Archive for the 'clothing' Category

LIBERTY OF LONDON SCHOOLHOUSE TUNIC

Published on March 15, 2012 in clothing, stitchery, textiles and the workroom. 7 Comments Tags: Kate Ada, Liberty of London, schoolhouse tunic, Wiksten.

I stitched up this Schoolhouse Tunic a little while ago, but didn’t get to taking proper photographs until the other day. It’s my second version of this great pattern. I made the first one out of voile from the Greenfield Hills collection. I knew my second version would be done with Liberty of London and I’m so happy that I chose this spring-y Kate Ada print.

I tried out the gathered elastic sleeve for this version and I really like it!

I’ve had a busy start to the year with an unexpected project. I’ll finally be sharing some photos here very soon to show you what I’ve been up to for the last few months.

Speaking of Liberty of London, there’s a shipment due to arrive ANY day now (hopefully tomorrow) at the workroom full of Liberty of London Tana Lawn Cotton!!! It will be our biggest shipment of Liberty yet! You can sneak peek the prints that are arriving here. You can expect to see Liberty on our shelves on a regular basis now. Just in time for spring/summer wardrobe making!

One more piece of exciting news!! the workroom will be carrying Wiksten printed sewing patterns! I absolutely adore both the Tank pattern and the Tova pattern, so I’m over the moon that Jenny is making them available to us. Not only can you now buy these patterns locally, but look out for these projects as classes at the workroom very soon. The patterns will arrive in the next few weeks. I’ll let you know when they arrive.

Yay Spring!!

WIKSTEN TOVA IN MIRABELLE

Published on February 14, 2012 in clothing, stitchery and the workroom. 15 Comments Tags: jenny gordy, Liberty of London, Mirabelle, Tova, Wiksten.

Tova Shirt by Wiksten
Liberty of London : Mirabelle print Tana Lawn Cotton

I fell in love with the Tova shirt & dress the first time I saw it. This was years ago, before it was a sewing pattern. It’s perfectly my style. A simple tunic, a gathered yoke and gathered 3/4 length sleeve. I don’t know why I waited so long to order both Jenny Gordy‘s patterns (the Tank & the Tova), but now that I have them, I want to sew a dozen (at least) in each. I’ve made a few of the tanks. (Paris maps & Floral) But I had been taking my time, trying to decide on the perfect fabric for my Tova. I’m so happy that I finally decided to do it in Liberty of London Mirabelle. I’ve used bits of this fabric for other projects, but not yet for a piece of clothing. The soft drape of the Tana Lawn feels amazing with this pattern.

Jenny’s patterns are awesome. I love her details, the way she finishes hems & cuffs and the fit has been perfect for me. Everything about her design feels refined and I always feel like I’m making high quality garment as I work through her instructions. Fingers crossed that she continues to release sewing patterns in the future because they are the best.

I used Swedish Tracing paper to trace out my pattern and it is my new standard for pattern paper. It feels really nice, is lightweight, but sturdy. It is also sew-able, so if you want to baste a pattern to test it out, you can sew the Swedish Tracing paper! The trickiest part of sewing this pattern is attaching the yoke. My corners are more curvy than pointy. For my next version, I think I will hand baste the yoke in place and I’m sure that will help.

I’m getting ready to cut out my next Tova already. I’m just deciding which Liberty print will be next.

Happy Valentine’s Day! xxxxxo

WIKSTEN TANK IN PARIS MAP FABRIC

Published on January 7, 2012 in clothing and stitchery. 19 Comments Tags: 3 Sisters, Etchings, Moda, tank top, Wiksten.

Pattern : Wiksten Tank Top by Jenny Gordy
Fabric : Paris Map from the ‘Etchings‘ collection by 3 Sisters

Let’s talk about the fabric first. This Paris Map fabric is incredible. It’s the kind of fabric that I could use over and over again and never get tired of it. It’s the kind of fabric that only lasted in the shop for about 24 hours before all 3 bolts of it were gone. It’s the kind of fabric that you want to hoard forever and never not have it in your life.

I really wanted to enjoy this fabric on a regular basis, not just visit with it in my stash. I knew that this tank pattern would be a satisfying way to cut into this print. You just can’t go wrong with the Wiksten Tank. It is so versatile and easy to wear. (I have fabric picked out for my first Wiksten Tova that I hope to be able to sew up soon)

Again, I have to say that I super proud of my pattern matching on the pocket. (See my first Wiksten Tank here) You can barely see that there is a pocket!

I still have at least a metre left of these Paris Maps (plus every little bit of scrap from cutting out the tank) and the rest will likely go into some future quilts and definitely into my Blue & White Farmer’s Wife Sampler.

MISC.

