Love and Pincushions

MOVING

2009-07-23T15:27:00.000-07:00

I have decided that it's time for a change and moved my blog. This also comes with a new name, new design and a new focus.

I can now be found at http://dietcouture.wordpress.com/.

two more weeks...

2009-06-26T16:03:00.000-07:00

That's how long I have to wait until life calms down enough that I'll be able to get some sewing and knitting done!!! I have two finished knitting projects and one underway that I need to photograph and post.

I have a short list of sewing and knitting projects, plus some machine embroidery projects that I need to complete. My sewing room is almost completely re-organized, but definitely usable in it's current state.

Here is my to-do list:
- Finish a UFO from last winter (my husband's back problems prevented me from finishing it)
- Set up the knitting machine and actually learn how to use it. I have a couple of sewing patterns that I have been looking for a particular type of sweater knit to make, so I think I'm going to make some panels of sweater knit on the knitting machine and see how that works. I may just find a regular knitting pattern, but I think this will be good practice for the machine.
- Embroider three aprons for my father-in-law. This must be done before the July 4th weekend.
- Make a Hawaiian-style shirt for my father-in-law. This is something I promised him last Christmas, but was never able to get to due to my husband's back problems and subsequent surgery.
- Finish re-organizing my sewing room. This may not happen until after the July 4th weekend. Right now I'm taking double credits for my degree, so when I'm not studying, doing housework or spending time with my family, I only have the energy to sit in my chair and knit.

After I finish the items on my to-do list I will be able to get back in the sewing room full time and work on various projects. I have a few preliminary projects that I would like to accomplish:
- I need a lightweight short-sleeved black shrug for summer. Something that I can wear to dress up camisoles and tank tops during the 100 degree days. I have white, coral and purple shrugs (the purple one I made, the rest are RTW), but I'm missing a basic black.
- I have a rather long queue on Ravelry of items I would like to make. After I make the shrug, my next project will probably be a fall transitional piece and a sweater vest.
- I am making a fall/winter cardigan for my son. Details on that will come soon. I am also going to make him a lightweight cotton sweater for late summer/early fall and winter layering.
- Perfect my slacks pattern and muslin and make the Jalie jeans pattern. Come fall I will need these items.

That's about it for now, my focus is going to be primarily on knitting and perfecting a couple of pants patterns. I will probably make a few summer items here and there, but most of my sewing planning will revolve around fall/winter since that's what I have the most need for at the moment and the next few months will go by so quickly.

As with all of my plans, I really REALLY hope that I'll have time to work on them. It's a matter of finding free time at home with a toddler, full time job and full time school (one more year and I'm free!!!).

happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-08T14:34:00.001-07:00

So I know it's not until Sunday, but I doubt I'm going to be online much this weekend. In addition to festivities celebrating my 2nd Mother's Day (brunch at my house with my mom, almost step-father and grandparents), I have some preparation for our vacation to do, three school assignments to complete, a computer re-build to finish for my husband and a knitting project to complete (hopefully). There will definitely be no sewing taking place.

I just wanted to wish everyone out there a happy Mother's Day! I hope it turns out to be a special day for each of you!

green gable - I got my yarn!

2009-04-29T15:06:00.000-07:00

I still haven't blocked the lace for my purple tofu jacket yet, I had school until 10pm last night and just didn't feel like messing with it. I'll do it tonight and then I'm going to get started on Green Gable!

Today at lunch, I went to Jimmy Beans and bought the yarn. The pattern calls for Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece and they have such a great color selection and it feels like it will be perfect for summer that I went ahead and decided to use that rather than make a substitution. I fell IN LOVE with the Robin Egg Blue color, it's the same color as a Tiffany's box!! My local store only carries it in 9 colors, but they had Robin Egg Blue!

So I bought enough to make the XL, although I've read a ton of reviews that indicate that making the next smaller size is sometimes better. The color is much more vibrant in person - the photo makes it look a little dusty.

I'm going to play around with gauge tonight and hopefully cast on. We'll see how far I get.

lace is done

2009-04-28T13:31:00.000-07:00

I finished up the lace band last night at about 10:30pm. I thought about blocking it then, but changed my mind because I was sort of brain-dead for the last few inches of lace. There are a few mistakes where the pattern doesn't line up properly and while I tend to be somewhat of a perfectionist, I decided to call it good. It won't be noticeable with my dress and I'll just wear dark colors underneath it when I wear it after. Overall, I am very impressed with my first foray into non-scarf knitting.

My next project is Green Gable. I loved Adrienne's version and wanted something suitable for both the Reno summer and an air conditioned office. I think this should work well. I am going to cast on while I'm blocking the lace.

On the sewing front, I have my sewing room almost put back together with my new tables and will get started both on the dress for my mom's wedding and a couple of UFOs that have been sitting around waiting for me to finish them. I have a couple of tops and some skirts that just need things like hems!

progress

2009-04-25T12:59:00.000-07:00

I've made a lot of progress on my purple tofu jacket. I'm almost done (I have about 6" left) of the lace portion. The lace portion gets blocked and then I can start on the rest of the body. I'm hoping I'll be done with the lace portion today so that I can block and then start the rest of the body next week. In the meantime, here are a couple of pictures:

And a closeup of the lace:

purple tofu

2009-04-23T10:40:00.001-07:00

I've been doing some reading about this Soy Silk yarn and the process that is used to make it. Basically, it's made from the byproducts of making tofu. Interesting really...you can read more about it here.

So in the spirit of the process used to make the yarn, I've dubbed my jacket the "Purple Tofu Jacket".

I had some pictures of my progress so far, and the yarn with the fabric, but I'm having issues figuring out how to make the flash work properly on my new point-and-shoot. I think I figured out what I was doing wrong, so I'm going to try it again tonight. If it still doesn't work, I'll take the pics with my Nikon.

my next project - Mom's wedding outfit

2009-04-17T12:38:00.000-07:00

Actually, there will be multiple posts about this as I get through the process. The title is a little misleading - I'm not making my mother's outfit, I'm making my own to wear to her wedding. My mother is finally getting re-married after being divorced for the past 15 years. The wedding is in mid-June and will be outdoors at my aunt and uncle's (Mom's sister and BIL) house. It's up in the mountains of Northern California, so the weather won't be as hot as it is down in the valleys, but will still be warm. The top of the mountain where they live tends to be breezy and cool at times. Mom wants her two sisters and me to wear purple. Obviously, I will be making the dress - if I have time I'll also make shirts for hubby and Drew.

I have the fabric picked out - it's a really pretty purple and lavender floral chiffon burnout I picked up at Joanns. It will be underlined with a lavender matte satin. I haven't quite picked out the dress yet, but I want something that's pretty and a little festive and although there are some BWOF dresses that I could absolutely see this fabric in, I'm thinking something a little more simple will be better - don't want to outdress the bride after all! I'm thinking this New Look:

I'll make the view in orange in the lower right corner of the envelope. The fabric speaks for itself, so I don't need too many additional details. I'll try and take a photo of the fabric with the pattern and my immediate next project this weekend so you can see how it all goes together.

That brings me to my upcoming project. Because the weather tends to be breezy at my aunt's house and I get chilly easily, I wanted to make a shrug to go with it. I couldn't find any fabric that I liked, so I decided I would take advantage of all of the time I've put into practicing my knitting skills - I'm going to knit it! I found the pattern and a perfectly-matching dark purple yarn at my local shop and after working out the gauge, I cast on last night.

The pattern is the Little Lacy Jacket from Blue Sky Alpacas:

The yarn is Pure from Southwest Trading Company - 100% soy silk. The color is #073 - Vivid Viola.

It's the only appropriate purple I could find, but it's really soft and light and with the gauge I finally decided on should make for a great light summer sweater.

I should have more this weekend!

I really need to post some pictures

2009-04-13T10:34:00.001-07:00

There is so much going on and hopefully I'll soon have time to share some of it with the world! Over the past week, while I have been slaving away at work and school, my husband has been revamping the front yard. Our house is now 4 years old and we still had the original "dry" or "natural" landscaping. Because Reno is considered high desert, most of the landscaping consists of sagebrush and other native types of plants. The problem is that the landscapers hired by the builder were not paid to make it pretty, just to plant the plants. Half of them died the first year and half of the remainder have died over the past 3 years. There are three houses in our cul-de-sac and the other two have fabulous yards. We decided this year we would join their ranks. Here are some pictures of what he accomplished in just a few short days.

Here is the front porch - that's honeysuckle on the lattice and tulips in the planter boxes

A couple views of the strange triangle-shaped planter in the front of the yard. Our front yard is long and skinny since we are on the edge of a small cul-de-sac. He put a little brick wall up along the edge and we'll probably plant some shrubs in the little area behind it

In fiber-related news...I am now the proud owner of a Speed-O-Knit knitting machine by PASSAP. I don't have a picture of it yet, as it is still sitting in pieces on my dining room table, but as soon as I get it set up in the sewing room I'll post a picture of the actual machine. For now, if you click on this link, it will take you to an eBay auction of the exact same machine (although because mine was purchased by my pack-rat grandmother in the 1950s, I still have the book and the original receipt!).

I have also been practicing my knitting and doing some planning. My mom is getting re-married in mid-June and she wants her sisters and me to wear purple. I found this really pretty purple floral chiffon burnout at Joann's over the weekend and I'm going to underline it with a lavender matte satin. I still haven't figured out what dress I'm going to make, but it's going to be sleeveless or strapless and I plan on knitting a lightweight shrug to cover my shoulders. I have a few ideas, but I need the dress plan finalized before I decide. In the meantime, I have decided to practice my knitting skills. I'm halfway done with a cable scarf and then I want to do some swatches of some different lace motifs that I found on the internet to practice more intricate work. It's been more than 10 years since I last attempted to knit, and this time I think I finally got it down...we'll see if I'm being overly-confident. I'll post pictures of the fabric as soon as I figure out what dress I'm going to make.

I also realized that I never did post a picture of me in my Galaxy dress. I will try to post those pictures soon too.

holy toledo!

2009-03-05T16:09:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I've posted anything. And sadly, I have nothing new to share sewing-wise, but there has been a whole lot going on life-wise.

Baby Andrew turned 1 on February 11th. The next day at 4:30am I had to call an ambulance because my husband collapsed on the floor trying to take himself to the ER.

Now for the backstory:
He's been dealing with a lot of lower back and leg pain since before Thanksgiving. He had been seeing a doctor who insisted it was muscular and not skeletal and had been drugging him up with pain killers, muscle relaxants, steroids and diuretics. Nothing helped. A few days before the ambulance incident, he was FINALLY sent in for an MRI which came back negative. The doctor said the only other option was pain management. I had made him an appointment with my chiropractor since they take extensive xrays before starting any adjustments. I figured that would be the best second opinion we could get since the doctor wouldn't authorize it (damn HMOs!).

Anyway, fast forward to February 12th and the paramedics and fire department are in my living room trying to get my husband (who can't walk and is in so much pain he can barely breathe) onto the gurney. Once in the ER, they proceed to try and figure out what's wrong with him. After a little bit of conversation, they got his MRIs from the diagnostic center and then came the shock of the day: The stupid doctor requested an MRI of HIS LEG!!!!! No tests on his back, just his leg. Because the pain was radiating down his leg (even though it started in his lower back), the doctor assumed the issue was in his leg. We know he had ruled out blood clots and some other vascular and muscular issues, but we figured after a few weeks of nothing in that arena he would start looking at his back! Nope, just the leg. The ER ordered an MRI of his back and found he had a severely herniated disk between his L5 and Sacrum. So bad, that they couldn't actually let him leave the hospital for liability reasons since they were afraid it was about to rupture.

A few hours later they got him into surgery and now he's almost back to 100%. But since he is currently a stay-at-home dad and was unable to do any sort of lifting, bending, pulling or anything else that could cause post-surgery complications, my in-laws came to help out. They happened to be in southern Nevada (they live in southern California), so they were several hours closer than they would typically be; however, they were also on a vacation on a lake in their boat. So they cut their vacation short and towed the boat to Reno and here they have been since mid-February. They went home today.

It was great that they were able to come and help out, and it really helped Nate to get better, but it is stressful when there are other people in your space for an extended period of time. What made things more difficult was that I have a very long list of things I wanted to accomplish sewing-wise and the mojo to begin it...but no space since the sewing room doubles as a guest room in the infrequent occasion that someone stays with us - and because the situation surrounding their staying with us was unexpected, there was no time to plan. So no extracting sewing machines, fabric, patterns and notions to another part of the house so I could work on projects while they were here. I just didn't have the time to plan for that.

Now that I have my workspace back, I really hope that my mojo will remain in full swing and I'll be able to get some new garments done. Now, more than ever, I need to really ramp up my wardrobe to be more business professional and less casual or business casual. Wish me luck! I always seem to be needing it!

knitty knitty

2009-01-15T12:05:00.000-08:00

A post all about knitting?? Who would've thunk it, especially since I can barely knit. I crochet like a madwoman and understand the basics of knitting, but I just haven't spent enough time practicing knitting to be good at it. I was remarking to my mom this past weekend (who is a great knitter) that I really need to learn how to knit. I see so many wonderful garments being knitted by other fiber artists that I really want to be able to "join the club" so to speak. She then asked me if I would like her knitting machine. Oh.My.GOODNESS!! I couldn't believe she still had it!!! It's bulky, heavy and you have to do everything manually, but it can knit ANYTHING and it's older than me (which means no cheap plastic construction - everything is sturdy metal). She still has the original bill of sale when my grandparents bought it back in the 60s for $50. I've always wanted to learn how to use it and now I get my chance!!!

I definitely still need/want to learn how to knit by hand with more skill, but this knitting machine is going to be FUN!!! The only downside is I get stuck with her entire stash of yarn...most of which is in ugly colors and scratchy acrylic. Oh well, it'll be good yarn to practice with!

2009 wardrobe makeover

2009-01-06T21:42:00.001-08:00

This is my biggest goal for 2009 - to begin the process of making over my wardrobe. Last summer, when I went through my closet and donated 3 10-gallon totes of clothes, I determined some major holes in my wardrobe. I have enough clothes to get me through a couple of weeks, but most of them are casual.

These holes include slacks, woven tops, work dresses and skirts, some dressy knit tops, blazers, a winter coat and spring/fall jacket. Since my other big goal for 2009 is to dress for the job I want, not the job I have, I need to fill in the gaps with some dressy basics that I can use to build a professional wardrobe. My professional-dress goal comes with some inherent problems, though:
1) My workplace is extremely casual. While it's not unheard of for people to dress up, most of the time coworkers assume you have a job interview. This is definitely problematic if your boss thinks you are seeking employment elsewhere.
2) I don't have the time or money to immediately create this ultra-professional wardrobe.

Because of these two "issues" (and I use the term loosely, since I can easily overcome the first one), I have decided to approach this in phases. The initial plan is to phase out my casual items by incorporating versatile pieces that can be dressed up or down. By starting with versatile transition pieces, I can eliminate some of the job interview talk that floats around the office. I can also continue to wear some of my casual items with dressier items until I have made a bigger dent in my list of "needs".

My first mini-wardrobe will consist of two pairs of slacks (I need to try out some muslins to find a pair that work for my figure) and two woven tops. I should have a plan fleshed out by this weekend and hopefully my first pants muslin cut out.

year in review??

2009-01-04T15:13:00.001-08:00

So it's several days into 2009 and I've been thinking about some of what I had hoped to accomplish in the past year versus what I actually accomplished. I determined I got in a little over my head with planning for garments that have yet to see the light of day. Having a baby in mid-February has made it difficult to get as much accomplished as I had hoped and by the time I started having spare time and sewing mojo, it was time to work on Christmas gifts.

