create: floral hair pins

October 27, 2014 in INSPIRATION, STYLE, IN THE STUDIO

For our first photoshoot we created floral hair pins to put in my sister's hair. We had a different hairstyles for each look and created various sizes and types of floral hair pins to make each one unique.

Materials: bobby pins giant bobby pins hair clips fabric confetti (we made this out of remnants of the fabric used in the Flor Silvestre collection) various dried flowers (we got ours on etsy) glue gun glue sticks (we used a lot of these -- definitely get an extra pack) cardstock or thick magazine paper

First, we cut some ovals out of the cardstock and glued them to the large bobby pins. Then we glued on fabric confetti and various dried flowers. We would also made little piles of the dried flowers and fabric confetti, put small amounts of glue on the hair combs and then just dipped them in the pile over and over again until we covered the whole edge. Be careful--the glue will be very hot so don't touch it. Would have helped if we had some kind of stick, like those small wooden ones used for nail care, to push down the pieces, but we managed without one.

We let them all dry overnight. And voilà, gorgeous one-of-a-kind floral hair pins!

I love how they turned out! They look amazing in the photos and definitely helped to create the atmosphere I wanted for our first photoshoot.

Let us know if you tried to make them. And don't forget to check out our Flor Silvestre lookbook!

floral hair pins - etxe - flor silvestre photoshoot

behind the scenes: design

October 26, 2014 in STYLE, IN THE STUDIO

I am still super new to all of this, but I thought I'd share some photos in creating the Flor Silvestre collection. There isn't really a right or wrong way to come up with designs...I kind of just go with it. I start with fabric or a moodboard...usually a combination of both. Hmm...it's kind of like a chicken or the egg situation for me, but here was my moodboard: flor silvestre moodboard ss15

Then I started sketches and went fabric shopping with Val. When I found the liberty of london print I knew it would be the key fabric for these garments. It's just so perfect. I used to hate sketching. I'm not naturally good at it so I really have to try. And be patient. I much prefer sculpting fabric/draping, but sketches are really helpful to see all things together and actually create a cohesive body of work. It's also just such a standard thing that you use to communicate your ideas. So, I force myself to do it and I'm slowly starting to like it (and kind of getting better).

flor silvestre sketches ss15

Then I worked on patterns--a combination of draping and drafting and copying existing garments (like, if I like the way a skirt is, a pocket detail, etc.). I prefer draping, but I'm trying to do more drafting and just learn more of the technical aspects of pattern making so I can get better at it. In my past jobs I would just give the patternmaker measurements and sketches...and often talk it out since I was always over there, but doing it on my own I have to just learn--trial and error. It took me much longer than I anticipated and in the process I changed direction and cut out some bodies.

Once I had some patterns I cut and sewed muslins, fitted them on my sister (I knew she would be my model) and then edited, adjusted, etc., etc. Once I felt I had the patterns where I wanted them I cut out the actual fabric. And sewed 'em up!

Val in final fitting

More fittings, more adjustments... eventually I finished the garments. I learned a ton during this process and am super excited to start on a fall/winter collection. I think practice makes perfect, so even though I'm still figuring a lot of things out, I know I'll eventually have a flow that works for me.

Still curious about fashion design? Check out how we planned our photoshoot...

create: jewelry cabinet

October 22, 2014 in INSPIRATION, STYLE, IN THE STUDIO

I've seen some gorgeous jewelry cabinets around, but I never found one I loved. When I first moved into my house in Shaw I stopped into Simon Vintage and found lots of unique pieces. I bought a shelf and this awesome drawer that they literally took out of a huge old pharmacist's cabinet. I had explained to them what I wanted to do--make a vertical jewelry cabinet. They said it would be perfect. jewelry cabinet find etxe Once I found the drawer, I took it home, cleaned it and spray-painted it. I picked this green because, well, the hardware store near my house doesn't have that great of a color selection. It's a bit too Easter, but it is growing on me. I then added some nails for necklaces, though I could probably add more. I asked the hardware store how to attach it to the wall and they gave me these hooks and anchor screws. I borrowed a stud finder and found the studs, then attached the anchor screws to the wall. I added some nails on the side for long necklaces. Before I knew it I had a brand new jewelry cabinet attached to my wall! jewelry cabinet paint etxe Before I had this piece I didn't wear much jewelry because I never took time to look through what would look best with my outfit. Now I can easily browse everything I own. (I also am less likely to lose jewelry because everything has a place). I've also added nail polish, trinkets, and matchbooks!

