... filia dress preview - Flea-for-All, May 19

This Flea-for-All dress preview is a bit of a cop-out because, as you unusually astute readers will not doubt notice, there are no new dresses in the following post. But! This doesn't mean I don't have anything new for the Flea this week. I do, in fact, have some skirts in new colorful prints and also, something I don't usually do a whole lot of, new summer-weight tops!

These tops (blouses? tanks? I'm not entirely sure what the best descriptor is) are really lightweight, perfect for summer with shorts, jeans or skirts. They're a little bit shaped, but loose-fitting for a relaxed look. Pleats around the scoop neckline and button closure at the back of the neck. I've got one in the great brown-and-ivory print seen above and a few in a fantastic pink/teal/purple/navy print that I call "Yellow Submarine Print" in my head because I think it looks pretty psychedelic-fabulous.

(The shorts in these pictures look a little funny on Estelle because they're just pinned onto the front of her. I couldn't actually put them on her because Estelle, unlike most of us, has a metal rod sticking out the bottom of her torso which effectively prevents her from wearing pants. Don't feel too bad for her though - she can also lose like five inches off her hips with a couple clicks of a dial and about twenty seconds. That I wouldn't mind).

In addition to the new tops, I also have some of my classic elastic waist skirts in bright new prints, including a preppy kelly green geometric print and a fantastic print that's like a cross between fireworks and Spriograph drawings on a royal blue background. How perfect would that be for Memorial Day or the Fourth of July?? I'll have a few sizes with me this weekend, with enough fabric to make more if I don't have your size on Saturday.

So come visit me at the Flea, 125 Kennebec Street, Portland, Maine from 10AM-5PM this Saturday, May 19! (It's also my parents' 33rd anniversary - Happy Anniversary, Mum and Dad!!)

In non-filia news, god that chair that we've been working on forever - still not done! I am totally creating the hold-up because I just. can't. decide. on what fabric to use. I don't think I've ever been so indecisive about a fabric choice before. Our living room already has a lot of prints going on, so I think I'm leaning toward a solid (even though I'm always drawn to prints) just to even things out a bit. So maybe a grey or dark blue velveteen, something like that. Maybe. I just need to decide so we can finish it! Here it is looking all forlorn and halfway done:

Somebody decide for me!! Gah!

... filia dress preview - Flea-for-All, April 15

As previously promised, here is the first dress I'll be debuting at the Portland Flea-for-All this Sunday!

(Sorry for the lack of human modeling in these pics. I can't fit into anything for a while, and I couldn't recruit anyone on short notice. So you'll have to make do with my lovely dummy Estelle and just imagine how good these would look on an actual person. Like you!)

It's make of crisp cotton poplin in colorblocked red and navy (I also have a few in red and khaki). It has a comfy wide elastic waist, button closure at the back of the neck and pockets on the side seams (of couse). Available for the first time this Sunday, April 15 at the Portland Flea-for-All!

And because it's the big Flea Opening Weekend, here's one more sneak peak of a new item I'll have there:

This skirt is made of navy cotton eyelet (fully lined), has a really cute paper-bag style elastic waist and those trusty side-seam pockets. I came across the eyelet in one of my favorite fabric stores in Boston and snapped it up (I wasn't letting it pass me by, considering the epic quest I went on to find navy eyelet for a dress I made for a friend last year). I turned it into a limited number of skirts, so stop by Sunday to grab one for yourself http://portlandfleaforall.com/before they're gone!

So, one more time, the new Portland Flea-for-All opens this weekend on Saturday, April 14 and your truly will be there on Sunday, April 15th. It's at 125 Kennebec Street in Portland (in the Bayside neighborhood). Hope to see you there!!

... Spring show schedule

I'm taking a quick break from making things to bust out some info about some really fun and exciting retail events I'm going to be participating in as a vendor this Spring. I've got a lot in the works so I needed to take a time out to organize everything!

First off, I hope everyone's heard about the Flea-for-All, Portland's new indoor flea market located at 125 Kennebec Street. I'm so psyched about this, as a vendor and as a shopper! It opens this weekend, April 14 & 15 and will feature tons of amazing vendors selling vintage, antique and handcrafted items. Check out their adorable website here for more info. I'll be there with my filia wares for the Opening Weekend on Sunday, April 15 and also on the following dates:

Saturday, April 28
Saturday, May 19
Saturday, May 26
Saturday, June 10
Saturday, June 30

I have a ton of new styles in the works for the spring and summer, so at every appearance I make at the Flea-for-All, I'll be debuting a new design.  Stayed tuned this week for the first new dress!

