It wasn't easy for me to create a dress from Scrabble tiles. Words, yes. Square tiles, not so wonderful. But I'm trying to loosen up and not take everything so seriously. And making a dress without smooth edges is one way I can force myself to lighten up and just have fun. I must admit, the dress may not flow or drape perfectly, but it does make me chuckle!
Can you tell what game I played today? And guess what? I even won! *grin* The idea for this dress came to me when I was thinking of words to describe what it's like to find the perfect dress at the store and try it on. I love to shop, but the highlight of any shopping excursion is trying on a dress that looks great. It doesn't happen all the time for me, or even most of the time, so when it does -- I gotta have it! I haven't really had the chance to shop since I moved to the big city this summer, which is a shame, because there are a lot more shops here! But someday somehow I know I'll get to go spend the day at the mall. And maybe the perfect dress will be there waiting for me!!!
It wasn't easy for me to create a dress from Scrabble tiles. Words, yes. Square tiles, not so wonderful. But I'm trying to loosen up and not take everything so seriously. And making a dress without smooth edges is one way I can force myself to lighten up and just have fun. I must admit, the dress may not flow or drape perfectly, but it does make me chuckle!
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This is one of the cool national costumes I found when I was researching online. I added my own touches to the finished dress, but overall the look is the same. She even has the long braid (in this instance, it's made from embroidery floss.) Some of the trim showed up white in the photo, but it's actually silver. There's just something about her that I find intriguing. I wonder if it could be because she looks like she came off the set of "Lost Horizon"?
I have the feeling I may want to prune my dress artwork before the year is up (giving some away or selling some), because my room won't be able to hold it all! However, I'm finding it very satisfying to make these lovely little national dolls, because I know that since they will all be in one book, I won't have to find a place to put them once I'm done! Glancing through my Fashion Show pictures for the past three years, my eye was caught by this shot taken of my 2010 costume entry modeled by Ashley. She struck such a pose here that I wanted to see what special effects would capitalize on that. I found several that looked promising, but once I tried the neon effect, I was sold! She looks almost like she was etched into the background, making every flower of the print stand out. This really turned out beautifully, and I'm proud all over again that I made this dress.
This fairy dress was actually one of my first forays into impracticality. It's a dress that can only be worn once or twice a year (Halloween, Ren Fairs, etc.), so it was very far down my list of clothing to make, even though I had the design and fabric chosen. My daughter talked me into making it anyway, and I'm so glad she did. Not only was it a hit at the fashion show, it also adds a lot of excitement to my closet! It's 1:30 am and I'm wide awake, trying not to run to the bathroom. *sigh* Yes, I've managed to catch another flu bug. I know it's a different one than last week's, because the symptoms aren't the same. Enough said about that! Anyway, laying in bed feeling sorry for myself, I noticed that my lamp made an interesting reflection on my blue plastic bin across the room. It looked like a dress! I wasn't sure my camera would catch the shot the way I was seeing it, but I think it came pretty close. Do you see a dress?
It's weird to post a dress I didn't spend time making myself, but I've got to learn to loosen up as an artist and take art where I find it. And I don't think God will be upset if I use a reflection as my dress for the day. He doesn't worry about copyright issues. This invitation size card was such a delight to make! I started with my Sizzix doll body template, then used the leftover cutout piece to draw my Renaissance dress and get it the right dimensions. Then I used that pattern to cut the dress from some Fairytale glitter scrapbook paper I had on hand, added a stomacher, a gold ribbon sash, a bead necklace and ring, and a conical hat with veil. The background paper was also from the Fairytale paper set, which kept the Medieval look. The entire card took just over an hour to create, but the results were worth the time. My only problem now is that I'm not going to want to send her to anyone -- she's too pretty!
I found this great clipart silhouette and wanted to make it as playful as I could. When I took it to the Picnik section of my Picasa program, the first thing I did was turn it into a duotone using red-orange and yellow. Immediately the dress popped off the page! Next I used the special effect that added the soft frame, which brought the dress forward into the spotlight. Finally, I added the gritty feature, so that it didn't look so pop art-ish. I'm very happy with the finished print and delighted to be exploring more of my program than I ever thought I would!
It's funny. As a photographer, I considered myself very artistic, utilizing many composition and lighting techniques in my photos to gain an effect. But it seems that I was still very locked into a realistic mode, because I never would have dreamed of venturing into the special effect arena with my photos before this challenge. How wonderful to throw off that restriction! To celebrate Thanksgiving, I chose a party dress silhouette from my clipart collection, then played with it in the Picnik section of my Picasa program, adding text and inverting the image. This particular image has been in my mind for some time, but I didn't know how to accomplish it with my photo programs. How good it feels to finally be able to digitally create the look I wanted! I really like the results! Here's to a great holiday for all!
My friend was back with more produce today! I'd never seen red bananas before. They're tiny and cute, and I couldn't resist. I had to design a dress with them! Adding some red grapes for the bodice completed this adorable look. The bananas aren't ripe enough yet to eat, but I can't wait to try them out and see if they're as sweet as their yellow counterparts.
I don't own a lot of red clothes, even though red is my favorite color. It's not a color that lends itself to every style design, so I'm careful what pieces I add to my wardrobe. So it makes me very happy to create red dresses for this challenge, especially since red dresses are the hardest clothing to design well. The idea for this delicious dress came to me after a good friend shared treasures from her garden with us, giving us this lovely romaine lettuce and celery. The tender celery stalks provided the frilly bodice to this gown, while the romaine made a tiered full skirt. Two sugar snap peas completed the dress as a coordinating sash at the waist. Too pretty to eat, this dress would be delightful to wear!
Sometimes my day ends up too busy to create what's in my mind to do. I planned on making the blouse for yesterday's design today, since I found the perfect fabric for it in my stash. But most of our household is still battling the flu, so when we weren't napping, I was making meals for the rest of the invalids. However, creativity can handle a change of plans much better than I can, and being in the kitchen so much today inspired this yummy salad dress. A little Ranch dressing, and it'll be gone! Today I really wanted to see if I could design an outfit for me that incorporated both medieval and modern design elements. This ensemble was the result. It includes an updated medieval overdress fashioned into a crop jacket (using a rich autumn brocade with gold trim) complete with 14th century false sleeves. Under it is worn a Victorian blouse in a gold chiffon trimmed in gold lace at neck and wrists, and a modern narrow skirt done in burnt umber knit. I fell in love with the total ensemble and hope to be able to make it soon. Of course, I'll need to invest in some brown leather knee high boots to finish the look, but surely that's not a problem? *grin*
Yes, my practical side won out today by having me create something I can actually wear. But I don't mind, because I'm looking forward to the finished outfit! |
Denise FeltI took this challenge in the hopes of expanding my creativity as an artist. Already I'm seeing art in a new light -- as something to do for fun and not just practicality! Archives
December 2015
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