Saturday, October 17, 2015

Happy Customer Photo

I enjoy my miniature dressmaking binges so much, but it's not often I get to see the dresses in action.

This black and white polka dot dress was made from a favorite skirt.  When the zipper broke, I took it as a sign that it should be repurposed, instead of repaired.  Considering that the zipper broke because the skirt was too tight, a new zipper wasn't really going to fix anything anyway.

And it made a really cute dress.  The little girl's mom is a fellow artist, and I ran into her at a show today.  She sent me these photos of her daughter and said I was welcome to share, and I'm only too happy to do so!

This really makes me want to settle down with the sewing machine and some cute fabrics, but the holidays are coming and the custom bear orders are piling up.  Dresses are pretty much on the back burner until after the holidays, but I'll keep this picture around for inspiration heading into spring.

Monday, October 12, 2015

Rallying the Clan

A while back I received an email making some custom bears.  It was from someone I know online, someone I know who sews, but who said (more or less) that she would rather stick needles in her eyes than match plaid.

A friend brought this family tartan back from Scotland years ago, and she decided that she wanted to have bears made from it for her family and friend.

In the tradition of all good sewists, even though she didn't intend to use the fabric, she'd purchased a beautiful coordinating navy blue wool, which made my job even easier.

Here is the final result.  Well, actually there are 6 of them, but you get the idea.

Working with the tartan fabric made me realize that if I ever get to Scotland, my shopping budget is going straight to the nearest shop selling quality tartan.  It had a beautiful hand, the colors are more subtle close up, and it was a joy to work with.  Have to say, it was difficult to send the remnants back, but there's enough left that if my friend decided to, she could make herself a nice small jacket.

With matched plaid, of course.

Next up is another series of custom bears.  Remember the necktie bears from last year?  Well, that lovely man's family came up with more amazing garments for me to cut up and make a series of bears (and bunnies) for a different selection of grandchildren.  I'm looking forward to it, all except the taking shears to high quality clothing part.

But I always get over that, don't I?