You can dress 'em up...

(click all images to zoom in)
Daphne, Zoe and I have been asked by a classmate to design and make a look each for an event at our school called Asia Night, hosted by a school club. There will be a fashion show that night and we're always happy to contribute whatever we can make! I have started my garment, inspired by the Japanese aesthetic... On InDesign I made a little inspiration board (seen above) for my dress (seen below)- so far I've finished the top part, but the skirt and embellishments await.

I bought all of my fabrics at Mood, including some gold thread! I plan on embroidering a Japanese maple tree (seen on the inspiration board) onto the front of the top part of the dress.
I hand-stitched everything, I was too afraid the machine would wreck the delicate wrinkled silk! I used no patterns, I just draped everything - I feel more of a "connection" with the fabric that way.
A gold button to tie the knot.

Happy New Year everyone! May it bring joy and fulfilled resolutions!
Alice

You can dress 'em up...

Pillow Fight!

As a gender- and age-neutral Secret Santa gift, I have made a set of pillows. The print is fun, but not too fun, and has browns and blues (more stereotypically "guy") and pinks and reds ("girl").


These were super easy to sew! I have made up a little DIY...

1. Go to Target, Marshall's, Home Goods, etc. to buy (as many as you want) inexpensive, plain vanilla pillows. Stuffing with loose cotton can lead to lumpy, unappealing pillows with no couch appeal...we don't want that.
2. Find a sturdy fabric (and heavy duty thread/needles) which will hold up on a wear-and-tear type of pillow. If that's not what you're going for (a sleeping pillow, for example) then pick a less tough fabric.

3. Take the plastic bag in which they came wrapped, lay it on top of your fabric, cut out that size. The plastic bag perfectly covered the pillow, and so too will your fabric!


4. Be sure to leave one side of your pillow as the natural fold of the fabric - it saves your having to sew up one extra seam! Pin up other sides, sew the right (printed, outside) faces together. Leave one side open for pillow stuffing.

5. Flip inside out, stuff with pillow (right to the edges!) and hand sew that last edge - make sure to fold in the messy hems.

6. ¡Voilá! It's neat, it's ready to go, it's ready to be used as ammo in any pillow fight!


The fabric is from Mood from the home fabrics section - my first purchase outside of the fashion fabrics division!

On behalf of the 3 of us behind xAZD... Happy Holidays to all! Happy New Year!
Alice


p.s. Don't miss the awesome sushi pillow...
target pillow source

Pillow Fight!

Draw Your Gun

Sketches and drawings! These are more of those pieces that are potential portfolio material. The one with the newspaper collage is from an FIT class while the other 2 are from a RISD pre-college summer program. I recommend those programs - lots of fun and art education to be had!
Oil pastels, newspaper on newsprint
2007
Alice Taranto
(~15 minute pose?, with collage)


Black, salmon and aqua charcoal on newsprint (this one is of a classmate - it's so fun to do drawings of classmates, you never forget them afterwords!)
2009
Alice Taranto
(~7 minute pose?)


Black and reddish charcoal on newsprint
2009
Alice Taranto
(~15 minute pose?)

Enjoy! Happy week!
Alice

Draw Your Gun

xAZD in NYLON

We three at AZD are very happy right now! Alice made a drawing based on a photo in NYLON, turned it into fan mail, sent it in to the nylon letters office and there it is in the January 2010 issue's por avion fan mail section on p. 32! It's a small accomplishment, but exciting nonetheless! (see it on the top of the actual page in the above image) Some recommendations for fan mail...
1. Find magazines that you ♥ and that have fan mail sections with typed words, but art sections too! You never know if your work may get in.
2. Since often the names of the senders are not included, put your name (and website/blog if you have it) in the actual drawing.
3. Aaaah, do not fold it! I (being silly) folded by drawing in thirds and sent it via snail-mail. In the magazine, my drawing has two annoying fold lines running across it.
4. Make a sick envelope! An awesome envelope will only make the insides more enticing. Stickers, markers, you name it!

Happy week,
Alice, Zoe, Daphne

nylon cover photo source

xAZD in NYLON