MakeGrowGather

q&a with natalie chanin

2010-03-19T02:49:23Z

It is my very great honor today to welcome Natalie Chanin. If you don’t know Natalie’s work from her label Alabama Chanin, please head here right now. I have to admit, I have a couple of these pages bookmarked and I check in on my favorite designs from time to time when I need a visual hit of something singular and quieting and feminine.

Natalie just released her new book, Alabama Studio Style from STC Craft. It picks up where her first book, Alabama Stitch Book, left off. She was kind enough to take a break from her travels and answer some of my questions below.

KW: Hi Natalie, Welcome! I’m going to gush here because it’s the right thing to do. I met you a couple years ago when I walked into a studio in San Francisco where you were getting ready for a trunk show. I had only seen your work in photographs, then all of a sudden I stepped into a room full of racks of your dresses and skirts. To me, your clothes had such a presence in the room. It was almost like they hummed – or purred! – from every seam being loved into place. Which of course, they are because every aspect of your clothing line is done by hand: cutting, stitching, sewing, embellishing. So I wonder, do clothes feel different to you that haven’t been made by hand?

NC: Thank you so much for your kind words. I am so happy to be here and to be heading out your way very soon! I do feel what you write about in our clothing - being in the studio everyday is a luxury.

It is funny how spoiled you get after wearing our garments! I have a very hard time to find garments that meet all my requirements since starting my work with Alabama Chanin. Our pieces are just so comfortable, so easy to care for and designed to LIVE in a busy world and a busy life. I have become very demanding of my wardrobe. You know, most of our clients become repeat clients as they learn that a garment can truly become a part of your life.

And you know that old saying about “Loving Your Thread”… hard to measure but I certainly feel loved in a garment where every seam has been loved for me!

KW: I read your first book like it was a novel, cover to cover, and re-read the parts I especially loved. And this second book is no different. This time I finally took the plunge and am working on a tunic with the Angie’s Fall Stencil. After tracing and cutting the pattern and fabric, I arrived at the stenciling part. And I’m not going to lie to you, this part was a little terrifying, because I wanted it to work so very badly.

So I plunged in and then when I peeled the stencil back, I almost gasped – it was perfect. It looked and felt so real, so Alabama Chanin. What does it feel like as a designer to see your designs sort of fly the coop and have other people recreate them?

NC: This is absolutely the BEST part of the books… I love seeing how the books come alive in the hands of others!

KW: When I tell people what I’m working on, I hear a lot of, oh I could never do that. I don’t have the patience, etc. And I want to blurt out that I love an instant-gratification project as much as the next harried person. But you deconstruct the process of making these garments so well. What do you say to cheer people along who think they could never complete one of your projects?

NC: Until you try it, you don’t really understand the completely calming effect of working on these pieces and sewing by hand. Working in this way is so calming and you don’t appreciate it until you actually take up needle and thread.

It is more the other way around – after working this way, you have very little patience for other things… smile.

KW: One thing I love about your instructions is your plug for keeping working on something after it’s technically “finished” – to keep adding beads or embellishments. Do you have favorite pieces of clothing that keep evolving?

NC: In reality, every garment is a work-in-progress. I was just in New York at the ACE Hotel and found a hole in my favorite sweater. I mended the hole but had some extra thread on the needle… so, I just kept going and added a bit of embroidery around the neckline and a few beads that I happened to have in my sewing kit.

In order for us to keep garments in our lives and to be continually inspired by those garments, we have a commitment to keep going… to make that garment continue to evolve as we evolve.

KW: There is such a strong sense of place to everything you do, and this book is no exception. You include recipes and glimpses at your homemade dining room table and home. Can you talk about the sense of place that you bring into your work?

NC: There have been library shelves filled with works and studies about the Southern Sense of Place… I capitalize those words on purpose. It is such a big question that you ask. I wrote recently that the security of my home gives me the freedom to explore the world fearlessly. In essence, this sense of place is the basis for all that I do.

KW:I have to ask you while I have you here about your connection to radio, since I work as a reporter for my local public radio station. Do you see parallels between your craft and your love of radio? And I’m not thinking about the kind of quick deadline work I do, but the long-form work like The Kitchen Sisters and Ira Glass.

NC: I am addicted to radio… to the Kitchen Sisters and to Ira Glass and I have a great respect for craft of all kinds.

