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I haven’t blogged properly the results of our trip to The Way We Wear fair because the natural light in our house sucks. So I took along my finds to my mum’s house where it has lots of windows so people can see during the day without turning the lights on. Freaky, I know.
First up is this utterly beautiful spool of silk thread.
It is barely enough for a neckline edging but even if I never use it, it will still look beautiful sitting quietly on a studio shelf.
I found two of Madame Weigel’s patterns. I’m fascinated by such a strong reminder of the roaring rag trade in Melbourne (well, it roared until the 1950s). A brief bio of Johanne Weigel and her family appears here, courtesy of Shirley Joy and the Brighton Cemetorians (thanks to a post by Shula for the tip off).
I particularly love this next one because it may be very nearly my size. The design of the bust shaping is so sleek – shoulder pleats to fullness, nipped back in with three little darts on each side.
Next, two editions of ‘Marion’ a quarterly (?) pattern catalogue from a Dutch patternmaker. The first is 1968 and the second 1970, giving a really good sense of the fashion shift from the 1960s to the 1970s. Each edition carried a few free patterns and these are still with the catalogues. I think you’ll see why I’d prefer to draft my own pattern and it has nothing to do with not knowing Dutch.
Finally, Stitchcraft No. 242 (maybe the late 1950s) with a hint of batwing, berets and bonnets. There is also a stocking cap with contrasting bobbles but I didn’t want to scare people.
Not that I’m a fan of The Party with Peter Sellers, but I do seem to have a bird thing going lately. This bird was intended for the lass’ wall but it became clear that it wasn’t in her authorised colour scheme.
It seems I’ll have to keep it for myself.
This is the purple one, finished a little more quickly because I’m getting back into the swing of hand sewing. I find it immensely soothing. I’ve finished a little bird and used that one to try out some different stitches and play around with colour. I’ll hang that one up next to the lass’ bird prints from Geninne. Let’s just say that I’m going for ‘primitive simplicity’ while Geninne is clearly an artist!
I’ve an idea about transforming line drawings from out of copyright children’s books into embroideries – pre-1960. I have a thing for the dashing heroines of the children’s annuals of the 1940s and 50s.Perhaps machine sewing, with handsewn or painted embellishments? Something to mull over.
A few days ago, loobylu shared this little redwork design. Apart from being a gorgeous illustration, it put me in mind of two special little girls who are cousins and best friends even though one is in Melbourne and one in Sydney.
This pink one is for my lass who loves all things pink. I’ve started on the second in purple for my neice who adores all things purple. They’ll become rectangular little pillows just the right size for reading or hugging.
The gloomy indoor lighting doesn’t help but it’s shell pink on calico, using split stitch and french knots. The split stitch gives a lovely texture. Where I needed very fine detail I used back stitch instead to make sure the lines stayed clear. I secured the centre of the stars with a tiny stitch in the centre. The purple version will look rather different simply because it’s such a strong shade.
I’ve enjoyed stitching this so much, I even tried it during my train ride. It is possible to embroider on a train but make sure you’re only using one colour because it can get a little tricky managing the threads.
My head has been in other places for the last little while and it’s made me realise that I need to be a little more regular in my posts. It clears my head (good thing) and helps me keep track of things I’ve seen, done, want to try (also a good thing).
So, for a small start, here’s a couple of things to look at:
- Colour Lovers: a site for sharing personal palettes, looking at trends and trying your hand at colour combos;
- Purl Bee: for a tutorial on a saw tooth patchwork block – I think this might be the block I use for my lad’s doona cover;
- Origamisan: a Turkish/English site for beautiful and functional origami;
- feeling stitchy: for embroidery eye candy.
I’m going to take photos of my adventures with the overlocker to share with you – the fun! the stuff ups! the loooong list of things I want to do!
Well, yes. I shall take a deep breath and not count the hours until I’m back at home with my love.
Almost as life changing as the pressure cooker (used nearly daily since it took up residence). The gardener and I went halves in an overlocker a little while ago and I’ve finally had the time to make use of it.
All those knits and jerseys I’ve stashed – at last, they realised their purpose! Some pj’s for the lass and a fetching velour top; and plans for other tops and jackets. It sews like a dream and it’s so much fun. It’s not at all difficult to get the hang of it and I had a little guide book as a reference. Re-threading is tiresome the first time you do it but it’s not the drama I’d been led to believe.
