So here it is, my Cambie Dress!

This color is pretty accurate to real life, although it looks much different on me than the dress form because I actually have some color in my skin. The Cambie pattern is very pretty, and the dotted Swiss is delicate and youthful, and the green color is pale and soft, so everything came together to create a very lovely dress. But I had to funk it up a little, so I added a bright orange zipper.

I did a handpicked zipper, which the Sewaholic designer Tasia gives a tutorial for here. I used a bright orange thread, and I used it again for the blind hem. Handpicked-zipper stitches and blind hem stitches are supposed to disappear into the fabric, but not on this dress!

Now I’m going to show you a terrible picture of the back.

I tried to color-correct for the dress, and the background suffered for it. You can’t win ‘em all.

Okay, the dress fits me a lot better than it fits the dress form. But I love that zipper! Also you can see the unevenness of the dye. It’s not so apparent in real life, actually. I love the subtle mottle of the color, I think it adds character to the fabric itself. It’s very beautiful!

This ain’t my first rodeo with the Cambie dress, so I made a few small alterations with it this time. I let out the side seams 1/8″ each, and it fits much more comfortably now. I also brought in the top of the zipper seams because I have a problem with back gappage with every pattern I make, and this is a huge improvement.

I think I’m going to have to make more changes to it, though. I didn’t spend enough time fitting it well, since I made the bulk if it yesterday to wear to a thing at night. The back is too high and I have to do some weird maneuvering to zip it all the way up. And the hem is a little long for my tastes. But in all honesty, I’ll probably wear it a lot before I get around to making any of those changes.

I think that this dress will be absolutely perfect for picnics, and I’m excited for this dreary weather to turn around so I can get some good use out of this dress!

Some people are really precise with their dyeing, and keep recipes so that they can match colors exactly. But I would like to say up front that I am not like that at all. I’m not a very methodical dyer, so I can’t give a step-by-step here, but there are lots of websites that explain in detail and with pictures how to dye fabric and yarn.

The major thing to keep in mind when using natural dyes is that the colors will usually not be very bright or consistent. Sometimes you’ll have no idea what the resulting color will be like. So it’s good to test the dye with a small batch first, or else allow the color to be a pleasant surprise.

This was my set-up:

Propane tank and burner from a turkey fryer, rubber gloves, a paint stirrer (to stir the fabric) and a rusty old clambake pot. You don’t want to dye with anything you prepare food with. I’ve  dyed inside on the stove, but I prefer to do it this way because it was nice out, and sometimes I’m messy.

And this is what I dyed with:

These were all sorts of colors when they were in bloom, and they dried out on the plants because this summer was so dry, so I just plucked the petals out of the flowers like this. You can use them fresh, frozen, or dried. I think this weighed about 3 oz, but it provided more than enough color. Also there was some mold in it, but that’s not a big note. As a side note, I’ve also dyed by letting my fabric get moldy because I left it in the dyebath in a basement and forgot about it, and it turned out beautifully!

Anyway, the process of dyeing goes like this: you need to wash the fabric in soap first to get rid of sizing. Synthrapol is a textile detergent made specifically for that, but I didn’t have it so I just used a washing machine. Then you need to mordant the fabric. A mordant is a powdered metal that adheres to the fibers of the material, allowing them to accept and hold the dye better. The mordant I use is alum, which is foodsafe (you can usually find it in the spice section of a grocery store, I think it’s used for pickling). So you simmer the fabric in the mordant-y water for an hour, then take it out and simmer the dyestuff (that’s a technical term) for an hour, then take that out and simmer the fabric for another hour, stirring occasionally. Like I said, most other sources are way more descriptive than I am.

Then you can take the fabric out, rinse it really well, and dry it. I recommend machine washing it after you rinse it, too, because the color will still run a little.

My fabric was a bright, intense yellow before it dried. I also dyed some yarn because I have a loom.

Here’s the dotted swiss when it’s all dry:

It’s a much lighter yellow-green. I loved that yellow, but I like this a lot too. I think I dyed about 2 yards of it, and I’m going to use it to make a Sewaholic Cambie Dress! I love playing with natural dyes, and I really encourage you to try it! Onion skins give me a gorgeous mustard yellow color, mulberries produce a rich purple, clay dyes a mottled beige. You can even leave fabric or yarn with dyestuff in a mason jar in the sun, and it will work!

Happy dyeing!

The Datura Blouse is semi-fitted, with side bust darts to give it some shape. It buttons up in the back, but that’s not really necessary, because you can really just pull it on over your head.

