SOFT LAUNCH

November 15, 2012

We are elated to announce the “soft” launch of the new AlabamaChanin.com website.

I learned yesterday from the (amazing) team Hugo & Marie that “soft launch” means that the website is up and open to the public but still has kinks to work out.

The building of our new site has been a long, wonderful, learning process of developing a voice for who we are and who we want to become.  We hope that you will see how the company has grown these last five years and also hope that you will be able to find your way around our world a little bit (or a lot) more easily.

Please have a look around – browse and shop from our new Collection, visit our newly added Cook + Dine category featuring dinnerware from our HEATH Ceramics collaboration, find all the DIY Fabrics + Notions  you will need to make your Alabama Chanin project, and collectively view our upcoming Workshops and Events.

In the process, let us know what you love, where you find troubles, and just generally what you think.

(Note that all of our pictures are not showing correctly at the writing of this post.)

In addition to the new website, we are also thoughtfully designing a new Alabama Chanin Journal – one rich with imagery and content that goes hand-in-hand with our website. We are diligently working to create a place where you will find the same content you are used to – DIY instructions, recipes, book reviews, and heartfelt stories – plus new themes on fashion and sustainability.

Thank you for following our journal over the years (almost a decade now), leaving your comments and suggestions, and sharing your own stories.

We thank you for your patience as our team creates a place for stories and community with our new Alabama Chanin Journal.

We’ll keep you updated as we make progress.

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DESKTOP OF THE MONTH: NOVEMBER

November 5, 2012

For November, we’re featuring the Couching technique as our Desktop of the Month. Couching lends substantial weight and warmth to any garment. The final days of October brought quite a chill to Alabama, perfect weather for my favorite couched coat. I love pulling out my coats for the first time of the season; a sure-fire signal fall has arrived and the holidays are just around the corner.

We hope you have a cold-weather favorite you reach for year after year. Or, if it’s time to start working on a new favorite, you might consider making your own coat and embellishing with the Couching technique. The Alabama Chanin version of the technique is featured on page 110 of Alabama Studio Sewing + Design and shows several variations to work using beads or cotton yarn with a parallel whipstitch.

This hi-resolution photograph, for use as your computer desktop background, is now available to download from our Resource Downloads.

xoNatalie


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NEW WEBSITE

We often hear that you have to see an Alabama Chanin garment in person to really appreciate the beauty and craftsmanship that goes into every piece. We sincerely believe that our upcoming website is the next best thing.

As our brand continues to grow, and our interests and projects become more diverse, we rely more and more on AlabamaChanin.com as a way to showcase our endeavors, share our experiences, and interact with a community that is constantly expanding.

This is a place to share our life at the Factory, or at least a sampling of it: Weekend workshops, DIY craft, custom couture garments, cotton farming, upcycling developments, Thursday potlucks, visiting artists, and the list goes on. We wanted a site that would reflect all of the things that we are – and all of the things that you, our customers, are. We wanted a meeting place that is both welcoming and engaging and, of course, easy to use, because we know first-hand that when you have so much going on in one place, things can be a little difficult to navigate.

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ANNA’S GARDEN PONCHO KIT

November 1, 2012

Just in time for fall weather and the upcoming holiday season, we’re featuring the Anna’s Garden Poncho Kit. One of our most popular garments, the poncho is a classic piece, fit for most any occasion.

Originally featured in Alabama Studio Sewing + Design, the poncho is seen here in our 100% organic cotton jersey fabric in Black with Forest stitched in negative reverse appliqué. We constructed our garment using black Button Craft thread tied with knots on the outside. Continue reading →

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FALL GARDEN

October 31, 2012

Apples, sweet potatoes, autumn squash, turnips, rutabagas, leeks, and greens of every shade—I await the fall garden and all of its bounty each year with as much eagerness as the changing of the leaves and the relief from blistering Alabama summers. Root vegetables are at their prime this time of year and their heartiness is a beautiful accompaniment to braised meats. A meal of slow-cooked beef or pork alongside a simple roast of beets, potatoes, and turnips is my way of welcoming the season. Autumn squash, with its wonderful versatility, may find its way into a bisque or pie. And no fall meal is complete without a serving of greens—collards, mustards, turnips, kale, cabbage, spinach, etc.—served braised, sautéed, or dressed in salad.

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EXTRA VIRGINITY

October 30, 2012

From Extra Virginity:

“…Wine’s effects on us are vivid and swift, while oil works on the body in hidden ways, slow and lingering in the cells and in the mind, like myths. Wine is merry Dionysus; oil is Athena, solemn, wise, and unknowable.

Wine is how we would like life to be, but oil is how life is: fruity, pungent, with a hint of complex bitterness-extra virginity’s elusive triad.”

Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil is, surprisingly, quite the page-turner. Tales of scandal with delicious detours into the history and ceremony of olive oil will change the way you look at this kitchen staple forever.

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