Taunton's Threads - For people who love to sew
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The 2002 American Sewing Expo A show filled with the excitement of "Inspired by Threads" challenge winners, cool embellishment ideas, terrific fabrics, and innovative pattern ideas
Get "Inspired" One of the highlights of the show for us was the "Inspired by Threads" fashion show, during which the 20 finalist garments were modeled and 5 winners announced. The audience was as impressed as we at Threads were by the level of technical skill and design savvy displayed in these garments. This year's winners are listed below. Next year's challenge will be announced in our April/May 2003 issue, so keep an eye out, and start thinking of ways to show us how you've been inspired by Threads. In that same issue, we'll publish photos and descriptions of the five winning entries, but just to whet your appetite, we're posting a photo of the "Most Successful Garment Overall,"by Donna M. Brown.
Awards for contributions to sewing
To keep us all up to date on what the incoming generation of sewers is doing, the American Sewing Expo sponsored a contest for sewers ages 8 to 18. This year's overall winner was 14-year-old Matthew De Koninck, of Fowlerville, Michigan, who modeled his own version of a Carhartt-style pair of lined overalls and a matching barn jacket. Matthew is one of seven children, and was joined by his sisters Sarah, 15 (who won first place in the 15-18 year-old category), and Anna, 11 (who placed second in the age 8-11 group), in the contest. Their older brother Timothy was last year's winner. All the De Koninck kids were taught to sew by their mom, Sue. Fabric in the foreground Across the country, sewers share the same complaint: they have few, if any, local sources for gorgeous, inspiring fabric. For three days in Novi, however, we had nothing to whine about.
I arrived in the Detroit area on Thursday afternoon, purposely giving myself a free afternoon before the Expo began to spend some time at Haberman Fabrics (905 S. Main St., Royal Oak, MI 48067; 248-541-0010; www.habermanfabrics.com). Haberman has just reopened at this location, and the new store is huge and stocked with a seemingly endless range of yardage, from bridal to home décor, with a breathtaking selection of special-occasion fabrics (including the sheer embroidered fabric that was used for the bodice of the dress worn by Halle Berry at this spring's Academy Awards). As an added bonus, the store's owner Toby Haberman treated Expo-goers on Saturday evening to a fashion show of garments created by her highly talented staff, and featured fabrics sold at the store. Several of the garments were almost direct copies from the Paris runways. On a tip from Linda, I sought out the booth run by Dagmar Plenk, an artist specializing in hand-dyed, painted and stamped fabrics. Dagmar showed me a luscious selection of silks, velvets, and even cotton corduroy, each one unique and all of them perfect for art-to-wear garments or home décor projects. She also offers a line of hand-dyed cottons intended for quilting. (Dagmar Plenk Fabric Arts, PO Box 170587, Glendale, WI 53217; 414-228-9282).
One booth I returned to several times during the weekend was the display by Cathayana, run by Min W. Chiu. Min Chiu sells incredible antique Asian embroideries, many with stitching so fine it's hard to believe they were created by the human hand. She uses these pieces, which range in size from 3-inch circles to squares of 12 inches or more, in pillows, vests, and purses, framed with delicate Asian silks. Her Web site is still under construction (www.cathayana.com), but keep checking for it. For now, you can find her sumptuous wares at 5061 Babbit Dr., Troy, MI 48098; 248-689-8208, or email her at cathayana@hotmail.com.
I like to knit as well as sew, so I'm always drawn to fine and novelty yarns. I loved the selection offered by Rebecca Konieczny, the owner of Busy Hands (306 South Main, Suite C-1, Ann Arbor, MI 48104; 734-996-8020). She brought a marvelous range of fluffy, quick-to-knit mohair blends in many variegated colors, eyelash yarns that knit up to look like fur, charm-type yarns (fine, smooth yarns with intermittent, confettilike woven squares), and others. Rebecca and her staff at the booth were happy to offer easy instructions (so simple I didn't have to write them down) for knitting projects that, when made with her yarns, are fun and luxurious. Great for handmade gifts that won't take till 2006 to finish. Next door to our booth Laura Murray was showing hand-dyed and painted kimono fabrics (perfect for soft furnishing projects and fashion sewing, as well as materials for fabric foiling. Laura uses foils to add striking, metallic details to fabrics, and sells the products in a variety of solid and variegated colors. Once ironed onto the fabric, the foils are machine washable -- but don't put them into a hot dryer. See her samples and instructions at www.lauramurraydesigns.com (Laura Murray Designs, 5021 15th Ave. S, Minneapolis, MN 55417; 612-825-1209).
New patterns to try The Sewing Workshop, which can always be relied upon to provide us with interesting and unusual designs, has recently issued the Veranda Dress. Linda Lee also had a new offering at this show this year: the Riviera shirt kit, which includes the shirt pattern and coordinating cotton fabrics from the Kaffe Fassett line, all ready for you to sew up a smart and funky shirt of your own. (Sewing Workshop, 406 S. 7th St., Topeka, KS 66603; 800-466-1599; www.sewingworkshop.com).
Shirley Adams, best known as the host of the television series "The Sewing Connection," has developed an innovative pattern line called Alternatives. The line comprises four separate Basic Patterns for vests, jackets, coats, and tops, with instructions for altering them to fit. Each pattern includes all the pieces needed to make many, varied versions of a garment; the instructions for the variations are sold separately, and provide information on construction as well as embellishment. Shirley had racks of terrific samples, all proving what experienced sewers have known all along -- you don't need a lot of patterns to make a whole wardrobe -- a few well-fitting basics and some imagination will enable you to fill your closet with everything you need.
Next year Janet Pray and her staff will be celebrating the 10th anniversary of the American Sewing Expo, September 19-21, 2003. Visit www.americansewingexpo.com for information. We all hope to see you there.
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