The yoke is made with our Helen Wang cotton eyelet, and the main fabric is Liberty of London Millie B Tana lawn. I just love them together! I made bias tape out of my extra Liberty fabric, and I love that this pattern includes a template and a jig for making bias tape!

I constructed everything with French seams, since all of the seams are more or less straight. And, you know, it’s a French pattern.

And here is the back! It’s so pretty!

And we have the perfect buttons to complement the pattern on the fabric and the eyelet! What a perfect blouse!

To segue into my next topic, did you notice the bra straps in the first picture?

This pattern is the Bambi Soft Bra, by Ohhh Lulu. The shop sells lingerie, and recently released several patterns! So I bought this pattern (she only sells them through her Etsy shop), and made up this adorable bra that unfortunately fits the dress form better than it fits me. Lucky dress form. I used a Liberty Tana lawn for the main fabric, and a semi-sheer dobby weave cotton for the contrast.

This is lined with a beautiful coral rayon jersey. The construction isn’t perfect, and it’s way too small, but this is the third bra I’ve ever made and I think it’s great! I’ve been taking apart old bras for their hardware, so this one has lime green sliders and back clasps. I love it!

Rose did a great job with the pattern, it was very easy to follow! She has more images of bags that other people made, so be sure to check them out! We have her pattern for sale here at the store, or you can purchase it from her online.

Check out that pocket! Neat!

And this is our new friend, Nishana! She made a beautiful vintage Butterick dress out of some birch “pool” colored fabric! Isn’t it awesome?

Sorry for the bad picture, I totally blew it in Photoshop. But the back looks good!

That color is so gorgeous with her skin, I love it!

We love seeing what you make, stop in and show us!

We started off with some delicious snacks.

And then then learning began!

We had a great group of students, and Kelly is a fantastic instructor. We acquired two new Bernina machines for our classes, and they are so great to sew these heavy totes on!

One of the most important steps to making the totes was PRESSING EVERYTHING!

Kate acquired some beautiful vintage striped canvas, and paired it with our orange dotted organic cotton by birch.

The Sue Kirchner took our class! She bought a Tibetan quilted scarf from Kate at Stillpoint Gallery and made her own floppy tote out of it! It’s so beautiful, and she took advantage of the loose threads of the scarf to give her bag some fringe! She’s going to look so stylish taking this tote to her studio!

Kate’s finished bag is a fun play with stripes, it looks so good! She made several bags with her Tibetan quilts before this, so she’s already a pro.

Another student, Jill, was inspired by my whale shorts and followed one of Nan’s fabric combination suggestions, the Nanny Tucket Bag (which I think she named after herself).

I forgot to get a picture of Mary Pat’s bag, but trust me, it was adorable! Our first class was a total success, and we can’t wait to host more! Our next class will be Thursday, May 2, in the art of French Cartonnage. We’ll be making beautiful needle cases. We’re so excited!

You’ve been asking for them! So here they are! Of course we didn’t want to offer just any old class…so here are two phenomenal classes that you will just love, love love! Class sizes are small – for obvious reasons, where would everyone sit to work? Plus we want to offer as much individualized attention as possible. Please note these particular classes are for adults. We’ll let you know when we are ready for the kiddos! Thanks!

The Kelly Tote

Thursday April 18, 6-9pm

Learn to make this fabulous canvas tote bag! Super roomy and durable with lots of pockets for sunglasses and sunscreen OR baby bottles and wipes! You decide how crazy you want to be with the fabric and trim you choose. We used cotton duck and our new Kokka circus print canvas for our samples! Adorable!
FInished size is 17″ wide x 16″ tall x 6″ wide.

Class details

Cost: $60. Includes class (and use of our sewing machines and scissors, etc. – or you may bring your own), take-home instructions, interfacing, strapping, magnetic closure, light refreshments.

Not included in the price of the class: fabric and trim.

Class size: 6

Requirements: Must have some sewing experience (i.e., you are comfortable operating a sewing machine!)

Fabric: Medium- or light-weight canvas is ideal. Please have the following purchased and cut PRIOR to coming to class: Two 18″ squares of fabric for pockets, two 18″ squares of fabric for outside of bag, and two 18″ squares of fabric for inside of bag (so 1/2 yard of each fabric). You will also need 1 1/4 yards of ribbon for handles and another 1 1/4 yards of ribbon for additional accents.

If you would like to make one exactly like one of the samples shown, let me know and I can have your fabric ready when you come to class. The price of fabric and trim for the green elephant bag is $33.63 plus tax. The fabric and trim for the blue circus bag is $39.38 plus tax.

