No Moss Grows Here, But the Dust is Piling Up

Yes, it has been a busy and challenging summer so far.  Hard at work getting a small rental home ready to place for sale, I have been team director, painting and cleaning up a storm on every weekend.  Now that the end of this labor is only a few hours away, my body and spirit are clamoring for more creative pursuits.  I have never been so sore and exhausted in my life!  Pushing forward with smaller projects has been the plan all summer.  The sewing machine has been out for the duration and turning out a few things that I am very pleased with.  Because my bohemian style has been with me since college days, my friends and acquaintances have told me they can easily pick me out of a crowd.  Imagine my surprise when I was "forced" to shop a few days ago and I saw many wonderful garments that were of the Boho bent and on the racks at large chain stores like TJMAXX, Kohl's, Ross and Marshalls.  WOW!!!

Naturally, this bursting Boho assortment of goodies has me puzzled.  What is going on in the world that so many artful garments are appearing not only on the ready-to-wear racks but are also being featured on Haute Couture runways by Rodart, Jean Paul Gaultier, Kenzo, Emilio Pucci, Anna Sui, and many others?  There is a bursting emergence of designers that are selling through Etsy that are more moderately priced too.  After mentally pursuing this for a few minutes, it suddenly occurred to me that it's the economy!  Just as the pioneers made use of what was on hand, re-crafting and up-cycling, and the wonderful crazy quilts that eventually resulted in Victorian times, We The People are dictating fashion to the designers and manufacturers!  I find it very interesting that they are trying hard to imitate what is being done so artfully by women artisans all over who are using their brains to come up with amazing garments, jewelry, etc., that are one of a kind masterpieces.  I could also see that the sloppy cheesy assembly of a few years past has given way to better skill.  ...Really, how can a factory worker who does the same piecework hour after hour and day after day turn out terrible work?  (answer:  They have to try real hard!)

During the Art Nouveau Era, we had the same inspirational sense that is prevailing now.  Artisans were exploring in various mediums that were used together in very creative ways.  It was not unusual to find mixed media in the same piece.  Rules were broken and as a result, Art Nouveau became the most widely celebrated and favorited Era in fashion.  I came across a lovely statement by Kecia, author of Lemoncholy's blog, in my web browsing:

By removing perfectionism, I free my imagination to play and ultimately, this freedom results in whimsical pieces of grace and beauty.

I love this way of expressing creativity, as by removing perfectionism, we give ourselves permission to fail.  Why is this important?  ...Because it means that we are free to try ideas and techniques that may not work out, or that may result in a new way to approach and express ourselves artfully.