Chie

Design Your Own Fabric with Contrado

February 28, 2017 By Chie

Designing my own fabric was one of my goals as a sewer. One deterring factor of not accomplishing this goal is that I’m not good at drawing. I’ve attempted a few times to consistently drawing, but it never lasted long. I just could not get into it. But! I have a good friend who can draw amazing flowers that would be perfect for dress fabric. Natalie Bleakly is a illustrator with a fashion background now living in Tokyo. She is showing her illustrations at a cafe gallery named ginger.tokyo in Kiyosumi Shirakawa. She was gracious enough to help me with my fabric order. Here is Natalie:

“The Camellia flower (a.k.a Tsubaki 椿) is a common flower found in Japan. The white camellia is definitely more rarely seen than it’s red or pink counterpart. I wanted to paint something that most people living in Japan would recognise straight away but, also admire the beauty and rarity of the flower. Although, the Camellia is not a rare flower in Japan, seeing it in white is really something special as it can mean several things including desire, passion, longevity and faithfulness. In Japan, is symbolizes the divine. It is often used in religious and sacred ceremonies and also represents the coming of spring. They can also mean purity, the love between mother and child or mourning when used in funeral flowers. When presented to a man, a white camellia is thought to bring luck.”

I’ve used Spoonflower in the past, but this time I ordered from Contrado. It’s great that they offer their services in multiple languages including Japanese. I first ordered a fabric sample pack as I was unable to decide between different types of satins. Fabric swaps were very helpful! It came with bunch of different fabric samples, including organza, scuba, stretch knits, chiffon etc. it’s a maker’s dream! I ended up with Duchess Satin. It has a very elegant sheen and nice weight for a drape.Here is the fabric that’s arrived. It’s exactly what I wanted – thanks to Natalie who scaled the flower print in the size I needed! I’m going to be making a simple I line dress to show off the print.
このページを日本語で読む

MADE | Sheer Pullover Sweater

February 22, 2017 By Chie

After knitting my first sweater, I was hooked to knitting. I like having a portable project when I watch movies at home (right now watching Outlander). I found knitwear designer, michiyo’s book at a local library and immediately liked every piece in her book. From many patterns, I picked “see through pull over” in this book. As you can see, it is very straight forward. The first few rows of bodice and sleeves are rib, and the rest are all knitted in knit in round. It has a sheer effect as the pullover goes close to the shoulders since it is knitted in thicker needles. I think the sheer effect would show more if I wear a contrasting color underneath.
I started this project in mid November, so it took about three months to complete. I found the Japanese knitting patterns so much easier to follow as they have many graphics. I used 80 grams of Hamanaka Mohair. I bought them in this app called Mercari where you can buy and sell pretty much anything. Sometimes you can find fun stuff in craft supply section. The patterns for the white pants are Ginger jeans from Closet Case Files.
I knitted two sleeves at the same time, using the method I learned from this Japanese book(輪針でニット　びっくり！楽しい「輪針」の使い方). At first it was awkward to knit and I was afraid that it would leave big holes, but at the end it was not very noticeable. It was great to be able to finish two sleeve pieces at the same time. michiyoさんの「じっくり編んで永く愛せるニットのふだん着」から、シースループルオーバーを作りました。
michiyoさんのパターン、好きです。
他にも作りたいものがいっぱいの本でした。
「部活」として編み物のmeet upもやってるみたいなのでいつか参加したいと思っています。

糸はハマナカモヘアのサーモンピンク（色番４）。
1玉20ｇで、4玉で出来上がりました。
軽くて、柔らかくてふわふわの糸で、春の初めのまだ寒い時期にぴったり。

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MADE | High Waisted Tweed Pants

February 11, 2017 By Chie

Near my house, there is a craft shop called mano creare. It is owned by Okadaya, but tailored more for moms. They curate their stuff so as to attract moms who make kids’ bags and lunch box covers for preschool. Most of what they have is cotton with cars, buses or ballerina prints but, occasionally I can find more exciting treasures. I found this beige tweed on the end of the winter sale rack for just 900 yen for 1.5 meters. The fabric has a wide width, approximately about 145cm so I immediately thought of making a pair or wide legged trousers. The fabric has nice weight and have slight sheen to it. I have drafted a high waisted pants pattern and have been modifying over the past few months. It started when I made these shorts and I loved the fit. It sits on natural waist, covers the belly part with the front tucks and the back accentuate the waist and butt. So I used the variation of it to make these jumpsuit for a customer, wool top and pants set for myself(which are yet to be blogged), and these pants. I added back pockets which are never going to be used but it is a nice detail. The buttons are a gift from my friend, who found many vintage buttons at a flea market in England. I also made the front pockets, but it was not until I finished that I realized the design flaw. Since the pants are high waisted, they should have been placed on the side, from about five centimeters from the waistline so you can stick your hands in. Turned out I have four pockets that I won’t be really be using.
The hem is wrapped with beige silk satin bias strips (left over from this dress). These hidden details are nice! Nobody will look at it or notice it but it’s ok. It satisfied the maker’s ego.
Worn with crossover back chambray shirt (blogged here) and Superga sneakers. I’ve also worn them with stripe shirt. Wide leggs are nice so I can wear leggings and long socks inside to keep warm.I am satisfied with the end result and already started thinking of making another pair for warmer season. Maybe in bright red linen with cropped hem? These earrings are also my recent make. I took a jewelry making workshop. The group get together once a month to make different jewelry and the fee is usually 1,000 yen.