Taunton's Threads - For people who love to sew
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From the pages of Threads Magazine Sewing and Stitchery Expo 2003 Threads editors spill the beans about new patterns, notions, and trends in home sewing -- all seen at this year's expo in Puyallup
Now in its 19th year, the Expo has grown to well over 200 vendors, but the show's founder, Joanne Ross, notes that she considers the Expo a "juried" selection of exhibitors, and works hard to maintain an even balance among garment sewing, quilting, and other areas of interest. For this reason, there's very little repetition each year among the offerings -- meaning visitors need to look at every booth if they don't want to miss something really cool. In addition to the three buildings full of ultra-tempting shopping opportunities (we had trouble getting all our purchases into our suitcases, despite having packed lightly to begin with), this year's Expo offered 88 seminars a day, with a sensible schedule of repeats on alternate days, so a visitor with two consecutive days to spend on-site could attend at least one session of any seminar she liked. The seminars, which generally took the form of lectures by experts on all manner of sewing-related topics, were held in rooms with a capacity of 200, and most looked quite full. Eight style shows provided even more inspiration for attendees, and ranged from Puyallup's own 4-H club modeling outfits they'd created, to a portion of the Bernina "Masquerade" extravaganza that debuted in Houston last fall. (Next year, the entire Bernina show will be presented in conjunction with the Expo's 20th anniversary.)
Many attendees, us included, look forward to the Sewing and Stitchery Expo as an opportunity to see newly released patterns by independent designers, along with creatively sewn samples. In The Latest in Independent Patterns, we've put together a sampler of designs currently available or forthcoming, along with contact information. New entries into the pattern-drafting software arena include offerings from Wild Ginger (PatternMaster Curves, which includes lingerie, swimwear, and activewear; www.wildginger.com), and Living Soft (Dress Shop Essential Lingerie, Dress Shop Essential Activewear, Home Dec Sampler, and Hat Shop; www.livingsoft.com). Tools: new and noteworthy Threads' tools editor Judy Neukam, who knows a good gadget when she sees one, took the opportunity to scope out useful, clever, or hard-to-find notions, trims, and sewing aids. In the photos that accompany this story, she shares her discoveries so you can outfit your sewing room with the latest in handy accoutrements.
The Sewing and Stitchery Expo was founded and continues to be chaired, by Joanne Ross, a retired professor at Washington State University (which sponsors the show). It all started back in 1983, when Joanne founded the WSU Cooperative Extension's Clothing and Textile Advisors program. This program provided its participants with free training in all aspects of textile and apparel construction in exchange for 50 hours of volunteer community service, primarily in teaching sewing skills to youth, the disadvantaged, and through outreach to residents of local military bases. Within a year the program had strongly taken off, and Joanne's volunteers expressed an interest in having nationally recognized sewing experts visit and share their knowledge. Joanne took this request to heart and explored the options...and ended up deciding that the depth of local enthusiasm warranted a full-fledged expo. Just one year later, the first Sewing and Stitchery Expo was held at the Tacoma Dome and was attended by 3,000 avid enthusiasts. Within three years the Expo outgrew its venue, and was moved to the Fairgrounds where it's been held ever since. For more information on the Sewing and Stitchery Expo, visit www.sewexpo.com.
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