The only trouble is that I haven’t found any shops in Australia that sell quality children’s knits, terry and jersey. Crafty Mama’s do but their stock clearly flies out quickly and doesn’t have the range I’m after. So I’m waiting for an order of fabric that should produce a hooded jacket for the lad and complementary long sleeve top, a crossover top for the lass, a hooded top and a long sleeve t-shirt. In the meantime, there is a particularly luscious plum jersey to be made up into a 1950s wrap-waisted top, knight’s costumes, and probably pj’s for the neice and nephew.
I have pieces of orange velour and chocolate velour which were intended as a jacket for the lad a year ago. Unsurprisingly, he’s not keen on the colours now. I love them but not entirely sure I can pull off velour – it’s seems to be a kid’s texture. I’m sure my infatuation with the overlocker will help me arrive at a solution.
I had hoped to include a few photos today but in an aimless kind of way, I can’t quite locate the memory stick with them on it. There will be pictures again, soon.
This week has been quieter and a little easier for those smaller moments of joy to sneak in. I have tried new recipes or ones that we haven’t had in a long time. Some were successful, others less so, and pleasantly surprised by the ones which were eaten by the (slightly) smaller folk without fuss. I may have lied once when I robustly told them that they had eaten this meal before. Prior experience seems to make a difference if they face a plate with some suspicion.
I’ve decided to purchase a pressure cooker after hearing this interview with Suzanne Gibbs. She’s just published a book for pressure cookers – good, contemporary recipes by the sound of it. I was pretty much convinced when the host described the chicken tagine with a 15 minute prep time and 15 cooking time and I was sold when she said it cooked risotto in 6 minutes. I don’t care if that’s blasphemy but I love risotto and if a pressure cooker means I can have homemade risotto with homemade stock in the middle of the week, then a pressure cooker I shall have.
Plus it means its less disheartening when kids get fussy over a meal that took a great deal of preparation; or that it’s easier to put together an extra casserole so we can fill up the black hole that is the lad’s nearly ten year old stomach.
The camera went for a bit of a walk over the weekend – I was trying to figure out where to go and decided just to walk around our backyard. Some good shots, some not so great, but interesting and I learned that our camera has a magnification function. Just have to work it out, is all.
In craft studio news, I sorted my fabric AND put it away in the dresser cupboard. I’ve gone for two major categories: new, dress fabrics and vintage/remnant fabric. The dress fabrics are sorted by colour because that’s how I choose something for a project. Then I’ll figure out if it’s the right type of fabric and if it isn’t, damn it, I’ll have to buy some. I have large scraps sorted by colour into small boxes. I’ll do the books. patterns and notions this weekend and try and get a start on the decorative stuff. I moved my cutting table from under the house into the studio and it is bliss. It makes layout, cutting and sorting a dream.
All in all, I’m getting into a less hassled pace and enjoying it. Now to settle back for a weekend of Eurovision action.
This last month has been very head-ful for me. Lots of thoughts about the work I do, which is good, but has a tendency to keep my brain going even when it should be asleep. And quite a bit of preparation for the school fair yesterday. Mostly it was because I decided to take the plunge and have my own stall with my own handmade goods and a little bit of being the volunteer coordinator of the other stalls.
We had the most glorious autumnal weather that just to be outside made you feel good. I love those days. There’s a little warmth in sun but no so much that you want to hide from it, and just a hint of a cooling breeze. The kids have a fine time running around their school out of hours with its familiarity and one off strangeness as parents and family gather to eat, listen, craft and bungy trampoline.
I’ve been thinking for a little while about dipping my toe into the craft market business, mostly as a means of funding my fabric and yarn habit rather than as a serious business proposition. I went with the ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ theme of the fair and refashioned garments, made fabric cuffs out of remnant fabric and did up some iron-on transfer sheets. From a trading point of view, it wasn’t successful (I sold two items, but there wasn’t a great deal of buying going on for most of the stalls). I did learn heaps, though.
I got lots of positive comment on the refashioned garments. I can now tell you that one large machine-knit turtle neck jumper can produce a beanie (the turtleneck, with one opening seamed up), leg warmers or toddler’s leggings (the arms, plus some extra fabric from the torso for a rolled waistband), and a size 4 girl’s skirt. I’d pinned them up on a dividing screen so they were laid out for viewing and it was easy for people to stroll past, pause, get enthusiastic (and then walk on). I had some totes made from vintage fabric or refashioned items – a cotton knit halter neck in an oriental print make a great looking hobo-style bag. Trust me on that because I forgot to take the camera. For the record, a bright orange tote and the leg warmers got sold.
