SACSY SPOTLIGHT : VAN DER NEER
VAN DER NEER
Van Der Neer is a vision of fashion through the ages of time, conceived by
love and passion, created by Nicole Kniss and Justin Johnson.
The idea in which VDN has risen from is to enlighten and inspire all in which seek interest in fable, future, and fashion.Entertainment for those who need and understand the presence of dedication, creativity, and feeling. This is more than just a runway show, its a piece of art sewn to present pure beauty, magnificent hair and make-up designs. Van Der Neer does it all. All pieces are custom drafted and designed. All are one of a kind and made with vintage fabric.
after putting together thier first collection in 2007 they launched the line
and have done about three shows a year since.
SACSY SPOTLIGHT : RILEY DESIGNS
RILEY DESIGNS
All Riley Designs jewelry is hand-made by the designers, Christina & Lori. Extreme pride is taken in the craftmanship and materials used. Whenever possible base metals are avoided, so all of the chains and findings are made with sterling silver and 14k gold-fill and will not wear down to another color. Being a mother/daughter team the designs are often infused with two different perspectives, meaning the designs appeal to many different people.
Riley Designs is available in 2 local boutiques: Runway Boutique in El Dorado Hills and Pinkadot in Davis.
They also participate in local events, such as Created in California.
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The mother/daughter team of Riley Designs got started in different ways. Lori (Mom) was known for her 16 years of making and marketing stained glass kaleidoscopes. She then went into the glass bead-making field where she truly developed a love for jewelry. Christina (Daughter) took a different route. She worked as a model for several years before moving to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career and working post-production/visual effects. During a brief hiatus in post-production she worked for a great jewelry designer who took her in and taught her much about the jewelry design world.
“We are inspired by everything around us. Whether it’s nature, art, fashion, etc. We love working with color and we are always looking for ways to pull color out of real-life.”
Personally, Lori is casual and classic, with touches of folk whimsy (a throw back to her years in various arts fields). Christina tends to be more eclectic. She loves the looks of Anthropologie and I tries to create them by shopping at vintage stores, local boutiques, and yes, occasionally at Anthropologie itself.
The jewelry ranges and the styles are switched up from season to season. It’s a goal to create looks that are timeless, as the collections are made up of high quality investment pieces that can be treasured for years. They can range from pendant necklaces with beautiful semi-precious stones and one-of-a-kind wirework, to rich pearl designs that incorporate glass blown beads, to unique and often vintage-inspired necklaces.
“In this economy, we are seeing large corporate giants struggle, so it’s pretty easy to imagine how small-businesses are being affected. As a small business ourselves, we are always extremely grateful for the support of our community and we are always looking to return the favor. We believe everything starts from the ground up and supporting local businesses and companies helps to keep friends and family employed and more out-of-the-box and creative thinking.” – Christina
Locals RD Loves:
Runway Boutique in El Dorado Hills. They have amazing clothes that appeal to more than one generation (tweens). Also, Pinkadot in Davis for unique pieces when shopping for events. Krazy Mary’s in East Sacramento is also great. While not Sacramento based, Toms shoes (based out of Southern California) is a great company. It started small, had a great mission statement and grew with the community around them. That’s a great business model and example.
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Come out to Created in California tonight and try on some of Riley Designs!
xo JJ
SACSY SPOTLIGHT : CLOZLINE
CLOZLINE by Ronie
Clozline is one of our vendors for the
Created in California Shopping Tweetup
at Hot Italian December 8, 2010.
I am a mother, a grandmother, a gardener, an elementary school teacher, and an accomplished seamstress. I create custom, handcrafted children’s clothing and gifts fashioned from modern and vintage patterns.
Shop my Etsy shop, or check out my BLOG.
Email at roniesaake@yahoo.com.
I will come to customer’s homes to measure their children and show ideas and fabric swatches.
Children’s clothing off the rack tends to look like smaller versions of adult clothes. The prints are often too large for a young child and garments feature strange slogans and advertising for the companies that mass produce them. I like to create children’s fashions that feature a clean design, are vintage in style, and as much as possible are sewn from natural fibers. Seams are finished, buttons stay put, and the fabric is pre-shrunk before the pattern is cut out.
Back in the day, little girl’s dresses featured ample hems that could be let down and handed down. Pinafores extended the life of the garment, and could also be worn alone as a sundress. Dresses buttoned up the front or down the back and often included a detachable collar. Little boys pants buttoned to their shirts and long pants were often delayed until a boy was of school age. I have tried to incorporate these elements in the garments that I’ve created. These children’s clothes are meant to be soft on the skin, comfortable to move in, and appropriate for a child.
