Russian Sledges

まる：「着心地ですか？」
Maru:[Do you want to know the comfort of this bag?]


まる：「こんな感じですよ。」
Maru:[Read my face!]

"Please silence your needles." (From a Feb. 11, 1915 concert program; check it out in the New York Philharmonic Digital Archives! http://archives.nyphil.org/index.php/artifact/6a842918-af1c-4563-aaab-e82cb8d22d18/fullview#page/30/mode/2up)

138,00 USD

Vintage 1950s black rayon dress with surplice bodice, short sleeves, very wide wrapped waist with black grosgrain ribbon tied around the waist, semi-full skirt and metal side zipper.

✂-----Measurements

fits like: small
bust: 34-36"
waist: 26"
hip: free
length: 43"
brand/maker: Junior Guild
condition: excellent

To ensure a good fit, please read the sizing guide:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/DearGolden/policy

➸ More vintage dresses ✩
https://www.etsy.com/shop/DearGolden?section_id=5986725&ref=shopsection_leftnav_3

➸ Visit the shop ✩
http://www.DearGolden.etsy.com
_____________________

➸ instagram | deargolden
➸ twitter | deargolden
➸ facebook.com | deargolden
➸ blog | www.deargolden.com

124,00 USD

Vintage 1960s pony and leather slip on shoes with rounded toe, nice leather insole and wood sole.

--- M E A S U R E M E N T S ---

fits like: us 7 | euro 37.5 | uk 4.5
insole: 9.75"
ball: 3.5"
heel: .75"
brand/maker: n/a
condition: excellent

➸ More Vintage Footwear
http://www.etsy.com/shop/DearGolden?section_id=5800174

➸ Visit the shop
http://www.DearGolden.etsy.com
_____________________

➸ instagram | deargolden
➸ twitter | deargolden
➸ facebook.com | deargolden
➸ blog | www.deargolden.com

In 1950, the photographer Gisèle Freund embarked on what she believed would be a two-week visit to Mexico. As it turned out, she wouldn’t leave the country until two years later. There she met Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, who welcomed Freund into their home in Coyoacán, Mexico City. In ... More »

The pilot of the doomed Germanwings plane desperately struggled to get into the cockpit that the co-pilot had locked him out of before the plane crashed into the French Alps, killing all 150 on board, a German newspaper reported Sunday.

“For God’s sake, open the door,” the captain, Patrick Sonderheimer, can be heard demanding in cockpit voice recordings salvaged by investigators probing Tuesday’s crash, according to the German publication Bild am Sonntag.

The 27-year-old co-pilot, Andreas Lubitz, doesn’t reply, even as the pilot’s pleas are accompanied by screams of terrified passengers, Bild am Sonntag reported. Lubitz also ignored bangs on …

Read more from our partners at NBC News

The Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library at Yale has bought one of the largest private collections of 19th-century American photography from the Meserve-Kunhardt Foundation.

Rapier

• Dated: circa 1640
  
• Culture: Northern European
  
• Medium: iron and gold
  
• Measurements: overall length 107.6 cm 
  
• Inscriptions: stamped on the blade with the marks of Clemens Horn of Solingen
  
• Provenance: reputedly owned by the Patriot John Hampden, Pryse Lockhart Gordon; by whom sold to Walsh Porter; by whom presented to George IV, 12 August 1807
  

This sword, with its superbly sculptural hilt, was once thought to be the work of the Florentine goldsmith and sculptor Benvenuto Cellini. As with the ‘Cellini Shield’, the tradition was refuted when historic arms and armour came under more serious scrutiny in the last quarter of the 19th century. Nevertheless, the work of the anonymous sculptor of the forged and chiselled iron hilt is of very high quality.

The subjects are from the Old Testament Book of Samuel. On one side of the pear-shaped pommel David is depicted beheading Goliath, while on the other he brings his giant opponent’s head to Saul. These two scenes are separated by male and female herms. The oval grip has a scene of Samuel anointing David. Next, on one side of the quillon-block (the central point of the two guards or quillons) David is shown making a libation or sacrifice with water brought from the well by the gates of Bethlehem.

