tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89867731534018596252024-03-12T20:40:05.876-05:00:: clevergirl.org ::a sewing blog. mostly.Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.comBlogger227125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-27583372017178328972013-03-19T11:08:00.000-05:002013-03-19T11:08:25.759-05:00230. P.S.This blog was put to bed nearly 3 months ago, and some 100 or so folks just started following it via Bloglovin' in the last week. Looks like maybe some of you are still interested in staying in touch via a blog! Please feel free to check out my new adventure in social media, over at <a href="http://tangerinetrees.org/">TangerineTrees.org</a>. There's a button on that blog to follow it, if you like! I'm updating a few times a week at the moment.<br />
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Thanks for wanting to stay connected. I am still figuring out how I can exist with sanity in both the online and offline words. :)Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-1383090334630063092012-12-31T21:29:00.002-06:002012-12-31T21:29:45.112-06:00229. The End :)My dear ladies, and the occasional gentleman:<br />
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The time has come for me to officially bid this blog adieu. When I first committed to blogging, I'd also just started sewing, and bringing those two things together was so exciting and fresh. I loved the new friends and the new adventures! Over time, I met some of you offline, found myself sewing and socializing more IRL than online, and that pendulum never really took a swing back the other direction.<br />
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Although sewing is now simply part of my identity, and I still sew quite a bit, there are so many other big pieces of my life that fall outside of sewing and making clothes that never felt like they had a place on this blog.<br />
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So, as we close the year, it feels like the right time for me to definitively close my commitment to clevergirl.org. I'll probably hang onto the domain name and keep the blog archived here on Blogger, but I don't plan to add new content to it in the future. It's possible that I will have another blog in the future, but it will be more reflective of my entire life and identity now, not just the sewing. I'll let you know.<br />
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In the meantime, I have so enjoyed getting to know you, and will keep visiting your blogs from time to time. I hope that you will stay connected in any way that feels right for you:<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/phthooey/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a><br />
<a href="http://instagram.com/phthooey" target="_blank">Instagram</a><br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22676897@N02/" target="_blank">Flickr</a><br />
<a href="https://twitter.com/phthooey" target="_blank">Twitter</a> (waning profile... not sure I will keep this up forever, either)<br />
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It's been a fun ride! Thank you so much for reading, commenting, and always being willing to lend a sister a helping hand. I wish you all the best in 2013 and ever after! Happy New Year!!!<br />
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xo<br />
AntoinetteAntoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-37931756618917697062012-09-09T12:01:00.002-05:002012-09-09T12:01:55.725-05:00228. NYC in August, Drama with a Capital "D", and Two New DressesI was lucky to take a quick trip to NYC with <a href="http://vacuumingthelawn.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Kyle</a> last month! Wore a new dress I haven't shared with you, and picked up some fabric from Mood and made a new maxi dress after I got home. More on that later. This post will be photo heavy, word light, after the jump:<br />
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I was supposed to fly to Newark on Friday (Aug 10), but after I'd made it to Baltimore, the second leg of my trip was cancelled. I am always impressed by service dogs, but particularly when they help navigate airports. And how this one waited patiently as new plans were made, over hours of delay. Service dogs are so smart and so well-behaved:<br />
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The earliest flight Southwest could offer me was on SUNDAY, which means I'd have missed the whole NYC weekend. So I accepted a voucher and booked a train to Princeton instead:<br />
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Loved Amtrak -- remarkably on time, comfortable, free wi-fi! All good. Also, the train is apparently a place where people are comfortable being very casual, standing on the seats to access their bags, with their rear ends up for public scrutiny:<br />
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When I got to Princeton, Kyle picked me up from the train station. We grabbed a Princeton shirt for my husband, picked up a pizza for dinner, and then Kyle totally surprised me with an early birthday cake:<br />
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So sweet! And some really sweet gifts, including a box of Cynthia Rowley Band-Aids!<br />
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The next day, Saturday, was Male Pattern Boldness (MPB) Day in NYC, so Kyle and I hustled into the city to participate! I've read Peter's blog before and found his writing style charming, and I was looking forward to meeting him and other sewing folks. We met up first at the FIT Museum, and as there was no photography allowed in the main exhibit, I've got nothing for you there. There were some beautiful garments, and interesting omissions. Across the street was the Barbie Pink student exhibit, where we saw some cool, compelling interpretations of Barbie and her impact on pop culture. This was one of my faves, a small diorama of Barbie being made up by an Army of mini-Barbies:<br />
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This was a life-size Barbie vanity:<br />
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And then we had lunch at Brown Cup, which had a wonderful selection of food, snacks, and tasty beverages. Here are Kyle and <a href="http://couturearts.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Claudine</a>:<br />
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And Nicole and <a href="http://sewqueer.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Mike</a>:<br />
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Nicole doesn't blog, but we had a nice time chatting about her exotic lifestyle with the foreign service. Mike was on North American holiday from Australia, and is just lovely to chat with. He has been working on a blazer that has turned out beautifully!<br />
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After lunch, Kyle and I broke away from the group because we'd put together a very short and deliberate list of fabric places we wanted to go. We had to knock this out! After, we'd meet up with the group after shopping time was over. We went to Pacific Trim, where I bought a $7 zipper (do you remember that line in Pulp Fiction where John Travolta says, "I gotta know what a $5 shake tastes like!"? Well, I had to know what a $7 zipper felt like, and it feels HEAVENLY!!!!!), and SIL Thread, where I bought Clover hat making templates I've known about for years but never seen in real life. Among other things, of course. I picked up a few standard black invisible zips and things like that. But the $7 zipper and hat template were the stars of that show:<br />
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At Mood, Kyle was running out of steam, so I felt for a moment like a Project Runway contestant, getting very clear about my purchasing priorities and fighting for space at the cutting table! LOL I ended up with luscious printed rayon knit, an exquisite men's shirting with woven windowpanes, and a lush, polka dotted cotton sateen:<br />
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Kyle suggested we get a drink and rest for a bit. It was on our way out of Mood that things got funky. I could tell something was up because the "flow" of the street had come to a stop. As we approached 7th Avenue, I could see lots of police cars and police officers. I took this photo without really knowing what I was photographing. I thought I'd add it to my "crazy things that happen when I visit NYC" catalog. <br />
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If you want to click through to the original photo, hosted on Flickr, you'll see that there are a bunch of officers aiming guns. I originally thought they had stopped the little blue car. Turns out they were trying to stop the man behind the car. When I realized this, I noticed the man had something in his hand, and told Kyle I thought he had a gun. She suggested we walk west on 38th again to get some distance. We saw the whole procession of officers and suspect move just past us down 7th Ave. Kyle pulled out her map to see if we could get around this craziness to grab a cold beverage, and BANGBANGBANGBANGBANGBANGBANGBANGBANGBANG. Kyle grabbed my arm, and we ran into Pacific Trim, and I sobbed for a few minutes, quite sure at least one person had just died half a block away from us, and Kyle very kindly comforted me.<br />
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Later I found out much more about what happened. If you Google "Darrius Kennedy" you can find out more, but unfortunately it seems most public discourse around this ended a few days after the incident. ANYWAY, to say the least, this was a difficult experience for me to shake off.<br />
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We made it back to Kinokuniya to meet the MPB group, share purchases, and say goodbye. Thank goodness they were all safe. I don't think I took another photo that afternoon. <a href="http://malepatternboldness.blogspot.com/2012/08/mpb-day-2012-fashion-fabric-fatalities.html" target="_blank">Peter's MPB Day wrap-up is here.</a><br />
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After rest and relaxation, on Sunday, Kyle and I had a whirlwind day taking a wonderful food tour in Greenwich Village, and then shopping at every NYC spot we'd ever wanted to shop. <br />
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Can I tell you first about the food tour? Sometime in February or March, I think, I got an email from a gal who'd seen the <a href="http://www.clevergirl.org/2012/01/216-happy-new-year-norma-envelope.html" target="_blank">Norma Envelope Clutch</a> on Pinterest. She emailed me to ask if I had any for sale, as she never intended to sew but would gladly purchase one. I don't do production sewing on any scale (boredom supreme!), and have no idea how I'd price something like this, so I offered to send it to her and chalk it up to karma. She told me that she worked for a food tour company in NYC, and if I were ever there, to contact her so she could hook me up with tickets. So I did, and she did!<br />
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Here's Amy from Foods of New York Tours, and me, before the tour began:<br />
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I never would have chosen a food tour without this opportunity. I'm so glad we did this, and I will probably take more food tours in the future! BTW that dress is a modified View B tunic from Butterick 5644. It's made with quilting cotton, and though I hated the stiffness at first, it has softened a lot and is a favored summer dress for me at the moment!<br />
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About the food tour -- they were accommodating about our vegetarian preferences, all the food they served was delicious, and they stuffed us full! No joke. We learned so much about food, labelling laws, history, and architecture. We met interesting people, some from near and some from far away (Australia!). I'm a food tour convert.<br />
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This is one of my favorite photos from the trip, of Kyle and me outside Milk & Cookies Bakery on the food tour:<br />
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That's the main image I'm trying to cement in my brain around this trip. :) Because if it weren't for one tragic incident, it would have been, overall, just a super-duper weekend. And mostly, it was.<br />
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After the food tour, I recommitted personal funds to improving the economy by running around to Purl Soho, Warby Parker, No. 6 Store, Uniqlo, and Christian Siriano's new store. And at the end of the day, Kyle headed back home and I headed to NJ for work. One last image from the trip -- we saw Edward Scissorhands on the subway!<br />
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<a href="http://vacuumingthelawn.blogspot.com/2012/08/male-pattern-boldness-day-clever-girl.html" target="_blank">Kyle's post about our NYC weekend is here, and she's got lots more cool pics.</a> Thanks for everything, Kyle! You are a wonderful friend and I'm glad I got to hang out with you at least once this year!<br />
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Upon my return home, I made that rayon lycra knit into a birthday dress for my actual birthday, and I'm glad I did, because my husband put together a "surprise open house" and I got to see a bunch more friends help me celebrate aging. Haha! The dress is from McCall 6069, which I made pretty much according to instructions two years ago. This time, I took that square-neck piece, rounded the neckline, and used it for both the front and back bodice. I just used long rectangles of the knit for the skirt. I wish I'd done more with the proportion of black versus the print -- something about this isn't quite right -- but I'm again surprised at how much I like wearing this dress anyway:<br />
