Literary Sewing Circle: A Project Round Up!

The deadline for sharing makes for this round of the Literary Sewing Circle (featuring Banyan Moon by Thao Thai) was last Friday, and so today I'm sharing a round-up of all the projects shared in various places online. I'd forgotten that the link-up process was complicated and so didn't work for adding our projects on the final LSC post. So here are the many items made, shared here today! 

I'll start with my own. I decided to make the Full Moon Bag by All Well Workshop, a free pattern with a subscription to their newsletter.  Full details of making this bag can be found on my original blog post - I made this with scraps and really enjoyed it. I was inspired by the title of our book, and by the folktale about Chu Cuoi.

Next up we have DT Sewing Stories, who was also inspired by Chu Cuoi - but she made a Remy Raglan by Sew House Seven, with her fabric as her inspiration. You can read all about this beautiful top on her blog post, which is full of details. 

Silverdell over at PatternReview joined in the fun by making a top from a Japanese sewing book, her second version - in a bright Kumquat colour, inspired by Ann's nickname for her baby. 

Sarah (@sew.focused) shared her project on Instagram. It's an upcycled cardigan, inspired by the descriptions of Ann and Huong both wearing different cardigans & sweaters, and by Minh's love of thrift stores.

And Jan also shared her project on IG, this time a red blouse with gold embroidered accents, recalling Ann's discovery of the red fabric shot through with gold peonies in the trunk in the attic. 

If you made a project but didn't quite finish it by deadline, please share a link in the comments - we'd all love to see it! Hope you've all enjoyed this round of the Literary Sewing Circle. Keep your eye out for the next round sometime in late Spring 2025. 

Literary Sewing Circle: Book Talk and Link-Up!

 

Today is already our final day of the Literary Sewing Circle focusing on Thao Thai's Banyan Moon.

I hope you've had the chance to read the book, and both the first and second inspiration posts, and are getting lots of ideas for a project of your own.

The project linkup will be added to the bottom of this post: as soon as you are done your project, just pop a link to your post into the linkup and we will all be able to visit your blog/instagram etc. and explore your creation -- remember, it can be sewn, or knitted, crocheted, embroidered... any textile art that you practice.

I'll share some questions and thoughts about the book here - please respond to them in the comments, or add your own questions and reflections for others to engage with as well. 

1. If you decided to pick up this book and read it for this round, why? Had you heard of Thao Thai before, or did the book just sound interesting on its own?

I found this book in my library earlier this year and thought it sounded fascinating, especially once I read more about the author. I enjoyed it and thought there was a lot of room for discussion in the story, so I decided to share it with all of you!

2. What do you think of the book's concept? Are you a fan of stories told from 3 different perspectives like this one? 

I am a fan of stories told by 3 generations of women, but I often find that the middle one gets less time on the page than the other two. In this book I was pleased that all three women had strong stories and strong voices as they shared their perspectives. 

3. Is there a particular character that you connected with most strongly? Any particular themes that resonate with you?

I really found the idea of three women who are closely related and spend their time together yet still have many secrets to be compelling. Each of the characters is so complex and invested in their relationships, and yet there is so much in their lives that they keep to themselves and don't share with the others - from actual events to their feelings and memories. The idea that it's impossible to know everything about someone else, even your own mother or daughter, was so interesting to investigate. 

And surprisingly I found I was really drawn to Huong. I found her story and her response to her life trauma so convincing and so relatable somehow. She wants to be a good mother and provide a safe and complete family structure for her daughter and yet somehow she can't, she just has to keep moving and deal with what comes. I respected her efforts during this story to learn new things and to build a better relationship with her daughter. 

4. Were you familiar with the historical context of this book? Were there any parts of the story that you found surprising or illuminating?

I felt like Ann's story was familiar but as we got back further to Minh's lifestory, it was really something new for me. I knew the basics of Vietnam during the war, and the surge in immigrants around the time that Minh fled the country as well, but this was so personal and highlighted a lot of things I didn't know about at all. I also loved the inclusion of the folktale of Chu Cuoi, the man in the moon. Great imagery in it reflecting some of the themes of this book. 

5. This story focuses in on the relationship between mothers and daughters, and the secrets we keep from one another. Did you think the characters got balanced 'airtime' here? Do you feel that their decisions to keep elements of their past secret were justified?

Sometimes in books with 3 perspectives, we get one that's more overlooked but as I noted earlier, I felt it was very balanced here. We get a good feeling for each character's contemporary life, but also their interior life - their past and the secrets they keep. And we see how keeping their secrets has affected the other characters. 

