Mindful and Tees

Yeah NOW the new series has launched!

I have been very busy and kept quiet for a while. And a lot has happened. But what is nicer to write another post and talk about a new project!

Practicing Kundalini Yoga and teaching it made me very aware of the power of words. One word can change my whole frequency in an instant!

The other thing I really love is comfortable clothes. Clothes that I do not feel, that look nice and are of good quality. That is i can cu.

So I combined the two and my new series of Mindful Tees was created. I know for myself how good it is to be reminded of mindfulness and being mindful. And to have a mindful word on a comfortable Tee is just the perfect thing to me.

PEACE was the first word chosen. And funny enough the carving for the print was created under the most un-peaceful circumstances you can imagine, having a bunch of kids run around being excited about Easter. 

LOVE had a similar challenge and having finished those two prints made me really happy. 

In this series I combined sewing by hand and sewing with the machine. Having spent hours with thread and needle and a garment on my lap I have a learnt a lot and trained my feeling for the right tension or better lack of it, construction and most comfortable design to be able to offer a more economic version. Only constructed by machine I added a reinforcing decorative stitch by hand (as usual). Living on a Hand sewn wardrobe for years I will tell you that the quality is so very high and my organic material choices made each piece last a very long time. This might be against the times but I love to have fewer pieces I love and wear them until they dissolve one day.......

So with this fusion I can be sure the comfort is excellent and the the embroidery gives the additional unique look.

Ok, there is so much more to do.

Peace. Love.

Now or never, for MEN only

Once upon a time...

It has been a long time and I only have a minute! 

So ATTENTION this is a new Hand stitched Top available for MEN, made of Organic Bamboo/Cotton Jersey. The photo shows the vest but it would not be a problem to add sleeves. The classic version is black or white, colours can be ordered on demand.

Made to order, the pattern is ready for size S, any other size requires grading, which would only mean the production takes a little longer.

The material is very soft and due the sewing by hand only the spoiling effect is enhanced drastically. Easy to care for and breathable, which means airing is often enough.

PS You don't have to be a Yogi to wear comfortable clothes ;)

Rusty accident, New Moon & a New Top!

New Moon on the wrong day ....

Why is that? I have a moon app and I was really very sure that New Moon was yesterday. I even did my Moon fast yesterday. But then this afternoon I read weird posts on facebook concerning the moon and checked my app and had to find out that New Moon is today, never mind.

A good timing for this post. I worked on a new order, a men's vest and because it is still school holiday I had to squeeze it in somewhere and found a gap. So I developed the pattern and checked and double checked and then when I was happy I started cutting the fabric, wow, this is running smoothly.

Pinned and stitched I put it on my tailor's stand, which is not accurate because it is a men's vest but as it is for a size S, I could at least see its shape and collar. It looked nice. Good that I had a similar vest to compare sizing because it was far too wide.

How did that happen?

I haven't done a top all summer, so I might be a bit rusty but intuitively, I added a bit to the pattern being used to making ladies clothes. I know my patterns and know when I need to cut a bit wider so there is more room for drape and change and fine tuning, so this might be why it happened. 

This vest has a similar cut like my Hand stitched favorite Tank top, just with a men's shape, as in smaller armholes, smaller cut for front and back neckline, and it is a bit less tailored at the waist. 

So no chance for adjustment here unless I changed the pattern and create instead of a one-seam top a 3-seam-top. But the really comfortable thing about this one seam is that it feels fantastic on the body, because no seam is bothering you anywhere and the one seam that holds it together and gives the shape is on the back. So the answer was no, I had to check the pattern again, make sure that the pattern was super accurate and then concentrate to cut it at the line without adding anything.

There was enough fabric left, I started again. 

And what to do with the unusable top? I tried it on had to find out that it looked really nice on me. I never thought of using these differences on a ladies top. That is why I probably like it. The neckline is a bit higher than I would normally go. But because men have wider shoulders there is more space at the sides of the neck and this makes the whole décolleté very interesting and loose. And as men's waist is less accentuated than women's it floats nicely down my sides without touching and comes to an halt at my waist where it drapes. 

I shall finish it and take a pic.... Nice to have a new order and a new top for myself at the same time!