On May 12, I'll also be at The Big Thaw, a very cool local arts, crafts and vintage fair held at the Mayo Street Arts Center in Portland, ME. It's the day before Mother's Day, so it's perfect for last minute shopping! I'll have some of my clothes there as well as lots of giftie items. filia was also recently spotlighted on the event website, which you can check out here and wherein I talk a lot about my mum.

So with all the filia stuff going on, I haven't been able to focus on making much else lately. I still have a deconstructed chair sitting in my dining room that needs to be reupholstered, but I just can't seem to pull the trigger on a fabric choice. But I'm hoping to squeeze that project in soon!

… retail location for Filia

I have really exciting news to share: my handmade clothes and accessories collection, Filia, is now available at The Merchant Company at 656 Congress Street in Portland, Maine! I’m really thrilled to have a brick-and-mortar retail location, and even happier to be among the awesome stuff available at The Merchant Co. Seriously, this place is stuffed to the gills with cool handmade and vintage items, lots of it from local vendors: ceramics, clothing, knit items, jewelry, bags, vintage housewares, skin care, baby stuff… you could find a gift for pretty much anyone in there (including, of course, yourself).

So the pics above are my little set-up. Items available right now include my wide elastic-band skirts in a variety of fun prints and solids, a few linen dresses, some newer print dresses and tunics, small zipper pouches, and cotton yoga mat bags. Some items are similar to ones available on my Etsy site, while others are unique to The Merchant Company location. I'll be adding new stock pretty regularly as well!

Here are some close-ups of the yoga mat bags. May I suggest, I think these would make a fantastic holiday gift for the yoga enthusiast in your life! They’re handmade with 100% pre-washed cotton, fully lined, reinforced in the bottom and the strap, and have neat features like deep side pockets (for your cell phone, socks and whatnot), a key ring, and an adjustable strap.

George and I knocked together this display for these flower pins I make from fabric remnants. We used scrap wood from my parents’ house, but my dad wasn’t around to help us use the table saw (AKA The Mangler), so we had to use a hand saw! It came out pretty dang good, though.

So this holiday season, consider shopping local and check out The Merchant Company! It’s right down by Longfellow Square on Congress Street in Portland. And then let me know what you think!

... elastic-waist skirt

Some nasty weather and unexpected life events prevented me from making it out to Brimfield last weekend, which means I'll have to wait for the July show. Bummer! It's been an altogether dismal start to the flea market and yard sale season in the Northeast, in terms of weather. I'm seriously jonesing to dig through someone else's junk (not a euphemism).

So, more sewing projects! Which are not weather-dependent. I whipped up this quick elastic-waist skirt from some printed twill I picked up recently. I really love the pattern and colors and it has a nice weight to it with just a little bit of stretch. 

Twill skirt

Front (also could be the back)

The front is pretty much exactly the same as the back, and it has pockets (of course). I finished the hem with some grosgrain ribbon before I hand-tacked it.

... plaid skirt (with mixed results)

Spring is coming, and like most people in the Northeast, I'm viscerally longing for warmer weather. The stores are starting to carry spring clothes, the runways are showing fall clothes which really seems like jumping the gun, and I'm itching to make some light, breezy dresses and skirts for the warmer temps.

But I have unfinished business, before the cold weather is gone for the year: this black plaid fabric that I bought almost three years ago. Every winter since, I've meant to do something with it - preferably before black plaid fabric goes out of season. And every year I've never gotten around to it. So before I bought any cotton lawn or planned any sundresses, I was determined to use. that. fabric.

The fabric wasn't really inspiring me on its own, so I decided to copy a J. Crew wool skirt that I liked:

Photo from www.jcrew.com

Photo from www.jcrew.com

Cute, right? You don't have to like it. No judgement. Anyway, getting the folds "right" was pretty tricky - I say "right" because I don't think I entirely succeeded.

Attempt #5 or #6

The result (please excuse the quality of the pictures! I seem to be getting worse at taking them):

side view

back

front

This, my friends, is a solid Meh at best. The fabric (which is not wool, but sort of a medium-weight woven business) didn't really want to cooperate and I didn't get the draping quite right. The back looks better than the front, which is not generally what you're going for in a skirt. Would it have been way easier (and quicker) to just make a simple A-line skirt? Uh, yes. But it's good to try something new. Even if it doesn't work out, you usually learn something. And honestly I'm just glad I finally used that fabric. I can move on!!