i'm wishing, i'm dreaming

 

some of the things ive been taking in, all via my tumblr (where you can also fid the sources for these)

im really into summer/ summer camps and uniforms, especially the freaky power dynamic when they are combined. So far i have a two piece playsuit and a collared shirt patterned and ready to go, and i think that's all I'm going to plan! trying to just let the ideas come and get away from planning things to death (2013 resolution?) anywho here's a preview of that shirt, it's super roomy with a box pleat in back, and sweet with a rounded stand collar. there's lots of add ons for it, like homemade wooden buttons * featured below*, front pocket, long vs. short sleeves...

fun & games

i found this cute list thing that pairs birth dates with colors and birds, apparently at 5/29 i'm a dark warm grey (#585352) and a dacelo novaeguineae, a laughing kookaburra. pretty cute i think!

goals for the new year

1. Get involved in a few communities, online & off.
im generally a very secretive and introverted person, but i know that getting my face out there will do no harm. im starting a school club for fellow craft sellers, and im making a point of going out to events that im interested in. Ive also started frequenting the mori girl lj again (im kidcaella!) and also posting on burdastyle. relating to goal #4, i might start posting outfits on lookbook or here, but im not sure if i can keep up with it.

2. Fill out the shop with a few more styles.
right now there are pants and dresses, but id like to fill it out and have all the categories covered. im finishing up the samples for a sweet button down shirt, that can be ordered short or long sleeve. it has a cute rounded collar that springs open for a chill pajama look <3. im also thinking about a long pleated skirt with a removable jumper bib, and a short wrap skort thing. ive been daydreaming about more out there sorts of stuff ( playsuits! tabi slippers! >o<) but those might be experimental one offs, or stuff i make for goal #4.

3. Approach some brick&mortar boutiques.
there are a few stores here in philly that i think would be great to show my stuff in, but ive never done this before so its pretty daunting! but i know my work can hold its own against everything ive seen in these stores before, so im feeling *sort of* confident.

4. Beef up my own wardrobe with handmade stuff.
wearing your own work is the best publicity, they say, and is probably true. ive always been complimented while wearing stuff i made in the past, and told i should make and sell it. ironically, id been working so hard on filling the shop out i didn't have time to make stuff for me, but ive made some stuff now i can wear to school and out&about AND then have a shop to direct people to. ill be wearing the prototype shirts, which ive made up in a short sleeve fish print, and a long sleeve tomato&dot print, so cute. i also want a pair of "The Scholar" culottes and im sure ill be wearing the new skirt prototypes as well. maybe i should post outfits here?

5. Expand my makers skills.
I was formerly a fashion design student, and literally had 2 years of exactly the same stuff at the same skill level, and was so bored i felt like walking into a brick wall might be more productive. ive recently switched to studio arts, and im SO excited for all the awesome stuff im gonna learn!! small metals and printmaking are on the must list for next semester!

6. Do some more of my hobbies.
ive been so busy sewing (which is still my favorite thing to do.) i haven't really had time to tend to my other hobbies. i love baking, which ill be doing some of this weekend, forest exploring (hard in a city), gardening (near impossible in a city x_x), bike riding, drawing and more (i have an endless amount of hobbies!)

do you have any goals for 2013?

co incidence

i had always planned to open my store before the coming spring semester, and, i have <3 but i didn't intend for pen&planchette's opening to coincide with the start of a new year!

it seems unreal, but i do now sell my stuff out of penandplanchette.storenvy! Here's some of the goods I'm selling, i also have pants that aren't up yet but will be soon. an ill be getting back to those soldiers very soon.

even more apprehension

was all geared up to shoot today, list and all, but then i hit a wall. several very badly lit walls. there isn't a good place to shoot in this entire house, what a bee in my bonnet. anyway here are a few ok photos i took of the first piece i tried out, The Witches Garden smock, inspired by a recovered book from my childhood. it has two bound pockets and a tie neckline, it's very roomy and fun to spin and pretend to fly in. this is a style ill be stocking in a few different fabrics, this on is a very loose and floaty cotton in a grid weave.

a questionable charm

this is my charm necklace i wear very often, and get a lot of questions about. like any charm anything, the objects on it invoke a certain nice feeling, each targeting a certain sense. the jaw bone is visual, the colors and textures are gorgeous and bring me back to when i lived on a farm in rural delaware, where I found this bone (i added the silver teeth later), and the tassel is for touch, it's lovely silk that is so wonderful to feel slip over your skin. i used to have a tiny silver bell for sound, but it was lost... so now i am waiting for the charms for hearing, scent, and taste to reveal themselves.

on a more apprehensive note, i haven't photographed anything, but I'm starting tomorrow because of the nice sunny days that are coming in. ive been inspired by very minimal editorials like the one below from a mori girl magazine, and want to set the mood with minimal hand held props and possibly by doodling on the photo after. it's all in the air now