It was fun to take a deep breath of frosty morning air last week and give thanks for a fabulous Fit for Art year. Though 2022 is not yet complete, here in the USA we take stock of our many blessings this week as we gather and feast on Thanksgiving…
Category: Helpful Hints
Pastel Blue of Occitanie, France
This summer’s Fit for Art retreat in Southern France included an amazing day with the dye vats of Denise Lambert, woad historian and so much more. Denise has devoted the past 30 years to re-discovering an historical color “Dyer’s Woad – Isatis tinctoria” and incorporating it into modern industry. From…
Transitional Waterfall Cardigan
During these shoulder seasons, it is nice to have some tops that can transition from warm days to cool nights. Lately I’ve found myself relying on pieces like this periwinkle print Waterfall Cardigan made in french terry with basic knit tank tops. Construct these knit tops easily with the Twin…
Revamped Dress – A New Favorite
Some clothes are hard to part with. I feel that way about many of the handmade garments in my archive. This is especially true when the fabric is special. In that case, the garments are worth revisiting and restyling. Identify a garment that needs an update. To inspire me as…
Piecing with Knit Fabrics
As we were preparing for the Fredericksburg Original Sewing & Quilt Expo, Carrie took on the task of creating a sample top with the fabric from one of our new knit bundles featuring a bright floral print on black with solid black or green. Because I was using pieces left…
Jacket Making Adventures
There is so much Tabula Rasa Jacket energy right now. We hope you are feeling it too. We have sent printed patterns and digital pattern files all over the world. Our booth at the expo was full of new friends having jacket sizings and members of our sewing community getting new ideas,…
Jeans: Wide Leg and High Waist
Chasing a fashion trend, I decided to make myself a pair of wide leg, high waisted jeans. One of my pandemic obsessions has been scrolling through the Vogue Daily E-zine. This summer, every day, there was a feature with a model or actress sporting wide leg – high waist jeans.…
Design Interrupted and Adjusted
Do you love of embellishments as much as I do? And there always seems to be new challenges and new ideas that capture my attention. It starts the planning juices flowing but sometimes a busy schedule interrupts the project and when it is revisited, the design idea moves in a…
Take Time to Make Jackets
Make time for Tabula Rasa Jackets as we move into a new season and want a little wardrobe refresh. Where I live, we are moving into fall, the perfect time to make time to make a jacket. Or you could say take the time to take a jacket making class. …
Fanciful Linen Hem
The uninterrupted hemline of the Carpe Diem opens up some fun hemline design opportunities. A new linen top, designed and made as spring became summer, is an excellent example of creative energy moving a Carpe Diem hemline to the next level. Plan the Project It started with a stash search…