Some more about fabrics...

Modal

My quest continues to learn more about fiber and what it means to all of us....from an environmental and economic view.  I deal with fabric every day..... I make quilts and bags, I shop for it,  I read about it and I have blogged about it. Back in June, I came across information that led to a fiber epiphany ..... I was aghast at what I found and so I blogged about the what I found.  


Recently a friend asked me about modal...if I knew what it was.  Had no clue....so I googled around a bit and found some information - not only on modal but some other fabrics as well.  Thought y'all might  be interested in this site www.envirofabrics.net ...here is a little of what I found there.


Silk.....an easily dyed fiber that retains its shape; cool to wear in the Summer and warm in the Winter.....

Wool......a hearty fiber that’s light weight; naturally wrinkle and dirt resistant as well as absorbs moisture

Linen/Flax.......70% cellulosic, it absorbs as much as 20 times its weight in humidity before feeling damp. Linen fibers are naturally non-allergenic, antistatic and antibacterial

Cashmere.....a luxurious goat wool imported from Central Asia

Viscose....called an artificial silk, it has a silk-like aesthetic with superb drape and feel. Viscose is moisture absorbent, abrasion resistant and low in pilling.

ProModal^® ....a blend of TENCEL^® and Modal^® fibers combining Modals soft hand with Tencels moisture absorption's skin sensitive properties and strength. With ProModal^® you can feel nature. The fiber blend is extracted from wood. Timber from sustainable grown forest plantations have a much lower impact on the environment than cotton, consuming 10 to 20 times less water than cotton.

Modal LP^®......a 100% Modal for garment dyers that will greatly diminish the pilling and hairiness effect associated with regular Modal in garment dyeing.

Supima Cotton/MicroModal^®......if hand and softness is needed for drapability, then the intimate blending of two yarns creates an unbeatable product. Buttery soft knit fabrics in a variety of stitches and colors.

Triblend......using a combination of polyester/cotton and Rayon intimate blended to form textural yarns. Used in a variety of coarse gauge sweater knits for contemporary fashion.

Sew, wanna make a tote with me?

Simple tote anyone can put together....come on in:

I like to make a very geometric and easy tote..... no pattern....just wing it.  The fabric speaks for itself.  In this case the fabric is a heavy hemp canvass fromwww.daisyjanie.com/ and organic cottton  from stash for the lining. The batting is organic bamboo. If you have a complicated bag made with fabric that really rocks, you have far too much going on.  My bags with gathers, pleats and all ... are made with simple linens, bamboo and organic cotton with easy prints.  Let the bag do the talking.

I wanted a shoulder tote to take to meetings with all my paperwork, to the library, etc.  So here is what I did:   cut two twelve inch squares (or whatever size you like)....out of outer fabric, quilters batting and lining fabric.

Notch the corners of each piece.

Sew around the outside of the outer fabric right sides together; sew the batting and lining the same way...(treat the batting and lining as one piece and sew them at the same time). Leave a section open for turning the bag.

Fold your notches together so that the side seam and the bottom seam are together.  Sew across the opening.  Do this for the lining and the outer shell.

For the strap:  take a strip of the outer fabric 4 times the finished width and whatever length you like, fold in half then open up and bring the raw edges to the center and press. Topstitch.  I like to make at least three lines of topstitching for strength and also for a tailored look. 

Sew ends of the strap to the outside seam of the bag....Put the outside bag inside the lining (right sides together) pin and sew around the top opening.

Now, I do not recommend sewing over pins.  It is a no-no with bags.  I did it anyway and you can see the results.  I have made enough quilts and bags to know better.....really, I do.  AND with this sturdy fabric and so many layers, I was living on the edge....no excuses. 

see the pin sticking out?

The pin was pushed into the workings of the machine and I spent more time undoing the mess that it would have taken to remove the pin. Shortcuts will get back at you every time!

Now, back to our bag.....reach in through the opening in the bottom and pull the outer bag through and stuff the lining inside the bag.

Last two steps....topstitch around the top of the bag and sew the opening in the lining closed.

Ta Da!!  Off to the library.

There is a great tutorial with lots of photos and more description at www.modernorganicfabrics.com/journal/201 0/6/8/tutorial-li...

Hemp, from hippie to hip

The issues surrounding of the plight of the hemp industry really has me upset.   Beyond the fact that I my money ends up overseas so that I might eventually obtain hemp to make  purses and bags for my Etsy shop,  there is the incredible frustration with our federal laws.  As we know it is illegal to grow industrial hemp in the United States.  Industrial hemp is NOT marijuana.  Hemp is one of the most earth-friendly crops on the planet!  Legislators simply do not want to hear it.  When evidence is presented...another excuse for the ban is produced.  The latest one is that growers will sneak marijuana in their hemp fields and cause a drain on law enforcement. Since the two plants cannot grow together due to totally differing agricultural requirements and the marijuana would contaminate the hemp crop and ruin the production of fiber I fail to see the problem.


Is there a huge cotton lobby in this country?  Or in California, for that mattter?  California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) last Friday vetoed a bill that would have allowed California farmers to grow industrial hemp. Sponsored by Assemblyman Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), Assembly Bill 1147 would have defined industrial hemp as an agricultural crop, limited its THC content to less than 0.3%, and mandated annual testing of fields to ensure content limits are met.

Hemp, from hippie to hip - Los Angeles Times
(courtesy Independent Media Center)

In his veto message, Schwarzenegger said the measure conflicted with federal law and would have made it more difficult for law enforcement to monitor illicit marijuana crops. While he acknowledged recent successful court battles waged by the hemp industry, Schwarzenegger said "no court has specifically ruled that a live cannabis plant is a non-controlled substance or that farming these plants is not a regulated activity.

