wish list

i wish someone would buy me 100 custom illustrated calling cards from anna of rifle paper co. it's only $100 for 100 cards, $65 for the custom illustration and $40 for the hand lettering.

pretty please?

easily charmed

i'm not quite sure why i found this simple addition of a drawer to an ikea chair so charming, but i'm itching to do it myself. step-by-step instructions here.

jackie kennedy

(found here via here)

wear your name

somehow i missed seeing the light speed blouse while shopping on the anthropologie site last night. yeah, i think i'd wear it.

from the sewing machine to the computer

for the first time in weeks, i had the entire day free. i had hoped to start on a few of those dresses in my previous post but i really need a dress form and i'm not interested in going into work today. maybe it's time to think about buying a dress form for myself.

so, without a project to work on and despite the gorgeous weather, i spent this afternoon investigating the new york public library's digital gallery's amazing collection of images. for anyone doing visual research on anything, the nypl digital gallery has to be your first stop. it almost makes me want to do my thesis all over again. you can find everything from yiddish theatre placards to elevations of middle- and upper-class new york city apartments to portraits of irish prisoners. as a student of costume history my first stop was the fashion archives:



these are two images of imported french fabrics by e. meyer & co. from paris (1930-1931). i love the long slim lines of the 1930's.



i enjoyed the descriptions of these suits by b. kuppenheimer & co. "illustrating a new century of clothing-radically different from the old". i particularly liked the confidence of b. kuppenheimer who says that these class A suits "cannot be appreciated until they are seen. they must be seen".

from the computer to the sewing machine

these are just a few of the things i'm hoping to make this spring.

the first dress is the picka shift dress from marimekko, a finnish textile and clothing company established in 1951. i have loved their fabrics for years but didn't realize that they sold clothing until i browsed their website. there's a marimekko concept store on the upper east side in nyc and though i'm sure i won't be able to purchase anything, i'd love to touch all the lovely fabrics. i'm going to try to find a striped cotton sateen to make my copy.

the other three items are from anthropologie--another store with beautiful fabrics. i love the racerback detail on the dress. i think i'll be making a lot of things with racerbacks this spring.


(follow-up to the shoe post: none of the shoes i ordered from zappos fit. i tried the clarks erda sandals in a 7 wide but they were still too big. i'm considering getting them in a 6.5. i did, however, FINALLY buy the boots i've always wanted:


i wore my new blondo boots last weekend to nyc. i was hesitant to be breaking in new boots when i knew i would be doing a lot of walking, but they were great! it rained all weekend and my feet were dry as could be. the zipper dug into my ankle a little but i think it just takes getting used to. too bad it's now 70 degrees and sunny!)

a blog entry about my feet

so, i've been having this horrible pain in my left foot for two weeks. my soon-t0-be-an-athletic-trainer sister tells me that i am suffering from plantar fasciitis and, as far as i can tell, this seems to be the case. i stand at work (not unusual for most people) and the pain in my foot is aggravated by all of the short bursts of walking i do to and from the sewing machine. of course i know that i should be wearing more supportive shoes (thanks, dustin) so tonight, after a particularly painful day at work, i have decided to do something about it. many of my sewing friends swear by dansko shoes and though i find them very attractive on most people (danielle!) i just can't see myself wearing them.

here's what i wear almost every day:


i LOVE my flats. over the years i've had many pairs and many styles but none have offered the support i need. they have also always been cheap shoes that i wear for 6 months and throw away. however, after shopping online for 2 hours, i haven't seen any flats with arch support that i like. i've decided to purchase arch support inserts and put them in my flats and see if that solves part of my problem.

however, i know that for real relief, i must bite the bullet and get myself some better quality shoes. i like the styles of clarks and naturalizer. looking forward to the spring and summer, here's what i bought tonight on zappos.com:

these are indigo by clarks smooch. i have a couple of pairs of cheap gladiator-style sandals that i wore last summer but, again, they have hard, hard soles and offer no support. though these sandals don't have specific arch support, i think the better quality construction and materials should help.


these sandals are also by clarks, the erda. i'm not much for heels (see: standing at work all day) but i have always lusted for heeled sandals (see: blog entry janurary 28th) and wouldn't they just look lovely with the navy blue and white summer wardrobe i'm planning?





i know we're quickly moving from winter to spring, but i've been looking for boots to fit my wide calves for so long that i just wanted to try these on.
and last but not least, these heeled oxfords (also by clarks). i've been admiring the trend of heeled oxfords for the past year and have yet to find a pair. though these shoes have a 3" heel, i'm hoping that all of the customer reviews are correct and they don't feel that high. i'm certain that there will be plenty of opportunities to wear these with tights before the weather gets too warm (spring comes late to northeast pennsylvania).

so there we are. i'll most likely be returning three out of four of these shoes but that's the thrill of the hunt, right?