I'm out of the loop quite often, but in my boredom-induced internet bumbling, I have learned that one of the new designers on Project Runway is from my neck of the woods!
Ben Chmura apparently resides in Tampa, and won a Best of the Bay award a few years ago. His name sounded familiar, and I'm awaiting a response from my sister to see if she knows him. If anyone knows anyone in Tampa it's her. I live nearly an hour and a half away from her, and I still have people that ask if I know Erica Heiden. Its kind of disconcerting to have people ask which fabrics are suitable for dance costumes in the same sentence that they inquire about the members of my family...
Anyways, I'm excited to see what this chap has to offer. He's a transplant, originally a New-Englander, so I'm a bit worried on how he plans to represent MY Florida.
I HATE the fact that when most people think of Florida fashion, they instantly go to flamingo pinks and mint greens, oversized button-down shirts and strawhats, and old people. Yes, that is what makes Florida appear so appealing to the rest of the nation, which is apparently made up of only wheat and corn, (I'm lookin at you Nebraska!) or sleet and disdain. (Seattle, anyone?)
I blame Hemingway. As the holder of a degree in English, I am required by law to love him, whether I like it or not. But he ruined my state! He turned Florida into Key West! It's not all beaches and bars here. I would much rather have Zora Neale Hurston's view on the land be the authority.
When I see My Florida in my head, I see the muted colors of the buildings where cement was mixed with sand. I see palmetto green flora and amethyst clouds. I see the mahogany branches of the mangroves and the still, black water shimmering on an alligator's nose. And nowhere in sight are there mouse-ears or t-shirts that say "Hog's breath is better than no breath at all."
Natural Florida is a force to be reconed with. If you've ever seen the plant life, you know how hardcore it is. Grass is not natural here. All the lush lawns you see were brought here from other places and need special conditions just to survive against our badass plants. Look at sawgrass! Let's see your pretty lawn fight off that mofo! Plantlife here has evolved in many crazy ways to survive the climate. Most are just green, with no flowers, and rigid, sharp edges. Sometimes I wonder what the Spanish were thinking when they called this place "land of the flowers"
The plants are all such vicious contenders in the botany world, that they can't even fight each other, and when they get overgrown, we have to burn them all down! It's called prescribed burning. That's why Smokey the Bear now says "Only you can prevent wildfires!" instead of "forrest fires". Cause our forrests deserve it when they wont play nice.
And before you freak out and say prescribed burning is unnatural and detrimental, just know that there are a lot of thunderstorms here for a reason. Tampa is the lightning capital of the western hemisphere (apparently Nepal is the world capital), and when people don't set those fires, nature sets them herself. She gave us the idea.
The people who live here, too, have to be pretty hardcore just to survive. The majority of the state was originally swampland, and had to be worked and drained to make it liveable. There are still large areas that are uninhabitable. And the weather is pretty unique. Hot and humid. Not only are you hot, but YOU CAN'T SWEAT na-na-na-boo-boo!
I went to Vegas on my honeymoon. In August. So I know NOW that Florida is not nearly as bad as it gets when it comes to heat. Let it be known that I DID pass out after a short walk from the Venetian to Caesar's Palace. You can't sweat there either folks. It evaporates before it even gets out of your skin!
If I were to ever given the chance to reinstate Florida fashion, I would take inspiration from the rugged swamp, and make all my fabrics out of linen, rayon, cotton and bamboo. Light stuff designed for hot, sticky weather. I would do away with the Key West/ South Beach air, embroidered souvenier t-shirts, and maxi dresses. I will allow the flip-flop as long as it is tastefully done. None of this plastic B.S.
I just hope this snowbird on Project Runway dosen't taint my state's already bad name. Represent, my homie! Please, please, represent.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Trying is the First Step Toward Failure...
Hopefully by now most of you have gained enough confidence in yourselves to try out a project or two. If you have, GOOD JOB! I’m proud of you! *hug*
If not, we’ve got more work to do.
One of the hardest lessons of life to learn is the acceptance of failure. I KNOW that those of you out there who are too afraid to start a project, probably also got all A’s in school. You’re probably very critical of yourself. You dress well, speak clearly, and keep the public parts of your house very well kept. But when you screw up, you are your worst enemy.