The fabric cuffs and iron-on transfers were directed at the pre-teen demographic. They weren’t things I would plan to do at a craft market since they’re fiddly and pricing needs to stay reasonably low to attract the smaller budgets of the audience. Again, a lot of interest but no sales. My lass, who had invested her own time and energy in making a large sign, and helped out beautifully on the day, wistfully wondered why nobody was buying our things. I was wondering too.
My guesses are that a lack of regular foot traffic meant fewer (no) sales. The stalls were away from the main action and required a special trip – they weren’t on the way to anything – so that meant fewer opportunities to wander past and reconsider a purchase. I think this was most true for the older kids who are encouraged to have a small budget to manage on fair day. I also think that the fair is seen by the school community as a time to get together and have a bit of fun. So food and drink were popular, obviously, and especially so since that was arranged around our little ampitheatre while students and a parent/teacher band performed. Grown ups and kids alike were happy to have a go at the lucky number spinning wheel and to get into the few carnival games we had. Craft activities seemed to do well and is particularly popular with the under-6s. And as this year’s external stalls coordinator, I’m very happy to argue that we shouldn’t have any. Or only a couple. The more we focus on helping the kids have fun and their parents relax and join in, the better.
But back to the learning curve. For refashioned garments, I got the most comment on articles that were dissimilar to their original form, such as the toddler’s leggings. That might mean people are more interested in those things that go beyond the ‘I could do that myself’ thought. For new or different items, demonstrate their purpose. It would have been easier for my potential customers if they’d seen a hand mannequin wearing the fabric cuffs or a model t-shirt with an iron-on transfer. For totes and bags, variety and volume may be the go. I didn’t really expect to see the bright orange one go because it was such an individual piece. But someone came along and saw that it fitted her style – with more bags there may have been more customers drawn in to browse. And as ever, good signs and display.
I think I will do a real craft market. But I’ll do it just a few times a year with a more focused product line with more of my particular style in the goods.
And I’ll remember a folding chair. Because standing up for seven hours is not fun, even in glorious autumnal weather.
After three failed attempts and one barely passable attempt, I have finally made a pair of trousers that fit and can be worn in public. I started off this particular pair with the decision to draft my own pattern – and that was about three or four months ago. I stalled after the muslin was altered but then the second draft/actual trousers didn’t work. I seemed to be going around in circles, getting one bit right, then stuffing up another bit. So I left it and did other stuff.
Until someone on BurdaStyle posted trouser slopers for each size. Checked the sizing, printed out the pattern, checked out the sizing again and it was beautiful – a trouser pattern that required only the most minor of adjustments. I was more conscientous this time and repeated the muslin stage until I knew I had the right fit. As a sloper (a personal measurement draft, really) it didn’t have instructions or full pattern pieces such as facing, waistband or pockets. But it was pretty straightforward to draft some facing and I don’t go for waistbands or pockets anyway.
From muslin to trousers
Preparing the facing: trace pattern, remove darts.
Bring dart edges together and trace out new piece.
Facing and waistband pieces
The final trouser pattern makes a good shell for a skirt pattern.
So now I can knock up some more trousers – a pair in an afternoon – and I know just how much fabric I need for a pair. Quietly triumphant, I was. But I don’t have a photo of the finished piece yet because I’ve been too busy wearing them to work. I’ll entice the lad into some more fashion photography this weekend and have something for you in a few days.
I’ll get round to transferring the pattern pieces onto pattern card eventually but I do enjoy the convenience of fabric pattern pieces. They just stay there, perfectly aligned, and then you can cut without pinning. I did find out that I hadn’t quite enough fabric so the hem pretty minimal. I’m thinking of adding a faux cuff with some tone on tone embroidery, just to glam them up a bit. We’ll see – I do want to do it but there’s that thing about my to do list being possibly being a little bit longer than the time available.
I’ve had a good couple of weeks with craft and design. Last weekend I spent a few hours at the Stitches and Craft Show; this weekend the lass and I drove up to Bendigo for the Golden Age of Couture exhibition.