Our dear Kristiann, has recently launched her own line of pdf sewing patterns. Her company is called, ‘Victory Patterns‘ and I know you’re going to fall in love with her designs. I have my eye on the Hazel dress with those sweet front ties.
I’m adding this DIY Fur Pom Pom project to my list of things to do
Have you seen the online magazine, Covet Garden? It is SO good. Each issue features a different house in Toronto and this issue features Arounna & John’s home from ‘Bookhou‘!
The Frosted Pumpkin Stitchery is starting a Dessert of the Month club. Each month you get a new adorable dessert cross stitch pdf pattern emailed to you. the workroom will be working with the Pumpkins to create Cosmo floss sets every two months that will contain all the colours you will need to work on your desserts. We sold out really quickly on the January/February sets yesterday, but more floss is on the way. Let me know if you’d like to buy a set when they are back in stock!

WIKSTEN TANK IN MARTHA NEGLEY

Published on November 12, 2011 in clothing, stitchery, textiles and the workroom. 11 Comments Tags: Martha Negley, tank top, Wiksten.

I’ve admired everything Wiksten for so long and finally I ordered her two sewing patterns a couple months ago. So far, I’ve just made the tank top (twice!), but I’ll be making the Tova as soon as possible. I’ve had a crush on that shirt for ages.

The tank pattern is awesome. Jenny’s patterns are hand drawn and incredibly well designed. You don’t even need a serger for this project, since it is sewn with french seams and bias finished hems. Genius.

I am MOST proud of the pocket on the tank. I PERFECTLY matched the pattern on the fabric so that you can barely even see that the pocket is there. Small details like that make me so happy.

With winter approaching, I’ll be wearing it layered with cozy cardigans.

It doesn’t at all seem unreasonable to me that I might need a rainbow of colours in this tank. It’s clearly a wardrobe essential.

You can order Jenny’s sewing patterns and clothing from her online shop here.

STYLISH DRESS BOOK 2 : DRESS ‘S’ IN EBS

Published on October 30, 2011 in clothing, japanese dress/craft and textiles. 13 Comments Tags: ebs, Liberty of London, sewing summit, shirring, Stylish Dress Book.

Stylish Dress Book 2 : available at the workroom
Liberty of London : Ebs

What can I say, I love this pattern. This is version #3. Version #1 & #2 get tons of use and I was feeling like I should add another version into the rotation. The only change I made was to add side seam pockets to this version.

This Liberty of London print is called ‘Ebs’. This soft colour palette is so incredible and the print looks like it was coloured in with pencil crayon. It has been sitting in my stash for way too long. I’m pretty happy it’s now hanging on my closet and joining me on adventures like the Sewing Summit.

SIMPLICITY 2215 : PURPLE DROP CLOTH

Published on October 24, 2011 in clothing and stitchery. 24 Comments Tags: cynthia rowley, drop cloth, habitat, jay mccarroll, Simplicity 2215.

I love this dress so much!

I have been holding onto a couple metres of Jay McCarroll’s Purple Drop Cloth fabric from his Habitat collection. I knew it would make a really special dress once I found the right pattern. I saw this Cynthia Rowley pattern online and when I couldn’t find it here in Toronto, Amanda picked up a copy for me and mailed it to me. It was very easy to follow and I love that I can also make a separate skirt or top using the same pattern. I’m keeping my eye out for a skirt fabric to use next. The pockets in the skirt are brilliant.

I wore this dress on our first day of classes at the Sewing Summit. We had a long break after lunch before our afternoon classes started, so Katherine, Amanda and I went to our room to hang out and relax. Of course, I noticed how lovely the light was in our room and promptly started moving furniture around to take photos of this dress, my new fabric, Amanda’s mini quilts, etc. If you ever wondered what the other side of my camera looks like, Amanda caught me in action here. I get pretty resourceful when taking photos. I stacked boxes of cookies to make a ‘tripod’ on our last day to get these group photos.

The prints from Habitat really seem to suit clothing. This drop cloth fabric is GENIUS. I made a skirt from the Grey Multi Coloured Polka Dot Habitat fabric a few months ago that I adore and I’m REALLY wishing I had more than a metre of the grey Birch fabric. What was I thinking?! Perhaps I can squeak out a tiny tank top from it.

1001 PEEPS : ENCHANTED BOW SKIRT

Published on August 12, 2011 in clothing, DIY, stitchery and the workroom. 26 Comments Tags: 1001 Peeps, Enchanted Bow Skirt, Lizzy House, shirring.

I’m so excited to share my 1001 Peeps Summer Camp project with you today! Have you been following along with the other great camp projects every Friday?

