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Tying Jack's tzitzit

Jack's tallit was completed. it was time for him to come tie the tzitzit. I showed him the completed tallit in all of it's details. The base silk was different than what he had selected. I sent his family photos of the silks that were available and they were pleased with the alternative choice. ( I was too, it was a much nicer silk. Sometimes the stock issues of my silk suppliers play out in our favor.) I also showed Jack and his family the sad red silk that I had ordered and they agreed that the deep red velvet was MUCH better We were then ready to tie the tzitzit. I usually show the bar-mitzvah child how to do the tying first. Often the family wants to join in.  Jack's mother and grandmother joined him in tying the tzitzit. Of the three, Jack's grandmother was the most used to doing handwork. She was a quick study. there is always something so companionable about a group of people all working together with their hands. Jack used a tooth...

Finishing up

Jack's tallit is complete. The whole thing came together quickly and easily. That's not something that I can assume. I will show you photos of the whole tallit in it's glory in another post. Jane's tallit made of the antique lace looks beautiful and keeps presenting technical challenges. It's time to make the eyelets. Normally this is a piece of cake. I use an X-acto knife to make little cross cuts , stitch around the resulting hole and then finish with a button hole stitch. This time, well not so easy. The place where it makes the most sense to put the eyelets onthe face of the tallit included crochet lace ( danger of unraveling) ad also a seam with layers and layers of fabric which just makes things hard to do. I am part of an online sewing discussion group that is populated with really smart people who know far more than I do about some of the more arcane aspects of sewing. Sometimes the discussions are far too technical for me or focu...

Why I do my own work - and a bit of Food Friday

Often people are surprised that I do all of my own sewing, that I don't contract contract out my work or at least hire assistants.  I think there is an assumption out there that the designer comes up with a sketch and that is the smart work and then the "little hands" as they are known in the French couture world brainlessly bring the ideas of the designer to fruition. Amazon.com Widgets I am both ends of the equation, I both come up with the big ideas and do every bit of the sewing. I find that this is in fact a strength. I have discovered over and over again that only with the actual manipulation of the materials I am able to elevate my work to something just better than it would be if I handing off the sewing to someone else. Right now I am finishing up two tallitot, Jane's which is made out of precious family textiles and Jack's which is being made out of all new materials. Yesterday each of these projects presented me with a moment where I realize...

The solution is obvious, once you figure it out

Jack's tallit is due in  a of weeks. Ie had wanted a tallit with blue and gold stripes accented with red. I ordered the silk from one of my long time suppliers.  The silk for the body of the tallit was a white herringbone, even more wonderful than I had hoped for. Amazon.com Widgets I loved the metallic and silk dupioni then sent it was exactly what I wanted. The blue was not precisely what I wanted but was close enough to work. The red was not making me happy. It read as a little bit too pink, a little pallid for my needs and for Jack's taste.  While I was trying to figure my way out of the problem of the pallid red, I began piecing the blue and gold silks.  You can see the three fabrics here. I was feeling stuck so I just kept piecing away. . I rummaged through my stash hoping that something would work, Today the mess of my fabric stash rewarded me. A length of red velveteen emerged. It was exactly the right color. I apologise in advance for t...