If you haven’t entered yet, please leave a comment on this post (following the instructions, of course). Become a fan of Chickdowntown on Twitter, a friend on Facebook, and leave another comment to let me know. Send a friend and get another entry!
This is the last day – we’re holding the drawing at 12 PM tonight, so get those entries in while you still can!
Good luck!
So I’ve been writing for this little blog for a year and a half now (probably closer to 2 years if truth must be known), and in the beginning I had no comments. Ever. None, zilch, nada, zip. For more than a year. Then, maybe about 4-5 months ago, I started really working hard at this ol’ internet blogging thing – i.e., trying to network, joining groups, commenting on other people’s blogs…and as a happy result, finally receive feedback and comments from my readers (not a whole ton, mind you, but 1 or 2 per post). I love hearing what other people have to say, and responding on their blogs, finding new interesting bloggers…what a world out there.
But the major drawback of the internet is that it’s anonymous – you can spread nastiness quite easily, and do it without fear of repercussion. Take my first nasty comment (above) on my post about how to DIY your own Katherine Hamnett tee using handcut thermoflex vinyl lettering. If the commenter had specifically said what they didn’t like, I’d be able to respond in kind, or at least be like, okay, that’s their opinion, perfectly legit, fine, whatever.
What’s hideous? Are you an SATC/SJP-hater? Are you saying my final product pales in comparison to the original? That I look hideous in the photo? (I’m probably with you on that. I’m no model.)
But wow. 2:45 AM may not be time for Anonymous’ close-up.
My first negative comment! I’m finally somebody!!
I’m not looking to encourage nastiness or negativity, and I don’t want (m)any crudeness on my blog.
How do I deal?
Bwahahahaha it’s my blog, I’ll DIY if I wanna.
xoxox
Carly
Leave Comment
Jelly Garcia (love the name) is a Japanese brand that is one of my faves. I always stop by where they’re sold when I’m in Tokyo. The pieces are drapey, multi-functional, soft, and unusual, mixing bohemian and industrial sensibilities. (more after the jump)…
Here is the woebegone English description (directly from their website): “Jelly Garcia was launched in 2002 for the autumn/winter collection in Japan. The brand aims to establish conceptual ideas as the inspiration for cloth making. The notion of elegance is explored and constantly experimented, mainly through the military style. Different concepts are incorporated for each season to create a piece of clothing that has always an “elegance factor”.
“The anatomy, also the study of materials is particularly considered at the pattern making stage. They are then put under production often using materials that are invented originally or exclusively manipulated in our own method to create the classic design.”
Designer Hideaki SAKAGUCHI was born in 1973 in Tokyo, Japan, and after briefly working for DC meson, founded EXPERT WORKS TOKYO co. ltd. He then established his own label “Jelly Garcia Premium Wear.”
“Our aim is to create “the most beloved piece of garment” in wardrobes.”
Qojelly (with the “Q” pronounced like a “K”) is kind of the little sister to Jelly Garcia (“Ko” means “child” or “younger/smaller” etc. in Japanese). It’s a little more youthful and is smaller in scope, putting out fewer pieces each season, and offering more accessories and shoes. Below, some photos from some past Qojelly collections:
A pair of Qojelly shoes I bought last year:
This is the Jelly Garcia dress I bought last time I visited 55Hotel Boutique at LaForet Harajuku [a huge shopping plaza mall in the heart of Harajuku in Tokyo]. I love the industrial feel to the straps and the heavy-duty canvas fabric couple with the beautiful asymmetrical hem and feminine cotton gauze lining. It’s adjustable and can be configured into multiple styles (which I love – that was one of the premises of my old line RIVETED when I launched it 2 years ago). A couple photos below:
Configuration 3: Outer layer open, one side of inner layer spread open and wound around neck, other side laced under the outer layer strap to tie at back.
I wish I were more photogenic so the true beauty of this dress could be seen. I was even wearing it when I had a fashion sketch done of me at the tents at New York Fashion Week this past February. (Chambord was doing this free promotion thing.)
I had belted the dress above with a thin studded black belt.
It is indeed “the most beloved garment” in my wardrobes. (And when I put it on to take the photos my son said “Oh Mama! You’re wearing a pretty dress!” Testimony enough.)
