I have a friend with cervical spine damage who is always on the hunt for the perfect pillow.  She asked me if I could make one for her that had the following qualities:

• flat, not too tall or fluffy
• loosely packed so that the fill can be shifted around to make cradle for the head
• a kind of fill that doesn't get either compacted or lumpy with use

I hemmed and hawed, because she's far away from me, so I wouldn't be able to run the prototype past her, but then, at Fabric Depot's warehouse sale in February, I saw Pellon's Forever Loft(R) Latex Fill steeply discounted, so I bought it.  If it doesn't meet her needs, it was only four bucks and a night of work.  Plus, it used up a bunch of my stash! 

Today's post is about Yoko Saito's artwork, and about a skirt I made recently, from the same stash and pattern as the A-line of last week.  It includes a strip of bias-cut wool in very soft taupe colors, appliqued onto a darker wool using Yoko Saito's instructions, so I've taken to calling it my Yoko Saito skirt! 

Yoko Saito is a famous quilter.  Her work is very Japanese in its sensibilities: subtle colors, subtly combined, with impeccable stitching and attention to minute detail.  There are three elements which come together to make a Yoko Saito quilt really distinctive to me: the taupe colors; the complex and often layered applique; and the hand-quilting.  Doing an image search for "Yoko Saito" will give you a pretty good idea of her aesthetic; it's the kind of work that rewards close study.  Be aware as you look that Saito has many students and followers who replicate her style, so not everything you see is definitely made by her; but it represents her school of quilting. 

Several months ago, I had in my stash two slivers of cream-colored poly-satin.  If I had to guess, someone made a wedding dress with a gored skirt, and these skinny triangles were the leftovers.  I also had a few scraps of another satin, but this one less shiny, in the same color.  From these, I intended to create a shirt that would match my tulip skirt, and thus be a valuable addition to my wardrobe.  As to the actual result, well... it was educational! 

Admit it, you've been dying to see this "stash" I'm so often sewing from!  Go on... you know you want to...

Or should it be "self-made underwear"?  Or does that sound like the underwear made themselves? 

Much like camisoles, underwear use up tiny amounts of fabric and satisfy the urge to sew something even when I'm not feeling like (or am putting off) a big project.  I first made my own underwear several years ago, when I was living off of sporadic temp work: I could not afford the money to buy new undies, but I could afford the time and scraps to make some.  

I should note that this post contains no pictures of me in my underwear, so if you clicked from prurience, no such luck!  

This "Five Hour Jacket" pattern came from a thrift store, cut out by the previous owner.  She obviously had some inspiration for it, since she had clipped an ad for Hancock Fabrics, showing a similar pattern made up in a red plaid.  I decided to eliminate the shoulder pads and make it a V-neck, and make it in denim for my sister.  I'm very pleased and excited by this latest project, which I conceived as a "jean jacket" but which now looks so cute I think I'll upgrade it to "denim blazer" because it sounds fancier. 

A few months back, I decided to use up some of my stash.  I pulled out a lovely piece of green rayon(?), with gradients of warm color and Japanese style twisty trees on it.  I love this fabric!  I figured out I had enough to make a dress, by the simple expedient of wrapping it around myself.  Not a very full dress, but a dress it would be!  There was about 1 1/3 yard at 60"(?) inches wide.