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<br />Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-53660789747476227402012-08-14T05:15:00.000-05:002012-08-14T05:16:26.586-05:00You can also follow me on Bloglovin<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/821167/?claim=dnqpd2hb3hj">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-71467162113324475602012-08-05T13:44:00.000-05:002012-08-05T13:44:51.543-05:00227. Plus Quilt and How-To / TutorialMy last baby quilt of this baby season! Here is the front of the quilt, and after the jump I'll tell you more and give a quick how-to if you want to try to make a quilt block:<br />
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I made a couple of errors with the <a href="http://www.clevergirl.org/2012/04/218-pinterest-and-zigzag-crib-quilt.html" target="_blank">zig-zag quilt</a> and the <a href="http://www.clevergirl.org/2012/05/219-super-simple-baby-girl-quilt.html" target="_blank">simple baby quilt</a> that were driven more by procrastination than anything else. Determined not to make errors due to time / procrastination, I started this quilt a long, long time ago. I think I've taken about 4-5 months total with construction (as opposed to previous quilts, which I made in, oh, one weekend). I had to make it easy to sew a couple of quilt blocks here, in between projects, a couple there. <br />
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The concept of taking more time with this worked out beautifully, except then I encountered problems that could only happen *because* I was taking so long -- I would misplace fabric and end up buying another half-yard of something, and the colors would be slightly off because they were from different dye lots. Or I would buy two shades of green (kelly vs. hunter), decide which to use, then not pick it up for a month and be certain it was hunter green, until I'd sewn three quilt blocks, and then I'd go, dangit! Did I really mean to use kelly green? <br />
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I wanted to make a plus quilt. I started pinning all kinds of plus <a href="https://pinterest.com/phthooey/quiltz/" target="_blank">quilts over on Pinterest</a>, and when I read the tutorials, I felt dread fall over me like a rain cloud -- some people were laying what seemed like thousands of tiny fabric squares all over their floors, and arranging them into a field of pluses! Such a beautiful outcome, and such tedious, mind-numbing work. If I tried that approach over 5 months, I would lose track of so many things. Just not realistic for me.<br />
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I turned to Google and found a couple other methods. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Modern-Log-Cabin-Quilting-Patchwork/dp/030758657X/ref=sr_1_12?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1344172914&sr=1-12&keywords=modern+quilting" target="_blank">One is on the cover of this book</a>, and though I again love the outcome, it involves square AND rectangle piecing! No, thanks. <br />
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This gal, <a href="http://www.auntycookie.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/quilty-cross.pdf" target="_blank">Aunty Cookie, had the most make-sense method for quick measuring, sewing, and piecing</a>, but I still had to figure out exact dimensions. I love her quilt's charm. If I'd made it for myself, I might have eyeballed everything, too, and not measured. As it was to be a gift, I spent a few pages doing some calculations in my notebook to sort it all out. (So glad I paid attention in algebra and word problems in school. I knew that it would all pay off someday! :p)<br />
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Below is a how-to / tutorial in at-a-glance form. If you want to go through, one picture at a time, I created a <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22676897@N02/sets/72157630917217094/" target="_blank">plus quilt Flickr set here</a>.<br />
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Let's get on with the show! This quilt is composed of 12 blocks, arranged 3 blocks x 4 blocks, and the finished quilt measures 45" x 60". Each quilt block is 15" x 15". In retrospect, I would make each block an inch smaller, and I'll tell you why later. For now, though I'll give you what I've got.<br />
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If you wanted to make this using scraps, it is a great way to use up those extra 8 inches of fabric (selvage to selvage) remaining from a previous project. If not, here's what to get at the fabric store:<br />
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<b>SHOPPING LIST for the quilt top:</b> </div>
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<li>I used <b>four colors</b> for this quilt, and bought a <b>half yard of each</b>. I cut them into 3" strips after washing and drying. A half yard is a bit of overkill -- it takes less -- but I find that some fabric store cutters are incredibly inaccurate, and what looks like 1/2 yard when they cut is a lot less because of crooked cutting (both by the previous cutter and the one who's helping you). </li>
<li>I over bought the <b>white</b>, but if you were buying just to make this exact quilt, I'd suggest <b>1 1/2 yards</b>.</li>
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Each quilt block is composed of:<br />
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<li>One 11" x 11" fabric square ( Fabric A - this will be the color around the plus - in my case, white)</li>
<li>Two 3" x 11" contrasting fabric strips (Fabric B - this will be the fabric that is the plus)</li>
<li>Two 3" x 16" contrasting fabric strips (Fabric B again - this will also be part of the plus)</li>
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<b><i>Sew everything with the quilters' standard 1/4" seam allowance! </i></b></div>
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Take your Fabric A square, and sew an 11" strip of Fabric B on one side, and the other 11" strip of Fabric B to the opposite side. Press your seams open. It should look like this:</div>
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Now take one of the 16" strips and sew it on the adjacent (make) side of the square, and then sew the other 16" strip to the opposite side. Press your seams open. Your fabric square should now be bordered by the contrasting fabric on all sides, making a big square, like this:</div>
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If you want to square up at this point, you can. The square should measure 16" x 16".</div>
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Now take your ruler and rotary cutter, and cut this square in half, making two rectangles:</div>
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Then cut each rectangle in half to make two squares:</div>
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Now you'll play a bit of musical chairs with your pieces. I was kind of picky about directionality of seams, so I took each piece and swapped it with its diagonal dance partner, so after you mix things up, you should have this:</div>
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I sewed the top and bottom of each side of the plus together first (and then press those seams!):</div>
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And then I sewed the two halves together:</div>
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Ta-da! Giant plus quilt block is complete! Square up again, if you like. This time, you should have a 15.5" x 15.5" block.</div>
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Took me a few tries to lay out the 12 quilt blocks in a way that looked best, and then I sewed them all together to make the quilt top. I went to my favorite independent fabric store in Austin (<a href="http://www.commonthreadfabric.com/" target="_blank">The Common Thread</a>) to find fabric for the quilt back, and though it is a bit too matchy-matchy -- it was undeniably the very best choice for this quilt. It's from <a href="http://www.robertkaufman.com/fabrics/celebrate_seuss/" target="_blank">Robert Kaufman's Celebrate Seuss line</a>. Soft, but 44" wide before washing and drying! An issue since my quilt top measured 45" and I wasn't going to trim it. (If I make this quilt again, I will recalculate everything to make 14" or 13" quilt blocks, methinks.)</div>
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I bought a yard of grey cotton for binding, so I cut these, on-grain, into 3" strips. I pieced them together and sewed strips of them onto the quilt back to extend its size. <a href="http://www.made-by-rae.com/2010/10/rae-pretends-she-can-quilt-and-shares-a-quick-quilting-tutorial/" target="_blank">Made By Rae featured a "cheater quilt binding tutorial"</a> that I remembered and thought would come in handy right about now. I was right -- I did it, and I was SO HAPPY with the way it all came out!</div>
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A couple more notes from a non-quilter about making this quilt: I bought a package of curved quilting safety pins, and I probably used 35 of them to "pin-baste" before quilting. It was SO WORTH the time. Everything in the final product looked better. I also decided not to quilt in straight lines across the quilt -- I opted to sew the squares of white, which helped to reduce those stress lines that show up in my quilts often. Not sure if you can tell from the photos of the quilt back, but this idea turned out great. If and when I sew another quilt, I'll be looking for ways to quilt like this.</div>
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And with that, quilt season is OVER! Back to the Olympics.........</div>Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-59945404394502123102012-08-04T13:40:00.001-05:002012-08-04T13:40:58.127-05:00226. Maxi Dress Refashion and random musingsHere she is. What was once a plus-size cotton gauze muumuu is now a nearly-maxi dress for moi:<br />
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Sometimes, when you're challenge-driven, really great things manage to happen despite yourself. <br />
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When you're challenge-driven and you let that into your sewing room, things can quickly spiral out of control. Here's the evolution of this project from "no brainer quickie project" to "now I have to wear this no matter how bad it looks, because I spent so much time on it":<br />
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<li>This can make a cute maxi dress for me! (But the top yoke really eats into the length of the skirt. I'll unpick the bottom of the yoke so I can get maximum length. Half an hour and a ripped back bodice later...)</li>
<li>The a v-shaped yoke at the top doesn't leave a lot of choices for sizing down the bodice. So I'll add an all-black or all-white top! (Two days later, after scouring the fabric stash for appropriate weight white or black and coming up empty-handed for weight and drape...)</li>
<li>That will look dumb. I'll unpick the entire yoke and re-use that. Then I'll cut the raglan sleeves open and use one sleeve for each of the side bodices. (Three hours later....)</li>
<li>This looks iffy. And now I need to cut a matching yoke for the inside. (One hour later....)</li>
<li>When I pin the top and bottom together, the skirt is still a tad short, and the waistline falls too low. I'll add a 2-inch elastic waistband and sew each piece to it, separately. (A couple days of not finding 2-inch and settling for 1 1/2-inch elastic later....)</li>
<li>This will be quick and easy! (Three hours of fabric clumps getting stuck and sewn under the seams later....)</li>
<li>Let's throw it on the form and see what we've got. (OMG this looks so cuckoo. Those visible zigzag stitches on the elastic look so blah. The elastic is too loose. I don't know if I want to try it on. I might hate myself for how much time I spent on it, and how unremarkable it is.)</li>
<li>Post my shame on Instagram and admit I am afraid to try it on. (There is some support and love. Now I have to wear it.)</li>
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So today I am wearing it:<br />
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This is my birthday month. I tend to get very, very thoughtful about my clothing in the month before my birthday. I have already made a couple of trips to Goodwill to pass on things that don't fit, never fit well, I don't wear often, etc. And mostly, I think a lot about whether my clothes reflect that I am aging gracefully. So a mess of babydoll dresses and junior-cut clothing went to Goodwill.</div>
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This August also marks the 6-year anniversary of my first sewing class in garment construction, so I did end up parting with quite a few items of clothing that I made with my own hands. This was harder than I thought! There were just a bunch of tops where the armholes and sleeves are not comfy. Beyond repair. They had to go, and hopefully to someone whose body fits more comfortably into those clothes.</div>
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This also signals to me a pretty significant point in my sewing, where I have some good basic construction techniques under my belt, and it's time to learn some specialized skill that goes deeper in one particular area. Master something, as it were. Not sure what that is, and in Austin I'm not sure there is anyone with the expertise, interest, and time to teach someone like me to go deep into one skill, like armholes and sleeves (my sewing guru has moved out of state). So maybe it is time for me to go into the realm of sewing expos and sewing conferences. I've seen lots of ads for online classes, but I am very much a visual and experiential learner and prefer a hands-on, in-person, instructor-led classroom. </div>