-Carly J. Cais
UPDATE (8/2009): Jelly Garcia Premium Wear has now changed its name to “The Dress & Co” (though QoJelly, retained under The Dress & Co label, remains the same. They will apparently be showcasing a collection to an international audience in New York in October 2009 (though not affiliated with Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week).
Leave Comment
I have a love/hate relationship with Jo-Ann Fabrics. It’s the only fabric/notions store around; it’s more affordable than my local Mill End Store; it’s easy to get to. It also never seems to have exactly what I’m looking for and the notions are mostly for crafters: cheap, fall apart easily, aren’t made to industrial standards or to withstand heavy usage (don’t even get me started on their selection of snaps, buckles, and sewing machine needles for leathers…inevitably Dritz and inevitably crappy), and, compared to what I could be spending at an online wholesale place (or in NYC on fabric row!!), fairly expensive. I can definitely blow through $40 with almost nothing in my basket. $5.95 for a zipper???? 2″ wide sew-on velcro for $7.99 a yard?? I mean, come on. I understand they are a retail store and need to set the prices as such out here on the West Coast in order to make a profit…but with no alternative supply store here it makes my habits very expensive. It’s also populated with…erm…people who usually have a few decades on me and are thronged around the quilting section. But it’s always there when I really need something – and I can often improvise in their findings/notions section when I can’t find what I want.
My other quibble with them is that the majority of the free project sheets around the store are usually for projects that don’t seem…particularly fashion-forward or youthful. How to make a quilted tea-cozy, for instance. A how-to sheet on attaching 1/2″ red loop fringe to the bottom of your kid’s jeans. I guess they know their current market (which doesn’t seem to be people who are interested in trends or fashion-forward designs).
On Tuesday, Feb, 17 G-Star RAW presented their latest collection in a spectacle of a show at the Hammerstein Ballroom, and yours truly was in attendance, courtesy of FashionTribes.com. The huge ballroom with its echoing ceilings and gilt pillars was packed with guests, including Micha Barton, Natascha Beddingfield, Miss J. Alexander, Robert Verdi, Shenae Grimes, and Tyson Beckford. On a stage separated by a translucent curtain, live classical music was played on two grand pianos, while male and female models alternated stomping down the W-shaped runway. The latter half of the show was marked by actor Benicio del Toro
appearing onstage and reciting as spoken word poetry, the lyrics of Joy Division’s song ‘Candidate.’ G-Star chose the song based on its connection to the film Control from renowned Dutch photographer/director Anton Corbijn, who curated G-Star’s Spring 2009 advertising campaign. Del Toro’s art intervention transitioned the show from traditional catwalk to a G-Star finale, as ‘Candidate’ played in the background, reached a crescendo, and ended the show with all the models standing behind the translucent curtain. (More after the jump…)
The pieces showcased in the collection represented G-Star in its purest form as a luxury denim brand. NY Raw Fall/Winter 2009 magnified the brand’s signature detailing to an unprecedented level; each garment, created by the in-house atelier, blended the finest material, sophisticated design, and extreme utilitarian functionality. Though I‘ll personally be skipping the drop-crotch denim carpenter harem pants, almost every single coat (both men’s and women’s) was to die for. Innovative dying, overdying, and washing techniques had produced amazing denim fur (!) and varnished denim. Extensive bindings and buckles, high-stance necklines, oversized pockets and straps gave the collection a rugged, industrial feel. The multi-belted trenches, aviator jackets with goggles attached to the hoods, plethora of pockets, leather detailing, peacoats, high-shine denim, chunky knit scarves – all evoked an Aviator-meets post-apocalyptic feel that seemed on-trend and current in today’s market.
Below, see all the women’s looks and a few standouts from the men’s:
-Carly J. Cais
Leave Comment
Yup – when it rains, it pours. Yet another mention of my dinky little blog out there on the WWW. (This time I had nothing to do with it…they found it and reposted it on their own.) And this was on FashionIndie…one of the hugest fashion sites there is! I was so proud…but I can’t take all the credit! I wrote the original post for FashionTribes.com, and it was due to the wonderful talents of my editor Lesley Scott that my bumbling loquaciousness was crafted into a really slick DIY post. Thank you Lesley for all your hard work! Read the original post here.
