Thursday, July 26, 2007

Internet Links I love

I've been having a fun time on the internet, and decided to share, so here's a bunch of links to some great sewing sites.

I can't seem to get the links working properly, so you may have to copy and paste. Sorry!

This first one is from Central Saint Martins in the UK. The fashion nerds amongst us will recognise this as the training ground for many of the best designers in the worls, including John Galliano, Alexander McQueen and Stella McCartney. They have a series of tutorials introducing patterncutting and block making. This is a must- see.

www.linst.ac.uk/learning/garment

The next link is to PatternReview. Ordinary sewers review patterns, share tips and techniques, describe fabrics in a glossary, and much much more. I almost hesitate to share this because it makes me almost redundant!

http://sewing.patternreview.com/

My regular students know how much I love Burda patterns. Well, now they are available for free on the internet. You just have to download them, print them, trace them and add seam allowances, but then you can upload photos of yourself wearing them and share the fun!!

http://www.burdastyle.com/

I'm also a blog tragic. I love the way the information is not moderated by focus groups, market research or commercial concerns. So many blogs are full of passion and that's something that advertising agencies just can't fake.

The absolute world leader in sewing and apparel blogs is Fashion-Incubator, by pattern-maker and apparel industry expert Kathleen Fasanella. She so generously shares her knowledge and dazzles me with her intellect. I have to confess that a lot of the manufacturing discussions she holds are way beyond my experience, (I've never had to deal with huge overseas factories, for example) but she offers a fascinating behind the seams look at how clothes are made. I love her News From You posts, because I end up places I would never otherwise see, and I'm definitely a frustrated adventurer.

http://www.fashion-incubator.com/mt/

A lot of people may have noticed that the environment is big news at the moment. There's plenty of discussion going around that questions the consumerist idea, and plenty of people who are opting out of not just conspicuous consumption, but consumption itself. That's pretty radical for most people, but for those who sew, we're already partly there. Sewgreen and Wardrobe Refashion are two sites that take the idea of reduce reuse recycle and show it really isn't the second best option.
http://www.sewgreen.blogspot.com/
http://www.nikkishell.typepad.com/wardroberefashion/


And finally (for now - it's a big cyberworld out there!) for sheer unadulterated eyecandy, you can't go past Net-a-Porter and the Sartorialist. Net-a-porter is an online luxury goods shop which displays the designer clothes so well you'll get a gazillion ideas for your next project, and the Sartorialist is the blog of a photographer who likes to photograph well-dressed strangers. He has an amazing eye, and sometimes points out subtle details that are the key to the look. It's not all trendy, either - he loves classic menswear, and one recent photo was of a hand-tailored suit 30 years old and seriously fraying. It was all about the perfect fit, and yes, it looked amazing.

www.net-a-porter.com
http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com/

Well, that should keep you going a while. Enjoy!!

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