The Bobbin Blogs On

The Bobbin's Year End Newsletter 2011

The Bobbin Slow Fashion + Sustainable Design Year End Newsletter 2011    Happy Hand made Holidays! It has been many moons since I've written a Bobbin Newsletter.  The Bobbin survived "The Great Move" and quietly celebrated another year-in-the-life as a small business in America. The transition from brick & mortar retail store to custom design studio has been quite the rollercoaster ride. After working my way through Planning & Zoning, navigating a name change, website change & re-brand, The Bobbin Slow Fashion & Sustainable Design emerged. As an official Vermont artists studio located in the South End Arts District, The Bobbin is available for custom design and sustainability consultations. I am so honored to be a participant in this year's 15th annual Women's Economic Opportunity Conference. I will be a panelist for the "Arts Go Online" morning workshop. The conference is in its 15th year and is sponsored by Vermont's own U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy. The morning keynote speaker is Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. This conference is free and open to the public. Childcare is available for those who pre-register. To learn more: CLICK HERE                                                              Radically classic custom clothing & accessories sustainably made in Vermont. The Bobbin's evolving slow fashion designs are well tailored & ethically hand made.      Playful. Empowered. Authentic.            As we have collectively learned that our food is not grown at the grocery store, it is now time to learn that our clothing is not sewn at the department store. Photo: Gyllian Svensson Bobbin sez... Eat Local! Dress Local! Buy Handmade! Do you know who sews your clothes? A Year in the Life of The Bobbin In January of 2011, I had the pleasure of participating in an episode of "Vermont Edition", our local VPR radio show. 2011 was declared "The Year of Making" through a call in show with Jane Lindholm, focusing on Vermonters growing interest in making things with our hands and a return to more traditional ways of living.   The prediction has certainly rung true for me... This "Year of Making" has brought forth not just one, but TWO Slow Fashion Collections; including dozens of new patterns created for sustainable textiles. I also created a series of Sustainable Sculptures and designed/produced custom jersey tanks for our local roller derby team, The Green Mountain Derby Dames!     The Derby Tanks are "Green Mountain" green with a black racing stripe down each side. The fabric is a super stretch athletic performance material, made right here in the grand ole' U.S.A.! It was a real treat for me to work on a local level and become a corporate sponsor of a fantastic team. The GMDD "Grade A Fancy's" certainly look fancy & fierce in their locally made custom tanks!    美国产品 Made in America     The first slow fashion collection of the year, "Made in America", was an exploration of the dichotomy between fashion & labor in China and America. Vintage velvets, velours & plenty of sweet stripes accent this sustainable line of ECHO tops, Swing Skirts, Art Jackets & fuzzy Vermont Panda hats.   Lake Champlain: After the Flood   The second slow fashion collection is inspired by Lake Champlain : After the Flood. The Collection explores the strength and resilience that help us move through mourning and overcome loss. The Lake Gowns' languid lines are broken by the rigid structure of the tailored pants and vests in motion. These original custom designs were created with all sustainable textiles including vintage silks and wools from the 1930's and 1940's.       Gyllian's Sustainable Sculptures - Art Hop 2011   I was also able to expand my artistic horizons this last year to create a series of sustainable sculptures created from found and recycled objects, including many sticks, stones, barks & branches scavenged from wake of Lake Champlain's Flooding & Hurricane Irene. Living on Lake Champlain will, I'm certain, continue to inspire my designs for decades to come.  The languid lines of the Lake Gown are the apex of the entire collection. A marriage of turquoise cotton & silver silk this gown explores the crossroads of strength crashing against mourning. Tom's of Maine Blog Posts 2011 brought along two opportunities to bring The Bobbin's message of sustainable fashion to Tom's of Maine's eco-friendly fans. In March, I wrote a post explaining the concepts and ideas behind Slow Fashion and its relationship to other "Slow" movements.   Photo: Kristin LaMonde Click this link to read post: What is Slow Fashion? In September, I wrote another post: DIY Let's Make Sustainable Napkins. A step-by-step tutorial (with fun pictures)     Wanna make your own sustainable napkins? CLICK HERE    7 Day's Presents: Strut VI!    This year marked the 6th year of Burlington's very own fashion show STRUT! A popular attraction of SEABA's South End Art Hop, this years show was the biggest and best yet. Sponsored by Seven Days and showcasing twenty designers, this years STRUT! really rocked the runway.     Photo: Eva Sollberger of Seven Days       In honor of 7days Newspaper's "Sweet 16" birthday. I designed this paper skirt. Individual panels are created from folded sheets of newspaper, specifically selected for their color & content. The panels are sewn together and hand-painted.         Buy Hand made & Sustainable this Holiday! EcoOwls, Swing Skirts, Art Jackets, ECHO tops and more! To learn more about The Bobbin, check out our Blog: The Bobbin Blogs On Follow us on Twitter, Friend us on the Facebook join our Fan Page Sustainably Yours, Gyllian Rae Svensson The Bobbin Slow Fashion & Sustainable Design, LLC 802-355-4264 gyllian@thebobbin.com thebobbin.com gyllian.com

Slow Fashion Sketches: "So Long Irene" Collection

Autumn of 2011 has brought intense periods of days/weeks lost in creativity at my home studio in Burlington, Vermont designing my newest Slow Fashion collection.

The inspiration behind these designs is on a continumn of ideas relating to "Lake Champlain: After the Flood". These sketches represent the beginnings of the next collection: "So Long Irene"

 

 
   

 

 

   

 

 

"she, said" Svensson Original Designs

Radically classic custom clothing & accessories sustainably made in Vermont.

