Next up: Spring Dress!

Excellent news everyone!  My three month probation has finally finished at work, which means my perks kick in!  The most exciting is the display program, which lets me make one outfit a month with all the materials supplied for me, in exchange for the garment hanging in the store for a month.

So, without further ado: Project April!

I'm going to be doing a version of Butterick 5605, view C (in the top right).  I got the pattern for Christmas and I was planning to make it for dinner with my fiancee's work, back in January.  If you recall, my stash-busting was my doom, and the dress got shelved.

So, on Saturday, my manager very kindly cut 4 meters of a gorgeous stretch poplin.  It is fairly light, cotton polyester, royal blue on lighter blue.  The pictures don't really do the colour justice, unfortunately.  It has a nice hand to it and I think it'll work really well with the skirt in this pattern.  There's enough body to fill out the back pleats, but its still light enough to fall nicely, especially over a petticoat.

This is truer to the colour

I've got two weeks to get the finished dress back to work, where it will hang for a month, and then it's all mine!  Needless to say, I'm fairly excited about this whole program.

Fabric and materials were provided by my employer in exchange for use of the dress as display for one month.  All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

Plaid Trials

I've avoided plaid until now.  I've never sewn with patterns that need to be matched before.  But, there was a nice plaid at work.  And it was the end of the bolt, so I got it at 75% off.  So I decided to give plaid a shot.

Well, I cut very carefully.  And went to pin it together, only to realize that the fabric must have stretched at some point.  There was nothing I could do to get the horizontal stripes to line up perfectly.  But. half an hour later, I did in fact have a passable side seam.  And I am fairly happy with the skirt overall.

I think perhaps the pleats could use an ironing.  And I wish there was a little bit more fullness to the skirt.

Final Notes:  Don't expect to see a lot more plaids around here... I like the look, but half an hour for one side seam just isn't worth it!

Long Awaited Portrait

Today I bring you the long overdue reveal of my portrait blouse.  This is the first pattern I attempted from Gertie's New Book for Better Sewing, and I've mentioned my trails with it briefly before.  

The Portrait Blouse.

I made at least 2 muslins, and am fairly sure, though have no evidence, that there was a third in there somewhere as well.  Admittedly my fitting process was not particularly methodical, however, by the final muslin I was fairly happy with it.  

To the left is the version that Gertie recently posted to her blog, made from a stable knit, which is likely the best comparison to what mine should look like.  You can read more about it here.  I also used a fairly stable knit.  It has some stretch to it, but hangs and feels much like a cotton.  During fitting I lost the cap sleeves.  This was, I'll admit, accidental.  I did a narrow shoulder adjustment while fitting, because the shoulders seemed broad and I was getting pull lines.  However, I think that these are just part of the style, not necessarily a fitting issue.  In any case, by the time I moved into my fashion fabric I was happy with the muslin.

I'm not entirely sure what changed, but I'm significantly less happy with the final version.  The biggest flaw I think is that no matter which I do, the bust darts stand out and make an unattractive point. They also aim to a point far higher than my bust point.  It doesn't seem particularly noticeable in the picture, however, it is one of those flaws that can be all I notice.  Luckily, it isn't a complete scrap, as I can still wear it layered under other things, such as the cardigan in the first image (which I don't really like as I think it hides my waist, but will keep wearing until I replace it with something nicer). 

The other flaw in the top is that I didn't do a narrow hem, as instructed.  Instead, I used some narrow twill tape as hem tape.  And while it looks nice, and would have worked perfectly on a slightly heavier fabric, here it just turns the hem out a little bit, making a tiny ruffle.  Luckily, I usually wear it tucked in, and when I wear it out over jeans the ruffle is almost completely unnoticeable. 

Conclusion: I'd like to try this again, with a lighter fabric (like a crepe), before passing final judgement.  I''m not sure if my issues with the pattern are completely from my haphazard fitting methods, or not, but I do think at least a few of my issues are from the pattern.  I'll discuss that a little more when I post my full review of the book.

