All Hallows' Eve

If you're out partying tonight, I hope you look as fabulous as this rabbit (sculpture by Darla Jackson). I myself am in my pj's whilst watching Hugh Jackman pretend he is Wolverine (if only!). Now, who's going to have the better night?

My vote is on the rabbit.

As promised, Dress Up Time.

My man is at work and I have the day off, so I thought I'd finally post some photos starring my wonderful new ArtLab pieces, plus some old(er) favorites. Changing my outfit more than once causes me to work up a frightful sweat, so you'll have to be content with my dress form standing in as the model. You can see my shadow in a few of the pictures though, so don't complain (please). You'll probably get the gist of it from the picture descriptions, but all but 2 of the pieces are handmade pieces bought directly from the designer, with all but 2 of the handmade pieces purchased on Etsy.

First up: the lovely ArtLab Space Odyssey dress, styled with various harnesses/accessories. From left to right: ArtLab Space Odyssey harness; ArtLab Couture Bib Noir; ArtLab Clinical White Harness No. 1; Norwegian Wood Elastic Harness; ArtLab Charlie Chaplin Couture Bib.

All the rest will feature the versatile ArtLab Military Skirt No. 1, as well as a basic white American Apparel ribbed tank. As pictured on the dress form, the outfits look mostly spring/summery. However, I would be wearing these over leggings, pants, jeans, or other skirts, and with armwarmers, mittens, and more/non-white underlayers (ie. tank tops, t-shirts, and long-sleeve shirts, especially my trusty treehouse 28 basics). My dress form only has one leg and no arms, so you'll have to use your imagination to fill these details in.

Basic outfit with one accessory. From left to right: Quillinan The Forgotten with Zip Neckpiece; Bonzie Le Coquette Ruffled Scarf; hier apparel Boldt Canvas Carapace; drapey vest by Covet. You can also kinda see my extra-high black monochrome Chucks in the 2nd photo.

Adding one more layer (except for the 1st photo - tank top missing). From left to right: ArtLab Charlie Chaplin Couture Bib; hier apparel Golden Mean Peasant Shift; hier apparel Vock Canvas Armour; Liza Rietz half circle tunic in black.

Adding an accessory. The first two photos feature the Liza Rietz waffle tucked tunic in herringbone, with the ArtLab Couture Bib Noir on the left, and the Attila Design Cown Neck Scarf on the right. The last photo features the ArtLab Andromache's Deconstruction Blanc dress with the ArtLab Couture Bib Noir.

This group features the ArtLab Bustle of Lysistrata, plus an accessory. From left to right: Las Lopez Wood Nymph Point Lace Shawl/Scarf; Attila Design Cowl Neck Scarf; hier apparel Boldt Canvas Carapace.

These are full outfits (minus the leggings/pants/mittens) that I would wear. The black top underneath is the complexgeometries two face dress, and the hoody is The Hoody (a.k.a. the Alexandra Groover 5-hooded hoody). The first two photos feature the ArtLab Clinical White Harness No. 1 over top the cg dress, with the Las Lopez Wood Nymph Point Lace Shawl/Scarf in the second photo. The last photo has the ArtLab Bustle of Lysistata instead of the Clinical White Harness No. 1.

And here are the two looks you would see me most often in, as I tend to be a creature of habit when it comes to throwing on an outfit quick. The first look (and probably the worst picture I snapped all morning) is the ArtLab Andromache's Deconstruction Noir, with The Hoody. The second look (and probably the best picture I snapped all morning) is the complexgeometries two face dress, ArtLab Clinical White Harness No. 1, Las Lopez Cobwebs Shawl/scarf, and my Yokoo East Hampton tote in pumpkin spice and charcoal grey.

Now I have to put all those clothes back in my closet/on their pile. Sigh.

Ball (Anti-)Gown

Excuse my very poor attempts at Paintbrush. I do wish there was a real version of Paintbrush for Mac, as this program is missing a lot of key elements (such as being able to cut around what you want to cut and paste, rather than just cutting out a box shape). Nonetheless, I just woke up from the weirdest dream, and wanted to recreate the outfit my mind put my sister in. We were at a party and she showed up wearing this thing around her that was basically a reconfigured shiny jet black garbage bag, slung around her one shoulder like those one strap across the body backpacks that used to be 'cool' for guys. The other side is supported at her right shoulder with a huge ball of something, like the pendant of the Hanna af Ekström Knot Necklace (cut and pasted onto my Looklet 'sister base'). Then the garbage bag itself is stuffed full of similar ball things, creating this massive blob hanging from my sister's side. And let me tell you, this outfit (or thing, as underneath she was just wearing a turtle neck sweater and jeans) made her quite popular, as she left the party with all her new friends to go for a night out on the town, showing off this garbage 'masterpiece'. I was not amused.

