A
few years ago, I had the pleasure of interviewing the talented and hilarious Marisa from New Dress A Day. After being laid off, Marisa turned full time to her passion for fashion, sewing, dying and chopping and created a blog that chronicles her awesome dedication to remaking a flea market or thrift store find into something imminently wearable, every day.
Q. You mention MacGuyver
pretty often; what's the craziest, craftiest alteration you can think of?
A. Ooh, the craftiest alteration
I can think of would be the first piece I turned around and wore the back as
the front. A last minute tweak has
become one of my favorite switch ups!
Q. Which item of your remixes
is something you wear over and over?
A. I have a dress from my first
year that I’m obsessed with and wear to meetings as well as a blouse I dyed
red! The basic pieces tend to be the
ones I wear over and over, just because of the versatility! Pair with jeans one day, then under a
sleeveless dress another to bring it from summer to fall!
Q. Have you discovered any
new haunts to find raw material?
A. I’ve definitely found a few
new favorites, many which have come from readers! When I’ve been visiting different cities,
I’ve used reader suggestions to check out local stores and their favorite
spots. I love scouring downtown LA – there are so many fabric stores and I have
my faves (Michael Levine is amazing!) however it’s fun to just browse and see
the treasures in all the little, mom & pop stops. I’ve found amazing deals on thread and ribbon
in these little joints!
Q. Do more people on the
street recognize you now? What's that like?
A. Ha, I do get recognized every
once and a while and it just seems so weird because, who am I, you know? I’m no celebrity! People are just so lovely, so it makes me
really happy to meet readers who enjoy what I do!
Q. As you've grown more and
more focused on refashioning, have you incorporated any new tools or machines
into your life, or do you stick to your old stand-bys?
A. I definitely stick to my
stand-bys, but I’m obsessed with Simplicity’s Bobbin Winder (such a time
saver!) and have bought myself a stash of Fray Check, for those fast
tweaks! I’ve started to use a rhinestone
applicator as well, for the smaller stones – saves my fingers from getting glue
all over them!
Q. What are your favorite
colors? Favorite candy? Favorite book?
A. Favorite colors – hmm, such a
hard question! I love melons, emerald
green, cranberry, and cobalt blue. You
basically get a little bit of the rainbow with that question! I’m obsessed with Reese’s Pieces and
Twizzlers, and on the book front, I love David Sedaris, have a special place in
my heart for Jacqueline Suzann’s Valley of the Dolls (not just for the cover,
either!), and love The Great Gatsby. I’m from Long Island too, so it’s like a
little homage to my hometown in an era I always wanted to live during!
Q. What do you do to overcome
"sewer's block," if you do get it?
A. I’ll take a break and sort
through magazines if I get “sewer’s block”.
Usually when I’m at the point of sewing, I have an idea of where I’m
going.
Q. What's it been like
transitioning from snapping your own photos to being filmed live and
professionally "done"?
A. It’s actually been a rather
easy transition! I still snap my own
photos for the blog; however shooting professional pictures for the book was
great! One of my dearest friends, Jordan
Whitley, was my photographer, so it was easy, fun, and super casual!!
Q. Do you ever dream of
sewing or thrifting or buttons?
A. Ha! To be completely honest, I have nightmares
about my old jobs (I used to be a waitress years ago and still have dreams of
being in the weeds!) or going on stage without knowing lines, however I don’t
recall any sewing dreams. Perhaps I was
so sleep-deprived I just didn’t remember!
Q. What's on your
inspiration board right now??
A. Ooh, I just made a brand new
one! Aside from my horoscope from this
October (book release and birthday), I’ve got a ton of chunky knits, oxblood,
velvets, brocade, and a whole lot of Dolce & Gabbana embroidery
pieces. Trying to gear up for winter,
even though I live in LA and it’s still 80 degrees in October!
✄ ✄ ✄
For those hardy and crafty souls in New York, Marisa is visiting with her book this coming week!
And Bostonions, she'll be hanging out on Saturday night (Nov. 10) with
Shoestring Magazine and
DIY Boston at 40 Berkeley for a little photo booth/DIY demo/book signing/vintage consultation from 6-9pm! For the rest of the book signing schedule (Phoenix, SF, Charlotte), check
here. I'm planning on going to the San Francisco signing! San Diego is coming soon, too (should be Dec. 4) but firm plans will be released on
her blog this week.
