December 12, 2012

Voodoo Market No. 9, Berlin Urban Spree

Last weekend we spent the day in my little stall at voodoo market @ Urban spree. It was a good day full of handmade cheer! 

My stall fickle sense 

I bought two little illustration prints from the artist ryslee!


I was really impressed with mockingbird's upcycled collection. It was by far the best upcycled clothing that I have seen! Really inspiring stuff.


 mimikri's jewellery was made from upcycled materials! I love her use of colour blocking.

Some interesting textures with the Handcraft berlin's t-shirts and singlets.

 joy's feathery designs were full of colour and she had some unique feathers

Andrea Wan worked away at her illustrations as the voodoo market goers checked out her work.

Some nice screen printed designs from the happarel guys

December 09, 2012

MUSIC: GIRL POWER! with peaches

PEACHES! The last time I saw Peaches, she was rocking her heart out with her band at the Big Day Out festival in Perth, 2007. This time around we attended a more intimate event, where she was interviewed by the CDR Berlin guys.

I have always appreciated Peaches unique and fearless approach to music making and performing. After hearing her being interviewed I definitely gained respect for her as a person as well. Her message was clear. Be yourself and express yourself through your own creative means. Take it or leave it. I found her wise words extremely inspiring and I have been listening to Peaches tracks constantly since the interview!

This was the best interview that I have seen at CDR Berlin and there were a few more girls in the audience this time too! The CDR event happens monthly (or so) and gives the opportunity for electronic music makers to hear some inspiring words from those who have 'made it' in the industry. Audience members also have the opportunity to play their tracks at the end of the night. Perhaps more girls will start going to events now that Peaches has broken the 'no females draught'. Girl Power!!! 

My dodgy photo of Peaches being interviewed.

 
'I feel cream' -PEACHES


 
I love this party track! 'More' - PEACHES
Love the break down, bridge section
 
 

November 28, 2012

Hounds tooth

Hounds tooth shorts. Who would have thought that these little shorts could cause me so such grief? I made these shorts a while back, but had great difficulties creating a solid outfit for them. I didn't want to make a simple black top... but this is what I ended up going with. I also made a blue chiffon top... but it still didn't quite work out. So I am still waiting for the ideal inspiration:)





Fickle Sense blue tote bag



Photos: Michael Dooney
Studio: Atelier Nalepa, Berlin

November 03, 2012

MUSIC: Planningtorock in Berlin

The other week we were lucky enough to stumble across a Planningtorock performance. Embarrassingly enough we went to the Berlinisches Gallery Kunstnacht12 without recognising who the headline artist actually was. When she started playing I went a little insane. She rarely performs, so it was quite the treat! She was one of the artists who I have wanted to see for a while.  
Take a listen! Her voice is unique and her electronic sounds provoke some solid emotions. I just love her sound:) She is certainly an inspirational artist.




October 31, 2012

SEWING: Floral shorts on a Berlin Summer day

Warm summer days in Berlin have been few and far between for the past 2 years. So when there is a glimmer of hope for a warm sunny day I can't help but break out the high waist shorts. I made these high waisted floral shorts weeks before summer started and was able to wear them on the Berlin beer fest. Unfortunately I won't be wearing these shorts without tights for a while.... winter is coming:(

I paired the shorts with my favourite vintage white blouse. I actually bought the first version of this blouse in Mount Lawley, Australia. I wore the blouse so much that it started to turn yellow. Gross! So luckily I found a new version in a secondhand store in Berlin. 

Don't you just love it when you find a garment to replace a warn through favourite? What replacement pieces have you found or made?

Outfit: 
floral shorts: mahaila made high waisted shorts
blouse: vintage white blouse

Photos: Michael Dooney

October 22, 2012

Geometric Chrissy Joy!

Get organised and neon up your Christmas! Spread the Christmas cheer with some unique handmade Chrissy cards:)
 
So why did I decide to make Christmas cards?
 
Well, I am a sucker for Christmas. I always get excited about making presents for family and friends. I took this love a little further this year by drawing different Christmas trees and converting them ready for screen printing. I created blue, neon red, neon lime green and neon pink geometric little trees:)
 
As with every Fickle Sense product, materials used within each item are carefully selected. All cards are made with 100% recycled paper. The paints are locally sourced and are water soluable.
 
So, head over to the Fickle Sense Shop to grab your very own 8 pack or 4 pack of cards and spread the geometric joy!









October 08, 2012

Last weekend gigs

Radiohead  29th September 2012, Wühlheide Berlin.

Last weekend was a massive weekend for me. A pivotal musical moment. A moment where my childhood dreams came true! I saw Radiohead live! I can still remember as a teenager traveling to Melbourne to see a Radiohead concert (unfortunately this concert was cancelled due to Thom Yorkes illness). Radiohead are one of those defining bands and arguably the band of the 90's/00's. I have seen most of my favourite bands and Radiohead were at the top of my 'must see' list for years. So yes, I was the crazy, ecstatic dancer(sorry to anyone sitting or standing near to me:))
Radiohead have been going since the mid 80's and I am happy to report that they definitely still have it. The gig was exciting and they definitely rocked out on stage.  




Squarepusher 30th September Astra Berlin
After an awesome Radiohead Sat night we were off to Squarepusher on Sunday night. My knowledge of squarepusher was that he was an incredible bass player and being a bass player myself I thought that he would be an absolute inspiration to see live. The performance was certainly interesting and a little different to what I had expected. I made one massive 'audience' mistake. Don't stand close to the stage when there is a light show in a smallish room. Being short, I generally gravitate to the front of the stage. This was a massive mistake, I really should have researched his current work a little more. It was an absolutely blinding LED experience. Perhaps the set was built more for a festival/concert experience. 
Squarepusher is an incredibly talented musician and it gave me some insight into Acid/Drum & Bass. I am getting more and more into electronic music, however I don't feel that I will get into this style of music. I appreciate that he is experimental and pushing the boundaries but it was a little too much of a sensory overload for me. 