In a Funk and Un-Historical

Well, as you can tell, I'm not doing so well with Historical Sew Fortnightly.  It seems I have fallen into a little bit of a sewing funk, well to be honest, a general funk that has affected my sewing.

I've realized that the projects I'd planned for the Historical Sew Fortnightly were mostly just projects to fit the themes, not necessarily projects that I would make us of.  And, at the moment, that doesn't make sense for me.  With my limited funds, and limited time, I don't want to waste either making projects simply to have met a challenge.  Right now, for me, it's more important that each piece I sew can be put into my wardrobe.  So, at this point, I'm bowing out of the challenge.

However, today will not be a day only of doom and gloom.  I have some good news as well.

Firstly:  I'm employed!  I started working at a fabric shop in mid January.  It's right near where I live, which means I've been walking to work most days, and there are some awesome perks once my probationary period is up.  Of course there is a staff discount.  But there is also the Garment Display program, where I can make current patterns (from lines the store carries) and my supplies will be given to me either free or at cost in exchange for them having the garment as a display for a month.  I'm really looking forward to giving it a try.  I'll be able to make my first in April, which is the same month the new catalogs come out, so I'm not certain if I'll be in time to make anything from this release or not, but either way, it should be an awesome way to get some sewing in.

Secondly:  I may be starting a second job!  I've always heard that they best way to find a job is to have a job, and maybe it's true.  One of the ladies I work with also works doing alterations at a dry cleaners.  They were looking for another seamstress, so I've been introduced to the boss and I'm to start next week.  I'm a little nervous, but we'll see how it goes.  Stay tuned.

Thirdly:  Just because I haven't been sewing Historical doesn't mean I haven't been sewing.  I've finished my Portrait Blouse, so stay tuned for a reveal post and a review of Gertie's New Book for Better Sewing soon.  And I've got a finished plaid skirt to show you as well.  And two more projects underway, including my first authentic vintage pattern!

Fourthly:  I'm considering starting to do a Better Fit Friday series where I go through pattern adjustments on 1/4 scale patterns.  Would there be any interest in following along?

Christmas Circle Skirt

In all of the kerfuffle around the holidays I forgot to show you the circle skirt I whipped up.  It was a quick job, finished the morning before the family Christmas party.  I'm fairly happy with it, though I did learn an important lesson about sewing machines.

Photographer-fiancee is still in training...
I'll remind him to back up next time ;)

I've almost never sewn on machines that weren't a similar price point and technical level to my own.  My best sewing friend has a machine that's similar to mine, though a different make.  And the machine I learned to sew on was my mother's vintage machine she inherited from her aunt, but that hadn't been for a tune-up any time in my memory.

As was bound to happen eventually, my mother's sewing machine finally bit the bullet.  She doesn't sew a lot any more, so she decided to replace it with one of the super-cheap Walmart sewing machines.  I didn't discover this until I couldn't find the sewing machine in the basement because I was looking for the wrong one.  Now, the new machine does in fact sew, and even has a few different stitch options.  However, I did notice some things were lacking, primarily the foot pressure and the feed dogs (that move your fabric through the machine).  This resulted in uneven stitches that tended to jump around at little bit.  I also noticed some skipped stitches.

Now, to be fair, this was fabric I had gotten at Walmart to test out.  The fabric itself worked fairly well for this project though.  It was really more of a canvas-type fabric, which helped give the skirt a lot of body I think.  However, it frayed terribly, so I do need to go back and add bias binding to the waist seam.  The waistline also seemed to have warped quite a bit between when I cut it out and when I unpacked it at my mother's to finish sewing.  I had probably an extra 4-6 inches, so I added some gathers while attaching it to the waistband, which I think turned out nice enough.

I used a pattern generously posted here by Casey of Elegant Musings.  The pattern is from a 1954 Smart Sewing booklet.  Instead of the traditional circle, the waist line of the skirt is a little bit more of an oval, which makes the skirt hang a little bit differently.  It is still just as quick to sew up though.

