Artistry in Fashion, 2011 - Review

I'm not sure I can add much to JillyBe's excellent review of yesterday's AIF event. But it was the best one ever! This year was the 20th anniversary of Artistry in Fashion. It is "must do" event if you are anywhere in the vicinity and love to sew, and/or to wear beautiful clothing and accessories. It is like immersing yourself with a hundred kindred spirits and is a sure-fire way to jumpstart one's creative mojo.

This year Margy (Margyh on SG) drove up from southern California. She and I have talked via email, and she recently started a blog, but this was the first time we've met in person. I was also happy to meet Leslie (Lessalt on SG) and her sweet husband, who drove in from central CA. I was happy to see other friends that I have seen before, such as JillyBe and Joan (Joan71 on SG). And, of course, there were many other people whose company I enjoy and are without blogs or internet presence. ;)

It was really nice to see Lyla Messenger speak and present a trunk show of her designs. I also enjoyed both "stylist" presentations, which showcased items for sale, styled into outfits. And, for me, one of the highlights of the show is shopping. :)

Here is what I bought yesterday:

I have wanted one of these sweaters for years. Finally, this one is mine, and it's red and black! With polka dots!

I just love the simplicity of this necklace! This is a stone tumbled in the ocean.

The artist who made this scarf had a beautiful, hand painted, silk chiffon top featured in the stylist presentation. I would have bought it, but even though it was "one size fits most", it didn't fit my bust. She hand stamped this silk scarf, but she also paints and silk screens her scarves.

I bought this fabric from Lyla Messeger's booth. This interesting piece is double sided, contains lycra, and the black centers have little holes in them.

Three of us who closed down the show were in no rush to end the fun, so we decided to have dinner. JillyBe, Margy, and I headed to Redwood City and drove around until we stumbled on a restaurant. We had a great meal, sharing experiences of the day, and our favorite shopping resources. Finally, I drove them back to their cars at Cañada and we grabbed a few pictures with JillyBe's camera. But, by now, it was windy and cold! There are no pics of all three of us because we were completely alone in that parking lot.

Yes, it was cold and extremely windy, but they still look good!

Can you tell how cold and windblown we are in this pic?
A fun end to a fun day.