Can't Buy Me Love...or Taste.

I don't know why (wait -yes I do!),  it always dismays me when I read something that yet again equates "Luxury" purely with the amount of money something costs.  Real luxury is something much, much more than that.  It's getting to sit down and enjoy a wonderfully hand-prepared meal with people you love, leisurely.  ( Happy 4th! Enjoy the day!)   It's getting time to sit in the sun and relax- listen to the waves or the calming white noise from the bakery across the street.  It's having a cat purring contentedly on your chest.  

It's incredibly wonderful to be able to have the luxury of a beautifully made and perfectly fitted garment on your body.  Here, even the most unlikely fit - even very corseted or tight- is actually comfortable over long periods of time.   And yes, many Luxuries cost money,  (and so they should) from custom-made-anything to having a private jet, or driving that Cobra...

What I don't really get is that somewhere along the line someone also has to then  encrust it with diamonds,  & say they are a "designer" so they can put an insane price tag on it and sell it to someone who I can only think has too much $$$ and very, very low self-esteem.....(Along with nothing to do with their money- which is inconceivable in this day and age -  help solve the BP leak problem - contribute to an an award.  Put some kids through school - establish a scholarship or part of one- Jeeze, adopt a kid, build a school....there are a gazillion things.  Help fund a small business for crying out loud- but not like this!)
  

 600 hours to make?  They are including the cutting of the diamonds I presume...

This is not "Luxury".  This is just pure silliness.  

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Can't Buy Me Love...or Taste.

White Hot Leather

White leather has always been a very popular request,  especially for editorial purposes- however, no white leather ever goes out of here unless it is purchased... I never stocked it in my shop for the same reason,  it simply does not get taken care of properly by people unless they have some skin in the game!

Recently I've had more & more customers asking about it & ordering it.  One white project I am working right now on is for an HBO Special right now - when it is closer to air time I will update.  When I work in white the whole studio is given over to it and I dress in white!  (No kidding,  my husband did not recognize me the other day when we met downtown for dinner since I was not in my usual head to toe black!)

I've done white leather stagewear:

here's a white leather wedding dress:

White leather baby bibs (they wipe clean in most cases)

White leather jackets:

& God know what else...

Good white leather when it is tanned must be finished in a dust free environment, it is harder and harder to find white leather that is finished properly - many times you will see,  on smooth white leather, little tiny spots in the finish because of dust...it's not in the lot I just got!  It's been ages since I have not had to painstakingly check every skin for these.  Makes me happy.

On the subject of white leather,  I just got photos from a client, (one of my few ladies) of an outfit I made her last year.  She's got star style and confidence and effortlessly carries off  looks much stronger than most people here in NYC would ever attempt! (...my pet peeve about NYC- sometimes it feels like everybody wants to fit in - often to the point of blandness... it gets boring.)   Randa's use of accessories is flawless to boot!  I think these photos only give a hint of that.  This is one amazingly turned out woman,  & on an everyday basis!

 "You certainly have my permission to use the photo on whatever you need it for.  Thank you sooooo much!"

I love to see the finished work the way it is worn by the people it's designed for!

Thank you so much to Randa S.  for the photos & permission to post.

Here is the front view:

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White Hot Leather

Sharp Dressed Men

After seeing "Jack Taylor of Beverly Hills" I feel inspired…Custom-made Menswear has surreptitiously become my concentration and it's kind of funny.

Many years ago when I was studying costume design, my teacher Jose Varona was looking over my shoulder while I was sketching in class (was it for Eugene Onegin?) and commented on how good I was at designing for men.  He said  he found it unusual,  he felt most of his students preferred designing for women and thought it was much harder to design well for men.

I felt hugely complemented & I liked designing mens costumes, at 14 I wasn't much into ruffles - unless they were Roberto Cappucci type ruffles ("ruffles-on-acid" was how I thought of them- here's a taste!). Do an image search - you will see what I mean- mind altering!!

So I guess I've come full circle.

And with that in mind…Here's the 2nd of a pair of jackets I did recently….

Can you tell I've become bored with the Wedding Dress? :) will get back to it soon!

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Sharp Dressed Men

Jack Taylor of Beverly Hills

Last night I caught a wonderful documentary on an amazing LA based,  bespoke suit maker. 

The documentary, by Cecile Leroy Beauleiu, follows the 60+ year history of the indomitable title character Jack Taylor,  whose beautifully cut and impeccably styled,  custom made suits have graced the bodies of everyone from The Duke of Windsor, Cary Grant, Robert Mitchum, Frank Sinatra, Jack Lemmon and Elvis Presley continuing right up to Jason Schwartzman today.

The man, from what I can tell, is still going strong today at 94... He is truly an inspiration. The love he puts into his work and the pure joy he gets back from it just takes my breath away!

