A New Year's Resolution!

As the New Year approaches we are all faced with that question, what will my New Year’s resolution be?

Mine was a simple one to figure out this year, As the New Year approaches we are all faced with that question, what will my New Year’s resolution be? stay up to date with my blog. I, as many people do, started a blog early this fall, wrote a few posts and then abandoned it. NO MORE!!!!! I am vowing that in 2012 I will blog as often as I possibly can.

Now, the trick to this resolution, well all resolutions, is to follow through. It’s not that nothing is happening. I have made many things, designed a few garments and I am having some success with my Etsy store. It’s that I fail to sit and write about it. Again, NO MORE!!!! I vow to write about the goings on in the shop, the things I love about sewing, the things I love about fashion and I’m sure a few personal things will slip in there. After all, my shop is in my home where my son is running around and my husband is very much a part of the business, which I won’t get into now. I’ll post later about all he does. See? The ideas for new posts are starting already!

I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

p.s. What will your New Year’s Resolution be?

Discovering the Joy of Online Fabric Shopping

While taking in my daily Twitter feed, (OK, twice daily feed) I came upon a fellow sewing enthusiast discussing great places to buy fabric online. I usually shy away from buying fabric online. I would rather be able to feel the weight of the fabric before buying, but I decided to check them out anyway and wandered over to fabricdirect.com.

Fabric direct is a wholesale warehouse that offers many different textiles at wholesale prices. They stock fashion prints, cottons, Chinese brocades, silks, leather,etc... you name it,they have it. While browsing the site I noticed a tab titled Fabric Bundles and decided to give it a click. Fabric bundles are usually several yards of different yet coordinating fabric that you can buy at a discounted price, however at fabric direct this was not the case. Their fabric bundle is 25 yards of fashion fabric picked form their warehouse at one flat, discounted rate per yard. The catch is you have no idea what fabric you will be getting. They randomly pick from their warehouse and send you one to several yards of each fabric. You don’t even know how many different types you will be getting. This intrigued me.

I love making unique garments and rarely make the same thing twice, unless it is requested by a client. I love that one of a kind feel of a garment. It makes it special and for me, unforgettable. This also means being able to source more of an exact fabric isn’t really a concern for me. If and when a client has asked for a recreation I can always find something that works but isn’t exactly the same, keeping everything one of a kind. I am also take a lot of inspiration from fabric. I usually buy material I like and then design from there, so the idea of getting 25 yards of unpredictable fabric had so many possibilities for great design and sewing projects written all over it.

I ordered and waited with bated breath for my fabric to arrive.

3 days later it was at my doorstep and here is what I got.

Several yards of a powder blue knit, black suiting with a subtle blue dot, periwinkle cotton, magenta duchess satin, pale striped cotton/poly, a peach stretch, cream lace and burgundy chiffon.

My favourite is the magenta duchess satin, of course. Such a rich, beautiful colour and it will make a stunning evening gown.

With this line up of fabrics the ideas are pouring in. Now its designing, drafting and making those ideas come to life. And THAT is the best part of my job.

Last May I received a call from a local woman, as her son was getting married the following summer, and she was looking to have an outfit made. She is quite petite and was having a difficult time finding the perfect dress. After discussing her likes and dislikes, we came up with an idea, and I was left with a few months to sketch some designs.

At the beginning of this year we met and went over the sketches I had done. She settled on a 3 piece outfit. A corset top, a floor length trumpet skirt and a cropped bolero jacket with ¾ length sleeves. I took her measurements and while she went in search of fabric, I started on drafting the pattern.

She returned a week later with fabric. She has chosen a beautiful rich brown satin that seemed to change colour in the light. Depending on how the light hit it you could see tones of gold and eggplant. She also brought a Rochelle Lace in a lighter brown that was flecked with gold sequin. The lace was used as an overlay for the bodice.

I spoke with her after the wedding, and was delighted to hear how happy she was with her dress. She commented on how comfortable it was, and that she felt great wearing it. I was also flattered to hear that she had received many compliments. I was happy to hear that she was satisfied, as making my clients happy is always my #1 goal!

