My Love Affair with Kantha Fabric

I have to admit, I think Kantha fabric is awesome.   For those who do not know about Kantha; here is a brief description.  In India, old saris, either cotton or silk are patch worked together and then they are layered one of another, usually only two layers.   These two layers are then hand stitched together to form one fabric.   Usually the stitches are long running stitches.   Kantha fabric is used for garments and home decor items. 

This past spring and summer I found 3 pieces of Kantha that I love and I have made 2 of them into garments.   The first was a red floral print on one side and solid red on the reverse side.   Often garments from Kantha fabric are made reversible.  This jacket is not reversible but I did use the reverse side for the collar and cuffs.   All the colors in this jacket make it extremely versatile.  I think it will even look great with blue jeans. 

I found the second piece and third pieces at Silk Road Textiles in Cincinnati.  I have finished another Kantha jacket in purple.  It is fully lined and has wonderful sleeve detail.  

The third piece is a luscious brown print that is yet to be made but I can't wait to get started.   More to come.... 

Unusual Lantern pants

I made this Marci Tilton skirt last year from Vogue pattern V9060 and loved the shape.   I thought that the shape would also look good as pants so this year I decided to give it a try.  I took my standard pants pattern to get the waist, hip and crotch depth and then free-handed the design from there.  I drew the shape on pattern and decided on how the pattern pieces would look then I created the pattern and test the pattern in muslin.  When I was satisfied with the fit and shape I cut it out of some striped fabric that I had in my stash.   I believe the fabric is a cotton/linen blend and has a texture like something we used to call "shagbark".    I really love the result, but now I have to design the perfect top to go with it.  Have some ideas so I'll work on them this week...stay tuned.  

New Red and Black Winter Coat

I have a Lee Andersen coat that I love and I decided to use it as inspiration for another coat.   Finding fabrics that I could use proved to be quite a challenge.   I finally found a black nubby fleece and red and black sculpted fur at Fields in Kalamazoo.   I found a red and black fur online at Mood Fabrics.   Once I had all the fabrics, I set to work on a pattern.  I heavily modified a Burda Pattern so much that you wouldn't even recognize it but the sizing was what I needed most.  It is unlined so that it will be an intermediate weight coat for late fall and early winter.  I made mock flat felled seams  and serged seams so that the inside of the coat is neat in appearance.  

I found it very difficult to photograph the black and still be able to see the detail so I have included a couple of close up photos.  Enjoy. 

 

New Upcycle Tunic

Many of my friends have asked me how I make my upcycled tunics so here are a few pointers if you could like to try one yourself.  

If you want to upcycle some thrift store finds into a tunic start with sweater and shirt that will be too big for you.   Sometime I use men's sweaters and shirts and sometimes I find a L or XL women's sweater, dress or shirt.   The point is that the garments you choose should be too big for you since you will be using them as a tunic and will be modifying them.   In this case the sweater was a man's XL and the shirt was a Large.   I always try on the sweater to see how long it is on me.   Then I know how much fabric that I want to add to the bottom of the sweater.  In this case I wanted this to be a little longer so that I could wear it as a tunic with leggings or a dress with tights.   

Always fuse knit interfacing to the back of the sweater where you plan to cut into the sweater.   For example, most of the time you will want to cut off the band at the bottom so you would apply fusible interfacing where you will be cutting.  Also if you plan to change the neckline then fuse interfacing to the top part of the sweater.  

In the past I have always left the sweater sleeves long, but this time I cut them off and hemmed them to make a modified "vest".    To add interest to the sweater and to make them look more like one garment then take elements, such as the pockets, cuffs, buttons, and fabric from the shirt to add to the sweater.   As you can see I used my serger to make strips of shirt fabric that I used for trim around the bottom and neckline.   I also used  the collar band as a decorative stripe down the front of the sweater.   Number one rule...cut off each piece of sweater and shirt as if it could be used because many times that's exactly what you end up doing.  

I used my ruffler attachment to make a pleated strip to put around the neckline.  

I like a stand up collar, so I move the tiny buttons up to the collar stand that makes a new collar.   

Memory Lap Robe

My friend, Debbie Silva, died last year from ALS, and she gave me an appliqued elephant panel that she had started and knew she wouldn't be able to finish.   She also gave me the complimentary fabrics that she chosen to go with it.   As most of my followers know, I am not a quilter, but I made an exception for this project.   I decided to finish this as a lap robe.   It reminds me of Debbie's, wonderful creative and  loving spirit.  It also serves as a reminder to count my blessings.  We never know what lies beyond the next corner and we need live every day to our fullest potential and be thankful for all our friends and family. 

This quilt is truly a labor of love and further reinforced that fact that I'm not a quilter at heart; at least in the traditional sense.   I could see myself doing art quilting but that's about it.   There's a couple of places that I wish I had done it differently but overall I'm pleased how this all came together as a design.    I outlined the elephant by couching on gray and orange yarn to the edge of the appliqued design.   I think it helped "pop out" the image.    I'm glad that you can't see the quilting part in the picture.  That's why so many quilters send their quilts out to be stitched.   Hope you enjoy the design.

New Tunic

I finished the tunic that I made from the pattern I created from my ready-made sweater tunic.   I made it out of sweatshirt fleece which gives it a different silhouette.  It is more bell shaped and less drapey.  I'm still looking for a good sweater knit fabric so that I can make it again as a sweater.   However, this does show how different fabric choices can influence the shape of a garment.   I like them both. 

 

New Year--New project

It's the new year and I've given myself a new challenge.   I have a purchased sweater that I like and I have decided to recreate it in fabric.  It is very "roomy" so I shouldn't have any problem with the fit.  I purchased a sweatshirt fleece which has a varigated stripe which I can turn vertical or horizontal.  I will use interfacing where necessary to prevent stretching.  I'll post the finished product when completed.   Here's a picture of the sweater that I'll be using for the pattern.  Wish me luck!!