On the other side there’s Abigail, the wife of Nabal, brings David two flasks. At the centre of the side ring is an oval cartouche with the young David slaying the lion. The quillons terminate in hunched and winged figures of Fame and Time. The details of the figurative scenes are picked out in gold, overlaid on the iron ground. A second tradition attaching to this sword is that it belonged to John Hampden (1594-1643), one of the leaders of the parliamentary opposition to Charles I, who was mortally wounded at the Battle of Chalgrove Field.

This was claimed by another former owner, the author Pryse Lockhart Gordon (?d. 1834), who had casts made from the reliefs of the hilt by the prolific Scottish cameo artist James Tassie (1735-99); he presented these to friends 'as memoirs of the patriot’ (i.e. Hampden). Gordon sold the sword to 'a royal purveyer of virtu, a man of fine taste’, namely Walsh Porter (d. 1809), the writer, collector and connoisseur who advised George IV on the decoration of Carlton House.

Source: Copyright © 2015 Royal Collection Trust/Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

It’s that time again when the cherry trees bloom, people in kimono enjoy picnics and cats inexplicably bust out their best pearls.

Six-month-old one-horned rhino Jalada Prasad had a prance party in honor of his public debut Friday at Alipore Zoological Garden in Kolkata, India. Little dude had some rough early months after his mother was killed by poachers. But! He was rescued and nursed back to health, and now appears to be quite the peppy fella.

Read more...

I have a "Who Needs Him" novelty bath kit which includes chocolate and caramel scented bubble bath and cookie dough flavored lip gloss. Free to whoever will come pick it up!

Let’s talk about one of sewing’s favorite subjects—dress forms!

Over the last month I’ve been shopping for a new form, both by doing a bit of online “window shopping” and by asking questions of various dealers and makers. It’s been a fun process!

The first time I went shopping for a dress form, circa 2002, I had access to very little information about them. The little that was out there on the internet about patternmaking and draping seemed to reinforce the mystique of, or my need for, a dress form. I was convinced that I needed one for any kind of serious sewing work.

Of course this was fueled in no small part by my lifelong romantic ideals of fashion designers all draping away on their dress forms. When I was a teenager, I used to imagine that a vintage Wolf form was something Molly Ringwald’s Pretty in Pink character might have kept in the corner of her bedroom. And I adored that character (what she did to that prom dress!).

I now own two dress forms. I bought one for personal use and one for professional pattern work and display photography. However, neither fills the specific need I have at the moment.

So before I dive into dress form specifics, let’s talk about all the reasons one might want a dress form:

1. You are a professional custom dressmaker or fashion design student who needs a form, or several forms, for patternmaking and draping. Chances are you already know what kind of forms work for you, based on your training, your clients, or what your school recommended to you.
2. You often make very fitted patterns with a lot of design details, and want a form to assess style lines, or play with the drape of fabric.
3. You draft your own patterns but prefer draping as part of the drafting process, rather than only working with flat patternmaking. It helps you visualize ideas.
4. You want a form to mimic your body so you can use it as a fitting tool.
5. You are a blogger or shop owner who needs a prop for styling and taking photographs.
6. You are a collector! Or you simply want a fun clothes/jewelry showpiece in your house.

Do any of these stand out for you?

Knowing what you really want to use it for can help you choose from among the various dress form styles.

So for example, when I look at this list, I’m most drawn to a form that works for both blog photo styling and makes an interesting collector’s piece. I’d also like the ability to pad the form for fitting purposes in the future. So I’m interested in looks as much as function.

Clearly I don’t prioritize having a form for fitting or draping purposes, which is probably the biggest reason many sewists want a dress form. The truth is, even if I had a better form or a totally customized body cast I don’t think I would use it very much for fitting. I prefer to fit directly on my body, and I can often visualize what flat pattern adjustments are going to do.

However, if you have trouble visualizing adjustments or pattern lines, a form might be a helpful tool!

Types of Forms

Now let’s have a look at some of the different form types out there.

1. Professional form with cast iron base. These kind of forms are usually made with papier mache, padded with a few layers of cotton wadding and covered in linen. These are usually available either as a classic dressmaker form with a skirt cage or as a full body with legs.

Among these kind of forms is a huge variety in quality, and I’ll talk more specifics about these forms in my next post.

