Sometimes You Have to go for Broke

And, go for broke, I did!

I'm back from my trip to Toronto and I come bearing fabric (and photos).

The very first store I stepped into was The Wool House (which has now moved five doors down from it's old location - sorry I can't remember the new address). Here are a few of my fabrics on the cutting table. Wait to the end of the post to see my entire haul, with descriptions.
I love this store. It is an anal retentive fabric lovers dream. The fabric is gorgeous and the organization and presentation is impeccable. Check this out:

This entire section consists of neatly shelved Zegna fabrics. Each fabric is more amazing than the last












This section holds all the high end wool/cashmere and pure cashmere. The prices in this area run from $100 to $1000 per yard. Yes, you read that right - there is a pure cashmere suiting that runs $1000 per yard. The salesman said that they have difficulty keeping it in stock because so many people are having suits made with it. Although I did get a piece of amazing cashmere from this section, I didn't shell out that much!










This section holds all the Italian cotton shirtings (although there is one amazing silk/cotton shirting in there that is exquisite). They sell for $16.50 per yard, which really is a steal for this quality. I got one piece for my inaugural voyage into dress shirt making for my husband. Wish me luck, Liana, oh goddess of the dress shirt!







This is a sampling of the Irish linens. They are the softest, most sumptuous linens on which I have ever laid my hands. And the colours, the glorious colours...just look at the colours - it makes me salivate.









This is a new fabric that they are carrying this year and they are having a hard time keeping it in stock. This fabric is a linen/cashmere blend (it may have some silk in the mix, too). Although, the stripes are not really my cup of tea, the hand of the fabric is TDF.








My next stop was L. A. Fabrics. This store carries both day and evening wear fabrics. There are silks, wools, wool/cashmere blends, linens, cottons and much more. Every time I go to Toronto, I succumb to a great fabric (or twelve), at a great price from this store. Once again, like at The Wool House, I love the neat organization in this store.













I wanted to show you one other store, which makes me giggle every time I set foot into it. This is World Sewing Centre. It is a a neat freak's nightmare (and I imagine the fire marshal has a special place in his heart for it too). It is floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall fabric. There are places where the fabric is stacked so deep, there is no hope of extracting the bolt on the bottom of the pile. In most sections, the aisle ways are so narrow that I have to turn sideways to get past the encroaching fabric. It is always an adventure. Every time we go in there, my husband says that we should keep an eye out for a single skeletal arm poking out from beneath the piles of fabric. He figures some poor soul was crushed by an avalanche of fabric in 1974 and has yet to be found amid the chaos!















Alright, I know what you're saying...show me the fabric. So, without further ado, here are my new babies,
From the top:

1. Coral orange cashmere from The Wool House. I spent more per yard on this fabric than I have ever spent in my entire sewing career. I have finally hit the big leagues with this one. I have a very special project in mind for this fabric, but I'm not giving any info just yet. A girl has to have her secrets!
2. Rust wool/cashmere from The Wool House.
   
3. Orange wool/cashmere from The Wool House.
   
4. Light green Italian cotton shirting from The Wool House.
   
5. Coral wool from L. A. Fabrics.
6. Hunter green wool from L. A. Fabrics.
7. Heathered brown wool from L. A. Fabrics.

Believe it or not, I actually have projects in mind for every single piece. I have been collecting a bunch of vintage Vogue Couturier and Vogue Americana designer patterns and I plan on putting them to good use.

So, there you have it - that's what I did on my summer vacation!

Fabric Mecca, Here I Come!

I won't be around for the next few days. My husband & I are going up to Toronto to visit his brother. My brother-in-law just bought a new house that I haven't seen yet, so up to TO we go. However, I cannot tell a lie - I have other more nefarious motives for agreeing to this journey:

Two words - FABRIC DISTRICT.

Here I come Queen Street. There a few stores that I never miss - LA Fabrics, The Wool House and Mokuba Trims. There are several other stores that I enjoy going into as well, but I can't remember the names - I'll have to pay better attention this time around.

I'll report back next weekend on my haul - see you then!

Happy Canada Day!

On July 1st, 1867 Canada officially became a country - so today my homeland is 140 years old. I have to say she looks pretty good for her age.















The photos above are pictures from the last time my husband & I vacationed up north (in the Muskoka region of Ontario). This is one of the many beautiful, natural, breathtaking regions that can be found in Canada.

I am proud to be a Canadian for so many reasons:

1. The bravery shown by hundreds of thousands of Canadian soldiers in WWI, WWII and in peacekeeping missions all over the globe today.
2. The tolerance for others, evidence by the Underground railroad (I live 15 minutes from this historic site), same sex marriage and multiculturalism (there are more than 200 ethnic origins represented in Canada).
3. The sheer number of funny Canadians - Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Jim Carrey, Michael J. Fox, Phil Hartman, Eric McCormack, Lorne Michaels, Rick Moranis, Mike Myers, Leslie Neilson, William Shatner and Martin Short, to name a few.
4. Canadian humanitarians, Terry Fox and Rick Hansen.
   
