Sew Coordinated

I love fabric collections - especially the ones from Patsy Aiken. The fabric is a wonderful quality and always washes well. Plus, everything goes together. You can get fabrics from one of her lines, but you can sometimes mix and match the more neutral designs between lines since the colors will match.

Here is a small capsule wardrobe collection I just stitched up. The top tops are from the same Ottobre pattern, with FOE binding at the neckline. I made yet another pair of leggings and the reversible skirt is like the one I made from the Patty Young knits last week. That is a fantastic pattern from last fall's Ottobre. It's very easy and fun to flip the skirt around. The pants are from the Fall 2006 Ottobre and have a lot of great details.

I Want to Sew...but It's Really LATE!

Since I last posted, I've sewn up an Abracadabra jacket, two Ottobre skirts, and two Ottobre t-shirts, so the to-be-sewn list is down five items. I want to make a pair of pants next before I change out sewing machine thread, but I know they are probably going to take 60-90 minutes. It's almost 2am...that's probably not the best idea.

I could happily sew all night, but with four kids to watch and a grad school assignment to tackle in the morning, sewing the pants isn't the best idea. So, I'm winding down with some thoughts on sewing:

I love fabric - patterns and textures and colors...can't get enough, which is why I do so many multiple fabric items. Someday I want to make a quilt out of fabrics I have used to make clothing for my daughter. I save fabric scraps even when they are too small for a big project because you never know when you want to line a pocket or make a small bag or doll outfit (if you have a little girl who loves dolls). My problem is deciding what I would want said quilt to look like.

I love browsing pattern websites because I love imagining all the possibilities. I used to enjoy shopping at the mall for similar reasons, but now I don't get as excited there. I feel like there are more possibilities open when you sew.

I love that Peach on the new season of Project Runway is 50 because that means I could go in the next 12 years and still not be the oldest contestant. LOL ;-)

Seriously, I'm rambling because I am trying to order my thoughts before I wander up to bed (instead of back to the sewing machine). I guess it's time to go up and dream of new projects.

What do you dream of doing with sewing? What stimulates your imagination as a sewist?

Another "little" cutting fest

I cut out some more projects now that batch #1 of Gracie's fall goodies is done. I kind of lost count as I kept grabbing fabric and patterns and saying "Ooh! This would be nice."

Well, I ended up with 19 projects in the bin...yes, 19. Okay, if you have seen my work on PR, you know I sew fast. That's mainly how I have the stash contest banners down there on the left sidebar!

I arranged all my projects by thread/needle usage so I don't have to mess around with setting up machines any more often than I have to. I already had white thread loaded, so I grabbed this skirt and stitched:

It's a McCall's pattern - 2 pattern pieces and it took all of 15 minutes to make. I sewed while DH gave her a bath.

I also did a brown & pink on white striped top and a velour, polka dot print dress this evening. Tomorrow, I'll finish up the white thread projects and switch colors. Maybe pink? I have a lot of pink projects in the stack (imagine that, lol).

I do have to say that the more you make, the faster it becomes - at least for me. I rarely look at directions. Certain items just go together automatically. It's fun that way since I get instant gratification. I'll be back to work soon (I teach middle school.), so my prolific sewing will slow down, but it is nice to be able to accomplish things quickly. It takes down my stress!

Gracie's Fall Fashions

I have been busy making coordinating pieces for my sweet three year old daughter Gracie. She starts preschool in a couple of weeks and is super excited to have a "back to school" wardrobe.

I am in the process of reviewing these pieces on Pattern Review, so if you want details, please click on my reviews!

New Fall Butterick patterns

You can check them out here.

I like some of these a lot. Here are my picks to snag at the next pattern sale:

This one is B5535 - I like the cut of the shorter jacket and the skirt.

B5522 is rather intriguing. I can't decide if it would be flattering or disastrous on me, but I want to think about it.

B5525 has some cute options (the yellow and the blue) and the same scary sleeves from one of the McCall's patterns I did not like for fall. I did this look in the 80's as a teen. I'm over it.

B5526 has some nice basic shirt option. I really should make a white shirt. It's a missing basic in my wardrobe.

B5538 would also make a good basic white shirt.

This is very pretty (B5544), but I would shorten it. I toss and turn to much to get twisted up in a longer nightgown.

B5513, a See & Sew pattern, is cute...

...as is B5511, also See & Sew.