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Do you have any feedback on the online classes for specialized skills? Have you been to the big sewing conferences and taken classes there? How did they go?</div>Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-89436986052207799882012-07-17T14:14:00.000-05:002012-07-17T14:14:11.046-05:00225. McCall's 6566 + Greyhound Tote + Fabric Place BasementA few small updates in one long blog post...<br />
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I've been bucking wardrobe tradition this summer and wearing more shorts than dresses. And I don't have enough voluminous tops to coordinate with short shorts, so I went to the fabric store Sunday to see what I could find. McCall's has released some... um... <i>unusual</i> top / shirt patterns recently, but M6566 was pretty basic. Boxy and shapeless, but not insane.<br />
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The shirt on the model looks like it's a raglan sleeve pattern, right? Wrong. Dolman sleeve. The lace is cut out to suggest it's part of a raglan top. I've always wanted to sew with lace. Over the years I've collected some interesting lace remnants to mess around with, so I had a few to choose from for this shirt. I picked a polyester lace, which may be bridal judging from the sheen, and which I am certain to never, ever purchase again. It had a scalloped border and I decided not to cut it off.<br />
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As for the body of the shirt, I picked through some fabric from the last fabric swap I attended, and there was a pretty, dusty pink, almost sheer rayon knit. I may have just seen Black Swan and had that (as my friend calls it) "naughty ballerina" idea in my head when I decided to take it home. Or, more likely, it was on the "about to go to Goodwill" table at the end of swap night and I couldn't resist its softness. I am very tactile!<br />
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I hadn't used it yet because it was so sheer, so with a lace overlay it would be perfect. There's nothing to say about construction -- so very easy and simple -- except that I did remove 1/2" from center back and another 1/2" from center front. The neckline is perfect: open and comfy but doesn't reveal bra strappage. It's great to wear with short shorts, but the cheap lace has snagged twice already! I have a couple RTW lace tops and they don't snag. I'm debating whether to sew another one. Maybe in a print.<br />
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Today I finished a tote bag for a male colleague / friend, as a thank-you gift. Brown fabric paint, freezer paper stenciled onto this hardy, unbleached natural canvas. (Does that description sound manly?) I'm sure my friend will appreciate the time and thought and effort that I put into this -- but secretly, I really really hope he will use it! My husband didn't seem hopeful, as it is still just a tad too feminine in his eyes. Ah, well.<br />
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The same friend for whom I made the bag tipped me off to <a href="http://www.fabricplacebasement.com/" target="_blank">Fabric Place Basement</a> when my son and I were in New England a few weeks ago. Awesome place and I was thrilled with its fabric selection. It's located about 30 minutes west of Boston, in Natick, and you can bet I drove my rental car there (twice) to get some yummy fabric goodies. From top to bottom, there's a bright cotton ikat; a yard of Liberty-wannabe floral cotton called London Calling; a fun-colored cotton plaid shirting; and a heavy woven polka dotted cotton:<br />
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Their swimwear knits feel just divine -- substantial and flexible and just really high quality compared to the swimwear knits in the big-box fabric stores in Austin. This one had a super-cool geometric print in fun colors with this black and white border print. I'm not sure I've ever seen a swimsuit with a border print, but I should Google that before I cut into this fabric:<br />
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And the rest of the haul is here, which includes a floral swimwear knit, 80's style rainbow elastic (Olivia Newton John much?), 1" wide cotton elastic for dyeing, and a USA patriotic heart appliqué:<br />
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I'm making plans for my newest fabric acquisitions, esp. since I will get to revisit NYC next month with my Jersey sewing homegirl, <a href="http://vacuumingthelawn.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Kyle</a>, and buy even more fabric! Mwah ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!!! (Greedy, fabric-hoarding laugh.) Mwah ha ha ha ha ha ha..... (deep breath) ha ha ha ha ha ha......Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-14715939037950794582012-07-08T08:40:00.000-05:002012-07-09T10:53:48.957-05:00224. McCall's 5391: Scalloped Hem "Resort" ShortsDid I mention that June was crazy busy? It was so crazy that I knew talking about it too much or thinking about it too long would freak me out. So in May, I kind of planned everything out as best I could and just went for it. Turns out I've lived to tell, and I sewed quite a few new things! Good times.<br />
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Some of my focused sewing mojo was inspired by a nice, long trip to New England that I planned for the end of June. It started out with work but ended with a week of fun. And what's more fun than a pair of scalloped hem shorts? (I think I saw a pair of green, scalloped hem shorts somewhere while online browsing -- don't remember where, or when, so there's no inspiration photo. Plus, when scallops seem to be everywhere, like <a href="http://sownbrooklyn.com/2012/05/23/the-40s-yard-slapdash-ensemble/" target="_blank">this adorable scalloped waist skirt at Sewn Brooklyn</a> and <a href="http://www.madalynne.com/abigale-dress" target="_blank">this precious scalloped crop top at Madalynne</a>, how can you deny them?)<br />
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I found this bright kelly green cotton / lycra twill in a remnant bin, thinking it would be reliable for a bag. After purchasing McCall's 5391, I thought I would push my luck and see if I could squeeze a pair of shorts out of the half yard remnant. After all, it was 58" wide, right?<br />
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My approach to the whole project was experimental, so I cut corners for time whenever possible. Not usual for me, but June was not a usual month, either. I spent much more time fretting over the width of the scallops than I did interfacing or finishing. Translation: I skipped interfacing the scallops and most finishing techniques. <br />
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I've sewn one other zip fly, from a Simplicity shorts pattern, and it was a different experience entirely. The Simplicity shorts instructions were great, and I remember them addressing options for finishing the pieces of the fly. The McCall's instructions were puzzling, the illustrations were confusing, and I honestly think the pattern's topstitch line was off by a good quarter inch. But, I was not in detail mode, so I winged it (and the fly topstitching is charmingly janky, which is not noticeable for anyone choosing not to stare at my crotch, which I assume is <i><b>everybody</b></i>).<br />
<a href="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7524727070_9ec91d56e9_b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7524727070_9ec91d56e9_b.jpg" width="400" /></a>Not including the confusing zip fly and the self-imposed scallops, these shorts were really simple. I skimmed the reviews on PatternReview.com well after I'd sewn my shorts, and was surprised at how many people have made shorts from this pattern. At least one other reviewer had the same experience I did, of noticing that the waistband piece was a few inches shorter than it needed to be. Heads-up if you are considering this pattern. I didn't have enough fabric to cut another waistband, so I lengthened the waistband. Odd placement for a seam, along the front of the waistband (pictured in the collage above, middle photo), but again, this will not be noticeable to the casual observer as my shirt will always cover the waistband.<br />
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<a href="http://sewing.patternreview.com/cgi-bin/readreview.pl?readreview=1&reviewnum=77031" target="_blank">My full pattern review of McCall's 5391 is here</a>.<br />
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These shorts were the final piece in my "summer 2012 resort collection." Some updates on the other pieces, after wearing them for real:<br />
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<li>The <a href="http://www.clevergirl.org/2012/06/223-resort-dress-aka-hazel-hack-dress.html" target="_blank">Hazel Hack denim dress</a> was a touch too big at the over bust. One of my good friends is just a touch larger than me in that measurement, and when I showed her the picture of the dress, she gushed. I knew she had to have it. She styled it 3 ways within 30 minutes of receiving it, and emailed me photos to show its versatility, and all this confirmed she was the rightful owner of the dress. My Hazel Hack never saw New England. :)</li>
<li>The <a href="http://www.clevergirl.org/2012/06/222-simplicity-2059-lisette-resort-top.html" target="_blank">Lisette linen top</a> was a winner. Boxy, and easy over a swimsuit. Still coarse, but I know it will soften over time. The hunchback? Not an issue after folding it and stuffing it into my suitcase under the weight of other clothes. </li>
<li>The <a href="http://www.clevergirl.org/2012/05/220-my-first-hand-sewn-swimsuit-kwiksew.html" target="_blank">swimsuit</a> was perfect. It is so wonderful to swim and not constantly readjust an ill-fitting suit. I picked up two more cuts of swimsuit fabric while on vacation (more on that in a future post) and am considering another version of this KwikSew swimsuit. Also got a vintage swimsuit pattern from Ebay. With summer settling into Texas, there's still plenty of time to get the most from swimsuits before 2012 is over.</li>
</ul>Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-1603966129790927442012-06-15T12:16:00.002-05:002012-06-15T12:17:53.424-05:00223. "Resort" Dress, aka Hazel Hack DressHow is it that I'm drowning in work and still make time to sew? That's never happened before. Maybe my sewing mojo was blocked and all the work just hid that fact. Anyway, the recent swimsuit success seems to have really buoyed me, so here we are with another project, again with vacation in mind.<br />
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Does the bodice style look familiar? It mimics the new-ish (released in May, I think) <a href="http://www.colettepatterns.com/shop/hazel" target="_blank">Hazel pattern by Colette</a>. I'll make the story quick: <a href="http://www.colettepatterns.com/shop/hazel" target="_blank">Sarai from Colette Patterns made this dress in an embroidered fabric</a> and I LOVED the photos she posted on her blog. I got ready to boogie down to The Common Thread to make this pattern mine, but there were a couple hours yet before the shop opened. So I stayed busy reading pattern reviews on this gem. <a href="http://sewing.patternreview.com/review/pattern/75573" target="_blank">Someone who is on the petite end of the spectrum, very thin, AND wears a C-cup said the top of the dress, in size 0, was still too big for her</a>, and then I knew I would have to drape this one instead of buying the pattern.</div>
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I really like the seaming on the front bodice! Mine is close to the original, just made for my body:</div>
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<a href="http://www.clevergirl.org/2010/03/192-colette-patterns-macaron-dress.html" target="_blank">I made Macaron a couple years back</a>. The fit is OK. I wouldn't call it perfect. I bought <a href="http://www.colettepatterns.com/shop/rooibos" target="_blank">Rooibos</a> but you've never seen it on this blog because I can't figure out how to do a good SBA with three bust darts! In my world, there is no need for three bust darts. I could never get the top to look right on me. Beautiful pattern, though. So here we are with Hazel and I just couldn't bring myself to get the pattern and potentially be dumbfounded about how to fit it to me and end up with another pattern minus a dress. Figured I would start from scratch.</div>
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It really wasn't bad. I used leftovers from a thrifted bed sheet that I used to make a <a href="http://www.clevergirl.org/2010/07/201-world-needs-another-mociun-tie.html" target="_blank">Mociun knock-off</a> long ago to drape the bodice on the form. The fit was easy to drape and then alter so I went to fashion fabric quickly. I'm a collector of lightweight denim, and I had two small cuts of dark denim to use. I used one for the top and another for the skirt.</div>
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There were a couple of fussy bits, like that tiny bust dart. It just wants to be pointy! Messed with it on the muslin a while and have ended up with a curved dart. It's finally working for me but could still use fussing to get it perfect, if I want to get to that point (no pun intended):</div>
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And yes, I did flat-felled seams all around the bodice, no lining.</div>
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Still struggling with invisible zippers, getting everything aligned just so. The waistline seam looks pretty good, just a titch askew:</div>
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But at the top of the dress you can see that things were a quarter inch off:</div>