Schwarzenegger fell for the standard US police excuse that allowing hemp production would make it more difficult to stop outdoor marijuana grows: "Finally," he said, "California law enforcement has expressed concerns that implementation of this measure could place a drain on their resources and cause significant problems with drug enforcement activities. This is troubling given the needs in this state for the eradication and prevention of drug production."

Oddly enough, police in countries where hemp farming is a legal and productive part of the economy don't seem to have any problem distinguishing between industrial hemp and marijuana.  For the abstract of a paper by by David P. West, Ph.D. please follow this link. 

Bamboo 101

I looooove this fibre....yummy and soft, no wrinkle, wash hang to dry....t shirts, sheets and towels.  Sweet!


Bamboo fabric (truly viscose-from-bamboo) is made from the pulp of bamboo grass. It's softer than cotton, has a gorgeous drape & a silky feel that looks luxurious but feels like pajamas! I do enjoy an occassional indulgence in the ultra-soft bamboo fabrics. Oh, how the soft fabric cradles my body and how it makes me feel...

Because it grows so fast - 1-3 feet every 24 hours - bamboo is one of the most renewable resources on the planet. It also produces 40% more oxygen than a hardwood forest on the same amount of land.

Bamboo is also "naturally organic." Bamboo grows like a weed (people who plant bamboo in their yard can attest to this fact after their yard becomes a bamboo forest!) and it doesn't need any pesticides, fertilizers or irrigation to enhance it's prolific growth. This is a huge step up from cotton, which requires the intensive use of pesticides & irrigation (even organic cotton - yes, organic farms still have to use pesticides, they just have to be approved. Not to mention the irrigation

Used in everything from flooring and construction to bed sheets, bamboo is quickly becoming a popular choice for environmentally conscious people around the globe.

But above all else, people continue to be amazed at how comfortable bamboo clothing is. Like a blend of silk and cashmere, viscose from bamboo feels great on the skin. Bamboo also has a benefit that silk and cashmere will never have... it's cruelty-free! That makes bamboo clothing perfect for vegetarians!

Let's Talk About Hemp...

I have introduced a new line of bags in my Etsy shop made from eco friendly and sustainable fabrics such as hemp, linen, organic cotton and bamboo.

I wish to buy hemp.  It is not grown or manufactured in the U.S. .....soooo, I need to send my  dollars out of the country since our government in it's effort to keep us drug free simply flat out banned the growing and harvesting of cannabis.  In researching the fabrics I am using I am learning a lot about growing, harvesting, manufacturing and arcane laws.

Hemp bags with coconut husk buttons lined with bamboo-cotton. 

 

Surely no member of the vegetable kingdom has ever been more misunderstood than hemp. For too many years, emotion-not reason-has guided our policy toward this crop. And nowhere have emotions run hotter than in the debate over the distinction between industrial hemp and marijuana.  Please read this article which is intended to inform that debate by offering scientific evidence so we can distinguish between myth and reality.

Finally....hemp is one of the easiest and sustainable  crops to grow.  Anything that can be made from cotton can be made from hemp.  Cotton is one of the most environmentally destructive agricultural crops. In pesticide use in the US alone, it is staggering – 125 million kilograms annually. Worldwide, cotton production used 50 percent of the world's pesticides/herbicides. 

Pesticides are possibly the greatest toxic threat to contaminating our soil, air, water and natural communities because they are often permanent and they bio-accumulate, ie their toxicity increases as they are consumed up the food chain. Many pesticides are known carcinogens, and can also cause immuno-deficiency disorders. Added to this, pesticides have a petroleum base and their excessive use perpetuates our dependency on oil. (Courtesy: Binhai Times).  You may want to take a look at Hemp 101 .

I am more and more tuned into what we, as a family, are doing to work with our environment as well as getting chemically engineered products out of our lives.  With my antennae up I am taking in more and more information and adding that to what I already know....which I find was surprisingly little.   So I am taking the liberty of chunking up my blog with this information.  Sorry, but this little corner of the world is mine.

In the next few weeks, I will pass along information about household cleaners, organic gardening and re-cycling.

Please, if you have something to add...I would welcome it.  The comment section is open to everyone.  Let's share what we know.

The Gathered Clutch....and a few more..

Love it...here it is finished.  The pattern that Noodlehead shared.

Also....since I am trending toward a bit of organic, natural and sustainable in my shop, I have ordered some lovely linens and hemp.  I already have bamboo fabrics, so I guess I just have to get sewing.  The other day I put this one together for my shop.  It is hand printed (stamped) linen from Australia.

This little one, I will probably

keep for myself,  but not sure....

This fabric is from Japan.  A lovely, medium-weight linen.    It was along one of the selvages, just little phrases that were so charming, I used it for the strap.

Also, in the clutch department

....this one was just listed on SquareBag.   Pattern from Keyka Lou .  I would suggest you check out her blog if you are into making bags. Lots of great patterns that you can use to make bags to sell. 

Karine Swenson's Art

I have just discovered Karine Swenson's blog, where she talks about her life as an artist living in the High Desert then her Etsy shop where she sells her art.   I am working on a new group of bags for my shop that will feature organic fabrics and style.  Lots of linen, some hemp and bamboo.  Some will be stamped by me using leaves and flowers from our property. 


Karine sells transfers in her shop....and I had a lightbulb moment.  How would this little guy look on the front of a linen or hemp bag?  Dunno.  I ordered a couple and will post the results of the first experiment right here.  Stay tuned.