The thoughts, sewing projects, and fabric oglings of a dedicated sewist.

Mustard yellow

10/14/11
I have developed an interest in mustard yellow lately.  I found a large piece of mustard corduroy fabric at one of my favorite thrift stores (The Economy Shop in Oak Park) a while back, and then one of my friends ordered two bags with mustard yellow accents.   What a great color to use as a contrast!  I think of it as a sour note that makes bright colors pop and neutrals perk up.  Here are the bags for Susan:






Susan chose some interesting prints by Joel Dewberry - a herringbone in navy and the woodgrain print that I made a clutch out of last week. 

I've decided almost any color goes with mustard yellow.  My next challenge is to try to pair it with hot pink, like this beautiful ring from Etsy seller Hunt and Peck:


New bag, new skirt

10/7/11
This was a fun sewing week.  I figured out how to work with loose-weave wool, made a new bag, and finished work on an experimental skirt for my friend Diane. 

Diane is fun to sew for because she has a good sense of style and what works for her, but she also likes to experiment.  She picked this Amy Butler fabric and wanted a fun skirt made out of it:


We kicked around a bunch of ideas and finally decided on a grey yoke and hem band to frame the fabric, and some slight gathering at the top of the skirt to play with the lines.  At the last minute I decided it needed a second hem band and here's how it turned out:





I also tried out a new bag design based on a request from K, who attended the first skirt party.  She wanted a clutch with Joel Dewberry's woodgrain fabric.  And here it is:



I made two to make sure that I got the technique down.  I may keep this one for myself or put it up on Etsy as my shop has been looking a bit bare lately!




All in all, a fun, challenging week!  I'm going to finish up working on some other bags this weekend and then next week I'm on to designing a yoked pencil skirt.  B picked out some fantastic fabric for these that I'm excited to work with!