This week fabric collage is at the forefront of my brain. As we put the final touches on our Day of Creativity class Saturday with the Richmond/Charlottesville ASG, previous creative projects come to mind. Today we will look closely at the Our Lady of Guadalupe quilted Tabula Rasa Jacket (TRJ). …
Thankful for Sew Great a Year!
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…
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…
Carrie’s Pant Journey Continues
Now that cool weather has arrived, my summer pants wardrobe is no longer appropriate. As I tried on my existing Eureka! Pant wardrobe, I realized that I urgently need to get on with developing my pants pattern for fall and winter. Over the years I have determined that a contoured…
A Tabula Rasa Trench Coat
In 2020, while confined to my house during the pandemic isolation, I decided to enter the Threads Challenge for members of Association of Sewing and Design Professionals. The theme was to design and make a garment or ensemble that reflected one of the Four Elements: Earth, Wind, Water and Fire. …
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.…