April 25, 2013
Last fall, one of my neighbors gave me a box of vintage patterns he found tucked away in his basement. The weather-stained cardboard box that once belonged to his mother was filled with patterns that represented decades of accumulation: Vogue Patterns, McCall’s, Simplicity, and Butterick . Each had been purchased for as little as a [...]
April 18, 2013
My friend Kay and I started giving one another socks for each holiday several years ago. Although this may bring back memories of dreaded Christmas gifts from years past (not socks again!), I find the gift of socks a very practical thing. It’s just not one of those things that I go out and purchase [...]
April 1, 2013
This month’s Desktop of the Month celebrates the arrival of spring. Variations of reds and pinks highlight our Daisy stencil, creating a strong contrast against the Natural colored background. Taken from our new Collection, the Daisy appliqué features red variegated embroidery floss sewn with a whipstitch. We use this technique on our A-line Dress and a [...]
March 28, 2013
Confession: I have a certain disdain for flip flops. More often than not, they are considered a faux pas in the fashion world, and sometimes for the right reasons. This being said, I must also confess I own a pair of Havaianas that I bought years ago on my Venezuelan adventure. They are packed snuggly in [...]
March 21, 2013
In addition to our Little Flowers and Little Folks stencil collaboration with Anna Maria Horner, we’re also introducing a new DIY Kit: the Little Flowers A-line Tunic. This is one of our few kits available in lightweight organic cotton jersey (along with our Random Ruffle T-shirt and the Paisley Skirt). The relaxed fit and the flow [...]
March 15, 2013
Our latest Alabama Chanin Collection features two original pieces – The Swing Coat and Layered Dolman Coat – and several classic patterns like the Alabama A-line dress and Long Skirt developed in new colorways and patterns. Last summer we collaborated with friend and talent Anna Maria Horner on the Little Flowers stencil, which you’ll find [...]
March 14, 2013
Monday, we wrote about artist Tilleke Schwarz’s New Potatoes as inspiration for the week. However, Tilleke’s textiles have been a source for inspiration for me for years. When New Potatoes landed on my desk about a year ago, we started the skirt you see above as homage to Tilleke and her work. We have produced narrative work [...]
March 7, 2013
You can add texture to anything (and everything) with our Spiral embroidery technique from Alabama Studio Sewing + Design. Personally, I would like to have a Spiral embroidered couch; however, my production manager just shakes his head. Perhaps a quicker and easier place to start is with a set of the Spiral embroidered coffee cozies [...]
March 1, 2013
Last month we launched our online class, Hand-Embellishing Knit Fabric: Stenciling, Appliqué, Beading, and Embroidery on Craftsy, along with our DIY Kit for the class, which includes all fabric, thread and paint needed. Originally we offered only one colorway for this project – Italian Plum #12536, shown above. We now have ten additional colorways from [...]
February 21, 2013
Couching is another age-old technique that we employ over, and over again as a design practice at Alabama Chanin. When embellishing, we often use cotton jersey pulls as appliqué to give weight and a sculptural quality to our crafted garments and home goods. From page 110 of Alabama Studio Sewing + Design: “At Alabama Chanin, [...]