I'm on this kick of recycling men's flannels and dress shirts...

I know the collar thing is probs getting old, but what can I say, I love a big collar to duck behind when needed.



More fitted.... made to fit me. :)

Whew, where has time gone! I have one more week of school, but today was the last day of Draping, my most important and most challenging class. Here are photos of my term garment!

(And I got an A on it. ) Even though the faux leather and the studs on the jacket kind of reacted weirdly. The pleather kind of stretched in a weird way on the collar. But my prof was awesome about it and said I never could have forseen that, and that my design was fantastic. She even got all misty-eye'd today saying she was so proud of us and couldn't believe how good we've all gotten. Awe, it was cute.

Anyway the outfit,

It looks waaay cuter on a person. And tomorrow I get to see it on a person who isn't me! I was selected as one of the designs to be worn by a real model from basic model management in a photo shoot being put on as a final project by the photography majors tomorrow. :)

dress front

The leopard is actually a crinkly taffeta-silk. the photos don't do it justice. And the boob part is like a pinstripe black and white....then the brown is the faux leather.



dress back



Dress w/jacket
Jacket is ultra suede + Faux leather and is fully lined on the inside with the same pinstripe as on the bodice on the dress. The studs are the real deal, and are really heavy.



2 rows of studs on each sleeve + studs all the way round the collar. The killer was that I actually had twice as many studs on the collar, but then didn't like how it looked, removed them all and repositioned them. And that my friends, is why I have bloody stumps for fingers.

But man, that A was WORTH IT. haha.

Models, Photographer, make-up/hair artist needed! MICHIGAN location.

I'm looking for a photographer and MODELS and possible hair/make-up artist for a fun photo shoot, that will take place in Michigan some time around the end of December/early Jan. You do not need to have any modeling experience, but not be shy - interesting looks/personalities preferred. ;) Email me at kellylynnetinsley@gmail.com for more info and if you have any questions about this excellent opportunity for fun and fashion fabulousness. For links to recent work check out
http://www.kellylynne.com/blog/blog.html or
http://flickr.com/photos/kellylynne/sets/72157606203432224/

Recycled fashion! My dad gave me some of his old flannel shirts. On this one I cut off the sleeves and turned one of them into a collar. Then I cut the buttons off the center of the front, and sewed them on the back. I took in the sides and put pleats in the center of the front and back and wa-lah!

Alot has been going on, so I haven't been able to update. My grandma, Doris Bednarczyk passed away at the age of 89 on Saturday. It was very very sad, but I was glad I was able to be in Michigan that weekend and see her and talk to her before she passed. I will miss her forever. :(

On the bright side, On Monday I was hired as an Intern for Cynthia Rowley! I'm super excited! Cynthia is a very successful business woman, as well as an amazing designer. I only recently discovered the "Swell" line of towels, soaps and other cute things sold at Target are hers! I had no idea! I know I bought some of those products while I was living in Michigan.
And then there are beautiful things going down the runway at fashion week such as these babies from Fall '08.....

Things are going to get a lot more exciting in my little studio!

My mom and dad got me this beautiful baby for my birthday this year!
Fun times to come...

vintage halloween

I have been collecting vintage halloween stuff... there is more on my flickr site. I also went to the NYPL pictures floor and checked out 60 old photographs that i'm going to scan. I just think they are fantastic.

My midterm for draping is tomorrow. We are supposed to drape a halloween costume. But we can't tell anyone what it's going to be. We are graded on the drape, which we do in a fabric that is not the actual costume...then we take the drape home and make a costume, fully sewn, and bring it in next week for a Halloween party. This is the most fun final I've ever had at FIT. The most non-serious final, at that. We have to turn in a sketch of what we are going to do to the teacher. Here is mine. I'm going to be IVY from the Batman Comics. I have never worked with spandex before, I'm a little scared! I know I can do it though. I have faith. ;)

sleepless nights

Some of the project I have to do at school don't involve actual sewing, but more art design. Here is a project I just finished. It took me soooo long to do. The hardest part is the rendering of the fabrics. Its really hard to draw houndstooth when you have to cover an entire jumper! But I'm proud of the way it turned out. It gets graded today, so we'll see if my professor thinks the same.
The cover page is the fabrications and mood/inspiration page, followed by a 12 look line. This is essentially my dream sportswear collection - lets hope I have the funds to make these one day!

2 new autumn designs!

autumn party dress



Cowl neck pullover

update, schmupdate

My lovely boyfriend is sending me a cable this week from Michigan for my camera, so the new fall photos will be up by this weekend I hope! In the meantime, here is the beginning stages of a logo i'm working on for a new line I'm creating for Fall '09. It's inspired by 1950's secretaries - think pencil skirts, girly blouses, amazingness, slim lines, etc.



