ebb-fade-pivot-axis

I haven't posted any complexgeometries lately (i.e. for over two years, apparently) for various reasons, the most recent being that I'm scared of buying new things, I have no money, and the last few sales have tended to be at the worst times possible. But I currently am wanting no less than four cg pieces and am setting aside a portion of my tax return to possibly maybe get one. In no particular order:

1) The ebb tunic, i.e. the dress version of the wave t. I have worn my two wave t's (or whatever they were called in 2010) to death (literally - they both have multiple holes in them), and I would love a 100% tencel dress version for the summer. But, it's $182.

2) The fade vest. It's 100% silk gauze, one size fits most, convertible, perfect (or almost, at $325 - apparently my words two years ago still ring true). I'm pretty sure this is one of those pieces that will magically not be on the website when there's a sale.

3) The pivot dress. This reminds me of my beloved mydearthing Carly Dress (which I first met almost four years ago!), just longer and 100% tencel. And I've been going through mydearthing withdrawal for quite some time. At $165, for the amount of year-round wear I'd get out of this (and the addition of a new colour to my wardrobe), this might be the piece I go for in the end.

4) The axis dress. I'd probably end up getting the tank version instead because the dress is form-fitting and only available in two sizes (small and medium), but 100% cotton has never looked so elegant. The dress is $169, and the tank is $139.

Now, after a week-and-a-half-long absence, it's time to return to school...

Yeah We Know

My new favorite editing outfit:

OAK cardigan (sorry, it's no longer available) + Dinosaur Jr. tee, in grey with black print/logo (from amazing show in NY last month) + mydearthing Panel Skirt (if you don't have it already, you'll have to wait one week for the Etsy shop to re-open) + complexgeometries mega hose + monochrome Chucks + long flowing hair (which I will mourn for months, if not years, if I actually cut it as planned)

This outfit not only gave me the will to sit in Starbucks for nearly two hours (something I never ever do anymore), but also to edit nearly twenty consecutive pages of a Master's thesis for said nearly two hours. I must say, however, that the mesh part you can fold over or wear like a strapless top on the cg leggings is quite (i.e. immensely) annoying. If you walk at all (or at least like me), it simply does not like to stay folded over (as mesh over mesh just slips and wiggles until it's not mesh over mesh), nor does it like to stay up over a bra. And due to the doubled fabric, you can't just discreetly yank it down/up back into place - you have to go lock yourself in a bathroom stall and totally reconfigure everything from the waist up. Meaning that, if you're not willing to give up your coveted seat and/or possessions to walk to the much-too-far-away washroom, you end up stuck with this bunched up mass of mesh fabric under the bust, not unlike a ruched waist cincher that you never wanted to wear. Sigh. At any rate, it's a good thing I purposely bought my Dinosaur Jr. tee a size larger, as you couldn't see the bunched-up-ness going on underneath it. Also note that the bunched-up-ness that you do want going on in the leg area does not act as any type of mosquito repellent (and may, in fact, be an attractant). I did say this was a 'favorite' outfit, right?

While I'm here, I will also share with you the fact that the Dinosaur Jr. tee is hands down my favorite non-metal infused tee ever. I may or may not have worn it for longer than 24 hours at a time in the recent past/present. Anyhow, I'm off to edit another twenty-or-so pages today so that I'm officially more than half way done this little freelance job. Wish me luck.

P.S. Because I'm sure I've done a great job of selling the cg mega hose, complexgeometries is having a 48hr online sale starting tomorrow (July 12th) at 12PM EST. By using the code 'twentyfive', you'll get 25% off. This is for all stock, not like the random sales they've been having on select items lately. Check it out tomorrow, and be warned that all sales are final.

I'm going hunting

You know what's better than having your hair freshly coloured and your fringe perfectly trimmed? Having your hair freshly coloured and your fringe perfectly trimmed whilst listening Björk. Sure, I'm going to miss that little bit of eyebrow that went missing in the process, but I'll live. Anyway, today is brought to you by the end of Season 4 of The Wire (heartbreaking) and the first batch of S/S 11 pieces in the complexgeometries shop. Word of advice: don't set your heart on anything made of silk chiffon. Best to keep your money in your pocket for when the mydearthing shop opens up again. cg sure sorted out the draped tank problem though. I, of course, have my eye set on the tencel piece, being the (one size) blast tank (below). And, yes, the website still states that the pieces are made in Canada.

