wearable art Archives - Buttons&Beads&Quilts!

Tag Archive for wearable art

Back in the 80s, sequins for evening wear were all the rage and I fell in love with this commercially made butterfly top. The piece had been handmade in India, and worked from underneath, using a tambour stitch to secure the sequins. It was worn to many black tie events, including a fewcruises. (Ah-h-h! Another lifetime!) The trouble was that as I grew older and heavier, if I lifted my arms, the “V” shape at the very bottom of the piece revealed my bare belly. So, rather than donate the piece to charity, I decided to add on to it, allow it to evolve as any butterfly would, and make it my piece of own wearable art.

Here is a detail shot of the center medallion that I used in the front and the back of the above mentioned “V” to “fill in the space” I needed. I used a gold brocade fabric for the center of the piece, and pink and black bugle beads to make a band around the center that radiated out like a star. Gold metal beads were added for their shine. A similar medallion was placed in the corresponding “V” on the back of the top so that my front and back were covered discreetly. After all, these were classy affairs!

However, the sides had the same baring problem when I raised my arms. There was that offending gap. (I hate it when clothes “shrink” like that on me!). Swallow tail butterflies, with the long lobes at the tips of their bottom wings are all over the place in my gardens in the Summer. Perfect, I thought, I’ll just add some really long lobes to make sure that this piece will be wearable for quite a while. I added strips of black and gold ribbon alternating with black satin. Two “shields” of black velveteen made the spots that are on often on the real butterflies. Scattered all over were some more of the pink bugle beads and gold metal beads. Instead of adding dress weights into the lining to get the panels to hang straight, I added some of my beloved buttons for the added weight. (The link has an interesting article on how the Queen of England solves the problem). The panels even give an interesting “swoosh, swoosh” sound when I walk, which makes me smile as if I were flying,

A few posts back, I wrote about chokers that I’ve made. The photo of the black one that shows up was made to be worn with this top. I also made a long black lace stole to drape over my arms and felt quite elegant when I went to parties. I love making things that are different, and wouldn’t be seen anywhere else, and always got a lot of compliments when I wore this outift. Alas, it’s gone out of style, but there have been a few Mardi Gras parties where it worked. Who knows what the future will bring for this top? If I wait much longer it will become an antique, but then I’, fast approaching that status, too!

What have you ever added to a piece of commercially made clothing to make it special? How did it make you feel when you wore it?

Why not leave a comment as to your thoughts on this posting. Please take a minute, fill out the form below or by clicking on the “comments/no comments link” at the top of the posting, and then share your ideas with the rest of us. We all grow when we share our thoughts and impressions, so why not join our growing community of those who appreciate art quilts and textile arts. We’d love to hear from you!… and PLEASE tell like minded souls about this blog! The more readers and contributors, the more I write because encouragement helps the words flow!

You can see more of my art work on my web site at www.fiberfantasies.com (be patient as it loads; it’s worth it), my spiritual healing work at www.transitionportals.com and can find me on Google + , Facebook (for Transition Portals) Facebook (for Fiber Fantasies), and Twitter.

To find out how to buy my art work, please check out “How to Buy my Art Work” in the “Pages” section to the right of this blog.

Category: Techniques in Other Media / Tags: art quilt blogs, art quilts, beaded art, embellishments with buttons and beads, Nancy Smeltzer, wearable art

Ties Through the Ages – Recycled Wearable Art

June 12, 2013 / Nancy Smeltzer / No comments

Nancy Smeltzer, MFA

I didn’t realize that 450 men’s ties would be the gift that they turned out to be when my brother gave me 4 trash bags full of them. As an artist, I love having lots of the same materials to use in a piece that I’m working on. It’s even more fun when I’m creating wearable art by recycling something. My brother helped to clean out my great-uncle’s basement after he died, and that’s how I got my bags of treasures. They were already tied and hanging on coat hangers, so that all you had to do was to slip them over your neck and tighten them to fit around the wearer’s neck.

My uncle’s parents, my great-grandparents on my mother’s side had owned a second hand clothing store, so I imagine that’s where all of the ties came from. I can remember going into it when I was very little and wandering up and down the aisles. Things were piled floor to ceiling, and it was easy for me to hide among the clothes, as my mother visited with her grandparents. The wooden floors and big bins were very different from the department stores where I was used to going into with my mother, but I always got some candy from my great grandparents.

The ties that I received chronicled the history of men’s neckwear from the 30s up until the 80s, when my uncle died. Some were as wide as bibs and would have covered most of a man’s chest. Other’s were very narrow and barely more then 2.5″ (6.5cm) at their widest part. Some of them had food stains on them, so I threw them all into the washing machine to clean them. A few were ruined in the process, but after the remaining were dry, I color sorted them into bins and waited for inspiration.

For this vest, I chose a very simple pattern that was flat with no darts for shaping at the bust line. I cut out a lining of a navy, cotton blend fabric with a sun, moon, and stars pattern. There were three pieces, two for the left and right fronts and one piece for the back. Keeping the point of the ties intact, I then cut various lengths of ties from the navy print colors and pinned them in place onto the lining. I hate to rip out stitches, so I left most of the linings in the ties themselves. After arranging the various tie lengths onto the lining pieces and pinning them into place, I stitched them onto the lining. I then went around the neck and armholes with a bias binding that I made from one of the ties to cover up the raw edges. I left the bottom of the vest to be made out of the points of the ties, some from the widest part of the tie and others from the narrowest.

This photo has my great-grandmother standing on the left of the second hand clothing store. I’m guessing from other pictures that I’ve seen of her, that this photo was from the 40s. Notice that she has on a “pearl” necklace and earrings to go to work. That habit she passed on to her daughter, my grandmother, who would get dressed in the morning to mop the kitchen floor. My great-grandfather is in the second picture in the same store, I imagine on the same day that the first picture was taken, as these are the only two surviving pictures of them in the store. I only have one memory of him sitting in the corner of their house, as he died when I was about two and a half years old, so other than an obituary notice, this is all that I have of him.

It’s fun to look at these old pictures and see where my ties came from. I now have them neatly sorted by colors and stashed in big boxes around my studio, waiting for the next project to haul them out. Ties are made out of rather nice fabric and depending on the style in vogue at the time, can take up to 3 yards of fabric to make, as ties are cut on the bias or 45 degrees so that they’ll stretch around a neck and lie flat. I like the idea of using something, such as ties, for another purpose, such as this vest. Do you have any other ideas for me to try with my stash?

How have you re-purposed a material that was intended for one use but used for another? Do you have any well-lit photos of your creations? If so, then send me some to me at info@fiberfantasies.com as I’m always looking for ideas for posts for this blog.

To find out how to buy my art work, please check out “How to Buy my Art Work” in the “Pages” section to the right of this blog.

Category: Techniques in Other Media / Tags: art quilt blogs, art quilts, Nancy Smeltzer, recycled art materials, wearable art

Embellished Clothing I did Finish for my Mother

June 4, 2013 / Nancy Smeltzer / No comments

Nancy Smeltzer, MFA

Over the years, there were a number of things that I did finish for my mother, (unlike some of the UFOs or unfinished objects that I’ve been writing about lately). Her walls were pretty much filled with presents from living in the same house for over fifty years, so embellished clothing items were often what I gave her as gifts throughout the year’s events.

One of her favorite activities was her monthly Red Hat Society gatherings. They are a group of ladies who get together and have lunch at a restaurant or a house and dress up in outrageous hats and feather boas. The organization is based on the poem by Jenny Joseph entitled “Warning”. The first two lines say…. “When I am an old woman I shall wear purple, with a red hat that doesn’t go and doesn’t suit me.” My mother loved meeting with her friends and her phone conversations with me were often about where they had eaten and what had been served. So, when she bought this purple hat and asked me to make a feather for it, of course, I began on it right away.

The beaded “feather” ended up looking more like a leaf than something that came from a bird, but my mother was very proud of it and loved showing it off. The base for the beading is made of purple felt, which made for an “easy to sew through” fabric that wouldn’t ravel. The barbs or side ribs of the feather were stitched in shiny gold metal beads. The whole motif was accented with purple and aqua glass beads lined with larger purple ones. I mailed the feather off to her when I was finished, so she could show it off. However, I needed to see the hat on her before I could stitch it into its final location, as the hat is soft and floppy, and sits differently on each wearer. She liked showing off things that her daughter, “the artist” had made, so I’m glad that she got to wear it for a few years.

