bodner052

Vogue 9081 is a dress pattern designed by Marcy Tilton, maybe two years old. I first made it in a bright orange linen. Yes, what was I thinking. In its next iteration I eliminated the lower band, making it a tunic. Still too bright though, so I dipped it in black walnut juice. Over time it has seemed to continue to fade just a little to this: So I dipped it again. I had kept a bucket of black walnut juice from fall 2017 in the garage. It had developed a white glaze over the year but after I removed that, it was still potent for dyeing and this is the result: This color is the best so far, I think. I'm letting it cure a bit before washing it thoroughly and so I may lose a little color still. But it's almost time to collect black walnuts again so I'll have a fresh supply soon. Meanwhile I'm experimenting with avocado skins and seeds based on Botanical Colour at Your Fingertips by Rebecca Desnos on rayon challis. It is certainly not dramatic but I do like the soft pink I ...

The Picasso Top and Pants pattern is the latest from the Sewing Workshop. When they sent out an email teaser, I was instantly enamored. The pants are cropped with lantern shaped legs, similar I think to one of the blog posts on their site. I have long admired that remake of their Trio pants but never got around to following their directions for modifying the pattern. At this point in my sewing life, I know I would much rather follow a pattern than draft one. So, thanks for drafting these pants, TSW! The pants have the TSW signature waistline that is elasticized with a flat front. I first encountered this waist treatment in their Plaza pants that I've made many times. It has the comfort of an elastic waistband but places no bulk over the tummy. Their instructions still have you omit the elastic from the flat part but I've found I like it better if I extend the elastic all the way around, using the elastic in the flat part as a stiff interfacing. It only requires a vertical stit...

Huipil - #inspiredbyFrida #dresslikeFridaSAL Huipil :  the most common traditional garment worn by indigenous women from central Mexico to Central America It's a simple shape for a topper - just rectangles, perfect for narrow fabrics created on backstrap looms. And I've made this shape before, not realizing it had such an exotic name - Huipil. The Huipil has been revisited by many sewists of late due to an exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. There is a sew-along underway described here and seen here . I love seeing all the variations in this simple piece. Here is my very first Huipil. This was before I made the connection to Frida. I still wear these PJs. The top is the simplest shape possible. I cut two squares and seamed them to make shoulder seams. I left a space in the middle large enough for my head. This is a knit so it was easy to just stitch the shoulder seam open to finish the neckline. I placed pockets strategically. And I've lost this cute top: B...