About me and the idea

A clergywoman now, I've been interested in designing stoles since I was younger. It's partly my do-it-yourself spirit: I always thought that they were the kind of thing I could make.

I haven't found much help online, though--there aren't a whole lot of options of patterns out there, and no one's posting crafty tutorials. Many of the stoles I've found out there weren't that appealing to me. And even the mass-produced ones are expensive.

There are a handful of truly beautiful stole designers I've come across, and I have deep admiration for their work and the devotion it represents.

But now, with the easy options for custom fabric printing, the time seemed right to try my hand at creating digitally-designed stole fabric that could be printed with the pattern on it. Like those cutesy Christmas ornaments of my childhood, only more elegant and less cute--I could make a cut & sew fabric panel with guidance for sewing a stole printed right onto it.

So that's what I've done. Working from my the stoles I most appreciated for their fit, I designed a digital sewing pattern that's printed onto fabric I've designed and decorated for use in clergy stoles.

This isn't my main gig, and I'm not likely to get rich by it. Mostly, I hope to make beautiful and thoughtful contemporary design available for clergy stoles, in a way that's affordable and accessible.

(I don't want to do the sewing, so there's that, too. You're going to have to do it yourself. Or find some other nice person who will. The good news is that our churches tend to be full of people whose sewing skills are WAY past what this requires.)

I am a United Methodist pastor in Redondo Beach, California, a graduate of the Claremont School of Theology.

If you have ideas or questions, holler. I'm not sure where this will go, but so far it's been a lot of creative fun!

3 comments:

  1. What a wonderful idea! Beautiful! I am wondering what the words are on the green stole.
    Thanks,
    Diana

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  2. The green stole has the text of Isaiah 55:10-11: For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
    and do not return there until they have watered the earth,
    making it bring forth and sprout,
    giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
    so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
    it shall not return to me empty,
    but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
    and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

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  3. Hello! Great idea! I've been asked to make some clergy stoles for a friend. Just wondering.....one piece of your fabric panel holds 3 stoles waiting to be sewn? How much are you asking? How much is shipping? What sort of fabric do you suggest for the back? Is cotton quilting fabric good, or does it have to be satin? Do I need interfacing also? Thank you. Angelika

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