Sewing – Page 59

June 7, 2019

10-Minute Table Runner

It’s always helpful to have a quick project idea in your toolkit for those times when you need a quick gift or when you’ve finished a difficult project and you just need a simple win. This ten minute table runner is the perfect gift or pick-me-up project.

Material Required

Theme Print: 10″-12″ (1/3 yard) of theme print, width of fabric (WOF).
Coordinating Fabric: 18″ (1/2 yard) of coordinating fabric for back/border (WOF).

Note: If the fabrics are different widths, cut to match the widths.

Instructions

Place right sides together. Stitch along the long edge with ½ inch seam allowance.
Repeat, stitching the seam along the other long edge.
Press seams away from center fabric. (see Image #1)
Turn the right side to the outside. You now have a long tube.
Lay flat, press so the theme print is bordered evenly on the long side by the coordinating fabric. (see Image #2)
If necessary, trim the short sides to even them up.
Fold in half lengthwise so the theme fabric is facing out.
Sew a ¼” seam allowance across each short end. (see Image #3)
Press the seam open.
Turn the seam to the inside, forming a triangle, with coordinating fabric on the front of the triangle. (see Picture #4)
Finish with topstitch and buttons or other embellishments.

If you can’t quite visualize how these steps will work out, don’t worry! Just take one step at a time, referring to the pictures. Soon you will have created a quick new look for your table!

~ Akron Chapter

May 31, 2019

Alabama Chanin, a Pioneer of Slow Fashion

We have grown used to getting everything we want as fast as possible. Even in the fashion industry, fast fashion – otherwise known as inexpensive clothing made quickly and, typically, with lower quality – has become the norm. However, there is a burgeoning group of talented artisans who are fighting against bottom-barrel quality and prices through what has been tagged the Slow Fashion movement.

Slow Fashion Explained

Slow Fashion considers the quality of the clothing being produced, as well the processes and resources used to produce it.
Slow Fashion designers strive to make garments from high-quality, sustainable materials that are locally sourced whenever possible.
Slow Fashion clothing companies typically release fewer collections throughout the year than traditional clothing producers.
Slow Fashion garments are usually sold in smaller, boutique-style stores rather than department or big box stores.

The American Sewing Guild loves the growing momentum of the Slow Fashion movement. Who knows better than our own members that sewing your own clothing is the best way to ditch fast fashion and bring sustainability back to your wardrobe? And, inevitably, when discussion turns to a specific Slow Fashion company, one always comes to mind for beautiful and sustainable garments…

Alabama Chanin

“I became interested in the Alabama Chanin techniques about five years ago,” said Cathy, a member of the ASG St. Louis Chapter. “A local instructor was a skilled fashion designer who encouraged creativity and spoke of how the fashion process enriches our interests in sewing and the needlecraft process. She introduced us to the Alabama Chanin techniques and we were all immediately engaged.”

You’ve most likely already heard of Alabama Chanin but may not know the incredible back story of Natalie Chanin, the company’s founder. Natalie grew up in Florence, Alabama during a time when the cotton and textile industry was booming in the area. After finishing school in North Carolina, she moved to New York then onto Europe to pursue a fashion and design career. Unfortunately, during the years she was gone, the textile mills and production factories in her hometown closed and moved offshore.

Natalie’s first spark of inspiration for Alabama Chanin occurred when she was invited to a party in the late 90’s and created her own tee shirt to wear. She cut and embroidered the tee and arrived at the party to a wave of interest and requests for information about its source. She knew then that she had hit on the style of garment she was looking for; however, she still wanted her clothing brand to have more of an impact. Natalie wanted to bring jobs back to Florence. Alabama Chanin was officially launched in 2000 as a lifestyle brand with a focus on handmade clothing created from 100% organic cotton jersey and was created under the concept of Slow Fashion. As a Slow Fashion pioneer, Alabama Chanin also takes into consideration the working conditions and pay of factory employees.

In addition to pre-made garments, the brand provides open source information to creators interested in creating similar garments. Patterns and techniques are available for use through books, workshops and their School of Making which sells full projects kits via their website, as well as in stores around the world.

ASG Members Embrace Slow Fashion

Many ASG members have been motivated by the School of Making. Like Dian from the Nashville chapter:

“Creative, relaxed, rewarded—these three words describe the feelings I have when embroidering on my Alabama Chanin items. I love having a different concept of embroidery in my repertoire which I did not have previously. For me, doing something unusual is always a plus.”

Dian had been unable to join in when her chapter took a road trip to visit the Alabama Chanin factory and the School of Making. She was familiar with the brand but, at the time, didn’t believe it was her style. It wasn’t until she and Mary, the chapter’s President, connected with Cathy on the way to ASG conference that she finally understood the range of resources available under the brand. Cathy’s enthusiasm for Alabama Chanin projects changed Dian’s thinking and was further captured in a top Cathy created and wore to class. Dian instantly fell in love with the top and realized the open source style of education the brand encouraged meant that she could create the projects, then complete them in the style of embellishments that she favored herself. What a fantastic concept! Since then, Dian has been practicing her stitches and began work on a project that she fully expects to love.

