If any of you are like me, you have a nice stash of crafty supplies and half started projects around the house collecting dust. Thanks to two separate venues around town, now is your chance to trade ‘em in for something you might actually use, or at least donate them to great non-profits selected by the hosts.

The first swap takes place at The 100th Monkey Studio (110 SE 16th Ave) on Saturday (4/19) from 1-4pm. Here are the deets:

Bring art materials that have been collecting dust around the house and trade them for some new inspiration! Please bring any art or craft materials that you aren’t using anymore. We’re open to pretty much everything paints, (clean) fabrics, yarn, beads, buttons, pens and pencils & paper.

The only stuff we’re not looking for are those random cast-off things you’ve been hanging onto in case that perfect project comes along. You know … those paper-towel tubes and items that would be better off in the recycle bin.

There is no admission fee for this event. We do ask that you bring something to swap. We are not placing limits on what people take, but we hope everyone will respect that this is a community event,
and leave plenty for everyone else.

Left over materials will be donated to three non-profit agencies.

The second swap is on Sunday (4/20) at Union Rose (2023 NE MLK) from 1-2:30pm. Here’s what Union Rose has to say about their event:

We’re celebrating Earth Day with a good old-fashioned Craft Swap!
This is your chance to trade that project you never completed
for something new and exciting.
If you’ve never swapped before, you’ll love it!

Bring your supplies to Union Rose -
yarn, fabric, notions, beads, paper crafts, needlework - you get the idea.
(This is a swap of supplies only, not finished projects.)
Any leftovers will go to SCRAP, a place near and dear to our hearts.
Re-craft, Re-use, Re-cycle!

As mentioned previously here, Foundation Garments is having a spring preview party this evening (5-8 pm), and their colleagues on the Alberta strip have decided to join them IDOM, Digs, Frock, Garnish, Donna & Toots, and Mabel and Zora are jumping into the fray too, with treats and deals all around. Sounds like a nice, shoppy way to kick off the weekend…

(IDOM outfits photographed by the rad-tastical Minh Tran!)

Someone said it’s going to snow this weekend? Whatever. Nonetheless, Foundation Garments is celebrating everything new in the store, including an expanded menswear section that allows them to lay claim to having the largest selection of men’s clothing in NE. There’ll be treats from Voodoo Doughnut, 15% off storewide, and with a purchase of $25 or more you’ll get a tote bag screenprinted with their cement truck logo.

A pair of men’s jeans from Montreal’s Paul Graham.

This month’s “Thursday Nightie” at Oh Baby (722 NW 23rd) explores “the misconception that black lingerie is indicative of deviant and aggressive sexuality while white lingerie signifies sexual purity.” Attendees are encouraged to dress according to their own black/white/virgin/whore dynamic, and models will be on hand (wearing masks!) to demonstrate the naughty niceness of all lingerie.

Mind you, this is not tonight! This should be your fashion outing this evening. But with Portland’s crowded fashion calendar, I thought you all could use a heads up for next Thursday, the 24th, 7-9 pm. Plug it into ye olde iCal.

I’ve just come back from a long, pleasant chat with May Tee, a locally based apparel designer about to launch her first collection, Soft Sculptures, for Fall, this Saturday with a trunk show at Mario’s downtown from 10 am-5 pm. There you can view the 10-piece collection (two blouses in silk crepe; two jackets, one pair of pants, two skirts, and three dresses in silk lined wool jersey), get sized, and pre-order, with shipments expected to arrive in late summer, with plenty of time left to anticipate the weather getting cold enough to debut them in your wardrobe (is there any other reason than fall fashion to anticipate cold weather?).

The pieces, in a word, are impeccable, despite that this is really career #2 for the designer, whose background is in computer science and engineering (though that includes a stint as a system analyst for Prada). Nonetheless, she went back to school for design, and has been a student at both Parson’s and Central St Martins. She’s worked both as an intern for Missoni and at Intel in Hillsboro, but these days you’ll find her as a sales associate at Mario’s, a perfect incubating environment for a designer in the process of refining her look and taste.

