Oh, Alabama

I have this inability to really focus on one thing I love. I get pulled in so many different directions- trying to figure out if I want to spend my weekends and nights trying new recipes, decorating the house, doing yardwork, knitting, sewing, reading, petting the dog, staring vacantly, etc, etc, etc…

But now I feel like I’m kind of onto something. While I still have knit projects and house decorating that I’ll dabble in I think I have a new obsession. Sewing knit fabrics. Of course, I haven’t put scissors and needle to fabric yet, but I’m doing all my research. Wendy Mullin has created two books on sewing- one on woven fabrics and the other, Sew U The Home Stretch: The Built by Wendy Guide to Sewing Knit Fabrics. This book is explaining why all the other times I’ve tried to make t-shirts out of knit fabrics I have failed. Totally. I was doing it all wrong. This is why research is so great. I love ye olde internets!

And then for an amazing dose of inspiration I stumbled across Natalie “Alabama” Chanin yesterday. I have new hero. Really. Not only does she incorporate organic and recycled knit fabrics in her work, she and other local artisans make these absolutely beautiful and creative garments by hand. There’s something to be said about that commitment to handmade objects. Her book Alabama Stitch Book is here. Alabama Chanin is here.