If you're around the webs much at all, you'll know that season 2 of The Great British Sewing Bee has hit the airwaves... or digital feeds, or whatever. It's been something of a trick to watch it on this side of the pond; I found a feed last week that worked, but when I tried it this week all the available choices either wanted me to download something (eek! no!) or watch advertising for something that looked very, um, morally deficient. But I did find that episode 2 was posted on youtube, so I managed to watch it there, although I had to keep refreshing the window. Took a while.
I really am enjoying this second season; it's maintaining the spirit and the quality of the first season and it's interesting to see how everyone handles the pressure; I don't know how well I'd do, having to stick to the spec sheet and not use my favorite short cuts or methods. (Hand pick a zipper on a skirt??? Why??? )
But, turns out that if I lived up in the New York/New Jersey area I could see if I could round up the nerve and give it a go; the company that produces TGBSB is doing a pilot on this side of the pond. I don't expect that to be news to anyone by this time; it's all over the blogs. It doesn't look like the pilot is going to be a replica of the British show; if I'm reading the info right, there will be a new group each week. Kinda cuts down on the 'bonding' with the folks, but if it's just fourish shows to try it there wouldn't be a lot of opportunity to get to know the folks anyway.
I'm just hoping to see some familiar names; several of the folks on my news feed are from that part of the country.
I think it would be an absolute hoot to do, although I don't for one minute think I could keep up with most of the folks whose sewing I follow. I'd just love a chance to sit down and sew with them. ;-)
Friday, February 28, 2014
Friday, February 21, 2014
First Muslin Pass at the Trench Coat
No, I haven't forgotten that I'm supposed to be making a trench coat...just can't seem to get into the sewing room.
But I did get the muslin cut out and thrown together; the first pass showed that I need to
1) move the shoulders in 3/4"
2) remove excess ease from the sleeve cap
3) lower the bust point of the dart about 1 1/4"
I'll also need to add a couple inches of length, as the bottom edge of the muslin hit right about mid knee, which is about where I want the finished length, so I need to add a hem allowance.
The muslin actually fit a bit loose, but since I will be wearing bulky layers under it I thought that was a good thing. I think if I can get the shoulders fixed up it will be fine if it's a bit big...I'll be able to put bulky sweaters under it.
I've trimmed out the shoulders and marked the new bust points; I'll fix the darts and put the sleeves in again on my next iteration. I'm hoping that the narrowed shoulders will take care of the extra ease in the sleeve cap.
But if that all looks decent I think I'll call it good and cut out the good stuff. I've decided to go with fusible interfacing, since I really don't want a terribly stiff coat, so it'll probably take me a full week just to get all the interfacing fused on. I may try to add a floating chest piece, though...I kinda have a hollow upper chest, so that may be a good thing to do.
The hardest thing so far has just been sticking to my resolve not to buy any more fabric until the coat is done. I've had to exercise some real restraint, let me tell you....;-)
But I did get the muslin cut out and thrown together; the first pass showed that I need to
1) move the shoulders in 3/4"
2) remove excess ease from the sleeve cap
3) lower the bust point of the dart about 1 1/4"
I'll also need to add a couple inches of length, as the bottom edge of the muslin hit right about mid knee, which is about where I want the finished length, so I need to add a hem allowance.
The muslin actually fit a bit loose, but since I will be wearing bulky layers under it I thought that was a good thing. I think if I can get the shoulders fixed up it will be fine if it's a bit big...I'll be able to put bulky sweaters under it.
I've trimmed out the shoulders and marked the new bust points; I'll fix the darts and put the sleeves in again on my next iteration. I'm hoping that the narrowed shoulders will take care of the extra ease in the sleeve cap.
But if that all looks decent I think I'll call it good and cut out the good stuff. I've decided to go with fusible interfacing, since I really don't want a terribly stiff coat, so it'll probably take me a full week just to get all the interfacing fused on. I may try to add a floating chest piece, though...I kinda have a hollow upper chest, so that may be a good thing to do.
The hardest thing so far has just been sticking to my resolve not to buy any more fabric until the coat is done. I've had to exercise some real restraint, let me tell you....;-)
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Work Wear 9 - The Gray Scale Scarf
Oh well. I'm sure you'll get the idea.
Mostly, I just wanted to put together something that allowed me wear the newly-hemmed gray scale silk scarf.
I'm getting bolder in my old age; there have been times past in which I would've shuddered with horror at the idea of combining the graphic print with the striped pants. Now I think it's kinda fun.
RTW sweater shell; modified Loes Hinse Oxford pants in a pinstripe RPL topped off with Silhouette Pattern's Robins Jacket in wool flannel, finished off with plain ol' Wrights bias tape.
Wasn't thrilled with the way I tied the scarf, but I couldn't come up with a better way to do it in the time I had available this morning. Square scarves are not quite as easy to wear these days as long rectangles...
Anyway, that was a silk panel print that came from...Fabric Mart? I think? ...about a year and a half ago. I wanted to hand roll it but couldn't get the technique down well enough to suit me. So I wrangled it through the rolled edge foot on the sewing machine and will keep practicing on the scraps that I trimmed away to square it up. Someday...I will have a hand rolled scarf...
Sunday, February 16, 2014
Choir Wardrobe 2/16/14
I pulled out an uber stretchy Jalie 2005 v-neck top, in a tan print on black; layered it over a black Jalie 965 tank top and topped it with Loes Hinse's Bistro Jacket. Coldwater Creek jeans.
All old stuff. But I finally got on the sewing boards this weekend by finishing that silly little sleevelss boatneck top that's been on the sewing machine for about 2 months. Don't have a photo yet; it's a little awkward in that 1)it's a rather firm double knit, not a floppy rayon jersey, so it's a bit snug and 2) there's a bit of a gap in the armhole; it needs a scant 1/2" dart rotated out. But it's intended to be worn solely as a bottom layer under a jacket or cardi, so I'm thinking neither of those things are going to be big problems. Especially since it was made from the remnants of the fabric after I'd cut out pants and a skirt. So it's, like, free anyway, right?
