My daughter Anna, French tour guide extraordinaire, became engaged last winter. Everyone was so excited. When she visited the states in May, we set out to plan a lovely ensemble for the small city hall wedding the couple were planning. She wanted a lace top and pants that could be…
Category: Carpe Diem
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…
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…
Riffs on a Trusted Pattern – the TRJ
This year Threads Magazine is featuring Riffs on a Trusted Pattern by Becky Fulgoni as an online insider series. Becky chose the Tabula Rasa Jacket pattern as her trusted pattern for the series, so every month we’ve been enjoying Becky’s creative makes with the TRJ pattern. You may recall that…
Dress up a Carpe Diem with Details
It’s time to introduce some more options included in the Carpe Diem Dress & Tunic pattern. This week we are looking at the Minty Fresh Carpe Diem Dress to demonstrate the steps for preparing and inserting the optional cap sleeve, back belt, and pleated hem vent. Doesn’t this dress feel…
Pockets for Carpe Diems
Carpe Diem dresses for summer is what Edye wanted after enjoying her rayon version all through the winter and fall. Because her stash is full of cotton novelty prints leftover from the line of kitchen linens and children’s clothes she sold at craft shows, she chose her favorite summer prints…
Finish a Carpe Diem with Binding
Today we are looking at an alternative way to finish the armholes and neckline of a sleeveless Carpe Diem Dress or Tunic. Patterns and instructions for finishing those areas with a traditional facing is included with the Carpe Diem, as seen on this sleeveless double gauze top. A few weeks…
Trimming a Carpe Diem
The Carpe Diem Dress & Tunic is the perfect garment design for featuring fun trim. If you watched the Artistic Artifacts Facebook Live on Saturday morning, you saw a number of trimmed Carpe Diems that have become wardrobe favorites. We are going to look at the Indian Cotton Batik from…
Notched Carpe Diem Top
Carrie made this notched scoop neck top very early in the development of the Carpe Diem Dress & Tunic pattern. The notch opens the neckline up a bit, making it easier to pull a top or dress on over your head without a back closure. While the notch design didn’t…