Work In Progress: Boro Skirt

Little steps - stitches here and there.

 I loooooove these buttons. One is a compass.

 I actually wore it Sunday and enjoyed it very much.

Work In Progress: Boro Skirt

A few more stitches here and there.




You can see all the posts about it here.
http://lyrickinard.blogspot.com/search?q=boro

from here - to there - so far....

Work In Progress: Rockstar Boro Skirt

More progress on the boro inspired skirt.

 

I've sewn down dyed vintage laces to cover the raw seams but haven't embroidered them yet.

At my current pace this project is going to be ongoing for years..... and years.

skirt front view - Lyric Kinard

 If you missed it - Melanie Testa inspired this project with a more true to form Boro project of her own.

If you haven't seen her new website yet - go check it out. It's GORGEOUS!

skirt back view - Lyric Kinard

 This will eventually be partially covered by more embroidery. I'm thinking this whole skirt will be a continual embroidered travel journal... which means the Disney Castle should show up next.

Here is a link to the previous progress posts for this project.

(I love alliteration - don't you?)

Work in Progress: Boro Skirt

Over the holidays we took all the kidlets down south for an absolutely fabulous week at Disneyworld.

That's a good 20 hours of total driving time and I consider it time will spent. I'm very fortunate that Mr. Almost Perfect likes to drive and I don't get carsick so there is a lot of nice open time for hand work.

boro in progress - Lyric Kinard

I've decided to cover all of the raw seam allowances on the outside of the skirt with hand stitching. There are still a number of seams left to go - and then I'll consider it wearable AND washable. I don't think it will ever be "done" because I can think of a million things to add to it. A canvas in progress. A stitched journal. Art in motion. A continual "to-go" project.

If you would like to listen in - Rice Freeman-Zachary and I talked and giggled about this project, among other things on her podcast: Notes from the Voodo Cafe.

http://ricefz.libsyn.com/webpage/lyric-kinard

Rice (rhymes with "Lisa") is talented, funny, and articulate. If you have a few minutes it's worth the time.


And.... day two of Artspark's

heARTfest

tutorial blog hop

1/26/2012 Traci Bunkers Printed Heart Ice Cube Trays

tomorrow look for

1/27/2012 Diana Trout Woven heart valentines card

Work in Progress: Rockstar Boro

Beautiful Boro and education at KimonoBoy.com

Japanese Boro is a form of patchwork repair, a method for using every scrap of precious cloth and keeping your clothing functional over many, many, years. It was a necessity - not an artistic choice.

I think my Boro project is much more in the spirit of Boro, rather than following the actual design esthetics. I think it's a beautiful idea. Even though I do my best not to subscribe to our culture's rampant consumerism, I find myself being wasteful more often than not. I'm seriously considering a clothing moratorium for an entire year. I certainly have more than enough clothes. I also have many, many projects I've wanted to make - and the fabric to make them.

So. I have quite a collection of old linens and lace scraps - other people's cast-offs. Some of them are exquisite hand made pieces that I can only imagine creating. 

Many of them are deteriorating, no longer useful in their original form. I've dyed them and now a few choice pieces will add color and shape to my wearable "canvas." 

It's no different than making a sketch or any other work of art. It's all about composition. I have to choose shapes and colors and think about placement.

If I use a contrasting color it might become a focal point. It's very important in wearable art to consider the placement of a focal point or any attention grabbing element. There are places you don't want people to stare when they are looking at your body right?

Boro beginnings by Lyric Kinard
And to reference Melanie Testa, the inspiration for this project, I've stitched a little bird inspired by some of her artwork. Literally - sketching with needle and thread.

Work in Progress: Rockstar Boro (how to sew a decorative hanging pocket)

Progress on the Boro

Inspired by Melanie Testa's Rockstar Boro project.

I got the zipper put in (the right way this time!), and the hem finished with a triple row of zig-zag to give it a little bit of a lettuce edge.

I put it on and decided the pocket that used to be a shirt pocket is too small to keep my phone from slipping out when I sit or walk. Time for a free hanging deep pocket. Decorative I think. Deep enough to hold my phone and keys. Free hanging so it won't make the rest of the skirt bulge or get in the way of the swing. I really love clothing to swing and move when I do.

I sewed a triangular patch where I want the opening to be - you'll see it in a minute. You can skip this step entirely if you want to make your own hanging pocket - or make a decorative patch in any shape your creative mind comes up with.

Next I placed the first pocket rectangle over it and sewed the opening shape. Again - this is a place to use your creativity. A rectangle is classic but how about a heart or an arrow? I made a smile.

Make sure to leave at least 1/2 inch of cloth (I didn't) on either side of the opening. Also make sure the opening is at least as wide as your hand.

Slit and cut the inside of your opening - carefully go all the way to the corners.

Clip the seam allowances.

Trim the seam allowances if the fabric is thick and then turn it inside out.

Iron it so that you see just a bit of the outside fabric when you are looking at it from the backside.

Top stitch the opening if you'd like. You could also do some fancy decorative stitching here.

Pin on your second pocket rectangle.

Carefully sew all the way around the edge of the pocket. I sew from the back side of the pocket, pulling the skirt out of the way to make sure I don't catch it. This is the tricky bit next to the opening that would have been easier if I had left more seam allowance.