Now I just need to make a day wear petticoat to go under it.  The one I have is shortened from my step-mother's wedding dress, so is a little full to wear from day to day!

The Not-Historical Fortnightly Dress

I don't really want to show you this dress.  I'm sure I'm not the only one who's had a project that just doesn't seem to work no matter what you do?  Well, this was one of those dresses.  I did have it 'finished' but I couldn't wear it to dinner Saturday night.

It also occurred to me that I wouldn't be able to submit this as my Historical Fortnightly entry this month as it was no longer made from a printed pattern.  More on that later.

As I mentioned, I'd decided to use the jersey fabric I had in my stash and drape a pattern myself.  Well, it took me a little while to realize that I could trace a tank top that I already know fits me to make the pattern for the base of the dress.  And then, being so excited by this brain wave, that I forgot to widen the straps into kimono sleeves before cutting the front piece out.  Fine, I thought.  That's fine I can work with that.

Not what I had envisioned, but so far, it
doesn't look that bad...

I got the base sewn together, and could not for the life of me get the gathers to lie flat on the base.  I did the best I could and moved on.  The skirt went fairly smoothly, which was nice, because that means at least something did with this dress.

But once the skirt was sewn on the whole dress pulled forward from the weight.  Well, that's ok too,  I can just add a waist stay.  I'm not sure if my fabric stretched, or if I added less ease to the waist stay than to the waistline of the dress, but the stay was a few inches shorter.  So, rather than sewing it in, I just tacked a few places across the front and at both side seams.  Which, lead to a lumpy and unflattering waistline.

Sadly, it's back to the stash for this...

So, I wore a back up dress to dinner, and will likely be taking this back apart and making something else.  Perhaps I'll try something with a pattern...

The Woes of Stash Sewing

I finished tracing and cutting out the pattern for Butterick 5605 last night.  I made a muslin and a few more tiny adjustments, adding a bit of width across the back and raising the scoop to cover my bra as well as pinching out a bit of excess in the front neck line.  I started laying out the pieces to cut only to discover that I had nowhere near enough fabric.

The pattern envelope calls for 5 3/8 yards of 45" fabric.  I had already decided not to line the dress with my fashion fabric which would cut down the requirements a little bit.  Unfortunately, it does not cut it down to 3 1/2 yards, which is what I have in my stash.  In fact, three and a half yards is not even enough to cut out all of the skirt pieces... Talk about a fabric hog!

There is one possible way to cut this dress from this fabric, and involves a style sacrifice and a cardinal sin of sewing.  The style sacrifice is pinching out the pleats in the back of the skirt.  I really like that style element, however, if that was all that was required, it was a sacrifice I was willing to make.  The cardinal sin is cutting one piece upside down.  Now, this isn't always a problem.  However, I'm working with a satin, and even though it looks like there isn't a nap to the fabric, I'm certain that once the dress is made up the side back piece would look like a completely different colour of fabric.  I've been there before, and I'm not going to make that mistake again!

And so, back to the drawing board.  Unfortunately, being on the budget of the unemployed, I can't really justify going out to buy new fabric, tempting as it is...  So, that leaves me with a very large piece of jersey.  I sew very little with jersey, and though I do like the print, I'm not sure why I would have felt the need to but four yards (at least) of it for my stash.  However, maybe I should be more thankful, because now I can use it to make a dress.

I'm attempting to drape a pattern that will in the end look something like the dress from Simplicity 1168, but with kimono sleeves and a v-neck rather than the original sweat heart halter.  I'm not hugely fond of draping directly onto my own body, however, difficult times call for difficult measures.  And I need a dress by Saturday!

Catch-Up

December was a pretty frantic month.  The most exciting thing happened right at the end of the year, when my boyfriend proposed at the stroke of midnight on New Years.  This was definitely my best new years ever, and the most amazing way to start 2014.

A few days before that we moved into Ottawa proper, which has also been wonderful.  I've only been here a few days, but it is so nice to be back in a city again.  We're able to take public transit anywhere, which is a big change from the small town.

