Sew L.A.'s 2nd Annual Holiday Bazaar!

Please join us on Friday, Dec. 5th from 3 - 9pm for our Second Annual Holiday Bazaar! It's an evening filled with crafty fun, fantastic local vendors and cookies & cider for all. I have also been testing German spiced wine recipes (tough job) to serve a little later in the evening - mighty tasty!

We'll have sewing stations set up for some free crafts: make a card with fabric scraps or learn to sew a mini flying geese garland like the ones in our window. There will also be make & take kits and demos for mini-loom coasters and embroidered leather bracelets! 

Here's a preview of some of the local vendors that will be participating - all items are handmade right here in Los Angeles by the people who are selling them to you!

Charlie from Minor Thread will have handmade sachets, teas and mulling spices!

Mary will be selling her hand sewn clothes for boys and girls!

Wendy from Green Girl Art will have a selection of plushies and wall art!

Iris will have some lovely handmade jewelry for sale!

Elinor from Krank Press will be selling her gorgeous notecards, journals and calendars!

Ms. Molly will have aprons for adults & kids and table linens made from beautiful batiks and mudcloth!

Rebecca will have luxurious silk rayon infinity scarves and small leather items!

Tonie will have a selection of bags and wallets along with this gorgeous child's coat!

Our make & takes are scheduled on the hour as follows:

3pm: Shaerie sets you up on a mini loom to weave coasters - $2 for the yarn kit

4pm: Robert Mahar will show you how to wrap candy cane ornaments - free!

5pm: Haley demos embroidering on leather bracelets - $10 for the kit

6pm: Mr. Mahar helps you create beautiful pom pom ornaments - free!

7pm: Shaerie is back with the mini looms - $2 for yarn

8pm: Mr. Mahar returns with the lovely pom poms! - free

All demos are on a first come, first served basis. We'll have extra kits & supplies too, if you want to keep practicing what you learn!

Christine Haynes' New Book Blog Tour!

I am so excited to be reviewing The Complete Photo Guide to Clothing Construction by the lovely Christine Haynes. If this book isn’t already on your radar, it is essentially a sewing encyclopedia with photographed step-by-step instructions of everything garment sewing related. Not only is Christine my co-worker here at Sew L.A., but a close friend of mine as well. That being said, I am one tough critic. I hold my friends to the highest of standards, and Christine did not disappoint. 

As a sewing instructor I am often asked to recommend a good reference book for beginner sewers, and The Complete Photo Guide to Clothing Construction fits the bill. Christine’s book is broken into five easy to follow sections, each detailing different elements of garment construction. “Tools of the Trade” walks you through the various tools needed for sewing from the machine itself, to pressing tools and notions. “Patterns, Fabric and Your Body” breaks down the process of choosing a pattern, your size, your fabric choice and the cutting and marking process. 

“Construction Basics” launches you into some simple sewing techniques such as seam finishing and garment closures. “Taking Shape” conquers all of those tricky techniques that give our garments shape like darts, gathers, pleats and more. 

If all of these assets aren’t enough, this book is genuinely adorable! Each page is full of some of my most favorite fabrics and patterns. All of us ladies at Sew L.A. are seriously excited to have this book in the shop. I would recommend it to either a sewer who is looking to expand their skill set, or a novice seamstress who is looking for a reference book to supplement their sewing classes. Often times in sewing patterns, all of these essential techniques are explained with inadequate detail, or not at all. This can be so frustrating for the novice sewer who is looking to challenge themselves with new patterns. With a good foundation of basic knowledge and this book by your side, you can confidently master new skills.

 I think the best part of this book is the fact that it doesn’t read as a bland instruction manual, but rather as a good girlfriend dishing all her sewing tips. She effortlessly explains challenging concepts comprehensively and concisely. Thanks Christine for writing one AMAZING reference guide for sewing!

- written by Haley Glenn, photos courtesy of Christine Haynes

(P.S. - Shaerie here! Just to let you all know that of course we are having a PARTY for Christine on Friday March 21st, from 6 - 8pm. Not many sewing shops out there can boast about having a manager as awesome as Christine, and we are super proud of all her hard work. We'll have giveaways (Christine's books, patterns and more) and treats and champagne cocktails - so mark your calendars and we'll see you there!)