And here is a pic of the lovely Ashley, modeling my oh deer! shirt. It looks so great on her!



These shirts are available now for purchase in S, M and L. They are $40.

October nights

I thought I'd post some pics of the stuff I did over the summer. I'm waiting on a new cable for my camera...as soon as I get it, I'll post my newer stuff, which I'm really proud of! I've made some great party dresses lately.... until then.... summer stuff!




I wore this one to a wedding in Michigan.



I wore this to my sister Allison's wedding!

And here are some more random things I made...

Polly



Betty



Grace



The skirt below is made from my sister's left over curtain fabric. She was like, can you make something out of this? And I took it as a challenge.



I can make "something" out of anything! :)

I call this one below my hipster dress. It's one of those dresses that looks a lot more special on a person than a dress form.



Here is a jumper I made. I really like the pockets in the front, and the cut in the back, so I posted both views.





That's all for now! More soon..... I'm so busy with school right now, but my new stuff is pretty sweet. I'm so inspired by fall so I have a lot of looks in dark burgundy, brown, red, orange and green. I made a dress I"m totally in love with, that I wore to a wedding of our friend's Ruth and Chris on Sept 28th. I'll post that soon, as well as the projects I've done so far at FIT. We are working on soft silhouettes - cowl necks, knits, fitted jeans, balanced and unbalanced dolman sleeves and bal and unbal peg skirts. My weekend project is an unbalanced peg skirt, most of the fullness is pulled to the back and I'm doing a million pleats. It's pretty, and I'll show a picture soon!

It may seem like I'm not keeping my promise, but sad news, I cannot for the life of me remember where I put the cord that connects my camera to my computer. So new projects posted on here, that is a stall. I'm working on a cowl neck vest this weekend though, and another oh deer! shirt for a girl who wants one. I'm also working on this great 12 look collection for my fashion art class...which is a big deal in 3rd semester....we go from creating 5 looks on average, to suddenly 12! yikes! but I have a really good concept and I love my designs. All of the girls are wearing these amazing hats with large feathers. The color story is very old hollywood ...pale pinks and pale blues for leather jackets, brown fur, green, pale yellow, various browns... I will post the pics as soon as I find that cable! I have to work today though...I'm working part time at Anthropologie.....which I love, and hate. Hate only because I want to buy everything, love because I get really inspired by being around all those beautiful clothes all the time. Today is also my mom's birthday. Shout out to my mom! Happy Birthday Mom! :)

My life thus far.

Fall is coming. The air has changed. I can smell the cider already, and have started thinking about my Halloween costume. (Sexy MTA Conductor? Zombie Northwest Stewardess?) I have decided since this is my last year at F.I.T, I need to try and blog about my life here in better detail. I have been in New York for a year now, I have a New York drivers license (the DMV here is a hellish experience) and am (as of July) an official New York State resident (yay, lower tuition). I have survived subway flooding, the G train at 3 a.m. (scary), numerous random sicknesses (trying to find a hospital in Queens on foot with no emergency contact is no fun!), and have had just as many amazing moments (Sunrise over the city, the view of Manhattan at dusk from a rooftop in Brooklyn, real sunday brunch the way you can't have it anywhere else; the 3rd floor of Bergdorf Goodman, Magnolia Bakery, Union Square Market, the flower district, the many amazing museaums...the list of "amazing" New York experiences can go on forever. Needless to say, it takes a long time (in my case, a year) to get used to it here. To find your flow, and decide there is room for you here. Some people never find it, and they leave. Some find it right away. I think I'm somewhere in the middle. Sometimes New York is just a beast. A dirty snarling cruel over powering yet pretty fantastic beast. You have to let it do it's thing - whether it involves calm or chaos, you have to let it be and you can't try to control it, because it's always, ALWAYS going to be bigger and stronger than you are. So let your shoes get soaked, don't get too mad when all the bottoms of your bags break, or the subway doors close 20 seconds before you get there. There will be a moment when every single bit of that is without question, SO worth it.

I thought quite a bit about whether or not I wanted to blog in detail as far as my design development, my school projects, where I get my inspiration, projects I'm involved in, etc. There is this kind of pre concieved notion behind designers being 'mysterious'. You don't see the face with the name very often, instead you see a line of beautiful bambi-esk creatures stomping down a long white runway wearing these gorgeous clothes that just kind of appeared somehow from the mind of this faceless person. (Unless we're talking celebrity designer here, because most of us know what Marc Jacobs and Donetella Versace look like, but that's a whole other topic...) In short, the clothes make the statement you want, about who you are as a designer. For me there are many statements I want to make, and a point of view I want to get across. But in really simple terms, I design clothes because I found that for years whenever I went shopping, I would have this *perfect* thing in my head for a special occasion (which could be a wedding, a BBQ, or even a trip to the supermarket..well, ok maybe not that last one.) but I could never seem to find it. I'd remember these amazing suede shoes I had in 5th grade and think how they would be so perfect now. Or this full skirt I saw my grandma wearing in an old photograph, and I'd think about how confident and lovely I'd feel wearing something like that. About how that one item could make such a difference in my confidence at said event. There is so much behind the clothes we wear. So many people don't even realize it.