This commercially made navy sweater that I embellished with hand and machine embroidery I think I must have given to my mother in the early 90s. (I know that the navy print that’s the main design motif here I was using in some of my art quilts then.) I satin stitched around fabric cutouts with my sewing machine to keep them from unraveling, and then layered them on the shoulders of the sweater along with white lace cut-outs. White buttons and beads were added to add a lush look. As for the pocket, I repeated one of the fabric designs and some of the lace cut-outs. I only did one pocket, as I like asymmetrical looks, but also part of the problem is that the space inside of the pocket was small. That made it hard for me to get my hand inside of the space to attach very much, so I gave up after decorating one pocket. Art decisions are often based on what’s convenient. or at least that’s been my experience.

Here is another gift that I made out of a commercially produced white sweater. Here, I used big stitches, done by hand, to go around the outside of the fabric cut-outs. She must not have washed this sweater very much, as the edges of the fabric would certainly have unraveled after repeated washings. Since the fabric was black and white with yellow accents, I added buttons and beads in those colors to add lushness to the shoulders. On neither of these sweaters, did I add any textures to the backs, as that can often be uncomfortable when wearable art is smashed against a chair back.

I was glad that I found these pieces as I was cleaning out my mother’s closets. While I know I’ll wear the hat, the sweaters I might cut up and use as a quilt dedicated to my mother. I have an ink jet printer that can print on prepared fabric and I might make a quilt based on her photos. Then, these appliques could be added to it…or I may not. Still, I’m glad that my presents did not end up being given away to someone who wouldn’t know the history of them.

Hand sewn gifts are just one way that people have given presents over the years. What are some of the presents that you’ve made for your loved ones? Any handprint paintings or popsicle stick creations out there?

To find out how to buy my art work, please check out “How to Buy my Art Work” in the “Pages” section to the right of this blog.

Category: Techniques in Other Media / Tags: art quilt blogs, art quilts, beaded art quilts, embellished clothing, Nancy Smeltzer, wearable art

A Shirt for My Back From My Mother

May 30, 2013 / Nancy Smeltzer / No comments

Nancy Smeltzer, MFA

I’m not exactly sure when my Mother made this shirt for me, but I think that it was the early 80s. It was popular then to take already made clothes and decorate them, and I had done some for her ( details in an upcoming blog). I had taught her about padded quilting, or trapunto, and I was also doing a lot of hand quilting at the time, so that may have been some of the inspiration for the design techniques.

She folded white rick rack in half and stitched that along the edges of the cuffs and also along both sides of the placket and the edge of the collar. The leaves and stems of the flowers were hand appliqued on, but the lady bugs and the flowers themselves were stuffed … a lot! They stick out about two inches (5 cm) from the surface of the shirt, making the front of the shirt a little top heavy when worn. She also added on a pocket on the front, and used the same fabric to line the inside of the cuffs and collar, and to make one of the flowers’ petals.

The stem of one of the flowers on the shoulder on the front extends to the back and has a different flower on it. The padding on that flower and the lady bug near it hit me an uncomfortable place on my back, as I remember. Still, I wore the shirt as an over blouse a number of times until I put it away in my closet.

When I went to look for this shirt in my closet to check out some details, I couldn’t find it, and am afraid that after I took the photos for it, (several months ago) I sent it to Good Will as I hadn’t worn it in quite awhile. While cleaning out one of my Mother’s closets, I found another one of these shirts, and I seem to remember that my mother had made one for me, my sister, and one for herself. That one, too, went to Good Will, as I thought that I still had one at home. If I had known that my mother was so near death when I took the photos, I don’t think I would have let go of this shirt yet. I know that I can’t keep everything and I still wouldn’t have worn the shirt, but I think that I would have held on to it longer as if it were a way to hold on to her longer.

What have you discarded, only to regret later that you hadn’t held on to it? How are you recording memories now so that you’ll have them for later years?

