stitch and bitch

WE MADE IT OURSELVES

This week as promised we got into some fabric manipulation, in the hope of coming up with something to wear to our forum on craft and technology at the Melbourne City Library on Thursday night next week.

While we may not have come up with the perfect accessory for our next public appearance, we did have a lot of fun, and managed to come up with another six exhibition ideas over the whirr and hum of our Janomes.

first stop some old school ruching

then we did some random circle work

and finally some of the thermoplastic techniques of our sensei.

pleats please!

Yes we have gone gaga over fashion this week again.
With our trusty DIY Miyake-style book at our side and seated alongside bolts of fabric, string, plastic tubes, scissors, needles, thread and a ball of elastic bands, we're ready to see what our fashion sensei has in store for us. We invite you to take a quick trip through the latest Miyake couture and ready to wear collections with the ladies of handmade life.

www.isseymiyake.com
www.pleatsplease.com

nip/tuck

BOOK OF THE WEEK

So after you've been wowed by Miyake you may experience a vague queasiness that always seems to accompany inspiration. How can you ever hope to replicate those pleats? Trust us, help is at hand.

The HML team discovered this bible by Colette Wolf several years ago and it is never too far from the sewing machine. Yes we too dream of a life where we have enough time to produce 10 fantastic outfits each season that means we never have to walk into Target for trousers ever again.

The Art of Manipulating Fabric is a no frills instruction manual, complete with grainy black and white photos and line drawings. Like a commonsense cookbook in the kitchen it may be the only textile manual you'll ever need (that and your Readers Digest guide to sewing).

Chapter 6 is all about pleats. Flat pleats, partial pleats, projecting pleats, accordion pleats, wrinkled pleats and double controlled pleats. Not for the faint of heart!

We can't guarantee you'll be able Miyake your frock in the comfort of your own home but you will achieve something magical we promise.

turn to the left...

SHOW OF THE WEEK



Abstract Mode: Geometric Fashion and Textiles.

We know we brought this show to your attention on Friday but we find ourselves so besotted with this exhibition we want to double the encouragement for all fashionistas to make their way to the second floor of the National Gallery of Victoria. We revisted the show on Saturday after battling the swarms in Pisarro. His paintings were good (lets face it really good) but they were no match for John Galliano for Christian Dior. Our hearts belong to textiles, what can we say?

We breathed a sigh of happiness as we gazed lovingly over Issey Miyake's genius pleats, swooned at the Pucci print, the Amish quilt and the perfect Commes des Garcons ensemble as designed by the brilliant Rei Kawakubo.

Clearly we can't get enough of the stuff. Get on down St Kilda Road. And dress for the occasion.

NGV International 180 St Kilda Rd. Show runs until Nov 12 (yes that is a long way off but if you don't go now you'll forget about it and the next thing you know it's Christmas).

So spoddy

WEEKEND SPODTACULAR

This weeks spodsploits involved getting the Right Honorable John So into some new mayoral robes. While he struggled a little with the get up at the get go, he soon warmed to the idea that not only he but his entire entourage could enjoy a little winter warming in the SPOD. .. Perfect for those outdoor meet and greets.


We also headed out to Footscray where three of the loveliest ladies of Lonely Planet got spodded. If you look closely you'll see that they also managed to get three plastic mechanical spotted deer to join them for the shoot. A special shout out to Rose, Katie and Janey D. Readers note, no animals were harmed in the filming of this entry.

mental health day

THIS WEEK WAS ABOUT

Regular readers well know that we are knee deep in Spod. All roads lead to Spod. Every waking moment is all about getting the Spod show ready.

Spod Spod Spod Spod...

Well except when we take a mental holiday which we did one day this week.

We managed to catch a classic take away lunch in Footscray, consuming probably the finest vanilla milkshake ever made. We did intend to make our way into the city to see the new Marian Hosking show at Gallery Funaki but only made it as far as St Kilda Rd. We got sidelined by two beautiful shows at the NGV:I.

The first was Abstract Mode: Geometric Fashion and Textiles. We never thought we'd see the Mondrian Dress by Yves Saint Laurent (1965) in the flesh. It is more beautiful and more well made than even we could imagine.

The second was American Beauty: Photographs of the American Social Landscape. What an extraordinary show. In the age of digital photography sometimes it's good to go back to the craft as it once was. When the photographer spent time looking. Each one a poem. Like this one by Jose Lopez Southern Illonois 1975.

Tonight team HML is off to the movies to see the latest Yash Raj Bollywood extravaganza Fanaa. Directed by Kunal Kohli it stars Aamir Khan last seen in Mangal Pandey (2005) sporting an incredibly excellent moustache. After his succession of blockbusting historical epics it will be interesting to see how Amir fares back in the modern age and out of a dhoti. Weirdly enough they filmed much of Fanaa in Poland so we'll be curious to see how it looks. Films like this are medicine when life is too hectic and there is no end in sight. For three hours (including intermission) we get to travel.

We promise to get to the Hosking show next week. It runs until June 3

Funaki Gallery website
National Gallery Website

gimme an "H", gimme an "M", gimme an "L" !!!

WE MADE IT OURSELVES

Pom-Pom necklaces...
they say it's best to work to your strengths, and with this in mind our jewellery making this week featured more precious yarn than precious metals... still the results aren't half bad, especially if you're feeling the need for a cheerleader related accessory to finish off an outfit.