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As I mentioned, the dress is not lined, so the top is finished off with a bias facing -- two inch bias strips of denim, folded in half lengthwise and sewn to the right side of the garment, then turned to the inside and topstitched down. A bit bulky at the back but I'm not worried about it. Here's the "big picture" from the back:</div>
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My skirt is very different from Hazel's! Did you notice? I have not had great luck gathering denim, even lightweight stuff, so I went in a different direction with a half circle skirt. <a href="http://ficklesense.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-to-make-circle-skirt-full-34-12-14.html" target="_blank">This gal has a wonderful "cheat sheet" on pattern drafting the various kinds of circle skirts</a>. I just measured the bottom of the bodice (27 inches) and used that as my radius in the half circle skirt calculation. Everything was just perfect. I finished the bottom of the skirt with my handy-dandy 6mm rolled hem foot! Heaven!</div>
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In reality, on my body? I think my waist is actually 1/2" higher than Clementine's. I will need to adjust for this in the future. My husband keeps harping on me that the bodice is too big, but to me it has wearing ease. Just LOVE this half skirt. I've only ever done full circle skirts in the past but I think half circle is just right for me. I considered putting in welt pockets because I can't imagine everyday life without pockets! Didn't want to affect the drape so no pockets for this dress, I think. Love the 2" wide straps that cover my bra from the front and back.</div>
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My "resort collection" is coming together! ;)</div>Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-56285800951344798712012-06-12T22:57:00.003-05:002012-06-15T12:17:28.032-05:00222. Simplicity 2059 Lisette: "Resort" topA little joke with myself, this top being "resort wear". I'm actually taking some time off and away this summer, and when I consider what I should wear, I see practical appeal in designers' "resort" lines. We're going north, to where the water is warm but the air is cool, and I think I will get to wear some long sleeved shirts! What?!<br />
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You have no idea how exciting it is to me to wear long sleeves in summer. When we went to Scandinavia 6 years ago, I was in heaven wearing long sleeves, knee socks, jeans, etc. in June. It's kind of a big deal!<br />
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<a name='more'></a>I have a lot of these Lisette patterns, but this <a href="http://www.simplicity.com/p-6377-misses-sportswear.aspx" target="_blank">Simplicity 2059</a> is the first one I've sewn. And it was simple, as I'd hoped. I used a pinstriped linen and was surprised how fussy it was! It kept shifting under the pattern pieces, and even the rotary cutter, with a sharp, new blade, couldn't cut two layers of this fabric predictably in one pass. I doubted the entire time sewing that I'd cut the hem well, and even now I can't tell if the hem is droopier on the left or the right (the photo shows the right side lower than the left, but in real life the opposite appears true.) At one point, I thought maybe I accidentally bought burlap, this stuff was so coarse! Pretty sure it's a clear-cut case of heavyweight linen with maybe too much structure for this pattern. You'll see what I mean in a minute.<br />
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Without monkey business, I could have finished this cute little top in 3 hours or less. <i>"What monkey business?"</i> Funny you should ask....<br />
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<li>I thought it needed pockets. So I cut bias pockets so the stripes would be at a 45 degree angle from the rest of the shirt. One bright idea begets another...</li>
<li>I have this 6mm rolled hem foot. Seemed like a good idea to use it to finish the pockets. Only, since the pockets were cut on the bias, they stretched out along the bottom during this brilliant rolled hem process.</li>
<li>After deciding to pleat the bottoms of the pockets so they would resemble pockets one would find on clothing, I realized that I'd hemmed both pockets with stripes facing the same direction -- not opposite, as I'd planned.</li>
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At which point I found myself tossing about 4-letter-words in my head, and tossing the janky pockets into the remnant pile. And a good half hour from starting my pocket detour, I was back on track.</div>
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Oh, and there was another 30 minutes of monkey business with my serger! My good serger, not either of the two semi-working sergers I also own. I rarely serge -- normally french seam everything -- but with the princess seams in the back I decided to serge. Just a few seams in, a bottom looper thread kept breaking and I couldn't figure out why. Suddenly, I couldn't believe I denied french seams for this top. But I persisted, got the serger working again, and all was well.</div>
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After putting the whole top together, the bottom part of the back suddenly became ominously bulbous. Like maternity wear, but to accommodate a bump on your lower back. I mean, it's odd looking. I've decided I will give this top a trial run and see if sitting in a chair kind of smashes the bulbousness into submission. If not, I will try to give it a quick press flat with the iron and see if that will hold all day.</div>
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<i>Is that an alien from Prometheus protruding from your lower back or are you just happy to see me?</i></div>
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All this assumes I will get used to the fabric! As a parent, I've read all about that kid who is uncomfortable in their clothes all day -- yanking at necklines that feel too constricting, taking off shoes to adjust the seam of the socks along the toes, clawing at clothing tags. Did you read about that kid? I kind of have that kid. And I WAS THAT KID, totally. I am still that kid. This burlappy linen had better break in soon or I will have another garment ready to be made into a bag.</div>
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Wrote a <a href="http://sewing.patternreview.com/cgi-bin/readreview.pl?readreview=1&reviewnum=76280" target="_blank">review of Simplicity 2059 over at PatternReview.com</a> if you're interested....</div>Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-81391602038509652282012-06-11T22:20:00.001-05:002012-06-11T22:43:53.190-05:00221. Nearly-Perfect Travel Tote from Simplicity 4535<a href="http://www.clevergirl.org/2012/01/217-simplicity-2350-almost-perfect.html" target="_blank">I've mentioned before my quest to create the perfect carry-on travel bag</a>, after not being able to purchase one that fits my exacting needs. <a href="http://www.simplicity.com/p-2160-accessories.aspx" target="_blank">Simplicity 4535</a> is as close as I've come so far, and it's pretty close!<br />
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Most U.S. airlines define the maximum size carry-on as 35 linear inches. The dimensions of View D total 33 linear inches, so I went with this tote. It's bigger than it appears in the photo because the bag has 7 inches depth. And as always, it's those little customized pockets and other details that really make or break the bag.<br />
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The pattern instructions for View D stunk -- there were lots of references to following steps 3-5 for View C, or whatever -- but once you've made a few bags, the order of things just comes to you anyway. That's my code for "I didn't follow instructions much".<br />
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Here are some of the customization bits, as best I can recall given I sewed this a week ago now:<br />
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<li>I didn't interface the bag at all, because both self and lining are canvas, and because my last travel tote was interfaced and I hated it. I also used 2" wide cotton webbing for the straps, because that's how I like them!</li>
<li>I added a secret pocket on the back, just below the custom strap that secures the travel bag to my roller board handle.</li>
<li>The squared off zip top is something I copied from an Old Navy bag I saw recently. Didn't follow a tutorial, just improvised. The zip top covers most of the top, but not all, which makes it a little more versatile for pokey bits and odd-shaped bits and those times I don't want to mess with the contents of the bag to get everything to fit just so. You can also slide little bags of trail mix and other snacks in and out of the bag without having to zip open the top.</li>
<li>Also, the zip top hangs about 3" off each end of the bag. This means that, when the zipper is open, the zipper opening is roughly the same as the bag opening. No squeezing things into a huge bag through a small zippered opening.</li>
<li>There's a "key keeper" sewn into the lining, which is just a spring hook on a small piece of cotton webbing. When I leave the house, I tuck my keys in a safe place until I return home. Problem is that sometimes I don't remember where that safe place is! So I clip my house keys on the key keeper and forget about them until I walk back up to the front door, days later.</li>
<li>Inside, I used the pen pouch pocket that came with the pattern, and next to that I added a small sticky-note pocket cause I never leave home without the sticky notes. I also made one huge pocket piece for the other side and sectioned it off into one big catch-all pocket, and a slender boarding-pass-sized pocket. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22676897@N02/7356258780/in/photostream/" target="_blank">Here's a better photo of the inside than the lower-left blip in the collage above.</a></li>
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In the end, this is a bag that will get a lot of air time. The pockets are pretty much everything I need to support the flow of stuff I need to travel, and the size is just about right. I just got a new laptop and, in its entirely badass laptop sleeve (which I did not sew -- was a gift), it's a bit tall for the bag. The bag gives, ultimately, but I could have measured and added what I needed to the length of the bag. I'd also love to have known that the straps are just a touch short for me. I'd add a few inches to each strap next time (if there is a next time).</div>
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One thing I haven't solved is the traveling with a DSLR conundrum. Is it just me, or are traditional camera bags bulky and difficult to travel with? I have seen some tutorials on Pinterest for sewing your own carrier, which you can then drop from one bag to another, but we shall see where my sewing time is spent next.....</div>Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-13423289422111431932012-05-30T21:14:00.000-05:002012-05-30T21:18:33.709-05:00220. My first handmade swimsuit! KwikSew 3779Today was the perfect day for an adventure: a swimsuit-sewing kind of adventure! <a href="http://www.clevergirl.org/search?q=undies" target="_blank">I've sewn some undies</a>, and figured it couldn't be too much more difficult to sew a swimsuit. Good news is that I was right about that. :)<br />
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It took me at least 2 years to do this because...<br />
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<li>I'd spent so much on store-bought suits and felt that, even though they weren't the best fit and style for me, I wanted to feel I'd gotten my money's worth by wearing them more... </li>
<li>I couldn't find a great current pattern... </li>
<li>Of vintage swimsuit patterns, many of the styles I loved were made for woven fabrics, back in the days when you wore a swimsuit to lounge, not to swim...</li>
<li>Sometimes I have so many things I want to sew that I don't know where to begin! The swimsuit never made it to the top of the queue.</li>
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Why today? First pool party of the season! If that isn't motivation, I don't know what is!!!!</div>
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Everything, from cutting to sewing and finishing, took about 4 hours. I did follow the instructions almost to the letter, despite my many doubts. For instance, I was skeptical about that center front seam. My undies are always cut on the fold because center front seams are <i>the worst</i>. Since the lining is cut on the fold (without the center front seam), it's completely comfortable in that area, if you know what I mean. </div>
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I wasn't sure how much of a petite adjustment to make -- I usually take an inch each from waist and hip. Following my instinct, I took a half inch from the bust and another half inch from the waist. </div>
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There were no instructions for how to sew in modesty pads in the bust area, and I didn't feel like messing this up with my experimentation, so I skipped any enhancement up top. Honestly, esp. with the large print of the fabric, it's fine! And comfortable. Sometimes I sew garments with gathering under the bust and it gapes -- this pattern is incredibly forgiving and it doesn't look like I have too much fabric in the bust area (and there's room for more, you know, if there were more to put in there. You know).</div>
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Also wasn't sure how the rear coverage would be, just from eyeballing the flat pattern, but I went with it. It's perfect for me! Didn't spend one moment adjusting the bottom of this suit, even after rising from a seated position.</div>
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I used almost an entire package of 3/8" clear elastic, using it exactly as directed. And I have never, ever felt a better fit from a swimsuit in my entire life! This suit feels solid. That clear elastic seems to allow the suit to keep integrity. The fit is just perfect. I can't believe how much money I've spent on swimsuits all my life that mostly didn't fit well, and today, with four hours, free swimsuit fabric from a fabric swap, $5 of swimsuit lining from Joann's, and a $2 package of clear elastic, I have the best swimsuit ever!</div>
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Thank you, KwikSew! I'll be sewing this again in solid fabric, I think. And if the photos of me in the suit help anyone out there who's considering sewing this pattern, thank <a href="http://sewing.patternreview.com/cgi-bin/search.pl?ProfileID=3295&search=1" target="_blank">Leslie in Austin</a>, who reminded me once that the Sewing Sisterhood relies on this kind of full disclosure to make better decisions about how they spend their precious sewing time. I still hear Leslie's voice in my head when I'm tempted just to show you a swimsuit on a hanger. :p</div>
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<a href="http://sewing.patternreview.com/cgi-bin/readreview.pl?readreview=1&reviewnum=75837" target="_blank">Click here for my pattern review of KwikSew 3779</a>.Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-5945698521442960862012-05-25T11:32:00.001-05:002012-05-25T11:33:42.011-05:00219. Super-Simple Baby Girl QuiltStill alive, working like a crazed beast and loving every moment, and somehow still sewing. Oh, I remember: people around me still insist on having babies. As long as they invite me to a shower, I will shun the baby registry and head instead to the fabric store for quilt fabrics. This is for a baby girl, whose parents are doing a pink and brown, woodland creatures theme. I did get some owl / woodland fabric from Etsy for a separate blanket, but that didn't get finished in time! Luckily, the quilt did. Here it is, front:<br />
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And a collage of front and back (pink and white cotton gingham), with dogs:<br />
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The dog on left is ours; the dog on right was a 2-week foster dog, who was almost identical in size to our dog, but only 5 months old. I didn't ask the dogs to walk all over the quilt, but it must have been really cozy. :)<br />
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Can I say that the fabric store is the only place left in the world where I allow myself to feel judged? I swear, in asking the fabric cutter to help me decide between various colors for binding, I showed her the quilt top (which features five 8.5" x 10.5" colored rectangles), and she asked me, "Is that it?" I said, "This is the quilt top." And she said, "You aren't adding anything else"<br />
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No, I'm not adding anything else. I am not a professional quilter. I don't have a lot of "patience" for "precision" and "accuracy" and can't keep track of lots of little bits of fabric. At the fabric store, where you'd think the goal is for employees to show enthusiasm and support for their customers' projects, I felt a little deflated! Boo and hiss.<br />
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Well, the quilt is done and I was proud to offer it as our gift. Maybe I will choose another fabric store next time.Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-38177968298746122272012-04-01T17:57:00.000-05:002012-05-25T11:33:49.088-05:00218: Pinterest and the Zigzag Crib QuiltPinterest has grown up and gotten grown-up problems: there have been <a href="http://ddkportraits.com/2012/02/why-i-tearfully-deleted-my-pinterest-inspiration-boards/">rumblings about copyright and legal liability when pinning photos</a>, with ex-users saying Pinterest made it easy for us to casually and frequently pin other people's content, but covered itself by burying in its terms of use agreement a bunch of verbiage that users really ought to carefully clear copyright on the stuff they pin or they could be in big legal trouble (Pinterest recently updated their Terms of Use - but I haven't picked through it with a fine-toothed comb yet, so if you have a summary, feel free to lay it out there).<br />
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Before this serious stuff, the joke among Pinterest users was that it was the most beautiful, addictive time waster ever! And while I could see that, the best thing Pinterest has done for me is visually catalog all the things I want to TRY. And it surprises me how much I do end up trying! Among recipes, <a href="http://thetolerantvegan.com/2010/12/mexi-burger/">this vegan burger</a> is a winner every time, these <a href="http://onceamonthmom.com/skinny-monkey-cookies/">skinny monkey cookies</a> are popular among all our household members, and these <a href="http://vegandad.blogspot.com/2011/10/harvest-pies.html">harvest pies</a> we're the most effort I've ever put into one dish -- and I was glad about it every bite I took.<br />
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I've also tried some cool crafts I've found on Pinterest. When three good friends announced babies-in-the-making this spring and summer, I knew it was time to <a href="http://pinterest.com/phthooey/quiltz/">let the quiltspiration come</a>. I started pinning quilts that caught my eye, and a few motifs kept surfacing, like the zigzag quilt. I am not the most precise sewist, so piecing triangles was not in my future. I remembered seeing (not on Pinterest, ironically) a <a href="http://beesquarefabrics.blogspot.com/2009/03/how-to-make-zig-zag-quilt-without.html">great tutorial on zigzag quilts</a> built from strips sewn together, then cut into squares. The zigzag dream felt achievable! My friend Shannon was sure that her baby boy's room would be decorated in blues and browns, so I chose to do a few rows of blue and brown zigzags on a cream background for her baby's quilt.<br />
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I'm really fast behind the machine, but am probably slower than average with measuring, cutting, pressing, etc.
It took me an hour to press the prewashed fabric, cut the strips, sew them together, and cut the squares. It took about another hour to lay them out and assemble the quilt top. One more hour to figure out Plan B when I realized my fabric for the backing wasn't enough (used a cream-and-navy micro houndstooth print from the stash), quilt the top-batting-backing (only used horizontal stitches, about 5 inches apart), and sew on the binding.<br />
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Four hours for a finished crib quilt - finished size approx. 42" x 56" - is totally reasonable for me, and I have to credit my machine for much of that ease. The two things my little machine doesn't usually handle well are heavy fabrics and quilts, but the stars were with me on this quilt, and I hope they will be with me on the future quilts, too. There was so little squishing between the feed dogs it was like I was using a walking foot when I wasn't!<br />
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Don't call me a quilter yet, but I am encouraged by this experience and am going into the next two baby quilts with an open mind and <i>lots of visual inspiration</i>. ;)Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-684886733777540542012-01-15T16:09:00.000-06:002012-01-15T16:29:04.809-06:00217. Simplicity 2350 Almost-Perfect Travel Tote<br />
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I travel a bit for work, and since most of my trips are 3-4 days long, I do a pretty good job packing EVERYTHING in my 18" rollerbag and a shoulder bag (i.e. I almost never check luggage). My shoulder bag in recent years, which counts as a "personal item" per U.S. airline regulations, was a conference bag made of ballistic nylon. It was pretty basic/ ugly, and the polyester straps were so uncomfortable, but the size and functionality were pretty solid. The zipper broke about a year ago, and instead of making a copy, I sewed a replacement bag from <a href="http://www.simplicity.com/p-5258-bags-cynthia-rowley-collection.aspx" target="_blank">Simplicity 2350 / Cynthia Rowley</a>.<br />
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I'm pretty sure this pattern was not meant to make a critical piece of luggage for a frequent flyer, but that didn't stop me from wishing! Unfortunately, it started looking kind of sloppy after just a couple of trips. I used 1/2 yard 100% cotton canvas from IKEA (gifted from my good pal Stephanie) with some quilting fabric for lining and 100% cotton webbing for straps. I've been travelling with the bag for several months, making notes for the (hopefully) final travel bag in its next form.</div>
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The quilting fabric lining is completely interfaced with a heavy interfacing, but it's still not very stiff. Maybe I will line with canvas next time, weight be darned. I also insisted on a top zipper, for when the bag tips over on the plane so my gum and impressive collection of pens doesn't spill all over the floor. The heavy metal zipper does pull the top of the bag inward, though, adding to its semi-disheveled appearance. Maybe a nylon zip next time?<br />
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I spent a ton of time completely customizing the bag with a series of little pockets that make travel easier, each of which has a purposeful function and location. In the photos below, there's an outside pocket stitched from scraps on the front side, for my phone and earbuds; a wide outside pocket for the quart-sized bag of toiletries, easy to grab and throw in the plastic bin at security, which is underneath the custom strap that holds this tote more securely atop the rollerbag; and the metal zip top:<br />
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The inside pockets are, as my nephew would say, *BOMBEST*. The two pockets on the wide sides of the bag were included in the pattern (a flat pocket and a pleated triple pocket). On the skinny sides of the bag, I added one flat pocket for the ID & boarding pass during those critical seconds after you're waved through security and suddenly you're throwing your life into the plastic bin and praying you don't get radiation poisoning from the x-ray machine, and one zippered pocket for my house keys, which always seem to go missing from the time I leave home until I arrive back at my doorstep:<br />
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The perfect bag will probably include the perfect pockets from this bag and the shape and dimensions of the conference bag that wasn't so bad. I've got to get serious about sewing a jacket, though. Finally found a tweedy wool for that Chanel-style jacket I'd hoped to sew a long, long time ago. Yeah, <a href="http://chaneljacket.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">that Chanel jacket</a>.......</div>Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-24515735457651462522012-01-01T00:11:00.003-06:002012-05-25T11:34:02.136-05:00216. Happy New Year! Norma Envelope Clutch - free patternHappy New Year!!! New Year's Day is my favorite holiday! But how would you know or remember that, given my propensity toward semiannual blog updates? I plan to blog more frequently in 2012. I've missed sharing my sewing exploits, and I have talked myself out of posting some patterns and tutorials for silly reasons. This year, I'll just put it all out there and maybe it will be of use to someone, somewhere in the world, just when they need it.<br />
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First up in the new year is a free pattern and pseudo-tutorial (you'll see what I mean in a moment) for an envelope clutch. I was OBSESSED this summer with sewing pleather, and faux suede, and other new-to-me fabrics, and I was digging the envelope clutches all over street style blogs and Pinterest. I'm comfortable sewing clothes, so putting together a bag has never been a technical concern. But when it comes to bags, there are often curves and proportions that look better when they're planned, and not made up on the fly.<br />
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I drafted a pattern and sewed the first prototype for this envelope clutch in October, and when I took it out one evening, my friend Norma gushed. Norma has a very strong sense of personal style -- a way of looking appropriate and trendsetting and fashionable -- and I could not have been more surprised how much she liked the clutch! I had to make her one for her recent birthday, and name this in her honor. :)<br />
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<a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B3ieQgz4dU4WYWQ1ZWE0MzMtZTlhOC00NDc4LTk1YjUtYmY0YTYyNDZmMDQy">Download the Norma Envelope Clutch Pattern here.</a> And the brief pseudo-tutorial follows the jump.<br />
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You'll need:<br />
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<li>3/4 yard (27 inches) fabric for bag</li>
<li>3/4 yard (27 inches) fabric for lining</li>
<li>magnetic closures</li>
<li>approx. 40 inches piping (optional)</li>
<li><a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B3ieQgz4dU4WYWQ1ZWE0MzMtZTlhOC00NDc4LTk1YjUtYmY0YTYyNDZmMDQy" target="_blank">Norma Envelope Clutch Pattern</a>, printed and assembled, which will look like this if you can decipher the little matching code system I tried hard to remember from Burdastyle patterns of yore:</li>
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Use 3/8" seam allowance all around. The quickie directions / pseudo-tutorial for sewing together:<br />
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<li>Cut out bag piece and lining piece and mark notches for piping and magnets.</li>