To find out how to buy my art work, please check out “How to Buy my Art Work” in the “Pages” section to the right of this blog.

Category: Techniques in Other Media / Tags: art quilt blogs, Nancy Smeltzer, wearable art

Some More From my NeMaS Wearable Art Collection – Magenta Jacket

November 21, 2012 / Nancy Smeltzer / No comments

The final piece from my NeMaS wearable art wardrobe is this commercial silk jacket that I embellished with appliques, buttons, beads, and ribbons. I used to wear this out to dressy dinners and got quite a lot of compliments on it. As with some of my other wearable art, this quilt on my body did not have much on the back. I quickly discovered that sitting against a chair back with bulky buttons poking into me was not very comfortable, so the back of this is bare as far as embellishments go. As with some of the other pieces of clothing, there was a limit as to how far up a sleeve I could decorate, and how far down into a pocket I could sew buttons and other additions to the wearable “canvas” I was creating on this commercially made jacket.

In this detail shot of the top of the jacket, you can see the pleated gold ribbon that I put down the front. It was way too stiff to put around the neck, so I left the part of the soft, silk collar that was against my neck plain as I hate scratchy things. I did couch down some flat burgundy and gold braid on the seam where the collar meets the body of the jacket. I machine embroidered on some fabric motifs that I had left over from a quilt that I had just completed. One of my favorite motifs at the time, a black rose on a purple background, is shown just to the bottom left middle of the detail photo above. This was 1985, and Woody Allen had just come out with the movie, “The Purple Rose of Cairo“. The title of the name intrigued me, as I love clever word phrases. Also, being an avid rose gardener, there were no purple roses on the market at the time. Yes, I know that this is a black rose (none of them for sale either), but this fabric was as close as I could get to something that was vaguely like the title. Of course, there were buttons to add to the front; I can always find a place for some buttons!

Here is the bottom edge of the front of the jacket that has a natural curve upwards where the two sides meet. More gold ribbons, more black lace, and buttons, buttons, buttons. If you look at the flat gold and burgundy braid to the left of the pleated gold ribbon, you’ll see that the way the gold piping on the edge moves in and out makes tiny burgundy circles. (Sort of little mini button-like motifs.) Then I added a different flat gold ribbon to repeat the color of the pleated one. Next came vertical rows of gold buttons of two types to play off of the rows of ribbons. I like to repeat similar sizes, colors and shapes, but on different scales to enhance the composition. It’s kind of fun to look down and see lots of details when you’re wearing something like this.

I’m often asked how do you clean something like this and the answer is that you don’t. No dry cleaner would take a piece like this without you removing all of the embellishments. If I wore in a restaurant back when people smoked at dinner, I would hang the jacket outside for a day to air out. I did spot clean small areas on my wearable art clothing when needed, and there was a wine disaster on one piece that needed some additional appliques to be sewn on to cover up the stain. I wish that I had stored this jacket in a cloth clothes bag, because when I brought it out to photograph it, even though it had been in a closet for years, the shoulders had faded some. Using a silk jacket to embellish was a risk because of the silk’s fragile nature, but I did enjoy wearing this piece out to dinner.

Have you made any wearable art and what did you learn about embellishments, and care of the piece. Did you find that your work was commercially viable or did you care?

You can see more of my art work on my web site at www.fiberfantasies.com (be patient as it loads; it’s worth it), my healing work at www.hearthealing.net and can find me on Google + , Facebook (for Transition Portals) Facebook (for Fiber Fantasies), and Twitter.

To find out how to buy my art work, please check out “How to Buy my Art Work” in the “Pages” section to the right of this blog.

Category: Wearable art / Tags: art quilt blogs, art quilts, contemporary art quilts, Nancy Smletzer, quilts embellished with buttons and beads, wearable art

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Buttons&Beads&Quilts!

Tag Archive for wearable art

Wearable Art – Adding on to Make it Work!

Ties Through the Ages – Recycled Wearable Art

Embellished Clothing I did Finish for my Mother

A Shirt for My Back From My Mother

Some More From my NeMaS Wearable Art Collection – Magenta Jacket

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