via whizzme clothkits are a kit that includes fabric that has the pattern screenprinted directly onto the pattern - you don’t have to fuss with paper patterns, as all the bits come with it - including zippers buttons etc. [read more four good corners who attended the launch] clothkits link (and yes they do adults skirts, kids dresses and skirts and dolls too)
Kim’s a posting fiend since starting True Up. Loving her Daily Swatch, featuring a piece of vintage fabric from someone’s stash or for sale somewhere. Yes she even links to wherever it’s on sale! Link.
So sweet my tooths ache! Link.
Lovely Kim from dioramarama has started a fabric blog, “True Up“. Great title Kim and good luck!
“True Up” means to make something square or straight, and as a sewing term it means squaring up your piece of fabric, making it true to grain. The term for me also evoked taking a large piece of fabric and chunking it into smaller pieces, which I thought is a nice metaphor for blogging.
True Up will have fabric news, instruction, inspiration, sale alerts, new fabric announcements, advice, interviews, opinion, guest appearances, and much more. There won’t be all that much about actually using fabric — no sewing or crafting projects per se — unless the project or technique helps us think about fabric in a new way. I want this space to be primarily about fabric for fabric’s sake, and I hope to reach and inspire fabric fans who practice a diverse array of crafts and trades.
at sock monkey fun on flickr.
greeting arts has made a tutorial for her scrappy cartwheel dolls quilt that was showcased in our mini quilts whiplash contest a while back.
This quilt was inspired by an article in the New Yorker magazine about recycling steel. The picture accompanying the article showed a wall of crunched steel packed together that immediately brought to (my) mind a stack of wrinkled fabric.
After years of sewing I have an enormous stash of fabrics and this after many many spring cleanings and purgings. There are always pieces I can’t part with because I know I’ll use them. Someday.
I started by cutting/tearing rectangles out of a linen like fabric I had plenty of, to use as the backing fabric. I don’t like measuring or cutting. I prefer to tear fabric. I love the rough unfinished edge of it. After I tore a small pile of them, roughly the same size rectangles, I grabbed whatever fabric was at the top of the pile, tore it to the approximate length of the linen rectangle and started sewing it to one edge of the rectangle right side up, as a starting point.
I then folded the fabric over the stitched edge and sewed down another seam very close to the first stitching, creating a flap, making an effort not to sew a straight line and angling the fabric at one end.
I wanted this to be rough and wrinkly and it took some trial and error but I finally hit on a sewing technique that gave me that wrinkled surface I was after. As I sewed down each “flap” I not only angled but created creases by pulling the fabric one way, sewing a little ways and then pulling it another way and continuing the stitch. This crooked line created little “ditches” that were perfectly wrinkled once I turned the flaps down.
Each flap was ironed down after sewing with the flaps concealing the previous sewn line. Then a new piece of fabric was sewn underneath the previous flap so on and so on until the entire rectangle was covered with these wrinkled uneven flaps. I then ironed them all down and trimmed off the edges.
I call it Intoxicated Sewing. It was amusing to me how difficult it was to sew in this manner. All those years of trying to sew straight careful lines could not be banished as easily as I’d thought but once I got the feel for it, it was very liberating.
Once I had enough rectangles to sew together, I laid them out being careful not to place the same fabrics next to each other. I sewed them together right side to wrong side, as I didn’t want a normal seam which would have created too much bulk with all that folded over fabric and like I said, I like the rough edges. I started with the top row and sewed the other four rows in the same manner and then sewed those together to form the quilt. I could have sewed on a backing and maybe I will but I like all the wacky stitches in the back and since this will be hung and not laid on a bed or used in any other way, the back is fine the way it is. I’ve also considered whittling down some of my trimmings stash and adding it to the mix but I think I’m done. For now.
About the maker: Yolande blogs at hand and spirit studio, she sews, knits, makes jewelry and is currently painting her house. She is working on a new website to somehow contain it all.
caption: “Pressure Cooker / Tower “, which is in Quilt National ‘07 and on the cover of the Quilt National book.