Happy New Moon!
x

210 days of Bound Lotus and the Hand stitched Onesie

Harvest time

You might think I have started expanding my work and specialize in toddlers clothes. No I haven't. Although I would not mind it at all designing a girls dress or a baby jumpsuit or any children's clothes, really.


This time I worked on an Hand stitched Ladies Onesie. The request was to replace a range of jumpsuits with the mission to be more attractive at home. Also wearable all year long, with and without any other layers to wear, and very comfortable were included in this order.

I must say I am very happy to have been approached. It is nice to have my work noticed. And I love this kind of approach. Can you make me...is my favorite.


I would not have designed a onesie in near future, so it is nice to have expanded my collection. But now as it is accomplished I would not be upset at all if the customer would not like it, as I fancy one myself.

It is the ultimate of comfortable so far! The cut is very feminine but there is enough drape to feel good if you know what I mean. The waistband is looser than for the Hand stitched Yoga pants as it should just gently sit there, which is also an important factor for hot summer days. The legs of the pants only touch at the very end so the only points of contacts are on the shoulders, a touch on the waist and at the bottom of the legs. The conic shape allows to pull them up higher when you wish to have cooler ankles.

I have the feeling she might ask for other colors once she received it and will not wear it only at home. I guess I can start making another one ...... ;)

I called this post harvest time. This onesie was quite a challenge as it has a lot of folds and must really sit perfectly. And looking back I can tell now how much I have progressed with my work. 

I recently had a similar experience with my daily Bound Lotus practice. I noticed a shift before but now I can see the difference. It is hard to explain but this posture seems to be part of my body now, in way. I am still far from reaching my toes but I feel comfortable and notice what this posture gives me.

The warmer days seem to be more frequent and I am thinking of shorter and airy......... 

In Training

New year

It seems that this year is everything else than superficial. I found already great music, geared up my Yoga props and changed my daily practice. Up somewhere around 4 am I start the day like in a cloud or dream. It is not really hard to get up at this hour for me, I am perfectly trained after two toddlers who still venture in my bed nowadays. 

The most challenging is to keep the time. I am slower but also this practice is much longer than anyone I had so far...... I try to finish before everybody is up but mostly end up with a little boy or two lying on my tummy or a demand for breakfast. 

It goes very deep to dedicate this golden hour to turn inside. And as a consequence during the day I feel sort of minced and incredibly tired. I notice it is getting better and the day does not seem endless anymore but I still have a long way to go before I fully integrated this routine into my life.

That does not keep me from designing new outfits. My head is bursting and I am looking forward to spend some time with the doll (tailor's dummy) over the next dew days......

ps:
I had some lovely feedback on my new collection, wearing it on a Yoga course I was attending. In a random conversation some ladies mentioned they could not find any nice Yoga Wear and where I got mine from, thank you!

The New Collection on the Beach

Finally ready to let go of 2013 . . . .

I am soooooo tired - But it was a good day. 

The last weeks I did nothing else but finishing off my NEW Collection - BASIS - and today I was ready to take all the pieces with me to the Beach to take some pics. Obviously it was freezing cold but the sun was out and we chose a rather sheltered corner. So filled with my excitement of being at the Beach - home! - but also because I finally can show the collection and offer it in my shop, I felt almost warm.

Just after a couple of hours I could not feel my toes anymore and we had enough shots captured and could drive back home, where we shot the rest of the details and voilà: my first listing is online!

The collection is the Best of ONE year work. There are Yoga pants, three different styles of Long sleeve Tops including a Tunic and a Tank Top and ALL pieces are Hand stitched. I offer size S, M or L and the fabric is either Organic Bamboo/Cotton Jersey or Organic Cotton Jersey in black, white and colours. (I will show the colours available but will have to order them on demand according to availability.) For the seams there is a choice of contrasting Red, or a similar colour to the tone of the chosen material and you can state your wish at the check-out.

There is still much more to do but I can feel a chapter is finishing and I am ready for the New of 2014! 

100 days and The Lotus

Experience of a daily practice

I do not want to blame all on my kids but it took me an incredibly long time to find a routine in my new life. Not so much caring for the kids but meeting my own needs. Sadly it included a vast amount of energy to make all the family members take their share, not sure but it might have been easier to accomplish this with female household members, saying that, my oldest son complained this morning that the kitchen has too many things lying around and it was impossible for him to get some more breakfast (being 4 and a half he is climbing everywhere to get what he wants).

