Road to Commingle – Part 2
It has been a busy week at SoHo Exchange. Beginning with not using the billboard shown in part one. Welcome to the world of creativity. After reviewing the sketch for the two items included in the blog, that billboard was just not going to work. So here is a picture of the newest billboard.
So Many to Choose From!
Often patterns are made simultaneously while selecting the vinyl. You will be spared the tedious details of pattern-making. Let’s just say there is lots of physics involved. We will be highlighting 2 looks, one a formal gown and the other a jacket accompanied with either a skirt or pants…stay tuned…it hasn’t been decided yet. Also, part of the not being locked into a path and letting the creativity evolve.
After selecting the vinyl, the pattern is cut. One of the challenges with using such a big section of textile, it is filled with a lot of wrinkles making it necessary to trim up the pattern to make it more accurate after the initial cutting.
Takes a Steady Hand...
Working with recycled billboards takes a lot of elbow grease. The signs are filthy! So after the pattern is cut the pieces are washed (scrubbed actually) and hung to dry. Once it is dry, we transfer the markings from the pattern on the textiles so that we know how to put the puzzle together.
It Dries Pretty Quickly
In conjunction with vinyl billboards we use recycled denim, leather, fur, silk, yada, yada! For the jacket, it will also be entered into a contest that has specific guidelines on materials that may be used. One of the acceptable textiles is denim…so I found some old men’s jeans. I usually do a 1-piece set-in sleeve…but as part of the evolution of this garment and the ever changing design…it has a 2-piece raglan sleeve (think of a sleeve on a jersey). Problem! The back piece of the sleeve was not fitting on the leg of jeans. Grrrr! In the next life, planning will be more a part of our makeup!
If you would like to see a daily (sometimes moment-by-moment) account of this venture, please find us on twitter.com/SoHoExchange.