Category Archive for ‘stitchery’ at make something

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Archive for the 'stitchery' Category

NINE PATCH BABY QUILT

Published

Karyn

on November 26, 2009

in patchwork, stitchery and the workroom

. 18 Comments

I’ve been wanting to show you this quilt for a few weeks, but wanted to make sure that it got shipped off to baby Chloe in Vancouver before posting the photos here. This is just the second quilt that I’ve ever finished. Can you believe it? I feel like I’ve got about a dozen quilts in progress and I keep starting more!

This quilt has undergone a quite a few changes since I started it a year and a half ago. When I took the Presto Nine Patch class, I thought the technique was so fun that I should make a queen-sized quilt. I think this is a particular ’syndrome’ of new quilters. You want to make every quilt a bed-sized quilt. It’s incredible how much the more work, exponentially, it is to make a huge bed sized quilt. I am now quite happy to make large lap-sized quilts. Baby quilts are a breeze in comparison. I had discovered my abandoned quilt blocks and thought I would motivate myself for the Crafty Slacker’s contest that Toronto Craft Alert had, but I didn’t do much more than post about my abandoned project at the time.

Little Chloe was born a few months ago and I was inspired to give her a baby quilt in the colours of my childhood – pink & green. My first bedroom as a child was decorated in homemade decor all coordinating in pink and green. I loved the colour scheme and still have a soft spot for those colours.

I made the nine patch blocks smaller than what we did in class and then framed them with matching strips. I used a Kona solid in soft pink as sashing between the blocks. For the back, I used some scrappy bits. I especially love the green camouflage which contrasts the sweet girlie-ness in a nice way. I was able to put the front and back of the quilt rather quickly. I machine quilted by stitching in the ditch around and in the blocks using a variegated thread.

Then, I stalled when it came to doing a label – for a couple months. I was not too happy with the label I did on my first quilt. I had used embroidery thread and tried to free hand the embroidery, both were mistakes. I finally got up the courage to try doing this new label. I pre-drew the writing on my piece fabric and used the same variegated sewing thread that I had for my quilting lines. I’m happy with how it turned out. Variegated thread makes everything better.

For the binding I was inspired after seeing a scrappy binding the Karen W. was working on at a recent Quilt Sunday. It’s such a cute detail.

Before I packaged it up to mail it to the west coast, I washed and dried it to get the lovely puckered look. It is so satisfying to finish a quilt and then wash it! It is also extremely satisfying to hear that Chloe is enjoying the quilt as both a blanket and play mat and hopefully it will become infused with all her memories of growing up.

STYLISH DRESS BOOK 2 : DRESS “B”, SHORTER TUNIC

Published

Karyn

on November 25, 2009

in japanese dress/craft and stitchery

. 19 Comments

I know, I JUST posted this dress pattern. I warned you that I was going to make it again. (and again) It’s a really easy top to wear, since it’s almost like a t-shirt. It’s also really easy to sew and I didn’t want to trace out a new pattern. (lazy!) Also, I find that almost all of my real t-shirts are too short and I prefer a longer tunic length. I cleared out my drawers the other day and bagged up an entire drawer’s worth of clothing, mostly t-shirts that I never wear anymore. (FYI – new class alert for the new year = t-shirts!)

I was given some lovely soft woven cottons from India. This fabric is incredible. It is so lightweight and lovely with just the slightest sheen to it. I had just enough to make a shorter tunic version of this dress. Keeping with my resolution to use more trim, I made a special trip to Mokuba to pick up the grey blue lacey trim. Hemming with trim is actually a time-saver.

With all the unfinished projects I’ve got piled up right now, it felt great to whip up this little shirt and wear it the same week. I’m going to make another, but I promise to try out a new pattern first.

SHERIDAN TEXTILE STUDIO SALE

Published

Karyn

on November 17, 2009

in local, stitchery, textiles and the workroom

. 8 Comments

Sheridan Textile Studio Sale
Friday November 20, 2009
5-9pm
at the workroom

the workroom has a certain fondness for the Sheridan Textile Studio program. Students in this program spend three years exploring printing, dyeing, felt making, surface embellishment, mixed media and digital design. So much fun! Both Debbie and Rosalyn are enrolled in this fantastic program, so I’ve seen first hand all the incredible work that goes on there.

Every year the students have a fundraising sale to make money for the graduating class’ final exhibition. I’m delighted to be able to host this year’s winter sale at the workroom. I hope you’ll drop by after work on Friday to browse the lovely wares and support Sheridan’s third year Textile Studio class. I got a sneak peek at a sampling of the goodies for sale and they include hand-printed pincushions, lavender sachets and aprons. I can’t wait to see what else they’ve made and to pick up some early holiday gifts.

COLOURFUL FABRIC DRESS BOOK

Published

Karyn

on November 16, 2009

in japanese dress/craft and stitchery

. 6 Comments

nani IRO – Colourful Fabric Dress Book
ISBN 9784579111831

Naomi Ito is the designer behind the inspirational nani IRO fabrics line. Her fabric designs are like paintings that flow across the bolt, often in beautiful double gauze cotton or linen blends. This book not only showcases all her fabric from 2008 but many of her simple designs and patterns. Everything about this book is inspirational.