(& here is a wonderful interview from 2002)

Thank You,  Jack Taylor and Cecile Leroy Beauleiu

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Jack Taylor of Beverly Hills

Cutwork Linen Wedding Dress, Part 4

Getting down to the wire now!   1 week…. excited!!!   (a little stressed, too many little, time consuming things to do on top of real life)  Dress is done so I am back tracking here- it's all a distant memory so I hope to catch here up sooner rather than later.  
Lace is already applied to backing material, so now the inner workings of the corset and the body start going together.   It's odd construction (ie: nobody does stuff like this anymore- it's closer to couture)  since I don't want any seams in the lace past what is absolutely necessary.  There are quite a few more seams on the inside than the outside which I know will complicate construction down the line. I say screw it...I am more than momentarily sorry later, but I get over it. 


Inside Layer, with corset workings:

 Inside Center Front

Side layer:  lace overlay will continue in one piece from front to side,  hiding the side front seams of the corset.  Side is one layer of cotton with silk overlay- to cut down on weight.  It's about 95 degrees and insanely humid in NYC while working one this dress.

Inside Side Panel-silk basted to cotton-from back

Inner layer and  side layer are attached to bodice layer, turned out, and seams folded and stitched to form casings for last two pieces of front boning. (Oops-forgot some pix here- not sorry)

 Inside & outside together- shown from inside.

I want to use some of the edges in the cutwork-to frame the neck accent & add a little interest, so I have not stitched clear through it, I've allowed little bits of it to poke out framing the neckline:

Cleaned up, trimmed and hand-stitched down:

Maybe a little subtler than I expected, but I like it, these are the sort of little close up details that make things special.

Here you can see the single layer sides extending beyond the edges of the lace medallion- the ace edge  was stitched down with a tiny matching zigzag, trimmed with applique scissors, and the remaining was stitched - by hand,  through the chiffon layer only.  The medallion continues up the shoulder straps - 

without a seam that corresponds to the strap seam on the underlying foundation layer. 

All of this I am doing by gut, I do not know what is going to happen with the skirt or the final fit, since I expect the  fit will be different than fit in muslin and checked at every juncture.  I have not worked in fabric in ages so I don't know what to expect and accommodate for at this point.

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Cutwork Linen Wedding Dress, Part 4

Antique Cutwork Lace Wedding Dress, Part 3

In real time I am almost done with the dress.  (I expect to be done by Sunday the 30th,  tomorrow-barring any massive changes /adjustments or fits of complete anality which don't belong in this project!) Anyhow, I know its now a dress. Rather than a bodice and skirt or even a semi-attached…whatever…

But since I started to do this in actual segments, in blog time,   I'm sticking to that!  You've seen the rough layout, but I will refresh you: 

This is just the front panel, the lace will wrap around to the sides.  I plan to make use of some of the oval edges as well as the motif edges. Just not sure which ones or where at this point.

The lace is carefully back stitched down to the layer of twill and silk.  not too close to the edges, since the sides need to be stitched on later.  I've cut the straps in one piece on the lace layer.  I want the motif as continuous as possible. The basting line 3/4" inside the cut edge is the finished edge I've drafted for.  Parts of this are likely to change since fit was done on muslin and the finished piece entails several layers and will be thicker so we'll see…

Thread is wrapped around needle, for portage.  (I watched "In Cold Blood" while doing the handwork- Great movie!  It took far too long for me to get to...)

From the front, stitched in a mocha/taupe along edges of cutwork- I was very lucky to have an old,

old spool of thread that was a perfect match to the embroidery! 

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Antique Cutwork Lace Wedding Dress, Part 3

Summer Special on Custom Made Leather Pants

Custom-made leather pant orders placed for Fall 2010 & confirmed with a deposit between now and Monday,  July 12th, (or until we are booked solid, whichever comes first!) will be discounted 20% from the regular custom-made price.  This applies to any regular custom-made men's pants, in a selection of our very best selling black and brown cowhides.

  Limited Specialty treatments will also be offered during this special,  prices vary accordingly.

(Details on the Summer Special Here)

 

 

& Ladies, womens custom-made Italian Lambskin pants (in our classic clean cuts only) will also be 20% off any orders confirmed with a deposit by July 12th.  A range of colors is available in our Italian Lambskin.

So, avoid the Fall crunch and plan ahead. 

Please call for an appointment or email us for more information.

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Summer Special on Custom Made Leather Pants

Custom Made Wedding Bodice-part 2

First the fun part  of re-doing the front foundation.  (PITA) I go back to the drawing board to my first instinctual direction (doh!)

Re-cut and re-trace one front panel and trace all the boning points.  Using a piece of the stretch silk I apply it to the twill along the boning marks.  Because of the stretch I don't need to worry about adding room- or perfect stitching.   I use a rough cut piece & trim it later.

Because of the chiffon I do have to worry about the fabric shredding if boning isn't pushed through carefully.  This stuff is sharp!  I lightly melt the edges of the boning,  being very careful not to allow carbon buildup.  Which has potential to be ugly & messy at all times.  (At least no bleeding yet,  which is a given.  I don"t think it counts if you don't bleed on it at some point!)

Then the crossways boning, using what is really the wrong size twill tape (because its here) I make casings over the applied boning- it will be inside, under several layers.  Slip in the boning & trim.  This layer is the lining,  as well as the foundation.

 I'm a little off here,  but it ain't leather - I have not worked in fabric in years- not like this!

