creative dabblings: my kasia skirt

burdastyle's kasia skirt


burdastyle's kasia skirt close up


inspired by my own recent post about the great patterns on offer over at burdastyle, i decided to sew up my own version of their kasia skirt pattern.
i've been lusting over high-waisted skirts in general for a while now...really, since way, WAY before my daughter was born (and she's six months today!!). needless to say, i had to wait a while...whilst my waist expanded and then contracted to the point where i could finally wear such a thing. that time recently arrived (yay, post-partum weight loss!) and i'm eager to make the most of my newly recovered shape!
it was worth the wait to wear this style...i love this skirt pattern, and the results! i worked on it over several evenings, after the baby girl was put to bed, and for a couple hours over a recent weekend.
i'm happy to say my version fits me like a glove, without any alterations to the pattern or the garment (except length, because i'm a shorty). yay for that! *phew*
the deets: it's made from some medium weight black cotton canvas-like fabric i thrifted so long ago...that i cannot even remember when or where i got it. i'm guessing i thrifted it somewhere in florida, before i moved to new york city (in 2004). i made this skirt with it, and that shot is from 2005. oh well, who knows. similarly, the buttons are so old, i have had them for ages, don't even know where i got them from or when. i didn't have 6 of one kind of button so i mixed and matched the buttons on the front of the skirt to make it look interesting/intentional.
the pattern was free, the fabric and buttons were recycled/dirt cheap...i feel like this skirt is a prime example of "making something out of nothing"...my favorite kind of something to make.
sewing it was pretty darn easy, the pattern is probably intermediate level...has some tricky bits that might trip up newbie sewists, like the interior zipper, the gathered hip yokes, and so forth. those slightly challenging details are what makes this skirt particularly stylish, however, and worth the effort to sew. i totally want to make another (or maybe a FEW more!?), maybe one in denim with big wooden buttons? or another one with totally mismatched colorful buttons of different sizes on the front? this skirt pattern could be really fun to play around with, i'm thinking.
best of all, i can totally see myself wearing this cute number with all sorts of things, if not everything, it's so perfect and versatile: with a buttoned up blouse or tank tucked in to it, over leggings, with my equestrian boots, cowboy boots, with a little shrunken blazer or any one of my ubiquitous denim jackets over top (HA!)...or maybe all of those or combo of select members of that list at once?

julie floersch's quilted jewelry

j3.jpg


j2.jpg


j1.jpg


j4.jpg


some stunning quilted/patchwork jewelry made from recycled denim and other fabrics, by greenpoint, brooklyn-based fiber artist julie floersch. her line of quilted jewelry is called Kwilti. i love her necklaces/collars especially the innovative use of the seams of jeans, for added visual and textural interest in said neckpieces is genius.
she also makes other quilted work as well as some pieced accessories to decorate one's home. you can peruse said items on her website, and see/buy her work at brooklyn's Jan & Äya, located in greenpoint, brooklyn, through march 1, 2009. an interview with julie may be found on that shop's blog, here.
(via this is love forever)

the sewing workshop: a sewing and arts school in san francisco

this one is for the bay area folks!

sewingworkshop.jpg


***


the sewing workshop is a "sewing and arts school" in san francisco's richmond district that offers private sewing lessons, plus a TON of classes geared toward the fashion-minded do-it-yourself-er, focusing on sewing, embellishing, restyling, and the like. many of the classes seem to be broad in their subject matter (like beginning sewing: learning the basics), specially crafted to teach prospective students the basics of an area of interest, while others are project-based (such as the jean jacket workshop) and still others teach special interest skills (like japanese shibori for today).
a complete list of the sewing workshop's class offerings may be found here: http://thesewingworkshop.com/classes.php
some other classes they have on offer in the coming months which sound like a lot of fun (to me, anyway!) include:
-couture sewing school -vintage re-dux -springtime hatstravaganza! -hand sewing 1 -painting and embellishing shoes

***


(thanks to san francisco's discount fabrics (where i found a flyer advertising the sewing workshop...)! it's a great bay area chain of fabric stores that sell "wholesale" to the public...)