What did I accomplish in 2008?
*I made 2 baby quilts (one for Andrew and one for a friend's baby)
*I did several machine embroidery projects (lipstick cases, photo frames, Christmas cards, quilts and the beginnings of three advent calendars)
*I made a machine embroidered and quilted wall hanging for my sister-in-law
*I made a machine embroidered and quilted sewing tote for my mother-in-law
*I made three tops, three skirts and a dress over the summer
*I made a Galaxy-inspired dress for my company holiday party
*I also completed two large-scale cross-stitch designs (one for my son and one for a friend)

Not as much as I had hoped, but quite good considering life constraints - and the fact that I did absolutely no sewing in 2007 and the first half of 2008. I also started several projects that are not yet finished. These include coats for my husband and myself, a shirt for my husband, a shirt for my father-in-law and a skirt that I started over the summer and have yet to finish.

During my pregnancy, I expressed a dire need for business-appropriate attire. Even though I work in a fairly casual office, I have decided to start dressing for the job I want rather than the job I currently have. So for 2009, in addition to finishing outstanding projects and some more craft and machine-embroidery projects, I would like to make another coat (perhaps two), a blazer and dress skirts and slacks to wear to work. I would also like to make a pair of trouser jeans that are styled after the best pair of jeans I have ever owned (they just happen to be maternity jeans and since I have no plans of having another baby I won't be able to wear them again). I hope that this short list is not all that I accomplish in 2009, but I have to start somewhere and I've found my previous years' goals were too lofty given other responsibilities I have in my life.

Aside from sewing-related goals for 2009, my other primary resolution is to work on my time management. I work a standard 40-hour work week and have weekends off. I am approaching my 5-year anniversary at my company and will then double my vacation time (I already get 2 weeks of vacation and 2 weeks of sick each year). I attend school one night a week and have reading and writing assignments for class. My son is nearing his first birthday and although he is becoming more independent, he needs more supervision than ever before (he's almost walking). My intention is to find 30 minutes each day to spend on sewing and craft-related projects and spread school work out to one hour each day instead of an entire weekend day as I do now. If I can accomplish this, I will have more time during the weekends to spend with my family and on sewing projects without compromising my other responsibilities.

Wish me luck!

all I want for Christmas...

2008-12-27T20:50:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a great Christmas. I certainly did!! Hubby and I took the baby to the lake cabin to spend the week with his family. We arrived Christmas Eve after I got off work and are staying through New Years weekend. It's nice to have something that resembles a vacation!

So Ann tagged everyone to list what they got for Christmas. This year was great despite the economy. What I got:

*A remote car starter for my Xterra (a gift from my husband - it's wonderful considering how much snow we've gotten)
*A pair of chocolate-brown Uggs (I've wanted these for a long time)
*A Swarovski crystal tennis bracelet and matching earrings
*$50 Barnes & Noble gift card
*$200 Walmart gift card
*8" Viewsonic digital photo frame
*$100 check from my grandparents
*An awesome white and silver snowman cookie jar
*Movie tickets and babysitting from a good friend
*Some really great hand-crafted Christmas decorations
*Stuff from my mom that I haven't even received yet since I won't see her for a couple more weeks

What's funny is that this Christmas the hubby and I expected far fewer gifts because everyone was making a big deal about this being Drew's first Christmas (which is what we expected). Then, to our surprise, we actually got quite a few wonderful gifts! Drew definitely got the most gifts - of the 6 of us at the cabin, Drew got more than half of the presents under the tree. So much for taking back less than we brought up!! To top everything off, we had a wonderful turkey dinner followed by the best prime rib (my mother-in-law makes the best prime rib ever) the next evening. This is definitely one of the best vacations I've had in a long time!

the dress is done!!

2008-12-14T10:45:00.000-08:00

I don't have a picture of the finished dress yet, but I finished it in time to wear it Friday night.

After the previous post, I took off the sleeves and cut 1" off of the cap. I also attached the lining to the zipper, hand-stitched the flanges to the bodice front and finished the hem of the dress and lining. Right now, the lining hangs free and I put a thread chain on the vent to hold the lining in place. I will either add two more thread chains at the side seams or permanently attach the lining to the hem - I haven't decided yet.

The dress was a hit and the party was a lot of fun. There are several pictures of me in the dress and as soon as I get them from my coworkers I'll post one. I'll also post a photo of the custom-made jewelry that a coworker made for me.

progress!!!!!

2008-12-10T20:48:00.001-08:00

I've made significant progress on the dress. Here is what I have so far:

I am really struggling with the sleeves - the sleeve cap it came with just doesn't cut it so I really need to figure out a better way to make it work. I am using the stiffest netting I can find, but I have a few ideas I'm going to try to see if I can get a poofier sleeve cap.

I also found shoes!!! I have spent every day this week working long hours at a property 30 minutes from home and haven't had time to really work on the dress or even look for shoes. Tonight was my last night of the off-site work and to celebrate I stopped at Dillards on my way home and found these:

Because the dress is a plain wool crepe, I wanted something with more pizzazz for the jewelry and shoes. These shoes are just the ticket.

I had 30 minutes yesterday...

2008-12-02T14:05:00.001-08:00

and I was able to accomplish quite a bit! I got home around 10pm from my class and couldn't sleep so I went into the newly re-organized sewing room (more on that later) and began work on my Glaxy-inspired dress. I don't have pictures of my progress, but so far all I did were baste the darts. Because I made a few modifications, I wanted to make sure the darts were in the correct spot. They turned out pretty good.

I still need to press and cut out the lining (I'll do that tonight) and decide if I want to underline or interface (or neither) the bodice. I am going to play around with a couple of options tonight before I do anything more with the bodice.

I also still need to finish up some Christmas gifts - I have some machine embroidery work, some quilting work and a shirt that need to be made. So much to do and so little time. I've decided I'm going to devote as many evenings as I can to getting all of this finished.

I'm thankful for...

2008-11-28T09:11:00.000-08:00

Among my family, friends and healthy son, I'm thankful for UPS and Allbrands! My iron, which was supposed to arrive Monday, actually arrived on Wednesday evening!!!! I haven't had a chance to use it yet, but I plan on pre-treating my wool crepe today and getting started on my Galaxy-inspired dress!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving celebration. Because it was just the three of us this year, we didn't make a traditional meal. Instead, I made pork adobo (my favorite spicy pork!) with tortillas, rice and beans. It was delicious!!!

blasted holiday!

2008-11-25T10:44:00.000-08:00

Ok, I love Thanksgiving, but because UPS doesn't operate on Thanksgiving day or the day after, I won't get my iron until Monday. So much for working on the dress over the extended weekend. I guess I could have paid the additional $60+ to have it here today or tomorrow, but I really didn't *need* it so the justification would be difficult.

So now to call my dry cleaners and find out how much to have them do it for me - watch I'll find out it would have been worth paying for expedited shipping...I guess I can always borrow an iron.

Merry Unbirthday to me!

2008-11-23T10:26:00.000-08:00

So I started the process of pretreating my wool crepe for the Galaxy-inspired dress. After several swatches, my chosen method was to wash on the gentle, low-spin cycle in baby shampoo and then steam press until dry. All but one of my four 6"x6" swatches shrunk by 1/2" in the length and width. The fourth one shrunk by only a tiny bit less - and that was the swatch that was machine washed and hung to dry.

The only problem is that the steam function on my home iron is on the fritz. There is no way I want to steam press a 4 yard piece of fabric with my old home iron. As an early Christmas/merry unbirthday gift to myself, I bought a Consew Gravity Feed iron. It should be here on Friday (leave it to me to make a purchase during a holiday week). Because I really wanted to work on the dress over the holiday weekend, I will probably pretreat this length with my existing iron. I may even forego the spin cycle altogether and let the fabric generate it's own steam. One of my swatches used the soaking wet method and shrunk as much as it did in the dryer without changing the appearance or hand of the fabric.

So it looks like I have a plan B after all! But I can't wait until my new iron arrives, I've been putting it off for far too long!!

off to a good start

2008-11-21T15:05:00.000-08:00

Since I had decided on the Galaxy-inspired Vogue dress for my upcoming company holiday party, I needed to make sure that the style would suit me. Tuesday after work I made my first mock-up. I need to make a few tweaks to the length of the bodice and the flanges, I'm also going to raise the neckline by 1". I don't like the straight skirt on my figure, so I am going to play around with some other skirt options.

Next was the task of finding fabric. I knew I wanted a dark blue of some sort, but couldn't make up my mind as to the exact type of fabric I wanted. I went back and forth over several choices (tafetta, a satin microfiber, stretch satin, wool) and because I want something more versatile than a party dress typically is, I decided on this wool crepe from Vogue Fabrics

I ordered it late in the afternoon last Friday and it arrived yesterday. It is an even prettier color than the picture suggests - darker and with more of an aqua hue. It's stunning. Tonight I'm going to play around with pre-treatment options.

Tomorrow, my mom is coming to Reno for the day and I hope to get the rest of my fitting tweaks onto paper so I can get started. My goal is to have the dress completed over the 4-day Thanksgiving holiday.

For jewelry, I've enlisted the assistance of a coworker. While I love making jewelry, I just don't have the time with all of the other projects I have lined up for the holidays. My inspiration was this necklace from White House | Black Market:

There are going to be an assortment of black, dark grey, light grey and clear Swarovski and Czech crystals and glass pearls. So the necklace and earrings are taken care of.

Now for the remaining accessories...I still need to decide on shoes and a belt. I have time, the party isn't for 3 weeks and I have some black patent pumps that I could wear if all else fails.

my mojo is returning

2008-11-06T15:19:00.000-08:00

It's been SO long since I've been in the sewing room. So long, in fact, that it has turned into a temporary storage room for my husband. Not for long!! He is in the process of returning my sewing room to me as I type this. My family and his parents are all going to be visiting this weekend, so we need the room, but it also happens to coincide with my mojo returning!!

I have been slowly starting to work on Christmas gifts for the family. This year I decided to make good use of the three new machines (embroidery, sewing and serger) that I have purchased in the past year and make most of the gifts we are giving to friends and family. I have been ramping up that, but I also need a dress for my company's upcoming holiday party. The party is December 12th and this is what I am leaning towards:

I'm going to start working on a muslin of view E and see if it works on me. I'm leaning towards a sapphire blue color, but I have no idea of the fabric yet.

OR I have several strapless "party dress" patterns with fuller skirts that may work, and for something like that I'd be looking for a cross-dyed sapphire/black with a black velvet or faux fur shrug.

Any other pattern ideas??? I definitely want something fun and I'm just not completely sold on the idea that the Roland Mouret knock-off will look as good on me as it does on so many others.

Next, I'll have some Christmas gifts to share and some possible SWAP ideas - the extended timeframe might actually make it possible for me to complete and I need some new work clothes.

nothing new to show

2008-08-20T15:52:00.000-07:00

Since Drew is getting to the point where he can almost sit on his own, I've been spending all of my free sewing time working bits and pieces on a shopping cart cover for him. I wanted to make it from Alexander Henry's Tattoo fabric, but the only quilt shop in town that sells Alexander Henry no longer had it. Bless their hearts, the ladies that work at Windy Moon Quilts looked high and low to find it. It probably didn't help that it was smack in the middle of Hot August Nights when I was looking and most of their really cool fabrics were already depleted.

So I did manage to find an alternative tattoo fabric that was similar to the Alexander Henry print I wanted and bought some of that, a bright red batik and some lightweight black denim for the bottom of the cover. The denim is more of a chambray type of fabric but the whole thing looks really cool! I have to finish sewing on the pockets and toy tabs, add the elastic and the whole thing will be done. I should have it posted before the weekend.

In the meantime, enjoy a couple of pictures of the little one from our 4th of July celebration at the lake!

is this too matchy-matchy?

2008-08-04T13:44:00.000-07:00

I was browsing Smart Bargains today and found this shoe:

I love it!! It's the same colorway and a very similar print to my geometric skirt from my last post.

I doubt I could really pull off such a matchy-matchy look, but with a solid brown or even an ivory Cosmo dress that aqua would really pop!

Thanks to everyone who enabled me to discover online shoe shopping...like I need another addiction/obsession/passion/money sink!

I have a plan

2008-08-03T18:25:00.000-07:00

But first, I have some completed garments to show off!!!

First up is my very first BWOF. I've had a subscription for a couple of years now, and haven't gotten around to making anything from it yet. I was especially inspired by a top in the July 2008 issue. Here is my version of BWOF 7/08 #118!

My husband - although I love him dearly - is not the best fashion photographer and this is really the best of all of the photos he took. Next time, I think I'll just go with the tripod and do it myself. It doesn't help anymore that I had just come home from work when this picture was taken.
Here is a picture of the top with the skirt made from the same geometric print. The skirt is New Look 6735:

Next, my first HP Cosmopolitan Dress. I love this dress, although there are several changes I need to make for my next version. I made this from a purple, gray, black and white floral from Gorgeous Fabrics. It's been sold out for some time, but I think she either has a red or blue colorway of the same print. I'd look to find out for sure, but I have an infant on my lap who desperately wants to type along, so I need to finish this as quick as possible :)

Friday was the opening of bow-hunting season so my husband left Thursday afternoon and is expected back sometime this evening. I decided to work from home Friday and got quite a bit of planning done in between projects. Saturday I cut out a dress from New Look 6779 in a black/gray houndstooth double knit from Gorgeous Fabrics, another New Look 6735 skirt from a black/off-white/green ITY, a New Look 6430 (apparently out of print and no longer on their site) top from the same ITY and I cut out and finished this New Look 6470 top:

I bought this ITY from Fashion Fabrics Club and they advertised it as aqua. It even photographs as an aqua, but in reality, it's more of a kelly green. According to Pantone, it's called Fir (18-5621). It worked out perfectly because I thought it was going to be used with my brown/aqua wardrobe but ended up matching the green in a black/off-white/green leaf print ITY that I bought in the same order. I made view A without the sleeves. Here is a side view of the tie for the band:

I also have the Vogue alice+olivia pants planned from a charcoal RPL from Gorgeous Fabrics as well as a really cool gray herringbone tweed with little metallic colored threads woven in that I bought at Joann's.

new Vogues

2008-07-24T10:36:00.000-07:00

I was reading Carolyn's blog and she was showing off her most recent Vogue pattern purchases along with information about their $6.99 sale. I get the emails, but sometimes get too busy to look at them and because I don't really spend enough on patterns, have not joined Club BMV yet.

With that said, I must say some of Carolyn's choices *forced* me to go to Vogue's website and pick up a few for myself. Here are my choices that should be on their way to me any day:

The famous Alice + Olivia pants that I've been drooling over for months

I love this dress and already have a couple of possible fabrics in mind for it

I really like the style of this cardigan and I definitely need more of them for work when the A/C gets cranked up!

I like the jacket, but I LOVE the skirt!

I'm not sure about this jacket - I think it might make me look like I'm wearing football pads, but I like the details on the pants - and I definitely need to make some pants!

I like the pleats and while I probably won't make this as-is, I think it has a lot of potential.

operation wardrobe: episode 2

2008-07-18T09:46:00.000-07:00

I have cleaned out the closet and now have nothing to wear!! To make my life even more complicated, in an effort to allow my husband to continue to stay home with our son, I have begun the journey of trying to get a promotion at work. I will be done with school in the next year or so and would like to use that time to begin the gradual overhaul of my work persona. From an experience and knowledge standpoint, I'm in good shape. Once I get the education part out of the way, all that's left is wardrobe!

