From earlier this year, a spring jacket, appliquéd with a leafy floral design.
This cool kimono silk fabric was my inspiration. I love the cartoony, abstracted flowers and leaves!
So cool.
Some kimono silks are traditional, traditional traditional,
others [see this one!], not at all.
A picture of the jacket in process showing the design laid out with my skinny bias tubes. Can you see all the pins?
Next, I basted the tubes down, then hand stitched them in place.
Many evenings later, after hours of hand stitching [my favorite way to escape from all the crazy out there…],
then sewn into a jacket and,
Voila!
jackets
New Jet Jacket
In process, a new jacket, ‘Blue Jet’.
For a customer who wanted the style I call ‘Jet’.
Jet, because it looks like it’s taking off, zooming into the stratosphere.
Like the jacket pictured below, ‘Jet Remainders’.
Only she wanted it in blues, like ‘Jet Top and Pants’ shown below.
I love my customers! Who are fine with combining and varying different concepts into brand new pieces.
Japanese Kimono Fabrics
At first I only used Japanese kimono silks with very subtle patterns and weaves. It was the drape, the unusual colors and textures that drew me in. Anything with a traditional Japanese image didn’t interest me.
That didn’t last long…
Soon I was seduced by the cranes and pine trees, cherry blossoms, peony flowers and Hokusai ocean waves. They were so beautiful and cool and gorgeous. How could I resist?
I found myself buying the older, damaged kimonos and undoing, rearranging and piecing them into new jackets and coats.
The older, well worn kimonos are best. I set aside any torn or stained areas, signs of a life well lived, and find ways to reconnect the elements in new ways.
This is the kind of old kimonos that I use. They usually have the patterns along the bottom edge. The upper half is left undecorated and is where the obi is placed.
Although many of the same design elements are used over and over, the colors, the particular style, the placement and subtle differences make each kimono unique.
As I reconfigure the pieces, I see images flow together in new ways.
Cranes fly up and away, ocean waves crash together, flowers, trees and branches connect.
The fun part, I never know exactly what will happen. I lay out the fabrics and follow where they lead.
This old kimono had enough for a second jacket. I posted a picture a few weeks back. Go here to see it.