I never have stopped with my yoga practice but I have been drained for a long time mainly due to sleep deprivation. But combined with Aqua Running and 3 weeks on my own with the kids (where I had nothing better to do in the evening than doing yoga) I could gather a lot of stamina that I do not wish to loose again.

It has been almost 100 days since I have started with The Bound Lotus. As so often I do not know how things make it into my life but there it is and I am very fond of this practice. 

I must mention at this point that also this practice challenges me a lot. First I had to practice the Lotus position as I have been avoiding full Lotus for the past years. So part of the warm-up set now is to stretch my legs to achieve Lotus easier. And it is working. I manage to sit without props in full Lotus. My hands are still far away from grabbing my toes (after crossing them on the back) but I think I will emphasize on this stretch from now on. Also the head does not touch the ground yet, but I approach this while sitting in Bound Lotus, and I get closer, every day a bit more. But there is still much more stretching to do for Lotus and arms, so this might take a bit longer.

As the practice only counts if you do not skip one day I had to discipline myself to start the day with Bound Lotus. So no matter what conditions I will warm-up and stretch and do the Bound Lotus before I start anything else. Because from experience I know once I have started the day there is no stopping and a day would feel wrong without Bound Lotus at the very beginning. 

And here I am 100 days later, happy to have found this practice as it replaces meditation for me at the moment. Because to sit still in mediation will require another quarter of a lifetime.
Practice on.

More about Bound Lotus here.

New & Merry

An early Christmas Treat and Best Wishes!

The Year is almost over and I am very excited what the New one will bring. It seems already busy and full of challenges. But this is for a new blog post.

For now I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!


I thought it is time to treat myself to a new Yoga Mat after 15 years. It seems it starts a whole new chapter.

Peace.

Lotus and the Beach

Yoga in progress

My newest challenge is Bound Lotus. I have avoided Lotus in general the last years as I was either too fat or not flexible enough. But now the Baby-fat is fading and this summer had a good aspect as I had nothing else to do at night than doing my Yoga Set, every day. So Lotus is possible now, Bound Lotus still a big mission though. But I must say after 11 minutes with lots of props and some suffering, I feel really good afterwards, just wondering when will I enjoy 31 minutes without too much pain.....

Meanwhile my Hand stitched Yoga Tunic in natural Organic Cotton Bamboo Jersey is finished. The seam is at the front this time, as it might bother me while practicing kriyas on the back. Also, it is neither too wide nor too tight as I want to be able to do inverted postures without showing my belly. I enjoy being aware of my body but do not want to be trapped like a sausage, so I chose the middle way. 

As you can see on the picture, I took it on an outing and this Tunic is really fun to mix with blue and grey. The material is fantastic to wear (Bamboo!) and with the Yoga Bra, the white feels even better, as it breaks the brightness.

The second Top of this special Hand stitched Yoga collection is also about to be finished, already thinking of variations with different seam colours but I might add some coloured versions anyway, as I am not sure to keep it all white....

I love big projects!

3 min dis-traction

Restless night

Thinking of when I lived on the small remote Island in Scotland I remember one really cold winter, so cold that the water system froze. We had very brave longterm guests back then and while I was really inventive to gather some water to wash my hair, the girl solved it with Dry Shampoo that she had brought with her.

The other night, I could not concentrate on anything which is a shame because I really honor those quiet hours, and nothing mind numbing was broadcasting, so I remembered the upcoming wedding in our family and browsed for some special hair do. Vimeo has quite some arty films and I once watched a really nice series of Tiger in a Jar like making your own pesto or bread but also a nice hairstyle. From that I ended up at Hair Dresser on Fire which is kind of entertaining to watch..... On her blog she talks about no poo which is when you don't use shampoo but water, baking soda and cider vinegar. She says she cannot handle that herself but tries to reduce the times of hair wash and that is where the Dry Shampoo came back to my life.

I thought I give it a try after all and went into the shop I pass on the way to get my son from school and tried it this morning. A funny thing. The hair feels lighter but it turns white so I guess you have to spray it with a bit of water?.....I really don't know about that.

Anyway it is fun to play with hair for a while but last night I had a much better distraction result after exhaustion of a restless mind and Aqua Running:

3MS - 3 minutes to shift the flow in your body and mind...