I also broke down and used my rolled hem foot to finish off the square scarf that I've been toting around for a year and a half. I've tried and tried to get my hand rolling down on the scraps that had been cut from the edges of the panel, but I just couldn't get anything I was at all happy with...and the scarf panel itself was beginning to fray. So I figured I'd better just hem the silly thing and keep practicing...maybe someday I'll get the technique down and I'll hand roll a scarf. It was even a pain to hem on the rolled edge foot; that's something else I need to do some serious practicing on.
I'll try to wear at least one of those to work this week and get a photo....
Meantime, I have now cleared out the queue in front of the trench coat muslin. And tomorrow is a day off...
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
HItting the Cyber Wall Again
There are two things that have continually been a thorn in the side as I've tried to participate in the online sewing community.
The first has been photo hosting...trying to find SOMEONE who can host photos that I can access for reviews and such without the need to go back and relink the photos every 18 months or so. I think I'm on the 4th time for updating the links for some of the older reviews....two of the photo hosting sites that I used closed shop and a third one seems to randomly mess with the links; what clicked through to a specific photo one week will just bring up the whole album the next week. Very frustrating.
The second is the feed collectors... places to subscribe and read all the new posts in one spot. I think the first one I used was Bloglines; they went away and I moved to Google Reader, then they closed up shop and I tried Bloglovin' before landing on the Old Reader, who threatened to go away but found new owners and stabilized.
However, when I logged in today I found that the Old Reader has instituted a 'premium' service, available at the introductory price of $20/year, effective immediately.
They say they wanted to avoid using advertising, and have cool new features available for folks who want to subscribe. But, not to worry, they said, they will still have a free version for folks who have less than 100 subscriptions. And, while the new pricing is in effect now, they are graciously giving everyone 'about 2 weeks' to look things over and make up their minds.
Now, I am not opposed to paying for services. But someone dug into the 'terms of service' and found some clause that was left over from the previous free version that basically said that the administrators were reserving the right to terminate the service without notice. Pretty bad if you've paid for a year.
This seems to be pretty heavy handed. Not the sort of service I'm interested in paying for.
But I had 227 subscriptions.
So I began to delete subscriptions. First to go were all of them that had not been updated in the last six months or so (with one or two exceptions...if those folks ever post an update, I want to know...). That was quite a lot, actually; I was surprised at how many hadn't been updated in over a year.
But that left me still well over a hundred. So I went back again and culled all of them that weren't really what I read blogs for...blogs that had morphed into knitting or quilting or cute pictures of grandchildren or lots of links to other places on the 'net.
Still over a hundred. Now I had to steel myself and be ruthless. I went back again and removed subscriptions to blogs that I had subscribed to a while but, for one reason or another, I just didn't make a connection with the blogger. Nice stuff, nice work, but ...sigh.
After all that, I was still at 112. I reminded myself that I still have subscriptions to all but the very newest ones over on Bloglovin', so it's not like I'm cutting folks out of my life forever. I took a breath and looked at folks who had posted within the last few months, but the post before that one was six months or so older. Seldom updated blogs.
Finally, I just had to randomly pick two or three to cut. It wasn't easy, but I got it down to 99. And every one of the names on that list are blogs I recognize....intentional subscriptions.
But I'm hoping to bite the bullet and switch to Bloglovin, so I can just delete the Old Reader account. Because that's just going to be too much trouble to maintain two separate lists. Besides, they rather ticked me off.
To be honest, if my blog was on the list I probably would've cut it, too...not enough inspirational sewing going on at the moment, just rehashes of old things that don't really fit any more.
So that made me appreciate anyone who is still following along here. Thanks for hanging with me; hopefully better sewing days are ahead. ;-)
The first has been photo hosting...trying to find SOMEONE who can host photos that I can access for reviews and such without the need to go back and relink the photos every 18 months or so. I think I'm on the 4th time for updating the links for some of the older reviews....two of the photo hosting sites that I used closed shop and a third one seems to randomly mess with the links; what clicked through to a specific photo one week will just bring up the whole album the next week. Very frustrating.
The second is the feed collectors... places to subscribe and read all the new posts in one spot. I think the first one I used was Bloglines; they went away and I moved to Google Reader, then they closed up shop and I tried Bloglovin' before landing on the Old Reader, who threatened to go away but found new owners and stabilized.
However, when I logged in today I found that the Old Reader has instituted a 'premium' service, available at the introductory price of $20/year, effective immediately.
They say they wanted to avoid using advertising, and have cool new features available for folks who want to subscribe. But, not to worry, they said, they will still have a free version for folks who have less than 100 subscriptions. And, while the new pricing is in effect now, they are graciously giving everyone 'about 2 weeks' to look things over and make up their minds.
Now, I am not opposed to paying for services. But someone dug into the 'terms of service' and found some clause that was left over from the previous free version that basically said that the administrators were reserving the right to terminate the service without notice. Pretty bad if you've paid for a year.
This seems to be pretty heavy handed. Not the sort of service I'm interested in paying for.
But I had 227 subscriptions.
So I began to delete subscriptions. First to go were all of them that had not been updated in the last six months or so (with one or two exceptions...if those folks ever post an update, I want to know...). That was quite a lot, actually; I was surprised at how many hadn't been updated in over a year.
But that left me still well over a hundred. So I went back again and culled all of them that weren't really what I read blogs for...blogs that had morphed into knitting or quilting or cute pictures of grandchildren or lots of links to other places on the 'net.
Still over a hundred. Now I had to steel myself and be ruthless. I went back again and removed subscriptions to blogs that I had subscribed to a while but, for one reason or another, I just didn't make a connection with the blogger. Nice stuff, nice work, but ...sigh.
After all that, I was still at 112. I reminded myself that I still have subscriptions to all but the very newest ones over on Bloglovin', so it's not like I'm cutting folks out of my life forever. I took a breath and looked at folks who had posted within the last few months, but the post before that one was six months or so older. Seldom updated blogs.
Finally, I just had to randomly pick two or three to cut. It wasn't easy, but I got it down to 99. And every one of the names on that list are blogs I recognize....intentional subscriptions.
