Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Stitch & Slash

I told you in a previous post that I signed up for a class on Craftsy called Stitch & Slash.  It definitely was money well spent (plus it was on sale). I'm having the best time!!
It's perfect for overcoming your inner perfectionist. In fact, it's like wonderful fabric therapy. :)
You basically layer four (or however many you want) fabrics one on top of the other, then sew them together in a pattern you make up. It doesn't have to be exact (oh, how freeing!).
When it's all sewn together (I just chose to use wavy lines), you start slashing away layer after layer to expose the very bottom layer while still showing some of the other fabrics.
Oh, the fun I had slashing away with my seam ripper.  You want the edges to be raw and frayed for wonderful texture and depth.
I felt like stopping with the third layer, which was so pretty, but I made myself slash down to the last one, just do do it!  No fear, right?!
Basically, you create you own artsy fabric - and there really is no limit to what you can do with it. The instructor, Carol Ann Waugh, adds couching with yarns and ribbons and fancy stitching, and some people add beads.  Your imagination is your limit! There are no rules and no mistakes - I love it!!
I didn't do any fancy stuff with this one as I liked the way it looked. I cut it up and am making more little clutches, combining it with yet more different fabrics.
 This one has a really fun lining.
You can see more photos in my Etsy store if you are interested.

In any case, if you love sewing and (like me) don't like following the rules, this will be perfect for you. It's like painting with fabric! 

On the weather front, the winds are starting to die down here (and luckily we only lost two trees in the storm) and it's sunny again and quite cold. We've gone from having the air conditioning running to turning the heater on within one week. That's how it can be here in the South. I'm not complaining though. Cold weather agrees with me!! 

Silke

14 comments:

  1. Liebe Silke,

    es ist wieder bezaubernd schön bei dir.

    In lieber Verbundenheit

    Elisabeth

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    1. Liebe Elisabeth,

      Vielen Dank fuer deinen Besuch!! Ich freue mich immer so darueber.

      Jetzt gehe ich wieder an die Naehmaschine!

      Alles Liebe, Silke

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  2. They're lovely, you've done a great job! The bright orange is really scrummy! Good to hear the storms are quietening down. :)
    Jess x

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    1. Thanks, Jess! I'm really having fun with this - a technique where I don't have to follow the rules exactly. That's perfect for me... :)

      xoxo Silke

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  3. Oooo! I like the fabric!...even though I'm not a fan of sewing. I haven't done it, except by hand all the time with my crochet pieces, since I was in high school!!...Nice look!...I love the clutch too!

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    1. Thank you!! I don't do much sewing, particularly because it seems so complicated to me. But this isn't - and it's fun!! Hope you are doing well!! Hugs, Silke

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  4. Beautiful Silke, love the fabric so pretty!!

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  5. The clutch looks very cheerful!
    Glad you and your loved ones didn't suffer anything worse from Sandy.
    Similar quick weather change here, too; we went from sunny, mild days to snow and frost in less than a week, and now it is warming up again.

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    1. Thank you!! The weather is decidedly strange these days. We are now in our gorgeous winter time. Now that the winds have died down, the nights are nice and cool (cold) and the days are sunny and the temperature gets up to 22 Celsius. This is when I love it here.

      Stay warm!! xoxo Silke

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  6. Hi Silke, I hope your cold is getting better! The little bag looks great, and that technique looks like so much fun, sorry about the trees coming down, but like you say, it could have been worse. I've been listening to a few weather reports about the storm and it's awesome about how big the storm was, take care, michelle

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    1. Hi Michelle,

      I've been thinking of you with this class I am taking! I think the instructor was at your quilt show in Houston as well. She makes it so easy and fun - and not following any rules - I like that!!

      Yes, the storm didn't do much damage here at all and we were lucky. A few trees, but that's all. No rain at all!

      Safe travels back to Canada!! xoxo Silke

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  7. The fabric looks great, Silke! And, it sounds like you are having a fabulous time pushing yourself through your own 'safe zone'. Glad that the weather is now a bit calmer for you - stay warm xx

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    1. Thanks Deborah,

      It is fun sewing that way - especially for a non-sewer like myself! And, yes, we are happy about calm and sunny days again...

      xoxo Silke

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