<li>Sew one magnetic closure to the right side of the bag, as marked, and the other magnetic closure to the right side of the lining, as marked.</li>
<li>Baste piping to right side of bag fabric. You don't have to use piping but I think it looks cleaner and helps finesse little oopsies like fabric slippage, etc.</li>
<li>Place bag on top of lining, right sides together, and sew, leaving an opening along the bottom straight edge of the clutch.</li>
<li>Turn the clutch right side out, press, and sew the opening closed.</li>
<li>Fold the bottom of the clutch along the fold line (where the piping begins) and topstitch all around. The topstitching will be functional where it holds the sides of the clutch together, and decorative along the flap. Choose thread color accordingly. :)</li>
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You have no idea how many patterns and ideas I haven't shared on the web because I avoid technical writing and photography! But I can handle writing 6 steps, and scanning in my hand-drafted patterns. I hope that works for you if you plan to download the pattern and sew the clutch.</div>
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This finished clutch is a versatile size -- it can accommodate netbooks, small laptops, iPads, and thin letter-sized notebooks beautifully. I sewed a pocket into my prototype version, but never use it because everything I put in the pocket makes it bulky. The fabric I used is an upholstery faux suede, and most home dec fabrics come in 60"widths, which means not only can you probably find a right-sized remnant in 3/4 yard, but it might also be wide enough that you can make 4 of these clutches from one remnant! (Save the other three as birthday gifts for your friends and family?)</div>
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Although I'd imagined a nickel magnetic closure, all I found at my local fabric store was this Dritz Magnetic Sew-On Snap. The magnets are strong, and encased in this rubbery plastic. You actually sew in the little groove. It was easy, I didn't break any needles, and I really like how flat they lay on the clutch. All good!</div>
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That's all for now. I hope you are all enjoying a safe, beautiful, fresh new year! Welcome 2012!</div>
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<br /></div>Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com29tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-832508519026682302011-08-27T13:58:00.002-05:002011-08-27T14:03:41.730-05:00215. Simplicity 2187: Transition to Fall Romper<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I don't know if I've ever smiled a cheesier smile on camera. But I am happy about this romper. Sometimes there's a style bubbling among the like-minded. I bought Simplicity 2187 early this the month, and then <a href="http://glamspoon.typepad.com/glamspoon/2011/08/favorite-item-of-the-season-rompers.html">Tina blogged about rompers</a>, and then <a href="http://thelaststitch.blogspot.com/2011/08/reclaiming-jumpsuit.html">Johanna blogged about rompers</a>, and now mine is finally done.<br />
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The romper has been on my to-do list since last spring (2010) because I recognized a need for me to drag myself around the excruciatingly hot summers in something dressier-looking than a t-shirt and shorts, and something more lounge-able than the many dresses I already wear. Also, we usually go straight from summer into winter in Austin, so we can realistically expect another 2 months of summer (for example, today, August 27, we are supposed to reach 110 deg F / 44 deg C). I don't have what I consider "transition" clothing. If I redefine "transition clothing" from summer to fall for Austin, I'd say I still want to wear light single layers and simply change the color palette to something more suitable for fall/ winter. <br />
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I can stay in analysis paralysis forever with my sewing: <i>Do I draft the pattern myself or do I look for a RTW pattern and pray all the proportions will work for me?</i> Took me about 18 months to just get a pattern a go for it! <br />
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I bought a yard and a half of this lovely rayon challis from Pacific Fabrics in Everett, Washington, earlier this month when I was there for work. It behaved so well, almost as predictable as a cotton.<br />
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The pattern itself underwent some changes before I cut -- namely, I took about 2 inches from the width of the entire garment. I folded it all out in areas where gathering would happen, but I don't think it negatively affected the shape and drape of the garment at all. I also made the shorts length, not capri length. Wore it yesterday and it's just what I wanted.<br />
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I've never seen a pattern with pockets made like this. The pocket piece is meant to fold over itself to form the pocket bag! It's so dang smart. Have you ever made pockets like this? I'm betting that jeans are similar, only the pocket bag is made of thin cotton, not denim.<br />
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I am thinking about making one more romper before I turn my attention fully to winter clothes. If there is another one, it will have a different bodice: either a draped cowl in a knit, or maybe a crisp, tailored top half like a shirt. <br />
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And as a fun little random surprise, I am today's "Featured Member" on PatternReview.com. Kind of lit a fire under me to live up to this very arbitrary turn of events by making sure I photographed this romper, blogged it, and wrote a review of the pattern. So I will link to the pattern review when it's done. ;)<br />
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<br />Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-49405230328921461152011-08-14T23:56:00.002-05:002011-08-14T23:56:55.126-05:00214. Vogue 1179, and moreHere is a quick grab bag of updates, mostly related to my most recent trip, a super-short one to the Seattle area.<br />
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<b>1. This dress, <a href="http://voguepatterns.mccall.com/v1179-products-11087.php?page_id=854">Vogue 1179 DKNY</a></b><br />
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If this awful yellow-room-yellow-light-phone photo doesn't scare you off, you will make it through the rest of this post! I took this photo right after I checked into my hotel in Everett, WA -- because I'd already worn the dress several times, and knew if I didn't take a pic now it might be never given the rate picture taking is happening in my life!<br />
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It's made from this really yummy rayon-lycra knit that <a href="http://vacuumingthelawn.blogspot.com/">Kyle</a> gifted me about two years ago. I didn't mean to make an exact duplicate of the pattern envelope dress, but there was enough of this red in my stash and it feels really great! With only three pattern pieces, it came together quickly. I did end up cutting the cowl on the bias, even though I'm pretty sure instructions are to cut on the straight grain. I always cut woven cowls on the bias and wasn't sure if it would make a difference for a knit, but I didn't want to chance it.<br />
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With my birthday coming up, I'd begun obsessing about how many loose-fitting / empire or no defined waist / I might look like a small child kind of clothes I have made for myself. Do the clothes fit my age? After consulting a couple of new-to-me style books, I concluded that a good rule of thumb is to focus on a more defined waist. No more smocks. Unless they show some serious leg.<br />
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ANYWHO the point is that V1179 really doesn't fit that need for a defined waist -- but it does feel very grown-up without being fitted at all. Age-appropriate? Check. Moving on!<br />
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<b>2. Kinokuniya in Seattle's International District</b><br />
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I think sometimes I will move mountains to get to this Japanese bookstore. I squeezed in about 90 minutes to obsess there after work was done, before I flew home. I'd intended to purchase Drape Drape and Drape Drape 2, but it seems the yen and the dollar aren't getting along anymore, and I could not justify buying both. Then I couldn't choose between them. What a nut! So I ended up going through EVERY SINGLE CLOTHING SEWING BOOK in the store. And I unearthed this gem, which I am Very Excited about sewing from. Even though some of the clothes are not shaped and fitted, they have details that make them decidedly more grown-up than most of my dresses from the last 5 years of sewing:<br />
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A couple of blog readers from days gone by have commented that I should write a book on refashioning men's shirts. I am glad to report that there is already a lovely Japanese tome on the topic! Right here:<br />
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No, I did not buy it. :)<br />
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<b>3. <a href="http://pinterest.com/">Pinterest</a></b><br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/phthooey/">Here's where I am on Pinterest</a>, if you'd like to connect. Depending on who you ask, Pinterest is either sent from heaven or the work of the devil. I'm currently leaning toward sent from heaven, but it is easy to see how the hours can pass when we enter the Pinterest portal. I started using it to keep track of all the runway photos I am inspired by on Style.com, but in Seattle last week I was spending an hour before bed each night pinning attractive kid crafts. The projects are easy to find, and after I pin them on my virtual bulletin board I am inspired and reminded every time I log in. Because of this, I've actually DONE a couple of kid crafty projects I've wanted to try with Louis, like <a href="http://www.makeit-loveit.com/2010/05/making-gak.html">making Gak / slime</a> with the least toxic materials possible, and blowing ogre-sized bubbles:<br />
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The photo is in black and white so you don't see how dead our grass is. It is not so much embarrassing (the worst drought and heat in 60 years has done this with many lawns in our neighborhood) as it is just ugly. So I'm sparing you. Check out that bubble! (And excuse my talking mouth, not looking very graceful, HA!) <br />
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<a href="http://tatertotsandjello.blogspot.com/2010/08/summer-project-make-giant-bubbles.html">The instructions I followed</a> were really thorough but we customized a little:<br />
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<li>We halved the bubble recipe (there's only so long anyone wants to stay out in 107-degree heat)</li>
<li>We added more glycerin for lasting power in this dry heat</li>
<li>I bought 12" dowels instead of 24" and they were great</li>
<li>I screwed the eye screws directly into the dowels instead of predrilling first</li>
<li>I made three bubble wands with different sizes instead of just the size recommended in the tutorial. Actually, I made one as instructed, one at 3/4 the size, and one at 1/2 size -- and the two smaller ones were the best ones for us, giving plenty-impressive bubbles and not getting tangled nearly as much as the largest one</li>
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I'm pretty excited to work on a craft project for me this week: <a href="http://birdhousefamily.blogspot.com/2011/01/diy-terrarium.html">the succulent terrarium</a>. This one isn't mine, but it's my inspiration:<br />
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I've actually been sewing a decent bit this summer! So I'll try to post again later this week so I might have a chance of catching up. Have a great week!Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-17768560283716778752011-07-04T14:26:00.000-05:002011-07-04T14:26:00.830-05:00213. Dots and Bubbles for a Happy 4th!If you're celebrating, I'm wishing you a Happy 4th! I made a new dress for the occasion from Simplicity 2725 (<a href="http://sewing.patternreview.com/review/pattern/64935">my review on PatternReview.com is here</a>), using a cotton/ lycra woven:<br />
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In this shot, I'm blowing the bubble hem out of proportion. In its natural state the dress isn't this distorted at the bottom:<br />
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The white dots were like stars on a blue background. Didn't want the dress to get too literal with red and white stripes, so I wore the dress to the neighborhood parade this morning with red and white sneakers. Louis had the camera and took this photo randomly on our walk to the parade, which I think captures the natural movement and shape of the dress when I'm not posing for a picture -- and I like the natural movement and shape:<br />
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So let's talk about the fabric for a minute. It's Robert Kaufman, and printed on the selvage was proof that this fabric and I were meant to be:<br />
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Only, here I am, a month and change before the last birthday of my "mid-thirties", and I'm wondering about the girlish shape of the dress I just sewed, and the fabric named "LUCKY GIRL", and the name of this blog, CleverGirl. I may have a girlish figure but the fact is I'm so NOT a girl anymore! Even if I sew princess dresses that look like they're made for 7-year-olds. Ha! I seem to over-think my age, and whether or I'm dressing my age, every year as my birthday approaches. More to come on this topic, I'm sure......<br />
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Back to the July 4 bubble dress -- I bought this fabric last month at Metro Textiles in NYC (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!). I worked in NJ for a couple of days and flagged down Kyle from <a href="http://vacuumingthelawn.blogspot.com/">Vacuuming the Lawn</a>. I asked her if she wanted to make a day trip to NYC with me to shop in the Garment District. Not only did she accept, she also planned our transportation there and graciously invited me to stay with her after my work was done in NJ. SEWING SLUMBER PARTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!<br />
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Kind of. My first night there, Kyle showed me where all the blog magic behind Vacuuming the Lawn happens. You know, the nooks and crannies of our homes where we take in-progress photos, and finished garment photos, and oops-I-need-some-fitting-help photos. She also shared with me the many garments in her wardrobe that she has made, and it's a great collection!<br />
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During our ride into the city, I had butterflies. All my life I've loved the idea of NYC. I thought about going to college there, and I've visited White Plains and Syracuse before but never made it to the city. I have about a zillion impressions of NYC from as far back in my memory as Fame (<i>do teenagers dance and sing on cars in the street that are stuck in traffic?</i>), Beastie Boys videos (<i>no sleep til Brooklyn!</i>), Midnight Cowboy (<i>seedy!</i>) and Dog Day Afternoon (<i>transvestite love and tense hostage negotiations</i>) and endless episodes of Law & Order in all its incarnations. All I could feel were butterflies, like I was going to visit my childhood crush. For all intents and purposes, NYC kind of IS my childhood crush.<br />
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I couldn't help the touristy wonderment. We came out of Port Authority and the first thing I saw was this:<br />
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It was clear we'd arrived in the Garment District just a few blocks later:<br />
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Kyle had also done a bunch of information-gathering about where we wanted to go. Much of her research came from the excellent information at Meg's (of <a href="http://www.lindsaytsews.com/">Lindsay T Sews</a> fame) <a href="http://www.shopthegarmentdistrict.com/">Shop the Garment District</a>. I can't recommend this site enough for its reviews, maps, and list of stores with restrooms. ;)<br />
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One of our first stops was Mood:<br />
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Unlike big-box fabric stores in Austin, there was way more than one cutting table and lots of employees around to help. And SO MUCH FABRIC it boggled the mind. Interestingly, I brought a list of about 10 very specific items that I wanted to buy and didn't find most of it during my entire day of fabric shopping. But I did find a couple of great things that I'm excited about. More on that later.<br />
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It was interesting to see the many kinds of people employed at Mood. I got the sense that some of them were fabric people through and through. They weren't big on sewing but knew fabric like no one's business. A few had "fashion design student" vibes, and there were a couple of ladies who may have been budding stylists. I don't know anyone else who wears platform heels to a job where they climb ladders and are otherwise on their feet all day. The bouncer at the door was very solemn and stern, until Kyle and I took one too many photos at the entrance, at which point he HAD to crack a joke at our expense. At which point I INSISTED he join me in a photo:<br />
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We got to visit other shops that day, another highlight being Metro Textiles, where I picked up another couple of cuts of fabric. The proprietor, Kashi, is a rock star of some kind in the home sewing world. He's got a great personality and almost sold me a ton of silk brocade I really don't need and would probably never sew! Here are four of the five fabrics I purchased in NYC:<br />
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The top two are from Mood -- a printed cotton to make a top to wear under my black work suits, and a striped denim that might have a fun life as a new garment I have in mind. The bottom two are from Metro Textiles -- a stretch woven pixellated flower print, and the dotted fabric that became by July 4 dress. There is one more fabric, the creme de la creme, that I purchased at Mood. It has a special place in my sewing room. I'll show you when I have more direction on what it will be. Very special, this one....<br />
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Did I mention that Kyle and I got stuck in a hailstorm in the middle of our day in the big city?<br />
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I have a few more photos in my <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22676897@N02/sets/72157627115309210/">NYC Flickr set</a>, but <a href="http://vacuumingthelawn.blogspot.com/">Kyle did a much better job of documenting our trip, both in photos and in this great blog post</a>. Thanks for everything, Kyle! I had a really great time hanging out and exploring NYC's fabric stores with you. Goodbye, pretty city! See you soon, I hope.<br />
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Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-76381944970160146282011-06-06T10:24:00.075-05:002011-06-11T08:53:19.848-05:00212. Knock-off City: Cherry Print Knock-off DressOn the left is my latest summer dress, and on the right is the knock-off point:<br />
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But really, nothing is truly original, right? <br />
<a name='more'></a>I mean, the H&M dress was also probably "inspired by" another dress that came before, like maybe this <a href="http://vintagepatterns.wikia.com/wiki/Simplicity_7633">vintage Simplicity 7633</a>:<br />
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And it kinda looks like this Stylish Dress Book (1) cover dress, though which came first, the H&M dress or the Stylish Dress Book pattern (and in the end, does it really matter?):<br />
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Hard to see detail on that dress so here's the technical drawing, complete with an unintentional shadow:<br />
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I was stunned to see a dressy version of this dress at the thrift store for $11 -- from H&M:<br />
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I had to buy the thrift-store dress, not only because it was cute and inexpensive and a close-enough fit, but also because I had to knock it off! I didn't buy the vintage pattern (missed the auction for the pattern in my size). I didn't trace out the pattern from Stylish Dress Book. I knocked this H&M dress off. You might think that's the option of three that presents the most work, but for some reason it made me feel more confident, I guess because I tried on the H&M "muslin" and had a good idea of fit.<br />
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Last year <a href="http://vacuumingthelawn.blogspot.com/">Kyle</a> gave me a black cotton with all-over cherry print and border print, and this dress style was perfect for it:<br />
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My version has a piped neckline and a narrow gingham binding to finish it off. It's a little bulky and makes the neckline stand away from me a teensy bit, but overall I love to wear it. It was so simple to put together that I might crank out a couple more of these this summer!<br />
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I was going to take a picture of the new cherry print dress on Clementine, but it was incredibly small and tight and distorted on her. I'm not trying to start rumors, but I hear <i>she has been eating cheesecake like there's no tomorrow</i>. Either that, or my eating vegan for a year+ now means my measurements are now more than a tad smaller than Clem's. Gives me pause when I consider how useful she will be for my swimsuit-sewing adventure in the next few weeks.....<br />
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Up next is a new travel bag, and a pair of shorts, and hopefully a simple pair of pants, only a couple years after the pants sew-along I started up. I do meet my sewing commitments, give or take 5 years! ;)Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-13563501055760203842011-04-24T22:05:00.001-05:002011-04-24T22:07:03.507-05:00211. Easter + Earth Day Shirt from the remnant bin!Happy Easter! Happy Earth Day! And Happy Birthday to my boy, whose birthday overshadows everything within a 1-week vicinity:<br />
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There's something about a sewing challenge that I especially love. When I have enough fabric, when the pattern is a perfect fit out of the envelope, when the stars all shine down on a project, I kind of get bored. Sometimes I'm so bored I don't even start! Ridiculous. A few months back, I purchased a yard remnant of Alexander Henry cotton from the remnant bin at <a href="http://www.commonthreadfabric.com/">The Common Thread</a>, because it was really cute, and a few days later I found a half yard of gray cotton with white polka dots from the remnant bin at Hancock. Even though they were both quilting cottons, I knew they were destined to become one in the form of a shirt -- nee, a <i>statement shirt</i> -- somehow, from those two meager remnants.<br />
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It's basically Simplicity 4179, with a modified front placket, longer length, and no back darts. It's an Easter shirt because of the crazy hen/ rooster print, and an Earth Day shirt because it was made from the leftovers of two bolts of fabric (and vintage buttons from a recent estate sale button bag purchase -- score!). It's yet another article of clothing that kind of makes ME look like an 8-year-old, but hey. In another 10 years I will look insane wearing it, so for now, no sweat. ;)<br />
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BTW any ideas on why the top of the placket rolls forward? Is my interfacing for the collar too stiff? Is the interfacing on the front placket too floppy? Have a super week!Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-63289493665008950672011-03-11T10:18:00.001-06:002011-03-11T11:03:43.179-06:00210. One (major) pattern pieceHi, Blogland Buddies! It has been a while! I've missed you! :)<br />
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Since my last post, which was just before Christmas, I've worked extensively for two very cool new clients and other very cool current clients, seen the Austin school district undergo a massive budget crisis which resulted in the threat of my son's fantastic public school being closed, lost myself in the ensuing drama, pulled myself back out with the help of good friends, and finally gotten back to sewing and life in general.<br />
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After a 2-month hiatus from sewing, I jumped back in by skinnifying 2 pairs of jeans for family members and mending a pair of Louis' shorts. Easy stuff, projects to dip my toes back in the water. Then came Book Character Day at school. Louis wanted to be Curious George (again) so I made a (bigger than last year) monkey suit. I took a McCall's boys shirt pattern and pant pattern and traced around them both, matching at the waist and (as best I could) aligning along the grainlines. I've always appreciated those Simplicity Jiffy patterns from the 60's and 70's, with one main pattern piece, so I blended the front and back so that there was no side seam. Et voila! A one-piece pattern for a monkey suit:<br />
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I found a thin, medium-brown cotton twill from Hancock's and bought what was left -- about 1 1/2 yards. Not sure why I forgot my son has grown since last year and that I'd probably need more than that. I just eked out the main pattern piece, and nothing substantial was left for the hood. Back to Hancock's I went at the last minute, though they only had a dark brown. But when that's all you've got, that's what you get. BTW I have a new sewing injury to add to my repertoire: pulling the monkey tail inside out, I lost grip on the tail and banged my forearm on a closet door! At the time, I thought it would be a little knot, but it turned into a huge knot and awful-looking bruise. Much better now, a week later. I'm laughing that I didn't even take a picture of Louis in the suit when it was done. Oh well, he will wear it again and I can photograph it then.<br />
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It inspired me to take on a challenge that had been brewing in my head for a while: What if I could modify an existing pattern for myself so that I could eliminate side seams, and end up with a dress that has one primary seam (the opening to get in and out), and would only use a yard of fabric? Using an old self-drafted pattern, I rotated the bust dart from the side seam to the armhole. Drew new side seams to run perpendicular to the grainline, overlapped the front and back pieces at the side seams, and then traced around the whole thing:<br />
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I also drafted a coat collar from <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22676897@N02/3278852127/">this book</a> and put the simple dress together from a remnant of fine-wale corduroy, finishing off with purchased Wrights red piping and leftover black and white gingham from <a href="http://www.clevergirl.org/2008/10/vogue-1046-view-oh-i-need-help.html">this dress</a>. I kind of like this reverse ladybug dress and anticipate it will get lots of wear this spring and summer:<br />