But I'm hoping to bite the bullet and switch to Bloglovin, so I can just delete the Old Reader account. Because that's just going to be too much trouble to maintain two separate lists. Besides, they rather ticked me off.
To be honest, if my blog was on the list I probably would've cut it, too...not enough inspirational sewing going on at the moment, just rehashes of old things that don't really fit any more.
So that made me appreciate anyone who is still following along here. Thanks for hanging with me; hopefully better sewing days are ahead. ;-)
Sunday, February 09, 2014
Forgot again...
Just simply didn't think to grab a photo in the 55ish minutes that I was actually home for lunch before we left again. If I had been wearing some new creation, that would've been sad, but it was a more-than-two-years-old knit shirt w/a RTW jacket and blue jeans, so really, you didn't miss much.
I managed to get my trench coat muslin cut out last week, but haven't started sewing it up yet. I still have that brown double knit top plugging up the works; it just needs a double-needle hem on one armhole and the bottom and it's done, but I can't seem to get into the sewing room.
But I have put myself on a fabric fast until the trench coat is done. No new fabric until that puppy is hanging in the closet.
Oy, this is gonna be tough...
I managed to get my trench coat muslin cut out last week, but haven't started sewing it up yet. I still have that brown double knit top plugging up the works; it just needs a double-needle hem on one armhole and the bottom and it's done, but I can't seem to get into the sewing room.
But I have put myself on a fabric fast until the trench coat is done. No new fabric until that puppy is hanging in the closet.
Oy, this is gonna be tough...
Friday, February 07, 2014
Poppies, Revisited
I came home yesterday and had a most interesting message on my answering machine...a lady in Nashville had somehow managed to look up my phone number and called wanting to ask questions about the last year's poppy costumes.
I called her back...somewhat curious as to how she found me...and left a message that the easiest way to catch me would probably be email and left my email address.
So we've been emailing back and for for the last 24 hours; she had kids who are going to be doing, I think, The Wizard of Oz and they were interested in making costumes similar to ours.
I answered the questions the best I could...I really wasn't involved in actually putting the hats together, for one thing, and, um, it's been a year for another...but I *think* I got the story straight.
But one thing remained...to post pictures of the petal patterns. So, dug from the archives, I bring you the prototype patterns:
Hopefully the grid will help with drafting; I added 3/8" seam allowances to the dart in the skirt petal, and we used 1/2" seam allowances everywhere else. I think I said that I cut the waistbands 36" long, but after considering I think I actually cut them about 42" long; I ended up cutting some off of every one but I thought it was safer to be generous. ;-) I also think I said that the dart was sewn below the V; that's because of the added seam allowance. The point of that curvy V is the point of the dart; some of the V will be filled in when the seam allowances are added to that dart (that is the only place I actually added; I just used what was there everywhere else).
I really wish I'd taken more photos of the process, but I really didn't think anyone would actually want to try it.
So, Sydney in Nashville....good luck!!!
I called her back...somewhat curious as to how she found me...and left a message that the easiest way to catch me would probably be email and left my email address.
So we've been emailing back and for for the last 24 hours; she had kids who are going to be doing, I think, The Wizard of Oz and they were interested in making costumes similar to ours.
I answered the questions the best I could...I really wasn't involved in actually putting the hats together, for one thing, and, um, it's been a year for another...but I *think* I got the story straight.
But one thing remained...to post pictures of the petal patterns. So, dug from the archives, I bring you the prototype patterns:
I really wish I'd taken more photos of the process, but I really didn't think anyone would actually want to try it.
So, Sydney in Nashville....good luck!!!
Tuesday, February 04, 2014
Work Wear 8
I really, really, really like that FTA skirt pattern. This is the first time I've made it in a knit and it works great. But I gotta find a less uniformish way to wear it...
Monday, February 03, 2014
Choir Wardrobe - Groundhog Day
I was busier than Punxsutawney Phil yesterday; while I managed to hop in front of a camera for a moment, I did not get the photo posted.
Which probably is no biggie, since, aside from the shirt, I wore the exact same outfit I wore last week....which is, owing to my crazy busy life this week, the post immediately preceding this one. ;-)
But, hey, we had a big conference over the weekend and the registration process had a giant mantis of a bug in it and, well, I was busy. So.
February colors are black and white, with gold or tan 'accents'.
The shirt is a modified version of Burda's boatneck t from Feb 2010 made up in a very stout cotton/lycra knit...with teeny gold lurex lines outlining the black stripes. Of course, no one can actually see the gold lines...I think they're about two threads thick...but I was delighted to have something so dead-on to put on.
I don't look too tired there, do I? Amazing... ;-)
All I have managed to do on the trench coat was dig out the muslin fabric and haul it to the cutting table. I have promised myself I will not retire tonight until I have cut the back, the front, and the sleeves from the muslin....
Which probably is no biggie, since, aside from the shirt, I wore the exact same outfit I wore last week....which is, owing to my crazy busy life this week, the post immediately preceding this one. ;-)
But, hey, we had a big conference over the weekend and the registration process had a giant mantis of a bug in it and, well, I was busy. So.
The shirt is a modified version of Burda's boatneck t from Feb 2010 made up in a very stout cotton/lycra knit...with teeny gold lurex lines outlining the black stripes. Of course, no one can actually see the gold lines...I think they're about two threads thick...but I was delighted to have something so dead-on to put on.
I don't look too tired there, do I? Amazing... ;-)
All I have managed to do on the trench coat was dig out the muslin fabric and haul it to the cutting table. I have promised myself I will not retire tonight until I have cut the back, the front, and the sleeves from the muslin....
Sunday, January 26, 2014
First Choir Post of 2014
I was really surprised when I put today's photo into this year's choir photo folder in 'My Documents'...there were no other pictures there! My first thought was that I had somehow inadvertently deleted them, because surely there were one or two others...but then, I thought and realized that I'd been sick for the first half the month, then I forgot to take a photo last weekend so...yeah, today is the first photo of the year.
As we've done in years past, January colors are royal blue and black (one of my personal favorite combos...).
