Sew Artsy Creations: Sew Artsy Re-Creations

"Dream Big, but furnish your castle in the sky Room by Room". Dream it, Believe it. Then work your patootie off every single day, and you might achieve it. Take one step at a time toward the goal..." from "Apronisms" EllynAnne Geisel.

Today, as another step toward achieving MY dream, I am adding to my ever growing collection of new products, this is not exactly a new idea, one I'm sure that has been done often by many seamstresses, and could even stretch the limits of sewing to be labeled a craft or an "art" -- that being said, I call them my Sew Artsy Re-creations because I am re-creating something old into something new and fun. These clothes are meant to be worn with joyfulness and a have fun with your wardrobe attitude. Casual elegance, you could pair a jacket or vest with a simple black tee with a silk scarf, a long skirt or jeans and you're ready to go out on the town!

This first fabric shown on a jacket is called "Frida's Garden" from the Alexander Henry designer line of fabrics. A very colorful dedication to the life of artist Frida Kahlo who was married to the famous artist Diego Rivera, and includes images depicting many important aspects of her life. The colors in this beautiful 100% cotton lend itself well to use with denim. One of my favorites.

(Click on images to see details)

Jacket Front (above); Jacket Back (Below)

Frieda's Garden fabric details of back with embellishments. Above, detail of shoulder and pocket.

Denim jackets and vests are timeless accessories for most women and are ageless. Women of any age can and do wear denim.

It is warm, comfortable and durable. The problem is that a lot of people tend to tire of them after a few years and end up shoving them to the back of their closet and forget about them. I say why not rev up the denim....make it look new and fresh by adding your favorite materials and what a fun way to re-purpose a favorite jacket, jeans or vest!

Next is a denim vest decorated with the "Los Novios" fabrics in bright summer colors.

These items are for women of all ages and range in size from small to large. Each piece is a one-of-a-kind re-creation in my own sewing studio.

Here I am using various combinations of folklorico fabrics so popular in my aprons.

(Detailed of Los Novios fabric)

The fabrics are inlaid and bonded to the jacket or vest. In addition I sew around each piece of inlaid fabric (as in applique), and later embellish the piece with a little "bling" to create a new look for a tired old jacket, and one that is an actual quilted work of art. Each piece of clothing takes between 6 to 8 hours to complete and a lot of patience. But the end result is fantastic!

This jacket shows the back side with all three panels inlaid with The Virgin of Guadalupe fabric icons.

(Click image to see close-up)