How colour analysis can help you choose fabric and yarn :: By Kate from Fabrickated ::

Happy Sunday everyone! I hope you had a great weekend. I love having guest bloggers in my blogging space. I learn so much every time, it is really inspiring. Colour analysis is something I've been wanting to know more about, to make better decisions when it came to buying wool and fabric. And when Kate asked me to come over and have my colours done, I did not think twice, and I was in her office within a week. I was of the view that if I learnt more about my complexion and what worked for me, I would be wasting less money on fabrics that do not suit me, and splash out on those that do. It is another sustainable way to look at fashion. 

Also Kate is amazing fun to spend time with, and totally inspiring. She is an active blogger, as well as the Chief Executive of a housing association. And yes, she does have children, and grand children - I mean whoah amazing. So you get your colours done, and a great dose of inspiration.

I will leave it to Kate to explain how she approaches colour analysis and what her conclusions were for me (hopefully I will make full use of these findings)! 

I love colour and I like making clothes. While I have always known, more or less, what colours suit me (trial and error – lots of them), I wanted to know what colours suited my family as I like to make presents that will suit and please them. So a few years ago I trained in colour analysis and I am happy to share my skills with others.

If you are a keen knitter or dress maker you will spend time choosing just the right fabric or yarn for each project. You may be considering:

• The right fabric for the pattern
• The quality and price of the fabric
• How much it will go with the rest of the wardrobe
• How much you like the colour, texture, pattern etc

Do you consciously think – does this colour really suit me?

Do you hold the fabric up in the shop, draping it over your body, and think – does this piece of cloth or ball of wool make me look more beautiful, brighter, less tired – or does it emphasise the little imperfections in my skin?

The thing is, on the whole, certain shades work really well together. Not all reds looks great with all yellows, but certain reds and yellows look amazing together. Normally this is because they are going in the same direction. So a yellow with a warm undertone will match a red with a warm undertone. A deep purple will usually work great with a deep green. A muted orange will work nicely with a muted brown. If you look at patterned fabric you will see that normally the designer has stuck to one direction (black and white works as they are both bright colours), although sometimes one contrasting element can work well.

You may have found in nature how colours work harmoniously together – a pale blue-green birds egg with a light orangey brown speckle; a tropical flower that includes the brightest orange, yellow and green; a girl with deep brown skin, deeper brown eyes and black hair.

So humans have a natural colour palette that tends to work beautifully together. Take the classic red head with light skin, freckles and light greeny eyes; or snow white with her red lips, white skin and black hair. Harmonious colour palettes.

So the point of colour analysis is to determine what your primary colour direction is – deep or light; cool or warm; bright or muted. Many of us have a secondary direction as well that helps inform the primary direction.

 When I analysed Nat’s colours I found that the light colours looked great on her – colours with quite a lot of water in them, relatively speaking. The deepest shades tended to made her skin look a little tired and grey.  But we found that the muted shades were also better than the brightest shades. So Nat looks best in lighter colours with a softer look. Now she knows which colours look best (I gave her a colour chart of the types of shades that look the best on her), I would say there are a few advantages that she might enjoy.

• Helping her choose what wool or fabric to buy for each project, saving time and money and reducing waste
• Ensuring that everything in her wardrobe will work with everything else, making it easier to put outfits together
• Giving her the confidence to wear more colour, certain that it flatters her delicate pretty complexion
• Knowing that a nicely put together, harmonious look will add to her self confidence
• As a knitter and dressmaker she can use the information to create patterns, blends or mixes of colours that work brilliantly together
• When what we wear is harmonious with our own colouring it helps to give a good impression to those we meet.

Well I am feeling under pressure to make the right choices, but also more confident to make choices. I have my colour chart in my purse, and take it with me everywhere. To be fair, my colours are probably colours that I liked already, but it has certainly widened the range of colours I could consider wearing. And hopefully I will be confident enough to add more colours in my wardrobe (when I finish knitting all the grey wool in my stash...). 

Bamboo Silk :: A Sustainable Fabric Alternative (if chosen carefully) ::

* Don't forget to enter my current giveaway here*

Let's be honest I never had a lot of silk in my stash - in fact I only have one piece of silk which I have been too scared to actually start cutting into. I bought it on sale some time ago, it was pretty, cheap and I felt quite brave at the time. And now it is stuck in my stash. 