I haven’t been to a Stitches and Craft show before, despite best intentions, and this year’s show was a major revamp of previous shows. It had a definite ‘yoof’ edge to it. Which means it appealed to people under the age of 45. I think this is attributable to the involvement of Living Creatively, an online magazine. They got the indie designers and the bloggers (usually one and the same) and put them together in an area that just felt vibrant and enthusiastic. This part of the main exhibition was noticeably lively, with lots of chatter between exhibitors and visitors. That part of the crowd covered a good age range – 25 to 45 – and that will no doubt warm the cockles of the hearts of the organisers. What is really fabulous about this incubator concept is that there’ll be regional variation between the Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney shows. I know that some indie designers are going to two or three shows but there will be a spot for the local designers that have built their own customer base and will be able to meet those customers.
Among the main displays, I really enjoyed Kelani Fabric and Amitie. Kelani had brought in their gorgeous range of Japanese cottons and linens as well as sharing space with Aunty Cookie. We could have a good look at the beautiful, hard-to-find, usually order on-line fabrics and Shannon Lamden had brought new designs to the show. That stall just rocked the whole time I was there.
Amitie had some of its most popular fabric available on bolts but had decided to go for kits and small pieces of fabric. It was a great idea that worked really well. They were selling 30cm x 110cm strips of fabric, arranged by colour, for $6.50. Some of the designer pieces were $8 and you may recall the flap bag I made for the lass – that was a piece I bought at Amitie. I wasn’t the only one enjoying the range of colours and prints – the stall was buzzing and the poor staff had barely any time to scratch themselves.
But what I enjoyed most of all was the two hours I spent as a volunteer in the Wardrobe Refashion area. Nichola Prested (Wardrobe Refashion and BurdaStyle) had set up a reconstruction zone with sewing machines, overlockers, cutting area and tables full of op shop clothes, as well as thread, trims and buttons. It was free to wander in, choose your garments and then let your creative juices flow. During my stint there were two women who had never touched a sewing machine before. One produced a bag out of an old pair of trousers and the other sewed an apron and a baby sheet with applique. There were quite a few mother/daughter combos, one guy and a couple of sets of friends. The average age of the refashionistas would have been 20. I had a ball!
They also had craft bars in the main display area, where you could sit at a bar stool, select your craft cocktail of choice and be served by experienced crafters. There was one each for embroidery, knitting and crochet. These seemed to have a regular turnover of under-30s trying their hand, especially at the embroidery bar where they were serving up Sublime Stitching patterns. I really liked the idea of a craft cocktail bar but I’d suggest a cozier setting next time. It was all white and stark and maybe I’m showing my Melbourne bias but I was thinking of baroque, smoky, hidden in a laneway and up the rickety stairs kind of look.
The Golden Age of Couture finished on the weekend so we made a dash for it on Saturday (after my plans for me and the lass wagging a day on Friday came unstuck). Although I had forgotten to buy my tickets online and therefore condemned us to an hour long wait at the gallery, I had looked up the details of the exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum’s website. This meant I’d read all the stuff beforehand and didn’t have the hassle of trying to read labels in a very crowded space.
It was a great deal of fun. The lass thoroughly enjoyed it and I found it more enjoyable because she was there. We zigzagged across the rooms going from one display to another, pointing out the fabulous and the ridiculous and marveling at the intricacy of some creations. The lass pointed out a number of suits I could wear to work and we tried to pick our favourite dresses. It seems we both like minimalist lines in our frocks but the lass likes more bling on her shoes than I do. I suspect that she was slightly disappointed at the lack of pink but the pale blue cape made up for that loss a little. The choice of colours was interesting – all these dresses had been made for clients, so they reflected the client’s colour preferences. Beige was popular, a few greens, a couple of yellows, and a few dramatic reds. Beading and embroidery were popular and dark blue made a good showing. It seems that I like Dior (the original) quite a lot, followed by Givenchy. In terms of design I thought the suits were the most interesting since it was these that embodied the ‘New Look’. I particularly liked the use of diagonal lines in construction, often in the form of an overlapping collar piece or in the line of the jacket’s front placket.
If you missed the exhibition, tootle around the V&A’s website. It has all the info and a great deal of the costumes.
Edited to add: if you pop over here, scroll down a little until Nikki starts writing about the Stitches and Craft Show. The very happy lady showing off an apron is one and the same lady I’m talking about! And if you hop over to Nikki’s flickr set, you’ll on the second row the apron and bag ladies (!) and on the third row you’ll see the back of me (shoulder length brown hair wearing the yellow safety jacket).
Further edited to add: I’m here!
