Eat, Sleep, Write, Sew: Fashion Photoshoot- with Ivy Studios Photography

I am SOOO excited to announce that my first photoshoot has been successful! It was a random, "Hey, I'm getting money from taxes, I have enough for a photoshoot!" moment and I booked a shoot for one of my designs. Then, because I'm half crazy I decided that a photoshoot for ONE design was ludicrous, I needed more. Well, unfortunately, I have designed a lot of originals but made almost none of the really good ones because I didn't have the money to spend on them. That all went out the window with this booked photoshoot. I had two weeks to finish the dress I had planned on shooting in, and make two others. Plenty of time, right?! No. But I did it anyway, and I finished, so all is well!

So hiring a professional photographer? Well worth the money. For anyone in the Phoenix area of Arizona, I highly recommend Shelly Ivy of Ivy Studios Photography. From our first conversation I had a glimmer of her awesome personality, and my regard for her talent has only grown working with her. Plus, she listens to metal and rock music, so how cool is that? I went to her house last night to watch a slideshow of the photos and they were set to awesome music. Because I love metal and rock, it made the experience THAT much better :D I went home on a cloud of euphoria...normally I call it a car, but last night it was "The Cloud of Euphoria".

"So why the photoshoot, you crazy person?" I hear the few people who come to my page ask. Why? Because I eventually want to have an online store selling my creations! Historical reproductions, Costume Reproductions, and Fairy-tale-ish designs. If it has a corset involved...I'm in love.

Anyway- What I am so excited to show you are some of my absolute favorites that she took. Unfortunately....my absolute favorites happen to be 32 of the 114, so there are quite a few. This page is about to be inundated by photos! :D Please, please, PLEASE comment! I would love to hear some feedback and suggestions :)

First Outfit:

This is the Raven Queen Outfit I designed for the MYTH Masque ball in LA. (I know I said earlier that I wasn't going to show it until after the ball...but I'm just too excited!)

The corset and skirt are made from black taffeta. The corset has around 2,000 hand painted Swarovski crystals hot-fixed on. The skirt has 500 feathers attached. And I would just like to point out that while I did make the heel-less shoes seen with this outfit, I did not come up with the original shape. That honor belongs to designer Noritaka Tatehana (I believe that is who the idea is now credited to) whose designs were made famous by Lady Gaga. Anyway, photos:

Above there is a detail of the heel-less shoes. I measured the non-existent heel...9 inches. Oh yeah. Not hard to walk on a flat surface such as wood or linoleum. Carpet and very twiggy, muddy ground? Prepare for face-plants.

In these pictures I have on the head-dress that I designed to go with the outfit. And yes, I am wearing red contacts. I love them. I want more colors now!

Second Outfit:

I already had made this corset for the Hobbit premiere, but ended up wearing it underneath my green dress (I posted that a while ago). So I wanted to make a complete outfit that would compliment the corset. The corset is three layers: muslin, canvas, and muslin again. I added some color with the embroidered front and the quilting on the sides in the burgundy. The skirt is made of olive-green iridescent stretch taffeta, and burgundy tulle. I made a head-dress for this one as well. Here it is:

Third Outfit:

The third outfit has a very Neo-Victorian Snow White-esque feel to it, although when I originally designed it, that was not my intention. I made this outfit in one day. That's right, one day of sewing my fingers off. And BOY was it fun!! :D The corset is made from iridescent blue taffeta, and the skirt is made from a heavy upholstery fabric. Curtains CAN be worn! :) The weight was perfect for the look I wanted, and I loved the stripes. The skirt has some flowers on it, those were the only handmade flowers I did for any of the outfits. Way cheaper to use, as fabric flowers are $5+ for each, but not always as realistic, I think. But, anyway, here are the pictures: