Cat Fur Studio

Celebration Time!

2012-01-29T15:51:00.004-05:00

F-i-n-a-l-l-y it's finished! The blue jacket is complete. I was held up a bit due to illness, but am thrilled to be clearing the decks to start a new project. Ya HOO!

I used a hand prickstitch to keep the lining from migrating outside the jacket during wear. I think I might use this technique more often from now on, as it doesn't take much more time than doing the same thing by machine, plus it is not a bulky as machine stitching (less thread, you know).

I love this fabric, but I am a bit tired of looking at this jacket because it's been my 'ongoing ' project for quite some time. So I will not be wearing this for at least one week. It will stay in my closet for a little while. On this jacket, I know there are a few imperfections (the casual observer will be oblivious to these I think), and I know from experience that if I wait some time to wear the jacket, I will have largely forgotten about my little errors and will enjoy wearing the jacket more. Are you like me in that when you purchase a jacket, you don't examine it as closely as you do your own work? I'm not talking about the obvious, such as puckered seams, tears, etc. More the little niggly things like a button not sitting just right, or a facing just a wee bit off grain.

Anyway, if I don't wear this for a while I will forgive its small imperfections and enjoy wearing it more in the long run.

Here's a closeup of Smokey. Isn't he turning into a handsome gentleman kitty? Smokey and Snowy turn one year old on February 9!

Land Ho!

2012-01-22T19:18:00.003-05:00

The project that keeps on going and going is almost done. Christopher Columbus crossed the Atlantic faster than I will have completed this project.

A few hours and it is finished. I think. All that has to be done is finish pressing the neckline, hand stitch the lining under (understitch) -- and I want to do it by hand not machine so as to keep a flexible soft look. Then I need to hem the jacket and the sleeves, also these are lined to the edge, so I will do a hand stitched understitch to the lining.

The loops for the buttons are a braided yarn and ribbon. The jacket meets at center front.

You can see here the on the left side the lining presses in very nicely to the neckline. Be You Ti Ful! All I need to do is the same on the right side. I use a ham to press this curve. Crucial if you want it to lie nicely against the body while wearing. Of course this is the highest quality wool tweed, a gift from my dear friend Patti; the wool melds wonderfully.

I tweaked the fit just a bit at the upper chest, using the princess seam to take in about a half inch from shoulder to bust point.

Goal - to wear this at work during the coming work week! Can she do it? Vamos a ver (let's see).

The Project That Keeps On Going. And Going. And Going

2012-01-02T17:37:00.003-05:00

I've been working on this particular project on and off since November. It's been a long haul.

In the meantime, Snowy checked the quality of my sleeve just this afternoon. He and Smokey, his brother, are getting larger!

Last spring, my friend Patti gave me a beautiful blue/purple boucle. I bought buttons to match in NYC in September (M and J Trim), and then bought some lining from HotPatterns' Etsy site.

Here are the buttons, lining and fabric shown together.

I had determined to make a classic 'chanel style' jacket, by quilting the lining to the fashion fabric. Muslin. Check (I was not going to risk a fit disaster!). Thread traced the seam lines. Check. Cut all out. Check. Then, I started quilting lining to jacket fabric, just as the instructions in a number of Threads Magazine articles instruct. At that time, I realized that the quilting seamlines would show on this particular fabric. And it was not a couture look. More "REI meets Chanel". So I could have continued, but I decided to re-engineer the project. So now, I'm sewing up the jacket, Simplicity 4954, regular-style. With the V neck. It's turning out pretty well. I'm using traditional (new style) tailoring techniques, such as fusible tape, sewn-in silk organza in the upper back and such. Here it is so far. Notice how the neckline edges hug the dress form? That's because I used fusible bias tape, and stretched it ever so slightly as I applied it along the neckline.

Check back in a week or so to see (I hope) the finished version!

Cape Easy

2011-10-17T20:02:00.004-04:00

I bought this pattern, Vogue 7974, a few years ago, and now it's out of print. There are plenty like this out there. I like the trend this autumn to wear capes. They're simple and easy over a suit jacket or sweater when it's not so very cold. I like that it is a simple cape, but it has a collar. I thought of making a cape with slits in the front, through which you put your arms, but I like this style better, because it seems less constricting, as long as you don't mind your cape flipping up when you move your arms.

I used wool from Mr. Kashi in NYC when I was there for a work trip back on September 1 of this year. (Lucky me, my company opened an office in NYC so I can go up there for work (it's two hours away from where I live) and make pit stops to buy fabric and such. No more 'special' trips needed just to buy supplies! ) Smokey, pictured below is playing quality inspector, and is reading a tag marked "Tessuti" Italy. Could it be real Tessuti fabric? Maybe. Anyway, it is super quality, tweedy but soft. I like it and Smokey agrees.
Smokey also checked the pattern.
The pattern envelope told me I needed 3 1/8 yard to make this garment. No way you need that much. I cut mine from a mere 2 1/4 yards, and had enough left over for a cat-size blanket (if you can call a serged-edge trapezoid 2 feet by 1 foot at the other end a blanket).

Smokey is checking out my pressing tools. It was fun to work with wool! I haven't sewn in wool for a long time. I forgot how malleable wool is. It's easier to sew than most any other fabric in my opinion.
Smokey loves playing next to the sewing maching. Snowy also got in on the action.

When the time came to put in closures, I opted for snaps (that's what the pattern says, it gives a nice unbroken line). Smokey lent me his talent for accurate measurements.

My cape is unlined, which is fine. I finished the hems with my groovy blind hemming machine. Made quick work of what would have been an onerous hand hemming job. Actually, if I didn't have my blind hemmer, I'd have just put in machine stitched hems.

All my raw edges were encased in 4-thread serging. I used Pam Erny's light tailoring interfacing for the collar and front edge. Nice stuff. So now, I'm set for the light breezes and slight chill we have in the air here. The brooches on my cape were old - one (the one with the black stone in the center) I bought in 1987. The bigger white one, I think I bought in the early 1990s. Both to wear with blouses at work. I used to fasten the center front of a blouse with those pins. The smaller one is from either my mother-in-law, Carol, or my grandmother Eleanor. I can't remember...but I like how it goes with the other ones, and also lends a bit of flair to my cape.

Transitional Dressing

2011-10-10T18:40:00.003-04:00

I bought this, Hot Patterns' "Primavera" Dress, earlier this summer, with the best of intentions of making up a batch of this loose fitting style to wear during humid steamy days.

Time got away from me, and I did complete it before the official arrival of autumn!

I raised the neckline by 3/4 inch, but this was not nearly enough for my size 10 pattern. Oh well, I like the look of a black cami underneath anyway.

The way the pockets are constructed is way cool. They help stabilize the dress at the waistline, wrapping all the way around the front.

I used a rayon lycra knit from Christine Jonson. She has, in my opinion, the absolute best knit fabrics on the market for people like me who buy yardage to sew at home. Super quality, and the fabric lasts many years and many washings.

Hot Patterns have a thing on You Tube showing the construction of this dress - actually,I think there are three videos total, and I would recommend taking the time to view them if you're thinking of making this dress.

Chocolate, How I Love Chocolate Brown

2011-09-18T13:16:00.007-04:00

My mind turns to jackets this time of the year, where I live on the northeast coast of North America. Summer is starting to wind down and the air is cooler. As a bonus, the humidity is usually diminished a bit, which is welcome relief!

I used a rayon lycra double knit from Christine Jonson to make the long version of her Double Collar Jacket. I like this pattern a lot. The collar adds interest to the top of the body (to the face) and the long lines of the jacket elongate the body. The princess seams give plenty of opportunity to fine tune the fit. I used a knit, although this pattern is designed mainly for wovens, but of course knits can be used as well...stretch or not.

In this photo, you can see that I used a cotton lycra sateen, cut on the bias, as the under collar on both collars. The cotton fabric is thinner than the knit, and with the bias cut of the woven, the collar drapes very nicely.

I prefer not to insert buttonholes on knit fabrics. So I changed the design slightly, by inserting a seam at front. I left the seam open at five locations. These openings became my buttonholes.

Below you can see what I did to make this extra seam - shown on my cutting board. Cut the pattern, added seam allowances. Simple.

My two able assistants helped me to ensure the cutting lines stayed accurate.

When it was time to sew the seam,of which buttonholes would be part, I marked their position very carefully. Since there were actually two sets of seams/holes (on jacket and on facing), it was crucial that both sides matched perfectly when fit together upon jacket completion. A double-check from the VP of Materials Evaluation...

An added bonus of the extra seams at center front helps elongate the jacket lines. I repeated this at the side where I sewed the buttons on.

I got my buttons at M & J Trim in NYC. Where I work, as of September 1, we opened an office in NYC. So it was a simple matter for me to stop by M & J after work when I was in NYC for the day. I paid a visit to Mr. Kashi while I was there, too. Got some great stuff. Maybe I'll post it here later.

I have not seen many people make this pattern up, and I don't know why. It looks good, is classic, easy to fit, and easy to sew. I personally changed the the fit slightly at the side seams, and this was easy, with all the princess seams. The front looks uneven at center front in my photo, but I promise, this effect in the photo was caused by blowing wind!

Parting shot. Snowy and Smokey watched the 'fashion shoot' today through the screen door.

Meet Smokey and Snowy!

2011-09-10T10:40:00.006-04:00

The newest members of Cat Fur Studio joined us in April, 2011. They were just under 12 weeks old when we drove up to Brooklyn to pick them up. They were not quite ready for their social debut then, but now that they've reached the age of majority (6 months), they are ready to enter "society".
They are both males. The grey boy is Smokey ( Phineas Smokey Moses). The white boy is Snowy (Ellsworth Snowy Baby).

They are a breed called Egyptian Mau. This is the first time that Nick and I have adopted kittens. All our other cats have been 'rescues'. Nick (my husband) had done some research, and had found that this breed is known for being friendly and loyal. Our experience with Smokey and Snowy agrees with this reputation.

Smokey and Snowy like human company. A lot!

Smokey is the more active and assertive of the two. He loves to rip things apart. Smokey is more of a strategic thinker, in that he sits and thinks a while before acting. Snowy is more athletic and impulsive, and can jump very high. But Snowy tends to be more placid most of the time.
These two are brothers, and they are with each other most of the time. Where one goes, the other goes too. Smokey eats a lot more than Snowy. They are by no means full grown yet, but I hope through this progression of photos you can see how they're growing.

CopyCat, CopyCat

2011-09-09T19:08:00.003-04:00

In all the best ways, I copied Rhonda's Circle Skirt, shown here.

I made my skirt so it would rest right above my hip bone. (Forgive the top of my undies showing at the waist area above the skirt waistband on your left. I could have photoshopped it out, but I know you understand.)

Rhonda lives over 1000 miles away from me, so I trust we will not be seen wearing the same skirt!

I finished this with a simple rolled hem on the serger, lined it with a lightweight cotton, and really enjoyed wearing it to work today, along with a lime green cardigan (not shown). I wanted you to see the skirt in it's simple state, along with my grey tank top and high heeled sandals.

I got to like this skirt more and more as I wore it today. It moves so nicely when I walk. I anticipated this, due to the color and pattern, but it attracted quite a bit of attention today. A total stranger, plus 4 different people I work with (who normally never comment on my clothing) commented on this skirt today. And among those who did not comment, I saw eyes travelling down to look at it all day, whether people commented or not.

I got the sense that this skirt made the day a bit more colorful not only for me but for those who were around me.

Comfort and Elegance

2011-08-22T19:29:00.003-04:00

Having comfort and elegance together is a gift we often do not receive.

With Butterick 5606, a knit pattern I picked up last year, this proves that one can have elegance and be comfortable at the same time.

I used a very thin but weighty rayon lycra knit from Kashi in NYC.

The secret to creating some stability on this neckline was to add a folded band of self fabric, and then twin-needle it (I used a coverstitch) for extra measure. You'll see below that I used the self-fabric at the neckline, but simply turned and stitched at the armholes. I did have to reduce the armhole circumference a total of 1/2 inch on each armhole to get rid of gaping.

I wore this to work today, and it was a bit "on the edge" for my conservative workplace, being sleeveless, but I think the jewelry and high heels (not shown here, as I'm in my commuting shoes) made it acceptable.

Necessaries

2011-08-19T08:17:00.004-04:00

Why do you sew? In my conversations with people who sew, I conclude that there are (basically) four reasons. Some of us sew for a combination of these reasons, some for only one.

1. Creative expression.

2. Fit. Customizing the way the garment feels and or looks so that it is comfortable and flattering (although overfitting can result in very unflattering garments, but let's keep this simple for now.)

3. Style. Getting exactly what we want in the fabric, color, length, and so on.

4. Cost. We can make great quality things for a fraction of the cost of ready to wear. I'm not talking about competing with Target, folks. I'm talking about going into Neiman Marcus, seeing what's there, and making something that's similar for a fraction of the cost.

These...

have been sewn entirely for the "fit" reason. These bikini underwear are not very exciting, but they're functional. They're made from powerdry (a Malden Mills product), which sews pretty much like tricot. I made several underwear from black powerdry a long time ago, and they're still going strong. I use them for hiking and kayaking. They work for me because they do not ride up. I find that most purchased underwear rides up, and I hate that. The reason for the ride up is that the elastic is never tight enough around my upper thigh. I guess my butt-to-thigh ratio is higher than the normal person's, so ready to wear underwear is not built for me. To get enough fabric to cover my butt, but to make the elastic tight enough to ride up is only something I can do by sewing the underwear (or buying the brand, "Jockey for Her").

So, I wanted more underwear but I did not want to make it. Normally, I don't like sewing basic things because it's not very exciting. So, before Nick and I left for a backcountry hiking trip to the Sierra Nevada mountains, in California, I bought several pairs of 'antimicrobial' and wicking underwear. I REALLY did not want to have to make underwear for myself. I spent a pretty penny, too. Over $20 for each pair of underwear. I had high hopes. But after wearing them for two hours, it was no go for those babies. So on the hiking trip, I just wore my usual older black power dry ones that I made a long time ago.

When I returned, I knocked out a few new pair, using white, and some lavender elastic I had on hand. I used a pattern which comes with this book, "Stretch and Sew Guide to Sewing on Knits", which I've had and used since the 1990's. If you ignore the styles, which are outdated (unless you're looking for a "Big 80's" theme), it's quite an instructive book. It gives lots of ideas and options for creating knitwear. I recommend it.

The pattern in the book is for waist high underwear. I took off the top three inches at the waistline and created bikinis.

It looks like from now on, I ignore the hope that beats strongly in my heart that the undies in the store will fit, ignore the tempting undie offerings at REI, and make my own power dry creations, boring or not!

For That Dressy-Casual Vibe

2011-08-14T14:31:00.004-04:00

Before I start, may I introduce one of my handsome new sewing assistants? This is Snowy. Snowy and his brother Smokey have big paws to fill here at Cat Fur Studio, but they are confident they're up to the job.

Here's a casual dress with interesting details. It's really easy to wear and comfortable. It's Vogue 1225, Tracy Reese.

My fabric is rayon lycra knit, lightweight, from Metro Textiles (Mr. Kashi), NYC. I had bought 3 yards of this fabric over a year ago, thinking I would use it for a few knit tops. But I decided to use it for a dress. So, even with my lengthening the dress a bit, which is par for me, I squeaked out just enough from this length to make the dress (the pattern calls for 3 1/8). So I have zero, ZILCH fabric left over from this project.

Anyway, I did have to make the self fabric drawstring from a few wonky pieces of leftover, instead of cutting from a nice straight length, but that was ok, because the pieces are all encased in the casing anyway and thus don't show.

The front pocket detail was easy to do. Once I positioned the pockets on the skirt, I used spray adhesive to keep them in place during stitching.

At the shoulders and waistline, I used kind of smocking stitch (by machine) to add interest to the lines of stitching, rather than use a straight stitch. I like the substance this seems to give the design.

I added two hanging loops at the waistline, one at left side and one at right side. These are suspended from the hanger when in the closet, to bear the weight of the skirt, so that the dress can hang from the shoulder on the hanger, but without stretching out the neckline. This pattern uses a lot of fabric, and rayon is heavy so this, I felt, was crucial.

My trusty assistant Snowy is shown here with the loop detail, because he was just SO interested in this that I did not have the heart to discourage him. Smokey and Snowy (more on the "boys" later!) are enjoying learning the ropes here at Cat Fur Studio land.

The back neckline has a drawstring of self-fabric. To tip both ends of the drawstring, I added two bugle beads, sourced from Foreign Bazaar, in Philadelphia.

I did not add the "petticoat" that is part of the pattern,that is supposed to be added at the waistline under the skirt. When I move in the dress there's plenty of volume in the skirt, and I didn't really want more volume, which of course the "petticoat" would have given.

This dress will come in handy for casual dinners and other times (like a movie) when I want to look "nicer" but don't want to go full bore with a really dressy vibe. I put my hair up for the photos so you could see the neckline better.

Thank You, Fremont

2011-08-06T10:35:00.004-04:00

Our little Fremont has died. For the past several months, Fremont had been lethargic, at times with little appetite. Our vet saw her many, many times, and could not find an organic reason for her symptoms. Her symptoms appeared right after the death of Midget, this past January.

We put Fremont on an appetite stimulant, had her scanned (for growths..tumors), found nothing, so went on vacation last month. Our cat sitter, Lorena, stayed at the house with Fremont, and our two kittens (now, almost 6 months old), Snowy and Smokey.

Nick and I were in the backcountry of the Sierra Nevada mountains for one week, and unreachable.

We came back two weeks ago to find that since we left, Fremont had not been eating at all. So Lorena took her in to the vet. Lorena and our veterinary team found cancer - fast growing - in Fremont's abdomen. She seemed in extreme pain. The tumors were wrapped around her kidneys and liver. The poor little girl. They made the decision to let her go. Nick and I have a standing order to our veterinarian and Lorena. They have full authority to make such decisions of life or death with any of our animals in our absence, and I totally support their decision. I am just so sorry that I could not be with Fremont as she died. I really do not understand why the cancer was not found earlier. I honestly don't doubt the competence of our vet, but it seems really, really, weird that cancer would grow so very quickly.

The morning Nick and I left for the airport for vacation, Fremont was sitting on top of the back of our green leather couch. I remember the dusty smell of her fur as I buried my nose between her shoulder blades, ran my hand down her right side, scratched her head between the ears, gave her a treat, and left, not knowing I wouldn't see her again, at least in this life.

Nick and I buried Fremont's body two weeks ago, along with Midget's ashes. Midget had died this past January, and the ground was frozen, so we had her body cremated.

I embroidered a linen shroud for Fremont.

I have been sewing quite a bit. It's the blogging that's been faltering! I'll soon post more of my sewing, and also about Snowy and Smokey...our Egyptian Mau gentlemen, who we adopted in April.

...now which one will it be?

2011-05-23T18:52:00.003-04:00

Sarong...or shorts? Both, with this free download courtesy of our friends at fabric.com and Hot Patterns.

Here's my version. I used an ancient black jacquard, acquired back in 2000 or was it 1999 as a free fabric bundle from Fabric Mart. It's acetate. It drapes decently, which is imperative, in my opinion, for this design.

This garment was very easy to put together. The hardest part was taping the 8 1/2 by 11 inch sheets of paper together (which is how the pattern prints out).

Let's see....tips. I used a serged hem instead of doing a regular straight stitched hem. I shaved about 5/8 inch off the hem when serging. I recommend you use a fabric that looks the same on the wrong side as the right side, as the sarong does show on the wrong side when wearing. I did not shorten the hem, but I am thinking I might shave one inch off these babies before they're ready for prime time. But then again, it's wearable, and with high heels, what the heck. I don't want to invest more time in this thing. Remember, I'm 5 feet 9 inches tall, with most of my height in my legs. Note the length on me before you make this.

The elastic waistband is not my friend. I usually avoid elastic waistbands, because they, well...they enlarge my waistline. But I made an exception here.

I'm planning to wear this with black high heeled sandals and a black top to go out clubbing (such as I do...) at the shore this summer.

Here are Snowy and Smokey testing the garment to ensure it's wearable. More on Smokey and Snowy later...they joined Cat Fur Studio a month ago, and they've for sure livened up the place!

More Cosmopolitan

2011-05-15T19:57:00.003-04:00

Here's another version of the Cosmopolitan Dress. This version is the scoop neck. I raised the neckline 1 1/2 inches, and it's still low! The skirt is longer, almost ankle length. I used a rayon lycra fabric from Christine Jonson. Hems are edge-serged.

Notice the shoes? No matter how much I want these to wear out, they won't. And they fit so well and are so comfortable, I can't get rid of them. Those are over 10 years old. Donald Pliner, bought on impulse back in summer, 2000. I just had the elastic connector at the buckle replaced on both ankle straps, and like it or not, it looks like I might get another 10 years out of these things!

What's Black & White...

2011-05-08T19:12:00.006-04:00

..and a utilitarian wonder?

This, my friends, is the latest output from Cat Fur Studio. I like this dress a lot.
I'm a bit late to the party for the Deco Vibe Cosmopolitan Dress by Hot Patterns. Whatev.

A few years late, It still looks good.

My fabric is a rayon-lycra-poly blend (I think), from Christine Jonson. She's sold out of this, as it was offered last year. Fabric Mart had something like it a while ago, I noticed, although I don't know if it's the same stuff. The fabric has an allover lace pattern. I usedblack foldover elastic on the neckline, which I raised a full 3/4 inch. The elastic was cut 1 1/2 inches smaller than the fabric on each side. The black gives it some definition, I think.

Although I raised the neckline, this puppy still needs a cami underneath. Hey, I was going to church today in this, and didn't want to cause a distraction in the pews. At the waistline, I inserted a black sash. This is (I think) black PowerDry from Malden Mills. I usually use this fabric for undergarments. (Shirts, and underwear). This was the only solid black I had that was the right weight, so I went with it. I kind of think it reads dark grey, but oh well. It works. At the hem, I used a serged rolled hem at sleeves and skirt hem, enhancing with some wooly nylon in the lower looper for some extra heft. It worked really well.

I'll leave you with the back view.

Till we meet again!

Purple Blouse

2011-02-23T19:05:00.003-05:00

I made this "Miss Moneypenny" blouse several months ago, and here it is for you to see!

I used silk from Fabric Mart. This was bought several years ago when they were having a "Anna Sui" fabric sale. This is a relatively simple blouse to make. Instead of using buttonholes, I installed 5/8 snaps down the center front. I get my snaps from Snap Source - really easy to use and a good result. Overall, this is a nice blouse, as it's close fitting under the arms, giving a slim look and it also tapers in at the waist. The bow at the bustline is a nice touch. Although having come of age in the workplace in the 1980s, I have to admit I thought twice before wearing the bow. The bow -- or should I say, "THE BOW" was something I remember wearing very early in my professional career, as a kind of ersatz tie for women. A "take me seriously even though I have breasts" look. Ha. Now, thankfully, it's more of a style statement, so I am going with it. You be the judge.

Ready for the World

2011-01-30T13:10:00.004-05:00

I love a good knit dress. I love even more a good black dress. One I can throw on at a moment's notice, accessorize or not, and look ready for the world.

Vogue 8593 works on both counts - knit and black. I used a pretty dense rayon lycra knit from Metro Textiles (NYC). I think Mr. Kashi told me this is an italian knit, and it is really a very good quality. I washed this knit in the machine, and it turned out fine. I have subsequently washed the finished garment to good effect.

I had to do some retro-seaming to this dress. I initially constructed it using a regular seam (not serged). I did this so that the seams would remain flat. But I soon realized that was a mistake when I sat down in this dress at work a few weeks ago, wearing it for the first time.

".......PoP!!" Went both the side seams, for about a inch each side, right near my hip. Thankfully, it was early in the day, no one was around, and I was in my office. I was also wearing a dark slip. So I shut the door, got out my trusty sewing kit, and repaired the seams using a strong double-threaded backstitch, and was careful to mince around .....verrrryyyy.... carefully for the rest of the day. At home, later, I serged the side seams, so now they move along with the knit, and the seams don't pop. They don't lie as nicely either, but so goes the world. One solution is usually never perfect, in that in implementing one 'fix', you have to compromise somewhere else.

Ah, such is life, eh?

Thank You, Midget

2011-01-24T06:51:00.000-05:00

Midget, Cat Fur Studio's Director of Fabric Identification, died this past Friday, January 21, after a short illness. In mid-January, Midget showed signs of lethargy and loss of appetite. She was diagnosed with a quick-moving cancer, and declined rapidly before even a needle biopsy could be obtained, which would have told us what type of cancer she had.

I am heartbroken over Midget's loss, but created this short video as a celebration of her life.

Thank you, Midget Cat, for your beauty, spirited personality, and the joy that you brought to my work at Cat Fur Studio.

Bamboo

2011-01-09T12:53:00.003-05:00

Sometimes I feel the need to get down to 'business' and make stuff I really really REALLY need. So a few weeks ago, I made a few new pairs of leggings, this one of Bamboo Knit. I used the Baseware One pattern from Christine Jonson. I've had this pattern for years, and love it (the top and bottom) for yoga and 'first layer' wear. The bamboo fabric is warm to wear without being heavy, drapes wonderfully and feels very soft but not flimsy next to my skin.

It has been colder than usual this winter, where I live on the east coast of the US. So these come in handy under pants, jeans, and skirts.

I use a really soft waistband elastic, 1 inch in width, so that the waistband is not too stiff under my other clothes.

.

It's a Sewing Hat!

2011-01-08T21:12:00.005-05:00

When Nick saw this, he said, "It's a sewing hat!". He was reacting to the button trim.

I found the pattern in issue 22 of Sew Hip magazin e. I bought this magazine on a whim at my local Philadelphia Borders store back in November.

The instructions were pretty primitive, and did not include a lining or 'sweatband' insert, so I added my own polishing touches. I broadened the brim, and I lined the hat, then installed an elastic headband inside. I used the serger for most of the construction, using 1 centimeter seam allowances.

My fabric is from Mood in NYC. I bought it back in 2005 when there on a visit with friends. I lined the crown with Liberty cotton which I got while in London back in 2001. I bought it at the actual "mother ship" - the Liberty of London store. The buttons are vintage, bought at an antique mall in Quakertown, PA, a few years ago.

Update - January 16,2011 -- The brim was way too floppy, so I inserted 6 strands of monofilament fishing line (nylon), braided together, into the circumference of the brim. I did this by putting a channel of rayon seam binding at the edge, and threading the line through.

Before:
After:

Purple Pencil

2010-12-06T21:47:00.003-05:00

I made a quick skirt to wear with my recently finished purple top. Christine Jonson's Pencil Skirt has been a favorite of mine for about 10 years. I used a polyester/rayon/lycra double knit, also from Christine. It's called Ponte Double Knit. I really like Christine's autumn knit collection, and recently indulged in a sizable order.

Since this knit stretches about 20%, and the pattern was designed for a stretchier knit, so I sized up about 1 1/2 size from my normal size on this pattern. The skirt fit pretty well. A bit loose, and that was what I was looking for. I will only wear this under a long (hip length) overgarment.

I finished the hem with my handy dandy Reliable blind hemmer.

Check out my new pattern weights! I got these from Liana. These are prototypes, and she's planning to put them into production and sell them at some point. They are stainless steel, smooth, and light enough to handle easily, but heavy enough to get the job done. I love the long rectangular shape. Efficient. No need to position a bevy of weights - one or three of these will get the job done.

Kit Kat Pillow

2010-12-04T19:55:00.003-05:00

I was rummaging around in my sewing room today, looking for a specific pattern, when I found a long forgotten treasure!

Back in the late 1990's, I attended a sewing/expo thing (I think it may have been in King of Prussia, PA) and met glass artisan Bonnie Maresh. Bonnie had a booth and she was selling beautiful hand fused glass buttons of various types. I bought several of her buttons, which I used to enhance various jackets at that time.

One of the products she had and I bought, is this. It's a "Kitty Cat" button kit. She gave two cat eye type buttons (basically green with a black stripe in the middle) along with a basic line drawing of a cat. I abandoned my mission of finding the pattern I was seeking, and followed my little Kitty Kat detour.

Using three types of silk/rayon velvet, some rayon thread, and a 16 inch pillow form, along with some leftover yarn, I made my Kitty Cat pillow. Don't you love that sense of accomplishment that comes along with completing a long-anticipated project? In this case, over ten years in the making-- finally...a Kitty Cat Primitive Pillow for my green leather couch!

Soft Purple

2010-10-11T21:40:00.003-04:00

The "Mighty Aphrodite" top, in a super-soft lightweight wool knit from Christine Jonson. I got this fabric last spring, I think. Christine has the best knits! Normally, wool knit is too scratchy for my skin. Not this. I even washed it in the machine on "gentle" and it is perfect.

This view of the top has long sleeves, and I put the optional ruffle on the shirt hem only. I was planning to put ruffles on the sleeves, but I opted to hem the sleeves with a picot edge finish, which is less in the way - important, as this is a 'wear to work' shirt for me.

I am wearing the top with Christine Jonson's pencil skirt. I think the top will look better with slim pants (as suggested by the HotPatterns experts) or even a shorter knee length skirt.

I have another version of this top made (and I've worn it several times already) - I will post it here eventually, I guess.

Anyway, lately, my sewing has been more of the 'keep it simple' variety, as things at work (my day job, so to speak) have been very busy. Good busy, but still, busy - which kind of limits my sewing time. I anticipate that things may be calming down a bit in the near future, which will free up some of my time and energy for quality sewing time. It's been a long time since I made anything "serious" and I am itching for a chanel-style boucle jacket... I even have the fabric and the buttons.

Draped Greekness

2010-09-06T14:36:00.004-04:00

The "Mighty Aphrodite" from Hot Patterns made my must sew list.

Here it is in a very lightweight rayon knit from Metro Textiles in NYC. I am wearing the shirt with blue pants to show the contrast. I plan to wear it with less contrasting (khaki) colored pants. The knit is so sheer that one can see the color of the pants underneath, here.

I think I like the draped sleeve a lot - the pattern shows one sleeve ruched (draped) and the other plain. The next version of this I make will be in black or purple, and I will make both sleeves draped.
I have seen this drawstring feature on clothing for years - first on Michael Stars T-shirts, and now it's everywhere. I think the drawstring trend might be slightly beyond its apex but I don't care. I love this feature!Thanks to my dear husband, Nick, for contributing (as always) his photographic skills. Nick is very good with his camera - uses exposure settings, flash, and so on, to get the best photo possible.

Country Fair Wear

2010-09-04T21:45:00.006-04:00

I made HotPatterns 105, a top, into a dress, by lengthening it and putting a ruffle at the bottom. My fabric is a cotton patchwork from Metro Textiles in NYC.

I'm wearing the dress today at the Allentown Fair. I cinched in its considerable volume with a woven leather belt.

The fair has all the old timey fair stuff. Freak shows, food (funnel cake, please!), rides, and games, along with baking and cooking contest displays, produce, and animals. Here I am checking out some old time corn grinding equipment.

I hope everyone gets the chance to go to an agricultural fair at least once.

Town and Country

2010-08-29T16:30:00.006-04:00

"Town and Country" is Nick's new term for stuff I make (and wear) that is in his view, wearable in both rural and urban settings. Actually, the statement started out as a joke yesterday. We went for a 10 mile hike on the Appalachian Trail, and I wore a pair of silver earrings. He looked at me around mile 6 and said, "Town and Country". I guess you could say the earrings 'dressed up' my hiking regalia.

In Nick's view, this shirt is "Town and Country". It's from Burda Style magazine, May 2010 issue, number 118, which is featured on the front cover. The shirt is designed for a very thin fabric, like cotton voile. I used thicker cotton fabric, from Metro Textile (Mr. Kashi) in New York.

My buttons are old - they're from Nick's mom, and the package was labeled $.29 for six plastic buttons on a card. I thought the blue popped nicely.

I lengthened the sleeves and am planning on using this shirt mainly as a second layer, or overjacket. It should serve well this coming end-of-summer into autumn.

Summer Eyelet

2010-08-15T14:03:00.007-04:00

Burda Style magazine featured this one-shoulder blouse in the June 2010 issue.

Because my fabric (I used white eyelet in two designs - the bigger cutouts for the ruffle) was substantial, I did not use two ruffles at the neckline. I only used one ruffle. In a silky fabric, I would have gone with two (or even three) ruffles. I used my serger to create a narrow two-thread hem at both edges of the neckline ruffle. Here is the serger in action. I used the serger knife to trim exactly where I wanted the ruffle to end.
Also at the neckline, to avoid bulk, I applied the neckline ruffle on top of the blouse at the neckline, instead of turning layer upon layer over into the neckline, as the instructions indicated. With my fabric being so substantial, I'd have ended up with a cardboard-y neckline otherwise.

I made a channel at the neckline, into which I inserted 1/4 inch elastic, so the garment would not gap. The elastic is just tight enough to be secure, but does not dig in.

I lengthened the top by 1 1/2 inches, as I wanted a blousy look.

Finally, I reversed the design, so that my right shoulder would be covered by the ruffle, not the left shoulder. This is to hide a scar I obtained back in early July. I fell pretty badly while riding my bike, and as a result, suffered a road abrasion on my right shoulder. It's healing wonderfully, but I want to continue to protect the scar and keep it out of the sun while it finishes healing.

Being able to make small changes like that reversal of shoulder covering is one of the primary reasons I sew.

Edit - August 16, 2010 -- Thanks, everyone for your comments. This top is fun to wear. So far, I've only worn it with denim, and am looking to expand its horizons. Gail, I got the fabric from Metro Textile (Kashi's) in NY.

Pyramid Handbag

2010-05-15T04:57:00.007-04:00

I have mixed feelings about the Hot Patterns Pyramid Bag. On one hand, it's a neat looking bag, and capacious. On the other hand, it's a bit unwieldy. Opening it's like opening a sleeping bag, and the contents of the bag tend to slip around inside. On the whole, it's a keeper, and it's interesting. I've been using it every day for three weeks, on and off, for commuting. It is big enough for my lunch and shoes (I always wrap my shoes in two layers of plastic bag before putting them any where near my lunch, and still, I think it's kind of gross to put shoes in a handbag, because of where those shoes go, but I do it anyway and I digress). I often commute wearing low heeled shoes and change to heels at the office.

One option in construction is to insert a 10 by 10 inch stiffener in the bottom of the bag. I did not do this, because the bag would have been too wide and unwieldy. I prefer to have the contents dictate the shape of the bag. That way, if I don't have a lot of stuff in there, the bag is smaller and closer to my body while I'm wearing it. Handy in city crowds, where I don't want to be constantly reining in the hugeness of a handbag as it protrudes from my body.
I used faux suede from fabric.com. I put a flat pocket on the outside of one side of the bag, into which things like transit passes go -- things I need quick access to. I installed the bellows pocket on the other side. I like the design, and I love the inside pockets, and the colorful lining cheers my day.

As an aside, in the video, I'm wearing my aqua wool dress (see previous post), so you can see that in action as well!

Aqua Wool - Elegant Drape

2010-05-02T12:59:00.005-04:00

This, Vogue 1027, is by DKNY . I have wanted to make this for quite some time. I used a fine wool jersey from Metro Textiles in NY.
The skirt is cut on the bias. I might have cut the dress one size smaller, but it's wearable as is. I wanted an elegant drape - not too tight. Note the waistband application is gathered - because there's elastic inserted in the seam. I'm not in love with that look, but it was necessary to draw in the extra fabric. I could have taken the seams in, but decided to just go with the gathering - kind of a short, pseudo peplum. A little strange, but I figure it's ok, since it kind of looks deliberate.

I love the fabric - I pre-washed it, so this dress will be hand washable. Being a fine grade wool, the fibers are resilient and wrinkle-proof, plus comfortable in all weather. Normally, I can not wear wool next to my skin, but this wool is so soft, it's not a problem in this fabric. Indicative of how fine this fabric is - when I saw this fabric while shopping, the bolt was mistakenly placed amidst the Rayons, where at first glance it looks like it would belong, being so fine and weighty and drapy.

Fuschia Sunshine

2010-04-18T19:39:00.004-04:00

I was in the mood for a quick project this weekend (seems lately most of my sewing is in the immediate gratification category). I've been wanting to make the Weekender Sunshine Top. I cut it out late yesterday evening, and since I could not sleep last night, I got up bright and early (when you're eyes are wide open at 2:30 AM you might as well make hay if you're me) and easily finished it in time to wear to church this morning.

I had planned to make the version with the waist band, but didn't like the way it looked on me, so I cut the waist band off and simply hemmed the top with my coverstitch machine. There will be plenty of these in store at Cat Fur Studio. I love the design. It covers little bulges (I'm a few pounds above normal weight right now - no biggie really, as I will lose the weight with increased exercise, but for now it's nice that this top covers that little waistline 'blub' I have that sits at my waistband.)

I finished the Pyramid Bag last week, and have used it incessantly since then. Mine is the exact same color shown on the front of pattern illustration. I used faux suede, and it was my first time making anything of this fabric. The persimmon colored bag and my new fuschia top went pretty well together, I think, especially along with my orange and cream high heeled sandals. I was so in the mood to wear color today that I even painted my nails green using this.

I'll post more on both the handbag and the top later. Maybe I'll also put up a video. I think I will, it's just a matter of taking the time.
On weekends, I've been helping my dad and mom refinish a boat for the past month or so, and wanted to share this photo of the flying squirrels that I saw today. They live in my dad's wood shop. This particular colony has lived in and around my parents place for at least 50 years. I understand they're pretty rare to find in a suburban environment such as ours, since they're mostly woodland dwellers.

The Empire Lives

2010-03-20T21:55:00.002-04:00

I made the Empire Dress from Folkwear, and here is a video. Should I continue these videos, or should I continue the normal photo plus text format?

Retro Apron

2010-03-16T20:00:00.003-04:00

Here's Simplicity 3544, which says, "1940's farm housewife" to me. I've been on a Apron roll. Why is it that so many women are so into aprons lately? Especially younger women. I have a book which even promotes the wearing of some aprons by"teens" and "twenties" as a fashion statement!

Interesting, the resurgence of aprons, because when I was a child in the 1970s, aprons were hardly ever worn at home by younger women. Only older ones (like grandmas) wore them. Maybe women abandoned aprons in the 1970s because aprons were a symbol of being tied to the house, and therefore a symbol of women's lack of choice? This sounds to me like a likely topic for a Master's Thesis or more. Maybe when I'm done here I'll do a search on the internet and see what I can find.

Anyway, now that women, particularly those of us in western countries, have more choice in careers, it seems that we're not afraid to enjoy wearing aprons any more. Ok, enough of that. Here's the video:

Blooper alert - here are some things I should have said but did not in this video. (You Tube's server will not let me annotate my video right now (grrr), so that is why I'm telling you this stuff here. Anyone who accesses the video from YouTube alone will not have the benefit of this info. So SEE ? Now you know why you bother coming here to read this blog, right? Right?

1. In the video I state that I used three yards of bias binding. Nope, I used three PACKAGES, which comes to about nine yards.

2. In the video, I did not adequately thank my dear MIL, Carol, for her mentorship and caring, not to mention the fabric I got when she died. (However, I paid my father in law for the fabric, as he was going to sell it, and I felt bad depriving him of the income. And it seemed like the right thing to do.)

3. Toward the end of the video, when I turn around to show you the back of the apron, I mention that the apron strings are topstitched to the body of the skirt. Indeed they are, but I could not see the area to point it out to you. Further, the back of the skirt is twisted, but I could not see this. Sorry. That's how it is when you do a video on the fly. I guess next time I need to hire a stylist. Ha.

So, what do you think of aprons? Do you wear them? Do you think women abandoned apron-wearing in the 60s and 70s as a reflection of their re-entry into the 'paid' workplace in droves? I say re-entry, because in the 40s, women were all OVER the paid workplace. But when the menfolk came home from WWII, the 'girls' gave the jobs back to the returning war heroes.

PS - Please know that I have no illusions - women have a long way to come to gain full equality in the workplace. We have made a bit of progress, though. I'm just saying.

What Surfing Taught Me About Sewing (And Life)

2010-02-13T15:46:00.003-05:00

This past week, I was in California, taking surfing lessons. I had never tried surfing before. Come to think of it, I've not tried to learn a brand new skill for....a long time.

I am by no means a perfect sewer, but I'm competent. I've been sewing for over 20 years, so of COURSE I'm competent! You don't get good at something by accident. I've been a 'surfer' (and I use that term generously) for only a week. So of COURSE I'm NOT competent at surfing. But, I have to admit this. In my heart, in my hopes, as I prepared to take surf lessons, I was thinking I'd rise like Athena from those waves, riding the board on the strength of confidence and enthusiasm. Duh, Barbara. Of COURSE I did NOT. Surfing is a collection of skills, just like sewing is. And I had to learn those skills.

It was kind of wierd, at my stage in life, to be in the position of "beginner", and it was also a reminder to me of this: It's effort - the journey - that is the most fun. Mastery is pretty cool, of course, but the seeking and the learning are the best feeling, to me.

So, this is what I would like to share as a result of my surfing safari. Yeah, I know you already know this stuff...but I found it valuable to be reminded of it and maybe you will, too:

1. Give yourself a break! Very few of us can do anything perfectly the first time out. It's ok not to be perfect.

2. You're never too old to try something new.

3. When you venture into new territory, you will get beat up. Pick up, wring out your hair, shake off the sand, and keep going!

4. The help of a supportive friend or two will carry you through some tough times.

5. Victory is sweetest when it's shared.

A New and Spiffy Cover

2010-01-31T13:52:00.002-05:00

My ironing board is a great shape -large, and sturdy. The only problem with it, was that - you guessed it - the cover was worn out and butt ugly. So here, you see my new cover.

One hour before Nick and I left for an event, last evening, I got ready to do some ironing. That was it. I did NOT want to look at that butt ugly cover any more.

So I made a new cover. Removed and flattened out the old cover, traced it out with a 1/2 inch seam allowance. Cut out the cover, serge-finished the edges, turned them under, sewed them down to make a drawstring casing. Then threaded string through the drawcord edge, tightened, and there it was! A beautiful new ironing board cover.

An added bonus is that the fabric came from my dear mother-in-law, Carol's, fabric collection. A cheerful, clean, uplifting new ironing board cover, done almost as quick as you can say, "lickety-split"!

Travel Trio One T Shirt - Dress

2010-01-17T19:44:00.004-05:00

I lengthened the T-Shirt from Travel Trio One, from Christine Jonson, and made it into a dress. I lowered the neckline 1 inch, all around, and eliminated the neck-band. I simply turned and stitched the neckline. My fabric is Interlock Twist Yarn, also from Christine Jonson.

I also made the Travel Trio Jacket from this fabric, and it is just gorgeous.

This fabric drapes beautifully, and has excellent recovery. I've washed the garment already, and it's no-iron and beautiful.

I get no compensation from Christine for writing about her offerings - just so you know. I just think they are faboo!

Lace In Translation

2010-01-15T18:14:00.003-05:00

Today, I visited "Lace In Translation" which is being exhibited by Philadelphia University until April of this year. Philadelphia University used to be known as "Philadelphia Textile", as it was THE school to which people went if they wanted to learn about the science of fabric. Now, it's offerings have broadened, but they still have a strong emphasis on textile design.

The Quaker Lace Company was an industrial powerhouse of Philadelphia in the Victorian Age and the early 20th century. This company made complex, beautiful lace, available to the middle classes. This company operated in Philadelphia, then moved operations to Maine and other areas, until it finally went out of business in the 1980s.

Work from the Quaker Lace Company inspired this exhibit. Various notable artists were invited to contribute artwork.

I was struck by the fact that lace uses both positive and negative space to make its' statement, and this is evident in the exhibit. Also, the fact that lace, and in fact, all material, is ephemeral, seemed to be emphasized in the way the exhibit was composed. In particular, raffia, which was used exclusively by one artist, is by nature, easily decomposed. But this was also part of the oil drum exhibit, which is in the back yard of the museum. As the oil drum artist explains, (and I paraphrase), something as strong and hard as steel is brought to its knees by rust - which is caused by gentle rains - over and over- destroying the hard steel over time.

I hope you enjoy the photos I took of "Lace in Translation" and if you're in the Philadelphia area, you can visit the exhibit.

Christine Jonson Travel Trio 2 Funnel Neck Top

2010-01-03T12:30:00.004-05:00

In cold weather, a good layering piece is always a good thing to have. A very simple piece is this, from Christine Jonson's Travel Trio 2. This is meant to be a close fitting top, but I made mine a bit loose, as the fabric is a fine wool knit. Wool, even super-fine merino, often makes me 'itch', when it's next to my skin, but I can avoid that for the most part if I make the garment loose. Plus, wool is, as all of us know, a super-insulating fiber, which does a nice job of 'wicking' moisture away from the skin. Those legendary arctic explorers of yore always wore wool underwear, in the days before Polartec and such.

I'm using this as a base layer, to wear under jumpers, jackets, and the like. If I were going to wear it by itself, I would have probably nipped it in at the waistline.

The neckline on this pattern is wonderful. It's a simple funnel neck that is turned in on itself. The pattern is drafted well, and I like the touch of using self-fabric ribbing at the sleeve hem.

Another Version of Hot Patterns 1090

2010-01-01T10:08:00.001-05:00

This time, in cotton knit and long sleeves.

Actually, this is my muslin. I decided, as a result of this practice piece, to shorten the skirt one inch. I also shortened the bodice, and decided to make the sleeves short. (See previous post for the 'final' version).

This is wearable, but is not a 'go to' favorite. It definitely needs to be worn with high heels so as to avoid any 'frump factor'.

I Love Stretch Velvet

2009-12-29T16:22:00.004-05:00

I first used stretch velvet (polyester, totally washable and dryable) over 10 years ago, and back then, it was hard to find, and relatively expensive. Now, I can get it from Kashi of Metro Textiles for around $4 per yard. I am a fan. I like to use this fabric in casually 'dressed up' garments, like this one.

This is Hot Patterns 1090. I was not sure if I really wanted to buy this pattern - after all, how many "T" shirt derivatives do I really need? But boy, am I glad I bought this pattern. It has everything I love, and it's so easy to buy someone else's work than to try and draft the design myself.

So what do I like?

I like the dolman sleeves. They are shaped very nicely at the shoulder point. I like the banded hems. So easy to finish (you have to s-t-r-e-t-c-h those bands if you're using self-fabric, but what the heck). I made this entire dress on the serger. Well, except for using the straight stitch to pin down the seams where they meet. I sew a few stitches of straight stitch when seams meet (say, at bodice and skirt), and then, I serge. The straight stitching serves as a 'super pin' and ensures the seams meet nicely.

I like the style of this a lot. Loose enough to show I'm a lady, but shows enough to reveal I'm a woman. Who said that? Well, I'm paraphrasing Edith Head. Wouldn't you have loved to have Edith Head dress you? She dressed film stars, of course. But can you imagine...she knew how to make the most of every asset God gave a woman, while hiding any small flaws. I would love to have the benefit of Edith's expertise when dressing myself. But since I don't, I do the best I can without her. Those screen stars of the 40s and 50s looked like demi-goddesses, thanks to Edith and her golden eye.

A helpful hint when you're sewing pile fabric, like this velvet - sew the seams so that the pile is facing the sewing machine's run of cloth. In other words, sew so the feed dogs are grabbing the fabric against the nap. This keeps your seams from sliding around, as the velvet pile kinda velcros on itself. I just invented a verb. I velcro, you velcro, she velcros, they velcro.

Speaking of velcroing. Check out my bottom band (on the skirt hem). All my bands (neck, sleeves, bottom hem) are cut so that the nap goes down my body on the inside, so as to avoid upward creep. The bottom band is crucial, so that my skirt will not creep up. If anything, it will creep down, as it rubs against my body, but that' s ok. As a result, the band nap is going up on the 'public' side. This results in a darker hue, and I like that.

I made a mistake on this skirt band, but it's not a deal breaker. The seam at center front on the skirt band should have been at center back. I thought about tearing it apart and re-doing, but decided against it. This goes against every perfectionistic bone in my head, but so be it. The seam stays at CF! And that's my final answer.

I finished off this dress with an 'obi' belt of self fabric. The pattern tells you what dimensions to make this in, but since I'm tall, I made mine a mite wider. This adds the right touch of elegance, in my opinion.

I'll wear this with boots, tights, and on super cold days, a tight fitting turtleneck.

I Used "That" Fabric!

2009-12-27T16:47:00.004-05:00

"That" fabric.
Lovely, soft, colorful fabric.
Bought so long ago.

Loved fabric.

Taken from the closet.
Stacked again.

Cut. Committed.

Courage rewarded. Lovely fabric.
Life with bright clean future.

And now for details. My fabric was bought from Fabric Mart quite a while ago. It is a wool challis, very finely woven. Several bloggers bought this fabric, I remember. Among them, Mardel and Carolyn. I believe both of them felted their fabric to make the hand thicker. I kind of liked the fabric 'as is', but waited...and waited...and waited...for inspiration to strike.

Quite a while ago, another sewing friend, Patti, suggested I could make good use of this fabric by making it into Vogue 2933.

I agreed that this fabric was perfect for this design, and played around for a while so as to use the border design to good effect. I finally decided to place the border at the bottom of the main skirt piece (expected), and then, down the sides. During normal wearing, you won't see the side border too much, but I think it will look good when I move around and a glimpse of the border on the side will be seen.

Since this fabric was so finely woven, and the skirt takes a LOT of fabric, which would be heavy, hanging from the seams, I stabilized with two different stabilizers, both sew-in. Above, you can see what I did on the side seams. I used a rayon seam tape - it's very thin but very strong. Strength is needed when holding up those "wings" that are attached to this skirt on both sides. I sewed this in on both sides of the seam. I extended the tape on both sides up into the waistband seam, so that the weight could hang from the waistband.

One thing I also did, which lends a neat clean look, is that I did NOT sew a continuous seam at the "U" (again, look above). I broke the stitching in three places. At the side seam, and at each side of the "U". Or is it a "V".

Anyway, this lets the seam float a bit. Kind of like in carpentry, you don't want to nail the flooring tight to the subfloor. You want it to float on top so that expansion and contraction - normal moving of the materials - does not impede the finished project. Or, while we're on the building analogies, kind of like when you build a steel and glass skyscraper. The building floats on the foundation, so that the building can sway a bit in normal wind. Kind of like tree branches that sway in the wind. They sway so they do not break, right? On my dad's side of my family, they build things for a living - in fact that' s what my dad and mom did when I was growing up. They built houses and specialized in high end custom work. From hanging around their business (they worked a LOT), I learned a bit about building things. I also got experience mixing mortar, painting, installing insulation, rough carpentry (VERY rough), and so on, by working around my parents' business. So to summarize, from being around my parents' business as a kid, I know enough so that I can identify most wood on sight, and can be a real pain in the ass to builder/contractor -types.

Below is a photo of the waistline seam, where it joins to the waistband. I sewed a strip of silk organza in that seam.
The skirt will be fun to wear with a turtleneck sweater and black boots. And the color is such that I will be able to wear it well into spring, with a lighter top and maybe black sandals.

Christmas Aprons Live and In Person

2009-12-27T08:58:00.002-05:00

These are some of the aprons I made to give as gifts. It's fun to see them being worn and enjoyed by the recipients!

More Aprons

2009-12-24T12:38:00.002-05:00

More aprons from this fab Butterick pattern! View A, on top, is for my niece, Christine, who is an artist in Photography. She has lots of silver nitrate to deal with, and it is hoped that this apron will protect her from that caustic substance! The bottom is the tried and true version, posted earlier, but in a fabulous cotton from Spool in Philadelphia.

Apron, Apron, Apron, Apron...

2009-12-13T19:29:00.007-05:00

I've made lots of aprons, to give as Christmas gifts, along with matching napkins. For the napkins, I cut large (between 15 and 18 inch square) fabric, and used my 3-thread rolled hem function on the serger to finish. A little fray check at the corners, and done! The napkins complemented the aprons. In some cases, I had enough fabric to make exact duplicates, but in other cases I had to find something that would coordinate - in mood, if not in actual color.

Some of the fabric came from my mother-in-law, Carol, who was a painter and craftsperson. She was trained in flat pattern design at Chicago, in the 1950s, and was extremely talented. She was generous with her knowledge and work. She died a few years ago, and like most of us who sew, she had, and left behind lots of fabric. Hers was mostly cotton, as she pretty much did crafts and quilting in the last 20 years of her life. I used some of her fabric to make these aprons. I plan to give these aprons to family members, in part as a celebration of her, and so that others can enjoy the fabrics she had selected but never used. She was a prolific quilter, so these fabrics had been purchased to become quilts. Back in the 1990s, I did a lot of quilting myself. I finished several full sized quilts, and some lap quilts and wall hangings. After a while, though, I got back into sewing garments pretty exclusively. During my quilting phase, she was a faithful teacher and advisor. She was always very supportive of my sewing, and gave me lots of gifts related to sewing. Fabric, tools. I have a very old steamer, called a "Steamstress", that she gave me, and it still works wonderfully. Hams, point turners, scissors, and sewing instruction books came from Carol. When Nick, my husband,was small, she sewed a lot of clothing for him and his three brothers and sisters. She made his Easter suit many years, as well as many dresses for his sisters. I would like to think that she would be happy that I used some of her fabric to make gifts for Christmas.

For the aprons, I made 7 versions of view D, of Butterick B4945. This is such a fun, flirty style! Last summer, I made a version of view C for myself. View D is faster to make, as it doesn't call for pockets (of course, I could have made view C without pockets, but I feel view C would lose it's charm without pockets!). And view D has a single hemmed circular band to finish the bottom, which is fast to make. One of the aprons is a copy of one I have. It's pictured further below.

I think the part that takes me the longest is doing the apron strings. This is despite the fact that I use my rotary cutter to make short work of the cutting, and after sewing, I use my loop turner to turn the ties right side out. I think what takes so long is the part when, after turning the ties right side out, when I make sure the ties are pressed properly and that the seams are straight and that the fabric is not folded in on itself. Then, I topstitch the ties before putting them onto the apron. This is time consuming, but makes the apron much more durable. In fact, I pretty much topstitch or edgestitch everywhere I can. These are supposed to be durable utility garments, so topstitching is de rigeur, in my view.

I'm not normally one for production sewing as I love variety and get bored easily. But I kind of enjoyed this, sometimes in a zen kind of way. I was making these aprons in batches of two, so that I could take advantage of using the same thread in the machine, and I would do sequences in which I'd sew both parts of both aprons at the same time. At non-zen times, I cranked up my stereo, listened to music by groups like Def Leppard ( in opposition to my seemingly mild mannered and quiet outward demeanor, I like - no LOVE - loud and raucous 1980s music). It was fun to time myself to see how fast I could get things done.

There's more where these came from! I may post more pics later.

This blue apron, above, is copied from an existing apron I have. I think the original came for free, as a membership premium in a cookbook club I was in. The original was white, with blue ties. This is blue (as you can see) throughout. I put a contrast bit in at the hem and also at the top, where the ties go in, which also serves to reinforce. This one, above, is trimmed with rick-rack, which I also found in Carol's sewing room. This rick-rack is so old that a packet of three and a half yards (unopened) was priced at 15 cents, and it was 100% cotton. This is the first time in over 20 years of sewing that I've EVER used rick-rack. I wore dresses with rick-rack on them when I was little (dresses made by my grandmother Eleanor), but never sewed with it before now. I think this one is my favorite of all.

The green fabric was bought by me less than a month ago, from a store called Spool in Philadelphia. This store has a great selection of cottons, and they seem to be doing a nice job of introducing sewing to a new generation.

And here's Midget who got in on the wrapping action today.

Little Handbag

2009-12-12T09:26:00.003-05:00

I love to make gifts for people. It is fun to totally customize what I give, and from what many of you tell me, you like to make gifts, too. This is the "Chloe Handbag" from Lazy Girl Designs. It's made of wool, and has a magnetic snap closing. The handles are durable, lightweight black plastic.

The bag is lined with a wool pinstriped suiting, and the first initial of my recipient, "L" for Leslie, is embroidered (using my trusty Bernina from 2000) in white rayon on one of the internal pockets.

This handbag is the perfect size to keep inside a larger work bag, to pull out at lunchtime, or whenever.

Here's Leslie with her handbag. Oh...and the occasion of the gift - her birthday. We were born exactly one year apart on the same day. When we were little, on our birthday, we always each got our own cake.

And here's the VP, Operations. Fremont found her way into my interfacing bucket - making Cat Fur Studio true to its name. Cat Fur in every hem. Cat Fur forever!

RedHOT and Me

2009-11-21T21:05:00.004-05:00

Over a year ago, a friend and I spent a day modeling for Ileana Andruchovici and Alex Stanciu. So cool that I was able to spend the day putting on garments worth thousands of dollars. And Alex is totally a professional photographer, so I felt like a supermodel that day.

Ileana and Alex are a Mother-and-Son team. Their business, Olympia Creations is worth checking out. They print luxury silk fabrics so that their finished garments are rendered seamlessly beautiful. Their clothes feature their original artwork. Ileana is by training an archetect, and Alex is a computer expert. Together, they rock beautiful clothes. They sell at high end boutiques and juried art shows.

Their "Mystic Forest" dress is featured in the Paradise City Arts Festival "RedHOT" exhibit. And, yes, none other than MOI, is wearing their fantastic dress.

Here's more info on the show, "RedHOT", which is in Massachusetts this weekend.

If you're on Facebook, check out this album.

Same Old Same Old...But Good Old

2009-11-14T16:22:00.002-05:00

Kwik Sew makes some fantastic knit patterns, and this one, 3115, is one of my favorites. My fabric, from Christine Jonson, is called "Tanager", a cotton-lycra blend. It has 80% stretch, and great recovery, which makes it perfect for this, my favorite knock-around-the-house and yoga pant. I recently bought a new serger - the baby lock imagine. Since Baby Lock is introducing some new models, I was able to get a decent deal on this one, which has 'automatic air' threading. I have easily mastered the 3 and 4 thread serging features on this machine, but the 2-thread has me stumped. I need to go to class. I, Ms. Independent, and I will do it myself, thank you, ran into major headspaceandtiming issues, while trying to master a 2 thread flatlock. (That means I used lots of bad words, and the cats fled from the sewing room...) So, after 2 hours of frustration, decided to just go with the 3-thread flatlock, which I used on the side seams of this garment. The 3-thread lays more thread down, which is bulkier...which brings me to my desire to use the 2-thread flatlock.

Anyway, I ended up using this relatively light color fabric, and that's why I wanted vertical seaming to show, so I'd have a lengthening, and slimming line in my final garment. I used darker blue thread in the flatlock, and I used a narrow rolled hem. So, I did these in time to wear tonight, and soon I'll be making meatloaf and pumpkin pie for dinner. What does meatloaf and pumpkin pie have to do with these pants? Nothing. But there it is. And here are my new pants.

Just In - Philly Phanatic Takes Midtown Manhattan

2009-11-04T12:14:00.000-05:00

The Marrakesh Express

2009-10-24T16:13:00.001-04:00

Don't you know we're riding...on the Marrakesh Express! Don't ya know we're riding on the Marrakesh Express. They're taking me to Marrakesh! All aboard that train. All aboard....that train.

That song has been in heavy rotation on the Cat Fur Studio sound system lately.

It's because of this pattern. The Hot Patterns people have done it again, with their new Marrakesh pants.

I used a heavy textured rayon for my version, and it went together well. This pattern is drafted beautifully. Every piece goes together seamlessly and the design is faultless. I like the way the back crotch of the pants is drafted - in an "L" shape, which makes the most of one's rear assets, so to speak. (Others have commented on this before, too.)

The pattern includes full directions for creating a fly front zipper, which is incorporated into a combo drawstring/elastic waistband design. Nice. I also like the cute feature by which one can shorten the pants at the legs by installing tabs andbuttons at the side seams.

These casual pants are not super quick to sew, but they are easy to sew. Lots of good detail makes for a nice wardrobe basic

Eminently Brilliant

2009-10-18T17:11:00.004-04:00

Nick has been trying to get me to let him install some better lighting. I kept putting him off, but the other week, he went to the Home Depot and came back with a humungous light fixture. He didn't even tell me he was doing it. So, he installed it, and I liked it so much, he installed another, right next to the first one. So now I have two large flourescent light fixtures on my ceiling. Nick's my hero. Did you know that Nick and I have been married for almost 25 years?

The sewing room is as bright as a factory floor! I can see black threads on black fabric, even in the depths of night. On the bad side, dust, dirt, and such is also very apparent. Time for a good cleaning! Fremont approves.

Beary Nice Clothes

2009-10-10T19:43:00.004-04:00

I am going to a work lunch next week with a friend. We were told to bring dressed bears to the lunch, along with wrapped snacks, to be donated to charity. The bears are going to be judged on 'creativity' and 'best profession'. She provided the two bears. I figured I would dress them. I spent almost 5 hours today creating costumes for said bears. I decided our bears will be surgeons. Heart surgeons, since the bears are destined to be donated to children who've experienced abusive situations. I draped the pattern... then I made the surgeons masks of linen and elastic. And I embroidered onto the garments using my machine. The final garment was blue cotton. This was a case of "this is a quick project", becoming more complicated than the end result would indicate. The embroidery was the hardest part, since I hardly ever use my machine, which is an Artista 170 (Bernina), from 2000, to do embroidery. Lots of quirks to work out. But, I finally got there!

Urban Warrior With Skirt

2009-09-30T18:48:00.001-04:00

Here is my jacket along with a shortened pencil skirt. Love this outfit! The boots are Cole Haan - 2 years old, I think. I wore flesh toned hose, as it's still in the 60's, temperature-wise (Fahrenheit).

"Urban Warrior" Jacket

2009-09-26T14:41:00.006-04:00

Black is a magic color ( yes, it's really a non-color, if you want to be technical). Color or non color, black is serious, it can be seductive, it's dangerous, and as the color of this jacket, with a pair of kickin' boots, it says, "Don't mess with me." Perfect for day wear on the mean streets of Philadelphia.

This jacket is just another example of why I love Christine Jonson so much. This is going to be comfortable, for sure. It's timeless in style. And it shows I'm a woman while leaving plenty to the imagination.

I'm going to be wearing this jacket to work with a just-above the knee skirt, dark hose, and high boots. I'm going to wear it over pants for a more casual travel look.

This pattern is very easy to execute, and the directions are excellent. I did a few things differently, however.

First, because my fabric is rayon and lycra blend, it's pretty heavy. There is a lot of fabric draping off the neckline, so to prevent stretching, I stabilized the neckline by fusing a 1 inch strip of knit tricot interfacing at the entire neckline, and I carried it throughout the hem edge for a consistent look. I did not stabilize the sleeve hems, as I felt it was not necessary. I raised the neckline about 3/4 inch, because I want to wear this with only a necklace at the neckline. The only other thing I did was serge some narrow clear elastic into the shoulder seams. I love the ease of the mitered corners! Christine's directions make this easy. Here is a close up of the tie-end......and here is a close up of the right front hem at the corner.

Travel Trio T

2009-09-11T08:20:00.005-04:00

So I have made a lot of T-shirts in my life. There is something wonderfully satisfying to me about making T-shirts. They're a great way to use up a yard or so of that 'extra' fabric I always have laying around. When I shop for fabric, I usually pick up at least 3 yards. 'Cuz ya never know, right? You never know what you'll end up wanting to do with this fabric.

So a few years ago, I made a dress from this fabric, and had just under a yard left over. So I kept looking at this fabric, thinking it'd make a perfect T. I made this shirt using Christine Jonson's new Travel Trio pattern. I wore the shirt to work under my black suit jacket and my ubiquitous black pants. With a 3 inch heel, the outfit looked fab, if I do say.

And, what a wonderful T-shirt draft this is! Christine Jonson is one of my favorite independent pattern companies, because her designs are always eminently wearable for my life. And (this is a big 'and'), her instructions and techniques are easy to do, and always produce a very professional result. I think this is because Christine created and sold her own line of ready-to-wear for many years before starting her pattern company. So she gives us the benefit of her real world experience.

In this design, Christine's treatment of the neckline is super-simple and yields impeccable results. Essentially, you fold your neckline binding, then apply it to the raw edge of the neckline, subsequently topstitching it down. I am lucky in that I have both a serger and a coverstitch machine, so I used the serger to apply the neckline binding, then I coverstitched it down. I think I've found my new favorite T-shirt pattern.

The next time I make this shirt, I'm going to open the neckline a bit. I think I'll lower it by 1 inch. That said, I'm still very happy with this shirt.

Next up - I want to make the other garments in this pattern. Stay tuned!

A-Cowling I Will Go

2009-09-07T15:38:00.005-04:00

I made the cowl version of this top, and liked it so much that I decided to lengthen it and make a dress today. For the cowl shirt and this dress, I used the same fabric, which is a bit heavier weight than I used on my twist version of the "Three Graces", and for me, heavier (just a mite, mind you!) is better. Even for the twist top. When I wore the twist top to work, I felt it was just a bit too 'cas' (...that's casual, of course) for the workplace. It had too much of a 'beachy' feel. So the next twist version of this shirt I make will also be in this 'just a bit heavier' type of rayon lycra knit.

Easy peasy, I do say. You can do it, too, if you want. I added fifteen inches to the bottom of the top pattern, as I wanted the finished dress to hit me just at the knee, with belt in place, and I wanted a 1 1/2 inch deep hem. I located the waistline on the pattern, and from there, flared out a few inches, to the hip, then perpendicular to the hem. This gives plenty of ease ( I chose four inches for me) around the hipline. Although this is a knitted fabric, with 100% stretch, you want a nice drape around the hip - not skin tight.

At the hem, on the inside, before turning it up, I fused a 2 inch strip of the high quality knit interfacing from Pam Erny, (love, love these interfacings,by the way), because I wanted a bit of heft and weight at the hem. (This is a relatively lightweight rayon lycra fabric, obtained about a year ago from Metro Textiles).

Fremont helped me quite a bit on this project, so I thought I'd give her credit:

Gracefulness

2009-08-26T09:14:00.003-04:00

The Hot Patterns Three Graces T Shirt is a beautiful design. When I saw the pattern envelope, I fell in love and had to have it! This is reminiscent (although very different) from the Burda Twist Shirt which was the darling of Pattern Review reviewers a few years back. (I think it was April, 2005). This is better than that one, though!

I used a very lightweight rayon lycra knit, from Metro Textiles. I chose this knit because I wanted the maximum drape in the front. Trudy's video on You Tube helped me figure out how the front is draped. Draping it on a dress form is definitely the way to go. On the flat, I found it to be incomprehensible!

The pattern is drafted beautifully. I think this will be a repeat-performer for me! And best yet, there are two other versions of this top (a simple cowl and a crossover) included in the envelope.

Next time I make this, I'll go a little heavier with the knit. This is just a bit transparent, and I do think just a bit more weight would be a good thing. The deep hem, as designed, does help with creating weight at the bottom.

Overall, this is one beautiful design!

Summertime, and the Halter is Easy...

2009-08-22T20:04:00.002-04:00

This Hot Patterns 103 halter dress was just what I needed for casual summer evenings out, when I want to look dressed, but not like I'm trying too hard. The print on the fabric is what 'casuals' it up. Wearing it with low heels would make it even more casual.

I lengthened the bodice one inch, which resulted in the back bodice being higher than the designer intended in back. I wanted it that way, to cover my halter bra strap. So I installed a snap at the side seam, above the wrap. This creates a bit more security.

I love how this dress wraps in the back - a double back - nice and deep wrap, so a stray breeze is unlikely to show my goods to the world. A good thing.

Nick calls this my 'stained glass' dress. I bought the fabric from Metro Textiles. It's a nice mid-weight cotton, which launders well. Wash and dry with nary a wrinkle.

I love this pattern.

Check Out My Cooking Blog!

2009-08-16T15:20:00.002-04:00

I spend a lot of time cooking. I guess I'm not alone. Many of us 'creative' craft types do a lot of cooking. So, instead of putting my cooking stuff here, I'm creating a separate blog for it. To see, what I'm up to in the kitchen, check out my cooking blog!

Insanity...

2009-08-13T12:06:00.003-04:00

doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results.

Over the past week, I've been what Dr. Einstein would categorize as eminently insane. I've had big time serger problems. Seams that sew, then don't sew. So, I re-thread, then sew again. Same problem. I re-thread. I check the manual. I re-thread, again, checking the diagram. Again. And Again. I start all over again. All threads off. Then rethread. 1, 2, 3. 1 - lower looper. 2 - upper looper. 3 - needle. Then, stitches skip. Thread tangles. I consult the manual. "When stitches skip, change the needle". Check. "When stitches skip, change the thread.". Re-thread. OK. Check. So then I re-threaded again, checking the diagram.

You are way ahead of me here, by now.

Guess what? The upper looper thread had to go BEHIND that whatchamacallit, THERE. Shouild I blame the diagram? Should I blame the instructions? Nope. For sure, the problem was all me. I did the same thing. Over and over again. And I expected different results.

I lost one week of sewing time (yep, every evening...after dinner... for one week, I obsessed over this problem.). All because I did the same thing over and over again, expecting different results.

JulHippo Rocks!

2009-08-11T13:25:00.004-04:00

This is my niece, JulHippo. She's been posting videos on You Tube for a while.

JulHippo's funny. She's smart. She's cute. She's JulHippo! Check her out. If you like her, let's help her get to 5000 subscribers!

Giving It The Slip

2009-08-02T17:54:00.003-04:00

Slips are considered old fashioned by some, but all the same, there are times when I do not want transparency under my skirts (and not all my skirts are lined).

It's hard to find slips for sale in stores. (Being they're old fashioned and all.) The solution for me? This will shock you...I make them.

Here's how. Using PowerDry and some lace, along with some simple elastic, I cut a length of 43" by 16 1/2 " PowerDry. No need to cut two halves and sew them together at the side seams - I took a cue from the RTW slips I have and simply made them from one full length of fabric.

I cut the chosen length using the following rough formula. Since my hips measure 39 inches around, and I wanted 3 to 4 inches wearing ease (because PowerDry is not a very stretchy knit), and my seam allowance totalled 1/2 inch, that gave me about 3 1/2 inchesof wearing ease around the hip on the finished garment. Plenty, for this PowerDry garment, which I wanted very loose fitting. I wanted the finished length of my slip to be approximately 21 inches; my lace trim totalled 6 1/2 inches in length, and about 1/2 inch was taken up in length by the elastic waistband application. (I cut the elastic for the waistband about 4 inches smaller than my waist).

I applied the lace hem using a zigzag stitch. After sewing on the lace, I trimmed closely with applique scissors near the stitching. Then I sewed the side seam (again, one seam only was needed). Then I sewed my elastic in a circle then applied my elastic to the slip body, stretching the elastic to fit the slip fabric. I used my coverstitch machine to finish off the waistband elastic.

The colors are fun, and the PowerDry will make this a comfortable all-season garment.

Apron Love

2009-07-06T07:54:00.002-04:00

I bought this pattern a few years ago, thinking that some day, I'm going to make some aprons.

The fabric came from Spool, a shop in Philadelphia. It's a bit thicker fabric than the typical quilting stuff at Joann's, which makes it just perfect for use in my apron.

I like this pattern, because it's got lots of shaping seams. The apron hugs the body, unlike some other bib apron designs, which are floppy and fit only when one ties them tightly.

Barefoot & In The Kitchen

2009-06-30T19:30:00.003-04:00

Wearing a simple-to-make apron.

I had some leftover cotton fabric (from which I made a skirt earlier), purchased from Metro Textiles in NY a few years ago. There was not enough fabric to make a second skirt, even for a child. But there was enough for half a skirt. And so, an apron was born!
The fabric was pre-hemmed, so all I had to do was add a waistband (of black cotton), bind the edges (using the same black fabric), and add ties. And there you have it. A quick, kind of cute kitchen accessory. Below, you can see how I used wide ties at the waistline, but pleated them so they'd fit into the waistband neatly. I've seen this type of thing done on vintage aprons.
Speaking of aprons, I got this book recently - "A is for Aprons". After seeing my friend Jan's copy, along with her cute apron collection, I wanted my own. My own book. And my own apron collection. The directions for this apron are not in this book (it's so simple to make, no directions are needed), but I'm finding plenty of other inspiring designs to think about.

Making The Most of a Setback - The Asterisk Shirt!

2009-06-21T15:08:00.004-04:00

I used the T shirt pattern from Christine Jonson's new pattern, Travel Trio One, to create this deconstructed quickie. It's a great pattern, but this post is not about the Travel Trio One.

The back story -- if you read this post from last week, you know that earlier this week, I was feeling like one super highly motivated sewing dynamo. I was. I cut out and sewed a most lovely version of a certain wrap dress - a Kwik Sew that I've made twice before. I love both of those dresses and wear them a lot, even though I've had them both for over 2 years. So I thought...why not make another of this great pattern? Well, things were winding down on the project. As I finished the waist attachment to the bodice, I tried it on as an assembled garment. Although it had looked lovely in pieces on the dress form, it did not look lovely on me. Why? Well, the fabric, a polyester knit, hugged every one of my itty bitty curves (not just the top two) way too much for decency. I brought Nick (my husband) in for an opinion. He agreed. Not that it was indecent...just that I should not wear it in public and expect to be taken for a lady.

So what happened? Previously, I'd made this dress of a rayon lycra knit - not more substantial than the polyester -just draped differently. Even though I tested the fabric, even though the weight was ideal for the dress, the fabric just did not work for me. (I guess, for someone with way more willingness to show the body's dimensions pretty completely, this fabric would have been just fine in this dress.)

If you're thinking that this problem would not have happened if I'd just have stabilized the fabric at key stress points, thus negating the fabric's tendency to cling - I did that. I did it all. I stabilized at shoulder seams, neckline, and even did a waist stay. But the fabric was just not right! This kind of thing happened to me a lot when I first started sewing. It has not happened for a long time. But that reminds me that the craft of sewing is loaded with variables that must be considered and controlled. Design of garment, construction techniques, fabric, quality of ancillary materials (like interfacing), whether the moon is full...

OK, so after that, I was in the mood for a pick-me-up. It was too early in the day for a few good slugs of Kentucky Bourbon, so my pick-me-up came in the form of a deconstructed t-shirt.

I did not finish the edges. I just serged all around the neck, all around the sleeve hems and all around the hem. I lengthened the shirt 1 inch. The fabric is from Jomar. It's a very stretchy rayon, with very little recovery. The front decoration (the asterisk) was done on a whim, after I cut the shirt out, but before I started to assemble it. It's simply eight 10 by 2 inch strips of fabric. I attached each strip to the shirt with a zig zag stitch running smack down the center of each strip. The fabric curls in to hide the stitching. The whole design of the shirt and it's deconstructed nature takes advantage of the knit jersey's tendency to curl toward the right side.

This project was a quick way for me to get my motivation back after that wrap dress setback! Onward, ho!

Smokin'!

2009-06-15T12:04:00.007-04:00

Smokin' Hot, that is. My creative brain has been punched into overdrive!

The summer is almost here, and that's why I'm in my sewing room less than usual. I'm at the shore, traveling, riding my bike, with family. Regardless, I have indeed been sewing some. So check back soon for pics of what I've been up to when it comes to fashion fabric. In the meantime, I just HAD to share with you some amazing and beautiful things. I just purchased the Christine Jonson pattern, Travel Trio One, and can not wait to try it out. It is a beautiful design, I think. Draped on the chair, above, is the most beautiful fabric, also offered by Christine. It's called "Tango". I am SO glad I bought this fabric - it's super stretchy, made of very high quality rayon/poly yarns, and has little parallel ruffles (about 3/4 inch) inserted horizontally, perpendicular to the selvedge. The ruffles and the base fabric are subtly printed with a slightly shiny abstract print. Know that, however, when I say shiny, I do mean subtly shiny. I will wear this to work (I work at a Philadelphia, PA law firm) with no reservations whatsoever. So, I guess you'd say this fabric is conservative, but interesting. Using this fabric, I'm going to do a simple t top and straight skirt and plan to mix and match the garments (no bells and whistles needed, as the fabric will do all my talking in this design).

My friend Catherine just returned from Europe, and sent me a very beautiful and generous care package! See below. These magazines are in Spanish and Italian, and include all the patterns for the designs shown. I know about 2000 words of Spanish, and zero Italian. So I can't read them. But what do I care. These designs and patterns do all the talking I need to hear. From others, I've heard raves about these magazines, Patrones, in particular, and now I know why.
Just a sample of the goodies inside these magazines. Below, check out the feature on shorts. Hot! I really like the pair shown in green in the bottom photo. It has a cute little cargo pocket on the side - sporty and still elegant. I will probably wear mine with gladiator sandals - the high heels are a little much for me. But then again...we'll see...

Catherine also sent me some great things last month, including this book and a beautiful wrist pincushion - the same kind worn by the 'petits mains' in the Paris workrooms, which she had picked up on an earlier trip to Europe. Muchas gracias, Catherine!

Too Nice To Wear on The Lawn

2009-05-10T17:30:00.003-04:00

This cotton lawn, available from Ann at Gorgeous Fabrics, is just the ticket for an elegantly casual tunic. I used Simplicity 2584. And..Ann has suggested just this pattern to make up this fabric. Great minds and all that. I really did think of it before I saw her recommendation!

The fabric made up beautifully in this design. The fabric is so finely woven that ironing was not necessary after I pre-washed. That bodes well for care of the finished garment.

I kind of see this garment as a 'brunch at the country club' type thing. Casual, colorful, not frumpy-comfy. Just comfy.

I drafted an 'all in one' neck facing, by overlapping the seam allowances at the shoulder, then cutting a one piece facing using silk organza. Actually, I cut two facing pieces, sewed them together, at the edges, then turned them right side out, thus creating a finished facing which I applied to the garment neck edge. Neato. I first learned of this technique from the Spadea sewing book back in the mid-1990's, when I checked out a copy at my local library. I bought my own copy quickly thereafter. This is the type of book I take to bed with me. (It's either a sewing book or a cookbook. And sewing books don't make me hungry...) The Spadea book is a collection of newspaper articles from the 60s and 70s. Back when sewing at home was something a lot of people did, it was common for mainstream newspapers to print sewing articles. They were in the "living" or "entertainment" section, usually near the crossword puzzles. Anyway, this book is out of print, but well worth getting, if you can find it.

I added a split hem at both sides, for wearing ease, especially when sitting. This garment is cut close to the body. Which is good, for appearance's sake - it looks good - not voluminous and bulky. Of course, that makes fitting very important. I have a broad back, so I added a total of 1 inch in the back, easing the extra fabric in at the shoulderline.

I inserted an invisible zipper and a button and loop at the neck. (The pattern does call for a zipper - the regular kind. You might agree with me that using an invisible zip ensures that your garment does not have that sometimes undesirable 'loving hands at home' look). The zipper allows the garment to fit pretty closely and you can still get in and out of it.

The Shirt On My Back

2009-05-03T13:38:00.004-04:00

It's been a while since I sewed a traditional shirt - at least four years. So I thought I'd take a crack at this shirt from Hot Patterns.

I made a few changes, but nothing significant. Since I was using a striped fabric, I divided the back yoke at center back, and cut the pieces on the bias, creating some interest there. As for technique, I recommend David Page Coffin's book on shirtmaking. This reference is unparalleled, and I've been using it since it came out in the late 1990s.

Before? Or After?

2009-04-20T21:37:00.002-04:00

Here is a dress by Hot Patterns that I made last December. The last one was of knit. This one is of rayon acetate, purchased off the remnant table at Jomar.

Do you like it better "before".....

Or does it look better, with a belt, "after"...?

To my eye, in the mirror, while wearing, it looked better with the belt. But upon reviewing these photos, I think the 'before' shot, sans belt, is better.

What do you think?

Jomar on Film

2009-04-04T09:17:00.002-04:00

Any sewing person who knows Philadelphia knows Jomar. Jomar sells great fabrics cheaply. Like the exact same $50 per yard silk I saw at G-Street in the Metro DC area was at Jomar for $4. Yep, I bought it.

So, US unemployment has risen to 8.5%. Credit has dried up despite our federal government's largess to failing financial institutions. So newly reformed spendthrifts are interested in saving money. Well, wake up, world. Some of us have been shopping Jomar for over 20 years. They recently were featured in a local TV spot. Want a 'taste' of Jomar? Check out this video. Dare I say it's worth your coming to Philadelphia if only to visit Jomar? Yep, Jomar has a lot of schlocky stuff. But a lot of treasures are hidden among the dreck.

So come to Philadelphia. My home city. Philadelphia - City of Brotherly Love. Philadelphia - "Cradle of Liberty", where the US declared Independence from Mother Britain back in 1776. Philadelphia - Home of Cheesesteaks, Rocky Balboa, the Eagles, Phillies, Flyers, and Soft Pretzels. Philadelphia - Where smart people visit Jomar. (Jomar doesn't pay me for saying this stuff. Maybe they should?)

Springtime Roses

2009-03-03T20:29:00.003-05:00

Inspired by this piece on You Tube, I copied Trudy's HotPatterns Cabana T shirt with rose trim. I did not tax the brain with creativity on this project! But why reinvent the wheel? Anyway, Trudy is down in Florida, and I live more than 500 miles north of there, so it's unlikely we'll be seen wearing this thing together at the same time.

Shameless rip-off of a great idea. I didn't even bother to make it in a different color, did I? The white shows the shadows and texture so nicely, doesn't it?

Wash N' Wear/Drip Dry Clothes

2009-02-15T18:48:00.004-05:00

By Wash N' Wear, I mean "go to" everyday clothes - easy to wear, easy to maintain. Easy to put on, wear, then throw in the wash. This dress is of a polyester knit, a stable jersey, bought from Mr. Kashi of Metro Textiles in New York, last autumn. The pattern is McCalls 5516. I made view C.

The hem is ruffled; I used a double stitched machine hem, which added the weight I wanted, while being neat and clean. The sleeves have a 'bubble' hem - easy to do by gathering and stitching the outer fabric onto an inner cylinder, then turning up.

Jacket Required

2009-01-22T19:21:00.007-05:00

I saw Diane E's version of Vogue 2991 live and 'in person' this past spring. It looked really nice on her, so I bought the pattern at one of the Joann sales.

How do you decide what project to make? For some, the pattern is the first step...then the fabric and notions are chosen. That's an orderly and linear method, but I never do it that way.

For other people, a need (gap in the wardrobe) is identified, then a garment created to fill that need. Are you kiddin' me? Well, when I'm feeling "diligent", I think something along the lines of, "I need some black pants in my closet". Next, I tell myself, "I think I'll make myself some". That thought lasts two minutes max. I don't bother making what I "need". I go buy that stuff.

For me, the buttons or fabric come first, then a design is dreamed up to use these to their best advantage. I look at my different fabric, then, maybe, think about my buttons. (I have a large inventory of fabric, but not so many buttons.) My mental creativity is sparked from the fabric. My hand might caress a fabric ten times over the months or years, until that fabric "speaks" to me and, essentially, tells me what it wants to become. That's of course, how I decided to make a cropped jacket from this 1 1/2 yards of gorgeous cashmere, bought from Jomar's Whitaker Avenue outlet. I bought the end of a roll, so I only got a little over 1 1/2 yards. This jacket was perfect for that exact amount of fabric.

I love the look of bound buttonholes on wool, so that's what I put in. Bound buttonholes do not take much more time for me than when I mess around with the sewing machine trying to get the machine buttonholes looking halfway decent. I only needed two buttonholes, as I had only two vintage bakelite buttons, which, I thought went perfectly with the style of the jacket and the fabric. I placed the buttons together at the top of the jacket, thus creating a 'flyaway' look. My husband, Nick, as usual, served as a wise design consultant at this phase in the project.

The buttons are bigger than those called for in the pattern design, so I added 1/2 inch to center front, thus accomodating the overlap needed by the larger buttons. I often refer to Roberta Carr's book, "Couture - The Art of Fine Sewing", when I need to refresh my memory on how to think through details things like this. I had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Carr a few years ago at a PACC conference in Baltimore. I knew she would be there, so I brought this book along with me and she kindly signed it for me. She wrote, "Barbara -- Sew. Enjoy. Admire. Roberta C. Carr, October, 2005".
The jacket is fully lined with silk. The pattern only calls for a partial lining, but I like my jackets fully lined, so I made my own lining pattern using the main pattern pieces. Not hard.

I "bagged" the jacket lining, which is an easy technique used in the garment industry. This method allows one to install the entire lining using all machine stitching. Instructions on how to do this are in many sewing references on the market.

The jacket is supported by twill tape at all curved edges, cotton batiste in the upper back, a chest shield of armo-weft, and tricot fusible inserted at the hems. These steps, especially the twill tape, will, it is hoped, serve to make the jacket hang well for many years, without stretching.

Fremont, my Vice President for Operations, is shown here with me, last night, before I finished the jacket. She is on the pieces of my next project, which is always her favorite sitting spot!

Another Body

2009-01-20T19:22:00.002-05:00

Here's another version of the Hot Patterns Bodysuit. This one is the V neck version. I like this shape better on me, but found the "V" neck pulls a bit at the center - it's a mock wrap, and where the two pieces join, there is some wearing strain. It hasn't stopped me from wearing this, however.

I tell myself, "Well, it's no worse than a lot of ready to wear". And because I made it, the sleeves are long enough, unlike most ready-to-wear. (Did I mention that I had to lengthen the sleeves three inches? Well, I did. And that, by the way, is why I started sewing back in the 1980s - to get clothing that had sleeves and legs long enough!)

Ephemeral Fashion

2009-01-17T15:29:00.007-05:00

I fit in a trip to NYC recently to visit the Dark Glamour exhibition at FIT.

There are several layers to the Dark Glamour exhibition, which is held, appropriately, in the dark basement of the FIT museum. After descending a staircase, one opens the tomb-like double doors to the exhibition area. Immediately, you're launched into the history of "Gothic" as a cultural force. An introductory theme is the culture of mourning as one antecedent of what is known as "Gothic". Shown are a variety of historical mourning garments such as this one from the Victorian era.

This dress, below, is a modern creation by Kambriel. The use of corsetry (dark restraint) and the romanticism of the lush, midnight black fabric, complemented by the ornate hairstyle and makeup, including blood-red lips, creates quite a seductive combination, without, however, showing any skin, except for the upper chest. To me, that's the appeal of Gothic style - luxurious darkness and structure. A statement of restraint and deep quiet can be very appealing. Sexy in a way different than is often seen today.
The exhibit was divided into several sections. There was a cabinet of curiosities, containing a death mask from the 1800s, jewelry of different sorts, some with a skull motif. One pair of earrings was made of severed bird talons, onto which Tahitian pearls were strung. The earrings were macabrely beautiful. They drew me closer, and repelled me at the same time.

The color red was prevalant, and was used most often, next to black. This dress, above, by Rodarte, is a confection of silk. Below, a different by John Galliano, is from 2000. Red symbolizes passion, blood, life.
My take away - fashion is ephemeral. Gothic style reminds me that we, too - at least, in our physical form, are also ephemeral.

So, celebrate the chance to enjoy the flower while it blooms...revel in the joy of every day..now!

It's All About the Body!

2009-01-10T20:10:00.005-05:00

The Hot Patterns Body Suit reminds me of a body suit I wore in 7th grade. The virtue of this 'suit' is that I can wear it under low cut waistbands, and the skin will not show! (The HotPatterns people say it helps avoid the dreaded "muffin top" but I disagree...it does not "avoid" the muffin - just covers it!)

Below are two of my versions.

Note! I'm EDITING this on January 11, to answer some your questions about the crotch snaps and overall comfort level when wearing this.

I find these very comfortable to wear, and I have to say that when I made the first one, I was doing it on a lark...I really didn't expect it to be that comfortable. BUT, they ARE comfortable, and I think the following is why:

I installed the snaps so that the 'nipple' of the snaps are pointing away from my body. Also, the pattern is designed so that the snap closure is toward the back...and there is no way to put this delicately...the snaps are right under where the cleft of the butt cheeks begin. Since there is a natural hollow in the body there, I find that this placement is super comfortable. At no time do I feel the snaps when wearing.

I sewed the snaps in. I did not use snap tape because the only tape I could find was cotton twill, and thick. I even checked out the garment district in NYC looking for softer snap tape. I did find some, but the snaps were very large. And the other tape I found, at a 'dance wear' notions place, was hook and eye. That would have worked, but I wanted to use snaps. The first version had five snaps, and it was a PITA to sew all the snaps on. So the next version used only three (larger) snaps, and that worked well.

To help me hold the snaps in place while sewing, I used "505" temporary adhesive spray. I just put it on the back of the snaps, then placed them where I wanted. It worked very well.

The "boy" short bottom does not ride up, even in my tight fitting low cut jeans. Part of the reason for this is the way I installed the leg elastic. At a 1:1 ratio at the front of the leg, then stretching slightly in the crotch area, then stretching a LOT under the butt cheek, where it meets the leg. This creates a 'cup' and is comfortable, and the leg does not ride up.