Susan Shie of Wooster, OH, is a well-known quilt artist and teacher, yet she considers herself to be an “Outsider” artist, her work lying “outside” the circles of traditional painting and quilting. Her earlier quilts were funkily stitched and highly embellished ” … huge amounts of hand sewing … lots of tiny glass beads. It took many months to finish most of my pieces then.” Her recent painted quilts emphasize storytelling with the visual embellishment of stream-of-consciousness diary writing. “… now the sewing has become secondary to the painted composition. The detail created by my airpen writing and drawing intrigues the viewer, and … the tiny writing itself makes a new texture, which … doubles as pattern.”
Katrina Blues
Susan Shie, well-known Outsider quilt artist and teacher, will speak about her work at the February meeting of the Textile Study Group of New York. Date: Wednesday, February 20, 2008 Time: 7 PM
read more here about her work
WILMA “PEACE VOODOO”
the big winner - Simplicity 3775!
The folks over at Pattern Review have compiled their top 15 favorite sewing patterns of 2007. Amy Butler and Built By Wendy both made the ranks. Each entry includes photos of FOs made from the patterns by Pattern Review members. I’ll definitely be picking up some of these patterns at the next 99-cent sale. (For those not in the U.S. — do you have equivalent sales or do patterns tend to hold fast at full price?)
some beautiful patchwork detail from stitch in dye on flickr
The purse project theme has been announced and it should get everyone excited - ‘recycled linens’ can’t wait to see what everyone makes - the deadline is March 1 2008. The tie one on apron sew-a-long due Feb 1 2008 is ‘polka dots’. The last theme ‘local pride‘ gallery is up for viewing and there are some great shots.
This one by luvababy from Coober Pedy in central South Australia and has a large indigenous population.
and this one from honeyflake with a beachy theme.
Three helpful sewing how-tos I’ve bookmarked lately:
How to choose a sewing machine. From Dress a Day.
How to sew with knits on a regular sewing machine. From the Fabric.com blog.
How I design my bags by Lisa Lam at U-Handblog.
[image of peace quilt by spirit cloth]
This pic at the blue blog - following Amy’s instructions from her new book [Bend-the-Rules Sewing: The Essential Guide to a Whole New Way to Sew
“Transport Pillow” by Feed Dog
Glittergoods has been on a quilted pillow kick lately.
Lovely wool tied quilt started in Grandma’s stash and finished by Redheaded Snip It
Lady Harvatine calls this “Audio 1,” inspired by the random zig zags of audio waves
Luckybeans made this red, white, and blue quilt for a lucky cousin’s baby girl
Mr. Monkeysuit found a place for all those Japanese fairy tale prints and other juvenile/novelty fabrics she’s been collecting.
Ruched made a black/white/green/blue quilt inspired by this quilt by Yarnstorm
A month or so ago Pink Chalk Studio released patterns for Anna Banana, a collection of four designs for the table. Lovely!
By Small Means has finished some fabulous white-backgrounded scrappy quilts lately - this is just one of them
You know how you tend to gift the things you make, and you realize you and your family are the last to benefit from your crafty talents? Tree Fall was happy to finally complete a superpink quilt — and her daughter adores it.
And Wise Craft made a “boy version” quilt for her son after her daughter got a girl version of the easy lap quilt from Amy Karol’s Bend-the-Rules Sewing book.
I consider myself to be a proficient seamstress, not advanced thats for sure - but proficient, I can tackle any project and get it mostly right most of the time - I can usually understand what is needed but I don’t tackle projects that are beyond me - I know my limitations but sometimes I like to challenge myself and push myself to learn something new.
My sewing machine has been a good old work horse 30 years old or so… It was given to me after my grandmother died. Its an Elna and has a few basic stitches, very heavy - it doesn’t move around much or vibrate when sewing - it sits solid on the table. It doesn’t break down … well once a spring snapped - but in 30 years thats pretty good going. I oil it and clean it regularly and in return it is capable and reliable.