Complex sales

Super sad event yesterday - my last visit to Nokomis, which closes its doors forever next week. I have a hard time talking about death or serious illnesses with people, and apparently I transfer this awkwardness to the death of local businesses, as I didn't say one word to the owner about the fact that this was the end of the best store in town while scouring the racks one last time. Sigh.

Anyway, the closing out sale at Nokomis brought me two unexpected things that I absolutely couldn't pass up, seeing as they're both complexgeometries (...and I felt bad for the little guys). First is the cg super tube. At $40 (reg. $110 on the cg online shop), the many ways in which I can wear this lovely mix of baby alpaca wool and silk is well worth it. I think I'll likely favor the skirt option.

Second is the cg truth t. I believe that this was basically the cover piece of the cg A/W 10 collection (named 'In Search of Truth'), but it was one that I didn't really take a second look at with the whole cape thing. But at $29 (reg. $149 at Reborn), and in the lovely Nokomis changing stall for the very last time, I have happily discovered an extrememly versatile piece that I'm going to have a lot of fun playing around with. 

My only concern: hanging this baby to dry. Methinks I may have to wear this to The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, the taping for which is my newest acquired tickets for my NY trip. It's going to be a whirlwind seven days! I also think I really need to post some things for sale. Though I could never stick to the 'one in, one out' policy, I could at least try it for a bit. I'm thinking of listing a Bonzie velvet bolero and the Mandula shorts for starters...

P.S. Congrats to Liza Rietz for being Etsy's Featured Seller!

Song for the Mute, et al.

Today's post took a little bit of a journey to get to. First, I stopped by NOTCOUTURE, as I do, and clicked on a thumbnail for a post from Italian online mag We Are Selecters. This led me to peer around their site a bit, which led me to an entry on the fantastic third collection from Australian menswear label Song for the Mute, which comes from the duo of graphic designer Melvin Tanaya and Parisian-born designer Lyna Ty. I somehow didn't notice that there was a video for the A/W 11 'Milieu' collection tacked onto the bottom of the WAS post, and I was wondering where the photos for the new collection had come from (as they aren't on the label's website), so I went to the SftM Facebook page to search further. This in turn brought me to one of my more recent favorite blogs, scoute, who had (also) posted the Milieu video, which I will now insert here for the simple fact that it is pretty.

Doesn't that make you want to go to Australia right now? And perhaps have one of those huge wetsuit zippers to spice up your regular ol' black sweater? Anyway, I apparently haven't read scoute for a few weeks, as I hadn't seen the post on Sruli Recht. Though I had only written a couple of posts on Sruli (the main one being here), I immediately had the two-fold reaction upon seeing his name of 'Oh!' and '...', as I think a lot of his work is incredible, and yet I still don't know how to feel about his use of particular 'materials'. You'll have to go here to see the video that i-D magazine did with Sruli as I can not embed it here, but I do recommend it for anyone interested in the designing and pattern making process. The video is intended to be a sneak preview of Sruli's upcoming menswear A/W 11 'When Gravity Falls' collection that will be shown at Paris Fashion Week, though all we see is the initial construction of a jacket (featuring half-size dress forms and laser cutting pattern machines) that may or may not be in the collection. Though I will never be in a position to buy a robot to cut out my patterns (and really, I think my tendency to be lazy is more compatible with Julian Roberts' method of pattern cutting), I'm excited to see Sruli's upcoming laser cut collection.

By the way, in case you've made in this far in the post and you want a couple more links to click on, you may be interested to know that, starting tonight at midnight EST (i.e. New York time), complexgeometries will be having a one day (i.e. 24 hour) sale of 40% off their entire store. Just use the code 'onedaysale'. I highly recommend the Wave T for $82.20, or the Wool Stifler for $202.20.

(Photos of Song for the Mute's A/W 11 collection are actually via Dapper Kid, which I found via the SftM Facebook, even though I could've just as easily saved them from WAS. Now I will try to calculate the mileage my fingers just clocked in coming up with this post...)

I'm covered in bees, Part II

I've noticed the recent (and exciting!) trend of coated fabrics as an alternative to leather, and I really hope that more designers jump on this bandwagon (remember that glorious glazed cotton piece by Mr. Pugh?). Canadian designer Sonja den Elzen's Thieves' current collection, for example, has some lovely organic cotton pieces that are treated with beeswax (though I must say I'm a bigger fan of the men's pieces than the women's, this time around). The fabric supposedly both wears and is to be treated like leather. Most of these waxed pieces thus cannot be machine washed, but can be spot cleaned by rubbing more wax on them. While the prices are also comparable to that of leather pieces, I think it's definitely worth investing in a great piece that is so environmentally conscious.

