And for the men.......

Since we had a few guys stop and look at our cuff bracelets at Unique LA, we decided I should come up with a prototype for the guys. I made this one wider, with snaps...and yes, it's reversible!  What do you think?

Photos and Results from "Unique LA Holiday Show"

What a great weekend this was! My first ever "trade show",  in the heart of LA's fashion district!  Rhion Magee (of Dreamworks) got me involved in this project earlier this year, and this show was our first forway into the world of commerce.

This show was HUGE - there were so many vendors, it was impossible to check them all out. Almost all of the vendors sell on Etsy, and so we were competing with some very professional booths. I'm happy to say, we had a steady stream of visitors, and our African fabric cloth products went over very well.  We also sold beautiful flour cloth fabric bags made by the women in the village, plus 100% pure Shea butter from Ghana.

By Sunday evening, we sold about $1,000 of merchandise (over 2 days), all of which will go back to the sewing center in the village of Okurase. I've been up late each night and every weekend for the past month or so sewing belts, bracelets and coasters and it was so gratifying when someone (like the girl below) loved her purchase.

Happy customer!

With a body like this, we had to ask her to model it for us....!

Our booth (before the crowds flooded in)

Rhion and her son Cade standing by our booth

the belts

the bracelets

Laura and Rhion, at the end of a very long and productive day!

Unique LA Holiday Show this weekend!

This weekend, all our fabulous African mudcloth belts, bracelets, and coasters will be on sale at the Unique LA Holiday Show, in downtown Los Angeles. Billed as the largest independent design show on the West Coast, if features products from over 300 local designers and artists .
The event is at at the California Market Center (110 East 9th Street), the cost is $10 (which pays for entry for two days - plus a tote bag and a free drink ticket)...check out the link for more details:
Unique LA Holiday Show
I'll post photos after the event!

More African mud cloth belts

Here's the belt in the brown and black mudcloth from Ghana. I used a different contrasting fabric (also made in Ghana) on the reverse side, so you can wear these belts on either side. I took photos of each. The metal loops are re-purposed curtain rings. I finished the edges with woolly nylon serger thread.
I love this fabric, and it's the "real deal", not imitation mudcloth. This fabric was hand-carried on a plane from Ghana.
We'll be selling these at Unique LA, Dec. 5 and 6.

Reunion Dress

Here's a lined dress I made for my high school reunion (and no, I won't say which one!) The top is a lined knit, with darts in front and back, and the organza skirt has a black silk lining. It zips up the side.

Very comfortable..self-drafted pattern.

Knit dress knock-off

Here's the cotton knit dress I made for my friend Jaime, which was in an earlier post (unfinished).  Here it is again, hemmed and finished. She gave me one of her favorite dresses, and I basically copied it. I love it with the white T!

African mudcloth fabric belts

For Project Okurase, I'm making these reversible belts out of mudcloth from Ghana. The darker fabric is the mudcloth; the other side is made out of a gorgous cotton print from the same village. You can flip the belt over for a completely different look - great with jeans or a long flowy skirt. The belt hoops are actually shower curtain rings! These belts, along with fabric cuff bracelets, will be sold Dec. 5 and 6 at Unique LA. Stay tuned for more project photos for this non-profit organization.

The reverse side...