design (and MAKE!) your own clothes this summer!

1. my first dress, 2. Blue skirt for length, 3. Basic shirt, 4. Florence (Flossie Teacakes) – Ruffle Top, 5. Basic Pant – Design it yourself clothes, 6. P1100121, 7. DIY Kathy dress 3, 8. Drafting a T-Shirt, Take 2, 9. Kathy Dress, 10. Untitled, 11. Peter Pan Collar and Pintucks blouse, 12. Polka dot blouse and high waisted skirt 2

wow, the make-your-own-clothes movement seems to be gaining momentum, have you noticed? the pics above are some of my faves from my Design-It-Yourself Clothes flickr group. so much inspiring stuff there! if you’ve made something from my book or one of my classes, i hope you’ll post it there for all the world to see. you should be proud!

also, my friend kristine and her crew over at A Verb for Keeping Warm have taken a pledge, to make 25% of their wardrobe themselves. i love this idea! i made a pledge to myself sometime back in 2005 or 2006 to (little-by-little) convert my entire wardrobe to handmade (mostly by me, but including some pieces by friends or other indie designers. gotta support!). this week i was also interviewed by a reporter from the Poughkeepsie Journal, who is writing an article about sewing your own clothes, and how it relates to the sustainability movement.

i’m guessing there are many of YOU out there who might be starting to get the itch yourselves. well, more good news! this summer, i am teaching a FIVE DAY intensive workshop called Design (and MAKE!) Your Own Clothes at the super awesome Womens’ Studio Workshop in Rosendale, NY, as part of their Summer Arts Institute program. with a whole week devoted to patternmaking and sewing, you’ll learn to draft patterns for a skirt, T-shirt and dress, and then make a muslin, fit the muslin, and sew a final garment for each.  you might think of it as a *boot camp* for learning to make clothes! i taught a version of this class last summer, and it was wildly successful (and not only in my opinion: see what julie and yahaira said about it too). WSW is a really cool place (you may remember i took an incredible shibori class there 2 years ago) dedicated to “encourag[ing] the voice and vision of individual women artists”. and whether you live in the Hudson Valley, or NYC, or even further away, Rosendale is an adorably hip country town to escape to for a summer week.

so, who wants to join me in making some new summer duds?

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