Later on I read about the process to obtain silk - basically boiling the worms alive inside their cocoons. To ensure that the silk filament is whole, culturists must destroy the chrysalis. This is done by stoving, or stifling the chrysalis with heat.This is heavily protested against by animal rights activists and vegans, who view the killing of these chrysali which would soon emerge as moths, immoral and cruel. So I  decided that silk would not be added to my stash (or wardrobe) anymore - but that was an easy decision - the same however applies to yarn of course - a harder decision for me. 

However I do love the feel of silk. A silk top will always add a bit of glamour to an outfit. I like the drape, even though I am not that keen to work myself with silk. So what ethical alternatives could provide a similar glamour factor? 

This top from this collection

I looked alternatives to silk, such as "Peace" or "Ahimsa" silk. Most cultivated Ahimsa Silk is Bombyx mori. It is raised just like conventional cultivated silk, right up to the point where the cocoons would be stifled, or processed with heat, in order to kill the pupa and keep it from breaking through the cocoon. The Ahimsa cocoons are all allowed to hatch and breed, and the silk is processed from the hatched cocoons. In some cases, the cocoons can be cut open and the pupa tipped out; this avoids the moth soiling the cocoon with urine. There is however some controversy about the cruelty-free aspect on this silk as well.  

Humane alternatives to silk—including nylon, milkweed seed pod fibers, silk-cotton tree and ceiba tree filaments, polyester, and rayon—are also easy to find. Another alternative is bamboo silk. I made a top with bamboo silk (not blogged yet) - and I loved the drape, and using the fabric. Although it is slippery, it is nowhere as slippery as silk. Whilst researching bamboo silk a bit more, I have now discovered that it might not be as sustainable as it might seem. 

Bamboo is an extremely fast growing grass taking only 4-5 years to fully mature and harvest (compare that with 20 years or more for other woods). It can grow up to a meter a day, and re-sprouts through its roots, so there’s no need for replanting. The plant’s growth puts little strain on the environment because it requires no pesticides or irrigation for growth, and can be harvested sustainably.

However turning bamboo into a silky fabric requires highly intensive chemical processes. The undertaking is a viscose rayon process, turning a cellulose fibre (plant material) into fabric. Any plant or tree—in this case bamboo—can be used as a cellulose source, but the fabrication transforms bamboo into rayon, and must be labelled as so. Not all ‘regenerating cellulose fibres’ are chemical intensive. For example, producing lyocell captures and reuses 99% of the waste.

The growing of bamboo is environmentally friendly but the manufacturing of bamboo into fabric raises environmental and health concerns because of the strong chemical solvents used to cook the bamboo plant into a viscose solution that is then reconstructed into cellulose fiber for weaving into yarn for fabric.

Bamboo silk fibre - picture from here

Some bamboo fibre manufacturing facilities put forward their sustainability and green credentials by establishing ISO 9000 Quality Management policies and ISO 14000 Environmental Management policies. This is largely a PR excercise because these ISO standards do not mean that the facilities, their manufacturing processes or their fabrics have been certified by any of the international certification bodies such as SKAL, Soil Association, Demeter, KRAV, or OKO-tex.

So not all bamboo fabric is eco-friendly. Some companies choose to chemically process the bamboo. Look for the Oeko-Tek certification (like this one in the UK) to ensure that you are purchasing true eco-fabric.

I will use the silk in my stash - it is there, it is still beautiful. But I like working with bamboo silk better, I have already made a top out of it, and there are cream and black fabrics in my stash ready to be used. 

Have you used bamboo silk or silk? Which ethical fabric do you like working with best? 

Maternity Wear # 2 - The EcoFabrics Top and a Discount Code | A Finish {Dressmaking}

These pictures were nearly never taken - this is our last shoot before we had to fly out of Brittany (ie a couple of hours before the flight was actually due to take off), but I am so happy we took the time to take the pictures. Of course on the blog, it is about the top and the fabric I chose, but I do love that picture with Baby MiH, showing his addiction to the sand, and me thinking, please please don't eat it.