Some of the secrets didn't seem that vital to be kept a secret, but others were very understandable. Huong wanted to shield her daughter from the trauma she herself had experienced and Minh doesn't share her past with anyone, a way to move beyond it. 

6.  Is there anything specific  in the book that has sparked an idea for a project? Are you mulling over ideas?

The image of Chu Cuoi is still rumbling around as a theme I might use. But there are also other elements I didn't include in inspiration posts but which are still sticking with me, like Ann and Minh's shared love of good coffee. Or the light in the trees around the Banyan House. I have some ideas, I just have to pick one and get sewing. I hope you're starting on a project or have at least enjoyed your reading!

Please share your thoughts on the book, its themes, characters, or anything you noted about it -- either in the comments here or on your own blog with a link to your longer thoughts in the comments so we can find it. I love to talk about the experience of reading so feel free to comment no matter when you're reading this post; if you've read this I'd love to hear about it!

What project have you made, inspired by your reading of Banyan Moon? Share a link to your project on this post as soon as you're done! The linkup will be live until November 8 --  you have another 2 weeks of sewing time to finish and share. 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

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Literary Sewing Circle: More Inspiration!

 

 

It's time for more inspiration for our sewing projects drawn from Banyan Moon! This week I'll be looking at some of the settings and the outfits mentioned in the book to spark some ideas for our own sewing. 

Florida itself plays a big part in this book. The weather, the ocean, the fauna and flora, all show up here. We could be inspired by the ocean, simply with this Ocean Daze shirt by Pattern Emporium. Whether worn as a beach cover-up or in fabrics inspired by the title, it might be a great choice. 

There are a number of scenes on the beach in this novel. The novel opens when Minh, Huong and Ann are on the deserted beach in Ann's childhood - there is mention of the young Ann's wish for a new swimsuit as well as a description of Minh's outfit (as noted by reader Sara in our last post!)

'...She wore wide legged trousers in eggplant and a button down shirt that covered her arms entirely, except for a sliver of wrist, shaded exactly like sun-warmed hay. '

You could copy Minh in pieces by Liesl & Co, such as the Gallery Tunic along with the Cannes Trousers. 

Or you might want to try this Linnet Tunic by Patternerie on Etsy. 

Maybe it's the swimsuits that interest you. Huong teaches herself to swim during the action of the novel, facing her fears and tackling the ocean. You could make a swimsuit inspired by these mentions. 

You might try the Jalie Diane one-piece - practical and also a nod to Huong's sister-in-law Diane. 

Or maybe the Waverider Suit by Ellie & Mac for Huong's ocean swims. 

Perhaps it's the Seabright Swimmer from Friday Pattern Company that will catch your interest! 

In one of Huong's ocean swims, she gets caught in a riptide but survives with some quick thinking. Before she realizes what was happening she had stopped swimming to rest on a sandbar: 

I get on my knees and dig through the sand until I find what I'm looking for: the tiniest most perfect sand dollar. ... I can't wait to show Ann.

The most obvious make for this quote is the cheerful Sand Dollar Dress by designer Ann Treacy of Pattern Division! 

Or maybe the description of Ann's feeling when she's settled into the Banyan House will inspire you:

I want to be something feral and self-sufficient, like those panthers in the Everglades with their silky bodies, jumping from branch to branch.

You might choose to create the Panthere cocktail dress by I AM Patterns! 

Or even just use a thematic fabric for another project, like this Black Panthers rayon found at Simplifii Fabrics

Or take Ann's comment on her mother, near the end of the book: 

Her love is not flawless, a solitaire sparkling from a smooth hand. Rather, it reminds me of a geode -- rough and worn by time yet cracked, occasionally, to reveal a vibrant cluster of crystals. 

You could make the Geo Dress by Sew Different, maybe in one of the many gorgeous Geode prints from Spoonflower -- or you could tie-dye your own!

You might look at some of the colours and items described in the book, like the red silk shot through with gold peonies that Ann finds when she opens the old trunk in the attic -- or the milky-white glow of the moon in the story of Chu Cuoi -- or the jade bracelets that Minh talks about ("their deep green like the bottom of a pool, a color that felt taken from a painting") -- or Ann's description of the 'blooming purple azaleas and starry milkweed' surrounding the Banyan House -- or the way the "light filters through the trees in planked yellow streaks on the grass". 

