The holidays are here!  The holidays are here!  We've worked hard at college this semester and I really enjoyed the chance to learn some great skills amongst some lovely creative types (most of them half my age!)

My skirt - took some things I liked - a high waist, shaped hem, bound edge......big metal zip at back...and made this!I think my favourite subject was Wendy's sewing production class where we made a truckload of samples ( zippers, casings, pockets etc), then sewed pyjamas, skirts and a couple of shirt/jackets.  Really enjoyed drawing, making the pattern and stitching up our own skirt design - it's very satisfying turning an idea into a 3-D object!

Super simple to sew cowl neck tee - the hardest part is making the pattern - lucky we have Wendy our favourite teacher to help out!

We also did some T-shirts - painless fun for those with an overlocker, but a little trickier on an ordinary sewing machine.  Here's a little cowl neck tee I made, it's pretty simple to sew once you draft the pattern up...

From Garance's photos during a trip to SydneyKeeping a blog is hard for lazy me!  But it's a great way to keep a record of what you've been doing.  There are a gazillion brilliant blogs out in the Blogosphere, but one I always keep an eye on is Garance Dore's.  She's the Sartorialist's girlfriend if that means anything to you (that guy who snaps people in the streets) and a brilliant photographer herself.  I like it because it's heavy on photos and images, light on text...

This diary entry about a painting I saw at Qld Art Gallery...inspired this costume party outfit......which then evolved into this 60's shift!Keeping a journal is a lovely record to have. 

Keeping a visual diary is like that but in mostly pictures instead of just words...  

We're required to keep a visual diary for our drawing class and it's been really fun. 

First there's the discipline of daily entries...

For the past month, I've made myself put aside time every day to draw. 

It's a real luxury to do that, putting aside housework  or other things you're obliged to do. 

But it's really rewarding - give it a go!

Hmmm.... chillis for a logo? or maybe two lamb chops?Lots of friends are ardent Masterchef addicts, picking favourites already!  (Not so much me, I'm still mourning the end of SYTYCD - go Robbieee!)  But it does make it easy to hand-craft birthday presents for foodie friends.  I found instructions for this chef's hat here, but frankly, they're really hard to follow.  I gleaned that the pattern is a circle and a rectangle, and from there I just made it up in much the same way as I'd sew a pleated skirt!

Not for the faint-hearted, but if you do give it a go, personalise your hat with different fabrics or an embroidered on felt logo...

Katie GannonTo find out more about the fashion industry, I interviewed designer Katie Gannon for a college project.  Her eco-friendly label "Mother Maria" is dedicated to her late Polish grandmother, Maria.

Katie started sewing as a teenager, remodeling her own garments from retro pieces she picked up at local op shops.

She's still inspired by vintage  magazines and retro patterns. Many of her unique garments use vintage fabrics collected over the past 15 years.

I love the way that Katie's label and cool blog have a strong social conscience. Her clothing is always created under ethical work conditions, using sustainable fabrics, such as recycled vintage pieces, and organic cottons. 

Since 2004, Mother Maria has grown from piecing together individual garments on a home sewing machine, to now producing seasonal ranges for stockist's Australia wide.

Here's some of our Q & A...

What do you do in a typical working day?

I am usually up at about 6am. I start work at 7, check my emails for about an hour, then it's to the sewing and cutting rooms where I am either designing or getting production ready. I also have to make time to fit in a bit of book-work, web-maintenance, and research before I finish at around 5pm.

What’s your favourite part of running Mother Maria?

Definitely when a new range is finally finished and we get to shoot it, and start marketing the clothes.

Your least favourite task?

I would have to say sewing the same designs over and over many times if I have a lot of orders for it.

ABOUT ECO-FASHION

 

What sparked your interest in sustainable fashion?

 When I started looking into the behaviours of major fashion labels and their impact on the environment, I was rudely awakened to how destructive this industry is.

 

I love your eco-friendly fabrics  and your passion for ethically produced clothing.

