Zelda Kaplan

The life of Zelda Kaplan, a New York artist, is an interesting one, detailed in the article I have linked to this post below (highlighted name "Zelda").

I have recently begun an amazing assignment, working as the "hands" of an extremely experienced French dressmaker/couturier, living in New York, who is just overflowing with creativity and ideas.  She is as talented as anyone can possibly be, and working with her is like being paid to take one of the best classes I have ever taken.  And what I am learning is not what one learns in design school... it is about the art of the craft, the philosophy of fashion, the amazing turn a dress can take when you turn a "V" shaped neckline into one that is squared off at the bottom.  The best part of all, is that I am in the right place in my life, professionally, and personally, to appreciate and absorb what she has to say.  While her clientele and friends are and have been names we all know, she is as personable, sweet, and grounded as any person can be.

Oh, Zelda.  I didn't know her personally, but this fashion-forward nonagenerian inspired so many, and will truly be missed.

The things we make have one supreme quality; they live longer than us. We perish, they survive. We have one life, they have many lives. And in each life, they can mean different things - which means that while we all have one biography, they have many.

-Niel MacGregor, Director of the British Museum

I take fabric, cut it, shape it to fit an individual human being, sew it, tweak it, finish it, and send it on its way. I gave birth to it, and then it travels on to be with its owner.  I love being involved in the process.  The above quote sums it all up so well.  Some people make things because we simply must.  I can't control this desire to create.  I have long quiet periods of deep thought, but they are vital to the process.  I must have spent a full hour in silence this morning, imagining twists and folds and calculations... Let's see what today's work yields...

The 4AM cry...

Whenever I get into conversations with other self-employed artist types, we discusss agonizing over projects, working so hard to force materials to conform to our vision, thinking and working so hard we can barely see or stand, and pulling all-nighters just to allow our minds and bodies to rest. That often brings up the subject of the the universal 4AM "cry".

And, without fail, I get a wide-eyed response of "You too???" This seems to be something almost all of us have in common. That soul-wrenching, supposedly private cry you have when you decide that you are a hack, a failure, talentless... untill you breathe life into the project, and, for better or worse, it starts to "become".

I think the creative process is very much like giving birth, and when it works, the glorious, euphoric high it produces is better than almost any feeling you could ever have. But the road is painful, sometimes long, and extremely emotional.

So, if you know this experience, at your next 4AM cry, know that you are not alone. If you are stuck, you can get "unstuck", if you are blocked, you can clear it, and you can (you will, and you must) overcome it. This is part of the process. If it is 4AM for you right now, I won't tell you to go to bed, because I know even I wouldn't take my own advice on that one!




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Not for Sale

My hero! This was one of my favorite Oscar dresses, because you can tell, she wore it because she wanted to! ... And it really seems to suit her personality. This is an example of the personal expression and individuality I celebrate.



I haven't seen the movie she wrote, but I may... when I can watch it at home... maybe.

Explaining why she wouldn't wear the million-dollar Weitzman shoes on the red carpet, Juno's reasoning was simple...

No one asked her. They simply sent the shoes, expecting her to wear them.

She doesn't have a million dollars, and, if she did, that's not how she would spend it.

I love that! She's not for sale, and that's fantastic...

You probably have a special skill or talent. Something that, when you give it your all, is painstakingly difficult to do, but thoughroughly rewarding. There is no amount of money that it is worth.

There is an infitinite and ever-expanding amount of love, beauty and creativity in the world; and a finite number of million dollar shoes. Today, let's focus on expanding the infinite.


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The Allegory of the Cave...

A few nights ago, I was watching the shadows of the city lights outside, dancing across our bedroom wall, and I turned to my husband and asked, "What do you think the lesson of Plato's Allegory of the Cave was meant to be?" He said "Well, probably... no matter how hard you try, you just can't make some people see things your way." (And yes, we have conversations like this all the time...)

If you are unfamiliar with the story, it describes a dark cave, dimly lit with a roaring fire. Prisoners are chained in a restrictive position, so that they can only see shadows on a wall, being cast by the figures behind them. Because of their limited view, it appears that the shadows are real, and that the voices they hear are coming from the shadows. A prisoner who was able to escape, leaves the cave, and experiences sunlight and the outside world, then returns to the cave to "enlighten" the others... But they dismiss him, thinking he is crazy, and that his eyesight has been damaged by the sunlight. This is just a quick condensed version of the story, but it is truly food for thought.

