solution being forced through a spineret to make fibers

But the most common manufactured fibers are petroleum-based. With these fibers, the shape of the spinnerets and how the filaments are processed affect the finished fabric enormously. Obviously, anything made from petroleum isn’t going to be very environmentally friendly. But I’ll talk more about that later.

Here are some of the most common petroleum-based fibers.

Acrylic is a polymer fiber that has a lightweight, soft, warm, and wool-like feel. It takes dyes beautifully and has excellent colorfastness. It resists shrinking and wrinkles. Those pashmina wraps that New York sidewalk vendors sell in every color of the spectrum are actually made of acrylic because it can be finished to have a similar feel to cashmere. (Yes, I know the labels say they’re made of pashmina or cashmere, but you don’t really believe you can buy a large pashmina wrap for under $10, do you?) Unlike cashmere, however, acrylic tends to fuzz or pill easily, and it isn’t nearly as warm. It also builds up static and can irritate the skin of people who suffer from eczema. (Can you tell I’m not a big fan?)

Polyester has a bad reputation, but as a fiber it possesses some valuable qualities. It is strong and resistant to stretching and shrinking. It dries quickly, and it’s crisp and resilient both when dry and wet. It’s also wrinkle and abrasion resistant, and it retains heat-set pleats and creases well. It’s easy to wash, but it’s difficult to remove stains from polyester because it repels water so well. It’s also prone to static and pilling. So that sort of explains why polyester was so popular in the 60′s and 70′s, doesn’t it? At the time, it seemed like a miracle fiber, sort of like prepared foods were miracle foods; they were so easy to prepare. The sad truth, however, is that although it’s the most commonly used manufactured fiber in apparel, polyester is also one of the least environmentally friendly fabrics to produce. Not than any of these fibers are terribly environmentally friendly, but polyester is the worst offender.

This is Polly Ester, not Polyester

Nylon is the second most widely used manufactured fiber in the U.S. The polymers used to make nylon give it strength as well as good elasticity and resilience. Nylon also has a nice drape. It can be washed or dry cleaned, but because it repels water (the technical term for this is “hydrophobic” if you want to know how to sound like a real fabric geek), it tends to build up static and pills easily. You’ll find nylon used most often in intimate wear, swimwear, exercise wear, hosiery, and sometimes in jackets.

Spandex has excellent stretch and durability without pilling or building up static. Spandex is quite expensive to produce, however, and tends to yellow and become brittle over time. This doesn’t usually pose a problem for most street wear, however, because spandex is usually blended in small quantities (sometimes as little as 1%) with other yarns to make fabric with some stretch. You don’t need much spandex to get stretch in a fabric, but if you’ve ever had a swimsuit give out after spending time in a chlorine pool, you’ve experienced the drawbacks of spandex.

Some of the most interesting innovations in the manufactured fiber industry over the past few decades have been in the production of microfibers. These fibers are much finer than the manufactured fibers I’ve just discussed, and there are two methods used to produce them. In the first, very fine filaments are produced which are then stretched to make an even finer yarn. In the second method, two polymers are combined into a filament which is then split it into a number of even finer filaments.

The fineness of these fibers gives them their unique qualities. The hand is softer than other manufactured fibers, they drape better, and they wick moisture (which means that they’ll pull moisture away from your body to keep you comfortable). Microfibers can also be combined with other fibers to improve on the original qualities of another fiber. For example, microfibers blended with wool can make the wool appear to be a better quality than it actually is. (Tricky, hmm?)

And now that some fibers are actually being produced from recycled materials, not all petroleum-based fibers are as bad for the environment as their reputation would lead you to believe. Post-consumer polyethylene terephthalate (PET) soda bottles are commonly recycled into polyester fibers, and from what I understand this doesn’t require any more energy or processing than the creation of new polyester. So we can feel at least a little better about recycled polyester and polyester microfibers now that we’re recycling materials.

Now that we’ve discussed common fibers used in apparel fabrics, we’ll turn next to discussing some of the finished fabrics themselves. Within each fiber category there are such a wide variety of fabrics, we’ll never be able to discuss them all, but maybe you’ll learn about some fabric you hadn’t previously considered. I’d love to hear about your favorite fabrics to sew, too. Have you discovered any fabrics that have surprised you and that you’ve enjoyed sewing or wearing?

If you’re a quilter (or want to become a quilter in short order!) you can send quilts or blankets here.

This is a nice story about an 83-year-old woman who sews and donates clothing to causes like this one. If you’d like to sew clothing for children who were effected, you might consider making a Lazy Days Skirt or a Popover Sundress and sending them to Sewing to Rebuild.

Project Linus is also contributing to the effort! Here is a story with links.

If you’re aware of any other services, please feel free to leave them in the comments of this post. And thanks for helping out!

