Hello Kathy. I have been watching your videos for some time now and you have allowed us to share both your high and low moments - a generous, and kind, gesture in my opinion. Finding who you really feel you are and being comfortable in that situation is a goal. The road towards it can be filled with problems - even set backs. But also opportunities. I am so pleased you are grabbing the opportunities as they present themselves - and I am sure we will all be supporting you (if from the other side of a screen) through your “expedition”.
Part of the reason why I picked up Sewing and Crochet and various fiber arts is pretty much for the exact same reasons here. I was bored with everyday clothing items and the ways they never really fit me, I played videogames and interacted with various types of media and would see the outfits and garments the characters were dressed in and want something similar for myself. But the clothing either didn't exist or people were charging very large amounts of money for the garment they made (nothing wrong with that I just can't afford those prices) so eventually while in college I decided to take some art courses based in fiber arts and I loved it and apparently had a knack for it. So now when I'm not working I'm spending my time figuring out how to make these various garments so I can enjoy them for myself. Beautiful video as always Cathy, well said and well made :)
I truly admire your dedication to the beautiful craftmanship. It gives me hope that our history continues to live on through people like you who appreciate the art in these things. Society is so quick to toss something out and replace rather than considering to preserve and conserving. I see your struggles at times and your triumphs as you work through how something was created. The skill, time, and care you take creating all these beautiful pieces is really inspiring. I haven't touched a sewing machine, embroidering, or even crochet in years and watching what you do makes me want to begin exploring those things again. I've learned a lot about so many things from your videos, I can't begin to tell you. Please continue share whatever topic you wish to. All topics and projects are appreciated. 🥰
This was absolutely beautiful, Cathy. I love the cinematography as well as the sentiments. I do want to say, however-referencing your opening statements in this video-that as a person of varied lineage (mainly African-American) married to a Native American man (Ojibwe Tribe); it does make me sad/frustrated that anyone has ever made you feel as though your interest in Historical Fashion (or History in general) is based on a desire to "glorify the Western/European ideologies of the past", or what have you. I found your channel during the onset of COVID (along with several other talented Historical Fashionistas), and I never once felt even the slightest hint of malicious intent behind your interest in history, or your work. Back then, I watched you handle the history surrounding the Peacock Dress with the utmost grace, respect and compassion; and that should have been more than enough to disrupt anyone's negative opinions about your intentions. I'm so happy to have found your channel. I always learn so much from your studies, findings and process. Thank-you for being here, and sharing your knowledge and your journey with all of us.
I just took the deepest breath and sighed in the loveliest way after watching this video. Every word and video frame just resonated like a warm cup of tea.
First. I love this. This is a beautifully filmed and edited piece. Second, I appreciate the advice you give by just sharing bits of your life and showing vulnerability. I think that coat is gorgeous and seeing the way it is pieced and thought out has been so fun to watch. I love that I get to savor the building of this bit by bit, so that is lasts like a delicious chocolate melting in my mouth.
Welcome to your long stint in the USA from a fellow Coloradan! (if my little assumption of where you're landing from your shares on where you've been visiting is correct)
I started this video, and my husband was in the room. After a minute, he piped up and said “I wondered what you were watching on the BBC, then I realized that oh no, it’s Cathy Hay.”😂he isn’t into historical dress, but he does listen when I talk so thank you for that moment in our marriage💚
Thank you, Kathy, it is always refreshing to hear someone going slow in today's 'must get it done now' world of rush, rush, rush. I agree that taking time to do a project like this is important. It is an important lesson for modern living too. I have a project, a quilting project that has now been on the go for a good part of 3 years because life crowds out time for me to dedicate time to it. But my goal is to finish it. Put it up on a wall and enjoy it. Thank you for the reminder that going slow is a worthwhile goal in today's world.
Hi Kathy! I remember being linked to your videos by a friend and loving the dedication to the craft, and also the documentation of the process and the craftsmanship itself. My health has been well enough I can try and learn and practice a few embroidery stitches, a craft I want to learn to fix up and customize a lot of my plain and neutral clothes, as well as giving myself something to do on the bad days that keep me from doing much else. It's satisfying, enriching, and it's learning. Gives me a chance to focus and meditate on the task, and be mindful of the process, and revel in completion - no matter how small. Glad you've been well, and loving the journey!
Wonderfully said! There's definitely a special kind of magic in being able to bring aspects of the past to life and see the art moving in real time...and there's also the giddy feeling of making a dramatic velvet robe to swoosh around in like a grandly dressed Duchess. 😂
Thank you for your video. In a way, I am joining you. Late last year I decided to finally make the cloak that Princess Leia wears in Empire on Bespin. I've wanted to do it for 20 years but I never started it because it just seemed so big. So I finally just .. started it. It requires 3 yards of hand-embroidered designs, broken up by large blank areas too, at least. It's just 2 different stitches and sometimes I felt like I was going crazy. So I just ... set it aside and waited for it to be ready to work on again. Sometimes it feels like projects have a mind of their own too, and they let you know when it's no longer helpful to 'push through' to complete something and went it's time to give the fabric a rest too. This video was really helpful right now, thank you.
This echoes so many things I've been striving towards, and I am so thankful for being able to watch your journey and be inspired to live more authentically, or to simply slow down to even begin to realise what that would entail. This was a very nice reminder in a time of stagnation in my life. Thank you for the video!
Cathy I truly love your videos so much. I think you offer such an amazing example of someone who is dedicated, passionate, driven and who follows what is right for her. I loved this video, like the others and I feel so excited to learn more about your Victorian Velvet coat project. You have so much skill, focus, kindness, authenticity, and it feels so great to see someone online who I can relate to and I am sure that other people can relate as well.
i've been watching your videos for years by now, and find myself at a crossroads having finished my degree in design and handicraft, feeling like i've lost my motivation to create. this video gives some food for thought
My purpose in life ,for being ,is simple: I should endeavor to make everyone to strive to be a better, more kind and happy person for being in my company (no matter the length of time) than if they had never met me. No matter the Location!
