a poem

Missed Connections

I liked your long post about no one missing you and would like to talk to you, yes I'm far away,

yes this is a little weird, but you seem a “kindred spirit”.

Every week I check this damn thing

to see if anyone in this city of millions

has missed me. What gives?

I ride the train no less than twice a day,

five or more days a week.

I'm pressed against some of you

in the commute.

Haven't any of you women missed me?

I go to the park.

I shop at places.

I walk around.

wear shoes.

I have ear phones.

I drink stuff.

Start missing me already, goddamnit.

I am very easy to miss.

Monday:

Go to work after the weekend.

Try not to sweat in the sweltering

humidity of the subway.

No one misses a sweater.

Listen to music to drown

out the reality of being stuck

in the train with a million strangers;

avoid eye contact at all cost.

Bullshit about the weekend with the coworkers.

Get caught up on Craigs List.

Tuesday:

Go to work.

Eat at one of same four places around work.

Walk around a little during lunch,

hoping to bump into someone new.

Trick my way home early.

Contact friends to make plans for the weekend.

Check Craigs List.

Wednesday:

Go to work.

Spend most of lunch break wandering around trying

to find someplace new to eat.

Realize nothing of interest has been built since I checked last week.

End up eating at one of four usual places.

Try taking a different route home.

This time try to make eye contact with as many strangers

as I can.

Thursday:

Go to work.

Lunch hour I run errands,

return library material,

get money from the bank,

and call up friends to reconfirm plans.

In stores I walk up and down each aisle

to make doubly sure everyone has had a chance to miss me.

Get home and get frustrated.

Friday:

Go to work.

Spend all day waiting for work to end.

Take smoking break.

Look for smokers to miss.

Get out of work.

Forget all about Craigs List.

Find friends.

See more strangers in one night

than rest of week combined.

Stumble home at ungodly hour.

Saturday:

Wake up at some point.

Roll over to the park.

Maybe check out a museum.

Try to look deep and lost in thought.

Feel envious of all the people missing others right before my eyes.

Try to forget or become crushed by laziness or the ennui of it all.

Look up ennui in dictionary.

Sunday: Fuck it. I'm sleeping in. I'm doing laundry. I'm ordering take-out. I'm not leaving the

damn house. You've had your chances all week. I'm taking a me day. I'm reading a book. And by

reading, I mean surfing the internet; whereas by book, I mean porn. Knock myself out with the

usual roofie-colada, wine + sleeping pill, so I can wake up in the morning and pack myself into

an overcrowded train to get to work and check Craigs List.

Fucking miss me already. I can't do this forever.

love

The Seamstress

this is for all the people who walk in to The Factory and ask me if

i'm the seamstress they have been hearing about. HA

a film by my Friend/roommate/road trip buddy

Sarah Sitzler

shot in our Brooklyn dwelling this past Fall 2010

prettyslick

http://www.prettyslickthemovie.com/index.html

a film one of my family members did about the BP oil spill.

WARNING it's really fucked up

a few things i made

on sale at The Factory

THE FACTORY

totally awesome.

right now i am floating. i now work for Portland's coolest shop located on Alberta Street.

The Factory

Here i sit sewing almost every day of the week, de-constucting then re-creating one of a kind fashions from pre-existing clothes. how perfect.

come in and check out what we are doing! every inch of the store is eco-friendly and super hip. duh. not only do we sell affordable vintage but I offer personal one on one design services. essentially it's funky, affordable, eco-conscious couture.

if you don't believe me read the articles about the shop and about my designs!

http://portland.citypicksgroup.com/

http://www.msmspdx.com/2011/09/06/ms-ms-lookbook-the-factory/

and theres more to come!

see you in the shop.

yes.

PORTLAND

updates....====

......-.....-........got a job. more like two.

one is better than the other -_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

living with my home girlz M and S

SKETCHING A TON

It took me this long to write

new york-oregon

often we have to actually be in the situation to experience it and decide what to do. in that sense, living is the ultimate creative experience. we are often surprised and amazed by how strong we actually are, and we come away feeling that we have a lot of resourcefulness and will show strength of character that we never knew we had.

i chose not to post pictures of my travels, what i saw is what i saw.

change

its road trip time.
i don't know what I'm doing or where I'm going

YAHOOO

"Congratulations!! You have been chosen by your faculty and the head
of your department to represent the program.

Your thesis project has been selected to be featured in a special
thesis work package that is being developed by the university for
promotional purposes.

Your participation in this process is completely optional, however it
presents a valuable opportunity to promote your work to: press, alumni,
prospective employers, and the broader art and design community."

-Parsons to me

been up all night

Ellen Yoon

Open publication - Free publishing - More fashion

school

lets go back

THESIS 2011

My thesis is about continuation. The clothing I create is the integration of introspection, awareness, and practicality. This explanation aligns with the thought and material processes I have developed since I began making. Through production I have found joy and have gained a more profound self-awareness and heightened sense of what is meaningful in my life—connection, community, history, and identity. The clothing I make reflects my identity and sense of purpose as well as the meditative practice of handwork.

