Undersea Wonder Bra done

Well I've finished the Undersea Wonder bra. Here are some pictures. The "seaweed" on the left side is really some "fuzzy" foliage taken off a silk flower stem. It made me realize, tho, that if you had something plastic that you wanted to paint and the paint wouldn't stick to it, you could flock it first, then paint it, since the flocking is what would absorb the paint.










Oh, and at the bottom is a picture of the charm pin I made ages ago, that inspired the "Think Pink" bra. I really had a lot of fun making these bras - it sort of solves the problem for me of what to do with what I make. I hate to spend a lot of time on something, then have it sit in a closet or a drawer - I can't display everything I make - there's just not enough horizontal space!

Time for Another Bra

Well, it's time for another bra! This time the bra is for my church, which is doing a "Bras for a Cause" exhibit in North Carolina in June. The bras will earn money that will go to breast cancer research.

This time I started out with a different bra - I think it was a cheaper one, because when I tried to dye it using Dy-Na-Flow, like I did before, it didn't take. It was so strange, I would go to bed and the bra would be awash in wonderful color, then the next morning, there would be a blue-green spot of color in the center and the rest of the bra would be white again. Polyester doesn't take dye well, so I think this bra has a higher percentage of polyester. Sooo, I ended up painting the bra with Lumiere paints and loved the way it came out! You can see in the picture, all the great blues, greens and turquoises. Also, that gold in there is great.


I started on the right side, with the undersea embroidery and beads, pearls, shells, charms - it's so much fun! I'm not quite finished with this side; I want to add a jellyfish at the top.

Some closeups of the sea...It's amazing, when I'm doing CQ or jewelry, I don't like the misshaped beads or the stone beads. Then, when doing something like this, those beads are so valuable. That just fuels my desire to never get rid of anything....


I'm not quite ready to divulge my plans for the left side of the bra - you'll just have to be surprised!

Happy Stitching,
Lin Moon

Guardian Angel Art Bra Done

Well I've finished embellishing/decorating my Art Bra. I used silk ribbon, braid, yarn, beads, sequins, and organdy ribbon. I dyed the fabrics and many of the embellishments using Jacquard's Dye-na-flow. It's so easy - just paint it on! I bought a couple of exciter packs and was disappointed that JoAnn's no longer seems to carry them - but they are so good to try out the different dyes/paints in small quantities. In the case of fabric or ribbon, I washed it, then heat set it by ironing. If it was some embellishment that would be flattened or ruined by washing/ironing, I just shot it with some steam from my iron to set it. I have to say, this was one of the funnest(is that a word?) parts of the project - to be able to make whatever color I wanted. I looked for this color of pink fabric at my local JoAnn's, but could only find pale pale pink or hot hot pink. So, back to home to dye some! Besides I have boxes of fabric and really try hard not to buy any more.


Here's the angel, with her archway of mother-of-pearl stars in the sky....She was really fun to make also. The ribbon encircling her dress was pale turquoise with white stitching, so I dyed it to match the dress. The gold edging on the top of her dress is the edging on some woven ribbon that I cut off. Her breasts are, guess what, pom poms! They were just the right size and I made a little "bra" cover for them so she wouldn't have bumpy boobs! It was a good idea to use something lightweight like parachute silk for her dress, since she's rather small and I could make it look compact while still being able to manipulate it the way I wanted. That was one thing with some of the other paints by Jacquard - I painted some ribbons, etc. with Lumiere, but it changes the hand of the fabric, so the ribbon was then too stiff to gather, etc.



And here are the two put together...I almost think the bra is fine without the angel, but after all she WAS my inspiration, so...


All in all, this was a very satisfying project to work on - very few limitatations, very open-ended, I loved it!

Happy creating,
Lin Moon

Half of Bra Front Done

Well, I'm almost done with the front of my Art Bra. Ironically, most of this won't show because it will be covered up by the guardian angel, but I am still having lots of fun!

Happy Stitching,
Lin Moon

Art Bra for WtWW

Here is my angel for the Art Bra I am working on. I haven't yet figured out what I'm doing with her hair, so it's flying a little loose...She's kind of a flat doll, since she'll go on the center of the bra. I had a great time making her dress - I dyed some parachute silk with Dye-Na-Flow and wrapped it sort of free-formed over her. Her face is embroidered, with a little chalk for added color. I also dyed the ribbon under her bodice, etc. to match the dress. She will have wings, of course and a halo.

The latest issue of CQMagOnline contains a Call for ArtBra Submissions. This is a "Can't Lose" proposition. There won't be any rejection letters. If your bra is one of the best, it might make it into the calendar. But even if it doesn't, your bra will be auctioned off and the money goes to support Breast Cancer research. There's no downside! It seems like a wonderful way to support this research and at the same time to be creative. Join me and make an Art Bra!
Happy creating,
~Lin Moon