Alabama Studio Sewing + Design

We remember our first glimpses of handmade garments from Alabama Chanin, the design house founded by Natalie Chanin. We had never seen anything like them before, and our fashion- and craft-loving hearts skipped a beat.

Much like when we first laid eyes on the handknit sweaters of Alice Starmore and Kaffe Fassett, we were struck by the beauty and unique vision of Natalie’s clothes, and we wanted them.

More than anything, we were curious: how were they made?

That question led us on a delightful journey of learning a way of making with our hands that is different from knitting, but a close sister craft. Along the way, through workshops with Natalie and artisans from The School of Making, and through Natalie’s books, we were learning the lasting beauty of garments made stitch by stitch, slowly, by hand.

Every garment we’ve made is still in rotation in our wardrobes, proving the observation that ”loved clothes last.”

When Natalie first started teaching Alabama Chanin’s techniques to amateur sewists, fashion industry insiders thought that sharing trade secrets would ruin her company. Firm in her belief that “good design should be available to all, that my company should be sustainable in its practices, and that we should all enjoy (and preserve) handcraft techniques,” Natalie did it anyway.

We’re grateful that she did, and so is the close-knit community of School of Making stitchers that sprang up and flourished around the United States and the world. If you’re curious, we welcome you to join us! A hand sewing project makes a great companion to your knitting queue, and there is no outfit that will elevate your mood faster than a handknit sweater worn with a swing skirt from The School of Making.

We chose this title from the four books in Natalie’s Alabama Studio Book Series because it takes you through the process of making a garment start to finish, from sourcing materials and tools to stenciling and embellishing cotton jersey fabric to seaming and constructing. It’s a reference that we turn to ourselves whenever a question arises on one of our projects—which is often!

What’s in the Book?

Contents

Chapter 1: The Basics—Materials and Tools

Chapter 2: Stencils + Stenciling

Chapter 3: Basic Stitches

Chapter 4: Basic Garments + Accessories

Chapter 5: Embellishing with Beads, Sequins + Embroidery

Chapter 6: Quilting + Reverse Appliqué

Chapter 7: Appliqué

Chapter 8: Fabrics + Fabric Maps

Chapter 9: An Alabama Chanin Wardrobe

Index of Design Choices

10.75″ x 1″ x 8.5″, 175 pages, hard cover