April GAM is early!

Butterick B5642. Lovely pattern that sews up quickly and beautifully.

I'm pretty sure this is the first time my Garment of the Month has been early. Not just a little early either but over 2 weeks early!

This dress was finished last Wednesday the 16th, and all ready for Easter Sunday. The pattern is Butterick 5642. I absolutely love the pattern and the dress.

There are two pretty big deals about the making of this dress. One, this is the first dress I have ever made for myself! I realized that halfway through sewing it up. (oh, I just remembered I made 2 knit dresess back in October and November when I first started the GAM so this is dress number 3). One of them I have since donated due to poor fit. I usually only make skirts and blouses, never dresses for myself. I think the reason is I am short so always, always, always, bodices on dresses are too long for me and gap in the back especially at the neckline and are a general pain.

BUT, this time and here's number 2 big deal; I changed the way I view making a muslin. I use to think sewing a wearable muslin was better because....well, I don't know why I thought that. It just seemed like the thing to do. I don't like throwing things away so perhaps that was the reason but who knows. I just got into the habit. Well, I am not going to do that anymore and didn't do it this time. Really when I was making a wearable muslin I was making the garment as perfectly as possible but I don't think that should be the purpose of the muslin. It is for pattern making and fine tuning and fitting. Am I the only person on the planet who did not realize this?  Sometimes those habits, just can't shake them.

But for this dress the muslin was sewn in less than a hour complete with the zip. Another hour later I had a workable pattern that fit me pretty much as well as possible for where my sewing skill is currently. I still would like to do a shoulder seam adjustment and bring the whole bodice up a tad but overall am very happy with how the dress turned out.

Definitely will be making this dress again. Maybe sleeveless next time with a cotton voile and fully lined??

The fabric is 100% linen so I did not bother lining it although it is called for in the pattern. If you have never taken the leap in to linen for garments, I highly recommend it. So easy to sew and work with.

I also added some neckline details using a decorative stitch on my machine and some hand stitching. My daughter didn't care for the hand stitching up the neckline but I love it. The sleeves and hem were finished with a rolled hem on the serger. Love the way the rolled hem looks on the flutter sleeves curling a bit and making them even more feminine.

Neckline details. Inset with decorative stitching.

The dress had lots of gathers, back darts and an invisible zip.

Why are there so many more wrinkles in a picture!!

I can think of lots of style ideas such as an exposed zip, many different neckline details, beads, trims, more elaborate embroidery. Also, would be lovely in black linen as well with some beaded trims.

Excited that I finished my April GAM and if you want to see some great seamtresses and their beautiful garments head over to GAM and take a peek. So fun.

Lovely Little Linen n' Lace

Claiming her Meringue clutch.

Things have been happening here. And they don't have anything to do with sewing; which makes me a crumpy person. There have been Debate tournaments, music recitals, road trips to do college things, car repairs, work (necessary, I suppose) and general life event things that require attendance (this one is ok). NOT MUCH SEWING.

But, finally, this past week I had 6 days off in a row. Whoohoo!!! Let's sew!!!

I thought anyway, but amazingly very little has been accomplished. Almost an entire day was spent trying to figure out how to make a mini sawtooth star quilt pattern when what I should have done first thing was google it. Because, guess what?? Someone has ALREADY come up with that pattern. Of coarse they have. Quilting is a mature industry for sure and there aren't too many surprises out there. Yes, new variations on patterns, yes, the trend of "modern quilting", yes, occasionally new techniques, and yes, lots and lots of new fabrics always.

The beautiful Sawtooth Star Pattern.

But you can be assured when it comes to something like the sawtooth which is an OLD quilt pattern, well, pretty much every aspect of that pattern has been thought about and given the once over by someone! No need to reinvent the wheel. So, memo to self...don't waste time and fabric trying to come up with a pattern for a certain size block because someone already has (or come close anyways).

Another day was spent on the Gabriola skirt SAL from Sewaholic. Because the pattern requires 5 yards (yes, it's true, 5) of fabric, I made a muslin from a .49 resale fabric. Thank goodness, I did. My muslin had/has some issues. What should have been a quick sew of a great maxi is now lingering in my sewing room. Meanwhile...tick, tick, March is coming to a close and my Big City Bag for March was not done!

It is a good thing this month's bag was an easy one! The Meringue Clutch.

From: Mommy's Naptime as featured in Sara's book.

Yes, even in my sewing slump, I was able to finish the Meringue Clutch! I have learned quite a bit about bag making in the last couple of months. Between Sewing with Squeak's Big City Bag SAL and Deby's Carry All Bag, the opportunity to work with various interfacings, bag hardware, and bag making techniques has been ample.

