NicoleLebreux Early Spring 2011 Collection

I'm sure that you all enjoyed the fantastically fun behind the scenes video that Caitlin and Jeff made of our recent Spring 2011 photo shoot, and now I'm here to share with you the photos! Kaitlin Coleman was the photographer and did an excellent job executing the bright colors on gray background shoot idea that I had. To keep with the all are loved and welcome fidget finds aesthetic I chose to use real women as my models. Granted they are all my close friends, many of whom I have know since childhood, but they all embrace the positive attitude and enjoying life feel that I want my clothing to have. Everyone did their own hair and makeup and the photos were not touched up at all to hide blemishes or to make the girls appear thinner because all shapes and sizes are loved here and all the girls are absolutely stunning JUST THE WAY THEY ARE!! Here are a few of my favorite photos but please be sure to check out my new website where you'll see many more (warning: it is still very much under construction!) I will begin to list items in my etsy shop in the next week and of course I will keep you updated on local markets where you can purchase items in person. So exciting!!







A big thank you to Kait for the photos, my intern/partner in fashion Melanie who thankfully took the lead with styling for the shoot, and Chantal for pitching in and doing a lot of sewing in the days leading up to it. And of course my models and muses, Renee, Caitlin, Julie, Lily, Maya, Andi, and Mae.

Feature in The Bay Magazine! (the unedited edition)

Make sure you check out the April edition of The Bay Magazine to see a profile piece about FidgetFinds and the debut of my new collection of original apparel labeled under my name, Nicole Lebreux. It's just so very exciting to see your picture in the paper! Here is the unedited version of the interview that I wrote for the paper:

-Tells us about your vintage clothing online store and blog.
Fidget Finds started in the fall of 2007 and has taken on many forms including a brick and mortar in Newport and is currently an online shop on etsy.com. My work is a collection of interesting, unique, and wearable vintage items that embody having fun, enjoying every moment, and bright sunny days. The blog is an outlet for me to share current inspirations, photography, and a way keep my customers up to date with Fidget happenings.

- When and how did you become interested in vintage clothing?
My love of vintage walks hand in hand with my taste for thrift shopping and finding lost treasures. I started scouring the racks at the local church thrift when I was in elementary school to add to my collection of “dress-up clothing” for various plays and dance recitals in my living room. My interest became more developed in high school with my distaste for mass produced clothing and in looking like everyone else. Vintage, thrift, and my own hand made creations enabled me to express myself and embrace being unique.

- What inspired you to start your own clothing business?
I don’t ever remember a time when I didn’t want to be an entrepreneur or design clothing. “Fidget” was actually the name of a tee shirt collection that I designed in sixth grade. My mom used to make my sister and I outfits for special occasions, making the sewing machine available for me to take full advantage of. I also took lots of sewing and art classes in high school and attended F.I.T. to gain a degree in fashion design. After working the industry in NYC for a while I decided that I had too many qualms with traditional clothing manufacturing and I also needed to be closer to nature. I moved back to RI and it was a natural progression from there.

- We heard you are finally starting your own line! Can you tell us what is in store?
I am so excited about the collection of original apparel I am working on under an eponymous label! It is a collection of about 20 different styles ranging from high waisted maxi skirts, knit rompers, and boxy crop tops. I make all of my pieces out of brightly colored and printed recycled fabrics, mostly vintage but also including mill surplus. I will be selling my garments on etsy.com as well as in local markets and trunk shows over the summer. My designs are certainly vintage inspired but more in the sense that they’re classic and timeless.

- Who is your favorite designer?
I actually don’t have one, although I fully respect the collection of ideas that other contemporary designers show and am frequently inspired by them. I have always favored looks and conceptions over labels and trends. If you want to go back and speak to the creators of modern women’s wear then the list is long and includes Claire McCardell for her contributions toward comfort, function and fit, Elsa Schiaparelli for her smart Surrealist aesthetic, and Madeleine Vionnet for shaping clothing to a woman’s body.

- What would you tell someone who has never shopped at a vintage store?
First of all, don’t be scared! I always suggest to vintage newcomers just to pick one or two pieces of clothing or jewelry that catch their eye and to work those pieces into their existing wardrobe. Inevitably this leads to loads of compliments on the item and the want for more unique articles with a story in their closet. Collections can grow pretty quickly from there!

