During the past several winters, seamstress Barbara Taylor has been leading a garment sewing workshop for Maine Fiberarts. Barb uses commercial patterns to sew a wide variety of coats, jackets, vests, shirts and dresses, and always wears something chic when she comes to visit. She uses fabrics collected in her travels; her experience and knowledge gained over many years; and an amazing ability to put together cloth, color, fine skills, and design to create beautiful garments. This January-May, Barb will teach for us once again, and Arlene and I visited her studio in preparation. We browsed through patterns, admired fabrics, tried on garments, and discussed fit. Arlene and I both settled on one dynamite jacket/coat (Marcy Tilton, Vogue 8934) which could be worn as a dress, depending on fabrics used. Once we got back to Maine Fiberarts and showed volunteer Elizabeth, she decided to make one, too! We won’t all make the coat. Carolyn will sew some dresses for her granddaughter. And we welcome more people to come sew with us and look forward to seeing what they make. Classes take place at Maine Fiberarts in Topsham on Tuesdays, (January 19-May 3) from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; $15 each session for members; $25 for nonmembers. For information about the workshop, see our Bulletin, and, in the meantime, enjoy this preview.