This is the "self-help" book I want. For me, my purpose in life has always been to do, learn, and experience as many things as possible. And that was great, when I was younger. But I'm about to turn 40. It feels like a milestone. Knowing I have a chronic illness that will shorten my lifespan, I've been fumbling with feeling the need to leave a mark. And this is a good one. Not that I intend to stop seeking knowledge and new experiences, I don't think I can, it's just part of who I am. But I want this concept to be a part of me that I've actively curated too.
Beautifully Said! I always look forward to seeing these posts! Yes, Making something like the coat does take a while. Most clothes Quilts I make are hand sewn. But when you are done. You get such a level of satifaction!
❤What a beautiful video and such special, importantly spoken sentiments. Maybe, there are many of us who wish for a less cluttered, time-pressured life. I certainly would love to be able to go back in time to the preindustrial revolution age. I repeatedly read and now watch Flora’s “Lark Rise to Candleford “ series which I have loved for the past 30-40 years, since I was a teenager. I love Jane Austen and my nectar for relaxing and renewal is to indulge in watching the “Lost in Austen” short series. I can only stitch underthings from the eighteenth and nineteenth century that I’m happy to wear, because unfortunately my shape (non-standard bigger boobs, and small frame doesn’t make for easy patterning! I loathe RTW clothes and spend my time (not a lot, with two big dogs to walk repeatedly and regularly during the day, plus very severe arthritis that makes standing for any time excruciating) is so short that even trying to make a bodice sloper that I’m happy with for further projects, is hard. I don’t know why you have decided to travel (meaning that you lose your special place of sewing things, and merely have a travelling stitch purse) but, it must be very important to you. I love that you are dedicating so much of your time to an exquisite piece of art/clothing, and admire the patience that you must have. I have a similar wish, and vision for the ‘oranges on velvet’ dress that is in the book on 19th century dress that your velvet coat appears in. If, by any chance, I ever have the time, the slopers and then the ability to stay on my feet for however many hours to make a replica, I will perhaps enjoy the similar escapism that this video of yours suggests to me. I wish you all the best. ❤
The same with me, I use to design and make my own clothes over 30 plus years ago, but my career took off and it was placed in the back burner. Then 14 years ago my Mom got sick and I changed my life upside down to help Dad look after Mom until she passed away 11 almost 12 years ago, 5 years ago I got really sick as the Drs said in the ER “why are you alive” I have no idea why so many others died with a milder version of the blood clot I got, I don’t know why I got to live but it woke both Dad and I up to realise we had been drifting since Mom passed, I have started to sew again and paint, we have both learnt that we need to live and be doing things but at a slower pace. I still have not fully recovered I get tired so quickly and so by going back to designing my own clothes and making them has helped me to regain some focus back into my life again. I will never be the person I was before the PE I just don’t have that kind of energy any more but at least siting and doing hand sewing does not wear me out and when I need a brake from sewing I have taken up my paint brushes and started to paint again and to draw. When did life become so fast, everyone is always in such a hurry to go from nowhere to nowhere. I forgot how much I use to love driving and seeing the country side, it was all part of going from somewhere to else where.
Hi Kathy, I too have always sewed my clothes and enjoyed having clothing that no one can buy off the rack, individual, unique. However not in any particular style or influenced by history. I also just whip up on the sewing machine as I am definitely too impatient to really invest in a slow process for producing a garment. However the ability to alter a pattern to make the clothing suit my body, tweak the style to suit my taste and to be comfortable is great, especially as plus size women are not well represented in 'off the rack' shopping. One thing I have learned from watching creators of historic inspired clothing, such as yourself, is that clothing in the past was made with a much better understanding of a women's body. An experienced dressmaker in 1900 definitely had a much better knowledge of getting a garment to fit perfectly than today. I am sure you have clothing that you have quickly made for everyday wear but I do really understand that the recreation of these bespoke historically inspired pieces is for you not just about having a nice item of clothing at the finish, you seem to almost get more from the process of figuring out the engineering, the how did they did it questions and challenging yourself to do it. I'm sure that future Kathy will reflect on this time of living the travelling lifestyle with great fondness and as a wonderful time where you gave yourself the freedom to relax, reconnect with friends and to see the world. Thanks for bringing us alongu
What a beautiful video with an inspiring message. Thank you so much for sharing your journey. I'm off to go hand-sew a project I've been working on, thanks to this inspiration!
This current project of yours is an epic undertaking. A work of art in fabric and embroidery. The flow of the garment, the texture, the colour. Stunning. I do have to take this opportunity to say that I am so distressed about the peacock dress. What you were doing was to bring attention to the stunning beauty of this dress. What the, for a lack of a better word , woke … what? … I don’t know. The colonial oppression? What you did was to make apparent the incredible artistry of these East Indian embroiderers. I would never have known about it had it not for you. Stunning beauty. The intricacy of the patterns that you painstakingly undertook. So this woke attitude, this oppression on the part of the castigation of the “colonialists” is not the issue. Those amazing artisans were given a task that they completed beautifully and they should be acknowledged for it certainly and through your work they are. At the time, if the dress had not been commissioned, those embroiderers in that fashion house would not have had the job for which they were paid. The woke whoevers rarely take in the context of the times. The colonialists are evil in their view but in some aspects of society, not so much. So, when the woke uninformed March on, they do not necessarily have all of the facts at their fingertips. Your peacock dress was not violating any ridiculous woke colonial nutsoid bandwagon that those sorts of people take on. Your project to investigate the historical costume design of an exquisite dress only serves to enhance both the design house as well as the artisans who amazingly executed the beauty of the original design. So, Cathy Hay! I applaud you and castigate the nay sayers of the peacock dress. Press on with the embroidered coat because that will be a stunning accolade to those dress designers of yore!