A second example of coated fabric was found last night, when I rediscovered the work of Carrie Hayes at Ukamaku, a wonderful new online shop that features Canadian designers. While I'd more readily go for one of the printed silk dresses from her S/S 10 collection that was inspired by Icelandic geology, this jacket, made of polyeurethane coated linen (in the most perfect shade of green) is rather adorable (and a great deal at $80 CDN, from $295).

However, while I'd prefer to buy a coated clothing item, the time has come for me to buy a new bag. For the other day, I had to stand at my apartment's front door for too many minutes, digging in my once beloved handmade cotton bag (which was last year's Christmas present) for my keys. The thin inner lining simply couldn't handle more than 11 months of me shoving my sharp keys and sharp cornered books into it. Sure, the outer layer will hold up for a bit longer, but I simply can't be standing outside, degloved in sub-zero weather, fishing for keys which I won't have the agility to use be the time my frozen fingers have found them. Sigh. All is not lost though, as moop has also discovered coated fabrics! I've had their highly functional and aesthetically pleasing Letter Bag in my favorites for quite some time, but now that they have it (as well as some of their other styles) available in a waterproof waxed canvas, I think I must cave. And, as in honour of Cyber Monday, with the code 'GRAYFRIDAY', you/I get 10% off your moop order. Yay!

Oh, by the way, here are some more Cyber Monday codes/deals you may want to know about. Yes, I know that Cyber Monday is almost over (or long over) for some of you, but I had a truly busy and life changing day. You see, I've finally found out that I have a legitimate knee problem (and have since being a pre-teen) that can be relatively easily corrected, and I'm on my way to becoming a bona fide grad student. Yippee!

- hier apparel: Today and tomorrow, save 20% with code '20off', AND get a free $25 gift card with any order over $100, or a $50 gift card with any order over $200 if you mention the November Promotion in the Note to Shop when ordering. That means that the gorgeous new wool wrap is essentially $103 instead of $160!
- complexgeometries: Today only, 20% off everything with code 'monday'.
- Glamorous Amorous: Ending tomorrow, 15% off your order with code 'NOV15'. Meaning that the Nichole de Carle piece I still have my eye on is only a few dollars more than my weekly acupuncture/beekeeping session. Sigh.

(And yes, I realize this post seems rather disjointed. Such is the result of writing half before life-changing appointments, and then the other half after said life-changing appointments. My apologies.)

Credo

Though outside is frightfully cold, I have to admit that this afternoon off has been rather lovely. First of all, I pulled together a very mydearthing-heavy outfit which might just be my favorite layered concoction yet. I should also mention that each and every piece in said outfit is an absolute cold weather/layering fiend essential. (From top left to bottom right: Patricia Ayres Artisanal Wool Coat, mydearthing Alpaca 4 Way Shrug worn as a cowl, complexgeometries leggings (which aren't available anymore, though the new long line leggings look pretty sweet), mydearthing Surplus Wool Warmers, James Anthony Apparel custom Augustus print Cut Out Dress (I think I have the only one, so the print shown and linked here is not the same), mydearthing Sheer L/S Sweater worn over top of the JAA dress, and mydearthing Panel Skirt.)

Then, after getting some yummy things from the farmers' market and visiting my sister's booth at the craft fair (go here after tomorrow to see listings for whatever she doesn't sell), I've been repeatedly listening to Credo, which was Monday's part of Lincoln Center's White Light Festival that I was very sad to not be in attendance for. Someone must've recorded the live online stream, because somehow I have gotten a hold of mp3 files for each part of the performance, which featured Kjartan Sveinsson and Jonsi from Sigur Rós (in separate works), backed by the Latvian National Choir, The Hilliard Ensemble, and the Wordless Music Orchestra. Though the songs have nothing to do with Christmas at all, the spectacular sounds of what must've been a magical night for those involved have gotten me in the spirit already. Topped with a chai and some Hershey's Special Dark covered pretzels, I don't mind that I have to stay indoors today at all.

By the way, Credo should be available as an archived stream on WQXR at some point. Go here (later) to see if that stream is up. Or, if you don't mind compensating myself for shipping and a CD-R, something could probably be arranged. It's really quite beautiful music, so it's definitely worth a listen.

(Photo of rehearsal of Kjartan's "Credo" from Sigur Rós' Facebook)