So, today was a royal blue bamboo jersey made up in Burdastyle's funnel neck top from the Sept 2010 issue, which I have apparently never reviewed, worn with the 'waistcoat' from the May 2009 issue, made from black cotton twill, that I have worn almost to death.
New darkwash Coldwater Creek jeans...love those after Christmas sales!
This has been a weekend in which No Sewing Happened...but I did get some work done on the home budget, which is so behind I'm not even going to tell you. But it's gotta get caught up so we know what we have to start the new year off...planning to get the trench coat muslin at least cut out in the next couple of days...
As we've done in years past, January colors are royal blue and black (one of my personal favorite combos...).
So, today was a royal blue bamboo jersey made up in Burdastyle's funnel neck top from the Sept 2010 issue, which I have apparently never reviewed, worn with the 'waistcoat' from the May 2009 issue, made from black cotton twill, that I have worn almost to death.
New darkwash Coldwater Creek jeans...love those after Christmas sales!
This has been a weekend in which No Sewing Happened...but I did get some work done on the home budget, which is so behind I'm not even going to tell you. But it's gotta get caught up so we know what we have to start the new year off...planning to get the trench coat muslin at least cut out in the next couple of days...
Friday, January 24, 2014
Major Players Traced
I finished tracing the pieces printed on the pattern sheet today; I haven't made facing or lining pieces yet. I'm going to do a quick muslin first, then alter the pattern and then make the facing/lining pieces from the altered pattern. I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to shorten the sleeves by about 2", but that's a pretty standard alteration for me on everything. I haven't sewn enough Burda patterns yet to have a regular set of alterations for them.As I finished up, I moved the pattern sheet around and suddenly had a fresh appreciation for how small it really is...astonishing that an entire trench coat pattern is on that sheet, along with some others. My Sweet Babboo stuck his head in the room just shortly after and took a look at what I was doing. 'Wow,' he said, 'How can you see anything on that?'
Just takes a little patience...
But I finally got to use the little curvy ruler that I won in a giveaway a while back. If I had bought it, I'd tell you it was worth every penny. I zipped through adding seam allowances. I was going to post links to the etsy shop for them but it appears to be closed :-( However, Claire did post a note there, saying that anyone who had questions could email her at sales [!at] sacurve.com . Perhaps she still has some available...NAYY and all that...Next step: Muslin.
Time is tickin' away...tick tick tickin' away...
Thursday, January 23, 2014
Sometimes the Blogsphere is a very cool place...
I'm feeling the love, let me tell you!
Firstly, whilst perusing along the new posts in The Old Reader, I happened upon Rhonda's weekly Showcase post, in which she shares stories and photos of two other sewing bloggers. I looked through the first set of photos, very impressed with Virginia's sewing (particularly that black lace dress!!), and then had a double take moment, because somehow the photo of the pillowcases I did for the Mary Bridge project popped up. I was confused for a moment...then I realized that the second blogger featured this week was yours truly. What a surprise!
And I got a lesson in photo posting...every one of the photos of mine that she posted were fuzzy; I'm assuming that's because I reduce the size/resolution of them before I add them. I've always done that...first to reduce the upload size (back when I started blogging, there was a limit as to how much you could upload in a given month) and also to prevent my photos from being used by strange and unauthorized folks (still shaking my head over the guys who wanted to use a photo of a pair of plaid pants I'd made in a article about lame outdated fashion). Not that Rhonda is either stranger or unauthorized...but I'm here to tell ya, shrinking the photos works. ;-) The blurries were not her fault.
Then, today I walked up to the front step and saw two packages on the step. One was the WAWAK package with my buttons and hymo, but the other was hand addressed...to me. Puzzled, I reached for the package to see the return address and realized it was from my cyber friend Miriam in Kansas. We've never met, but Miriam has been a long time reader (and commenter!) on both my blogs.
In that package was a 3-yard piece of black denim. Washed, dried and ready to sew.
My friends, it reads 'black' against the other fabrics in the SWAP pile. The real deal.
The black denim jacket has now replaced the denim shirt in my SWAP plans; it will be the second wild card.
I've already emailed Miriam to squeal my thanks, but I want to publicly say here 'THANK YOU!!!' I will think of you every time I put on that jacket.
Here's hoping I don't mess it up sewing it. ;-)
Firstly, whilst perusing along the new posts in The Old Reader, I happened upon Rhonda's weekly Showcase post, in which she shares stories and photos of two other sewing bloggers. I looked through the first set of photos, very impressed with Virginia's sewing (particularly that black lace dress!!), and then had a double take moment, because somehow the photo of the pillowcases I did for the Mary Bridge project popped up. I was confused for a moment...then I realized that the second blogger featured this week was yours truly. What a surprise!
And I got a lesson in photo posting...every one of the photos of mine that she posted were fuzzy; I'm assuming that's because I reduce the size/resolution of them before I add them. I've always done that...first to reduce the upload size (back when I started blogging, there was a limit as to how much you could upload in a given month) and also to prevent my photos from being used by strange and unauthorized folks (still shaking my head over the guys who wanted to use a photo of a pair of plaid pants I'd made in a article about lame outdated fashion). Not that Rhonda is either stranger or unauthorized...but I'm here to tell ya, shrinking the photos works. ;-) The blurries were not her fault.
Then, today I walked up to the front step and saw two packages on the step. One was the WAWAK package with my buttons and hymo, but the other was hand addressed...to me. Puzzled, I reached for the package to see the return address and realized it was from my cyber friend Miriam in Kansas. We've never met, but Miriam has been a long time reader (and commenter!) on both my blogs.
In that package was a 3-yard piece of black denim. Washed, dried and ready to sew.My friends, it reads 'black' against the other fabrics in the SWAP pile. The real deal.
The black denim jacket has now replaced the denim shirt in my SWAP plans; it will be the second wild card.
I've already emailed Miriam to squeal my thanks, but I want to publicly say here 'THANK YOU!!!' I will think of you every time I put on that jacket.
Here's hoping I don't mess it up sewing it. ;-)
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Tracing Away
The AWOL pattern may actually have saved me something...if I had it at hand, there's a good chance I would've just gone with that one, since it was already traced.