Now, I will admit, I do have a few complaints. First of all, aside from a re-release of a leotard/tutu pattern, there is NOTHING for kids. Also, the only men's offering involves (you guessed it) sleepwear/loungewear. I know some people like aprons, but the ones in the new collection are only so-so. There's one accessory pattern, and it's not too exciting.

Then, there's the weird stuff:

What in the world is up with B5530? It's like Miami Vice meets Michael Jackson bling. There's potential there, but with so many cute jacket patterns out there, I'll deal with altering for fit, but not style.

B5528 seems to be their take on the weird hemline cardigan - still not a fan.

If you like your crazy hemlines short, there's B5529.

...and the winner for least flattering top possible since it makes the line drawing women look fat...B5524. This is awful and dumpy. I'm sorry...I can be critical of style and appreciate that someone else out there just likes the funky hems. If you do, enjoy, but I would give serious thought before sewing up this gem. Blech!

Of course, this pattern makes the next one look so more flattering...B5536 is another schlumpy take on the Snuggie, but at least it isn't meant to be worn outside of your domicile!

So now, I await the next Butterick pattern sale, but I'm still happy to have a good 600+ patterns in my stash to choose from.

The beginnings of Gracie's fall wardrobe

Here's a taste of what the stylish preschooler will be wearing. After cutting over a dozen garments this weekend, I started sewing the pear dress last night. I finished that this morning as well as the rest of the pieces seen in this photo:

Clockwise from the pear dress (one of the new McCall's releases), the aqua apple print Kaufman corduroy is a Butterick jumper, and all of the rest (leggings, dress, two tops, and a reversible skirt) are from various Ottobre issues and made out of Patty Young's new line of knits for Michael Miller.

Here are a couple of pictures of the reversible skirt outfit:

I'm going to finish sewing my batch of cut items (and possibly a few more that will match the thread I have in the machines) before I have Gracie model these looks and I review all the patterns. At the rate this is going, that may not be long! I sew fast, but even I was surprised at how much I got done today (plus four loads of laundry, a homemade pizza, and taking care of my four kids).

Wardrobe planning

When I sew for myself, I have to think about fitting items into my current wardrobe. Unless I suddenly gain or lose a lot of weight, that's a pretty fixed group of clothing. Sure, I weed stuff periodically, but I'm not a growing child.

Speaking of which, I have several of those, but most notably, my sweet little Gracie. Having had three boys first, I have a large wardrobe to pass along for them. I weed the stuff the older ones mess up (oldest two are the same size and have been for a couple of years), and I add in a few new pieces for the little guy, but I don't start from scratch (anymore). However, I only have one daughter, and she's a darling little three year old who is suddenly acquiring little girl proportions - all arms and legs and tiny body. She ends up with a new wardrobe every six months just by virtue of her age. It is her wardrobe that I have the most fun with.

I do buy her a few pieces, mainly at end of season sales on things I wouldn't buy at full price (b/c I'm cheap like that). I buy her jeans - especially when I found some gorgeously embroidered and embellished girly jeans for about $8 a pair on clearance, and I buy a few embellished/character t-shirts since I don't yet have an embroidery machine. I also buy sleepwear because that's pretty boring to make.

It''s the little girl fashion coordinates and dresses that just make me smile. I cut a cute little corduroy print jumper and a soft corduroy print dress, and then I started on a wardrobe of coordinates. I used some of the new Michael Miller/Patty Young knits with Ottobre patterns to cut a tunic, reversible skirt, dress, and two pairs of leggings. Now, I'm working with the same designer's "Playdate" cotton woven line which I plan to mix with some of the knits and a couple of Farbenmix patterns. My goal is to have some mix and match outfits.

Pictures to follow...

Simplicity Fall sneaky-peek!

I was at Joann's looking for some Simplicity's as they are currently $1.99, and I found a cool surprise - the next release was already in the drawer!

That's not all, of course, but just the ones from the new collection that I liked.

They have lots of Halloween including several Alice in Wonderland themed costumes, and a new Cynthia Rowley. That one wasn't my favorite, but CR fans might like it.

Here are some details on the ones I did get:

 This Project Runway dress has lovely front tucks and I like the teal version with the contrast hem band.

This skirt pattern has some great lines and doesn't take much yardage - about 1 to 1 1/4 yard per version.

I'm not a fan of the angled hem cardigan, but I like the knit dress/top a lot.

Adorable dress designs for little girls - also comes in 4-8, but Gracie's only a size 3 (in length - smaller in actual torso) so I got the 1/2-3. I like the tucks beneath the yoke - that's different.

