Ench By Sew-020- Mind of the Maker

Hey! 

The latest Enchanted by Sewing Podcast has been published!

Listening Option I) You can listen to the show right on the web by clicking on this link 

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Listening Option II)  Click on this link to iTunes  to download this and other Enchanted by Sewing shows to your mobile device (iPhone, Android, etc.) free from iTunes

Did I miss any links mentioned in the show? If so, please post here and share them with everybody

Email- EnchantedBySewing@gmail.com

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- Pensamientos Primero  

Reflecting on Making

For some people, sewing is just practical . For another segment of society, and I’m one of them, sewing is an important creative outlet that helps us to stay healthy and happy.
- Entonces /Then

She B. Coole

Live talk from our local Makers Faire includes extempore  interview with professional embroideress (Tapistres?) Barbara Coole (B. Coole)
o B. Coole Shares
• Thoughts on the realities of garment sewers investing both time and money into modern machine embroidery equipment and know-how
• Her advice on choosing an embroidery machine

- Pensimentos Finales:  What I’m thinking now, when it comes to my dream embroidery machine

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Web Resources

This Steam Punk Sewist
is right at home at
Makers Faire

My Regular Sewing Blog Me Encanta Coser http://www.meencantacoser.blogspot.com

She B. Coole - Barbara is a professional embroideress and textile artist.  As Barbara (B. Coole) reminds us embroidery is “… an art form that’s been going on for thousands of years.” People have sent out their embroidery to be done by professionals,  for hundreds of years.  B.Coole  does detailed projects involving professional couture embroidery to order . She also sells a wide variety of embroidered bits and pieces, parasols and more along with embroidery motifs that sewists and non-sewists can add to their garments, bags, hats, etc.  http://www.bcoole.com
bc@bcoole.com
(707) 575-8924

You’ll find that under-pocket cat embroidery created by Hiroko Kubota, along with other embellishment ideas on this pinterest board. http://www.pinterest.com/lrshimer/embellishment-sewing/

The Steam Punk Esthetic http://www.pinterest.com/lrshimer/steampunk-era-or-state-of-mind/

I have several sewing inspired boards at pinterest http://www.pinterest.com/lrshimer/

Maker’s Faires are found in many different cities http://makerfaire.com

She’s Hep With Tech  

Mind of This Maker
http://www.hepwithtech.blogspot.com/2014/05/mind-of-this-maker.html

What Would Beethoven Print? (3D Printing)
http://www.hepwithtech.blogspot.com/2014/04/but-what-would-beethoven-print-3d.html

Vintage Threads: Elsa Schiaparelli's Roses Get me Dreaming

Elsa Schiaparelli created this gorgeous design
for her autumn 1937 collection

I encountered this evening coat, designed by Elsa Schiaparelli, in the Victoria and Albert (V&A) fashion gallery, when I visited London in late May. If you come along on my audio tour of the exhibit, you'll hear a discussion I had with a Londoner about these lovely details, and the trompe l'œil urn design ... Is it an urn or is it two women facing in?   You may already recognize this famous double image created by artist Jean Cocteau designed to fake the viewer out. If you want to read more about the art movements that inspired Miss Schiaparelli's work, as well as more details about the garment, follow this link (http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O117953/evening-coat-schiaparelli-elsa/ )  to the V&A.

I've never really been that all taken by trompe l'oeil, but I do love roses! Don't you want a bevy of these beauties? I know I do, and of course the fact that I'm caught up working slowly and carefully through my denim skirt project (learning jeans-sewing skills without yet encountering the challenge of fitting jeans) gets me dreaming about switching horses in mid stream. Best to simply dream and plan these roses, and get the skirt finished, don't you think? 

You can check out other views
of this coat at
http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O117953/evening-coat-schiaparelli-elsa/ 

How will I use these blooms on that great come-and-do-it-day when I sit down with needle and a mass of silken ribbons? Well.... despite the beauty of this sumptuous evening garment, I know that I wouldn't get a lot of use out of a similar long flowing garment. It wouldn't be too practical  in a software Meetup, on a walk to the grocery store, a bike ride or trip to class. Sure, I might wear it to the ballet, opera or theatre but those aren't places I go everyday. In fact I have a pretty hooded black velvet coat I've been using for special occasions since college, and it still works great. That was a lifetime purchase (I found it in a low-key consignment store), so I won't be creating another special occasion garment with these.

I'm planning to create and use my roses in a rather different way. I wrote about those plans in a posting I wrote in Stitcher's Guild/Artisan Square, when I visited to ask a few how-to questions. 

I think they (the roses) would look nifty as an embellishment on my denim jacket, placed in a similar way to the ones that Elsa designed.

I know there are a lot of ways to make fabric roses. I'm partial to spider-web roses - but I think these are made differently. They almost look like origami- and maybe some kind of folding technique would be best. Another woman touring the gallery wondered if maybe when they were originally made, did they perhaps stand up a little more 3D, and over time they've flattened out. If so, a little iron steam might do the trick, though the flattened origami-kind of look looks good too.

As you will see, if you visit the forum and read this posting (http://artisanssquare.com/sg/index.php/topic,21274.0.html ), I'm not an expert when it comes to ribbon embroidery. But I got a lot of pointers from the folks in the group. No, the life of a creator just wasn't the same before we had the power of the web, was it? (In fact we used to depend on family members, classes, schools, clubs, neighbors, groups and our local libraries. We weren't that all deprived.)

Some of the basics I acquired reading different people's answers. (Though you will get more ideas when you visit the forum). 

Folks Suggested...

* Either silk ribbon or a strip of heavy bias silk--folded, draped, and layered into a rose shape similar to ribbon embroidery. 

* Intense pink at the center of each rose may be a brush dipped into dye.

* The leaves and golden bits perhaps crewel embroidery.

This gorgeous vintage camisole has
roses similar to the embellishment on the Schiaparelli Evening Coat

I loved reading the different ideas and discussions about antique ribbon work. And what about the beautiful camisole photo that emerged from the question? Yes, another distracting garment!

With the resources and ideas collected in this discussion, I'm expecting it won't be too long before I have my own bouquet of ribbon roses. 

You may also enjoy....

Stitcher's Guild Artisans Square, Forum Posting - "How Would You Create Elsa Schiaparelli's Roses?" http://artisanssquare.com/sg/index.php/topic,21274.0.html


 The Enchanted by Sewing Audio Tour of the V&A http://enchantedbysewing.blogspot.com/2013/07/ench-by-sew-010-v-fashion-gallery-tour.html