bodner052

Pam Howard is about to teach a local class on The Classic Tailored Shirt . Unfortunately it is sold out but I think you can still register for her class on Craftsy. It is a wonderful class, no matter how or where you take it. I've been lucky enough to do both. Pam started my fascination with classic men's shirting details in feminine tops. Although I have to miss her local class, I decided to participate in spirit! I bought these 3 pieces at Gail K. Brown: cotton sateen Cream: Pima cotton Gray: cotton shirting Using an old favorite pattern, I started with the gray cotton. It was so easy and fun to sew. The Hibiscus pattern is an old favorite because it's a little different and it's a little puzzle. I do enjoy a pattern puzzle. It takes a bit of time to cut it out because so many of the pattern pieces are cut singly. Here are the only ones I could cut on doubled fabric: The sleeve has some interest with the inset at the hem. That oddly shaped piece fits into the corner c...

For Christmas I made my granddaughter a new coat. She had been over to my house wearing a coat I made several years ago for her, only the sleeves are now barely 3/4 sleeves and it is rapidly becoming a shrug. The pattern is from this issue of Octobre. In fact, it is on one of the two covers: As you may know, Octobre is a European (Finnish?) subscription magazine that includes the patterns in each issue. I have loved having some of these for making clothes for the grandchildren. It requires tracing the pattern from a page like this and then adding seam allowances: Always a little daunting! The instructions are brief but fine as it is a pretty straight-forward make. The hoodie attaches with an inset corner but otherwise it is a very easy pattern to put together. My corner on the inset was a little wonky so I covered it with a label. The fabric is a cotton-linen blend I purchased at Sewing Workshop this past summer. Because it is a jacket, I quilted it, using cotton flannel as the batting...

Recently I purchased The Art of Cloth Dyeing from Craftsy. It is taught by Jane Dunnewold and is a blast! I must confess that I became impatient watching the video and missed a step, I think. The key to dyeing the Dunnewold way is heat and time, as she says. I think I short-circuited the heat. cotton sateen - cobalt blue It is a very low stress way to dye with chemical dyes. And it is not messy at all. I did it in the laundry room and did not dye anything accidentally, as far as I know. I used my tea kettle to make sure the water was hot enough, but otherwise did it all in my utility sink. The rinsing process was very easy - I used the utility sink for the cold wash, then my washing machine for the hot rinse. No renegade dye anywhere! Generally I prefer natural dyes. However I purchased some of these fiber-reactive dyes a few years ago and decided I should use what I have. Of course, I'm addicted now and so will probably be purchasing more. I used the cobalt blue for most of these....

Yet another piece from my current favorite pattern, the Now and Zen from the Sewing Workshop: Fabric: a remnant I purchased at Gail K, 1 3/8 yd (60 w) for $17. It is a wonderful medium weight wool - soft to the touch, easy to sew, even nice next to my neck, and a beautiful rich navy blue. It's so dark that it does not photograph well. Changes I made: omitted sleeves and used silk dupioni to bind the raw edges. added patch pockets on lower fronts. stitched to back pleat together for about an inch at the waist line. reshaped the front facing so that it does not fold twice; rather it folds once, creating a wider front facing. This was a fairly easy make as it is unlined. I did hand-finish the raw edges on all the seams but otherwise it came together quickly.  Things I like a lot: the back pleat the collar that can be worn folded back or up to keep my neck warm the overall simplicity of it the color and weight of the fine wool Now I'm trying to decide if it needs buttons. I don...

This post documents an episode in my continuing search for the perfect pants. Perfectly fitting pants are the holy grail for most garment sewers and I am no exception. I keep thinking I've got the perfect pattern but then I become disenchanted. Note: I'm looking for good looking pants for non-stretch fabrics. Stretch pants are easier, I think, but I generally prefer woven fabrics. My last make of pants used the Quincy from the Sewing Workshop, their pattern for narrow-leg pants using non-stretch fabrics. I've made them three times now, most recently on New Year's Eve. The last pair was made from a drapey rayon twill. They feel delicious. But I need to admit that they are not flattering on me. They are a little too big on me (I think) but the more significant problem is that narrow pants can create a pegged look that I do not think is attractive. You see them everywhere on women large and small. I'm not sure I even like them on small people, but that is not my proble...

For the past 36 hours I have been experimenting, off and on, with shirts I purchased for $2 each from my local thrift store. And what have I achieved? I have converted a shirt into, yes, a shirt. It's hard to look at the result and see how much work went into it. That's what we do as sewers though, isn't it? And enjoy (almost) every minute. This started as a man's shirt size XL. I was able to reuse the button band and buttons on the front, the plackets on the sleeves, portions of the hem, and the chest pocket. I'm convinced that I could have made this from scratch more quickly. But, of course, that was never the goal. Here you can see the original shirt, second from the left - a classic man's shirt. First I removed the collar and the cuffs. Then I removed the yoke. By keeping the shirt tail hem, I was able to cut the back from the back and the fronts from the fronts. For the fronts, I simply aligned CF with the buttons and buttonholes. The hem had to be reshaped...

Happy new year to you. Since the first, I have not begun any significant sewing projects. I'm playing and healing. That is enough for now. Today I played by thrifting for fabric. I've done this before with mixed results. It is never a large investment and I always learn something or at least have some cheap fun. And today my favorite local thrift store had shirts priced at $2 each. Such a deal for these lovely cottons: Each shirt is a men's size L or XL so as to be able to harvest the maximum fabric. First I'll toss them in the washer and dryer, though three of them still had laundry tags on them. Then I'll cut the pieces apart. I've learned that it's not generally worth the trouble to harvest from the collars or cuffs due to the fusible interfacing used. But I'll see. I have some favorite patterns in mind but really should wait to see how large the pieces are. If all else fails, I'll just play with the pieces in some kind of an art project. I like h...