"she will shrink for no one"

"she can hear the train a coming"

"she walks slowly into the big wild woods"

"her boots are made for talking"

"but, she said, I think I'm sweet"

"she resides within her own time zone"

"she could not even begin to not know how to answer that question"

"she divines water, while skipping ahead"

"she's always ahead of the next wave"

"she is forever nostalgic for the future"

"she knows that she is evolving"

"just because, she doesn't have to"

"her ears are ever open"

"she enjoys dressing smartly"

"she enjoys writing in an obsolete vernacular"

"she is becoming her most sustainable self"

"she lives beyond girls-just-want-to-have-fun"

    smart * sassy * sweet

After the Flood: The Collection

 

 

Strut VI

Seven Days Presents: Strut VI  

The Bobbin's Slow Fashion Collection 2012

Lake Champlain: After the Flood

In honor of 7days Newspaper's "Sweet 16" birthday. I designed this paper skirt. Individual panels are created from folded sheets of newspaper, specifically selected for their color & content. The panels are sewn together and hand-painted.

The #BTV Pants, Wave Skirt and NorEaster top utilize Zero-waste design principles throughout the pattern-drafting and manufacturing phases.

A fantastic dress created from vintage hand-dyed jersey paired with the softest of sustainable silks. The "Sticks & Stones" dress was designed with 3/4 inch silk sleeves and a short flirty ruffle.

The Norn Dresses are super soft hand-dyed cotton jersey with a long waist and a polka-dot ruffle. Hand-braided silver & vintage rope close at the shoulders with a bow.

The languid lines of the Lake Gown are the apex of the entire collection. A marriage of turquoise cotton & silver silk this gown explores the crossroads of strength crashing against mourning.

*Photographs by Eva Sollberger of Seven Days

Art Hop "Garden Party & Trunk Show"

In celebration of The Bobbin's official status as an Art Hop Site, we held a fantastic Garden Party & Trunk show during Saturday afternoon. It was a spectacular sunny day in Burlington, the clotheslines were filled with sustainable fashions while local favs "Electric Halo" rocked the garden stage.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"the gardens are

    alive with sustainable fashions"

Sustainable Sculptures

"she divines water"

This year The Bobbin is an official site for the Art Hop. (Site #2 Art Hop Map) In addition to clotheslines plump with local slow fashions, the garden will be alive with sustainable sculptures.

Gyllian had super fun this summer mucking about in the yard with her two favorite kiddos, acquiring recycled objects, sticks, stones & pinecones for our sculptures. It will be such a treat to watch them transform throughout the coming seasons.

"she is always evolving"

"G is for girrl"

"she creates transition"

Slow Fashion Collection Spring 2012: The Sketches

The majority of my summer 2011, has been spent at my home studio in Burlington, Vermont designing my newest Slow Fashion collection.

The inspiration behind these designs is Lake Champlain: After the Flood

The first design that began this collection was the idea of a vest. A scoop-necked, button front vest with extravagant tails. Mozart-esque tails. But modern, classic lines with a flair.

In honor of 7days Newspaper's "Sweet 16" birthday. I designed this paper skirt. Individual panels are created from folded sheets of newspaper, specifically selected for their color & content. The panels are sewn together and hand-painted.

The #BTV Pants and NorEaster top utilize Zero-waste design principles throughout the pattern-drafting and manufacturing phases.

The classic Vermont Plaid Pant design is THE pant I wanted to create when I first found this fabulous vintage plaid. 

A fantastic dress created from vintage hand-dyed jersey paired with the softest of sustainable silks. This dress was designed with 3/4 inch silk sleeves and a short flirty ruffle.

The Norn Dresses are super soft hand-dyed cotton jersey with a long waist and a polka-dot ruffle. Hand-braided silver & vintage rope close at the shoulders with a bow.

The languid lines of the Lake Gown are the apex of the entire collection. A marriage of turquoise cotton & silver silk this gown explores the crossroads of strength crashing against mourning.

Art Hop 2011

September 9-10

Now in its 19th year,  SEABA (South End Arts & Business Association) presents a remarkable exhibition of visual art, paintings, sculptures, fashions and so much more!

Welcome to the season of Art Hop! This is one of my favorite times in my Burlington neighborhood, which has recently been designated the official "Art's District" of Vermont. The year, for the first time, The Bobbin will be an studio site on the Art Hop Map. Don't miss our Open Studio Garden Party with live music on the outdoor stage from Electric Halo noon-2pm.

Saturday, September 10th from noon-4pm

The Bobbin Slow Fashion & Sustainable Design is Site #2 on the Art Hop Map.

'tween Graduation dress

I have recently crossed a parenting threshold and am now the proud Mama of a middle school student.  I can remember the first day of Kindergarten like it was yesterday and now, in a few short weeks, I will no longer trek off to the local elementary school. Instead, the bright big kid middle school full of advanced math, art electives, kissing gossip and unimaginable wonders awaits us.

In honor of this big move, my daughter designed her own "step up" graduation dress. Working from her pencil drawing and love of vibrant colors...we dove right into the project.

The bodice was created from super soft vintage teal jersey, combined with bright red velvet sleeves. I estimate these fabrics were made in the sixties and they are a joy to work with. Yes, a crucial design element was to have one long sleeve and the other short!

The unique skirt design is a patchwork of teal jersey, flowered red silk and a screen-printed japanese-inspired print. Cut in geometric shapes, utilizing zero-waste design principles, the skirt is "...exactly how I drew it!" exclaimed my creative daughter.

If you, or someone you love, would like to know the joys of designing and wearing a stunning sustainable garment, please contact Gyllian for a consultation. 802-355-4264.

To learn more about The Bobbin Slow Fashion & Sustainable Design Custom Design process and policies: CLICK HERE