The Hot Pursuit of Summer

Summer. It burns for you. Like the road to Hell. I hope your karmic credit is in good standing!

Ah how I long for thee Dear Summer! I can’t wait until I’m bitching about how hot it is, how much I hate sweating all the time, and that i can’t wait for Fall when it’s cooler. 😀 The Vestival of Vests Summer Edition was both a pleasure and a challenge to pull off – the easiest part was picking which vest. Red, of course! After that? Ahhh, it was…

Always on the Highway to Hell, thank the Heavens I got the Commute Rail pass! 😀

Ha! That it wasn’t, but I couldn’t pass up on the terrible pun involved. So Summer makes me a bit nerd giddy because it also has a tarot card on above the right breast pocket, a symbol on the cowl, and a movie ticket as the name placard on the left breast pocket – just like Spring. The color schemes worked together so well, I was stunned they weren’t sold this way. All the abovementioned patches are from Hot Topic, as well as the vest itself!

A hazy, heavy, looming Death, isn’t it? SHEESH.

Oh Louise; you are my totem Love, do you know that?

The progression of the vest is what really brought it all together; originally it was going to be about Hell and nod into that but then as things worked out for patch options, I was able to sharpen it and give it deeper value. I wanted to draw a firm line between Summer and Fall on their themes, though both deal with Death, I wanted Summer to be about DAMNATION and Fall to be about… Other options than the great beyond. IE, didn’t get either ticket per se. 😉 Sidestepping an Abraham religion nod directly, I went more with a … Karmic debt angle that is more universal.

I couldn’t pass up the option to bring up my favorite Vengeance demon, ANYA!!!

As Saint Wheaton puts it, “Don’t be a Dick!”

Anyone else suddenly want to listen to Squirrel Nut Zippers?

“If you did something to bring me to your door, you had to know I was coming” – Gross Pointe Blank, Mr. Blank himself.

The addition of the ‘Bee Kind’ and naturally, the Devil Mask from the BEISTLE Collection at Creepy Co, it brought things towards the right directly. Be an Asshole, and be drug to Hell. Ah now it was really coming along. I had a few stray patches in my collection that didn’t have homes and I kept trying to put them somewhere, ANYWHERE but I couldn’t find the right application and didn’t want to force it. That’s because apparently I was waiting on discovering the “Welcome to my Dead Talk” from Hot Topic and suddenly I had my own little 3 cell message for my back panel:

I mean, that’s what happens when you are a dick – you get fiery, terrible shaft… Straight to Hell.

The last piece was a loose acquisition that only drove home the point and made the back that much more interesting. I was already pretty content with how it turned out; a solid consistent theme so I didn’t want to blur or shift it. But when this bastard comes a-calling, you hear him out. And if there was ever a guy who drug people to Hell, or shacked them really…

I can almost feel his hot breath on my neck, asking if I have been a good lad or a TERRIBLE ONE.

Ah Krampus!!! One of my favorite Yuletide deities. I loved the book by Brom regarding Krampus and it brought me that much close to the mythology and a new personal divine creature to revere. He was the perfect addition to the vest and his placement only makes it that much more… Sly as you really don’t know you have upset until you are upside down and looking at his back, right before he thrashes you firmly with his rods and puts you in his sack of mischief.

The back in all it’s glory!! I may just leave this be – but who knows what I might find on my journeys!!

Fun Fact – In case you are of the Philly geographic region and thought you saw me once wear this vest at a party, you aren’t confused! It was originally purchased as a part of a costume as ‘Logan Berry Bush’ from Bob’s Burgers. My lovely wife went as an older Louise for Halloween and we ‘friend fic shipped them’ as romantic partners after Louise got out of High School. He always loved Louise’s Bunny Ears so she bought him a pair of Fox Ears and here’s the result of that narrative!! Drink in hand and being my normal, awkward self!!

As you can see, Logan is a bit of an, ah, ass, when he first meets Louise.

Alright, that’s it folks!! I hope you enjoy the jacket and I will post Fall next week!! CHEERS!!!

