CasaSugar

An Interview and House Tour With Natalie Chanin

Elka Karl — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 06:00:02 PST

Those of you who've been following CasaSugar for a while know that I love the work of textile designer and artist Natalie Chanin. From her studio in Florence, AL, Natalie creates appliqued clothing and an interiors collection, runs workshops, and writes books, including Alabama Stitch Book, and her latest, Alabama Studio Style. Natalie recently invited CasaSugar readers to take a peek at her home in Florence, where she dreams up her designs and raises her daughter. Let's take a look at her beautiful home!

Home Library: Alabama Chanin Studio Style

Elka Karl — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 07:00:42 PDT

I've been a long-time fan of textile artist Natalie Chanin. The Alabama native left her successful career as a costume designer and fashion stylist in New York to return to her hometown of Florence, AL, where she creates fantastically intricate appliquéd textiles for the wardrobe and home. While her first book, Alabama Stitch Book, focused on pattern-making for clothing and some home decorating projects, her latest, Alabama Studio Style ($35), is more of a lifestyle book.

While the book shows you how to create 20 lovely clothing and home décor projects, through the use of sewing, stenciling, and beading, there's much more to be found in its pages than straight projects. Recipes abound, as do in-depth stories of how and why each endeavor should be attempted. And there are plenty of delicious recipes to explore as well, including Put-Up Tomato Tart and Greens & Pot Likker. The book takes you deep into the Alabama Studio world, and for the first time ever, I find myself interested in making a trip to visit the state of Alabama. Natalie Chanin's book is beautifully photographed and written, and the projects and ideas she shares create a vision of a rural village that is thriving with both creativity and community. Check out a few photos and projects from Alabama Studio Style below!

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CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Award Nominees Announced!

FabSugar — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 11:00:22 PDT

The CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund top-10 nominees have been announced and it's filled with major talent. The wide range of genius includes eco-conscious creators, Monique Pean and Alabama Chanin's Natalie Chanin, edgy designers Flora Gill and Alexa Adams of Ohne Titel, and even men's footwear extraordinaire, George Esquivel for Esquivel Shoes - stiff competition! The chosen one and two runners-up will be announced at the annual gala on Nov. 16. The prize? Cash and mentoring from the industry's crème de la crème.

(L-R: Ohne Titel, Alabama Chanin, and Sophie Theallet)

To see who else made the cut,

Gary Graham
Patrik Ervell
Simon Spurr, of Spurr
Sophie Theallet
Waris Ahluwalia, of House of Waris
Wayne Lee, of Wayne

Casa Verde: Alabama Chanin's Interiors Collection

CasaSugar — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 15:00:20 PDT

While I've featured Alabama Chanin before, the design company's site has beautiful new interior pictures that I thought were worth reflecting upon. Alabama Chanin, the collection of designer Natalie Chanin, features clothing and interior decor pieces that strive to be as environmentally sensitive as possible. Organic cotton, natural indigo dyes, and US-made products are all part of the line. The interior collection offers limited-edition pieces for the home that emphasize upcycling. Natali calls the collection "Alabama Studio Style." Right now, Alabama Chanin's collection includes home furnishings as well as decorative pieces.

To find out more about the interiors collection,

All of the lighting and furniture are handmade, artisan creations that were found in vintage shops, flea markets, or scrapyards in the southeastern United States, and then repurposed. Old metal scraps have been transformed into sculptural objects, and farm chairs feature new seats woven from cotton jersey scraps and old ties. Chandeliers made with old lighting fixtures are decorated with cow bones, string, metals, and sticks retrieved from river beds. Ancient, tattered quilts have been washed, patched, and decorated with appliques and decorative stitching, and all of the pillows in the interiors collection are made from 100 percent Certified Organic Cotton from the Alabama Chanin Fabric Line.

If you're interested in seeing more of the interiors collection, check out the online store.

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Inspired: Cameron Diaz's Reverse Appliqué

CasaSugar — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 09:15:56 PDT

Cameron Diaz's Oscar de la Renta dress, which she wore at the Women in Film Awards, reminded me of another beautiful lady who's fond of appliqué and reverse appliqué. In fact, this designer marks them as signature techniques in her fashion and home décor lines. I've featured her work a few times in the past, along with her inspiring book.

