Adventures in Double Knit

Recently, I had a friend of mine gave me a whole bunch of double knit polyester.  Her mother had passed on, and she gifted me with her mother's sewing supplies and fabric stock.  I gladly received it, knowing that somehow I could use it in the future, and dutifully put it on my shelves with all of my other fabric stock.

I don't have much fabric of my own--I had a job at a university where I had long ago donated all of my fabric simply to get it out of my house.  Honestly, at that point I had way too much fabric to do anything with.  I had collected for years thinking, "Yeah, I could do that with it, and that with it, and--Oh!  Yes!  I could do that, too!"  Well, those projects never materialized, and I continued to somehow collect more and more fabric.  I believed (whole heartedly) in that saying, She Who Dies With the Most Fabric Wins.

Well, it got to be too much, so I incorporated it into the school's minimal fabric stock, thinking it would be put to better use.

Years later, I left that job and my fabric stock with it.  Not a big loss, as I knew I would accumulate more and more as time went on.

And I did.  And this double knit polyester has fit right in with my new growing collection.

But unlike the past, I didn't have a clue what I would do with it.  Until a couple days ago, when, in desperation for space and items to sell for my business Relished Artistry, I finally hit upon a solution of sorts:  Totes.

But not just any totes.  I decided to try a new sewing technique that I hadn't really considered in the past: layering and cutting away...  I know there's a name for it, but I have no idea what it is!  The knit won't fray as badly, and the layers are good for durability (double knit polyester lasts practically forever, right?).  I figured some fun, colorful designs could really make a large tote a lot of fun.

So that's my next project.  Now I've got a Glinda vest to finish (to go with the Elphaba vest I completed), a smoking jacket to finish up (which has plagued me for a while now) and some stretch velvet tank tops to explore a bit more (which have been on the back burner for a LONG while...).  But this is intriguing enough to me to get this fabric off my shelves and into a form that's actually fun to carry around!

Here's a preview of the technique.  I layered three layers together, free-hand sewed a flower, and then cut away in between my stitch lines.  Then I went back and did some (rather sloppy and fast) topstitching to finish it all off.  Does anyone know what this technique is called and where I can find some more examples of it?  I'm tickled pink about it--I'd like to find some more examples so I can really go to town on it...

Until next time--Live Life with Relish!