People sometimes ask me why I would want to make things that are so easily bought. "Why would anyone want to make slippers?" they ask. Until this moment, I thought that maybe one of us (but who knows which one...?) was the cave-dweller, who just couldn't imagine the other person's way of thinking.

Turns out, after thinking about it, and rereading Plato, that isn't it at all!

The problem, it seems, is in our wide definition of "slipper".

Further reading in Plato's Republic analyzes art, truth and imitation. Assuming there is only one true Creator of all things, everything else is imitation, right?

So an approximation of a generic foot, generates a standardized pattern, which gets produced, yielding a product that you can then buy, called a "slipper". While this is a perfectly valid way to obtain a slipper, an alternative way to develop a "slipper", is to obtain the measurements of the intended wearer, find something that is beautiful to the person who will wear it, and create it according to its intended purpose and unique design. This can also be called a "slipper", but it really just isn't the same thing.

This idea goes back to my post about spider webs, and the beauty of unique, specific, ergonomic design. I no longer seek to convert people to my way of thinking; it is enough for them just to know that making things is something I do, because I love it, and it is meaningful to me.

Sure, you can buy a shirt or make one, but the one you make isn't just a shirt, is it? I mean really, what you want is never an exact duplicate of what you can actually buy, is it?

So, if I haven't lost you, and you haven't yet decided that I am completely off my rocker, here is some proof of that idea.



So, what is this? You might have seen this fabric, which was wildly popular about 7 years ago, and was ushering in a kinda new color scheme at the time... Plus that it conveys such a happy mood, and a great attitude. So for me, at a time when I was feeling optimistic and VERY pregnant, I bought this fabric, and created a baby bag...




I wanted to carry this mood around with me all day, and that was reason enough to create this bag, using this fabric, and I used a layer of clear vinyl on top, and a canvas totebag beneath to sandwich the layers without needing to create a pattern. Heavy snaps made it very easy to open and close, and the vinyl coating kept me from worrying about getting it wet in the rain. I carried it until I no longer needed it, and it really seemed to brighten the day for me, and for others.

So my point is... if it means something to me, it needs to be created just as much as I need to create it. I really can't explain why, so I'll just continue to live it.

It may seem that I am abandoning projects...

Once upon a time, I made these things...


Above, a dress for an actress to wear at a red-carpet premiere of her indie-movie. I saw her again on TV some time later. I hope she's living her dream!



Above, a fun, flirty replica of the bride's mimiskirted wedding dress, to be worn to her rehearsal dinner. Stretch tank dress beneath this lovely silk... trumpet sleeves - sexy... what fun!



Above, pants for a very slim and elegant executive. They fit like a glove.



Above, a Valentine's Day themed duvet cover and accessories for the NY Newsday article. Although they came and photographed everything (this was my own photo, not a professionally lit and styled one), the only picture that came out in the publication was a huge one of my face. It was a very uncomfortable moment then, but now I'm over it!



Above, a bridal client's neckline for her 50's themed dress, with a big, flowy skirt... No understructure... see? There's my point. Every bump and wrinkle shows.


I have quite a few projects in various states of completion - I tend to work on many at at time, and new ideas come in. You can see the rhythm in my blog, even though I hide it. I suddenly get inspired to write like ten posts, then stagger the publishing, so I can provide a bit of steady content. Well, that... and I have NO time, these days...

So, I get inspired by things that might not look like what I'm envisioning, but they spark an idea, and I must hold onto it. Then I keep an idea journal, and create things in a sewing binge, that makes my family wonder if I've gone mad. I'm in one now...

So, there are always some pieces of inspiration that I doubt would explain much to anyone who is not in my brain... but rather than wast time trying to convey my plans, I'll just work on showing you the results...

Too good to pass up...

I have packed 5 boxes already today, and I need a break. I haven't been intrested in TV too much lately, so I've been doing a lot of web surfing. These are fun things to inspire all of you creative people out there.


Mr. Picasso Head
Gotta love this idea. You can create your own Mr. Potato Head-esque creation. I got really into it!


Simpsonize me
You have probably already heard of this one, but my daughter and I created one for her together. She didn't feel there were enough hairstyle choices to truly capture her essence! (She's 6)

An eco-friendly design idea? This is a very interesting idea for making your own fabric using plastic bags. I'm a bit scared to try it. If anyone does, I'd love to know how it turns out...

Okay, back to packing for an hour!