Creating the world around us, one stitch at a time

Just in case you aren't aware of it, Earth Hour is encouraging everyone to turn off the lights for an hour at 8 pm LOCAL TIME Saturday night. The program was created by World Wildlife Fund, for whom my kids play their instruments to fundraise at the Farmer's Market each summer. (Yes, that was unrelated to everything except my little bit of pride in my kids -- hey give a mom a break, okay?) Earth Hour is designed for multiple reasons -- the obvious one of immediately cutting carbon emissions, of course, and pointing out to us all that we really don't need to use as much power as we necessarily think we do. And then there's simply the idea that bringing our focused attention to the issue of climate change might bring about ideas for and actual change as well.

So what are you waiting for? It's only an hour -- Sign up now.

(I just want to know, though, if it'll really make a difference for us to turn off our lights when we're already off the grid. Regardless, we'll be participating if only to have another opportunity to discuss climate change with the afore-mentioned instrument-playing kids, who already wake up in the morning and look outside to see if it's sunny or windy (and thus a "good power" day) or if we're going to want to be a bit more careful...)

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Just a quick note to let you know that the big truck we've been waiting for drove up yesterday and we finally have Natural Light Hemp Canvas, Sand Heavy Hemp Herringbone, Black Heavy Hemp Herringbone, Black Hemp/Tencel Plain Weave, Black Hemp Canvas, and Olive Hemp/Tencel Plain Weave back in stock! We're hoping for more hemp arrivals in the next week or two, but as we've told so many of you, the demand for hemp is absolutely staggering -- mill runs are frequently entirely claimed before production is even started! It's wonderful for the future of sustainable textiles, particularly when you're dealing with people who keep in mind all aspects of the fabric's production (how making it is affecting both people and the planet -- and yes, we keep that at the forefront of our mind when making decisions of what to carry, as well you know!).

(Oh, and it's neither a hemp nor a hemp blend, but White Wide-Width Sateen is also back in stock finally, woohoo!)

Posted by Tara at 10:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

That's what my grandma used to call me, when I was a little girl going here and there getting all sorts of things done. Of course at that point I was trying to catch tadpoles, painting my face with "rock paint" I created by grinding up colored rocks, planting acorns, looking for wintergreen berries, and other urgent tasks that occupy five-year-olds in Upstate New York. How times have changed -- this past week my busy bee-ness has shown itself with many exciting new items being added to our website. (Yes, it's remotely possible that I'm the only person who finds these new items exciting, but I prefer to think that my vast readership is out there on tenterhooks eagerly awaiting word of our new acquisitions. And to bring it all back around to fabric, did you know that being on tenterhooks actually refers to a process involved in the making of woolen fabric? As another of my grandmothers would say, "Not a day is wasted in which you learn something new," and I'm guessing we all just did. Yet another thing to be excited about, and I haven't even started talking about our new items. But here we go...)

First of all, let's hear a big hurrah for the new Heavy Duty Fiberactive Organic Thread. Wonderful for quilting, embroidery, bedding, and other heavy sewing work, this thread comes in three cone sizes and will revolutionize your organic sewing. We've also added three sizes of Organic Twill Tape (which you can see above to the right), ranging from 1/2 to 1 inch wide. Both the thread and the twill tapes are made in the US, and both are available wholesale for our business customers who want to buy in larger quantities.

We've not only added notions, of course -- we also have some mahvelous new fabrics. Lovers of classic elegance will greatly appreciate our Ivory Organic Wool Twill, which makes me think of Jackie O or Audrey Hepburn (for no real reason except that they're who come to mind when I think of elegance ... go figure!). It joins our Heathered Charcoal and Deep Purple Wool Twills, both of which call out "You too could be timelessly elegant if only you wore me!" each time I walk past their rolls.

The Organic Paisley Pizazz Collection is fantabulous and only available at NearSea Naturals. Check out this eye-catching large-scale print in Comfy White Interlock, Arctic Jersey, Colorgrown Green, and Rainstorm (where I love the interplay of the pattern's print with the fabric's weave). Think of the creations you can make combining the various iterations of printed and plain fabrics -- what fun!

