s l o w d o w n

Lily Donaldson’s Flying Hairfrom Sam McKnight on Nowness.com.

A Slow-mo Session with Sam McKnight

Internationally renowned hairstylist Sam McKnight teases out the unseen calm in two seconds of a thrashing blonde mane in this slow-motion film shot by photographer Matthew Donaldson. As his model daughter Lily spins 360 degrees, her hair buffeted by four wind machines, Donaldson stretches two seconds into two hypnotic minutes, capturing every exquisite movement at 1,000 frames per second. In a world where technology is increasingly maligned for encouraging us to hide from reality, there is a welcome irony here: Using the super-high definition Phantom Gold HD—a camera initially developed for monitoring missile flights—Donaldson distills a hyper-real tranquility. The film is also a paean to Ara Gallant, one of the great session hairdressers of the 1960s and the inventor of the “flying hair” technique. “I love using wind on hair, and I love anything to do with the outdoors—like windy beaches and mountains,” McKnight says. Not that nature is required for coveted bouncy locks. “The two girls who could move their hair without any wind machines were Linda Evangelista and Yasmin Le Bon,” he reminisces. “They were legendary for the ability to shake their hair even slightly and it could fill two pages.” Working with make-up artist Val Garland and a suitably dreamy soundtrack by Zero 7, McKnight and Donaldson have created a film with a poignant message: Life may be ephemeral and precious—but isn’t it beautiful?

dye project No.6

This was a freelance project for No.6. I worked in their studio in williamsburg dyeing hundreds of silk fabric swatches a day.
I worked to achieve 3 books filled with fabrics, overdyed prints and solids, in many different weights in fabric.
The book was organized by my formulas using 3 different type of dyes. Procion mx, Dylon, RIT, and Jacquard dyes.

It became a little difficult to organize all the different weights of fabric, especially when there is such a range, many fabrics became difficult to differentiate after the dye process! Half way through the project, I started to cut the swatches before dyeing, to help identify them after!

Note:
Fabric is measured by mm (mommes)
Habotai- 5-16mm
Chiffon 6-8mm
Crepe de Chine 12-16mm
Gauze 3-5 mm
Raw Silk 35-40mm
Organza 4-6 mm
Charmeuse 12 - 30mm


Anyways, the books were great, and the selection of colors became so sophisticated and quite beautiful.
click here to see the no.6 lookbook : AW11 No.6 collection

or here to view the lookbook: no. 6

have you ever noticed when you walk in to a store, such as J Crew and American Eagle, for example, you see the same shades of green or yellow?

Im more interested in the off colors, the muted yellows, the warm greys, every color has a tint and shade, as well as saturation, (muted color vs. bright) , also color has cool and warm tones. And when you put a certain selection of colors together, you can almost tell a story. I love this.

This is what I LOVE to work with. Which is why I'm a painter as well as fabric dyer.

No. 6 collection was a great company to work for, and working in the studio was cool, going through an inspiring collection of their vintage archive, with a ton of foilage and terrariums around, and devendra banhart as well as the East Village Radio show, "Chances with Wolves" playing while I got to work as a fast little color chemist.

No. 6 has a blog and a beautiful store in Nolita, its super charming. The store includes their current collection as well as their exquisite vintage selection.

Too bad the job had a end... I'm looking for more experiences in that field....I love color and getting my hands and eyes immersed in a project.
Til the next freelance job, I'll be finishing up new paintings and jewelry, and album artwork for my boyfriend's band, Fancy Colors, will update post them very soon!

two for fashion: german fashion/music art blog magazine: thank you for featuring my closet

I had the pleasure to have photographer and friend Julia Wilczok over into my studio at my apartment in Brooklyn. We had met recently at a music video shoot for Kishi Bashi of which I was styling. It was super fun, and so amazing to meet such talented and interesting artists/photographers/musicians, one of which is Julia!


I had no idea she works for a german fashion blog, but once she mentioned she'd like to visit the studio and snap some pics, I couldn't deny that, especially because I had just went through my closet and realized I've been collecting such an extensive archive. As I was going through all my clothing I truly couldn't believe how many precious and special things I own and how I should share them for inspiration and to give them a life of their own, even though I try my best to wear them!