I also have tons of other fabric combination suggestions…PLEASE CHECK OUT our next blog posting: suggestions for your tote bag! If you place your order ahead of time I can send you a PayPal invoice and have your fabric ready when you come to class. Otherwise you will have to stop down ahead of time and pick up your goodies!

Your instructor:  Kelly O’Toole is the owner and designer of Scarlett O, a handbag and accessory business. Kelly graduated from Syracuse University with a BA in Fashion Design. She has been creating unique, well-crafted handbags and accessories for the past 10 years. Her bags are sold at Juma Gallery in Little Italy and can also be found at the Shaker Square farmers’ market on most Saturdays from April through September.

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Needlecase Extraordinaire!

Thursday, May 2, 6-8pm

Don’t your sewing needles deserve a chic little pied-a-terre? Mais bien sur; of course they do! Begin your new love of French cartonnage with this simply elegant needlecase (or porte aiguilles, as our Gaulic girlfriends call them). Cartonnage is the art of covering mat board with beautiful fabric and/or paper to make boxes, picture frames and other functional items. This needlecase has a pocket for storing a package of needles as well as a felted side for storing used needles.
Finished size folded is 4 1/4″ x 3 1/8″.

Class details

Class size:10

Requirements:  No experience required. This is a beginner level class. Nothing to prepare!!

Your instructor:  Betsy Begue is an experienced teacher who lived as an ex-pat in France for five years. While there, she discovered cartonnage, the French art of creating objects from mat board and then covering them with beautiful fabric, paper and trimmings.  She studied in the Atelier of Fanchon Grand, eventually teaching international students who were as passionate about cartonnage as she is. In September of 2012, she returned to the Atelier for further instruction, renewing old friendships and returning home with many new ideas and supplies for the cartonnage classes she now teaches in North Canton, Ohio. Betsy will be a featured Instructor at Artiscape, an artists convention in Columbus, Ohio this April 18th-21st.

If you place your order ahead of time I can send you a PayPal invoice and have your fabric ready when you come to class. Otherwise you will have to stop down ahead of time and pick up your goodies!

Our recommendation is to use two to three fabrics (inside, outside and pockets) depending on how crazy you want to get with this!

Have fun choosing!

Luna Bag
Pack this tote with your PD (depending on what day of the week it is!), kindle and iPad and head down to Luna for a morning of people watching and indulgence. You’ll never run out of compliments, things to do, or treats to eat! Echino blue linen/cotton canvas, kokka penguin canvas and birch organic blue dots; Amy Butler banner ribbon and pink ribbon accent for the strappy handles.

Sea Bag
Navy canvas outside pockets for durability. Polka dot outside and waves inside. Great seashell trim. Or, for a cleaner look, use all navy canvas outside with polka dot inside.

To Market To Market
Heather Ross designed these uber-darling piggies (a few are wearing very stylish glasses) for kokka of japan, and they will happily go to market with you every day! Fabulous woven jaquard alium ribbon in purples and pinks is the perfect trim. Navy canvas, organic dot and linen/cotton piggy print.

Center Field
Head to down to Progressive field with this bag under your arm and you can sneak in all the treats you want! Solid brown canvas, linen/cotton echino canvas, and floral print from Liberty’s new Lifestyle Collection. Accent your tote with chevrons and medallians for a winning combination! Maybe even the Indians will win!

Spot & Dotty
Elegant woven jaquard ribbon looking something akin to a Rorschach test spot mixes well with the gold polka dot print from birch organic…all on a background of hot pink canvas.

Bubble Gum Yum
This combo makes my mouth water! Brown canvas sets the stage for delicious blues and pinks. Organic blue dots and a yummy print from Liberty’s new Lifestyle Collection, trimmed with woven jaquard floral ribbon and yellow ric rac!

Oliver Twist Tote
“Please, sir, may I have some more?” You’ll just keep wanting more and more of these colors!! Pale pinks, blues, browns and greens on a background of chocolate brown. Brown canvas, Moda floral print, organic pink polka dots, owlie jacquard woven ribbon and pink ric rac! Fab!

Garden Tote
Earthy but fun! Beautiful pale pink and green accents in the ribbon, coordinate beautifully with the blue organic dot print, brown canvas, and blue cotton and linen canvas.

Bright Apple Bag
Perfect for a Saturday morning at the Shaker Square Market! Blue linen/cotton canvas, brown canvas and fun Monaluna organic apple print with bright yellow flowers and tiny suns.

