Color and prints are amazing things. Usually, they work together, even when you least expect it to. But it does take a bit of work to get there.

Some people have been asking about how I get to the finished product for my 'mosaics.' It's really a game of trial and error, and kind of like one of those sliding mazes. Eventually, the pieces fit. :)

Here's a pile of fabric for example. This one happens to be a mix of prints and colors. I typically tend to create stacks of pre-cut fabrics that are organized by color scheme, as well as other piles that regardless of color, have amazing prints. Then whenever I go to create a dress I pull out the colors that I am wanting, as well as some incredible prints. But lets say all you have is a bunch of miscellaneous fabric like I do below.



I go through it and pick out the squares (I know they are rectangles, but it just seems so much easier to call them squares!! ;) that 'speak' to me. Sounds hokey, I know, but that's how it is! ;) In this case I am making a size 5/6 skirt and I need 12 squares. So I pick a bunch out:



My next step is to start with the main squares. The ones that will be on the most visible spot of the skirt:



And start building from there:







So the above image, something was bothering me. I didn't like how the black and white print, and the floral print right below it with interacting. The reason is because the two prints are approximately the same size and intensity. The key when mixing prints is to mix small with large, or soft with bold when they lay side by side. This way they are not competing. If they compete, all you want to do is look away. Not a good thing. ;) So I switched it up a little:





Now I really wanted to use this Buddha print in this skirt, and so I altered my original main two pieces (the argyle/diamond print and the polka dots) to include it:



But gosh, now the polka dots didn't work! So I switched it up again....



The toile and the polka dots above were too soft together making that side of the composition a bit bland, so I switched it up again:



But I was determined to get that toile in there (even though only a sliver of it will show in the final skirt) so then I reached the final layout:



Well, I thought it was final. I usually step away from it for a few minutes and then revisit again. It needed a small tweak. I switched the bottom right two squares so that I didn't have two solids above one another.



Ta-da! :)

In art school they often teach you to turn your painting upside down and either work on it like that or just evaluate it like that. It's amazing how much that can help you see things differently! Though I don't turn these upside down, I do try to look at it with a fresh eye before sewing together...it's amazing how a few minutes can make you see things differently!

Some people have been asking how I got into sewing. The answer is two part, and right now I'll just write about Part one (I'm quite long winded).

When I was in my second year of art school I enrolled in 'Fiber Art 101' and didn't really know what to expect. I was a painter but was looking to expand my horizons. :) Lots of students in the class were these amazingly creative sewers and fabric artists and I stared at their work in awe. We did a lot of silk screen printing and traditional dyeing techniques, but somehow I always reverted back to canvas and paint. It was my comfort zone I guess.

One day my mum and I were out shopping and I saw a sewing machine. I just had to have it. It happened to be just around my birthday, so I told her it would be a perfect gift! I guess it was. :) It was a Janome 1804. It's practically that old ;) And it is still the sewing machine I use today.

So I went home armed with a new sewing machine and no clue what to do with it. So off I went to the studio to paint; left it in the box for weeks, to my mothers dismay. I finally took it out one day, cut up an old painting, and decided to try and make a 'quilt painting.' It's very ugly. Like, really, what was I thinking? But it was an attempt to sew; my first attempt.

It's pretty big, like 7 feet by 6 feet. Here it is in its entirety (It's been folded in a trunk for a million years)

And here is a detail shot (or two or three):

I guess I didn't realize until looking at this piece again, after all these years, that it's kind of similar to the clothes I now create. Very eerie.

I was not a very good seamstress. Here is my first attempt at a zig zag stitch



and I think this was supposed to be a straight line (I still struggle with those ;)



This is the back. To be quite honest, I prefer it this way!

So there you have it. This is what started me sewing. Granted, I didn't sew much after this project (would you? It was not a pretty sight!) but nevertheless, it was a seed planted.

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Hitting Milestones

According to Dictionary.com (I love that site! Also Thesaurus.com) a milestone is: "a significant event or stage in the life, progress, development, or the like of a person, nation, etc."

So, I'm feeling kind of philosophical today... Been thinking a lot about our future and our present (my husband lost his job due to this economy last month), and we are contemplating our next step in his life and what our next plans are. All the while that's in limbo, I'm still working my tail off at my 'normal' job (because somehow making kids clothing doesn't seem like a 'normal' job ;) and sewing for SLD!

Left and right I feel as though we are hitting Milestones of some sort, and I wonder if I need to stop and take it all in?

Often there is something bittersweet about milestones. For example, a child's 1st birthday (yay, but at the same time "Holy cow they grow too fast!') or when they head off to school and so on. But do some milestones happen with glee and excitement and no looking back? Today was a biggie. See below?

One hundred sales kind of sneaked right up on me. :) Man I'm flabbergasted! I guess I am a bit scared about the next 100... questions float around in my head like "will people still want this?" and "can I stay current?" I guess what I'm saying is, there may be something just a tad bittersweet about this milestone too, and I wonder if they are all like that?

Anyhow, something you may not know about me...I'm honest. I tell it like it is and I rarely hold it back. Good, bad and ugly ;) So if you're still reading, you're going to get it all in this blog. Keepin' it real :)

So while this milestone is AMAZING (wow, doing the happy dance!) it's also a bit daunting. Just thought you should know ;