Posted by: Dena in Living the Embellished Life on
Mar 05, 2010
If you’ve read my blog, my newspaper column, or if you watched my TV show on the DIY network, you definitely know that I love a good flea market. They inspire me to embellish and create. So I know I am super lucky to live close to the Alameda Flea Market, which happens every first Sunday of the month. It’s Northern California’s biggest market – it takes hours to walk through! Everything sold must be at least 20 years old and you can find some amazing bargains. Here are a few photos from my last visit.
If you’re in the Bay Area, I definitely suggest a trip to this flea market.
Click here for the website!
Posted by: Dena in Business, Announcements on
Feb 24, 2010
My bright and sunny collection, happi by Dena™, is now available as gift bags and kitchen stationery, made by CR Gibson. Everything looks so great! The bags, recipe keeper, note cards and more are made with special details, like buttons and grosgrain ribbon.
Click on this link to get to CR Gibson’s website, where you can browse and buy the products online. They’ll make really fun gifts for Mother’s Day.
Today is a rainy, cloudy, chilly day. But here's a really cute photo! My tiny poodle, Ruby, has become a studio dog this week. Today she's sleeping in a little bed I customized for her with some of my fabric made by Fabric Traditions. Super easy to do, and it makes Ruby feel special.
Hello! Today I would like to hand my post over to my assistant Katrina. She was inspired to create a Sizzix floral wedding dress for her wedding two weeks ago! I work for Sizzix creating dies, and I use my machine all the time. The dress is truly a testament to what can be creative with motivation, time, and a little patience…
Hi all! I'm Katrina and I’ve been so lucky to watch Dena at work, always embellishing items she finds at the flea market. I picked up the idea for this dress one year ago when I saw her using her Big Shot machine with a shimmery pink organza to decorate gift boxes. I immediately thought, “I want a whole dress covered in those!” At the time I didn’t know it would be my white dress, but when else does a girl get the chance to spend a day in a diy-couture gown?
For this project, I used the Big Shot machine with the Flower Layers #3 654982 die – yes, just one die created this whole dress! The base dress is a ‘50s summer dress I’ve had for years; it even has pockets. The flowers were cut from 6 yards of polyester georgette and glued on with just a dot of Fabri-Tac at the top. Cut some flowers, glue down, and repeat. The dress took three weeks to complete, just a little work each day when there was time. I worked in horizontal rows, which kept everything neat and manageable. See below for the in-progress shot, and then the final dress!
The great thing about this dress is the way it moves. As you walk each flower flutters. For an every day version you can adapt this idea to a t-shirt. Use thin knit jersey fabric (which won’t fray when cut), die cut desired shapes, and glue them down with Fabri-Tac, it’s washable!
Since we're on the topic of weddings, Dena has also come out with a new wedding collection, "Amour" for CR Gibson. The products below include a gift bag, guest book, memory book, and photo albums. Just another great reason to be in Dena's studio.
The outdoor photos were taken at Dena’s home (which has got to be the most beautiful place to come to work.)
-Katrina
Here in the San Francisco Bay Area, there are some cute independent fabric stores. Walking by Piedmont Fabric the other day, I noticed this window display!
It’s the easy to sew tote bag and apron from my newest fabric collection, Leanika, with Free Spirit fabrics. Behind the sewn samples, you can see how the yard of fabric is laid out, ready to cut and sew.
Piedmont Fabric is at 3858 Piedmont Avenue, Oakland, CA 94611. If you’re interested in buying the Leanika cut and sew tote bag or apron, etsy.com is a great place to buy fabric and support small businesses. Simply type “Leanika” in the “supplies” search field and you’ll find results for my fabric collection.
Happy sewing!