I am considered an engineer although the nature of my job is not that of an engineer. My company is business casual, although in the past two years they've gone more beach casual. I tend to stay somewhat business casual, though I do love my jeans. I need to get away from that and move towards a more dressy/business professional look. Honestly, I would love to be the best dressed person at work! That's my goal.

I have taken a good look at what is currently in my closet and what I need. 90% of my clothes are on the more casual side. This is definitely going to be a transitional process. I am in need of slacks, skirts, jackets and dresses as well as tops (although I already have quite a few appropriate tops). I have a ton of fabric that I've been collecting with a work wardrobe overhaul in mind. Now is the time I need to implement it.

I got a serger (finally!) yesterday - I'll tell more about it in my next post. I am all set to get started. I will finish up my very first BWOF tonight (a great top!) and then I have three skirts that just need hems and then I can get started on my plan.

Up first will be a dress. I have a ton of really nice knits (and several more on the way). As much as I love wovens, with my body still changing and shrinking back down to my pre-pregnancy self, I love the versatility and ease of wearing I get from knits (and a nice pair of Spanx). I am FINALLY going to make myself a Cosmo dress from a black/white/yellow ITY that I got at my local Hancock a couple of months ago.

I am also going to finish up my aqua/brown summer wardrobe as most of those pieces are dressier and versatile and I'm also going to work on some of the pieces from my original Timmel SWAP that never saw the light of day. I have at least two suits and then my jacket from the coat sew-along if I can ever get to making a muslin of my coat (hubby's coat is coming along great though!).

So that's it for now! Next post will have some pictures and won't just be boring ol' text!

Happy Anniversary!!

2008-06-25T16:25:00.000-07:00

Today is my 2-year wedding anniversary to my dear husband. We actually celebrated our anniversary on Saturday since I have school tonight, but he took me out to a very nice anniversary lunch today. Although he doesn't read this - Happy Anniversary Nate!!

Back to sewing-related topics, I'm throwing in the towel on my JCC. I have had no time to devote to it AT ALL since the 10th and while I have the shirts for Drew cut out and ready to go, I don't anticipate having enough time in the next 5 days to get them finished. Part of the problem (although not a problem at all, really) is the fact that my in-laws were staying with us for the past few days. I actually had quite a bit of sewing mojo and time, but the sewing room doubles as the guest room so it was occupied. I really enjoy spending time with my in-laws and the lack of sewing room gave me some time to figure out what was bothering me about the muslin for my husband's coat. I already posted it for all of the readers of the Coat Sew Along blog, but I'll probably repost it here tonight after school or tomorrow.

In addition to just a lack of time for finishing my JCC, I realized that I do not have the proper mindset to focus on a SWAP-style plan and not stray from it. While I have no intention of straying from the plans that I put together for both my husband and our son, the timeframe made me take all focus away from summer clothes that I desperately need. I am more of a "make a list and complete it in whatever order suits me at the time". A SWAP-style plan is too rigid for how my mind works and I find myself spending more time planning and daydreaming about what I'll start after I'm done with my current plan than actually working on the plan! Sooooo, from now on I'm not going to take on any more SWAP/wardrobe type of challenges. I might start participating in some of the single-item contests on PR though, they look like a lot of fun and are really more up my alley in the contest realm.

I'm also thinking about getting more involved in other sewing endeavors in my community and that will take up quite a bit of time as well - I haven't quite found anything that speaks to me, but I know that when the time is right something will.

another baby capsule item finished!

2008-06-10T22:13:00.001-07:00

Here is item #2 in baby Drew's capsule:

This is the first of several father/son bowling-style shirts. The pattern is Simplicity 3852

I took the baby romper pattern and cut off the shorts part, leaving the perfect baby button-down shirt pattern! After I made the buttonholes I realized that the bottom buttonhole is really too low. I'll fix this for the other shirts, probably only using 3 buttons instead of 4. I also couldn't find any 3/8" buttons, so I used 1/2" - fortunately they don't look too big.

I'm IRRITATED!

2008-06-06T13:59:00.000-07:00

TWO weeks ago I ordered several yards of the Burberry raincoat fabric in RED. TODAY I get an email from Denver Fabrics indicating that they have since sold out and cannot process my order. Now, I know that if the website isn't set up to keep track of inventory as purchases get made it's easy to place an order and have it sell out before you get your cut. I understand this; however, this fabric was still listed as in-stock on the website for a solid FIVE days after I placed my order. If it was sold out before they could process my order, it should have been marked as sold out much sooner, in my opinion. Maybe I'm wrong. In any event, I was stoked to think that I actually managed to get my hands on some of the red before it sold out. That's what I get for counting my chickens...

To top things off, my credit card had ALREADY BEEN CHARGED for the fabric!! I'll have to give a few days and see if they bother refunding my money. Generally, my credit card gets charged when an order is ready to be shipped. I know there are also exceptions to this, but I've ordered from both Denver (since they switched owners) and FFC before and it has always been my experience that the card was charged just before shipping.

Thanks for letting me rant. On a brighter note, the UPS man and the mailman have both been spending an awful lot of time at my house. This weekend I'll share all of the goodies that have come my way...

a big fat wadder...

2008-05-30T22:53:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I made a skirt (I still need to photograph and post it) that was part of my original JCC plan (brown/aqua color scheme). I wanted to wear it to work earlier this week but needed some sort of top to go with it. Since I was short on time and even shorter on fabric, I decided to make a shrug. I used McCalls 5236

I made view E (lower right corner of the picture) without the ribbon tie. Well, let's just say I attempted. I'm not sure if I shifted something when I cut out the sleeve but there is way too much ease! I used a brown jersey and even with the strechiness of the fabric there was still too much ease in the cap!! I ended up having to gather the sleeve to fit it in and then it just looked silly. I'm not sure it's worth making a muslin for a basic shrug and since I have another 4 or 5 shrug patterns in my collection I think I'll go back to Hancock and pray they have more brown jersey (I used the fabric that was originally earmarked for trim on my Cosmo dress that has yet to be made) so I can make another one. Maybe this time I'll use one that is specifically designed for knits and not a "woven or knit". I am so disgusted I don't even want to take a picture...

JCC - baby cargo pants

2008-05-27T21:53:00.000-07:00

These were originally intended to be cargo shorts (like hubby's), but I put the pocket on and then realized I didn't adjust it for shorts. At that point I didn't feel like taking out the two rows of topstitching and decided to keep them as pants.

Drew wore them to my mom's birthday dinner on Saturday and was positively adorable! I probably won't have pictures of him in the pants until I do final photos of his capsule for the JCC.

They are Simplicity 3765. I haven't done a PR review yet, but I will soon. I have a few more reviews to complete and will probably do them all at once.

Enjoy!

Great Coat Sew-Along

2008-05-27T11:41:00.001-07:00

I decided early last week to join the Great Coat Sew-Along that Marji is hosting. Boy am I glad I signed up when I did - if it's not closed to new participants already, it will be very soon!! The response has been amazing and I feel honored to be a part of this project along with so many great sewists!

I had originally planned a post with my possibilities and was going to open up for suggestions. I wanted to use fabrics and patterns already in my collection so I started digging through boxes and drawers of fabric and found a bunch of possibilities. Patterns, however, I am lacking somewhat as I only had 4 coat patterns, including the Vogue Michael Kors that several of my counterparts are making. This was the coat I was most leaning towards, but (with some input from my husband) decided on this:

Wool blend purchased from Fashionista Fabrics. I'll be using McCalls 5247 View C (the version in red on the pattern envelope):

I also hope to make a coat for my hubby at the same time. I bought some charcoal melton almost 2 years ago with the intention of making him a dress coat for winter. It's still rolled up in the original package it was mailed in! I don't have a picture, but it's very dark - almost black - and heathered (good to hide dog hair). I plan to make Burda 8275 shortened to mid-thigh length:

operation wardrobe: episode 1

2008-05-17T20:48:00.000-07:00

Although I got the Lucky Shopping Manual for Mother's Day, I didn't have a chance to really read it until today. I read it from cover to cover and it really got me to thinking. I'm an adult!! I realize that I've been an adult for quite some time, but now that I'm a mother, am working on turning my job into a career, preparing for graduate school and am *gasp* quickly approaching 30, I need to have a more adult-looking wardrobe (and I don't mean this in the Nevada brothel sense).

My husband has been getting on me to go through my closet with a fine tooth comb and purge at least half of it. At first I was put off by the idea of getting rid of the clothes in my closet (although 80% of them are "fat" clothes that probably look potato sack-ish if I were to wear them today). After reading the Lucky book, this no longer seems so much of a daunting task. In fact, I am now looking forward to purging everything that no longer fits and re-designing a wardrobe that works for every aspect of my life.

This is going to be a multi-part process.
1. I get rid of anything that is too big.
2. I go through the remaining and pull out those pieces that I just don't like or won't wear and get rid of those.
3. I set aside in one section of the closet the items that work. The remaining items will be put on the other side of my closet. I will get rid of these later, as I know I have very few items that work well for my new lifestyle, but I still need something to wear while I replace them!!
4. I will fill in the gaps with classic pieces first and then worry about trendier pieces after I have a good base wardrobe to work with.

I need dressy work clothes, casual work clothes, play clothes and going out clothes for winter and summer with transitional pieces for fall and spring. I also need a couple of coats in different styles. I know I have some workable pieces that will fit into these categories, but I definitely have a lot of holes. I'm in the process of compiling a list of the basic pieces I need in my wardrobe and a beginning plan of attack to accomplish it.

I need to finish the father/son capsule and then I'll get started. My next post on this topic I will have an update on the closet purge and a preliminary list of what I need to fill out my wardrobe. This is definitely going to take some time to complete the entire process, but I'm sure when I'm done I will never be able to say I have nothing to wear!

June capsule contest

2008-05-13T23:06:00.000-07:00

I decided to officially enter the June capsule contest at Stitchers Guild. My plan is called "Like Father, Like Son" and will be a matching set of clothes for my husband and our infant son. A little bit of background: my husband and I are big fans of the TV show Two and a Half Men. Charlie Sheen's character wears these retro/bowling style shirts on the show (it's his trademark for anyone who hasn't seen the show). My husband loves that style of shirt and has a few, but has been asking me for quite some time to make him some more. I had been putting it off until this contest came along. Since hubby has been wonderful at taking care of the baby and letting me have some sewing time, I decided I should reward him by using some of that time to make something for him. When the contest was announced I made a plan for myself - which I will still make for the summer - but I changed my mind and decided to enter a wardrobe for him. Hubby came up with the idea of making a matching wardrobe for the baby.

Here is the storyboard for my plan:

Since the challenge for the contest is no black, I had to order new colors of fabric for the shirts. I'm going to make khaki cargo shorts and the colorblocked shirts will be in shades of brown/tan and blues. I'll also be putting my new embroidery machine to good use by doing some custom embroidery on the colorblocked panels. I will probably not do any embroidery on the baby's shirts, but the basic design will match. There is also an accessory requirement and I'm going to make hats from the same fabric as the shorts.

I'm very excited to be doing this for my boys. My "before June" item will probably be the cargo shorts to get them out of the way and then I can make the shirts assembly-line style. If I'm unable to get the hats done in time, those will be my purchased item and I'll just buy something that goes with the ensembles. I hope to get the fabric in the next week and by then I'll have the shirt patterns created with the different colorblock configurations. My hope is that on June 1st I can start cutting everything out and get started!

Wish me luck - I may have just gotten in over my head...again :)

happy Mother's Day to me!

2008-05-12T10:46:00.000-07:00

This is what I got for Mother's Day:

The Lucky Shopping Manual. I have only skimmed through it briefly, but it contains a lot of great information on how to shop for everything and what looks best on certain body types. It has a lot of eye candy for inspiration as well.

I also put some of my personal sewing on hold temporarily to sew for my hubby. He has been requesting some retro/bowling style shirts for some time and that was part of the reason I got my embroidery machine for Christmas. The dog ate the Vogue pattern I usually use and I haven't replaced it yet (he was only a few months old, so it was over a year since I've even ATTEMPMTED to sew for hubby), so I'm trying out a now OOP Simplicity Threads pattern. I don't have the pattern numbers handy or else I'd post them, but I'll post all about it when I'm done with this first shirt.

ETA: I almost forgot!! Hubby and I went to Barnes and Noble after our early breakfast yesterday morning and they FINALLY have Burda WOF on their newsstand. Even though I have a subscription, it made me feel better to know that I won't miss out if I ever forget to rewnew on time! Reno is growing up...

another Simplicity 3881

2008-05-06T20:43:00.000-07:00

I really love this pattern!! I have made this 3 times now and have a couple more planned. It's a very flattering style on me - slim up top and flared at the bottom. This fabric came from Gorgeous Fabrics. I don't remember what it's called, I bought it last summer, but I LOVE it! It's difficult to match up the flowers, so I did the best I could. It looked sort of strange at the seam where the top of the skirt meets the peplum, so I added a piece of 5/8" grosgrain ribbon that I had in my stash to break it up a little. I really love this.

On another note, today I purchased the Hot Patterns Weekender Jean Jeanius Trouser Jeans pattern. I've been eyeing this pattern for a while and on a recent trip to Joann's I found a couple of great pieces of medium-weight denim that I have in mind. I am going to attempt to recreate a pair of maternity jeans (only non-maternity) that I fell in love with.

Simplicity 4129 - military-style jacket

2008-05-06T18:25:00.000-07:00

(it still needs a good pressing...it looks great on me, not so much on the dressform - I'll try to get a picture of me wearing it soon)

Pattern: Simplicity 4129, View D
Fabric: Tan faux suede-type fabric, chocolate brown Ambiance lining
Other: 10 antiqued gold buttons

This pattern is apparently no longer available even as an OOP from Simplicity's website. It comes in sizes 6-22, I made size 20 based on my high bust measurement and widened to a 22 at the hip.

Alterations:
- 1/2" FBA
- Lowered bust point 2"
- Lenghtened body by 1-3/4"
- Lengthened sleeves by 1-1/2"
- Raised armhole by 1/2"

Details:
As I had mentioned in an earlier post, I wanted a military-style jacket and after seeing EricaB's version I decided to use the combination of the Simplicity pattern and the faux suede that I had in my stash. I found 10 antique gold buttons that went well with the fabric (the only gold buttons that Joann's had 10 of!) and some chocolate brown lining and I was off! I was doubly inspired by this Dolce and Gabbana jacket and really wanted to incorporate some of the other design elements into my jacket. The problem was that I wasn't able to find enough buttons in the right sizes to really accomplish this, so I ended up just making it based off the pattern.

The instructions were marginal. This is definitely not a pattern for beginners - the jacket itself isn't especially difficult, but the instructions are not very user-friendly. They have you jump around from view to view and then leave out certain necessary steps such as inserting the sleeve and when to attach the buttons! Although if you are intuitive enough to know that at some point you need to insert the sleeve before you attach the lining, you'll be fine. Ann from Gorgeous Things has mentioned before her disappointment in Threads patterns not having enough notes from the editors of the magazine and I have to say I was especially disappointed at the quality of the instructions for this particular pattern considering it is a Threads design.

The pattern calls for interfacing the front and front facing. I decided to only interface the facing because my fabric was thick enough that it didn't need the extra stiffness - even with a thin interfacing. I used knit fusible ala Tany to just give it a little bit of soft shaping. Because it's a more casual style, I didn't want it to be TOO structured. It also calls to only line the peplum. If I were to make this again, I would add more structure to the peplum and cuffs by using a stiffer interfacing. It is definitely wearable and I love it, just something I would recommend to anyone wanting to make this.

