What a joy it is to be back again here in the Black Rock Nevada desert! I have once again ventured to the playa as a proud member of the Black Rock City's DPW and one of the builders of Burning Man 's central sculpture, the Man.

As one of the women of Man KCrew , I thought it apropos to sport a garment that combines both beauty and strength on the playa. To this end, I am especially excited about the debut of my rugged "Carhartt-inspired" work corset!

For the past year, I've desired to create a garment which blends the femininity and elegance of a corset with the durability and ruggedness of a workbelt. Recently, I shared my idea with the talented seamstress and designer Robynne Winchester of Tulgey Wood Designs. She was instantly excited about the concept and agreed to collaborate to make it a reality.

I love the ruggedness of Carhartt work clothing and a quick glance around the work crews at Burning Man proves I'm not the only one. It withstands the harsh working conditions of the desert and meets all my utilitarian needs on the work site. So it delights me to create a corset, a nearly polar opposite piece of attire, which incorporates all the functional things I love about Carhartt work clothing.

Durable

To create this hybrid corset, I first chose a fabric consisting of same type of rugged cotton canvas found throughout the Carhartt line. Durable, practical, and breathable, the material allows me to get down and dirty with my hammer and drill without fear of damaging my corset.

Functional & Versatile

 

Next it was important the corset be functional and versatile. I attached holsters for a hammer, drill, tape measure and pliers, as well as pockets to use for assorted needs while working.

All the tool holsters and pockets are attached to the corset with heavy-duty snaps allowing me to change the configuration according to my needs on the job site.

A modular system - above I have attached a cordless drill holster.

On those days I just need to pound nails, I can replace it with a hammer holster.

Beautiful

Finally, I wanted the corset to be as beautiful as it was functional. For this, I specifically chose quality Occidental Leather tool holsters which compliment the design of the corset. This juxtaposition of reinforced feminine curves and sturdy sensibility was exactly what I wanted in a haute couture work garment. In addition, the cherry leather and hand-dyed laces to match are the perfect compliment to the classic Carhartt carmel brown.

And it's fashionable too! I reconstructed a Carhartt workshirt into an adorable shrug to wear during those those chilly evenings in the desert. And for that event in the evening when I just don't have time to change? A tiny top hat, of course!

 

I am so happy with my work corset! Robynne's skill with corsetry is wonderful and she was a pleasure to collaborate with. There are still a few more tweaks and additions that I plan on adding, but I'll save announcing these little treats until I am finished making them—soon!

Also, it should be mentioned that the gorgeous photo taken of me at Man Base at Burning Man, is the work of excellent photographer Neil Girling, aka Mr. Nightshade, aka Carnivillain. I highly recommend checking out his continually updated series of photos from Burning Man 2009 on Flickr. Neil took a small series of photos of me in my work corset which I look forward to sharing as soon as I return home from the desert.

 

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Nifer Fahrion is creative mastermind behind NifNaks and lives in the dynamic and vibrant city of San Francisco.

An artist and crafter since childhood, she has always taken great delight in hand-made items, and the special joy and interconnectedness one gets from experiencing something truly unique. Nifer loves experimenting in new mediums, which is how she discovered felting wool in 2006. She instantaneously fell in love with the soft, sensual wool, and the infinite possibilities it has to offer and has been hooked ever since.

Working primarily with felting wool, she creates a menagerie of charming critters, decorative accessories and other assorted curiosities, each one a unique piece of wearable art. Nifer balances the cute & fuzzy with the tough & brawny in her life. She rides a motorcycle daily and enjoys getting her hands greasy as she learns how to fix it. She also has been practicing Muay Thai, the art of the 8 limbs, for upwards of 3 years.

Nifer likes adventure and new experiences -- walking in a lush, wet forest, picking up cool bits of nature, chasing after critters, and sticking random things in her mouth just to see what they taste like. Life makes her gleeful!

 

I'm so honored to announce that I was selected as one of the winners of Craft Magazine 's 2009 Valentine's Day Project Contest ! My winning creation was a soft sculpture, made entirely of hot pink merino wool, called "Love is a BattleField."

The "Love is a Battlefield" Hand Grenade is 1:1 scale replica of a real pineapple grenade. It is a needlefelted sculpture made of solid hot pink merino wool throughout and of course, the heart-shaped pull pin is indeed removable. 

 

It is part of my continuing fine art series of needle-felted weapons made from merino wool. The first of the series, was introduced last winter during my 2008 holiday craft season. In fact, it was at the Bazaar Bizarre Holiday Show, that I sold my first piece to San Francisco's own Mythbusters co-host, Adam Savage.

What a perfect item for an eclectic and interesting gentleman scientist! Adam was so kind to post pictures of the hand grenade when he got home to his Twitpic and Flickr accounts, as well as posted a picture of the half dozen sweet and adorable NifNaks Eggy Eggs that his charming sweetie, Julia, fell in love with. What a heart-bursting moment. :)

I'm totally loving this new series of weapons and am so pleased that others seem to be enjoying it as well. Stay tuned to see pictures of the next in the series that I am working on, a needle-felted Glock hand

I couldn’t imagine a better way of starting off the new year, than communing with friends over brunch on a Sunday morning, so
this past Sunday I invited friends out for some sharing food & conversation at the Thai Buddhist temple in Berkeley, Wat Mongkolratanaram .

It's such a fun experience, exchanging your bills for handfuls of Thai tokens, and then you stand in one of the many food lines and exchange them in for Thai deliciousness. The place is packed with people waiting with patience for a favorite dish – mine being their yummy mango with sticky rice. (The mango with sticky rich is reason alone to go! They serve it with both white AND forbidden rice, AND a wee bit of coconut custard on top, AND the portion is huuuuge.)

After brunch, I invited friends to take our motorcycles up into the Berkeley hills for the lovely scenic views of the entire Bay Area. We had total of 10 bikes, with 12 riders. What fun!

 The day ended with hanging out with a good friend, who communes with The Cute & The Good. Cookies were made, and I had lots of fun documenting all the cuteness abound:

I need more Sundays like this in 2009. How about

Three adorable flip wigs arrived from China today for use in NifNaks photo shoots!