You know, the word “craft” has such strange connotations these days. Some people equate it with poorly made products while at the same time, it means exceptional products which are made by hand. I look forward to the day that craft claims its rightful place of honor.

BUT, to answer your question, I do see a connection between the stories that we preserve with textiles and the stories that people like the Kitchen Sisters and Ira Glass preserve with audio. And, I am honored and blown away that you would include my work in the same sentence with those great artists. Thank you.

KW: When I was thinking about this project, a funny analogy came to mind: marmalade. It sounds weird, but there’s something similar about touching every part of the process: picking the fruit, preparing it, letting it soak, then finally cooking it, jarring it and having those gem-colored jars to give to people. I haven’t gotten very far into the hand-stitching part of the tunic yet, but I am looking forward to this project keeping me company in a similar way. Do I sound crazy?

NC: No, you do not sound crazy but very sane! What you describe sounds to me like living.

I read the other day that every living being – be it a bird or a human – has 5 million heartbeats in its life. We should strive to make each heartbeat count. Beat by beat we should enjoy every minute growing into the next... sewing (or doing anything for that matter)… stitch by stitch, minute by minute… beat by beat.

Thanks so much, Natalie, and congratulations on your beautiful, inspiring book. Find more of Natalie’s blog appearances here, and while you’re there, leave a comment for a chance to win the STC Craft book of your choice. Good luck!

bog tea

2010-03-15T17:18:40Z

Our normal morning routine is pretty lackluster: wake up, take the dog for a walk, and get working. But we do happen to live in San Francisco, which means that even on a ho-hum morning, you may happen upon a view that makes it feel as if the world has just been remade and cracked open, all for you.

So one recent morning when there was a bright, blue-sky break from the rain, we made some tea and hauled it up our local hill. And now, we have a special name for this tea: bog tea.

This happened accidentally. We couldn’t find the top to our thermos, so we poured the tea into this swing top bottle. We brought mugs, a little jar of sugar, and toasted marmalade sandwiches.

We all know that things taste better outside. Now, I also think that things taste better when they have been carried in glass. Maybe this is just sentimental, but as we sat atop our craggy local peak, Mike told me about his Mom, who grew up in Sligo in Ireland. There was a bog at the end of their country road, and during the time of year when everyone would pitch in to cut and stack their turf for the year, Mike’s mom would bring tea out in an old whiskey bottle, already milked and sugared, for the regular tea breaks.

So in honor of St Paddy’s Day, I suggest that you brew some good, strong Irish tea, carry it outside, and drink in the world.

new washington post project

2010-03-11T02:09:39Z

A new project to take on spring showers is up at The Washington Post. This was a great project to create and work on because, really, when do you ever consider an umbrella DIY fodder? Give one of your dark workhorse umbrellas a punchy makeover with bright stacks of nylon circles, tacked down with buttons for extra dimension and homespun charm.

Get the step-by-step right here.

five things making me happy right now

2010-03-09T01:54:15Z

In the much-missed Domino magazine, one of my favorite features was the back page “10 Things That Make Me Happy.”

I loved that an assemblage of seemingly random goods offered a glimpse into someone’s personality and peculiarities. So I’m going to revive the idea here, but keep it at a more manageable list of five items (partly because of my remedial photoshop skills). I’m kicking off the feature with my favorite things of the moment. But I have some wonderful guests on tap to tell us about their favorite five, so stay tuned.

1. Magnolia Blossoms: Spring in Northern California arrives in February (sorry, East Coasters), starting with the cherry trees snowing down their delicate blossoms. Next up are magnolias. Their big, showy blooms unfurl slowly before the tree leafs out, making their emergence even more dramatic. (image from Etsy seller honeytree)

2. Seed Packets: I just learned that Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds just opened up an outpost in Petaluma, one of my favorite Norcal towns. I am in full spring fever mode right now, deciding what to try and grow in my small little backyard plot. Their dizzying range of choices does not make these decisions any easier, but I savor the process. (image from Sunset magazine)

3. Alabama Studio Style: More on this in a couple weeks when Natalie drops by for a blog visit. Needless to say, my dining room table is covered in piles of soft cotton jersey, as I practice hand-sewing and stitching. All for a project from her new book, which is chock full of inspirational designs and living.

