Base14

I can’t help it, I have to give in to my feminine instincts every once in a while. So in honor of the holiday that celebrates everything girly and eeewy gewy cutesy in this world, I give you the ‘kissy kiss’ necklace. That’s right! What is more absolutely precious than these two little cherubicly plump figures smooching on a necklace? (Except for maybe this.) Either way, there’s no debate about it. This one’s a keeper.

All the charms were handmade and hand-painted by yours truly, as per usual. You might be asking, “Where can I buy it?” And your answer is: You can buy it in a beautiful dream world where I have enough time to mass produce these gorgeous pieces instead of memorizing the differences between various types of togas.

It’s that time of year again; time to sacrifice every available moment to the fashion gods. But the good news is I get the exciting pleasure of introducing you to the new line I am working on this year.

The concept was conceived last August and is now finally becoming a reality. Inspired by the Australian artist Ghostpatrol, this line maintains a bittersweet mood. Appropriately for a spring fashion show, this is a fall/winter line for 2010. (Coming to an imaginary store near you!) Fabrics include felted wool, heavy sweatshirt knits, flannels, heavy denims, twills and corduroys. They reminisce of classic winter clothing. Patches and layering give the look that the pieces have been worked and reworked. In addition to the garments, this collection features hand-knitted accessories and handmade jewelry.

Though I have designed a full line, the size of our fashion show unfortunately limits me to only three models. Keep a lookout for more pictures as the garments are completed.

Here’s to November! And here’s to another fun shirt from Base14! I’ve always been a big fan of No Shave November (a month-long celebration of beard growing.) But sadly I cannot participate. To fill the void in my heart and to encourage participation from the opposite sex, I created this T-shirt that boldly says, “I find you more attractive with a beard.”

Press onward, noble beard, for today is your day.

So, I bet you’ve been wondering why it’s been a while since my last post. The reason is because I’ve been working non-stop on this new series of handmade silk scarves. Each pattern is hand drawn through a gutta resist dye process. The color is then painstakingly painted on using a liquid dye. (The red scarf alone took over six hours to add color to.) This process is followed up with steaming, rinsing and finalizing.

The series was created for a Donald Hall exhibit that will open at Purdue next Thursday, November 5th. The scarves are in response to the line “beautiful terrible sentences unuttered” from his poem ‘Without.’ Like many, I know all too well what it feels like to lose a loved one to cancer. This series of scarves follows my reaction to Hall’s poem as I personally related it to recent events in my life.  Each one travels deeper into my interpretation.

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Generally, I post pieces made exclusively for Base14, but it seems there is a desire to see more of my fashion portfolio. So here is the first of a series of mini-posts with works from spring and summer.

Purdue Fashion Show: Spring 2009

All fabrics were dyed and treated by hand. The waist of the dress is hand smocked by yours truly. Pricing information available upon request.

Just in time for all you back to school hipsters, we present the Base14 tee! I did two prints to please the main Base14 customer base. One is a dark gray shade on black and the other is the classic white and orange logo on dark gray and green. As always with Base14 apparel, screen printing was done by hand. This was an exclusive first printing, but if you’ve all been very good this year, there’s a good likelihood that we will have some for sale. Please comment if you have any other color preferences.

I am proud to release the first T-shirt officially for sale from Base14. Just in time for Spring, these hand-screened shirts feature two little kites tangled together. The back has a small Base14 logo in the center of the shoulder blades. Since they are made by hand, each shirt is unique, but the one thing that they have in common is that each one is very excited to be worn by you and make you look fabulous.

Features: 100% preshrunk heavyweight cotton, seamless collar

Sizes Available: Adult small and medium [size chart]

Price: $10
Shipping (USPS First Class): $3

Click below to purchase a shirt through PayPal.