2. Display form. These forms are often designed to look just like sewing forms but they are really produced for display purposes. The form is usually made from either foam or fiberglass, and have a more simplified body shape to them.

Some dress forms cover a middle ground between professional sewing form and display form. For example, Urban Outfitters is selling this dress form, which was probably produced as an inexpensive form by one of the major form makers:

Although it is advertised as a sewing tool, it doesn’t have collapsible shoulders, is made from foam, and the stand has a height pedal that is purely decorative. You’ll also notice that the body shape is quite simplified, with absolutely no butt.

3. Adjustable form. These are the forms with dials that allow you to expand and contract the form as needed for different measurements.

4. Handmade form. There are a lot of fun methods for making a totally customized body form: plaster-casting, duct-tape and papier mache. Among these methods I’d include the mother of all crazy inventions, the Uniquely You form, which is a compressible foam form that you squeeze into a custom-fitted cover. Whoever first came up with the name “torpedo boobs” for this form deserves a sewing hall of fame star! I own one of these babies, too. A story for another day.

An important thing to keep in mind is that most dress forms can’t totally replace the work of fitting on an actual body. Bodies move and breathe. Most of these forms need work in order to replicate important body measurements and posture.

If you don’t need to do a lot of heavy fitting work, almost any of these will work for light sewing purposes. What you choose depends on budget, how much you need to fit precisely, or whether or not the form is for other non-sewing purposes.

—-

So after all this you may wonder what I’ve chosen for myself! As I mentioned I have a very specific need and I’ve narrowed it down to a few options. I’ll share more about that, along with what I loved and disliked about particular forms, in my next post.

Do you have a form? What do you use it for? What do love or wish you could change about it? And if you’ve blogged about your form, do share a link. I love reading dress form posts!

The post A Guide to Dress Forms appeared first on Cloth Habit.

I love making up sewing tools. There are times a tweezer works better than a bone folder, and a rubber hammer works better than an iron. I have a pencil that works great for spaghetti straps and probably do “wet finger” pressing on silk more times than I care to admit.

It’s really fun and easy to make your own pressing tools, and this week I’m pleased to share a guest tutorial on making your own bra pressing curve from my fellow lingerie-making addict Maddie Flanigan! You may know her from her blog Madalynne, gorgeous sewing photography and brand-new bra making workshops in her Philly studio. So let me step aside as Maddie brings on the drill…

——–

Based on a similar item sold at Bra-makers Supply, my bra pressing curve has become a
valuable tool. I first came across it when Beverly Johnson mentioned it during her class
on Craftsy. She said it was easy to make and she was right. All it took was a trip to the
hardware store and about 30 minutes. I use it mostly to press cross cup seams without
touching other parts of the bra.

Supplies:
All supplies except for round ball can be sourced at most hardware stores such as Home
Depot and Lowes.

• Power drill
• 3″ wood round ball
• 5.5″ x 5.5″ wood square
• 1 1/4″ diameter wood dowel
• Dowel center pins
• Brad point or dowelling drill bit
• Just like bra making, sourcing all those little bits can be intimidating. To make it easier, you can buy a dowel kit such as this one.
• Regular drill bit
• Pencil
• Masking or painters tape
• Wood glue

Prep: Most likely, your hardware store will sell long, rectangular pieces of wood, not one that is exactly 5.5″ x 5.5″. The same goes for dowels. Having it cut down isn’t a hassle. The hardware store should do it for free. Ask to have extras pieces cut so you have a spare in case you mess up.

Step 1: Using a pencil, mark the center of the sphere, the center of the dowel at the top and bottom, and the center of the square at the top and bottom as well. Mark all of these points with a cross mark.

Step 2: Mark the center of the dowel pin and then place it next to the drill bit as shown. Using masking or painters tape, wrap the drill bit at the point where the center point is on the dowel pin. Why? Because you don’t want to drill too far into the ball or the dowel.

Step 3: Use power drill to drill a hole into the ball and the dowel at both top and bottom. To ensure that you drill straight down, use a quick grip clamp or have someone hold the ball and the dowel while you drill.

Step 4: Connect the ball with the dowel by placing a thin coat of wood glue on the dowel pin and inserting one end into the ball and the other into one end of the dowel.

