Posts from ‘Inspiration’
These are more pictures from the Jean Paul Gaultier show at the MMFA.
This dress struck me because it contains no animal skin at all. It is a masterpiece of beadwork. The claws are rhinestones. So awesome.
I love the nude dress. It is so bold and gutsy and LOOK at those perky nipples!
This show is beyond fashion…
It is about sculpture that can be worn.
The arms of the dress become fingered gloves with bright red lacquered nails.
The sequins are actually shaded to lend contour to the body.
Go to the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts before it is too late. The show closes October 2nd, 2011
These are both pictures that I took on my 3rd visit to the JPG show in Montreal at the MMFA.
The in-soles of those heels are lined with white fur. Down to the detail his work is amazing and desirable.
It’s sexy. It’s glam. I want.
This is one of my favourite costumes from last year’s Smirkus production. We stitched all the veins of each leaf mixing silk leaves that we made in the studio with fake maple leaves that i found. It took a few days of appliquee work.
One that note, the Fall collection is starting to arrive in the store. Come take a look!
I know it was months ago and I haven’t been posting a lot lately, but here are my pictures from the opening night of the Jean Paul Gaultier show in Montreal. It is the all time best show ever!
Go see it!
Don’t miss it!
I was very inspired and have been back to see it again since the opening night. It was so crazy that night, that invited guests had to line up for hours just to get into the Museum.
The first series of photos below were taken while Krin and I took were in the line up to get into the Museum.
Me wearing a turquoise silk bustier ($158-258) and Russian Bracelet ($12-16) and Silk chiffon scarf ($22-32).
My muse and circus super star Karin Maren Haglund wearing the Purple Bella dress ($278)
This Rosebud necklace is all gypsy and all modern ($248)
The slim fit crinoline in multi reds ($140) available in 12 different colors at Boutique Katrin Leblond 4647 blvd. St-Laurent
The Museum of Fine arts in Montreal decked out in JPG sailor stripes.
Just before we went in to see the show I bumped into Rosie Godbout. Her atelier is upstairs from mine and she is an incredible textile artist who specializes in felting and makes the most amazing winter coats.
Here we are inside the show admiring and stealing pictures on the down low.
My fave dress above and Krin’s fave below.
the famous Can Can dress was on a catwalk of moving mannekins. The installation of the show is superb and very fresh.
I leave you with this picture of the most incredible shoe collage: heels inside wedge sandals! WOW!
Everyone loves getting flowers. Especially this time of year, we’re busy buying each other roses by the dozen, orchids to brighten our kitchen tables, or pots of crocuses .
Where we buy our flowers makes a serious impact in the lives of many people. The commercial flower industry is as horrifying, corrupt, and abusive as the sweatshop-clothing industry. Not something anyone wants to support!
Katrin Leblond Design celebrates the fact that our clothes are ethically made, and that the people who lovingly stitch the garments actually get paid fairly for their labour. In this industry, that says a lot.
Buying fair-trade flowers is just as important. It’s the difference between supporting local farmers, sustainable agriculture, and small businesses, and supporting cheap mass-labour, pesticide use, human-rights violations, and unnecessary fossil fuels.
There are many wonderful florists in Montreal that carry fair-trade, locally-grown flowers. Here are just a few. Go visit them as you pick your perfect bouquet!!
You can also pay a visit to Jean-Talon Market and see what local farmers have in store for you there. There’s something lovely about talking to the people who actually grew and harvested the blossoms themselves.
- A flower market in Ohio
Enjoy the beauty that flowers add to your home. Buy someone you love flowers, or better yet, buy yourself a sunny bouquet. Flowers add magic and enchantment to a space. When they’ve been grown and harvested with love, I bet that magic’s even stronger.
Express your beauty as you are. Dance in your kitchen and sing to the stars.
Sarah Pearson
This is the last of my Artforms in Nature posts. I have really paid a tribute to artist and naturalist Ernst Haeckel. I leave you with a beautiful series of full colour plates showcasing larger lifeforms. Some might not seem so beautiful at first (the frogs!!!), but I insist, there is inspiration there for someone.
