The Wednesday Showcase

It isn't official, the voting won't take place until May, but...I have agreed to be the president of the Haute Couture Club of Chicago!!! I am rather excited actually. If by chance you are ever in Chicago the first Saturday of the month, by all means, stop by and attend a meeting. We would love to have you. The club is made up of an exceptionally talented group of ladies, and even a couple of men. I had the pleasure of helping out with the garment review for our upcoming fashion show this last Sunday. I was blown away by the garments that were brought in. Just amazing work. It's going to be a beautiful fashion show. You can read all about the club and the upcoming fashion show HERE.
In our last 2 Wednesday Showcase posts, I've introduced you to 2 co-op type blogs. The Denver Sewing Collective and Refashion Co-op. The Denver Sewing Collective is made up of a group in Denver, Colorado who enjoy sharing what they do, but by being part of a group, the responsibilities of the blog don't fall on the shoulders of just one person. The Refashion Co-op blog is a different platform as it encompasses the talent of sewists worldwide and there are 100 contributors. 
Just this past week, a message was left on the blog by someone who contributes to another collective blog called We Sew Retro. This blog is also a co-op type blog, but here their focus is retro fashion and they have over 1000 contributors, so the content is always fresh and new.
Take a look at some of the beautiful pieces you'll find on the blog.

I especially enjoy when we get to see the pattern alongside the real life garment. 

The blog does not concentrate on just one period of time, so all decades are showcased.

I just had to include this picture. Love the leisure jacket! Be sure to pop over to the blog and check out the other pictures. This gentleman was such a great sport :-)

If you enjoy making a vintage or retro garment from time to time, We Sew Retro is a great place to share it, and even better, you don't have to have your own blog to join in. Check out all the info on how you can join in HERE. Remember, the 70's and 80's are now retro!!!

Now for a more traditional blog, meet Amy of SewsNBows. She lives in Oklahoma, a girl after my own heart. She loves her jeans, cowboy boots, and southwest fabrics, oh, and she also loves to sew! I love her easy style and her beautiful smile.  

She has a very well rounded repertoire of sewn items, the "I Want One For Myself" vest above and this ever so hot bra below. 

Amy also enjoys doing a little restyling. I thought this t-shirt was especially nice. On the left you see the trim that came with the original piece and on the left you see the fabric that she chose to restyle the t-shirt. What a perfect combination.

Amy has a couple of very lucky little girls in her life that she sews for. So precious.

Amy has also taken a stab at designing some of her own fabrics like this adorable teddy bear print below.

By the way, Amy's blog is called Sew N Bows. She makes the most incredible hair bows. She has a tutorial on her blog that you can find HERE. She also has an Etsy shop that you can find HERE.

As always, I am so inspired by what all of you do. One of the things that I plan to do for the Haute Couture Club of Chicago is start a co-op blog. As I said, so many of our members are doing such incredible things and it needs to be shared. Even better when you don't have to commit to an entire blog. It should be up late summer. I'll let you know when it is up and running.

Take a minute and pop over to La Sewista if you haven't already. She has a Wednesday Words post that I think you'll get a kick out of. Sadly, it's all too true for me! Due to an unfortunate accident, she's laid up for a few weeks. I'm sure she would enjoy a quite note too.  

Have a wonderful day!
Rhonda