Design Made Easy

I just learned about a pretty awesome company, Garmz - fashion designers submit their sketches, users vote on the designs, and if you garner enough votes, they produce the garment to sell on their site! It's like Threadless, but goes way beyond tees. I am totally addicted to the site!

This tailcoat was one of the designs that will be produced. The price is 109 euros (about $145) - which is pretty reasonable. I am excited to see more from Garmz...I think it's a great idea and hope that they stick around.

Vietnamese Handicrafts

As mentioned earlier, I recently returned from a trip to Vietnam and Hong Kong. We did a 2-day hike through the Northern Vietnam highlands in Sapa , through villages of Hmong ethnic minorities, who make some very lovely crafts - especially intricate embroidery.

Hmong women in traditional clothing

Detail of Hmong embroidery

They make their own fabric (from the harvesting the hemp, weaving the fabric, and dying it with indigo) - and make clothes, bags, and scarves. We went to the Ethnology Museum in Hanoi, which had extensive exhibits of the many ethnic minorities, their culture, and their crafts. I highly recommend this museum - if it's the only one you go to in Hanoi, this is it. We spent over 4 hours here, and they have an excellent gift shop with a great selection of crafts and good prices (without haggling!). Woot.

Postcard Show

Howdy everyone! Sorry for the long hiatus - still recovering from jet lag from a trip to Hong Kong and Vietnam..but more on that later...

For those of you in the SF Bay Area, please check out The Lab's Postcard Show this Saturday - lots of small format art, wearables and cool stuff made by local artists and crafters - and the best part, nothing costs over $30! And for the first time this year, there will be a Mini Market, with small format edibles, of which I am participating with my baby caramel apples.

Knickerbockers!

I only found out recently that the New York Knicks are named after knickerbockers - you know, those dapper knee length trousers. Not only do I love saying the word 'knickerbockers' - I've been apprenticing for a fashion designer. B. Spoke Tailor,  who specializes in tailored wool knickers for bicyclists. She makes fabulously dapper and functional knickers so you may ride in style - the anti-spandex gear. And each pair is cut and sewn right here in Oakland, California.

She also makes custom knickers to get you that perfect fit, as well as accessories including recycled wool arm warmers, top tube covers for your bike.

So what are you waiting for? Grab some knickers and get on yer bike!!

Very Obedient Felines

For all of you kitty lovers out there, you just *might* enjoy pics from a cat fashion show held at the Algonquin Hotel in New York City. This show was part of a birthday party for Matilda, the Algonquin Hotel's official cat.

Raggedy Ann! Though she looks like she might cut someone in a second.

My personal favorite...no words needed!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The angry king. Doesn't quite seem to enjoy the attention.

Happy Friday everyone! :)

You Can Do Lots With Bodypaint

Did you know that the World Bodypainting Festival just took place in Austria? Yes, I don't know how I lived this long not even knowing about its existence.....check out some of the bizarre and creepy bodypaint that you missed out on.....(some are slightly NSFW)...

Poor sad Raggedy Ann on LSD, are you frowning because your clothes aren't keeping you warm enough?

This guy is pretty super fierce, like a liger...

And walkin' like an Egyptian! Check out more pics here by Geoff Gebler. Happy Hump Day ya'll!

Fun With Glass

I was reading an old article in Craft magazine (which is unfortunately no longer being published - but their online presence lives on) about making your own stained glass, which looks really intriguing. Definitely on my list of stuff I want to do one day! Until then, feast your eyes on some of these creations by Timothy Miller....



Yes, this is indeed a Transformers stained glass, and of course, your living room is not complete without a Deceptacon stained glass lamp!!



And last but not least, here is Autobot.

Pie or Die!

Sorry for the hiatus the last few weeks...been sooo busy, but that is a lame excuse, I know.... We had a fun Red Cake event on the 19th, featuring Vanessa Marsh's new work- some of which is now available on our site. I've continued to be super busy with homework for my patternmaking classes at Apparel Arts (which I am LOVING!).
And, I just found out that I will be competing in the upcoming SF Food Wars PIE OR DIE
competition! I will be one of twenty competitors baking pies for this super fun event. My entry is Super Fierce Pecan Buttermilk Pie - one of the pies I baked for my wedding reception. Check out the NY Times article about the event, too. Tickets for the event go on sale tomorrow at noon - and they sell out fast, so act quick if you want to go!

I Love Metal

We're super excited to introduce another new addition to Red Cake - Queens Metal jewelry!
As you may have guessed, she's based out of Queens, New York. And I love, love her Lollipop earrings - I have my own pair and have been wearing them all week (and they're only $25!!):



I also love her Chrysler Ring - it's just really chic and modern!



You can check out more of her creations at Red Cake or on her Etsy shop. Have a great weekend!

Red Cake Sponsors The Lab's Thread Bare

Red Cake is a proud sponsor of The Lab's 5th Annual Thread Bare, a super fun fashion fundraiser - it takes place on June 11 in San Francisco. A variety of local designers have donated clothes to the runway show, and they will have their wares available at the trunk show, including Miss Velvet Cream, below. Hope you will check it out!!