But if you are amused by this, I will sell you the rights for my Ball (Anti-)Gown. Don't want to keep this stuff all to myself you know. Ah, dreams.

Swedish knots

Can anyone read and translate Swedish? Whilst Googling Josefin Strid, the artist behind the incredible zipper dress that Jaana posted today, I came upon a website full of incredible Swedish designers. I'm really going to have to take a serious look through all the designers (and probably hurt my head calculating Swedish Krona to Canadian Dollars, and trying to use some sort of translation aid), but my pillow is calling. So I shall just post this incredible textile necklace that immediately caught my eye, and its matching cuff bracelet, both by Hanna af Ekström. Because I believe I need them to live. Not really, but I spose you never know when a knot necklace and/or bracelet could come in handy. I'll see you, Kotyr, tomorrow.

Superblogger? Not quite...

Oh hurray! I was just mentioned in Fashion Platz's newest post "Search for a Superblogger". Check out this great article here, and my itty bitty screenshot below. Can you see my grey-ness? Hot diggidy blog indeed!

The Envelope (Pullover), please

Finally! I slept through the night (minus turning off the man's alarm clock), and I woke up just before noon. And it was glorious. Too bad I have to go back to work in about 3 hours. All I'd like to do really is curl up with a good cup of chai, or hot chocolate, or both, and my new library acquisition (the beginning of the Hellblazer comic book/graphic novel series). But I'd like to be wearing this. Not really sure if it's intended to be menswear or womenswear, but it looks ever so cozy. And I just love anything by butterflysoulfire. And it's now available (albeit in a slightly different form) on Doshaburi here.

mydearthing, Winter 09 Preview

I absolutely love these adorable new black dresses (and their photos!) from mydearthing's just-posted preview of the Hindset Winter 09 collection. She's also having a special spend over $100 get a free bamboo/organic cotton t-shirt deal this weekend. I'll take one of each - now how many free tees do I get? Oh, and she's also made a gorgeous hand dip-dyed reversible cardigan. Sigh.

By the way, you need to check out the black and white hand drawings that go with each of the new listings. And I love the idea behind this collection, copied from the Etsy listings:

"The Hindset Winter 09 Collection is a response to the excitement/ anti-climax that the holidays can present. Clothing worn during this time needs to be comfortable, sexy and versatile, with little surprises that make them noticeable. I chose to do a collection of clean, modern dresses and shirts made entirely out of various kinds of black fabric. The outerwear and accessories are varying shades of black and gray. The result is an elegant combination of textures which is anything but limiting. These garments are meant to be layered with other pieces from this collection, in addition to objects from your existing closet. Those layers can be shed during the season to reveal a unique core. So, whether you have a great party to go to or not, you will have a fantastic dress to wear anyway!"

I myself would have a hard time to choose between the top two pictured dresses. Hmm...

Canadian Thieves

Positively wonderful find via The Coveted today. Thieves is a Canadian label by designer Sonja den Elzen, who uses eco-friendly fabrics to create a collection "with a mix of fine tailoring, easy draping, asymmetry and the texturing of fabric." Um, yes, please! You can pick up a Thieves piece or two in the online Thieves Boutique, which also carries other designers keen on sustainable design. I for one am in love with the incredible Thieves hemp/tencel Siberian Vest (top; also available in Plum or Java), and the Thieves tencel/wool Hooded Tiaga Dress (middle; also available in black, moss, or dark grey). This dress would probably be my first pick as it would be the most versatile, with the pointed shoulder detailing, unique v-empire waist, cowl skirt (reminiscent of my Liza Rietz scooped cowl knit gown), 3/4 sleeves, and high neck/hood. Sigh. And tencel/wool is by far my newest favorite fabric find, as it's like jersey in its drape and softness, but is warm because of the wool content (and it doesn't pill!). The Thieves hooded Horn Vest (bottom; made of organic wool suiting) is also quite an eye-catching piece with the stuffed details and pointed cap sleeves. I would love to layer this over a top or two. Sigh.