lovely video. 💖 i look forward to your journey. i loved the nature scenes, and i particularly enjoyed the scene at 4:55 because you look so pleased and at peace. your voice is beautiful.
it is so hard to go slow in a world that wants to go faster than ever. Being almost 54 yrs old, I've reached the time where I want to go slow. For me, my slow project, is knitting. There are times I can knit my fingers off when I am hurrying but more often than not, I don't want to hurry. I want to take the time and enjoy the process of what I am doing. I keep thinking about who I am and what I want to become when I get to the stage of retirement. the things that used to seem so important to me aren't what I want anymore. I find myself wanting a peaceful quiet life where I can create when I want to and go lie in the sun with a book if I choose. I need to create that life for me but I am not quite sure how to yet. I will get there though.
I love this so much! I don't know how to express how much I needed this. Your calm and love for your sewing inspires me to take time and love over my projects.❤ Edit, just read your email and I think you look glorious and real! Thank you fir sharing this!
One of the reasons that I chose to research Renaissance clothing as I wanted to get in touch with my maternal ancestors. I wanted to experience the clothing that they would have worn for the past century before 0:06 immigrating. Not all of it would have been court dress as many were just trades people. So I wanted to do the court clothing to understand all of the politics at the time, and how One wore their wealth for all to see. And then I focused on middling clothing that my actual ancestors would have worn. I wanted to answer some questions; what was their motivations to leave everything they knew to start again in a completely different place. My Welsh ancestors were slate workers and my Irish ancestors were farmers and my English ancestors were brewers. All of them had a particular trade and they all became colonists in the greatest sense, as they came over in the late 1600s. Yes, that means that I have to struggle with the challenges of my ancestors land that wasn’t really theirs to take from the native peoples. So there were definitely some unexpected challenges, but definitely worth exploring. And they’re definitely was a mental health benefit for myself being able to slow down, create something beautifully crafted while delving into the research.
Thank you for sharing your beautiful journey and all your feelings highs and lows. You are a wonderful kind sweet lady. Thank you for all that you share with us. Your coat is turning out extraordinary ❤
Been with you from the beginning, and I am looking forward to seeing how you complete this one. I think it was brave of you to let go of the previous dress. You learned some important things about how a dress like that could only be made by a team of very skilled people. Humbling, I know, but enlightening too. In this case, you are learning new skills and creating something beautiful. You have inspired me too try embroidery too and your commentary has given me permission to go slow and enjoy the stitching.
✨CHEERS TO THE REBEL SEWISTS!!! ✨ I love this slow making historybounding all-the-cores movement in reaction to fast fashion which is so destructive, to not only the environment, but even to our understanding of how reality works. Like city children not knowing where their milk and meat come from, people today believe that it is reasonable to expect that clothing be cheap/affordable, when NEVER in history has it EVER been "cheap" (ask any weaver!) or made in such abundance in such an extravagant throw-away culture as today! AND I absolutely see the parallels between the radical reactionary Aesthetic and Arts & Crafts movement in the US and UK, Jugend in Germany and Japan also had Mingei, apparently, making that reaction to industrialism a world-wide reaction, VERY MUCH like the handmade slow making historybounding of today. We are all part of a collective movement today: sewing to express our own essence and self-identity, in whatever shape or form that may take, and seen as a whole, we are all rebels, taking part in a reaction to the industrialization that is fast fashion. So CHEERS to being a rebel and CHEERS to expressing our inner selves! It is absolutely an extraordinary journey.
Don’t put yourself down ever, Cathy, your patience and expertise are enviable. I wouldn’t mind wearing that coat you are working on. I volunteer at a National Trust house where the women were great embroiderers and even worked from a kit by William Morris. Maybe you have visited Standen. I don’t think they have any of the clothes worn by the women of the house though, only pictures.
Hi Cathy, I just love your videos and the work you do! I don’t sew historical clothing well let me say I am a quilter for the most part, but I happen to come across your channel a couple years ago. And you interest me so much with the topics and your demeanor is so gentle. I have sewn clothing in the past, and still do once in a while for my granddaughters. I enjoy doing embroidery and other crafts as well. Keep posting I love listening to you talk!
I love seeing one of your vids pop up! It doesn't matter what content, it's just you & hearing your voice (even when it's quiet) & thoughts on your subject. Like this one. Last I heard I think you were going to Colorado (?) or somewhere here in the USA. If I could travel like you do, I would, so I really enjoy seeing where ever you are at the moment. You are actually in the moment which is saying a lot.
Your voice is sounding so much more fluid and very much less strained. I agree with your opinions on clothing. I admire people who can see, I can't and I no longer have a body that I'd want to spend hard earned time on to adorn with bespoke clothing. Can't wait to see your cloak finished...I've always wanted one, highly ornate or plain, I'd welcome it all.