Or maybe you'll be inspired by actual descriptions of clothing in the novel, like Minh's outfit mentioned at the beginning of this post. Or Huong's effortless style:

Now Mom greets me at the door in jeans and one of those clingy polyester shirts printed in a mandala design, somehow making it look fashionable

There are so many jeans patterns you could try, from the Mountain View Pull On Jeans from Itch to Stitch to the Heroine Jeans by Merchant and Mills or the Everyday Jeans by New Craft House, to name just a few! 

And you could make one of a multitude of swingy, clingy top patterns but of course in a nicer fabric than poly - maybe a bamboo jersey or modal. Lots of great mandala prints out there too! The Laundry Day Tee by Love Notions or the (free) Mallory asymmetrical tee by Tiana's Closet might be a great pick. 

Or one day after swimming lessons, Huong returns home: " I shower quickly, then put on a cornflower-blue sundress". 

Maybe you'll make a Cornflower summer dress from Wissew! 

When Crystal first comes to the Banyan House to see Ann after all their years apart, she comments that Ann looks different from what she expected - like, that Ann might have "a Chanel blazer or those fancy shoes with red soles". Ann doesn't tell her that she does indeed have a Chanel blazer packed away. And we all know how sewists love our knock-off Chanel blazers! You might want to make a quick dupe, using one of many patterns. If you're on PatternReview, there is a Chanel Style jacket sewalong you can follow for many tips and ideas. And you can also find a list of great choices at this blog by Sewing Chanel Style!

pic by SewingChanelStyle.com

Perhaps you'll accent something with lace, like the one Ann finds in the linen closet and they use for Minh's altar -- "Ann spreads out a piece of white Chantilly lace from the Lady's linen closet. Maybe it was meant to be sewn into a dress once, or a veil." For tips on how to sew with Chantilly lace, you can find a lot of great info in this blog post at Gertie's original blog! And there are more tips on lace in general at the Charm website. Or maybe you'll just give a nod to this image by using the Chantilly dress by Seamwork. 

When Ann is in the hospital, Huong talks about their outfits on a chilly October day - hers a cardigan the color of an olive leaf, and Ann's a rust-red one with big gold buttons, while Ann later mentions Huong wearing one of Minh's old sweaters, the "Big Bird yellow one with the huge buttons she got at a church rummage sale". 

You could choose any of a number of wonderful sweater or cardigan patterns to copy these outfits. Maybe the Misusu Cuddle Cardigan in green would copy Huong, while Ann's rust red one sounds like a Marlo by True Bias  The Citrine Cardi by Made by Rae in big bird yellow might replicate Minh's rummage sale find. 

Misusu Cuddle Cardigan & Sweater

\

Marlo Sweater by True Bias

Citrine by Made by Rae

Of course, you might also be thinking of Ann's previous life, in which she dresses up for parties like the one that opens this book. At that pivotal gathering she has on a fancy gown:

...he runs his hand over my hip, across the ocean-blue silk  of my one-shouldered gown, modest yet bold

Meanwhile, Noah's mother is wearing "an unusual dress for her: pink chiffon in a swingy pattern, the color of a shell's pearlescent interior, a direct affront to the white-and-blue theme". 

Both of these fancy dresses make me think of Burda patterns! Ann's dress could be copied - in blue of course - using this gown from Burda 07/2011.

Or for a more modern look, you could make this knit version by using the Bond Dress by Sewing & The City. 

Meanwhile, Alice might have been wearing something in a slightly lighter pink chiffon, similar to this Burda 127 from April 2024

Or it could be that this final image might stick with you, from when Ann is rummaging through her inheritance, Minh's jewelry box: "I sift through the precious metal, the gleam of rubies and deep, woodsy emeralds. Pearls that seem almost indecent in their luster, their perfect roundness. It's Aladdin's cave in there." 

This book feels a bit like a treasure box to me, and I love this image. You could take the jewels literally and make the Ruby Dress by Simple Sew, the Emerald Dress by Made by Rae or the Pearl Dress by Galia Couture, 

Or simply choose a fabric to represent this idea, like this Obsidian Baroque print by Raveneve on Spoonflower.

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I hope that you have both been inspired by this post, and are enjoying the reading. Please share any inspiration you might be thinking of for your project! 

And also, please share any quotes from the book that have jumped out at you so far, and thoughts about which parts have really caught you. I'd love to hear what you think of the story! 

Literary Sewing Circle: Author Feature!

 

Today's the day to talk about the author of our pick for this round of the #LiterarySewingCircle! Thao Thai is an American writer who has had her work published in a wide variety of both print and online magazines, as well as guest posts for many websites. Banyan Moon is her first novel, featuring Vietnamese women across the generations. This novel was the July 2023 pick for the Read with Jenna bookclub.  It was also a Barnes & Noble Discover Pick, and Book of the Month selection. Banyan Moon was also selected by booksellers as an IndieNext pick and longlisted for the Center for Fiction's First Novel Prize.

