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September’s magical light….

September is my favourite time of the year and it’s no wonder why. There is something strange and magical about the light of early fall.  The gaudy bright yellows and oranges clashing with magentas and purples suddenly looks right in the garden.  It’s the last vibrant scream of the flowers before they begin their autumn decent.  As the sun shines lower, the sky above appears bluer and light reflects more directly off each leaf and surface. All the subtle patterns of nature, such as the textured relief of a tree trunk, are more readily revealed in the subtle play of light and shadow.

I love to observe a well tended and lush garden in the fall.  There are so many amazing flowers that thrive now. One of the true luxuries of having a garden is to be able to enjoy flowers for as long a season as possible.  Perhaps consider some of these choices next spring when you’re in the garden center.

Hardy Fucshia (Magellanica)

Classic Sedum 'Autumn Joy' with Purple Aster

Purple Coneflower (Echinacea) echos the colour of the house here. Black Eyed Susan " Rudbeckia Goldstrum" adds the bright, brassy yellow

Hydrangea

 Grasses add so much life to the fall garden.  These cool striped ones are called   Miscanthus sinensis ‘Strictus‘. The wider leaved grasses are Phormium species, generally not reliably hardy below Zone 9

Sword Fern

Graceful Miscanthus with seedheads (background) and Lobelia Tupa (not reliably hardy below Zone 9)

Gallardia (Blanket Flower) surrounded by annuals (orange Zinnias, pale mauve Verbena and Magenta Cleome)

 

Stipa tenuissima -(Mexican Feather Grass) with the plumes of non-hardy Purple Fountain grass in the background

Happy Birthday fellow Virgos!

 

And some days the magic just happens…

Just like a perfect first date, sometimes things just work out the way they are meant to.  All the separate parts fall together into a cohesive whole and a little flush of goosebumps washes over you. Last Wednesday was one of those days…..

It was Barb’s idea….”Diane I think we need to do a little informal shoot of the clothes. You know we’ll just put them on the dummy and do it.”  I was a bit skeptical, I’ll admit. Then Genesis said, “Well you know I could put them on”…….

So Bria, my design assistant, with a camera in hand, and the girls set off outside on a perfect sunny day. They wheeled the rack down the street in our neighbourhood just east of Gastown and found all manner of cool backdrops to shoot against. There was the newly restored heritage building with a big brick wall,  a weathered concrete block wall and even a pink garage door.

Then the wind picked up and blew her hair just so and the sun cast it’s spell…….

“I Want It” Tunic in Navy

 

 ……………….doesn’t she look lovely?

 

"Covert Vest" in Black over the "Allure Tunic" in Blush and the "Rejuvinate Legging"

 

 

The "Mystique Tunic" In Merlot

I was thrilled with the results of this impromptu shoot! Thank-you girls!  Afterwards while we all sat around to look at the photos, it occured to me that this was the smallest model we had ever used for our website. But, one of my greatest pleasures is seeing women of all sizes wearing my clothes;  anyone from a size small to a 3x.  Size acceptance is about inclusion of all shapes and sizes of women….

The complete Fall 2011 Collection!

Summer is one of the busiest times in the fashion industry. It’s all about designing and making samples for the following Spring season and about full on grading, markers and production of Fall goods.  So many things to do; shipping, photoshoots, updating websites and yes blog posts! 

So today as we already shot photos of brand new Spring styles, I thought it was past time to show you our complete Fall collection.  Here are the illustrations that we use as a selling tool.  Most, but not all of these items made it into production. This is the original vision of all the pieces together….

Which is your favourite?

Queen of all flowers…the Rose

From earliest childhood, I have memories of the flowers my mother grew in our garden.  Snowdrops and crocus in early spring, sweet bi-coloured columbine in May and fountains of pink and red roses all summer long. As long as I’ve had a garden, I’ve grown roses.  From those uninspiring thorny canes sprout the promise of heavenly beautiful and often fragrant blooms every year.

Now in a townhouse, I have space for a few roses.  But lucky me, I have only a short walk to one of the prettiest rose gardens in the whole city.  I have to give much credit to the man that created the Queens Park Rose Garden as well as those who maintain it with love and attention.  This garden contains roses of every shape and colour in the possible palette. From purest white through every shade of pink, apricot, yellow, red, mauve, burgundy and combinations of red or pink and white stripes. My favourites are the roses where the petals melt from soft yellow to pink to salmon….just like the most beautiful sunset.

If I could share a few bits of wisdom on growing roses, first it would be to pick a trusted variety for health and disease resistance.  This can vary by region, so get opinions from knowledgeable gardeners in your area.  Roses get all manner of bugs and problems so chosing well and treating them right will go along way in your overall  enjoyment of your rose(s).  The second most important thing is to meet their needs of good quality soil, something akin to fluffy chocolate cake by liberally mixing in manure and compost.  Also feed the soil, not the rose, which means using organic fertilizers like bonemeal, alfalfa, greensand, kelp and epsom salts.  Of course you can buy a premade mixture, but best to pick one with these kinds of natural ingredients.  It’s very important to pick an area with at least 6 hours of sun a day and good air circulation.

