Chicoree Shoppe

Chicoree Shoppe Hats this Fall

2011-09-26T13:53:00.003-04:00

How to Make a Leather Chisel Wrap

2011-09-23T10:39:00.003-04:00

One of the first projects I tackled with my new sewing machine was to make my Fiance a chisel wrap to house his hand tools. If you are interested in doing this yourself, follow along.

The tools you will need:
- cutting pad
- rotary cutter
- ruler of some sort
- a marking device (soap, chalk or a pencil)
- a good iron
- heavy duty thread
- leather (I used deer skin)
- denim

Supplies

Iron out any wrinkles in the leather and stretch as much as possible when the skin is warm to touch. Use a ruler and rotary cutter to square the piece of leather you are going to use for the wrap. I decided to leave the flap side raw as it adds a rustic appearance. Fold the bottom end of the leather to the desired height you wish to have it. This will serve as the pocket for the chisels to sit in. Cut a piece of denim to fit inside the pocket as a liner. The leather is quite soft and without a liner, the sharp chisels could puncture through. If you have a serger, serge the edges of the denim; if not, simply sew along the edges with a zigzag stitch to reduce fraying.

Fasten the denim to the leather along the bottom edge of the wrap. Fasten the denim at the top edge. Create a two step hem on the top edge of the denim by folding the raw end inwards, iron flat and then again, iron flat. Sew this to the leather for a clean, accentuated pocket.

Place the chisels inside the unfinished pocket to ensure the height is where you want it. Now turn the pocket inside out and fasten the pocket sides. I reinforced the first stitch to increase the strength of the seam.

Fold pocket outwards. Start sewing slots into the wrap by measuring first with the chisels. I created a specific pocket for each chisel but universal sized ones could also be created. Use a marking utensil to get the desired width for the slots and a ruler to ensure they are square with the wrap itself. I sewed two stitches side by size for added strength and decorative purposes.

I left a larger pocket in the middle of the wrap so that extra slots could be added in the future when the chisel collection increases. To complete, sew a strap to one edge of the wrap. Ensure that it is centered on the wrap when it is all bundled up before you fasten it.

All finished!

All wrapped up!

The bottom edge

Side profile

The happy boy sleeping with his new chisel wrap!

Oh those beautiful hats...

2011-09-22T21:38:00.000-04:00

The Swagger - 2011 winter fashion

2011-09-22T21:37:00.004-04:00

This fall I am pleased to see that some great oversized trends are on the Runway. I have an over sized chest filled with just such coats that I will start listing on Etsy!

Wish I had this coat!

I Have this exact coat. Purchased in mint condition from a garage sale for 1 dollar!

Where in the World is Carmen San Diego?

Lace or no lace

2011-09-22T11:11:00.004-04:00

I have been spending a significant amount of time looking at wedding dress styles as I prepare myself to start some irreversible alterations on my own dress. I decided to share as I found it very helpful when I stumbled across a blog with numerous styles and dresses that suited my fancy.

Bernina

2011-09-22T10:19:00.002-04:00

We have returned to Southern Ontario for another winter of school, work and creativity. The weather is still warm here for short sleeves and I can enjoy my morning ritual or drinking coffee and reading down by the river with my dog. I had a fantastic summer filled with short work days, even longer weekends, canoe rides, long hikes and road trips. Living in the caboose will never get old and being proposed to by song is pretty awesome as well.

I found a wedding dress, well I found two and purchased two in case something horrible happens and I NEED a backup. I am planning on redesigning one of them as their is an abundance of raw ivory cream silk to work with. This has the potential to work out in my favour...or not, hence the necessity for the second dress.

I started the alterations, or rather the destruction of the dress before I actually had a sewing machine and removed numerous pounds of crinoline which was housed between two layers of silk in the ballgown skirt. About a week later, we made a day trip to Kingston to look at some used machines.

I found Bernina, sandwiched between two other floor models that were hardly comparable. The machine was born in 1982 which means she is older and wiser than I am. She has all her metal parts, red detailing and a fancy latch case. She came with a rockin red foot petal and purrs when she stitches. In our short time together we made a denim hair trimmer case and a leather chisel wrap for my Fiance's hand tools. I am not quite ready to take the wedding dress to her but I can feel that it will be soon.

A Happy Ending in Winnipeg? I think not...

2010-12-06T19:10:00.000-05:00

Then came the time to move across the country to settle in a little heritage town near Ottawa. We spent months renovating, cleaning, downsizing and garage selling.

Once arrived, I sat and tried to figure out what to do with myself. Well, I spent numerous hours sleeping, taking my dog for long hikes, visiting friends and discovering what the surrounding area had to offer. What I realized was that this little town of 5000 had everything one needs. It also had a picturesque landscape, mild weather and a location smack dab in the middle of everything. I could visit friends in Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto or make my way to New York at the drop of a hat. I also realized that every small dot on the map within a 200-mile radius was another mid-sized community just like this one. Every community had tons of charm, stone and brick buildings and antique shops. Right up my ally? I think yes. 

On a Saturday I stumbled upon an Estate Sale - a place I had only every dreamed of - in my own neighborhood. The house was a 4 storey 100 year old brick home. Once inside, a time warp took place and you were in the dwelling of a 1950s collector.  Apparently the second floor had not been used for some time and was completely packed to the brim only months before. It took the estate sale company 3 months to organize the house into what had now become a museum! I was in heaven. The owner definitely had the same taste as myself in clothing and was my exact size in 1940.  

I bought it all - 3 truckloads of vintage clothing.

Fly Tier…or a Tie Flyer.

2010-12-05T22:23:00.004-05:00

This evening a few friends and I sat around a makeshift workbench involved in great productivity. I was making feather jewelry, and the other two were drafting. My friend reminisced about the Fly Tying classes his mother used to enroll him in. He grew up on a famous fly fishing river in Cape Breton and said that some flies can sell for over $50 – If they catch fish – and the most beautiful ones always end up in frames.

The topic sparked the memory of how, when I was a child, my great uncle sent me 3 flies in the mail. I cannot remember the significance of them or the context of why they were sent to me. I did not know how to fly fish and never took up the sport. However, I put them in my jewelry box and there they still sit. I come across them every couple of years and study them. I think of them fondly sitting there in my jewelry box but never have I taken them out of their protective packaging or used them for fly-fishing. 

Then I recalled the Fly Tying vice my father gave to me a few years ago. It consisted of a couple of movable magnifying glasses on a cast iron base with two heavy-duty tongs. Still when I received this gift I did not jump into the sport of tying flies. I once used it to look at the symmetrical nature of dragon fly wings but that was as close as I came to tying flies. 

Now as I write this, I remember cleaning the cottage of a man who had dedicated an entire area of his cottage to   tying flies.   Whenever I came to cleaning his office I was under strict instructions never to dust or vacuum the over sized pine desk. The surface was littered with minuscule, beautiful particulates. 

Sometimes signs are not clear. 

It was not until I found the following page, browsing the art of tying flies that I realized where I must evolve my art of working with feathers.

10 Most Beautiful Fishing Flies I Ever Seen

It is all too clear that I must become a Fly Tier…or a Tie Flyer.