Fine Day Fox
It’s a fine day when you can carry this darling fox print with you! Organic cotton Monaluna fox print, organic birch dot, and solid brown canvas. Floral woven jacquard trim makes a great accent.

Brown & Lime Circus
Love this one! Fun colors, kinda crazy…brown and lime kokka circus canvas (totally adorable lions and giraffes!), solid brown canvas and organic lime green elephants from birch! Accents are woven jaquard, yellow ric rac and brown and lime cotton ribbon to accent the handle straps!

Brown Lime & Pink Circus
Brown and lime kokka circus canvas (totally adorable lions and giraffes!), solid brown canvas and organic lime green elephants from birch! Accents are woven jaquard ribbons introducing color splashes of pink, orange, green and blue and gold.

Birdie Bag
Brown canvas, blue cotton and linen canvas, birch organic cotton dots, birdie trim and green and yellow accents!

Animal Parade
Giraffes, elephants, horses and monkeys abound in this tote! Brown canvas, stripey kokka canvas, and birch organic elephants accented with super fun Sue Spargo jaquard ribbon.

Rebel Tote
Gotta love the dissonance of the pink skulls with hearts and flowers! Hot pink canvas and black gingham mixed up with some crazy woven jacquard!

Just for Fun Tote
Brown solid canvas is the background for birch organic taupe polka dots and these handsome brown and newspaper printed penguin canvas from kokka of Japan. Woven jacquard ribbon of ice cream sundaes and flowers make a fun contrast!

Just for Fun II
Brown solid canvas is the background for birch organic taupe polka dots and these handsome brown and newspaper printed penguin canvas from kokka of Japan. Woven French jacquard ribbon of striped flowers and pink ric rac trim are added fun!

Bright Idea Bag
This bag will wake you up in the morning and carry you brightly through your whole day! Super fun and bright colors: hot pink canvas, green and pink elephant canvas from kokka of Japan, and green organic polka dots from birch set the stage for some funked out ribbon combinations!

Casual Calm Tote
These colors just make me relax. Solid brown canvas, blue echino linen/cotton canvas and birch’s bicycle wheels and birds print in a yummy deep peach color. Sweet little owls and flowers woven jaquard trim and ric rac brings all the colors together.

Sophisticate Tote
This is one that you can toss your lap top and files into and head off in style to the office. Great navy blue canvas is the background for taupe gray organic dots and spectacular woven jaquard ribbon from Amy Butler’s new spring collection.

Mais Oui!
French woven jaquard ribbon is the star of this fabulous tote. Dreamy colors of blues, browns and peach make a wonderful bag that will have you feeling like your walking down the Champs-Elysées when you’re actually running into Trader Joe’s! Solid navy and brown canvas and a pale rusty-pink organic cotton of bicycle wheels and birds with ribbon and ric rac trim.

Nanny Tucket Bag
Sperry Top Siders and clam chowder are all you need after you toss your belongings into this red, white and blue canvas beauty! Navy canvas, red whale and geometric print from birch organics, accented with striped gros grain and ric rac.

Blossom Bag
Toss your wine, cheese and baguette into this awesome tote and head off to Blossom for a magical night under the stars! Brown canvas, echino’s blue cotton/linen canvas and red gingham, with yummy gold and plums in the woven jaquard trim.

I’m Cool Bag
Despite global warming, you will always feel cool with this bag over your shoulder. French woven jaquard ribbon sits atop brown canvas, with icy blue and gray Moda cotton floral print and birch organic taupy-gray polka dots.

Floral Bliss
Spring and summer schlepping will never feel the same once you head out the door with the Floral Bliss bag! Hot pink canvas, purplely-blue Amy Butler floral print and organic lime green polka dots meet up with purple and blue woven jaquard ribbon.

Anyway, I said I would make shorts out of our new birch whale print organic cotton, and I did! I think these are my favorite creation! I used the Sewaholic Thurlow shorts pattern. I was hesitant to use it at first, because the patterns are designed for pear-shaped women, and my body isn’t like that, but obviously I did it anyway.  They fit wonderfully, and I’m very happy about it!

I call this look Van Whalin’. Get it?

Sewaholic patterns are very well-designed and wearable. I’m a huge fan. I do feel that the instructions are a little sparse, but the great thing about the internet is that it has a plethora of resources. Some bloggers and patternmakers have sewalongs to work through patterns, and Lauren of Lladybird hosts a sewalong for the Thurlows here.