Leave CommentLike beaded waterfalls draping the body, James Murray Jewelry ranges from the fun and flirty to the dark and gothic. Designer James Murray has been styling photoshoots since the early 1990’s, but couldn’t find the jewelry he envisioned while on set. This lead to him creating his own, and from there everything took off. He began making pieces for friends and family, and growing interest lead to him selling in a variety of retail stores and creating jewelry for runway shows such as Vera Wang, Rebecca Danenberg, and Gottex. Featured in Glamour and In Style magazines, he has also made pieces for pop star Nadia Ali, Cindi Crawford, Good Morning America, Jacqueline Smith, and Lara Flynn Boyle. The multi-talented designer is currently working on some jewelry for a film that is slated to begin filming in august.
“I am fortunate to have so much to inspire me,” says James Murray, “New York itself is an endless source of beauty – its glittering buildings, restaurants and the men and women who live here. I’m fascinated by the complexities and contradictions we see every day! The vegan who chain smokes, the hotshot lawyer who takes off in the middle of the day to finger paint with her child, the frenetic creative director putting doing a million things at once while her smile flirts to a man across the street whom she won’t see again – it’s great.”
“Women in New York pay a lot of attention to their accessories even when they are simple. Adding something that is classic, like glass pearls, but amping up the glamour factor is what I like. You can wear the Anna necklace to the ballet or with your t-shirt and jeans out to dinner. The “rules” for what is street wear and what is evening wear have become a lot more fluid and my designs are in concert with that. A crystal Burst bracelet may be worn next to a Cartier watch or a Sanskrit tattoo—and both are great.”
And not everything in the collection is high couture. Many of his pieces are now on sale for $25 and under, like these beautiful Swarovski Crystal and Glass Bead Earrings (Blue), $18 (above). See the full collection and shop at JamesMurrayJewelry.com.
Leave Comment
OMG!
I almost died when I saw a feature on yours truly at my style and DIY inspiration – OutsaPop Trashion.
I looove Outi and all her inspiring projects – this lady is incredibly, incredibly talented – and she constantly posts inspiration from across the web. She’s a big supporter of indie designers and DIY afficionados…right up my alley! Definitely check out her website if you have the chance!
Thank you, Outi, for the feature! I’m thrilled beyond all words!
-Carly
Leave Comment
Another Feather blog featured me and a post I put up previously about the beautiful bullet quartz necklace I bought from them. Read the post here.
They wrote: “Thank you carly for featuring a AnotherFeather necklace in your blog. you are so adorable.”
Haha! You’re welcome!
And definitely check out the Another Feather blog for an inspiring collection of the beautiful, ethereal jewelry pieces owner Hannah creates all with her very hands.
Thank you Hannah!
-Carly J. Cais
Leave Comment
Images courtesy Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week
Thursday, Feb. 19 saw Mackage’s presentation of their Fall/Winter ’09 Collection, a study in the juxtaposition of the opposing elements of light and dark, matte and shiny, and masculine and feminine. The Canadian design duo Elisa Dahan and Eran Elfassy added sleek separates and chic accessories to the only outerwear brand to show at the tents during Fashion Week. The slim-fitting, warm coats central to the line continued with their approach to “outerwear as an integral element of fashionable dressing.” Those familiar with Mackage noted their signature one-sided scarf collars and garment-washed leather in many pieces; wool and leather over-the-knee boot-covers, zippered gloves, and tight-fitting leather pants rounded out the looks, imbuing them with a tough chic sensibility. Of special note was a black-on-charcoal wool/cashmere double-breasted plaid coat, with a high collar and full pleated skirt, cinched by a black leather corset belt; a tan fur bomber jacket with caramel leather sleeves paired over slit cocoa skinny jeans a knee-high riding boots; and an off-white hip-length puffy parka with wool cable-knit trim, topping off white leggings and off-white leather boot covers.
Prior to the runway show the brand was also involved in sponsoring a coat drive February 13 through the 22nd in conjunction with Housing Works. New Yorkers were invited to donate coats at any of the Housing Works Thrift Shops’ seven participating locations. In an effort to increase awareness and raise money to support this initiative, celebrity fans of the line – such as Maggie Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, and Lindsay Price – donated autographed Mackage coats to the boutiques, which were auctioned online at Shophousingworks.com from February 7-19.
For more runway photos see http://mbfashionweek.com/newyork/fall2009/designers/mackage/
-Carly J. Cais
Leave Comment
Carly J. Cais I am a DIY’er, designer, sewist, maker, and marketer. Chic Creative Life is where I share what I do, and help others bring their unique style into their own lives.