This simple, empire-waist jumper designed especially for beginning sewists can be worn alone or layered over a blouse or shirt in cooler weather. View A presents a softly pleated, mid-calf-length skirt, while View B gives an A-line skirt with a single, inverted box pleat at center back. Both views button up the back.

You can purchase the digital version of this pattern in the shop.

So here we go. As long as we’re talking about favorite sewing tools, let’s add a sleeve board to our list!

Sleeve boards are like mini ironing boards. They’re officially made for pressing sleeves (hence the name), since a sleeve fits right over the board and can be ironed without a crease.  But sleeve boards are also really useful when you’re sewing, since the surface is just the right size for pressing a seam. I keep my sleeve board and my iron right next to me when I sew, and that way I’m not constantly getting up to press at the ironing board. It saves lots of time. Then I can continue right along with my sewing, pressing each seam as I go. And since children’s clothes are so small, sleeve boards are also useful for pressing kids’ clothing.

We don’t carry sleeve boards in the shop, but if you’re looking for one you can find them almost anywhere (including Target, I just noticed). I prefer the double-sided boards with a sturdy wood or metal frame like the one shown above, but you can also find collapsible boards if space is a concern. I have a feeling you’ll really like this tool once you start using it.

The Sketchbook  pattern features a shirt in two versions: a cuffed, long-sleeve option with a one-piece collar and chest pocket or a band collar and short sleeve option. Both styles include button front placket and shirt-tail hem. Also included is a pattern for below-the-knee length elastic-waist shorts which include front pockets and a mock fly.

This pattern is now available for purchase and download in the shop.

Now we’ll turn it over to Janice and her report on what Flat S has been up to lately.

After Flat S had such a nice visit seeing all the sights of Los Angeles with the Chan family, she made a brief stop with us in Long Beach. We were happy to show her around our neighborhood after the Chans showed her around Los Angeles. As Sarvi mentioned, Los Angeles is really lots of small neighborhoods making up one huge metropolitan area.

Long Beach is part of the greater metropolitan Los Angeles area, and has over 450,000 inhabitants. The city is 51 square miles–a big city by any measure. If you look in Wikipedia, we found that there are almost 50 distinct neighborhoods in Long Beach!

We live in a little part of Long Beach, and we were happy to show Flat S our neighborhood. We live in Belmont Heights. Our neighborhood is right near the water, so most of our family activities are water-related.

Belmont Heights is famous for a colony of feral parrots that live in the trees. We hear them squawking all the time. Apparently, there was a fire in a shop in Pasadena (35 miles away) in the 1980’s and the parrots escaped, and somehow nested in our neighborhood. There are hundreds of them!

Julia was happy to take Flat S on a bike ride to our Mom N Pop grocery store nearby where she enjoyed a Mexican mango ice cream treat.

Unfortunately for Flat S, Julia was not in the mood to share….

We visited the Belmont Shore area, home to tons of independent restaurants, stores, bakeries, bookstores, and more. Flat S definitely was interested in Julia’s Hello Kitty cookie, but again, Julia wasn’t sharing….

We took Flat S to the Naples neighborhood of Long Beach, and walked the canals. Naples has one of our family’s favorite Christmas activities–the Christmas Boat Parade. We stopped off at the fountain, and crossed the bridges.

We made a stop at Marine Stadium to show Flat S where the World Cup of Dragon Boat championships are held. Marine Stadium also has all kinds of boat races, including some events in the X-Games.

We brought Flat S to our beach bike path–a place for bikers, joggers, and walkers to enjoy the beach and get some exercise.

For her last evening in Long Beach, we brought Flat S down to the boat docks. One of Julia’s favorite activities is walking down the docks and seeing all the cool boats. She says someday she is going to buy her mom and dad a boat!

We did try serving Flat S a substantial dinner of meatloaf and mashed potatoes, but she still didn’t seem hungry. So, Julia finished off her portion.

We had to say “Bon Voyage” to Flat S. Julia is very concerned about her taking a trip by herself, but was assured that she would be picked up at the airport by a very nice family at her next stop!

We can’t wait to find out where S is headed and what she’ll do next! Thanks for hosting her, Janice.

These rulers are great because they’re so easy to read, especially when you need to measure or mark anything with eighths or even sixteenths of an inch.

Since they’re small (one inch by six inches), they come in handy for measuring all sorts of smaller items.

But the real advantage is the clear plastic, which allows you to see through the ruler so it’s easy to add a stitching line or a seam allowance. But you’ll find many, many other uses for this ruler, too.

This is another one of those small, inexpensive items that I buy in bulk and keep stashes of all over. I keep one or two on the desk at home, I keep a few at each sewing machine, and I carry one in my handbag all the time because you never know when you’re going to need to measure a button or check the length of something or other. I’m constantly reaching for one.