Going back to this new pregnancy top... I have actually already made a top out this pattern (from a Japanese book, in French but honestly it is all about the pictures) - and in fact I took pictures of it back in Brittany whilst pregnant with Baby MiH - can you see why I was so keen to take pictures out there. 

I knew it was a great fit for pregnancy wear, but this time I wanted to have a much lighter fabric than Essex linen (this year's summer has been much hotter). 

Let's start by the minor modification for pregnancy wear. Although the pattern (cut in my normal size M) fitted me until I was 5/6 months pregnant without any changes the first time round (and I am a little bit smaller this time), I decided to add some fabric at the gathering stage at the front, in a similar way as with the Tova. I added 2 inches to the pattern (4 inches in total). I reckon I probably added another 2 months for pregnancy wear and it can still be worn as an oversized blouse when I am no longer pregnant. 

I also cut a size bigger for the sleeves, because the pattern seems to fit skinny arms only. I cut the sleeves in L, and added another 1 cm when cutting the fabric. 

The fabric, well let me tell you, I am very excited about this. My readers will know that I am trying to find fabrics/craft supplies that are ethical and environmental-friendly - and this is my first find. I had been looking for a while on the net, and then thought of Etsy - and this is where you will end up on the Eco Fabric Store run by Vishruti, which stores organic, naturally dyed fabrics.

And it is quite hard to find fabric prints that I like, and fit with my sustainability aspirations, that I wanted to know about more about Vishruti and her shop, and share it on the blog so that if you buy her fabric, you too will feel part of the Eco Fabric Store story. 

Hi Vishruti, how long have you been interested in environmental friendly processes in the dyeing of fabric?

Since my teens, I have always been interested in Eco, Organic, Recycled, Earth-Friendly ways of living. It is something that was a part of my lifestyle even before I knew it. My businesses too always reflect the same sentiment and values.

Tell me more about the Eco Fabric Store and its values. 

The Eco Fabric Store was born recently on March 21, 2014, and is based in Mumbai in India. However I have another 3 other shops on Etsy , so technically I am an Etsy shop seller since February 2009. You can only find me on Etsy at the moment, but I am planning to build my independant website as well. 

All my fabrics are Eco Friendly and Earth friendly. The yarns are natural and are hundred percent biodegradable. We also offer a variety of fabrics made from Eco and Earth friendly fibers such as Organic Cotton, Bamboo, Hemp, Soyabean Protein, Banana and Ahimsa Silk. 

I used to have my own organic cotton garmenting and manufacturing unit which was certified by GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standards) . However I closed my unit because of my marriage and moving to another city, but kept very good contacts and friendships with the certified mills I used to work with and all the fabrics that I am selling on Etsy are from those certified mills only. I work with local communities, and all her products are a representation of local communities, paying fair wages and generating local employment. These are stringent tests that they have to pass to gain the certification.

What dyeing process do you use?

The naturally dyeing process is a GOTS Approved Natural Dyeing (also referred as Vegetable dyeing, Herbal Dyeing). We have developed the expertise to dye/print with flowers, roots, fruits, etc.  like turmeric, onion, myraballams, madder, kesu flowers, dhavadi flowers, natural indigo etc. This not only prevents water pollution due to replacement of petrochemical dyes with vegetable dyes/natural dyes,but also imparts medicinal value to cloth as many herbs used for dyeing are having high medicinal value. Also, this is not a newfound process, it was a common practice in ancient India. Historically done by hand and on small scale.

Do you design the pattern? 

Yes, being a designer, I also design fabric patterns. I also take personal or custom orders from clients who like to create a range or produce a custom line for themselves only. I also have a little block printing space where I create fabrics prints using unique OOAK wooden blocks for myself and my family. 

What can we expect to find in your shop? 

Hopefully there will be more designs available each season, and very soon trimmings. However working with nature needs me to work according to its moods ! For instance the rainy season doesn't allow the natural dyes to dry soon. There is also high humidity issues which causes certain pigments to coagulate which is why certain colours cannot be prepared in certain seasons. For updates, you should like her Facebook page. 

And because Vishruti is such a nice person, you can use the discount code: MADEINHOME10 to get 10% off any purchase in her shop.

