Journey to the South pt. 1 - Visiting Alabama Chanin and The School of Making
The School of Making at Alabama Chanin
This blog is late. Years late. And yet, with the passing of time, I think some of the memories of this trip have greater relevance and importance for where I stand as a maker today.
In the summer of 2022 (I know! Three years ago!) I received a LIFE CHANGING grant from DCASE, Department of Cultural Affairs and Events from the city of Chicago. My grant proposed the development of a new quilt coat collection, alongside a trip to The School of Making at Alabama Chanin to participate in a workshop. Without the support of this grant, this would have been an impossible trip. The workshop alone costs thousands of dollars without the additional cost of traveling to get there. But with the announcement that I had received a grant and my proposal had been accepted, my dream trip quickly became a reality.
First came the booking of the trip - and squeezing into the last available spot for the Advanced Outerwear workshop. It was my ideal choice and as luck would have it, it aligned perfectly with the last minute time off my boss was allowing me to take. Already on an incredible roll, I quickly found (with a recommendation from the Alabama Chanin staff) a perfectly accommodating Airbnb, a rental car, and booked my travel.
Textile sample from Alabama Chanin
What came next was truly the experience of a lifetime. I feel like I am relatively well traveled, but this was my first solo adventure - and to the south, a place I had never been! It was equal parts exhilarating, liberating and fascinating to forge my independence in this manner. As a person who leans toward introversion, the idea of participating in a group workshop made me nervous, but from the second I walked into Alabama Chanin studio, I was in a brand new world. So many Alabama Chanin staff were present to greet each workshop participant, introduce them to the space and the project, and get them situated in their own studio space for the week. I was introduced to the project for the Advanced Outerwear Project and my studio space, and got right to work in selecting my jacket style, color way and stencil for the project! To be able to work on a completely customized piece for the duration of the workshop and have access to all of the resources of the Alabama Chanin studio was an incredible dream.
Lunch is served at The School of Making
Each day of the workshop would begin the same, with a farm-to-table breakfast communally served before the day’s instructions on the workshop project, and with times to view the Alabama Chanin archive of textiles, documenting every fabric manipulation developed for 25 years worth of collections! This was by far my favorite way to enjoy downtime between making - taking note of every embroidery and embellishment technique as a bit of inspiration for Kiki’s Quilty Pleasures became as important as my workshop project itself. Each day also progressed with an equally delicious lunch, and then an introduction to a new facet of Alabama Chanin studio: a tour of the design studio, an introduction to the resident stencil artist, and amazingly, we got to tour the entire production facility, following the garment trail from start to finish! I had never before seen a slow fashion manufacturer, and this completely opened my eyes to how garments can be sustainably and ethically produced while honoring design.
Custom garment by Alabama Chanin
At the end of the three day workshop, I was filled with inspiration - I had learned how to cover snaps in crochet, sew flat-felled seams by hand and perfect my whip stitch while beginning the process of producing my own custom Alabama Chanin coat. Beyond that, I had observed how to stencil a pattern (a technique I haven’t yet used but I will!), the process of preserving garment salvage and repurposing material, and the transformative techniques of appliqué, embroidery, beadwork and quilting when applied to garments by hand. I was heartbroken to leave - it really is that special of a place! - but the memories, and my own Alabama Chanin hand stitched garment stay with me. I have vowed to go back, and I can’t wait to dive into a new project when I do.
Sample garment from Alabama Chanin