I’m happy that we have been able to source these clear plastic graph rulers for you. We’ve now made them available in the shop.

This lined, above-the-knee-length, A-line dress features a hidden, on-seam, front kangaroo pocket and an invisible back zipper. The pattern comes with two views. View A (shown above) has a stand-away, roll collar and 3/4-length cuffed sleeves. View B includes a ruffle collar and gathered, bias-bound, 3/4-length sleeves.

This style is undeniably more dressy than many of our other designs (it is, after all, intended to be worn for a school photo!), but your choice of fabric makes a big difference in the feel of the finished garment. Just compare the dressy, special occasion look you can achieve with a silk dupioni (above) with the somewhat more casual look when the same view is made with a printed cotton (below).

This pattern is now available for download in the Oliver + S Shop.

Hi! My name is Heather Jones and I’m the designer behind Heather Jones Studio quilt patterns. I’m really excited to be sharing some information with you about myself and my designs here on the Oliver + S blog.

I’ve always been crafty, but my first love was fine art, and I studied art history in college. I’ve also always been intrigued by quilts, especially old ones, although I didn’t grow up in a family of quilters. My great-great aunt Ollie was the only person in my family who quilted. In fact, she made me a baby quilt when I was born, completely pieced and tied by hand, when she was in her 80s. I was lucky enough to know her briefly as a child because she lived with my grandparents for a time, and I was always so inspired by her all of handwork. My mom and I own a couple of her quilts, and I still have my baby quilt, and they are among my most treasured belongings.

While I’ve always been drawn to quilts, I was honestly kind of intimidated by the thought of making one for a long time. I made my first quilt while I was in college, and I started many more, but often left them unfinished. Fast forward to 2010, when I started the Cincinnati chapter of the Modern Quilt Guild, after hearing about the Modern Quilting movement that was sweeping across the country. At that time, I certainly didn’t consider myself a quilter, although I had made (and completed!) a few. So when I was elected as the guild’s president, I thought to myself, “I need to make some quilts.” And so I set out to do just that.

I’ve never been interested in duplicating the work of others, so I decided to design and create my own quilt patterns. I also began to participate in some national quilting challenges, and to my astonishment, I won three of them. So, I thought that others might like to make their own versions of my quilts, and I produced my first line of patterns last year.

I am often inspired by everyday places and things that many people wouldn’t even notice (think an old metal silo or a painted grid in the parking lot of a big-box retailer), and I’m always excited by the challenge to translate that inspiration into my work. My work is quite minimal in nature, and I think that the most simple things are quite often the most beautiful. I also have a great respect for the art of quilt making and I love to bring a modern twist to traditional patterns.

Pinwheel Spinning Around is my modern twist on the traditional pinwheel quilt pattern. The large scale of the pinwheels in this pattern is the perfect way to showcase some of your favorite fabrics. The combination of beautiful prints with lots of negative space creates an elegant, modern design that is suitable for both beginner and advanced quilters alike. It measures 70″ x 70″, which is a great size for a lap quilt, but it also fits well on a twin size bed.

Coin Toss is a great quilt pattern for a beginner and a perfect way to show off some of your favorite prints. It’s also a fast project for an advanced quilter. Coin Toss is my modern spin on the traditional Chinese and Roman Coin quilt patterns, and it includes a lot of negative space to make those prints pop! The directions are written for baby, twin, queen, and king sizes.

Squared Strips is a reversible lap sized, or generous baby sized, quilt. The front is my spin on a traditional strip quilt and the back features an oversized log cabin block in the center, giving you two completely different looks in one. This quilt comes together quickly and is a great pattern for beginner quilters and a fast project for more experienced ones. It measures 50″ x 50″.

Ohio Supernova is my modern spin on the traditional Ohio Star pattern. In my version, the scale of the block has been dramatically increased so that it makes up the vast majority of the finished work. Using solid colored cottons and simple construction, the Ohio Supernova packs quite a visual punch and is suitable for both beginner and advanced quilters alike. It measures 72″ x 72″, again making it a generous sized lap quilt or twin sized quilt.

As I mentioned above, I used to think that quilt making was a really intimidating process. But, it doesn’t have to be, and that’s what I want to share through my patterns. I really hope you enjoy them and I’m so happy to be offering them to you here through the Oliver + S website. If you’d like to keep up with me, feel free to visit my blog at www.oliveandollie.com.

These are a simple, ingenious little tool that makes quick work of clipping the threads at the end of a seam or for removing stray threads from your finished sewing projects. They’re also useful for clipping into seam allowances on light- to medium-weight fabrics, and for marking notches. (I usually mark my notches with just a little clip at the location of the notch. Do you do that too?)

We’ve added these thread snips to the shop, for your sewing tool kit.

And I just went and counted. There are seven thread snips in the jar by the sewing machine today. Obviously I haven’t started my sewing yet!