The fabric was a bear to sew and I had a heck of a time taming it, despite using a Teflon foot, roller foot and even-feed foot. Pretty much nothing made it cooperate the way I had hoped. In the end everything worked out and what few puckers I couldn't get rid of are all hidden by the lining anyway. The pattern calls to bag the lining and because the fabric was so difficult I only machine stitched the fronts to the facings and then hand-stitched everything else. Personally, I like hand stitching and this way I get the control I wanted.

Would I make it again? Probably not. I think a girl only needs one of these in her wardrobe unless she is really into the military style. I toyed with making a slightly different style in a navy microfiber I have in my stash and using silver buttons, but I think I'll save that for another project.

All in all, a winner - you can read my review here.

capsule wardrobes

2008-05-05T14:06:00.001-07:00

The military jacket is finished. As soon as I get some pictures of me wearing it I'll post a review.

In the meantime, I've been thinking a lot about capsule wardrobes. After failing (miserably) to even really get started on the Timmel SWAP, I started thinking about tackling it in smaller chunks. I realized, while trying to decide on 11 pieces for the SWAP, that I actually think in 4-5 piece chunks. I would always end up with one or two pieces that did not completely coordinate with the rest of the bunch, but broken into two separate mini-SWAPs they worked perfectly. I decided to focus my spring and summer sewing on this concept - especially now that I have time, space and motivation to actually plan some and have it come to fruition!

Right now, I have two mini-wardrobes planned. One revolves around two floral prints for skirts (one skirt is completed) with two coordinating tops (one completed). The second is a darkwash denim skirt, tan faux suede military-style jacket (both completed), a pair of darkwash denim trouser jeans and a top.

Yesterday, while reading Carolyn's blog I saw her mention the June capsule wardrobe contest at Stitchers Guild. They are doing a similar contest at Pattern Review, but during the month of May. Without sufficient time to plan for a contest that had already started, I decided not to worry about a May contest and figured I would enter the contest they are holding in August. Then, after reading Carolyn's post, decided that a June contest is perfect. Make four pieces with at least one top and one bottom, and one accessory. One can be made ahead of the June 1 start date and one can be purchased. I don't want to purchase anything, but I think I'll use my faux suede jacket as the pre-made item and expand my capsule to include one extra item (since I can't use the skirt I've already completed if I'm using the jacket I just completed). The biggest challenge is that there can be NO BLACK! This is the exciting part for me. I have a lot of black in my wardrobe and much of my stash is black, or contains black, so this is going to be a good challenge to get out of my comfort zone and create something entirely void of black.

I'm thinking I'll use the jacket, a pair of darkwash denim trouser jeans (using Hot Patterns Weekender Jean Jeanius pattern), a t-shirt type top and a blouse. For the accessory I'm thinking jewelry since I have a pretty extensive handbag collection that would already coordinate well with a neutral color palette. The June 1st start date gives me ample time to plan and perfect the fit of the patterns I'm thinking of using.

Tomorrow, (or tonight if I get a chance to take pictures) you'll see the military jacket and the skirt that I promised to post a week ago.

military jacket part 2 - some progress

2008-05-03T12:49:00.001-07:00

I've made pretty good progress so far on the jacket. I don't have a picture right now, as my sewing room is being occupied by one of my best friends who is visiting from Phoenix. Because of this, I haven't done any work on it since Wednesday morning. Right now, I have the outer shell and lining both assembled and ready to attach. It looks great on my dress form with the denim skirt.

What is left to be done:
- Attach sleeve cuffs to sleeves. I also decided to forego sleeve bands because I thought it would make the jacket a little busier than I had wanted.

- Set in sleeves on outer shell. I had originally postponed this because I wanted to make sure I could find smaller matching buttons for epaulets (which are not yet cut out and sewn). As it turns out, the smallest buttons in the design I chose are the 7/8" buttons that I bought...and I bought them all. I asked when they would get more in, and nobody knew and would not order them for me. This means epaulets and pockets are also both out, since they just won't look right without buttons.

- Attach the peplum to the outer shell. Again, I was waiting on buttons to determine whether or not I would have pockets. Since pockets are out, peplum can be attached as-is.

- Attach the buttons to the front. The way this is designed, it looks like the buttons secure the front detail (I don't know what it's called off the top of my head). Right now, it's attached to the front piece at the center front, but hangs free everywhere else. I need to do this before the lining is completed.

- Insert shoulder pads. I usually don't need, nor do I like, shoulder pads. I tried on the muslin with and without shoulder pads, and the 1/4" shoulder pads look better. I'm also playing around with sleeve heads, but it might be too bulky - we'll see how it works out.

- Attach the lining to the outer shell. The instructions call to bag the lining, but I am going to attach the lining mostly by hand. I will machine-stitch the facing to the front, and then take it from there. Even with a roller foot and an even-feed foot, this fabric tends to shift and pucker and I'm afraid that bagging the lining will result in unwanted puckers and shifts.

Like I said at the beginning of this post, I haven't been able to work on it since Wednesday morning. My friend leaves this afternoon and I'll probably be able to work on it tomorrow (Sunday) and then my father-in-law comes to visit for a few days. I also start back at work on Monday, so it might not be finished until next weekend. I was really hoping to have had it finished so I could wear it to work on Monday, but things don't always work out the way we plan.

military-style jacket part 1 - the muslin(s)

2008-04-27T19:34:00.000-07:00

I have spent the past 3 days working on muslins for Simplicity 4129. I originally fell in love with this Dolce and Gabbana jacket, but of course could never justify the price - even if it is $2200 cheaper on overstock.com. When I saw Erica B's version I was re-inspired and then realized I had a pattern in my stash that I could use to emulate the D&G version...enter Simplicity 4129 (which is apparently out of print and not available on Simplicity's website - I searched for it). I'm making view D (the green one in the upper-right corner of the photo) with some modifications.

I decided to use some fabric from my stash, a caramel colored sueded poly blend (it doesn't photograph very well in my dimly-lit dining room). It looks and feels just like suede, but it's more forgiving to work with than true synthetic suede (it eases better and doesn't show needle and pin marks like a true synthetic suede would). I decided to not get too crazy in the lining and settled on a chocolate brown Ambiance and then I found some antiqued gold buttons.

Because I didn't want to cut into my fabric without knowing this would fit perfectly, I decided to make a muslin. Three muslins later I am FINALLY ready to cut out the base jacket pieces. I plan on adding pockets to the peplum, possibly pouch pockets like the D&G version, but I haven't decided exactly what I want to add yet. This pattern has been a bear to get to fit properly. I went with my high bust measurement and decided on a size 20 for the first muslin.

Muslin 1: Basic fit was OK. The only alterations I made for this first muslin was lengthening the jacket body by 1 3/4" at the waistline. The bust line and hip area were snug and while the sleeves fit well, the movement was horrible. On to make some additional modifications for the next muslin.

Muslin 2: I did a 1/2" FBA, which only partially fixed the bustline. From the waistline, I widened all pieces to size 22 for extra hip room. For the sleeves, I originally questioned whether the sleeves were really too tight which might account for my movement issues. Not the problem - in fact, altering the sleeves made the sleeves worse!! Off to muslin #3.

Muslin 3: Wearing the second muslin and studying it in the mirror, I realized that my sleeve issue was because the armhole was too low. For muslin #3, I lowered the armhole by 1/2" (an alteration I NEVER have to make), using the method in Fast Fit - except because of the princess seams I decided to make my alteration at the dots on the sleeve cap rather than just above the notches...this way I didn't have to deal with making an alteration to the side pieces. I also needed to figure out what was wrong with the bust area. After looking through my Fast Fit book I decided to check my bust point against the bust point on the pattern - I needed to lower it by 2". I also lengthened the sleeve by 1 1/2" after adding the sleeve cuff. All of these modifications FINALLY made the muslin fit well...

I'm going to cut out the fabric and lining tonight.

Simplicity and a Hot Pattern

2008-04-24T21:59:00.000-07:00

Before I get started on my latest projects, I have some exciting news (well, at least for me)...I can wear my SKINNY JEANS again!!!!! This is a big day for me. I still have the little baby bulge that is getting smaller and smaller as time passes, but it was super exciting that I'm now back down to the size I was before I got pregnant...

Now back to our regularly scheduled program!

I've made two skirts and a top this week. I have a whole pile of projects on the table waiting to be cut out, but I have a project due next week for school so in the meantime I'm going to show you one of the skirts and the top.
Up first...Simplicity 4076. I've made the scoop neck version three times now and the wrap version once. I really love both, but the scoop neck has become my TNT t-shirt. It's very flattering and looks great on me. I made it from some white cotton lycra jersey that I got from Timmel Fabrics.

I didn't feel like taking off my PJs to get a picture of me in the top, so you'll have to make do with my unnamed dressform. I added 3" to the length because I like it a little bit longer - especially now with my little bit of baby bulge. I also made a couple of changes specifically to this iteration: I widened the neckband by 1/4". I also redrafted the sleeves, adding some gathers at the cap and a band at the hem. Here is a closeup of the sleeve:

Pattern Review can be found here.

Now for the skirt, I did make another Simplicity 3881, which is my absolute favorite skirt. I'll show that in another post. Today, I'm going to show you my Hot Patterns Denim Diva Flirty Skirt. This was made with some awesomely gorgeous darkwash denim that I got from Gorgeous Fabrics.

I have to say this skirt is awesome. The only modification I made was to take in the side seams a little since my hips aren't as curvy as the pattern was made for. I shortened it by 6" after it was finished because the pattern says it is supposed to hit just at the knee and that's how much I needed to take off to achieve that look. The hem is still pinned up because I haven't decided exactly how I'm going to hem it yet. I did double rows of topstitching in white thread - since I couldn't find any white topstitching thread at Joann's and didn't want to drive across town to Hancock for thread, I used two strands of regular white thread in the needle. I really like how it turned out. I definitely plan on making this again, but next time in a drapier fabric that will allow the A-line to hang a little more relaxed. The pattern review for the skirt can be found here.

Next time I'll show you my 3rd iteration of the Simplicity 3881 skirt!

I'm sewing!

2008-04-21T09:14:00.001-07:00

FINALLY!!!! I don't have any pictures to post yet, but I finished one skirt yesterday and I have another skirt and a top cut out and ready to sew. I'll make one big post when I have them all done since they are all patterns I've made before and posted on this blog...

After my two skirts and top are finished, I have a short list of garments that I would like to make next. They include a faux suede military-style jacket (I was inspired by Erica's faux nubuck jacket. I already have the suede and pattern and reading Erica's blog and review cinched the combo for me.

This weekend I helped my mom start a SWAP-style wardrobe plan. It's not complete and for her needs it's not going to be true to the challenge, but it's close. She lives in Northern California and the climate tends to have hot, humid summers and generally mild, sometimes rainy winters. She walks several blocks to the train that she takes to work and is not only in need of some new corporate wear for her new job, but she also needs some outerwear that can handle the elements. Because her new corporate look is going to include jackets and in the winter a warm coat, I decided that this will be her overcoat:

We are going to add a removable hood. Now to find some waterproof rainwear fabric. Mom says we missed the boat on the (Burberry) rainwear from Michael's even though it's still listed on their website. Worst case, we'll just waterproof some other fabric. Since we are entering the hot, humid part of the year we have some time before the cape needs to be completed.

Baby needs to be fed, I have a paper to finish up for school and then back to the sewing room for me! I go back to work in two weeks, so I'm hoping to get as much sewing done as possible between now and then.

up next...skirts!!

2008-04-14T10:11:00.000-07:00

So I've lost all of my pregnancy weight, but I'm still not quite back to my pre-pregnancy size. My jeans *almost* fit, but they don't quite look good yet. What's great is that the weather is getting so nice and a couple of skirts I made last summer fit and look good. In honor of this, I'm going to make a couple more of my TNT Simplicity 3881 skirts. Here is the pattern:

and I'm going to make it first from a fabric I bought from Fabric Mart just before I left for my high school reunion (and consequently found out I was pregnant):

Then, I'm going to make it from this really cute pink, green and white floral that I also bought last summer from Gorgeous Fabrics. I don't have a picture of it handy, but I'll show the fabric when I post the finished skirt.

After the skirts are done, I am going to make another Simplicity 4076 t-shirt:

I have some really nice white cotton/lycra that I got from Timmel Fabrics that I had planned on using with this pattern for my now defunct SWAP. I'm going to make a modified version of the short-sleeved scoop neck version. Another TNT t-shirt pattern that will make a really easy transition back into sewing.

Then...I'll unveil my (hopefully not too ambitious) spring/summer 2008 sewing list.

Till then...

new sewing machine and 2008 SWAP

2008-04-12T23:01:00.000-07:00

It was probably one of the toughest decisions I've had to make in a while to drop out of the 2008 Timmel SWAP. My sewing machine dying a week before the contest deadline made me feel only slightly better that I wasn't frantically trying to finish up 11 garments with nothing to sew them on! The broken sewing machine problem is no longer, though - thanks to my wonderful hubby, I am now the owner of a brand spaking new Janome HT2008!

I did quite a bit of comparison shopping online and testing at the various dealers in town before deciding on this machine. Of the machines I looked at, my favorites in my price range were the Brother Innovis 80 Project Runway edition, the Viking Emerald 183 and the Janome that I ultimately purchased. I also looked at some Singer, Pfaff and Babylock machines but wasn't as impressed with the models that were available at my local dealers - or the pricetags of some of them. I was most torn between the Janome and the Viking - the Brother was very similar to the Janome in terms of ease of use and available functions, but felt much more portable and not as sturdy as the Janome. The biggest reason I decided not to go with the Viking was that the electronic display wasn't as user-friendly as I had hoped, and it was $200 more than the Janome. If my old Viking feet were compatible with the Emerald, I would have spent the extra money since Viking feet are notoriously expensive...my walking foot cost more than $100! Since the feet were not compatible, I didn't think it was worth it and went with the Janome.

This machine doesn't have a lot of the bells and whistles of the higher-end machines, but it also does not have the high-end price tag at $399. What it does have is 50 stitches, including 3 one-step automatic buttonholes and several different utility stitches. These utility stitches include several different stretch stitches, straight stitch variations and overlock/finishing stitches. It even came with a special foot for the overlock stitches. There are also darning, heirloom and decorative stitches - most of these I probably won't use...which is one of the reasons I decided not to go with the more pricey Brother or Viking models - extra stitches = extra cost that I just couldn't justify.

I have to say that so far I really love this machine!! I have only had it a couple of days, but so far it's great. I have only sewed the strap onto my Hooter Hider (nursing cover for baby Andrew), but it sewed through the 6 layers of fabric/interfacing and the rigelene boning like BUTTER!!!!

Now I have so much reason to sew. I go back to work in 3 weeks and would really like to have some new clothes to wear when I go back. Also taking into account that we have decided that hubby is going to stay home with the baby, I am forced to be on a budget - that means I have an even better excuse to sew since I do need new clothes and can't really justify a trip to the mall in my budget since I can sew and have the stash from my original SWAP plan...now to put that plan into action!

So even though I've missed the deadline (and only really completed 2 garments before the baby was born in mid-February), I am now going to work on making the SWAP garments. Instead of doing the original 11-garment plan, I'm going to make mini-wardrobes of 5-6 garments that consist of 2-3 tops, 1-2 bottoms and a jacket. I hope to have at least one or two new outfits to wear when I go back to work. We'll see how that works. Maybe I can get a full mini-wardrobe completed.

RIP dear sewing machines

2008-04-07T21:06:00.000-07:00

(you can't see it, but the digital display now reads "666" when it turn it on...I'm sad)
Two down, no more to go.

Until recently, I had two sewing machines. One was a Singer Slant from the 1950s and the other a Husqvarna Viking 960 computerized from the early 80s. Both have stories and now both are dead.

