written September 23rd, 2009 ·
0 comments
I am so excited to go to the US in 3 weeks with my boyfriend who hasn’t been there with me in almost 4 years. Crazy how time flies. We are excited to do some shopping, eat some Philly cheesesteaks, hoagies and crabs down in Maryland. And definitely a good burger somewhere! Basically, we will be eating pretty unhealthy for 2 weeks. I can’t wait to go to some crazy huge supermarket (well, they are all crazy huge compared to the stores here) and buy stuff I can’t get here. Recently the names of candy that I have totally forgotten about keep popping into my head and I think, oh I have to buy that in the States! Like York peppermint patties:) Or Reeses PB cups. And most definitely chocolate covered caramels. They don’t do hard caramel here. How I miss good caramel! Now that I think of it, I’ll probably buy everything I see in Trader Joes. Oh the millions of food choices in America…how I miss them!
Posted in Random
written September 23rd, 2009 ·
0 comments
I was at my yoga studio today and they asked me to fill in for my teacher on Sunday for 2 Pilates classes! Since I have only had a week to practice the series in German, they want me to do it in English, which is a huge relief! I will learn to teach it in German, I won’t cop out, I just need more time to internalize it! But it was funny because my teacher who was training me today said she likes the class better in English, it sounds more natural for her. Interesting! We’ll see how it goes on Sunday and if the public agrees. Hopefully my boyfriend doesn’t mind practicing with me this weekend…
Posted in Life in Berlin, Pilates
written September 21st, 2009 ·
0 comments
A couple weeks ago I went shopping for the first time in 7 months. I had to buy a dress for a wedding I am going to in 2 weeks. I only have summer dresses so buying something more appropriate was definitely in order. Of course, my first stop was H&M because of my budget. And lucky me, I found something! But the best part is I found something to wear with the purple heels that I have. Purple! Yes purple is still in…lucky me again. The dress is really cute. It’s very retro, 70’s, with an umpire waist and a wide ribbon that ties in back, a V-cut neckline (I have to wear a tank top under it for sure) and wide sleeves. The neckline, sleeve ends and ribbon are satin. It is very minimal yet dressy enough for the occasion. And it matches my shoes. And it was only 20 Euros:) Now I just need some jewelry. I will design a set of necklace, earrings and bracelet I think. I already have an idea already. I’ll post pics of my ensemble after the wedding! Can’t wait:)
Posted in Fashion, Life in Berlin
written September 21st, 2009 ·
0 comments
I am doing my first giveaway right now and anyone can receive these fun dangles of mine for free! Katie from the blog A Plumber’s Wife asked me to do it and I am very pleased to see that there is already some interested gals out there who have entered! See the giveaway here and enter by doing a few simple things to help support me and Katie’s blog! Thanks to all who enter and good luck! Giveaway ends October 3rd.
Pass this on to your gal pals!
Posted in My Jewelry
written September 17th, 2009 ·
0 comments
I love being online when there are free treasury spots opening up soon! Here’s mine from today. View it here to leave comments until Sunday:)
Posted in Etsy Treasuries, Inspiration
written September 17th, 2009 ·
0 comments
As Fall comes creeping in I am forced to remember when I was back in school, high school really, when the beginning of the school year was so exciting! I remember going back to school shopping and getting a few new outfits for Fall that I would be so excited to wear to school. Picking out my outfit for the first day of school was the best. As if it would make a difference, it always gave me a sense of a new beginning. After all, a new grade back then meant new classes, potentially new friends. It was a big deal back then.
I have been reminiscing about the kind of clothes I used to buy back then too. I would shop at The GAP or some other real preppy stores, or should I say all American? You can’t find the kind of clothes I used to buy over here. Bulky sweaters, zip up sweatshirts, casual jeans…maybe at H&M, but that is as basic as you can get. The clothing here is so European. How can I describe it better? It is hard to find a normal pair of jeans without any kind of weird detailing, bleaching, stitching or patterns. Same goes with sweatshirts or sweaters. Everyone dresses a bit nicer here and therefore the simple casual clothes are hard to come by. Whenever I go home to the US, I love shopping at Old Navy. If not for the prices, it is for the casual fashion that is perfect for my style. Whenever I shop here, I end up buying dressier things I don’t wear very often.
I was thinking about Fall outfits and what my Fall outfit would be today if I was going back to school:) I don’t know if I’d be wearing these kinds of outfits exactly….but there are definitely a lot of different styles to choose from this year! There is this bulky, woolly, 70’s layered look, as well as a sleek leggings/skinny jean look with those ankle boots still in style. Here are some quick silly collages I created today. All H&M stuff.
read more…
Posted in Fashion Fall 2009, Life in Berlin
written September 17th, 2009 ·
0 comments
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have begun to train as a substitution Pilates teacher. My teacher is going to do an Ashtanga Yoga training in Thailand for 5 weeks and I will be teaching for her in her absence. This means I’ve got to learn the series down pat and really get my body to memorize it. And then I’ve got to practice doing and speaking, all in German! This is actually not so bad really. I have been taking this class for a while now and I have grown used to how my teacher explains each movement to the class and which tips she gives. Next week I will try already to give the class to my teacher and a friend to see how it feels. My friend is a beginner Pilates student, so this will be interesting! I can really get some good feedback from her about how I am explaining the movements. So I’ve got to practice from now until then…a lot! Besides today, cause I am doing yoga, I’ll practice the series every day.
