Bob Mackie Fashion Bias Designer - Stretched the Boundaries and started the feather fashion trend

Bob Mackie  born in 1940 describes himself as "The Sultan of Sequins." FABULOUS designer for decades, he has pushed the envelope on fashion and has designed clothing for some of the most famous women in the world. He made feathers famous. Are you into the feather craze yet? If not, you will be soon/,,,,,, feather earrings, feather tops, feather skirts, bohemian chic.

Check out the video on Paris Fashion Week - Tropical, Pops of Pink and Feathers http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xfa9xb_tropical-prints-pink-and-feathers-a_lifestyle

Will we see feathers this fall?

Some of the people who have worn Mackie's outfits include:

• Cher
• Carol Burnett
• Tina Turner
• Whitney Houston
• The Supremes
• Diana Ross
• Liza Minnelli
• Ann-Margret
• Bart Simpson (in the episode "Burns' Heir")
• Raquel Welch
• Joan Collins
• Diahann Carroll
• Judy Garland
• Pink
• Lucille Ball
• The Jackson 5
• Jada Pinkett Smith (at the 13th Screen Actors Guild Awards)
• Barbra Streisand (in the films Funny Girl and Funny Lady)
• Madonna (at the 1991 Academy Awards)
• Goldie Hawn
• Shalom Harlow (at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Fashion Gala)
• Marie Osmond
• Eva Longoria (at the 2006 Golden Globes)
• Charo
• Dolly Parton
• Elton John
• Lola Falana
• Marlene Dietrich
• Teri Hatcher
• Oprah Winfrey (at the 1986 Academy Awards)
• Bette Midler
• Sally Field (in film Smokey and the Bandit II)
• Chita Rivera
• RuPaul
• Whoopi Goldberg (at the 71st Academy Awards)
• Sharon Stone (in the film Casino)
• Brooke Shields
• Anjelica Huston (on a cover of Vanity Fair)
• Pink (for her Funhouse Tour)
• Katy Perry (in her video for "Waking Up in Vegas")
• Kylie Minogue

You can follow him on FACEBOOK http://www.facebook.com/officialbobmackiepage

Summer Love!

Thrift Shop to Expand your Wardrobe and Your Look

Thrift shopping can be fun and social. Plan a date with a friend or two for lunch and spend the day at local thrift stores. Local thrift stores are concentrated in areas in cities making it easy to go from one store to the next.

Make sure you start with great foundation pieces – spend your wardrobe money on things that can last you for more than one season. Ann Taylor Loft is an affordable store that carries high quality separates that look terrific and will last.

Stay on top of the trends so you know what to look for when you shop. Splurge for several pieces during a season – find your “must haves” but don’t go overboard. You will wind up with a great look for one season but will have to start all over again the next season which will be expensive. Marie Claire Magazine is fun and fashion forward and features the latest pieces and accessories. Pull out some pages and bring them with you when you shop.

When you thrift, look for things that are timeless (vintage) and trendy. Thrifting is perfect for items like jewelery, belts, scarves, jackets and purses.

Don’t be afraid of color or patterns or textures. Jackets and scarves can extend a late summer wardrobe into a fall wardrobe. Layering is another way to add interest and to migrate your wardrobe into the next season.

Find something and change the color by using RIT Dye. It can totally restore the piece and change the look of something. Buy an inexpensive item – cotton works well and experiment. If it does not turn out well, you learned something and only wasted a few dollars. If you get good at it, you will save money and can create one of a kind statement pieces.

Befriend an artist – we paint on clothes, add embellishments, and rework pieces. I took my roommates old Ked high tops and totally restored them using Sharpie pens. They are now her favorite shoes.

Take a sewing class at Joanne Fabrics (http://www.joann.com/joann/home/home.jsp) and learn how to deconstruct something so you can rework it. This is a fun hobby and you will be proud to wear a garment you personalized. They also have interesting buttons and notions that you can sew on to your piece for added interest.

Just remember:

Be open – try things

Be prepared- stay up on trends

Take a friend – get their opinion and keep it social

Make a day of it – go to lunch. You will need  your stamina on your fashion treasure hunt!

My Favorite Thrift Stores in Columbus, Ohio – Do your homework on your city!

