More Naked Cycling!

After my feature the other day I was contacted by some lovely people!

Sara from SewCreativeBySara send me a lovely message and would like to offer my readers 15% discount on a seat cover if you mention the A Crafter At Sea blog when you order!

So go get yourself one here!

Also, Melanie aka mellovelo of Bike Bums deserves a second mention as she is sending me a pirate seat cover! How awesome is she?! Go check out her stuff too!

Naked Cycling!!

I got into an interesting Twitter conversation with GoingPlacesToo this week. She had seen naked bicyclists in Seattle celebrating the beginning of summer and it reminded me of some naked bicyclists I'd seen in Vancouver a few years ago. It turned out we had had the same thought - What kind of bike seats are they using?! GoingPlacesToo kindly looked up bike seats on Etsy as our conversation escalated and I just had to share some with you:


Left to right, top to bottom:

Florida Theme Bicycle Seat by mellowvelo
Frankenstein Bike Seat Cover by kalleen
Fleur des Lis bicycle Seat by madebyjulianne
Bicycle Saddle Cover by SewCreativeBySara
Vintage Upholstery Bike Seat Cover by BeatriceHoliday
Blue Wool Bike Seat Cover by EmilyCrochetsPants

Let's get those bikes out and be green people!

Shisha Mirror Work

Section of a traditional wall hanging with shisha mirror work

As I mentioned before I am very interested in Shisha embroidery. I was going to write a blog post on it, but as I searched I found that many people have already gone over the subject and done a better job than I! So instead, here is a few links and artists I think you should check out if you are also interested in this subject.

Shisha means little glass and is the process of attaching round mirrors to fabric. The mirrors were placed in significant positions on clothing to ward off evil spirits and the evil eye. They were also used on decorative textiles to place over doorways etc to keep out evil spirits and on sacred textiles.

My own shisha experiments with bottle caps

Penny Nickles

Penny's work was what first lead me to Shisha. She has produced some beautiful pieces like her invisibility mask here and my fave experiment here

She also wrote an amazing article on Shisha for Mr X Stitch which you should read here

Detail of my shisha work

How to Shisha

There are several tutorials online about the process of Shisha. I learned the technique from Joyful Abode here. It uses lots of photos and is really helpful.

Stitch Magazine posted this diagram on their site to show you how to Shisha with instructions here

An alternative shisha stitch

Design

On the Pakistani Embroidery Blog there is a different version of the stitch (pictures above)which you can learn to do here
I really like the shape of this version, but it hides more of the item being attached.

Sonie from Sonie's Embroidery World offers free square Shisha patterns on her blog here, which I might have to have a go at!

Beer Cap Belt WIP

My Own Shisha Work

I have been experimenting with Shisha myself as you have seen from the photos throughout this blog. My main reason for the experiments was for a belt I am working on.... so above is a sneak preview of the work in progress... keep your eyes peeled for the finished product!

Shisha mirror work at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London

Share the Handmade Love Wednesdays - Shisha

A while back I discovered shisha embroidery through Penny Nickle's blog DonkeyWolf. Check out her stuff, it's very cool! I'm going to blog about it soon, but for now, here is some handmade love for shisha on Etsy!


Left to right, top to bottom:

Embroidered Apron Top by pgasparotto
Shisha Mirror Hand Felted Cuff by lanadeflor
Belly Dance Benjara Belt by MagicCarpetDanceArts
Beaded Brooch by CrimsonPetalCouture

Spiral Sea Necklace

This shell sat on my desk for about three weeks while I worked out how to wire wrap it without taking away from its natural beauty. I loved the spiral of this shell so I tried to emphasise it with wire curling around it, but it wouldn’t stay put! Finally I worked out that wrapping vertically would not distract from the natural shape and would mean I could attach the shell to a necklace.

I used dark coloured wooden beads and chocolate coloured hemp cord to bring out the dark colouring of the shell. I used copper coloured wire to wrap the shell to add a little colour to the piece and introduced blue glass beads from England to compliment it.

This piece seems very sophisticated to me, with its mix of colours and textures. The dark colours seem to make the blue beads and copper wire sparkle.

This piece is currently available for sale in my store here

American Woman

While I was in New York I made a visit to the Metroplitan Museum of Art. I went to see their latest exhibition - American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity. If you are in the area I urge you to go see this exhibition. It celebrates the addition of the costume collection, formerly housed at the Brooklyn Museum, to the Met. There are some beautiful pieces on display including my favourite - a rare sweater from 1895 with mutton sleeves!

The exhibition shows clothing from the 1890s to the 1940s displaying them in 'character' groups It begins with the heiress which consists of evening gowns made by French designers, the most famous and prominent being the House of Worth. I took the time to sketch my favourite gown from 1900 - lavender silk satin with lace and tulle sporting a wheat-ear embroidery decorated with beads sequins and rhinestones.

Next came the Gibson Girls with their leg of mutton sleeves and practical linens. I particularly liked a bathing suit in this section that was very nautical in style. Next came the Bohemians with their floating gowns and art deco patterns. One dress dated 1909-11 from France used strands of beads in sections for decoration.

The Suffragists and Patriots were next. I want to research further the buttons and ribbons worn by the Suffragists. Their united colours of gold, purple, white and green and later purple, white and gold interest me and I would like to incorporate it into my work some how. There were several gorgeous beaded flapper dresses to follow. Those dresses are so intricate but so delicate that I hope my $20 donation will go towards properly storing them when the exhibition is over. The final section of the exhibition was dedicated to screen sirens. This section was full of what I consider true American style. Slinky satin dresses cut in the bias with twists and pleats to emphasis the figure. My favourite was by a costume designer called Travis Banton from the movie Limehouse Blues. The gown is a combination of a Chinese cheongsam with a high collar and side opening and a Belle Epoque era dress with a train. It features a huge dragon motif made of gold and silver sequins that sweeps from the neck all the way down to the train.

My only complaint about this exhibition was the wigs used on the mannequins. I am used to displays that have period correct wigs or representations of such. These were not period correct, nor did I think they were even well executed. I expected more of the Met in this department but for the most part it didn't distract from the gorgeous costumes on display.

Go see it - find out more at the Met website here

Share the Handmade Love... Couture

This week I went to see the new Sex and the City movie. I think everyone should go see it as is it very funny! The girls are playing for laughs this time and there are plenty of them! In tribute to the fabulous girls, here is a Share the Handmade Love dedicated to fashion!



Mutlicoloured Blazer by m1ra

African Leather Mini Dress by emilyelizabethcoutur

Goddess Dress by GeorgiaGriegoFineArt

Boho Floral Pumps by buttercookies

Mermaid Style Dress by stylesbychimere

Canvas Lily Skirt by attiladesign