Cathy shared her thoughts:

“I had never been interested in hand sewing before but found the process really charged my creative side,” said Cathy. “During the class, I started a long dress from one of Natalie Chanin’s books which I cut out, stenciled, and stitched. It took months to complete the dress but since then, I have been making hand-sewn garments continuously and always have an Alabama Chanin project waiting for my attention.

“I have made seven tops, three swing skirts, several pants, and two ponchos since that first dress. Although I have not mastered many stitches, I have done the running stitch, backstitch and cretan stitch (my favorite binding stitch, perhaps because it is one that I seem to do fairly well and love the results). Some tops are made using embroidery floss for the backstitch. Others have stenciled areas, some of which are cut and other areas are left uncut. The variety of looks you can achieve by changing the colors, stenciling, stitching method, and cutouts offers endless possibilities. It is always great to continue to learn new things.”

Dian is thankful not just for the resources and inspiration she’s received from Alabama Chanin, but for bringing business back to her area as well:

“I am fortunate to live only an hour from the studio where I can go to sew with other like-minded sewists. I extend my thanks to Natalie Chanin for bringing her talent home to Florence and for the opportunities and jobs her studio provides.”

My Personal Thoughts

Alabama Chanin is truly a unique company that puts as much focus on education and product quality as they do on selling their garments. I know I join many other sewists who are happy to have found the brand and learn from the resources they provide. Is is my hope that this blog post inspires you to jump into your own Alabama Chanin project!

~ by Rita Johnson

May 24, 2019

Kenneth King: “Smart Fitting Solutions” Book Review

Smart Fitting Solutions by Kenneth D. King

Kenneth King coming to ASG Conference — Image from KennethDKing.com

If you have ever been frustrated with trying to get a garment to fit YOUR body, don’t despair. Help is on the way! Iconic designer and sewing educator Kenneth D. King has written a new book, Smart Fitting Solutions, that demystifies the fitting process for a multitude of problem areas for women no matter what their body type.

Perhaps you have journeyed down this fitting road before and have been confused with wordy explanations and unclear instructions of what to look for and how to achieve a solution.

What you will absolutely love about this book is the clear, concise text that accompanies the hundreds of beautiful photographs that are truly worth a thousand words each. Smart Fitting Solutions is like a graphic novel for sewing. Unlike a video that whirls by quickly, the photographs provide the reader an opportunity to review the brief text, then take the time to study the picture to really see what is being conveyed.

The impressive photographs are not the only aspect that make this book unique. Scattered throughout the book are King’s personal preferences and tips. These span topics like recycling a muslin, pattern making techniques, fixing gaping necklines, and even where to begin flaring a skirt. I liked that King distinguished between conventional techniques and his own preferences, allowing the reader to understand the reasoning behind the differences.

Smart Fitting Solutions Explained

The layout of the book begins with evaluating a figure and creating a personal “croquis” or sketch from which to determine characteristics for an individual. Again through pictures, when the proportions of fashion illustrators are modified to reflect the actual proportions of the individual, it becomes quite clear why the completed garment is not as flattering as the illustrations made it appear.

Six women from the Threads staff are featured wearing several different garments that are evaluated on fit and figure flattering aspects. After “reading” each, King then gives suggestions on both fitting and style that would enhance their appearance. He even gives ideas for modifying ready to wear to salvage those non-flattering garments. His insights provide an excellent starting point for choosing the right design aspect that does not work against a particular body type.

King’s fitting approach simplifies the process into three basic categories: net loss, net gain or no net change.

While these sound like complicated accounting terms, they are just his way of saying an area of the pattern is too large, too small, or just not in the right spot.

And the remaining 80% of the book is devoted to showing us how and where to add, remove, or rotate the fabric to place it where it is needed. (In Appendix 1 he has included diagrams of a body as well as a pattern with key measurement points indicated so that the reader can easily see the points on the body and where those adjustments would be made on the corresponding pattern.)

King begins with step by step instructions for modifying a pattern based on his initial croquis evaluation to create a muslin, then “reading” that muslin to see what the drag lines and wrinkles tell us. Again, those pictures clearly illustrate the techniques he uses to make the adjustments on the muslins for each of his six subjects. Those adjustments are then transferred to the pattern.

“Once I understood the concept, I found I was reading wrinkles on everyone.” ~ Rosemary Fajgier

The more I observe, the more I understand and see how the adjustments can be applied. I am working on a top that I have made several times with stock adjustments that have never worked. I am looking forward to tweaking the fit using the methods from this book.

~ Reviewed by Rosemary Fajgier

May 17, 2019

My Welcome to ASG Membership Shirt

Proud to be a brand new member!

For 15 years, I had been a vendor at the Puyallup Sewing and Stitchery Expo; however, this year was my first time attending as a sewing consumer and a brand new American Sewing Guild Member. Imagine how excited I was when I was invited to appear in the local ASG chapter’s Fashion Show at the Expo! I decided to sew a blue silk taffeta shirt and proudly named it my Welcome to ASG Membership shirt

Like you, I simply love to sew and have been sewing since I was a small child. My mother, also a sewing enthusiast herself, taught us on her Singer Feather weight machine and I still have that machine to this day. She learned to sew from her mother (my grandmother), whom I unfortunately never met but was a dressmaker. Grandma made everything from fine cotton batiste lingerie — as well as the lace used to trim it — to baby doll clothes that I dressed my own dolls in almost 25 years later.

