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Fall 2024 Sewing Classes in Chicago at Tchad: Monday: 10-1 or 6-9 14 October – 16 December Tuesday: 2-5 or 6-9 15 October – 17 December Wednesday:2-5 or 6-9 9 October – 18 December No classes Wednesday 27 November Thursday: 2-5 or 6-9 10 October – 19 December No classes Thanksgiving Day Friday: No Classes Scheduled Saturday:10-1 or 2-5 19 October – 21 December Sunday: 10-1 or 2-5 20 October – 22 December   ••• You can find out more or register for your space by… Emailing us at classes@tchad.biz Give us a text or call: 773.680.5914 Check out our Frequently Asked Questions Page CheckRead More →

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Summer Sewing Classes in Chicago at Tchad: Monday: 10-1 or 6-9 22 July – 23 September Tuesday: 2-5 or 6-9 23 July – 24 September Wednesday:2-5 or 6-9 24 July – 25 September Thursday: 2-5 or 6-9 25 July – 26 September Friday: No Classes Scheduled Saturday:10-1 or 2-5 27 July – 27 September Sunday: 10-1 or 2-5 28 July – 28 September ••• You can find out more or register for your space by… Emailing us at classes@tchad.biz Give us a text or call: 773.680.5914 Check out our Frequently Asked Questions Page Check out our main website at tchad.biz See you this coming Summer,Read More →

Tchad Workroom, empty and clean, there is a lily in the left corner.

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  Spring Sewing Classes in Chicago at Tchad: Monday: 10-1 or 6-9 15 April – 17 June Tuesday: 6-9 16 April – 18 June Wednesday:6-9 17 April – 19 June Thursday: No Classes Scheduled Friday: No Classes Scheduled Saturday:2-5 20 April – 22 June Sunday: 10-1 or 2-5 21 April – 23 June   ••• You can find out more or register for your space by… Emailing us at classes@tchad.biz Give us a text or call: 773.680.5914 Check out our Frequently Asked Questions Page Check out our main website at tchad.biz See you this coming Spring, everybody!Read More →

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We’re finally feeling out from under the pandemic (finally!) and are ready to go with a full session of classes this coming Winter!   Winter Sewing Classes in Chicago at Tchad: Monday: 10-1 or 6-9 8 January – 11 March Tuesday: 6-9 9 January – 12 March Wednesday:6-9 10 January – 13 March Thursday: No Classes Scheduled Friday: No Classes Scheduled Saturday: 10-1 or 2-5 13 January – 16 March Sunday: 10-1 or 2-5 14 January – 17 March   ••• You can find out more or register for your space by… Emailing us at classes@tchad.biz Give us a text or call: 773.680.5914 Check outRead More →

Students in Tchad Workroom sewing studio talking and sewing in chicago

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Well, folks, the pandemic is almost over (Hopefully! We are always hopeful here!) and we’ve got a Summer session coming up with tons of spaces and lots of availability for you guys! If you have been looking for sewing classes in Chicago, let us know! Summer sewing classes in Chicago at Tchad: Monday: 10-1, 2-5, or 6-9 18 July – 19 September Tuesday: 2-5 or 6-9 19 July – 20 September Wednesday: 2-5 or 6-9 20 July – 21 September Thursday: 2-5 or 6-9 21 July – 22 September Friday: No Classes Scheduled Saturday: 10-1 or 2-5 23 July – 24 September Sunday: 10-1 or 2-5 24 JulyRead More →

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We are in the process of enrolling the Winter 2021 of sewing classes in  Chicago at our Workrooms and there is still time and space left to get on board! Get yourself some fun, interesting, and safe social distance sewing! Here is what we have for you this Winter: Monday: 10-1, 2-5, or 6-9 18 January – 22 March Tuesday: 10-1, 2-5, or 6-9 19 January – 23 March Wednesday: No Classes Scheduled Thursday: No Classes Scheduled Friday: No Classes Scheduled Saturday: 2-5 or 6-9 23 January – 27 March Sunday: 10-1, 2-5, or 6-9 24 January – 28 March Just let us know whatRead More →

Just some of the cleaning sullies we use at the Chicago sewing workrooms

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COVID-19 has changed everything. We are doing our best to adapt so that you stay safe! One of the things that is really important as we are all opened up is doing it as cautiously, safely, and smartly as possible.  Some of the procedures we’ve established may be overkill, some of them extreme, and all of them would have raised an eyebrow or two just a year ago and put us into Howard Hughes territory. In helping build and develop the sewing community in Chicago the past 20 years, we also see it as our role to protect it.  It does no one any goodRead More →

This is the social distance setup at our Chicago Workrooms. Social Distance | Sewing Classes In Chicago | Tchad | Workroom | Sewing Studio | Chicago Sewing Studio

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We are in the process of enrolling the 2020 Fall Session of sewing classes in  Chicago at our Workrooms and there is still time and space left to get on board! Get yourself some fun, interesting, and safe social distance sewing! Here is what we have for you this Fall: Monday: 10-1, 2-5, or 6-9 5 October – 7 December Tuesday: 10-1, 2-5, or 6-9 6 October – 8 December Wednesday: 10-1, 2-5, or 6-9 7 October – 9 December Thursday: No Classes Scheduled Friday: No Classes Scheduled Saturday: 2-5 or 6-9 10 October – 12 December Sunday: 10-1, 2-5, or 6-9 11 October –Read More →

