Journeys and Vintage - by St Leger & Viney

While I missed the official launch of St Leger's two new ranges last week, I managed to pop in the following day and take a look at their glorious new goodies...

(Images via St.Leger website top, Ralph Lauren bottom left, and Pintrest bottom right)

Vintage is a range of upholstery fabric that's been engineered to look like a well-worn chenille. There are three designs in the range: Antique, Antique Kelim and Vintage.  All designs are tough and boast between 40 000 to 50 000 rubs. Although they slot in perfectly in vintage styled interiors, they also work well in contemporary interiors (the contemporary, clean lines of the sofa in the St.Leger showroom attests to that). Antique Kelim is available gorgeous jewel colours (no-one does ranch-chic like Ralph Lauren, right?), while Antique and Vintage colourways range from soft, muted hues to deep, dark tones and fiery warm tones.

Technical facts: 

Antique has 50 000 rubs and is made up of 69% synthetic (P) and 31% Cotton. It comes in six colourways 

(Left image blogger's own, right image via Leather Chairs of Bath on Pintrest UK) 

Antique Kelim has 40 000 rubs, is 100% synthetic (P) and comes in three colourways.

Vintage has 50 000 rubs, is 100% synthetic (P) and comes in six colourways.

Journeys consists of thirteen designs and uses rose quartz, black and charcoal, indigo and apple green. Printed on a blend of cotton, linen and rayon, the base-cloth has a soft, luxurious handle. The whole range is on trend regarding gender-neutrality and could translate to almost any interior.

Designs Bricktown and Cutglass are strong, easy-to-use geometrics. Bambara, Dreamtime, Eden, Maui and Mudcloth all pay homage to tribal patterning. 

Frond, Pollock and Wycombe are all painterly and inspired by different paint techniques. Shibori, Shibori Diamond and Shibori Dot are all a nod to the Japanese shabori tradition of manual resist dyeing. 

(Left and top Images via St Leger website and bottom image via Park & Cube)

Also... KLAXON!!!! St.Leger & Viney's annual sale runs from 26 July to 28 July in Cape Town. Yowzer!

Tell next time nerds x :)

must love gauzy linen

(Images: both via megbydesign.com)

We just got back from a trip to Bali, and while it was a surf trip that didn't involve much fabric, fabric found me. While sniffing around various tourist destinations like Ubud and Singapore on our way home, I couldn't help noticing the awesome fashion aesthetic that many of the oriental women have. 

Our neighbour is Japanese and I've always loved her sense of style - lots of loose-fitting smocks and tunics, natural fabrics and comfortable shoes (that are actually shaped like normal human feet, not like some pointy-toed alien feet.)

To explain where I'm at, here's what I mean...

I love the understated grace of these designs. They are both timeless and would suit women of any age. The way that the navy dress is layered over white and denim is ACE!

(images: left via veritecoeur.jp and right via lagenlook tunic via pintrest)

Say linen and I think French vintage sleepwear (I actually bought an antique nightdress when I was in Italy. It's LOVELY! BTW, Bellamy and Bellamy have some stunning replicas in their store.)  I'm crazy for the rumpled, pebbled washed look on the left and the French painter's smock on the right is sublime. Look at those pleats!

(Images: left via Pigve.com and right April Cornell french artist smock via pintrest)

Lightweight linen cowl neck tops... it's a YES from me. I'll be hunting down a pattern for these.

( Images: left linen smock on etsy via Pintrest, right via vividlinen.com)

Classy, fresh and understatedly sexy. However, I think it's all about the gauzy, light weight of the fabric. You don't want to look like an extra on Litte House on the Praire. I'm obsessed with the raw hemline of the short tunic (right).

(Images: left via sassyposh.com and right bloglovin.com)

Just before we left for our trip, I tried to find a very lightweight linen dress that I could wear with long leggings on the plane, over a swimming costume on the beach, and over shorts while exploring. A kind of from the beach to the bar to the parent-teacher meeting kind of dress. Not too much to ask, is it? 

Guess what? I didn't find one ANYWHERE! Then I remembered that I had some gauzy off-white linen fabric that was left over from curtains that I had made. 

I first washing-machine dyed the fabric a faded denim colour (much as I LOVE white, it's not a sensible travel colour). I found an old pattern lying around (erm, yes, from the 90's - Simplicity pattern 8980 by the way), made adjustments to the pattern here and there, added some raw-edge ruffles on the sleeves, and made a dress the similar to megbydesign's dresses (top image)

Voila! I'm stoked. It only took me about an hour or so and now all I have to do is wait for it to get warm enough to wear back in SA :)

(Images: Camille linen gauze top via Pintrest, right, own)

If you're looking to make something out of any linen, gauzy or not, make sure you first pre-wash it (or else your baby-doll dress really will be able to fit a baby doll ;)

Till next time nerds

x

Keep fabricing :)