Have you ever made a jewelry cabinet? How did it turn out?

Simon Vintage

1911 9th Street, NW Washington, District of Columbia 20001 (202) 629-2517 Mon-Fri 2pm-7pm Sat-Sun 12pm-8pm

DC Art Scene: Art all night + (e)merge

October 20, 2014 in TRAVEL, INSPIRATION, IN THE STUDIO

DC ART SCENE (e)merge and Art All Night

One of my dreams is to just travel and attend art shows. I love love love it. We recently had art all night and (e)merge here in DC. They were both fantastic. I took photos at both, but I must have had one to many drinks during art all night (which, I think is understandable considering I hosted a chili+cornbread dinner at my house and the event went until 3am) because this is the only photo I feel ok publishing: artallnightshaw-1

The next weekend we headed over to (e)merge, a huge art event that intends to connect the collector and emerging artist. This year it was at Capitol Skyline Hotel near the Waterfront in SW. Val and I biked over on a Sunday and spent hours wandering the hotel rooms. On the way, we found some public art as part of 5x5.

We said hi to our friend Fawna who does fine art printmaking and is off on an epic adventure right now.

We ran into people we knew, or kind of knew, or lived in places we used to know -- like Ana Schmidt who had a landscape acrylic painting of Arenas on view. AMAZING. I used to live in Sopelana and teach in Getxo when I lived in the Basque Country. Really, quite crazy. I was staring at the painting thinking, this feels familiar, and then I looked closer and recognized the bridge, the maze-like neighborhoods, the port...I looked at the title and sure enough, it was Getxo. I'm still kind of shocked by this coincidence.

We met artists and gallery attendants that sometimes looked bored and sometimes chatted with us, like Justine Otto. I was asking her about Hamburg and she was sharing her experience of DC and apparently we were talking for too long because my sister claimed she went through the rest of the rooms and came back in that time frame (lies!). Anyway, I love Otto's work and I hope you check it out!

We also met Mercedes Teixido who was doing a site-specific letter writing piece where a person reads and she draws two copies of the same thing using a contraption that was used by Thomas Jefferson. Here's Val reading her article about the female body being exhibited so people could learn more about anatomy.

There was a garage, called the 'lower level', that house more installations. We loved this interactive piece:

And this column:

And this:

And upstairs this photobooth set up (where you had to pay to get your picture taken). I really liked the concept, but not the awkward moment when the artist kept asking us to take a photo and us not really wanting to and being confused. Or I was confused, Val just turned around.

When we started to get tired, we got coffee.

Then we got tacos.

Then we went to an opening at Blind Whino and ended the night at DC9.

Me taking photos of myself.

Other people taking photos of us.

WE MISS YOU FAWNA!

October gems

October 17, 2014 in INSPIRATION, IN THE STUDIO

It's fall! It's so exciting! I love leaves! I've been spending my free time exploring DC and sipping on some tasty treats in my neighborhood--like almond milk lattes and rosé with a side of whiskey. Here are our October gems:

The Washington Memorial the one and only

Walking across the mall and looking up in awe at this monument never gets old. This month we're doing a little site seeing in our city. We hope you explore the gems in your city, too!

All Souls Bar a corner bar

For Shaw locals, this is a godsend. We love the All Souls special and the cheddar pecan cookies.

Compass Coffee they have almond milk

It's really awesome to have another coffee shop in the hood that has internet, good vibes and sustainable coffee.

Check out our August gems post and let us know--Where are you exploring and quenching your thirst this month?