Custom Workroom Weekend!

Hi there people- I'm back to work this week after a fabulous time in NC for Susan Woodcock's Custom Workroom Weekend, where I taught a class on Relaxed Roman Shades, and did a demo on using fusibles to facilitate sewing.
My co-instructors were Penny Bruce, Mary Rose LeBlanc, and Susan Woodcock.  Between us, we covered drapery topics (fascinating headers and a great new ripple product), shades (English roman shades and my relaxed), and demos on enchanting pillow and slipcover details, essential hand-sewing stitches, and my fusible applications to facilitate detailing.

I'm wearing my hand-sewn and hand-flower-dyed tank top

Susan and Rodger organized an intense educational weekend in a rustic mountain lodge, and I have already been able to use some of what I learned while writing up new proposals this week.

Now Susan has announced the October 20 opening of early-bird registration for the Custom Workroom Conference 2017 which will be held in Nashville next May!  I'll be reprising "Relaxed Roman Shades" so if you missed it last weekend, I hope you'll consider taking it in the spring.  I'll also be presenting "Streamlining Top Treatments"- all about workroom techniques and practices for efficient top treatment fabrication.  Check out the long list of classes- it's a comprehensive selection of workroom topics.  I'm glad I'm going to be there, and I hope you'll be there too!

I've spent my week back on fabrication and workroom organization.  We've gotten some new "toys" and this weekend we will be re-arranging the workroom to accommodate them and improve traffic flow in our space.  We are busy, busy, busy on shade and top treatment orders.  Here are a few shots of recent work:

 I love the look of multiple treatments marching around a room.  There were 9 of these in all.

 

Another geometric roman shade- pleated to pattern, OF COURSE!

 

We also made a bunch of stationary romans like this one, in various sizes.

This is my new favorite way to make stationary roman valances.  Lift cord is run through rings, just like on an operable shade, but it's secured at the top on the board, and at the bottom with orbs, which allow slight adjustment.  This gives the treatment a natural look.

 

It's impossible to describe just how impressive this sleek, ultra-modern fabric was as a roman shade.