The (not so) Secret Confessions of a Stitch Chick

Sew up Some Penny Pinching Style!

We are living in serious times and saving money is uppermost on everyone's mind. Obviously since the only stock that went up was Campbells' soup. Since this is not a cooking blog I won't go into 1001 Creative ways to Cook with Campbells but what I do know about is 1001 Savvy Ways to Save with Sewing.

1001 Savvy Ways to Save with Sewing TM

1. Raid your closet. This means take an evening or a day and take everything out of your closet. Put back everything that fits well and you love. Now for the rest. Yes you can donate and use it as a tax write off. You also can easily restyle some of those items that are out of date,too loose or have been mysteriously shrunk by the closet fairy.

• The piece is totally not you anymore. You can still remove the buttons, any trim and cut up for another project.
• A skirt that is too tight or wrong length. Open up side seam and insert a complimentary strip of fabric or trim down the side. Add some buttons for detail. If it is too short add a border to make longer.
• Use same border fabric to create cuffs on a shirt that has too short sleeves or worn cuffs.

Now for, (as my creative guru Margot Potter calls it) Shameless Self Promotion! In my book SWEATSHIRTS: Figure, Fit, Fashion, (look for the exciting sequel Spring 2009), there are nineteen designs which can be created from a sweatshirt. So if your closet coughs up some old sweats they would be perfect for restyling into a vest or tunic. Here is my daughter wearing a jacket created with a black sweatshirt with some fabric, ribbons and trim.  Debra...Inspiring the JOY of creativity---1 Stitch at a Time!

 

Sweatshirts Comfort versus Style?

As I am finishing a second book on restyling sweatshirts into fashion wearables like the one I am wearing here as well as promoting my first book Sweatshirts I enter every store and head for the active wear section.  There are sweatshirts in every color, lots of styles, embroidery, appliques but all have the basic comfortable sweatshirt design. It is the comfort and warmth that holds their huge appeal and I wonder how often the guests on "What not to Wear" after losing their favorite comfy sweats get right back out there for more. Rightly so the sweatshirts are the first discarded on the show, they are not flattering with baggy, droopy shoulders and ugly neckline BUT they are comfortable. What else can you wrap yourself in that is comforting especially at the end of a long day.

Personally I love the coziness of the sweatshirt but I also like to look good and to me that means a shoulder that fits well and not adding ten pounds to my already generous figure. Since we are by nature creative the solution has been to redesign, quilt, embroider, embellish the sweatshirt manipulating it into a beautiful finished garment. Again not always flattering. What I have tried to do is take body types into account and to look at the initial unflattering features of the sweatshirt before altering it. In Sweatshirts added curved seams, neckline and seam treatments give a more flattering shape to the sweatshirt itself before adding anything else.

I tested the results at the Spring Quilt Market Tradeshow where I wore a sweatshirt coat or jacket everyday including this one pictured here. I had women retailers chasing me down the aisles commenting on my jackets and the response was always "I can't believe it's a sweatshirt!" The same thing happened at the summer CHA show where I was coined the "Rockstar" of sweatshirts as fans followed me out of the ladies room. The jackets are warm as the shows are usually air conditioned and chilly. I also don't want to create designs I would not wear myself.

SO CAN COMFORT and STYLE COMBINE? Yes it does not need to be one or the other because feeling good and wearing something that wraps us so comforting is as important as looking good and how THAT makes us feel. We shouldn't have to compromise or sacrifice one or the other! That is really what my book is all about is feeling good, not settling or sacrificing, being creative, feeling comforted combined with looking good the end result. So if you have some ugly duckling sweatshirts, give them a makeover. Send me photos I would love to post them here. Comments on the book love to hear those as well.

Debra