Sewing memories

The process of making this shirt for the Fashion Show was a wonderful reminder of all things I love about sewing. I think that sometimes it is just the powerful “need” to be sewing that drives many of us to take fabric to machine. In this case there were a lot of things that happened easily and just added to the joy of sewing the shirt. I was thrilled with the fact that I could shop my fabric stash for the fabric. I had a Katherine Tilton shirt pattern, Butterick B6521, in mind and once the fabric made itself known, I was in business. Changing the serger thread — all three spools — successfully is always a bit of trick, but I managed it on the first try and I was ready to go.

I had not spent a full day sewing for a very long time. And while I did not complete the whole shirt the first day, I did manage to get the body and the collars stitched together. I was so happy to just be in that zone, where your hands know the next steps to take without thinking.

I believe that this is why we are here. Why we are a growing a vast community of people of all kinds who simply love to sew. Baby boomers, young girls and boys, grandmothers, lawyers, actors, people of all ethnicities and genders. Our faces, our reasons, styles and skills, are as diverse as the items that we stitch together. But the common thread is that we create something, and that connects us all.

Deborah Kreiling | Deborah will be the Keynote Speaker at the 2019 ASG Conference

Deborah’s almost forty-year career at Simplicity Pattern Company began as a sewing instructions writer and evolved through the years to having responsibility for ensuring that the designs created could be produced to meet manufacturing and packaging standards as well as be created successfully by home sewing enthusiasts. After establishing the first Quality Control Department at the company, she moved on to become Design Development Director, the position she held until fall of 2018. Deborah’s unique insiders’ view into almost four decades of pattern development and the company whose patterns we all know and love – the producer of the ASG patterns featured in our annual Anyone Can Win contest – is sure to entertain. Deborah is a dedicated garment sewer, an avid cyclist and holds the rank of 5th degree Black Belt in Seido Karate.

May 10, 2019

ASG 2018 Hall of Fame Honoree

Anne Marie Soto

An article entitled “Meet the Writers” in the November 1992 issue of Sew News stated, “If the home sewing industry were to bestow on individuals awards for versatility, no doubt one would go to Anne Marie Soto.” It happens that the American Sewing Guild does bestow awards on individuals in the sewing industry. The criteria for our award are to have had a lasting impact on the home sewing industry with unique and innovative contributions through sewing education, product development, media, or other sewing-related endeavors.

On our 40th anniversary, we were thrilled to honor someone who not only met every area of our criteria but who also played a key role in the initial development of ASG and continues to support and contribute to ASG today. Anne Marie was the editor of Notions for almost 20 years, but her history with ASG goes back much further.

After earning an undergraduate degree in home economics from Cornell University, Anne Marie was determined to use her textiles and clothing degree in some way other than the usual teaching or retailing path. She landed a job in The McCall Pattern Company education department. A little later, she moved on to Vogue/Butterick where she spent the next 10 years serving in a variety of roles. Her duties included creating sewing lessons and educational materials and producing fashion shows. During this time, she also earned a master’s degree in communications from New York University.

In 1978, Anne Marie began her own business doing consulting work in the sewing industry. This was at the very time that the American Home Sewing Association (AHSA) undertook a project that ultimately led to the American Sewing Guild. Anne Marie was hired as a consultant to work on the development of what became the first chapters of ASG: Denver and Indianapolis, then Minneapolis and Houston. She worked with early chapter leaders to create the original ASG Policies and Procedures and other manuals and organizational documents. Under her guidance, ASG grew to nine chapters. At that point, AHSA needed to hire a full-time national administrator to oversee the ASG chapters, and Anne Marie opted to move on to new projects and challenges in the sewing industry.

Over the following years, Anne Marie authored many books, including “Vogue’s Sewing for Children,” “Simplicity’s Simply the Best Home Sewing Book,” “Simplicity’s Simply the Best Home Decorating Book,” and “Stain Rescue: The A–Z Guide to Removing Smudges, Spots & Other Spills,” and contributed to a variety of clothing textbooks for Glencoe/ McGraw-Hill. She also became a regular contributor to Sew News, Sewing Update newsletter, Serger Update newsletter, Vogue Patterns magazine, and Butterick Home Catalog. In 1999, she teamed up with Betty Watts at Communication Concepts to produce Notions for ASG.

In addition to her writing and editing, Anne Marie is an active member of the ASG North Jersey Chapter. Perhaps one of her greatest contributions to ASG has been as the self-titled “godmother” of the ASG Simplicity Patterns project and its annual contest. As a member of the ASG 25th Anniversary Committee, Anne Marie volunteered to contact her former boss and long-time friend Judy Raymond, then senior vice president of Simplicity Pattern Company, who agreed to partner with ASG in what has been an ongoing relationship for the past 15 years.

A long time ambassador for ASG, Anne Marie is a worthy addition to the ASG Sewing Hall of Fame.