Since I love making clothes so much, I thought I would create a skirt pattern that is very easy to sew. You will start and finish this skirt in a few hours! Also, I show you how to do elastic shirring with this pattern. If you’ve never tried it, this is a magical technique to learn. It’s also very addictive. You may have seen it in this dress, this dress or this dress. Since I know how much Lizzy loves bows, I had to make sure it had a big bow on it too! My Enchanted Bow Skirt features a ruffled paper bag waist, an elastic shirred waistband and an adorable contrasting bow.

It was pretty hard to choose just two fabrics from the 1001 Peeps fabric collection for the skirt, but I’m having a love affair with purple right now, so I chose the Purple Pearl Bracelet for the bow and the Scheherazade for the skirt.

You can download a pdf of the instructions to make this pattern here. I’ve added the elastic thread that I use to our online shop, in case you don’t have a place near you that sells it. Please let me know if you make one, I’d love to see it!

the workroom will FINALLY be receiving our shipment of 1001 Peeps next week. Just in time for Lizzy’s arrival. There will be sets of all 24 prints for sure! Fat quarter, half metre and full metre. If you need one, (I definitely need one), let me know and you can pre-order.

There are just two more weeks left of the 1001 Peeps Summer Camp. Be sure to visit Whipstitch next Friday and Happy Zombie on August 26th!

p.s. The bow on this skirt is totally enchanted. Take a look at the last photo where the magical bow is trying to fly away!

Finish Enchanted Bow Skirts :
- Jeni finished her skirt within a day of posting the pattern! It’s amazing with the Royal City print in orange.
- Lizzy House made TWO enchanted bow skirts while she was in Toronto. Here’s her first one made with Heather Ross’ Far Far Away 3 fabric.

HONEYCOMB SMOCKING

Published on July 30, 2011 in clothing, needlework and the workroom. 3 Comments Tags: honeycomb smocking.

I’m learning honeycomb smocking and I’m pretty smitten.

MANNISH STYLE

Published on July 29, 2011 in clothing, japanese dress/craft, reading, stitchery and the workroom. 4 Comments Tags: Japanese dress book, mannish style.

Mannish Style – available at the workroom

This is my current favourite Japanese Dress book. Firstly, it has a fantastic title that makes me smile every time I read it. The full title on the book is ‘She has a mannish style’. I am feeling this mannish style right now!

What I love about this book is that it strays from the typical sweet tunics and dresses you find in most Japanese Dress books. It’s great to see some variation in the styling. There are some super cool drapey tops and vestlets that look like they will be fun to make. I’m looking through my stash to figure out what fabric will work for one of the dresses. It will be one of the 13 projects I hope to work on over the long weekend. I need more time to sew!

NATURAL DYEING AT JULIE’S

Published on June 19, 2011 in clothing, delicious and natural dyeing. 8 Comments Tags: indigo, julie sinden, natural dyeing, shibori.

Thursday night, Julie hosted a fun backyard dyeing party for the students from the Advanced Natural Dyeing class. During the class we weren’t able to get the zinc lime indigo vat going properly, so Julie offered to have us over when she got one going successfully at home.

It was the perfect night to be outside eating fresh baked bread and cheese, drinking iced tea and experimenting with indigo. There were two indigo vats that Julie had going. One was a zinc lime indigo vat (you can see the ‘flower’ below that forms on top of the vat when it is ready for dyeing) and the other was a natural fermentation vat. We found the natural fermentation vat to be deeper in colour and I felt like I could try to do this type of indigo vat on my own. It was pretty exciting to try out other types of indigo. What is it about indigo blue?

I did some Itajime Shibori, which is created by simply folding and clamping your fabric. It’s so simple, but the results are stunning. I’m really happy with how my square window panes turned out and it was my first time trying to do triangular folds. I’m not too sure what I’m doing with these indigo pieces but I’m sure you’ll see them re-appear in another form in the future.

We also set up a pot of cochineal with lime juice, which seems to give some brilliant red results to the yarns that Susan and Julie were dyeing. We tried mixing cochineal and log wood into another pot and got a pretty purplish colour.

I over-dyed a few pieces that will go into my natural dyed quilt. I think I’m ready to assemble the quilt top and back. I can’t wait to see how all these dyed samples look together.

We stayed outside dyeing and chatting until it got too dark to see what we were doing and the mosquitos started to bite. We missed Carolanne and Margie that night, who couldn’t make it, but we talked about another get together since we had so much fun.

We ended the night with a raspberry pie that I got at Mabel’s on Roncesvalles. YUM. I’m plotting going back for another one that I might try to eat all by myself.

Check out Arounna’s photos here and Julie’s photos here. The top photo in this post is by Brian who took some great shots while I was unfolding my fabric.

p.s. Julie opened up a little shop on etsy to sell some limited run natural dyed accessories and yarns!