The Tiny Closet

A few months ago a friend of mine asked if I'd be interested in designing a dress for her to wear for an upcoming feature performance.  Thrilled at such an undertaking, I felt only the flood of enthusiasm and creativity that comes first (and none of the normal uncertainty and hesitation that comes second with most rational folk) as I instantly promised to whip up something short of amazing.  Yay for the rookie-can-do attitude!

You know you're a beginner at a craft when you think you can do anything.... oy.  

For this beautiful, leggy, swan-like chanteuse, the design I chose was halter... with lots of leg slits!  The material - why, silk of course.  

Basically, I had no idea what I gotten myself into!

I am so incredibly thankful I dove in feet first on this project though.  I mean I'm clearly still learning but if I hadn't agreed to such a request, 

I would never have been crazy enough to create this:

Yep, this project has been my bestie for the past few weeks but sadly I didn't allow enough time at the end to find a 5'10" model to wear this dress for display soooooooo 

I got my 5' self a stool and popped it on.  Silk for days, folks.

My first custom gown work but I really hope believe she will look marvelous in it!

Crop tops and harem pants.  Over the 90 degree weather weekend, I wore them together.

Why didn't I do this sooner??

I repurposed a denim tank dress as a cropped denim tank.  I've had crop-top fever lately and since I hadn't worn this item as a dress in ages anyway, I thought I'd reinvent it before throwing it out for good...I actually think it may have been better as a dress though :-/   What do you think?  

Eh, you repurpose, you learn I suppose. 

crop denim tank: thrift/repurposed / bangles: Philippines / sunnies: RayBan / harem pants: Philippines / wedges: Castaner

These harems however, will never get old.   I swear it!  This is #2 of 6 in my growing collection.  These can actually cover my body as a tube jumper.  But that look really is for the beach I think.  I love the elegant drape they have when worn as pants.  

And they actually pair beautifully with my linen lace up wedges. This is a comfy outfit all in all.  The crop was a bit high so I wore a casual lace bustier type bra underneath.  

You can actually see it peaking  out from under which is kinda fun :)

...In other news, I am FINALLY finished with a wonderful project I've been focusing on as of late.  Can't wait to show you tomorrow the long awaited fruit of my labor.  

It was so fun and I learned a ton so please come visit again tomorrow to check it out!

Hope you enjoyed your weekend :)

With my newly sewn linen skirt laid out to wear with my maxi tee and favorite necklace, I stepped out of the shower preparing to head out to Grand Central Market for some shopping in my new ensemble (that I made to wear for such an occasion).... when Theo calls to let me know he already took care of it.

But.  But. But I was gonna wear my new grocery shopping skirt....  

And take pictures!  Shopping...  In my new grocery shopping skirt!

Thankfully, I will be hungry again tomorrow so we'll surely have a need to go grocery shopping again and I will finally be able to debut my ready to wear pieces appropriately :)  

For now though, let me just pose.

It's almost like an oversize tennis skirt.  I love it's volume!!  It's slouchy, just like my tees and it's mid length, which is nice because that means I don't have to sit like I'm holding a dime between my knees.  I can lounge, bend, move, kick back!  As though I were wearing pants.  That's why this skirt is perfecto for errands.

I also added piping along the bottom for a simple finish as I knew I'd be paring it with white a lot over the Summer months.  I'd like to make another with black piping.

And speaking of ready to wear, I'm so glad I finally figured out a way to finish a long drawn out draping project I started when I first moved to L.A..  

So excited to show and tell!!

 Shades of nude and biscuit and creams swim around my room.  After Theo and I installed our new linen drapes, 

of which I originally felt were pretty blah and void of style, turned instantly elegant...

It's interesting how something so simple and bare can do so much, aesthetically speaking.  These simple drapes literally transformed our bedroom...

In a very minimalistic, chic way of course :)

And more interestingly, my new drapery spawned some new ideas for my Tiny wardrobe.

This new skirt, The Tiny Closet Collection, is different.  Hip slung, pleated and swing style - and also mid-length.  And most importantly, the fabric is incredible!  

A delicious weighty, drapey wheat hued linen.

Mama like.

And paired with my collection of maxi scoop neck tees, it's the perfect Summer outfit for shopping at the Farmer's Market,  vintage browsing, coffee outings and... a windy day :)  

---with all this swing and pleating, this skirt's really got some Marilyn Monroe flair when it's windy out!  

You will see it on me soon enough so check back tomorrow!

During the day, I try not to eat heavy foods as I get tired very easily and anything heavier than toast will just send me to dreamland.  But I also don't really feel like having just a juice in the middle of the day either.  So, to keep my stomach from growling around 3pm (and to satisfy my demanding sweet tooth), I like to blend this quick snack:

ice cubes

20 almonds

1 tbsp flax seeds

small glass of almond milk

aaaaaaand...

Trader Joe's Midnight Moo chocolate syrup

And why am I wearing Skipper's undergarments?  

Well, I don't have a fit form.  If I did, my life would be a slice of amazing pie.  But I don't so, oh well...

For those you who don't know what a "fit form" is, it's a mannequin form usually of the neck to butt portion of the body.  In the sewing world,
it's made for draping and tailoring commonly for formal wear.  Which I am doing.  But without a fit form :(  wah, wah - you get the picture.

