inspiration

There was such a wealth of gorgeous garments in the Golden Age of Couture show at the Frist that I'm quite overwhelmed by the thought of writing a post on my impressions of the exhibit as a whole. Instead, I thought I would highlight my favorites in individual posts. And what better way to start than this gorgeous early 50s dress,...

September/October brings change of season, and fresh starts and frivolity and seriousness too. So for a break from whipup realtime I am introducing a few weeks of guest bloggers to liven up your crafty experience. To bring you something fresh, and hopefully invigorate you to make and do and be and think! Its going to [...]...

We're gearing up to the big Lady Grey Sew Along ! I have a special treat for you today: Sarai Mitnick of Colette Patterns, the very talented creator of this pattern, is here to answer a few questions in preparation. Gertie: Which era was the inspiration for this design? Sarai: I don't think there was one particular era I had in...

Looking to find some inspiration for your next sewing project? Take a peek into Sandra’s Closet! Click here to see Sandra’s personal garments and read her comments on each garment. More garments will be added in the next few weeks, so be sure to…...

So two thing. Well three things.... one Football season is here so I have been super busy with 4Quartersonline.com. I haven't been updating as much but mainly because of time and nothing is really going on to blog about in Janine World right now, but not things are changing so I will try to be consistent with the updates. Two... this...

Do you link your blog posts to link parties or memes? These are posts on different blogs where you can share your posts and see what others have shared. It's a great way to get inspiration, meet clever bloggers and have visitors to your blog. There are heaps of different parties out there, but I mostly participate in crafty ones. Often...

I gather inspiration wherever I go. Most often it's waiting for me right outside my back door. But as much as I love living surrounded by trees, sometimes I need a little urban shake-up. My family and I spent a jam packed weekend in NYC (yes, this road trip was on my mind when I created the felt board!). I've come...

Recently our lovely friend Pottymothmama wrote a post about copying. The reaction was quite strong. It got me thinking about this article I wrote a while ago and have been wondering where exactly to put it. On some handmade forums?? I couldn’t decide. After showing it to a couple of bloggy friends I decided to just put it here but want...

Tessuti's beautiful guipure, chantilly and corded laces (below) plus our stunning diamante motifs and trims, featured beautifully in the latest Spring issue of Cosmopolitan Bride ....

Now that Season 8 of Project Runway is underway, we get to see Nina Garcia on a weekly basis dolling out advice and critique to the challenged designers. As the fashion editor for Marie Claire (and formerly Elle magazine), Nina has the up-to-the-minute info on what’s hot and what’s not. And, she can disseminate a [...]...

The idea of "having a color" always makes me think fondly of Peg Boggs in Edward Scissorhands, who was quite committed to lavender as her color - so much so that she was hardly seen in any other hue. Likewise, "my" color seems to be red, which often elicits compliments and proclamations of "that's your color!" Accordingly, I've gotten rather possessive...

There's a great tutorial on Tallgrass Prairie Studio on how to achieve this line quilting. Its done on a home sewing machine and sounds super easy. Thanks, Jacquie!...

I tend to burn through obsessions pretty quickly: one day it's millinery, the next it's owl brooches. The day after? It's anyone's guess. I used to worry about this aspect of my personality, but I've decided to take a different stance on it lately: that all these little obsessions add up to one unique world view - that they all contribute...

I love this quilt over at Crafterhours blog ! I think its the "rainbow" factor......

Image via Etsy There's pretty much nothing I love more in a dress than a fancy, sculptural bust line. The shelf bust, written about briefly on the Vintage Fashion Guild, is a somewhat vague term that applies to a design that's built up in a way that makes the bust appear to be on a shelf. (And what a lovely way...

When I came across this Liliane Romi white evening gown in a magazine from 1987, my immediate thought was, "I've seen that dress before." And I knew exactly where. The image at the left, by George Hoyningen-Huene was featured on my blog back in February of 2009. He photographed the white gown for Bergdorf Goodman in 1940. My question is, where...

Lookie what came in the mail yesterday – a box full of happy Dolly Donation dolls .  Suzi from Heber Springs, Arkansas sent them in to our Craft Gossip Dolly Donation Challenge .  Aren’t they the sweetest?  Look…...

One of may favorite things to do is look through past fashions and see how they influence today's looks. Living in New York City you can see people wearing vintage pieces and styles from almost every decade from the past century. Living here also provides the opportunity to go visit the vast collections around the city. Many cities have these collections...

**I’m reposting this from yesterday, since yesterday’s post had a bad link.  My apologies for the confusion!!  This is what happens when your Craft Gossip Sewing editor gets too many windows open on her computer at the same time.  The …...

As someone born under the zodiac sign of Cancer, I am not a super adventurous person. I'm also finding that as I get older, I'm less willing to take risks and this is holding me back from a lot of things. There was a time back in the day when I thought nothing of packing all of my stuff and moving...

I discovered the idea of a "tasting plate" for kids from a friend. Its another way to tempt the fussy eaters! Since then my kids have decided tasting plates are great. Here's an afternoon tea plate: a chunk of cheddar cheese with a shape cut out a strip of ham rolled up tiny sandwiches with a mix of white & brown...

The kimono sleeve came into fashion for ‘Western’ women’s clothing towards the tail end of the 1940’s when the exaggerated shoulders which had previously been fashionable began to evolve into a more natural silhouette. As women’s fashion entered into the 1950’s, the fashionable silhouette for shoulders continued to move away from the large padded ‘Power’ [...]...

Lookie what Sachiko from Tea Rose Company and Tea Rose Home made!  She took scraps from her daughter’s outgrown baby clothes that she couldn’t bear to part with and made these heartbreakingly sweet clothes for her daughter’s dolly.  What a lucky little girl she…...

I rarely shop ready-to-wear anymore (too busy fabric shopping, I suppose), but yesterday at lunch I made a brief reconnaissance mission to Anthro. You see, I had spied this aqua version (below) of the " Tracing Twirls " dress online and fell madly, deeply, head over heels. Look at that 50s-inspired bustline! I knew I would have to attempt to drape...

Found these beauties at Kelani Fabrics...

This very cute dress up doll set is magnetic. All the little bits are stored in the tin. Perfect for taking to church or the waiting room to keep a girl busy. The tutorial is over at Recycled Toys ....

I was looking back through some pictures today and came across this little outfit for Elisabeth. I made this in early 2009. The pattern is Children's Corner Ainsley and I loved putting it together. The back is as cute as the front. And I remember agonizing over what to put on the front. I came up with the bullion daisy idea...and...

Aren't these a great idea? Name tags painted with blackboard paint so you just write the names on. I can imagine these at our church craft group where people sometimes forget their tags or are new... I found them at Cute as a Fox...

As much as I love to wear black, there are few things as exciting to a sewer as putting together colors and textures. Playing with color must be a fundamental reason that a lot of us get into sewing. We each have our personal preferences, the colors we think look best on us, and the [...]...

Here is my flowered dress. Not quite as "literal" as John Galliano's Fall Couture Collection for Christian Dior! Project Details: Pattern: Simplicity 2579 - View C/D (Modified) Description: Dress with fitted bodice and gathered skirt. Invisible back zipper, and options for either a halter top or gathered bust with or without sleeves. Pattern Sizing: 8 - 22. I cut the 14...