Thursday, July 16, 2009

And Off To Town She Went

... and shlepped around for a good five hours. Uhhhh boy, there sure are a lot of junk to sort through to get to the good stuff. I even heard a shopkeeper say to a customer, "No, we only carry the cheap stuff, all c**p." :)) And he meant it.

So for quality trim, I found only two places:

Beads & More
800 S. Maple, Suite A
Los Angeles, CA90014

and

Berger Specialty Co
413 E. Eight St.
Los Angeles, CA 90014

I went into Michael Levine but they have a very limited selection and nothing that could work for me.

I couldn't find a single thing to replicate that rope-pearl-beaded thing so I'm now going to let that go and use other means to achieve a similar effect. Below is a sample I did last night with rhinestones I got. The light colored pearls are not the same quality as the darker ones- no luck with Swarovski pearls downtown so I'm ordering them online. There is a HUGE difference is shine and finish, like with most things; you get what you pay for. But the sew on Swarovski crystals are simply too expensive to be used alone on all that trim so I'm playing with combinations of other elements.


The rondelles are good quality but not Swarovski and therefor less expensive. I got those at Beads & More and the owner was very helpful. The sew on rounded rectangle is from Berger Specialty Co., and again I received first rate service. I bought 1 gross (144), and they ARE expensive so I'm trying to keep the amount down. However, if I used the above combination I will need at least 2 more... So I'm playing around.

I got other trimmings as well but that will have to wait.

Off to the theater- the tech is working great (you all know theater people are night owls right? rehearsal usually don't start until the afternoon and ends around midnight :))

Thank you Els for the link to the Chanel video, that looks like a perfect way to do the shoulder pad. Now if I can only find that kind of batting, it looks like something that can be molded/stretched into shape? Any suggestions? Wish I could see it done from start to finish...

Anne, you amaze me. Thank you.

Hugs to all who read or comment on this Balmain journey, I soooo appreciate it.

5 comments:

  1. I LOVE the combination you are featuring. The rondelles look as good as any swarovski!I am sure it is both fun and frustration to try to find what you want. It will all be worth it. The greater the hunt the greater the satisfaction. Keep going!!!

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  2. Amazing how much detail and time is going in this project. You will certainly make the most gorgeous jacket, these beads look very promising.

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  3. Your trim samples are fabulous. This jacket will truly "sparkle"!

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  4. You know, you could try calling M&J Trim in NYC and asking for one of the bridal consultants for a little one-on-one customer service. They could have something close to what you're looking for, and I've seen how helpful they are with clients in the store. Worth a shot.

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  5. Bonjour Birgitte, I just woke up and realized I have an interesting book to suggest you. It is called Fine Embellishment Techniques written by Jane Conlon. This is a good book and she has at the end a list of resources you could use. She also gives details on threads, transfering techniques and so much more. If you want only few pages I can scan them for you.

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