Step 5: The final step is to connect the dowel/sphere (which is now one) to the wood square. Using a regular drill bit, drill from the bottom of the square block up through the bottom of the down with a regular screw.

The post Guest Post: Make Your Own Bra Pressing Curve appeared first on Cloth Habit.

Why would anyone wait hours in line for a limited-edition beer? We talk to a few beer nuts in line for Russian River Brewing Company’s Pliny the Younger to find out.

745,00 USD

Vintage 1920s warm yellow silk crepe dress with silvery-gray beading along the collar, down the bodice, on small tabs on each side of the waist and heavily in a geometric pattern on the skirt. This dress has no closures and slips on easily over the head.

✂-----Measurements

fits like: medium
bust: 34-36"
waist: up to 26"
hip: up to 40"
length: 44"
brand/maker: n/a
condition: excellent, no flaws

This dress is eligible for layaway, send a convo for details. :)

to ensure a good fit, please read the sizing guide:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/DearGolden/policy

➸ visit the shop
http://www.DearGolden.etsy.com
_____________________

➸ blog | www.deargolden.com
➸ twitter | deargolden
➸ facebook.com | deargolden✩

128,00 USD

Vintage late 1950s, early 1960s white, green and a hint of pale blue floral lace sheath dress with short sleeves, fitted waist, extra long and wide sash belt and metal zipper.

✂-----Measurements

fits like: large
shoulder: 16"
bust: 38-40"
waist: 33"
hip: up to 42"
length: 42"
brand/maker: n/a
condition: excellent

To ensure a good fit, please read the sizing guide:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/DearGolden/policy

➸ More vintage dresses ✩
https://www.etsy.com/shop/DearGolden?section_id=5986725&ref=shopsection_leftnav_3

➸ Visit the shop ✩
http://www.DearGolden.etsy.com
_____________________

➸ instagram | deargolden
➸ twitter | deargolden
➸ facebook.com | deargolden
➸ blog | www.deargolden.com

Russian Drinking Horn

Item from: Gifts from Heads of State

This drinking horn was given to the United States by Nikita Khrushchev when he was Premier of the USSR. It is made from a bovine horn, silver, and niello. 

Discover more gifts between nations at the Friendship Between Nations Family Day! This event is tomorrow, March 28th, from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. in the Boeing Learning Center at the National Archives in Washington, DC. You can find more information about this event on the events page at http://www.archives.gov/dc-metro/events/#blc2.

Source: http://www.jfklibrary.org/Asset-Viewer/Archives/JFKSG-MO-1963-2470-1.aspx

"Tractor Rape Chain" is one of the most classic songs on Bee Thousand, one of Guided By Voices' most classic albums. And even though the aesthetic difference between modern-day GBV and modern-day Death Cab For Cutie seems vast, the bands exploded into the national underground within a few years of each other and probably came up playing a lot of the same dive bars. And as Death Cab frontman Ben Gibbard demonstrates in a new solo acoustic cover for SiriusXM, the intersection of the two artists' styles makes some kind of sense. Speed up, slow down, go all around below.

The most asked question about the Marlborough bra pattern is “Will it fit me?” Usually this question comes from someone outside of the size range listed on the pattern. It is an excellent question and many times, my answer is actually yes!

This bit of sizing magic is possible through what is called “sister sizing”. Sister sizes are bra sizes that have the same bra cup volume and underwire size. The difference between sister sizes is usually just the size of the band and frame.

Below is a table showing sister sizing by row as it relates to the Marlborough bra pattern. The Marlborough sizes are in black and the sister size equivalents are in gray.

If your size appears in gray above, you can find your Marlborough size by finding the nearest equivalent size in black on the same row. For example, if you are a 34E you will use the pattern for the 36DD. If you are a 34F, then you will use the pattern for the 38DD. Then it is simply a matter of adjusting the band and frame to get to your band size.

In the first example above, you will be removing ½” from both the frame and the band at the side seams for an overall circumference decrease of 2″. The orange lines in the drawing below indicate where the new seam line would be for this change.

To increase the band, you add to the side seam. For example if you want a 42D and are starting with the 40DD pattern, you will be adding ½” to the frame and to the band at the side seam for an overall 2″ increase in band circumference. Again, the orange lines in the drawing below indicate where the new seam line would be for this change.

