To get my creative juices kick-started, I thought I'd start with something small and fun. I'd had these creepy porcelain doll photos I'd been saving up to use in an interesting project; and also some printable fabric that is colour-fast that I'd wanted to print with some original designs to then incorporate somehow into a garment or accessory. I love the broken-down Gothic look, layers of satin, lace, doileys, and well...slightly decayed tat, so I heaped all my bits and pieces onto a big table, printed out some creepy dollies, and came up with my first Doll Cameo Tatty Cuff.
I made this one to complement my Lace Twiggy Babydoll Dress, which I'd just finished and am really pleased with. Here it is:
Please drop into my etsy shop to see more photos of this.
I was so pleased with my new cuff I immediately decided to make another. I love pleating satin by hand and ironing it to get a knife-sharp edge, so I decided my next cuff would have a black pleated satin base, and then I'd go from there with the embellishments:
Thus far I'm keeping them quite simple, with the focus on the Vintage Doll Portrait Cameo embellishment. I'm experimenting with my embroidery machine to customize the trims, too. I found a supplier of wonderful vintage and antique buttons in Prague (isn't the internet unreal!) so the button closure on this cuff is from the 30s-40s, made of Czech glass and etched metal. I love incorporating vintage haberdashery into my work and I really think this lovely button adds the finishing touch to this new cuff.
Anyway, I'm thrilled with them! They look quite evocative and romantic and make me want to create a whole dress (or underwear) in a similar style! Perhaps I'll make that the focus of my next few garments...
NANICHAN
Nanichan.etsy.com
Nanichan is a fellow etsy seller and a really fun person to know. We often convo each other throughout the working day, which really gives me a lift when I'm suffering from cabin-fever and going crazy from being cloistered too long with my sewing. She has a fab sense of humour and great taste.
Nanichan makes simply gorgeous (mostly knitted) accessories: brooches, flower pins, scarves, scarflettes, cuffs (ooh, is that where I got the idea?!), bottle cozies and hats.
Her colours are strong and vibrant, often in jewel-tones. I'm completely in love with her over-sized rose embellishments:
her embellished scarflettes:
and her all other fun, whimsical, crafty accessories, like this pretty skull hairpin:
Drop into her etsyshop
and have a browse. She's convo-friendly, too!