(That's my edge stitching foot - I was too lazy to take it off for this step.)

I finished the pocket edges the lazy way, turned them over and zig-zagged them. 

There's the triangular patch on the front. I also sewed another line of stitching all the way across the top of that triangle, catching the top of the hanging pocket. That way and weight in the pocket will pull on the full skirt rather than just the pocket opening - which would make it sag out anyway.
More to come tomorrow.

Work in Progress: rockstar boro

Today was a hurried scurry from one errand to the next.

As per usual I had left several things to the very last minute.

Son's tunic for his school's ren-fest was one of them. He's one super excited little nobleman wearing his dad's size 13 pirate boots.

Then instead of getting started on dinner or sitting with kidlets to get homework done I decided that I really, really, really wanted to just get the last gore sewn and the zipper in on my boro project. (I'm following along with Melaine Testa's rockstar boro project this month.) 

So I did it. I haven't sewn in an invisible zipper in several years and I must say I was rather pleased with myself.  Nice tight insertion. The seam lays flat. I was a little lazy and just zig-zagged the seam allowances to the zipper tape rather than the fancy french seams or bindings I often do.

Then I trimmed up the waist and made a binding for the waistband. I've even topstiched all the seams in this skirt, whether they are raw side out or in. I've mixed it up a bit on the skirt.

Then I held it up and turned it around.

Pause.

Look again.

I sewed the zipper and the binding inside out. 

Granted, some of the seams are inside out and some outside in on this upcycled garment made from old linen shirts in my interpretation of the boro spirit. That confuses the issue a bit. But I purposefully held the skirt up, placed the zipper, looked at it carefully and distinctly told myself to make sure I do it on the correct side. And promptly proceeded to sew it inside out.

Time to go make dinner.

After dinner little miss ripper and I will get down to business while we sit next to kidlet who really does not want to do homework. Sigh.

The funny part is that skirts and I have a history. Back in high school I was sewing what was one of my very favorite skirts. Grey pinwhale corduroy, ruffle at the bottom with a raised portion so that a fake lace petticoat could show through. I was talking on the phone to a boy while I sewed in the pointed yoke and waistband and zipper. I sewed it in upside down. 

Twice. 

In a row.

Joy in Service: Day 6 Thank a Worker

The invisible ones.

The guys who pick up your garbage. The custodian who cleans up the school. The bus driver. The kid who gathers the grocery carts. Your mail carrier.

What ideas do you have for ways to thank them. I'm thinking of standing out when our garbage truck driver comes through and handing him a gift. They drive by in the big robot trucks so the driver doesn't usually get out of the truck... I'd have to get his attention some how. We love the robot truck. We run to the window to watch the arms reach out and grab the bin and lift it up so high to dump it into the truck! I think I might still run to the window to watch even without kids.

Boro Project by Lyric Kinard

I've been mentioning this to so people as I'm out in different places and it's so much fun to see them think of little ideas they can do to make someone feel better. I did stop and say thank you to the secretary at my kidlet's school, and told her how great she looked. I didn't leave myself enough time to give a gift. I did some quick shopping later and instead of just picking up teacher gifts, I picked up extras for the bus driver, the secretary, and the custodians. They need the lift as much as the teachers do.

But I feel bad for one thing. I was rotten grouchy after some worse than usual "homework fights" with the kids last night and after they went to bed I went to the grocery store. I smiled and asked one girl who was stocking shelves how she was and she said "tired." I smiled and said "tired too." I wish, wish, wish, I had a little gift... a flower, anything, to give her. Or maybe I should have just knelt down next to her and given her a very quick hug and told her thank you for what she does. Now I know what to do next time.



And here is the progress on my Boro project. One more gore in the skirt, a zipper and a hems and then some of the real fun begins. I think I might raid my stash of hand dyed lace. I like the idea of embroidering stories into the cloth as Melly does.

Upcycling!

Please tell me what you did to make the world a better place today!

It's not bragging - it's giving me ideas for what I can do.

It's inspiring others to look outward.

There is nothing that makes one feel better than helping someone else.

And I'm having so much fun sending little thank-you gifts from my studio. Mostly some lovely Quilting Arts magazines that I need to clear out, but a few other things here and there.

Joy in Service - Day 5 upcycle something

Yesterday you did so many lovely things. Knitted prayer shawls and caps for soldiers, gave compliments, coffee cozies and desert choices to both strangers and loved ones. I offered a ride to a friend and fed a couple of hungry young missionaries who were far from home. I sat next to someone looking alone. 

Gene Black is making and collecting lap quilts for a youth center. Do you have one you can ship off?

Today I'm officially joining Melanie Testa in her Rockstar Boro project.

Look here to learn more about this beautiful japanese upcycling art form.

I've had this stack of old linen shirts - cut up and laying over the back of my studio chair for months. I'll start there and work out a skirt. I know it's not exactly following the Boro esthetic of appliquéing onto existing garments.... but I'll get there.

First this had to come off Brunhilda, my duct-tpe-double. I've enjoyed remembering my fabulous sisters every time I glanced over to it's colorful corner. (really, you've got to go check us out...you'll smile!)

This is the progress so far in the first quick hour.

After I get back from lunch and center time at kidlet5's school I'll sew a few more bits together. I think I'll take something (who knows what) as a little surprise giftie for the front office secretary.

Tell me what you did today!