But I've looked at the reviews for it, and I saw a number of folks who complained about the sleeve cap...and in many of the photos, it's obvious that there is too much ease in that sleeve.
So I decided to go with one of the patterns from my stash of Burda World of Fashion/Burda Style magazines...I subscribed for 5 years, and there is some good stuff there.
I looked the three or four available patterns over and finally decided on 9/2010/113:
I wasn't crazy about the darts instead of a princess seam, but when I realized the darts had the pockets on an angle, instead of vertical as they were in the princess seamed designs, I decided to go with this one. I like the pleat in the back and the button tabs on the sleeves. I *could* put a flap on the right shoulder, if I want, but I'll probably stick with it as designed. We'll see. I chose view A, since I'm short. ;-)
But there's a lotta tracing to do...and I *almost* forgot to add the seam allowances to the front when I traced it.
It's been a while since I traced a pattern from the magazines...
Back to the tracing table.
But I've looked at the reviews for it, and I saw a number of folks who complained about the sleeve cap...and in many of the photos, it's obvious that there is too much ease in that sleeve.
So I decided to go with one of the patterns from my stash of Burda World of Fashion/Burda Style magazines...I subscribed for 5 years, and there is some good stuff there.
I looked the three or four available patterns over and finally decided on 9/2010/113:
But there's a lotta tracing to do...and I *almost* forgot to add the seam allowances to the front when I traced it.
It's been a while since I traced a pattern from the magazines...
Back to the tracing table.
Monday, January 20, 2014
A little help from my friends...
Ok, I got the fabric and pattern for the trench coat ages ago.
Then Marji started a coat sew along. I followed the details on an email list as the actual blog was limited to the ladies who were doing it...and I hadn't been brave enough to jump in. After the sew along ended, Marji made the blog public.
So, now I'm ready to make the coat. And I checked my bookmarks and didn't find the Sew Along Blog.
Bummer.
But then I remembered...the emails... And, lo and behold, I had saved all those emails in a folder.
Woot!
I will have some guidance. :-)
The Great Coat Sew Along
Then Marji started a coat sew along. I followed the details on an email list as the actual blog was limited to the ladies who were doing it...and I hadn't been brave enough to jump in. After the sew along ended, Marji made the blog public.
So, now I'm ready to make the coat. And I checked my bookmarks and didn't find the Sew Along Blog.
Bummer.
But then I remembered...the emails... And, lo and behold, I had saved all those emails in a folder.
Woot!
I will have some guidance. :-)
The Great Coat Sew Along
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Another SWAP Baby Step
Actually pulling fabric and making The Plan...
So...The top fabric is wool gab, for the trench coat. It's been bagged up waiting to be sewn since 2007, and I found some moth damage on it. But it's mostly along the selvedges, and I purchased about half a yard extra fabric, so I think I can work around it. But the Simplicity pattern that I had traced has mysteriously disappeared...I thought it was in the bag with the fabric and such, but it wasn't. I may be starting fresh with one of the 4 or 5 trench coat patterns that are in my archived Burda Style magazines. sigh. And I'm giving myself 4 weeks. If I can get it done by Valentine's day I should have enough time left to get the rest of the SWAP done...but every weekend between now and then is booked. Gonna be tough. But even if that's all I manage to get done...it'll be done. Cause for celebration.
The rest of the SWAP fabrics across the front are:
1) black rayon (bamboo?) jersey. Jalie drapey v-neck top and Jalie cap sleeve t shirt
2) heathery gray ribbed rayon/lycra jersey. Jalie cap sleeve t.
3) silver rayon jersey. Jalie drapey v-neck top. This is almost the same color as the one I wore to death.
4) White cotton jersey. Jalie cap sleeve t.
5) Rayon/cotton/lycra 3 oz. denim. Button up shirt...pattern TBD
6) White cotton jacquard stripe. Button up shirt, pattern TBD. I may actually switch to a different white fabric on this, we'll see. For now, I pulled this one.
7) khaki stretch cotton/lycra sateen. Slim leg pants, pattern TBD. If I really have enough, it's a remnant from an earlier project. I've got about 2 yards and a long bit along the fold but it's only 45" wide. May have to switch this.
8) black wool/lycra tropical weight suiting. Loes Hinse Oxford pants and shortened Cutting Lines Designs InTheTrenches skirt.
That's 11 garments; not sure how I'm going to split them into 3-packs. The trench coat is obviously one Wild Card; not sure about the other. The denim shirt, perhaps...
I totally forgot to take the choir photo today; I was going to post this tomorrow but, well, maybe that'll give me a pinch more time to sew. 4 weeks...
The rest of the SWAP fabrics across the front are:
1) black rayon (bamboo?) jersey. Jalie drapey v-neck top and Jalie cap sleeve t shirt
2) heathery gray ribbed rayon/lycra jersey. Jalie cap sleeve t.
3) silver rayon jersey. Jalie drapey v-neck top. This is almost the same color as the one I wore to death.
4) White cotton jersey. Jalie cap sleeve t.
5) Rayon/cotton/lycra 3 oz. denim. Button up shirt...pattern TBD
6) White cotton jacquard stripe. Button up shirt, pattern TBD. I may actually switch to a different white fabric on this, we'll see. For now, I pulled this one.
7) khaki stretch cotton/lycra sateen. Slim leg pants, pattern TBD. If I really have enough, it's a remnant from an earlier project. I've got about 2 yards and a long bit along the fold but it's only 45" wide. May have to switch this.
8) black wool/lycra tropical weight suiting. Loes Hinse Oxford pants and shortened Cutting Lines Designs InTheTrenches skirt.
That's 11 garments; not sure how I'm going to split them into 3-packs. The trench coat is obviously one Wild Card; not sure about the other. The denim shirt, perhaps...
I totally forgot to take the choir photo today; I was going to post this tomorrow but, well, maybe that'll give me a pinch more time to sew. 4 weeks...
Saturday, January 18, 2014
How Brave Am I?
After realizing I didn't have the black denim that I *thought* I had, I went back to the original inspiration photo of the Common Core Wardrobe and looked at it very hard.