I always kind of knew this was part of my destiny. My roomate for the first 2 years of RISD was a former rhythmic gymnast and we used to do ballet and Pilates together. She went on to get herself certified and now teaches on her own. Now it’s my turn! Even though I do want to get certified soon, I think I may do it when I move to London next year (if I do, for my masters degree), because then I’ll be trained in English. Even though Joseph Pilates was German, my teacher tells me London will probably have better and more renown studios. So I guess it’s saving time!
Ahhhh…Pilates in German…
read more…
Posted in Life in Berlin, Pilates
written September 17th, 2009 ·
0 comments
I was in the Etsy email! Oh yeah! I was actually online for alllll to see:) There was an Etsy newsletter that was sent out entitled All Over The Map where they feature a few sellers from chosen cities around the world. And this time, they chose Berlin! And guess who was featuered?!?! As soon as I saw Berlin in the email my heart was pounding so fast, I was wishing and hoping and yes, I was there! Then before my eyes, as I was online an old friend of mine snatched up the earrings that were featured:) My 4th sale. So yes, that was the best part of my Tuesday. You can now find my feature on Etsy’s blog here. Documentation:
My earrings among some other fun Berlin sellers.
I check this website craftcult everyday to see if I have been featured anywhere in the Etsy world and it finally says something other than ChicHandmades is not featured… when I check it. What a nice feeling:)
Posted in My Jewelry
written September 16th, 2009 ·
0 comments
So yesterday was a very exciting day! In the morning I was actually feeling a bit overwhelmed because I am juggling a few things on my plate right now. I am trying really hard to get my jewelry sold in a few shops in Berlin. My process for this includes walking around the city visiting shops to see if my jewelry will fit in and then usually calling back afterwards because the bosses aren’t there to make any decisions. I’ve also been trying to find some more markets to sell at, so I’ve been visiting them on the weekends. And then last week I was given an exciting offer to teach a Pilates class for 5 weeks while the regular teacher is at a training in Thailand. So I have to learn the class by heart and be able to teach it in German in 6 weeks! And then of course, there is my Etsy shop and my design work for my masters application portfolio, which has been a bit neglected lately. So many things.
Then I went to the yoga studio where I am working now in exchange for free classes and I was talking to the boss and he kind of mentioned that he might want me to teach some classes next year as the studio is expanding and doing really well. I am not getting too excited about it, but it would be a great experience! So that brought my spirits up. And then we had a huge attendance at our vinyasa class that day, when we normally have about 8 in a class. So that was fun and the energy in the class was great! So I really pushed myself and it felt good.
After yoga I went to the art store to buy some supplies for a display stand for my jewelry. A store in my area picked out about 20 pairs of earrings of mine to sell! Anyhow, they were having a 20% off sale a the art store. That made my day even better. I got some fun fluorescent paints and some wood beads to make a crazy huge statement necklace. A girl has got to do some experimental projects once and a while!
I got some paper for my stand and started building it when I got home. I had made a really rough prototype out of paper already, but it was looking seriously weak. So I decided I would attach the Ikea frames I had for selling at the market to the front of my paper constructions. Anyhow, I wanted to do a kind of step by step process for the making of this stand for my blog, but unfortunately I have no step by step process. It was very experimental and I just made the design decisions as I went along, solving problems one by one. So here are some images. This is my very first promotional/presentation stand for my first retailer in Berlin!
read more…
Posted in Life in Berlin, My Jewelry
written September 13th, 2009 ·
0 comments
Fabiola Arias is a Cuban born (Miami raised) fashion designer who just recently graduated from Parsons and is showing her collection during New York Fashion week as an installation of still life models. I wanted to post some really beautiful images of her latest collections here and share some of her process and my thoughts.
Her Fall 2009 collection was inspired by the winter in New York, which includes designs that are beautifully textural and sculptural. Combining the contrasting images of fallen leaves and snow with broken glass and rubble from the streets of the city, Fabiola created a chilled palette of black, pine green and silvery beige. Her sculptural dresses are elegant and expressive and her pieces are formed by layers of bunched fabric in an attractively organic way. The fabric resembles an organism that has attached itself lovingly to the wearer’s body, which is what I admire about her work, that it is structural with a deep sense of the body underneath.
Her Spring 2009 collection shows traces of her love of structure and layering as well. She designed a lovely pink top that has bunched fabric clusters along the collar and sleeves, which gives it some weight and then the rest just drapes light as a feather and relaxed down to the waist (see pictures below). A simple yellow mini is transformed into a textural beauty by large stitches that curve around the hip area in a seductive and flattering way. She also worked with a very organic print on a lovely dusty rose colored dress, the form of the dress hovering between structural and amorphous in a feminine and charming way.
Fabiola’s line was picked up by the store Ikram in Chicago (a favorite of Michelle Obama’s) before she graduated and she will be presenting her Fall/Winter 2010 collection in Tokyo. So watch out for this rising talent!
Posted in Fashion, Fashion Fall 2009