4. Frye Boots: Tall boots make skirts possible here in chilly San Francisco. I have a beat up pair of vintage Frye boots that no amount of polish can restore at this point, but I hope to still be wearing them as a senior citizen for weekly Bingo games. This winter, I splurged on a new pair with a lower heel so I can walk all day and my feet are still ready for dancing at night.

5. Lemon Squeezer: It’s citrus season here in California, and our neighbors' trees are lit up with aromatic yellow spheres. I love citrus and this perfect tool makes it easy to keep a constant supply of lemon water close at hand: I squeeze a lemon in a pitcher of fizzy water for my desk. And when I can convince neighbors to spare some lemons, this genius tool makes curd-making quick and easy.

winter sunshine

2010-03-05T17:21:25Z

You may remember back to my rhapsodizing about making candied fruit peel this winter. Well, the smell of all that citrus and the resulting peels that were bright as stained glass inspired me to circle back and try bona fide marmalade. I used a recipe from this book, which I cannot say enough wonderful things about. Its straight talk and gorgeous photos and preserving wisdom totally and utterly demystify the process. And, whoa! I just this second found out this very book will be published in the US this summer. Giddyup!

One of the great things about traditional marmalade recipes is that you cut all the peel and pulp and let the whole shebang soak for 24 hours. So you can chip away at the process and steal a little bit of a sunny morning to do some prep work, then skip off to work knowing you have a pot of winter sunshine in the works.

homemade hopscotch and more

2010-03-01T20:05:15Z

When the rains breaks, there is nothing as good as hopping a train to the beach with both my sisters and niece and nephew to etch out a hopscotch court in the sand and marvel at my little niece’s pick for beach footwear.

After getting our shoes sandy and breathing in big lungfuls of salty air, we stepped out of the chill for bone-warming hot chocolate at the serene and lovely Trouble Coffee, followed by a slow wander through General Store – a new shop with great light and plain wood shelves artfully filled with a bang-on, perfect collection of everything from postcard sets to succulents to porcelain cans and vintage Irish sweaters. (click here for a great peek and review)

Thanks to Sunset magazine for the tip-off about the outer Sunset gems. So worth the train ride. Especially because my niece requested that we sing Christmas carols on the ride home, for no apparent reason other than to make us all smile, along with lots of our confused, but sweetly amused, fellow passengers.

rainy days and wednesdays

2010-02-24T23:58:58Z

I have come to love winter rains here in California. Perfect for putting on a big pot of soup in the evening and hunkering down with gardening books to plan for spring veggies. Even better if the reading takes place in the bath.

lovely card from letterpress, at etsy

floaty embellished tee

2010-02-22T03:28:46Z

This is a gauzy, haphazard embellishment that will likely make true seamstresses cringe. But sometimes you need a down-and-dirty 30 minute project to flounce up a shirt that is otherwise so very grey.

Follow along with instructions and photos right here.

more stewed seaweed

2010-02-16T00:55:13Z

I have written about my love of cooking with seaweed before: how startling it is to stir a pot that includes cream, lemon and – oh wait, that IS seaweed, I forgot.

I was not intentionally fishing for more seaweed uses, but then I was flipping through the back pages of my favorite old school Irish cookbook and came across a recipe for a seaweed throat syrup, just as my throat was feeling scratchy. So I it cooked it up and holy moley, it was fiercely bad. So bad that I felt it must work for people to have choked this stuff down for years. The hot tea smells and tastes like a humid aquarium, flavored ever-so-slightly with lemon and honey.

I couldn’t make it through the big mug, so I let it cool and now have this syrupy concoction in the fridge. Somehow, it tastes a little better cooled. And the seaweed makes a natural syrup so I can take it by the spoonful, even though it looks a little like frog spawn or sci-fi protoplasm.

Now that I have really enticed you, here is the recipe, adapted from The Ballymaloe Cookbook by Myrtle Allen:

Soak ¼ cup carrageen moss for 10 minutes in a cup of water. Remove, discarding water. Add moss to a saucepan with 1¼ cups fresh cold water and bring to a boil slowly. Strain and add honey and fresh lemon juice to taste. Drink hot or cool and add a couple tablespoons to tea, or take straight spoonfuls from the bottle.

an unexpected start to the day

2010-02-15T17:20:18Z

Happened across this at the top of our local park this morning. Enormous, undulating bubbles in the fog. Some otherworldly magic for the start of the week.