The Sewing Place

Alabama Chanin..

Efemera

Alabama Chanin..
« on: March 17, 2018, 13:21:26 PM »
How fabulous is this..but the price!


Lee Dress
$5,918.00
« Last Edit: March 17, 2018, 13:23:08 PM by Efemera »

Tamnymore

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #1 on: March 17, 2018, 13:46:33 PM »
Mmm love the dress but not its price!
'One should either be a work of art, or wear a work of art.' Oscar Wilde

Ploshkin

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #2 on: March 17, 2018, 14:23:55 PM »
Simple black dress.  Sew your scraps on to it.  Sorted, and you've saved a few thousand.
Life's too short for ironing.

DementedFairy

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #3 on: March 17, 2018, 15:28:41 PM »
Go for it!  Hand sewn I suppose, hence the price tag, but it's not difficult, just time consuming...
C'est moi!

sewmuchmore

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #4 on: March 17, 2018, 19:10:22 PM »
I have got a dustbin bag full of bits of scrap fabric if you want it.   ;)
It's not easy being this perfekt

Janet

Bodgeitandscarper

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #5 on: March 17, 2018, 19:29:59 PM »
That's really lovely  :) - but a tad expensive  :(

Edit:  Actually if that's American dollars, it's not that bad, only £4,244  :)  :o  :S
« Last Edit: March 17, 2018, 19:32:15 PM by Bodgeitandscarper »

rowe1311

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #6 on: March 17, 2018, 19:56:13 PM »
I really like the style and tried to do it a wee bit of it myself. 

I really like the ethos of the company.  They are providing work in a poor rural community, hence the massive price tag on their stuff as it is very labour intensive, but also, they are selling books with their patterns so you can go and do it yourself for a lot cheaper. 

Kwaaked

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #7 on: March 17, 2018, 20:28:36 PM »
I really like the style and tried to do it a wee bit of it myself. 

I really like the ethos of the company.  They are providing work in a poor rural community, hence the massive price tag on their stuff as it is very labour intensive, but also, they are selling books with their patterns so you can go and do it yourself for a lot cheaper.

LMAO Florence, Al isn't poor.   Neither is Muscle Shoals.  Most of the area is Upper Middle class, partly due to the college, partly due to TVA.  Muscle Shoals is known for its music and has 3 recording studios...one of the most famous of those that did is Lynyrd Skynard.  Rascal Flatts routinely do, too.  While most of the recording is done by country singers, it's just got a huge legendary music scene of all genres with local bands to international singers recording there.  It is also a college town, off the Tennessee River...and yeah.  It's not that rural.  The county houses over 100,000 residents before the college kids. 

I live about 30 miles from her shop, and while I live in a somewhat depressed rural area (which is kind of a misnomer...it's depressed from all the stuff sitting empty not from no one working), I actually DO live in the country.  My studio is in a town of about 800, I live in a town to 2500 and the big ol' place to go is the county seat, population a whopping 25K.  My county in TN never really recovered after several companies moved to Mexico, but even so...we're not all poor here either.  Lot of people go to a neighboring town and work for Saturn.

Both places make about the same amount of median income. 

Folks hear "Alabama" and think "oh my, so poor.  What a backwoods area!"  And some times it's true...and compared to where Natalie Chanin came from it is (Chicago, I think).  But....it's not an entirely true statement where she is doing business.

jen

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #8 on: March 18, 2018, 14:48:30 PM »
I bought one of the books and was seriously underwhelmed. Jersey stitched crudely with thick threads knotted, pattern of appliqué not matched across cf seam, that sort of thing. Just bad, construction which wouldn’t stand the stresses of wearing or laundry. High priced fakery imo.

rowe1311

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #9 on: March 18, 2018, 20:18:06 PM »

Folks hear "Alabama" and think "oh my, so poor.  What a backwoods area!"  And some times it's true...and compared to where Natalie Chanin came from it is (Chicago, I think).  But....it's not an entirely true statement where she is doing business.

I obviously have been sucked in by their marketing then!  But please now don't tell me she underpays her workers, and the high price tag goes nowhere near the people who make it.  I still support the idea that the clothing industry should pay its workers properly, and I had hoped her 'brand' went someway to doing that, but perhaps that is all part of the marketing too! 

« Last Edit: March 18, 2018, 20:56:56 PM by Acorn »

DementedFairy

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #10 on: March 18, 2018, 20:50:34 PM »
Ruth of Core Couture did a whole AC collection for SWAP a couple of years back- she reckoned that the running stitch method is actually surprisingly sturdy, but I'm not prepared to try it! [Although I have made some completely hand stitched garments]
C'est moi!

Surest1tch

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #11 on: March 18, 2018, 22:24:54 PM »
I love the shape of the dress but I'm afraid the patchwork effect doesn't do it for me.  Guess I'm showing my age now

Gernella

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #12 on: May 02, 2018, 10:28:31 AM »
It looks a nice dress but let's face, with a body like that you could wear a bin liner and look good.  Usually when people can afford to spend that much on clothes, not always, they haven't the figure to carry it off.

Stash extension 2024- 6.1 meters
Left at the end of 2023 - 66 meters now (includes fabric found hidden out of sight)  Lining fabric not included

UttaRetch

Re: Alabama Chanin..
« Reply #13 on: May 02, 2018, 11:10:47 AM »
I don't care for the ragamuffin look nor would I spend that sort of money to achieve it, but Dolly Parton said 'it takes a lot of money to look this cheap'. 0_0