Tag Archives: paint

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POCKET SQUARES

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I made some pocket squares for my dad to wear to a Red charity event. He sent a photo of the tie and suit that I needed to match, and left the rest up to me.

pocket squares pocket squares

I think you can all tell that I have a colorful sense of style. My dad, however, tends to be a little more conservative in his dress. I could not trust my own judgment as to which fabrics went with the tie! I agonized over the fabric selection for a while, but then reasoned that if he wanted a boring pocket square he could have gone to JC Penny, but since he asked me to handle it then he knew what he was getting into.

tie and suit to match tie and suit to match

painting polka dots

I picked two printed cottons from Joann, but I wanted a fancier option as well. I went to a few other fabric stores looking for a silky print with no success. I even hit up thrift stores, planning to cut up a men’s dress shirt for the project, but no luck there either. Finally, I just decided to paint my own silk!

I chose two different ABC silks: one is a dull blue, the other is a neutral gray. I didn’t entirely trust the accuracy of the colors in the photos, so I wanted to cover my bases. I used a simple red paint pen, and the 10×10″ square took almost no time to decorate. Hemming was also a breeze of course.

my dad all spruced up

I haven’t seen my dad in over a year! He lives a few miles in from the Atlantic, and I’m a short bike ride to the Pacific. We could hardly be further apart. He and his wife just booked their flight to New Orleans for our wedding reception, so it’ll just be another 6 months.

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RAINBOWS ON THE SOLES OF HER SHOES

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Literally, people have pulled over on the side of the road to ask me where I got these shoes. They are attention grabbing and generate a lot of conversation, plus I think they’re fabulous.

rainbows on the soles of her shoes rainbow shoes

pre-rainbow shoes I got the tan cotton shoes at Payless for $10, and used acrylic paint to spice them up. The shoelace is a white metallic cording I had lying around, and it’s the perfect final touch.

In other news, I’ve been busy generating stock for markets and all your holiday shopping, plus a million little projects (and a couple bigger ones). I’ll get my Halloween costume posted before it’s completely irrelevant, plus I’ve been working on a great little party dress for our upcoming trip to Vegas.


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RAINBOW GOGGLES

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For some people, goggles are essential at Burning Man. Me? Not so much. I’ve gotten along fine without them, but I would like to have the option during a particularly dusty day. Plus, I’ve always thought those reflective bug-eye lenses look cool. I wear glasses, and while I am planning on using contact lenses* most of the time, it doesn’t make sense to have goggles that only work with certain eye-gear setups.

rainbow goggles Goggles in progress

rainbow goggles Painted, glittered, and relasticated, I’m one step closer to being ready for Burning Man.

Both goggles started off as standard plastic Dr. Peepers, which fit well over most glasses and have that bizarre alien look that we all try to cultivate. I taped over the lenses, front and back, and then covered them with spray primer (the key to having paint stick to plastic is to do several thin coats). Next came a layer of very shiny chrome paint–a great foundation for any project.

The decorations are done with a high-quality acrylic paint. I wanted the silver to still show through, so most of the acrylic layers were pretty thin. I wanted the two goggles to belong together without matching, so I used many of the same colors but in different places. I really enjoy painted in duplicate, because it allows me a chance to experiment with designs as I move between each goggle.

Goggles in progress Goggles in progress

I mixed different glitter with a water-based high gloss sealant, and I added a coat of Duplicolor Clear Effex glitter spray paint, cause I’m not holding anything back.

Goggles in progress Goggles in progress

One of the most crucial steps to achieving my look was the replace the boring black elastic. My sparkle rainbow elastic is a tiny bit wider than the original. At first I was concerned about not being able to find the hardware goggles detail to make my strap adjustable, but then I realized that the point of customizing my goggles was so that they didn’t need to be adjustable!

Minor additions were foam padding where I needed it (another benefit of really claiming an item as YOURS), and a few delicately placed rhinestones were unavoidable.

Last but not least, I added my name and playa address on the inside of the frames. If I were to loose these, I imagine I’d be pretty mellow about it–did I lose my goggles or is some stranger about to discover a really awesome gift? But still, I’d want the dusty stranger to know their story!

*Contact lenses are actually much easier than glasses at Burning Man. You find somewhere out of the wind to put them in, and you’re good to go all day without worrying about cleaning your specs or having them fall off!

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