Tuesday, July 22, 2008

DIY!

Look, I made a purse!

Materials include: the cardboard box some Pampers Cruisers came in, the December, January, and March issues of VOGUE, a piece of fabric trim from the Wal-Mart craft department, a buckle, needle and thread, Elmer's glue, and about 30 coats of polyurethane varnish.

purse 004

purse 002

purse 015

My crappy pictures kind of fail to do it justice. In real life it kind of has a Lagerfield-at-Chanel-esque, pop-art quality. This is actually purse mark II. Purse mark I failed in the construction phase. I'll post how it fits together if anyone is actually interested.

This gets me interested on the difference between fashion/design, which I think is great and fun and full of wonderfulness, and the fashion industry, which, to say the least, has its issues. It's like the difference between Tim Gunn on Project Runway and Tyra Banks on America's Next Top Model. I do think that sometimes this difference gets glossed over in certain feminist discussions/circles, which is Yet! Another! Reason! why I'm meh on feminism as a movement lately, albeit a very frivolous reason.

(And if anyone says "strawfeminist" I will throw up, thank you.)

15 comments:

Renegade Evolution said...

OMG Vanessa, you should SELL those, that is a work of art...and I bet there would be a market for purses you can recycle! That's amazing!

and you know, even as a..ahem...fucktoy sellout to the pat...I don't get a lot of the fashion industry/model crap. Clothes should be FUN. I sew, but I only sew FUN stuff...ren faire clothes, costumes, goofy stuff for going clubbing...skirts make out of old ties and stuff like that. The whole idea of being super perfect stylish ala the runway? Yawn. Gimme some funk, thank you.

Vanessa said...

Yes, clothes should be fun! Fashion can be fun! Even the super precise stylish I think can have an element of play to it.

It's the play, I think, that gets forgotten in the discussions a lot.

And thanks! If I made them to sell I'd probably be more careful about not getting glue on the strap!

Vanessa said...

Also, thinking about it more, I think the modeling industry specifically has become a bit dull recently. I grew up reading fashion magazines in the supermodel era. I miss Linda Evangelista, Naomi Campbell, Iman, and (later) Stella Tennant and Kate Moss! Even Giselle Bundchen was more interesting. They all had personalities, and seemed like individuals!

Now every model looks like the same 15 year old, vacant-eyed girl with their hair slicked back.

Cassandra Says said...

Ooh, that's really pretty, and I'm not even much of a purse person. It's pretty, but there's also something sort of gothy about the pattern. It's goth meets art nouveau.

J. Goff said...

WIN!

Ravenmn said...

Extraordinary! I love your choices in color and combination. Did you have to line it as well? Because that's a lot of work.

Sarah J said...

You should sell those. that's awesome.

yes, fashion can be fun, and playful, and a way for women to express creativity, rather than slavish adherence to whatever's "in style" these days. ;)

love it!

Anonymous said...

It's really, REALLY beautiful. Let me know if you ever decide to make purses to order. Not with specific criteria or anything, just, you know, with colours and patterns that could match a certain dress or a certain frame of mind...

Outis said...

Yes, please post construction details. I am a Mat & Pro nut.

Wonderful job!

Daisy said...

Really nice, I was thinking of PROJECT RUNWAY even before you said it!

I think you're ready to move on to clothes next... my designer friend says starting on blazers/jackets/coats is easiest if you are specializing in strange or quirky styles. (Or jewelry!)

Great work, Vanessa.

La Libertine said...

That is very cute! I'd totally buy a purse like that. Is the inside lining black?

SunflowerP said...

Very beautiful!

Another difference that might be worth considering is the difference between having a sense of fashion, and having a sense of style - a distinction pointed out to me by a clothes-horse feminist friend who has enough of both for three people.

Sunflower

CrackerLilo said...

That is exceptionally awesome!

I agree with what you're saying about the models. They've always been thin, but now they're downright bony, and they don't smile. It is bothersome that we don't even know any of their names.

Octogalore said...

Gorgeous, Vanessa! Really unique, I second (or third or fourth?) that there's a market here.

Goody said...

That really is lovely.