POUR LA VICTOIRE

I'm looking forward to a multi-week whirlwind of family visits starting with my Mom's arrival later this afternoon. I can't wait to show her around our new home and neighborhood and allow myself to feel like a tourist in my own city. I hope to check out the botanical gardens, which I've never done, and spend some time at Jean Talon and in Old Montreal, where I love to visit. Hopefully we can just relax and walk and cook and eat, my ideal life.

In anticipation of family time, I've been working all week at getting a package together for my favorite Ottawa boutique, Victoire. It will be done and sent next week and I've just finished some dresses for them which I made up in hand-dyed linen. I think they're quite lovely and I wish that I had just a little extra fabric to make one for myself - oh the plight of the designer.

When that's done I'm planning on taking an indefinite sabbatical and closing my Etsy shop for a few weeks so I can devote my full attention to the aspects of my business which ultimately get pushed aside in favor of day-to-day tasks. This means that if you want anything before then, please let me know. I'll be going on vacation as early as May first and for sure by the 13th. And just a reminder to anyone who may not know, you still have three days to take advantage of 15% off everything in my shop with the code: anemonefriends

Ok, back to work, I hope everyone has a lovely weekend and maybe that sun will finally shine as both the season and the weatherman have promised. xo.

DYEING PART I

My Mom taught us how to tie dye when we were pretty little. She taught us a lot of things: how to dye, how to make paper, how to sew and cook and grow things in the earth. How to draw and invent ways to entertain ourselves. How to make whatever we wanted from the abundance of raw materials around us. Looking back at this early education it's no wonder I've ended up doing what I do, I've been doing it since I was a child.

I love dyeing. I love just plunging in and waiting and wishing and not knowing the results until the grand unveiling at the very end of the process. I love the unique irregularities that come with dyeing something by hand. I like creating my own patterns and then cutting them up and reconfiguring them in new ways.

This is the first bit of dyeing I did yesterday. I'll finish it with an over-dye in pale grey to keep things subtle - no need to look like we're off the the North Country Fair. And then tomorrow, maybe, I'll cut it all up and begin to sew.

FRIDAY AFTERNOON KINDA DRESS

Coulda fooled you, right? I know, I know, this doesn't look like much of anything, but it's actually a fantastic dress I'm working on. The pattern is complete, fit is great and now I just need to work out finishing details. I have 6m of white linen that I'm going to tye-dye in grey this weekend, then hopefully next week I can sew and be ready to ship out 4 of these pieces to Victoire in Ottawa (oh hai Victoire, remember me?)

I also just ordered some new cream tencel twill with which I will be able to make this and another style for sale in my Etsy shop.

One day these promises of putting new styles in my shop will actually come true....I swear it!

I'VE JOINED THE TWITTER FOLD

Yes, Twitter is now a part of my life. I've added a link to the right if you wish to visit or to follow me, enjoy!

"FASHION IS THE ARMOUR TO SURVIVE THE REALITY OF EVERYDAY LIFE"

Do you think this will come to Montreal?

OBSESSION

As I obsessively window shopped the internet all weekend (busy weekend), I kept coming back to this one fantastic jumpsuit on Etsy. I loved it, but it reminded me of something too, which I couldn't seem to put my finger on.

Finally today it hit me - Jean Paul Gaultier Fall 2010 Couture! I've had this image sitting on my desktop for almost a year now. Of course it just makes me want the jumpsuit more, but I'm saving for a vacation.

Seriously though, someone needs to buy this, it's just that good.

Jumpsuit from Persephone Vintage on Etsy, J.P.G image from style.com

SNEAK PEEK

Surprise!

We were so happy when Designsponge asked us to share our home with them & their readers. Though it still feels like we just moved in and that our place is in a state of constant flux, it's lovely to invite others in to see where we work and live. Thanks to Designsponge for thinking of us, thanks to Marc Rimmer for the photos and thanks to my hub Raymond for generally being so talented and famous and basically wonderful in every way.

Click here to see the full post.

ALL QUIET

Today, tomorrow and Sunday are work work work work work days. I have a ton of stuff to do and, for the most part, have the house all to myself so I am putting my head down and partying through it** until I am finished.

-However-

I urge you to come visit again on Monday when I should have a fun little surprise to share with you....stay tuned.


**Party through it - a term coined by my friend JT to describe any situation where one must follow through and have fun in the face of adversity.
ie. "I can't believe Freddy Mercury's risen from the dead to perform a personal concert just for me yet here I am - sick in bed, puking, completely unable to move. Oh well, better just party through it."