Who sews your garments?

I sew a lot of my garments, and I also have several local sewing ladies with whom I contract work out to. I used to produce clothing overseas, but after working with a few factories and seeing the conditions, I decided it wasn't the direction I wanted to take.

How do you ensure that your range is ethically produced?

All of my sewers are now paid between $20-$25 per hour. This means that every piece of my clothing made under the Mother Maria label has been sewn by someone who was paid fairly, and was happy to create the garment, not forced into it due to poverty. 

Any things you've learned/advice/wisdom to expound?

If you want to make beautiful, quality clothing, don't ever try to compete or compare yourself to cut price made in China garments that are all over the shopping centre. If your designs are unique, you will set yourself apart from mass produced clothing. Stay true to yourself and have confidence in what you do!

How would you describe Mother Maria's product range?

Natural, vintage inspired clothing for the modern girl who loves nature and simplicity.

Who is your company’s target market?

Women aged 14 - 45

Hope you're having a lovely Easter break! 

Thank you Anna, for organising a crafter-night (as opposed to a crafter-noon) where we made these cute bunnies.  My Grandma's doggie pincushion

I made mine into a pin-cushion, as I feel too cruel sticking pins into my other pincushion, a lovely little dog I inherited when my grandma passed away. 

Awww... Here's a funny bunny cartoon to cheer us up!

I'm loving College.  Especially since I've found a way of including TV watching in my study curriculum!

For our sketching class, we had to draw a dress from five different angles.  Unable to find anyone willing to stand still long enough five times, I resorted to freeze-framing people on So You Think You Can Dance.  Here's Ivy from that fabulous Paso Doble routine a few weeks back!

Getting lots of help from Nancy Reigelman's book Colors for Modern Fashion -

a great book with lots of tips and techniques for using coloured markers in particular. 

Full of fabulous examples too...

Here's one I copied earlier ...

Please mark your calendars for...

BrisStyle Indie Twilight Markets –  handmade wares with a little soul -  handbags, jewellery, funky footwear, babies and children’s wear, soft toys, artworks, illustrations and vintage re-creations.

Where and when? King George Square, Adelaide/Anne Sts, Brisbane City
Date: Fri 30/4/10  5 - 9 pm.

Just part of my new stash of fabric...When I spotted a stack of Vogue Designer sewing patterns (circa 1980), I suspected this St Vinnies might have some nice fabric in stock. 

True to form, I found crisp linen (pristine white and prints), crepes, real wool and  shiny silks tucked in amongst their stash. 

And the price?  A princely $16.50 for some twelve metres of material.

Spot the op-shop jeans...Seriously, who can tell the difference between my brand new $65 no-name jeans and the $4 Levis I found op-shopping in country Kenilworth? 

It was so hot camping that I bought the jeans on the right to cut up into shorts, but in the end figured they were too nice and deserved better treatment!

Easiest ever way to convert your jeans to shorts

For those with the same urge to cut up your jeans, I spotted the easiest way to do it on some shopbop.com shorts.

Just turn up the edge once to the outside and stitch.  No messing around trying to put cuffs on your shorts - it stops the fraying just a bit and you get a great look for minimum effort!

Copy of a Catherine Malandrino sketchPractising draping detailsSketch of our teacher's 80's dress!Still having fun at college, thanks for asking...

Here's some drawings I've done in our fashion illustration classes. 

Try copying drawings that you like.

Or work from real life garments. 

Practice, practice, practice!

By the way, when I was a kid, I couldn't draw to save my life.  Just ask Christina, a friend in grade 6 that I had to borrow a drawing from, for show and tell time! But I do believe it's like reading and writing, you can learn to do it.  Betty Edwards' book Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain is a fabulous book for those who want to learn to draw.

Am loving our sewing class at college - those industrial machines can go at breakneck speed!  To get used to them, we've been doing lots of exercises on squares of Vilene.  If you'd like to give them a go on your machine, (well worth it!), I've made a little tutorial for you here.

