Let's Get Funky for Fall!

I can't believe that summer is virtually gone - August flew by so quickly we've barely had time to think about our fall wardrobe. As I look back at the things we've been making, as much as I love each and every garment, I'm starting to wonder if I'm too much a creature of habit, too color conservative, too predictable.

For me fall, like spring, is a time for renewal. It's that whole "back to school" mentality that we never seem to grow out of as September rolls around: time to gather sharp pencils and new notebooks, buy new dresses and boots, maybe try a fresh hairstyle. For those of us who sew, it's a time to peruse the new pattern books, check out the new fabrics and plan our fall/winter wardrobes.

This season I'm feeling the need to branch out a little with my fabric choices… and I have been inspired by our own staff here at Stonemountain.  Most of them are sewists in their own right and their creativity and use of our fabrics inspires me to shake off the everyday Suzan and morph into: Funky Zan.

I'm surrounded with creativity every day at the store. Wow, these women can sew!!

When I see their creativity, I am excited to step out of my comfort zone and add some real flair and color to my wardrobe.  I am equally inspired by the "Fall Cool-lections" (my new term!) in the pattern books. 

Plaids are everywhere…BurdaStyle magazine has patterns for "back to school". We love it when fashion design students visit Stonemountain to choose their fabrics! Talk about inspiring!

I love to see what retail fashion has too offer too. I saw this idea that in a fall catalog: check out the added lace to this top - love it!!

I want to try this idea on this Japanese Print cotton, to be made up in the New Look 6013 dress. But call me old-fashion, I hate it when my bra straps show, so I think we will just layer the lace over the sleeve fabric. I had my first fitting with the muslin mock-up on this dress and I love it!

Laurel inspires me with her creativity as well...she took one of our cotton stretch knits to create a "slouchy sweater" for her European car trip.  She used Marci Tilton's boxy jacket pattern (Vogue 8430) that we've both used several times, and lined it with some left over rayon knit.  It's reversible and kinda funky!

Have you noticed that big capes are making a comeback this fall? We love this pricey Burberry cape, but for we sewists, there are other options.  Why not pair some of our great fall woolens with this Vogue pattern.  The possibilities are endless!

We have picked out some great fabrics and styles this month,  all to help me get down and get a little funky for fall. Stay tuned to see how these plans come together! I would love to hear your ideas on what you are doing to "funk" up your styling for the fall...

Thanks so much for reading my blog…I value this community more than words can tell...

Creatively Yours,
SuZan
a.k.a. fabriclady
email me at fabriclady3@gmail.com
Check out my store at
www.stonemountainfabric.com
Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics
2518 Shattuck Ave. @ Dwight Way
Berkeley CA 94704
Store phone: 510-845-6106

Winter white...truly a California "Dream"

All the leaves are brown

And the sky is grey

I've been for a walk

On a winter's day

I'd be safe and warm

If I was in L.A.

California dreamin

On such a winter's day

   Mamas and Papas, 1965

The Winter Solstice came and went without so much as a snowflake resting on the trees around me. The weatherman delivered his ominous threats of a California drought as we watch the images of dry lake beds and brown mountaintops flash across the television screen.

I close my eyes and imagine a ski slope waiting for me, all decked out in her Winter finery and I am restored. What is it about the softness of snow that helps us transcend ordinary life and be part of the whiteness of it's beauty? It's why we city dwellers love the beauty of snow amidst our struggling lawns, leafless trees and grey cement edifices blocking the warm sun.

For years, even the fashion designers shared our passion for white...not the bright
bridal white of vestal virgins (LOL!) but the soft creamy white of a snow drift bathed in the afternoon sun. Winter White - it's timeless, never going out of style, worn year after year by all.

Back in December 1987, I did a fashion show with Stonemountain & Daughter along with Berkeley Adult School. I'm not into gloves, stockings and heels gig too much anymore, but I have to admit that yummy Winter White coat and sheath dress would easily fit today's style. And, let's hear it for that pixie cut! Back in style, FYI!

Many designers and fabric manufacturers produce fabric in the Winter White shade. As a buyer, I am aware of the soft pink or cream cast to them, depending on fabric content or dye. These subtle color variations allow our customers to select shades that flatter their skin coloring. Laurel (Laurel's Quill) and I had a blast pulling all the winter white fabrics off the shelves in the Garment Fabric Room at Stonemountain - so many great projects to do!

We tend to only think of wool as a Winter White fabric. What a stereotype!  However, there is a variety of shades and hues of white in an array of fabric contents and textures: wovens, knits, crepes and synthetics. Why not try a warm white in Tencel or silk boil for a pair of slacks this season? Or a sumptuous swing coat in a brushed wool? Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics has a Winter White Boiled wool that would make our awesome Marci Tilton jacket..again!

And for our naysayers who think that white makes you look "bigger", I say nonsense!  Love your body the way it is - your special femininity all your own, so deck it out in a snowy dream fabric, don your jewelry, and celebrate the Winter season...even if we don't have snow (yet)! 

I hope that you will find the time to stop by our store. We are having so much fun and joy playing in the world of fabric and what more is possible! 

Warmly, 

SuZan

p.s. I am off to a ski trip to Park City with my husband to celebrate our 19th anniversary (13 years married!) Here are a few shots from our winter wonderland last year.  

 

Wardrobe "Basics": My Marci Tilton Jacket

The Daughter's Collection for Fall 2013 is all about basic wardrobe necessities: pants, tops, blouses and jackets. With these four elements, you can create an entire wardrobe for the season.

Stonemountain & Daughter Farbics got this wonderful boiled wool in for the Fall/Winter season in 12 colors. Boiled wool is a special type of fabric primarily used in berets, scarves, vests, cardigans, coats and jackets. It is created by a mechanical process using water and agitation, shrinking knitted or woven wool or wool-blend fabrics, compressing and interlocking the fibers into a tighter felt-like mass.