So far, its been a fabulous year.  And I think there's plenty more to come that'll make 2014 a year to remember.

2014 will also be a year of sewing.  I've decided to attempt a Half Marathon of the Historical Sew Fortnightly hosted by The Dreamstress.  I've decided to complete even number challenges, meaning I'll be starting with Challenge #2:  Innovations. The only sight alteration I'm making to the rules is the definition of 'Historical'.  I want to make sure that my projects won't be closet ornaments.  The official rules state that Historical runs until the end of WWII (1945), however, I'm going to extend the time period until the end of the 1950s, as it is the 40s-50s that I am interested in.

The first four challenges have been published so far, and so here is a run down of what I'm thinking of making for each.  Of course as I get to work there will be at least a reveal post for each one.

Challenge Number 2: Innovations:

According to their website, In 1948 Butterick began to produce printed patterns in 1948.  Not too long after that (ok, almost a decade is a bit of a stretch, but stick with me) in 1956 Butterick 5605.  And that will be my first project for a dinner with my fiancee's new work.

Challenge Number 4: Under It All:

A challenge devoted to under-things.  I'd already decided to try and make the Bullet Bra from VaVoom Vintage, and now I have the perfect opportunity.

Challenge Number 6: Fairy Tale:

I don't think it will really come as a surprise, if you've been following for any length of time now, but I'm going to make Little Red Ridinghood's cape.  The cape pattern I've mentioned a few times here was among the patterns that I got for Christmas, and although the timing is not idea for a nice warm red wool cape (being due on April 1st, that is exactly what I'm going to make!

That's it for now.  Tune in next time for a Historical Fortnightly Challenge #2 update!

Planning Ahead and Dreaming Just a Little

So, I've been working away on my Portrait Blouse.  I recently discovered that I've sewn the back on inside out (after I'd tied everything off and of course using French Seams at the shoulders).  Luckily (or unluckily since this is likely how I made the mistake) the fabric looks the same on the right and wrong sides.  So, I'm going to spread the darts and sew them down, like it was an intentional point of visual interest.

In other, more optimistic news, I've been told some of the patterns I'll be getting for Christmas.  I have a lot of extended family, and decided that I would ask most of them for patterns this year.  One of my aunts discovered that she wasn't the only one who was given a list of patterns so called to make sure no one else would get me the same patterns.  Which means I now know some of my presents and I've been excitedly plotting.  They'll likely be familiar from my Patterns of Note posts recently.

I know for example I'm getting New Look 6227.

New Look 6227

Now, all I can imagine is view A, in bright red!  Now luckily, Tilly, from Tilly and the Buttons is currently hosting the giveaway to end all giveaways!  The Stitcher's Dream Christmas Givaway runs until Sunday December 8th, so I would definitely recommend heading over to check it out.

I found Vibrant Cardinal Red Wool Blend Coating at Britex Fabrics and Red and Black Jacquard Print Lining at Minerva Crafts and I think I need both so I have a cape for spring!

Well, good luck everyone!

A Trio of Dresses

Today, I bring you three vintage dress patterns from a wonderful blog I like to follow for inspiration.

Erin over at A Dress A Day has now posted a hundred dresses that she`s made.  (Take a moment and let that sink in.  100 dresses she has made. Anyway...)  She usually accompanies the dress with the pattern she used as well.  Which means I have a small list of patterns she`s shown that I`d somehow like to acquire.

So, today I present to you three of my favorites!

Vogue 9670:

This dress looks super cute, but also pretty casual.  It seems like something I could wear all day while I do whatever errands I need to do, but could also wear to the office.  Erin posted about it first here, but went on to post quite a few more.

Mail Order Pattern 4946:

I certainly couldn`t pull of the seersucker with yoke stripes going the opposite direction from the bodice stripes.  But, that`s exactly what Erin did, which I`d say is suitably impressive.  I think I`d be far more likely to use either a solid and a print, or use the same fabric for the yoke and the dress.

Simplicity 1577:

This dress is adorable.  It`s another dress that I could see being perfect for doing errands in or going out for coffee or lunch.  It`s even got pockets!  Erin had a bit of an obsession with the dress, starting here.  There`s a long list of posts where she`s shown this dress.  I`d be hard pressed to pick a favorite, which I`m taking as a sign that I should make this for myself.

And this concludes today`s Trio of Dresses.  If you`re ever in the market for some pretty dresses, you should definetly go check out the hundred dresses as A Dress A Day.  I know I`ve started a vintage pattern wish list!

Every Girl Needs a Cape

At least, I'm pretty sure I need a cape.  Welcome to A Coat Thing Part 2.   Today's coat, I'll admit, isn't technically a coat, but it definitely falls into that category.

Without further ado:

Coat Number 2:

New Look 6227

This pattern doesn't seem quiet as popular as Coat Number One from Friday.  I found one review on PatternReview.  However, just because it isn't popular doesn't mean it's not wonderful.  I mean really, go take a look at her View A.  That, is one gorgeous cape.

I'm a little torn between Views A and B.  But, like she said, do I really need more than one cape?  I could probably do View A in something lighter, light a trench-weight cotton and then View B in a mid-weight coating wool.  Then I have something for the warm days and the cool ones....

Still, not likely the most pressing thing I need for my wardrobe... but only if I'm thinking logically.  This might be the top of my list of Most Wanted Patterns right now...  (Dear Santa, ... )

Morality vs Legality

I'd like to prefix today's post by saying I'm not a lawyer.  I have no background in copyrite law (or any other type.), and that I've not done all of the research I'd like to do on this subject.

There seems to be some debate in the internet-sewing world as to the acceptable and legal use of store-bought patterns.  There are some people who firmly believe that any use of these patterns for anyone besides yourself, and especially for sale, is a violation of copyright.  And there is the opposite camp who is convinced that once you've bought the pattern you're free to make it for whoever you want, and charge whatever you want, from now until the end of time.  Naturally there are some camps in between: the Make-100-per-Pattern camp, and the Each-Customer-Buys-A-Copy camp, the With-Designer-Permission-Only camp.  There's probably almost as many versions of 'Acceptable Use' as there are people in the debate.  The argument that I find most interesting is that it is legal to sell things you make, but it is morally wrong.

I'm in the camp of if it is legal to do so, then there is no reason I shouldn't.  To start, don't confuse this with Because it is legal, it is not wrong.  That's a different debate.  What I'm saying is that as long as it is legal, I don't see why it would be morally wrong to sell something I make.

I think it is wrong (and illegal) to photocopy the pattern and sell that.  I think it's wrong to claim that the pattern is mine.  However, I believe it is my right to sell things which I make.  I am putting in my time, effort and knowledge.  There is skill involved in sewing, you can't just sit down one day and whip up a coat.  And I don't think I'm taking anything away from the pattern-maker by doing so.  People who are going to buy already sewn items are not as likely to buy a pattern.  And, when I'm selling things I've made it will involve posting pictures of items to the internet.  I would think, seeing well made items from a pattern would make other sewers more likely to buy the pattern.  I know I at least look around for some finished examples and pattern reviews before buying a pattern.

So, that's my view on the matter.  Don't sell someone else's pattern.  But if you want to make something to sell, store-bought patterns are free game.

P.S. Again, I haven't finished my research, and I'm not a lawyer.  I should not be quoted in a court of law.

Muslin-Block

Sometimes I don't like making muslins.  Sometimes I just want to sew a dress, and I want to do it NOW.  (There are other times when I enjoy making muslins and adjusting patterns).  Sometimes, this leads to rash decisions, and sometimes it leads to a stalemate.

Last time I wanted to sew something right away, I went with a sundress I had made before.  I made a couple small pattern changes, and cut this fabric.  Now, having started I realized that I made at least one mistake... I lengthened the bodice but I didn't lengthen the back piece.  I'm fairly sure that I can put a pleat in the front midriff piece that will balance the two out.

However, now I'm a little stuck in that project.  Rather than finishing it quickly, I've completely stalled out of fear for what else could go wrong.

On the other end of the spectrum, I've been working on muslins for the Portrait Blouse from Gertie's New Book For Better Sewing for quite a while now.  I've made one that was split-sized, between the shoulders, bust and hips.  Then I adjusted it, and did a kind of full bust adjustment and a narrow shoulder adjustment all in one, and moved the hips up a size.  Now I just need to make one more muslin to make sure that I haven't thrown anything out of line with these changes and I'll be able to move into real fabric.

Now, the other day, I wanted to sew.  But I didn't want to make another muslin.  That's all I'd been sewing recently and I really wanted to sew something I could wear right way.   But, I also didn't want to sew the dress, because that means I might discover a mistake that I can't fix.  Worst case scenario, I will have a fairly nice A-line skirt if I've made an irreparable mistake, but that's not always a comfort.

I think I'll just have to buckle down on my next day off and sew the last muslin.  Once I've gotten past that, I think I should be able to make a Portrait Blouse pretty quickly.  And my next project from the book is likely to be the A-line skirt, which won't require a muslin.  (Yay!)

Your thoughts on Seam Finishes?

I must admit that I never used to finish my seams.  At all.  If it was an especially fray-friendly fabric I would pink the seam allowances, but usually at the end so I would have awkward gaps as I got close to intersecting seams.

With Kasia, and the (supposedly) quick-y project I'm working on right now, I've been finishing seams.  With Kasia, I used bias tape to make bound seam allowances.  I'll admit though, that I did some of them at the end, so I need to finish the bias tape by hand, which I haven't done yet.

The dress I'm working on now will be a combination of bias binding and french seams.

I haven't give it much though before.  But, I've traditionally only sewn semi-formal wear and almost universally under an absurd deadline (like, I need to wear the dress the next evening...).  In cases like that, I simply don't have time to finish the seams like I should.  But now that I'm sewing for long term wear, I think that it's worth the extra time to make the garment look that much better, and last longer.

Do you finish your seams?  What method do you use, and how do you decide?

A Tailor's Ham

I've begun putting more care into the construction of my sewing, now that I'm sewing clothing that I'm hoping to wear on a day to day basis.  I finished the seams in my Kasia Skirt.  I'm actually pressing seams, not all of them yet, but as directed.  Before, I'd just finger press the spots that needed it to continue sewing.  So, I'm not the star pupil yet, but I am working on it.  And one thing I've discovered, is that its easier to do things properly with the proper tools.

Enter the Tailor's Ham.

It looks a little like a hat, before it's stuffed

I found this pattern at Tilly and the Buttons.  Its quick to print off and super easy to put together.  I will admit, I did have to take all the darts out and redo them because my points were off though.  After I fixed that, it was just a quick fill with shavings, stolen from Lindy Bunny, and we're off to the races.

I used leftover fabric from Kasia.  I'm really happy with it, it's working well.  My only problem is I don't know how to get all the dust off from when I was filling it...

Little Lindy Bunny

Gertie's New Book for Better Sewing

I have a secret.  I bought Gertie’s New Book for Better Sewing a couple weeks ago. 

 

I've been pouring over the pages, and it’s all pretty wonderful.  I was going to wait until I’d finished one of the projects to share my thoughts, but, I’m impatient and I can’t wait to share.

Gertie's New Blog for Better Sewing is pretty well known around the internet.  It's one of the blogs that I've gone back and read the entire archive of because its so full of useful information.  And her book is exactly the same.  You can see the sample pages she posted in a Flickr pool here.  

The main reason I wanted the book is for the patterns.  I'll admit, I usually find sewing manuals slightly disappointing.  That being said, I've found the technique section really useful.  Its been mentioned around the internet that she doesn't simplify this section.  I tend to agree.  There are some advanced techniques, especially I'd say, in the Tailoring section.  However, the instructions are still easy to follow.  I think this is the only sewing manual I've actually read cover to cover to date.