The orchids are just incredible. I made a series of dresses once for the Cirque du Soleil based on orchids. Below are two dresses by Michelle Ferranti that served as my inspiration for that project.
Here are the frogs!! Ha ha! They are so hideous and yet i have nothing against frogs. Actually, I think frogs are pretty important and I own a pair of little gold frog stud earrings that are quite delightful. We all loved Kermit the frog. Below I have added the image of a dress by John Galliano that seems kind of froggy to me.
This plate is classic Faberge egg inspiration. It is just so perferct. Look at he symmetry and ornament and texture.
You don’t need to be a genius to be an artist. You just need to take the time to do it. A lot of the work that I do is detail oriented and time consuming. Other designers look at my work and think I’m crazy to be cutting out shapes, making stencils and drawing with thread. But to me, it’s just what I do. Come see the new Spring 2011 collection at the boutique. I have been adding new styles every week.
Kat
Are you feeling the pastels yet? Are there easter eggs on the countertop at the depanneur? If you are not into the commercial hype of Western holidays, maybe you can find solace in the natural rhythm of the earth. It’s really just about Spring. It’s about sprouting, budding, beginning, hatching…it is that moment on the cusp of growth. It’s about birth. Or shall we say re-birth, since Winter will come again and then another Spring will kindle re-birth again.
These images are for you to savour. Taste them as if you are eating a meringue. Let them melt on your tongue. As much as they are about high-fashion, they are absolutely not about the clothes. They are a feeling, a mood, a moment. The crumbling broken statues and columns evoke a feeling of walking among the ruins of an old temple. The light and the colours are fresh. It is the morning. The day is new.
I see a still moment. A moment to breathe. A time out. A little gift of time alone with yourself. Just look out the window and stay there for a few minutes. Your nervous system will adjust to the slower rhythm, the lack of stimulation. Try. See how hard it is to do that.
And here is a little facial tip from Michelle Phan. She is my make-up teacher. I came to make-up late in life (like, last year) and have been really enjoying playing with colours and powders thanks to her.
Kat
We have been excitedly anticipating new Ivko pieces. They are finally here! Coming to us all the way from Serbia. These Incredible knit wear designs are covered in beautiful pattern, exquisitely made using top quality yarns. The spring collection offers beautiful styles in linens and cottons.
Vanessa recently returned from a life-changing trip to India. In her seven weeks there, she experienced sensory awareness on a whole new level. “I felt more alive than I ever had,” she said. Her feeling of being “home” was uncanny.
photo by Vanessa Finnie, available at Boutique Katrin Leblond
She’s been back since November, and is still processing what she learned on that trip. As part of that process, she has started making cards with the photographs she took in India. These stunning cards are now available for sale at the Boutique.
photo by Vanessa Finnie, available at Boutique Katrin Leblond
Her photographs are moving and joyous. They are full of colour and movement, humour and peace. The intensity of her emotions on that trip comes across strongly in her pictures. They are definitely worth a trip to the boutique to see first-hand. And are available for only $6.50 each. Give one to yourself or to someone you are thinking of.
Express your beauty as you are. Dance in your kitchen and sing to the stars.
Sarah Pearson
I find this woman and her dress very inspiring. She is stunningly beautiful and her pose is very masculine and confident. Her dress is a total work of art! I would love to know who this woman is. Is she an artists or a designer posing for a story? If anyone knows who she is, I am curious. Please leave a comment.
More and more businesses recognize the benefits of having animals around. Did you know that employees at Google headquarters can bring their pets to work? In fact, they are actually encouraged to?
Many companies, recognize that animals make us better people. They align us with our values. They help awaken our senses. Their needs are simple – a bowl of food here, a trip to the vet there – but it’s enough to keep us in a healthy rhythm ourselves. It’s enough to keep us on track.
Pets make us more productive, and certainly more creative.
