bits and bobbins

for those who may be new to the bitsandbobbins.com blog, a few things about me, and the blog itself, to clarify…

ME:

i am tricia royal.

i’m in my 30s.

i currently live in san francisco, california with my husband of nearly 9 years, pete, and our three cats. i have no children at this current juncture.

i grew up in florida (outside of orlando), primarily.

i have a degree in art (with a concentration in art history) from the university of north florida, jacksonville. my minor was in history. i graduated from UNF with a BA in 2003.

after finishing up at UNF, pete and i moved to new york city (bushwick, brooklyn). i studied fashion design at the parson’s school of design (now parsons the new school for design), in the 2 year associate’s program. it took me only 1.5 years because i already had a BA. it was a great experience and sharpened and honed my fashion chops on a myriad of levels. it was a great compliment to my art and history studies.

just after graduating from parsons in summer 2006, i moved to san francisco, because of my husband’s job (he’s a software architect). i’ve been here nearly a year now.

i have been sewing for 20+ years. i’ve been knitting and crocheting for 3 years. some of my crochet patterns have been published in major books and magazines like debbie stoller’s stitch and bitch crochet, crochet today, and more. i’ve also taught sewing classes on occasion.

i started wardrobe_remix, a “DIY street fashion” community, on flickr on a whim around/after september 13, 2005. for some reason, the group took off and now has about 4600 members, and it’s pretty damn active. it’s gotten me a photo feature in WWD, and has led to a quarterly column in ADORN, a diy fashion/livestyle magazine that can be found on many US newsstands, and features fashion inspiration via images of stylish WR members. other projects related to WR are in the works, both online and offline. i never ever expected it to grow this much, but it has. i am grateful for the opportunities it has given me and i am committed to making be the best it can be.

as for work, i’m still figuring it out, and i do a little of this and that. mostly writing right now. but a little design here and there, too.

THIS BLOG:

this blog started last july (2006).

it was an outgrowth of my old livejournal blog, which was a LOT more personal, though fashion focused.

bitsandbobbins.com is my personal site, and was first and foremost an online shop where i sold some of my creations. i may sell things again someday, but i am not really selling much at all right now.

i think of bitsandbobbins.com/journal as a somewhat personal, design and fashion-focused blog. to me, it’s not simple or explicitly categorizable…even those words don’t really define this place for me or why i do it.

this not your “typical” fashion blog that’s just focused on trends or products (though i occasionally do post a few products i like)…

i am a lover of fashion, but i am also a maker of fashion, a maker of *things*. i admire things i see made by others, but i also need to heed a compulsion inside myself to create, and actually create things. the admiring and making both live here, because i see the thread between them in my mind. it makes sense for them to live together here, in my blog.

i am not just into the surface level of the fashion world. i am interested in the connections, culture, design/concept, aesthetics/art of fashion, fashion at the street level, the ethics and realities of fashion…and that’s what i post about, though i do not generally post things in any regimented manner, i’m just posting about what i want to post about as it comes to me.

fashion to me, goes beyond the clothes i wear, and the clothes you wear. it touches and is influenced by everything: politics, culture, business, art, etc. so i also post about other things that may not seem immediately connected to fashion in the minds of others, like YOU, but the connection is there for ME.

while i might occasionally post things i knit/crochet, or things i sew, this is NOT primarily a craft blog, or knitting/crochet blog in the classic sense (though i love others blogs of the same ilk). i post these items here because they are, primarily, wearable objects. and they are mine. and again, this is my place. get it?

wardrobe_remix, as mentioned before, has become a large part of my life in the past couple years. because i created wardrobe_remix, and i believe it’s related to fashion in a big and unique way, it is and deserves to be a big focus and topic of discussion on my blog, as it has been since the beginning. it absolutely will continue to be a big subject on this blog until circumstances surrounding it or my life change. period.

i thrift like it’s my job, for my wardrobe, for my home…it’s a way of life for me and has been such since i was very young. so again, another big subject around here. it’s a level of consumption i’m comfortable with and wholeheartedly support. it’s yet another outlet for my creativity…buying things secondhand, loving them, using them, redefining their use. i will always be a champion of the thrifting lifestyle.

so, this blog is a reflection of me, my past, my present, my interests, and the whole mess is set up in a loosely defined manner that reflects the way my mind actually works.

in short, this is MY place, my online world, and it’s my life. i write about what i want to write about and will continue to do so. my life and this place may not please everyone’s tastes. great! i am happy to be different.

it all makes sense to ME and that’s the way it is.

thanks for reading. i’m still humbled by the fact that anyone takes the time to do so…or that anyone finds what i have to say interesting. but i am grateful that you do, and that you are here.

if you have any questions you want to ask, go ahead and ask. i many not always be able to answer them, or may choose not to, but you’re welcome to do so.