Skip to main content

Valentino....and so much other stuff.

Hope 2011 has started well for you all.  I have declared it "Year of Me!"... that is, that I will do things that will suit me and my son, not everyone else.  I tend to be the person who will go to everything she is invited to even if it means getting tired or putting myself out in some way.  We all do this, I'm sure but I need to pull it back a bit.  I have 3 legal battles going on (all personal and tiring) and my study, keeping the house and garden (ha) neat and tidy and of course the most important; my son.  So starting with holiday to Adelaide to see my girlfriend and her family; I am practising the "Year of Me".  Actually this is not that big a sacrifice as 1) They have a new home.. with a pool. 2) it is over 30 degrees there and sunny 3) it is STILL pouring rain nearly every minute here and not the least because 4) her husband is also on holidays at this time and is a fantastic cook!  They have been away from Brisbane for much of the last 15 years so since having my son, we have not got to them often.  We will visit the Pandas in the Adelaide Zoo and see some of the Tour Down Under (cycle race) with my friend entering my son in the kids race! I hope to see some thrift shops and fabric shops but I don't really need anything (but always on the lookout for shoes I can't live without!)

It was a little while ago, but on clearing my desk I found the entry ticket to the Valentino Retrospective that was in Brisbane from 7 August to 14 November.  Of course, I managed to nearly miss it by not remembering to go when my son was at his Dad's (one day a week) or after tafe finished but before school holidays started.  I went on the last day and only remembered at lunch time.... without a doubt, many others had done the same thing and there was a line a mile long!

There were many beautiful dresses including the black number Julia Roberts wore on winning her Academy Award, the dress Jacqueline Kennedy married Onassis in and many beautiful creations.  You can see the collection if you google Valentino Retrospective (I've tried about 15 links but they are archived and don't work).  It is worth it but you can't see the detail of the work... truly amazing!  Every stitch on couture is hand made ... NO sewing machine work at all. (the workshop did purchase sewing machines one time but they were sent back more than a year later unused). Each and every rolled hem stitch, ruching, seams, beading etc are all done by hand.  As one who sews, that was what was awe inspiring to see ... the detail and work is overwhelming and the photos don't do it justice. I was thrilled to see the work even though some was not to my taste, other pieces were.  I was thrilled for the opportunity and even though the designers do the design work and have to know how the fabric will behave etc, etc you cannot go past the many women that toiled over these works of art.

Other things that have transpired ... I bought a subscription to Ottobre Magazine starting in February 2011!  I do like a lot of their designs and it is so cheap!  I think it was about $26 AUD for the two issues ... well that's not that much when it would be the same to buy Burda off the shelf (if I could find it anywhere!!).  I think the Burda subscription is too expensive for me and besides I can get it for free at the library!




Finally also have some photos of the dress I made for my friend's 50th birthday.  None of me wearing it as it makes me look very round! But it does look great on the hanger and with someone a few kilos lighter (me soon hopefully) it will look great!  I have had many favourable comments however and the satin was a great choice for this dress.  It swishes about ever so lovely and is really comfortable to wear with the elastic waist. (this was very handy as my friend had fantastic finger food and champagne all night at the party!) I have to make a sash belt for it or get some contrast ribbon as it really needs something... any ideas?  The colour is probably more true of the top photo. Just a reminder... the fabric was $3 from the church jumble sale and the pattern was .20cents or .50cents!  Bargain.




Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The saddest dress, then a few more.

Well hello. It's been a while. It was 8 months from the last post to the previous one to that and it's a bit longer this time. The last day I wrote was 10 Jul 2021. On 12 July my son and I were finally seeing Tim Minchin  after booking it before we went to Europe at the end of 2019. It was going to be April 2020, but changed a few times and although it was a school night (year 12 for Alex) we went for dinner and sat in the show. My Mum had gone to hospital that morning and my sister was still at the hospital with her. Just after interval I got a message on my phone, "get to the hospital now". So we raced out and to the hospital where. although it was a lockdown and no visitors allowed, all 10 of us were allowed to see Mum as she was end of life. I won't go into the whole thing but Mum didn't die that night, but because of lockdown, we were not allowed to go and see her until a week and a half later when we were allowed just to discuss palliative care. By the n

Bubble O'Bill: take 2; bikinis

With some time at home, I've been sewing a bit lately and I finally had time to make the bikinis for my son's girlfriend for her birthday. I cut them out in February from some scrap fabric my friend gave me. I made my son some swimmers   and I see someone has some for sale if you feel you are missing out 😆.   I had to piece together the bikinis as I had nearly nothing left over. I made the top back and the briefs from the free Madelynne Noelle pattern and the front top from another Madelynne pattern I can't find a link for it but was Mallory Lane. It's a basic top with scrappy back. If anyone wants it I have the download. Looks like it's not available any more.  All this piecing and mixing was purely from fabric limitations. The other fabric I mixed it with was ombre from aqua blue to purple and matched well. I asked Liv if she wanted a frill down the centre front to break up the print as I wasn't sure she would, but she loved the idea, so on the went. She tr

Emergency Rashie KS2600

I go to aqua aerobics 3 or 4 times a week and I like to wear a rashie as it's outdoor and it's a bit warmer in the (not very cold usually but really warm this) winter, and I can't reach the spots for sunscreen. In Brisbane you must wear sunscreen every day even in winter as we have the highest skin cancer rates in the world and I don't want to be any more wrinkly than I am! Anyway, I went to the Gold Coast to see my friend for a few days and I left my rashie at her place and I she wouldn't get to Brisbane for a few days so I pulled out KS 2600. I saw this pattern listed on a pattern site and then became obsessed with it till I got it but this is my first chance to try it. Isn't it lovely! I wanted to test it to see how the fit was. I've made McCall's 7417 a few times but it's long between the shoulder and the arm for me and even though I have made a few it wasn't ever a great fit but it is a quick sew. The pants on the McCall's is a good fit