Artists have long understood the importance of keeping pets around. Mary Oliver wrote an incredible book of poetry mostly inspired by her morning walks with her dog. Sarah McLachlan attributes getting through one long creative block to her companionship with her pup. I know some of my best ideas are the ones I first share with my cat.
Animals can sense the things we’re often desensitized to. They know when we need a snuggle, a hand-licking, or when we need to play. They also know when we need some fresh air. What’s better – and healthier – than a cigarette break? A dog-walking break!
- prints from Katrin Leblond’s spring collection
One of Katrin Leblond’s, um, more furry of team members is Arthur, Kat’s brother’s dog. He hangs out a lot at the studio, keeping the team company. Does he earn his keep? You betcha. The creative inspiration he brings to the workspace, as well as his boundless ability to love, is priceless. It’s a treat to be in the studio or boutique when Arthur’s around. He just has a way of keeping everything more real.
Much of Kat’s new spring collection was inspired by animals. Monkeys, fish, and elephants all made their way into her latest designs. However, I believe that more art than we give credit for is inspired, in one way or another, by the pets in our lives.
Express your beauty as you are. Dance in your kitchen and sing to the stars.
Sarah Pearson
You know, the UK fashion designer who’s been named Queen of Punk, and who also happened to design Carrie’s wedding dress in Sex and the City I?
She recently starred in a documentary. Basically her, on her bicycle, giving her audience a private tour of all her favorite London haunts. By haunts, we mean art galleries.
- London’s National Gallery
Though London is one most expensive cities on the planet, entrance to all the national galleries is completely free. That is a powerful message about the justice of democratizing high art.
I love the message behind this. I believe strongly in democratizing “high” art. I believe in making beauty and culture accessible. I believe that the masters – the artists who dared to change the world with their art, not the ones who catered to a phase and then burned out – should belong to all people. Their work, I believe, is the copywright of humanity. I also believe that, given their important work, great artists must get paid.
For a woman credited with birthing punk fashion in the 70s, it is mildly funny to see her lauding the values of high vs. underground culture.
- Vivienne Westwood’s bridal design
She is anti-establishment, yet also vehemently pro high-art. The two, she posits, go hand in hand.
Here’s what she told the Globe and Mail: “if you’re an art-lover, you’re also a freedom fighter, and you need to take part in trying to save the world.”
That is also the spirit behind Katrin Leblond’s work. Kat believes fiercely in making art to better the world. She expresses this both in her craft itself, and in the way she runs her business. Her garments are made ethically, and her business is run with utmost concern for the environment.
Through vehemently defending beauty, she brings light and love to the world. The clothes she produces, brimming with joy and made with love and justice, spread positivity when they’re worn in the world.
Vivienne Westwood insists that art exists to make us better people. That love for humanity is certainly present in every piece of art that comes through our Boutique doors.
Express your beauty as you are. Dance in your kitchen and sing to the stars.
Sarah Pearson
Katrin Leblond’s new spring season was inspired by a wish.
Well, actually, three wishes.
A rack-full of new spring wear!
When it came time to draw up themes for this new collection, Kat was ready to try something new. She sat down her whole creative team, and asked them to write down their three wishes for humanity.
She collected these three wishes, some in English and some in French, and read through them. There were many overlaps – wishes for the health of the oceans, for endangered animals like elephants and monkeys, wishes for clean and safe foods, wishes for the forests. There were wishes for the emancipation of children, for the heart of humanity to be wide open, and for all people to enjoy the warmth of the sun.
“I wanted these wishes to be the inspiration behind the collection,” Kat explained to me, “but I also wanted to make sure that my intent was clear.” She wanted to tap into not just her visual impression of these wishes, but that of the collective consciousness. In today’s world, that means paying a trip to Google.
Kat sat down at her computer and entered every wish, word-for-word, into google-image. She leafed through the images, and absorbed.
Google-image was able to make free associations that no single designer would have been able to make on her own. The wealth of inspiration was overwhelming.
The pattern from a dress inspired by native women
“Images kept coming up of spiritual leaders,” Kat told me, “that I never would have associated with some of these wishes, but there they were. We were talking about using the colour grey, and I had no ideas for that, but then I typed in ‘elephants’ and all this grey imagery came up!”