- What is considered a “good find” when shopping for vintage clothes?
Something that speaks to you, something that makes you gasp when you first see or touch it, something that makes you happy and proud to wear. Add a good price and a great fit and you’ve got yourself your new favorite wearable item.

Photograph by Amy Amerantes

Nicole Lebreux Original Apparel Coming Soon!

Nicole Lebreux - Spring/Summer 2011 from Caitlin on Vimeo.

Ahhh!! Don't you love it! Caitlin and Jeff put together this little sneak peak after filming during the spring collection photoshoot that took place last week. I can't wait to see the photos that Kait took and stay tuned for the featured garments to make their debut on etsy in a few weeks!

Credits:
Clothing: Nicole Lebreux (yours truly!)
Photography: Kaitlin Coleman
Styling: Melanie Silva and Chantal Gallipeau
Models: Renee Lebreux, Andi Flax, Caitlin Luderer, Mae Drapeau, Maya Tavares, Julie Normandin, Lily Drapeau, Chantal Gallipeau, Nicole Lebreux
Jewelry/Accessories: FidgetFinds

Style Experiment: Vintage Red Polyester Boxy Top

I've been really bored with getting dressed lately. I feel like I have nothing to wear, even though my closet is overflowing and I have the inventory of an entire vintage shop to play with. However, I've owned most of the items in my wardrobe for many years and after a while they start to feel old (no pun intended as most of my clothing is vintage and thrifted, but-um-bump). Honestly, I don't have much occasion to actually get dressed. I work from home in my pj's for the most part and whenever I leave the house for errands or gatherings at friend's homes I usually dress to be warm first and stylish second. Thus "Style Experiment" was born. I hope you enjoy this newest addition to our blog post family!

THE IDEA: I usually only wear knit tops. Due to my curvy and busty figure (just sayin', not complaining) traditional woven styles either don't fit, look too matronly, or make me look a few sizes larger in the midsection than I actually am. Button ups or secretary blouses, forget it, I look ridiculous! This usually isn't too much of a problem as I have many knit tops to fill in the blanks (see here, here, and here for example). However after seeing other fashion bloggers looking totally cute in woven tops I decided to give it another try. On my weekly thrift store hunt last week I spent extra time in the "Blouse" section scoping out shirts that might work for me. Here's what I came up with...

THE SUBJECT: This vintage "Lucky Me" super big and boxy bright red polyester top.




THE HYPOTHESIS: If I style a boxy woven blouse correctly for my body type than I can totally pull off wearing items that are outside my comfort zone.

THE EXPERIMENT: Style this top in different ways that are practical for wear and can be used for other similar style shirts.

Style A: Loose with fitted jeans and a bold necklace. I wore a fitted tank underneath the red top to elongate my torso a bit and take attention away from my widest part; my hips. It also was a good color contrast and showed my slimmer torso under the baggy top. These jeans were great because they were fitted in my thigh, you don't want to wear a loose top with loose pants. The flat red top proved to be a great backdrop for this enormous vintage necklace and vice versa, the necklace broke up the mass of solid color. The heels because I haven't had a chance to shorten these jeans yet, and of course the added height. The black socks to contrast against the gold and to keep my toes warm!




Tank: Express, Jeans: Joe's Jeans from the Swap (with $200 price tag still attached!), Shoes: Steve Madden, Jewelry: Vintage

Style B: Tucked in to a mini skirt. If you have an hourglass figure, the best advice in the book is to showcase your smallest part, your waist! By tucking this top into the skirt and wearing the skirt around my natural waist (smallest circumference of my torso) the baggy shirt and slightly puffy skirt don't make me look huge, if anything it makes my waist look even smaller. The other great part about wearing puffy skirts around your natural waist; no more sucking in your gut! This is also another trick of proportions. The short skirt hides the biggest part of my body while showcasing my fit legs (all those yoga warrior poses aren't for nothing!) I also just love the color combination of this outfit; the taupe and red go great together and the black tights and brown boots only make it more interesting.




