It is Saturday, it is sunny- what a perfect super open day! The Factory Store at 589 Markham Street will be all the way running from 10 am to 6 pm for your shopping convenience. Drop by and see what is on offer. If you have cool Thanksgiving related plans, I am around by chance or appointment during the week- please contact sara@imadethisforyou.ca.


Pictured above is a fabulous pair of earrings, designed and made extra super special for the shoppe by a local First Nations artist; glass beads.  

The Fashionary is a sleek little reference notebook that was made extra special for the fashion designer. It includes all kinds of information- measurement tools, a brand index, spec sheets, laundry label definitions- in the front and pages of sketchbook paper printed with the faint outline of a body form in the back.

It's pretty great- the only set back being that many of the body measurement charts are in metric and although a conversion chart is given, it takes math to change them into inches.

I have just received mine in the mail and am sitting down, putting pencil to paper- I thought that I might share this cool find with you; http://fashionary.org/ for more information.

One more note on fabric construction:

There is leather too. Leather is made by animals all by themselves :) Pictured above is a cow.

The last installment of fabric construction:

So we've got knits, woven and now felted garments. Felt is often made with just raw fibers as opposed to thread- neat, eh? So raw fibers are layered, then heat, water, pressure and mild agitation is used to tangle those fibers together. And, ta-da! Felt! 

Let us review- you can have a pull over sweater that is 100% wool because it is a knit; or a 100% wool pair of dress pants with a lovely straight waistband and fly front, maybe some pleats for fit; or even a fedora that is 100% wool that has been felted to fit you head. All of them wool, all different fabric constructions!

Pictured above is a wool jacket is from the "I made this for you."- Sara Duke Fall/Winter 2010 Northern Renaissance collection, shown at Harvard University in Boston last April; full mink pieces and vintage do-da detailing. This jacket and all other bits from the collection are available upon request from the Factory Store (589 Markham Street) on Saturdays 10 am to 6 pm, by chance or by appointment anytime- Sara@imadethisforyou.ca.