La la la

My big, wide, veiny feet enjoying nature's touch.

I was in Houston/Galveston, Tx last weekend for a series of events one of which was an ancestral tribute that took place on the Galveston beach. I could go on and on about it, but suffice it to say I enjoyed myself thoroughly.

Pictured above you can get a glimpse of the minimal sewing that I've been doing lately: a fitted, floor length skirt to wear that day. As mentioned before I really only ever sew for myself when it's time to attend an event that I need a particular type of garment for. The request was to wear white to the beach, so I whipped up something. I'll get (and post) better photos of it soon.

Me adorned with marks to deter evil spirits. These were given to me by Yoruba priestess Oyafunmike Ogunlano. If you've seen the film Sankofa, she's Shola/Mona, one of the main characters. (Both she and Mutabaruka --Shango from the film--were present.) Seeing as how I enjoy Mutabaruka's work and Sankofa is one of my favorite movies to watch, It was definitely an honor having them there.

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Feels like I've said it before, but I really hope to be back to my regular sewing within the next few weeks. A lot has changed for me, and I'm working some things out, but it's all coming together. :-)

peace!

Circumstantial

I've got a photographer friend who recently opened up a studio in a local mall, and from time to time he'll call and ask me to come pose for him so he can practice with lighting, angles, various props, etc. Then there are other times when I'm just over there--with no intentions whatsoever of taking any pictures--and he'll talk me into getting in front of the camera. Below are shots taken nearly two months ago. In the former ones I'm in a reversible dress (A FlyTie creation, of course ;-) which is purple and a dark teal color, but in the second shot you'll see where he used Photoshop to make it a different color. Oh, and the beaded necklace belongs to a friend of mine who went with me to the studio that day. That day was a planned day of photography. The latter photos were taken impromptu another day while we were sitting in his studio talking and watching people walk through the mall.

Before these sessions it had been a long time since I'd had photos taken of myself that involved someone else besides me, the auto feature on my camera, and a box or something to prop the camera on.

Enjoy!!
(Maybe??? :-/)

(It was my idea to get behind the cage. i don't know. There something sooooo..forbidden about it!)

© 2009 Mark Joseph
Majestic Photography
Lafayette/Carencro, LA

About a Dress

On September 5, 2009, my friend Olympia was joined in holy matrimony to a charming man in a private ceremony. Following the ceremony a select group of individuals converged and engaged in merriment and glee at an intimate reception in honor of the new union. Seeing as how I was not actually present at said reception, I can only assume that the aforementioned merriment and glee are the reality of the day. However, knowing the ways in which love can inspire the best in people, I'm going to stick with this assumption. :-D.

Come along with me for a pictorial presentation of the day's occasion. In the process, you'll be able to read my impromptu, (poorly composed) short story about a particular dress and an explanation as to why I missed out on such a special moment.

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Sometime in early to mid August I got word from Olympia that she was getting married....like in less than a month. Of course she'd need a dress, and she was entrusting me to make it... on time. Something non-traditional, canary yellow, and strapless. Simlar in style to this dressfrom my shop but with a contrast color peeping from under like in this one. Something in color. Not just white.

The contrast colors were important, but the band at the center was to be solid, not patchwork like the original. Ok. I got it. In my head. I never really was a sketcher.

Time went on. We did more "virtual designing" via phone, email, and Yahoo! Chat and determined that the contrast colors should be blue in nature. Yellow and blue usually go well together. Turquoise and navy blue is what we decided. Yep, that was gonna be it.

And some of that stuff to make it poof out and be full, Olympia added. Netting. In white. Canary yellow, navy, turquoise, and white. Yep. That was it. We had it together.

Oh! And what about a belt attached to the center band? I thought it was a good idea and dug upone of my earlier designs (which was later produced in another form) and emailed her the link as an example of what I meant. She liked it and also decided that her band should be wide--like the original dress--not 2-3 inches as we'd first thought, but much wider. Alright. I had all the info I needed. All that was left was for me to make it happen.

But wait. I needed measurements. The dress has to actually fit! Ummm, but we hadn't (and still haven't) seen each other since June, were in two different states, and all that getting fitted stuff was too much. "Just give me your bust measurement," I say. Yeah. That'll do. If it fits uptop, then we're good. The skirt part is sorta like a one size fits all situation. And where the length is concerned, I'll just use myself as a model to determine how long it should be based on her height (Meaning how tall I guessed she was. I didn't know her actual height). Yep. It was ready to be made.

But one problem: I was ripping and running all over. From North Louisiana to south. Then back. Then back again. Then to Austin, TX. Then back to South Louisiana. Doing thus and that and that and this. All while knowing I was being depended on to make a wedding dress.

August passed on. September arrived. September 1. September 2. I finally went to purchase the materials on this day and learned that canary yellow wasn't really an option. There were only a few shades of light yellow and a golden yellow. I called from the store and we made the decision over the phone: golden yellow. Ok. I had the materials. Still no dress. I was in transition unsettled. No place to really set up my machine and supplies and get to work, but it was gonna get made.

Then we came to a resolution: I'd go to her home--further South Louisiana--make the dress Thursday, and leave it there for when she arrived back home that Friday evening for the ceremony that would take place on Saturday. We were pushing it, but hey, it had to be done.

So I went, made the dress, hung it up so it'd be in plain view when she walked in, and headed out Friday morning back to where I was (about 2 hrs. away) with the intention of going back down that way to attend the reception on Saturday. When I woke up Saturday, though, the exhaustion had set in. I could barely move and just felt sick. All the driving and ripping and running all around had taken its toll, and I knew I wouldn't make it. :-(

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When it was all said and done, and the vows were taken, and the fun was had, and the people were gone, we talked, and I was happy to know that the dress--designed and created over the miles without us ever seeing each other to get it done--had worked out in the end. She loved it, the people loved it, and a new concept was born The Olympia Dress. I'll be coming out with a collection of this style and variations of it as an alternative to the usual styles of wedding dresses.

peace!