Click on a pic to see helpful notes. Enjoy!

First week at Fashion Design & Technology school at MSIT... A little strange for me as I'm so much older than most students!  Lots are recent school leavers - mostly aspiring fashion designers.  Our Industry Awareness class was a bit of an eye opener - designers' jobs are pretty scarce, but there's work going for sample machinists (who sew a prototype garment that is sent overseas for manufacturing) and patternmakers (the area I'd like to move into) are sought after too. 

But aspiring designers don't despair - some do just fine.  Brissie finalists in first series of Project Runway AustraliaMetropolitan South TAFE's most famous ex-student is Leigh Buchannan, runner up on first season of Project Runway Australia.  Juli Grbac (the winner) studied in Brisbane too, at Gateway TAFE.

Show me the money!

Studying through TAFE can get expensive as there's no HECS scheme where you can defer payment (fees are around $5000 per annum.)  So start saving, and get ready for some hard work! This semester we're tackling patternmaking, drawing and design, fabrics, industry awareness, computing (Photoshop and Illustrator) and sewing on industrial machines.

Enjoyed our fabric identifying class this week...

Our cut and pasted yarns and fabricsEveryone loves to cut and paste things, not just kindergarteners!  Learned lots about how fibres are twisted together to form yarns.  How tightly twisted the fibres are contribute to how the fabric feels.  For instance, flannelette and satin are made from gently twisted yarns.  Crisp, firm fabrics like voile and chiffon result from twisting the yarns they're woven from very tightly. 

This exercise would be great for teachers to introduce students to different fibres.  

Also fun is looking at fabrics under a magnifying glass.  You can clearly see the knitted structure of stretch fabrics in T-shirts and the diagonal patterns of twill weaves on denim. 

Bought this dress last year for $10. In fact, everything in the store was on sale for $10.  With clothes so cheap, why would anyone bother to sew their own? 

I found a good reason while I was reading a beautiful book called Hungry Planet by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio.  It's full of great photos of 30 families in 24 countries, detailing "what the world eats."

Here's a local family living just outside Brisbane and their stash of goodies for a week...The Browns from Riverview spent $376 USD on this weekly spread...

And a rural Chinese family with their weeks worth of shopping...The Cui's from a village outside Beijing spent $57 USD on this healthier looking selection...

Li Jinxian (in the yellow polo shirt) works in a factory making clothing for the US.  She's paid $2.50 USD for a ten-hour workday.  Unsurprisingly, she dislikes the job - she'd have to sew 70 hours a week for 3 weeks just to pay for the weekly shopping shown.  Her husband is forced to work in Beijing, coming home only on the weekends, as there is no work in the village where he can earn enough to support the family.  They never eat food outside their home.  "It's very expensive", says Li Jinxian.  " We aren't in that kind of circumstance."

Hmmm, even in my darkest hour financially, I still manage to eat out at least once a week.

So I guess this Chinese family is why I can buy a dress for $10.  Whoever made that dress probably got paid about 25 cents. 

Somehow, finding this out has made cheap clothing seem even cheaper and a bit nastier.  How much more valuable is hand-made clothing made willingly by someone who loves you!

Can't remember where I found the lovely quote above, but it sums up my New Year's resolution.  This year I'm off to MSIT, studying Fashion Design and Technology, to learn all there is to know about sewing, patternmaking and design.

When I fronted up for the college's creative audition, the exercise we were given was to collage fabric  onto a croquis (fancy name for sketch!) to demonstrate some of our design ideas.  It was such an enjoyable exercise - I'm looking forward to being the world's oldest schoolgirl and getting into more making and creating!

Will try to blog regularly about what we're tackling at College. To get your creative juices flowing, why not try the exercise yourself.  Download a figure template - the sample above is from Malcolm Design or try http://www.designersnexus.com/free-fashion-croquis-templates/.  Use glue, pins, tape or staples to collage fabric scraps onto your chosen croquis.  Add detail with coloured pencils or markers.  Create an entire outfit with accessories; consider where the outfit would be worn and by whom. 