That being said, I think it would be really interesting for people who care about and support me, to see at this state in my career, where my ideas come from. When I was researching FIT and Parsons, and trying to decide between the schools, it took a lot of hunting to find information on people who attended or were currently attending these schools. Maybe I can help other prospective students get a feel for what it's like here. Also, I'd like to write about what I do in New York when I have a day off (once a month? ha!) or where I go for inspiration. My favorite clubs, restaurants, secret spots and interests in New York. Fashion (shopping) and Fashion (people watching). I want to try and post pictures of things I'm working on, things I see. What about Central Park makes it so magical. What is a bodega? Why do people here say "Get on line" instead of "Stand IN line." And why New York really is the greatest city in the world. So just in case, if this happens to be my last year in New York, aside from my last year at F.I.T. (where I'm going after I graduate is still a mystery at the moment...) I will have a good place to look back on what I did and what I learned. Hopefully soon I will also have a 2008-2009 collection up for viewing, since I know the looks on my main page are very, very outdated. I will also post sketches, thumbnails, design development, mood boards, inspiration, and more.

Thanks for reading and check back again! I will try and update at least once a week.

- Kelly

Business Cards!

My lovely and talented sister Allison, designed these business cards for me! Yay!

Oh deer!

oh deer!
Originally uploaded by Kellylynne.com

I wore this to work today, and people went crazy. It was really overwhelming and unexpected, but I now have 5 orders for this shirt! If the place still has the fabric, I think I might buy like 15 yards. I have no idea what to even charge! This is all so crazy! But so, so exciting. People are into my designs. :D

August

I have been in Michigan for the past few weeks, taking a much needed break from the hectic life of New York, getting inspired by Midwesterners and research on vintage fashion. Here are some of my favorites:









I am trying out for Fusion this year (http://www.fusionfashionshow.com) and have been working on my sketches. I plan on posting them here as soon as I have chosen my five designs for the show! It's really nice being in Michigan because I can really concentrate on sketching - it's hard in New York because my sewing equipment is all there, and when given the choice between sewing up a new dress or jacket and sketching, I tend to get sucked into the sewing end of things a lot easier.

I'm so excited for Fall - Fall fashion is so inspirational and so beautiful!

It's been way too long since I've updated this site! I completed my first year at F.I.T in May, and have been having a good summer. I've had two internships - one in the winter with Silvia Hillman of Pepper and Pistol - http://www.pepperandpistol.com - which was fantastic, I helped to prepare the Fall '08 Collection and I learned so much from her! And now I'm currently interning with Alisha Trimble, helping her prepare her collection for Spring '09. I'm having a blast and Alisha has been great to work with. I'm so excited for the Fall when I get to see our hard word stomping fiercely down the runway! Her website is at www.alishatrimble.com

I am trying to get a photoshoot going this summer so I can post all of my new stuff on this blog... but here is a small preview of some of the things I've done recently.




Here is my jacket and dress, which were my final project in Draping II with Professor Arata-Gavera, who was the best prof I've ever had in my life. I'm going to miss her this year!! Our focus was on Jackets. We had total creative freedom - the only requirment was that the basis of the jacket be in 100% wool, and it had to have at least 1 pocket, be fully lined, and have some sort of a collar. My trim was done in a very nice faux fur. This particular faux fur has a really great story behind it. The first time I ever visited NYC I took a trip to Mood for the first time. This was before I even considered that I'd ever be able to attend fashion school in New York. Anyway, I saw that fur in Mood...and bought a yard of it. When I got home I made a beautiful capelet out of it... it was the nicest thing I ever made. How funny that 2 years later I would be in CLASS, doing a final project at FIT, and was able to find the same faux fur at Mood - which is one of the most highly trafficed fabic store in New York!

So anyway, back to the designs. I did the collar and the sleeve bottoms (which are supposed to look like an old fashioned Muff when the woman has her hands together!) and the lining is in a silk organza, I really am proud of this jacket. It was a lot of work, but by far my most treasured design to date. I hope this Fall/Winter I get to wear it to some fabulous fancy party in the city.

The dress is done in the same silk as the coat lining, and is just a fun 50's style dress. I did a tulle petticoat underneath to really make it pouf out! I got an A+ on this project. :)







Here are some illustrations! This was a Louise Brooks inspired line I sketched out...







I have a lot more of my summer work up on my flickr site, which can be viewed at
http://flickr.com/photos/kellylynne

I will try and update more often!

XO
Kelly