Sewing for the Outdoors

The birds are chirpping and the sun is shining. It is time to spruce up my outside patio and I think these two pillows just might do the trick. I loved the variety and bright colors of all of the berries in the fabric and was able to find the perfect colors in the stash of batiks to create some fun piping. Not settling for only one row of piping, I doubled up, creating a two for one. It is a lot simplier than you might think. Simply create to rows of piping using cording between bias strips of fabric and your zipper foot, butt the two rows of piping together and stitch. They are now one piece and can be used as any other piping might be used. For full instructions on creating your own outdoor pillows as well as an article on outdoor fabric choices- click on the Clotilde Sewing Savvy logo next to this post and you will be directed to my latest newsletter post on this subject.

As these pillows will be used outdoors I chose Weather Soft™ Pillow Inserts for my pillows. http://www.fairfieldworld.com/product-cat/74-outdoor-pillow-inserts They are available at your local Joanne Fabric stores.

If you find yourself in the area stop by and I will make us a pitcher of lemonade.

An interview with my friend, Jonathan Fong

I was so fortunate to be able to meet up with my good friend, Jonathan Fong at CHA this past January. Jonathan is a creative genious that walked past the booth Eileen Hull and I were sharing in the License and Design section some years ago. Jonathan was wearing a two piece suit created from floral images from his latest book. He was at the show to sign copies and check out CHA. Luckily, we stopped him and commented on his suit and became fast friends. Jonathan lives in California and we have been able to stay in touch via email and stopping by when either of us happens to visit the West or East coast. Jonathan is one of those people that make life fun and I am so glad to have connected with him.

BTW: If you happen to be looking for some inspiration, Jonathan produces, directs and stars in some great video shorts. Check it out at http://www.stylewithasmile.tv