Etsy

Dorothy LeBlanc lives to create and design in the clothing/fiber arts world...and she lives to write and perform in another creative dimension, music! Her etsy shop represents both of those diverse, but co-existing realities...

Her mother made it her mission to teach 8-year-old Dorothy the finer points of sewing. Admittedly, an 8-year-old tomboy did not make the most eager pupil, but learn she did! And to this day, sitting behind her sewing machine or wandering through aisles of fabric are two of her "happy places"! The bandana skirt design featured in her shop is one of her favorites to create (every one is unique!) and is also one of her favorite designs to wear. {As a teenager in the early to mid-1970's, she battled a severe case of anorexia, before anyone knew much about the condition. Coming out of anorexia, she learned to love the flowing, swirling, non-conforming, no pressure, fun-to-wear skirts and pants that she still loves today!!! Through her etsy shop, she loves to celebrate the playfulness of clothing that she herself still celebrates every day in her wardrobe.}

As a child, Dorothy also felt drawn to learning piano and flute and guitar, wanting to learn to create the singer/songwriter sounds that filled her soul in the 60s and 70s. She received her formal training at Louisiana State University, but she will tell you that her career in music evolved outside of the traditional classroom! Her early musical influences were very eclectic…ranging from folk to bluegrass to traditional country to big band to rock and roll. She herself did not make it to center stage as a musician until her own children were grown, her husband had retired, and she had successfully tackled a pesky run-in with breast cancer. Suddenly, Dorothy felt that this was her time to get out there and express herself as a musician…and express herself she has!

She worked tirelessly for 5 years as the music
teacher at early learning centers in the Baton Rouge, LA, area. Her new focus with her children's music is to add musical merriment to children's birthday parties! In 2006, Mrs. Dorothy expanded her business to include performances at seniors' centers and Alzheimer facilities. Her program is lovingly called "Memories 'n Song" and each performance is filled with tunes that these seniors knew and loved when they were younger. 2010-11 also seemed to be Dorothy's years of the song, in that she has been journaling and writing and creating songs from her heart and soul to share at singer/songwriter venues in her area. What a creative time this has been!

She also performs as one-half of the acoustic duo, The Buskers. Her duo partner is Mike Whitney, who played dobro on two of her children's albums. They boast a playlist that includes folk and blues, rock and bluegrass, celtic, original and traditional tunes...all done acoustically!