Hey there! I lost your account because of phone change. I'm glad I found your videos again amazing, inspiring craftsman ship. 😊It's always great to connect with people who appreciate unique designs and unique fittings. You're definitely not alone in that! ❤
Hey Cathy I absolutely love you and your videos I hey bring me hope and inspire me so much.I have been sewing on and off for about seventeen years and yours videos remind me of where I want to get to at some point with my sewing adventures. I know I’m still in the advanced beginner stage of my sewing hobby w I’m working towards my goals slowly . So thank you
Wonderfully and beautifully expressed, Cathy. Thank you for continuing to inspire and motivate me to keep trying as well as being more accepting of taking the slower path. I needed to hear that pep talk today. Wishing you all the very best on your new path in the USA. Love, your new neighbour in the North, RC 🥰
I'm reminded of Anne Morrow Lindburg's book, "Gift From the Sea." You are on a travelling retreat of self discovery instead of a stationary one. I appreciate what you share. 🌻🍄
Beautifully put, Cathy. Hand-making anything is a worthwhile endeavor and nothing can replace the joy of watching your own creations blossom. I so look forward to seeing your finished piece but am enjoying the slow journey as well.😊
it's been a genuine pleasure watching this project slowly develop. I think the world needs a little more 'slow'....on everything. I adore your channel and am so excited every time I see a new video pop up!!
Thank you for sharing your passion with us! This is so inspiring! I'm also really excited to see the coat finished! even if I know it will still takes time and that each step is as important as the result. i'm not a pro at sewing. I know basic things (i'm a potter and I like painting). And I love your videos because they're full of love, creativity and inspiration. Thank you for sharing your adventure with us all =)
I adore this video! You articulate the question of purpose and human expression so beautifully. You are so intentional and thoughtful in your decision making process. Thank you for making this statement of purpose. It resonates with the time in the past of humans versus the machine age and it also resonates with today's dilemma of humans versus AI. We need to solidly re-emphasize the real meaning of what it is to be human and create. Thank you.
I see it I like it I'm gonna make it this is just amazing with every step I started this channel with the peacock dress and I'm living for this purple cloak so much love sent your way!! ❤
Amazing. I don't like the mass production either especially since I've learned that people in countries like Bangladesh are working in poor conditions for some outrageously demeaning paycheck.
Thanks for your lovely words. Glad the visa came through! I think of you every time I pass the V&A (which is about once a week). Safe travels both in body and mind!
A lot of people hide what they'd really like to say or do or be. Being authentic is being yourself without that fear of judgement or pressure. We mostly see her through sewing, but I'm sure in her other facets of life she is learning (and sharing that learning) how to be true to herself and not just follow the trends. Authentic is currently an overused word though, so the meaning will evolve.
My hair is decently long - maybe mid back, and so slippery, and I've had such a hard time finding protective styles that don't just fall out within an hour... Anyone have ideas?
I watch your projects and I wonder how many skills can I add to a piece before it is “wrong” … I can sow, bead, knit and crochet … paint … and even with all this, I don’t start anything with mixed skills.
Nothing is ever wrong as long as you are singing your song! I enjoy knitting, embroidering, & hand making quilts both patchwork & applique. I especially like quilts because quilts are the my biggest canvas. Currently I'm knitting lace to applique to a quilt. There will, no doubt, be beading, embroidery, & embroidery as quilting. Have confidence in yourself & your voice. You only need to please yourself. Make sure you treat your works of art as art. Have unveiling parties--teas, cocktails whatever is your jam. If you treat your work as important others will too! There is NO WRONG!
I have been trying to figure out why you are traveling "across the pond" so frequently. I haven't found a video which explains it yet. Have I missed something important?
For visa reasons. She said on instagram, I think, that she finally got her visa to move to the US for good. Before, she wasn't able to. She hasn't said, as far as I'm aware, why she wants to move to the US in the first place. I hope it's not solely because her spiritual teacher lives there.
She came to the conclusion that there wasn't any way to complete it that felt ethical because of what it was designed to be in the first place. There's a video where she talks about it on the channel.
ua-cam.com/video/pS9BZFkEA1g/v-deo.html Not sure if this is of interest but this is an American who married an aristocrat and lives in Britain. Her M in L opens a trunk and out came all these 17th,18th and 19th C dresses.
The evening before I started my journey back home to Kelmscott Manor , timetravelling to meet a part of my soul in “my“ last life as William Morris , in the moment I set my clock your Video appeared on my screen💕 We met years ago in Arizona .. joining an event with Jeff Walker. I clearly remember you and nothing is for accident 🙂today after two days with Matías de Stefano and the 9 dimensions I’m still in London .. Greetings from my heart and blessings for your work and health 🩵🦋🌼🌸
Hello Kathy. I have been watching your videos for some time now and you have allowed us to share both your high and low moments - a generous, and kind, gesture in my opinion. Finding who you really feel you are and being comfortable in that situation is a goal. The road towards it can be filled with problems - even set backs. But also opportunities. I am so pleased you are grabbing the opportunities as they present themselves - and I am sure we will all be supporting you (if from the other side of a screen) through your “expedition”.
Part of the reason why I picked up Sewing and Crochet and various fiber arts is pretty much for the exact same reasons here. I was bored with everyday clothing items and the ways they never really fit me, I played videogames and interacted with various types of media and would see the outfits and garments the characters were dressed in and want something similar for myself. But the clothing either didn't exist or people were charging very large amounts of money for the garment they made (nothing wrong with that I just can't afford those prices) so eventually while in college I decided to take some art courses based in fiber arts and I loved it and apparently had a knack for it. So now when I'm not working I'm spending my time figuring out how to make these various garments so I can enjoy them for myself. Beautiful video as always Cathy, well said and well made :)
I truly admire your dedication to the beautiful craftmanship. It gives me hope that our history continues to live on through people like you who appreciate the art in these things. Society is so quick to toss something out and replace rather than considering to preserve and conserving. I see your struggles at times and your triumphs as you work through how something was created. The skill, time, and care you take creating all these beautiful pieces is really inspiring. I haven't touched a sewing machine, embroidering, or even crochet in years and watching what you do makes me want to begin exploring those things again. I've learned a lot about so many things from your videos, I can't begin to tell you. Please continue share whatever topic you wish to. All topics and projects are appreciated. 🥰
This was absolutely beautiful, Cathy. I love the cinematography as well as the sentiments.
