How Could I Have Nothing NEW To Wear?

That's the question:  "How could I have nothing NEW to wear - something that I made?"  Wednesday I leave for one of my favorite sewing shows, the American Sewing Expo in Novi, MI.  I will be greeting visitors into the Social Media Lounge as they recharge batteries, take a few minutes to Face Book, blog and meet sewing celebrities.  So what am I going to wear?  Yes, I have been sewing, but this year I have been quilting more than garment construction.  I certainly cannot wear my quilt blocks.  :) 

This is what I intended to stitch and wear ..........

Jacket Express #218
Janet Pray, Islander Sewing Systems

. . . . but the fabric is still folded neatly in my sewing queue.  I have this beautiful navy with shades of blue and white vines and just a hint of green cotton fabric with just 1% Spandex that should sew easily and wear comfortably. 

I love Janet Pray's Islander Sewing System patterns with tested well written instructions and especially for this pattern has an expedited construction order.  Now, doesn't that sound interesting... expedited construction order.  To learn more about how Janet constructs this pattern take her Craftsy class.  Her class went live this summer and already has had over 3,000 students. . . . and I too will be one of her students.

Meet me this weekend in the Social Media Lounge at the American Sewing Expo.  What will you be wearing?
Sew SCHMETZ!
Rhonda
www.SCHMETZneedles.com

www.islandersewing.com
www.craftsy.com
www.americansewingexpo.com

Social Media Lounge

Fall is finally in the air, well at least today with cooler temperatures.  So that means that one of my favorite sewing shows is just around the corner - The American Sewing Expo.  I love this show with all the creative energy of sewists from around the country, Canada and other far away locations converging just outside of Detroit to beautiful Novi, MI.   

This year Janet Pray, the founder and owner of American Sewing Expo, is celebrating the 20th anniversary of this fabulous show.  Janet is always on the look out for new talent and delivers venues through ASE to further develop and promote creativity in our wonderful world of sewing.  This is where I come in - this year Janet and her team have created a Social Media Lounge on the show floor.  Most importantly while you are blogging, Facebooking, doing Instagram or charging up your device, you can meet with representative of McCalls patterns - especially if you are looking to create your own patterns;  Meet the lovely Ellen Marche of Sew News and SewItAllTV; Talk with sewing expert and blogger Gertie along with Tiffiany and Shannon of Create Kids Couture.  There is so much to see and learn!  And . . . . I will be greeting you at the Social Media Lounge.  Yahoo!  Plus I can answer any SCHMETZ needles questions you may have.

So get ready. . . finish your sewing projects and meet me along with 1,000's of sewing friends in just two weeks in Novi at the American Sewing Expo!  It is not too late to sign up for classes, but do it now by visiting www.americansewingexpo.com

Swatches September 2013-3        New! 2013 ASE  Social Media Lounge

Don't Miss Out!   The following classes have less than 6 seats left:      Thursday Workshops The Perfect Fit Friday Seminars Basics of Pattern Drafting      A Place in the Sun Placemat Saturday Seminars     Sleeve Drafting and Fitting Two for One/Knit Jacket Sunday Seminars  Beyond Seam Finishing Sample Wonderful World of Paintstiks Last day to pre-register - Thursday September 19th.   Happy 20th Birthday ASE! To celebrate our 20th year we will be posting trivia questions about ASE logos, events and special guests. Prizes will be awarded!    Who provides sewing machines prizes for contestants and the audience at the Passion For Fashion Finale? Three people who get the answer correct will win the prize. Winners will be chosen at random.   To send your email answer (include full name and mailing address) click on Diane.   Last weeks question: In the all day workshop, Fitting the Four B's; What do the four B's refer to? Answer: bellies, boobs, backs and butts  Winners: Mary Gillette, Hannah Troupe, Roberta Hoag    Teaser Alert!   The ASE birthday celebration begins at 8:00 AM Friday and Saturday.         Registration Brochure    Download by clicking on cover above.         To go directly to registration click above.

To support our friend Simon Haskins, ASE is sponsoring an exhibit of Sunshine 4 All quilt blocks. You can send us your quilt block, bring it to the expo or you can even sit down and sew a block when you attend ASE this fall. Please read below and follow the link to learn more about this very special project to help find a cure for this  dreadful disease! Join us in the Sew Party Cafe' to sit and sew a block or two. Fabric provided by our good friends at Coats and Free Spirit!

And bring several pairs of comfortable shoes and tote bags to fill with all the enticing fabrics, trims, patterns  - lots of goodies to take home.  Yes, the shopping will be very good!  I look forward to seeing you!
Sew SCHMETZ!
Rhonda
www.SCHMETZneedles.com
www.americansewingexpo.com

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The Night Circus, Sewing and Black & White

This posting is going to be my own three ring circus tying these topics together:  The Night Circus, sewing and black and white.  Here's how it all started.  At the suggestion of Nancy, our local librarian, my husband brought home a magical book The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.  Little did I know how enchanting this good read would be. 