5. Canadian inventors - Alexander Graham Bell, Joseph-Armand Bombardier, George Klein, James Naismith, P. L. Robertson and Gideon Sundback, among others.
6. Canadian doctors and researchers - Frederick Banting, John Callaghan, Tommy Douglas and Jeanne Mance; if not for them, the world would be filled with more suffering.

So, Happy Canada Day to my fellow Canuks. To celebrate, why don't you head on down to Timmy's to pick up a double-double and a butter tart, eh?

No More Pencils, No More Books...

Woo Hoo!! Today is my last day of school for 9 1/2 weeks!! Oh yeah!

I have so many wonderful sewing plans. Unfortunately, I also have to paint the entire first floor of my house, clean and rearrange my garden and my Mom's garden and make curtains for 3 windows. Oh well, I guess it's penance for having so much glorious sewing time this summer.

I have been making progress on Vogue 8319 (one of my many sewing projects lined up for the summer). The dress and its lining only need to be hemmed. The jacket needs the lining inserted, hemming and the buttons. I hope to have photos soon.

Fabric Mart is my Kryptonite

I got an email from Fabric Mart. It said they were having a sale. I looked. I bought. 'Nuff said.

Dark coral stretch cotton twill











Lime rayon cotton stretch woven












Orange paisley rayon/spandex novelty knit











Dark chocolate silk charmeuse










Chocolate rayon/spandex novelty knit











Beige & cocoa brown silk herringbone suiting

I Can See the Finish Line

Not much to post about in terms of sewing this week. My classes have their final exams, so I am a marking fiend. Over the next few days, not only do I have 86 major final exams to mark, but I also have to calculate final grades, produce report cards and volunteer at graduation. This is always such a busy, hectic time. However, looking on the bright side, I am officially off on summer break June 29th until September 4th - 9 1/2 weeks of uninterupted, blissful sewing time!!! During the summer, I hope to have a ton of new projects to post about, so stay tuned.

P.S. I have started working on Vogue 8319, so I hope to post some progress in the near future.

Summertime Sewingtime

Carolyn noticed that I have less than 2 weeks left until my summer break. Oh yeah, baby!! She also inquired as to my summer sewing plans. Although I haven't fleshed them all out yet, here is a small preview of the projects calling my name the loudest:

Vogue 8178 - I have been wanting to make this dress for a very long time now - I will be using an olive brown linen for this one.




Vogue 8319 - As many of you know, I have a thing for 60s designs, so how can I not make this one? I have a gorgeous yellow/orange silk suiting for this one.




Vogue 2903 - I also have a passion for 50s designs. I have adored this dress since I first laid eyes on it. I have a beautiful chocolate/white floral cotton that is screaming to be made into this (unfortunately, the fabric is a tad heavy and since this dress calls for 5 m of fabric, I may have to reassess).



Simplicity 3874 - This will make a great outfit for work in the fall. I have a peach circle print silky for the dress and a coordinating peach linen for the jacket.

I have a bunch of original vintage patterns that are vying for my attention too. I am also desperate for some new shorts and capris for the summer. Oh, and I need a few, toss-em-on, look-cute, feel-comfortable, schlepping-to-the-grocery-store dresses. I guess I have my work cut out for me - actually, I wish my work was cut out for me, then I could just start sewing! :)

Flat Felled vs French Seams

Sheila asked an excellent question in the comments. She wanted to know the difference between a flat felled seam and a french seam.

The major difference in my opinion, is how the seam looks on the right side of the garment. A flat felled seam shows stitching on the right side (think of the seams on the side of a pair of jeans), while a french seam does not (it is found in many high end sheer garments). Thus, a flat felled seam tends to be found in sportier, more casual garments and a french seam is usually found in expensive evening clothes. Both types of seams are extremely sturdy and stand up to wear well. However, it can be difficult to get either seam to look great if the seam is highly curved - so I tend to use them for straight or slightly curved seams. I love both types of seams as I don't have a serger (yet) and it finishes off the inside of my clothing so that no raw fabric edges are visible.

Below, I have created a tutorial. I sure hope it makes sense - let me know if I have totally confounded y'all.

Flat Felled Seam

1. Sew the two pieces of fabric, right sides together, with a 5/8" seam.
2. Trim one side of the seam allowance down to 1/4".
3. Fold the 5/8" seam allowance over and around the 1/4" seam allowance, completely enclosing the 1/4" seam allowance with the 5/8" seam allowance.
4. Stitch down as close to edge as possible.
   
5. This encases all raw edges inside the seam.
   

French Seam

1. Sew the two pieces of fabric, wrong sides together, with a 5/8" seam.
2. Trim both sides of the seam allowance to 1/4".
3. Press open the seam.
4. Fold the fabric, right sides together, along the seam and press.
5. Stitch 3/8" from the fold.
   
6. This encases all the raw edges inside the seam.