Amy Butler in the HOUSE!

WE CAN'T WAIT!

Decades of Style Tea Party!

1940's Girl Friday Blouse

Sew L.A. is thrilled to announce a Decades of Style Trunk Show and Tea Party! 

Join us on Saturday, November 3rd from 6pm till 9pm for the opening of our week long display of vintage amazingness! The show will be hanging at Sew L.A. for a week (through November 11th) , but only at the party will we be offering a 20% discount on ALL DECADES PATTERNS and the chance to win one of the three newest designs: the 1930's Beach Romper, the 1930's Leading Lady Gown, or the 1950's Object d'Art Dress. If you have never seen these GORGEOUS patterns made up before, now is your chance - they are breathtaking.

Janet, the talented owner of Decades of Style, will be joining us for our tea party, and we are requesting appropriate attire for the event - your best vintage outfit (handmade or not), hats & gloves too! Of course, all are welcome regardless of attire - we just like to have an excuse to dress up!

We'll have many types of teas and beverages, along with sweet and savory snacks - scones, finger sandwiches, cakes, tarts - yum! And just to whet your appetite even more, here are some pictures from our first ever Decades trunk show, back in 2008...

1920's Tulip Kimono

1944 House Dress

1930's Butterfly Blouse

1916 Sanger Skirt

1931 Matinee Blouse

1927 Cloud Cape, front

1927 Cloud Cape, back

And here's a picture of my favorite hat (NOT a Decades of Style pattern). We all look forward to seeing you at the party!

How Summer Gets So Busy - Renegade, Kids Camp, Promballoona!

Phew! I'm exhausted. Isn't summer supposed to be when you get to put your feet up, read a book and drink lemonade? That is definitely not the case here at Sew L.A.! Here's some of the stuff we have been working on so far this summer...

We had a bunch of lovely ladies join us for Kids Camp, and a few returned for a second week! 

Learning how to gather:

photo by Hollye Chapman

 Cute Skirts!

photo by Hollye Chapman

 Dresses for all!

photo by Hollye Chapman

photo by Hollye Chapman

 Week two started out with bags and super-cute PJ pants:

photo by Hollye Chapman

Some lovely tops and a red sailboat Tess' Dress...

photo by Hollye Chapman

 Some quilts, just for fun!

photo by Hollye Chapman

Zippered wristlets! 

Design sheets for Kitty Zipper Pillows - everyone picked out eight different fabrics and planned where they would go.

A tunic top that's more of a dress, snazzy pj's and a puppy pillow, a red top and a patchwork pillow! The crazy person living in my head allowed the more advanced kids to work on individual projects. I'll repeat... phew!

Smack dab in between the camps, we attended the Renegade Craft Fair in downtown LA for two days of handmade goodness. I love going to Renegade because I get to see all the amazing & creative stuff people are making - sometimes I get tunnel vision when it comes to sewing and I forget how much I love other kinds of art and crafting. 

Here's the booth that we shared with the lovely Christine Haynes, who recently debuted her first two adorable sewing patterns. Sew L.A. represented by offering some awesome kits for our most popular projects in addition to patterns & books, but everyone loved the sample sale we had and the bin of one-pound-of-fabric scrap bags!

 

 

Both days were gorgeous and sunny, with just enough of a breeze...

I splurged and got a beautiful throw from Linea Carta , a SEW SAY WE ALL tee shirt from Robo Roku, and a dogs-in-space onesie from Orangeheat:

And lastly, but certainly not leastly - Sew L.A. welcomed the fantabulous Oonaballoona from Kalkatroona for her birthday Promballoona! Oona is a sewing blogger exraordinaire, and we were all thrilled when she asked us if she could have her party here. Thanks to everyone who came out for the dancing, drinking, chatting about sewing and general silliness!

The birthday gal!
photo by Christine Haynes

photo by Christine Haynes

If you missed this party, keep your calendar open for the last Friday in September - we'll be celebrating Colette Patterns Fall releases AND our five-year anniversary! Huzzah!