Aretha Franklin's President Obama’s Inauguration Bow Tie Hat

As you can see, it’s not for me, but the Queen of Soul wears it well. And Detroit needs all the good publicity that it can get…thanks, Mr. Song.

Everyone’s talking about Aretha Franklin’s crystal studded bow hat which she wore to President Obama’s Inauguration. The $179.99 hat, customized with Swarovski crystals, came from Mister Song Millinery in Detroit. It was designed by Luke Song who has been making ladies dress hats for 25 years.

He was interviewed on television yesterday, January 21st, and said that they have received over 500 orders for this hat thus far. It’s great to hear that a local Detroit family run business is getting some well deserved recognition and making a small fortune in the meantime.

He wholesales his designs at 500 boutiques across the nation, the Caribbean and Great Britain.

Versions of Aretha’s bow hat are available in 15 colors for $179.99, though the original is "exclusive" to Franklin.

Mr. Song describes it as a "structured beret with large bow" and embellished with 10 dozen Swarovski crystals.

According to a Detroit News article, “Song admits to being "shocked" at the outpouring of negative reaction online, but says those who are bashing the look don't understand the black church culture from whence it comes.”

Mr. Song says, "This is a black culture that is a mystery for 90 percent of the population," he says. "But it's such a familiar thing for the black church culture, so comforting to them. It's what their mothers and grandmothers and great grandmothers have done for centuries."

If you would like one, you can contact Luke at:
Mister Song Millinery
6513 Woodward Avenue
Detroit MI 48202
Phone: (313) 873-2540
Fax: (313) 873-5992

Free Cosmetics at Major Dept Stores Starting Tuesday, Jan 20th

As part of a class action settlement, $175 million worth of free cosmetics products will be distributed to customers who between 1994 and 2003 purchased a product from the manufacturers named in the suit. The freebies will be available for a maximum of seven days, while supplies last, on a first come, first served basis starting on January 20.
Source: boncherry.com

http://www.boncherry.com/blog/2009/01/18/free-cosmetics-at-major-dept-stores-tuesday-jan-20th/

Silhouette T-Shirts

Well, part of my new year’s resolution is to live more creatively. This project was an attempt at that. I also want to express more love and appreciation to my loved ones and to live more frugally…this also fits all of those as well.

I made shirts for my sister and her husband with their children on them. I made a shirt for my daughter with her daughter/my granddaughter on it. And one for my son with his dog/my grand puppy on it…he doesn’t have any kids yet.

I bought the shirts at Joann’s, for 5 of them, it was $10. I picked up a package with 4 bottles of pastel soft fabric paint for $4.99 and a package of sable hair paint brushes for $1.99. So for less than $17, I can make 5 customized t-shirts.

I got the idea from here:
www.inhabitots.com/2008/09/12/making-a-customized-silhouette-t-shirt/

This project was fairly quick to do; it took me about a week to pick the photos, print the photos, cut out the stencils, buy the materials, then actually sit down to prep and paint the shirts. Other more aggressive/less lazy people could probably finish this project in a few hours.

A couple of things I did wrong, which I’ll make note not to do next time, is I used regular paper for my templates, not the freezer paper the link suggests. Because of this, I was unable to iron the paper and have it stick to the fabric. I used tape which didn’t hold the stencil tightly to the fabric all over, especially in the center of the designs. I believe that the regular paper, probably tore more easily than freezer paper would have, leaving little pieces of paper stuck to the edges of the painted designs in spots, which I’ll try pulling off with tweezers as the link suggests.

Also, I may have used too much paint on them. It was labeled soft fabric paint, but it felt pretty stiff while I was removing the paper and tape from the shirts this morning. I’ll have to check on that more closely later.

I do have concerns though about how long the designs will last on the shirts. This paint easily washed off my brushes and hands with warm tap water, so I’m wondering how it will hold up after a few machine washings. I have never used fabric paint before, so it will be interesting for me to watch their age progression.

I still have one blank shirt…I’m contemplating a design on that one for myself…I’ll probably post it here in a few days, if it’s presentable.

Ann Taylor Online – Bridal Gown Clearance

I noticed my Flea Market Wedding Dresses photo has gotten a lot of traffic on Flickr since the begining of the New Year. If any of you are looking for bargain wedding dresses, you might want to try Ann Taylor Online. They have one reduced from $600 to $39.88. Unfortunately, it's only available in one color and three sizes.

The dress on sale does not look like any of the ones shown in my photo.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bargal/235355355/sizes/m/

Here's the link to the one on sale:
http://www.anntaylor.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=4088&viewAll=true&Ns=CLEARANCE_SEQUENCE_NO&Nr=AND%28CAT_CLEARANCE_FLAG%3AY%29&N=1200063&categoryId=152&cid=E0001312&defaultColorNameFromCategory=Bridal%20Ivory&defaultSizeTypeFromCategory=Misses

FINAL SALE Elizabeth Bridal Gown
Sizes 14, 16, 18
Color: Bridal Ivory
Was $600
Now $39.88

Standard Shipping is $6 on every order