4.11.2017

An Outfit for SewSew Def

oonaballoona | by marcy harriell | sewsew def

A few short weeks ago, when there were still piles of weathered, traffic beaten snow on the city streets, three Californians wrapped in newly minted down coats arrived on my doorstep. Barefoot, grinning, and clad in a seasonally inappropriate crop top and pencil skirt, I bear hugged each of them before they could get a word out.

oonaballoona | by marcy harriell | sewsew def

Underneath their coats, Mimi G, Norris Danta Ford and April Hartsfield were as fashionable as you'd expect, and although we have a no-shoes rule upon entering casa Kalkatroona, I had decided in advance to lift this ban. There was NO WAY I was asking Mimi to take off her kicks. That would be like asking someone to take off their pants. Her kicks are a non-negotiable part of her ensemble. Norris, however, caught sight of my toes and immediately joined me in my bohemian vibe, which provoked laughter all around, a sound that continued for the next two lovely hours, while we videotaped an interview for their new multicultural sewing magazine: SewSew Def.

oonaballoona | by marcy harriell | sewsew def

Here's the thing: I had no idea I was even on Mimi's radar. Though I haven't talked about it much--if at all--I've been following Mimi since I started blogging. Many of my ensembles have been inspired by her eye for fabric and her out-of-the-pattern-envelope-box thinking. I've just...never mentioned it. I began to imagine how, once meeting IRL, I'd confess, you know, parts of my deepest soul. I'd say something super un-awkward like You are so pretty. I've been a little scared of you for years. I was fairly certain you were like the perfect girls in high school that didn't like me because I was a little too white or a little too black or a little too italian or a little too whatever-part-of-me-that-didn't-fit so I just kind of quietly lurked in the shadows and got inspired by your stuff.

oonaballoona | by marcy harriell | sewsew def

You know, the sort of lighthearted conversation you make when you're meeting someone you've only known via a computer screen for the first time.

Fortunately, I played it sensible. I did, however, yell something like I WAS ACTUALLY IN THE MIDDLE OF MAKING THIS TWO-SET BACK WHEN YOU EMAILED ME AND UMMM BASICALLY I LOOKED AT SOME LEFTOVER ANIMAL PRINT PONTE AND ASKED MYSELF WHAT WOULD MIMI DO.

oonaballoona | by marcy harriell | sewsew def

(Obviously, she would go body-con, and she'd whip it up without a pattern, which is exactly what I did. And she would wear the perfect kicks and sunnies for the shoot, which I *tried* to do. But look, I own two pair of sunnies, and don't even start me on my shoe collection. It's more like a shoe box.)

You can see us laughing our way through all manner of things on SewSew Def's youtube channel-- the interview is just under half an hour, and listen: she surprises me at the end. Actually, we surprised each other a few times. Fortunately, they made it SFW. And you can subscribe digitally to SewSew Def here, monthly or yearly. Bonus, two patterns are included with each issue, one for the gals and one for the guys. (Cue Rob's dance of joy. Soon, he will have very def t-shirts.)

I know I sort of claw my way through a story, picking up bits and thoughts here and there, so here's what I really want to say: I'm so thrilled to know the real version of Mimi, and not the person my high school mind created. She's the antithesis of that girl. Though we are a diverse and barrier-free community, that's not always evident at a high level--the companies at the top have been slow to catch on to that fact. Mimi has been the face of ethnicity in the sewing universe. It would be easy to corner that market, but instead, she's using that power to lift others up. This magazine is a burst of color in every sense of the word--take a peek at the contributors page: it looks like the world. I'm honored to be a part of the first issue, and I can't wait to see MORE.

15 comments:

  1. I saw your interview with SewSewDef and I love it. Hope to see you put together something for us in a future issue. Thanks.

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  2. Ahh, such a good post! I think we ALL have bloggers we think are too cool for us - one of the things I love about meeting people in person is that they turn out just to be really nice people! Your outfit is fab, I love the shoe combo, and I'm going to hop over and watch your interview tonight! I watched Jennifer's already, and I loved the long-form chat!

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    1. Thanks girl! I'm excited for the day when the channel is full of interviews, and I can listen to them like a podcast ;)

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  3. oona you are my secret too cool for me blogger! but taking part of a project with Mimi sounds like soooo much fun. Love your ideas and seeing what you are making. Cheers from Downunder.

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    1. Hahaha! I promise, your secret is definitely not true ;) Thanks for the love, mate! (mate is proper, yes? You know I'm using an accent in my head.)

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  4. Amazing interview, Marcy! I so enjoyed it. I also really enjoyed meeting you in New York even though I was nervous to come and say hi! So glad that I did though.

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    1. And I am SO glad you said hi!! That was such a fun night. And did you hear? We saw one of their last gigs together...

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  5. I've been looking at your blog a few years now and was watching nurse Jackie and said "Why do I know that temp?" Is that you? Janie

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  6. I love your new outfit, very Mimi indeed. I've been meaning to subscribe to sew sew def but I already also subscribe to Seamwork and basically never look at it so I'm still on the fence. I should really check it out though . . . Now if either Seamwork or Sew Sew Def would come out with a hard copy subscription, I'd be all over that.

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  7. I loved every single word of this post and would like to look you in the eye, holding your shoulders and shout, YES! And, I watched your interview twice. It felt like we were all hanging out together.

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  8. really enjoyed watching your interview! can all your posts be video from now on :D
    also, i totally need to copy your outfit (i actually do have a pencil skirt and crop top in same animal print fabric, but never tried to pair them thinking it would be too much.. now i have to give it a try, even though my version is in very loud pink-black-white combo, and i might look crazy wearing it)

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i thankya truly for taking the time to comment, i love a good conversation-- and hope you know my thanks are always implied, if not always written!