Happy Monday Giveaway Day!

Today's Happy Monday Giveaway is: one yard of Chairs from Circa 50 by Monaluna for Birch Farics.

For a chance to win, leave a comment on this post telling us where you usually sew (sewing room? dining room? other?) I will randemly choose one lucky winner from among the comments.

Good luck, comments close Friday at midnight!

Winner: Westfalenstoffe Fat Quarters

Congratulations Shannon! You won the Westfalenstoffe Fat Quarters!

i sew mostly for my daughter and for myself. though my daughter doesn't really seem to wear what i sew for her! ha ha ha! she and i have such different taste in clothes. *sigh* i actually want to sew more things for my sons, but i always get suckered into the cuuute thing to sew my daughter or myself. ha ha ha!

thanks for the giveaway opportunity! :)

Also, still looking for Kim, last week's winner of the Monaluna Pink Scooters fabric. Please email me with your address! modernorganic@gmail.com

I love pink and brown together! Love your site and fabric...just made some raggie quilts and they are adorable!

Organic Sewing: Show and Tell with By My Touch

Meet Wendy of By My Touch. Today she is going to tell us a little about what she sews with organic cotton fabrics:

Modern Organic Fabrics: What do you make with organic cotton fabric?

Wendy: I design handmade bags and purses with the organic fabrics. I offer them for sale on Etsy and at local retail shops and am just getting started on craft fairs.

Modern Organic Fabrics: Which fabrics are you using?

Wendy:  Recently I've used Pebble Lines, Garden Chain Dot, Chartreuse Scroll, Solid Steel, Solid Red, Solid Black, Free to Grow Summer, Coral Weed and Canvas (in Black, Natural and Seafoam colors).  I particularly love the lines by Robert Kaufman and Cloud9.

Modern Organic Fabrics: Why do you like to use organic cotton fabric?

Wendy:  I love to use organic fabrics as:
a. the colors are vibrant
b. the designs/printing are very good quality.  The detail in the print can be quite complex sometimes, and I've been impressed with every one I've bought so far.
c. they hold their shape so I can easily cut a pattern repeat so my seams match.  This is an important detail to me when using all but the smallest prints or solid color.  I've used other non-organic fabric, of supposedly high quality, which constantly twists so I can never get two pieces of fabric to match up and have ended up not using them.  Expense aside, this was enormously frustrating and time consuming.
d. They iron easily and there is no 'chemical' smell, unlike non-organic fabrics.
e. They are very soft to the touch.  As a very tactile person, this is something I look for in any fabric I use.
f. I've taken the decision only to purchase organic fabrics from now on.  This is because if feels 'right' to me and the thought of all those toxic chemicals in our environment (from non-organic fabrics) makes me shudder.  I've been on a steep learning curve since starting my shop, and cannot wait to use up (and sell) all the fabrics/bags that don't fit with what I want to offer.  I also realise that this makes my shop stand out amongst the crowd, and that's a good thing!  Long term, the more people that purchase from me, the more money I can donate, so anything that sets me apart and helps bring attention to my items the better. Using organic fabrics is not only ethically the right thing to do, it makes me happy and it helps me raise money for charity :)

Downsides to using organic fabrics:
a. depending on the cotton fabric, they can sometimes be thinner to use (Coral Weed for example), which is not really a negative, but I have had to adjust my machine to compensate so that the stitches are correct.  I am slightly technically challenged, so perhaps to others this would have been an obvious thing to expect! I've learnt to do a trial run before using a new piece of fabric to save me the headache of unpicking uneven stitching!  It might be helpful to mention possibly adjusting the tension settings in the fabric information.
b. the cost can often be two to three times that of regular fabric.  The more people that use them, the lower the prices will get over time, so I'm happy to be supporting this movement and spreading the word.

Modern Organic Fabrics: Tell us about your product.

Wendy: I make bags and purses of all different styles and sizes.  I make my own patterns, and pay particular attention to quality of construction, careful attention to detail and unique finishing touches.  To my knowledge, my designs are unique on Etsy, but I also sell my items at some local retail shops where the feedback has been wonderful too!  I love twinkle, and it's kind of my trademark :)  It will often be found as a finishing touch when I think it works.  I also love artisan glass beads and these can often be seen as a finishing touch too, as well as Lucite flowers which are my latest fancy!

Modern Organic Fabrics: Is there anything else you'd like to add?

Wendy:  I wanted to raise money for charity and that's how 'By My Touch' got started earlier this year. It was a small hobby that I started to help me get over a series of difficult surgeries, but it rapidly grew to a full time activity when I'm well enough to work - I have fibromyalgia - and I love it!  I can't wait to get up every day!  I donate my time and profits to charity.  If you'd like to know more about me and the charities I support, please follow this link to my profile http://www.etsy.com/people/bymytouch

Thank you so much for inviting me to do this.  I appreciate your interest in what I'm doing, and bringing a little attention to my corner of Etsy.  I love what I do, and am especially passionate about being as eco-friendly as possible in the way I run my business. Every element is carefully researched with this aim in mind, whether it be the materials I use for my hand drawn cards and bags, my business cards, shipping materials etc.  Even my studio is run using green power!

Thanks for sharing, Wendy!

Be sure to visit Wendy at her her shops:

www.bymytouch.com
http://www.bymytouch.etsy.com

Have you made something with organic cotton fabrics? Would you like to be featured here? Email me using the link over in the right column!

New! Ottobre Design Kids Winter 2010

Brand new! Ottobre Design Kids Winter 2010. Full of fabulous designs for babies to tweens, including coats, dresses, vests, pajamas, diapers and more! View photos of all patterns here.

Themes are:

SCANDINAVIAN KIDS
Bright materials and straightforward designs tempt even novice sewers. Comfortable underwear, soft and cozy playwear plus lots of attractive gift ideas. 
Sizes 86–170 cm

WASH YOUR FACE WITH ORANGE JUICE
In celebration of our 10th anniversary, we designed a funny yet sweet collection of special-occasion outfits. Dresses, a tunic, pants and a blouse for girls. Skinny corduroys, a gingham-checked shirt, two vests and a sweater-knit jacket for boys.
Sizes 86–170 cm

ARCTIC BABIES
A cute penguin coverall, bootees, a hat, mittens, a footed one-piece and a warm baby bunting. In response to our readers’ request: a bamboo-knit fitted cloth diaper and a diaper cover sewn from recycled materials. Sizes 56–92 cm

ENCHANTED FOREST
Winter outerwear displays the magic of a fairytale forest. A beautiful tulip-shaped coat and a velour knit dress for girls. A classic double-breasted wool jacket for boys. An easy reversible coat and a scarf for little girls.
Sizes 86–170 cm

Happy Monday Giveaway Day!

Today's Happy Monday Giveaway is four fat quarters in Stripes from Westfalenstoffes' organic Junge Linie.

To enter, please leave a comment on this post telling us who you sew for most.

Comments close this Friday at midnight. Good Luck!