I don't much like the big girl's outfit, but isn't the little girl's outfit cute? The pants have a side zipper - I don't see that working in a 3 year old's pants. That's a potty problem going somewhere to happen.

I've decided this is the season I tackle a fitted, lined jacket, and while I already have several patterns, I liked the style on this one. Now, this is NOT lined, but I want to try fitted and unlined before I go for the lined one.

I got some other Simplicities as well, and I also stopped by Hancock's where McCall's is 99 cents and Vogue is $3.99. If you need patterns, this is a good weekend to get yourself to one of these stores!

Knit tops!

Simplicity 3790 - If you have a drapey knit, make up view D - went together like a dream in about an hour - esp. since I didn't have to even re-thread my machines!

Simplicity 2364 - Sexy tops, but surprisingly not revealing (and yes, I have a convertible bra to wear this with) - another quick and easy one

Burda Style magazine - June '10 - design # 139 - Great top for those with curves (and Gracie's dress is from 2008 summer Bizzkids mag, my shorts are New Look)

I love sewing knit tops. They are quite forgiving in the adjustments and tend to be wash and wear and still look great. Being a working mom, I love things that transition well between professional and casual wear.

Sandra Betzina patterns...love 'em

The more I try Betzina's Today's Fit patterns from Vogue, the more I love them. After hitting the wall of frustration earlier today, I was correct in guessing that Vogue 8151 would improve my mood.

Check it out: no FBA (although I did go up a size, figuring I could always take it in if needed), no wrap gap, no problems.

Sandra Betzina's instructions are excellent and I couldn't be happier with how this turned out.

There is also a plain front top with 3/4 length sleeves in this pattern. That one's great, too. The next time you see a Vogue sale, you need to pick this up if you don't already have it.

FBA = F-in' Big Annoyance

I'm using to doing an FBA on most patterns I sew for myself. However, the FBA for this dress took on a life of its own.

This is Vogue 1152, a Rebecca Taylor design that appealed to me because of its figure flattering nature. I also know that *usually* princess seams are easy to alter. This one - not so much. My original FBA, described in my previous post, turned out to have a problem. I had extra space above my girls. It was not good. Plus, I had gaping at the shoulder seam. The inch and a half I added to piece 1 was good, and I would definitely recommend it.

I spent hours messing with the fit before constructing and attaching the sleeves. This project is causing me to think about making a duct-tape-double, but I must admit I am totally horrified at the thought of what that would look like. The hormonal roller coaster of giving birth and then nursing four babies plus a little birth control has not done nice things to my body. Yes, I need to lose weight, but I am sewing for the body I have. It could be worse. I'm a 14 RTW which translates to 18 US or 44 Euro in patterns. I've stayed at that size throughout my forays into the maternity section, and I'll settle for maintenance. Of course, I'd be a liar if I didn't say I sometimes look wistfully at the size 8/10 girl staring at me from my wedding portrait, but she was fleeting (and on the Pill so the darn dress didn't even fit on our first anniversary). Then came the kids...I blame them. Even if I lost 30 pounds, things would never look like they once did. Yep, I'm curvy, but I'm going to do my best to make those curves look good.

Now, I think I will be much happier after I finish the four knit tops since there should be fewer fitting issues, and did I mention that the poly charmeuse is pretty, but it is slippery! Ugh! Now I remember why I hate sewing with that stuff. I'm not a fan of pinning, but I couldn't have sewn this without pinning a lot of it. Other fabrics, I do very little pinning during construction.

It's moments like this that make sewing frustrating and rewarding at the same time. Hopefully, I'll have a more positive perspective on everything in the morning (since I'm reviewing and blogging in the wee hours). I reckon my experience with this dress was turning into the project I did NOT want to go to sleep thinking about.

Now, I shall go to bed, wearing my cute knit nightie sewn by me from a pattern in Ottobre Woman (that I repurposed as a nightie). This one makes me feel cute and the FBA worked the first time!

Sleep now, sewing knits in the morning, grad school work in the afternoon...

A preview of coming attractions

I had a cutting party, one of my favorite things to do. I love imagining all the possibilities as I match fabric to pattern. Here are some pieces for transitioning from summer to fall:

First up is Vogue 1152 which is a Rebecca Taylor design. I'm making it in a satiny poly print from Hancock's.

I added an inch and a half to the bodice (piece 1) below the V neck and increased the curve on the side front at the bust an equal amount. That's why this piece doesn't lay flat - because I am most definitely not flat!

I plan to complete this tomorrow and pair it with some lovely black strappy pumps I recently got on sale at Macy's.

My next project is also a Vogue - Today's Fit by Sandra Betzina, V8151. I've made view B already and it's a great fitting basic knit top. I'm tackling view A, the wrap top, out of a gorgeous Canvasbacks knit I got last summer at Waechter's Fine Fabrics in Asheville, NC while I was traveling. (Funny how I always make a side trip to a good fabric store...)

I like the cut of this pattern, especially the ruching at the bottom sides. That looks quite forgiving.

While I have the serger threaded with white, the next project will be from the June 2010 Burda. I have decided that being a size 44 Euro is perfect as I can fit both the regular and the plus patterns, and what is not to love about that sexy knit top with the gathered front seam? I'll be making it in an ITY jersey I got from Fabric.com.

After the two print tops, I'll be threading up my machines with purple for the next two selections.

The first purple top is Simplicity 2364. I'm using some purple interlock that I got at the Patsy Aiken outlet and making view E. I like view E because it's almost one shouldered, but I need that little strap. I think this will be fun to wear to the Brad Paisley concert next month (especially after seeing how people were dressed at Toby Keith).

The second purple top is made with a really drapey cotton blend jersey I got at the Fabric Mart store in Reading, PA, on my recent trip. It was only $2 a yard! I'll be making Simplicity 3790, View D. I think the draped front collar will work quite well with this fabric. You can also see in the picture that the fabric has a pretty sheen to it.

The last project I cut tonight was also from Simplicity 4032: a jacket designed for fabrics such as the ubiquitous polar fleece that abounds at Joann's (which is, of course, where I got it). I have cut view D which has a cute curved front shape that was easy to do an FBA on and is a style that looks good on ladies with a lot happening up top. I really like the idea of this as a casual, yet somewhat more sophisticatedly styled jacket. I'd like to try a more tailored jacket for this fall and this is a good stepping stone project, in my opinion.

At this point, I ran out of pins and space in my to-be-sewn basket, so I dumped a load of fabric in the washer for shrinking purposes. All but the dark solid on the bottom left are Michael Miller knits from Patty Young's collection. They are lovely, but prone to major shrinkage so I was not about to touch them without prewashing. I also wanted to be sure the dark stretch twill was ready to be cut into a semi-fitted skirt from a Rachel Comey (Vogue designer) pattern. Once I do that skirt, I'll probably switch over to working on Gracie's back to school wardrobe. My baby is starting three-year-old preschool and she needs some cute things for school.

A picture is worth a thousand yards

Okay, maybe not a thousand, but this is definitely a major addition to the stash. The final tally will be revealed after I complete the task of inventory and adding it all into my database of fabric. I plan to sew something tonight. I don't know yet what it will be, but after a week away from my machines, I *need* to sew.

BTW - highlights from this pile include many lovelies from my visit to Fabric Mart. I even got to pick out the pieces of my own "mystery bundle" since I spent more than $75. The picture doesn't really do it justice, but as I start planning and sewing my fall wardrobe, more of this will be revealed.

Sewing Machine Withdrawal

I'm sitting here in a Barnes & Noble because I (fortunately) had an excuse to leave the kids at the in-laws' house for a couple of hours so I could submit a paper for graduate school. Of course, I did that little deed in a hurry and now I'm about to peruse some sewing books/magazines. I managed to snag a July Burda yesterday afternoon in Philadelphia, and there is an entire suitcase of all that gorgeous new fabric waiting in my car. However, it will be Friday before I can bust out the machine back at my house.

I wanna sew!!!!! I need to cut some fabric! I need to hear the whir of the motor...

In the meantime, I will satisfy my urges by reading about sewing and, of course, purchasing so more fabric. I have 3 more fabric store visits in the works, so I will hit them and get my fix.

Is it a bad thing to have no problem bypassing cheaply made, wrinkly, chain-store clothes longing to custom fit and create one's own fashions (or things for one's adorable kids)? I think not. I just miss the thrill I get from doing it!

A Fabric Place (a.k.a. Michael's Fabrics)

No trip to (or through) Baltimore would be complete without a visit to A Fabric Place. An unassuming little building hides this amazing gem. The staff was very helpful and Michael himself greeted us and when he found out I had come from North Carolina, he gave us (me and my four thankfully well-behaved kids) a tour, offered some amazing deals and pointed out some incredible fabrics. I just about had a fabric-gasm (if I can invent the term).

It's late...very late...drool now, and I'll describe later.