We spent three hours going through my closet and hanging out in the studio, it was super fun! She took pics of my studio and my bedroom and I tried on some of my own hand-made pieces, in combination to my most favorite vintage and talked a bit also about other influences on my personal style. I will post them here, since the blog article is only in german!



1. How do you organize your closet?


I like to keep a good contrast in the way I arrange my closet, so I notice my favorite pieces, and can see everything. That way, I enjoy my clothing more and I encourage myself to not wear the same things everyday. However, I always go through phases of a favorite outfit and wear it almost everyday for a week, and can't help to always gravitate to certain pieces! (usually dark and something I made!)


2. What are the three pieces you find yourself wearing constantly?


-black silk charmeuse draped top i actually made..it was a dress but i cut it to be a cropped boxy draped top, i love to wear it with my long skirts
- a ton of jewelry, my long pendants, one particular piece is an artifact that ancient egyptian women used to apply black kohl makeup to their eyes, it is worn on a string as a necklace
-grey-taupish nail polish - i like this color, it reminds me of the muted vintage colors of a vintage book illustration or movie

3. Do you remember the moment when you knew that you wanted to become a designer?

Well, I've always collected and appreciate beautiful art, antiques, and jewelry, and clothing that is very looks easy and flow-y and at the same time elegant and made of a fabric that is unique or really soft and silky and theres a special element to it. I went to RISD as a freshman in 2001, and decided to major in apparel since it involves textiles, illustration, evoking a mood through color and texture, and also working 3-dimensional, sculpting and draping the fabric.

4. Where do you find inspiration for the clothes you make?


my dreams, the feeling and mood of my dreams... then i collect materials and colors... paint and play and experiment with draping the shapes and feeling that evokes that similar feeling.
everything i create also is a reflection of my imagination and dreams and curiosity in different cultures/ history especially ancient rome, middle east, im interested also in the southwest american culture/ symbols

5. Who is your all time favorite style icon?


well i absolutely love norma kamali right now... she's 66 and looks amazing and super chic. but as my favorite style icon, i do love margherita missoni.



6. What is your favorite recent purchase?
my woven boho bag, I wear it everyday, everywhere. It has a south american pattern and goes with everything I wear. from the nyc store "a lil wicked", at the manhattan vintage show


7. What trend are you most hoping will vanish this summer?


well high waist pants are amazing! but! Some people I think need to wear it right with the right top/ or the right cut to their body! Its better to flatter your figure than to follow a trend. If high waist pants are the right cut for your shape, then that is so hot and really stunning!


8. How do you want to dress in fall?


an earthier femme fatale .

more womanly French, 50's moviestar chic bardot styling, makeup/hair/super feminine, meets the bohemian natural textures. Also also for jewelry, pairing something very organic shapes with something geometric side by side.

9. What about a secret store you love that you're willing to share?



Love, adorned. is my favorite store. There are handmade wallets and scarves, dreamcatchers, the most amazing handmade jewelry, as well as vintage and antique. Also handmade soaps and organic candles, the whole atmosphere is beautiful and great energy from the selection of artists/designers and vintage. i.e. they sell moroccan wedding blankets.






10. whats the most treasured piece in your closet?
I love my poncho! My boyfriend Zac picked it out for me and I actually cut the center front and tacked and folded the front to the center back. I created sleeves in a way and its super fun to wear out!
also, my white leather / silver metal snake belt it belonged to my aunt in the 70's and I find it so special. also my long woven native american coat that my mom gave to me from her own amazing collection.

thank you julia for hanging out and featuring me on two for fashion. You've inspired me to start a new blog where I can also share my recent work, and updates as well posting about the art and music of my talented friends! so much love. xoxoxo

new CHAPPO music: pisces princess

I had the most amazing opportunity to contribute and create the new EP artwork, which is getting printed on VINYL!!! so sweet!

Posted here are the sketches for the concept of the album. The willow tree is the center of 2 worlds, underwater/land. Also the center front also has a vesicas pisces symbol which is 2 perfect circles that intersect symmetrically. Listen to the EP and look at the artwork at the same time, or dance around and dream off!



click here to check out what others had said at their most recent show last week : CHAPPO AT THE SATELLITE 8/22/11

click here to download and listen to the 5 track album: Plastique Universe II: Pisces Princess

congrats guys !