This Clutch design just speaks summer to me so I wanted something soft and summery. Linen and Lace! I used pure white linen and a vintage piece of cotton lace I've had since my 20's. Trust me, it's vintage. :) I opted to use a medium weight interfacing and skipped the interfacing all together for the strap. Also, after seeing a few comments about the gathered panel that was used I decided to only cut my to 20" instead of 24". I did not want the lace pattern to be lost in the gathers. I also didn't topstitch near the zipper. Call me a rebel.

Really like the shape and size of this clutch.

Cotton lace which my Mom gave me eons ago.

So pure and white, it is my opinion that linen is one of the most beautiful fabrics available.

 Anyway, I am quite pleased with how the bag turned out. One of the great things about Sara's bag patterns is they finish to very generous sizes, even this clutch. My daughter promptly claimed the clutch. Happier now.

Goodnight Irene SAL - January Progress

Most of the blocks for Terry's Goodnight Irene SAL January assignment have been done for a while now. This was one of the first projects I started for the new year and the first major quilt that I have attempted, with one exception, in a very long time. To finish it the size I want to and to finish with everyone else, I need to sew 3 rows of 7 blocks (for a total of 9 rows) each month. I am a couple blocks short of that but worked on it some today and hopefully will be all caught up by the end of the weekend.

Really love this quilt pattern!

I am using Kansas Troubles II jelly rolls for my prints and a cream cotton couture for the X blocks. These are not normally colors I would choose being a brights person but I really like them in the quilt pattern.

Some of the prints in the Kansas Troubles II lineup. Cream cotton couture underneath.

Very happy with the way the quilt is coming together!

After having visited many of the links Terry has on her blog I am amazed at the talented group of quilters sewing along! So fun to see other peoples fabric choices and sew along with them. Thanks Terry for hosting!

Big City Bags SAL, Fireside Bowling Bag Complete!

The Big City Bags Sew-a-long.  A bag a month for 12 months.

It is not too late to join us!

Hmmmm….after Bag #1 it seems possible!

Albeit, not many bags have been sewn around here; I just don’t “feel” like a person that sews bags. What does that mean? I’m not even sure myself.

I can easily list the bags sewn in the last couple of years. It is a short list. A few easy totes, a bucket type bag a while back and recently, a test bag pattern for Deby at SSE and the Colette Cooper Bag. I wasn’t really sure how this bag making endeavor would go. However, motivated by the design of the first bag which I have adored since last January, I plunged in. My goals were to get some general experience making bags, learn how to sew bag details, the use of different weights of interfacing, work with purse hardware and to end up with some nice gifts for some sweet people in my life. After the first bag of 12, it seems pretty likely it can be done! All 12 I mean.

Very pleased with the end result!

A list of the good:

This bag sewed up easily and quickly once all the prep work was done.

I made a mistake and ended up with two layers of stiff stuff.
A layer of soft and stable AND a layer of fusible fleece.

The bag design had some sweet details that were simple but really added to the finished product such as the accent trim and the bit of piping between the main and accent panels.

Love the shape of the bag and sweet touches
such as the accent panels and clippy dodads!

I really LOVE it when metal clippy things and D rings and the such are added to a bag. Instant glam.

The interior of this bag is large. Love that. As soon as my daughter saw the finished product she listed all the reasons why she needed the bag for herself. J

A list of the bad:

I make copies of the supply list and check them as I get them done. 

There is a LOT of prep work. It takes a loooooooong time to cut all the pieces.

At least it takes me a long time. Confession: I find the cutting part of bag making to be very tedious. Is it just me? I really have to break out the “get ‘er done” attitude to get it finished.

I think I may have done something wrong because the lining part did not compute. Mine just sorta hangs there. I actually plan on tacking it in the corners after this post. It is too floppy.  The next time I make this bag I will be adding ½ inch seams to the pieces and using French seams to finish. I also am going to layer and cut my lining and main fabric pieces all at the same time.

I ended up with extra bag and interfaced pieces. Wonder where they went? Haven’t a clue.

Some of the directions seemed to be lacking in details and I think I found a couple of omissions or mistakes but, again, this is probably just me. I found myself ignoring the directions a few times in order to get something done.

All in all, the bag was a success and I am quite happy with the end results! Thanks Angela for hosting this SAL! I am looking forward to the February bag.

2014 Sew-A-Long Roundup

Welcome to 2014! Well almost anyway, you still have a few hours to do those last minute 2013 things. 

I don’t think I have ever been so excited for the new year and have soooo much sewing planned.  

One thing I plan on doing is documenting my completed projects better. The other day someone ask me what I had sewn and aside from a few recent items I could hardly think of anything! Craziness.  So, I plan on documenting my stitching endeavors much better this year. I have already gotten started with this free sewing journal available from SewMammaSew. To get things started I am putting my last few 2013 items in the journal.

In between my sewing time I have been browsing around the internet researching 2014 sew –a-longs (SAL) in the hopes of finding something interesting! Well there is plenty of interesting THAT IS FOR SURE. The harder part of this search has been deciding what I am going to attempt to tackle.

