The 1st Change of Heart Workshop in the World!

I like firsts.

Not the winning type of firsts but the ones where nothing else is the same 

and these are the girls that get the - oh, I don't know...sticker (gold sticker!) - for being the first to attend the first ever (in the world), Change of Heart Skirt Workshop!

Save your applause 

until you see what they created...

 

Bronwyn created her own unique look by combining printed cottons with fine pinwale corduroy

  and added a splash of vintage lace & a little bit of applique to tie it all in.

 

 SuAann opted for all printed cottons

  

 

 and highlighted each change with a strategically placed floral applique.

In the end Nadene chose to keep her skirt simple by combining a textured cotton/linen blend fabric with a stylised floral cotton.

 Merediths challenge was to get it perfect (believe me you want her performing your heart surgery) - which she achieved the last night and in time to wear the next day for her birthday.

Here's a hint of what to expect when I get the opportunity to take a full length shot.

 Japanese cotton and vintage lace embellished with free machine embroidered highlights.

Now you can clap!

There's 2 spots left in the next one.

Flowers

1. Bib Necklace, 2. Free Motion Embroidery , 3. CoH - Jody, 4. handmade fabric flowers, 5. textile bracelet cuff, 6. ruffled wrist cuff from salvaged textiles, 7. RyW - Antoinette , 8. Lake Orta Romance Rings, 9. Dirty English (skirt), 10. Fiber Jewelry 2010 Winter Collection Sneak Peek, 11. autumnLOVE apples..., 12. Dress detail close-up, 13. Men's shirt refashion- flower close up, 14. Freeform amoeba, 15. Untitled, 16. RyW - Aurelie, 17. Fibre Art Bib Necklace, 18. RyW - Jody, 19. orange and aqua, 20. Sold@Sadiesez.etsy.com, 21. Bib Necklace by Sadiesez, 22. applique4, 23. yoyodetail, 24. Gothic Rose fabric necklace, 25. RyW - Knit Rose, 26. Untitled, 27. rose2, 28. Spring Coat...available in my shop, www.aforgottenart.etsy.com, 29. Barkcloth Wrap top, 30. Jody - Flowers, 31. S'allonger dans l'herbe ..., 32. Fabric flower brooch, 33. A floral waterfall, 34. McCalls 5799, 35. Vintage inspired, hand sculpted, blue silk floral brooch, 36. Jody

Inspiring floral creations gathered from the Sewn Details Group.

but wait...there's more!

   Not only have Change of Heart Skirts changed my life, by combining my old love of REinventing with mens ties I'm now making accessories to go with them!

 

I conducted a Tie & Zip workshop during the week and wanted to wear stuff that reflected the topic I was going to spruke about for 3hours.

Also with my new look short 'Do' which I'm allowing to show it's true colours (grey), chunky neck adornments seem to be my new fascination.

I don't wear jewellery often (I bought a watch last week - first one since I was 12) and as much as I admire frill & froth on others I'm not a frilly frothy sort of girl, so I was nervous walking out in this however the response was positive and the more I look at this photo the more I like it.

The top is REinvented from pants using mens ties for the straps - the back is folded and shaped lower than the front forming a sweet little bustle effect.

 My interpretation of a Rose on the front of the Skirt is made from a tie - unpicked and stitched to shape.

I haven't a full shot of the reverse side of the skirt however this detail shows how I potato printed a doily to give it interest.

Back to the Bib Necklace (correct terminology is always important), this too was made using a mens tie - unpicked and rolled to shape with scraps of fabric machine embroidered to shape before being stitched, along with buttons, onto a doily back.

Now all I have to do is find it so I can wear it again!

Update: Found it and wore it the next day.

More images of the REinvention I wore it with over here.

Change of Heart Skirt - an Obsession!

This is my third Change of Heart Skirt and with a number of others in the 'good-to-go' stage, I'd call it an obsession.

