A Throw, New Pillows and on the Cutting Table

Finished: new covers in winter fabrics for all of the throw pillows. I chose a pretty red and white toile that has been ripening in the stash since 2003. I had forgotten exactly what I bought it for, but it makes pretty pillows for winter that don't look too Christmas-y. Pillows in Chez Hunting Creek lead a hard life, and I end up recovering them about twice a year anyway. They serve as floor pillows, lap desks, foot rests, as well as normal pillow duty. I don't use zippers because of customer complaints about zipper hardness. Instead I use one piece of fabric, two seams, (one on each side) and an envelope back. Smooth, no lumps and everyone is happy.


Some people have said mean things recently about minky, but the blanket-using population here has nothing but praise for the new faux sheepskin and minky blanket I made last weekend (when it SNOWED!). Making a faux fur throw is so easy a rookie can do it, but be aware that just like real fur, this stuff sheds like crazy when you cut it and sew it. When writers talk about the fur flying, I believe they were referring to sewing faux fur. I had to clean out the inside of my machine twice and wipe down the cutting board plus vacuum the sewing room afterwards. But the actual construction is a breeze. Please note that minky and my faux fur were knit backed, so I used a ball point needle and a small zigzag stitch. I left a opening on one side then reached in, turned it right side out and hand sewed the opening shut. The fancy fur thows at Pottery barn and Restoration Hardware sell for hundreds of dollars, and while I admire them, I won't cry when someone spills pizza, root beer or red wine on mine, because I can wash it. And it didn't cost several hundred dollars.
I asked Mr. Hunting Creek if so many finished projects meant new fabric purchases were in my future. He laughed and said, "Only when you have an empty shelf", so don't expect new fabric purchases in the next week or so.
Next up:

I admired Lindsey T's Cynthia Rowley Simplicity 2192 tops so much that I thought I'd make one of my own. The pattern back suggested brocade as an option, and it just so happened that I had some pretty dark teal and black brocade lurking in the stash from a long ago purchase. I don't recall what this fabric is made of, (I suspect man-made, but nice synthetic, if that's not an oxymoron) but I know it has some lycra because it has a slight stretch. Since I bought it forever ago, that means it's free, right? This pattern is very simple, and like all simple designs, nice fabric is all. If the "free" brocade version looks good, then I'll upgrade to silk brocade.(Which is aging nicely in the Great Wall 'O Fabric).
A note about this pattern. As Lindsay T mentioned, it runs big. That seems to be the style now, so if you prefer a smaller size, please plan accordingly.

I've finished six things in the last week and items 7 and eight are in progress. This is amazing productivity for me. And all items have been successes! I want to hang a sign on my sewing room door like they have on factory floors that says something like Eight Successful Projects Without An Injury.
What's on your cutting table?

Great Moments in Fabric Literature, Vol XX1: Fabric Words

My BFF from high school, up in snowy Alaska, sent this fun fabric email:

This week's theme
Fabric words used metaphorically

This week's words
chintzy
pinstriped
dirty linen
flannelmouth

I've heard peaches described as cottony, as in, "Late peaches are all cottony inside." Maybe it's a Virginia thing?
Cheap people are chintzy, but generous people are never satiny or silky.
We all know about airing dirty linen in public, (witness the current Republican Primaries for a more direct example of dirty linen airing in real time) but no one ever advises showing off your clean linens either.

What other fabric related words can you think of?

Scary Fabrics,Volume I: Sock Monkey Santa

If Stephen King sewed, this would be the fabric he'd make into pajamas for his kids.
"No, Daddy, NO! Not Sock Monkey Santa!"
Of course, if you're a fan of the macabre little monkieys, find them here. All others be warned.

It's Snowing!

In the ultimate Trick or Treat gesture, it's snowing in October.

Bedside Reading- Colette Sewing Handbook

The Colette Sewing Handbook came in the mail yesterday. I read every single book that I sell on my website - what if someone asks me a question? This book would be a nice gift for someone who wanted to learn more about sewing, and if I were giving it as a gift, I'd put it in a gift bag with some silk pins, a pretty pin cushion, and a measuring tape. I like how it opens up and lies flat too. The book has lots of good advice about prepping fabric and pattern tissue - stuff that I learned from my mom ages ago, but if you don't have a mom or grandma who knows about sewing, it's nice to see this sisterly advice here. There's a chapter on fitting, advice about wardrobe planning and more. I need to read it very carefully again and maybe make that cute skirt. The instructions have lots of pictures for visual learners, and are very reassuring.
Even though I've been sewing since I was a child, there's always something new to learn. Plus, it comes with five patterns! The skirt with the scalloped hem would be perfect for my daughter. There's also a pretty bias blouse with fluttery sleeves, and a couple really pretty dresses. There just aren't enough pretty dress patterns - you can't have too many.
Mr. Hunting Creek thinks reading sewing books in bed is deviant behavior. Things could be worse, I tell him - with mobile devices I could be buying fabric in bed. This effectively shuts him up about the reading material.

Jasmine is my New Favorite

Even though I have not purchased any fabric in over four years (and not suffered one bit, that's how much fabric there is around here), I never stopped collecting patterns. Patterns are the crack cocaine of sewing, incredibly addictive, and each new batch leaves you wanting more, more , MORE! Not that I have a problem with that. Patterns are small. I temporarily stopped my so far fruitless search for Simplicity 3536(but now I have two completely clean closets!)
to unwrap my new Colette Patterns, and immediately decided to make the Jasmine Blouse. So pretty! So feminine! No buttons or zippers- a big plus in my book. Although I've been making buttonholes since I was ten, I hate sewing on buttons and this is a perfect chance to avoid them.
As mentioned yesterday, when I cleaned out my office closet and previous fabric storage location, I found fabrics that some unknown person had snuck into my house. Luckily this unknown person has exactly my taste, so I could make the Jasmine Blouse out of blue charmeuse or cream silk jacquard. Or possibly both.
The new Peony Dress is a very ladylike kind of dress as my mother would say, and it would make a perfect LBD, and the Clover Pants are VERY Audrey. Audrey and I look nothing alike, but we can't let little things like that get in the way.(I'm more like Elizabeth Taylor, and very few people would say that she was a fashion icon...in a good way. She had her own style, though. She didn't give a damn about what you thought of her, and that's a style worth emulating.)
I know what I'm making next -what's on your cutting table for Fall?

How Much is Too Much?

You know you have too much fabric when you clean out the office closet and find four yards of dark blue silk charmeuse that you have never seen before in your life.
You know you have too many patterns, if, when trying to organize them (a Sisyphean task)you find not two but three of the same one.
You have too many shoes if you find new shoes in the back of your closet but it's the wrong size. Did I think somehow my feet would shrink?