I’ve had this book for ages and can’t believe that I haven’t made anything from it yet. The cover image is probably the most popular pattern in the book. The dress is very simple, very Japanese and I’ve seen several lovely versions of it made. I’m officially putting it on my Crafty List of Things to Do. There are lots of different types of projects to try including mother/daughter clothing patterns (so cute!), bags, coin purses and a simple apron.

I’m hoping you will pitch in with your comments and thoughts about these books and patterns as I post them to the Japanese Dress Books section. If you own any of these books or have had luck or even difficulty with some of the projects, it would be great to hear from you!

STYLISH DRESS BOOK 2 : DRESS “B”

Published

Karyn

on November 8, 2009

in stitchery and textiles

. 11 Comments

I’m so glad you like the new section on the blog! I’m excited to fill it up with lots of Japanese dress books and creations.

I’ve been holding on to this metallic linen for ages. It’s from our trip to New York last year. Sometimes I tend to spend a lot of time waiting for things to be absolutely perfect before making a decision. That sure makes for some slow crafting.

This special fabric needed a super simple pattern that would allow it to shine. It finally dawned on me that Dress “B’ was just that. It was one of the patterns in the book that I’ve overlooked a hundred times because it was so plain.

This t-shirt style tunic called for a bit of trim, which I picked out at Mokuba. The wide linen-coloured eyelet trim has a nice soft contrast to the shiny blue. I chose to simply trim the sleeves and hem, but not the neck. I really love the neckline on this dress, it is so wide and open.

The dress was very easy to sew. You’ll notice that my version is much shorter than the book’s and I did not make the slip that they show with it. As is usually the case, there is no zipper or closure of any kind. The neckline does have a facing, which I understitched to give it a clean finish. I also trimmed a bit off the sides to give it a slimmer silhouette.

I like this dress a lot. I made it for my birthday this year, nothing like a little sparkly linen to celebrate a special occasion. I would definitely like to make this pattern again in another variation, perhaps a nice wool for winter?

JAPANESE DRESS BOOKS

Published

Karyn

on November 2, 2009

in stitchery

. 11 Comments

It occurred to me the other day how popular Japanese Dress Books are becoming. I’m not really surprised, the aesthetic is so simple and there aren’t really any other patterns on the market that are like them. Now that I’m also teaching a class about them at the workroom, I thought it was time to organize all my posts on the subject into one section. In addition to cataloging my growing collection of books, I hope it will be a fun resource for you when you’re deciding which books to buy for yourself and which projects you might want to try.

To start, I’ve gone through my collection and listed all the titles I have with their ISBN’s and cover images. Anything that has already been posted about has a link, along with a list of all the projects I’ve made so far. (Stylish Dress Book 1 & 2 are far in the lead with most projects made) I’ll be posting about each of the different books that I’ve got on a more regular basis. Plus, surely I’ll have to buy even more books to show you. Yeah!

QUILT MARKET : PART TWO

Published

Karyn

on October 23, 2009

in patchwork, stitchery, textiles, the workroom and traveling

. 11 Comments

Okay, so the majority of my trip to Quilt Market was actually spent wandering around in a bit of a daze surrounded by ridiculous amounts of fabric and more quilts that you can ever imagine. Whoa. For someone who loves textiles, it’s definitely sensory overload.

Let me start by explaining exactly what Quilt Market is. It’s a huge trade show for the quilting industry that happens twice a year. The fall show is in Houston Texas, while the spring show moves around from city to city. The spring 2010 show will be in Minneapolis. The first part of quilt market is to the ‘trade only’ and all the fabric manufacturers, designers and distributers have booths where they show off all their new collections. The booths are usually filled with quilts, accessories and clothing made up from the fabrics and you can sit down and look through all the collections and place orders for your shop. Sewing machines, notions, quilt patterns, books and magazines are also represented. You would not believe all the sewing gadgets, accessories, and even lotions and potions that are represented. I was surprised to see several vintage dealers who sold fabrics, quilts and even buttons and jewellry. I treated myself to a sweet pink vintage feedsack and a few yards of an old orange floral fabric.

There is also a Quilt Festival that happens right after Quilt Market and this is open to the public. There is a huge exhibit of vintage quilts, along with quilts that have been entered into competition. The lighting was pretty awful in the convention centre and especially in the exhibit, but I tried to get photos of my favourites. It’s fascinating to see all the different types of techniques that are used in these modern quilts, including all kinds of hand painting, beading and photo transfers.

Since I was hanging out with the Soak gals, I got to tag along to their meetings with some of the designers. I got to meet (and secretly gawk at) Amy Butler, Anna Maria Horner, Heather Bailey, Joanne Figuerora, and Sandi Henderson. Each of these talented ladies were so incredibly sweet and I was just blown away with the new amazing collections and patterns they have come up with. You can be sure to find lots of their new stuff coming to the workroom a.s.a.p. I was especially charmed by Anna Maria Horner’s new line of flannels for kids – FINALLY, flannel prints that are modern and not too cutesy. Heather Bailey won for best booth design at the show and it was well deserved. I loved her wallpaper, clothes line and she even had real sod laid out. Check out her cute new patterns – Henrietta turtle and Claira & Clancy pig dolls. I can’t wait to get them in the shop.

