Obi with Maiocchi Skirt

I have a confession to make. I love clothes. I love innovative designs, BUT I am a very impatient seamstress. I have been collecting fabrics, especially over the last year. My fabric box is starting to overflow with the most stunning pieces and I have yet to do anything with them.

I have 3 favourite designers in Brisbane; Maiocchi, Nelson Molloy and Dogstar. Funnily enough, all three are influenced by Japanese design. Each time I go back to Brisbane, I promise myself one piece. Luckily, all three designers have stores just around the corner from each other in the Valley, so I check out the range of each and then decide what to buy.

A bit over a year ago, while I was still living in Brisbane, I had a friend's wedding to go to. It was just before Christmas and my card making business was so busy, so I hadn't even had time to think about what I was going to wear. I wanted something gorgeous, but didn't have time to go shopping.

Luckily I was surrounded by stunning Japanese fabrics and took inspiration from them. I had a black Maiocchi Apron skirt. These skirts are great. They are made with hooks at the top and then you can buy all different things to hang from the hooks. There is a picture of one of their skirts at the top. I own a range of different "hanging bits" so the skirt can be easily changed from a day to night outfit. Many different looks in the same skirt! I took a piece of an obi that I couldn't bear to sell all of. It was quick and easy to sew it up and hang it off the skirt. You can see a picture of it on the right.

The friend who was getting married was Japanese and many of her family members had come to Australia for the wedding. I was seated at the table with her family and her aunt was a designer who specialised in textiles. My skirt was admired by all at the wedding, especially the designer who repeatedly came over to look at it again and again.