Monday, February 25, 2013

Teenage Seamstress Competes in Birmingham Fashion Week

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Being a twelve-year homeschooling alumni (and a current Homeschool Mom,) I am personally experienced in the benefit of having extra time to pursue extracurricular activities and interests. Recently, I had the opportunity to sit down with a current homeschooler who is using that opportunity to catapult her career off to an amazing start.

Rachel Irvin, a sixteen-year-old Junior from Birmingham, has been sewing since she was twelve. She taught herself out of a love for historical costumes.

“I watched a lot of period films with my Mom [like Jane Austen,] and I wanted to wear nothing but those kinds of clothes. I couldn’t afford a $350 costume, so the only way I was going to get what I wanted was to learn to sew and make my own dresses,” Rachel explained to me.

However, the luxurious fabrics it would take to build period pieces are also not cheap, so Rachel makes her creations with 100% recycled materials – either from thrift store finds or donations from friends and family.

“Curtains are my favorite! They’re usually in great condition, haven’t been washed too often, and rarely have anything wrong with them except for maybe a little dust.”

Staying true to her sewing inspirations, Rachel’s career goals lean in the direction of costume design for theater and movies, rather than couture fashion. She hopes to enter the University of Alabama’s Apparel and Textiles program to help propel her vision forward.

Besides being able to earn High School elective credit for teaching herself to sew, Rachel has also taught homeschool elective classes for other interested students. She can also spin yarn, weave, crochet, and knit. And when she gets stuck, she seeks advice from her Grandmother.

Rachel’s most recent project was creating a garment to enter into the Birmingham Fashion Week Rising Design Star Challenge. In this event, middle and high school students from across Alabama can enter their design work for the chance to be a part of the week’s events and win a scholarship. More than 200 contestants submitted design ideas, and the top 40 were chosen to be displayed at the Birmingham Museum of Art. Of those, thirty were picked to show their work on the runway at Birmingham Fashion Week. Rachel was chosen as one of those finalists, and will showing her look on Thursday night. The competition states that you must use unconventional materials and methods to make your garment. I didn’t get a sneak peek at Rachel’s outfit, but she told me that the main structure is window screening, lined with garbage bags and tissue paper. She added detailing to the shirt with metal brads, a halter with Mardi Gras beads, and cut bath poofs to add ruffles to the skirt.

Rachel did bring along a couple of her other dresses for me to admire. We chatted as she laboriously prepared her mannequin in a double-layered medieval-era Renaissance dress, and I stared, amazed at her design talent.

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Her Father, Richie, served as her assistant.

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This beautiful creation was made entirely out of recycled materials – the underdress had the former life of a bed sheet, and the overdress was concocted from curtains and valances. The accent buttons on the sleeves were donated to the project.

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Rachel said that the look took four days of nonstop work. It is exquisitely crafted, including an open sleeve that shows off the dress underneath:

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The second look that she displayed was a Regency Period dress in the style of Jane Austen. Also made from curtains, Rachel designed this dress to wear at a Christmas Ball. She tailored the front to be shorter so that she didn’t trip while dancing, and added the panel in the front for movement and style.

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“I kept struggling with the button holes in the back of the dress, so I took it to my Grandmother and she helped me get them right,” Rachel explained.

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Rachel’s fourteen-year-old sister, Hannah, will be wearing Rachel’s Fashion Week entry on the runway Thursday night. Sixteen contestants will be chosen from the thirty finalists and will get to show their creation again on Saturday night, where they will be competing for the grand prize of a $1,000 scholarship.

I might be biased, but I will be cheering for Rachel this week.

Tickets are currently still available for this event and others online at Birmingham Fashion Week.

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Birmingham Fashion Week: How to Dress.

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Birmingham Fashion Week officially started on Saturday, and will have exciting runway shows and events all of this week. In celebration of the event, I am giving away a $140 prize package on my other blog, Grasping for Objectivity. Be sure to enter soon – it ends on Wednesday!