Until about 6 years ago, I was using sewing machines borrowed from my mother or grandmother. That is, until one day when my brother found this old Singer Slant - in a cabinet! - outside his apartment waiting to be taken by the garbage men. He brought it to our mother - a master seamstress and mechanical guru - who oiled the heck out of it, got it moving and gave it to me. It came with EVERY accessory you could imagine, including an original packet of needles (which I have never used, but found interesting). That machine was a workhorse, making several suits and dresses, including my wedding dress! The automatic buttonholer attachment made wonderful buttonholes and I had just about every template for it that existed.

Fast forward to 2 years ago and my mom received a 1980s computerized Viking as a gift for helping a friend move - he was going to sell it in a garage sale until my mom showed interest in it. She gave it to me and that was the quietest, quickest, best machine I could possibly imagine. It came just as the Singer was requiring yet another re-oiling (which would cause fabric to become stained for several weeks if I did not take precautions...it just wasn't worth the work anymore). I retired the Singer and began to sew exclusively on the Viking.

Fast forward to yesterday - after 2 months of getting the hang of being a mom, and overcoming a pretty nasty case of the flu, I finally had some sewing mojo. I decided to start by putting the finishing touches on the hooter hider that has been sitting on my dining room table for weeks. I turn on my machine and it looks like it was possessed!!! All of the digital numbers were showing up as 8's, every LED was lit up (as if I had selected EVERY available stitch to stitch at the same time!). I tried to sew and it went along at a snail's pace - literally it did one stitch per second in this teeny tiny stitch length that I cannot lengthen. So, I decided to break out the Singer that had been recently oiled but not used - it stitched along fine for about 8 stitches and then SNAP - the thread breaks and I have a birds nest of bobbin thread. Tear everything out, put in a different bobbin and rethread...same thing - 10 stitches and then SNAP...this time the needle breaks. I go through this one more time, replacing the needle and have the exact same results. The only thing we can think of is that there is a nick in the bobbin case (something I just had to deal with on my embroidery-only machine last week). The problem is, it will cost $100 to have the local Singer/Viking deal look at EITHER machine - or $150 to diagnose both - and I just don't think it's worth it for machines that are so old and I have no real attachment to.

So...now that I have my sewing mojo back and am dying to jump in and take on some new projects, I am in need of a machine. Nothing too expensive, since hubby and I are on a budget now that we have decided he will stay home with the baby (the cost of daycare and the expense of his commute with the price of gas made that decision easy) but definitely something with some lasting power. Now taking recommendations. In the meantime, I'm off to research new machines!!

just checking in

2008-02-28T18:02:00.000-08:00

I have been offline for several weeks now, and as things are starting to calm down somewhat, I felt that it was time to give anyone who reads this an update on what's been going on...
There has been absolutely NO sewing, planning or thinking about sewing taking place in the past three weeks. At 2:09am on February 11th, I FINALLY gave birth to our long-awaited new addition - a baby boy named Andrew Joel. He weighed exactly 9lbs and was 21 1/4" long. Needless to say, he's a BIG boy and I'm still recovering from the birth!! The past 2 1/2 weeks have been focusing on getting to know our son and learning how to be parents. Here are a couple of pictures:

So there you have it - what I've been up to for the past few weeks. As soon as little Andrew starts on a more regular schedule I'll be able to head back to the sewing table. In the meantime, I've decided that the 2008 SWAP just isn't going to happen. I'll definitely make all of the garments on my SWAP list, and will hopefully make a dent in my to-sew list for 2008, but we'll see how that goes...

to SWAP or not to SWAP?

2008-01-26T18:01:00.000-08:00

That is my conundrum. I REALLY want to participate in the SWAP. I have a plan, I have fabric, I have patterns and I've made my participating purchase. What I don't have is the confidence to be able to pull it off. At least not now. I started out with a plan to make post-maternity clothing that I can wear back to work while transitioning from pregnant body to post-pregnant body. The problem is that the contest started January 1st, ends the middle of April and the baby isn't due until next month. My doctor thinks I might deliver late and that will give me really only a month and a half to make and/or finish 11 garments. I was going to try and make a primarily-knit wardrobe based on my pre- and early-pregnancy measurements, but it just isn't working for me. Add on top of that the fact that my sewing room is still a storage room for everything that was in the nursery (back when the nursery was a storage room). I can't sew well when I'm disorganized and while I may be organized in the fabric, pattern, plan sense, I'm definitely not organized in the sewing location and notions sense. I find myself digging through boxes looking for notions and not being able to find what I'm looking for...it's frustrating.

I'm still going to keep my name in the hat for the time being, as I haven't really made a final decision as to whether or not I am going to participate. I have a plan B SWAP idea in place that will consist of a baby or toddler SWAP and have preliminary patterns picked out for both boys and girls so I'd be ready regardless of what we have.

So now onto the next topic...my sewing goals for 2008. I sat down today to make a list of all of the things I would like to accomplish sewing-wise in 2008. The top of my list is to reclaim and reorganize my sewing room so that I can actually begin to accomplish some of these goals. I also plan to make a bunch of stuff for the baby, but primarily I would like to complete some of the following projects (not necessarily in this order):

1. A set of fitting garments using Pattern Master Boutique. I bought the latest version of this software with my annual bonus from work and have not been able to play with it since I've been pregnant this whole time. I would really like to spend time learning how to use it and make a set of fitting garments.

2. A SWAP wardrobe - regardless of whether or not it's part of the official contest. If I don't participate in the contest, I am going to heavily modify the wardrobe to be less transitional and more cohesive of the type of wardrobe I want for myself as a professional working mother. I would ultimately like the full 3-phase and will probably include all of the following garments into the SWAP plan (except for the items I plan on making for the hubby or baby)

3. At least 2-3 shirts for hubby. Part of the reason for buying my embroidery machine was so that I could make retro/bowling shirts for my husband. My husband has lost some weight and is back to the size he was when we met, and while he was heavier he got rid of all of his smaller shirts, so this is going to be even more important when his work schedule lightens over the next several months.

4. Make hubby a wool coat. He asked me over a year ago if I would make him a wool peacoat style coat. I have the dark charcoal melton wool and Burday coat pattern that he picked out all ready to go.

5. Make at least one coat for myself. I have several coats I would like to make, but I have recently purchased a gorgeous furry wool/mohair fabric that would make a fabulous dressy coat.

6. Make a Chanel-style jacket using couture techniques. I have 4 different boucle fabrics to currently choose from, and 2 different suitable patterns.

7. Make a tailored suit. This may not be feasible in 2008, but I would at least like to have this planned on the back burner for the end of the year if possible. I don't have a dire need for suits, but I can see a benefit for just about anyone to have at least one smart tailored suit. It may include skirt or slacks or both, and I may even include a vest - I haven't really thought this one through, but since my old suit is about 4 sizes too big for me even now that I'm 8 1/2 months pregnant I think it's time to rethink a new one.

8. Make at least one designer "knock off". This is to be determined and may end up being included with one of the other projects, but I would really like to refashion a pattern, or use PMB, to knock off one or more of my favorite designer pieces.

9. Make a pair of jeans. I haven't made jeans since I was in high school and would really like to revisit the idea of this. I realized the other day, when I was mending my maternity jeans, that my trusty Viking sews through several layers of denim like butter so I'm excited!

10. Make a handbag. I haven't decided if I want to make a diaper bag, purse or tote of some sort, but I would really like to try my hand at making a bag of some sort. This is something I have never done.

11. Sew something from leather. I'm not sure if my first attempt at bag-making will also include my first attempt at sewing leather, but we have a great leather source in town and I would really like to attempt something from leather this year.

So those are my lofty sewing goals for 2008. I can accomplish most of them as part of a 3-phase SWAP. Notice how I don't call them "resolutions"? I want to challenge myself to accomplish as much of this as I can, but do not want to limit myself to just 2008. If I can have some of these accomplished and others completely planned for 2009 I will be happy. Ultimately, this is the year that I want to spend really honing in on my skills and working on mastering new techniques and trying some things that I have never ventured to try. I think the idea of becoming a mom has made me braver when it comes to my sewing and now I relish in the idea of giving myself the ultimate in sewing challenges. Then again, maybe it's just the nesting instinct kicking in and all of this momentum will go away as soon as labor starts. We'll see how well I do...

Denver Fabrics is back up...

2007-11-20T21:57:00.001-08:00

but is it just me or do they carry the EXACT same inventory as Fashion Fabrics Club?

See for yourself...I did a search for coating fabric at Denver Fabrics and got the exact same results as I did from the same search at Fashion Fabrics Club

Curious...

I need to name my SWAP!

2007-10-19T15:12:00.000-07:00

The more I look at my current SWAP plan, the happier I am with it. I am usually my own worst enemy when it comes to trying to plan out a wardrobe like this (I was going to attempt the Wardrobe Contest over at patternreview.com, but could NOT make up my mind on what I wanted to make or what I wanted the wardrobe to look like). I think it helped that I have a specific need/desire in mind. When I was attempting create a summer wardrobe I didn't really have a need, and then I got pregnant and needed a "maternity wardrobe", but the contest was practically over and I had no desire to do anything but sleep!!!

But back to the current SWAP...I may have some additional tweaking to do once I get the rest of my fabrics in, but I think it's pretty much "the plan". I'm looking at this wardrobe as a *hopefully* somewhat sophisticated transitional wardrobe that will help me not only transition from post-pregnancy weight back to pre-pregnancy weight (and then finishing the weight loss I started before I got pregnant), but also transition from a more casual work wardrobe to a more professional work wardrobe. Even though my office goes anywhere from casual to professional and everywhere in between - I want to start maintaining a more professional appearance at work to go along with the promotion I received this week.

Since my color scheme is black/gray/white/purple, I've been trying to come up with a name that fits. I was originally thinking something that had to do with a cityscape at night with the dark colors with a splash of white, but I'm having a hard time coming up with a name that suits that theme. So far, the only name I've been able to come up with is "Smoke on the Water." There are several reasons why this name fits:
1. It is the name of a song by the band "Deep Purple" - being that the only real color in my wardrobe is purple, it fits.
2. The color of smoke can be any of the three remaining colors: black, gray, white.
3. When I think of the name "smoke on the water", aside from the song, it reminds me of a picture I saw of a forest fire near a lake. The photo was taken at dusk and the sky was several shades of purple, with the blackening lake, gray smoke and the glint of white from the moon reflected off the lake.

But I am open to new ideas. I still would like to come up with a name to represent a cityscape at night before I make a final decision as to the name...anyone have any ideas??

SWAP plan

2007-10-13T20:50:00.000-07:00

After careful deliberation, I am going to make every attempt to complete the Timmel Fabrics SWAP. Since I will be in dire need of some transitional clothes once the baby is born and I go back to work. I don't anticipate having a lot of baby weight to lose, but I know I'm going to want comfortable clothes and then I plan on rejoining Weight Watchers to lose the rest of the weight I had to lose before I got pregnant. All in all, I'm expecting about 20lbs total. I have a lot of casual clothes, but not a lot of dressier work clothes.

So, this brings me to SWAP. With 11 garments, plus a couple of extras, I'll have a wardrobe that will be perfect for work, business trips and special events. Even though I won't be wearing any of these items during the fall or most of the winter, I have decided on a color scheme of black, gray, white and shades of purple. There are four reasons I chose this color scheme:

1. I'm a little bummed that I can't wear most of the gorgeous fall and winter styles that are coming out this year, so I'm going to wear them a season or two late (woman's prerogative).

2. My favorite maternity clothes (one top and two dresses) are in this color scheme and I plan on altering them to be wearable post-pregnancy, so they will be added to the final wardrobe to expand the number of options.

3. Purple and gray is one of my favorite color combinations and black and white are business wardrobe staples. Even though I can wear pretty much whatever I want to work, one of my plans for next year is to make a conscious effort to dress more professionally.

4. The majority of the wardrobe pieces (especially the bottom pieces) will go with many of the mis-matched tops I made for my early pregnancy and will allow more options for the transitional wardrobe.

Without further ado, here is my plan. I currently have one additional top and bottom piece than the SWAP rules call for, but this gives me a little bit of flexibility in decision making.

My chosen wardrobe pattern is Butterick 5101:

I chose this wardrobe pattern primarily because it was a knit wardrobe and knits are better for my post-pregnancy transitional plan. The reason I chose this over the many other knit wardrobe patterns was the fact that the top and skirt together look like a wrap dress, but will give so many additional options for a SWAP wardrobe. I like the wrap dress that comes with the pattern, but I really like the handkerchief hem of the skirt - my combination will be a black version of the all brown look on the far right of the picture.

As soon as all of my fabrics arrive, I'll post some photos of more detailed plans.

ok...so i've been giving this some thought

2007-10-07T22:30:00.001-07:00

and I need some suggestions of some good patterns that I can possibly use for a transitional wardrobe SWAP. I need items for a primarily business-casual environment (once I'm back at work) that aren't too fitted and that I can make and mostly fit in the hip/bust areas while I'm pregnant. I don't think I'll really have too much baby weight to lose, but I want things that will be more comfortable than my fitted clothes I wore prior to becoming pregnant. I'm going to try and use as much of my stash as possible so that this wardrobe will only cost me whatever patterns I may need to buy and some notions...especially since I'm sure there are some pieces that I will only be wearing for a short time.

So if anyone has any pattern ideas of what would be appropriate for the office, yet still comfortable for a new mom, please let me know!!!!! Thanks :)

oh my goodness!!

2007-10-07T21:59:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's been more than a month since my last post. Unfortunately, there is still no sewing on the horizon. The house is chugging along, although it's going a lot more slowly than I had hoped. Hubby has been gone for the last month on a job training and is finally coming home in one day!!! In the meantime, I've been fighting with the contractor who is supposed to paint and install baseboards - they don't want to talk to me because hubby is the one who they have been dealing with. Oh well, at least I have beautiful new cherry hardwood floors.

I have contemplated participating in the 2008 Timmel SWAP, but since it doesn't start until January there really isn't any point. I was going to make a maternity SWAP if it started earlier, but since I'm due in early February I don't really want to make a whole wardrobe I can wear for only a month. I have some time to plan, maybe I'll make a post-partum transitional wardrobe to wear while I lose baby weight. Ooooh, that's actually a really good idea! Ok, now the ideas are rolling...time to rethink not participating!!

Well, I guess that's about all that's going on. Pregnancy is going well, hubby is coming home, work and school are taking up most of my time right now - but everything should be back to normal very, very soon.

sew many things

2007-08-27T19:42:00.001-07:00

have been going on, and sadly none of them have anything to do with sewing. Wait, I take that back...

The weekend before last, my mom, granny and I went to the Original Creative Arts Festival when it made it's way to Reno. I meant to post about this sometime last week, but the week got away from me with work and baby preparations (not to mention I am in Las Vegas this week on business). My mom and I had originally planned on taking several of the classes and seminars that were offered throughout the weekend, but that was before I found out I was pregnant. Now, I would never be able to sit through an 8-hour long class without several breaks. Instead, we decided to bring mom's mom (dear granny) to the festival with us. I don't know what I was expecting; after all, looking at the website indicates it's heavy on quilting. But after looking at the various classes offered, I thought there would be more garment-based booths then there were. Oh well - there were some absolutely GORGEOUS quilts and while I'm not a fan of wearable art items myself, there were some great items in that area as well. All in all, it was not a waste of the $7 admission fee and it was nice to spend an afternoon with my mom and granny.

