Last Updated 8 May 2007

will be opening at Tamarac Square. The paperwork and the set up details are being done to provide a sewing lounge with sewing machines, classes, meeting space and a maybe even a little bit of fabric and buttons, to make you so very happy. My research of the last 18 months (or really a lifetime) has led to an exciting gallery of Fashion and Fiber Arts coming together in an inviting space for you to enjoy visiting often. There is much to be done! I will be contacting many of you who have expressed interest in helping me create the non-profit arts center, specializing in fiber and textile traditions. More explanations are below!

The new space at Tamarac Square will be a unique mixed use environment. I am still creating the concept! In addition to working with artist guilds in Denver, I will be announcing special trunk shows and events at varying times during the year. I expect to do special fabric shopping trips for both the web boutique and in-person shows. I am also excited about re-creating the beloved Button department! It is important that I have your email contact address so I can let you know about these shows! Send me your email contact address.

D'Leas even makes the billboards around town!	The Little Black Dress Runway line up	The D'Leas silk Polka Dot challenge!

If you missed out on the Premier Fashion Project event 2007, start planning for it next spring when it comes back again. This Project Runway style event was so much fun for all involved from designer to model to judge to crowd to bloggers to national news!

Check out the slide show links on the website www.fashionprojecttamarac.com to see the shows and the designs. It also mentions the great Westword blogs that are fun to read. There were 4 challenges plus a 5 minute mini-challenge to kick off the series. The terrific surprises were the wildly creative designers, their personalities and the connection we all felt for them during the concurrent shows. Many people got hooked on going every week, just like what happens on the Bravo Runway series. Denver has a wildly talented pool of fashion artist talent and we showed them off in this fabulous event. The challenges were Little Black Dress, Ace Hardware supplies, D'Leas Bubble Dot Silk and Embroidery challenge, and Career to Cocktail Successful Suits. It was a big Wow right up to the very end.

All 12 designers are winners. They became fondly known as the Designing Dozen. Seemingly impossible, we did select a winner each week and a grand prize winner who will be going to New York Fashion Week for the designer show of his choice. Congratulations to Armando Thomas Guerra for his consistently high scoring designs that won him the big prize! Grand Prize Runners up were Gino Vilardi and Stephanie Ohnmacht who had won weekly challenges. Jose Clark, Nancy Sedar Sherman were other runners up in earlier challenges. The unique and entertaining designs that were sewn from scratch by the remaining 7 designers were also awesome and fun. Many of the designers are D'Leas customers. Now we really know what good taste they have!

And, as people who love to sew, you will love hearing this. They sewed welt pockets, French seams, reversible jackets, lots of zipper and pockets and tricky collars... linings, interfacings, rusching, poufs and godets. These were no simple tasks with only one week and a "real life" going on at the same time. So, I say to you... What are you waiting for?? What a motivation to sew, you can do it too!

Plan a trip to Denver next April, or if you're lucky enough to live here, get Wednesday nights in April blocked out for a sure fun Fashion Project 2008.


D'Leas continues as a part of your creative life 24 hours a day. You can simply click us into your sacred space... get your "me" time whenever you want to. She's here for you! Subscribe for the D'Leas Touch and visit the Gallery page often for successful design projects you can enjoy thinking about.

The fabrics and patterns shopping cart is taking time to develop. Thank you for your patience. The fabric world is changing by the hour. My pioneer blood (from my prairie grandmothers) is leading us to the new frontier of new ways to buy fabric. Be sure you are signed on to my email contact list so you'll be the first to know when the new "boutique"is ready!


I have a wonderful class series developed for starting a retail boutique. If you or someone you know is thinking about starting this lifetime labor of love, my How to Start Your Own Fashion Boutique classes are getting rave reveiws. It can be any type of business, but I specialize in fashion and retail. See www.fashiondenver.com Workshops for the descriptions of the two classes, The Dress and The Jacket. I’d love to help you! We have lively discussions and you can learn from fellow attendees, too.


The fabuloso classes D'Leas is known for will be gently reappearing soon. Ben Hearn, the owner of AAA Creative Sewing Centers and I have enjoyed some good conversations about bringing D'Leas to AAA and bringing the wonderful quality of his sewing machines to D'Leas. Details to follow on that, too...

Studio Sundays with Jackie Scott are ongoing now
Bring whatever you are working on. Get expert help and design advice from a pro, while also relaxing and stitching in the company of like minded stitchers. The location floats from studio to studio, we'll let you know where. Jackie drafts and sews the amazing period costumes for the Denver Center for the Performing Arts theatre. She is also an interior designer and custom clothing designer. You'll be happy to learn from her while also making new friendships! First and Third Sundays of every month, 5:00 - 8:00, $25 per time or 3 for $75.

Know Your Body and Style with Irene McKnight
We are gearing up to provide the classes that I believe are essential to successful sewing and designing. Irene is an image consultant with professional training on styling, color and shape. Her classes are extensive in helping you to determine what looks best on you. Or if you want to design for the public, she can stimulate your awareness of differing women's tastes and shapes. Learn collars and jackets and sleeves that work best for who. Learn designer details that succeed for you or your customer. Class dates coming for spring and summer. Express your interest here.

Designing Dozen... I hope to feature these talented fashion artists in short classes or talks where you can learn from them and ask them questions about pursuing your fashion design creativity to new levels.

Art in Your Heart classes, by my spirited colleagues, Carolyn Fineran and Anne Randolph, will begin again in the summer. Exercise your right brain for more creativity. The Julia Cameron books, Artist's Way and others, set the theme and you are on your way to incredible self discovery and finding your authentic self. One of my favorite parts of these classes is the magazine collage exercises. I look at mine often to remind me of my inner voice. Contact me with your interest.

Many new class topics are popping into my head... watch for new teachers and new ideas soon to follow!


Call for Founding members: I am aggressively pursuing the development of a collaborative Textile Arts Community center here in Denver, tentatively known as TACtile. This center would be an umbrella clubhouse for the many arts of textile and fiber:

• Sewing	• Embroidery	• Dyeing
• Weaving	• Dolls Making	• Spinning
• Quilting Arts	• Fashion Design	• Button Arts
• Knitting	• Surface Design	• Many more
• Needlework	• Crochet
• Lace Making	• Basketry

The community center will have ongoing education in these fields, studio and workshop space, exhibitions, speaker events with visiting international artists, an art gallery, library, retail shop and special classes & programs for kids.

If you or someone you know would like to contribute financially or with your time, to this life work project, please contact me here. We will contact you for the founding discussions to make this happen.

Get your name on the slate of Founding Members to be recognized for generations to come.