Skip to main content

dyeing, UFOs, and Harley

Update one: I'm still making dye swatches for the PEM workshop.

Goldenrod with alum, l to r: cotton woven, cotton jersey, wool from Dharma Trading Co.,  wool from Weircrafts, and nubby silk

Black-eyed Susan (I think) with alum, also in woven cotton, nubby silk, two types of wool, and cotton jersey

I was surprised by the black-eyed Susans; you can't really tell from the photo (bad light, I guess), but they produced a fairly dark range of purple-greys. I totally expected them to make the usual yellows and oranges. I really like the results, especially the Alabama Chanin cotton jersey at bottom right. (All I want for Christmas, Santa, is a billion yards of white Alabama Chanin fabric.)

Also, I used the goldenrod to dye the base fabric for an experimental pillowcase:


Overnight soak on linen, no mordant. I made this for The Chalifour Collection at the Pickering Wharf antiques market in Salem, along with a few other pieces. (The back story on that: I was out yard-saling on my bike one Saturday morning—as one does—when the proprietor saw me looking at sewing stuff and said she was trying to find someone to redesign some vintage linens for her antiques booth. After a lot of hemming and hawing, I decided to give it a shot—although I still feel like I'm in beginner territory as far as sewing goes!) 

Anyway, the pillow above was made from two white linen napkins and a crocheted placemat. I'm actually really enjoying the process—some of the linens are hand-embroidered and really beautiful, dating from the '30s, '40s, and '50s, I'd guess. It's been fun trying to puzzle out what to do for each piece.

Update two: I AM making clothes. I swear. I got sidetracked by dyeing and pillow-making, but I have, like, four UFOs that just need finishing up. 

Update three: Harley the cat had surgery and is now in possession of a glamorous new accessory:


He doesn't much care for it. I can't understand why. It's very Gareth Pugh.

(Did you know that those things are called Elizabethan collars? I had no idea.) 



Labels:

Comments

  1. craftspacecontinuumSeptember 21, 2015 at 12:50 PM

    I'm digging the dye experiments and the pillows (cool!) Glad Harley's on the mend : )

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Alabama Chanin Factory Dress, and an update

Right! So I've been thinking lately about making three "uniform dresses" with pockets in Alabama Chanin cotton jersey that can be worn by themselves or over t-shirts and leggings, under cardigans, etc. And then I got this new "accessory" in May (which I'll explain in a sec) and couldn't get a red dress out of my head. To match, sort of—even though I hate it—but also, I love red and for some reason have none of it in my closet. So anyway, here's the first Factory Dress! It's single-layer medium-weight cotton jersey in Carmine, in a straight size medium, with hand-stitched seams (although I machine-stitched Eloflex within the SA afterward for extra stability). I used the punch cards from The Geometry of Hand-Sewing for the Cretan stitch around the neckline and armholes, which worked out great.  Bad closeup of neckline: This was a really enjoyable make—I had fun with the combination of machine and hand-stitching. I might k
4 comments
Read more

finished: Alabama Chanin Classic Jacket

Hi! Lots going on around here lately. Thing One: I bought a new sewing machine! This is my new Bernina 480 , purchased from Sew Creative in Beverly, which recently closed. Sorry I don't have a better picture. I love this thing—it's fancy! I'm still learning my way around it. Thing Two: I was supposed to have another article in Vogue Patterns Magazine, but it folded! Bummer. It's on lighting for sewists, and if you want a copy, feel free to contact me on le social and I'll send it to you. I interviewed the gadget person from the Carroll Center for the Blind, and he recommended a lot of great stuff. (Really going to miss Vogue Patterns—it was my favorite sewing magazine! RIP.) And finally, Thing Three: I completed an Alabama Chanin Classic Jacket, from their Sewing Patterns book. The backstory is that I really wanted a nice reversible travel jacket in nice AC organic cotton for an upcoming trip to Japan. (This is after ordering an expensive travel hood
3 comments
Read more

complete: Nani Iro pocket dress

I made a dress! With the new sewing machine! Wheee! And not to bury the lede, but: We went to Japan for two weeks, and I completely fell in love with the clothing—especially Nani IRO and their amazing fabrics. I'm hooked. We tracked down the atelier in Osaka. ( Here's my review on PR .) They wouldn't let me take photos of the shop but said it was OK to take pictures of the fabrics. Lots of linen, cotton gauze and sateen in bright colors, as well as buttons and notions, an archive (I wasn't sure if it was possible to buy any of the archived fabrics), and jewelry. I bought some lovely blue linen with an asymmetrical print: And the book—the English translation had just been released. And it was signed! (I have a picture, can't seem to post it, sry.) So anyway. I couldn't stop reading the book—you know when you get really really obsessed with a pattern book? Like that. As soon as I got home, I decided to try out the pocket dress. Here'
2 comments
Read more