New D.I.Y Felt Embroidery Kits Now Available in My Etsy Store!

I am so excited to share my new iteration of my Afro Diva and Puff Diva designs. They are now available in my Etsy store as laser-cut felt embroidery kits.  

The kits are available in floral embellished Afro or Afro Puffs. The designs can be further customized with a range of skin choices and sunglasses color.

The kits include background fabric, felt, coordinating embroidery floss and a needle. A basic stitch guide is included as well as suggested stitches to use. I love that each maker can put their own spin on the design. It can be used with the flowers or without. Add freestyle design stitches to the elements to make it your own. Use the included colors of floss or mix it up with your own.

Do you want to order a large quantity for a girls night out, a slumber party or sorority event? Do you want custom flower, hair or floss colors? Do you want stock for your store? Email me here so we can discuss it.

Happy Sewing,
Bianca

Create What You Wish Existed, Embroidery Edition

Hello friends, I have been away from my sewing machine for a little bit. I have missed it, but I have been holding an embroidery hoop instead. I am sure you recall I designed some natural hair theme fabric for my daughter and myself. It was  my response to a negative comment about my daughter’s natural hair. A playmate with pin straight hair remarked that her curly ringlets when worn loose, looked “weird”. Her feelings were hurt that someone, a friend no less, would say a hurtful thing about a physical feature she loves and embraces.  

In that creative endeavor, I choose to remind her of how beautiful her/our hair is. As we continue to live, grow and craft she is expanding her skills and learning hand embroidery. While looking through my embroidery patterns she noted that none of the authors of the books illustrated people who look like her or me. She also noted that the designs I have made from these patterns do. I explained that I change the features, hair, and skin to look like I want because the designers didn't do it.

This lead to a discussion about whether people of color are excluded from designs on purpose, overlooked based on ignorance of the need, are not seen as a people who craft, or perceived as people unwilling to purchase designs. We had no definitive answers to these questions. (It is hard to explain issues of racism, institutional oppression, micro-aggression and cultural appropriation to an 8-year old without doing some emotional harm.) She did suggest I stop buying designs from people who don't think about us (smart girl!). She observed that the modifications are easy for me, so until now, I have not been troubled by it (not true, but I was rolling with it). "What about those who can't change the designs?" she asked, "What are they supposed to do?", "Will their embroidery never look like them?"

I have told you guys before that she thinks I can anything and encourages me to try. She suggested I make embroidery patterns that celebrates natural hair and sell them in my Etsy store! I had done much of the foundation work with the fabrics I printed, so we thought, why not?

My hopes with these designs are multiple:

•        To create fun whimsical designs that celebrate the beauty of natural hair for women and girls who embrace or struggle to embrace, their hair texture.
•   To provide racial diversity in available hand embroidery designs for all creative makers.
•     To create a fun design that celebrates the beauty of natural hair for women and girls who appreciate natural hair, but do not wear it because it is not their natural hair texture.

    These designs are now available in my Etsy store as PDF digital downloads and printed linen fabric.

The downloads include a 7-page booklet that includes a stitch guide, pattern transfer methods and instructions for adding water color accents to your designs. 

The designs can be stitched by a beginner using one or two stitches. A more experienced stitcher can embellish the designs with more elaborate stitches. The patterns can also be used to try multiple stitches as a sampler.

The patterns are sold individually ($4), as a complete collection ($15), or pre-printed fabric ($8). 

Stitch a message to remind someone they are beautiful inside and out.

Glitter applique adds a fun, fresh and dramatic pop to the sunglasses.

This message comes in two fonts with both the Afro Diva and Afro Puff Diva.

 Mix things up with watercolor.

Or keep it plain with a pop of sparkle.

These were so fun to make. My daughter loves them all. Her favorite design is this one. She loves that it can be stitched on fabric to match anyone's skin tone.

Her's

 Mine

   Her friend's

   Since sharing my daughter's story, I have gotten lots of feedback through email, Facebook, and Instagram.  Some of it has been encouragement and support, commiseration and consolation and news reports of people being ridiculed because of their hair and/or complexion. 

  There is a need for people to see positive representation of themselves in everyday life.  I feel it is important for girls and woman to see their natural selves shown with pride and fun. I made these for people with "weird" hair to remind them they are beautiful, always. I made these for those with pin straight hair, to remind them there is nothing "weird" about it. 

    

   The designs are now live in the Etsy shop and in my Craftsy Store! I hope you will buy and make them and have a blast doing it. I also hope you will share the link/image on social media. There is a someone who needs a reminder that they are beautiful, naturally.

   Happy Sewing,  

   Bianca   

  

Create What You Wish Existed In The World: Fabric Printing for Little Miss.

Update! This fabric is available in my Etsy store!

