I was given this tablecloth many years ago at Christmas time. It was huge - complete with about ten napkins, beautifully machine woven, gloriously matched colours and a fringed edging. A real keepsake! Unfortunately as the years passed it remained unused. Too precious to use, stain and launder. Besides it deserves to be out there in the world so I cut it up and made many beach bags. Yesterday I saw one of the bags being used so there you are - functioning at last. I must say that the weight, the colour and size of the beach bags make them a very practical gift or saleable item. If I remember rightly I have even made a hat to match out of the same fabric.
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There are four types of natural silk which are commercially known and produced in the world. Mulberry silk is the most important and contributes as much as 90 per cent of world production, therefore, the term "silk" refers to the silk of the mulberry silkworm. This photo shows a very raw, rough silk from a rescued men's kimono and has a lustre of it's own. The pattern is raised and is slightly out of alignment creating a very unusual fabric. I think I'll used it to frame an ink painting. Watch this space. Hee, hee. Yes, I've been away from these web pages lately although I've been checking in to see how many hits I get per day. And do you know one day I reached 68! What's going on? I was so surprised but now the visits have hit rock bottom due to lack of updating. Anyway back in Japan I could not find second hand clothing shops. Why is this? So I've been to departmental shops, looking, looking and did find one with a fabric department. At first I was pleased to find Japanese designs on quality brand new cloth but it was too expensive. The rest of the fabric was just what we would find in Spotlight or Lincraft. I did come across some used Kimono shops and in the past I have enthusiastically purchased a few promising and unusual items. However, my recent visit to the same shops was disappointing as the bargain kimonos were sad, droopy and lifeless. The more expensive ones were modern and lacked depth and history. On a previous visit I did come across this grey silk kimono, all hand sewn of course with silk lining. Note the Japanese design........ A good way to get rid of those off cuts or scraps that have been hanging around for years is to composed a landscape of different textures on a decent size piece of curtain lining or other suitable neutral fabric. I try to group these in same, concrete blocks of colour and arrange in a contemporary design or in a haphazard way. Either way you'll create your own sense of balance in the composition or what is pleasing to your eye. The important thing is to create with a practical project in mind e.g. cushion cover, quilt, waistcoat etc. I think I will sew all mine together to form a quilt or individual cushion covers. To be honest I can't think of anything else that would be practical. I have sharpened the photo to illustrate the beautiful taffeta, lace, silk and lame. Believe it or not but the fabric is black but appears dark red and green here. Nevertheless it gives a good idea of rich texture don't you think?
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My name is Catherine Rowe. I live in Australia.I'm busy producing new creative items for my Etsy shop called Creatifbitsnpieces. Fashion is becoming more artistic don't you think? It's now a challenge to think of new things. Archives
August 2021
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