Another fun thing is her Wallflower Chats substack - you can subscribe for her regular newsletter. In this substack, she shared a bonus chapter for Banyan Moon, one that was deleted - it's from the perspective of Minh, and you can read it here! 

Photo by Caroline Lohrey

Thao Thai also understands us sewists! She is a sewist herself, and has written a number of articles about sewing and creativity for a variety of online publications. 

At Literary Hub, there is a beautiful essay on "Sewing & Summoning Possibility", in which she says

The comparisons between writing and sewing are perhaps too obvious. Both are acts of creation, relying on pattern and ingenuity to produce a new thing in the world. A garment, a sentence, is composed of common elements rearranged in specific and fateful ways. Both require dedication and precision, and often, many, many instances of redrafting.

 

At the Bustle Book Club, she talks about elements of her creativity, including her writing desk:

 half the time it’s a real writing desk, but another portion of the time I kind of set everything aside and have all my fabric and scissors laid out.

Photo by Jen Theodore on Unsplash

 

At Seamwork she has shared a couple of essays of interest to sewists. 

In "Reclaiming My Family’s Collective Sense of Creativity" she states "I came from a family of seamstresses—a whole country of them." and "My grandmother owned a fabric store in the market. She filled it with bolts of creamy satin, rainbow-bright silks for ao dais, lightweight cotton for sleepwear." 

In "The Peculiar Grief of Sewing My Daughter’s Spring Dress" she shares the bittersweet feeling of sewing for a fast growing child and having to put clothes away when they're outgrown. 

In her own substack she has shared thoughts on mending and how it can be a metaphor for life and art as well as just being itself:

But now I’m older and more tired. I don’t want to discard anymore. I want to mend where I can, lovingly and with reverence. The accumulation of time means more to me than it once did. A thirteen-year friendship is worth preserving. A beautiful dress is worth repairing.

And at Elle.com, she's written a brief essay on the traditional and modern Áo Dài - 

My grandparents aren’t the first, or last, to hold cherished memories of the áo dài. This garment, translated as “long shirt,” has been a fixture in the cultural imagination of Việt Nam since 1744...

 

Photo by Kris Atomic on Unsplash

I've shared some excerpts here but I encourage you to click through and read the full articles - they are lovely and so interesting for sewing readers!

If you are interested in more about Banyan Moon, including a recipe, you can find a Reader's Guide on her website. You can also find out more about Thao Thai on her socials 

Website 

Instagram 

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I hope you are enjoying Banyan Moon so far! Please feel free to leave your thoughts on the book so far, or on any of the articles shared today, in the comments on this post. 

Literary Sewing Circle: Fall 2024!

 

Our Fall 2024 session of the Literary Sewing Circle starts today! There is one notable change to the LSC this time around: we are moving to a 5 week schedule rather than a 6 week, with book discussion encouraged all the way along, and a wrap up book discussion on the final post. 

I'm pleased to announce that our group read this time around is:

Banyan Moon by Thao Thai

Summary: 

A sweeping, evocative debut novel following three generations of Vietnamese American women reeling from the death of their matriarch, revealing the family's inherited burdens and buried secrets.

When Ann Tran gets the call that her beloved grandmother, Minh, has passed away, her life is already at a crossroads. Ann has built a seemingly perfect life, but it all crumbles away with one positive pregnancy test.

With both her relationship and carefully planned future now in question, Ann returns home to Florida to face her estranged mother, Hu'o'ng. Under the same roof for the first time in years, mother and daughter must face the simmering questions of their past.

Running parallel to this is Minh's story, as she goes from a lovestruck teenager living in the shadow of the Vietnam War to a determined young mother immigrating to America. And when Ann makes a shocking discovery in the Banyan House's attic, long-buried secrets come to light as it becomes clear how decisions Minh made in her youth affected the rest of her life and her family.

Spanning decades and continents, from 1960s Vietnam to the wild swamplands of the Florida coast, Banyan Moon is a stunning and deeply moving story of mothers and daughters, the things we inherit, and the lives we choose to make out of that inheritance.

(from publisher)

Photo by Caroline Lohrey

About the Author: 

Thao Thai is a writer based out of Ohio, where she lives with her husband and daughter. Her work is published or forthcoming in the Los Angeles Review of Books, WIRED, Real Simple, Catapult, The Sunday Long Read, Cup of Jo, and other publications. Banyan Moon is her debut novel.