I asked myself questions like 'What do you really want out of a SWAP? What is the real goal here?'
And I realized that I really, really wanted a Core Wardrobe.
With the possible secondary aim of developing a TNT shirt pattern.
Using patterns/fabric I've been intending to sew but hadn't got around to it yet kinda figured in as well.
But the number one goal is...basic neutral wardrobe.
So as I thought about that I realized that I probably was going to have to axe the tweed jacket. As much as I love the fabric, it is not part of the basic wardrobe.
Likewise the gray stripe pants.
Basic, Lisa. Those things will be great add-ons, but for now...basic.
And, as I thought, I remembered a project that has been bagged up since 2007. Fabric, pattern (which HAS been traced but not fitted), buttons...
It's a taupey gray wool gab trench coat.. I promised myself I would make it in 2007, but all I got done was tracing the pattern. Then I suddenly wasn't sure I liked that pattern and...well, I broke my promise.
But a taupey gray wool gab trench coat is very basic. And it works with the rest of the wardrobe.
But, wow. Can I do something that involved and still finish the rest of the SWAP by the due date?
I'm'a gonna need to make up my mind really soon...time is ticking away...
I asked myself questions like 'What do you really want out of a SWAP? What is the real goal here?'
And I realized that I really, really wanted a Core Wardrobe.
With the possible secondary aim of developing a TNT shirt pattern.
Using patterns/fabric I've been intending to sew but hadn't got around to it yet kinda figured in as well.
But the number one goal is...basic neutral wardrobe.
So as I thought about that I realized that I probably was going to have to axe the tweed jacket. As much as I love the fabric, it is not part of the basic wardrobe.
Likewise the gray stripe pants.
Basic, Lisa. Those things will be great add-ons, but for now...basic.
And, as I thought, I remembered a project that has been bagged up since 2007. Fabric, pattern (which HAS been traced but not fitted), buttons...
It's a taupey gray wool gab trench coat.. I promised myself I would make it in 2007, but all I got done was tracing the pattern. Then I suddenly wasn't sure I liked that pattern and...well, I broke my promise.
But a taupey gray wool gab trench coat is very basic. And it works with the rest of the wardrobe.
But, wow. Can I do something that involved and still finish the rest of the SWAP by the due date?
I'm'a gonna need to make up my mind really soon...time is ticking away...
Friday, January 17, 2014
When Black Isn't Really Black
I've been pulling fabrics from the stash (and ordered a couple of knits, to get the right shade of gray...) and thought I was well on the way to getting started with the SWAP sewing.
One of the key elements of my really basic wardrobe swap is a black denim jacket.
Or was, anyway. I pulled the 'black' denim from the bin today and laid it on top of the other black fabrics in the plan and saw that it is really a deep blue. Not black at all.
Oh, I'm pretty sure it was listed as black on the website from which I ordered it, and it looked black enough when I pre-washed it and put it in the bin with my other denim fabric, but when in direct contact with truly black fabric, it has a definite blue cast to it. And of course, the point is to wear it with the black fabrics in the SWAP plan.
So now I'm kinda stuck. I have some very dark charcoal gray poly/cotton/lycra twill in the stash that might substitute, but it doesn't really feel denimy and it is heavier than the denim. The point of the denim jacket was to have a wear-in-arctic-air-conditioning in the summer jacket.
So now I have some decisions to make and some re-planning to do...rats...
One of the key elements of my really basic wardrobe swap is a black denim jacket.
Or was, anyway. I pulled the 'black' denim from the bin today and laid it on top of the other black fabrics in the plan and saw that it is really a deep blue. Not black at all.
Oh, I'm pretty sure it was listed as black on the website from which I ordered it, and it looked black enough when I pre-washed it and put it in the bin with my other denim fabric, but when in direct contact with truly black fabric, it has a definite blue cast to it. And of course, the point is to wear it with the black fabrics in the SWAP plan.
So now I'm kinda stuck. I have some very dark charcoal gray poly/cotton/lycra twill in the stash that might substitute, but it doesn't really feel denimy and it is heavier than the denim. The point of the denim jacket was to have a wear-in-arctic-air-conditioning in the summer jacket.
So now I have some decisions to make and some re-planning to do...rats...
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Taking a breath and plunging in...SWAP 2014
So, The Flute Player missed the very first rehearsal for the school musical, as 1) she neglected to check the schedule she received at auditions and 2) we were all sick anyway. As a result, she was not put in the opening number nor was she assigned to any one of the three sub-groups in the chorus. Which meant that she ended up sitting around doing pretty much nothing at the second scheduled rehearsal.
But she spent her time thinking, and remembering how dicey spring semester last year happened to be...and, after a discussion with her theater teacher, she withdrew from the musical. There is at least one, perhaps two more productions coming from the theater department yet this spring, so she should still get her time in onstage, but for the moment, she says she is relieved to not be obligated to work on the musical.
All of that, however, also means that I am not obligated to work on the musical.
I may, if asked with urgency, head down and help a bit if they get in a bind, but, as this is 'Fame' I don't expect to be needed.
So I am going to say in front of witnesses that I am going to try and get the SWAP wardrobe done this year.
So, the first official action I've taken is to London Shrink the black and white tweed for one of the planned jackets. I've about decided that I'm going to use Loes Hinse's Bolero Multiples (her website is down; can't link...). I made the original Bolero jacket like, ten years ago, but really wanted a jacket that actually buttoned. When she released the Multiples pattern, which is basically just a set of alternate center front pieces for the original pattern, I snagged a copy.
And it has languished in the drawer. Maybe I should call this my 'Round Tuit Swap', since I'm going to be pulling some patterns out that I've been wanting to get around to sewing...
This tweed is a wool/lycra blend, but it is very soft-draping. I've about decided that I will fuse some Pro-Sheer onto it to beef it up a little; Loes doesn't use interfacing in her patterns but I really think this fabric could use a little more support. But, if I fuse it, I will also line it, just to make it a little more wearable over grabby winter tops.
There's 2 yards here, which is way more than I'm going to need for the jacket. I might get the SWAP skirt from it as well...
