General

Pinterest – Hot New Tool for Designers

February 2, 2012

Pinterest Hot New Tool for Designers One of my favorite design tools is the mood board or inspiration board. I routinely build collages that inform, inspire and delight the eye and fuel my own creative process. Recently, I went over to the new website, Pinterest and began to explore. What I have found, to my [...]

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Assiut/Assuit in Motion – Liquid Silver

January 27, 2012

Assiut/Assuit in Motion – Liquid Silver Apparently, I’m obsessed with assiut/assuit cloth. Which is probably good, since I’m working on a book about this magical fabric. However, several folks have sent me email queries along the lines of: Hey Dawn, I’ve heard assiut/assuit referred to as “liquid silver” but when I see assiut/assuit it looks [...]

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Vintage Dress – Assiut/Assuit Transformation

January 10, 2012

Transforming a Vintage Assiut/Assuit Dress Step One – “Before Video” As I work on projects for my upcoming book, All About Assiut/Assuit, I’m trying to catch some photos and videos of me wearing costumes made from this fabric. In December, I had the opportunity to wear a dingy and sadly in need of repair assiut [...]

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Every Dancer Needs a Red Costume

December 29, 2011

Bay Area dancer Setareh in Red Assiut Costume

Every (American) Dancer Needs A Red Costume There are many costuming options for a dancer to choose from. From the glamour of beads and sequins to the earthiness of tribal and folkloric costumes, the options can be overwhelming. Many dancers start by selecting a specific feature. Color is one of the most obvious first choices, [...]

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Hermeen

December 12, 2011

Hermeen – Unsung Golden Age Dancer I adore watching old videos of classic Egyptian dancers. The costuming is so inspirational, and it makes me want to hit the drawing board to create unique and retro designs. Recently, I decided to hunt down a relatively unknown, but extremely accomplished dancer, Hermeen. Information about her is quite [...]

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Getting a Grip – Rubber Tipped Pliers

November 8, 2011

Getting a Grip – Rubber Tipped Pliers Do you do beading? Have you tried to sew through the many layers of a stiff built or a heavily padded bra, only to have your needle get stuck somewhere on it’s slide from one side to the other? Even if you push really hard with your thimble, [...]