I do want to say, however-referencing your opening statements in this video-that as a person of varied lineage (mainly African-American) married to a Native American man (Ojibwe Tribe); it does make me sad/frustrated that anyone has ever made you feel as though your interest in Historical Fashion (or History in general) is based on a desire to "glorify the Western/European ideologies of the past", or what have you.
I found your channel during the onset of COVID (along with several other talented Historical Fashionistas), and I never once felt even the slightest hint of malicious intent behind your interest in history, or your work. Back then, I watched you handle the history surrounding the Peacock Dress with the utmost grace, respect and compassion; and that should have been more than enough to disrupt anyone's negative opinions about your intentions.
I'm so happy to have found your channel. I always learn so much from your studies, findings and process. Thank-you for being here, and sharing your knowledge and your journey with all of us.
I just took the deepest breath and sighed in the loveliest way after watching this video. Every word and video frame just resonated like a warm cup of tea.
First. I love this. This is a beautifully filmed and edited piece. Second, I appreciate the advice you give by just sharing bits of your life and showing vulnerability. I think that coat is gorgeous and seeing the way it is pieced and thought out has been so fun to watch. I love that I get to savor the building of this bit by bit, so that is lasts like a delicious chocolate melting in my mouth.
It's a HARD week this week Cathy. Thank you for your passion, and kidness to yourself. I'll try to emulate.
Welcome to your long stint in the USA from a fellow Coloradan! (if my little assumption of where you're landing from your shares on where you've been visiting is correct)
I started this video, and my husband was in the room. After a minute, he piped up and said “I wondered what you were watching on the BBC, then I realized that oh no, it’s Cathy Hay.”😂he isn’t into historical dress, but he does listen when I talk so thank you for that moment in our marriage💚
Thank you, Kathy, it is always refreshing to hear someone going slow in today's 'must get it done now' world of rush, rush, rush. I agree that taking time to do a project like this is important. It is an important lesson for modern living too. I have a project, a quilting project that has now been on the go for a good part of 3 years because life crowds out time for me to dedicate time to it. But my goal is to finish it. Put it up on a wall and enjoy it. Thank you for the reminder that going slow is a worthwhile goal in today's world.
Hi Kathy! I remember being linked to your videos by a friend and loving the dedication to the craft, and also the documentation of the process and the craftsmanship itself.
My health has been well enough I can try and learn and practice a few embroidery stitches, a craft I want to learn to fix up and customize a lot of my plain and neutral clothes, as well as giving myself something to do on the bad days that keep me from doing much else. It's satisfying, enriching, and it's learning. Gives me a chance to focus and meditate on the task, and be mindful of the process, and revel in completion - no matter how small.
Glad you've been well, and loving the journey!
Wonderfully said! There's definitely a special kind of magic in being able to bring aspects of the past to life and see the art moving in real time...and there's also the giddy feeling of making a dramatic velvet robe to swoosh around in like a grandly dressed Duchess. 😂
Thank you for your video. In a way, I am joining you. Late last year I decided to finally make the cloak that Princess Leia wears in Empire on Bespin. I've wanted to do it for 20 years but I never started it because it just seemed so big. So I finally just .. started it. It requires 3 yards of hand-embroidered designs, broken up by large blank areas too, at least. It's just 2 different stitches and sometimes I felt like I was going crazy. So I just ... set it aside and waited for it to be ready to work on again. Sometimes it feels like projects have a mind of their own too, and they let you know when it's no longer helpful to 'push through' to complete something and went it's time to give the fabric a rest too.
This video was really helpful right now, thank you.
You’re doing what so many of us WISH we could do. Please continue to allow us to live such a lovely dream vicariously through you.
This echoes so many things I've been striving towards, and I am so thankful for being able to watch your journey and be inspired to live more authentically, or to simply slow down to even begin to realise what that would entail. This was a very nice reminder in a time of stagnation in my life. Thank you for the video!
Cathy I truly love your videos so much. I think you offer such an amazing example of someone who is dedicated, passionate, driven and who follows what is right for her. I loved this video, like the others and I feel so excited to learn more about your Victorian Velvet coat project. You have so much skill, focus, kindness, authenticity, and it feels so great to see someone online who I can relate to and I am sure that other people can relate as well.
i've been watching your videos for years by now, and find myself at a crossroads having finished my degree in design and handicraft, feeling like i've lost my motivation to create. this video gives some food for thought
I'm so happy to be on this journey with you. It's so extraordinary that you get to do this thank you
I love this
My purpose in life ,for being ,is simple: I should endeavor to make everyone to strive to be a better, more kind and happy person for being in my company (no matter the length of time) than if they had never met me. No matter the Location!
This is the "self-help" book I want. For me, my purpose in life has always been to do, learn, and experience as many things as possible. And that was great, when I was younger.
But I'm about to turn 40. It feels like a milestone. Knowing I have a chronic illness that will shorten my lifespan, I've been fumbling with feeling the need to leave a mark. And this is a good one.
Not that I intend to stop seeking knowledge and new experiences, I don't think I can, it's just part of who I am. But I want this concept to be a part of me that I've actively curated too.
Beautifully Said! I always look forward to seeing these posts! Yes, Making something like the coat does take a while. Most clothes Quilts I make are hand sewn. But when you are done. You get such a level of satifaction!
