The Fabric of Time

Today's sewing endeavor is not very interesting, but I wanted to share photos because it was such a satisfying project. We've had these director's chairs for at least 20 years, and the fabric parts of them were faded. One of them was ripped and couldn't be used anymore. My mother said we should throw them out, and I said no, we just needed new inserts. I immediately retreated to my sewing room and whipped up these new seats. The canvas I had wasn't as heavy as the red canvas, so I doubled the fabric. It was such a quick, easy project; I probably finished sewing the seats, cleaning the chairs, and assembling everything in two hours. The seat backs are a little loose, but I can fix those quickly later if it's a problem. I'm really proud of these chairs even though it was unskilled sewing.

  This 18 th century coat and waistcoat sat around for a few months while I was immersed in my first semester of graduate school. I really struggled to keep up with sewing projects, so as soon as the semester ended, I threw myself into sewing. I managed to complete both the coat and waistcoat in a week! I’m so proud of myself for just getting it done. I enjoyed these projects very much, which is gratifying because I often get intimidated and lose motivation. I guess I knew how to do everything and therefore didn’t feel anxious about working on it. These photos are of the completed projects. I hope to eventually get pictures of the owner wearing them. I had a mock-up of a size 44 waistcoat, but I don’t remember what I made it from. It might have been a commercial pattern, or I might have drafted it or copied it from a coat that I made as I had been making several coats and adjusting patterns for them. Anyway, I met up with the gentleman for whom I made thes...

Graduate school interferes with what's really important--sewing, knitting, weaving, tatting, etc. I have actually been crafting here and there, but rarely sharing pictures on my blog. I realized that I never shared these pictures of tape that I wove last year, so here they are! I have woven more tapes recently, but have not taken pictures yet. All of these tapes are made with 16/2 linen thread. This green and white one is about half an inch wide. It's not copied from or inspired by an original. Next, here's a brown, orange, and tan tape. It is inspired by one in the Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center. The original red cotton with white and blue linen used as apron ties. It is item 1916.01.05, online at http://schwenkfelder.pastperfectonline.com/webobject/83534E81-6AF2-4CAE-ADE0-332276277360. This red, white, and blue tape is copied from a Schwenkfelder tape; catalog number  2006.14.09 at http://schwenkfelder.pastperfectonline.com...

Close-up of cuff with top stitching The last shirt that I made was rather popular. Several people showed interest, and one unsuspecting victim lovely gentleman requested that I make two shirts for him. Alas, he has waited a few months, and I've finally finished the first one. If only I had completed these before I started graduate school in January! This shirt is 100% linen and completely hand sewn with linen thread. As requested, it has linen thread buttons sewn onto the cuffs and collar. For this project, I bought Larkin and Smith's "A Manual for the 18th Century Shirtmaker" (http://atthesignofthegoldenscissors.com/collections/18th-century-shirts/products/a-manual-of-18thc-shirtmaking), which I highly recommend. It is informative and the techniques are professionally researched by examining original garments, advertisements, and other primary sources. I have some minor criticisms which should NOT discourage anyone from using this manual, just be forewar...