Ralph Rucci Books/What To Buy, What Not To Buy

After talking so much about Ralph Rucci and his incredible work over the last few weeks, I decided to purchase one of his books. I decided upon his autobiography thinking that it would have a large collection of his designs and also go into depth about his life. I have never been so disappointed with a book. When it arrived, I tore into the box as though it was Christmas. The book is beautiful and comes in its own hard cover.

Once out of the box, I went from elation to absolute disappointment. Below is a representation of what's in the book. Very little text, very little, and even fewer examples of his work. 

Although I purchased a "like new" book, it was still quite expensive. I decided to contact the seller and see if I could possibly return the book. They must have heard the tears in my voice as they gladly accepted the return. 

Once I sent this book back, I decided to check and see if the library had "Ralph Rucci, The Art of Weightlessness." They did. It is a lovely book.

The book does contain many pictures of his work. I enjoyed it enough to purchase one for my own library. Although, I would not spend the $65.00 for a brand new book, opt for a used or like new version instead. You can find a used book on Amazon starting at around $10.00. 
I decided to share my woes since I have talked so much about Ralph Rucci and his work and I was afraid that someone else may end up purchasing the book and be sorely disappointed. And even worse, not able to return the book as I was able to do. 
We all enjoy the work of incredible designers, and some may enjoy pictures of their home and their dog, but I want to see their work.
Have a lovely day. 
Rhonda

Monday Morning Inspiration/Quilted Inspiration Recap

Happy Day After Easter to you all!!!
My weekend started off with a horrible headache. I did everything, soaked in a hot bath, applied therapeutic oils, did my best to rest, all with no luck. I had a list a mile long of all I wanted to accomplish, but I gave in, rested and read a book that was quite inspirational. More on that at a later date. 
Although the headache was still with me yesterday, it was not as painful, so I was able to enjoy the afternoon with my niece, her fiance, and her parents. What an incredible lunch they made! Great food, and great conversation, just the perfect Easter Sunday :)

So many of you were very generous with your suggestions last week when I put out a plea for help. Wow!!!, did you ever come through with some great ideas. Rather than allow them all to be buried in the comment section of last week's post, I thought I would share some of the ideas with all of you.
First, I found this,

Pretty amazing. It's from the same Schiaparelli collection that the coat below which I shared last week is from. I too thought that the coat below might be matelasse, but now I'm wondering if it really was quilted.

Charade sent in this idea, a vintage Lilli Ann coat from the 1950's. The quilting is trapunto and the collar can be worn up or down. Beautiful piece.

I am a huge fan of President Abraham Lincoln. If you have never read, Lincoln The Unknown, by all means, please do. It is probably the most inspirational book I have ever read. Craft Alchemy sent a link to the picture below. It's the coat that he was wearing the night he was killed. Yes, the coat represents a very sad period in the history of America, but the surprise of the incredible quilting is quite inspiring. 

Carol In Denver suggested incorporating a little fabric manipulating into the quilting of a garment. There are a number of books, all of which I'm sure are available at your local library. Here's a list of some at Amazon. I own the book below, so I'm off to a great start :)

 

The Sewing Loft suggested some work with dragonflies. Just for the fun of it, I googled "dragonfly quilting," and found this picture of a piece in progress. Just the intricacy of the design is great inspiration.

Sue from A Colorful Canvas shared her amazing coat that she recently finished. Be sure to pop over to her blog and see the rest of the coat.  

Ruth commented on the subtle but beautiful hem of the Ralph Rucci dress that I shared a few weeks ago. I really like the idea of quilting not only being an accent, or design aspect of a garment, but also serving a purpose as it does with this hem.

A number of you suggested using Alabama Chanin as a source of inspiration. Cynthiacc also suggested Alabama Chanin, but using different fabrics, possibly boiled wool. Using the concept, but making it your own.     

Elizabeth K suggested getting some books that show fabrics and designs through the different decades. I do have a couple of books in my collection. A great idea.

E McAfee talked about the picture below on the left being a fencing costume. I was making a joke about feeling tied in knots, but she really came up with a great idea. The piece on the right is really amazing. 

Martha said, 
"You have great instincts, you know."
And Mary said, 
"You have all the skills and savvy that you need." 
A few others also offered some words of encouragement as well. Sometimes the best source of inspiration is being told that someone else believes in you. 
Thank you :)
With new found inspiration, I wish you a wonderful week!
Rhonda

Dream To Seam/An Interview with Ralph Rucci

"When I wasn't making a dollar, I was still a designer, it's the essence of who I am."

I found this video after I posted this morning's inspiration piece. It's long, but it's something you can put on and just listen to as you do other things. I think you'll enjoy it.

Dream To Seam - Ralph Rucci from modaCYCLE on Vimeo.

Monday Morning Inspiration/Chado Ralph Rucci

Today's post was inspired by our same friend who brought us the info on the free Metropolitan Museum books that I posted last week. So a quick, Thanks Miss P!!!, before we get started.

Chado Ralph Rucci has debuted a new collection, and I could not be more excited! It's museum ready and it has yet to hit the stores. I pulled out a few of the pieces that I especially loved. The last dress posted below is absolutely incredible. It's a very black collection, so be sure to look closely to see the details. If you would like to see more, take a look HERE. 

As it turns out, when Ralph left his label in 2014, he had no intention of returning, but he said that people were begging him to do so. I'm glad the right people begged :) We can only hope that Vogue Patterns will also be successful in having him return to the pattern market. 
Happy Monday All!
Rhonda

Monday Morning Inspiration

Good Morning All!! Happy Monday and Happy April 1st!
First of all, I would like to thank all of you for so many well wishes. I'm happy to say that I feel stronger each day and the stitches come out on Friday!!
Last week I started a little series for Monday's inspiration with  a focus on couture design. I think we all find it incredibly amazing to see the work that can go into just one garment. Today I am showcasing a book that I bought a few years back at the Art Institute of Chicago called American Beauty.

This book is full of so many incredible pieces. In fact, we'll spend two weeks with this book and I still will not cover everything. It is truly a treasure trove of interesting pieces. If by chance you would like a copy of your own, you can find it here on Amazon.
Today, I am focusing on a favorite of so many, Ralph Rucci.  There are not a lot of pictures, but I don't think we need a lot in order to be inspired.

The first piece is a suit from his fall 2006 collection. It is double-faced cashmere.

The suit has cutout designs where contrasting pieces were inserted back into the cutouts. All hand stitched.

Corded seams. Fall 2004.

 Fall 2006. All intricately pieced and hand sewn.

This is by far my favorite piece. Hand knotted bodice. Take note of how the cording is held to the main portion of the dress and all the tiny seams!
Spring 2003

 Ripple Effect Infanta, 2002

Ralph Rucci insists that there be no rigid or heavy understructure to his gowns. He uses organza and Filogil to support the voluminous skirts.  Filogil is a stiff but featherweight silk. In fact, it is so stiff that it cannot be bent into a seam. Rather, the material is cut 1/8" smaller than the seam of the base fabric and then hand stitched with a fine cross-stitch to the organza layer. All I can say is WOW!! No wonder these gowns cost thousands of dollars.

Fortunately for those of us who sew, we can attempt to recreate one of his beautiful pieces. Here is a link to his patterns that are currently available, http://voguepatterns.mccall.com/chado-ralph-rucci-pages-315.php
Wishing you all a wonderful week as well as a wonderful month!
Rhonda