I'm pretty excited about the patterns.  The first one up is the Portrait Blouse. But I have to say, I think I'll be making almost all of them, either as printed or with a couple variations.  It has been mentioned that there are a few flaws in the patterns.  And some things visibly off in the outfit shots.  One I've heard is that the darts in the sheath dress don't line up.  While it does look a little off in the image, I'm going to hold off on my judgement on such things until I've tried the patterns in question.  At the moment, it could just be how the dress is sitting.  

P.S. I apologize for the late post.  We lost power for a while last night in a thunderstorm and I had some issues getting my internet back up and running... 

Kasia 6012 Reveal

The first piece of my new wardrobe, the Kasia 6012 Pencil Skirt is finished.  I'm not entirely satisfied with the fit, I'd make some changes if I were to make it again, but I'm happy enough with this one.  I used a black cotton blend as the main body and a leftover black satin for the yokes.  I had been planning to use a slightly heavier red crepe-back satin, but apparently I'd used that for something else.

Front View

I talked about the pattern changes I made in my earlier post.  I think that the fit I got was pretty good.  There is some extra room across the hips, but it gets fairly tight when I sit because there isn't much stretch in my fabric.  I think I'd peg in a little bit more at the hem if I make it again.  My last issue with the fit is the way the yokes puff out.  I think that if I'd used a heavier fabric, closer to the main fabric, I wouldn't have had this problem.

The only change I didn't talk about last time, because I forgot I wanted to do this until partway through, is that I converted the back slit.  I turned it into a kick pleat using this lovely tutorial from A Fashionable Stitch.  I made the pleat in the satin that I used for the yokes, thinking that it would peak out occasionally and have a nice contrast.  Unfortunately, using bias tape to finish the edges (because the satin frays like you wouldn't believe) left it a little out of shape and thick in the hem so it tends to just stay open.  However, I kick pleat is definitely something I'll be tackling again.

It's surprisingly hard to take mirror pics from behind... 

Thimbles

I was hoping to reveal my Kasia Pencil Skirt today, but I ran into a hiccup.  I don't sew by hand.  I've never liked sewing by hand and I don't think I've ever done it well.  However, when I was finishing the waistband, with the stitch in the ditch method, it warped out of shape.  I finished the seam with an extra two inches on the inside and none of the seams matching up.  So, I've unstitched it and am about half way through stitching by hand.

A cheap sewing-kit thimble, just like mine

Its going unusually well this time.  I won't say I love it, and I certainly won't claim to be making the tiny neat stitches my grandmother would make, but I don't hate it.  I think part of the reason is my thimble.  I tried using a thimble once before.  I wore it on my thumb, because that's what I used to push the needle through.  This time, after the most preliminary of internet searching, I learned that I should be wearing it on my middle finger.

And, those first stitches look like they were sewn by a blind toddler.  I found it really awkward.  But, now that I'm half way through the waist band, I'm sewing faster, and it's easier too.  I'm not going to pack up my sewing machine any time soon, but I'll certainly be less reluctant to finish things by hand now.

Maybe if I get one of the gorgeous metal thimbles like this one I'll start sewing everything by hand

Yep, I could see a lot of hand sewing with this... 

...

Making Your Own Dress Patterns by Adele P. Margolis

I thought today I’d offer you a review of one of the first pattern making books I got.  I’ve had Making Your Own Dress Patterns, by Adele P. Margolis since high school.  It’s aimed at the beginning pattern maker, and has introductions to the basic slopers, moving darts, adding fullness and general design adjustments.   

It works similar to an exercise book in a number of ways.  It provides cute little quarter size slopers and then instructs you on how to adjust them into a number of different styles. 

I love that the book teaches you how to adjust the sloper, rather than to draft certain styles.  I think that those are far more transferable skills and will be more useful in the end.  However, the book doesn't teach you how to draft a sloper for yourself.  The book tells you that many pattern companies have sloper patterns and they can be called a “foundation pattern, master pattern try-on pattern, shell pattern, basic-fitting pattern, ect” (p. 18) and explains that these can be used to make new patterns in the standard sizes.  She also says that many home sewers like to use personalized slopers.  But, creating these is never discussed.   The book states a few times through it that it is aimed for the pattern-making audience, not a sewing audience.  I think this is likely the reason that drafting a sloper has been left out...