In order to experience the high fashion that Birmingham has to offer in anticipation of Birmingham Fashion Week, I visited Gus Mayer. They shared tips with me on how to dress for the week.

“Birmingham Fashion Week is an event that you can really be yourself, or push yourself to wear something you have always had the desire to wear,” explained Cami, Gus Mayer’s buyer. “It’s also fun at an event like this to put a dressy piece with something casual so you don’t feel so much in ‘cocktail attire’ but more in ‘party attire.’”

Cami explained that it is totally appropriate to wear a skinny jean and sequined top, or to be more dressy, such as the looks she picked out below:

In one of her suggested outfits, she chose this stunning sequin skirt,

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but paired it with this simple, less form-fitting shirt:

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She suggested wearing it with a white leather jacket and tall black boots.

“I like to choose one edgy item and pair it with something simple to allow that item to shine,” Cami explained.

Another fun texture that is on-trend this Spring is laser-cut leather, which gives a material that was formerly un-pliable much more dimension and movement.

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Cami suggested pairing that skirt with a dark brown boot and sweater, and then adding a bright scarf to make it pop.

My favorite outfit was this lace-overlaid pant that she paired with a sheer, long black shirt:

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So I grabbed them and headed to the dressing room, basking for just a moment in some exciting high fashion.

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“All of these looks are Spring looks, but can be made weather-appropriate for a night event by adding a jacket or an off-the-shoulder fur,” Cami explained.

If you would like to have some fun of your own at Gus Mayer, I'm giving away a one hour Facial and a $50 Gift Card (total prize worth $140.) To enter, click over to my other blog, Grasping for Objectivity, and comment.

To buy tickets for Birmingham Fashion Week, click here.

Disclosure: I received a facial from Gus Mayer in order to review the prize being given away on my other blog. I was not compensated for this post, and all opinions are my own.

Friday, February 22, 2013

Best Post of the Week: Week 191


It's time to link in your best post of the week!

The purpose of this column is to make it easier to keep up with each other's blogs, so that even if we don't have time to read all of the Alabama Blogger blogs every day, at least we get the week's highlights.

So, link up, tell us why you linked that post, and let's start reading! And remember - the best way to get new blogging friends is to comment on other people's posts, so be sure to say "hi" to your neighbors when you visit!

p.s. - please feel free to interpret "this week" as loosely as you like!

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Birmingham Fashion Week: Coming Next Week!

Birmingham has been known for many industries over the years. Steel, banking, insurance, and the medical fields, to name a few.  And now, thanks to the creation of Birmingham Fashion Week, we have the opportunity to be recognized as a fashion presence, as well.

Not only does Birmingham Fashion Week attract incredible designers, but they offer the chance of a lifetime for local students with their Rising Design Stars Challenge.

Over eighty students, ranging from 11 to 18 years old, submitted their own clothing creations made out of non-traditional materials and assembled with glue, tape, and scissors instead of stitches.  Forty finalists were chosen, and were privileged to have their work displayed at the Birmingham Museum of Art in January and part of February. The top thirty designers will get to showcase their work on the runway at Birmingham Fashion Week!

The Rising Design Star runway show was one of my favorite parts of BFW last week, with many impressive garments made out of materials such as sheet music,

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grass,

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and Ace Bandages.
 
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(My entire overview of last year's runway show can be found here.)

Birmingham Fashion Week 2013 will be located at Pepper Place from February 23 - March 2. The schedule of events is available on their website, but I would highly recommend attending either Thursday, February 28 or Friday, March 1. Jeff Garner of Prophetik will be showing on Thursday night, and not only are his clothes dream-inspiring, but his Runway Show aesthetics are like receiving the bonus of a theatrical event. And on Friday night, Project Runway All-Stars winner Anthony Ryan Auld will be showing along with runner-up Joshua McKinley. Being a committed fan of Project Runway, I am beyond thrilled to see them in Birmingham.

Tickets for each night are available on the Birmingham Fashion Week website. I hope to see you there!


Disclosure: Although I will be attending Birmingham Fashion Week as a member of the press, I was not compensated in any way to write this post. All opinions are my own.