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I’ve been working on getting the workroom back in order and starting up Summer and Fall classes, but wanted to take some time to write to you all about something that is very important to me, this workroom, and the broader community based out of and around it. I’ve taken my time with this and held off because I don’t love performative social justice and you guys need to know where I am coming from in building this community. Black Lives Matter.  We all should be able to say this without any hesitation at all. They matter in the world generally, they matter in theRead More →

amber bard | sewing classes in chicago | Tchad | Tchad Elliott | Sewing class schedules

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We are in the process of enrolling the 2020 Spring Session of sewing classes in the Chicago Workroom and there is still time and space left to get on board!   Here is what we have for you this Spring: Monday: 12-3, 3-6, or 6-9 16 March – 18 May Tuesday: 12-3, 3-6, or 6-9 17 March – 19 May Wednesday: 12-3, 3-6, or 6-9 18 March – 20 May Thursday: No Classes Scheduled Friday: No Classes Scheduled Saturday: 1-4 or 4-7 21 March – 23 May Sunday: 10-1, 1-4, or 4-7 22 March – 17 May Class meets the following days: 22 March, 29Read More →

A picture of two platitudes by Charles James - curvilinear shapes that helped inspire new seaming techniques. Tchad Elliott presentation at the Haute Couture Club's April meeting on 4 April 2020.

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As part of the 2019-2020 Haute Couture Club Presentation series, Tchad will be presenting a program on three of the more obscure methods Charles James used in his design and construction process At the club meeting on 4 April. Tchad will focus on James’ concept of the platitude – No, not that one – and its use as a design tool, his concept of the magic triangle, and how he experimented with shape through grain line rotation of pattern pieces as an exploratory technique. If you are interested in learning more and expanding your sewing and design tool and skill set, the program will runRead More →

Image from District Leather Website posted to Tchad Sewing Classes in Chicago Blog

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We’ve recently started the Winter 2020 session of sewing classes, and as usual people are bringing all kinds of things to the workroom cutting tables. We’ve recently discovered a leather and hide resource that is amazing: District Leathers. You can find just about anything there.  Check them out!Read More →

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I spent last night with my 92 year old grandma and some prohibition-era bathtub wine on the back stoop somewhere out in greater Appalachia at midnight ringing a giant farmyard bell.  That can only mean that the new year has begun and now I’m gearing up to head back to the big city, roll up my sleeves, and get to work. I’ll be carrying with me almost a thousand patterns for the archive from 1938-1972 and am in the planning stages for everything from lectures on Charles James and his particularly prickly design process to programs for the American Sewing Guild using Pattern Magic, theRead More →

Omoleye drafts a pattern at Tchad Workroom Sewing classes in Chicgao Atelier

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We are in the process of enrolling the 2020 Winter Session of sewing classes in the Chicago Workroom and there is still time and space left to get on board!   Here is what we have for you this Winter: Monday: 12-3, 3-6, or 6-9 6 January – 9 March Tuesday: 12-3, 3-6, or 6-9 7 January – 10 March Wednesday: 12-3, 3-6, or 6-9 8 January – 11 March Thursday: No Classes Scheduled Friday: No Classes Scheduled Saturday: 1-4 or 4-7 11 January – 14 March Sunday: 10-1, 1-4, or 4-7 12 January – 15 March Just let us know what you need –Read More →

A photograph of David Pye's seminal book The Nature and Art of Workmanship photographed at the Tchad Workroom library in Chicago that hosts sewing classes in Chicago

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As part of Tchad’s new role of President of the Haute Couture Club of Chicago, Tchad is offering all members of the club as well as current and past students an invitation to the first lecture salon in a series about workmanship and design. We will be talking about David Pye’s The Nature and Art of Workmanship.  David Pye was a professor at the Royal College of Art, London for years and wrote …The Nature… to give the artist a way to talk about their work and begin thinking about the different approaches one can take when considering how to execute design through workmanship. WeRead More →

The front bodice section of Vogue #2890 as constructed by Jae before attaching the skirt at the Tchad sewing studio workrooms in Chicago Jae wears the gunmetal grey silk version of Vogue #2890 by Belleville Sassoon that she worked up in the Tchad chicago sewing studio workroom classes.

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We’ve had Vogue #2890 up at the workrooms a couple of times of the years, and it is always a crowd-pleaser IF you pay attention to what you are doing AND you don’t mind adapting the shape just a bit in the back of the corset and bodice. Read More →

Picture of front of Pattern envelope: Pictorial Printed Pattern 1930s at the Tchad Chicago sewing studio workroom library in Chicago

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Just a neat sleeve pattern that was donated to the archive lately.  Someone saw it on the back tables, mentioned that Simplicity had done a reprint of sleeves, and was asking why there would be a need for sleeve patterns alone. Read More →

Omoleye models the Sasha Pant by Closet Case Patterns that she made during open sewing studio time at the tchad workrooms in Chicago

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Omoleye and her mother Rosebud took advantage of some free open sewing studio time last week to get a good handle on pants – the PDF download of Closet Case Patterns’ Sasha pant works up like a dream.Read More →