mind focussed.
In the morning I'd gone with R to pick up her bridesmaid dress. There was a bargain box on the counter. The diamante star caught my eye and I decided that for only a few dollars it needed to come home with me. I have images of it adorning a simple black t-shirt. When it came to dressing up the basket, I ran to my room and brought out my bling contribution. Decorating the basket was fun, though way out of proportion to its priority status. Today on the other hand I've made myself a list of tasks. Tablecloths for the reception are high on the list, as are some skirts for my friend to wear. I'll have the challenge of getting to know a new sewing machine and overlocker to keep my mind focussed.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Weddings
What is it about weddings? One of the uniquely formative moments of a couple's life, surrounded by infinite little details!
I spent several hours yesterday carving this stamp:
It's a monogram for my friends J and A to use on their wedding invitations. It felt good to focus exclusively on such a tiny aspect of their special day: not just the technical challenges of shaping the letters, but the relationship between the parts and the balance of the whole. I thought about the inevitable imperfections when something is made by hand--and the attractiveness of that reality. Today my friend D--J's mum--is spending the morning with a beading needle and thread, securing I don't know how many faceted glass beads to the hem of the wedding dress. There's a particular little sequin she has been unable to match. I'll try the local shops down here when the Cup holiday is over and post them to her. Meanwhile J is finishing her end of semester assignments at Uni and A is working and house-hunting. None of it's perfect, but it's good to be involved.
I spent several hours yesterday carving this stamp:
It's a monogram for my friends J and A to use on their wedding invitations. It felt good to focus exclusively on such a tiny aspect of their special day: not just the technical challenges of shaping the letters, but the relationship between the parts and the balance of the whole. I thought about the inevitable imperfections when something is made by hand--and the attractiveness of that reality. Today my friend D--J's mum--is spending the morning with a beading needle and thread, securing I don't know how many faceted glass beads to the hem of the wedding dress. There's a particular little sequin she has been unable to match. I'll try the local shops down here when the Cup holiday is over and post them to her. Meanwhile J is finishing her end of semester assignments at Uni and A is working and house-hunting. None of it's perfect, but it's good to be involved.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
My Hat!
I'm looking forward to a friend's wedding in January--in Queensland, no less! Looking forward in the sense that she's just about family and her wedding is, by definition, a very special event. On the other hand, the thought of making myself beautiful for an afternoon occasion in the middle of a sub-tropical summer is not all that welcome. Getting dressed-up is not on my list of favoured activities. I like to be comfortable and I hate the intense self-consciousness which often comes with special clothes. Here's my solution so far:
We're in the middle of Spring Racing madness in Melbourne. The shops are full of finery. When I went to my local craft superstore yesterday afternoon I stopped off in the millinery department. They had just finished a 3-day sale, so the shelves had been well and truly picked over. A clever and considerate somebody had set up a mirror at just the right height. There I was in my jeans, sweatshirt, coloured socks and plastic garden shoes--it was a quick trip for supplies, not a shopping expedition and I hadn't bothered to get changed. I fluffed up my hair with my fingers and tried on various styles of hat. then I looked at the prices. This hat attracted me because of its shape, neutral colour and its sale sticker! $10 and a good bit of imagination later, I am the proud owner of a hat. I've never trimmed a hat before. Nor have I fully planned my outfit, though I do have the beginnings of some ideas. My secret strategy is to use the natural fibres and simple styles I love for every day and add colour, detail and a touch of luxury to bring them up to the occasion. So I now have a hat--starting my planning from the top! My next purchase will be the very best umbrella money can buy. I lived in Queensland for enough years to know that a January afternoon is as likely as not to involve a deluge. I'm toying with the idea of some very fancy gum-boots, but that might be pushing the friendship too far . . .
We're in the middle of Spring Racing madness in Melbourne. The shops are full of finery. When I went to my local craft superstore yesterday afternoon I stopped off in the millinery department. They had just finished a 3-day sale, so the shelves had been well and truly picked over. A clever and considerate somebody had set up a mirror at just the right height. There I was in my jeans, sweatshirt, coloured socks and plastic garden shoes--it was a quick trip for supplies, not a shopping expedition and I hadn't bothered to get changed. I fluffed up my hair with my fingers and tried on various styles of hat. then I looked at the prices. This hat attracted me because of its shape, neutral colour and its sale sticker! $10 and a good bit of imagination later, I am the proud owner of a hat. I've never trimmed a hat before. Nor have I fully planned my outfit, though I do have the beginnings of some ideas. My secret strategy is to use the natural fibres and simple styles I love for every day and add colour, detail and a touch of luxury to bring them up to the occasion. So I now have a hat--starting my planning from the top! My next purchase will be the very best umbrella money can buy. I lived in Queensland for enough years to know that a January afternoon is as likely as not to involve a deluge. I'm toying with the idea of some very fancy gum-boots, but that might be pushing the friendship too far . . .
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Wedding Pretties
I've just had my friend D on the phone. Her eldest daughter is getting married in January. She's at the wonderful stage of imagining and exploring all the exciting possibilities for frills and fripperies in, would you believe, Baby Pink! Thankfully for me, the stage of imagining that I could make the wedding dress--since I made several gorgeous dress up items in her growing up--is well past. The wedding dress has been purchased and if anyone makes the bridesmaids' dresses it won't be me. That just leaves the fun parts. D is planning an embroidered ring cushion. Together we just imagined the silk dupion, ribbons and emboidery floss into one of my dye-pots. Then I added matching silk hankies for the men. And ooh! what about little wrist purses for the bridal party.
Confession time--I'm not known for my frilly pink tendencies, but these three pieces of fabric were in the top of my "silk box". I don't expect any of them will actually be used, but here they are in their pretty inspiration.
Now I just have to wait for some colour swatches--apparently a paint swatch from Bunnings is the thing! Then I can start playing with colour. Nine months out from the wedding, it all sounds like a lot of fun. And if all goes smoothly and there aren't too many last minute changes, it could continue to be lots of fun. Though I've experienced enough wedding preparations to know that somewhere along the line will be some complications and even tears.
Confession time--I'm not known for my frilly pink tendencies, but these three pieces of fabric were in the top of my "silk box". I don't expect any of them will actually be used, but here they are in their pretty inspiration.
Now I just have to wait for some colour swatches--apparently a paint swatch from Bunnings is the thing! Then I can start playing with colour. Nine months out from the wedding, it all sounds like a lot of fun. And if all goes smoothly and there aren't too many last minute changes, it could continue to be lots of fun. Though I've experienced enough wedding preparations to know that somewhere along the line will be some complications and even tears. Now as for today's realities--putting pretty baby pink aside. I have spinning and knitting to work on and a quilting class tonight. Oh, and no car. In non-textile news: my car was involved in an accident on the weekend--thankfully only the car was damaged, and the people are all ok. But it will be a few days before I know whether it will be fixed or written off.
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