15 Sept
135 Sewing Pride & Joy #pfBetterDoneThanPerfect
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Who’s our sponsor this month? Ha! Trick question! We don’t have one. Going forward, challenges are just for the fun of it. Does that mean I can win too? It means we all win.
Catch up:
Jenny:
I’ve made a couple new DIY Daisy sundresses. I love this style & it’s helping me to feel comfy with my bra showing. I’m also finishing up two secret pieces that will get revealed this autumn.
Beverly:
Continuing with Skirt Skills. I’ve made my first draft of the block, sewed it up and tried it on. That was finished on Thursday and Brooksann says not to fit on the same day as you make up the mock up (what she calls a toile/muslin). So I didn’t.
You wouldn’t believe the instructions I am following!
Other examples:
Thread marking
Stitch line pinning
Hand basting waist/hemlines
New patterns:
Swim Style Patterns Viola Vest – up to 60” hip
The Viola vest features overlapped side edges which have been rotated to create a slightly
flared silhouette, with angled splits at the sides. The neckline boasts a wide V and
simple armbands. Viola Vest has been designed as a layering piece or a top on its own. Our
instructions also include an option of how to create a longer closure at the side edges for a more modest look.
Itch to Stitch Cantabria Dress
The Cantabria is a lined, sleeveless trench dress with a double-breasted front, lending a contemporary touch. It’s ideal for sunny days and can be layered with a suit jacket or cardigan, making it perfect for transitioning into cooler seasons or air-conditioned environments. Craft it with breathable linen for a touch of casualness, or choose a suiting fabric for a more polished and office-appropriate ensemble.
Cantabria Dress Features:
- Options for cup sizes
- Notched collar
- Sleeveless finished with faced armholes
- Fully lined
- Front and back princess seams with a back yoke
- Semi-fitted with a knee length straight skirt
- Double-breasted surplice front with buttoned closure
- Belt loops with a detachable sash
- Designed for non-stretch woven fabric
Choose between two sleeve lengths: just above the elbow, or full length with an elasticated wrist. Cassie is a midi length dress, but you could also omit the extra hem tier to make her knee-length. Additional elastic is sewn in at the waist, to ensure the dress maintains its shape.
With no closures and the shirring in the bodice, you get the versatility of a woven fabric, with the comfort of a knit!
They also offer a class for this to learn how to make it. The class is just under $30 USD, and includes the pattern, which is about $17 alone.
Topic: What are you most proud of in your sewing journey? What makes you feel good about your sewing? Is it a skill, a garment, or something else? Let’s toot our own horns here!
Jenny:
My wedding dress. I’m really proud that I made my own wedding dress years and years ago. I’d made several for others, but never really considered making my own since it might mean drafting patterns I didn’t have any context for in my size. Ultimately, I made a drop-waisted dress with a boat-neck, gathered skirt, and simple straight ¾ length sleeves in a black and grey brocade. I finished hand-hemming it an hour or so before our wedding. My mother was appalled – her daughter married in a not-white dress. I made my bridesmaids dresses, too – simple cotton dresses in a floral print picked by my sister, with a loose-fitting bodice, grown-on sleeves, and a gathered skirt.
My father’s kilt. We traveled to Scotland to buy the fabric, and I stitched the entire thing by hand, sitting on the couch watching re-runs with my dad. He wore it with pride the rest of his life.
A series of quilts from my father’s neckties. I had a quilting group and we sat at tables and on the floor together pouring over his ties, to design & stitch up a set of three quilts in quick succession: one of my dad’s hospital room, and one each for my brother and sister. I’ve never had a group of sewing friends quite like the women who came together for me during one of the hardest times in my life as we waited for my dad to die.
The Moana costumes I made for myself, my husband, and my granddaughter. She loved to dress up, and this was her favorite movie. It reminded my of my tutu Marian, and I was so excited to create these. I stamped fabric, and tea-dyed laces, and so forth. We did buy a few thing (like the rooster hat my husband is wearing, and the beanie babie on my staff). But she had so much fun, and loved how many people wanted to take pictures with her.
Beverly:
Self-drafted Obrigada dress
Jim’s Cornell
First pair of jeans
Mom’s robe
Early make – kind of tricky pair of shorts