In other news, I had the greatest time throwing together a 'mish-mash' outfit (as my man calls my style), consisting of my new ArtLab Military Skirt No. 1, The Hoody, Norwegian Wood leggings, extra-high black monochrome Chucks, Johnny Cash t-shirt, and brown Pretty Raccoon owl print scarf. Next up: I must try the skirt with my hier apparel plum Vock. I'll try to take dress form pictures of both these mish-mashes on Saturday.

Miss Mail Lady, I think I love you

I have just received the best package of all time. 'Sure', you're saying, 'it's probably all the popsicles and cough drops talking.' Yes, I admit I'm still ill and have only had sufficient sleep for 2 days in the last 4 days. So, I might not be the best person to make such a statement. But perhaps I can convince you by the fact that the entire package consists of ArtLab pieces. I will also convince you with photos. However, since I'm still ill and have only had sufficient yadayadayada, I will not be appearing in the photos. Perhaps later on, if you ask nicely (as I have obviously gotten batteries for the crappy camera now).

1.

This is the (top of the) long-awaited ArtLab Space Odyssey dress, which is, in fact, both the first strapless dress and the first full-length dress I have ever owned. Patricia tweaked the design a bit for me, resulting in a gorgeous heavier weight brown jersey, with a brownish grey coated fabric harness piece to accentuate 'the girls' (closes with snaps in back). Fits ever so perfectly, and goes to the ground. Sigh.

2.

My very own ArtLab Clinical White Harness No. 1. The industrial strength elastic and snaps are incredible. And the straps extend past the waistband into little loops - love little details like that. I might even wear this with the Space Odyssey dress, since that harness is a completely separate piece.

3.

The ArtLab Military Skirt No. 1, front (left) and back (right). I realize that my Ikea duvet cover kind of swallows up this skirt. But trust me, it's gorgeous. And has such a nice weight to it (I know I've complained before about all my skirts being too heavy, but I obviously gravitate towards the weightier ones). Patricia made this nice and asymmetrical for me. I'm going to have a lot of fun layering this one, especially with my new found love of great leggings, and my rediscovery of my extra high black monochrome Chucks.

4.

And lastly (last because it was labelled as '4' - really, Patricia individually brown-paper wrapped each piece and numbered them!), this ArtLab bib piece is perhaps my favorite (actually, I can't decide which one is if I have to). This, I guess, would be the prototype of the popular Couture Bib No. 2 Noir (4 have sold in the last couple days!), as it only has an elastic to go around the neck. This is the most amazing accessory. I was wondering how it would sit with just a neck strap, ie. if it would stick out at all at the bottom. So if you were wondering as well (as the Couture Bib No. 3 Cocoa Brown is constructed similarly), rest assured that the wonderful weight of all those gorgeous pleats and felt backing keep it close to your chest, unless you're bending over, doing jumping jacks, etc. This is such a great statement piece, and adds instant flair to any top. I'm going to be wearing this with the Space Odyssey dress (sans harness) as well, and with both my Andromache dresses. Ooo, and with my Liza Rietz Waffle Tucked Tunic (which is of course herringbone, and not white) Sigh. I couldn't be a happier sick girl.

Liza Rietz, F/W 09/10

Okay, after this I'm going to sleep. But getting better can wait a few minutes, as this is the moment I've been waiting for: the unveiling of Liza Rietz's new F/W collection! And I'm simply stunned. The collection is, of course, full of the breathtaking architectural details which Liza's work is recognizable for. However, I think her designs get better and better with each collection. And with a muted palette of sueded silks, wools, and cottons throughout, each custom made piece is just perfect for fall weather! Sigh. Although, as you know, each of Liza's pieces are truly seasonless - I can definitely see each of these carrying through to spring and summer, far away as those seasons are, and into any year with the high level of quality that comes with each Liza Rietz piece. As Liza herself says, this collection is indeed "timeless eloquence."

By the way, if you missed reading my exclusive interview with the lovely Liza last month, click here to catch up on what is behind this genius designer. And visit her Etsy shop to see the full pictures of each piece, and to order something special for yourself. I'm going to have a hard time choosing my favorite (although immediately my eye goes to the Points Dress, pictured bottom right). Sigh.