Valentino的Rose Vertigo Hobo Bag一直以來都是用最高檔的Nappa羊皮來製作，在今年推出的這款造型深受我個人的喜愛，將皮革鞣製而成玫瑰的模樣，高貴典雅卻又不失風趣，也許男人下次可以買這個來當作玫瑰花送給女友，收到的話那種感受是不言而喻的！

“Good fit, good pockets, good protection, good look.” – Horse Journal, October 2009.

HORSE JOURNAL – October 2009
The product, care and service guide for people who love horses, HORSE
JOURNAL, field tested the Mountain Horse Arena Jacket against jackets from
seven other equestrian apparel companies with the Mountain Horse Arena Jacket coming out on top!

Mountain Horse Arena Jacket
This jacket had everything we could want in a riding jacket, including an
inside pocket for an iPod with a watertight slot in the collar to thread an
ear piece through.  The soft lining in the collar and pockets was an extra
nice touch.  It was soft, we were surprised at how well it did in the rain
(excellent).  We also liked the extra room in the shoulders and felt no pull
when extending the arms forward, and the sleeves were long enough to stay
put when we did.  Rubber grab-tabs on the hook-and-loop cuff closures made
them much easier to open.  The self-sealing zipper was unique and water
tight, but it was a little hard to work with reins in one hand.  We loved
the drawstring tabs being inside the pockets.  Good fit, good pockets, good
protection, good look.

For a nicely priced all-around rain jacket for riding, we like the Arena Jacket from Mountain Horse best.  Its innovative features and the so-soft
comfort make it our No. 1 choice.

Mountain Horse would like to thank the Horse Journal for including the Arena Jacket in their field test.

I’ve had a couple of requests for project bags from people who saw previous bags and I’ve been having such a good time making a bag for each of them (HI A and M!).

I was just moving along, working on each of them together and thinking about the linings I’ll cut next….and I looked down.  Ooh, pretty.

Now, each of these lovely women have an idea of what their bag might look like (M, if you want this one, it is yours – but I also have a larger pattern in mind for you), but neither is here standing next to me to see them emerge.  I felt I just had to post a progress pic.  Next up, lining fabric.

Fall Open Studios is coming to the Mission. My building, 1890 Bryant, is among the many in the area who are preparing for our big retail show of the year. Estudio Martita at 1000Markets.com

  I’m working on a few things at the moment and as I was stood at the ironing board yesterday I noticed that most of my work room is set out in a line along one wall. It made a lovely picture so I photographed it. Unfortunately the weather has been really dull here and the electric lighting isn’t great in here so it’s a bit dark.

From the left: 

Iron. My big iron is a must, I love having is set up all the time so I can use it ata moment’s notice. Little domestic things don’t do the job so I’m hoping to upgrade to a polti or spirella soon

Mini mannequins:  These aren’t any use at all, I just have a little collection going.

Basic block templates: These are an absolute god send and a time saver. I have made up these templates in sizes 10 – 16 (they are so useful I’m going to make 8 and 18 eventually). When I have a garment to make I just select the nearest sized basic block based on the person’s measurments, and alter the pattern from there. It’s saves so much drafting time and has been accurate so far.

Costume reference books: I put them in a little desktop bookshelf I’ve had since childhood. I did have them in a pile but it was getting a bit silly when I wanted one from the bottom. The grey folder is my on going napoleonic research file, by research I mean photocopies, he he.  On there I have Patterns of fashion 1-3, corsets and crinolines, history of underwear, classic tailoring techniques, supplier catalogues and more.

Adjustable dressmaking dummy: I’ve had this old gal for nearly 10 years. She’s a bit rickety but still does the job. I have a little collection of dummies and mannequins which came in very handy for the wedding dress exhibition a few months ago. I keep this one here because it’s handy to sit down and do some cutting on the stand when I am trying something out.

Angle Poise lamp: As I mentioned the electric light in here is terrible, I sometimes use a daylight bulb in here and angle it on my sewing machine as the bulb has gone. At the moment there is a 250 watt bulb and a tin pie tray in there for exposing silk screens for printing, it’s very warm *chuckle*

Sewing machine and overlocker:  Not a lot to say about these essentials. I’ve had my sewing machine since my Art School days and it could probably do with a service!! I love my overlocker, it makes everything so neat and complete looking.

Spot the cutting table!! It’s under there somewhere!!

My friend Faery Sola who makes the best damn pants in Second Life opened her own sim named MoonSong this weekend with two stores, her Studio Sidhe (pronouced She if you’re wondering) and FlipSide. I went to the grand opening party which was a lot of fun and want to congratulate her on her beautiful sim. Now, her sim is next to another gorgeous sim, Oubliette, and between those two sims there is this lovely bridge and that’s where I happened to shoot my pictures for this outfit which is a mashup for Muism and Sn@tch. Please do explore these beautiful sims – where some of my favorite SL residents and designers can be found.

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