New on eCRATER!

Just wanted to come over here and announce my new store on a site called eCRATER. I have been stocking the shelves over there since last Friday, but I wanted to wait until there was enough in the store for you to see.

Currently, I have a section in my store devoted to wall art, sorted by decade, and another section devoted to dishes, sorted by type.  This store is different from the others, because it is going to be devoted exclusively to vintage merchandise (none of my handmade items mixed in).

Hop on over there and go exploring!  I have been able to price things more cheaply than on other venues, because I don't have the usual fees to worry about.  It is fully functional, with Paypal secure checkout set up and ready to go. Here's the link to the shop, although I will also add a tab at the top of this blog for easy reference.

http://www.candyapplecrafts.ecrater.com/

The Maxi Dress is Back!

Giambattista Valli, Paris Fashion Week 2012

I've been watching the dress trends slightly more than usual this season.  I guess I've just been in a girlie kind of mood, because I've been wanting almost every sundress I see in the sales circulars, emails, and stores.

The top trends this year seem to be maxi dresses and mullet dresses.  In case you aren't familiar with the names, a maxi dress is full-length, narrow-profile (columnar) dress that tends to have a sort of ancient Greek vibe about it.  The mullet dress (also called dipped hem dress) has a rounded hem, sort of like the hem of a men's dress shirt, that is longer in the back than the front. Sometimes it is full-length, but frequently it is about knee-length in the front, and mid- to lower-calf length in the back.

The last time maxi dresses were really popular was the 70s, while the mullet dress style was last popular in the very late 80s into the 90s.  Both styles were borrowed from earlier eras, as well.  The maxi style was from the turn of the 20th century, and the mullet hem seems to come from the 1920s.

Besides the trends in sundress cuts, I've seen them divided pretty evenly into three types of fabric prints:

Asos Dipped Hem Dress

• Bohemian/tribal--Bohemian prints include the colorful zigzag, Ikat, and southwestern prints, along with feather and leaf motifs, mostly in earthy colors.  It all has a sort of "Return of the Native" or "Back to Nature" vibe.

• French/nautical--The most popular motif for this trend is narrow, horizontal stripes, because the classic French sailor's uniform had a shirt with narrow navy blue and white alternating stripes.  Besides this obvious nod to the French navy, you might also be seeing rope prints and trims, solid deep blues with a military design (like the pants that French sailors wore), and aquatic life in the prints or as a border along the hem or waistline. 

• Colorblock/Geometric or Organic Shapes--These dresses have very bright, frequently neon colors in large geometric shapes, floral prints enlarged to such an extent that they no longer look like flowers, or sections of the dress in solid blocks of color.

McCalls Pattern 4533

Although I have vintage scarves available in these prints and colors, I really have no plans to sell larger pieces of vintage clothing at this time. However, I do have several vintage sewing patterns that make maxi-length dresses. Most of my patterns are from the 70s and early 80s.  I just thought I'd share them here, in case you would like to make a dress in this style, customized with your own choice of fabric.

Out of all my patterns, this McCalls pattern from 1975 looks very easy--mostly straight seams and very little embellishment. I think it would be great for a beginning seamstress, or for someone who just wants to whip one up quickly before they lose interest in the project or the season is over.

Butterick Pattern 6510

There is also this Butterick pattern from 1984, which I think was designed for evening wear or the office. The sleeve lengths, skirt lengths, and necklines are interchangeable for maximum versatility.

I'm sure either pattern could be converted to mullet hems by an experienced seamstress, but getting the rounded shape to hang right will take some doing, as my mother used to say.  Converting the pattern is not something a beginner should try.

I have other patterns in that section that work for the maxi trend, should you decide to check it out. Just click on the links under the photos and go exploring in the sewing pattern section in my store.

Thanks for reading!  More to come, next time.

A One-Eyed, One-Horned, Flying Purple People Eater

I've been trying to step up my game when it comes to pom pom creatures and the like.  A couple of days ago, Mom started humming the Sheb Wooley tune about a Purple People Eater, and she suggested I make the creature.  I polled my facebook audience, who gave me the green light, and this is what I came up with!

 Here he is, in progress. You can see some washers on my worktable. I had to glue some inside the feet to keep him from falling over.  The holes in his clarinet like horn are drawn with paint, and I decided to put them on both sides of the horn, so you can see them from the back as well. After all, it's an alien!

You can also see uncut felt which I used in the project, a failed purple horn (the white shows up much better in my opinion), and just over my hand there is a messed-up poodle on the table, which I keep there to cheer me on, I suppose. :)

Don't worry. According to this song, the purple people eater is just here to play music on tv.  He only eats purple people, anyway, so I'm pretty sure you are safe!

I only made the one purple people eater (or at least my best representation of the song lyrics), and I put him here, in my Etsy shop.  You can go there to see more pictures of him, if you'd like!

 Meanwhile, here's the original artist, singing the song to a puppet (I can't see the puppet very well, though), way back in 1958.

Enjoy the 50s nostalgia!

Walrus Says Hello

I got overtaken by life events and my other work this past month, and forgot all about updating this blog.  So sorry about that!

In the meantime, I've dreamed up several new furry creatures, but only one has been listed, so far--the lime green walrus. Think I should make him available in other colors? Someone also suggested I make a top hat version.

I've been fitting my crafting exploits into the evenings, in front of the television, but I'm rearranging my schedule, now, to see if I can improve things. It's not good to neglect my customers!

Over the past month, I've been listing lots of scarves in a wide variety of colors.  Some have been dry-clean only, but I've tried to include easy-care scarves that can be hand or machine washed, as well.  Today I listed a decorative metal tin that was made in Germany, in the Cold War era (it is marked "Made in West Germany").

If you are shopping for Father's Day, stop by either store and see what I've got.  If you are looking for something in particular, let me know. I would be happy to help in any way I can, either by listing the thing you need (if I have it), or by pointing you in the direction of someone I know who sells it.

So, for a parting question, what's your favorite memory of time spent with your dad? Leave me a story in the comments section!