Canadian Smocking! and link to tutorial...

Lest you be given the impression that I've suddenly become obsessed with Star Wars, allow me to explain. See the amazing visual texture of the blue robe in the photo??? THAT, my friends is Canadian, or North American smocking, and that is the focus of my obsession. It's a method of gathering the fabric on the back, so that it gives that rumpled, elegant texture on the front. For a tutorial on how to do it, visit Savvyseams (I also borrowed this white smocking sample image from their site). I LOVE the result of this technique, so stunning...another site to check out for guidance on how to create this gorgeous texture is the Padawan's Guide (I borrowed the pic of Padme, above, from that site).

Cool New Fashion Venue

Allow me to introduce: Design Hive, debuting this holiday shopping season in Cambridge, MA. Design Hive is an exciting, new indie designers market that I will be selling at this season. The Design Hive will feature a rotating collection of clothing (new + vintage), jewelry, accessories, home décor, and art by different emerging artists every Saturday starting 11/1 through 12/20.

Please stop by my booth on these dates to see my latest items:

November 29, December 6, December 13 and December 20

I'm excited about their fashion-centered focus and can't wait to bring my latest snazzy batch of fancy clutches to share...for more information, visit their WEBSITE.

Industrial Strength

Apologies for the interesting lighting, but I had to share my newest vintage machine. I'm still investigating its pedigree, but you can see just looking at it, that it's an antique. It's also a heavy duty industrial, so it will open up whole new worlds of project possibilities...and hopefully I won't accidentally sew through any fingers because boy oh boy, does this sucker move FAST. Its external motor (not pictured) is larger than my head.

It joins the 1970's olive green Kenmore, the 1920's black Singer(rewired as an electric), the Blue 1950's Good Housekeeping, and the "Green Machine"--1961 Singer Spartan that I do most of my work on--in my vintage machine stable. The oldies are so great, because they do such good work and they last FOREVER. I can't wait to break this one in on a pile of vinyl!

Sometimes a song is all you need

I am always listening to music when working, and no, it's not all the cool, hipster indie rock a person would expect if one had ever gotten an eyeful of muchacha K. Don't let the fashion mullet fool you. For example...Pocketful of Sunshine...or One Step at a Time or how about American Boy. Yeah that's right cool people of the world...muchacha K is rockin' the pop tunes in the studio this week, and she's not afraid to tell it.

Oh don't worry...one of these rainy days I'll pull out "You Just Haven't Earned it Yet Baby" again...in the meantime, I have happy pop tunes inspiring me to keep stitching.

Life A.M.

After 2.5 months of planning and promotion madness, the Concord Arts Market Fall Preview Season is finished...sigh! What's a person to do next? Well it's Fall in NH...I went apple picking. The original goal was actually pumpkin picking at Lull Farm in Hollis (Hollis is so pretty). But it seems I got lost in this apple orchard at the Farm instead...and that apple was delicious!

FINAL WEEKEND! and Arts Concord...

This Saturday, October 4th is the final weekend for 2008 of Concord Arts Market! Come out and support the market on it's final weekend...then spend the next several months getting as excited as I am that we're coming back next Spring!!! Yeaaah! Well, I know that's what I will be doing anyway ;) And I'm already working on securing the space.

Once the market is over I have another project or two up my sleeve. One of them is this new website, Arts Concord, where I am compiling not only all of our local arts resources, but will be featuring profiles of local aritsts, and neat emerging and underground events alongside the big stuff, and the classics. I think Concord's got an actual arts "scene" gelling and it's easier to see the progress when the news is all in one place!