After her son’s wedding, she mentioned another she would be attending and had decided to revamp her mother of the groom dress. As much as she loves it, there isn’t much opportunity to wear a long evening gown. Sad, I know. If there were, my closet would be filled with them. I am a sucker for glamour!

We cut the skirt off at the knee, and decided on a satin cami under a wrap top made of the rochelle lace.

After two weddings she is now left with quite a few separates. A skirt, a bolero jacket, a corset, a satin cami and a lace wrap top.

I really enjoyed working with Carole. She is a great client, she knows what she likes and what suits her and since her mother was a seamstress she has a handle on the lingo and the ins and outs of the craft. I can’t wait to have her back!

Thrifting

In search of a new lampshade for an antique lamp, my husband and I were in and out of thrift shops. It was here I stumbled upon a resource I had not even thought of.

While browsing the home section of Value Village, my attention was drawn to a rack of what I thought were curtains. Having just moved to a new house, I thought I would take a look and see if there were any I could alter to fit an arched window in our bedroom. Upon closer inspection, I realized it was hangers of fabric! Honestly, I was a little taken aback. I had been in Value Village many times and had never seen this. It makes sense, though. Active sewers are hoarders when it comes to fabric. Sales are found and we stock up, only to find years later we never touched the piles of fabric we “had to have”.

As I went through the rack, ideas were going through my head as to what I could make. I chose a piece of red wool, a piece of stretch poly stripe and a navy satin. Each was a few metres long. As I gathered my find and was ready to leave the store, Jake pointed to a wall that had sewing patterns, bags of miscellaneous buttons and various other notions.

Score!

I don’t usually use commercial patterns. Normally I make my own, but on occasion, I will use one as a base for a design to save time. I chose a couple of patterns, at 50 cents a pop you can’t go wrong. Off to the checkout I went. Woohoo!

My Loot

I am now intrigued. Do other thrift stores have such a section? I will make it my business to find out.

BTW, I never did find a lampshade.

An Exciting Move!

It has been an exciting few weeks at Threads! I have officially moved from my makeshift shop in the kitchen of the house in Greenway to my own sewing studio in Crediton!


For over a year, I have been working out of my kitchen. On a small table, I have logged countless hours of sewing, pattern drafting, design, etc, and while it has served me well, I began growing beyond my humble beginnings. Using my kitchen table as a work space worked out fine in the beginning. I set up my machine as needed and stored it when I was finished. As my client base grew and I was working more and more my sewing machine, serger and dress forms became a permanent fixture, my family losing the kitchen table to my business. I then took over an entire storage closet to keep all my supplies, fabric and projects in progress.

My Humble Beginnings



It occurred to my wonderful and supportive husband and me that in order to run a successful business, I needed a proper work space. Thus began the search for the perfect house.

And here it is!

Store Front


View of Entire House


My awesome cutting/sewing table


A room with a separate entrance to the street, enough space to work and best of all, a house rich in character; A place to unleash creativity and display my original designs.

I am so excited and am looking forward to setting up shop!

Becoming a seamstress wasn't a career path I had planned on. I fell into it while working for a theatre company, where a very patient Head of Wardrobe taught me the basic skills of construction. With every costume I worked on, I learned a little more, refined my skills, and of course made many mistakes along the way. And with each mistake, I became more and more comfortable with challenges behind the machine. It wasn't before long I was given an entire garment to make from cutting to finishing. Looking back on it now, it was a complete disaster. Even still, I couldn't help but be so proud at what I had accomplished. With that, my passion for sewing was born. After 10 years of working on my craft, I still feel that sense of accomplishment when I step back and look at what I have done.

Now, taking all that I have learned from others and a few skills of my own, I started Threads by Chantel. I do alterations, make custom clothing and sell my own creations out of my home. For the last year, my kitchen table has been my place of business.

From my makeshift shop, I have produced ladies wear, men’s wear, children’s wear, day wear, evening wear, bridal wear, home fashions and everything in between, and I have enjoyed every project I have worked on, as well as the great connections with my clients.

I look forward to sharing my love of sewing, fashion, creativity and the evolution of Threads by Chantel.