Susan Khalje Couture Sewing School in Sydney

If you follow the Australian Sewing Guild or Tessuti Fabrics on Facebook you've probably already discovered that Susan Khalje is coming to Australia early next year to run sewing courses in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. And now that I'm safely booked in, I'm sharing it here in case you didn't already know!

Susan Khalje is a very well known sewing expert, particularly for her Classic French Jacket class which I've read lots about from various people who have attended her classes. I think it's a bit of a once in a lifetime experience to attend one of her classes, especially for us not located in the US.

On offer during her 2017 Australian Teaching School are the 7 day Classic French jacket sewing class, a 6 day Couture Sewing school, a 3 day Guipure Lace skirt class and a 2 day Couture Techniques class. The courses are pretty expensive, but I think hands on learning directly with the expert will be a priceless experience that you just can't replicate via on-line videos and books. Plus it's certainly cheaper than flying to the US!

I've enrolled into the French jacket sewing class and the 2 day couture techniques class which means that now I just have to purchase some suitable fabrics! There are so many inspiration photos out there, and I can't just decide whether I want to go with something classic like black and white, or something more colourful.

Since I'm making a classic French jacket I thought I'd buy something from the suppliers to Chanel: Linton Tweeds. I found some beautiful fabrics, but at 26 - 34 pounds per metre plus shipping (and the conversion rate) that is eye wateringly expensive for one garment so sadly I've ruled them out. But they are so pretty!

image via Linton Tweeds

image via Linton Tweeds

image via Linton Tweeds

And so the second part of my public service announcement post: Bewitch Fabrics in Leichhardt (Parramatta Road) is closing down and having a 50% off sale. I've never actually been inside their shop because I always assumed they only sold bridal fabrics based on what I could see in the window  as I chug past in the bus, but I have been told that they have a wide range of high end fabrics. And now I have a solid reason to go hunting - for a change I actually do need to buy some fabric and there's a sale, so it's a win-win situation. I shall report back when I'm successful!