The Verdant Madness of Spring

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Spring’s Vest brings it’s own vibrant presence, with a Wheel of Fortune and a ticket to the Shit how. Lucky you.

With Winter being so elegant, still, and unnerving, Spring comes bounding around the corner with triple the number of patches and what feels like endless enthusiasm.

Spring is the first of two (followed by Summer) vest that has a tarot card as the right pocket designation, a “ticket” as the name plate on it, and a patch on the detachable hoodie cowl. It was a pattern that fell into place due to purchasing opportunities from Hot Topic and I capitalized on those options!

I love the fact that the Wheel of Fortune is both a tarot patch AND a show!!!

It’s really a second two hit wonder – both the 8 Ball Fortune angle and it really makes me want to own Lucky Jeans again. Ha!

The overall theme is two fold – the onslaught of spring bursting through Winter’s hold, rife with possibilities, and just how many shows, movies, and cultural phenomenon build up a patchwork brand personality that makes us all up. These are all shows and/or movies I’ve watched that have become a part of my personality and ultimately, me. Some are cartoons, some are game shows, some are goofy live action shows, some are just simply off the wall entirely.

Both Spring and Fall were vest sets sold by Hot Topic as denim hoodies with removable sleeves and hood cowls. Spring and Fall are also the only two jacket/vests that have patches past the front pockets, which means I had to switch around the interior pockets on both to pull the patches off but they are not NEARLY challenging as putting the patches on front pockets – such a tight turn around but it’s so worth it when they get framed up so fricking well!!

How could I pass on having Space Force on this vest/jacket?

OH ZERO, HOW MUCH I LOVE YOU AS THE HEART PATCH!

I would be remiss to not directly acknowledge the madness that is Pickle Rick and naturally Button Eyed Coraline. Pickle Rick is actually a vinyl patch, one of the few in my collection. He came to me with a velcro backing, which I had to remove in order to stitch him to the jacket. I found other options on eBay but saw this listing and took a dive on it – so very, VERY glad I did! And naturally Coraline, which is one of my favorite Tim Burton pieces, very much belongs on this piece with all the complexities that she represents about found family and being your true self.

And I know better to acknowledge Lord Vader in his Sugar Skull variant, as I do not wish to upset the Empire:

The back was rather tricky; especially the lower section. I actually started, moved, and readjusted the back multiple times to get spacing and color flow just right to bring it together. Some of the patches showed up later than the rest and naturally the MASSIVE White Lotus Pai Sho tile rather threw things into a challenge to get everything in the right place. I wasn’t planning on getting a White Lotus piece that big but it was a cost effective choice from a small production site on Esty (the 2″ version was only a dollar cheaper if I recall, which I get on a materials/labor view). Other than Pickle Rick and the White Lotus tile patch, everything else came from Hot Topic believe it or not!

Most of these patches I believe are going to be familiar with everyone or at least most folks but I will go through them in detail in case they are lost on anyone – I have no desire to be an elitist gatekeeper with pretentious dripping tones of, “What do you MEAN you don’t know what this means?” Good fuck, go get a light bulb and screw yourself man. Not me Fam, I will GLADLY tell you all the things! Shit should be shared, not held over someone’s head like an ass!

Voltron patch; both a nod to the original and the reboot animated series! I loved them both for different reasons!

Ah the Winchester Boys from Supernatural. 5 seasons of original material, 10 encore seasons after that. Just crazy man.

No idea if this is official Scooby Doo material but in head canon this entirely tracks and I believe it!

And of course the Mystery Machine from Scooby Doo. Still have no idea how four adults, a dog, and a puppy lived in this!

Naturally a Star Wars patch and my Hogwarts House Crest patch since I’m an Gryffindor!

Spider Man has always been my Marvel hero from childhood and underneath him is Rick and Morty from the show of the same name.

Dunder Mifflin Paper Co is from the American variant of The Office

This is the Cobra Kai karate Dojo, both of the Karate Kid and Cobra Kai reboot series now currently on Netflix!

Gillman from the Black Lagoon – one of the only patches to be on two different vest in the Vestivals line!

This is a Red Koi fish that represents Big Fish; a very heartwarming but very emotionally intense Tim Burton movie.

The White Lotus Pai Sho tile from Avatar: The Last Airbender animated series

And naturally Appa, the loving and fierce (when provoked) air bison bound to Aang from Avatar: The Last Airbender

Steamboat Willie from the famed ‘Steamboat Willie’ from many, MANY years ago at Disney!

This is a vest/jacket that I will likely add things to in the future but for the time being, IT’S DONE. Of the four, this is the one with the most patches and was the most challenging to sort out. All the patches are different sizes and shapes but it’s so worth it! I hope you enjoyed viewing it as much as I did putting it together!!

Cheers!

Love, D.

The Pack of the Wanderer

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This all started because I got an adorable Geometric shaded Fox from Hot Topic. I adored him so much but I didn’t know where to put him (since I have a strong affinity with Foxes) so I held off. I had a few options I could have placed him but nothing was really ZINGing it for me. So he patiently waited for me to sort it out.

Fast forward who the frack knows; I run into a menagerie of Geometric Animals on Etsy doing a patches cruise, first catching the eye of the Tiger and tracked down the rest. The Koala was hiding out on Amazon and I had to snag him solo. To bring it all together, I had a “Alone but Not Lonely” patch I snagged for a family friend but it didn’t apply to them anymore because they are happily twined with someone and I couldn’t have been happier for them!

But what was I going to put this lovely collection of wild animals? It felt like something Tarzan would own to remind him of his upbringing so something of earth tones and applicable for traveling. Definitely one of our traveling packs; as I felt this collection of patches meant that one was in the world but not alone because they got to enjoy the presence of nature and wild life.

I thought about snagging a fresh Map Pack but I already have SO MANY PACKS that honestly I needed to buckle down and grab one of the ones I already had. Buried in the closet, underneath my massive gym bag and the cat carrier was ‘The Wanderer’ which was a cheap green canvas Mossimo bag I picked up on clearance for $8 from my fav retail store Target! We used it a few times but it was buried and forgotten about. PERFECT!

I went with a ‘Lining’ style approach on the bag so the animals trimmed the zipper and matched each of the animals to their similar counterpart and once I exhausted that option, color similarities. I used clear polyester thread to stitch the patches on so they wouldn’t get too disrupted. I don’t mind using this thread style but it can be very fragile and tangles very easily, on top of being not the most secure/easily torn off unless it’s very tight stitch. But naturally invisible stitches! Other than a little pinching here and there on the patch weave on a few, they turned out very well.

Maybe someday down the road I will find them some more friends or perhaps some shrubs or something to line the bottom – I don’t think this particular piece is done per se but I’m very glad on how it turned out! I stuffed some robes into the bag to give it shape to make it more presentable. Man it makes me miss traveling – hopefully soon!!

I hope you enjoyed this one as much I did picking out the patches and pulling it together!!

Cheers,

The Cruel Bite of Winter

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The ‘Silver Scream’ vest; featuring Creatures of the Universal Studios Classic Monsters line up.

Greetings my Friends and welcome to my first entry in the Vestival Work I have done as a part of my COVID-19 quarantine craft projects!!

Quick introduction to this particular part of this leg of my patch work crafting – this is one of four vests/jackets I worked on from Hot Topic. Each have their own color, some have removable arms, some are just straight up denim vests.

Each have their own theme, season that they are attached to, and their own flair and approach. Some are really elaborate, and some are very elegant in approach. Each patch is hand stitched on and carefully chosen for each jacket.

The Four Vests of the Vestival of Vests (I have gotten a little stir crazy yah? Yeah. 😀 )

So the cruel ‘Bite’ of Winter started off as almost not happening; I was on the fence about doing a fourth and final vest at the point I came onto it. Hot Topic was offering a deep discount on the vest and I kept coming back to it (not counting Facebook ads, me just not stop thinking about it). I have ALWAYS been a fan of the Universal Studios Classic Monsters of the Silver era of film; I have Frankenstein’s monster on every articles and naturally who could forget Monster Squad?

Ah dear sweet Horus, we already miss you!!