Visual reading is how I describe the story lines in this book.  The descriptions of the characters and the circus with all its unusual and magnetic tents were wonderfully refreshing and real.  I was especially thrilled to find out that . . .

Yes last night the author, Erin Morgenstern, was in my neighborhood to talk about her debut book The Night Circus.  So I grabbed a red scarf - I could not convenience my husband to wear a red scarf, but was happy that he wore a red bow tie - because I am now a "serious" fan of The Night Circus.  Yes, the red scarf has meaning from the story line.  What I learned is that Erin is an artist that writes AND is a writer that is an artist depending on how her creative energies need to express themselves.   The writing of this book started in a November -  sorry don't remember the year - National Novel Writing Month.  In 30 days the challenge was to write 50,000 words - some call this binge writing.  She wrote many vignettes that eventually all wove together especially after 2 years of editing and rewriting.  2 years of rewrites!  What tenacity!   

Years ago as an artist Erin designed tarot cards and challenged herself to using a black and white color scheme which also carried over into the menagerie of circus tents and even some of the characters in her book.   I love the poignancy of black and white and thought you may enjoy a few sewing pics I have taken from various trips:

Let's Go To The Zoo! 

Great Lakes Heritage Quilters Special Exhibit 

American Sewing Expo 2012

Baby Lock Love of Fashion by Designer Joi Mahon

Special Exhibit of Joi's Off-Beat Bridal and Formal Wear

American Sewing Expo 2012

Diane Kroll, Special Exhibit Coordinator

Standing in Front of California Dreaming Exhibit

By Lakes "Sew"Ciety Members

American Sewing Expo 2012

Rita Farro

With Her Newly Treasured Black and White Zebra Corduroy Stash
Nancy Zieman's Quilt Expo 2012

AnyWear Shoe

Comfortable Shoes Worn by Sewist Attending American Sewing Expo 2012

Just like The Night Circus, the inspiration to sew makes no announcement.  We simply must sew, collect fabrics and share our passion.
Sew SCHMETZ!
Rhonda
www.erinmorgenstern.com
www.americansewingexpo.com
www.dressformsdesign.com
www.wiquiltexpo.com

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Chanel and That Jacket, American Sewing Expo 2012

Claire Shaeffer describes herself as a "garment engineer".  Visiting Parisian couture workooms, dissecting haute couture garments, interviewing Savile Row workers and collecting Chanel - owns over a 1,000 Chanel and couture garments, Claire knows couture techniques and gleefully shares them.  Admiring students - and recently I was one - hung on every word and technique Claire shared.

A Chanel Jacket from Claire's Collection
Along with Chanel Inspired Jackets

Last week at the American Sewing Expo in Novi, MI, I had the pleasure of taking Claire's class.  I consider myself a quilter, but my sewing started with garments and I find myself increasingly enjoying garment construction.  At first I thought I might be in over my head taking this intense hands-on couture level class, Chanel and That Jacket.  However as the class progressed I learned I already knew and already use many basic techniques such as quilting and many hand stitches.  The difference - huge differences - in couture is fit, time, patience and thoughtfulness that goes into the garment construction, or in one word, craftsmanship.  Oh, yes . . . money is a huge difference too.

Juliette Shows Her Couture Techniques
Including the Quilted Jacket Body

The class had 30 students.  Through a drawing we buddied up to use Pfaff machines.  Juliette was my new sewing buddy from Austin, TX.  Juliette is an avid sewist and already made Claire's Chanel inspired Vogue Pattern #8804.  Her sewing techniques, quilting and use of chain weight on the hem were skillful and no wonder, Juliette along with half the class were members of The Association of Sewing and Design Professionals. 

The primary focus of our class were the intricacies of couture techniques applied to a three piece sleeve that Chanel avidly used.  I learned about generous seam allowances, thread tracing and quilting techniques.  We did lots of hand work.  When we machine stitched Claire said she uses SCHMETZ, so of course I had to make a video.  Find our which three SCHMETZ needles are Claire's favorites.  She also prefers to use the Swiss Iris Super Fine Pins - the ones in the adorable little blue Klip-Klap tin.

Claire is An Avid Writer and Educator

Except for this American Sewing Expo class, Claire has cut back on her traveling and now teaches an intensive 5 day workshop in Palm Springs only twice a year.  Lucky for us her knowledge is easily available in books, magazine articles including Threads and Vogue Patterns, and DVDs.  In February 2013 Claire's new book will be released,  Couture Sewing Tailoring Techniques.  I can hardly wait to get my copy. 

Rhonda Pierce and Claire Shaeffer

Thanks Claire for a terrific class.  Learning about thread tracing, easy bound buttonholes, creating trims and the importance of hand basting, you inspired me to sew for better fit and mostly . . . . craftsmenship.
Sew SCHMETZ!
Rhonda
www.americansewingexpo.com
www.sewingprofessionals.org
www.SCHMETZneedles.com