Friday, February 15, 2013

Post Meet-Up Connect


Photo by Tanya Sylvan

We had a fantastic meet-up today at Cantina, with around thirty-five people in attendance! Due to the high turnout, it was impossible for me to get a complete listing of everyone, so I'm posting a link-up below. If you were at the meet-up today, feel free to link your blog, Twitter, and/or Facebook account so that we can all connect.

Also - if you haven't connected on the Alabama Bloggers Facebook page, please take a second to join the group here! It's a great place for discussions, questions, sharing posts, and discussing local blogging information.

Thanks to Wade for being our host, Cantina for the great food, and to all of you for coming out!

Best Post of the Week: Week 190


It's time to link in your best post of the week!

The purpose of this column is to make it easier to keep up with each other's blogs, so that even if we don't have time to read all of the Alabama Blogger blogs every day, at least we get the week's highlights.

So, link up, tell us why you linked that post, and let's start reading! And remember - the best way to get new blogging friends is to comment on other people's posts, so be sure to say "hi" to your neighbors when you visit!

p.s. - please feel free to interpret "this week" as loosely as you like!

Friday, February 8, 2013

Best Post of the Week: Week 189


It's time to link in your best post of the week!

The purpose of this column is to make it easier to keep up with each other's blogs, so that even if we don't have time to read all of the Alabama Blogger blogs every day, at least we get the week's highlights.

So, link up, tell us why you linked that post, and let's start reading! And remember - the best way to get new blogging friends is to comment on other people's posts, so be sure to say "hi" to your neighbors when you visit!

p.s. - please feel free to interpret "this week" as loosely as you like!

Sunday, February 3, 2013

February Meetup at Cantina in Lakeview


By Wade Kwon
  • Alabama Bloggers February meetup
  • Topic: Building a community
  • Cantina, Pepper Place, 2901 Second Ave. S., Lakeview, Birmingham [map]
  • 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Feb. 15
  • Event hashtag: #alablogmeet
  • RSVP by leaving a comment below.
Your blog doesn't live in a vacuum. It's connected to people, to other blogs, to an invisible ecosystem with influence on the real world.

Is that a community? Can it be managed, encouraged and motivated?

All bloggers are welcome to join us for the Alabama Bloggers February meetup. We'll have lunch at Cantina, a terrific taqueria with a mouthwatering menu, along with your questions and ideas on blog communities. Host Wade Kwon of the Birmingham Blogging Academy will facilitate the discussion.

Let us know you're coming with a comment below, please.

[And if you want to join the discussion on all things blogging, join the Alabama Bloggers Facebook group.]

We'll see you this month in Lakeview.  

Photo: Chris Happel (CC)
 

Prizes: We're having a special giveaway: two $25 gift certificates to Cantina! One will be given away to an attendee. Must be present to win. One will be given away to a promoter. You can tweet:
  • I want to see you at @CantinaBham on 2/15 for #AlaBlogMeet! RSVP: http://itswa.de/alablog
Or share on Facebook (be sure to tag Cantina Tortilla Grill in your update):
  • I want to see you at Cantina Tortilla Grill on 2/15 for #AlaBlogMeet! RSVP: http://itswa.de/alablog

After you share the promo, please leave a comment below by noon Feb. 14 to be entered in the drawing. (Your hosts Rachel and Wade aren't in the running for either prize.) Thanks to Cantina for providing these great prizes. Good luck!

Friday, February 1, 2013

Best Post of the Week: Week 188


It's time to link in your best post of the week!

The purpose of this column is to make it easier to keep up with each other's blogs, so that even if we don't have time to read all of the Alabama Blogger blogs every day, at least we get the week's highlights.

So, link up, tell us why you linked that post, and let's start reading! And remember - the best way to get new blogging friends is to comment on other people's posts, so be sure to say "hi" to your neighbors when you visit!

p.s. - please feel free to interpret "this week" as loosely as you like!
If you haven't linked up and introduced yourself yet, be sure to go here to do so!