While I was still on the fence, Creepy Company sweetened my Cauldron by offering a deep discount on their site on patches; 50% and there was a Bela Lugosi patch that I was NOT going to pass on!! I checked my craft budget and it was just enough to pull off for about $50. SO I pulled all the triggers.

Who knew Dracula’s face would be so soft?! And yes, his eyes do glow in the dark so that’s EXTRA creepy. ❤

So the standing theme is naturally, ‘Silver Scream’ and it would involve Universal Studio classic Monsters on an black backed, acid washed vest from Hot Topic.

It has this great ‘mist/fog’ atmospheric feel to it but also a bit of a Silver wash feel at the same time that really helped bring this particular project together. I mostly used black upholstery thread from Coats and Clark, with the exception of Gillman, which I used clear polyester thread to not throw his appearance!!

The front section!! The lovely couple on the pockets are proper functional pockets; I didn’t stitch through 😛

Deucalion (Frankenstein’s Monster), his Bride, and Mothman were all purchased from Hot Topic, whereas the Chomping Teeth are from Creepy Co and their branding symbol.

I reserve the upper left breast area of my jackets and vests as a point of definition and designation and felt that the Fanged Teeth to be quite appropriate for such a venture. I ALMOST bought a Monster Squad patch for the jacket but decided to nod the original material. I’m that film geek.

The Back of the Vest in All it’s Glory!! I think it’s done, which is rare for me – usually I like to add things. Not this time.

Honestly this may be one of my best vests and jackets I’ve ever done because the patches just CAME together very naturally. I had to dig around a little bit to get all the pieces but it was WORTH IT. The flow is very clean and does a very good nod to Monster Squad without falling into it. Maybe at some point I’ll cave and put it’s patch on the middle back under the hood but we’ll see.

These four almost need no introduction but I’ll throw it out to honor them. Naturally we have this MASSIVE Bela Lugosi as Dracula center patch that is just stunning (so many pins to hold him in – I don’t iron on anyways but he has no iron on back, it’s assumed he will be stitched on.) The Mummy and Gillman flank Deucalion with such solid symmetry I am I kinda surprised they weren’t SOLD that way. But hey, if I can make it work on my end, I’m all for it!

Oh the stories to tell on these patches!!

So when I was putting this vest together, it was one of the reasons I DIDN’T go Monster Squad directly because it would limit me on what patches I could go with and keep the theme. They unfortunately only made one movie so I stepped back into the source material to spread my options open and focused on Classic Horror. My previous partner, Jen, was very much into Classic Horror concepts and that interest has been rekindled with my friend Rob so I went hunting for options!

The Phantom of the Opera was almost a given, as well as the Invisible Man – The Phantom was located on Etsy and The Invisible Man on Amazon of all places. The Black Cat is also from Hot Topic or Monsterologists, whether you want to get them from the source or from their vendor. The Wolf Man is from Ebay and was mailed out from Cali so he was the LAST to show up but holy crap I love how The Black Cat and the The Wolf Man use their shading and placement so fricking well!!

NOW TO ADDRESS THE MONSTER IN THE ROOM. Now if you are a hardcore Classic Horror film buff, there is very much a stranger in the fold. Mothman is most certainly not a classic; The Mothman Chronicles starring Richard Gere and likely a myriad of supernatural small screen series have featured this Cryptid but he’s not formally a classic monster.

But I have a soft spot for this strange, fuzzy bastard and it’s a running bit with my wife who loves Mothman so here he is. ❤ That and his coloring and shading totally makes it look like he’s a 50’s era film monster so fuck brother, it’s done.

I chose this particular vest for Winter as it is chilling (both conceptually and lacking sleeves) and the acid wash looks almost like bleak winter nights where every single, violent, bone chilling sound, just carries for yards across an open field as a pair of luminescent eyes pierce the gloom… right into your soul. You keep up on cardio right? Good shoes? Good, you should, ah, get a head start. JUST. RUN.

ANYWHO. SO here’s my project for the first vest of the vestival set, I can’t wait to show you the rest!!

LOVE, D.