Ooo! I divided darts :)

The book is full of useful information.  However, it can also be very repetitive at times.  Because of its workbook nature, the book instructions you through many versions of essentialy the same procedure.  For example, there are five examples of moving darts in the bodice.  Each example follows the same process but move the dart to a different end location.  This is an excellent way to make sure you’re comfortable with the process, but it can also be a little tiresome to read through. 

There is also a very large section in the second half of the book which outlines the changes required for a huge number of different styles.  These are mostly changes that I think many would be able to figure out, based on the techniques in the first section of the book.  However, the guidelines can be very helpful for a novice or uncertain pattern drafter.  I also find that the dozens of example drawings can be a good place to look for inspiration.  There are probably dozens of dozens of illustrations through the book.

Overall, I think this is a wonderful book for a very new pattern maker, or for a young sewer.

P.S. No one can judge you for making little paper patterns for all of your dresses... It’s oddly therapeutic to play with little paper slopers.  And I’m sure I’m developing useful skills! Not that I waste embarrassing amounts of time with this or anything... 

A Pencil Skirt

The hotel where I work has undergone a change of ownership.  This has come with a promotion, a ton more hours, and the need to dress more professionally.  I have a very small professional wardrobe, so I've tried to buckle down and get to building one.  And the shirt dress has moved to the back burner for a little bit.  I'm honestly not sure if this is a bad thing, or blessing in disguise.

I've discovered that there are actually a lot of different sources on the internet for free patterns.  I plan to do another post about those soon.  In the mean time, here is one I've found: Kasia 6012 by BurdaStyle.  First of all, it's a free download.  I can't possibly argue with that.  Second, the super cute hip yokes will let me sneak in a little bit of colour into the black and white dress code.

At the moment I'm working on the muslin.  After two constructions and 4 or 5 rounds of marking it up, I think I've got it.   I'll start by saying I had lovely pictures to go with this posts, and when I came to write I discovered my camera has eaten them... And of course, I'd just finished taking the muslin apart.

I had to size up a bit based on my hip measurement and I knew from the chart I wanted to add about an inch in length.  So, I traced the pattern and made those two changes before making my first muslin.

When I was adding hip width, I noticed that the pattern didn't seem to have any real shaping for the waist.  I couldn't find any hip point, nor did the pattern appear to narrow.  You can see what I mean in their pattern diagrams here.  I decided to trust the pattern and assume it was built in somewhere and I just couldn't see it.

It turns out, trusting the pattern was the wrong call.  I came out with a muslin that fit fairly well around my hips, but had a solid 6" extra fabric at the waist.  Knowing the difference between my waist and hip measurement, that means there is some shaping.  However, even if I hadn't added width for the hip I don't think it would have been enough.  The other issue I had was the that distance between the waist and the hip (which I found by looking at where the yokes fell) was about an inch too long.

I pinned both of these issues out.  I took the inch vertically in the front pieces and back as well as both yokes.  For the width, I determined a hip point and then took from the two side seams and center back, fading to nothing at the hip.

This time it was a lot closer.  Now that it was sitting properly at my waist, it was pretty easy to see I needed to take out a little bit more.  I pinch out another two inches along the side and back seems and am now pretty happy with the fit.  I didn't bother adjusting the waistband for the last time.  Having taken out some width on them before, creating an awkward seem allowance down the center, I knew that taking any more wouldn't really work.

I can barely tell which line I want to use... 

So, I do need to draft the waistband but that's a lot easier to do on paper in my opinion.  I also want to trace out my final muslin-pattern.  I know a lot of people just use their muslin pieces, and I think I would usually as well.  My issues is that there are a few tucks and bumps in the pieces from how I took them in.  Generally I think the final muslin doesn't have all of those.  But, since I didn't cut new ones, just refashioned the first, it's unnecessarily mucked up.