That’s just because you’ve never successfully learned to fail! And no, don’t go blame this on Mommy and Daddy or your first grade teacher (that poor homely woman has enough problems to deal with without your cosmic hatred). This is your chance to take responsibility, and learn to FAIL LIKE A PRO!!!
This is tough, but once you figure out how to royally screw up a project and survive, sewing, and on a more existential plane, life, will become SO much easier.
Now I’m not saying go out and buy 10 yards of fine silk and set it aflame in a symbolic tribute to nihilism. I mean, make something, and if you can’t fix it, give it to charity. They love that stuff!
When I first started sewing, my biggest irrational fear was interfacing. I didn’t know what it was, how to use it, what purpose it served, and I was much happier just staying away from it.
This was also several years ago when I had JUST started working for the fabric store I currently work for. This was also around the time I told a customer that there was no such thing as “charmeuse” and she had probably made it up. After several embarrassing situations like the charmeuse incident and my stuttering responses to questions about interfacing, I decided to face the beast, and make something with this crazy crap.
Since then, I have learned a bit about it, but not as much as I would like to. Even the almighty internet doesn’t have a great understanding of it’s specifics. One of the problems of info on sewing, I think, is that all the hardcore gurus that can tell you
anything you want on sewing, are all older and not too computer savvy. Just my theory. I know there are someGrandmas who can rock a mouse like nobody’s business. Nothing personal. The ones I’ve found that are internet friendly are not too keen on my generation.There videos and webpages are filled with comforting images of teddy bears and doilies, and their words are spoken in a soothing motherly tone. After watching these vlogs, I am not inspired to sew, but rather to find this lady's house so she can bake me cookies and crochet cozy afghans for me while I watch reruns of Ducktales cartoons from the comfort of her overstuffed couch. This is unacceptable. I need bright colors and electronic music! and I need all my information in 140 character bites! Where are the blasé twenty-somethings with peppy buzz words? Threadbanger, you have spoiled me!
I go off on too many tangents. Here’s what you want to know.
There are two main categories of interfacing: Fusible and Non- Fusible (sew-in)
Fusible just means that one or both sides are coated with a heat-activated adhesive. When you iron a fabric to the adhesive side, it bonds with it and adds extra body to said fabric.
Non- Fusible does not have this adhesive, and needs to be sewn to the fabric. This is usually best to use on very delicate fabrics, or fabrics that can’t be ironed/ take a lot of heat, such as most silks and acetate taffeta.
I’ve found that fusible works best on fabrics that are woven and made primarily of natural fibers. It’s hard to get the adhesive to stick to polyester. Sometimes I add an extra layer of just the fusing (I.e. wonder under, heat n’ bond, stitch witchery, etc) to get it to stick.
When applying fusible interfacing, the instructions say to set your iron’s heat to the highest that the fabric can handle. Say, if your using it on linen, turn the heat all the way up. If you’re using it on wool, keep it a little cooler. If your fabric is a blend, go with the weaker fabric. Like for a cotton-poly blend, set the iron to polyester heat.
Also set your iron to steam, if the fabric can handle it. (Always pre-wash your fabrics anyway!) My crappy little iron doesn’t have a steam option, so I keep a spray bottle of water close by. The extra amount of water helps to super-reinforce areas that don’t fuse as readily as I’d like them too. And it keeps the cat away.
When it comes to the weight, you generally want the interfacing to behave the same way as the fabric. (There are a few exceptions to that rule.) If your fabric is light, like charmeuse or peachskin, use a lightweight interfacing. If your fabric is heavy, like a denim or canvas, use a heavyweight interfacing. Most of the time you can use the standard non-woven stuff, but if you want the end result to have more flexibility, maybe try a woven or a knit interfacing. Because of the increased flexibility though, the fusing may come off over time.
Exceptions to the rule are based on common sense. Say you find a cute cotton fabric you want to make into a tote-bag. Of course you would want to use a heavy-weight interfacing to make it stand up. One of my friends says she uses décor-bond for her bags, but when I tried it I thought it felt like it had posterboard inside it. My personal favorite to use is Pellon’s shirt tailor, but sometimes that’s hard to find.