Skirt: Altered vintage (I made it much shorter), Tights: Express, Boots: Vintage, Jewelry: Vintage

Style C: Belted over a pencil skirt. This style is similar to Style B in the sense that it is using the same principle of showcasing your smallest area. Rather than tucking the shirt into the skirt I wore it outside and with a belt to show my waist. I think it's really beautiful to see the gathers of the top go in and puff out below the belt to form a great little peplum. The chunky texture of the skirt also is a great contrast to the silkiness of the top. And as far as colors go, you can't get more classic than red, black, and gray. Tall boots would have covered up too much leg (remember, thin near thick) so I opted for some nude pumps which also look great near the black tights.




Skirt: TJ Maxx, Belt: Vintage, Pumps: Vintage, Jewelry: Vintage

THE CONCLUSION: Success! I love this shirt! I think it looks great in all of the above stylings. When I first began this experiment I thought it was going to be a epic failure or total success and I'm so glad it was the latter. It goes to show that no matter what the wearable item, if you style it properly for your body type it can definitely work. I stepped outside my fashion comfort zone and in return found a new wardrobe staple. I am now so excited to try out more items that in the past I have been afraid of or confused about how to wear. I can't wait for next weeks Style Experiment!

Stay tuned for tomorrow's Over the Weekend Post about holiday decorating and cookies!

Silly Girl

What a beautiful fall day! So beautiful in fact I decided to venture to an unknown territory... a location photoshoot! And man, what a disaster! There are so many bloggers that I admire who take such wonderful photos of themselves in different locations everyday, Orchid Gray, Jen Loves Kev, Sally Jane Vintage, and Gary Pepper Vintage are some of my favorites. I know some of them have incredibly talented photographer boyfriends, but still. They always look so poised and professional and of course their outfits are just fantastic. Honestly, it takes a lot of effort on my part to even get dressed on days where I'll just be sitting in front of the computer and/or sewing machine. So today I said enough is enough! I'm going to contribute my styling abilities to the fashion blogging community instead of just showing my amazing vintage finds. I removed myself from my studio, took a shower (before noon? amazing!), and planned an outfit around this incredible vintage embroidered skirt that I thrifted in the summer. New sweater tights? check. Newly re-heeled leather vintage pumps? check. Grab my tripod and camera and out the door I go! Bristol, and Rhode Island in general, is teeming with perfect photo locations. This town is stock full of old Victorian houses, accessible waterfront, and this time of year trees (and the ground) full of bright yellow leaves. My locations were ripe for the picking. I went down to Independence Park and luckily there weren't too many people around. I set up my tripod and got ready to shoot. But wait, every few seconds the sun is out and then it hides behind a cloud and I simply just can't get myself together with all this wind! My hair was completely all over the place as was my scarf and skirt. Not good. I took about 40 pictures and only a few were slightly usable. Okay, this isn't going to work, so where to next? I remembered the wooden fence in my backyard and of course the yellow leaves and figured I'd give that a try. While a slightly more amenable location, the light and shadows weren't right and my heels were completely sinking into the mud and getting dark splotches from the wet leaves. I still took a few shots (I want you to see my outfit, remember?) I even tried some pensive straight faced shots but frankly, I think I look kinds silly when I'm not smiling. Fashion is supposed to fun, isn't it? Anyways, outdoor location photoshoot today = epic fail. It doesn't mean I won't try again, in fact I definitely will but with even more admiration for the gals that do this multiple times a week. My hat's off to you gals, you make it look so easy!

So back to this darn outfit that I went through so much trouble for. Sweater and tank from TJ Maxx, thrifted vintage skirt, gray sweater tights from Target, thrifted leather pumps, yard saled vintage Etienne Aigner leather purse, wooden bangles from street vendor in NYC, wooden ring from a hippie shop in Savannah, GA, and hand dyed scarf from Abigail and Magnolia's in Tiverton, RI. Phew!

So here they are: waterfront disaster photos!

There goes my hair,

and my scarf, and finally the sun.

Some that aren't so bad, the wind even worked with me for the last one! (I kinda love it actually)



Mediocre backyard photos, not a total disaster but not so great either.



Close-up photos which you can't really go wrong on.




And finally, some close up face shots, these I might not attempt again!


So now I'll hope you'll excuse me while I go put my pajamas and slippers back on.

Caitlin and Jeff's Wedding

As previously mentioned, two of my best friends got married at the end of August, and they finally have some photos to share. It was one of the best nights ever, as you can see by the constant smiling in the photos. Here are a few of my favorites, I know there's a lot but I just couldn't cut it down any more!




















All photos taken by Joshua Behan Photography.