Vera: The Art and Life of an Icon

 Day 1 :: Scarves Week

all this week i'll be blogging about scarves & today i'm kicking off scarves week with a quick peek inside the "Vera: The Art and Life of an Icon" book by Susan Seid, it's all about Vera Neumann and her art on scarves...

 :: this is such a colorful coffee table book, a great book to give as a gift, also a quick interesting read

:: get to know the lady behind the ladybug

 :: Vera Neumann believed that fine art should be accessible to everyone, not just to walls of museums & private homes

:: she put her paintings on scarves from botanicals to bold geometric patterns & signed the scarves (like a painting) with a cursive "Vera"

:: later she added the ladybug to her signature ~ a symbol of long life, good luck, & good health

 :: she was the country's top scarf designer

:: the most popular were the 36 or 44 inch square scarves

:: her company produced 500 Vera designs per year

:: Vera chose few colors for her scarves, limiting them to 2-4, making them more fashion-friendly

 :: the Vera company now sells apparel & kitchen linens, but it all started with a silk scarf

:: get this book & get bitten by the ladybug

see you tomorrow for a Sew, Mama, Sew! giveaway

PS share photos of your Vera scarves with the Vera Neumann flickr group

Eyelet Ruffled Halter

 Day 7 :: Spring Kids Clothes Week

you've probably seen this ruffled halter around, i sewed a pink one with white polka dots last year, it's by Oliver+S & the pattern is found in Stitch magazine Spring 2010

each ruffle is different as i was using only the eyelet in my stash, you know, "make it work" (what Tim Gunn says on Project Runway)

that ends Spring Kids Clothes Week for me, i look forward to the one in the Fall

see you Monday May 23rd for a Sew, Mama, Sew! giveaway ~ that will also be the start of Scarves Week here (as you guessed, it's a whole week blogging about scarves)

New Cuffs

 Day 6 :: Spring Kids Clothes Week

this was a super simple & practical project ~ an easy way to get more wear out of some old clothing...

 this pair of blue jeans started to get a hole in the knee... so they were cut, made into shorts & hemmed with vintage ribbon/trim (idea come from here)

 a while ago i bought my daughter a long-sleeved white shirt at a garage sale, only to find out when i got home there were stains on the cuffs. my daughter also had a couple of long-sleeved white shirts where she got paint on the sleeves. so i cut them off where the stains started & sewed on bias tape to make new cuffs. i made the bias tape out of the Liberty of London scarf that was leftover from the Suzanne dress i sewed.

see you tomorrow for day 7 !

Tutu

 Day 5 :: Spring Kids Clothes Week

i guess this can't officially be called clothing, what do you call a tutu ?  an accessory ?  a dress-up item ?

 anyway, this tutu is fun, elegant & lovely... directions came from little things to sew by Liesl Gibson

 it didn't turn out as full as the ones in the book because i bought shiny tulle that was only 54" where the ones in the book were made out of tulle that was 108"... one thing that i did different is that for the gathering i zigzagged over cording which is my preferred gathering method. all in all this was rather a quick & easy project & i would for sure sew more.

see you tomorrow for day 6 !

Girl's Floral Party Dress

 Day 4 :: Spring Kids Clothes Week

i hope all you mom's had a lovely Mother's Day yesterday ~ one of the things i was treated to was a sewing afternoon which allowed me to make this dress... let me introduce you to the girl's floral party dress...

 the robin's egg blue sash ties in the back (unfortunately no photos of the back)

 i snapped this shot while i was waiting for iron to warm up, it's the floral print from Fabric Traditions that i purchased at JoAnn's (i think it was called Garden Party?)

the sash was made out of Robert Kaufman Kona Cotton Robin Egg

& for the bodice white linen from my stash (3 pink buttons from my stash, too)

where do you find the pattern for the girl's floral party dress, you ask ?  you'll find it in Stitch magazine's Summer 2011 issue

if i get something sewn today, then i'll see you tomorrow....

Suzanne

 Day 3 :: Spring Kids Clothes Week

un, deux, trois, nous irons au bois...

 many thanks to a dear French friend who mailed this Suzanne pattern to me

this was the first time i followed a sewing pattern en francais

my parents would be proud that i've put their money to good use ~ using the French minor i got in college

 the Suzanne dress pattern has simple construction ~ no buttons, no zipper, no ties, no snaps, no elastic, no bias tape ~ it just slips over the head

such a unique style & it's reversible as in it looks exactly the same on the front & the back

i liked the Suzanne pattern so much i sewed my daughter 3 of them... one made out of a Liberty of London scarf (remember all the Liberty of London fabulousness that was at Target spring 2010?) & the other 2 were sewn out of cotton print fabric i got last summer at a flea market

these should make great summer dresses & nice beach cover-ups

bonne journee mes amies, a demain !

PS Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there :)

Scarf Skirt

 Day 2 :: Spring Kids Clothes Week

here's the perfect instant gratification project for showing off a fun pattern of a long rectangular vintage scarf

also a great project for the beginner sewist

 this was the skirt (named 'double trouble') that i designed for Craft Challenge: Dozens of Ways to Repurpose Scarves

 i found this vintage green & white mushroom, long rectangular, Vera scarf at hunt & gather for about $9

 with the scarf, enough elastic to go around my daughter's waist, & a little bit of thread, this cute little girl's skirt was made for only around $9 !

see you tomorrow for day 3 !

PS TtV photos taken with an Argus 75