❤What a beautiful video and such special, importantly spoken sentiments. Maybe, there are many of us who wish for a less cluttered, time-pressured life. I certainly would love to be able to go back in time to the preindustrial revolution age. I repeatedly read and now watch Flora’s “Lark Rise to Candleford “ series which I have loved for the past 30-40 years, since I was a teenager. I love Jane Austen and my nectar for relaxing and renewal is to indulge in watching the “Lost in Austen” short series. I can only stitch underthings from the eighteenth and nineteenth century that I’m happy to wear, because unfortunately my shape (non-standard bigger boobs, and small frame doesn’t make for easy patterning! I loathe RTW clothes and spend my time (not a lot, with two big dogs to walk repeatedly and regularly during the day, plus very severe arthritis that makes standing for any time excruciating) is so short that even trying to make a bodice sloper that I’m happy with for further projects, is hard. I don’t know why you have decided to travel (meaning that you lose your special place of sewing things, and merely have a travelling stitch purse) but, it must be very important to you.
I love that you are dedicating so much of your time to an exquisite piece of art/clothing, and admire the patience that you must have. I have a similar wish, and vision for the ‘oranges on velvet’ dress that is in the book on 19th century dress that your velvet coat appears in. If, by any chance, I ever have the time, the slopers and then the ability to stay on my feet for however many hours to make a replica, I will perhaps enjoy the similar escapism that this video of yours suggests to me.
I wish you all the best. ❤
Brilliant. Not just the content but the video itself. You're a genius.
Thank you JP, how kind!
The same with me, I use to design and make my own clothes over 30 plus years ago, but my career took off and it was placed in the back burner. Then 14 years ago my Mom got sick and I changed my life upside down to help Dad look after Mom until she passed away 11 almost 12 years ago, 5 years ago I got really sick as the Drs said in the ER “why are you alive” I have no idea why so many others died with a milder version of the blood clot I got, I don’t know why I got to live but it woke both Dad and I up to realise we had been drifting since Mom passed, I have started to sew again and paint, we have both learnt that we need to live and be doing things but at a slower pace.
I still have not fully recovered I get tired so quickly and so by going back to designing my own clothes and making them has helped me to regain some focus back into my life again. I will never be the person I was before the PE I just don’t have that kind of energy any more but at least siting and doing hand sewing does not wear me out and when I need a brake from sewing I have taken up my paint brushes and started to paint again and to draw.
When did life become so fast, everyone is always in such a hurry to go from nowhere to nowhere. I forgot how much I use to love driving and seeing the country side, it was all part of going from somewhere to else where.
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Hi Kathy, I too have always sewed my clothes and enjoyed having clothing that no one can buy off the rack, individual, unique. However not in any particular style or influenced by history. I also just whip up on the sewing machine as I am definitely too impatient to really invest in a slow process for producing a garment. However the ability to alter a pattern to make the clothing suit my body, tweak the style to suit my taste and to be comfortable is great, especially as plus size women are not well represented in 'off the rack' shopping. One thing I have learned from watching creators of historic inspired clothing, such as yourself, is that clothing in the past was made with a much better understanding of a women's body. An experienced dressmaker in 1900 definitely had a much better knowledge of getting a garment to fit perfectly than today. I am sure you have clothing that you have quickly made for everyday wear but I do really understand that the recreation of these bespoke historically inspired pieces is for you not just about having a nice item of clothing at the finish, you seem to almost get more from the process of figuring out the engineering, the how did they did it questions and challenging yourself to do it. I'm sure that future Kathy will reflect on this time of living the travelling lifestyle with great fondness and as a wonderful time where you gave yourself the freedom to relax, reconnect with friends and to see the world. Thanks for bringing us alongu
What a beautiful video with an inspiring message. Thank you so much for sharing your journey. I'm off to go hand-sew a project I've been working on, thanks to this inspiration!
So beautifully said Cathy! Watching you create something so lovely from a bygone time is just wonderful. Your videos are something else. 💗
Synchronicity! Thank you!
I heard this just yesterday.
Life isn't about disscovering who you are, Its' about interpreting who you want to become.
This current project of yours is an epic undertaking. A work of art in fabric and embroidery. The flow of the garment, the texture, the colour. Stunning. I do have to take this opportunity to say that I am so distressed about the peacock dress. What you were doing was to bring attention to the stunning beauty of this dress. What the, for a lack of a better word , woke … what? … I don’t know. The colonial oppression? What you did was to make apparent the incredible artistry of these East Indian embroiderers. I would never have known about it had it not for you. Stunning beauty. The intricacy of the patterns that you painstakingly undertook. So this woke attitude, this oppression on the part of the castigation of the “colonialists” is not the issue. Those amazing artisans were given a task that they completed beautifully and they should be acknowledged for it certainly and through your work they are. At the time, if the dress had not been commissioned, those embroiderers in that fashion house would not have had the job for which they were paid.
The woke whoevers rarely take in the context of the times. The colonialists are evil in their view but in some aspects of society, not so much. So, when the woke uninformed March on, they do not necessarily have all of the facts at their fingertips. Your peacock dress was not violating any ridiculous woke colonial nutsoid bandwagon that those sorts of people take on. Your project to investigate the historical costume design of an exquisite dress only serves to enhance both the design house as well as the artisans who amazingly executed the beauty of the original design. So, Cathy Hay! I applaud you and castigate the nay sayers of the peacock dress. Press on with the embroidered coat because that will be a stunning accolade to those dress designers of yore!
lovely video.
💖 i look forward to your journey.
i loved the nature scenes, and i particularly enjoyed the scene at 4:55 because you look so pleased and at peace. your voice is beautiful.
You are achieving something that most of us only dream of. The passion of doing something you love. Thank you
You are the sewist philosopher. Really enjoy your videos
it is so hard to go slow in a world that wants to go faster than ever. Being almost 54 yrs old, I've reached the time where I want to go slow. For me, my slow project, is knitting. There are times I can knit my fingers off when I am hurrying but more often than not, I don't want to hurry. I want to take the time and enjoy the process of what I am doing. I keep thinking about who I am and what I want to become when I get to the stage of retirement. the things that used to seem so important to me aren't what I want anymore. I find myself wanting a peaceful quiet life where I can create when I want to and go lie in the sun with a book if I choose. I need to create that life for me but I am not quite sure how to yet. I will get there though.
So beautifully said! Thank you so much for continuing to share your creative passion! 🤍✨
I love this so much! I don't know how to express how much I needed this. Your calm and love for your sewing inspires me to take time and love over my projects.❤
Edit, just read your email and I think you look glorious and real! Thank you fir sharing this!
One of the reasons that I chose to research Renaissance clothing as I wanted to get in touch with my maternal ancestors. I wanted to experience the clothing that they would have worn for the past century before 0:06 immigrating.
Not all of it would have been court dress as many were just trades people. So I wanted to do the court clothing to understand all of the politics at the time, and how One wore their wealth for all to see. And then I focused on middling clothing that my actual ancestors would have worn.
I wanted to answer some questions; what was their motivations to leave everything they knew to start again in a completely different place. My Welsh ancestors were slate workers and my Irish ancestors were farmers and my English ancestors were brewers.
All of them had a particular trade and they all became colonists in the greatest sense, as they came over in the late 1600s. Yes, that means that I have to struggle with the challenges of my ancestors land that wasn’t really theirs to take from the native peoples. So there were definitely some unexpected challenges, but definitely worth exploring. And they’re definitely was a mental health benefit for myself being able to slow down, create something beautifully crafted while delving into the research.
Thank you for sharing your beautiful journey and all your feelings highs and lows. You are a wonderful kind sweet lady. Thank you for all that you share with us. Your coat is turning out extraordinary ❤
Been with you from the beginning, and I am looking forward to seeing how you complete this one. I think it was brave of you to let go of the previous dress. You learned some important things about how a dress like that could only be made by a team of very skilled people. Humbling, I know, but enlightening too. In this case, you are learning new skills and creating something beautiful. You have inspired me too try embroidery too and your commentary has given me permission to go slow and enjoy the stitching.
✨CHEERS TO THE REBEL SEWISTS!!! ✨ I love this slow making historybounding all-the-cores movement in reaction to fast fashion which is so destructive, to not only the environment, but even to our understanding of how reality works. Like city children not knowing where their milk and meat come from, people today believe that it is reasonable to expect that clothing be cheap/affordable, when NEVER in history has it EVER been "cheap" (ask any weaver!) or made in such abundance in such an extravagant throw-away culture as today! AND I absolutely see the parallels between the radical reactionary Aesthetic and Arts & Crafts movement in the US and UK, Jugend in Germany and Japan also had Mingei, apparently, making that reaction to industrialism a world-wide reaction, VERY MUCH like the handmade slow making historybounding of today. We are all part of a collective movement today: sewing to express our own essence and self-identity, in whatever shape or form that may take, and seen as a whole, we are all rebels, taking part in a reaction to the industrialization that is fast fashion. So CHEERS to being a rebel and CHEERS to expressing our inner selves! It is absolutely an extraordinary journey.
I love these reasons. I don't sew but this is why I cook and bake from scratch. Sourdough was/is my big slowing-down project.
Don’t put yourself down ever, Cathy, your patience and expertise are enviable. I wouldn’t mind wearing that coat you are working on. I volunteer at a National Trust house where the women were great embroiderers and even worked from a kit by William Morris. Maybe you have visited Standen. I don’t think they have any of the clothes worn by the women of the house though, only pictures.
Hi Cathy, I just love your videos and the work you do! I don’t sew historical clothing well let me say I am a quilter for the most part, but I happen to come across your channel a couple years ago. And you interest me so much with the topics and your demeanor is so gentle. I have sewn clothing in the past, and still do once in a while for my granddaughters. I enjoy doing embroidery and other crafts as well. Keep posting I love listening to you talk!
I wish you the very best on your journey and thanks for inviting us to come along.❤
I so admire your commitment to being YOU and sharing that pursuit. It takes courage and it inspires courage.
Thank you Julie!
I love seeing one of your vids pop up! It doesn't matter what content, it's just you & hearing your voice (even when it's quiet) & thoughts on your subject. Like this one. Last I heard I think you were going to Colorado (?) or somewhere here in the USA. If I could travel like you do, I would, so I really enjoy seeing where ever you are at the moment. You are actually in the moment which is saying a lot.
Your voice is sounding so much more fluid and very much less strained. I agree with your opinions on clothing. I admire people who can see, I can't and I no longer have a body that I'd want to spend hard earned time on to adorn with bespoke clothing. Can't wait to see your cloak finished...I've always wanted one, highly ornate or plain, I'd welcome it all.
I’ve been with you from the beginning… and I’m definitely on your journey with you till the end!
Hey there! I lost your account because of phone change. I'm glad I found your videos again amazing, inspiring craftsman ship. 😊It's always great to connect with people who appreciate unique designs and unique fittings. You're definitely not alone in that! ❤
Hey Cathy I absolutely love you and your videos I hey bring me hope and inspire me so much.I have been sewing on and off for about seventeen years and yours videos remind me of where I want to get to at some point with my sewing adventures. I know I’m still in the advanced beginner stage of my sewing hobby w I’m working towards my goals slowly . So thank you
Well said. Thank you for sharing a slice of your journey with us all.
Wonderfully and beautifully expressed, Cathy. Thank you for continuing to inspire and motivate me to keep trying as well as being more accepting of taking the slower path. I needed to hear that pep talk today. Wishing you all the very best on your new path in the USA. Love, your new neighbour in the North, RC 🥰
I'm reminded of Anne Morrow Lindburg's book, "Gift From the Sea." You are on a travelling retreat of self discovery instead of a stationary one. I appreciate what you share. 🌻🍄
Beautifully put, Cathy. Hand-making anything is a worthwhile endeavor and nothing can replace the joy of watching your own creations blossom. I so look forward to seeing your finished piece but am enjoying the slow journey as well.😊
it's been a genuine pleasure watching this project slowly develop. I think the world needs a little more 'slow'....on everything. I adore your channel and am so excited every time I see a new video pop up!!
