Shoe Bags

Found these in Craft:. Aren't they clever? Designed by British designers, Azumi and David, these bags are a great inspiration for a shoe refashion! I wonder, if I buy two, can I wear them?

The Birdcage

The wings/feather/bird/ trend keeps evolving. It has spiritual connotations -think angel wings, flight, freedom - and is also all about nature - flocks of birds, trees, sticks and leaves, a wing, a feather . . .

It is so interesting to see where this trend is going. Feathers are again playing a role in fashion, this time in the Native American trend that is so big right now. Domestic and exotic birds are seen as props for fashion, while the birdcage motif is used in Anthropologie's latest catalog.

Also inspired by the idea of the birdcage is French designer Jean Paul Gaultier, who debuted his feathered-and-caged haute couture collection in Paris on Wednesday. He has always used corseting in his collections, but this time he constructed entire body cages in fluorescent yellow, orange and pink. He says, "Women feel so free nowadays that they are wearing cages again. It's the ultimate stage in women's liberation." Hmmmm. . . . I don't know about that.

I love this bird and birdcage necklace by Erica Weiner. It speaks more of liberation than a woman in a cage, don't you think?

God Bless America

Happy Fourth of July!!! Celebrate the greatness that is AMERICA! We are so blessed to live in the land of the free. In 1991, I went to Zagreb, Yugoslavia, on a missions trip with my church. It was right as the war there was making headlines in America and the mood amongst the people of Yugoslavia was dark. Even their clothing was dark, simple, plain. We from America laughed easily, wore jeans and tee-shirts and stuck out like sore thumbs. We had to walk a few miles each day to buy bread for our meals because you only bought what you could carry. There were no McDonald's or grocery stores on every corner like there are here at home. Not even a Coke on the store shelves. During our time there we took a train from Zagreb to Germany. Our train was stopped in the middle of the night by soldiers who demanded more money from our group or we would be put off the train in the middle of nowhere. It was scary. I had never been treated this way before. My first thought was, Hey, I'm an American! But I said nothing as our guide paid the soldiers. I realized then that my birthright as a United States citizen was not honored in other countries. I carried with me an expectation that I deserved to be treated well and fairly. I learned a valuable lesson that night, on a train in Germany. Only in America are my rights honored. Only in America am I truly free. By the end of my two week trip I was spiritually fulfilled, but incredibly homesick for America. As we were in mid air crossing over the Atlantic, entering the United States, our pilot announced that we were officially in America. Unexpectedly, I began to cry. I was so grateful for my home land. When I walked through my front door, home at last, I laid down on my floor and kissed the ground - literally. Truly, God has blessed America. Now go light a sparkler!

Wearable Art

Everyone loves a fabulous tee shirt. While building my trend report this week I came across some great tees.

Joy Apparel offers participants the chance to become instant works of art. Every face on a Joy T-Shirt has been inspired by a real person. Here's how it works: You purchase a shirt with someone else's face on it, the idea being when you wear your shirt you think about that person and how your everyday actions can affect others and the world we live in. After you purchase a shirt you may then upload a photo of your own image to their website where it is hand drawn and placed on a t-shirt for others to wear. It's all about being connected, and standing for peace and equality.

Then there is the Gap. They have partnered with the Whitney Museum of American Art to present a limited edition t-shirt collection. The idea is to wear art by some of today's most influential contemporary artists on your tee, taking art to the streets and into the world. I like that.

And there is the Lauren Moshi clothing collection. Every print is hand drawn by Lauren Moshi. By the way, celebs love her look. Check out Paris Hilton and Lauren Conrad....

Miami Oink

This has nothing to do with trending, except that the tattoo thing is hotter than ever, but it is so strangely fascinating to me I had to post this. I guess beginning tattoo artist's have to start somewhere..........

Sleeveface

Back in February I became aware of this website called 'Sleeveface.' Sleeveface is where one or more persons obscure or augment any part of their body or bodies with a record sleeve causing an illusion. It started in Wales, but the trend can be viewed on YouTube, Facebook and Flickr. I found it completely intriguing. I printed some pics and brought them into my trend meeting as a possible fad or trend to watch. Well, within a couple of weeks PEOPLE Magazine (March 24, 2008) featured a story called Covered Up. They called sleevefacing a "hot web trend" and "the latest DIY Internet fad." Now thousands of music fans are taking pictures of themselves with their favorite album covers.
What to do with such a trend? Jump on it! That's exactly what Duncan is doing - incorporating a cool Internet trend while making a fashion art statement.

Long Live Rock (and Dean)

Yesterday I get to work and start going through my emails, without even having any morning coffee (imagine that!) and one of my emails is from my big boss, Valerie, requesting that we all dress as 'rockers' because the next day (today) it is Dean's birthday. Dean is a cool guy I work with who just happens to be a rocker by night, with his own band, HAT-TRICK. By day, he is 'Dippin' Dean', knowledgeable about all things ceramic.

Anyway, because we all love Dean and are all 'a little bit rock 'n' roll, some of us actually donned our rocker clothes and came to work. Poor Valerie is traveling and missed out on all the black clothing, band tee shirts, heavy make-up and Guitar Hero guitars. Believe me, V would have jumped right in and rocked with us!

Dean was very surprised when he arrived for work to see many of the marketing team paying homage to him. Allee went as far as to make a jacket with Dean's band's name on the back. That's what's awesome about working for a creative company. When the work day wrapped, we gathered with Dean around his truck and took a picture. Front row (l to r) is Nicole, Alyson, Allee and Alexis. Back row is David, me and Dean. Happy birthday, Dean!