I used Echino fabric for one side of the wrap and vintage floral dress fabric for the other, the A-line skirt is suiting fabric.
The suiting and floral fabrics were both Op shop finds which when I thought about it helped to balance out the cost of the Echino. Not that I gave the cost that much thought however I wanted to mention this so I could lead onto skiting about the vintage fabric.

Back when you still found decent treasure in the oppies I found this 20m length of brand new

1950's floral cotton fabric. Like a lot of my vintage fabrics I rarely use them, they sit filed, waiting for their moment in the sun, don't get me wrong they're not ignored, I pull them out occasionally - admire them, stroke them, turn them around - before deciding they're not quite right for whatever I'm working on and REfile them.

I was thrilled to have finally found a use for this one - only 19m to go!

The next Change of Heart Skirt workshop

The Studio

30th April & 1st May

2-6pm

$135

Ruffles & Frills

1. SunDrop_Feliz_Back, 2. Cranbaby reconstructed nightgown, 3. skirt1, 4. SDC11318, 5. RyW - Jody, 6. vespa bloomers, 7. tattered secret garden skirt, 8. Romannude detail 6, 9. Peachy fae wear top , 10. innocence - victorian bolero , 11. Untitled, 12. Skirts!, 13. ruffled wrist cuff from salvaged textiles, 14. Handmade camo party skirt, 15. Circus Doll, 16. Untitled, 17. Dirty English (dress), 18. Layered Ruffles Lace Mini Skirt, 19. How to dress a living doll 2, 20. painted skirt by recycling, 21. Tattered Lace Ruffles Purse Upcycled Vintage Textiles Boho Grunge , 22. Mom's latest fashion details, 23. Untitled, 24. Ruffled Lace Shrug, 25. refashioned T-shirt, 26. Jody, 27. detail, 28. DSC09030, 29. Untitled, 30. IMG_3577, 31. Untitled, 32. RyW - Rebecca, 33. Distressed Dress back view 2, 34. RyW - AiLin, 35. la vie en rose, 36. Framed Upcycled Fashion - Romannude Skirt

Some of the Ruffles & Frills taken from the Sewn Details Group.

A severe talking to.

Twice this week I've had severe talks to myself about showing restraint by not buying something straight away and twice I've failed!

Thursday on the way home from a REinventing class I stopped into Calico & Ivy to pick up my magazine. 

I'm familiar with the shop, I know it's fabric wonderland.

All I had to do was stop at the counter, say my name, then pay & leave but no-one was behind the counter...so.... I thought I'd have a little look at the Echino fabric. 

They've new stock and everytime I turned a corner there was another 3 bolts leaning against each other...so...I bought 1m of 4 of them along with some bias binding and nearly left without my mag.

My rationale is I need them for marketing as they're going to look gorgeous in

Change of Heart Skirts.

I'm half way through making one for tomorrow so will be able to show you on Monday.

The other chat happened just this morning, on the way home from dropping Stella at a St Johns excursion, when I stopped into a furniture store to test-drive their couches to see whether or not my ideas were valid. 

Having always relied on Ebay & Gumtree to service my furniture requirements I was having a whole lot of trouble finding a couch that wasn't blue micro suede in the wrong configuration.

It took me all of 5mins to find one and it arrives in 4wks.
The justification for this purchase is Dans eminent and very significant birthday.

I'm now not leaving the house until tomorrow when I'll be way too busy with a whole day of workshops to spend any money - as long as I stay out of the gift shop and the cafe!

I would point out that his has happened before and seems a severe talking to doesn't work when you've got cloth ears!

Happy St Pat's Day

Heard these guys performing this for the first time on the radio while driving Stella home from school today and couldn't hardly see for the tears - I was nearly home so no-one was in any real danger.
I dedicate this to everyone because there's a little bit of Irish in us all and to see the lighter side of a misfortune is a good thing and Green should have it's own day.