Little by little, groups of this new collection will appear at the Boutique. One group has already been released, which is inspired by First Nations women and is rich with earth tones and sandy hues.
earth tones abound in the first group of springwear
Other treats we have to look forward to are a Garden Vegetable Skirt, a Planet Earth Skirt, and lots of elephant motifs, leaf appliqués and ocean imagery.
And we’re keeping it close to the source. “The wish that inspired the piece will be tagged on the hanger of each garment, so that people can know what it means,” Kat tells me. “I want to think of each garment as a magic spell that we’re putting out into the world for humanity.”
A magic spell wished for by the women who made these garments with their own hands, no doubt weaving their intentions into each fold of fabric.
It should indeed be a magical spring at Boutique Katrin Leblond.
Express your beauty as you are. Dance in your kitchen and sing to the stars.
Sarah Pearson
Roses are the Rolls Royce of ornamental flowers. They are cultural symbols of beauty, love, femininity, sex and virginity (figure that one out…). There’s a reason why the walls of Boutique Katrin Leblond are covered in beautiful rose prints.
It was Katrin’s brother Nick that stenciled the roses all over the back wall of the boutique. Here is Cassandra posing in Katrin Leblond designs in front of the rose wall.
Why do we assign the rose so much power?
Roses have long been associated with various goddesses. Isis the Goddess of fertility, and Aphrodite (or Venus) the Goddess of beauty and sexual attraction, are both represented by the red rose. Perhaps the folds and folds of red petals conveys certain imagery of feminine fertility. That, and the sheer beauty of them is so pristine.
The Virgin Mary however is also often compared to a rose. Two of my favorite Christmas carols are all about Mary as this very beautiful flower. The German carol “Lo how a Rose ere blooming” talks about the Virgin “blooming” with life in the dead of winter. Another carol, a medieval English one, describes Mary: “there is no rose of such virtue as is the rose that bear Jesus.” Here is a rose window in a French cathedral, dedicated to the Virgin Mary:
Roses are beautiful, delicate, and lovely. But they also have a dark side. They have thorns.
Certain Christian mystics liken the five petals of the red rose to the five wounds of Christ. The “crown of thorns” draws on the darker side of the rose – the pain, the suffering, the agony.
I suppose these two sides of the rose make it the perfect paradox to symbolize love. Love is beautiful, love is pristine, love is pure. Love also hurts. Even the most stable of partnerships encounter pain. Life, after all, consists of both light and shadows.
As we give and receive roses at this time of year, it’s nice to stop and think about these different aspects of the rose. They are both lusty and virginal. Eternal and fragile. Gentle yet thorned.
We can appreciate their beauty, their fragility, and their simple radiance. We can also appreciate their thorns.
Express your beauty as you are. Dance in your kitchen and sing to the stars.
Sarah Pearson
They say you can’t throw a stone in Montreal without hitting a church. Well, in Austin Texas, where I just spent a week’s vacation, you can’t throw a stone without hitting an image of the Guadalupe Virgin or the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
I wasn’t raised with any Catholic education, so I was unfamiliar with the Sacred Heart. On this trip, as I began to see so many beautiful hearts all over town, in boutiques, on murals, and even just on keychains, I noticed I was really drawn to them.
We LOVE hearts at Boutique Katrin Leblond. Just look at our logo.
The heart’s bursting over with flowers, just like many sacred hearts burst with flames.
They say that, in Catholicism, the Sacred Heart of Jesus represents Jesus’ divine love for humanity. I like to think that when people enter the boutique, they are nurtured and inspired to show divine love towards themselves. We want every woman to feel they are entering a temple that worships the beauty that exists in all of us, inside and out.
this hand embroidered pillow is available at the boutique
I left Texas with a little hand-made Sacred Heart made out of tin that I bought from a Mexican artist. I’ve hung it over my work desk, so that the radiance of that divine self-love may carry me through my work days, and inspire me to be my best self.