An Apple (or two) a Day

We're super excited to welcome some new additions to the Red Cake family! Check out Bay Area jewelry designer Sugar City Silver and her sweet sterling creations, like these adorable brass and silver apples. We discovered her on Etsy, so you can check out more of her goodies at her shop.
We'll be highlighting other new artists throughout the next couple weeks, so stay tuned!


Not into fruit? How about kittens instead? A resin kitty ring will surely brighten up your day.



These super chic stacking rings will make a welcome addition to any collection - and only $40 for the set!

I was researching the web about how to make gum paste flowers for cake decorating - and of course, digressed and ended up on a blog about messed up cakes (with typos, ugly decorations, etc.- thank you to Cake Wrecks for the lovely finds below) - and just some fabulously creative cakes, too.....

First, a very cool cake that I LOVE:

I have no freaking clue what this cake below is supposed to be...it's a bit phallic, but the color and long lashed eyes kind of throw me off. A butterfly without wings? Tampon lady? If anyone knows, let me know...


And I love a chocolate cupcake as much as the next person, but when it looks like a poop crusted monkey, I'm not such a big fan...

Whoa, hopefully this cake was for a baby shower for an expecting belly dancer?!!

Ear Candy

Once again, as I was trollilng Etsy (this time, I was scouting for new items to sell in our shop, I swear!) I came across some super cool candy earrings - made of real candy! And they're only $3.50 a pair - so affordable. Love it.


Prefer not to wear candy? You can pick up this candy business card holder instead:

Ok kids...gotta get back to work of scouting artists! Have a great Friday!!

Fabric and More Fabric

I've always loved looking at fabrics even before I learned how to sew, but now that I can actually sew - it's dangerous to step into a fabric store - more often than not, I end up leaving with fabric that I didn't even know I needed! Reprodepot is a great online source of cool, funky textiles and some great vintage ones too. Locally, I like Stone Mountain Daughters, especially their selection of 50% wools. Local designer Erica Tanov also sells fabric leftover from their collections, and some of her own design. Every Thursday from 1 to 3pm, they open up their Berkeley studio for a fabric sale, and the one time I went, I spent nearly $100, including on some $5/yard silk - they have some great deals- you should definitely check it out!
Here are some fabrics I'm currently drooling about....this vibrant retro cotton from Reprodepot is perfect for that little mod dress you've been wanting to make.






This swirly retro rubber band print is highly covetable, and it's on sale for less than $15 a yard....






This adorable puppy and kitten fabric can be found on Etsy - which is a great place for supplies of all sorts, not just handmade goodies!

Endtimes Gear

Not to be paranoid, but if the end times do arrive, wouldn't you still want to look stylish while fending off those bio-terrorists? My brief research turned up quite a few options for hip gas masks- first, Diddo Velema's versions below - they're so hip, you may want to wear them before the end times, maybe to cover up an untimely pimple?

....then, the Urban Security Suit by Dutch designer Tim Smit. Gotta love the Dutch, they are always thinking ahead - as an aside, they were the first country in the world to legalize same sex marraige, nearly 20 years ago - who knew?

With this uber cool gas mask necklace by Ball and Chain via Etsy - your outfit will be complete. I have this necklace and it's definitely an eye-catcher!

Fun on Etsy

If you ever need to kill some time, trot on over to Etsy and you'll whittle away the hours perusing the endless array of handmade arts and crafts. Not only does Etsy have tons of unique items by independent designers and artists, they also have a lot of supplies to make the aforementioned stuff, like vintage fabric, beads, etc. It does sometimes take awhile to search to find exactly what you need/wantdidn't know you wanted, but it's usually worth the wait. Here, I've culled some of my favorite finds that have caught my eye.



BerkeleyIllustration has lots of quirky animal prints, like this little Squirrel Lady above, and the well dressed Raccoon below. They're a little bit Alice in Wonderland and Peter Rabbit. And these are only $10 - perfectly recession friendly!



Now on to some wearable goodies...these fried egg earrings by Inedible Jewelry are just adorable!



This very cute ruffle sleeve top by Econica is so versatile and looks so comfy, I would totally wear it everywhere.



And this pleated blouse by Modaspia is simple, elegant and looks wonderfully made - I am definitely putting this on my birthday wish list!

Speaking of Cake

If I can scrounge up the time, I just might enter this erotic cake contest at The LAB, coming up next month......And digressing to non-erotic cakes.... did you know that Marshmallow Peeps come in chocolate mousse teddy bears!

I love this kitty cake from Culinary Delight Catering! I'd love one for my birthday!

Spandex!

Happy new year, folks! What better way to start 2010 than with SPANDEX? I recently learned about Spandex World through a classmate in my patternmaking class. As the name implies - it's a vast world of all of the stretchy delights you could ever imagine! The actual store is located in New York, but thanks to the miracle of the interwebs, you can have yards of stretch sequins shipped right to your door. The inventory ranges from simple solids, vinyl, wild prints, and of course sequins:



This eye catching spandex would make a lovely catsuit, no? I imagine that many ice skating costumes are created from Spandex World's wares...



In case you don't think the neon animal print is flashy enough, it's also holographic!



And my fave of the day is this peacock sequin print - perhaps some leggings in this would spice up your wardrobe for the new year? :)