My Sewing Space

It's been awhile since I had a post about knitting.  That's because there hasn't been much knitting going on. I did these dishcloths sometime in the spring: Good instant gratification knitting. I did most of them on a trip to visit family and they're all for me. The one that is second from the left was started and half finished during an 80 minute wait at the border crossing into the US.  It was just me and the three kids and it was the only thing that kept me from jumping off the bridge. Knitting is soothing. Then I finished these: I started them last September.  I finished one and had a couple of inches done on the second and completely lost interest. When I needed some mindless knitting for another road trip, I picked it up and am happy that they're finished. There is some serious ladder unattractiveness along the top of the foot, but still, I'm going to be happy with them. The yarn is hand-dyed and the colors are really amazing.  I will enjoy weari...

On a recent trip to the Salvation Army Thrift Store, I picked up a white linen skirt with a black print and some beading near the bottom. I thought it was cute and a good fit, but I didn't have a top to wear with it. To remedy that, I pulled out some black mystery knit fabric from the stash and Jalie 2788 . The fabric is very soft and drape-y, but also pretty thin, so sewing it wasn't always easy.  The neckline, in particular, doesn't look all that great.  I used clear elastic to stabilize it and I always have a difficult time getting that serged on neatly. I had the same problem with this version . This was a total rush job and looks like it on close inspection. I wanted to wear it out for dinner with the Preacher and finished it about an hour before I had to pick up the babysitter. So, I guess I was successful, but the top isn't as nice as I would really like it to be. It's been awhile since I had a serious beat-the-clock sewing session and it'll probabl...

For awhile now I've wanted to try freezer paper stencils with fabric paint. A few weeks ago I got myself to Michael's to pick up the paint. I did that before deciding on a stencil pattern or getting freezer paper, so when I saw a package of sticky stencils for fabric embellishing purposes I easily talked myself into buying the stencils rather than making them. I made a new T-shirt for each of my older kids. There is a possibility that I'll make one for my younger daughter yet, but it would be to assuage my guilt rather than make her feel good - she doesn't really care (yet) that I don't make much for her. For my son's shirt I used navy blue cotton jersey that has been in my stash for a loooong time and Kwik Sew 2918 . My daughter's shirt is made with leftovers of this shirt of mine and Burda 9549, just like this shirt . I didn't get any decent close-ups because my son is constantly in motion. Most of the pictures I took are some variation of this...

I was pretty happy with the look of this dress on my daughter and wanted to use the pattern again.   New Look 6884 has several different views and I think the collar, sleeve and ruffle choices make them look pretty different from each other.  For this dress, I left off the collar and used the cap sleeves with elastic bands. My MIL picked up the fabric awhile ago and I'm really liking all the stripes in the dress.  There are a lot of places where the stripes could  match up, but they don't at any one of the places.  Not from bodice to skirt (neither front nor back) or at the shoulders. I cut this out several weeks ago and I can't remember if I just didn't think to match them up or if I decided it would be okay to ignore it this time. The stripe repeat is rather large, so it would have taken some work to get it matching, but probably still would have been good to do. The sleeves are cut on the bias and have a partial elastic band at the bottom.  Bias ...

Every region has its own idioms. One of the interesting things about living in several different places is hearing and coming to understand these phrases and expressions that aren't perfectly clear to non-natives.  Where we live currently, people "pop over." As in, "Could the kids and I pop over for a play date?" or "Why don't you pop over for tea sometime next week?" I haven't yet gotten up the nerve to invite anyone to pop over for popovers, but maybe someday I will. When I saw the Oliver + S Popover Sundress on BurdaStyle , I couldn't resist downloading and making it. It would be perfect for my daughter to pop over her head and be looking cute when someone does pop over for popovers! It's a free download, available in sizes 2-8.  The front is exactly the same as the back, so there aren't all that many pieces of paper to tape together.  The instructions are good - something I was glad to see since I just ordered two Oliver + ...

I was so happy with the clothes I made in yesterday's post that I immediately used the same two patterns again. This skirt is the only piece of animal print clothing I've had as far as I can remember. Generally, they just aren't something I'm drawn to - my look isn't particularly dramatic.  However, this zebra print really appealed to me when I saw it in the home dec department. The inexpensive price increased the appeal. I like that it is brown and ivory instead of black and white. This skirt isn't going to get a lot of wearing time. I do really like it, but the fabric isn't going to stand up to a lot of wearing and washing.  I've worn it twice and already there is some seam slippage along the center back. I guess usually home dec fabrics should be used for home decorating and not wearing. The top is Butterick 3344 again. I made this version (View B, no sleeves) before (pre-blog) and found that the armholes and the gathers were up too high on ...

I'm not all that sure what I think about the changes to the Burda websites. I don't subscribe to the magazine so those changes don't affect me, but I have been frustrated when looking for envelope patterns that I use.  However, the last time I was fruitlessly searching for a link to a pattern, I found my ideal summer skirt pattern . So many others have sewn this, that you likely aren't seeing it for the first time. What makes it ideal for me? It sits just below the waist, has pockets, lacks front darts, and is just slightly A-line. Added to that is the fact that I could have it immediately by download and it was very easy to sew. I made it up in a light blue cotton twill with large white flowers. I had hoped to match the print across the center back seam, but didn't have enough fabric. To avoid any particularly strange pattern placement, I did cut the backs out single layer. The top is Butterick 3344 , a great pattern that is out of print. This time I made...

Ah, I'm back.  After some sewing for me and then a two-week vacation, I'm happy to be back to blogging. I have a bit of a backlog of projects to show you and I think I'll go in the order that I made them. A few months ago, I saw this dress in the Boden catalog. I really liked the style and the combination of the large and small print and set out to make my own version. I initially purchased New Look 6867 and figured I would alter the midriff band to be straighter and narrower and make it go around the back, but then I saw Butterick 5212 .  It already had those issues taken care of, so I bought it. On a trip to Fabricland I found coordinating prints that I liked and I was so eager to get this dress put together that I didn't trace the pattern or make any sort of muslin - both things I do very regularly. After checking the finished garment measurements, I cut a 12 with no changes.  Since I have a hard time being totally reckless (with fabric anyway) I did baste th...