Like a new dress or scarf, this little Heart of mine is a simple gift to myself that makes me feel special and loved. Come on by the Boutique and you’re bound to find something that does the same for you!
Express your beauty as you are. Dance in your kitchen, and sing to the stars.
Sarah Pearson
Are you tired of Ernst Haeckel yet? I’m not. I think his are some of the best illustrations from Nature I have ever seen. I love the attention to layout on the page…how he created shading and shapes that stand on their own as a work of art.
The first image is of moths. They are soft and fluffy and every hair is delicately rendered. Imagine the time it took to illustrate all of these.
And now for some Mothy jewelry. We just got these in the store. We have moth necklaces and octopus pins…oh and there is a Jellyfish necklace that is oh-so Ernst Haeckel.
The second image of the shells made me think of the experimental fashion by Swedish fashion designer Julia Krantz. These shell garments are made of translucent fabrics draped over metal frames. This was done as aschool project at HDK School of Design and Crafts in Gothenburg, Sweden.
We’ve all seen trilobite fossils as kids. They must have been numerous back in the day (millions of years ago) for there to be such an abundance of fossils around being found. and sold for a few dollars. Below Haeckel’s trilobite drawings, I have attached the image of a dress that to me looks like it was inspired by arthropods. The layers are like the sections of a hard shelled creature. The beauty of it lies in the perfect cusp between soft and hard. The dress holds it’s form, but doesn’t look too stiff. I think it is really gorgeous.
Trilobite Dress by: Wesley Nault+Daniel Feld
Hope you enjoyed another viewing of art, crafts and nature. Where does one begin and the other end? Is it all the same? Sometimes I believe that what we (humans) craft is not separate from, but a part, of the big organism we call Earth. We often assign value to what we craft: good or bad, expensive or cheap, destructive or ecological. What really matters though, is do you feel joyful? Is there a happy moment in every day that you live? If you need to find a happy moment outside of yourself, you can always come to the store for a little drop in, a hug or a cup of tea.
4647 blvd. St-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec, H2T1R2, 514-678-9616
Katrin Leblond
This is the second post of a new thread on this blog called The Goddess Series, profiling goddesses from all different cultures and finding a little place for them at our Boutique.
This week’s Goddess: Diana the Huntress.
Diana, Goddess of the Hunt
Diana: Who is she?
Diana is the Roman Goddess of the Hunt. Clothed in animal skins and dwelling deep in forests of oak, she represents creation, motherhood, and all earthly survival instincts. Diana is a huntress, which means she is ever-moving. She elusive and evading, keeping company with the sacred forests, and evading the grasp of those who might want to claim her for their own.
Her solitary, mysterious nature has led her also to be associated with chastity and virginity. She is also a lunar goddess in many cultures.
Introverted and elusive, Diana prefers the deep forests to the company of others
What Does Diana teach us?
Diana is the wild-woman spirit within each of us. She is present when we feel intuitive connections to land, or when we feel deep survival instincts towards ourselves or our kin. She is the power behind pregnancy and women’s physical mysteries. Diana teaches us to trust our wild side, follow our instincts, and delve into the shadows of our psychic lives.
Where Diana Lives at Boutique Katrin Leblond
Diana can be found in the earth tones of Katrin Leblond’s new spring collection, wearing prints that celebrate the health of our planet. She can be found in the knitted shawls, scarves and ponchos that envelop women in warmth and give us a touch of mystery. She can be found in the hearts of every woman that leaves the dressing room, feeling like they’ve just unleashed a hidden side of themselves with the new garments they’ve found.
A print from our new spring collection, celebrating native women
Earth tones abound in our new spring collection
Knitwear evokes feelings of both earthiness and mystery
Express your beauty as you are. Dance in your kitchen and sing to the stars.
Sarah Pearson
On February 2nd, pagans around the world pay homage Brigid, the goddess of poetry, smithcraft, and healing.
This is the first of a new thread on this blog called The Goddess Series, profiling goddesses from all different cultures and finding a little place for them at our Boutique.