Fast forward a week and I'm in Las Vegas. My house is being painted this week (hubby informed me tonight that he already finished painting the baby's room!!!) Next week, the new floors are going in the house and then hubby leaves for a month in Idaho for training for his new job. Whew, there is a lot going on - I guess you can see how I have so little time for sewing. I did, however, get some cross-stitch done. I am doing a set of Winnie the Pooh characters for the baby's room and Tigger is done. Now I'm working on Winnie. Then comes Eeyore and Piglet. When I get home I'll post a picture. That's about it for now!!

planning a challenge...

2007-08-10T10:06:00.000-07:00

is much different than actually undertaking the challenge! But, I digress. I am looking forward to the unplanned renovations in the house being done so that I can start working on some of the projects I have waiting on the back burner as well as some ideas that have been percolating.

One of the things that I was really thinking about, was doing a sort of SWAP-style plan for my maternity wardrobe. This is no more. I have two really cute dresses, jeans, slacks and some cute, simple tops. My mom is making me some additional tops and a couple pairs of slacks. I already have several of the longer sweaters that were trendy last winter that will work really well over the swelling belly and since we are approaching cooler weather that will prevail throughout the rest of my pregnancy, I'll probably be OK with a few more filler items...but what I'm really coveting are jackets and coats.

In addition to the Simplicity 4954 jacket from that great pink and black boucle I mentioned in this post, I'm also contemplating several others. I love coats and jackets and have more than one rationalization for wanting to make several. The first reason is that I practically froze to death last winter. It was the first winter in several years where it got in the single-digits (although it's frequently near the freezing mark). The second reason is that so far, the majority of my maternity clothes are summery t-shirts and shells. This is fine when it's 90 degrees outside, but when it starts hitting the 40s and 50s, a light sweater just won't do the trick anymore. Add this to the fact that I love layering, and you see where I have a need for jackets and coats. I figure if my maternity clothes are on the plain side, I can easily dress anything up with a great jacket or coat...and the best part is I can wear them after the baby is born because I don't plan on making maternity jackets. I may make one coat that can be fully fastened, but I don't want something that's obviously maternity - I want something that I can wear pregnant or not.

With all of this said, here is my current working list of jackets/coats that I really really like:

Simplicity 4791 (OOP):

I really like both the jacket and the longer coat. I have two great pieces of faux suede in camel and navy that would look great as either coat. I really envision the shorter coat out of leather or suede and the longer coat out of a tweedy wool.

Simplicity 4033:

My favorite cut from this pattern is the longer tan version on the far left. I really see this in a velvet or cotton velveteen with a brocade-style trim. I also have a heavy black poly/cotton jacquard that this would be great in - especially with either a rainbow or blue swirled silk I have in the stash as a lining.

Simplicity 4403:

My favorite views are the pink and green views on the right side of the photo. I have a chocolate brown velveteen that this would look great in, and I have a matching remnant of faux fur that would make a great collar. I would also really like this in a pink or royal purple wool. A friend of mine has this fabulous jacket made of what I call "Muppet fur". It's a bright purple shaggy fur coat that is very similar in cut and style to this jacket. It's such a fun jacket I could see making this out of a funky faux fur as well.

McCalls 5247:

This is very similar to Simplicity 4403. I obviously wouldn't make both, but both patterns have their merits. In the end, for me, I think S4403 probably will beat out this one.

Simplicity 4084:

I love a classic trench coat. This would be great in either a classic twill, or I really think it would be wonderful in a solid-colored brocade or jacquard fabric. The black rose-print jacquard I have in my stash would be perfect...if I made it from a fabric that could handle the treatment, I would definitely want to pre-treat the fabric with a water repellent. This would make it perfect for those drizzly or rainy days when wearing a wool coat is out of the question.

McCalls 5190:

I would love this in corduroy....a hot pink corduroy. I love girly-looking military style jackets and this definitely fits the bill. This would also be smashing in denim (of course) or even velvet. Could you imagine how fun it would be to have a velvet military-style jacket??? Ok, maybe it's just me!

Talea coat from burdastyle.com:

I can't say how much I LOVE LOVE LOVE this coat! It has all sorts of great military styling with trench coat syling and a big collar...not that I need to justify why I love this coat. I plan on making it in a camel-colored wool. I know, I know, how original...but in my own defense, I had envisioned a coat VERY similar to this in camel wool before I even found this pattern. I had figured I would have to take a different pattern and modify the heck out of it to get what I wanted...and then I found this and it was practically perfect.

BWOF 8/07 #111A - the jacket cape:

I'm not sure this will look that great on me - and it's a definite no while I'm pregnant - but I love it anyway. If this is still something that will work in the spring, I may make it then...but oh how I love it in the black...

So that is my wish-list for right now. In addition to the jacket challenge I'm setting before myself, does anyone know of any good resources for sewing leather? This is something I have never done by machine and am interested in any books that anyone can recommend on the subject. Specifically, I would like to make a leather jacket. I'm too tall and my arms are too long to find anything that fits in RTW leather styles I like so I would really like to make my own.

embellishment

2007-08-08T14:18:00.001-07:00

After writing a previous post, I started pondering the concept of embellishments on garments. Personally, I have always loved looking at the embellishinment that other sewists use on their garments. Since I started blogging, and started reading many other sewist's blogs, I have found a new appreciation for embellishing garments. I feel that the right type of embellishment gives a garment a special presence and a definite individuality that the fabric alone may not provide. However, I have always been reluctant to embellish my own garments. Why, you may ask? The answer is simple: my beloved grandmother. Now, don't get me wrong, I love my grandmother to pieces. The problem is that she is one of those who OVER-embellishes. And when I say she over-does it, I mean she REALLY over-does it!! She lives by the philosophy that more is better, while I have always lived by the philosophy that less is more (thanks to my mother, who feels the same way I do about her mother's taste in embellishment). I think the better philosophy is probably somewhere in between because my wardrobe screams for "a little something extra", although dear granny's screams for a little breathing room.

I am making a conscious effort to slowly start incorporating embellishments, when appropriate, into the planning stages of future garments. It's not my personality to embellish everything, as many sewists out there can do with such class and beauty, but I definitely see a need for a little "something extra" in my wardrobe. With a baby on the way, I'll have "something extra" in my life - so why not my clothes? Close one chapter and open a new one...I can always reinvent myself as the glamorous diva I've always wanted to be :)

since I'm not sewing...

2007-08-06T12:44:00.000-07:00

I thought I might show you what I am doing. Mainly, waiting...yep, waiting for water to dry is about as long and boring a process as waiting for paint to dry. Paint comes later...

So here are some pictures of my house. Please excuse the horrible mess :) You can see the holes that the water extraction people cut in the baseboards of my walls to help the drywall dry out. You can also see that basically everything in the downstairs of my home has been piled up on every available piece of furniture. I'm putting off taking all of this upstairs or into the garage for as long as possible because I'm afraid that once it gets moved it'll never go back to it's rightful spot.

Here is the kitchen, which sustained the most damage. You can see that our stove is in the middle of the room, now the dishwasher has joined it:

Here is the family room which, oddly enough, sustained the second most amount of damage, yet has the most furniture piled in:

The living room and part of the dining room - these rooms had more water than I thought - then again, carpet padding is made of sponges, so I shouldn't be that surprised:

The hallway, because the stairs are carpeted with the same carpet that was downstairs, we get new hardwood floors instead of carpeting in the whole downstairs of the house :)

So that's it. As soon as the water is dry (it's been a full week since cleanup began, but they found additional damage late last week that must finish drying) then we will get new paint and floors. I hope this will all be done before the end of the month. I'm already sick of the house being in shambles.

been away for a while...

2007-07-31T13:40:00.000-07:00

So much has happened since my last post. Hubby and I found out we were going to have a baby and between work and school I've been exhausted. Hubby has also had to put in extra hours at his job because of some recent staffing problems. Then last weekend the first floor of our house flooded, so we get to deal with all of that now on top of everything else. Needless to say, I have gotten NO sewing done...AT ALL!!! I had quite a bit of nausea the first 10 weeks and now it's subsided for the most part - I still get waves every once in a while but usually just before bed. I think that's my body's way of telling me it's time to go to sleep...I just have a hard time listening!!

My mom, bless her heart, has altered some old jeans for me and added the maternity panel. She also made me a dress to wear to a wedding this weekend. I'm only about 3 1/2 months along but I'm already showing quite a bit and none of my old clothes fit me. It's really amusing that I've grown so many inches and gained so few pounds. I'm about 40lbs lighter now than I was at my wedding, but my wedding dress is too small...and I've only gained 5lbs!! But I digress...

I have quite a few projects lined up in my mind and as soon as my house situation gets squared away I'll have my sewing room back and can begin some of my projects. My mom has graciously agreed to sew me some maternity clothes so I can focus on making things that I can wear while I'm pregnant, but that will be primarily for after the baby is born.

Up first:

I plan on using this gorgeous pink and black houndstooth style boucle I bought from Gorgeous Things:

This will all have to wait until the piles of furniture in the first floor of our house are back in their rightful place on top of floors that are not soggy plywood...

I'm back...sort of

2007-06-15T11:38:00.000-07:00

My high school reunion was so much fun! Even though we didn't have as good a turnout as everyone had hoped, there were a lot of faces that it was nice to see again. Some of them I will be fortunate enough to see in September when one of my closest friends (and Maid of Honor at my own wedding) gets married!

In addition to seeing friends that I hadn't seen since I was 18, my hubby also got to experience Central Oregon for the first time. My goodness has it changed drastically since I left 10 years ago. There is a freeway now (although they call it a Parkway)!! There is even a Macy's and several Starbucks. Just so you all know how shocking this really is to me, when I left there were probably 50,000 people in the county - now there are 50,000 people in my hometown. It was still nice to visit my old haunts, although that nagging feeling like I was missing out on living there is now gone.

What have I been up to in the sewing room? Not much, I'm afraid. I did cut out a Kwik Sew 3263 (I think that's the pattern number, I don't have it handy) from a pink and white cabana knit from Gorgeous Fabrics that should be really cute. I cut it out the day before I left for vacation though, and it's still sitting on my cutting table waiting to be sewn.

I also ordered this fabric right before I left for vacation and it showed up yesterday:

It's a stretch cotton twill from Fabric Mart and I fell in love with it. I got enough to make a skirt - probably another Simplicity 3881 (which has become my TNT skirt pattern because of how flattering it is on me).

Now to answer a question. I'm newer to blog-land than many of you so I don't get too many questions. I'm excited to be able to answer one! Dawn asked me how I tacked down the grosgrain ribbon on my Simplicity 3881 skirt. The pattern originally called for 5/8" twill tape that you join to the right side at the waist with a 3/8" seam and then turn under and topstitch. I just find twill tape sort of yucky to work with so I chose a 7/8" (because I couldn't find 1") grosgrain ribbon and did basically the same thing. I used a 3/8" seam, and turned it to the inside. Instead of doing a wider topstitching like I think the pattern called for, I did a less than 1/4" topstitch at the waist just to encase the seam edges. Because I wear the skirt with longer tunic-style tops you don't even see it. At the zipper, I folded the edges under and hand-stitched them to the zipper. I had originally attempted to put the zipper on after the ribbon was attached to the waist but it just didn't look nice so I redid it.

I have a couople of other ideas of how I could use this technique without topstitching but I should try them first before posting just in case someone else actually reads this blog :)

I have a couple more projects that I need to finish and then I will be on a temporary (and hopefully short-lived) sewing hiatus. More on that later.

in need of some structure

2007-06-05T16:56:00.000-07:00

I haven't really been posting much - or even very active on the various boards - because I haven't been around much. I have a math final that I'm taking tomorrow and then Thursday afternoon my husband and I will be leaving town to travel to Oregon for my 10-year high school reunion this weekend. Once that's over I'll be back to a somewhat normal schedule (except for the many weddings I have to attend over the summer and into fall).

After reading many of my favorite blogs I've come to the realization that mine needs a little more structure than it currently has. I originally just wanted this to be my place to talk about whatever with my fiber arts in the forefront, but I have another blog for the "whatever". This one will be 100% focused on projects - past, future and in progress.

I already have my "plan of attack" for how it will work and I'll get started as soon as I get home from Oregon.

Stay tuned!

so many projects, so little time

2007-05-29T16:20:00.000-07:00

I managed to have a nice 3-day weekend at home with the hubby and dog and did absolutely nothing on Saturday and Sunday. Monday I had lunch with the girls and then when I got home managed to get enough motivation to make another Simplicity 4076 top. I have made one wearable version already, in the wrap-style, to wear on Mother's day and this time I made the scoop-neck version out of my leftover black/aqua chain link. It wasn't until I cut it out that I realized that Summerset already made the same top! Thank goodness we live on opposite sides of the country. I originally bought 3 yards with the intention of making a dress, but decided to make a dress out of the coral/chocolate version and make a tunic top out of the black/aqua. I ended up with just enough leftover to eek out the scoop-neck version of my new favorite t-shirt pattern. This will go fantastically with the white linen pants (or will they be capris?) I have cut out and waiting to sew.

Now I need to get off my bum and post pictures of all my latest creations!

on the road...again

2007-05-24T20:21:00.001-07:00

In addition to not doing much sewing, I also haven't been doing ANY blogging. Friday and Saturday before Mother's Day I made another Simplicity 3881 skirt in red/white graphic print and Simplicity 4076 in a perfectly matching red knit (this one was the crossover with the short sleeves). I wore the outfit to Mother's Day brunch with my mom and grandparents - my grandmother said I looked like something straight out of the Nieman Marcus catalog :) I'll post a photo of me in the full outfit when I am back in town for more than two days.

That was the last thing I've sewn...the next day I went to Toronto and this week I'm in Las Vegas. In the next two weeks I'll be back in Vegas and my weekends have been busy with homework and spending time with hubby and the pup (who is STILL getting bigger every day...the pup, not hubby).

Up next: some low-slung, wide-leg, drawstring pants out of a slightly off-white linen blend. I have everything in my stash, but don't remember the pattern number offhand. After this much time away from the craft, I'm in need of an instant-gratification fix. I've had much time to think and plan and I think I finally have some other projects decided as well. The list will be in a future post - again, when I'm home for more than two days.

I can't wait until this traveling slows down...then I can get some stuff done for ME!

Simplicity 4076 - take one

2007-05-02T14:25:00.000-07:00

After having read so many wonderful reviews of the Simplicity 4076 top, and seeing as it's in my stash, I decided to give it a try. I haven't done much sewing with knits until more recently, so to get myself back in the swing of things I decided to make a muslin out of some yucky polyester interlock knit that I found for $1/yard.

For this trial run, I made view D - which is the short-sleeved scoop neck version. Based on my measurements and the fact that the knit was really stretchy, I made a size 18. There were a couple of things about this pattern (some of them have already been outlined in other PR reviews and blogs):
1. The neckline band is strange. The instructions aren't very clear about how they want this attached until you read them a few times and then actually do it. I'm going to make some changes to how this is attached the next time I make it, possibly making a new band altogether...we'll see. The band attachment as-is is something that I can live with.
2. I actually need to do a FBA on this view. I generally do not need the FBA, but in this case it's the only way to keep the pretty gathers from getting stretched out.
3. The short sleeves are just too short for me. I modified the pattern and lengthened the sleeves by almost 2" to make them a more appropriate length.

Here is the final muslin

I didn't bother hemming the sleeves or bottom as I accidentally tore a few small holes in the front band while making adjustments. The fabric was not pleasant to work with without stabilizer and I didn't start using stabilizer until it was too late. This one is a wadder but that's OK - the fabric is so yucky I probably wouldn't have worn it much anyway. I'll make one more out of this fabric to perfect the fit before I cut it out of the actual fabric. It's a quick sew and worth the effort because overall it's a nice-looking top.

Simplicity 3881 skirt

2007-05-02T09:11:00.000-07:00

With everything but hubby's shirt complete (and hubby's shirt is just waiting for buttonholes) I was in need of some instant gratification. I have two full notebook pages worth of projects in the queue but wanted something quick and easy that I could start on Sunday and wear to work on Monday. I chose the Simplicity 3881 skirt. Read the review on PR.

This picture was taken after a FULL day of wearing.

I made view A (which is the view in the photo, only I didn't make the belt) and my skirt came out almost identical to the one in the photo (even down to the similar print!). I swear it was a coincidence that the pattern's fabric almost matched what I ended up using. I made it in a straight size 20 based on my hip measurement and decided not to lengthen it any.

The fabric I used is a cotton/lycra stretch twill with a sateen finish in a black and white leaf/bubble motif that I got at Hancock Fabrics. I was originally going to make a pair of capris from the fabric but decided to use it as a wearable muslin of sorts for this skirt. The fabric cuts and sews up beautifully. The other great thing about the pattern on this fabric is that it's not really necessary to match up the pattern because of how the design is laid out...it seemed to match up for the most part no matter how I laid out my patterns. This was a relief because I didn't really have a ton of yardage to begin with.

When I first basted the side seams together I thought the finished skirt may be a little snug in the hip area, so I sewed the side seams of the top skirt and flounce with 3/8" seams instead of the standard 5/8". I also attached the flounce to the top skirt with 3/8" seams to give me some leeway with the overall length. It turned out I could have done my 5/8" seams and been fine in the end. Something to remember for next time.

The pattern calls for twill tape to be stitched to the top edge, turned over and topstitched. I used 7/8" grosgrain ribbon instead of 1/2" twill tape (I think twill tape looks yucky anyway) and really like how stable and comfortable the waistband is - and I don't have to worry about tucking in a facing, it lies totally flat. I also did a Hong Kong finish on all of the inside seams (including the long seam that attaches the flounce at the bottom) and did my usual invisible zipper application rather than the lapped zipper the pattern called for. The instructions called for the zipper to be inserted 3/8" (I think that's the measurement, I don't have the instructions in front of me) from the finished lower edge but I don't like having the gap at the waist, so whenever I have a pattern that calls for this treatment I insert the zipper to the top and then put the hook and eye below the zipper pull. It's not only easier to get to for me (especially on dresses) but it has that extra protection to keep the zipper from inching its way too far down (which I've honestly never had happen). For the hem, I played around with using a couple different types of seam finishes and in the end opted to sew a finishing stitch around the bottom hem and turn it up 3/8" and topstitch. Anything else I tried (including a double-turned hem or anything wider than 3/8" ended up interfering with the flowy-ness of the flounce. I ended up cutting about 1/2" off the bottom of the flounce to get the final length at mid-knee (which is the ideal length on me for shorter skirts and dresses), which accounts for my 3/8" seam between the flounce and skirt and the 3/8" hem rather than 5/8". This skirt also falls more than 1" below my natural waist because of my increased side seams. I like where it falls, so when I make it again I will probably keep the waist seam the same and taper down to 5/8" at the bottom of the upper skirt.

The interesting thing about this skirt is that it calls for 2-1/8 yards for a size 18+ but then it only uses 2/3 of the full width of fabric. My fabric was 45" wide. Three of the four pieces are cut on a fold and with 45" fabric the fourth piece cannot be cut to the side of any of the folded pieces. This left me with easily 12" of fabric down the entire folded length of fabric. I'm not sure what I'll do with the leftover piece of fabric, but it's definitely enough that I could do a simple tank.

I wore the skirt to work on Monday with cute fitted black knit top and dressy beaded black flip-flops. I wish I had gotten a picture of me in it. It is definitely a flattering look for me and was comfortable and wore great (no wrinkles!). This is absolutely something I will make again.

my first project

2007-04-23T15:14:00.000-07:00

A few posts back I commented that I don't usually make clothing out of tablecloths except in one case. Well, my very first apparal project for myself was made out of just that - a tablecloth.

From the time that I was 7, I was sewing. Granted, I was sewing doll clothes and blankets, as well as aprons, potholders and these cute little animal pillows that my grandmother and I designed together (I should post on these later). As my skills and confidence progressed, I was allowed to help make my clothes, but never to complete them from start to finish.

One day when I was 14 (and I surprisingly remember this day vividly) I was going through my mom's stash (she's worse than I'll ever be) and came across this really fun and funky looking fabric. I pulled it out, asked mom if I could have it (which she looked at it with disgust and said "please, take it") and then proceeded to pick out the right pattern. My mom had all of her patterns from when she was a teenager, so I found a pattern for these great hip-hugger bell bottom pants. Not really knowing completely what I was doing, I measured myself and then looked at the pattern. I determined my size and cut those suckers out. I did know enough that I would have to lengthen them by a couple of inches (at 14, I was the same height I am today - 5'10") but I didn't know that the lengthening needed to happen at a point other than the hem - so that's where I added them (making them even MORE bell-bottomy than they already were).

This is the finished product:

I had enough of this tablecloth leftover and I used it to make an A-line mini skirt. I think I made both pants and skirt in a weekend.

Here is the skirt:

Here is an up-close of the fabric:

I wore both the skirt and pants quite a bit until I completely outgrew them. I was a late bloomer - it wasn't until my junior year of high school that I started growing out of my Twiggy look (yes, I'm 28 and I know who Twiggy is).

Until I was a junior in high school all of the apparel sewing I did was random, spur of the moment, pick whatever I felt like using from my mom's "throw away" stash. I never even thought to take the time to match up patterns - and I probably wouldn't have even if I did have the thought. Sadly, the skirt and pants made from the same hippie tablecloth is all I have left from those days (any pictures of me in any of my other strange creations burned up in a fire two years ago).

Those were the days - if only I could get away without having to do any real alterations today and still have something that was cute and wearable (at least in my distorted 14-year old brain)!

My next post will be about my first REAL project that was actually planned and had a purpose - my junior prom dress. I just have to find the picture of 16 year-old me wearing it!

a quickie

2007-04-22T21:31:00.000-07:00

Today I was in need of some instant gratification. The fabric for hubby's shirt is giving me fits and I needed to bust out something quick and easy. One of my friends was having a birthday today (although I won't see her again until Tuesday) and I was planning on making her an apron so I decided that today was the day.

I used McCall's 3979 which is a vintage apron in 5 styles. The sizes run S-XL but my friend is a very small petite (4'11" and less than 100lbs) so I adjusted the pattern to what would be an XS and shortened it by 2". I did a full review on PR that can be found here. It's a pretty simple pattern and I used quilting cotton in pinks and browns as well as purchased brown bias binding. Next time I make this pattern I will make my own binding but I was a little pressed for time. If given more time, I would have made binding from the pink paisley print.

Here is the finished product:

I have a few more people with this pattern in mind. It's a really cute vintage design.

the poppy jacket is finished!

2007-04-22T21:21:00.000-07:00

The poppy jacket is finally DONE! You can read my PR review here.

Here is the finished product:

Here is the inside of the jacket:
.

I'm glad this beast is finally done, now I can focus on the other projects I have planned!

Read all posts on this project here.

some changes

2007-04-17T16:49:00.000-07:00

Today I did some housecleaning on the blog. I removed some dead links from some of the older posts so that anyone who might be looking back at those posts won't wonder what happened to the links and pictures.

I also put up progress bars (courtesy of Yarn Tomato) to keep track of the projects that I have coming up...because I have a lot.

That's it for now. I hope to have the final update for the Poppy Jacket up this week as well as Hubby's shirt that I'm currently working on. If I can figure out what's wrong with my buttonholer on my ancient Singer, I hope to have it totally done by the end of the weekend. If not, I'll have to wait until my mechanical genius of a mother comes up to visit me in a couple of weeks.

making progress...

2007-04-13T10:25:00.000-07:00

just not as much as I would like. I didn't get my poppy jacket finished just yet. Too many other things have gotten in the way. All that needs to be done is applying elastic to the sleeve cuffs and then hemming the cuffs (I want the elastic so that when I lose more weight, the sleeves won't look super-huge on my *hopefully* thinner arms). Once the sleeves are finished I just need to add eyelets to the belt and sew the beltloops on and it's done! I WILL finish it tonight after work.

I have been getting sidetracked by my husband's need for new shirts. He really likes retro/bowling shirts and wants a collection of shirts in different color block variations. I think I will make a whole series of posts about these shirts because if he has his way, he'll have 20 when I'm done. I have ordered some polyester poplin from Vogue Fabrics for his first "real" bowling shirt and then will evaluate whether or not to continue making them of the same fabric. Hubby will probably love it, I'm not a fan of making clothing out of tablecloths (except when I was 14, but that's a story for another day).

For the first "muslin" of the pattern and process, I'm going to use black and burgundy peachskins that I got at Denver Fabrics. Hubby really likes the fabric and will definitely wear the shirt so it's a good choice for a wearable muslin.

More to come, so stay tuned!

slight diversion

2007-04-08T15:42:00.000-07:00

Hubby and I took a 4 day weekend trip to the lake house to spend some time with his parents. I have taken a bit of time to finish up the final touches of the poppy jacket (which I hope to post here tomorrow). In the meantime, I found a small diversion from relaxing.

As with everyone else, I blame this on Gorgeous Things.

You are Strength

Courage, strength, fortitude. Power not arrested in the act of judgement, but passing on to further action, sometimes obstinacy.

This is a card of courage and energy. It represents both the Lion's hot, roaring energy, and the Maiden's steadfast will. The innocent Maiden is unafraid, undaunted, and indomitable. In some cards she opens the lion's mouth, in others she shuts it. Either way, she proves that inner strength is more powerful than raw physical strength. That forces can be controlled and used to score a victory is very close to the message of the Chariot, which might be why, in some decks, it is Justice that is card 8 instead of Strength. With strength you can control not only the situation, but yourself. It is a card about anger and impulse management, about creative answers, leadership and maintaining one's personal honor. It can also stand for a steadfast friend.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

fabric, fabric, everywhere there's fabric!

2007-04-05T12:30:00.000-07:00

I got a package from UPS the other day containing the coral chainlink fabric I bought from Gorgeous Things!! It is so fabulous. I'm thinking of making a dress with it. While my original inspiration for that fabric was the Hot Patterns Cosmopolitan dress, after seeing that Ann had made the exact same dress, I decided to find another pattern. I have several weddings to attend over the summer and into the fall so this fabric would definitely fit the bill for one of the late summer weddings!

On another note, I also ordered several more yards of fabric from Gorgeous Things. First, if any of you don't recall an earlier post where I had talked about not only buying the chain link, but also the Stylized Floral Knit and the Bright Floral Cotton Stretch. Well, the next post discussed how I ended up not getting the Stylized Floral. This is OK, I replaced it with the Hot House Flowers Knit Print in blue

I also took full advantage of Ann's Wild Wednesday Sale she had yesterday and bought:
3 yards of the Black,White&Yellow Floral Stretch Woven, 2 yards of the Cabana Stripe knit in pink, 2 yards of the Cabana Stripe knit in turquoise, 2 yards of the Aqua Mesh and 1 yard of the White Sheer Ottoman Knit

I should have these sometime next week.

poppy jacket #1

2007-04-02T16:40:00.000-07:00

I *finally* found time to finish the muslin of Simplicity 4698. Ok, so I didn't do as complete a muslin as I should have - but I was so dumb for thinking that I could just cut out the 22 and alter it down from there. After taking in almost 3" in the back, I decided to tear it apart, cut it at a size 18 and start over. What was fascinating to me was that the straight size 18 fit pretty darn perfectly (with the exception of my 1-1/2" length alteration). I decided not to worry too much about other alterations and just go for it - especially after seeing that JoAnn's has two more bolts of the fabric in stock. I've been too busy working on the jacket to download the pictures to post, but I'll rundown the changes I have made (or have planned):

Fit alterations:
The only fitting changes I made was to add 1-1/2" to the length

Other changes:
Sleeves - Instead of the long sleeve or 3/4 sleeve options, I decided to use a short, cuffed sleeve from a shrug jacket pattern I already had in my stash. It was a one-piece sleeve. The gathered cap and bottom looked cute on my muslin fabric, but I think the twill may be a bit heavy for the look, so I may just pleat the cap and bottom to get the same fullness without puckery-looking gathers.

Closure - I awoke from a deep sleep several nights ago with the idea of having a buckle/belt closure for a jacket (the original idea stemmed from this great piece of black velveteen I've had in the stash for a couple of years). Since the poppy fabric was relatively inexpensive ($5/yd), I decided to test out the idea on this jacket. It should work well since I am making View E, which is the single-button front. I will attach the belt to the side seams, have a pair of belt-loops on each side to keep the belt from flopping about.

Embellishment - Since the fabric is quite busy (and impossible to match the pattern without several additional yards of fabric) I thought it might make be a nice touch to bind the edges. I opted for a white bias binding (I was originally going to use a white twill, but it was too heavy, and white satin was too shiny and transparent - so I just went with the pre-made stuff). I edged the belt in a narrow binding and the jacket will be done in a slightly wider binding.

Finishing - Because I decided not to line it at all (just using a high thread-count white sateen cotton for the facings to keep a clean look), I used a modified Hong Kong finish completely binding the seams. The front princess seams were heavily clipped, so I pressed those towards the center front and am going to enclose those in the facing instead of binding them. I also think I'll make the center-front seam just a bit larger than usual to ensure that the front pieces meet in the center rather than overlap. I would ordinarily cut off the extra allowance first, but because I'm experimenting I wanted to make sure I wouldn't change my mind and have to go to the store and buy more fabric to start over.

There are some things that I would do differently next time, but those will be saved for the next - and probably final - post on this jacket.

Read all posts on this project here.

update to previous post

2007-03-30T14:07:00.000-07:00

It looks like I missed the boat on the Stylized Floral Knit Jersey - those are the breaks. I'll post what I replace it with as soon as I figure that out!

I must say, Ann at Gorgeous Things is SO quick to respond in letting me know it was sold out. Thank goodness I'm not that high maintenance when it comes to purchasing fabric. The way I figure it, I don't *need* the fabric, I just want it. I can live with wanting something and not being able to get it.

This experience made me realize that I have a terrible habit of waiting until something is almost sold out before I buy it. I lucked out with the coral chain link I purchased earlier in the week...now I realize just how much I lucked out!

new fabric on its way!

2007-03-30T13:02:00.000-07:00

Earlier this week I had ordered what I believe to be the last 3 yards of the Coral Chain Link from Gorgeous Things. I expect it to arrive sometime next week.

Today, I just ordered more fabric from Gorgeous Things. I got three yards each of the Stylized Floral Knit Jersey and the Bright Floral Cotton Stretch

The current plan is to make dresses with both fabrics, although the patterns are yet to be determined. Woohoo, I'm so excited!!

Gorgeous Fabric...

2007-03-29T12:42:00.000-07:00

One class down, one more to go and then I'll have time to SEW SEW SEW! OK, so that was a really cheesy rhyme, but what can I say - I'm sleep deprived!