There were so many independent quilt pattern designers at the show, but the one that stood out for me was Carolina Patchworks. In particular her Another Brick in the Wall and Golden Waves seemed like super fun quilts to make. I picked up four of her patterns for the shop and can’t wait to try them out.

I told you before I left that I had two missions – Japanese fabric and felt. Sadly I didn’t discover a good source for felt, but I hit many home runs on Japanese fabrics! I made great new contacts and ordered some unbelievably awesome Japanese prints. I was so excited about them that I completely forgot to take photographs of them, but this way you’ll be surprised and delighted when they arrive.

I do have a sneak peak for you of my favourite find – Puti de Pome. I ordered quite a few of these prints including this sweet map fabric, these cars and this border print. Of course, I also ordered some of the new echino line. I tried not to go overboard, but it was really hard.

To sum up all that – great food (not counting the convention centre food), quilt mania, inspiring designers and new fabrics and lots of J-A-P-A-N-E-S-E cuteness on the way!!

Check out part two of my slide show…

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

COOL COUTURE REMAKE DRESSES

Published

Karyn

on October 15, 2009

in etsy and stitchery

. 5 Comments

Cool Couture Remake Dresses
ISBN 9784579112289
purchased from Pomadour’s Craft Cafe

So, I actually ordered two books with my last etsy order and this is the second one. ‘If you’re ordering one, you might as well get two’ is my motto for Japanese Dress Books.

I particularly like the dramatic black and white photography and styling for the first section of the book. It is quite a contrast to the younger girl posing with a cinnamon bun on her shoulder in the second section which is actually standard styling for these books.

I was really excited when I discovered this book which focuses on transforming sweatshirts, tshirts, men’s shirts and neckties into new garments and accessories. I love to cut up and remix old clothes or thrift store finds, so it’s great to get some fresh ideas. I usually just deconstruct one item, while this book shows how to use parts of one to four garments to create some cool looking clothing. I need to do a bit more studying to figure out which one to try first – Tunic from Twin Tshirts (girl with hand on hip and stuffed bee in her hand) is a definite forerunner.

HAPPY HOMEMADE VOL. 3

Published

Karyn

on October 13, 2009

in etsy and stitchery

. 18 Comments

Happy Homemade Vol. 3
ISBN 9784579112470
purchased from Pomadour’s Craft Cafe

I went to Quilt Market in Houston, Texas over the weekend. It was both fun and exhausting looking at fabric and quilts for two days straight. I have lots to tell, but I haven’t even downloaded the photos off my camera yet. Soon.

In the meantime, I wanted to share my latest etsy purchase. I didn’t realize there were more volumes in the Happy Homemade series until Marilou brought her copy to the Japanese Dress Book class at the workroom. Of course, I had to have it for my collection. They’ve broken the book down into sections, showing variations on a basic style for each one. More and more, I’m wanting to customize parts of these patterns, so this layout is very helpful for mix and matching different pieces. ‘C-1′ basic is my favourite.

p.s. Today is the workroom’s two year anniversary! Hooray! It’s also my birthday, my parents’ anniversary and Liz, Ashley & Esther’s birthday!

STYLISH DRESS BOOK : DRESS ‘J’

Published

Karyn

on September 30, 2009

in stitchery, textiles and the workroom

. 43 Comments

I don’t think I’ve ever studied a book as much as I’ve studied the Stylish Dress Book. Every week or so, I pull it off the shelf and carefully flip though it, examining the photos and the technical drawings looking for my next project. The crazy thing is that I always find something that seems ‘new’ to me.

A couple months ago, I had tucked away a couple metres of the nani IRO fuwari fuwari double gauze cotton in purple when it had arrived. The entire bolt got snapped up within 24 hours. Within a few days both Ayalah and Melinda had whipped up cute frocks from the Stylish Dress Book, but I just couldn’t decide what to make.

The incredible thing about this particular nani IRO print is that it changes as it moves across the width of the bolt. This plays out in interesting ways depending on how you choose to lay your pattern out.

With the colder weather approaching, I’m switching to making shirts and tunics that I can wear with jeans (my cold weather uniform). I decided to change Dress ‘J’, into a shirt that could also double as a cute cardigan.

One of my favourite details in sewing in using variegated thread. I get so much pleasure from seeing the thread colour change along my stitching line. Seriously, it makes me so happy. I used it to sew my buttonholes on this shirt and I just love how they turned out. Little coloured rainbow buttonholes! This particular spool is called ‘Water Lilies’ (clearly a reference to Monet) and it changes from purple to pink to blue to green.

I’m going to Houston, Texas next Friday with Jacqueline for Quilt Market! Does anyone know anything about Houston? Is there anything I should see? I’m pretty excited to go check out all the new fabrics and maybe meet some of the designers. My two missions are ‘Japanese imports’ and ‘felt’.