Both h’s in her name are silent.

(from publisher)

This book is available for purchase in multiple formats.

You can find this title at all of these locations:

IndieBound

Chapters Indigo

Amazon.ca

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.com.au

Barnes and Noble

Powell's Books

ABE Books

Biblio.com

Or, of course, check your local library!

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How does the Literary Sewing Circle work? We read a book together, discuss it, and then make something inspired by our reading. As long as you can point out what inspired you from your reading, even if just a sentence, you can share your makes in our final roundup!

Anyone can join, and you can sew, knit, crochet, quilt or embroider - any textile art that you like doing - to participate. This is a reading/sewing circle, very low-key; no competitions here, just reading and sewing for fun. 

There is no official sign-up to worry about; just start reading along if you wish, and leave your thoughts on the book or your project on any of the Literary Sewing Circle posts. We do have a dedicated book discussion post at the end, but leave your thoughts anytime. And you can follow along on Instagram too if you like: look for @sewmelwyk and the hashtag #LiterarySewingCircle and you'll find us.

And when the final post goes up on week 5, so does the project linkup -- you can leave a link to your finished project there, whether it is on your blog, a pattern site, or even Instagram. It's easy :)

So, join in, and share!

Literary Sewing Circle Schedule

Sept 27 - Announcement & Introduction

Oct 4 - Inspiration post 

Oct 11  - Author feature

Oct 18 - Inspiration post

Oct 25 - Final Post: book discussion wrap up & posting of project linkup

We will have our project linkup live for two weeks after the final post to allow you to finish up and post your projects, which takes us to November 8, when the linkup will close.

Literary Sewing Circle: Finale & Project Link-Up!

 

Today is already our final day of the Literary Sewing Circle focusing on Connie Willis' To Say Nothing of the Dog!

I hope you've had the chance to read the book, and both the first and second inspiration posts, and are getting lots of ideas for a project of your own.

The project linkup will be added to the bottom of this post: as soon as you are done your project, just pop a link to your post into the linkup and we will all be able to visit your blog/instagram etc. and explore your creation -- remember, it can be sewn, or knitted, crocheted, embroidered... any textile art that you practice.

I've read To Say Nothing of the Dog a few times now, and have also read all of Willis' novels except for a couple of the earliest ones. I can say that her Christmas themed short stories are pretty delightful as well! 

I think this novel shows her style well -- lots of silliness, dialogue, science-y references, and history. Plus so many references to other works of literature. I find this is a frequent combination in her work, but in this particular novel it combines to a high degree of satisfaction! The characters here aren't quite as dithery as in some other books. Verity actually has common sense and takes action, while Ned is the most indecisive and clueless character. I find this balance entertaining, especially when Ned suffers time lag most intensively. 

Of course, the central role of cats to the story is always a pleasure, and the spiritualist scenes are highly amusing. I've just been rereading/rewatching some Lord Peter Wimsey stories so it was fun to have those references here as well. I also find the conversation about history, between the professors, and the concept of time travel and temporal contradictions, all so interesting. I studied history in undergrad so recognized some of the bits of the professorial arguments -- perhaps it didn't need to be covered so obviously, but thinking about time and history in a story like this is kind of integral to the subject matter. Also, when reading it this time, the mention of a receent Pandemic struck home in a different way than it did years ago. 

Putting aside all the thinking and the cerebral critique of this story, as a reader I find this great escapist fiction. It's fun, amusing, clever, and satisfying, which is why I reread it. I would love to be able to visit the Victorian era - dress in those outfits, have tea at a country house, visit a jumble sale - it would be a delight. This is as close as I can get :) I hope it was an enjoyable trip for you, also.

A real Victorian penwiper!

Questions for you: 

Did you enjoy the madcap style of this story? Have you read Three Men in a Boat to compare it? Did the humour work for you? Did you have a favourite character? A favourite time period in the story? Did you think the concept of time travel worked as it was created here? Did any particular elements of the story strike you? Where/When would you go if you had access to the Net?

Please share your thoughts on the book, its themes, characters, or anything you noted about it -- either in the comments here or on our first Book Talk post, or on your own blog with a link to your longer thoughts in the comments so we can find it. I love to talk about the experience of reading so feel free to comment no matter when you're reading this post; if you've read this I'd love to hear your thoughts.

What project have you made, inspired by your reading of To Say Nothing of the Dog? Share a link to your project on this post as soon as you're done! The linkup will be live until May 31 --  you have another 2 weeks of sewing time to finish and share. 

(If the linkup does not work for you please leave a comment with your project)

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter