Hello Gang!
September is my birthday month and to celebrate, I’ve put my best selling book, Embellished Bras on sale over on my Etsy store. Through September 31, 2015, this book is on sale for the lowest price ever – only $15 + shipping. I’m so proud of this book and it continues to be my best selling publication. This is, quite literally, a “workshop in a book.” These are the techniques that I present to students during bra making classes and workshops. There are many-many ways to make a bra. In this book, I present a simple draping technique for making a pattern for the bra cups. Once you have your pattern made, follow the step-by-step directions for sewing the fabric to the bra. The last half of the book is filled with ideas, materials, and supplies for embellishing your bra. If you already make dance bras, this book will offer you new insights, tips, tools, and techniques for taking your bra-making to the next level.
All of my in-print titles are available on Etsy, so if you are looking for a different title, stop by the store and check it out. If you are a regular Etsy shopper, favorite the store and keep in touch for new products and book releases!
Thanks for joining me in my birthday celebration!
~ Dawn Devine ~ Davina
Embellished Bras – On Sale for $15 + Shipping
On Davina’s Etsy Store through Sept. 30, 2015.
PS: I’ve been adding a few assiut accessory pieces made from scraps left over from the production of The Cloth of Egypt: All About Assiut. If you are in the market for a hair flower, headband, or other accessory piece made from assiut, be sure to keep an eye out. All through the month of October, we will be finishing up new pieces! One might be right for you! ~ Happy Costuming ~ Davina
This weekend I went to an event, a hafla hosted by Adira, of Adira Dance and Costume in Willow Glen, CA. Once a month throughout the summer, Adira transformer her parking lot into a performance space, and invites dancers from all across Northern California to come and dance. This Saturday, it was my turn, and I took the stage as one half of a duet called “Swirl,” the name I use for all of my group dancing experiences. Zemira, aka Alisha Westerfeld, my co-author and photographer on Cloth of Egypt.
Before Istanbul was Constantinople, it was called Byzantium, and I took this name for this collection of easy-to-wear costumes. The style is tribal fusion, a multicultural blend of textiles, coins, and jewelry components from along the caravan routes of the spice routes and along the silk road of Asia and North Africa. Ribbons from India, jewelry from Morocco, Coins from Iran, all came together to form these costumes. My personal mission was to make garments that would hold up to the rigorous life of dancing outdoors at festivals, historic events, on the beaches and around the campfires. They were sturdy, made from materials that could be hand washed and laid out to dry, ready for the next performance.
I adored dancing at Renaissance festivals and other living history presentations. At a festival, you might have to wear your costume for 4, 6 or even 8 hours in a row, longer than you would wear a spangled glam costume for a restaurant. They need to be flexible, and have give. And, they need to be made from period inspired materials.
Scraps! We all make them, and for many of us, they are a difficult thing to part with. I too have been saving up the tiny bits and pieces of hundreds of assiut costumes, and have amassed quite a little hoard of assiut scraps. My scrap box went from something a bit bigger than a shoe-box, to a pretty large flip-top tub. I’ve found I’ve had to sort them by size and usability and it took a day to realize that I making scraps faster than I’m getting rid of them!
