I'm BAAAAAAACK. That was supposed to be in a creepy voice, but it loses something in writing.

So, I moved! And now I have my very own sewing room (but let's call it a "studio" because that sounds way more impressive) to fill with works in progress. And to keep cat hair out of! Woo! No cats allowed!
Ahem... anyway.
So, I've got my new space set up. Here is a picture of it from back when I was first getting things together. it has changed a bit since then, and is now a little bit on the disorganized side (not true. It's far too organized. I always know what pile of crap on top of which piece of furniture something is in. But after I moved and organized everything? No idea where anything is. It's going to take a while to break this room in.)

It will never be this tidy again.

Anyhow... so we moved, and just as I was getting all excited about my new space my summer work schedule started, I came down with an ulcer, my cat was diagnosed with anorexia secondary to inflammatory bowel disease, and I was handed a large pile of raggedy dance costumes that needed to be fixed and spruced up for the ballet studio where I take class.
In other words I didn't get much accomplished project-wise until the end of August. Now I'm back and falling in to a routine of work (it's so hard to motivate yourself, you know?) so things are actually getting posted in the Etsy shops again. 
Of course, posting this is probably jinxing myself, but let's hope for the best.

I'm proud of this one, a new scarf idea that I came up with months ago but only juuuuuuust finished up this week. It's hand painted with textile paint on silk habotai and comes packed in a sweet little (giant!) felt fortune cookie. I have made so many "test" fortune cookies in myriad shapes and sizes recently... I tried and failed at a few different types, and when I finally found a pattern I liked I made them continuously for a day or so, just to make sure I had it down pat. This is the biggest, naturally, but the smallest was teeny weeny tiny!

Oh! And I have decided to post some of my non-wearable art in my destash shop. I have been working on (procrastinating on, really) an art project for several months, now, and it's not even vaguely ready to add to the shop, yet. BUT I decided that I should air out my ACEO collection and see what I could part with in preparation for making a bunch of new ones. This one, which I made several years ago and always kind of liked, is pretty simple, but I thought it might be a good place to start.

Inspiration

It always frustrates the heck out of me when artists (in any medium) claim to function in a creative vacuum. Like musicians who say they don't listen to any music from other artists. What a pity! To not experience the great body of art that is out there seems like a shame as well as an outright lie. No one will think less of your music if you listen to Mozart and are inspired by Etta James.
I am constantly inspired by other artists, from all genres. One of my favorite sources of inspiration is fashion history. Sometimes I will pull an embellishment idea from a Regency gown, a neckline from an Ottoman coat, or a colorway from a flapper's fringed skirt.
Here is an example of an inspiration that is much more direct than many of my designs.
This wool and silk tuxedo vest for the shop was inspired by a lovely Norman Norell suit from the 1960s. Here they are together: