The continuing story

Continued from HeidiAphrodite.

A list of recent fabric yardage and the project into which said yardage will be sewn, links to be added later.

2.625 yds of fine-wale red corduroy. It was going to be a skirt for me, but then I decided that I'd rather have a nice wool suiting skirt instead. I'm tossing around the idea of lengthening View A of this pattern to something at least mid-calf, if not longer. So I'll need to head to Hancock and get a couple of yards of their red wool while I still can. As of yesterday, I think I'll use the corduroy for skirts for my mom and sister, or just a dress for my sister. She's not as tall as me--there should be plenty for a simple dress.

4 yds of that pretty rose-colored damask I posted about earlier, to be made into the 3/4 sleeve version of this.

4 yds of cream cotton with a very pretty brown filigree butterfly print on it, to be made into this, except with sleeves. I'll be using the cummerbund effect of View B on View A, and finding an appropriate sleeve.

3.5 yds of red flannel-backed satin for pajamas for Laresa.

1.5 yds of pink flannel-backed satin with a cute penguin print for pajama pants for me.

3.5 yds of sky blue cotton with snowflakes and sparkles for pajamas for Bethani (I just need the style, Bethani!). I have a couple of surprises in mind for this project and I'm excited about it!

4 yds (maybe 3? I don't rightly remember) of that pretty sea-green wool I talked about in an earlier post somewhere that will become a skirt for mom and a dress for me, even if I have to buy another yard just to guarantee I have enough. The skirt will match the 4 or so yards of green and blue flowered silk I bought a few months ago, which will be made into a top to match said skirt.

2 yds of tan, rust, and sage green plaid wool from Pendleton Woolen Mills. I've had this for YEARS and I need to finally make a skirt out of it. I'm debating between bias cut or straight, but it will definitely be an A-line, possibly with pockets, and it will definitely be lined. I'm also definitely grateful the plaid is big, and therefore easier to match. Because Heaven forbid my plaids should be off by 1/8"! I'm serious.

I have a circle skirt of rust and brown plaid that I've been meaning to cut down into something a little more manageable. Probably another A-line or 1/4 circle skirt. It all depends on what works with what I have.

3 yds of a purple and ivory herringbone that was too pretty to pass up. It'll be a skirt, I just have to decide what pattern to use.

I have an awesome tapestry skirt that taught me, very painfully, to PRESHRINK before I sew! Now I wash pretty much everything (except stuff like acetate, polyester, and wool, but even then I'll usually give it a shot) before cutting it, because that beautiful tapestry skirt shrank on me and the only way to get it bigger is to cut off a few inches from the top and make it shorter. If that makes any sense. I'll have to move the zipper down and adjust to a shorter skirt that used to be almost ankle-length. I should have bought everything on the bolt because I've never found a prettier tapestry. *sigh* I still feel stupid about that one.

This week I also need to finish weaving in the yarn ends on Laresa's afghan and do some mending, including letting out some hems of supposed "long" pants that still aren't quite long enough. Silly Gap. Good thing they do deep hems.

Wish me luck--it's quite a goal to have all of this done next week!

The time has come...

I hate cutting things out. It's my least favorite part of sewing. In order to make the whole process less annoying, my dad built a wheeled platform for an old desk that is our cutting table. The platform puts it at a really good height, and allows a lot of storage space underneath. Last year on the day after Thanksgiving, I braved the crowds (even got up early!) and bought a large rotary cutting mat (30x60 inches) so that we no longer have to use two smaller ones butted together. I also now have two rotary cutters--a regular size and a small size--to make those tricky curves easier to deal with. I recently bought a soapstone marker after remembering that it's much better than chalk, disappearing ink, pencil, or transfer paper (although each one of those has its place and can be very useful for certain fabrics) and I've really enjoyed using it. I have a magnetic pin cushion, my ninja scissors (the earlier version of the pair I linked to), pattern weights, a wall-mounted TV, a DVD player, a stereo, a nicely climate-controlled room with easy access to snacks (the storage room) and company (the family room).

And yet I still have a hard time getting motivated to cut anything out. Once it's on the table and I know how I'm laying out the pattern, I'm very quick at it. I learned some shortcuts (cutting little slashes in the seam allowance instead of cutting out darts) that have made it even faster, but I still don't like the whole preparation bit of it.

Maybe this weekend, if I have a spare four hours, I will put in my new Fred and Ginger DVDs and force myself to stay in the sewing room until I've cut out at least two dresses and some pajamas. IF I have a spare four hours... *sigh*

A High-fiber Lunch

Thanks to Lisa, who made a really bad (and awesomely funny) pun when I told her I was going to the fabric store on my lunch break, I have title for my blog. Actually, I had to go to the fabric store because I have to reinforce the buttons on my pretty wool coat and I (GASP) don't have the right color of thread amongst my dozens of spools. I was pretty shocked. So I told Lisa with the magic of IM that I needed to go, and she said "Sounds like a healthy lunch full of fiber". It made me laugh.

I did come back with some fiber, and not just thread! I found a really pretty sea-greenish lightweight wool that would make a really pretty dress like unto this or this from Boden. For me or my mom. Or maybe both of us! I have just under 4 yards of 60" wide fabric, and that should be plenty for a simple little dress like that. What's surprising about finding that wool is that the wool selection around here has been absolutely dismal for the last few years with the exception of some nice coat-weight wool felts that I have no use for at this time. What's also surprising is that I got it for only $9.99 a yard. I did some quick calculating (initial cost divided by days worn) and realized that it would be a bargain to get a nice dress (or two) for $40. Now I just need to find a pattern or get really adventurous and "kitbash" a new pattern out of what I already have.

Next up, actually make the brown butterfly dress and the orange velveteen skirt (prettier than it sounds, I assure you) and some pleated skirts (corduroy? wool? a magic blend of some kind?). And buy some long socks (or these! because look how cute!) to keep my little legs warm.

Greco-Roman wrestling

I am looking everywhere for an old Folkwear pattern called the "Gallenga Gown". I think it's number 507 and I really just want to LOOK at it to see if I want to use it for an event in December. Failing that, I need something really simple that will work with Fortuny-ish pleated fabric...which I will probably end up pleating and dyeing by hand, but which should look awesome if I can pull it off.

NaBloPoMo

Yes, I'm finally jumping on the wagon. At the very least, this will help me from being bored during the slow days at work!

I'll post on one of my blogs every day, and I can make no guarantees that the posts will be coherent, relevant, or worth reading, but there you go. Maybe I can use this to do some personal history and creative writing, which would be great.

And this officially counts as my first post of November!

Geometry is our friend!

This is what I doodled at work while trying to figure out how to make a skirt without sewing more than two feet out of a piece of fabric that is roughly 60" by 72".

I am, apparently, a slacker

But I will tell you that I have spent a lot of time this summer pruning and organizing "my" sewing room and it has been no easy task, let me tell you! That sort of explains why I'm not sewing, but not entirely. The entire explanation (besides the lack of a satellite receiver in the sewing room making it hard to sew because I like background noise that is not the radio) consists of two-part frustration.

Part 1: If I can find fabric I like, I can't find patterns I like. If I can find patterns I like, I can't find fabric I like.

Part 2: I've gained enough weight in the last few years that very few of my already-cut patterns fit me. This is a problem because I try to cut a pattern out as soon as I get it home so it's ready to go should I find fabric for it. This is also a problem because I've been the same size in patterns since I was 21 or so, which is over a decade of same-sizeness. I am serious here. Someone I know keeps trying to tell me "but you have a woman's body now" when I've had this "woman's body" since puberty ended round about age 23. (I was a late bloomer.) So, you see, I'm annoyed with myself for gaining JUST ENOUGH weight to make sewing the patterns I've already cut very tricky, because I hate making alterations on myself. I'm also annoyed because it seems like whenever I start to settle into a good exercise routine (seeing as how I'm no longer working 9-hour days on my feet in retail), I hurt myself or get sick and can't exercise for a couple of weeks, which totally messes me up. It's not a LOT of weight, but it's enough that I look at patterns and get mad because I don't want to do the alterations it would take to get them to fit, nor do I want to buy them in the next size up (and many of them are out of print), nor do I want to make them in the size I should be and have them hang unwearably in my closet.

So you see my dilemma. I know it's only a number, but honestly. I've spent lots of money on patterns that are suddenly the wrong size and I hate every single extra pound. Hate it. My goal is to keep exercising steadily and, by Christmas, fit into the lace and (perfectly matched) plaid skirts I haven't been able to wear for two or three years. My orange taffeta dress will no longer be slightly too tight, and I'll be able to wear my blue plaid wool Eddie Bauer skirt without it cutting into my waist.

That is my goal. I have the feeling that once I can drop that weight, sewing won't be such an annoying chore.

Mail today!

Yay! My newest vintage patterns came today! I got them from Patternmania on Etsy and I love them. It's nice to have a new source for vintage patterns that isn't eBay...

I think I might make this slip out of a cotton batiste, with a little bit of stretch. Or not. I might just make it out of tricot and see if I can avoid the side zipper. I'm looking at View 2, just because it's cute and will work under full skirts and dresses. It will possibly be trimmed in pink. It calls for a "16 inch neck type zipper", and I have no idea what that could be. I'll probably use an invisible zipper.










I already have the fabric for this one--I bought over 4 yards of a beautiful robin's egg blue cotton sateen at JoAnn, because I didn't know how much I'd need yet. I'll be making View 1 and using some leftover off-white satin for the binding around the collar and sleeves and off-white mother-of-pearl buttons, and I may do something fun with the satin and my Wonder Under. Floral appliqués on the skirt or something. I figured I'd have enough extra to make at least one skirt, so I got a 7" zipper for that, not thinking that I'd need one for the side of this. I may have one in my stash, but if not, I know that the "ciel" zipper is a perfect match.

I'm getting excited about sewing again!

Already some resources, and the patterns I bought today.

Amy Butler fabrics are gorgeous, and speaking of gorgeous, check out Gorgeous Fabrics.

Pricey, but if you're looking for something unique and funky, these look like the places to go. Amy Butler's stuff is almost as good as the Liberty of London prints I can't stop googling.

Here are the patterns I bought today and Saturday:


Vogue 8211. I want to find a pretty floral canvas for this one, and line it in a stripe. I'll probably end up doing View C (on the far right) with long sleeves, but I'm not sure yet. I have to find fabric first.





Simplicity 3744. I like the lines and the cute front pockets, and would love to do it out of a pique print.












My sister Bethani once showed me a picture of a wedding dress she liked, and it was very similar to the short-sleeved view of this version of Grace Kelly's wedding gown. I'd been drooling over the pattern for a while and decided to just get it while they were less than $4.00. If she'll let me, I'd love to make her dress when the time comes!



Vogue 8028. Nothing much different from a pattern I've had for 10 or 15 years, but the black and white view has a certain 30s vibe that I couldn't resist.






Simplicity 3530. I love Project Runway, and I think it's great that Simplicity has picked up this contract. The black view (short sleeves with the lace trim) is very much like my current favorite tunic/shirt style. I'd do it without the lace and probably with a lower neckline. If I make a dress from this, I'd love it in a pink print on white, maybe in a voile or gauze.











Simplicity 4047. Speaking of Grace Kelly...I really liked the blouse and skirt on this and may be persuaded to make the swing jacket as well.










McCall's 5400. Someday, I will make my bombshell bathing suit, and the white top in the upper middle is perfect.








McCall's 5556. I love tunics and this one has some great details. I'm thinking a light-weight brocade or one of the "sari" fabrics on clearance at JoAnn right now.

Well, here I am!

After ranting about fabric stores and patterns and how neurotic I am about sewing, I decided it's time to have a sewing blog! At the very least, it will keep sewing in the front of my brain so maybe I'll be more motivated to actually do something with all the fabric I have laying around in my mother's sewing room.

I'll do a little intro, just for fun. I've been sewing since I was 7 or 8. My parents bought me a toy sewing machine for Christmas one year, and while I loved it, I quickly became bored with it and my mom began to teach me how to use the "big" sewing machine. My parents had gotten an old Viking at a school sewing machine sale and that's what I learned on. One day, I'll edit this post when I find the make and model. I made doll clothes and helped with mending--I remember making a skirt for my Barbies out of some navy blue cotton with little white flowers on it (leftover from the card-table tent Mom had made for us)...it didn't turn out quite the way I had hoped, but I learned a lot with that tiny bit of fabric. I got involved in 4H and made my first outfit when I was 10: pink pedal pushers and a pink top with a button placket. Nothing too complicated (elastic waist and many straight seams), but I learned buttons, buttonholes, patch pockets, and casings. I kept sewing Barbie clothes to match the many themes my sisters and I came up with in our play--"circus" was popular and I made tightrope outfits consisting of spaghetti-strap tops with little circle skirts attached and matching panties--and I also sewed clothes for our My Little Ponies, stuffed animals, and Cabbage Patch Kids.

I took a sewing class in 8th grade, and while I didn't learn very much, I made a blue stuffed walrus and started making clothes for a plush seal my best friend gave me for my birthday. I measured and cut holes for her little flippers and made matching bows that I would pin to her head, and I still have it all. I kept making dresses (with matching bows...) for myself and started to make things for my sisters. When my youngest sister was 9 and I was 16, I made her dress for the Fourth Grade Play. I can't even remember what the play was, but I remember her dress. It was a cobalt blue print on white with a white pinafore. The full sleeves had tucks on them and the pinafore had tiny little hems and it was the most beautiful dress on that stage. I think she still has it. I helped my mom make my sisters' dresses for high school orchestra and band, and I was put in charge of the design and color of the dresses for Concert Choir when I was a junior in high school. I made skirts and dresses all through junior high and high school and would wax creative with trim and buttons. I would haul the sewing machine into my room and spend most of Christmas Eve finishing dresses or jumpers or skirts for my sisters and spend hours trying to find the perfect fabric and pattern for each year.

I've always loved fabric and patterns and I've always drawn dresses. When I was in second grade and we got to decorate our big heart-shaped envelopes of butcher paper for Valentine's Day, I drew an 18th century couple on mine and got made fun of for drawing a girl "with a big bum". I tried over and over to explain that it was her DRESS, because I somehow knew that without knowing much about historic clothing, but I finally gave up. Little did I know that that incident would be a portent of doom for the future--I still find myself explaining aspects of clothing that most people don't believe, but I can back myself up. I started researching the history, psychology, and sociology of clothing when I was 12 because of an art project. We had to choose a picture out of any book in the library, reproduce it, and write up a little report about our subject. My friend Karen had found Doreen Yarwood's Encyclopedia of World Costume and we both chose pictures from that book. After the project was done, I went back to the library, checked the book out, and read it cover-to-cover at least twice before junior high ended. It was shortly after that I discovered the clothing section at the public library and devoured everything I could get my hands on.

Sewing has always come easily to me and I remember my mom saying that she couldn't teach me anymore because I knew more than her. I don't remember how I learned, but I did. It's a gift, I think, because I only took two formal sewing classes and didn't learn much (besides shortcuts) I didn't already know. It's just always been there. I have things in my closet that surprise me --I can hardly believe I came up with them and made them. I had a job at a fabric store from 1995-1997 and learned quite a bit there, and I worked for Nancy Barrus as her assistant for a few months in 2002 and learned more in that short time than any sewing class had ever taught me.

So, with all of that behind me, I'm easily frustrated in fabric stores because if I can find fabric I like, I can't find patterns I like and vice versa. I am thinking about playing with fabric stamps and resist dyeing techniques to get what I'm looking for, but I'm also always on the lookout for awesome fabric online. I just got back from my second trip to JoAnn and Hancock this weekend, another $45 poorer but rich in new patterns and inspiration and motivation. We'll see what happens!