We hope you enjoyed our previous articles on sewing technique collections. If you’ve missed them, here are all the links: Five Useful Pleats and Folding Techniques, Three Useful Hem Techniques, How To Sew Your Most Essential Four Pockets and How To Sew Your Most Essential Four Collars. Today, we have gathered all the useful sleeve techniques we’ve had…
Category Archives: SUCCESS HACKS
In my ten years of sewing, the most common question I have been asked by fellow seamstresses is, “Which tools do you use every day?” So today, I’m tackling that question with some reflection on those ten years and a little peek into my workspace. As a beginner, I remember feeling overwhelmed by the amount…
“Elegance is the balance between proportion, emotion and surprise.” Valentino Garavani, known worldwide by his first name alone, had an immaculate, Italian touch, one which earned him widespread, international acclaim. Finding his voice in the 1960s, his old-school, Hollywood glamour was an antidote to the proliferation of androgynous, tomboyish styles that were rising around him,…
“My job as a designer is to make a woman feel her very best.” Dominican designer Oscar de la Renta brought sleek, Spanish tailoring and European elegance to the United States in the mid-1960s, forever altering the country’s fashion landscape. Making his name in New York, he attracted high profile clients including politicians, models, actors,…
“My obsession is to make women beautiful. When you create with that in mind, things can’t go out of fashion.” Famously private and mysterious, Tunisian-born, Parisian designer Azzedine Alaia remains one of the fashion world’s most enigmatic figures, one who rebelled against the structures and conventions of the industry to follow his own path. Known…
“I believe that my clothes can give people a better image of themselves – that it can increase their feelings of confidence and happiness.” Without a doubt, Giorgio Armani is one of the world’s most influential and successful designers. King of the power suit, his immaculate, clean lines have draped the shoulders of the rich…
“The clothes that I prefer are those I invent for a life that doesn’t exist yet – the world of tomorrow.” Shiny, thigh-skimming boots, skin-tight synthetics, stretchy knits and micro-miniskirts; these were the epoch defining looks of Pierre Cardin. Like many of his generation, Cardin embraced the arrival of the Space Age in the late…
In many ways, sewing has become a lost art. A generation or two ago, a sewing machine was a household essential. It was common for women to make handmade garments, both for themselves and for their kids. Cotton feed sacks were made into dresses. Jackets tailored. Zippers fixed. Work pants patched. It seemed everyone could…
“To have style is to … remain true to oneself.” One of the most celebrated designers of all time, Hubert de Givenchy brought elegant, Parisian chic to Hollywood, adorning the stars with his inimitable, immaculate style, thereby cementing his place in history. As a counterpoint to Christian Dior’s “New Look” of the 1950s, with its’…
“It was as if Europe had tired of dropping bombs and now wanted to let off a few fireworks.” Christian Dior’s meteoric rise to success came in the late 1940s, at a time when post-war austerity and rationing led fashion towards clean lines and utilitarian styles. His designs came as a revelatory shock, re-introducing glamour,…
I fell in love with fashion, textiles, and sewing at a young age. Long before I realized it was a career option. I was not aware of the industry and its impact on people living around the world. As a kid, I knew sewing as one thing: a creative outlet. My grandmother was a seamstress….
“I don’t do fashion, I am fashion.” One of the most legendary fashion designers of all time, Coco Chanel is a true icon, whose legacy lives strong today. Famous for pioneering timeless staples including the little black dress, the skirt suit and the striped Breton top, her focus was on wearable styles with a streamlined,…
“In difficult times, fashion is always outrageous.” Italian designer Elsa Schiaparelli was a bold risk taker, one whose eccentric, flamboyant designs brought apparel in line with 20th century, avant-garde art movements including Dada and Surrealism. Recognised today as one of the most prominent and influential voices from the Parisian 1930s, 40s and 50s, Schiaparelli’s adventurous…
Sincere, inspiring, true are some of the words that come to mind when I think about my dear friend La Touche, aka Mr Hat. We met some many years ago at the 6th anniversary of Work It 90s RnB Party in East London, a mutual friend introduced me to an impeccably dressed tall young man…
“I do not want all women to look and dress exactly alike. I want them to be as different in their dress as they are in their personalities.” Paul Poiret the man was as bold, brazen and uncompromising as his fashion. At the height of his career in the Parisian Belle Epoque era, America crowned…
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