Check out the clip below and you can see how insane his light show is!

Squarepusher light show


September 16, 2012

Armhole Princess Seam dress


 A while back I drafted a few different princess seam dresses. This red dress is the 'armhole' princess seam. If you are interested in finding out a little more about the princess seam here is an article that I found. I have been quite obsessed with the old circle skirt lately, so this time I decided to attach a gathered skirt for the skirt section. I think that I can do a little better with the fit, but for now it is ok:) The navy bag in the last image is a Fickle Sense made bag, which you can find here.

Have you made any princess seam inspired outfits lately?
 

Princess armhole bodice + gathered skirt section

Drawing from stitches and seams


September 09, 2012

MUSIC: Telepathe

As a teenager I spent many nights waiting up for late night RAGE. RAGE is an  Australian music video program which features new music (Friday nights) and guest programmers (Saturday night). Like many Aussie youngsters I discovered heaps of new and old music on RAGE. It definitely shaped my musical taste!

One such discovery was a band called Telepathe. I can still remember watching the 'so fine' video clip on a Friday night. I was impressed with their unique and raw electronic sound. So, whilst performing my weekly Blitzgigs (Berlin gig guide website)check I was thrilled to discover that Telepathe were playing a gig at About Blank, Berlin

Last nights performance was full of energy from both the band and the crowd. Their multi layered fusion of sounds certainly drew me in and kept me wanting more! Below you can find the clip for the song 'so fine'. This song just makes me want to dance around like a crazy energizer bunny. Have a listen!







Up coming Berlin gigs to check out:

Radiohead
Happy Mondays
Cat Power
Garbage
Beach House

September 07, 2012

FICKLE SENSE SHOP: New eco friendly totes!

New Fickle Sense Bags!

You can find these bags in the Fickle Sense Shop
 I am a firm believer in making environmentally friendly and ethically produced items... and here they are! Each unique bag is definitely made with love and care. 

Look out for a behind the scenes post which details the Fickle Sense bag making process!





September 02, 2012

MUSIC: Molly Nilsson


Fickle Sense has been going for about 2 years now. Our focus has previously been on fashion and sewing, however I am going to change things up a bit. I realised that Michael and I are always on the look out for interesting gigs and events. Much of our weekends are spent checking out gigs, exhibitions, festivals, parties and cultural events... so in an effort to incorporate our everyday routine more within the blog I will be sharing some of our finds and experiences.

So today I would like to share the musical talents of Molly Nilsson. She reins from Sweden and produces a dreamy kind of 80's sound. Unfortunately I am mourning the fact that I found about her Berlin gig a day after she performed. For those of you in the U.S., she is touring throughout September so check out her tour dates on her site





August 24, 2012

Tutorial - Creating your own Textile designs

Recently I have been spending a great deal of time screen printing. I have been a 'casual screen printing hobbyist' for the past few years, but this year it has been one of my focuses. Within the coming months I hope to share my creations in the Fickle Sense shop, however until then I thought I would  continue on this screen printing path by posting a simple textile printing tutorial. 


You need. 
1. Paper and pencil for designing
2. Water proof drafting/drawing paper or projector film. 
3. Textile paint (I recommend Permaset)
4. Screen printing gear (screen & squeegee) OR Roller and roller paint tray
5. Fabric 
6. Desired garment pattern



ROLLER VS. SCREEN PRINTING
I am actually not a massive fan of using the roller when painting. Screen printing is much more accurate, however it can be expensive and difficult to find the equipment so using a roller and stencil is a good option.



HAPPY PRINTING!

August 09, 2012

SEWING: Gardens of the world

There is an endless number of things to see and do in Berlin, so much so that it can be difficult to tear yourself away from events conveniently occurring in your direct neighbourhood. But....on one sunny-ish Berlin day we felt somewhat adventurous and made the random decision to ride our bikes to the outskirts of Berlin, to 'der Garten der Welt' (Garden of the worlds). It was not at all what I had expected (though I really should have had a better idea, seeing that the title of the garden gives a pretty good indication of what to expect...gardens from around the world). Anyway, there were Japanese, Islamic, Balinese, Korean, Italian, and Perennial gardens. The gardens gave some insight into the different plant types and the unique architecture within each culture. All in all it was quite an inspiring place to be. I left with a spring in my step and a true feeling of serenity.... which is quite rare for me.

We stopped off at the Islamic garden to take some photos. I just love islamic mosaics. The amount of detail is quite amazing. 

mahaila MADE OUTFIT
At the moment I am focusing on getting some textile designs up and going. This top was a bit of an experiment and I will be sharing my techniques in a tutorial. These shorts were featured a while back on Burdastyle.

 UPCOMING TUTORIALS:
TUTORIAL 1:
Chiffon top FRONT - Creating a unique piece through simple textile printing
TUTORIAL 2:
Chiffon top BACK  - inserting some colour to a simple piece.   

  
 





July 30, 2012

Blue 1970's dress refashion

This is another refashion that I did from my 3.50 euro bargain op shop find. I really wanted to make some sweet little dresses for the summer holidays so I shaped the bodice on the dressmaking doll and created this super simple silhouette. It worked a treat when we were in the heat in the south of France. It also worked well in this stormy Berlin summer.... as you can see in these photos.     




I shaped the bodice on my dressmaking doll and attached a gathered skirt section to create the dress.