Breath is My Music

Picking Plums

The boys are out and this gives me a moment of inner silence which I love. Not that I do not accomplish this otherwise but it has a different quality to it. Somehow motherhood is connected to being there non stop and only stops with physical separation and still then there is a chance that a lot of thoughts and concerns are still with the boys.

Not knowing when they are back I started with my Yoga Set. The last weeks I am doing a pelvic balance set which is quite short but very intense. I am also back to Aqua Running after a long Summer Break and was really surprised how easy my return was. So I guess I finally made a huge step. I would not mention this but I have to admit it is a (my) BIG mission to get rid of a baby body (; 

Additionally I can stay in the wheel position and this took years hahahaha. That is one aspect of Yoga that I really love. I keep doing the same thing over and over again often struggle and then one day something has shifted and I can do it. And then the experience can still change by further repetition. I still remember one night, in my past life, I was out dancing and noticed a change of my hip-spine coordination which was due to spinal twists I was practicing at that time. This might sound weird but it is a great feeling for me to be flexible.

If you haven't seen this short film I post it here again. I really like watching it. Not only because Yoga in a dress looks really nice but also because it shows how normal Yoga is. I do not think she looks particularly fit from a glance....... And the poses do not seem to be great effort for her. And the good thing about Yoga is that there is no limit to age or gender or constitution or condition. It requires comfortable clothes which is nice to wear every day anyway (... i can cu) and some practice. And it all comes with the Breath.

(and I recently had the chance to watch the changes in a 70 year old lady, completely new to Kundalini Yoga, that went from swearing to moving quite smoothly in days, and that with acute spinal issues.)

They are back now.

Bra take 2

I finished the "day" version of this super comfy bra. I just wanted a second one that is not visible or looks like another T-Shirt layer like the Yoga Bra.

This time I have used a wider elastic band with a softer structure, which seems to be even more comfortable. I did not fold the material over and embedded the band but left it outside, sewn on a single layer of Jersey. But because of its width I had to sew two rows of cross stitch around the band, which is a nice decorative element. 

The cut is lower for this version. I might try a different shape for the next one, maybe a V? The best thing about this breathable Organic Bamboo Cotton Jersey is that I can wear it quite often with only airing it, compared to a bra made of Cotton or Lycra. The material is very suitable for a bra due to its elastane content for stability, but rather for smaller cup sizes (;

Still in test phase but already one of my favorite no feel designs!

bra in progress

Rusty

It has been a long time... I am back on the Island and have to find out that my favorite cardigan has blown away. I aired it before I left for the airport and forgot to take it with me, the other option is of course that it shows up again in 3 weeks time or so, a special quality of the house I am living in at the moment.

The other thing I notice being away for so long does something. It changes perspective but also, it takes a while to get back into a routine. Saying that I spent the last days in a cloud and slowly made my way out, mainly by sleeping and doing nothing. But yesterday I had to do it: I worked on a sports bra.

I love the summer even when it is boiling hot like it was on the continent but also because I can wear the thinnest materials or hardly anything. The bikini top I made was really nice to have with me wearing it non stop. 

But it is getting cooler now, the materials need to be thicker and layers drape over layers, so straps and ties are definitely in the way. Also, for my Yoga routine I cannot have anything bothering me on my back or anywhere else...........



Still some supersoft Organic Bamboo Cotton fabric left I hid in my studio for some hours and started to develop my Yoga sports bra. I am not a fan of bras and never found one that was comfortable and nice looking. And the elastic always bothers me and wires?? Anyway I made this first version especially for Yoga. It has a simple T-shirt cut with one seam at the back and a wide elastic band sewn between 2 layers of fabric. 

I will test it and adapt it for the day version. 

So far: very nice and comfy.

this way

The process of starting a painting is very funny to observe for me, but hard to explain. There is long nothing accompanied by a special nervousness. And all of a sudden it is clear, I can see it and I start. The outcome could be different though.

Sometimes I make plans and I can only laugh at the end of the day what is left of that plan. 

And then there are seeds. An idea comes up, energy flows and excitement arises. The thing is, it might take a long time to grow or another much stronger one overgrows everything.
In my head all goes very fast in reality rather not. I am learning to live along the slow movements... I have created a new Hand stitched Halter Top but it was already there for a long time. 


