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| | Fred Bloebaum
Fred Bloebaum passed away at home on September 4. She was a beautiful gentle soul with a deep passion for sewing and teaching and was loved and respected by her students and all who knew her. Fred's gift of using color was impeccable and inspiring. I first knew her in the earliest days at The Sewing Workshop. She moved from taking classes and a small dressmaking business to developing her own pattern line and teaching nationally. During her struggle with pancreatic cancer, her husband sent daily postings that were a touching glimpse into their lives, full of humor, sensitivity, resolve and their love for each other. The sewing community has lost a beloved teacher. | | |
| Katherine will be at Novi, Michigan
The American Sewing Expo | | Friday - Sunday, September 24-26
Katherine Tilton will be teaching and in our booth # 611 at The American Sewing Expo with the Marcy Tilton Fabric Collection, Silkscreens, Paris Buttons and Tilton Studio CDs. | | | Katherine is teaching, 'The Arty T', 11-12 every day and will be demonstrating silk screening in the booth. Come by and silk screen a design flag yourself at our 'make & take' table in Booth 611. |
| | | New Fabrics:
the lure of the chase in finding wonderful fabric....and getting the fabric to you! | | | Fabric in.... | | A new shipment of fabric moves from the delivery truck ( which is sometimes a semi) to the ArtBarn. Blanco and Shelley at the wheel of Beth's golf cart, along with a box of pears. |
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|  | | | | Fabric out.... | | Vasco standing guard over shipments of fabric and teaching supplies headed to Novi. You can see (and buy) a wide selection of cuts from our collection at the American Sewing Expo in Novi. |
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| | | LINK TO NEW FABRICS | |
Our fabric collection is expanding! At one point this past month, the kitchen and guest cabin were filled with bolts waiting to be photographed for the website and absorbed into the shelves in the ArtBarn. New shipments arrive often, and we are excited to rip off the packaging to see what is inside.
On a recent buying expedition I bought from three different bay area designers: a renowned SF designer known for her sophisticated clothes and unique European and Japanese fabrics, a highly successful SF designer known for her use of printed knits which she designs and are produced by a German mill, and a wearable art designer where I found a small collection of one of a kind cuts. | |
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Another buying trip resulted in the discovery of knits and wovens from an upscale nationally known designer (clue: starts with St.) I bought every scrap available from the supplier. Ideal for foolproof pants, jackets, dresses, travel, building a wardrobe. Then I discovered a few knits labeled Armani. And, in a dusty warehouse at the end of the day, I stumbled upon a grouping of artfully pleated and crinkled fabrics from an Italian mill.
In most cases there is no fiber content label, so I make an educated guess. A burn test tells part of the story, but the bottom line is that I choose the kinds of fabrics I would use in my own sewing and for the patterns I design for Vogue.
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PONTE PONTE PONTE PONTE
Ponte knits are designer workhorse fabrics. Defined as a stable double-knit fabric with stand-out stability and firmness that’s perfect for tops and bottoms (t-shirts, jackets, pants, skirts). Ponte fabric has a subtle matte/flat texture, very slight sheen and incredible soft drape . It looks the same on both sides, with a flat weave. Super easy to sew, a great starter knit if you don't have much sewing-with-knits experience. I don't recommend any seam finish, just leave the edge raw---and I like to use the raw edge as a design detail too. Comes in a rainbow of colors. I find our pontes from a variety of sources, so the structure of the fabric is the same, but the weight and fiber content can vary, but are usually a blend of poly/microfiber, rayon/viscose and lycra in different percentages.
Eileen Fisher describes ponte as 'the architect of fabric'. So many designers are using it - I am too, and I recommend it for you. | | | |
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| | | Check Out New Website Postings | | | | Pairing Pattern and Fabric: Pants | | | | T-Shirt Gallery | | | | Marcy's Closet | | |
| | New Vogue Patterns
October 2 release | | | | From Marcy Tilton | | |
| | Vogue 8703 | | Accessories grouping. Pieced scarves in silks have a large bound buttonhole to slip the end through, sits easily on the neck, looks like a collar, adding a shot of color at the face and feels delicious. Padded pocket scarves done in silk have a pocket to slip your hands into in the cold. Zig-zag edged scarf combines 2 fabrics and uses hand stitching for a soft detail. And just for easy fun, little gauntlet gloves that are a snap to sew and make marvelous gifts. I found gloves like these all over Paris, selling for $75-$100. I used fleece and lace for the pattern, but you could use other knits or even felted recycled wool sweaters. |
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| | | From Katherine Tilton | | |
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| ArtBarn Sewing Weekend
Labor Day weekend, my friends Alex and Carrie Marie came for a visit. We've been having sewing visits for over 10 years, this time I cleared the decks in the barn and we set up and sewed along together. Katherine worked along with us in her adjacent studio. Alex and Carrie Marie shopped for fabric, cut and sewed. Carrie Marie did a vest and T, Alex finished a jacket and vest, and I worked on a pattern prototype, a funky cardi and am finishing a pair of pants. | | | | Carrie Marie: 'Still life is my main interest, though special dog and cat friends appear in many paintings which are imaginary scenes but full of real domestic objects. A shred of fabric, a teapot, a tilted Matisse table top and a view out the window hint at something beyond. Many of my paintings feature silk screen designs from Marcy's collection or screens I've designed myself that she has made.'
