The Train To Crazy: Fabric

7 posts categorized “Fabric”

August 10, 2013

Sewing school clothes

It's been an AMAZING Alphabet Collection tour so far and I'm excited to be the next stop. It's hard to follow after fur coats, insanely awesome hand dying, cute toggles, mustache shirts, bonnetbus fabric, eyelet, zipper piping, patch pockets, stripe bandage pants, adorable photo shoots, and amazing brother/sister outfits. Seriously. They make me all wish I had more hours in the day so I could sew cool things like they do!

However, I'm pretty much in love with this outfit I created. I sewed it for my daughter who never chooses pink or frilly. She marches to the beat of her own drum and she couldnt' be happier with this outfit.

I was planning to make the button fly version of the W pants but when I asked my daughter she said she preferred elastic waist. I was a little dissappointed but I'd prefer she love them. I went off-book a bit and made a faux fly. I like the look a better than the flat seam front but that's just personal preference.

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August 10, 2013 in Fabric, Fashion, Go To Patterns, Pattern Anthology, Sewing , Sewing for boys, Sewing for Girls, Study Hall Jacket | Permalink | Comments (22) | TrackBack (0)

June 10, 2013

The time when I wore a toga. In public. To a nice dinner.

Last week I had the great fortune to attend the Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Girls Night Out dinner in Los Angeles. My friend, Jessica, organizes the event and hosts them around the country. They're tons of fun. This was my second time attending and I can't believe how much work she puts into them. Amazing.

The dinner was following Fabric Weekend 2013 so I had just purchased massive amounts of fabric and was too excited to leave it all alone in my hotel room by itself. So I wrapped the fabric around me in a feeble attempt to make a toga.

Thankfully Bev was there to show me how a real toga is tied and Jen helped style me. I am pretty sure they thought I was just joking and were laughing along with me instead of at me. But then I really did wear the toga out of the hotel, down the street in Los Angeles, and into a nice restaurant.

It was so hilarious and ridiculous that they made me pose for photos. This photo was taken by Christina. I couldn't keep a straight face. And it was at this point where it set in that I should have worn my nice dress under the toga instead of my jeans. So I kept the toga on. In moments like these you realize the extreme juxtaposition of your sense of humor and introvertedness.

It was a great night with friends, in spite of my wardrobe. Here I am with Stef and Cherie.

Thanks to great sponsors of the evening:

I've got a lot more to say about Fabric Weekend but I'll have to add more later. I'm off to enjoy the Character Awards for my daughter's kindergarten class. Can't wait to see which award she gets!

June 10, 2013 in blogging, Fabric, Fabric Weekend | Permalink | Comments (13) | TrackBack (0)

June 04, 2013

Hi. I’m Andrea and I’m a fabric hoarder.

If you're on facebook you might have seen my new photo. Just one of many I took during Fabric Weekend. It was amazing, by the way. 20 super fun bloggers and no drama whatsoever. Just fun shopping and lots of eating. By me, anyway.

I bought a lot of fabric. I'm stocking up since I'll be moving away from Los Angeles soon. That's what I tell myself anyway. I always get tons of knits. I go through those the most when creating a pattern. Stripes. I can never get enough. I love all the geometric prints everyone else was buying but I just didn't have the vision for any.

So my question for you is, are you a fabric hoarder or do you just buy what you need with a specific project in mind? What type of fabric do you seem to collect the most?

June 04, 2013 in Fabric, Fabric Shopping SoCal, Fabric Weekend | Permalink | Comments (13) | TrackBack (0)

May 29, 2013

Fabric Weekend 2013

A few years ago I was talking with some blogging friends and randomly mentioned how fun it would be to have a weekend of fabric shopping with friends from around the country. I kept saying I'd organize it but life was busy. However, a whole weekend of shopping and relaxing just couldn't be put off any longer. So I emailed a few friends. A few became about 22! And Fabric Weekend was born!

I'll tell you what I'm telling everyone: this is a pilot program. If it goes well this may become a new "thing". Would you love a weekend of fabric shopping?

We are SO happy to have some fabulous sponsors on board for the inagural voyage of Fabric Weekend!

Michael Levine is a staple in the Los Angeles Fabric District. Between their main store, the upholstery fabric store and the Loft where you can buy fabric by the pound, you will always walk away with bags of fabric you can't wait to use. Thankfully they have a great online store as well. Their on-line brand is lowpricefabric.com and you'll love it. If you ever wonder where I got a great knit fabric, look there because that's probably where I got it.

Thank you to Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Storesfor sponsoring Fabric Weekend 2013. Even in a fabric heaven like Los Angeles you still know you can find exactly what you need at Jo-Anns. I'm sure you know what I mean but Jo-Ann must have some sort of giant magnet that always seems to suck me inside. And it's nearly impossible to walk away with just what you came for. 50% off buttons? Oh, I'd better buy 50! Am I right?

I can't wait to share more about this fun weekend with you! If you're on instagram you can follow me there. There MAY be a little giveaway involved!

May 29, 2013 in Fabric, Fabric Shopping SoCal, Fabric Weekend, Sewing | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack (0)

April 11, 2013

I Want Fabric giveaway day returns!

My #iwantfabric giveaway was so popular in January I'm doing it again! This time Bev from Flamingo Toes is joining me! Yay! We'll be shopping in L.A. all day Friday and giving away fabric to YOU, live while we shop! Entering to win is super simple this time.

I Want Fabric day is brought to you by Go To Patterns.

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April 11, 2013 in Fabric, Fabric Shopping SoCal, Giveaway | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)

February 07, 2013

Help! I need some fabric and paint advice!

Hey, friends! I need a little design advice from you! I've got an old bench in our entry way that I'm planning to paint and make a new cushion for. Can you help me choose my fabric and paint? There is no "theme" in that area of the house so just tell me your favorites! I can't decide. They're all so great.

All these fabrics are from the Home Decor Fabric section at Sew Fine Fabric on Etsy.

A. Embrace in Tangelo Slub
B. Embrace in Yellow Slub
C. Embrace in Aquarius Slub
D. Sydney in Aquarius Slub
E. Sydney in Storm Twill
F. Aruba Feliz in Blue
G. Small Dandelion in Corn Yellow
H. Chipper in Corn Yellow
I. Ikat Domino (in Chili Pepper)

So what do you think? Which fabric, which paint? Or would you use a different color paint??

Thank you to Sew Fine Fabric for supplying the fabric for my project!

February 07, 2013 in Design & Photography, DIY, Fabric | Permalink | Comments (23) | TrackBack (0)

November 26, 2012

New fabric

My fabric shopping last week still has me excited. I'm happy to live near fantastic fabric stores in Los Angeles and smaller fabric stores in Orange County. I never went fabric shopping when I lived in NYC so I've got nothing to really compare it to but it sure is fun.

I posted this photo on instagram of the freshly washed entangled mess and it nearly had the most likes I've ever had. So I know you're just as excited as I am.

Don't ask who made any of it because discounters can't leave the selvage on. I guess. They always seem to be cut off. I did the math on this bunch. This ended up being around $2.50/yard. Not too shabby. I'm hoping to use most of it in the coming weeks as I'm getting a few new patterns ready. After the leggings and gift bags coming out back to back I'm feeling the pressure for weekly pattern releases. I'm not sure that will be happening but I do have 5 patterns partially complete right now. Any guesses about what's next?

And a parting thought:

November 26, 2012 in DIY, Fabric, Fabric Shopping SoCal | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBack (0)