Corners

1. Georgina - PwP, 2. tunic back, 3. simplicity 2854 front, 4. Maureen, 5. Re-invented Denim Jacket, 6. www.flickr.com/photos/43646943@N07/4132115606/in/pool-970..., 7. Untitled, 8. RyW - Jenny, 9. Skirt for Samy, 10. Eos - Peter Pan reversible collar, 11. spider mum - detail, 12. RyW - Carol , 13. Recycled Handkerchief banner, 14. Veronica, 15. Xl Godet T-Shirt - Black-White 001, 16. RyW - Neroli, 17. Jody, 18. Prototype for a new top..., 19. aqua wrap vest, 20. My Mourning Jacket, 21. a woman´s shirt evolution, 22. sold_pink_capelet_4, 23. Smiling orange clown, 24. Untitled, 25. White Handkerchief banner

These are some of the corners collected in my Sewn Details Group.

If I can work out a quicker way to do this Mosaic thing then I'd like to share more of the details from this collection in the future.

Creative Pod - 'Change of Heart' Skirt & latest REinvention

My latest offering at the Studio by way of workshop is the 

Change of Heart Skirt

It's a funky little number, in that it's 2 skirts in one.

When you get sick of one look you simply turn it round to

reveal a completely new look!

I've been wanting to offer my Learn to Sewers another interesting project that would stretch them and this is ideal because it introduces zips in garments, darts, buttonholes & a little hand sewing.

You don't have to be a novice to want to create this skirt all you require is a desire to wear it.

                              26th & 27th March - Fully Booked

30th April & 1st May

2-6pm

$135

I'm wearing it here with my latest REinvention - two t-shirts that were too tight are now one that's not quite as tight!

Live each day as if it's your last.

Mother Nature has changed the colour of my world as she makes it abundantly clear how small & insignificant we as humans are in the scheme of things.

There's that old saying, 'live each day as if it's your last', never has that made more sense to me than right now.

As a child I thought 30 was really really old and fully expected not to live that long,  when I got to 30 I remember being amazed & a little relieved to have made it & with an 8 yr old and a new baby wondered what was next. These last 20yrs have whizzed past in a blur of family & fabric and as I've gotten older and my journey has taken a certain path I can reflect on a life well lived so if I get swept away by a Tsunami tomorrow it wont be with regrets.

It's difficult to see how anything will be the same after this, I only hope that She lightens up a little so we can collectively catch our breathe.

Eco Quilt - 4th & 5th Themes

'Odd'

'Balance'

My Wasamba Baby

 I waved goodbye to my baby this morning as she headed off to experience a whole lot of firsts - without me!

I know she wont notice I'm not there as she camps out at her first Music Festival and participates in her first Wasamba gig wearing her new costume for the first time.

  

Wasamba was her idea.

When I questioned this choice of activity, as it seemed so far removed from anything she'd ever tried before or from anything that happens in our family, her reply was she felt it would help her with her confidence - I'm not arguing with that reasoning!

Her Dad has stepped into the breach and saved the day (again) because my workshops got in the way (again). As my priorities shift & grow, some RE-evaluating of workshops outside the Studio is going to have to happen.

I know she'll be safe and will have a fantastic time, I also know she is a little nervous because Mr Sleepy only ever gets a Guernsey when she's anxious about something - she's obviously not too worried though as he's not riding up front.

It's only one night but there's going to be milestones reached in my absence and I know the girl I waved goodbye to this morning is not going to be the same one I hug tomorrow.

Never say Never!

It was 11yrs ago that I decided to never say "Never" -

when we told Eliza she was getting a sister.

With an 8yr gap another child was soooo not on the radar!

(Eliza had always wanted a kitten or a little sister - so glad we opted for the latter!)

 The same goes for REinventing - not in my wildest dreams did I think I would ever create & wear a
Bubble Dress and actually like it!

 

Both were lovely surprises however I know how to do both now and I'll stick to REinventing!