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It already made its debut at the annual kite festival:<br />
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I look forward to easing back into Blogland, seeing what you've been up to. Thanks for sticking around and reading while life deals its bit and I roll with the punches.Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-80851972754150525522010-12-21T13:19:00.000-06:002010-12-21T13:19:00.314-06:00209. I Don't Craft! Christmas Edition.When I think about combining various related topics because I don't blog frequently, one thing I may have alluded to or outright mentioned a long time ago is that our household size has more than doubled with the addition of my sister and her two children! They are with us until June of next year. This means there are twice as many residents in the house and, somehow, four times as many presents under the Christmas tree!<br />
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It also means more indecision about the Christmas tree dilemma. Long ago we stopped buying fresh trees. Just didn't seem right to chop down a tree that we'd enjoy for 30 days. We had a fakey-fakey tree for a long time, but it got all bent out of shape and we tossed it a few years ago. One year we bought a rosemary tree and intended to plant it in the garden after the holidays, but I'm sad to say that somehow it died before January! This year I decided to make one.<br />
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Right after Thanksgiving, the hemming and hawing began over the tree. I brought all the Christmas stuff up from the garage, and I draped some Christmas fabric over Clementine. My sister twirled a string of lights around her. My husband saw the impromptu concoction and said, "You should make a tree that will use the dress form as a base." <br />
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I don't think this is exactly what he had in mind, but I suppose that's how inspiration works and develops in a collaboration. A princess seamed, strapless bodice connected to a tiered, floor-length gown. I really don't love crafting, to be honest! But this was a decent hybrid (who wears acrylic felt?) between crafting and garment sewing, and with the little time I spend behind my machine these days, that's OK. The best part is that I can see us using this tree forever and ever, as long as Carmen is with us to wear the thing.<br />
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The house is already full, but my parents will be here in two days to ensure that we are all way too busy! In case I don't get to post again before the weekend, MERRY CHRISTMAS to those of you celebrating! Stay safe and warm and in the company of those you love. :)Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-60067732819156957012010-11-29T18:31:00.000-06:002010-11-29T18:31:41.888-06:00208. Thanks + friends + a new refashionAnother set of related updates... Happy Belated Thanksgiving to all who celebrated last weekend! I am thankful for a great family. I am thankful for fall foods, which are my favorite from any season. I am thankful for the enduring handsome that is Kenneth Branagh, and it is clear many of you are, too (and if I can get my hands on those Swedish Wallander DVD's a couple of you mentioned, I will, but Netflix doesn't have them). I am thankful for my friends, both in real life and in Blogland. Super-thankful for this lady, <a href="http://vacuumingthelawn.blogspot.com/">Kyle</a>...:<br />
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... who, in late September, took a half day off work to drive to Philadelphia to pick me up from the airport, take me to Jomar, experience vegan cupcakes from <a href="http://viragobakingcompany.com/">Virago Baking Company</a> in Lansdale, and ultimately drop me off at my hotel in yet another town when the car rental company wouldn't rent me a car without my drivers license (which I'd lost at an airport and not replaced yet). Can we say "national drivers license database, please"?! Whatever - I first met Kyle in person less than two years ago and I think she's super-nifty. So, so glad we are both friends in Blogland and friends IRL. <a href="http://vacuumingthelawn.blogspot.com/2010/09/todays-sewing-surprise-plus-vegan.html">She blogged about our Septmber meeting in Philly here</a>.<br />
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Louis and I drove down to Houston last month to visit with another friend both in Blogland and IRL, <a href="http://www.sewer-sewist.com/">Sarah</a>. She was in Houston for Quilt Market, and Louis really wanted to stay in a hotel again. So we drove down after a birthday party that Saturday afternoon. Sarah had already been working a full few days and it was awesome that she was still ready to entertain. She raced Louis down the hall to her hotel room so she could change shoes and we could decide where to go for dinner. We quickly decided on Pepper Tree and it was such a fortuitous choice. I have found so few places to have vegan Chinese food and Pepper Tree is all vegetarian and vegan Chinese and Vietnamese food! By the end of the meal, Louis and Sarah were BFF's and I was simply the driver. Wish I'd gotten a better photo but all I had was my (older model) iPhone -- with the dim light and bad camera, I got a whole lot of blur! It's a distant second choice, but here's a photo of sculptures at a park Louis and I visited the next day:<br />
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A couple weeks after returning from Houston, I ended up moving my sewing stuff out of my sewing room and into my bedroom. Now, the truth is that it was probably a very, very good decision for many reasons. One is that my sewing room had become a dumping ground. I had no idea what I had anymore. It took me a good three days of going through everything, sorting, separating piles for Goodwill and an upcoming fabric swap, and finding new homes for everything I would keep. I uncovered a skirt that had been someone else's UFO. It was a simple straight skirt with an elastic waistband in a stiff, dressy cotton-poly blend pinstriped denim. I originally wanted to make myself a pair of cropped pants from it, but it was an inch shy in width for pants. So it had languished for ten months in a pile on the floor. Till now.<br />
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After tossing it on the form (the left-hand photo shows it pinned to Clementine as a too-large skirt) and then testing out a couple other configurations, the elastic waist pulled in the fabric enough that it looked like a feasible neckline. I was obsessed with <a href="http://www.clevergirl.org/2009/02/111-refashion-14-single-pleat-tunic.html">a single directional pleat at center front</a> so I pinned that in. At first it looked like a cape, but after I pinned back the fabric at the bottom of the "armhole" I could see a dress shape emerging:<br />
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I'm not entirely sure how to explain the rest. Made it up as I went along. I measured how big the pleats needed to be at center front and center back, took out the elastic, and decided I wanted a neckline yoke. Using what fabric? Believe it or not, a piece of denim I bought from my Jomar shopping trip with Kyle was a very close match, just without the pinstripes. Using some scrap muslin I draped the neckbands, making sure the finished neckline would be high and wide. I outlined the armhole plates on the form and cut them out, then dipped the neckline a tad lower in front than in back. <br />
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</div>A quick line of gathering stitches around the neckline made things more recognizable. After attaching the neckband, I put the work-in-progress on Clementine and suddenly those armholes were positively gaping. I decided to take in some of the width of the dress under the armholes to make them smaller and give a little more shape.<br />
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Because of the gathering around the neckline, some puff appeared at the shoulders, creating a sleeve all its own. I ended up binding the armholes so as not to enlarge them any further, and added some huge patch pockets. <br />
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Upon completing the dress, I was so proud of making a dress from a column of fabric. But the truth is that the dress often does look like a column of fabric with armholes! I think it's the fabric's inherent stiffness. After wearing the dress, I now know the pockets would be more functionally placed over the side seams. They are big, though. Big enough for my lip balm, my keys, my iPhone, a handful of discarded Jelly Belly jellybeans that Louis won't eat (like Buttered Popcorn, Cinnamon, and Licorice), and big enough to fit an entire <a href="http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/mall-pretzels/Detail.aspx">baked pretzel</a> or two, if I so desire:<br />
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And maybe that's worth flipping for.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5128/5219342308_6951ce66be_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5128/5219342308_6951ce66be_z.jpg" width="153" /></a></div>Antoinettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09398754886656482414noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8986773153401859625.post-82499186778187480372010-10-20T11:30:00.001-05:002010-10-20T14:08:59.556-05:00207. Zero WasteMy infrequent blogging creates a backlog of things I want to share with you, and then comes the task of grouping some of those things together into one post in an attempt to catch up. Zero waste seems like a good place to start.<br />
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I really, really dig the concept of zero waste! The idea that nothing is wasted while making something new is super-cool. Soy jersey is probably the softest and most luxurious fabric I've ever laid hands on, and it happens to make full use of the soy plant. (Technically I wouldn't say closed loop and zero waste are the same, but they both apply to soy fabric production.) Zero waste can apply to clothing design, too. <a href="http://www.stique.com/about.html">This gentleman</a> has certainly made waves in his pursuit of zero-waste fashion by <a href="http://www.ecouterre.com/what-is-zero-waste-fashion-and-why-does-it-matter/">designing zero-waste garments</a>, and <a href="http://francescawarren.com/">this lady</a> is refashioning straight from the fast fashion sale racks.<br />
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Appreciating zero waste means I have a few bags and piles of fabric scraps and remnants. My sewing room looks like a pit at the moment for lots of reasons (too much travel, not enough sewing, too many friends/ family members cleaning out their closets and forwarding perfectly usable castoffs, my deep love of a good challenge, I keep lots of scraps because I like zero waste), so I watched the entire first season of <a href="http://www.aetv.com/hoarders/index.jsp">Hoarders</a> and concluded that I'm messy, but not a hoarder.<br />
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I sewed a few bags, to get rid of some of the larger scraps and remnants. There is always a need for bags in my house, between the shopping and sewing meetups and hauling food to PTA meetings and my sister and niece, who are always ready to claim a new tote as soon as it rolls off the back of the presser foot! I'm happy to report that I had no emotional issues using the fabric and giving the bags away. The bag on the left was made with parts of khakis left over from the Austin Museum of Art khaki dress, the bag in the middle used a printed home dec remnant and the bottom of a bedskirt that my nephew didn't want, and the bag on the right was just scrap cotton print and scrap denim:<br />
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Then I turned to the pile of knit scraps. My 7-year-old needs long sleeved t-shirts. Correction: he needed them for the two weeks of fall-like weather we had last month, and since has lived in short sleeved tees and shorts in the lingering heat. But I bet he will need those long sleeved t-shirts at least by Christmas. So I snagged a stack of brand new t-shirts my dad gave me last summer -- some promotional t-shirts and some plain ol' men's cotton tees -- and using a pattern made from a traced tee in my son's drawer, cranked out a couple of new long sleeved shirts.<br />
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The first (all black tee) was a quick cut-up and small-izing of a men's long sleeved tee, keeping the ribbing at the neckline and wrists. The second tee was a little more challenging, because I used a black promo tee with a logo so prominent that I couldn't cut an entire new shirt front from the existing shirt front. So I grabbed some red knit from my scrap pile, leftover from a previous t-shirt project, and used it for the top of the new tee. And because the original tee had short sleeves, I used the red and some other black knit scraps to cobble together long sleeves. I didn't think I'd like the shirt while I was putting it together, but I kind of do now.<br />
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Totally unrelated to hoarding and the sad state of my sewing room, but related to my 15+ year crush on Kenneth Branagh and my love of all things Scandinavian, is the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallander_(British_TV_series)">PBS series Wallander</a>. All three of the new episodes have aired on PBS but they are available to watch online till mid-November. <a href="http://video.pbs.org/program/979359625/">See them</a>! Love them! They are excellent and the bullies meet their right fates. ;)<br />
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