82-lancMter Farming, Saturday, September 23, 2000
EnibettisH To Cover Up Or M.a\e 7<eiv
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Farming Staff
LEESPORT (Berks Co.)
Got a stain on your favorite
blouse? Worn out your jacket
cuffs?
Don’t despair.
“Embellish to cover up a rip
or stain. Make it new and wear-
i i You don’t need to be an artist. Everyone
can do this}}
able,” advises Shirley Adams.
At a recent workshop held at
the Berks County Ag Center,
Adams showed hundreds of
clothing pieces where she per
formed her magic by using
fabric scraps, yarn, and ravel
ings. Yes, ravelings, those pieces
rf threads you throw away.
If it sounds tacky, then you’ve
got to see the works of art
Adams performs by using
bobbin work, couching, machine
applique, and other sewing tech
niques.
“I got this idea from seeing a
$4,000 Armandi jacket in a
shop,” Adams said as she lifts
up a black silk jacket with artis
tic embellishing.
“If you use scraps, you have
nothing to lose. It’s just fun,”
Adams says of creating and up
dating wardrobes.
Don’t think that she’s spent a
lot of time on items such as
patchwork vests. She uses fusi
ble interfacing to built a log
cabin pattern, presses with an
iron, and finishes with machine
decorative stitching to hide raw
edges.
Some other favorite designs
Using bobbin work,
Adams created this wild
flower garden by duplicat
ing a design from a flower
catalog. First, place the
stems, leaves, and foliage.
Then top with loopy flo
wers.
Committee members who arranged the workshop at the Berks County extension
office, from left, are Jeanne Maddaloni, Elaine Baro, Sylvia Blomquist, Fay Strickler,
Berks County consumer science agent; Nancy Evans, Carol Miller, and Catharine Smith.
use couching, which is zigzag
ging over yarn, cord, and ribbon
with nylon thread that doesn’t
show.
For machine bobbin work, fill
bobbins with pearl cotton, heavy
rayon, and metallic threads to
create different textures.
A simple but dramatic effect
Shirley Adams
Adams said.
is using ravelings dropped on
top of a black background and
stipple stitched to hold in place.
Evening and matching purses
made with fabric scraps, dis
carded scarves, crazy quilt
stitches, and buttons, add a co
ordinated look to wardrobes.
Although Adams knows all
the rules of sewing, she occa
sionally breaks them to create
an effect. For example, fabric
should always be cut on grain. If
cut off grain, the finished gar
ment will pull out of shape.
Knowing this, Adams some
times cuts a piece off grain, but
fuses it to a backing to retain its
shape. However, she stressed
that tubes, piping, and binding
need to be cut on the bias to
curve without puckering.
Adams also uses bits and
pieces of scarves to stitch on
jackets and vests. She likes the
dramatic effect created by the
play of textures on the same gar
ment.
“If it’s a pricey fabric, think
how little you can use,” Adams
said. She showed how she cre
ated several different coordi
nated outfits by using a touch of
fabric in different ways.
Adams recommends that
most embellishment be done at
the neck and shoulders to draw
attention to one’s face rather
than one’s body.
“If you don’t like a fabric,
wrinkle it for an entirely differ
ent look,” Adams said. She
demonstrated fusing fabric
while wrinkling with fingers and
If it doesn’t fit, cut it up and make it new.
stitching with metallic thread to
hold wrinkles in place.
Pin weaving is another con
cept she incorporates. Using a
curved tapestry needle and
pretty yarns and ribbons, she
weaves a design to a fabric back.
Adams demonstrated making
your own chenille by using three
to seven layers of rayon fabric
and stitching, slitting, and wash
ing.
Adams said that gets her
ideas from everywhere. During a
flight, she noticed the beauty of
farmers contoured fields. Using
this concept, she fashioned a
vest with different fabrics ar
ranged similar to contoured
fields.
Adams has her own line of
patterns that introduces a new
concept in patterns. For exam
ple, her Alternatives 100 Classic
Vest includes patterns and in
structions to create 25 different
styles by using couching, color
blocking, bobbin work, weaving
fabric strips, wrinkling fabrics,
appliquing, and other effects.
“It’s no sense in making the
same thing over and over again.
Make an original,” Adams said
of her theory behind her pat
terns.
“You don’t need to be an
artist. Everyone can do this,”
she said of designing.
At the workshop at the Berks
County Extension, Adams
showed how to adjust patterns
to help clothes hang correctly.
Most people have a higher
shoulder or hip on one side.
Adams said that adjustments
should be made at the waist to
enable skirts and pants to hang
perfectly. She also demonstrated
changing sleeve and bodice pat
terns to fit one’s body type.
“Nothing is a mistake. If you
don’t like the effect, consider it a
creative opportunity to change
it,” Adams said. She showed
how a few of her “mistakes”
took on new life when buttons,
loops, and additional applique
were added.
Adams, a former Indiana ex
tension specialist, taught sewing
workshops via television for
many years. She travels the
states teaching workshops.
Adams uses only four basic
patterns to create a whole ward
robe of 75 garments. The pah
terns are available in sizes XS to
XXI with instructions on how to
fit the pattern to your size.
Each pattern offers instruc
tions and variations in add-on
pieces, style changes, size in
creases, and embellishment pro
cedures. Garments can also be
made adornment free.
For more information on
Adams’ patterns, books, and
videos, write to The Sewing
Connection, P.O. Box 688,
Plainfield, IN 46168. Phone 1-
800-237-4475. Website is
www.sewingconnection.com
(Turn lo Pag* B 3)
Nothing goes to waste in Shirley Adams’ sewing room. A
former television sewing instructor and Indiana extension
agent, Adams demonstrates the ease with which a ward
robe can be updated and embellished using scraps of ma
terials, fabric ravelings, threads, yams, and buttons. The
jacket she is holding was created by couching varigated
yarns on a fabric backing.
Some articles are Just for fun. Adams created this
when she needed a Western outfit for a party. The dancing
stick figures are an example of Adams’ philosopy that one
doesn’t need to be an artist to create original designs.