I hope this additional info helps!

...and matching undies, too!

2009-01-06T20:15:00.003-05:00

While experiencing an extreme fit of 'matchy-matchy', I made a pair of stretch velvet undies to go with my brown stretch velvet outfit. Using Jan Bones' "Smoothie" pattern, and some scraps, along with 1/4 inch elastic and some powerdry for the inside crotch lining, I created this:
The only change I made to this pattern was to add a bit of extra fabric at the lower 'cheek' above each leg. One time, I was shopping in a lingerie boutique, and I queried the staff, asking them why so many underwear you buy rides up in the back. They explained to me that there has to be enough fabric under the butt-cheek, and it needs to be cupped under the butt with elastic. So, when I make underwear or bathing suit bottoms, I always add extra fabric in this one spot, and it always fits and is comfortable.

...and here's the whole outfit!

2009-01-04T13:20:00.003-05:00

I paired the shirt I made yesterday with a skirt of matching fabric. The skirt is Kwik Sew 3032. It's a standby pattern for me. I've been making this pattern for years and am still not tired of it. Nick, my husband says, "Well, you never go wrong with that skirt!".

Stretching in the New Year

2009-01-03T14:29:00.002-05:00

Happy New Year!

I suffered a dispiriting sewing failure yesterday. A dress for which I had high hopes just did NOT work. So I tossed that baby right outta my hair, and moved on.

To console myself, I whipped Christine Jonson's new top up this morning. This pattern comes in two choices, "Cross Your Heart" and "V Neck T". The "Cross Your Heart" moniker is reminiscent of those Playtex "24 Hour Cross Your Heart" bra commercials from the 1970s. Well, I did not know this, but they're still making these bras and here is evidence.

After that little diversion, I will tell you that I did not make the Cross Your Heart version of this T; I made the V neck version. This pattern is classic Christine Jonson. Great instructions. Easy to put together, well-drafted pattern. After only a few hours, I'm in love with this top, and this pattern.

I used a stretch velvet from Jomar. Notice that I placed the nap of the fabric two ways - nap going up in the center, where it looks darker, and nap going down on the sides. I did this to create that always-flattering vertical seam effect.

I'm going to make a skirt of this same fabric and wear it this weekend. Check back if you want, because I'll post the whole outfit, once it's done!

I used a new thread in this project. A few months ago, I 'discovered' Guterman "Skala 360" thread. This is a special, lightweight thread, made for blindstitching. I've been using it in my regular sewing machine to very good effec You probably already know that silk thread almost disappears into a sewn seam. This thread acts the same way, in my experience. So you might want to give it a try. I got mine from Banasch's.

If you're still wondering about the sewing failure which preceded this project, it was a result of putting an incompatible lining with a poorly-chosen fabric. Poorly thought input = trash output. Did I learn, well, yes. Will I make the same mistake again, well, probably. I was stretching the envelope, and this time it did not work.

So, I'll celebrate the new year with this small success -- an easy, stretchy top to wear into the new year.

I wish you the best of everything in the year to come, along with the satisfaction of doing what you love, doing it with passion, and doing it well.

My Merry Christmas Dress

2008-12-21T20:18:00.003-05:00

Hot Patterns "Deco Vibe Delicious Dress" has my name all over it. A recent trip to Jomar yielded a multi-colored sweater knit which featured flecks of silver yarn throughout. This cost me $2 per yard, so I splurged and bought 5 yards (at 45 inch width, I figured I'd err on the side of quantity). So, this knit spoke "Christmas Dress at Family Gathering" to me. Nick and I are headed to the chilly midwestern US in a few days, so warmth is necessary.

I underlined the fabric throughout with walnut (that's a fancy name for brown) Power Dry. I bought a bunch of this power dry last year from Ressy's Co-Op, and I find that I am using it extensively for lining and underlining. (See Yahoo Groups for more info on this fabric-buying den of fabric divas known as Ressy's Co-Op. But if you go, be warned, it is highly addictive.).

Ok, back to the project at hand. The sweater knit needed not only the Power Dry, for a thicker and drapier hand, but also needed stabilization at all seams. For stabilization, the "Hug Snug" rayon tape was inserted in all overlocked seams, and I used some fusible bias stay tape at the neckline as well. This article is a good primer on sewing sweater knits; the biggest thing to remember is that sweater knits s - t - r - e - t - c - h under your sewing machine needle unless you use stabilization. (In other words, your size 8 sweater dress will become a size 20 if you do not stabilize. Trust me, I know.)

So, this is my new Christmas dress. I love that it is comfortable, and also roomy, but not overwhelming. I'm wearing the dress with a camisole, but the dress pattern does come with a 'modesty panel' which is inserted into the neckline and would give a nice look. I wanted the option of wearing the dress without a camisole for an evening event, so I did not insert the modesty panel.

Did you notice my new shoes? I got them on sale. There is a Cole Haan store near where I work and the sales people know me there. These shoes feature Nike Air comfort. For 4 inch heels, these babies are pretty darned comfy.

I love shoes. I have always loved shoes. When I was a child, I got a new pair of shoes each autumn. My parents and my grandmother would go to Kinney Shoes in Montgomeryville, Pennsylvania, and I'd get to pick out my shoes. I was always so happy with my new shoes that I slept with them. That's right. I took those shoes out of their box and slept with my arms around them, and usually woke up with my arms tightly wrapped around both shoes. Not one slipped through my grasp! But it was understood that after they were worn, I could not sleep with my shoes any longer.

A Woman's Prerogative...

2008-12-04T20:13:00.003-05:00

...is to change her mind. As it is everyone's prerogative, right?

And in that vein, the black sheath dress I had planned became something completely different:
It's another version of the Metropolitan Good Times Dress from Hot Patterns. This time, I used grey wool jersey (italian, purchased from Christine Jonson) and made the skirt longer. Since my skin and wool do not get along (wool makes me itch terribly), I lined the yoke, where it hangs from the shoulder, with silk knit. I used cotton batiste, cut on the bias, for yoke interfacing. This was perfect for the fabric, as the bias cut of the interfacing stretches slightly, as does the wool jersey. At the same time, the woven interfacing adds just enough stability to keep anything (neckline, for example) from stretching out during wear. The dress is pretty loose fitting, so the wool is not a problem rubbing against me, and I did not have to line it anywhere else. I did insert side "elephant ear" pockets and I wear the dress with a tricot slip underneath. (As a slip wearer, I sometimes feel I'm an endangered species!).

I am still in "love" with my super-duper industrial hemmer, which worked wonderfully to hem the sleeves and skirt, once I realized that to use it, I had to forgo my usual rayon "Hug Snug" hem binding. The woven rayon hem binding did not stretch, but my fabric did...causing my hem to be 'warped' while being sewn, if I used the seam binding. So I simply cut the binding off, then hemmed away. It worked wonderfully. Not very pretty, looking at it from the inside, but heck, the knit does not ravel anyway, and the hem is secure and invisible from the outside, which is I guess is what should matter most.

I wore this all day at work for almost 12 hours, counting the commute, and I still have it on now. That's a long way of saying it's one comfortable dress!

Handbag Happy!

2008-11-23T16:38:00.003-05:00

Well, not "handbag happy" yet, but I'm going to be soon, thanks to my receiving this mini-haul from M & J Trim. They were having an online sale a few weeks ago on handbag handles, so I bit. Check out those spotted ones - inlaid wood, and I paid, I think, less than $8 or $9. A deal. I also bought some sew on 'jewels'. I like those black plastic square handles, too. And the wooden circles.

Because the little bags I made a few weeks ago were a hit with the recipients (see previous post), I thought I'd make a few more larger bags, and maybe give them as holiday gifts. That's why I bought all these handles.

Right now, however, I'm in the middle of a little project - I'm making a sleeveless black sheath dress, using Nancy Erickson's 1960 top pattern as a base. I've been using this pattern to make semi-fitted (looser than the famous Jalie T-shirt) knit garments for over 8 years. I'm lining this to the edge with black power dry. So, a few hours to get that done (stay tuned), and I'll be on to handbag making mode over the Thanksgiving Holiday. (Nick and I will be hosting Thanksgiving dinner for 15, so sewing will start on Friday!).

Gifts at the Ready!

2008-11-08T17:01:00.002-05:00

There are several birthdays of friends and family coming up, so I spent this afternoon with some fabric, zippers, and the sewing machine, and made these: The five pouches are fully lined, with some silk given to me years ago by my friend, Catherine. Each bag will get a tassel and will be 'stuffed' with toiletries. I like Crabtree and Evelyn, so I usually buy a bunch when they're on sale, and keep them on hand. I did this 'assembly line' style, and overall, I guess it took me about five hours. Longer than I thought it would, but isn't that always how it is!!?

...and all the men and women merely players...

2008-11-02T15:05:00.003-05:00

If "all the world's a stage", I spend most of my sewing time preparing costumes for myself. I switched gears this weekend to create a "monk" costume for use by community theater in Philadelphia. The actor for whom this was created is a taller and bigger man than Nick. But Nick, my wonderful husband and a good sport, agreed to model the outfit, and although it's a bit big on him, I think it looks pretty good!

This monk outfit consists of a long hooded robe, topped by a separate capelet. The fabric is a heavy poly blend (mystery gabardine), and it took me quite a few hours to sew this thing. I added extra touches, such as heavy stabilization at the neckline using twill tape, and extra reinforcement at the openings. This costume will be worn at least 13 times, and I want it to hold up through the last performance!

I am thrilled whenever I get a chance to use my new "SuperDuper Kick @SS" automatic hemming machine, which made short work of the hem on this robe!

Nick says "Monks don't smile". Even when not smiling, Nick's pretty cute, isn't he?

Congratulations, Phillies! Baseball Champions.

2008-10-31T12:39:00.003-04:00

The whole city of Philadelphia, PA is shut down today, in honor of our baseball team, the Phillies! Yay, Phils...World Series Champions! Philadelphians are wild with pride and celebration. Pretty much every business in the city (including the one where I work) has shut down, and people are lining the streets, hanging from lightposts, and perched on rooftops, jumping up and down to watch our modern day 'heroes' as they proceed down Market, to City Hall, then down Broad. Philadelphia needed this...a true bright spot of optimism for the City of Brotherly Love. Halloween is going to be a denouement tonight!

Yes, It's Halloween!

2008-10-29T19:49:00.003-04:00

This spectre will greet the intrepid trick-or-treaters to our front door this coming Friday. It's been many a year since I carved a pumpkin. That's because about 10 years ago, Nick and I swore off giving out candy at Halloween, all because some nasty teenager smashed my pumpkin on the sidewalk at Halloween. But, it's time to 'do' Halloween once again. So, Nick bought a giganto bag of candy at Costco (of which I ate almost all the Butterfingers last night but there's still enough left for the children), and today, we got a pumpkin to carve.

When I was little, my mom would buy each of us kids a pumpkin, and boy, did we have fun carving them! The "ewwww" part was when we had to scoop out the 'guts' of the pumpkin, after opening up a lid at the top. Then, we got to the good part - carving out the design. Today, while doing the what came to my mind was not 'guts', but "antioxidant hand masque". A reminder...it's all perspective.

So, Happy Halloween. I'll be handing out candy this Friday night, and our pumpkin will be casting his glow on the neighborhood ghoulies.

PowerDry Hiking Gear!

2008-10-23T19:51:00.002-04:00

I am a woman of many activities. First, there's my 'day' job, which takes up most of my waking hours. Then, there's cooking, home duties, reading, museum and theater-going, hiking, running, biking, kayaking, clamming, going to the beach, drinking wine, and so on. But when two of my interests intersect...now that's the height of bliss! So it was when I got to wear some of the Pamela's Patterns t-shirts I made this past summer. I made the shirts from powerdry. I have five of these shirts.

Nick and I were in Utah last week. We had some wonderful times hiking. I'm wearing one of my Pamela's Patterns t-shirts. If you're still looking for that 'perfect' t shirt, these patterns are worth a try. I think they fit and flatter mature womens' bodies really well. Power dry fabric does not stretch much, though, so I had to make these t-shirts in a larger size than I normally would. But I was very comfortable in my power dry shirts, whether worn as an underlayer in the early morning of cold 30 degrees (fahrenheit) or in the 80 degree heat of the mid-day sun.

This was the view in the early morning outside our lodge window.

An Everyday Black Work Dress

2008-10-09T19:40:00.003-04:00

We can't have too many 'everyday' clothes, right? In that vein, I used the Metropolitan Good Times Dress
from Hot Patterns, some drapy rayon knit, and a few hours to make this. Easy and comfortable to wear.

The belt at the waistline is an 'in and out' style. At front and back are two holes, each about 5 inches in from the side seam. To wear the dress, you thread the belt outside at center back, in the two holes in the back, then out the front at the holes and tie at front.

Doesn't the yoke look a bit like a church choir robe? It's saved from that effect overall, though, I think because the armholes are cut high and close to the body. Still very comfortable, and not, in my opinion, frumpy, which it very well could have been had the armholes been lower.

The highlight of this project was that I got to use my new blind hemmer! Wowza, does this baby make short work of invisible hems. I should have bought this sooner. In honor of my grandmother Eleanor, I used some of the money she left me to buy this machine and a gravity feed iron. I think she would have been happy with these purchases!

Formal Dress - Autumn

2008-10-01T19:21:00.003-04:00

A formal event! September 20, 2008.

I used Simplicity 4270, and my fabric was silk shantung with a flocked/beaded applique border. Below is the muslin. I used linen. The weight of this fabric was similar to the fabric I was planning to use. With this fabric, there was no room for error - too precious! Therefore, it was imperative I refine the fit on test fabric.

Above -- Bodice interior. Bodice was lined with fashion fabric. Here, I'm pointing out the bra strap stay in the shoulder.

Below -- Here's how joined the appliques at the seams. There were four seams on the skirt. I used a simple machine stitched hem. Skirt was lined with cotton batiste.

Thank You

2008-09-18T20:26:00.003-04:00

Thanks to those of you who commented on the previous post. I started a website, Cat Fur Studio, back in 99/00, I think, and subsequently started this blog. My reason for creating the website (and later, the blog) was (and is) to connect with, solicit and share ideas and inspiration with other people who sew clothing.

As the saying goes, "it is what it is".

Thanks again for sharing your thoughts. I appreciate your time.

Is it worth the effort?

2008-09-17T18:41:00.000-04:00

OK, so Site Meter shows me that thousands of you peeps visit each week. But I feel like I'm composing in a vacuum. I have to admit, I'm getting tired of putting 'stuff' out there and NOTHING.
"If the tree falls in the forest and no one hears, and all that"...

A Warm Weather Dress

2008-09-15T19:59:00.004-04:00

I finished McCall's 5466 over a month and a half ago. Originally, I was planning to wear it with a sash made of the same fabric as the dress -- a cotton poplin. And then, after I made the sash, I discovered that I didn't like the way the sash looked. Kind of bulky, even though the fabric is thin. So I decided to buy a patent belt to wear with the dress. Patent, because the belt would then match my shoes. But I could not find the belt I wanted locally. So I went online to beltplanet. The belt is a bit wider than I'd really choose, but it serves the bill, and the price is right.

The belt took almost two weeks to get here. Then, the days started getting cooler, here where I live in Pennsylvania, so the short sleeved, exposed neckline was not going to cut it any more. So, I resigned myself to not wearing this dress until the spring, or until the weather got warmer.

Well, as you can see, it was warm here this morning, and here I am in my new dress.

I kind of like the way this dress channels Donna Reed, in a way. I don't think I've ever worn anything quite like this before.

There are a few things I did a bit differently in making this dress. First, I added sleeve heads. More of a tailoring technique, but they gave the structure I wanted to the shoulder line. Second, I lined the skirt to the edge using cotton batiste. Solved the problem of 'flimsy skirt' and negated the need for a slip.

This dress was perfect for today, a workday where I had no 'power meetings'. And I am happy that I did not have to wait for next spring to wear it!

It's Never Too Late for a Peasant Skirt!

2008-09-06T13:56:00.003-04:00

So, the fashion pundits have declared that the resurgence of the 1970s Peasant Skirt has subsided, but it didn't stop me from creating my own version, to wear now and into the fall. This Simplicity pattern, from the 1970s was perfect for the skirt I had in mind.

My fabric, from Metro Textiles in NY, was purchased last year. I can not remember who I was with that day, but it was a fellow sewer. I bought three yards, and she asked me what I had in mind. I replied, "I don't know. Maybe a shirt?". You may be able to relate to that method of purchasing. You like something, so you buy it, knowing eventually you'll find an application for it.

This fabric consisted of strips of cotton, rayon, and poly lace, all stitched together from selvedge to selvedge.

One thing I know about the clothes I like best is that I hate to wear anything that visually adds to my waistline. So, I modified this pattern, which was, essentially, three tiers of fabric, joined to a woven waistband, with a zipper closure. The modification is shown here. I cut off the top five inches of the pattern, then cut a 11 inch wide band of knit fabric, sewing it into a tube. I folded the tube in half, and sandwiched a 1 inch piece of elastic (which also had been formed into a tube) in between. Then, I applied this new knit waistband to the woven skirt. The basis for this knit tube as waistband idea came from Christine Jonson. The addition I made to Christine's instructions was that I inserted the 1 inch elastic inside. This assembly creates a smooth line, without that dreaded waistband puff that can sometimes come when creating a dirndl style skirt from woven fabric.

Since the lace portion of my fabric was see through, and I did not want to have to wear a slip, I lined the skirt, to the bottom of the first tier, with the same lightweight rayon knit used for the waistband assembly. You'll notice that for added interest, I cut the top tier of the fabric on the bias, the middle tier on the "up and down" and the bottom tier was left horizontal. I chose this not only for added interest, but also for the figure flattery that diagonals and lengthwise stripes can deliver. (I don't care if the skirt 'reads' wide at the hemline, thus that's where I chose to put the horizontal stripes.)

As autumn arrives, I'll wear this skirt with a jeans jacket and a cool pair of blue-grey cowboy boots that I had custom-made for myself in Juarez, Mexico, back in 1985!

"Crotcheting" Along

2008-09-05T19:20:00.004-04:00

When I was in 7th Grade, every student was encouraged to sign up for a 'club', which was first period, each Wednesday. My friend, Liz, and I signed up for the "Crochet Club". Liz, I, and about 20 other girls, under the tutelage of groovy Mrs. Baginski, sat in the Home Ec Suite of Lenape Jr. High School in Doylestown (ok, so this was 1974, people), with hooks, yarn, and hope.

On the first day, Mrs. Baginski demonstrated the basics. Chain stitch. Single Crochet.

Liz and I caught on to "chain stitch" quickly. Three months later, our classmates were looping along, silently, gracefully, industriously creating bedcovers. Liz and I were still perfecting "chain stitch". Christmas came and went. I was still on "chain stitch". In other words, I never learned to crochet.

However, I have a long memory. I do not fail. Even if success had to come over 30 years later...

Last night, before settling in to watch John McCain speak at the Republican Convention on TV, I spent 1 hour with "The Idiot's Guide to Knitting and Crocheting", and, get this -- taught myself (again) to chain stitch. 20 minutes later, I graduated to single crochet. Onward HO. There's no stopping me now.

Mrs. Baginski...if you're out there somewhere...take a gander at this:

I "Haltered" It

2008-07-17T19:43:00.003-04:00

Vogue 8448 was featured on the front of Vogue Patterns Magazine this past Spring, and I knew it was for me.

I also knew, from looking at the design, that it would be a droopy, stretchy mess, especially in the heavy rayon knit I was planning to use, unless I gave it some undergirding.

This is a simple design, and it is elegant, but, again, elegance is not achieved or experienced when worried that one has to continually hoist one's clothing up all evening.

So I made a few minor, but significant additions to the support structure.

First, I incorporated 1/4 inch clear elastic into the edge bordering the neckline. Inserted on a 1:1.2 ratio or thereabouts. (Not shown.)

Second, I incorporated 1 inch waistband quality elastic into the edge bordering the 'backline'. Inserted on a 1:1.3 ratio, as the rayon knit fabric is very heavy, and I needed that elastic grip against my body to hold the dress up. Backline is not a word, but you know what I mean, right?

Third, I incorporated a 'stay' at the center back, to wrap around my bra strap. Below, you'll see my bra strap inserted into the center back stay. You can also see how I incorporated the 1 inch elastic around the entire edge of the backline. I used my coverstitch machine to secure the elastic down, but you could just as easily do this with a zigzag or a twin needle on a regular machine. Et Voila. I have a dress that is comfortable to wear, easy to make, and suitable for many summer occasions.

10 Years Ago Today...

2008-06-02T19:19:00.003-04:00

Liana tagged me, so here I go!

WHAT WAS I DOING 10 YEARS AGO?
I was probably visiting one of our National Parks. The company I used to work for operated interpretive stores at over 130 national parks in the US. I was Director of HR for that company. I solicited for myself the ancillary duty of "internal auditor" so I could get out of the office more. Which meant that I got to be on the team to travel around, check the books, count the money, and most importantly for me, talk to the people who operated the parks and who operated the stores. I may have been at Cape Lookout. Or Cape Hatteras. Or even Gettysburg. At Gettysburg, we had over 70 employees at one time. I spent a lot of time in Gettysburg. My car knew the way. 2 1/2 hours each way on the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

WHAT ARE 5 THINGS ON MY TO-DO LIST TODAY? These are all done, except for number (5).... as it is almost 8 PM now....
1. (Work) Ensure that one of our high level people get the distribution they need from my firm's 401(k) plan.
2. (Work) Solicit feedback on the performance appraisal system (a management-by-objectives standard) that I designed for our executive management team.
3. (Personal) Go running with Nick. We did this already at 5:20 AM this morning. We do this every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I run 10 miles per week for maintenance...and am also working on developing aerobic capacity for my participation in the MS Bike to Shore ride. If you would like to sponsor me, I'd appreciate it!
4. (Personal) Clean the birdbath and plant two pepper plants in my vegetable garden.
5. (Personal) Rip out some neckline stitches on a dress I'm making. (*Yuk). I may not get to that one. Instead, I think I'll watch a movie. "Moliere", 2007. From Netflix. Yes!

SNACKS I ENJOY:
1. Clams on the half shell. Raw. (I ate one tonight-from Barnegat Bay, NJ where Nick and I kayaked yesterday.)
2. Popcorn. No butter. Some salt. Crunch and yum. (Will eat while watching "Moliere".)

THINGS I WOULD DO IF I WERE A BILLIONAIRE:
It is interesting that this does not ask what we'd do if we were a "Millionaire". Used to be that "millionaire" was a great achievement. I'm currently reading Richistan by Robert Frank. This book clarifies the fact that to be truly "rich", one must have a net worth of way over $1MM. More like a Billion! So if I were a Billionaire, I'd probably be doing the exact same thing I'm doing now. Going to work and trying to make myself useful. Taking care of two cats. Married to Nick. Yep. That's me.

PLACES I HAVE LIVED:
El Paso, Texas. Wuerzburg, Germany. Doylestown, PA. Augusta, GA.

WHAT TYPE(S) OF WORK HAVE I DONE?
Waitress (cocktail and food). Construction laborer (at 50 cents per hour in 1972, working for my Dad.) I carried bricks for the stonemason and mixed mortar. US Army Officer (during the Cold War - reference living in Germany, above), Factory Worker (I assembled flourescent light sockets), office clerk, Human Resource Director (that's me, now).

OK, NOW I'M SUPPOSED TO TAG OTHERS...
But I'm not gonna. This was hard work, and I'm going to keep it local, not global.

What I Do When I'm Not Sewing

2008-05-19T19:13:00.003-04:00

When it comes down to it, in the average given work week, lately, I'm sewing only for a few hours at best. When I'm not sewing, I'm gardening, cooking, boating, and yes, even working. Want to hear what my speaking voice sounds like? In work mode? Well, if you're curious, you can find out. Go here.

Quick Top - Fun To Make

2008-05-11T19:55:00.004-04:00

Diane inspired me to start whipping up some more of those easy print knit tops. You know - the ones we see in major department stores, selling for hundreds of dollars, in some instances.

Here is what I whipped up in less than two hours using Vogue 2980.

The fabric is a rayon/lycra knit - very lightweight, from Vogue in Evanston, IL. I was lucky enough to meet up with several great 'fiber' women a few weekends ago, and Vogue was one of our stops. This fabric, in fact, was purchased by Diane, too! We both loved it, and since we live on different coasts, I figured the chances of us being seen together in the same fabric were minimal.

An easier pattern to make than this can not be found, methinks. The front neckline is self faced to below the bust, with a simple turn of the cloth. The back neckline is folded, pleated, and stitched to the armhole first, then the shirt is assembled from there. The neckline is such that I thought my bra straps would show, and was going to insert bra strap stays, but this turned out to be unnecessary. I don't even have to think about them.
This design should only be made with a thin fabric, I think, so as to avoid bunching under the arms where the neck piece (which is turned and then pleated where it joins the front armhole) sits.

2008-05-06T19:20:00.002-04:00

Liana tagged me for some book fun. Neat! Here are the guidelines:

1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Turn to page 123
3. Find the fifth sentence
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people and acknowledge who tagged you. (this is the only part I might not do...)

Ok, so today I was at Borders and bought, "On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen". It's next to my computer, right here. And on page 123...the fifth sentence just happens to coincide with a heading. It says:

Abundant Meat in North America (heading)

From the beginning, Americans have enjoyed an abundance of meat made possible by the size and richness of the continent. In the 19th century, as the country became urbanized and more people lived away from the farm, meats were barreled in salt to preserve them in transit and in the shops; salt pork was as much a staple food as bread (hence such phrases as "scraping the bottom of the barrel" and "pork-barrel politics"). In the 1870s a wider distribution of fresh meat, especially beef, was made possible by several advances, including the growth of the cattle industry in the West, the introduction of cattle cars on the railroads, and the development of the refrigerated railroad car by Gustavus Swift and Philip Armour.

So, this shows that one other interest of mine (other than sewing) is food. Eating it. So, I cook it, too.

This mirrors my interest in fashion sewing. I like wearing it (fashion). So I sew it, too!

Why I Sew

2008-05-04T17:04:00.004-04:00

I was invited to give a talk today at the Women and Girls Luncheon held today at my church.

The idea was to share my fashion sewing avocation - why I do it, and why others might consider taking up the hobby. I brought a bunch of my sewn clothing, emphasizing all the variations on "t shirts" that I have done.

I also brought a bunch of sewing and inspirational resources to share.

Some of the women also brought samples of clothing they had sewn. A beautiful wedding coat. Baby dresses. And Kay, who presented with me, brought her beautiful handbags - and sold quite a few of them! It was, from my viewpoint, a resounding success. Because two young women (13 years old) asked me for very specific info on book resources, and two others specifically told me that they were going out to get fabric and SEW tomorrow!

How awesome is that?

Here is the outline I gave out today:

Step I - Inspiration

Your Life – What Would You Like to Wear?

If it’s true that All the world’s a stage (Shakespeare, “As You Like It”), then what part would you play?

Your roles vary depending on the need and the venue. You are playing a part whether you actively choose to or not.

The Street and Publications-- Vogue Bazaar NY Times Fashion Section Fashion Exhibits and Books

“Snoop Shopping” Designers/Ready to Wear (examine the work of those you like.)

Elie Tahari
Max Mara
Armani
Eileen Fisher

Step II - The Means

Basic Equipment:

Basic Sewing Machine (straight stitch, zigzag, buttonholer) – buy quality – it’s worth it! (Baby Lock, Bernina, Pfaff are no-fail brands) (if you want to go slow and steady, you can choose to hand-stitch…but accept that your projects will take a l-o-o-o--ong time!)

Scissors, Pins, Needles, Thread, Measuring and Marking Tools (Joann Fabrics is a good local source – but their fabric offerings are spotty.)

Fabric:

(there are multitude of resources out there! But for your first step, go to Jomar – great fabrics at low prices)

1721 Markley St., Norristown, PA 19401 610-277-2856

Step III – The Ability

The best way to learn is to jump in. Purchase a pattern, basic equipment, fabric and go for it! Pick a style with simple lines and not fitted if this is your first project.

Books

· Sew U: The Built By Wendy Guide to Making Your Own Wardrobe – A “just do it” guide to sewing many different styles of shirt, skirts and pants using basic patterns included in the book.

· Anything by Sandra Betzina.

· Claire Shaeffer's Fabric Sewing Guide

· The Vogue Sewing Book

· Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Sewing

Happy Birthday, Mom!

2008-04-20T07:29:00.005-04:00

Tomorrow is my mom, Anne's birthday. She is getting this:

This must be the fifth or sixth time I've made this shirt. It's the third one I made for mom. She's already got a black linen version, and a white linen version. So it seemed only right that she'd now get a black and white version. In faithfulness to Gregor Mendel, maybe the next one I make will be grey!

Although the pattern envelope says this is a 'two hour' top, yeah, right... it always takes me about 6 to 8 hours to make. That's because when it comes to sewing for other people, I can't do things 'fast and easy'. The interior of this top is totally finished. I used welt seams, silk organza interfacing, and, in general, did everything I could to make it clean looking and durable for many years of wear without fraying.

I've been using this pattern a lot in the past few years because it's got a 'goldilocks' neckline. Perfect. Not too low. Not too high. Hugs the body 'just right'. Here is a version of this pattern that I made last year for myself. I also made another version a few years back, using wool jersey, lined with silk. And I made a matching pair of pants to go with.

This pattern is out of print, but available here, if you're interested.

Black and White Graphic

2008-04-14T19:06:00.003-04:00

This is Vogue 8472, which was released just this past spring. The pattern includes a dress also, which is a nice design, and I will probably make the dress eventually.

This jacket is fun! It is easy to make, and I love the style. Here is more information on my experience with this pattern.

It's fun to be able to wear lighter clothing now that Spring has arrived where I live.