Sew What?! Red, White, and NEW!

I often get sentimental thinking of my grandparents - particularly during holiday celebrations (the 4th of July being no exception).  Although it has been many years since their passing (as romantic as it seems, they did not have The Notebook ending; they died quite separately and years apart), I find myself wanting to visit them, to bask in the warmth of their gentle, old-timey, unconditional, grandparental love.  As much as I appreciated having them as such an integral part of my youth, I find myself craving their love and counsel even more as an adult.

Leona & Bob
(Read more about them here and here)

And so I do visit them.  As well as visiting their "final resting place," when I am in the area, I also make a habit of driving past the home in which they lived out their last days (Neighborhood Watch is on high alert).  I've even eaten at the local coffee shop they frequented, confirming that the food is just as terrible as I remembered.  It brings an immeasurable amount of comfort to revisit some of their old stomping grounds, including their local thrift store.  It was there that I nabbed a length of tricolor, floral seersucker for the bargain price of $3.00 (I like to think it was grandmotherly providence; she was both thrifty and a sewing fiend).

As an inveterate fabric hoarder, rare is the occasion when I know
exactly what form the fabric will assume; usually I just hoard and hope for
the best.  Because the amount of fabric was limited, so were my options!

In the end, short supply and color palette dictated that this would be a fun, 1940s-style sun suit comprised of a ruched bikini top and a short, semi-circle skirt with attached bloomers.  Mary would have a red, white, and new outfit for the 4th of July!

I'm going to try and continue including my sketches in an attempt at
practice making perfect - both in drawing and silencing the nagging
voice inside that says the drawings are never "good enough." 

In spite of what I like to believe, my sewing skills are also rather amateurish.
Hoping to expand the breadth of my abilities with each new project, I try to
challenge myself with some easy but new-to-me techniques.  This time,
I drafted my own pattern for the fully-lined, elasticized bikini bottoms/bloomers
and made a shaped hem-facing for the skirt from the fashion fabric.  

Luckily, my efforts made the cut for Mary's Las Vegas shoot with the photography phenom, Alexander Thompson, for a style editorial in Ponyboy Magazine.

Capturing simple beauty is a task I think often more difficult than documenting
"grittiness" and "edge" - not that there is anything wrong with grit and edge.
I just know that our grandparents would have truly appreciated the simplicity
and loveliness of this photograph.
(Photo courtesy of Alexander Thompson/Ponyboy Magazine)

Feeling the pressure of last-minute holiday preparations, I am grateful that this ensemble was completed with a few months to spare!  I am also grateful for the talents of Alexander Thompson and Ponyboy Magazine, without whom we would not have these great photos - THANK YOU!!!

Do you hoard fabric with the intention of making themed, holiday outfits?  Were your grandmothers sewing fiends like mine?  Do certain sounds, sights, or smells remind you of your loved ones?  Are you a sucker for seersucker?

While you are pondering these questions, we hope that you have a safe, sane, and Happy 4th of July!!!


Cheers!

Mr. Tiny

Sew What?! Putting the "WOW" in Pow Wow!!!

Yipes!!!  Two weeks sure flies by when you are not having any fun.  Okay, okay, I had a little bit of fun but mostly my head was down, toiling away at my latest hat-making venture and preparing for the Tiny & Mary performance at the Charles Phoenix Wig Wam Pow Wow (much more on that to come).

I was flattered when Charles asked me to bring as many hats as I could muster to sell at what is sure to become a signature event for him.  Depending on Mary to be a walking advertisement for my pop-up hat shop, I had every intention of making her some thematically-appropriate headwear - and leaving the rest of her outfit in her hands.  Oh, the best laid plans...

The custom TeePee Topper!
Inspired by the paint scheme of the earliest Wig Wam Motels, I recreated the iconic
serpentine stripe with red ric rac.  I painted dowels for the tent poles and gathered a
Marimekko remnant as a stand-in for the planter that surrounds each wigwam motel room.

Unfortunately, when one makes such a specific accessory, the fundamental elements of a coordinating ensemble are somewhat elusive.

Digging through the fabric stash, I was surprised to discover just two
scant yards of a Native American novelty print, featuring, flowers,
teepees, horses, and warrior braves.

Completely unaware of the fabric's origin, I almost sent it back to the bottom of fabric mountain for its lack of sophistication and unrefined design.  However, if lack of refinement and sophistication immediately consign one to the bottom of the heap, I would never be allowed in polite society.  Denying the natural hypocrite within me, I intended to make the most of this fabric.

This is much more indicative of what my sketch pad looks
like than some of the other illustrations I've shared.  A small
amount of time and a small amount of fabric meant that the
outfit would need to be equally brief.  Weary of making bra
tops, I made a simple play suit consisting of a cropped peasant
top and a short, gathered skirt; I used every inch of that material!

Accessorized with just a few red bangles and a '68 Cadillac Coupe de Ville,
Mary and Fabian took the outfit and the car out for a spin!

I guess we won't be winning any awards for cultural sensitivity with this one, but we consider the outfit and the Wigwam Motel to be true celebrations of Americana!  Have you ever slept in a wigwam?


Cheers!

Mr. Tiny


p.s. Put A Lid On It Sun Hats from Mr. Tiny's Workshop will be listed soon!

Sew What?! A 1940's Sun Suit

Sometimes I fool myself into thinking that I am decluttering, stash busting, and overcoming the hoarder in me.  In actuality, I am usually doing quite the opposite - only making things worse by enabling the same terrible behavior in Mary.  The overwhelming "need" to rescue things from trash barrels, thrift stores, estate/garage sales is a monkey on our collective back.  And if we can't get rid of the monkey, at the very least, I would like to train him to recognize awesome vintage scores and to haggle like he's in a Baghdad bazaar.  I will admit that I am improving (the first step is admitting that I have a problem, right?) but when, on a road trip through Albuquerque, NM, I saw chenille sailboats peeking out from a rack full of unremarkable thrift store clothing, it was immediately obvious that this piece was not going to be abandoned to whatever fates the scorching desert sun offers to pink and purple, chenille sailboats.

This vintage, chenille beach cape languished in a closet for the
last couple of years waiting for me to figure out an appropriate
 ensemble; purple/salmon/lavender is a difficult color story to replicate.  

Our recent adventures on Catalina Island didn't begin and end with our friends' wedding; we made a long weekend out of it and that, of course, proved the perfect opportunity to bring the sailboats out of dry dock.

As we took the photo of Mary with the statue,
 this baby sea lion was perched on the rocks immediately
across from us.  He was not about to be outdone by some
crummy, old statue! 

Using a pattern that Mary created, I made a gathered,
halter-style bra top with a keyhole cutout.  The shorts
were altered from a contemporary pattern and then
given the Mr. Tiny treatment with a sailboat based on
the cape's design.

Using a satin stitch in varying widths, I machine-appliqued a
 sunset and sailboat on the shorts of Mary's sun suit in colors
coordinating with those on the beach cape. 

I call it a "sun suit" because, while it was technically safe to submerge in
 water, the two-piece set doesn't really have all of the desirable wicking
qualities and ultra-snug fit of a proper swimsuit.  Wanting to dive in,
 Mary was a little wistful at the water's edge.

Looking not unlike the bathing beauties for which Catalina Island
 was so famous in its heyday, Mary strikes a pose for the fine folks
of Avalon, CA.
(photo by Amber Foxx)

Mr. Tiny, Mary, and our pals Damien & Allison.
I like the fact that we ran the gamut of styles and levels of dress/undress.
White pants?  Don't mind if I do!
(photo by Amber Foxx)

Having done more than my fair share of sewing, planning, packing, performing, and preparation, I was ready to use our Catalina weekend as an excuse to relax and enjoy our sunny, Southern California weather.  While Mary sauntered around the tiny town of Avalon, Mr. Tiny was sitting...er, swinging...pretty.

The new album cover - "Mr. Tiny Swings in Avalon"

Cheers!

Mr. Tiny