February Sewing Classes

Intro to Sewing starts on February 16th (6-9pm) and February 20th (1-4pm). Intro to Evening Wear starts March 24th (6-9pm).
Private sewing, illustration and pattern drafting classes are always available. If you have a group of 3 or more, you're welcome to book your own class to suit your schedule. Email themakeden@hotmail.com to register!

Valentines Inspiration: Flappers and Lingerie

There isn't a day that goes by that I'm not thinking about all of the awesome workshops that I'd like to teach. From stuffed animals to swimwear, we're adding new workshops all the time. But the class that I'm most excited to teach in 2011 is totally lingerie. (not until fall though - sorry dahhhlings) Dainty lace edges and pretty pin tucks, oh my! With some great new machines in the studio, sewing underwear and finishing jersey will be a piece of cake. I found some inspiration at the amazing, updated website for the Kyoto Costume Institute, here. They've set up a timeline so that you can view images from their collection according to the decade, like this pretty homemade flapper gem here...


Of course, it's also fun to see the flapper through the lens of a contemporary designer, like this dip-dyed madness from Giles Deacon - the British designer who's taken over Ungaro from none other than Lindsey Lohan. And, while I can't believe I'm giving the company a big up - I do believe in giving credit where it's due and this dress has got to be one of the best American Apparel has ever made. The low scoop back with a fringe trim is super flattering and can be dyed to suit your whims... They've even posted a 'How To' about it on there site, here.

Right now I'm feeling...

Ruffles. Clouds of ruffles. It started while I was watching a Nicki Minaj video with some of my students. I'm always interested in what my students are reading, watching and wearing - and I'm always amazed by how connected and informed they are by current culture and fashion. She had on a piece from Valentino's spring 2011 collection, a little lavender jacket with a single, very stiff ruffle for a collar. Surprisingly (for a music video) it was a totally wearable piece. Cute and simple, with just enough of a statement detail to be worth a second glance. Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli, the new creative directors at Valentino (now that the Big V himself has retired and is sipping mimosas somewhere on the mediterranean), have managed to remain faithful to the original spirit of the label - fresh, feminine and soft -without becoming imitators. The entire collection was a play on dreamy, hide-behind-my-collar ruffles and flounces used as shoulder accents and surface decoration.




There is also, of course, the prerequisite Valentino high/low diffusion line - this time vis a vie The Gap. Notice that they've used a utilitarian fabric in army green to give the 'unexpected' element of the Valentino/Gap marriage. I think it works - the stiffness of the fabric is perfect for keeping the shape of the strong ruffles at the collar and I think I'd really wear them in that colour. I can't wait to whip up a 'Make Den' version of one of these for classes - it's still hard to believe that people pay thousands (or camp out overnight) for this stuff when they could just make it themselves! Sewing rules. Beginner classes are starting on Feb 16th and Feb 20th. Email themakeden@hotmail.com to register.

Sew Fresh, Sew Real

Finally, the poetry of hip hop meets the delicate art of embroidery. Choose your sweetheart's favorite hip hop lyric and impress him or her with your new crewel-work embroidery skills! Learn the chain stitch, stem stitch, french knotting and button edging stitch while you craft a timeless, thoughtful gift.

VALENTINES DAY HIP HOP EMBROIDERY WORKSHOP
Friday Feb 11th
1207 Bloor St. W
3-6pm
$25~ ($20 for returning students, $40 for both workshops)
Price includes refreshments. 19+



It's a whirl of twirling girls, a burlesque/boylesque bevy of broads, a craft for laughs with a bias-trimmed finish! From February to Febru-arty, it's time to Craft-Paste your way to your own pair of hand-made Craft-PASTIES!

VALENTINES PASTY MAKING WORKSHOP
Friday Feb 11th
1207 Bloor St. W
6-9pm
$25~ ($20 for returning students, $40 for both workshops)
Price includes refreshments. 19+




Class sizes are limited and fill quickly. Act fast if you want a spot!
Please rsvp to themakeden@hotmail.com to reserve your space.

www.themakeden.blogspot.com

Ryerson Portfolio Prep: 2011

There's alot brewing at the Make Den this week: Ryerson portfolios are due on Monday and everyone is putting the finishing touches on their portfolios. Hair, make-up, lighting - everything counts when there are hundreds of other young designers putting their best foot forward too! Here, Chanel (fashion was always her destiny!) shows off her ruffled dress in a stiff magenta cotton. Love it!

There

Intro to Sewing - February 16th & 20th!

Intro to Sewing starts on February 16th (6-9pm) and February 20th (1-4pm). Intro to Evening Wear starts March 24th (6-9pm).
Private sewing, illustration and pattern drafting classes are always available. If you have a group of 3 or more, you're welcome to book your own class to suit your schedule. Email themakeden@hotmail.com to register!

Inspiration: Sequins!

One of the biggest on-going challenges at the studio is dealing with all of the scraps that get produced as we're cutting patterns and more patterns on a daily basis. I've finally discovered 2 environmentally friendly ways to use the scraps that invariably fill buckets and buckets with (potential) landfill. The first great thing I do with scraps is I give them to bike shops. They can use them as rags instead of buying new ones. But some of the fancier fabric is no good for cleaning bikes - plus, why would you want to throw away pieces of cool fabric when you could use them to make more projects??? That's why I'm always on the lookout for awesome projects that use tiny pieces of fabric. Moustaches, bowties, headbands and now tiny gloves are all excellent choices for using scraps of awesome fabric!

Awesome Beginner Sewing Project: The Bowtie

Make Den Recut - Available at Tomorrow Never Knows

Sometimes I'll be teaching a class, and someone says 'I'd like to make something that looks like this!'. That's when we whip out the pattern drafting tools, everyone gets to learn how to make a pattern, either from an existing garment, or from scratch. Eventually I realized I had enough patterns to dress a whole army, and Make Den Recut was born. The little vest that Amanda's wearing here was made from some beautiful camel-coloured wool that I found at the Salvation Army, and vintage leather. Everything is available for sale at Tomorrow Never Knows (right down the hallway from me at 69 Vintage Collective) or you can make it yourself at the studio!

Make it or take it. You choose!

Photo courtesy of Hollywood Snob Photography by Ally Cervantes

Official Janome Sewing Machine Dealer!!!

We finally got new machines in the studio!!! After a few months of research and testing pretty much every machine out there, Janome was the company that won my heart. Not only do they manufacture machines for pretty much all of the other companies out there, but they also give a 2 year warranty on all of their machines. Which you probably won't even need to use because the machines are sooooo nice. Meet my new best friend - the Janome 625E. It has a see through bobbin case and cover, so you know when your thread is low - no more running out of bobbin thread while you're sewing!



Also - it has a variable speed setting, so that you can tell it to go slow, no matter how hard you push on the pedal! So good for those of us with lead feet!



And another nice little touch:



Add to those awesome features the smoothest, quietest machine I've ever used, a tonne of cool presser feet, a free carrying case and a 'needle up/needle down' button and I'm pretty much in love....

FAT application time...

Here's some pics from the bike gear collection I worked on 2 years ago for Toronto Alternative Fashion Week. It was a collaborative collection with my design collective/bike crew The Deadly Nightshades. We used organic cotton and printed/dyed all of the clothing ourselves. It was alot of work stirring yards and yards of cotton with a broom handle over a hot bathtub but the process taught us alot about the ins and outs of a sustainable clothing line. This time, I'm entering solo with a focus on recut and reclaimed materials, but the idea is still to be as sustainable as possible without sacrificing style. The application deadline is Jan 9th, so I'm up early working on sketches which I'll post later this week. Fingers crossed!