The emphasis in the pieces is clearly simplicity, and ease of wear. Being able to dress efficiently, with strong pieces that quickly ready you to walk out the door, are a clear priority. They can be effortlessly dressed up or down, are almost entirely ageless (take this gray dress:

Some leggings and flats, and a 15-year-old could wear it. Add a strong necklace and it-shoes, and it’s edgy enough for a fashion forward twenty or thirtysomething, and with a blazer and pumps it would not look amiss on a woman of 60 or more.), and each piece is rendered in a natural fabric that travels well—wrinkles fall out overnight on a hanger.

May Tee’s primary design muse is Isamu Noguchi the sculptor, particularly his stone pieces, and their concepts of smooth angularity blended with occasional texture. Very architecturally motivated, she prioritizes shape over patterns (so much for that stint at Missoni!), eschews florals and frothiness, and opts for a very clean, almost masculine aesthetic.

Though most of her direct influences are found in the fine art world, she also name drops Prada, Issey Miyake and Yohji Yamamoto (she points to her Malaysian origin as a possible explanation for being inclined toward the designs of fellow Asians), and Marni as designers with whom she feels a particular affinity.

I’m putting (at least) one of May Tee’s dresses on my personal must-have list (okay, wish list) for Fall, and I highly recommend attending her Saturday event, even if just to meet the best Portland designer you’ve never heard of before.

You’re done with your taxes: good job. You deserve a present, and you’ll find it at Una (2802 SE Ankeny), where they’re offering 15% off all clothing and jewelry through the 20th!

Hard to believe that just a year ago this town was without the lovely indie underthings supplied to us by Lille Boutique, but it has. They’re celebrating the 1st birthday of the store next Friday, April 25th (space is limited, so rsvp to info@lilleboutique.com to get a spot), with a fashion show of spring/summer ‘08 lingerie and swimwear styles. Plus, there will be music by DJ Linger, panty giveaways (!) and more.

The Rebel Rabbit Craft Fair is making its move to monthly, with events every fourth Sunday beginning in May (April’s edition goes down this coming Sunday, the 20th), at Hipbone Studio (1847 E Burnside). Look for all manor of creative crafts, like this oddly compelling “garden sphere” from Tah-Dah made from a bowling ball and marbles.

As some of you may now, the Mercury’s Spring Fashion Issue in coming out later this week, which features the 12 lines of locally designed clothing that will be showcase at our 4th Annual Fashion Show: “Installations”, taking place this coming Sunday at the Wonder Ballroom. (You can get tickets to the event, which also features live music from Tu Fawning, turntablism from DJ Beyonda, and visuals from E*Rock through Ticketmaster and at the Ballrooms box office.) To commemorate the issue and event, our kickass new-ish art director Mark Searcy made me this fancy, pretty new toy. Check it out for more information on the show and featured participants, plus even more content that will be added once the paper issue hits the streets. This is not the last you’ll see of our micro-sites, either…

This Thursday, Mink (3418 SE Hawthorne) celebrates their one-year anniversary with champagne and snacks, plus 15% off all dresses, and free giveaways. Stop by to say hi, and check out the new space if you haven’t already.

I’ve always been sort of curious about CRAVE, which throws these crazy shopping parties with, like, spa treatments and fashion shows. I’ve never been to one (they seem kind of expensive—you have to buy a ticket, and then pay more to buy the stuff—and I get a weird suburban cougar potential vibe), but their upcoming CRAVE Party Spring Market is intriguing me (plus it’s on my birthday):

It features over 50 vendors (designers, spas, boutiques) selling samples, services, food, etc at reduced rates, and networking. It actually has a “Connection Café” hosted by local networking groups… weird. Anyhow, there’s a “Bloom for a Bargain section of fashion, beauty and fitness tips on how to “bloom like a rose on a carnation budget” spa treatment samples (yay), manicures, makeup, and massage. It happens on June 1st at Staver Locomotive (2537 NW 29th) from 11 am-4 pm, $15-20.

So, okay, this could get really cheesy really fast, or it could be awesome. Has anyone been? Is it worth going? (And I can expense my ticket, right?)