Note that for maximum support I draft a fairly firm band for a power mesh with 50% stretch. If you are going down by just one band size or using a firmer power mesh, you may want to mock up a toile to test the band.

Happy bra making!

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photo by Emily Sinovic via Multnomah County Animal Services

Yesterday, two bright pink chickens were spotted wandering on the waterfront in Portland, Oregon. After Portland-area news organization KATU reported the runaway animals, an officer from Multnomah County Animal Services promptly picked up the chickens and brought them to the animal shelter for safe keeping.

Workers at the shelter say that food coloring is often used to dye chicks, an effect that lasts until the animal’s first molting. The practice of dyeing the animals is physically harmless to chicks, but some animal welfare groups frown upon it as it may discourage pet owners from seeing dyed chickens at Easter as a pet that requires a home and care for years.

North Portland resident Bruce Whitman came forward Friday afternoon to retrieve his two pet chickens, claiming that he purposefully abandoned his chickens—whose feathers he dyed with Kool-Aid, beet juice, and food dye—to elicit a response from the public.

photo via Multnomah County Animal Services

photo via Multnomah County Animal Services

photo via Emily Sinovic

The 26-year-old woman, identified only as Maria W., recalled in an interview with the mass-circulation Bild daily how Andreas Lubitz told her: "One day I'm going to do something that will change the whole system, and everyone will know my name and remember." "I never knew what he meant by that but now it makes sense," it quoted the "shocked" flight attendant as saying, adding the remark repeatedly ran through her head after hearing about Tuesday's air disaster.

No, Doctor Lecter has not been at it again – this is not a real ear. Its quite remarkable resemblance to the human ear has, however, given it a host of names throughout the ages – some it has to be said less flattering (or at least politically correct) than others.

The fungus is called Auricularia auricula-judae and it is found throughout the world. As you will see, some examples look more ear-like than others – you might even say earily so (to make a very poor play on words). In fact, anywhere you find elder trees you will likely find the Judas Ear.

It was first called the more unwieldy Judas’s Ear and as you have probably guessed it was named after the disciple who betrayed Jesus Christ. He regretted it fairly soon after and hanged himself from a tree – some stories (outside of Biblical passages) have it that it was an elder tree. In the English speaking world it is mentioned in texts as far back as the seventeenth century.

Said to be sent to grow on the elder tree as a constant reminder to us of the betrayal of the Christ by Judas, its name morphed by the eighteenth century to Jew’s Ear. Although all fungi was generally referred to as Jew’s Meat in the often casually but occasionally sickeningly violent anti-Semitic Middle Ages, later text books regularly took pains to point out that it referred specifically to Judas rather than Jewry as a whole.

Either way, the name is unflattering and it is often called the Jelly Ear, Common Ear Fungus and Kikurage among others. It does not appear exclusively on elder trees, contrary to popular legend – although it has to be said that 90 percent of the time it does.

Although edible it has never had much of a reputation around the dinner tables of the English speaking world. In the past it has been used in Europe as an aid to alleviate a sore throat. You will not hear any trendy chef waxing lyrical about this rather bland tasting fungus. In Asia, it is still regularly used in soups to help with colds and fevers. There is evidence of it being cultivated in China over fifteen hundred years ago.

The Judas Ear grows to between three and centimeters across but is has been found up to 12 centimeters in width. If you touch it, it feels tough, gelatinous and elastic – and is said to feel quite like a real ear. Whatever its size, it is probably true to say that boys have been using it to frighten younger siblings for thousands of years.

First Image Credit Flickr User Nutmeg66

from Fortune by Damon & Naomi

loveneverdidrunsmooth:

greypoppies:

Marchesa Luisa Casati. An heiress, a muse and a fashion legend, she dazzled everyone she met and shocked turn-of-the-century Europe.  She wore live snakes as jewellery and was infamous for her evening strolls; naked beneath her furs whilst parading cheetahs on diamond-studded leads.  Nude servants gilded in gold leaf attended her.  Bizarre wax mannequins sat as guests at her dining table, some of them rumoured to contain the ashes of past lovers.

Not gonna lie, she looks like she’s cosplaying the Iron Throne.

Sabbath/Flag

"Naomi" by Neutral Milk Hotel - Video by Naomi