Brigid: who is she?
Brigid is the fire of creativity and inspiration. Celtic tribes burned and protected sacred flames celebrating her spirit for centuries, until the Norman invasion of the middle ages. Legends of Brigid date back to ancient Ireland, but she has also been adopted by the Catholic Church as St. Brigid. She is symbolized often as an “eternal flame,” a spirit that lives in our hearts. Brigid is also considered a goddess of hearth and home. It is customary to offer her cakes and breads, as well as offer her words of poetry or wishes for the world.
A traditional alter for Imbolc, Brigid's pagan feast day.
What does Brigid teach us?
Brigid teaches us the grace of healing and handiwork. She guides us as our most passionate muse, but also nourishes us with the warmth of her fire. Brigid can make things whole, whether through her healing powers or through the synthesis of poetry. We celebrate Brigid as the days begin to grow noticeably longer, but while the earth is still clothed in white. Brigid reminds us that, while all may appear quiet and bleak on the surface, the earth is stirring, preparing for spring. She is modest and homely, but teaches us to go deep within ourselves. She holds our hand as we stir the soils of our own soul, anticipating spring.
Imbolc is celebrated with Brigid's creative fire
Where Brigid lives at Katrin Leblond
Brigid is in Katrin’s warm and sunny studio on Casgrain. She is in the hands of every person who stitches the clothes, cuts fabric, embroiders appliqué. She is the quiet inspiration that befalls a designer. She is in the hands of our fashion consultants, who lovingly craft beautiful outfits for all our clients in the dressing room. She is in the healing grace that comes from an hour spent in a colourful boutique, immersed in beauty.
Express your beauty as you are. Dance in your kitchen and sing to the stars.
Sarah Pearson
Here is my take-two on the analyses of how artists are influenced by Nature. Sometimes we really stretch the truth, but sometimes the source of our inspiration is very close indeed. I have included two other artists in this series: Alexander McQueen (17 March 1969 – 11 February 2010) and Karl Blossfeldt (June 13, 1865 – December 9, 1932). McQueen, who died last year, was one of the best headpiece designers of all time. Below, I have included photos that seem to be directly influenced by the shapes and forms in Haeckels prints.
This is from McQueens SS 2008 collection.
I mean, really? Is this not totally crazy awesome to see how closely linked all creativity is! We are all drinking from the same creative well!
Also SS2008 McQueen
These three images really need to all be looked at together. Above we have shapes that look to me like armour, shields and Samurai headpieces. Below we have another McQueen headpiece from his last collection FW 2011. Then below that, I have inserted three photos from early nature photographer Karl Blossfeldt. The references are stunning!
German photographer Karl Blossfeldt (June 13, 1865 – December 9, 1932) worked in Berlin and is best known for his close-up photographs of plants. It is documented that he was influenced by the the illustrations of Ernst Haeckel as a scientist and artist.
Here she is: the Lady!
Nowadays women don’t get to be a queen or a princess or a duchess or a lady anymore. Well, Lady Gaga says Bah! to that idea.
Whether you love her or not, she is awesomely bold and honours couture by wearing the runway pieces that no-one else dares to wear.
The origami dresses are incredible and she wore three of them ( so she must really like it). They are by designer Thierry Mugler.
And here we have the bubble dress by designer Hussein Chalayan. It seems there is debate whether or not she is sporting a real or a knock off of this dress. Either way, she is not sitting down.
This is the best of all. It is by Armani and it reminds me of the good witch in the Wizard of Oz, just in the future. She looks incredible! Not to mention, she is carrying a starburst accessory that is not a wand, not a purse, not really anything …and she is pulling it off. Her hair is barbie fabulous. Her shoes, oh my goddess, her shoes become her tights which go all the way up her leg in a thin line of sparkles.
Rocking Alexander McQueen! Here we get a glimpse of the lady that she is. She is not the kermit the frog wearing pop star. She is not wearing the meat dress. She is all woman. She is a lady.
