Author Archives: Jan

About Jan

Musician and geek and Juris Doctor; lover of fine art and fine craft; mother and grandmother and significant other and friend. Passionate about sewing.

Linen, You’re Cool!

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After so much travel, I’ve finally gotten my sewing mojo back. Before my travel to hot and steamy destinations, I picked up two pieces of linen at Jo-Ann. I normally do not utilize Jo-Ann’s convenient location for fabric, but I didn’t think I could go wrong with 100% linen. And, you know, coupons. I wanted a couple of pair of lightweight, cool pants for my summer travels. Digging through my pattern stash, I chose the StyleArc Peta Pants. (StyleArc is an Australian company that turns out some wonderful designs of simple, classic clothes.) I first made a Peta muslin in … Continue reading →

Bali Batik Going Back Home

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I’m leaving for Bali in eight days. Two years ago this week, I was scheduled to leave for Bali on Thursday. The Jazzman and I had just returned from Easter dinner in Columbus with his brothers and their families. I was carrying our bags out of the car when I caught my toe on the sidewalk. I realized I was going down and was determined not to break my wrist again, so consciously threw my body into a turn to protect my wrists. In doing so, I fell on my back on the lawn in such a way that the … Continue reading →

A Second Courtney for Bali

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On the heels of Friday’s seersucker StyleArc “Courtney” top, I made a second Courtney from a lightweight linen. And I love it! While constructing the seersucker top, I also had a dye job going. First I took a pair of Eileen Fisher stretch knit crops that I hated the pale gray color of, and dumped them into my wringer washer that came with the house (lucky old house purchaser!). I had prepared the dye bath with a bottle of Rit liquid dye in Taupe. The pants didn’t contain much fabric, and half the bottle would have been sufficient for those … Continue reading →

A Cool Top for a Hot Climate

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You know how I get when a trip is upcoming; I want to sew-sew-sew and wear all me-made garments on the trip. For my upcoming trip to Bali, the travelers on the tour have been warned to be prepared to be dinner for lots of mosquitos carrying lots of “bugs.” I’m taking a strong DEET mosquito repellent spray, plus mosquito repellent wipes, plus a repellent with eucalyptus oil, plus a product called Permetrhin that you spray on your clothes before traveling. Here’s the description of Sawyer Permethrin Insect Repellent Spray: “Permethrin, is a synthetic molecule similar to pyrethrum that is … Continue reading →

A Little Evening Bag

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I’m heading to Southern California next week for a special wedding on April 15. The bride is my great-niece, my half-sister’s granddaughter. The mother of the bride, the grandmother of the bride, and I will be traveling together on Wednesday, and the aunt of the bride will be following on Friday evening. My sister has been most gracious in including me in all the planning—including turning to me for wardrobe consults. You know I loved that!! Today I whipped up a little evening bag that might be used by either the MOB or the AOB. It’s based upon the Big … Continue reading →

Little Bags for Old Friends

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In mid-March, I attended the 50th reunion of the Class of 1968 of Forest Lake Academy, near Apopka, FL (Orlando outskirts). I grew up in Orlando and attended Orlando Church School (now Orlando Junior Academy) from 1st through 8th grades, and Forest Lake Academy from 9th through the first six weeks of 12th grade, when I dropped out of high school and started college a semester early. I was a rather lost soul. It was the 60s. I had no clue what I wanted to be when I grew up. For years I’ve attended the reunions of the Class of … Continue reading →

Honing my shibori knowledge

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Up-front warning: If you’re already a knowledgeable dyer, this post will be of minimal interest to you. I’ve written it with a lot of explanation for my friends who are not fiber-addicts or have never thought about dyeing fabrics beyond the occasional box of Rit from the grocery store. Are you saying to yourself, WTF is shibori? Glance at this blog post, discovered while writing this post. xo to Erica, executive editor of HonestlyWTF.com. Some of you know that I’m traveling in late June to the International Shibori Symposium in Japan. I’m mostly self-taught in fabric dyeing and shibori techniques. … Continue reading →

Hand[le] Me My Laundry

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Here’s a quick Sunday tutorial. You know the big plastic laundry baskets you can get in the hardware or home goods stores? Have you ever felt they were incredibly uncomfortable to carry when returning the clean laundry to its home? Or what if you have it overloaded with sheets and towels and you can’t carry it with one hand? Try walking up two-and-a-half flights of stairs, carrying the basket with two hands and risking falling head over heels down the stairs? Here’s your solution. Taking your quilting ruler or whatever straightedge you’ve got handy, measure and draw a horizontal line … Continue reading →