Beautifully worded. I so hear your passion. Thank you.
BTW Congrats x
Thank you for sharing your passion with us! This is so inspiring! I'm also really excited to see the coat finished! even if I know it will still takes time and that each step is as important as the result. i'm not a pro at sewing. I know basic things (i'm a potter and I like painting). And I love your videos because they're full of love, creativity and inspiration. Thank you for sharing your adventure with us all =)
Beautiful Cathy. So much goodness in this video. Side note: I want that apple at 2:57 so badly.
I adore this video! You articulate the question of purpose and human expression so beautifully. You are so intentional and thoughtful in your decision making process. Thank you for making this statement of purpose. It resonates with the time in the past of humans versus the machine age and it also resonates with today's dilemma of humans versus AI. We need to solidly re-emphasize the real meaning of what it is to be human and create. Thank you.
Hi, I hope you don't mind, but I totally adore the way you have modified your life to have peace in your soul. I also simply love your freckles.😊 xxx
Cathy what you are doing is rare art and it so very beautiful. ❤
Thank you for sharing. I needed to hear this! ❤️
Beautiful! Yes, I'm in, I'm coming too! 🙋🏽♂️ 😃
What a gem? Two if you count the video as well as the person.
Congrats on your US Visa. I hope you enjoy your stay and have a lovely adventure!
I see it I like it I'm gonna make it this is just amazing with every step I started this channel with the peacock dress and I'm living for this purple cloak so much love sent your way!! ❤
Thank you for being an insperation. Beautiful beautiful
This is beautiful. Happy sewing 💚🪡💚
Wonderful vlog Kathy.❤️🇨🇦🐕
I watch your videos because you share an awe of what was beautiful back when we think that they had nothing.
Amazing.
I don't like the mass production either especially since I've learned that people in countries like Bangladesh are working in poor conditions for some outrageously demeaning paycheck.
Thanks for your lovely words. Glad the visa came through! I think of you every time I pass the V&A (which is about once a week). Safe travels both in body and mind!
You are a very interesting person. Thank you for sharing this moment with us.
Hi Kathy I am so invested in watching this from idea conception through to done.I hope one day you will complete the peacock dress
Your voice sounds so much better than your last video.
I hope this means you are feeling better.🙂
Your voice is so strong now. I am very glad.
Thank you for the motivation you are.
I'm with you for the long haul *smile
Bravo, you! Your voice sounds stronger🎉
So happy your voice seems to be getting better.❤
Looks like you inspired Anna Wintour’s look at the Met Gala.
That was a beautiful speech
Of course, why would I not? There's no need for commercials. The next update is all I am waiting for with baited breath. So, next...?
I am not a sower, but I still like your videos and appreciate your skills 😊
In this context I don't understand "authentic". I am a real person; how can I be something other than my real self?
A lot of people hide what they'd really like to say or do or be. Being authentic is being yourself without that fear of judgement or pressure. We mostly see her through sewing, but I'm sure in her other facets of life she is learning (and sharing that learning) how to be true to herself and not just follow the trends.
Authentic is currently an overused word though, so the meaning will evolve.
i am frustraited by the math, nothing about me is standard size, but i dont have the skill to change a pattern
My hair is decently long - maybe mid back, and so slippery, and I've had such a hard time finding protective styles that don't just fall out within an hour... Anyone have ideas?
I watch your projects and I wonder how many skills can I add to a piece before it is “wrong” … I can sow, bead, knit and crochet … paint … and even with all this, I don’t start anything with mixed skills.
Nothing is ever wrong as long as you are singing your song! I enjoy knitting, embroidering, & hand making quilts both patchwork & applique. I especially like quilts because quilts are the my biggest canvas. Currently I'm knitting lace to applique to a quilt. There will, no doubt, be beading, embroidery, & embroidery as quilting. Have confidence in yourself & your voice. You only need to please yourself. Make sure you treat your works of art as art. Have unveiling parties--teas, cocktails whatever is your jam. If you treat your work as important others will too! There is NO WRONG!
Cool 😀
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Lovely
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I have been trying to figure out why you are traveling "across the pond" so frequently. I haven't found a video which explains it yet. Have I missed something important?
For visa reasons. She said on instagram, I think, that she finally got her visa to move to the US for good. Before, she wasn't able to.
She hasn't said, as far as I'm aware, why she wants to move to the US in the first place.
I hope it's not solely because her spiritual teacher lives there.
Where’s the peacock dress?
She came to the conclusion that there wasn't any way to complete it that felt ethical because of what it was designed to be in the first place. There's a video where she talks about it on the channel.
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ua-cam.com/video/pS9BZFkEA1g/v-deo.html
Not sure if this is of interest but this is an American who married an aristocrat and lives in Britain. Her M in L opens a trunk and out came all these 17th,18th and 19th C dresses.
I thought if that too
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I sincerely hope you find Jesus on this journey. He will explain everything.🙏
The evening before I started my journey back home to Kelmscott Manor , timetravelling to meet a part of my soul in “my“ last life as William Morris , in the moment I set my clock your Video appeared on my screen💕
We met years ago in Arizona .. joining an event with Jeff Walker. I clearly remember you and nothing is for accident 🙂today after two days with Matías de Stefano and the 9 dimensions I’m still in London ..
Greetings from my heart and blessings for your work and health 🩵🦋🌼🌸