So since I am sans fit form for now, I have resorted to draping and measuring pieces on myself, which means that instead of wearing drapey, comfy clothing,
I have to wear second skin pieces while sewing so I can measure and place fabric with ease.

It's not my first outfit choice for the house but it makes my projects much easier and...

Sometimes I catch myself in the mirror walking by and I have to say, the simplicity of this look is kinda chic no?

Anyway, I wasn't really wearing anything interesting on Sunday but I thought I would just show what I was wearing anyway!

I'm out ladies!  Off to watch my Khaleesi kick some butt in Game of Thrones!!

We still don't have curtains in our bedroom.  Or in our entire apartment for that matter.  Ah, but we love the light!  

When it comes to editing video, photos, and generally using a computer however, we're pretty much blind between the hours of 8am and 3pm.

So, Thursday we finally (begrudgingly) decided it was time for some curtains.   I don't care for curtains.  They tend to look messy no matter how you hang them or what material you use and over time, the pattern or color can make me feel stir crazy.  I love beautiful bare windows - especially against brick, which is coincidentally what we have - 

so if I have to cover them up, I decided to make my own.  

Being only a few walking blocks away from the garment district and a world of options for, well, anything - Theo and I set out to shop for some chic, simple curtain fabric.

Of course I got super distracted by all the street-side tulle and fabrics for costumes and Quinseanera dresses.  Siiiigh!

I also had to pick up the final fabric for a gown I created for a friend.  I am tremendously excited to see how this special project turns out.  

And of course, I will be showing it here soon!  

Eeeee!

Wednesday was super sunny...as per usual.  I love that I can say that now.  Ahhh.  

Anyway though, yesterday was hottt, actually and I wasn't really prepared for that type of warmth.

Preparing to meet Theo in the Arts District, I rummaged through a bag of clothing I've been putting together to donate to Goodwill and pulled out this old polka dotted silk crepe skirt.

Decided to wear it as a halter dress.

In 10 mins, I had sewn a grosgrain ribbon to each end of the skirt opening, threw on my ultra comfy, casual lace bustier and stowed my booties away in my bag for later.

I was ready to go out!

 dress: thrifted / bra top: Free People / booties: thrifted / sunnies: Rayban

Attempting to push the boundaries of my normal styling tendencies, I decided to restyle some favorite pieces of mine into a look unfamiliar.  

I think I succeeded.

An unfamiliar aesthetic made up of many of my favorite looks: 

androgyny, men's formal, minimalism, Eastern, exotic.

It was a bit hard to keep a straight face while walking around downtown in this yesterday but I have to say, it's now one of my favorite ensembles.  I felt like Charlotte Rampling!  Just so exquisitely sophisticated and mysterious and super cool.

It's outfits like these that when looking in the mirror, I see my future self.  The person I envision myself to dress like later in life, when I'm peaking and at the top of my game.  Clothes can really be interesting in that respect because they have the power to influence our behavior and state of mind.

mens shirt: PINK / harem pants: Bottega Veneta / flats: Trotters / sunnies: Rayban

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I am incredibly drawn to this weird look I've concocted.  In fact, I need to create more of these looks because it's here to stay.

While every blogger and their photographer it seems was at Coachella last weekend, I was hard work draping a new long Summer evening blazer.  The fruits of my labor you will see next week but for now, it's boringville and I've been living vicariously through tweets and Facebook status updates.

I hope those of you who partook in the crazy festivities had a blast!

It's been touch and go here lately with weather but I'm actually right in step with my all-season Closet.  On a particular warm morning, I took this photo as a request.  You've seen this Catherine Malandrino item before - as you have with all the clothing I wear.  

My closet is after all, Tiny :)

I have worn this dress many times.  Perhaps though, you might think a dress like this isn't that versatile.  

But it is. I've worn it with a sweater dress and then I've also worn it as a tunic over jeans.

And the oxfords?  I wear these babies  E V E R Y W H E R E.

See ya back here tomorrow!

Wow.

The incredibly positive feedback I've been getting from the handmade pieces I've been incorporating into my Tiny Closet has been amazing to receive.

Thank you.

I started designing and sewing clothing because, while blogging about my adventures in having a small wardrobe, I was growing a more discerning eye for quality and style and I just began being a lot choosier with the clothing I would wear.  I realized the clothes that I truly loved were considerably beyond what I could afford and frankly, waaaaaay overpriced to begin with anyway, so I began making the things I saw but couldn't/wouldn't buy.

For the past two years, I've been loving sewing everyday, tweaking designs I see in store windows and even creating my own designs.  It's become quite a passion actually.
So a few weeks ago, after discovering the meaning of life over Cheerios, I realized life is too short and valuable to not do what you love to do.
So I went down to city hall and and got a little present for my Tiny Closet: 

a business license

yay!

The Tiny Closet is now a licensed business - as a special promise to myself to keep sewing and designing, and working towards one day being able to see my creations in
someone else's Tiny Closet.  That would be a dream come true.

As I am working on a clothing line to sell, I am testing out each piece right here on my blog.  Seeing if you like them, testing how they fit, and also testing out how they go with my daily style and wardrobe.  The question of exactly when the line will be available is still to be determined but I do know I have never wanted anything more.

Your encouragement and feedback while I continue testing out new clothing is amazingly helpful so
*thankyouthankyouthankyou*
for visiting, commenting and emailing.

I so hope you'll continue to stick with me because

I am so excited for what's in store... 
!!