But she spent her time thinking, and remembering how dicey spring semester last year happened to be...and, after a discussion with her theater teacher, she withdrew from the musical. There is at least one, perhaps two more productions coming from the theater department yet this spring, so she should still get her time in onstage, but for the moment, she says she is relieved to not be obligated to work on the musical.
All of that, however, also means that I am not obligated to work on the musical.
I may, if asked with urgency, head down and help a bit if they get in a bind, but, as this is 'Fame' I don't expect to be needed.
So I am going to say in front of witnesses that I am going to try and get the SWAP wardrobe done this year.
And it has languished in the drawer. Maybe I should call this my 'Round Tuit Swap', since I'm going to be pulling some patterns out that I've been wanting to get around to sewing...
This tweed is a wool/lycra blend, but it is very soft-draping. I've about decided that I will fuse some Pro-Sheer onto it to beef it up a little; Loes doesn't use interfacing in her patterns but I really think this fabric could use a little more support. But, if I fuse it, I will also line it, just to make it a little more wearable over grabby winter tops.
There's 2 yards here, which is way more than I'm going to need for the jacket. I might get the SWAP skirt from it as well...
Tuesday, January 07, 2014
2013 Stats
Well, if it's time to add new stuff for this year, maybe I'd better record last year's stats:
Fabric In: 81.5 yds
Fabric Out: 39.75 yds
Last fabric purchase: 11/27/13
Garments made for me: 12
Accessories: 2
Garments made for other family members: 1
Home Dec Items: 1
Miscellaneous Church sewing:
5 mantles/stoles for Girls Only pins
2 tote bags; plus fabric out for 4 the girls made
School Costuming:Handful of alterations for 'Mousetrap',
Poppies for 'The Wiz' - 6 skirts
1 dress refashion
Misc. repairs and alterations
Charity Sewing:4 Pillowcases
All in all, pretty dismal. I'd feel less guilty about the lack of sewing if I had not purchased something close to 40 yards more than I sewed. And it's not like I went horridly overboard...it averaged to about 3 pieces of fabric a month for the year. Not crazy, but... I'm running out of storage which IS crazy and it's got to stop. Another reason to sew the good stuff..
Which means I have even more egg on face, because I have to own up to the first 'fabric in' batch of the year, three fabrics from Gorgeous Fabric's year end sale...
My rationale was that I wanted some shirt-weight denim or chambray with the thought that it could be used in the 2014 SWAP, should I decide to participate..and the blue/white pinpoint cotton would make a very nice shirt, as would the 3 oz denim-lycra on the right. The dogwood print is a fanTAStic cotton sateen, which I probably would not have ordered, except that earlier last year I ordered 2 yards of the matching silk chiffon. I saw a summer sheath dress, with a matching scarf, and it was in the cart.
So, that's 6 5/8 yards to start off the year. And the Flute Player, remembering the rough academic year we had last year, opted to withdraw from the musical so as to not overload herself. So, while I could end up helping in the costuming a bit, I will not be obligated to spend weeks sewing.
The SWAP actually looks to be a possibility for this year. A very definite possibility...
Fabric In: 81.5 yds
Fabric Out: 39.75 yds
Last fabric purchase: 11/27/13
Garments made for me: 12
Accessories: 2
Garments made for other family members: 1
Home Dec Items: 1
Miscellaneous Church sewing:
5 mantles/stoles for Girls Only pins
2 tote bags; plus fabric out for 4 the girls made
School Costuming:Handful of alterations for 'Mousetrap',
Poppies for 'The Wiz' - 6 skirts
1 dress refashion
Misc. repairs and alterations
Charity Sewing:4 Pillowcases
All in all, pretty dismal. I'd feel less guilty about the lack of sewing if I had not purchased something close to 40 yards more than I sewed. And it's not like I went horridly overboard...it averaged to about 3 pieces of fabric a month for the year. Not crazy, but... I'm running out of storage which IS crazy and it's got to stop. Another reason to sew the good stuff..
Which means I have even more egg on face, because I have to own up to the first 'fabric in' batch of the year, three fabrics from Gorgeous Fabric's year end sale...
So, that's 6 5/8 yards to start off the year. And the Flute Player, remembering the rough academic year we had last year, opted to withdraw from the musical so as to not overload herself. So, while I could end up helping in the costuming a bit, I will not be obligated to spend weeks sewing.
The SWAP actually looks to be a possibility for this year. A very definite possibility...
Monday, January 06, 2014
Might as well make a plan...
As this is day 21 for the crazy morphing respiratory virus and I'm home out of the cold and not at work, I decided I might as well look at the Common Wardrobe and see how it breaks down.
I spy knit tops... a black long sleeve turtle neck, a black long sleeve v-neck, 3 cap sleeve t's in gray, white and black.
I spy three button ups...a white shirt, an oxford blue shirt, and a denim shirt.
I spy three pairs of pants...black slacks, jeans and khakis
And finally there is a black knit button up cardigan.
Now, I am not going to be making jeans in this go-round; I have Lee jeans and Coldwater Creek jeans that are doing that job for the time being, and I have a Lands' End black cotton knit cardigan sweater already, but that's the 12th piece anyway and SWAP only needs 11.
So...
I really, really want these to be wearable year-round, or near year-round, which really isn't too far-fetched in North Alabama. I can layer jackets on top of sleeveless/ short sleeved tops and they'll work fine on all but days like today when winter drops by to say 'hi' (high in the teens, but we'll be back to 60 F this weekend).
The best sleeveless top I've made, in terms of being a versatile bottom layer and flattering on its own, has been Jalie 2682. I made the sleeveless versions in several colors, but the one I absolutely wore to death was the gray knit. And I did wear that to death; the fabric finally just pilled up and fell apart. So I really think I could make that in black, white (or maybe cream, as that works better for choir) and gray and wear them all. For a cap sleeve T, I've used the T from Jalie's 2566 Twin Set, although I've never reviewed that particular view. Black and Gray and maybe white or cream again...and I'm solid on knit tops.
