radical knitting (er, shouldn't that be radical crocheting??) + the colbert report = awesomeness. (via extreme craft)
aesthetic inspiration via the LIFE magazine photo archives
(photos via the LIFE photo archive @ google.com)
a recent post on the craft: blog mentioned the LIFE photo archive @ google.com. it's a huge collection of historic photographs that were published in the famed magazine in years past. one can virtually dig through said archive using keywords.
i had a fun time plugging terms into the search field on the site, such as: sewing, fashion, dressmaking, crocheting, knitting, needlepoint, needlework, quilting...and i got a kick out of the images that turned up (the results of some of those searches are shown above).
interesting, inspirational, and fun to look at, eh?
etsy's handmade portraits: built by wendy
i've been a long time fan of built by wendy, the nyc-based indie design label by wendy mullin. like, say, since at least the mid-1990s? yeah. i distinctly remember seeing a spread on her in seventeen magazine sometime back then, which i saved as inspiration... for those who may not familiar with wendy and her eponymous clothing line (where have you been? heh.), do check out her website, built by wendy.
in addition to having stores in major cities across the u.s. (including NYC, chicago, SF and LA), wendy's also the author of two books focusing on sewing, sew u, and sew u: home stretch (which i promise to review here one of these days, hopefully sooner rather than later!), and has a line of super cute, super chic little sewing patterns, available via the simplicity pattern company.
anyway, i love the aesthetic of wendy's designs...it's all a little bit of a throwback to decades past, a little nostalgic, but always sweet and girlish. her work has a distinctly crafty ethos...which is directly reflective of who she is and where she comes from. she claims she just wanted to "make things," from the get-go. that desire led to all of her future endeavors and successes in the design world. and clearly, she's remained humble through it all, and willing to share her secrets and inspire crafty young women the way she was inspired.
so, on those notes, i was delighted to run across this video this past week from etsy that features wendy and her work, called handmade portraits: built by wendy. i thought i'd share it!
[blip.tv http://blip.tv/play/5SbDgiuDh1s]
enjoy!