dork-o-rama

We were having a little too much fun at Sarah Giffrow Creative last week. It was product shot time, and Cheryl and I were running a muck before and during the shoot.

First off we got waaaaaaaaaay too excited about the new window space and were trying out our mannequin poses. (ya know, in cause either of us ever have to quit our day jobs)

 I thought I had a straight face until I saw this big. What you are missing is Rita popping out the door to the left.

Then we came to the realization that I am super short, and Cheryl is super tall. So we did this quick pose Twins style. (I'm Danny Devito)

One of my favorite things

Is seeing people wearing the dresses I make. Really. It will never ever get old. Here is one of my friend Annick wearing the Ascot dress. She's adorable, and she has a REAL LIVE unicorn.

Send me photos if you wearing my goodies. xo

S/S '13 Teaser!

You know you have some REALLY good pals if they will do an outdoor photo shoot with you in December in Oregon at night, and in spring dresses.

I just got the teaser from Sarah Giffrow. I may pee my pants when I see the rest of them.

lookbook photoshooting

Damn it, Sarah Giffrow gave me too many good pictures again. (below are my crappy cell camera photos)

Her, Cheryl, and I shot all the images for the SP/SM'13 lookbook this week in her studio. I'm kind of in love with the pink background.

 And no day would be complete without hanging out with Max in the hammock. His grumpy little old man self loves to hop on in whenever I'm on it. We watched the meteor shower together last weekend.

Extra studio helper

Bonnie is supervising cut in the studio today. (Keely just sprung her out of "jail" yesterday)

Party! Party! Party!

It's been a week, and I'm still celebrating that it's been 5 years in business. Not only for me, but Union Rose!

They have a party going Saturday night. I'll be there for sure. 25% off the ENTIRE store, plus wear something you bought there and get an additional 10% off.

Union Rose 5th Party 

Also, in party news, here are all the photo booth images from last week at the Fez. If you were there here is the link
http://sarahgcreative.exposuremanager.com/g/clair_5th_anniversary_party

And here are some of my favorites. Thanks again for all the love and support, and here's to the next 5!

Portland Monthly Magainze: Spring Fashion 2012

So like I've said, I'm not really sure where the first five months of the year went. I've been crazy busy, but the majority has been fun.

One of the many things I neglected to post about was being on the April 2012 Portland Monthly Magazine.

Here's a cute video about the shoot itself.

I'm lucky that I know the photographer, Brenden Coughlin, who's also my neighbor in my studio building.  So I have the hook up with nice fancy photo, aka, not the one my Dad took with his cell phone of the spread.

 And here's after color up, courtesy of Google Image Search.

 I think this ranks as #2 most exciting thing about making clothes. #1 most exciting thing is seeing people I don't know wearing something from my line. That will never ever get old.

I'm teaching a class on knits!

Yup, that's right.
Sewing a simple knit top with Alyson Clair

Saturday May 5th, at the Beaverton Mill End Store.  Space is limited so make sure to register if you'd like to attend. I'm also encouraging anyone attending the class to please  bring me your nastiest knit problems and we can trouble shoot them together.

Spring/Summer 2012

It's been much too long since I last posted on here. It's because I've been so busy with making Spring and Summer dresses, along with sampling out all my Fall and Winter dresses.  I have my very first trade show coming up, and I'm nervous. Fingers crossed some new stores like my dresses.
Anyway, here are the images from my last shoot. I wanted to pick a fun location, and also share a great community resource - The Community Warehouse. They are a non-profit in Portland that collects furniture and household items and distributes them to people in need. Those people include women escaping domestic violence, the elderly, people with mental and physical disabilities, refugee families, youth and adults recovering from substance abuse, and the working poor. They get their donations from people like you and me, and area businesses. I think what they do is pretty amazing. I first came into contact with The Community Warehouse when they were in their last location, a few blocks from my studio space. Along with being a wonderful resource to the community, they also raise funds from their Estate Store. Being an avid thrift store addict, the proximity to my studio was not always a good thing for my wallet. If you are in the Portland area, please consider donating to this organization or stopping by the Estate Store. It's one of my favorite places to shop, and I know it's helping out my community.

Clair Fall/Winter 2011 - Model : Seyta Selter

Seyta and I met over a patternmaking table in 2003. We've been pals ever since, though at times we don't see each other more than a few times a year. (very sadly). Seyta is the Lady of Duchess Clothier. When she first opened her business in 2005, I was lucky enough to do my internship there helping her get the store open. (most fun). That was back when she made dresses and before the suits. Those days have long passed, and she once again has a store front, both in Portland and San Francisco. Last year I actually found one of her dresses at the Goodwill from my internship days. I may have gotten a little shrieky about it, but I brought it home and returned it to Setya. You should check out her showroom, regardless if you are in the market for a new suit or not, it's lovely.

Clair Fall/Winter 2011 - model : Alaina Mickes

Paper, Flour, Water is the artwork of the lovely Alaina Mickes. She creates wearable art, piñatas, and fun interior décor. Her most used medium is papier mâché, and she is also a talented painter and mixed media artist. She also does custom work, some of my favorites are her animal piñatas. Seen here on display at For Paws PDX. (both of whom generously donated to the Newberg Animal Shelter Friends fundraiser thanks ladies!!) I had such a hard time picking a photo of Alaina because she's too adorable. Please make sure to check her out at Crafty Wonderland this holiday season.

Weekend of Trunk Shows!

I've got a busy weekend ahead of me! At the same time I'm super excited to have all my goodies from this season on display, and see people try them on.

So if you are in Portland please come see me Friday night (10/7) at Union Rose with Seaworthy.
And if you are in Seattle please come see me Saturday night (10/8) at Veloura with Nikki Jacoby.