I don't know that I'd wear an oxford blue button up much; I *might*, but I could definitely use a white (or cream) basic button up. All my button up shirts are severely aging...I am in sore need of not only more shirts, but a TNT pattern that I can use to make them. That may be the biggest challenge of the whole plan...find and fit a good TNT button up shirt pattern. Button ups are fiddly, too, and will take a lot longer to make than the knit tops, so this would be one of the slower-downers of the plan.
A denim shirt would be a good wardrobe addition, too. I really don't have one, and there are times when a denim shirt is just the right extra layer. I actually ordered some denim/chambray fabric before New Year's (that could, I suppose, arrive as early as later today...) with an eye to using it in the SWAP. We'll see how it washes up once it gets here. However, I need to do a little pattern research here, too, although this shirt will not be quite as fitted as the white/cream one. I have a shredding flannel shirt that I made something like 20 years ago that may be a decent enough pattern for a denim shirt, once I tweek it for, um, some changes that have occurred in the meantime.
That gets me to the bottoms; I have some lovely RPL black suiting that will do quite nicely as Jalie's Classic Trousers, which I've made a couple of times but apparently never reviewed (shame on me!). Dressy black pants are always work appropriate and most of mine are more suitable for cool weather; I need some that will work in the summer.
I've also got some gray/cream pinstripe RPL that I bought a while back with the intention of making Loes Hinse's Oxford Pants ; that will fit in very well with the SWAP plan so I think I will add those in lieu of the Khakis, which I already have.
I'm thinking I'll add a black skirt in place of the jeans...a simple straight skirt, maybe CLD's In The Trenches, shortened to just below knee length. I've been wanting to try shortening that skirt for awhile, this will give me a good reason to do it.
That will easily cover the 3 packs, with lots of leeway in the groupings, so all I need are the wildcards.
At the moment, I'm thinking the wild cards could be jackets...one a fall/winter jacket made from a lovely black and white wool/lycra tweed I got at Textile Fabrics and the other a year-round black denim jacket. But at the moment I'm not sure which patterns I want to use for those. I don't know if I want a traditional 'jeans' jacket, or if I just want to use the black denim to make a sharp little jacket that just happens to be made of denim.
I actually think I have almost all of this fabric in the stash (or soon to arrive on the doorstep..) already, so it would really just be a matter of steeling my nerve and getting started.
Once I get over this yuckky stuff and feel up to it...
I spy knit tops... a black long sleeve turtle neck, a black long sleeve v-neck, 3 cap sleeve t's in gray, white and black.
I spy three button ups...a white shirt, an oxford blue shirt, and a denim shirt.
I spy three pairs of pants...black slacks, jeans and khakis
And finally there is a black knit button up cardigan.
Now, I am not going to be making jeans in this go-round; I have Lee jeans and Coldwater Creek jeans that are doing that job for the time being, and I have a Lands' End black cotton knit cardigan sweater already, but that's the 12th piece anyway and SWAP only needs 11.
So...
I really, really want these to be wearable year-round, or near year-round, which really isn't too far-fetched in North Alabama. I can layer jackets on top of sleeveless/ short sleeved tops and they'll work fine on all but days like today when winter drops by to say 'hi' (high in the teens, but we'll be back to 60 F this weekend).
The best sleeveless top I've made, in terms of being a versatile bottom layer and flattering on its own, has been Jalie 2682. I made the sleeveless versions in several colors, but the one I absolutely wore to death was the gray knit. And I did wear that to death; the fabric finally just pilled up and fell apart. So I really think I could make that in black, white (or maybe cream, as that works better for choir) and gray and wear them all. For a cap sleeve T, I've used the T from Jalie's 2566 Twin Set, although I've never reviewed that particular view. Black and Gray and maybe white or cream again...and I'm solid on knit tops.
I don't know that I'd wear an oxford blue button up much; I *might*, but I could definitely use a white (or cream) basic button up. All my button up shirts are severely aging...I am in sore need of not only more shirts, but a TNT pattern that I can use to make them. That may be the biggest challenge of the whole plan...find and fit a good TNT button up shirt pattern. Button ups are fiddly, too, and will take a lot longer to make than the knit tops, so this would be one of the slower-downers of the plan.
A denim shirt would be a good wardrobe addition, too. I really don't have one, and there are times when a denim shirt is just the right extra layer. I actually ordered some denim/chambray fabric before New Year's (that could, I suppose, arrive as early as later today...) with an eye to using it in the SWAP. We'll see how it washes up once it gets here. However, I need to do a little pattern research here, too, although this shirt will not be quite as fitted as the white/cream one. I have a shredding flannel shirt that I made something like 20 years ago that may be a decent enough pattern for a denim shirt, once I tweek it for, um, some changes that have occurred in the meantime.
That gets me to the bottoms; I have some lovely RPL black suiting that will do quite nicely as Jalie's Classic Trousers, which I've made a couple of times but apparently never reviewed (shame on me!). Dressy black pants are always work appropriate and most of mine are more suitable for cool weather; I need some that will work in the summer.
I've also got some gray/cream pinstripe RPL that I bought a while back with the intention of making Loes Hinse's Oxford Pants ; that will fit in very well with the SWAP plan so I think I will add those in lieu of the Khakis, which I already have.
I'm thinking I'll add a black skirt in place of the jeans...a simple straight skirt, maybe CLD's In The Trenches, shortened to just below knee length. I've been wanting to try shortening that skirt for awhile, this will give me a good reason to do it.
That will easily cover the 3 packs, with lots of leeway in the groupings, so all I need are the wildcards.
At the moment, I'm thinking the wild cards could be jackets...one a fall/winter jacket made from a lovely black and white wool/lycra tweed I got at Textile Fabrics and the other a year-round black denim jacket. But at the moment I'm not sure which patterns I want to use for those. I don't know if I want a traditional 'jeans' jacket, or if I just want to use the black denim to make a sharp little jacket that just happens to be made of denim.
I actually think I have almost all of this fabric in the stash (or soon to arrive on the doorstep..) already, so it would really just be a matter of steeling my nerve and getting started.
Once I get over this yuckky stuff and feel up to it...
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