Every time I walk through the rose garden, I take a moment to stop and stick my nose deeply into a variety that comes in a soft red colour but does not have the most perfect blooms. But just like with people, sometimes we look past the imperfections to the hidden beauty, which in this case is the most delicious ‘Fragrant Cloud’ of sweet perfume you could possible imagine.  Aside from health and beauty, in my opinion, fragrance is a top consideration when choosing a rose.

Happy sniffing!

"Enchanted Evening"...notice the unusual scalloped petals

"Love Struck"....each petal is 'painted' with a deeper pink

"Playboy"....one of my favourites

"Rapsody in Blue"...the closest a rose ever gets to the colour blue

"Scentimental"

"Rock 'n' Roll"......this one really catches your eye

 

 

This photo doesn't do this colour justice..."Wild Blue Yonder" is the most beautiful shade of vibrant magenta

Blue shades…Homes and Gardens of Queen’s Park…part 2

Come on a pictorial journey with me through Queen’s Park neighbourhood to enjoy the enchanting blues of my favourite flowers and these charming gingerbread cottages…….

The gorgeous blue flower is called Corydalis 'Blue Panda'. It is native to China and likes shade and quite moist soil. Here with other shade lovers like Astilbe and variagated Astrantia

Who wouldn't want to sit and enjoy the neighbourhood from this inviting chair?

 

 

Campanula Persifolia or "Peach Bells"

I love how the campanula is growing up into the boxwood here!

The Line…Fall 2011

I spend hours dreaming, thinking about it.  The ideas come to me in my head as I’m lying in bed at night waiting to fall asleep.  I think about what I want to wear. What I ‘need’ and what I ‘must’ have. 
 
I spend an incredible amount of time thinking about where to put a seam. How to best flatter the body. About how the fabric will drape and gather, hug and relax, shape and float.  To emphasize the points that should be highlighted.  Always considering how best to use the fabric. How to reduce the use of the fabric to be cost effective yet at the same time being generous in the places it counts the most.
 
It’s a process. An idea flows into my head ready to transfer to my screen. I draw the first Line on the shape of the pattern. Yes, this looks good. More follow. The ‘block’ or ‘base pattern’ is cut into shapes that become all the pattern pieces of the garment. Sometimes I lay up the pieces in the puzzle known as the marker.  Analyzing the yield to get the most from the precious cloth.  The samples are made and again the Lines are considered, changed, moved. For one style. But soon I have a collection of styles.  The ‘Line’.
 
What’s missing? How will these clothes be worn? I seek an identity for the whole. 
 
I find a theme for this line.  My collections of lines.  A touch of retro. A dash of swagger.  The swirl of a skirt. The flick of an upturned collar. Perhaps what James Bond would wear if he was a she!
 
There is a jacket named Espionage.  A Spy Coat.  The Mystique tunic.  Double Agent dress…..
 
here’s a little sneak peak just for you…..
 
 

A Love Poem

I just have to share this beautiful poem by my favourite poet……

SONNET XVII

 I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz,
or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off.
I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul.

I love you as the plant that never blooms
but carries in itself the light of hidden flowers;
thanks to your love a certain solid fragrance,
risen from the earth, lives darkly in my body.

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where.
I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;
so I love you because I know no other way

than this: where I do not exist, nor you,
so close that your hand on my chest is my hand,
so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep.

Pablo Neruda

Our June Shopping Party starts TOMORROW!

Update: We will also have amazing dresses by the new CherryVelvetPlus! They’re going like hotcakes so don’t miss out on the exclusive and limited styles!

Can-can petals of buxom loveliness!

 Bodacious, buxom, plump and luscious! No this isn’t about your butt! I’m talking about the blooms of the Peony, Queen of the early June garden.  Easy to grow and long lived but requiring support of those heavy blooms. In Vancouver you can almost guarantee rain on the day the buds burst open, so it’s best to insert a wire frame early in the growth process so as not to detract from the glory.
 
From the moment of emergence in early spring with the bulbs, the stems and leaves enhance the garden with their lovely cherry red hue. Later fat buds enlarge to the moment when they burst forth like skirt of a can-can dancer to enchant us with their outrageous display. Overlapping petal after petal of shades from white stained with lipstick, every shade of pink, coral, cherry and deep red will delight you with loveliness every late May or June with their beauty and sometimes even soft fragrance. 

 

If you don’t have room to grow these beauties, head over to your local florist for an armful of in season, fleeting loveliness!

Cut flowers of fleeting yet extraordinary beauty ..... @ Dean & Deluca NYC