zlee

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Member since

2008/12/10

Country

---

Birthday

1960/09/20

Private pictures

About me

I was born in 1960 in San Francisco - that makes me (in terms of Chinese astrology) a Metal Rat.  I'm a first generation American; my parents both immigrated from China.  When I'm in the States, I live in Colorado, but I'm currently on what I like to call my "gap year" -- only just a little late.  :) 

I consider myself to be one of the most lucky women alive.

The first picture in my gallery is of the first dress I made for my sister, who competes in Latin ballroom dancing.  She was at the very beginning of her competition career here, so the dress is quite modest.  To make up for it, the dress is literally covered in Swarovski rhinestones in a gorgeous metallic gold (can't remember the name, think has been since discontinued) and trimmed with Jet beads.  Regrettably, the flatbacks did not come in hotfix, so I spent two days glueing the rhinestones!

The necklace, earrings, and bracelet set was made in 2005 for a Beadstyle community challenge -- the theme was to explore one color in all its tones.  I was flabbergasted to win, because I'd thought that some of the other designs were so much more original than mine was...  It did occur to me that perhaps it was for the sheer amount of headpins used in the design! :)

I'll put more pics in as I find them again.

Experience and Creativity

My mother claims that I've been sewing since I was 4 -- I personally remember it was 6.  I inherited creative genes from both my mother and father, though neither made a living in a creative field.  I have made my living as a creative professional (theatre costuming, acting, singing, music, journalism, criticism, crafting, illustrator, teacher/trainer, etc.) and sometimes as a administrative support person when I needed something between gigs -- the list of short-term jobs on my resume is seemingly endless, including office management, owning my own small landscaping company, and working as a UPS delivery person for a holiday season.   :)

I am by nature and avocation a teacher and have much enjoyed teaching software programs, creative skills, music, dance, acting, design, and more.  One of my favorite teaching assignments was teaching a project using Husqvarna Viking embroidery software and machines at the HV International Convention.

As a designer, I've created gardens, wedding gowns, Irish stepdancing solo and school costumes, theatrical costumes and sets, graphics, web sites, jewelry, and more.  As a published writer, I've worked in creative fiction, criticism, journalism, and editing.

I have a number of awards (which were very gratifying to have received), some professional (including several Denver Drama Critics Circle Awards for theatrical costuming) and some peer-to-peer (for challenges and contests in online communities and in "meatspace").

Hobbies and Interests

I love to travel and I believe it's one of the best ways to circumvent a closed mind.  My favorite way to travel is to settle into a place for as long as possible, get to know people and places.   I've spent most of my time in the UK, but have also visited Ireland, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Sydney/Melbourne.  I'm in the UK at the moment, but plan to get out into the EU before going back to "real life".

I also play Irish traditional music.  (I started playing because at one point I used to be a student of Irish stepdancing.)  Irish trad is a great music form, because it's a globally very small community, so it's easy to get to know people all over the world -- it makes a terrific excuse to travel!

Fields of Creativity

To me, a true designer can apply the principles of good design to almost any creative field.  I've covered most of my favorites above.

Favorite Movies and Books

I love books so much that I once missed Christmas dinner because I was reading.  My favorite childhood book is The Phantom Tollbooth, by Norton Juster.  I also love Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, and even now consider Agatha Christie novels my favorite light reads.  (Notice a certain escapist trend.)  I am currently re-reading some of Bill Bryson's books -- he's a bit of an Anglophile, which can get rather tiresome, but at his best he's giggle-in-public funny.

I don't have a favorite movie, really, as having worked in the field I'm usually too busy mentally looking at the shot or other production matters to truly enjoy watching films.

zlee's Friends

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• dwhiting
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• arky
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• StudioDTQ
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• Alla
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