One area of design that I'm pursuing more and more is that of creating something wearable out of remnants.
Often, once you've finished making a garment, there are pieces of fabric left over which are too small to use for a garment and too big just to toss away. The type of fabric or the pattern/design of the fabric may mean it isn't suited to making infants or children's wear while the size of the pattern/design may eliminate using it for doll's clothes!
My solution has been to take these pieces and create a wearable item out of them.
My method involves making the "fabric" while I make the garment. I actually start by pinning the shapes together - and I usually use the shapes as-is, left over from cutting the garment. This means I use my mannequin to pin and drape the left-over fabric shapes while I create the "new" overall fabric and thus the garment.
In the photos, I'm showing some silk scraps I made into a shawl-cape. (As it sits on the body more firmly than a shawl, I combined the words "shawl" and "cape" to convey this.) There are actually three types of silk used: Shantung, Dupioni and Noil.
I also combined two colors you don't usually see together - copper and hot pink.
The result is a great piece that is both subtle and stunning.
Copyright Deborah C. Sawyer