I say this to YOU now: Wear it. Dare to buy and wear the couture pieces that designers create. When that occasion pops up and you need to get media coverage, what you wear will make a difference!
Katrin
I would have used them in my dollhouse, for my barbies and made fashion jewelry with them too. I have been crafting for so long, that my collection of craft supplies requires more space than my collection of shoes. (But I am working on that, trying to buy more shoes and use up old supplies.) These little handbags are just so great. I have always been fascinated by the people who make things mini. They are so attractive to me. They are a completely frivolous contrast to my need as an artist to make functional art.
kat
How happy do these shoes make me?
I especially love the little garlic bulb reference in the first shoe on the heel. It is wintery and foresty and fit for an elf queen.
And these little numbers below remind me of the totally-blew-my-mind away book called Fairyality in which the artist creates fashion out of leaves and flowers and feathers for an imaginary fashion house called Ellwand. I have inserted the book cover below. We have a copy at the store for you to come and see.
Let’s play a game.
What does this fabric bring to mind for you?
I played this game the other day while writing the post about my daughter’s custom embellished bicycle. Yes! this fabric makes me think of her bike (or her bike makes me think of this fabric. Anyway, I’m digressing). I felt like I could go on and on about what I see in this beautiful fabric by Kaffe Fasette.
Below are some thumbnail pics of some of the things that this fabric brings to mind for me.
In order of appearance:
Another detail of a fabric by Kaffe Fasette that I assume was also inspired somehow by Klimt, bindis from India (jeweled accessories for girls to stick on their faces), a detail from Klimt’s painting The Serpent, another bindi, a gypsy caravan(in needle point no less!), another bindi, A gypsy cushion, the jeweled view through a keilidoscope, mandala, MANDALA, another detail from The Sea Serpent by Gustav Klimt, a silk scarf, a panting by Toller Cranston( I wish I could have found one of the illustrations from his visual version of The Nutcracker to show you), another mandala, and back to Kaffe Fassette again, and again.
You life is your most powerful art. See you at the boutique.
erin
I am always inspired by glitz and glamour and nothing beats vintage pin-up. These are all contemporary performers in the Burlesque Cabaret scene. And what a scene! These gals sing and dance and strip and act and shoot advertisements and make a good living keeping their skin milky white. Their hair is black and set in curls and their lips are always perfectly red. That is the style of pin-up, but these ladies are making it contemporary.
This is Camille o Sullivan, my favourite of the three. I simply adore the black taffta busstle skirt with green silk bow. The pleating and the hips are very modern and the bolero is similar to one currently in my design sketchbook.
The top hat with the voilette in front of her eyes is a very nice touch.
I never tire of sparkly ruby red slippers. One day, I will carry them at my store.
In this photo I am most interested in how the undergarment is separate from the bra. It is totally a suck-in-your-gut garment that has been transformed into a sexy corset high-waisted skirt. Love it!
Here is Dita Von Teese sitting in a large oversized bra. What a great stage prop.
These two images are simply great compositions with amazing lighting. The clothing is secondary to the set. It is the pose on the horsy bike and the big gold stripes that makes this image a total work of art!
And lastly, I present to you the cat-eyes of Immodesty Blaize.
The jewel studded corset with diamond straps is just insane over the top wonderful. One day i want someone to hire me to make a $10,000 corset. … Covered in Svarovsky crystals and solid as a rock.
I leave you with this image of Immodesty fully covered. These ladies always dress to the nines and I could do a whole blog post about what they wear when they are not stripping and titillating. They are artists that are living their professional image all the way. They stay in character wherever they go. It is something I have been trying to explain to musicians and actresses a lot lately. Think about your style after the show…what do you want to be seen wearing in the dressing room.. at the bar..talking to a journalist? What do you want to be seen wearing when you are grocery shopping or signing autographs? Your whole life is your art and there are many subtle ways to promote your craft all the time. Dressing the part is key.