Over a year ago  a child at the YMCA told my darling child her free flowing curly locks were weird. Her feelings were hurt, she was saddened and confused. She wondered how someone could be so ill-mannered and cruel. After a conversation, reading her books, "Happy to Be Nappy" and "The Skin We Are In" and she let it go. It wasn't so easy for me to move on and I made a note to step up my "you are awesome" and "fearfully and wonderfully made" game.  

I looked around for fun fabrics with kids like my daughter represented. I found a few, but they included unicorns, princesses and fairies. I have bought them and think they are great, but feature fantasy and myth. I wanted a normal design based on real people; based on us. When I couldn't find what I was looking for I decided to make what I wanted.

                       

Lately, I have been playing around with fabric printing. I have shared the prints I have previously experimented with on my Instagram. They have been small sample size and border prints, but never yardage enough for clothing. The process is imperfect and time-consuming so I was reluctant to print on a larger scale until now.

             

I made this Afro Puff Diva using design software and a die cutting machine. After careful consultation with the model, I hand-stamped the diva with black fabric paint and white flowers between. I love the texture the fabric paint gives. Some stamps are completely saturated and others have a weathered appearance. 

                   

I chose to use New Look 6320 to make this dress and it was a fast and easy make.

                                   

I love the collar on this dress. I wish I could take credit for perfect alignment of the diva on the collar when folded down. It was a happy coincidence that the hair and sunglasses matched up. I couldn't have planned for that had I tried.

                                           

I didn't want to hope on chance on the sleeve placement. I wanted the image centered, so I printed them directly on the cut sleeve piece.

                                    

I modified the dress to have side seam pockets and chose to add a regular zipper instead of the suggested exposed zipper.

                      

I love this and want one for myself! I have made a stencil of this and other designs I am working on. I hope that airbrushing the fabric will be faster enabling me to make more in less time. It will result in a different texture but I think it will be good. 

Can you tell she loves her hair and her dress? The positive messages she receives far outweigh the random carelessness of a poorly raised kid. I love that since that incident she continues to completely embrace her identity, asserts herself when confronted and moves on respectfully. She is so great! I want to be her when I grow up!

Happy (confident) sewing,

Bianca

Afro Diva Pincushions

So, I have been printing more fabric of my lovely handmade afro-haired sunglasses wearing diva. 

I have gotten carried away and decided to make a few pincushions. The base is the printed fabric with applique hair and embroidery accents in the hair and lips. This is a large pincushion that measures approximately 6inx6inx1in. It is filled with crushed walnut shells for weight and stability.

I have such fun playing in her "hair" with the pins!

I made a couple for friends and decided to have an Instagram swap with the extras. The support for the pincushions was positive and I was encouraged to make more to sell. I thought it was a good idea and have added them to my Etsy store. You can see them all in my store below.

   

Happy Sewing, Bianca

Fabric Printing and Finally a Sew Together Bag

Howdy! Long time no sew. I have been recovering from recent surgery for a torn meniscus and microfracture of my left knee. It is not my sewing knee, but it hurts lots and I am on heavy pain meds post- op. I have been busy in my mind, and able to steal only a few snippets of clear headedness to make anything.  I have long wanted to make the Sew Together Bag by Sew Demented and decided now was as good a time as any. 

Sew Together Bag

I have been playing around with fabric printing and made up this fun little bag in fabric that I hand-printed. I designed a large stamp based on a fun graphic. I used a combination of acrylic, foam and block printing to build my stamp.

Back

I cut the bag pattern prior to my injury with the goal of sewing it up. While laid up in bed, I added embroidered details to my printed fabric. I randomly stitched French knots, and various shapes to fill the negative space and accent the flowers. I added more dimension to the bag front with Trapunto surface embellishment. To do this, I backed the top layer with a second layer of fabric and stitched around the hair shape. I cut a small hole in the second layer, filled it with polyester filler then I stitched it closed.    

After my embellishments I began sewing the bag. I am a visual learner and I found the included instructions for making this bag insufficient. I bought the pattern and never made it because, there were not enough illustrations.  I found a tutorial by The Quilt Barn that shows step-by-step pictures to accompany the pattern. It is wonderful and I suggest you follow it if you plan to make the bag. 

The bag is meant to carry sewing supplies and the three zipper pockets will keep my tools in order. The lining is leftover Lisette fabric and the pockets are made  from a fat quarter on hand.

I like the accordion sides to hold the pockets. The zipper strap is cleverly secured to the sides to create the handles.  This bag is a fun canvas to mix and match prints. It is not for the zipper phobic, but not difficult to make. 

It may be the meds, but I am pretty happy with my bag!  I have coveted the bags made by others and I am glad to have finally made it.

In this process, I have found I really love stamping my own fabric! Playing with colors, orientation, and design on various fabrics is really fun.  

Supa Fly!

Cool Breeze

Spring Time

I am still tweaking it all, but I am having fun with it all, can you tell? I may be adding some of these to my Etsy store if I can bear to part with them :)

Happy Sewing,

Bianca