Apparently, the College has taken this exercise on the road whilst visiting schools.  They included a male figure template and even the guys really enjoyed this design task!



graphics from Joyce Meyer ministriesHope you have a lovely Christmas and all your hopes and plans for 2010 come true!

Do something good for those living in poverty this  holiday season.  If your friends and family have got it all, give to someone else who needs it!

This morning I visited micro-finance lenders www.kiva.org and bought one of their handy gift certificates.

The recipient gets to choose a low-income entrepreneur in a developing country to lend the gift money to .  When the loan is repaid they can get the money back or re-lend it.  Sweet!

Deck the Halls - bruise your hand!Saw some nice Christmas decorations on the cover of Inside Out magazine and thought to myself- I can make those! 

Quick and easy to whip up on the sewing machine, they're simply cardboard and paper dots, layered and stitched together. 

They almost need no explanation to make, but the speediest, easiest methods are here in the Free Projects section.

They're very minimum effort/maximum effect... I used them in a shop window display and got very favourable feedback!

New cover on my late Grandad's BibleThanks Anna, for organising a really enjoyable crafting evening!  Over cream-filled Lattice biscuits and a cuppa, a dozen or so of us sewed little clutch purses and fabric book covers.

Consulting a popular craft book, 3 of us each read 3 pages of instructions on how to sew a book cover.  It was so confusing, we decided we'll just look at the picture and work it out ourselves.

Some sewing/craft books are hard to follow, full of complex verbal explanations.  I love heavily illustrated books and have listed some favourites in our new Book Review section.

 

Unfortunately, they're perhaps not for absolute beginners, but they would be useful references if you want to keep learning! Please drop me a line at carmen@clotheslinehangout.com to add your favourite dressmaking books to the Book Review -  only criteria is that they be listed at Amazon.com so folks can track them down.

Made with his own bear hands!Happy Wedding Anniversary, Craig and Skye!  Early anniversaries aren't gold, silver or ruby anniversaries - they're more dodgy things  like paper, aluminium foil, bark... Traditional 2nd anniversary gifts are in fact, cotton. 

Rather than presenting Skye with tea towels, Craig set about making his gift this year.  Trekking into unchartered territory (Lincraft) he bought some broderie anglaise, not knowing what it was called, of course, just knowing it was made out of cotton. 

Sneaking away from work early, he made this lovely Ally top, sewing it up in just a couple of hours.  Not bad for a guy who works in IT and hasn't touched a sewing machine since 8th grade Home Economics!

Craig's philosophy is  - don't bother with lots of little romantic gestures.  You only need to pull one memorable one out of the hat every couple of years.  I think this one's good 'til about 2012!

Donut Brooch by littlechrissyGlass Earrings by Hot Toffee

Indie crafters are alive and well here in Brisvegas!  Last weekend was our first Finders Keepers market at a great venue - the Old Museum. 

For those who missed it, try Christmas shopping at the BrisStyle Indie Designers Markets (Sat 5 Dec 09 at St Augustines Church, Racecourse Rd, Hamilton 9am-4pm.)  BrisStyle is a co-op of local Etsy store-owners like littlechrissy and Hot Toffee, who only sell things handmade by themselves - no mass-produced, off-shore or on-selling of other people's wares allowed!

Finally!  Our wrap skirt project instructions are up on-line! 

This skirt is super easy as it is essentially a tube shape with ribbons and hammer-on snaps attached.  Also because it's made of two pillowslips, a lot of the seams are already sewn for you.  The sample skirt in the how-to's is sewn in contrasting colours, just so you can see how it works.

I've also managed to doctor all the How-tos in our Free Sewing Projects so that if you click on a picture, each can be viewed as a slide show with instructions.  Not a grand accomplishment for some, but for a direct descendant of Ned Ludd like myself, I was well pleased... 

Enjoy!