FACT. There are many quilting SALs out there for 2014 and from previous years. So if you LOVE to quilt you will be very happy with a simple google search of Quilt Sew-a-Longs!

FACT. There are many garment SALs from prior years still available and they ALL look awesome.

FACT. This post is about early 2014 SALS and these are the ones I plan on participating.  All the SAL's that I am going to mention have buttons on the right that will take you to those pages. Here goes:

First off….the Garment of the Month hosted by Sarah Liz. This really was the thing that got my garment sewing jump started and I joined up in October right after taking a Craftsy workshop to sew a knit dress. The challenge of making a garment for myself once a month was really intriguing and what I truly wanted to do so I joined! If you contact Sarah Liz, she can get you signed up. There are some very friendly folks associated with this group and a lot of sewing knowledge.

2. A Challenging Sew free Marfy pattern SAL. For ages now, I have been wanting to sew a Marfy pattern but have had serious “Marfy fear”.  But recently Marfy posted three free patterns on their website and Leisa is hosting a three month SAL to sew up those patterns. The patterns are for a blouse, skirt and jacket. My girl is a debater so this is for her!

3. Amity at Lolita Patterns is hosting two back to back SALS, one for the Gunmetal dress to begin Jan. 6th and one for the Spearmint Coat that starts up in Feb. I am pretty excited about these especially the coat because I purchased an amazing stretch twill from EmmaOneSock to sew up a spring coat for my daughter.

4. Sewing with Squeaks is hosting a 12 month SAL based on Sara Lawson’s new book Big City Bags.  There are 12 bags in the book. Didn’t that work out perfectly?

5. Craftytwinmommy is also hosting a 12 month SAL except participates can use any crafting/sewing book they have languishing in their sewing room. I particularly am enthralled with this SAL because A.) I am going to use it get all my Christmas “shopping” done for 2014 and B.) I hate hate hate having books laying around with super doper good information and projects in them and NEVER picking them up and using them.  Oh and C.) I have gone on a fabric buying fast and want to sew through my stash. This fits very nicely!

6.  LAST BUT NOT LEAST. I have been wanting  to sew a quilt for a particular friend from long ago. The thing is this friend and I are polar opposites now that we are adults and there has been much tension between us mainly over politics. Ugh. Hate that. I am hoping the quilt will be therapy for me (haha) and a balm between us. I found Terry from Terry’s Treasures in Ohio who is hosting a Goodnight Irene SAL.  Terry is so sweet. Love her already and I know this is weird but I thought this Quilt SAL is the one because my friend also lives in Ohio. Terry is starting things up Jan. 1^st or so.

Whew…I am getting tired just thinking about all this. There is no doubt some good organization is in order here. I have been working on that as well. Maybe a post in the future!

For now, Sew on Friends, Sew on!

Judy

P.S. There are also a bunch of contest at Pattern Review.

A New Sew-A-Long to go with the Old Sew-A-Long

Well, I am a glutton for punishment. Or something like that.



Just after finishing up my November GOM

It is not too late to join us!

and whilst in the midst of the Cooper Bag SAL, I joined another SAL today.

BUT, I do have an excuse. Or something like that.

This SAL is NOT for me because it is horrid (hehe) how I have been selfish sewing these days. This SAL is for my dear husband who, aside from the occasional pillowcase, I really don't sew for....ever. He has been asking me for ages to make him a padded laptop bag so I decided to make him a flannel shirt!

Confession: I am not being entirely SELFLESS here. There is the most outstanding pattern languishing in my sewing patterns for a women's classic tailored shirt. But, I fear it. It looks hard and there is not as much fudging with woven's like you can with knits. It pretty much has to be perfect or it looks, well you know, "homemade" in the bad sense. Plus my recent passion with bepoke garments and a propensity for perfection means I want to get it right.

Kelly, the hostess of the Flannel Shirt SAL appears to have what I call SSSS or the 4 s's. Some Serious Sewing Skill. And she has graciously made herself available for helping those who get themselves in a jam. 

In preparation all the cotton or wool flannel fabric in my stash was hauled out. The problem though, I never really bought any of that fabric for a guy shirt so my husband wasn't all that excited about it. Besides that he told me, he finds flannel shirts to be pretty warm unless he is outside working or hiking and this shirt is for the inside. So, back to the stash I went a few times resisting the urge to purchase shirting from somewhere. Then I happened upon this old post from SewMamaSew discussing possible fabric sources for a man's shirt and Eureka! I remembered a nice neutral linen I purchased earlier this year.

This passed Hubby inspection! Yay!!!

So, today we are off to our "flannel" shirt SAL! It is a quick one so at the end of 2 short weeks or so, I hope to have a nice gift for my husband to put under the tree...or something like that. Wish me luck!

BTW...Art Gallery Fabrics is giving away a fat quarter bundle. Check it out!