.....Even a Man Can Do it

Ad by Unique zipper co. from the February/March 1972 International Vogue Pattern Book.

It begins: "Improbable as it may seem, the Unique Invisible zipper is actually that simple to install."

Goodwill Finds: Fagoted Lace Dress by Dauphine

I found this dress at my local Goodwill last week. It will need a fair amount of work to be wearable again- including a dye job, a hem job, and some of the fagoted seams repaired. It appears that it was originally a sky blue color but was either bleached or somehow faded to what is now washed out white/gray. The thing that struck me about this dress in particular was that the fabric is made up entirely of strips of cotton with lace stitched on top that is joined by fagoted seams. The brand is Dauphine, and I love the simple, gold metallic weave label. If you are interested in learning more about fagoted seams, including how to stitch them by hand, check out the Coletterie post on the subject at http://www.coletterie.com/tutorials-tips-tricks/tutorial-how-to-sew-a-fagoted-seam. Also, I know there is a vintage or antique Singer attachment for making these types of joinings that is a hot (read expensive!) commodity.

Does anyone else ever feel like they need to rescue these castaway garments?

Simplicity 9099 in Floral Denim

My husband's shots are always either come hither, goofy, or with my head cut off. I've opted to share some goofy here today....

This is what I like to refer to as "pressure washer chic."

I really love this fabric. The skirt should have been easy to sew, as it is a Jiffy pattern, but I flubbed it up every step of the way. Inside the waistband is a gnarled nest of threads, but despite that it turned out quite well in the end. Good thing, because I might have cried if I killed this denim.

The fabric itself was a thrift shop find. I think it ran me 50 cents or a buck. Here is the pattern. I widened the side darts at the waist by sewing 1/4 less and tapering in 3" down to match the original darts. I also lengthened the front darts 1", cut the waistband larger, and shortened the skirt 4" for a modern mini.

His pattern is a nice basic and sits at my natural waist so I can actually wear some of the vintage tops I have sewn. I am actually planning on sewing another skirt today...hopefully in a Jiffy and minus the forehead smacking!

PATTERN SALE!

I am running a 3 day sale in my Etsy shop, Farmhouse Garden, and all patterns $5 and up are currently 25% off! I also keep a Patterns 5 Bucks or Less Section that always has inexpensive little gems for sale. Come on by and browse....

PSsssst! You can always visit and see what's for sale by clicking the SHOP page under the blog header!

Mommy 'n Me 'n Me (too!)

I made the little one and I some Mommy and Me Christmas dresses. The truth is, I started making mine first, and when my little bunny saw it, she wanted one too. Of course, I spent hours embellishing her dress, and then I was hand hemming mine on Christmas Eve eve! All's well that ends well. I'm sure I could blather on for a while here, but since it's already mid January, lets just do photos and captions, shall we?

Modern

Traditional

Christmas-a-Go-Go

Mommy 'n Me in the Holler

Sewing Together- Melt my Heart!

The Little Diva requested several Fittings

Braiding metallic rick rack

Braided Rick Rack stitched down with clear nylon thread, plus sequins & beads on the holly

Trick for reinforcing center back zipper with selvage

My dress and pattern in the planning stages

Oh, I forgot! It was Mommy 'n Me 'n Me (too!)

Sewing with (and for) Kids- Make it Better Yourself

My daughter has been pining after a headpiece with a veil for play (she loves dress up), so she and I made up a fascinator a couple of days ago during our crafty time.

We began with a round cut out of felt. She chose pink, and I stitched a couple small darts in it to make a dome shape, then I trimmed the edge in bias. Rooting through my drawers stuffed full of notions, the wee one selected the trimmings- a purple fruit net veil, some gold ribbon fringe, a bow, and a little bling. The veil and ribbon were attached by machine, while the bow and rhinestone were simply hot glued on.

We had a nice time making it together- there is just so much she cannot yet do in the sewing room, but she sees me sewing and wants to be a part of it. This was great, because she got to choose the trims and act as designer, and when she wore her fascinator in the coffee shop later that afternoon, my daughter received several compliments on it. I hope she, too, will learn to feel a deep satisfaction in "making it better" herself.

But, until she gains the skills herself, I will be sure to keep her well outfitted in cute, home sewn clothes...

Autumn Dress made from Butterick 2194

even when she's sleeping...

Slippers scaled up to a toddler 9 from the Norman pattern by I Think Sew,
Sleep mask sized down from Sew4home.com

and know that she feels the love that I put into each pint-sized garment.

But, I've also got to do some unselfish sewing to keep myself happy....

My slippers made from the Amber Pattern at Ithinksew.com

and my feet warm! The kid was stylin', and my old slippers actually had holes in them! 

HI! And Simplicity 2898

Hi! I'm still here! And I've got a sewing project to share....

A couple months back I took a class on Craftsy called Sew Better, Sew Faster. The class was excellent, and I decided to use some to the techniques I learned about on a project that I have been planning forever- Simplicity 2898 (available here on Etsy in a 32 for $7).

When I first found this pattern in a pile I purchased for my Etsy shop, I knew it was destined to be a "hold-back." You've gotta keep some of the things you love for yourself, right? I wanted to use it to make a modern denim jacket with retro details, so altered the pattern to a cropped length, I lengthened the sleeves, and I added bands at the hems of the jacket and sleeves.

For my fabric, I tried out a method I saw while browsing bleach techniques online. I used a medium weight denim and a lace curtain fabric, both thrifted, and simply placed the lace on top of the denim (in the driveway) and misted over them with bleach.

 Here are the results:

From there, I cut the pattern paying attention to where the lace had turned out best, although perhaps not enough attention to how the pattern would line up at center front. I also ended up with some larger bleach drips/spots that I left as hallmarks of the process.

I wanted to do some top stitching, as I have not done much in the past, and it gives a denim jacket a modern look. After I tested a few samples with different colors from pink to black, I appealed to my husband for his opinion on the best combo. He instead suggested the gold hue often associated with the top stitching on denim, and I really liked how it looked when I tested it. It turned out great on the jacket- it stands out while still being somewhat understated. I mean, who wants to do all of that top stitching and have it be invisible? And who knew husbands could give such handy sewing reccomendations?

Top stitching. Button markings courtesy of my Chalkoner. Best marking tool EVER.

In fitting, I found that this jacket, despite being a 34" bust, would be significantly roomier than the silhouette I had envisioned. I ended up taking the side seams and sleeve seams in about 3" on each side. I tapered the sleeve seam reduction from the underarm to the elbow.

Fitting "action shot."

A couple other little notes- I used cotton muslin to interface the collar and cuffs as well as the facings used to finish the inside of the jacket. I bound the armscyes for a somewhat tidy finish after my serger tried to eat them. I used my Singer buttonholer to stitch the buttonholes after several samples, as the denim thread proved difficult to work with for this purpose. I also used vintage bakelite buttons I salvaged from a thrifted jumble of buttons blogged about here.

Overall, I love the finished version, and it has been getting a lot of wear in this chilly weather! So now, for too many pics of the finished jacket....

My favorite photobomber!

Now I'm on to a blouse. Thank you, ladies of my region for constantly donating silk yardage to the thrift shops. And thank you ladies of the thrift shops for marking stained poly curtain lace far too high and gorgeous blue crinkle silk far too low.

 How is your fall sewing coming along?