Website!

It's finally complete, so have a look. If you're a crafter and wish to swap links, send me a message and I would be happy to do the exchange.

All that aside, I'm fairly busy with commissions and cleaning up shop as of late, but I've tried to put in the time for various crafty ideas for all those lolita loving artists out there. If you have any ideas or have seen some lovely crafts you'd like to share, I'd be more than happy to list them here, too. I am still working on my star tutorials and will have a new one posted up soon. Probably today or tomorrow.

In the fashion world I've been oogling over Infanta's new winter coats like crazy. Can you imagine how nice the cashmere must feel? All those beautiful designs and perfect stitching and intricate embroidery just steals my breath away. I dare say I will be disappointed when winter comes to an end, because there is such an elegance in nice winter coats, lovely gloves and warm boots. I personally own a very nice long black suede coat with faux fur trim, but having one of those babies at Infanta would blow it out of the water. Alas, I've been saving up for Sakuracon and I don't think I could afford putting money away toward any fashion items just yet. Upon summer I should hope that will change, and I can post up some gorgeous new outfits I just might get.

Cupcake Hat

Here's my finished cupcake hat. I'm pretty happy with it. This is a remake of an older design and I think it came out quite well, though it certainly took a while. The entire piece is hand-made. The base is made of plastic canvas and overlaid with soft pink cotton decorated in little white hearts. a ring of lace and organza accentuates this, and little pearly pink candy beads circle the cupcake. The cupcake itself is made of polymore which was hand formed, hand painted, and then lightly glazed. I also made the heart candy at the top of this, which is likewise topped with a pearl.

It's a very intricate and delicate looking hat, but surprisingly sturdy. I manhandled it quite a bit as I made it. The bottom of the hat is fixed with a smooth surface of the pink/white heart cotton, and a strong black comb is secured to it so you can seamlessly slip it into your hair and go.

I don't normally make hats like this as they tend to be the hardest for me, but they're also satisfying. My design is completely made by me, so it is guaranteed one of a kind, which is a nice feeling. I will be putting this up on my website for sale. It is made of the same material as my teacup hat.

I've also been working on some of my other hat designs and getting things in order to list quite a few other items-- specifically, I'm working on a bonnet design. It's a busy time of the year, so posts may be a bit sporadic.

Jo-Ann Fabrics and Cotton Lace Woes

It's probably clear by now that most of the time I'm building sweet lolita items, but I also cover EGL, Steam Punk, victorian gothic (generally men's attire) and cosplay. Yesterday I went to my beloved Jo-Ann Fabrics on a quest for some good, quality foam for the Neon Genesis Evangelion suit I am custom making my fiance. Since I am on a budget I had to lecture myself to not buy anything else.

But I failed terribly and ended up buying some lovely, fine grossgrain white ribbon and a nice black, white, and subtly smoky purple flower pattern cotton.

If only they had decent lace. One thing I have noticed about my favorite arts and crafts store is that they never have decent lace. Ever. It is always scratchy nylon or cheap polyester. They have rows and rows of the stuff, and it's such a shame. I saw a heart pattern that was beautiful, but the lace was terribly scratchy.

The quality of lace can easily make or break a lolita outfit, no matter how lovely that outfit is otherwise. The problem is that most craft stores have no clue at all. So where do we go to get our fine lace? As for me, I go to ebay. It's a risky business I don't recommend unless you've already got specific sellers you use who's stuff you know is good. I generally order from a nice older woman who handcrafts all her lace, and it is the softest, most beautiful lace I've ever purchased. But you don't need to go to ebay for it. Check out some local bridal shops and you might find yourself surprised that they often sell gorgeous, quality lace.

If you want to buy lace online, however, here are a few highly suggested shops:
http://cheeptrims.com/
http://www.etsy.com/shop/MaryNotMartha
http://www.doveoriginalstrims.com/ (only has a few good quality, so be careful)
http://www.dharmatrading.com/
http://kuboriki.com/en/ (gorgeous section of tulle lace)
http://lolitaer.taobao.com/ (chinese)
http://www.laceheaven.com/
http://delicatestitches.com/ (check out their cluney lace, very nice)

Links credited to: http://www.fyeahlolita.com/, http://egl.livejournal.com/

The 'I Love You This Much' Bunny

A plushie that informs you just how much she loves you. Never mind those teddy bears when you've got bunnies like this. She is made out of some left over cupcake material, with a mildly shirred yellow heart fringed around the edge to give that 'bursting' look. Her eyes and nose are sewn on and made of black thread with three little eyelashes on each. I prefer this method sometimes because it has a more 'old fashioned' appeal that just aids the adorableness, don't you think? She is stuffed with soft synthetic fiber and stands at about a 8" tall (though technically she doesn't stand-- she's too round for that and I had to prop her a bit for the top photo). I've always loved the childish sweetness of shouting, "I love you this much!" with arms thrown wide open, and I wanted to encompass that.
My apologies for the bad lighting since this was taken at night. I've been thinking of making a lightbox to fix this. They're very easy to create and great for photographing things at any time of the day with minimal effort-- perhaps I'll put up a tutorial on it later.

Should you be mesmerized by her cuteness, she is for sale.

Spring Theme Mini Hat

A little project of mine. I decided to add my recently made strawberries (from the tutorial below) to this adorable little mini hat. I usually list these (and other various goodies) in my shop, if you're interested.

Mini hats, oh boy. They're getting quite popular. I remember years ago that it was only the goths and really old english women who wore them, but now they're all over the place. I'm one for cotton myself, but it seems straw ones are getting out there. What are your thoughts on straw mini hats? Ever made a mini hat? I personally prefer to use plastic canvas rather than felt or cardboard. It is cheap, durable, and very light weight. Cardboard warps over time and felt just seems so tacky to me. Hatting itself can be very addicting and fun to do. The amount of variation possible from just a bit of material is pretty astounding.

As always, comments, thoughts, ideas, and suggestions are welcome. If you make any mini hats I'd love to see some of your work!

Begun!

Website is up and running at its new home! Finally finished setting up the shop as well. A few days work of getting everything organized, and I have been extremely busy making new things. I shall post them shortly, in increments.