Sprucing up the Atelier

I just got finished cleaning up our Etsy shop for the Feather Felt Earrings.  Whew!

Hopefully this will make it easier to order from, though it seems like there are still some possible improvements that could be made.  These are definitely some very cool earrings and I fear my marketing is falling short of conveying that.

Any suggestions?

Philadelphia Museum Show #2

 

Here is a second batch of images form the Philly SHow.  In the top one you can see how the booth was set up.  It was a bit rough and tumble, but we got everything there on our flight from SF.  Now that they charge for extra bags (we paid $80 each way to check in 3 large duffles and a rolling suitcase), you can check up to 10 bags per person for a fee.  After the 2nd, it goes up to $100 per bag, but I suppose you can weigh that against shipping and see how it works out for you (speaking of-people in the past have sworn by Fedex, but I haven’t tried it yet).  At least we don’t make glass/ceramics!  What a nightmare the shipping must be!!  (Hug your local ceramicist/glassmaker today for the extra effort they go to to get there)

 

Here is an image form the side.  We suspended square wood poles from the basic 10×10 which was crazy wonky (ordered from onsite services).  A bit pirate-style with all the rope, but the square poles really grabbed the felt pieces so that I could have most of the piece showing without it slipping off.  Lighting was a catastrophe: the lights we ordered from the show services were very hot and located in the front of the booth, making the back a bit cavernous and blinding people if they turned around.  It made the whole thing look a lot like a stage and many people asked when the puppet show would start!  Ah-life as art and art as life….

 

Learning really peal out with the aperture settings on the camera (finally!)-here is a spooky image of City Hall at night.  Yellow is such an weird choice for the the clockface!

Side image of City Hall in all its spookiness.

From the back of the cabana.

Ready to chat with anyone that wants to talk about felt, fashion, art, modern art, wearable art, wool, san francisco, puppet shows or all of the above.

We waited very long to book our hotel room, so Priceline still came through for us, getting us a hotel in the city center, so as to  be close to the convention center.  It was a bit pricier than I would have liked, but half priced ain’t so bad, so we had a room at the shi-shi Westin.  All was great except for the bed that was like sleeping on a sack of bricks.  Here is the view from out window of a mysterious dome.  Upon reflection, I think it might have been the hotel’s gym-something I should probably get a little more familiar with….  

The hotel was in a fab location: far enough from the hotel that we got to explore the city from “HQ.”  Sansome street was full of shops/delis/restaurants and coffee shops, so it didn’t take going far to find what we needed.   We found many amazing restaurants around the corner on 20th street-you had to walk a bit to get off the beaten path, but there were some restaurants that were just gems down the road.  I don’t remember the name of the places that we ate at, but here is my best recollection: if you walk as far down as possible, there are Christmas lights over the sidewalk and across the road is another place with a rabbit with a pig’s tail.  This little spot is run by a chef-the food was spectacular and very affordable, considering (most entrées around $20).  Up the road there was a spectacular Italian restaurant.  From outside, you could look up into the place and it had a sweet Italian name like Far Dolce or La Bella Vita…..again, one chef and if we could have eaten the plates, we would have!  Many restaurants in Philly are BYOB, so you can (and should) bring your own bottle of wine, if you want to have it at dinner.  We also went to Mama Palma’s off 23rd, which had worked up quite a reputation on yelp for controversy and pizza.  Good pizza-get there before the dinner rush!  I love feretting out great grub and we got really lucky in Philly!! 

 

So cool- air blades hand blowdryers in the hotel lobby bathroom!

Perhaps next post I can take a look at some of the other great felt artists who were at the show! Stay tuned for Philly #3….

Slow Fashion

I’m a big fan of the Slow Food movement which is having it a great big shindig next weekend here in SF.  Check here for details.  On thier site they say that they aim ” to build a food system that is sustainable, just, and delicious.”  Slow food started in Italy as a reaction to the unhealthy frenzy of fast food.  As a way of life, it is unhealthy to zip zip everywhere in a panic and we can get far more done, get greater reward from it and generally enjoy ourselves more if we JUST SLOW DOWN.

So, it was surprising to see this article yesterday about “slow fashion”.  Click here to read the original article.  To quote:  “Fast fashion is nothing but a superficial cycle of rehashed ideas,” says Zowie Broach of Boudicca, a proponent of the movement. “True creatives forge a world of their own. A great designer’s work is instantly recognisable — this is ‘slow fashion’.”

I think our felt fits into this notion of slow fashion.  Eternal pieces made to last and defying the whipperwhorl of seasonal trends.  Now, if I could just learn more subtlety……..

More articles about Slow Fashion can be found here:

‘Slow fashion’ is a must-have … and not just for this season

“‘Slow fashion is not just about responding to trends,’ says Adili chief executive Adam Smith. ‘It is a mentality that involves thinking about provenance and buying something that won’t look unfashionable after one season.’”

Keeping ahead in fashion’s slow lane

“Even more important than creating signature hits, these [slow fashion] brands are resolutely focused on a single style and point of view for their products. Fashion brands, particularly fast ones, love a seasonal flip-flop. One minute they espouse aggressive sexiness, six months later it’s nerdy intellectualism, then a dandy becomes the man of the hour, all of which creates seismic shifts in the clothes.”

Tracking the Trouser Cycle

“It says a lot about fashion today that the promise to produce the same reliable thing is a gimmick worth marketing. But thanks to new technologies and the pursuit of new young customers, fashion trends are moving at lightning speed these days.”

 

Live from the Apollo

We’re broadcasting in stereo-phonic trans-cortex audio-visual sound.

Just finished up all the new photos and have started a little blog dedicated to unique shawls available from the shop….a little online portfolio of some of the more spectacular pieces.

You can see it:  HEREHEREHEREHEREHEREHERE

Leave a comment if you like what you see!

 

London Calling!

We are super thrilled to announce that we have our first shop in London!!  Yipee!

Here is a link to their blog, Designova, with some of the exquisite items they carry in their store.  It just makes me swoon…..