I feel fortunate that I grew up in a family of skilled dressmakers. My grandmother and great aunt could sew up a room full of draperies as easily as make a lined winter coat. My mother knit our sweaters and sewed our back-to-school outfits. These women made most of their own and their children’s clothes because it was more cost effective, but they were also proud to have the talent to do so. I learned to sew when I was 12-years-old and soon took over the task of making all of my own clothes, buying fabric and patterns with my babysitting money.
When I married and had three children of my own, I fashioned all of their outfits, clothes for their dolls, and stuffed toys. Additionally, I supplemented our family income by creating a line of children’s clothes and marketing them through local fashion shows.
When it comes to shopping and supporting locally, off-the-rack is simply that and it has its place, but for the special child in your life and for those memorable occasions, there’s nothing quite like a handcrafted original item. – Ronie Saake
SACSY SPOTLIGHT: MORRIS + TERRY
MORRIS + TERRY :
Available at morrisandterry.com & Koukla Kids in Sacramento.
Modern meets classic. Timeless, quality children’s fashion.
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Morris + Terry is one of our featured local designers for
the Created in California Shopping Tweetup.
December 8th @ Hot Italian.
Morris & Terry is a sustainable children’s fashion brand. All materials are organic, renewable or recycled. Excess materials are made into accessories. Each garment designed is cut & sewn in CA. Morris & Terry makes timeless fashion for children, while considering the impact on the environment at every step.
{click on any image for a better look. }
Marisa (Morris) and Terry were high school friends who went off to explore different interests in college. Upon graduating, and reuniting over a cup of tea, they both realized they wanted to work as fashion designers. This common interest evolved into them pushing one another to learn different aspects of the fashion industry: Marisa went back to school to study fashion design and worked as a designer, Terry studied pattern-making and worked at a children’s apparel manufacturer. Eventually, the time came when Marisa & Terry were ready to create Morris & Terry.
Ralph Lauren is the inspiration for the brand, with his ability to create a lifestyle through fashion. Morris & Terry is a similar concept, except it encourages a sustainable lifestyle that supports the environment and the community of people who live in it. Morris & Terry believe that children have the power to make a difference and are important agents of change in creating this lifestyle and carrying it forward in the future. A Morris & Terry kid is an advocate for a sustainable way of life.
“Shopping & supporting local means building community. It supports small business owners. It sparks creativity. It promotes healthy competition that leads to better service and better quality products. It makes a statement- in the most recent times, the idea of business has coincided with mistrust and abuse; shopping & supporting local speaks against this negativity and helps to drive the change necessary to move business in the positive direction. So if you have the resources to, please shop & support local.” — M+T
Some Locals (M+T) Love :
Koukla Kids, Sister Brother Style, Bill Ngo & Red Lotus, Cal Signs Inc. (marketing), ElleCee Photography, Andri Tambunan (photographer), Documentary Foundation, Bella Bru, Toro Quality Goods, Natural Foods Co-Op, Blue Moon Printing.
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Here’s a darling look at their Holiday line.
http://www.youtube.com/v/uMpiawng8PM?fs=1&hl=en_US
JJ loves M&T. Visit them online & outfit the tiny humans you love with adorable, sustainable clothes.
xo JJ
SACSY SPOTLIGHT : AMITHYST
AMITHYST : shop her Etsy.
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Isn’t she just heaven?
Amithyst is one of our featured local designers for
the Created in California Shopping Tweetup.
December 8th @ Hot Italian.
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Amithyst hand makes each one of a kind hair piece with vintage
jewelry including: brooches, earrings, shoe clips, cuff links, etc.
Some of the feathers are also hand dyed in different teas.
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“I am inspired to get women to dress up more often. I think casual dress has taken over and we should be dolling ourselves up again! Red lips, feathers, gloves, heels. Put some fancy into your life! ” — Amithyst
Her gorgeous feather fascinators can also be purchased at her Salon : Amithyst Boutique Salon, www.amithyst.com
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WHY SUPPORT LOCAL?
“I own a local business and I hear clients talking about where they can get the same products some salons sell for cheaper at Target, Wal Mart,etc. But just like they come to get their hair done, they should be buying product in the local small businesses, because we NEED your business to stay open! Plus, buying custom feather hair pieces means no one will EVER have the same one as you!”
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Amithyst – we love your creativity & sass. Thanks for helping us pump up the glam!
