Monday, December 29, 2008


My husband is a systems analyst for a telecommunications company, and travels internationally. A couple years ago, he spent a number of months in Hyderabad, India, and on his return, brought me a suitcase full of silk Saris. I've used them in many garments, as linings and trims, and because of their very long length, and interesting borders, they make a terrific addition to my stash.
My husband made 10 trips to Dublin, Ireland this year, and on one of them, he made a trip into County Wicklow, where he found Avoca Handweavers. According to Wikipedia, it is the oldest surviving woolen mill in Ireland.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avoca_Handweavers.
My husband knows me well. He skipped all the clothing products, blankets, scarves, and went right to the pre-cut lengths of yardage, gorgeous wool tweeds, and picked out two different plaids to give me for a Christmas present. So, in addition to the six projects I've been outlining (don't worry, I haven't talked about project 5 and 6 yet) I have another mission, to sew something fabulous from the two lengths of handwoven wool tweed from Ireland.
I subscribe to Burda World of Fashion, which comes in monthly. The January issue just arrived in the mail yesterday, and there are a number of great ideas for using these two plaid fabrics. Oddly enough, there is a whole section devoted to the new plaids! I love the design of Burda, and especially love the fact that all the patterns for all the garments featured in each issue, are included in the center section. I now have more than 10 years worth. If I can think it, I have a pattern for it. www.burdafashion.com

2 comments:

  1. Oooohhhh, Daryl! You lucky woman! I would love to give the handweavers' handshake to those wool tartans (I was told in scotland that they don't it plaid [no matter what it is] it is 'tartan' ;) )

    I have just subscribed to Burda World of Fashion, and can't wait until my first issue arrives. I hope it will be the January issue you describe!

    Goodness, I am impressed w/ your blog. I never get that many words out (as you may note on my blog). My looms and wheel recently put out an APB.

    Best wishes for a fabulous 2009!
    Nancy

    ReplyDelete
  2. In case it takes awhile to process the Burda subscription, you might want to scour a Borders or Barnes and Noble magazine section to see if they have a copy of the current issue. My guess is your subscription won't start with the current issue. I have found Burda World of Fashion in some stores, but they usually sell out quick. Ask around.
    Since the fabric is from Ireland, I wonder if the same rules apply? Would a plaid from Ireland be a tartan?
    I'm having so much fun writing this blog, why didn't I start it sooner?

    ReplyDelete