As for me, I cannot wait to get started on other projects using the other fabrics I bought in her shop. I am also really tempted by her new tribal print, and I have noticed that she has posted an amazing dark red version of it. 

Destashing to get to sustainable stashing

How many times have I told myself 'I will destash' or 'I will only use fabric from my stash'  and the next thing I know I am buying more (gorgeous, of course) fabric (ditto for yarn). It may ring true with some of you - I have seen many collaborative blogging efforts to stop buying more. Clearly I have my limits - I cannot just stop buying - and in fact I want to buy more, just differently, of a more sustainable kind. 

If you follow me on twitter, you may have noticed a total change in the way I use it. To be fair, I did not use that much in the past (usually to notify the publication of new blog post) and therefore the fact that I am using it is in itself a major change. The second change is that I am using twitter as a way of learning and sharing more about ethical fashion, sustainable craft supplies, organic fabric, natural dyes, and the occasional upcycling project. My main interest is of course the craft supplies side of things as I am hoping to make more items myself, but I am fairly partial to ethical fashion too. 

So what has happened so far and what does it mean? 

• What is in my stash? 

It started one afternoon - I took everything out of cupboards, shed/sewing room and the attic and I laid it all out on my bed; and it was scary - there was a lot there, some I did not know I had, some I wondered why I had it, some I liked as long as it was not used on me - a mix of 'it was a bargain I had to buy it', or 'I will use this for a specific project', or 'I just like the fabric/yarn, will see what I make of it'. 

At the end of the day, I do like a lot of what I have - which makes destashing much easier - however I am not always sure I have enough of it for bigger projects. I seemed to have accumulated a lot of one skein of yarn here and 1m of fabric there. There could be strange combo being featured on this blog...

• How am I going to use my stash?

There will be two ways: I will be using my stash in future projects, and I will sell some of it and generate money for the next stash. 

I assume that using my stash for projects will be both project-driven and stash-driven. I have 8 skeins of Chickadee for instance, and I have been spending a lot of time finding knitting patterns that I will require that exact amount of yarn (and still fit my growing bump - not easy). 

As for the selling, I have decided to do it through this blog - probably on Thursdays, so it may be worth checking out because you could grab yourself a bargain. I am going to start with my stash of Tanis Fibre Arts yarn, beautiful but not for me unfortunately. Hopefully someone will love it and knit it! 

• How strict am I going to be with this sustainability malarkey? 

At this stage, I am SO into it - but I am always like this when I start a new project. I read about it, I research it intensely and that is all I think about. I think this is probably ok whilst my left over stash is still quite big and does not preclude any new project. It might be different if a new fabric line comes out or if I am dead set on a new project that requires specific supplies I don't have or cannot find a sustainable alternative for. 

I am not going to be too strict about it. I will try to get organic fabric and yarn whenever I can. I am going to be a bit more relaxed about natural dyes - although that might change as my techniques improve and/or my favourite suppliers list increase. I am totally learning as I am going. I may come back to this post in a couple of years and wonder why I was worried of having a stash of cream, or wonder which planet I was on. 

In addition, and most importantly, I will not judge anyone who is not interested in this, I am not an eco-warrior. I am just trying to spend my money better and find better alternatives if I can. And when I share this someone gets inspired as well, that one person will make me very happy indeed!

• What will happen on the blog? 

Not a lot will change - this is a blog about handmade stuff, combined with the occasional life snapshots. I may share some of my favourite sellers of sustainable craft suppliers, as it is quite specific and it might be useful. I may try my hand at some techniques such as natural dyeing (I am fairly excited about this) - and share the result with you (good or bad, I promise). I will try to tell a bit more about where the fabric comes from - whether it is destashing or the new stash, and report on project destash - I have at the moment 6 boxes full of fabric and yarn. I am hoping to get it down to 2!

The yarn stash

However in the background I will do a lot more research about what it is I am buying and how it is sustainable, and how it is helping local communities. I am interested in those stories, and it will make that garment I will just have sewn that extra special.

Phew! Here we are.. I did want to write this post for a while. It is not a new direction, but it is certainly something very important to me. Maybe having a second baby had wider impact than I thought. I hope you will carry on joining me and share your own experience of handcraft in my more sustainable world!