Amithyst is now part of SACSY Accessories. xo JJ
SACSY SPOTLIGHT : MARTY MAY
MARTY MAY : shop her Etsy
- Independent Press & Stitchery –
Custom tees, hats, costumes, messenger bags & wallets.
Marty May is one of our featured local designers for
the Created in California Shopping Tweetup.
December 8th @ Hot Italian.
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EMMA. FASHION FORWARD.
Emma Watson – getting it right.
Emma Watson isn’t your average teenager.
She’s adorable, British, has been in a couple small movies you may have seen, and has contracts with Burberry & Chanel…but most notable to me is that despite all of that, or possibly, enabled by it, she has chosen to put her name where her heart is.
Emma is using fashion as a tool to ‘alleviate poverty’. She’s designed a line called Love From Emma for People Tree and is donating her fee to craftsmen in developing nations.
People Tree is an incredible company, and I have a lot of respect for a girl who can (and does) have contracts with the biggest & best of the fashion world, but chooses to pour her energies into a company that truely works to reverse the negative imprint fashion leaves on the world scene.
Speaking of the timliness of her line on the fashion scene, Emma said, “I think young people like me are becoming increasingly aware of the humanitarian issues surrounding fast fashion and want to make good choices but there aren’t many options out there.”
People Tree clothes are made entirely by hand by fair trade groups using weaving, knitting and embroidery, helping to create livelihoods for disadvantaged groups in Bangladesh, India and Nepal.
People Tree is actively reducing poverty, promoting more environmental projects & organic cotton farming, and Campaigning to create an empowering environment for Fair Trade and sustainability amongst the public, business leaders and policy makers. That’s something I can get behind.
. . . . You can shop Emma’s new line HERE. Or shop the rest of People Tree HERE.
Want to make a difference? Whether it’s with People Tree or elsewhere, vote with your dollar. Become an expert on the practices of the companies you choose to spend your money at.
There are ways to get more involved with People Tree – and Fair Trade in general. Want to become a Fair Trader or come to an event? Do you run a shop and want to purchase wholesale? Or maybe you’re looking for an internship or perhaps even a career with People Tree.
Whether it’s something that involved, or just becoming more aware of how your buying power truely effects the world around you, be intentional. Make a difference.
– Kari
BLACK IS {not} BACK.
EXPERIMENT:
–noun. 1.A test, trial, or tentative procedure; an act or operation for the purpose of discovering something unknown or of testing a principle.
When entering into an experiment in life versus a science class, there is usually a desired result as opposed to “lets find out what this does”. In life, I feel the term “experiment” is used as a precautionary measure against the embarassment of failure. Unfortunately, this post is an example of that definition…the original intent behind this post did not include the word experiment at all. ugh.
PROBLEM:
I have a lot of black colored clothes that I’ve bought at thrift stores, and while they are in great shape, the black-ness isn’t what it used to be. I also have a few articles of clothing that I would like more if the color were different.
“EXPERIMENT”:
Gather up all almost-black colored garments, and unfortunately-not-black items, and dye them all black. The hope is to rejuvenate the black coloring on the items that are already attempting to be so, and transform the pieces that aren’t into deep, dark awesome wearable wardrobe staples.
This is one of the pieces I experimented on… I’m not super into pink, but it’s so comfortable!
I bought this dress years ago at a thrift store because I loved the shape & satiny fabric. But, it’s orange. yeah. Black satin dress = so much more wearable!
DIRECTIONS:
(Google is amazing.) I went to the site for RIT, to make sure I got as much info as possible so as to avoid having to call this an “experiment” {sigh}. There are a few ways you can dye something, and I chose to do it in a washing machine since I was doing quite a few items.
1. Fill machine with enough hot water for fabric to move freely.
2. Refer to the chart below for the right amount of dye to add. (didn’t include the chart) Pre-dissolve powder in 2 cups of hot water. Add pre-dissolved powder or liquid to hot dye bath. I read the chart & was too ambitious, added too much water & too many items for the amount of dye I had.
3. Wet fabric in hot water. Uncrumple and add to dye bath. Realized after I added the items to the dye water that I forgot to get them wet first.
4. Set machine for extended wash cycle. Fabric should be in dye bath for at least 30 minutes before rinse begins. (You can reset your washing machine before the rinse cycle begins for extended wash cycle.) I did all this at my parent’s house, as I have an upright washer that is not mine. Didn’t know how to operate a foreign washer, & overcompensated by letting items sit in dye for a LONG time.
5. Rinse in cold water until water runs clear. Wash deep shades in warm water with mild detergent and rinse thoroughly in cool water. Did that.