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| | | | | This 'painting' is composed entirely of fimo. Click on the image to enlarge and see the detail. Carrie Marie's work evokes textiles....she even uses silk screens in the paintings. |
| | | | | Commission painting of Teddy, a painting Carrie Marie did from a contact from a past newsletter feature I did on another of our girlfriend sewing adventures. |
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| | | | | | | Tully, Carrie Marie's dog came for the visit too. His mom, is also is responsible for the design of this website. Click on the link below to see her work. |
| | | | | Carrie Marie made this t using Katherine's new pattern Vogue 8690 and our Retro Dot sweater knit. |
| | | | Link to Carrie Marie Tasman website | | | |
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| | | | | | Alex describes herself:
Alex Merrin is an artist of life. Her medium, as life coach and counselor, is supporting people in creating a life worth living. With the aid of Alex's innate understanding, honesty, intuitive process and keen observation individuals, couples and willing young adults have resolved unanswered questions, gaining insight into personal patterns that thwart living a life of purpose. She is long in the tooth, having served others since 1988. Alex can be reached at 503.228.7784 or alexm11@mindspring.com |
| | | | Alex and her finished jacket. Fabulous rendition of V8676 in our Holmes Tweed. The original hangs behind in the photo.
Stepping out on a limb, Alex used a woven fabric for this pattern which is designed for fleece and knits, and it worked! This jacket makes great use of raw edges combined with the artfully wrinkled fabric, and the result looks like expensive Euro ready to wear. Alex cut the collar on the bias (and pared it down), adding a strip of dotted mesh at the neck. Added a pocket. Used raw edges on the hem and pocket and utilized every scrap of the selvedge. |
| | | | Click on this link to see more details of Alex's Jacket | | | |
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| | Carrie Marie's Vest
Carrie Marie used Vogue 8599 in polar fleece edged with our Taupe Baroque knit. This was one of those sewing projects that involved what seemed to be more ripping than sewing, but perseverance paid off! | | | Alex's Vest
Alex used V8088, in our Faded Glory wool gauze knit Sold out in this color, but coming soon in shades of dusty blue. | | |
| | | Marcy's Cardi | | | | | | | Slouchy cardigan in an acrylic/lycra sweater knit (sorry, sold out).
In my current fixation on the cardigan, I wanted to sew on a sweater knit, and I am hooked. Takes a bit of care on the soft fabric which does not have much stretch recovery, but with care it was not hard to work with. I used V8497 as a starting point. Copied off the pattern to turn it into a cardigan: changing the front neck to a V and cutting bigger side seams. This is my favorite kind of sewing...making it up as I go along. I'll be teaching a class on 'The Arty Cardi' at the Puyallup Sewing Expo, so more experiments with cardigans are on my radar. | | | |
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| | | | | | | The neck band gaped a bit, so I added the little darts, which changed the shape at the edge, making it more interesting. |
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| | All In the Family
My grand-niece, Bridget (Katherine's daughter Katie's daughter), has been bitten by the sewing bug. She has been taking lessons and is not afraid to take on a challenging project, as you can see here. I am so proud of her! | | |
| | | Studio Report: Finding The Ultimate Ironing Board | | | | When my beloved antique ironing board collapsed in a heap one day, I researched the best I could find. I spend as much time pressing as sewing (and often the pressing is what makes the difference), so I wanted the right size, very sturdy, a place for the iron that does not take up space on the board itself. This Texas sized Italian crafted ironing board from the Reliable Corp. in Canada is now in my studio and I love love love it. I'll add a wool padding underneath the cover, and I recommend purchasing the optional cord holder to complete the package. |
| Up Next:
Finding the Ultimate Dress Form
My next search to find just the right dress form. I am still researching, will post the result/final decision in a future newsletter. There are so many choices at so many prices. Stay tuned. | | | |
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| | | | | | | Click on the image above to go directly to the Reliable website. |
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| | | Cool Links | | British Father and Son Re-Craft Ancient Garments Into New
I loved this article! | | Communing With Fabric Blog
A personal favorite, I love to see what Sharon is doing and appreciate her detailed explanations as well as her real-life photos of the garments she makes. Inspiring, and it was fun to run into her at the PENWAG meeting in August. Kudos for keeping her blog so vital for a full year! | | Center for Pattern Design
Bookmark this site, and sign up for Sandra Ericson's quarterly newsletter. So much unique and valuable information is contained here. Taking one of Julian Roberts draping 'zero waste' workshops is on my short list of things to do. | | Fashion Incubator
SO much great information here, I cannot recommend this strongly enough. Bookmark this site, AND buy Kathleen Fasanella's book, 'The Entrepreur's Guide to Sewn Product Manufacturing'. Buy the book and you can access the forum, which is a place where home sewists interact with industry professionals for the bottom line scoop on cutting, fitting, fabric and many more insider secrets. 4 stars, thumbs up---and Kathleen is an ace writer to boot! And DO track down her postings on interfacing and sleeve ease. | | The Fashion Code
I haven't paid the $30 fee for my own personal code yet, but I like the concept here. You take your measurements, upload them on this website and get a personal best recommendation for your proportions. Interesting concept, a spin on the Golden Mean, and interesting photos. | | |
| | Coming in December 2010....
Power Sewing Toolbox, Volumes 1 & 2
Sandra Betzina has done it again! Her legacy to people who love to sew is a double volume book with a DVD tucked in each one. Filled to the brim with Sandra's signature sewing techniques and style. Photos of Sandra and friends, real people wearing beautiful hand made clothes. I learned some new things in each volume, trust me, you will want both---and both are designed to use in your sewing studio, though I curled up and read them cover to cover.
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| | | Link to Sandra's Power Sewing Website | | |  | | |
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