Making a muslin for this pattern especially is a really good idea. You definitely want pants to fit well, and you don’t want a flappy butt.

Looks good! Also, this pattern has welt pockets, which are pretty tricky, so you definitely want to practice those first.

Now let’s talk about fabric. The thing about organic cotton is that often the ink sits on top of the fabric rather than being absorbed completely into the fibers. That tends to stiffen the fabric a little bit, so it doesn’t drape as well as typical cotton. Birch’s cotton isn’t quite as stiff as other organics, and the way you treat it affects how it feels. I do laundry like a hippy with cold water and air drying, so these puppies will probably be stiff for a while. I imagine if you used fabric softener and a clothes dryer, the fabric would be much softer, but I can’t say that from experience. This stiffness is perfect for my shorts, though, so I’m happy. I wore them all day and they softened a little, so there’s that.

I’ll end this with a button. Isn’t it adorable?

They are so elegant and simple, very European. I just love the way Paco Peralta creates these patterns, too. He traces everything by hand, and handwrites all the little pattern notes in Spanish and English. So keep your erasers away from the pattern!

I feel that this truly makes each pattern unique and personal. Absolutely gorgeous.

Last week I finally decided to make one of his designs. Even though I wasn’t making this for myself, I think that the high-fashion aesthetic was holding me back. And then I realized how silly it was to worry about whether something looks like a high-end designer made it. I’m the one who’s making it, and I could make it out of a towel if I wanted to.

I didn’t make it out of a towel (this time); I used the Liberty of London Mirabelle lawn, and lined it with cotton poplin. I know it’s probably going to get cold again, but I wanted to channel Spring with this cape.

I love the pattern, and it looks adorable as the cape, but for a store sample I wish I had used something more dramatic, or with more contrast. But really, there are so many options for this. Peralta primarily suggests silk or wool, which would give the cape more structure. I used drapey cottons because, you know, Spring. The longer cape in a coated cotton would be such an elegant rain slicker, and the capelet in lace would be a cute peek-a-boo shawl. I love how versatile these patterns are, and the garments really don’t have to look like they were made in Europe (although that would be fun to do as well).

One thing about these patterns, though, is that they are not for the inexperienced sewist. While Peralta does include pattern notes, such as grainlines and fold lines, he does not give construction instructions. Since they are so simple, they’re not that hard to figure out, but I have to admit that this cape did have me befuddled many times. I took a couple liberties with construction, like leaving out the facings and using lining where he called for fashion fabric. I don’t think he’ll care.

Here’s a slightly better picture, on Nan’s fabulous dress. I used a coconut husk button with green resin, and it looks awesome!!!! I’d love to make this again, but I think I want to try some of his other patterns first. We carry the T-Coat, Drape Collar Tunic, Funghi Cape, and Draped Top patterns. To see more of his patterns, here is a link to Paco’s Etsy shop. However, we won’t have through-the-roof international shipping :)

Happy fashioning!

Debbie

We’ve been pretty busy here at the shop, which is great! Last week FOX8 stopped by to interview Nan about Bolt & Spool for a special about University Circle. She made an adorable skirt, and also wrote up a tutorial on how to make it. It’s super easy! She mentioned I made a skirt, too, so I guess I should show you!

I made it with small panels of our rayon/lycra stretch fabric, and the Liberty Lytton print. I don’t really have a step-by-step for it (guess I have to make another one!), but it’s really just a bunch of rectangles. I divided my hip measurement by 6 (for the 6 panels), then cut out rectangles to that width, and to the length I wanted–which ended up being to short, so I added a hem band of the floral print!

I sewed the pieces of the front together, and the back, then pinned the sides together, wriggled out of it, and sewed it up! Then I added the waistband, which is a couple inches smaller than my waist. This took me about 45 minutes to complete, which included deciding on fabric, figuring out how to construct it, and a couple costumers coming in. Not bad!

I mean, it’s not great, but I still love it, and it can only be improved upon.

So what else is new where? We have no lights!

Luckily we have big windows that allow plenty of natural light in. Unfortunately, it’s winter in Cleveland, so there’s not much of it.

Natural light is perfect for photographing fabric, though, and we’ve been busy doing just that so we can launch our online shop!

We’re also trying to clear out our MODA quilting cotton so we can make room for new fabric.

This is organic woven cotton from the company birch. We’ll be getting more in soon, including some knits! My favorite is the whale print:

Coming soon: Sewaholic Thurlow Trouser shorts in whale print!

Happy sewing!

Debbie