Inspiration is All Around Us

I feel that it is important to pay homage to history, but not duplicate it... rather be inspired. As many of you have seen, I am full of costume ideas and indeed wear them frequently. In my work, there are traces of old royalty... Sometimes it is Marie Antoinette, sometimes it is Queen Elizabeth I.


Recently a friend of mine asked me to create something special and I cannot wait to show you what I have planned, but you must wait for the unveiling.






















I leave you with this. "Think outside the box" and "remember that inspiration is around you, if you open your eyes.














QueenElizabeth/oscars.com
http://www.youtube.com/richielillard

An Elizabethan / Baroque Jacket

Not so common bicycle gear

Recently, I created an amazing Elizabethan / Baroque jacket for AIDSLifecycle Cyclist, Tony Eason. Tony Eason biked (along with 3,000 fellow cyclist) from San Francisco to Los Angeles in the fight against the AIDS Pandemic.

The fifth day of the AIDSLifecycle Event is titled 'Red Dress Day." However, being a man of his own, Tony Eason decided he did not want to wear a dress nor did he want to wear red. So together, we visited Britex,  Discount Fabrics and Beyond Beads.  Soon later, I returned home with orange raw silk and very fancy beads.

I went to work sketching, making the pattern, sewing the garment, hand beading the garment, and finally hand embroidering the "OM" sign. Sewing was not a problem,  I could of had it finished in three days.  Yet, because of all the hand detail... it took me something like forty five days. None the less, it was a raging success.

How to make an Elizabethan / Baroque Jacket

Shakespearean Elizabethan Baroque Doublet - Flickr Photos