a dress for Charlotte from scraps of Liberty

 

making costumes

a few snaps from-Infinite Variety:Three Centuries of Red and White Quilts-on display at the Park Avenue Armory.

detail from a flour sack quilt

Frances got the idea for this from a Christmas craft, but it took a slightly dark twist when she made me a metro card holder that looks like a subway rat.

little birds made from scraps of vintage and new fabrics. the pattern in from a site called Spool. the girls and i cut, stuffed, and sewed these together. we took the machine outside when the weather was nice and worked on the picnic table.

this is where it all started--my Barbie and all of her amazing homemade clothes.

my grandmother made all of them for my older sister, presumably from her stash of fabulous scraps. one day it was all passed down to me. my obsessive love of cotton prints stems from this particular yellow dress. i just couldn't get enough of it and of spreading out the wonderfully wide sweep of the skirt. i spent hours folding and refolding the little knitted and crocheted blankets and making beds with home made corduroy pillows , stuffed and held together by straight pins.

there were a few precious store bought things as well: a white fur stole, a flight bag, and the one outfit i ever bought-a pink and sliver full length dress that Barbie would perform her night club numbers in. pictured are a few attempts of things i made myself: a corduroy bathrobe and a felt sleeveless top with a hideous giant plastic button for decoration.

the ladies hiking in their new a-line skirts made from vegetable dyed cotton from Gujarat. Mary sewed her own.

my first big project sewn on my Genie. the embroidered flowers are inspired by the clematis in my front yard.

cushions made from fabrics bought in India.

my first sewing project in years- new curtains for the girls