 Now no puckering or buckling inside when curving with the body.

Sew the straps to the front bodice:

And layout the lace:

Here I am using a medallion from the center of the tablecloth.  Centering & mirroring as well as possible,  the cloth is not symmetrical,  at all.   Overall it is several inches off.  Still amazing  being entirely stitched by hand and washed a bunch.   I eye it.

The center of the cloth was the most stained.  I cut around this where possible,  not too concerned.  The stains add to the depth of the cloth,  I may spray parts of it with some tea when it is done. Depends.

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Custom Made Wedding Bodice-part 2

Buying Status or Luxury?

The other day I was up on 47th street and there was a little crowd knotted up on the street. I worked my way through the group, almost all guys, with their cameras out. 

And there it was; the most amazing apple-green,  iridescent,  two-tone Lamborghini.  The color was out-of-this-world.  I wondered where it was headed,  it had non-resident 20 day temporary tags on it. (Who knew there were such things?  I rarely drive & never in the city any more, so I am well out of the loop here.) It was funny to see it parked in a crowded business district in the middle of the morning, very incongruous,  leaving the impression at it wanted to get into a traffic jam really fast!  (It certainly was creating one very quickly!)

A beautiful vehicle,  fast - and always limited edition, since Lamborghini makes well under 3000 cars in a year.  I do hope it's going somewhere it can cut loose a little!

This is luxury & status,  with that color-bumping it up even more!  A very precision crafted, finely designed, hand-assembled & finished and renowned for  speed & performance.  Each one is test driven on real roads when completed.

So,  if you are able to buy one of these,  you are certainly getting what you pay for….

Then there's fashion.
Unfortunately, all too often the luxury/status/designer/label thing has become just another term for for big marketing & big manufacturing.

Case in point: Here is a used fabric Chanel Camellia.  Just a plain fabric one.  A bit beat. "Pre-owned".

It sold for $249.00.   I don't believe this variation of a Chanel camellia goes for much more than $300.00 new.  It's the tweed and raffia ones that run up to $600.00. Those need to be hand-stitched, at least to some extent.  This one - not so much.  Probably hundreds, if not thousands of these get made. 

There are flower makers here in NYC who do beautiful work of this sort,  mostly by hand & at a much higher caliber than this particular flower,  but they could never demand the price.  Meanwhile the real French flower specialists do work like this:

Needless to say these were not priced like Chanel,  having no "label",  just impeccable quality.

I realize this may not be the best comparison,  Chanel does have a resale value!  There are many "status" companies who market very, very mass produced items as status/exclusive/luxury when the only thing status/exclusive/luxury about them is the price… 

It's unfortunate that in fashion, particularly,  marketing of the label  has become so very confused with the actual quality & exclusivity,  and at the same time it sort of nurtures insecurity…this came into scary clear focus with this article on fashion bloggers,  and the keeping up with the jones-es pressure...Ugh!  I am hopeful that we are starting to move away from this, with so many choices and so many talented, independent creators now easily able to reach their audience.  The dynamic is evolving! 

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Buying Status or Luxury?

Custom- Made Wedding Bodice, part 1

OK. a little delayed in this, but still going to set this up in increments...

Bodice number 2 wins! It suits not only the overall feeling of the fabric, but it also allows for wonderful usage of the medallions.  Number 1 would become a nightmare, especially given my time frame and the very limited hours I have (and want!) to put into this project. I am also a sucker for historical periods & costumes and this is a bit of a Titania variation.

So, for the foundation, I found a nice brushed twill weave cotton that matched the linen beautifully, then I saw a great nude-beige denim that looked incredible under the cut-work, but it was way to heavy weight so I go for the twill.

Back in the studio I re-think this,  I have to find something in that color,  but much lighter in weight. Back out I go & this is my solution:

You can see the subtle contrast between the linen over the twill by itself vs. with a layer of  taupe-y-nude silk chiffon in between the two at the top.  So this is what I'm doing.

The silk-chiffon gets basted to the twill,  this silk has some stretch in it,  (not what I wanted or needed but for the color I will deal. ) It must be handled carefully because the stretch could pucker between the layers if not carefully basted down.

For the front and back panels the twill is cut in two layers one for the outside, which will have the silk & linen over it and one as the foundation layer.  Side panels will be single layer (with silk overlay) & twill is bias cut, for a little extra give & cling.  Here I use the stretch in the silk. (Side panel is shown from the  inside.)

All the basting includes stitching and reference marks.  Silk is trimmed down later.

I had planned on stitching the boning directly to the inside foundation.  This is how that worked out:

Looks OK from the inner side that will be facing the bodice layer (on left), but like hell on the side that will be facing the body. Its not so visible in the photo on the right, but when the foundation is curved as it will be when on the body,  all sorts of puckering appears.  The boning itself is not the good English ridgiline, (is that even made anymore?) but a Chinese version which is a bit less pliable and flexible and will not take on any curve at all when pressed - none of which helps here.

This part gets a re-do.  I had actually thought about doing this a different way at first, then  spaced on it.  So, this goes back to the initial plan.  End of first installment.

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Custom- Made Wedding Bodice, part 1