Or if you’re making a t-shirt quilt, you would probably want to back the t-shirt pieces with some lightweight fusible interfacing, instead of the knit interfacing. The t-shirt fabrics are all different, and some will stretch more than others. using the lightweight fusible interfacing keeps them from stretching, so the quilt wont get all wonky.
Even with all these generalizations, trial and error is still necessary. Don’t be afraid to try out a variety of interfacings in your projects, or maybe get a sample of each and try them all out on a scrap. Or maybe, if you feel so bold, ASK the salesperson about interfacing! *GASP!*
So my little chicklets, don’t be afraid to mess up something. You will not die, the fabric will not explode, and the bully from fourth grade will not suddenly enter your house to point and laugh at you. He’s already in jail for doing that to someone else. Seriously, what was his problem? That kid needed more hugs...
The worst that will happen from failing is that you might need to buy more fabric (but who doesn’t like doing that?) and that you might learn something. Remember, even Ralph Lauren didn’t know how to sew on a button at some point.
So, Sew a zipper in the bottom of your skirt? Old news. Drop your iron on your mother’s brand-new rug and burn a hole in it? Nothing new. Sew through your finger? Done it (It makes a great battle scar!)
And just to make things more interesting, maybe post in the comments or email me a story of your favorite fail moment. Sewing has been around since about 30,000 B.C. So don’t worry, whatever you did has probably been done before. By a caveman nonetheless.
If not, we’ve got more work to do.
One of the hardest lessons of life to learn is the acceptance of failure. I KNOW that those of you out there who are too afraid to start a project, probably also got all A’s in school. You’re probably very critical of yourself. You dress well, speak clearly, and keep the public parts of your house very well kept. But when you screw up, you are your worst enemy.
That’s just because you’ve never successfully learned to fail! And no, don’t go blame this on Mommy and Daddy or your first grade teacher (that poor homely woman has enough problems to deal with without your cosmic hatred). This is your chance to take responsibility, and learn to FAIL LIKE A PRO!!!
This is tough, but once you figure out how to royally screw up a project and survive, sewing, and on a more existential plane, life, will become SO much easier.
When I first started sewing, my biggest irrational fear was interfacing. I didn’t know what it was, how to use it, what purpose it served, and I was much happier just staying away from it.
This was also several years ago when I had JUST started working for the fabric store I currently work for. This was also around the time I told a customer that there was no such thing as “charmeuse” and she had probably made it up. After several embarrassing situations like the charmeuse incident and my stuttering responses to questions about interfacing, I decided to face the beast, and make something with this crazy crap.
Since then, I have learned a bit about it, but not as much as I would like to. Even the almighty internet doesn’t have a great understanding of it’s specifics. One of the problems of info on sewing, I think, is that all the hardcore gurus that can tell you
anything you want on sewing, are all older and not too computer savvy. Just my theory. I know there are someGrandmas who can rock a mouse like nobody’s business. Nothing personal. The ones I’ve found that are internet friendly are not too keen on my generation.There videos and webpages are filled with comforting images of teddy bears and doilies, and their words are spoken in a soothing motherly tone. After watching these vlogs, I am not inspired to sew, but rather to find this lady's house so she can bake me cookies and crochet cozy afghans for me while I watch reruns of Ducktales cartoons from the comfort of her overstuffed couch. This is unacceptable. I need bright colors and electronic music! and I need all my information in 140 character bites! Where are the blasé twenty-somethings with peppy buzz words? Threadbanger, you have spoiled me!
I go off on too many tangents. Here’s what you want to know.
There are two main categories of interfacing: Fusible and Non- Fusible (sew-in)
Fusible just means that one or both sides are coated with a heat-activated adhesive. When you iron a fabric to the adhesive side, it bonds with it and adds extra body to said fabric.
Non- Fusible does not have this adhesive, and needs to be sewn to the fabric. This is usually best to use on very delicate fabrics, or fabrics that can’t be ironed/ take a lot of heat, such as most silks and acetate taffeta.