Second Chance Consignment Boutique – Grandview Ohio

http://secondchancegrandview.com/

Ragorama – If found the most beautiful short classic beaded scoop neck dress for $10

http://www.ragorama.com/

VOA- Volunteers of America – money goes to charity and they have a wide selection because they receive donations – helps people in need and provides a tax deduction. This is a great place for true vintage pieces from someone’s attic. You will have to dry clean the pieces but it can be so worth it!

http://www.voago.org/

Kent State Fashion Library - I am a hand model in the making

During the academic year I frequent the Fashion Library on campus. In fact the first time I took a tour of the campus I vividly remember telling my mother and the librarian of my plans to set up camp because for the next four years I would be living there. At the time I am sure both the librarian and my mother thought I was being sarcastic, but now two years have passed and not only do all the librarians know me by name, but on a regular basis I am also asked for assistance by students who mistake me for a library employee. 


Spending as much time as I do rummaging through the stacks of designer biographies, original sketchbooks, and vintage magazines; I also catch up with the librarians to find out what's going on. 


This past semester  they launched a campaign to promote the library's Facebook page. The  library is known for having an amazing collection of historic fashion magazines.  The librarians decided to promote this by posting pictures of magazine covers held up by students and they created a three-dimensional effect as if the cover model were to come off the page. 


After learning about this fun and creative undertaking I decided to get involved by not only posing for one of the promotional images, but helping recruit other student models and assisting with the pictures. (See me above and my hand in the photos below.)

 You can check out the Kent State Fashion Library's Page on Facebook by visiting:  http://www.facebook.com/KSUFashionLIBB.


I hope you enjoy the pictures from the project that  I included.

          

 Summer Love! 

Fabulous Fashion Illustrator Arturo Elena and Toledo Spain

Two things I love about SPAIN...Toledo and Illustrator Arturo Elena who studied in Seville and Toledo  (Toe-Lay-Do not Toledo- OH). 

Check out Arturo's website http://www.arturoelena.com/

or see more of his illustrations on the justlookinggallery.com website.
http://www.justlookinggallery.com/artists/elena/index.php

The food in Toledo is artful too ,,,,,

 and so is this unique jewelry that is only found in Toledo. http://www.madeintoledo.com/jewelry.htm

Damascene "Damasquinado de Oro or "Damasquino" is the art of decorating non-precious metals with gold

Movie Review: Lessons from Seamless

Looking for a girl friend movie? Consider Seamless- a documentary about the experiences of  up and coming fashion designers. If you are a fan of Project Runway, you will like Seamless. I found it on streaming Netflix. Hip music and sleek fashion shows.

As a fashion student, here is what I learned....but watch it just for an inside look at a the world of fashion. These lessons are not just applicable to fashion...they are applicable to life.

Note: Fashion is a $32 billion dollar business for NYC

Anna Wintour "You need to walk in and own a room"
It is all about the business - know your stuff. Don't be wishy washy - have your vision.
It is important to back a winner - comment on first CFDA Fashion Award

Lazaro Hernandez  - "Most difficult to make mistakes publically"As an overnight darling of the fashion world - he had to run a business 24/7 while hisr friends were graduating.

Doo.Ri Chung "Every small town creates that fire...that you just want to get out of there!"
"One angle takes you to the next, takes you to the next, it is very free-form. My women always come out scary."  "I want to do killer sexy dresses." 
"They asked me where I manfacture, how many pieces I make, can I handle fame."

Alexandre Plokhov "Excited about the CRAFT of making clothes....going from sketch to garment."
"It should take you fifteen minutes to discover a man is well dressed."











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Marie Claire

Editing photos today for an upcoming Marie Claire and Loft by Ann Taylor style contest. Narrowed four hundred photos to 37. My model Jordyn is the quintessential Marie Claire girl! Love her. She is beautiful but has the fun quirky thing making her so relatable to guys and gals.

Loft fits my design aesthetic because they have great foundation pieces. I love to build with color, texture and layers to create my unique fun, flirty and relaxed look.

What a great summer experience. So much to explore. So much to learn. Combining it with social media makes it really interactive. Sometimes it is nice to get away from the sewing machine and enjoy everything fabulous about FASHION!  It will be back to fifteen hour a day sewing sessions before I know it!

Summer love!

The School of Fashion at Kent State University

Considering a career in fashion?  Kent State University has the third best fashion design school in the United States and one of the largest fashion musuems right on campus.  If you want a first hand report on the great opportunities at Kent, e-mail me at stallon@kent.edu.

See the Katherine Hepburn exhibit at The Kent State University Museum this month. Her costume collection is incredible.

 

I spend most of my life in  this building and I love it! I bet you would be surprised to know this building is FULL of sewing machines.

Kent teachers are well respected in the industry. They work outside the school as fashion professionals, they teach and mentor.

Kent internships are available all over the world.