Kat
Katrin Leblond’s designs are often inspired by nature. No wonder, nature itself has to be the most beautiful art ever made and we are dancing however beautifully or destructively across our world sized canvas every day. With the inevitable change of the seasons underway, I look out my window and I see the mascot of fall, the changing trees. The colors are rich and bright, soon to be brown, tired and then bare. I believe that trees are greatly under appreciated. They not only give us shade, oxygen and beauty, but they give us inspiration as well…
alive…
embroidered…
elaborate…
simple…
3D…
2D…
on your pillow…
Or on your clothes…
Be inspired. Even though winter is coming, and the trees that surround us will be going dormant, awaiting the warmth and light of spring, we can celebrate them 365 days a year, in our homes, and in our hearts. How will you capture the art outside your window? Come try on one of Kat’s creations. Wear a leaf on your sleeve. We all love trees.
Put on your hat and your scarf on and take a walk up Mount Royal. The trees are beautiful right now.
Photos in this post by Kat
It seems to me that everyone in my family is an artist. This is the garden of my uncle Paul Leblond. It is a very magical garden with plants and colours everywhere.
As a designer who does a lot of leaf-inspired embellishments, I am especially stunned by this section of the garden. The shapes of the leaves and the two toned colour combinations are unique and inspiring.
Cleomes. Always loved them. They make the most delightful seed pods that spring open if they are touched, releasing a cascade of little black seeds into your hand.
This is the view from the back porch on a rainy day.
Come fall down the rabbit hole…
This is Wonderland…
Let your imagination soar…
Let me tell you a story.
I had been walking for days. Lost. Alone. Afraid…
My feet were screaming, begging for rest, but I could not stop. I was fearful of the emptiness. If I kept going, maybe nothing could get me. Tears would no longer flow, tapped out.
I had stopped screaming for help two moons ago. I knew no one could hear me. I was in a world unknown to me.
I climbed up. up. up. Finally, the top of the mountain. The sun shone so bright. So yellow. How could that be? It was the dead of night. I got closer. closer. closer. It wasn’t the sun. It was a horse. A great horse. Yellow. Wings. I stopped for the first time in a long time. That was it. I was what I feared the most. Crazy.
He was standing still. Behind him was a wall of rocks. Some of them as colorful and bright as he, others dull and lifeless as I felt.
I approached the horse. He looked at me and smiled. Sit, rest. He said. I have riddle for you.
I sat.
In the dark I am found, without being fetched. In the day I am lost, without being stolen. What am I?
I thought. I did not know the answer. I gave up.
The stars. he said.
Stars. I hadn’t looked up at the stars since I was lost. I did so now. Their bright twinkling bodies gave me comfort. I hadn’t been alone this whole time. Those little tricksters had been up there the whole time. Laughing. Joking. Watching out for me. I found the brightest one I could off in the distance. He was different. He was warmth. He wasn’t a star. He was a town. I started to run. run. run.
I awoke to the sun in my face. The real sun. I was lying on a street, people surrounding me. They took me to a pub. Someone bought me a drink and asked me for my tale. I spoke of my days wandering. I hesitated. I told them of the magnificent horse. I expected laughs. The people looked at me knowingly.
There is a story, about a great horse, yellow as the sun, with spectacular wings. Behind him stands a wall. For every lost soul he guides home, one rock on that wall…turns a wonderful color.
Tell me a story….
(Photo in this post is one Kat pulled from the internet.)
Visit the Official Site!
Goodbye Jean Paul – Montreal will miss you!
Tomorrow is the last day to see the Jean Paul Gaultier show at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.
Below is a dress that must have been crazy to sew. The stripes are lined up on the diagonal, but the seams are going in the opposite direction also on a diagonal. Tartan is not a fabric I would ever design with, but I admire people who do and do it well. We have a new designer in the store called OcuniD (phonetically Aucune Idee) who has made his whole Fall collection of party dresses in tartan. They are great. I got one.
And this is the but of one of Jean Paul Gaultier’s muscle leotards. He designed the fabric and you can see the top of thigh high boots that go with the outfit. What cracks me up is the anatomical heart he placed on the right butt cheek.
I love JPG!