Weaving and Sewing Go Hand in Hand
Recently I’ve gotten a bit back into sewing. It wasn’t intentional, but the fact was that I needed a new wallet and I am far too cheap/picky for anything I found for sale. (Also, since when did women’s wallets get so big? They’re almost like a second purse–I digress.) It had been a long time since I had sewn anything but a hem on my handwoven towels, so I meekly went to the fabric shop and purchased some lovely fabric covered in wee foxes, a good amount of interfacing, and plenty of muslin so I could make a mockup or two before I cut into the fancy foxy fabric. What I discovered was that in my absence I had forgotten how much I enjoy sewing. I was also amazed at how very simple fabric shapes combined with simple sewing techniques created such a useful item. In less than an hour after I had created a functional muslin, I had a perfect little wallet made entirely of rectangles of cloth.
Immediately after I finished my little wallet, I found myself thinking about sewing with handwoven cloth again. Nothing too complicated, and certainly nothing couture, but simple garments and accessories that can be made with minimal cutting (if any). Weavers are lucky because we can create complicated items with minimal sewing simply by weaving interesting cloth and using color, texture, and pattern to our advantage. Take the elegant classic capelet from the aptly titled Simple Woven Garments, by Sara Goldenberg and Jane Patrick. Lacy Brook’s bouquet woven in a soft fingering-weight alpaca/wool blend creates a fabric with just the right amount of drape. Simple shaping around the collar and the addition of a button at the front transforms a simple rectangle into a sophisticated capelet that would be perfect for a night out on the town. Happy Weaving! |