And last but not at all least, check out our unbelievable single-layer Amity Peace Silk. I was seriously flabbergasted by my ability to pull a half yard through my wedding ring with room to spare -- and no, my fingers aren't that big; this fabric is simply incredibly finely woven. It's stunningly luxurious, and I'd create so many magical things from it if only I didn't have small and frequently grubby children around my house. (They take after their mother, too, so I don't have anyone else to blame ... remember the above-mentioned face painting? My five-year-old discovered that joy all by himself at a veeeeeery young age and doesn't seem likely to give it up anytime soon!)

Posted by Tara at 10:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I've been intrigued by Furoshiki, the Japanese art of gift wrapping with fabric, since I first learned about it many years ago. It wasn't until a business trip to California, however, that I found the book Gift Wrapping With Textiles: Stylish Ideas from Japan (available other places too, of course!). That book, combined with a little spare time (hey, there's not all that much to do in a hotel room, even an eco-friendly one, besides watch really bad TV and work), inspired me to start playing around with the concept ... and it's so very much fun!

Today I was lucky enough to be able to work with two new Harmony Arts fabrics, Black and White Whispering Grass Wide-Width Sateen and Blue Moon Light Flannel, and I couldn't resist trying a little furoshiki. (The new fabrics are probably worth an entry in their own right, especially because it's so wonderful having a printed flannel that can be used for the whole family and because the black and white version of Whispering Grass is so strikingly eye-catching, but instead I'm simply using the fabrics as props for a larger post. Do check them out, even if I'm not giving them their due in the blog.)

Traditional furoshiki (that's the word for both the wrapping cloths and the concept) come in eight standard sizes, according to the book, ranging from 18" square to 96" square. As a point of reference, the smallest ones are great for wrapping a few CDs, a small fruit, a couple of paperback books, and the like; the largest pieces wrap pictures and large boxes and can work as a tablecloth or coverlet. The in-between sizes wrap everything else, of course. I've had the most luck using tightly-woven cottons or hemp-silk blends, but I encourage you to try any fabric and let us know how it goes. You'll note that I didn't edge the 18" square pieces I was using, but that's because I was being lazy; I'd serge, hem, or at least cut the sides with pinking shears were I planning to use the furoshiki as part of a gift.

I love the concept of furoshiki for so many reasons. They're aesthetic, environmental, practical (it's much easier to make a last-minute furoshiki than a quick fabric gift bag, even though it doesn't really take that long to make a gift bag), cultural, economical, and more. And besides, it's just plain fun and impressive -- I get the same feeling of accomplishment when completing a difficult wrap as I do when managing a complex piece of origami.

If you want to save paper and money by not buying a whole book, Japan's Ministry of the Environment has a free .pdf file showing some basic ways to wrap with fabric, and if you're lucky enough to read Japanese you may be interested in the Furoshiki Study Group Website as well. (My Japanese is nonexistent, but I still enjoyed the site, especially the bow tie diagram and the Reduce-Reuse-Recycle brochure explaining how furoshiki fit within an eco-friendly lifestyle.)

My most recent idea for wonderful, easy-to-make gifts is creating an assortment of furoshiki in different sizes and patterns, packaging it with the above-mentioned instructive .pdf file, and, of course, wrapping the whole caboodle with yet another piece of fabric. If I wanted to get a bit more elaborate I'd silkscreen, draw, or embroider designs on the fabric (most Japanese furoshiki have either a large picture in the bottom left corner for orientation or a picture/motif with a clear top, bottom, left, and right). At the very least I'll definitely be wrapping the homemade canned goods I traditionally give over the holidays with a nice napkin, furoshiki-style. And what could be more logical and appealing than wrapping a To-Go Food Carrier and bamboo utensil set with a couple of napkins? (You can see a utensil set wrapped "kimono style" to the right; you'd definitely want to use a larger piece of fabric to wrap the food carrier, though, as I got very frustrated trying with an 18" square!)

Anyway, check out our new fabrics, and do consider trying furoshiki/the fine art of gift wrapping with textiles. I've really only touched the surface ... some of the wrapping jobs are absolutely unbelievable, and I look at some of the instructions and shake my head in disbelief. I'll get there someday, though. Really I will. I just have to keep practicing...

But watch out ... you just might find furoshiki as addictive as I do ... and what a fun, environmentally-friendly, productive craft meme to spread, don't you think?

Posted by Tara at 1:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)