Thursday, February 25, 7 to 10 PM

L2 Lounge, 3315 Cady’s Alley NW (between 33 & 34 off M)

Washington, DC

Suggested donation $5

Come on out and represent DC Threads at this event!

]]> http://www.dcthreads.org/2010/02/22/fashion-fights-poverty-supports-wilson-hs-clothing-and-textile-program/feed/ 0 http://www.dcthreads.org/2010/02/12/dc-threads-cancelled-this-saturday/ http://www.dcthreads.org/2010/02/12/dc-threads-cancelled-this-saturday/#comments Fri, 12 Feb 2010 16:23:40 +0000 admin http://www.dcthreads.org/?p=979

Hand-sewn snowflake cards, a great indoor activity idea from goldtop.org

Alas, for the first time since this program was launched in 2008, the DC Threads Sewing Lounge will be canceled this Saturday (February 13, 2010). We tried to hold out, but North Michigan Park Center is still working on plowing its sidewalks and parking lot, and many of our wonderful volunteer sewing coaches will not be able to make it safely tomorrow.  Our sincere apologies to those who were registered this weekend, but hopefully we’ll be able to see you at another lounge session this Spring.

We will be back and bustling on March 13, 2010!

Stay cozy and keep sewing!

Allison and Laura

As the temperatures dip – what better time to stitch up some warm and cozy hats and scarves to keep the chill at bay???  At our January DC Threads Sewing Lounge we will have patterns, equipment,  and loads of expertise available to you to make some warm, toasty and trendy accessories to keep you warm!

A sampling of patterns for the hats and scarves can be found in the Patterns section of this site (http://www.dcthreads.org/patternsmain/clothing/).  As always, please try to bring the appropriate yardage of fleece that you will need for the project you have chosen as we have a limited amount of fleece in our fabric stash!   Both G-Street Fabrics and Joann Fabrics have great selections of solid and printed polar fleece.

A few tips for lounge-goers: as we’ve been growing, we’ve been lucky to receive many new donations of fabric, notions, and sewing machines. However, we still have limited supplies and equipment (especially sewing machines), so if you plan to come to the lounge and have your own machine, we strongly recommend that you bring it so that you do not have to wait for a machine to become available. And if you are new to sewing and want to be sure you get the most out of the lounge session, we also recommend that you arrive as close to 1pm as possible so that you have plenty of time to learn the basics and start on your first project.

As always, if you are interested in volunteering we welcome you to join us!

Hope to see you on Saturday to ring in the new year!

Best,

Allison and Laura

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The Textile Museum has two “must see” events on their calendar.  First up is (drum-roll please) an evening with ISABEL TOLEDO – designer of Mrs. O’s fabulous lemongrass dress and coat!!!

From Switzerland to the White House:  The Story Behind the Inauguration Dress

Thursday, November 5, 5:30 Pm

Isabel Toledo’s Lemongrass Coat and Dress dazzled the world when it was worn by First Lady Michelle Obama on Inauguration Day. Join us at The Textile Museum for this special evening program and hear firsthand about the process behind its creation—from the fabric, made by the Swiss company Forster Rohner, to the finished product.

Panelists include American fashion designer Isabel Toledo, her creative partner and husband Ruben Toledo, and Hans Schreiber, creative director of Forster Rohner, moderated by Robin Givhan, The Washington Post’s fashion editor and winner of the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for Criticism. The talks will be followed by a reception featuring Swiss wine and chocolate. This program is co-sponsored by the Embassy of Switzerland.

Fee: $25/Textile Museum members; $45/non-members. Advance registration is required; space is limited. Call (202) 667-0441, ext. 64 to register.

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And it seems the Textile Museum is on a fashion roll – a new genre for them!   Don’t miss the extraordinary collection of Mary Baskett’s Japanese garments.

Contemporary Japanese Fashion: The Mary Baskett Collection

October 17, 2009 – April 11, 2010

In the 1970s and early 1980s, Japanese designers Issey Miyake, Rei Kawakubo and Yohji Yamamoto shocked the fashion world by introducing avant-garde styles that challenged received Western notions of “chic.” Informed in part by Japanese traditions such as the kimono, obi and the art of origami, these designers produced radical garments with shapes and textures often incongruous with the natural contours of the human body. Their designs—characterized by asymmetry, raw edges, unconventional construction, oversized proportions and monochromatic palettes—effectively overthrew existing norms and set the stage for the postmodernist movement in the fashion industry. Miyake, Yamamoto, and Kawakubo remain three of the most successful designers in today’s fashion world, and under their tutelage a new generation of Japanese talent has emerged.

This exhibition, an expanded version of an earlier showing at the Cincinnati Art Museum, includes avant-garde garments from the collection of Mary Baskett, an art dealer and former curator of prints at the Cincinnati Art Museum who has been collecting and wearing Japanese high fashion since the 1960s.

And before you set out for S Street to view the collection please please take a few minutes to read Robin Givhan’s review of the collection and her views on the designers – her insight definitely will make your time with the garments more meaningful!

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And as previously posted, Christian Siriano will be speaking about and signing his new book, “Fierce Style” at the Corcoran Gallery of Art on November 3^rd.

Oh yes!   November is lookin’ mighty fine here in DC!