A Very Fun Day

In case you couldn't tell from the two mid-class blogs, I really enjoyed my day with Alabama Chanin.

First off, you really need to check out the site.  An amazing amount of eye candy and green living thoughts/advice.

Although I don't really sew, at least not in the typical clothing sense, I enjoyed the whole hand-sewing concept and was pretty amazed by how tough and practical this beautiful clothing is.  Natalie says she puts hers through the washer and dryer.

So, on to the pretties.  I took lots of pictures for you.

This is Kitty.  She was sitting next to me (wearing the tee her husband picked out for her at a trunk show) and working on a beautiful wrap top.

Here it is closer up.

All tee-shirt jersey fabric, which is hard to believe when you are looking at the pictures.

Jennifer was working on a shawl.

The concept is simple — two layers of jersey, the top layer has a design stenciled on in fabric paint, and you can applique or reverse applique.  From there, you can become more involved, embellishing with beadwork or with embroidery stitching.  Once finished, pieces are sewn together to create a finished garment.

We had a room full of sample pieces around us for inspiration.

I fell particularly in love with the pieces that had journaling on them, like this one.

My little book cover seemed very minimal in comparison, but I was able to get it about half way finished in the middle of the fun of being with such a fascinating group of women.  It's such a portable project that I'm sure I'll finish it up during the week.  My plan is to move on to a beaded skirt kit — something that I can work on all summer and wear this fall.

I'll leave you with a picture of some beautiful quilts, with fascinating stenciling/embroidery treatment.  I think I came away from this day with enough inspiration to keep me happy for a long time!