I knew I wanted to have something made out of the rich brown for the Daughter's Collection Fall 2013 so chose a Marci Tilton Jacket pattern 8430 by Vogue. The beauty of working with this unique fabric and this pattern is that there is no real finishing to the jacket - it is basically an unlined, unhemmed simple jacket.  The pattern only had three pieces: the front (cut 2), the back, and the sleeves (cut 2).  That's it. You can use the boiled wool in the 100% quality or the wool blended with rayon quality. The one I chose is the 100% Wool. We *happen* have a great class here at Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics featuring making your own boiled wool and jacket!

Laurel did some research on the jacket to see how other dressmakers handled the construction and fitting.  It is a very boxy, roomy jacket, so a few women did some back shaping. And since I too have a relatively small frame, we decided to step down a size as opposed to the one which my measurements might dictate.

She also added an inch or two at the "collar" just so it would have a little more drape. The beauty of working with this fabric is that we can just cut that collar shape any way we want...so if I don't like the way it hangs when we're done, I can "snip-snip" it at any time. The same goes with the finished length of the jacket.  She added 3/4" to the bottom just in case I wanted a little more length.

Laurel confessed to me when we picked out the boiled wool that she had sewn on this type of fabric only once before...and it was years ago! She was quietly skeptical about sewing with such a thick fabric. When she shopped for her back-up machine a few weeks ago, she took scraps of some of my fabrics - knits, silks and the boiled wool (What a great idea, if you're contemplating a new machine!). She handed the sales woman the zip lock bag and said "I need a machine that will sew on all these!!"

Testing stitches on a variety of fabrics is a great way to get familiar with a sewing machine

There is very little to fear about sewing boiled wool. It is exceptionally forgiving - no puckers, no skipped stitches...just pin it together and sew. It took Laurel 30 minutes to sew my Marci Tilton jacket together. Amazing! Of course we still had to adjust the fit (it really is boxy!) and decide if we wanted to embellish it, if at all, i.e. with contrasting thread, binding, etc.

When we did the first fitting, sure enough, it was a little full in the back - time to take it in a smidge, Laurel!

I love the way the back is a little longer than the front.  

We all tried on this jacket during the fitting - despite it's "boxy" style, it looks great on all figure types

Ruth strikes a pose in the jacket that now everyone loves!

Laurel: "I gotta have one of these jackets!"

Even Laurel's Mini-Me Colette back in Sacramento looked stunning in the finished jacket.

The boiled wool fabric and construction of this "BASIC" jacket lends itself to a little top stitching detail. Again, it's an easy task - time consuming, but oh so worth it!!

The current collection of Boiled Wool and
Boiled Wool with Rayon at Stonemountain & Daughter Fabric this week!

Can you imagine how cool this jacket is going to look with jeans? Or that pencil skirt? Unlimited potential - that's why I call it a wardrobe "basic" and  I love it!!!

Creatively Yours,

SuZAn

Come make your own felted wool in
our upcoming class!

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Getting my "Fall" on

The Fall Equinox is a few weeks away, but in the fashion world, preparation for the the next apparel season begins well ahead of the onset of the season itself. So, I am already technically "late" planning the Daughter's Collection Fall 2013 wardrobe!

As I wandered through the store with Laurel to pick out fabrics for the collection, I found that I was drawn to the lush greens and rich browns - earthy forest colors. And since I'm a lover of all things in nature, it should come as no surprise that I would choose these colors to start my Fall wardrobe. (Hmmm...when I think about it, I think that my color choices for my summer wardrobe were reminiscent of the ocean - deep turquoises, blues, etc.)


Autumn is all about the earthy smells and rich colors of changing leaves. Among my favorite trees is the magnificent Redwood. Though not deciduous, it's beauty can be enjoyed in all seasons, but particularly in Fall. Redwoods are conifers, which means they have cones and needle-like leaves. Their rich reddish-brown bark and deep green needles are right in my wheelhouse of color choices for Fall.

(These photos were taken in Laurel's yard in Fair Oaks. Lucky girl...)

With the cooler weather coming, I choose fabrics for the "basics" to start my Fall wardrobe - a lightweight jacket, tailored slacks, a wrap skirt to wear with tights and boots and a simple blouse.

The jacket: Vogue 8430 Marci Tilton

Vogue 8430 Mari Tilton Jacket pattern

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Deep brown

Boiled Wool

The slacks: Colette Patterns 1024 "Juniper"

Colette Juniper Pants Pattern

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Deep forest green

silk noil 

The wrap skirt: Very Easy Vogue 8835

Pale Sage wool crepe

Vogue 8835 skirt pattern

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The blouse: The Sewing Workshop Collection "Mixit Shirt, Top and Tank"

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silk print

It's a good start to the Daughter's Collection, Fall 2013, wouldn't you agree?

Things are already starting to come together in Laurel's "Sewing Factory"  We got off to a rocky start on the Fall collection with the myriad of August machine problems and blow-ups. She's definitely back on track - read about it on Laurel's Quill. I love Laurel's tenacity...after a couple of meltdowns, she started on the boiled wool jacket (watch for a future blog on boiled wool) and she whipped out the Mixit Top from The Sewing Workshop. 

Silk, especially the fabric with lycra in it, can be a little tricky to sew.  It's slippery, so to speak, and keeping it in control while sewing is not for the faint of heart.  That's why you should choose a simple pattern if it's your first time sewing stretch silk.

Love this little blouse.

After a little vacation hiatus, I'm back on track too. Stay tuned in for more of my Fall collection and fabric buying adventures!

Creatively Yours,

Suzan

aka FabricLady

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