The first question I asked was how can my clothing speak to the self-aware woman, one who views her outward appearance as a momentary expression of self?

I followed up by asking these simple questions of my work “who, what, where, why, and how” in terms of my clothes-making practice. While remaining conscious of my personal meditative connection —introspection and awareness—I progressed by making the connecting leap between female awareness and practicality. After much research on the history of the “who, what, where, why, and how” in American women’s wear, my clothing became more approachable in material and form for my definition of the modern American woman, wearable for those who are actively participating in everyday life, progressive in their longevity, and transformative by allowing the freedom to embrace momentary change.

It is important to acknowledge the lack of beginning or end, by doing so you can only acknowledge the process, which is the present moment.

I have great respect for the materials I work with, they are salvaged denim from used jeans (durability, practicality, material history and history of being reworked), organic wools spun and dyed in Maine (color, practicality and community connection) and silk (color and history of femininity). My methods of construction derive from traditional womens’ domestic craft: dyeing, hand and machine sewing, hand and machine knitting, felting, patch working and rug braiding. My nearly waste-less production methods, importantly the reworking the common pair of jeans- are intended to produce designs that allow for its own evolution with its wearer.

I work in groups in order to encourage creative community and to invite practitioners to slow down and live in the moment. To keep a deeper personal connection to my work, I give myself time for self-reflection by working alone (which is expressed in my detailed hand stitching).

My work is the expression of the tumultuous present and the feminine power of the modern American woman who is constantly moving forward. My designs may not be perfect, but nothing human ever is.

I have developed a business plan for a store front and small line that will be based off this system of production. It will solidify my approach of awareness through community with local production, residency programs, local artist contributions, collaborations with local schools, and the teaching of traditional crafts though workshops.

Here are some film stills from a fashion film I collaborated on with Sarah Sitzler. Six out of eight looks are presented.

craft

0:36:00

politics-"something about love"

RAIN

working

working
photos by Colleen Schaffer

big daddy kane

The moral of the story is
The majority of the population of males and females today
Are just no damn good

Resume

Artist Statement 2011

dreamboat.

rock hudson

Mustard

in spring 2009, myself and four other parsons students
created Mustard, a small pop-up fashion business and zine.
we had two clothing sales events, taking place at school
and in Brooklyn's, Artists & Fleas Designer Market.
there were six different issues of our zine, and we each
designed out own collections. our zines were read and our
clothes were bought. however, though we were a huge
success, we did not continue as a business.

here is our long forgotten blog. http://mustardmag.blogspot.com/

below are some images from our fliers, first sales event,
zine and of my collection for Mustard.





*all garments by alexastark in image above are sold- except the black dress
*some garments in collection were not photographed and are sold

see clearly

some photographs
i took.
black and white
35mm

untitled. 2006


in my lap. 2007


girl in plastic. 2005

being mentioned

there are a few
bad ass blogs
that have
posted my work.

thanks.

showing my process of making:
http://colleenschaffer.blogspot.com/

client captured at party wearing:
http://www.popbopandsnap.com/search?updated-max=2010-09-14T11%3A16%3A00-04%3A00&max-results=7

fall 2010 fashion week show:
http://fashionatnightwood.blogspot.com/

2009 parsons:
http://www.nativefunkandflash.com/search/label/%28UN%29FASHION

jefferson lewis

check it..
http://jeffersonlewis.bandcamp.com/

she's a zombie

two look collection - she's a zombie
hand sewn
materials from pre-existing garments
silks, leather and velvet
2008
*black silk and gold leather dress sold

parsons sophmore 2008

first semester
assignment:
make
one
outfit a week.

theres room at the top

about that.
related to my thesis work.

com-maine history-munist

"A spokeswoman said Mr. LePage, a Republican, ordered the mural removed after several business officials complained about it and after the governor received an anonymous fax saying it was reminiscent of “communist North Korea where they use these murals to brainwash the masses.” " - http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/24/us/24lepage.html?_r=1&ref=us

brainwashing, really? it's our history.
why are people so fearful of the honoring
of our past? this country wasn't just born
in the advance industrial age. the jumpsuit
that kid is sporting, that alone defines the
working men and women of americas
past. to move the mural to a museum
destroys its value, it should be seen by
everyone because of its educational worth.

vionnet

two images that i often refer to when
i am designing. vionnet designed for
woman, not for the spectacle of high
society. she boldly embraced simplicity
and stayed true to the body. she designed
and made with care.

.this book. http://www.amazon.com/Madeleine-Vionnet-Pamela-Golbin/dp/0847832783

slit vase

stoneware.
2006

fifty seconds

nude
2006

Lenore Tawney

" Back in Chicago in 1957, she packed a few possessions into a car and drove to New York City. “I left Chicago,” she later wrote, “to seek a barer life, closer to reality, without all the things that clutter and fill our lives. The truest thing in my life was my work. I wanted my life to be as true. I almost gave up my life for my work, seeking a life of the spirit.” "

-http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/28/arts/28tawney.html


yeah man.

also, http://www.americancraftmag.org/article.php?id=1151

blind begining

my first post
an early work
2006