6. Dry item in dryer or hang to dry. Did that.
7. Clean washing machine using highest water level with hot water, detergent and 1 cup chlorine bleach using complete wash cycle. Clean lint traps. Did that.
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I absolutely couldn’t wait to see the results of my dye job, and rushed to the washer to watch the final spin on the rinse cycle.
And then… the epic fail.
The previously orange dress is now tie-dye brown-ish. It soaked in a lot of color, but the ratio of dye was no match for the overpowering orange. Might still try to save this, but I thought it wasn’t wearable when it was orange… patchy brown is way more stylish. FAIL.
Important note when dying anything: different fabrics, textures & finishes take dye VERY differently. My previously bubble gum pink sweater is now a dismal pinkish-grey. (with the zipper taking on zero dye, and remaining fully pink.) FAIL.
Another item, a cute (but unfortunately patterned) cotton maxi dress, not only was not awesomely jet black at the end of this, but now was even less attractive as a grey-washed version of an already unattractive pattern. FAIL.
CONCLUSION:
Experiments are fun, and sometimes a bit costly & dissapointing. The good news is, I now know a number of things to not do next time. : )
There may be a follow-up post at some point, where I try all this again with less items, more dye, pre-wet clothes, & hopefully don’t have to use the word “experiment”.
JUNIPER NEWS. ON IT.
Happy Christmas week everyone!
I got an early present: Juniper James was featured yet again on a news story.
Thanks to channel 10 for their continued support & exposure!
I don’t think I can embed the video, so click HERE to watch it. : )
Here’s the article that accompanies the video…what do you think??
SACRAMENTO, CA- More women are blogging. According to a survey by BlogHer, iVillage, and Compass Partners, 75% of women who use the internet, use social media. 55% of them read, post to, and/or publish blogs. The survey indicates that 12 million women post to blogs. 8 million women publish them.
Sacramento’s women bloggers have a large following. Among them: twinsoup.com– a lifestyle blog that includes everything from food to fashion. Fromdatestodiapers.com is by local mom Christine Young. Juniperjames.com, a blog by Kari Shipman, focuses on shopping thrift and vintage.
Some industry experts believe that women are playing an increasingly important role in social media.
“(There are) defintely a lot of mom bloggers and housewife bloggers. I think what they’re able to tap into is a specific demographic,” said James Pierini, the Co-Founder of The Urban Hive. He also blogs for airbagradio.com.
“Women tend to be lot more conversational and love networking,” said Shipman.
“I think women like to connect with each other like with a girlfriend. “
Dawn Wyatt, a technical writer who enjoys cooking blogs and local blogtwinsoup.com said, “I think women tend to be relational. Blogs are a great medium for connecting people. You’ve got a whole audience that gets to comment. It’s a dialogue about whatever it is you’ve posted.” —News10/KXTV By Suzanne Phan, sphan@news10.net
What do you think? Are women taking over the bloggosphere? Are they better at it or just like it more?
MOD-HEM
http://blog.modcloth.com/2009-05-01-sewing-101-how-to-hem-jeans
MODCLOTH – review coming soon! Follow the link in the sidebar for the full page if you’d like. But in MOD-DIY, emily shows you in under 5 minutes how to hem a pair of jeans – SO helpful! -jj
ETSY.COM : “Your place to buy & sell all things handmade”.
This site is so comprehensive and user-friendly. It’s effortless to browse, but efficient if you need to find something specific quickly.
It has a number of search options:
-by seller (great if you find one item you love & want to see the rest of that seller’s repertoire.)
-by item type (you can get REALLY specific)
-by price range
-or any combination of the above.
When they say “all things handmade”, they’re not kidding. It’s not just the usual clothes, jewelry & purses, though they do have that. Some of the other browseable catergories include : housewares, patterns, geekery (you have to see this one!) woodworking, furniture, toys, music and needlecraft.
The CUSTOM section is a place for artisans who are willing to work directly with you, the customer. Custom made jewelry, dresses, figurines, baby accessories, invites…the list goes on.
The COMMUNITY section is designed for just that. There are forums and chat rooms for etsy buyers and sellers to connect. Live workshops and online classes taught by fellow etsy users, as well as TEAMS – members united by craft, location or interest.
The weekly featured seller section is on the home page. It’s great to see a picture of the seller, read the interview about their journey as an artist, and see featured items for sale. For me, it re-emphasizes the feel of personal connection through hand-crafted work.
All in all, a GREAT site with an insane amount of quality stuff. In some regards, an extension of thrifting in the fact that the items you buy are more unique, and usually reasonably priced too. Good deal.
lovers, speak!