To find out who the designer is,

Cameron's dress reminded me of designer Natalie Chanin, who's made appliqué and reverse appliqué two of her signature techniques. Reverse appliqué is a method creating a cut-out look in a piece, and often uses a contrasting color. In Cameron's dress, the top layer (the white layer) would be the part that would be cut out, while the orange fabric would be laid underneath and stitched over. Natalie's company, Alabama Chanin, has created pillows, dresses, T-shirts, and napkins that use reverse appliqué. This designer claims it's easy to learn (I've done it once or twice, and I'd have to agree), so if you love the look as much as I do, buy her book, which has patterns and directions for projects using appliqué.

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Source and Source

Home Library: Alabama Stitch Book

CasaSugar — Mon, 05 May 2008 07:44:49 PDT

Seamstress, designer, and author Natalie Chanin is something of a virago - and I mean that in the most positive sense of the word. Indeed, she is a woman to be reckoned with. With her newest venture, the Alabama Stitch Book ($35) she takes you further into her world, sharing stories of cotton production, growing up in rural Alabama, and the family tradition of embroidery. Of course, Natalie's take on embroidery is decidedly modern. Whether she's showing her readers how to create a cotton jersey layered corset shirt or instructing them on how to embroider a postcard, the book's tone is always personable, knowledgeable, and approachable. I read the whole book in one sitting, and then immediately started listing projects to start in on, since there are numerous patterns and instructions included in Alabama Stitch. You can buy the book here, and I highly recommend you do. It's been one of the most delightful reads to cross my desk in quite some time.

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Oscarworthy: Designers And Diamonds Unite!

FabSugar — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 14:00:22 PST

It's almost Oscars time, so you know what that means? Diamonds galore! Phillip Lim, Rodarte, Libertine, Jovovich-Hawk, and Alabama Chanin have all joined forces with the Diamond Information Center to celebrate Oscars fashions by creating one-of-a-kind red carpet looks incorporating diamond pieces.

All the gowns, including Rodarte's (left), are currently on display at the Chateau Marmont in LA - today is the last day - so if you're in the area, stop by and report!

If all this Oscar talk is getting you excited for Sunday be sure to tune in to the Sugar network's online Oscar party! Myself and Bella will be doing our always-fun love-it or hate-it polls and Team is hosting a live chat - stop on by!

To hear more about the specific dresses and to see photos,

Lim has designed a "Galaxy" gown with the help of a Cartier antique brooch. The Rodarte sisters, Laura and Kate Mulleavy, used five diamond butterfly Van Cleef & Arpels brooches to liven their pink dress. Jovovich-Hawk borrowed a gold and diamond Camilla Dietz Bergeron necklace, while Libertine used 21 Neil Lane brooches to dazzle their 1930s black-velvet frock. Alabama Chanin teamed up with Gem Palace and used $50,000 worth of rough diamond beads along the neckline of her ivory gown. I sure hope someone wears one of these diamond-in-the-rough gowns to the Oscars!

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Source and Source

Designer Spotlight: Alabama Chanin

CasaSugar — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 13:30:55 PDT

In its September issue, Domino has a very cool interview with Natalie Chanin, the designer behind Alabama Chanin. I first became smitten with Chanin when I discovered her now-defunct clothing brand Project Alabama, so I was excited to read that the designer has expanded her repertoire to include jewelry and home wares. (Thanks to Poppytalk for the tip.)

Like Project Alabama, the Alabama Chanin brand is all about creating handmade, limited-edition pieces from new, old, recycled, and vintage materials - such as this reclaimed chair and necktie creation (left). It's as if someone climbed into a Southern attic full of treasures and crafted them into very hip furniture and home accents. Chanin, who has a degree in Environmental Design from North Carolina State University, is all about eco- and low-impact living in Florence, AL, where her studio and soon-to-open flagship store are located. To see a gallery of Chanin's work,

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Starbucks: Alabama Chanin

PopSugarTV — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:11:55 PST