The topic for today's post is:
I just found one of Ann's Gorgeous Fabrics on the Simplicity/NewLook website. I'm sure I'm not the first to see this, but the "Vintage Floral Knit Print" that is part of the "Changes in Latitude" collection is featured on the pattern envelope for New Look 6571. If it's not the same, it's VERY similar!
The New Look Pattern:

Ann's Gorgeous Fabric:
(This link was taken down or moved)

What a co-inky-dink :) Personally, I love just about everything on Ann's site and if I was made of money I would probably buy a little bit of everything...so far the only thing I've been able to justify was the last 3 yards of the coral chain-link (I can't wait for it to arrive!!), but for now I need to finish this last really tough class so I can have some time to sew up the projects in my queue.

re-learning to fit patterns

2007-03-25T21:20:00.000-07:00

It has been AGES since I've had to really fit a pattern. I had a nice TNT method that worked well for most patterns (assuming they went up to a size 22). I would make a FBA, add a half inch to the length of the shoulder and an inch to the width of sleeves for two or three-piece sleeve patterns, increase the overall length by an inch and a half and in non one-piece sleeve patterns I would widen the upper arm portion. Some patterns I've never had to modify for size at all (such as my wedding dress, although plenty of other modifications were made). I've lost 50lbs since October and am finding now that I have to make totally different types of alterations. I've been working on the Simplicity 4698 jacket and even though I've made this jacket numerous times, now that I've gone from a RTW 22 to a 14, I decided to make a muslin.

Well, my muslin attempt didn't get too far off the ground because I was having a heck of a time making a decision on the size to start with. I don't really think I'll have to make ANY modifications and I can probably get away with a size 14 or 16, but I traced off the pattern in a 22 to be on the safe side. The only modifications I made to the original sizing was adding overall length to the front and back. I didn't make any width modifications to anything. I don't know what my deal is, but I just can't seem to come to terms with the fact that I'm not as big as I used to be.

I was hoping the muslin would actually be cut out today, but that's not going to happen as I realized I have a paper due in a week that I haven't actually started. Let me tell you, it was so difficult to get away from the cutting table to work on that paper. Fortunately, the paper is almost done and I can hopefully have the muslin cut out and the first fit done before the end of the week.

My re-fitting of this TNT pattern is this:
1. Cut out and sew together the size 22 muslin
2. Make whatever fitting adjustments need to be made to the jacket front and back only (I'm not worry about sleeves right now because I'm still deciding what kind of sleeves I want)
3. Once I get the fit perfected, I'll figure out the sleeves and get them perfected in the same way (I may need to draft a new sleeve altogether)
4. Mark the muslin and re-trace my pattern pieces. This will also help me definitively decide what size to make in the future :)
5. Cut out my stretch twill poppy fabric and make my first summer jacket!

I still have 25-30 more pounds to lose, but I think if I make this jacket just a little bit more snug than usual, I won't have to take it in too much when I get to my goal weight.

Read all posts on this project here.

hubby's wedding vest

2007-03-24T20:46:00.000-07:00

Since I haven't had much time to make anything lately, I figured I should post about my last couple of projects. Sadly, it's been June since I've really accomplished anything in the sewing room (although that is about to change, as I've got several projects lined up). Anyway, I figured I would start with the SURPRISE vest I made for my husband for our wedding.

Because hubby is an avid hunter, I wanted to make sure there was a little bit of "him" in our wedding (which was decorated with orange, pink and red gerbera daisies). I decided that the best way to allow him to express himself was to make him a tuxedo vest that more closely fit his personality. I envisioned a silk or satin camouflage front lined in safety orange. My first hurdle was the fact that the ONLY camo fabric I could find was a medium-weight twill, fleece or netting. The twill was the winner for obvious reasons. The second hurdle (and most difficult) was to find a suitable good-quality lining fabric. I wanted to avoid the traditional ambiance lining because I wanted something with more body. After an unsuccessful trip to JoAnn's, I stumbled upon a remnant of a great safety-orange satin that had good body to it at Hancock. I decided upon a black dull satin (also from Hancock) for the back of the vest and black dull-satin covered tuxedo buttons for the front.

I used Vogue 8048. I made view C (the black one on the bottom) with some modifications:

My husband is a broad man, and even though he is only 6' tall, he has a longer torso for his height. I took the largest side and extended the width to fit his broad shoulders and the length to fit her long torso. Because this was a surprise that I gave to him at our rehearsal dinner, I needed to make sure he didn't find out so it was somewhat difficult to get the proper measurements. It helped that I made a note of his measurements when he was fitted for his tuxedo. Aside from fitting modifications, I made two other changes: I liked the configuration of buttons on view A (a pair of buttons close together with a wider gap between each pair), only instead of 4 pair, I used 3 pair (view A is higher-cut than view C). I also modified the back ties. I thought it might be more comfortable if there was a tie on each side rather than one in the middle. I used black plastic strap tighteners like the kind that adjust straps on a backpack and camo ribbon for the back ties. If I had it to do all over again, I would have used the twill as the strap, but the ribbon was fun (it was also used to make the camo and black lace garter that held a tiny holster and cap gun). Sadly, the ribbon was also somewhat difficult to sew and it's the only part of the vest that screams Home Ec. class (which is actually funny, because my mother-in-law is a Home Ec. teacher).

Hubby LOVED the vest - so did everyone else for that matter. I still get comments on how great it was that I "let" him wear a camo vest...most people are even more shocked when I tell them that 1-I made it and 2-I made for him as a surprise. They all say what a good wife I am...but really I have a great husband so it was worth the effort - I don't feel it detracted from the theme of the wedding at all, and hubby loved wearing it.

Here are some pictures of the finished project:

Front

Back

Lining

Tie Detail

Hubby looking fab

It got two thumbs up from hubby and the best man

Chapter 11

2007-03-23T23:51:00.000-07:00

I read the other day that Hancock Fabrics has filed Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection and they are closing nearly 150 stores. In anticipation of the possibility of the Sparks store closing (sadly, the Reno store closed several years ago), I headed down to take advantage of the weekend sale they had going on and to get the scoop on the store closings. I was delighted when I walked up to the front door and a big sign reads "This store is NOT closing!". I was ecstatic, really. I like JoAnn's as much as the next person but my experience with Hancock is just so much more home-town. I will drive 25 miles from my home just to shop there, even though JoAnn is less than half that distance. With the lack of decent fabric shops in Reno, I take what I can get (I'm not counting the myriad of quilting shops, because we have a ton of those...I'm just not a quilter).

Anyway, I am thrilled that my home-town Hancock is safe...at least for now.

The Wish List

2007-03-21T23:43:00.000-07:00

My husband and I are attempting to save more money each month. It's a somewhat daunting task because I'm a fabric junkie and my husband is a hunting junkie - both somewhat expensive hobbies. I decided it would be a good idea for us to just keep a running list of things that we want and budgeting for them better rather than just going out and buying them. Hubby asked where the fun was in that, but I'm looking to the distant future while he's looking to September when he goes Elk hunting in Idaho.

With that said, I've put together my "Wish List" for all of the items I would love to have but for whatever reason come up with no good "excuses" for why I should spend the money on them.
1. Subscription to Burda WOF
2. A serger
3. 4-5 yards of EVERYTHING at Gorgeous Things
4. Just about anything from Hot Patterns
5. A trip to NYC to go fabric shopping (the fabric-shopping trip to SF is happening this spring!)

My husband likes to think that I would love a new sewing machine. The fact of the matter is, both sewing machines I have were free and they work beautifully. The story behind my sewing machines will be saved for another day. In the meantime, what's on your wish list?

UPS rocks!

2007-03-21T16:31:00.000-07:00

I have yet to sew for my husband. Granted, through much of our early relationship I had a traveling job and was home maybe 1 week per month. However, now we've been married nearly a year and I haven't been traveling nearly as much - but I still haven't managed to find enough time to sew at all, let alone anything for my wonderful husband.

That's about to change.

Last fall he asked me if I would be willing to make him a wool coat. He specifically requested a coat similar to what Ben Affleck and Matt Damon wear in the movie Dogma (hubby is so silly). I said sure and we proceeded to pick out a pattern - Burda 8275. The pattern was easy to decide on, finding the right fabric is the hard part.

Unfortunately, there are no great fabric stores in Reno. Sure, we have JoAnn and Hancock and a mill end store that I keep forgetting about (one of these days I WILL stop and check that place out, although I have heard mixed reactions of the quality of fabric they carry...that, and the place always looks like it's out of business). Anyway, I haven't been able to find a good local supplier of the melton wool that I want for this coat.

Thanks to the fabulous people at Vogue Fabrics I found just the right wool and an INCREDIBLE price! It was their clearance double-faced wool from a couple of weeks ago - charcoal grey on one side and copenhagen blue on the other side - and it was $5.99 a yard.

It arrived today!!!!!!!!!!! I was so excited I raced home from work for lunch and unwrapped so I could take a picture and post it before school tonight. Here it is:

Hubby really likes the dark charcoal grey better than the blue and since this is going to be a wintery coat I plan on underlining it with a lightweight flannel and then fully lining it with something (haven't thought THAT far ahead yet). Fortunately, I have the entire summer to figure it out and hubby will have a spectacular and well-fitting coat for a fraction of the cost that he would pay for it retail.

I love gift cards!

2007-03-20T16:21:00.000-07:00

My birthday was this past Sunday, and one of the gifts I received was a gift card to JoAnn's (much thanks to my wonderful in-laws!). So on the big day I decided to stop by my local store and see if they had anything I couldn't live without. Here is what I found:
2-1/4 yards of this great white cotton/spandex twill with a bold aqua and lime green poppy pattern (I got all that was left on the bolt, and it was on SALE).
I plan on using this to make Simplicity 4698

which I LOVE and found out it just went out of print!!! I plan on modifying View E (is the green and white one in the picture) and putting either the 3/4 sleeves or making a shorter pleated or cap sleeve. I am not sure how I plan on finishing this. The first time I used this pattern I ended up drafting a full lining because I didn't like the partial back lining and lack of sleeve lining. However, because I plan on this being a lightweight summer jacket, I think I may just bind the seams and facing edges and keep it unlined - or just line the front. I haven't really decided how I will finish it, but this one will be an experiment anyway because I have some trim ideas that I plan on playing around with.

I also found 4 yards of this heavenly poly sheer. It is ivory with vines and flower buds in shades of brown, green, mauve and aqua.

I also got the remainder of the bolt on this one (and it was 30% off). The picture doesn't do it justice - you can see that it was folded a few times prior to taking the picture. I plan on making a dress to wear to a wedding in August up at Lake Tahoe. I'm thinking New Look 6557.

I may pair it with a shrug made from the same ivory matte satin used to make my wedding dress - I'll have to make sure I have enough leftover fabric. Otherwise, I may choose a different type of ivory fabric or use one of the other colors from the pattern for a simple shrug (maybe a slightly lighter shade of aqua to brighten it up?). I may also just make a lightweight cardigan-style jacket to wear with it - the weather in the Reno/Tahoe area is so unpredictable.

After stocking up on these two gems, I still have money to buy the remaining notions I may need to finish both pieces! What a great birthday!

I'm so bizarre

2007-03-17T00:11:00.000-07:00

So I was looking through my fabric and pattern stash today - as well as downloading some terrific patterns that I would love to try from burdastyle.com and fell in LOVE with their Talea coat:

I downloaded the pattern, printed it out, put it all together and am now trying to find the PERFECT wool to make it from. However, it was almost 80 degrees in Reno today...which got me thinking...why on EARTH am I planning WINTER clothes when it's 80 degrees outside? It seems that when the weather is cold, I plan warm-weather clothes and when the weather is warm, I plan cold-weather clothes. I'm such a freak. The good thing is that by the time I find the time to finish the coat, the weather will be cold again.

Maybe I'll spend my summer working on the wool coat from Burda 8275 for my husband and then make the Talea coat when I've lost all my weight. What I REALLY need to do is stop planning and JUST DO IT! I haven't sewn in forever it seems! Homework keeps getting in the way :(

my sewing room

2007-03-11T23:01:00.000-07:00

Last year, my wonderful hubby gave me my own sewing room. He wasn't my hubby at the time, but it was wonderful of him nonetheless. It helps that we have a 3-bedroom house for just the two of us...I'm sure once we have kids, I'll be giving up my beloved room; but in the meantime I'm going to make the most of it.

Sadly, just before our wedding last June, my sewing room became a staging room for the wedding supplies - and then a storage room when we redecorated the downstairs portion of the house. This weekend I got industrious and cleaned out the entire room and put my sewing room back together. I needed to do homework and laundry and a myriad of other chores, but I dedicated the weekend to my sewing room. I even went so far as to re-organize and inventory my entire fabric stash. Not only do I have 5 under-bed plastic storage bins full of fabric (although one of them is my scrap box), I have an entire bedroom armoire FULL. I also have an entire inventory of the fabrics in my stash, including widths, lengths, content, color, special notes about the fabric, etc.

I went through all of my patterns and reorganized those as well. I decided to use the plastic storage bins that previously held my patterns and relocate them to manila folder pockets. They are now safely in the file cabinet. All that is left to do is move a bookshelf from another room and a desk from the garage.

This room also gives me the perfect wall to hang this great drawing of a pair of jeans my mom did when I was in high school. I'll post pictures as soon as it's totally done :)

isn't this cute?

2007-03-09T11:14:00.000-08:00

So I was browsing the spring fashions on MSN a few weeks ago and happened upon this dress by BCBG Max Azria that can be found here.
I absolutely fell in love with it and went on a trip to JoAnns looking for just the right eyelet border fabric to make this with. Just my luck, they were having a sale on eyelet for $4.99/yd. Sadly, the ONE that was PERFECT for this dress was $16/yd and the only one not on sale. Because I didn't have enough time to look for a suitable pattern to make my own knockoff, I decided that it wasn't the right time to find the fabric. I would need to figure out the yardages for any pattern anyway and it would be my luck that I would buy 3 yards and need another 2 for more border...and then, of course, they would be out. I'm sure I can find some great border eyelet online or at Hancock across town, where I can easily special-order anything they don't have in stock.
Today, while browsing at patterns online, I happened across what just might be the perfect pattern to make this dress with Simplicity 3831:It's from their Spring 2007 line. I would have to look more closely at the pattern, but I think the styling would be a great fit to get something that looked very similar. For the sleeves, I would do something similar to Simplicity 4116:I would use a sleeve similar to the photo of the yellow dress...although I may end up drafting the sleeve myself. Now to find the perfect fabric...

so let's try this again...

2007-03-07T23:08:00.000-08:00

So this is my first new "official" post of my sewing blog. I had attempted a few posts late last month, but after re-reading them decided to just start from scratch.

So a little bit about me and my passion. I'm 28 years old and live in Reno, NV. I love to sew. Sewing is my passion. Unfortunately, the last thing I had time to make were kitchen curtains and after doing them I rethought the whole process and changed my mind on kitchen design. Unfortunately, I have no pictures of that project. But here is the story:

My husband and I decided to do a French storefront motif for our kitchen decor and thought it would be fantastic to do the kitchen window valance in a red and white striped awning type of fabric to match the artwork and wallpaper border (I'm NOT a fan of wallpaper, but this border was great and is perfect for my kitchen, so I couldn't resist). The issue was that in Reno there are not an abundance of great fabric stores so I didn't have a lot to choose from for a red/white awning stripe. I decided to paint my own and used 1" masking tape as my guide. I used a dark red fabric paint on muslin but found that I had to paint both sides. Even after pressing, washing and drying, the fabric paint made the fabric so stiff it was hard to sew. It was especially hard to attach the tabs to the top, which I did using 1" red buttons.

They were looking great until I decided to do a black and white toile fabric for the adjacent family room and sliding glass door that sits directly in between the two rooms. It looked TERRIBLE with the red/white stripe. I'm in love with the toile so one had to go - looks like it's back to the drawing board for the valances. I think we've decided to do the black/white toile on all 4 windows and the sliding glass door that make up the kitchen/family room combo. I gave the red/white monstrosity to my mother who loved them. I'll be sure to take photos of my next project :)

Love and pincushions,
Jamie