Local Sewing and Stitchery Expo Yields Hidden Treasures...

Clockwise beginning at the top:

Vintage Japanese Bingata Katazome Kimono Sleeve - Katazome (stencil-picture-dyeing) is a very old and traditional form of dyeing images on fabric believed to have originated in Okinawa where it is called bingata..

Vintage Japanese Kimono Silk Remnant - the russet leaf of the Japanese Maple is a popular pattern typically worn in Autumn.

Vintage Millinery Grosgrain Ribbon - Corded ribbon of cotton/rayon with edges that allow it to be swirled in a circle in hat-making; also called belting when used in garments.

Buttons and Buckle made of:

Bakelite - Recognized as the world's first synthetic plastic.
Catalin - Heavy, hard as brass plastic with Bakelite qualities.
Casein - Another form of early plastic also used in paint, glue and fiber products.
Celluloid - Referred to as French Ivory (table tennis balls are made from Celluloid).

Vintage Soutache Braid - A soutache is narrow flat decorative braid.

Vintage French Silk Velvet Ribbon with Cluny Lace - Cluny lace, inspired by lace samples originally worked during the 16th century and made popular during the mid-nineteenth century, is made from coarse linen threads.



Imagine the beautiful coats Dana will design with these extraordinary materials…

Baby on a Bearskin Rug….

Fiona simply cannot decide what to wear to Petchitecture SEVENTEEN…will it be classic and sophisticated or silky and exotic?  

I suspect there will be many trips to the “dressing room” before she selects just the right look she is going for…

Wool blend pinstripe coat and tab.  Antique linen belt and cotton crochet trim and belt-loops.
 Lucite buckle and Hard Plastic buttons.

Silk brocade coat with chenille brocade belt and tab.
Cotton crochet lace and plaid silk bias and belt-loops.
Hard Plastic buckle and Bakelite buttons. 

Long Beach Antique Flea Market

During a recent visit to Southern California, my brother and I made the drive from San Diego to Long Beach to check out the Flea.  I have made a number of visits to the Alameda and Rose Bowl flea markets; this was my first to Long Beach.

The weather was beautiful, the vendors had much to offer, and I discovered a bounty of JoeysCoat treasures to bring home to Dana for inspiration.

One vendor in particular I would like to mention is Patty Yuele of Bumblebee Vintage.  I was immediately drawn to her booth, mesmerized by the brilliant spectrum of colors from her Bakelite and Celluloid button, buckle and jewelry display…her collection is remarkable. 

Dana is fast at work creating one-of-a-kind JoeysCoat art with the treasures I found.

Thank you to all the wonderful Long Beach collectors I met…

Petchitecture SEVENTEEN

PAWS (Pets Are Wonderful Support) San Francisco was founded in 1987.  For more than 24 years PAWSSF has kept thousands of low-income seniors and people living with disabling illnesses together with their beloved pets by providing dog walking, trips to the Vet, client advocacy to help ensure companionship with pets is sustained, and much, much more.

 

PAWS relies solely on private contributions in order to support those in need.  

PAWSSF signature fundraiser is Petchitecture -  2012 marks Petchitecture’s 17^th event.  The annual Gala, which spotlights Bay Area architects and designers and their one-of-a-kind pet habitats, will be held at The Palace Hotel in San Francisco on May 11th.  JoeysCoat is delighted to be donating to the Silent Auction.   Dana is inspired, designing a very special JoeysCoat for PAWS. 

Dana and I will attend the festivities, along with 800 other human guests with their well-behaved canine companions.  Fiona will also attend, she is working on her “gala manners” as I type.  Her focus seems to be more about what she is going to wear rather than how to feign well-behaved...wish her luck!

Read more about Petchitecture at pawssf.org.

Gala Manners...

Not Gala Manners...

Gala Manners...

Not Gala Manners...

Ruh roh...

Look What Dana Did...

Today I photographed Dana’s latest creations…I know, I know, I still need to work on my lighting.  In spite of this, Dana’s coats shine brilliantly through…the coats are loaded on the site.  I am particularly fond of the Ikat silk…actually I am particularly fond of all of them…that said, Fiona wants an Ikat, please…

Here is but a wee sampling of the latest coats…

 just a tease, really…

                                                                                     

                                                                                        Enjoy! 

                          

Seattle Times Pacific Northwest Magazine

JoeysCoat is honored to be featured in this Spring’s Seattle Times Pacific Northwest magazine Footprint Edition of Green Market.  The article will include local businesses that design and sell eco-friendly items for pets. 

So grateful…

Fiona in French Grain Sack with silk brocade binding and trim made from a remarkable old necktie I recently found "thrifting". The tab is Sashiko - translation "little stabs"; a form of decorative and functional Japanese embroidery of white cotton thread on traditional indigo cloth.  Dana's imaginative aesthetic is genius!  The fabric for the belt loops was an Estate Sale find - a beautiful handmade wooden box that contained incense imported from Japan long ago. The material was actually used to secure the lid to the box during shipping. The extraordinary buckle and buttons are made of Bakelite.

Snow!

View from my dining room...

Winter wonderland in the enclosed garden...

Fiona in pink wool flannel with Antique French braid Dana found in Paris forty years ago!  Double-knit bow, satin braid belt-loops, Hard Plastic buckle, two-tone Bakelite buttons...prior to seeking refuge under the car, that is... 

Winter in the beautiful Pacific Northwest…the perfect backdrop for some snaps of Fiona playing in the snow, or so I thought…I was able to get one good shot before she crawled beneath the parked car to escape the icy, scary white stuff…it took some doing getting her to come out…the incredibly lovely pink coat will be visiting the Dry Cleaners!  Good girl…playtime's over…