Fit for Art is pleased to let you know that a long time dream of ours and is finally coming to fruition as another French connection. We are pleased to introduce French translations of the instructions for the Tabula Rasa Jacket Pattern and for the free download, Make a Tabula Rasa Vest. As you can see from visiting this very old post, our Parlez Vous Fit for Art project began many years ago when my daughter Anna was single and Fit for Art wanted to take advantage of her language skills.
Giving French Stitchers their own Instructions
Once she finished the French translation, we asked a few French stitchers to test it out. We sent patterns and the translations to several Rae had met at a Quilt Show in 2015. Our friend Arlette, who we met through Threads Magazine, was ultimately our biggest help in this project. Here is Arlette’s story as well as some of her Tabula Rasa creations.
I’m 74 years old, an intermediate level sewer. My grand-mother taught me basic stitches to make my doll garments. I always made some of my own garment (dresses, blouses) using Vogue patterns, but my main hobby was painting (watercolor, pastel chalk).
In 1997 I discovered patchwork with the first french quilting magazine QUILTMANIA. I took a course in a haberdashery shop, then joined a local group of quilters. The leader of the group was a woman who had lived in Australia and in the USA. She introduced me to machine quilting and to the great magazines THREADS and QUILTING ARTS; a new wonderful world opened to me !
With links found in THREADS, I upgraded my sewing skills with CRAFTSY and THREADS videos and articles by well known designers. In QUILTING ART magazine, I saw beautiful wearable art jackets and coats and dreamed I could do some in the future, because I was not at ease with regular sleeve head insertion.
In 2018 in THREADS I found THE solution with an article by Rae Cumbie. I bought the TABULA RASA JACKET pattern and easily made my first quilted jacket and vest, a breeze! It’s versatile and allows us to be creative, even with stash fabrics.
Some years ago, a french quilt shop offered fabrics on the theme of KLIMT (a painter I enjoy very much). I made 2 quilted jackets for my step-daughters and, as it’s easy, I offered quilted jackets to 2 friends of mine who seemed to like the ones I already made. I also made a jacket in sheer fabric, not lined, for summer, and now I’m going to make a new quilted jacket for me!”
Arlette kindly reviewed Anna’s French translation of the TRJ instructions and sent us her suggestions, mostly adding the French sewing terms she thought would be familiar to other French-speaking stitchers. By then, Anna was busy with her life, meeting her husband, managing the pandemic and finally having a baby. Later, Arlette sent us a French translation for the TR vest instructions, which she obviously has utilized herself! Last year while Anna was on maternity leave, she and I reviewed the translations together.
And now we have finally added these “ressources en français (French Resources)” to the Helpful Hints page for any French speaker to download, print out and use in conjunction with their Tabula Rasa Jacket pattern.
Shop Successfully for Fabric in France
A third French resource included with Helpful Hints is a vocabulary list we put together with Anna last summer for English speakers to use when shopping for fabric in a French-speaking country. Anna used to accompany our French retreat participants to the local fabric stores and translate for everyone. Her energy is endless, but now she cannot always join us. This reference helps us all navigate the shopping experience without Anna, including me as I get better at communicating in French. The list of French terms is available as a free download to anyone who wants these translations. Copy them off and use them whenever you are fabric shopping among the French!
Shopping is always on the agenda for our Enchanting France Retreat and this year we are going to be working with book making and stitching projects. Why don’t you join us? We have some spaces remaining. The 2026 August week will be fun for crafters who are not necessarily stitchers, too. Read more about the retreat in Spark Creativity in Enchanting France and register for this trip of a lifetime. Check out these other blog posts to read the reflections of some of our student from previous summers: Enchanting France Testimonial by Linda, who has come on our France retreat twice, and A French Testimonial by Barbie, who is joining in the fun again this year.
Thanks most especially to our wonderful friend Arlette and my wonderful daughter Anna for helping us finally bring another French Connection to fruition with Ressources en français in Helpful Hints! Enjoy these photos of Rae and Anna, then and now!