It is a beginning of a new direction I feel. 

m.o.v.e.m.e.n.t.

I will stop thinking for a while and come back to it and find out. 
Sorry to be vague for now but I will keep you posted, just don't know when (:

ONE and more

A year has past and the winner is ...

Time is a weird thing. It is either too slow or too fast and if I do not notice time it is perfect. Kids grow up so quickly and Christmas comes too often. 

Well, enough thinking, time to celebrate: I did not make the chocolate cake but will for sure enjoy the day, this first Birthday of my little business i can cu - Happy Birthday!

Somehow it is also a day to reflect on all that has happened over the last year. It has been so special to get back to creating after a long baby break and also very hard. I am proud to present my wardrobe, far from finished but I guess I won't stop anyway because there will be always this and that I have never tried! And finally all the patterns are transferred and stored. WOW.

It is also time to wait and find out which size, colour and colour of seam this special Birthday custom present will be, congratulations Serena! And thank you for supporting i can cu.

Do not forget to use chocolatecake1 the couponcode for 40% off on all your purchases in i can cu's shop!!

Lots of Love
Happy Day
x Tina & i can cu

June or April

Meant to be a Summercardi

No matter what kind of summer it is I always love to carry a thin cardigan around with me. I can use it as a pillow for a power-nap on the bench or in air conditioned rooms but also today when I ask myself whether it might be April. Being versatile to mix and match it also needs to look nice even after a day in my bag.

I was flirting with this rib-knit for a while now but never found time to approach it. Somehow avoiding the next project (to get ready to sprint like a cheetah) I grabbed one opportunity and started cutting this fabric and got very excited as I found out I had just enough of it to make this long thin summercardi I had in my head. I chose this material because of its light airy-ness and the color is just right for sunshine and picnics. And there it is with a bit of sunshine between buckets of rain.

i can cu is ONE - enter the BIG anniversary Giveaway!

i can cu's 1y anniversary Giveaway

Almost one year ago i can cu made a step into the light and opened the shop at etsy i can c u - Hand stitched Yoga wear / fashion +
What a big event! It took a while to get settled and some months later the shop was filled with lots of Hand stitched garments and we had some nice photo shootings.....

Thank you to all customers, supporters, new friends and old ones! I cannot believe a year has past but I am also very proud it has!


And now.......every birthday needs a present, so this is it
The BIG 1y anniversary Giveaway!
Because of this special occasion i can cu launches a big Giveaway and you can win YOUR favorite Hand stitched Tank Top in a color of your choice. 

Additionally you can select the colour of the contrasting seam and the size. This Tank Top will be made especially for you!

Choose size S, M or L.

The seam colours can be blue, yellow, white, red, purple or orange.
The fabric can be chosen from a comfortable grey marl cotton-rib double jersey or a soft mauve single jersey cotton-mix (T-shirt) or a very thin dark blue cotton-rib jersey (slightly transparent and very soft) or 
a stretchy very soft mustard cotton-mix rib-jersey.
From casual to elegant, Yoga or dance you will love YOUR new favorite Hand stitched Tank Top.

Happy Birthday!


ENTER here
To enter the BIG 1y anniversary Giveaway share this Giveaway in media of your choice and leave a comment below this post and add the link and your name.

You have earned one additional entry in case 
you additionally followed i can cu's blog 
or favorited i can cu's FB page 
or followed i can cu's pinterest page 
or subscribed to i can cu's channel 
and this will increase your chance to win. (please add that to your comment)

The winner will be randomly chosen and announced on the 1st of July 2013. 
Love to you all. Thank you!

Meet Dolly

Hello new friend . . 

Only a matter of time but now she finally made it, meet my new tailor's dummy. Hello!

I can cu featured!

hello friends 

my pink fingerless gloves 
are up for vote.

please vote for icancu2, 
thank you!!!!!!! 
very much appreciated....



http://onfireforhandmade.com/perfectly-pink-great-finds/

Energy boost

Excitement of the unknown

Tired or not I am generated by excitement of new projects and their outcome. I have an idea and and this boost drives me as fast as possible to realize it.

The mat is out, so is the Organic Cotton/Bamboo Jersey, which is  already a pleasure in itself to work with, a fine smooth material. . . .
And soon I will know. . .