Summer Sewing: Oriental Inspired Dress

  Photography:  Esther Boller (myself)

Model:  My stunning sister Ruth

Since I've been home this summer I've been finding all of my past sewing projects.  A lot of them are still only half way finished so lately I've been completing them.  This is a dress that I started last summer, but I never finished it until now! 

Last summer I fell in love with oriental style dresses.  They have a really simple and beautiful shape that I think is lovely.  The pattern is my own that I designed and drafted.  The dress is a sheath dress with a standing collar, cap sleeves, hook and eyes connecting the front bodice, buttons down the back, and a vent flap in the back of the skirt.  There are also a lot of curved seaming detail in the bodice and the skirt

I'm slightly sad, because the fabric is such a heavy print a lot of the seam details don't show up very well.  I'd like to make another version with piping in the seams to make them pop; especially the detail seams of the skirt.

 New projects are on the way!  Below is an Instagram preview of the swimsuit that I was telling you about.  I'll be sharing the full photo shoot next week!

Jazz like Dat

 

All photos from this shoot are self portraits taken by myself.

I've really been in love with the 60s/70s style kimonos that have been going around lately.  It's so easy to just throw one over a tank top and jeans and feel put together.  I got this kimono from Choies.com and paired it with this dress that I made a couple of years ago.

 

 
Outfit:  

Dress:  DIY Esther from the Sticks (for sale here)  

Kimono:  Choies.com

Necklace:  My mom's

I thought that you might enjoy the photo below.  On the left is the first self portrait I ever took in front of my garage in 2009.  On the right is my most recent self portrait taken in front of the same garage.  My kung foo ability has drastically declined since the 8th grade.

Also I wanted to give a shout out to all of the awesome kaftans that y'all have been making!  It makes me excited that so many different people have already tried out the kaftan tutorial!  

 Jen of iCandy-Handmade  made two beautiful versions!

Also, check out Morgan of Thread Theory who used such a lovely fabric!

  I'm currently sewing a series of swimsuits.  I can't wait to share them soon!

Process: Ink Splatters

I'm currently working on a photo series involving ink splatter overlays on top of my photography.  My favorite technique for finding the perfect splatter is to take two brushes full of ink/paint, and tap them together.  This creates more of a speckled look which is really fun.  I also find that I have more control to keep the ink from going everywhere when I do this.  Here are a few behind-the-scene photos.

 

Here's an instagram preview of a photo from the series.

I can't wait to post the rest of this shoot!  It should be up by tomorrow. 

Also, I've been listening to a lot of jazz this past month - specifically Chet Baker.  What been your go-to music this month?

Sarah

 

 Photography:  Esther Boller

Model:  My beautiful best friend - Sarah

This photo shoot was inspired by this painting (below left) created by George Breitner  Right away my eye was drawn to it.  The composition feels so intimate and the shapes are simply elegant.  When I first had the idea to recreate this painting, I became super excited when I realized that I had the perfect beaded dress that I found at Goodwill a few years back.  I was saving it for the right photo shoot, and finally found the reason to bring it out after looking at this painting.

 

 

I've been really excited with the way these painting-inspired photos have been turning out.  They've been so much fun to shoot, and I've noticed a change in the way I look at compositions now.  I have some new photo projects coming up this weekend.  Can't wait to share more with you!

Drawing: Sketchbook Journal

One of my favorite classes this past year at SCAD was my Drawing 2 class.  The class explored a lot of mediums, and we were given more creative freedom with assignments than in other classes.

As a part of homework everyone had to keep a sketchbook journal based upon a theme that we came up with.  The theme that I chose was the word nostalgia.  To convey my theme I walked around Savannah and drew the different houses around town.  After I drew a house I would write a fictional story on the same page of a memory that could've happened in that house.  The journal was relaxing for me, and it became what I looked forward to most during my week.

 

  

For the class's final assignment we had to create a piece of artwork inspired by the theme of our journal.  I decided to recreate one of my journal pages into a larger size with more detail. 

This class made me love sketchbook journals, and I now try to draw at least once a day.  It forces me to slow an hour of my day down, and also they're a lot of fun!