But just recently I have begun to realise its limitations - it doesn’t do blanket stitch for example - and to put down the feed dogs I have to practically dismantle the whole machine and get out the screwdriver to remove the feed dogs (surely there is an easier way?) I am sure I can buy new fancy feet and accessories to extend it further, but the one time I did try that - I bought a walking foot for quilting - it didn’t quite fit. Well I suppose I am nitpicking here but the reason is simple my daughter wants her own sewing machine and I am thinking of giving her the sturdy reliable work horse and purchasing something slightly more advanced for myself. Having never purchased a sewing machine before I really need to do some serious research as well as making a list of what I really need and what would be useful as well as what I probably will never use.
I recently received a book which I have decided is going to be invaluable in helping me on this new journey to upgrade both my skills and my equipment. Encyclopedia of Sewing Machine Techniques
For those who already have the basics and want to know more - this is really a fabulous book, it covers a whole range of techniques with many different variables within each area. Most of the techniques are those in the creative realm, such as applique, cutwork, sewing braiding and doing fringeing, there is a section on heirloom techniques, which includes puffing, decorative hem stitching, lacemaking, monogramming, pintucks, ruching and ruffling etc. There is a big section of quilting and patchwork, and embroidery. After this creative/heirloom section comes a good sized section on basic techniques and includes bias binding, buttonholes, hemming, buttons, edge finishes, gathering, seam finishes and topstitching.
Each of these techniques has a page or two dedicated to them with additional pages for all the variations - for each technique there is an invaluable guide to sewing machine set up including stitch, foot, needles, thread, tension, feed dogs, etc and what materials are appropriate and any additional supplies. Images are clear photographic images in series with very good step-by-step instructions as well as a good explanation of what the technique is, its background and difficulty level and when it is should be used.
What this book does not do - it does not tell you what kind of machine to buy but it does give you a simple overview of the various possibilities when looking for a new machine. It also gives you a basic guide in how to care for your machine and how to get the most out of the machine you do have.
Each of the techniques give options with regards to presser feet - and how many there are out there that I did not even know existed - this book has opened a whole new world of possibilities for me with regards to making my sewing easier. Many of these techniques I probably will never do but I now know what I do want to do and what tools will make it easier for me. For example getting a freemotion foot for freestyle quilting seems like a good idea, and a button sew-on foot might make my life more fun and easier, I can’t believe I don’t already have a hemmer foot. There is an incredible complicated looking ruffler attachment, but what it can do - gathers and pleats can be stitched in intervals or continuously based on setting - wow! Something else new to me is the double wing needle - yes that rights two needles on the one shank enables elegant stitch patterns. And who else knew about the piping and braiding foot?
Well I could rave on and on even more - but I need to go and investigate my machine a little more and do some research. - Any tips welcome.
Kathy Weaver uses the Robot or Cyborg as a metaphor for humanity she says: The robot is a translator of events, an alter ego, a doppelganger. The robot can be an observer, a soothsayer, a malcontent or a destructor. The viewer is invited into the picture plane to see the modality of the robot’s disposition as it reflects human nature.
Caption: Cyborg Female 3: Amusing Disorder, Satins, silks, velvets, airbrushed, hand embroidered, hand quilted, 90″ x 54″
Caption: The Robot Says Nothing, Fiber, appliqued, hand stitched, 30″ x 40 ”
Caption: The Robot Is Bound, Fiber, appliqued, hand stitched, 30″ x 40 ”
Bean Gilsdorf says that she likes to test the limits of what is traditionally a humble, domestic medium. She is subverting the idea that cloth comes with a built-in reference to home and to “women’s work”; and combines the cloth and stitches with non-domestic imagery and processes.
Caption: Infantry (2004) 45″ x 45″
Caption: Albatross (2003) 43.5″ x 36.5″