I’ve found that fusible works best on fabrics that are woven and made primarily of natural fibers. It’s hard to get the adhesive to stick to polyester. Sometimes I add an extra layer of just the fusing (I.e. wonder under, heat n’ bond, stitch witchery, etc) to get it to stick.
When applying fusible interfacing, the instructions say to set your iron’s heat to the highest that the fabric can handle. Say, if your using it on linen, turn the heat all the way up. If you’re using it on wool, keep it a little cooler. If your fabric is a blend, go with the weaker fabric. Like for a cotton-poly blend, set the iron to polyester heat.
Also set your iron to steam, if the fabric can handle it. (Always pre-wash your fabrics anyway!) My crappy little iron doesn’t have a steam option, so I keep a spray bottle of water close by. The extra amount of water helps to super-reinforce areas that don’t fuse as readily as I’d like them too. And it keeps the cat away.
When it comes to the weight, you generally want the interfacing to behave the same way as the fabric. (There are a few exceptions to that rule.) If your fabric is light, like charmeuse or peachskin, use a lightweight interfacing. If your fabric is heavy, like a denim or canvas, use a heavyweight interfacing. Most of the time you can use the standard non-woven stuff, but if you want the end result to have more flexibility, maybe try a woven or a knit interfacing. Because of the increased flexibility though, the fusing may come off over time.
Exceptions to the rule are based on common sense. Say you find a cute cotton fabric you want to make into a tote-bag. Of course you would want to use a heavy-weight interfacing to make it stand up. One of my friends says she uses décor-bond for her bags, but when I tried it I thought it felt like it had posterboard inside it. My personal favorite to use is Pellon’s shirt tailor, but sometimes that’s hard to find.
Or if you’re making a t-shirt quilt, you would probably want to back the t-shirt pieces with some lightweight fusible interfacing, instead of the knit interfacing. The t-shirt fabrics are all different, and some will stretch more than others. using the lightweight fusible interfacing keeps them from stretching, so the quilt wont get all wonky.
Even with all these generalizations, trial and error is still necessary. Don’t be afraid to try out a variety of interfacings in your projects, or maybe get a sample of each and try them all out on a scrap. Or maybe, if you feel so bold, ASK the salesperson about interfacing! *GASP!*
So my little chicklets, don’t be afraid to mess up something. You will not die, the fabric will not explode, and the bully from fourth grade will not suddenly enter your house to point and laugh at you. He’s already in jail for doing that to someone else. Seriously, what was his problem? That kid needed more hugs...
The worst that will happen from failing is that you might need to buy more fabric (but who doesn’t like doing that?) and that you might learn something. Remember, even Ralph Lauren didn’t know how to sew on a button at some point.
So, Sew a zipper in the bottom of your skirt? Old news. Drop your iron on your mother’s brand-new rug and burn a hole in it? Nothing new. Sew through your finger? Done it (It makes a great battle scar!)
And just to make things more interesting, maybe post in the comments or email me a story of your favorite fail moment. Sewing has been around since about 30,000 B.C. So don’t worry, whatever you did has probably been done before. By a caveman nonetheless.
See? Even he has a cape!
Saturday, January 2, 2010
The wait is over. The headache is now.
IT'S
FINALLY
FINISHED.
I appreciate your patience, my little ducklings. Please forgive the excessive wait and my hyperactive facial expressions. The filming part is easy. The hard part is the editing. I was up until six this morning trying to tweak the audio so that you could actually hear it over my normally quiet sewing machine. But I have two more videos filmed, I just cant promise when I will get them up.
I'm gonna take a hard nap. As always, feel free to comment or ask questions!
FINALLY
FINISHED.
I appreciate your patience, my little ducklings. Please forgive the excessive wait and my hyperactive facial expressions. The filming part is easy. The hard part is the editing. I was up until six this morning trying to tweak the audio so that you could actually hear it over my normally quiet sewing machine. But I have two more videos filmed, I just cant promise when I will get them up.
I'm gonna take a hard nap. As always, feel free to comment or ask questions!
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