Never Ending

School is a never ending run of projects and assignments. I am sleeping very little - 3 to 4 hours a day if I'm lucky, and I catch up on the weekends, against my will. At this rate I'm never getting ahead. With so many projects on the go for each class, I am going a little bit insane.

This week I handed in a lovely pair of pants, part of a coordinating suit project that will continue until the end of the semester. Unrealistic production time lines, yes, but oddly enough in the framework of post-secondary education it's barely enough time. I failed to take a photo of the pants in the wee hours of the morning before handing them in, and will only get them back at the end of the semester. Photos will follow then, but for now, enjoy the 3 inspiration boards required for the project: The South American Long-Wattled Umbrella Bird (mandatory "3-D object"), Gianfranco Ferré's FW 2009 collection (mandatory designer collection), and "Frogs" (randomly given "wild card"). Blogger has uploaded the images in some crazy way, so the colours are heavily distorted. Oh well.






















































The influence of these inspiration boards should be visible in the completed pant and jacket. My pants are a lovely, heavy-weight silk charmeuse in a deep bluish-grey, high-waisted with room in the hips, moving into a long slim leg - more influence from the Ferré collection than anything else. The jacket will be the showpiece, just as the Umbrella bird is a frou frou attention-grabbing bird flirt. Pretty excited about the garments, though they are keeping me up at night, every night. School sucks.

Focus on the Philippines

In light of the recent catastrophes occurring in Asia, the Filipino art exhibit has been understandably postponed. No problem for me, as my dress is still only a bodice, the sleeve is yet to be attached (I have yet to hand-sew the sleeve to the bodice, through 7 layers of leather!), and the skirts yet to be cut.

In the meantime, the Kapisanan is busy packing up balikbayan boxes and putting out calls for necessities to send to the Philippines. If you can donate anything along the lines of first aid kits, feminine hygiene products, diapers, food items, soap, etc. please feel free to drop by the centre on Augusta and Dundas, in Kensington, and drop off some items.

If you have time or interest, you can also help pack boxes, and learn a little bit about various parts of Philippine history. This centre is a fantastic place that offers a variety of resources for artists, musicians, opportunities to learn about the culture and participate in it through drawing circles, history lessons, and even food eating events! YUM. Visit their website to learn more, and make sure you drop by on Saturday, October 3 sometime after 7pm for a great fundraising event for victims of Hurricane Ondoy. The evening features a poetry slam jam, music, cheap drinks, and of course great people! It's Nuit Blanche, so if you're out and about, stop by!

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