The Occasional Woman – Velvet!
Well, Howdy, All, and a very lovely Season of your choice! We are fast approaching the time of year when our thoughts turn to fur, sequins, leopard print, satin and velvet. So, I looked up “Luxury Fabrics” online, and came up with some gems. Actually. a LOT of gems — so I shall do this in parts. The first thing that leaps to my mind is velvet. Like the Underground, and Velvet Jones.
Crushed velvet.
Velvet was originally spun by magical butterflies, who sip the nectar of peaches and, foolishly, psychedelic mushrooms; it is now mostly made in large factories and very (deservedly) expensive small batch operations around the globe. It has been used for big snazzy weddings, coronations, Oscar dresses and other hoity-toity affairs. It is also just a fabulous, easy to use, heavenly-feeling and bitchin’ as hell thing to make, and to wear!
Velvet is woven of longer and more dense, high-quality silk thread. This makes it feel like an expensive cat, but without the claws. One drawback is that wearers of velvet can be distracted by its sincere wonderfulness. There is also a lovely thing called stretch velvet — the best of all worlds! I have made myself a bunch of stretch-velvet dresses, in wicked prints and plain colors. Whenever I wear a dress of this type, I always feel gorgeous and just dang special! Oh so pretty.
Thanks to modern weaving techniques and chemicals, stretch velvet can be acquired much cheaper than it has always been. Companies have copied much of the weave of velvet, and reproduced it in a thinner, lighter and cheaper version; it loses some of the deep charm of real silk, but hey. Still looks good!
Stretch velvet.
We are sailing right into winter, and you will probably be included in Seasonal Parties. ‘What to wear, what to wear…” Ladies, may I heartily recommend velvet! From Macy’s and Bloomingdales, to Rainbow and MadRags, I am confident that you can find something amazing for winter hijinks! A stretchy, purple velvet top with a black skirt with disturbing heels — the world is your oyster! A nicely cut velvet dress — maybe something in a gorgeous cherry-red velvet, adorned with luxurious fake fur. . . and the hat. Gotta at least start wearing the hat!
I wish you all a very lovely winter, and New Year’s , both Eve and Day.
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About the Author (Author Profile)
I am a native Californian who has been based in the Philadelphia area since 1984. My first CD fashion creation was a gold lamé dress for the now esteemed editor of this publication. Since then I have made tons of fabulous frocks and other fashion apparel for the crossdressing and transgender community. Contact me for custom clothing or alterations via email: [email protected] Visit my Facebook page, @alterationsbylorraineSubscribe
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