ok sooo i wasn't going to buy anything for a new project until i finish the project that i've been working on, the lined dress…
i have been watching tutorials and reading books about using the narrow hemmer foot and trying to get it to work. and it's just not working right. the shape of the foot looks slightly different than the tutorial i was watching. i think the lady is using a bernina. i have a brother XR 7700. so not as fancy. anyone else have the same machine and know any tricks to getting the narrow hemmer foot to work properly? the fabric just will not stay inside the curved piece of the foot. it feels like it's more trouble than it's worth. i trimmed the hem of the dress and the lining and it looks pretty even now. you should have seen the makeshift hem gauge i made. it consisted of taping a yardstick to the inside corner of a wooden box so that the yard stick was perpendicular to the floor. then i marked it and used that to measure the skirt length. the skirt was on the bias, so after hanging, it was a little wonky. ok, a lot wonky. and i decided to make it around knee length. so now it looks pretty even. tonight i'm just going to give up on the narrow hemmer foot (at least for now) and do a narrow hem the regular way. then i'll be done! party, party, party!
as i was saying…i wasn't going to buy anything, but… my new sister-in-law has a birthday coming up, so i ordered some fabric from Spoonflower. i've never ordered from them, so i'm excited to see it. i didn't design the fabric myself, which is an option with their website. i just found a print someone else had already done that worked for what i wanted. i wish the shipping was faster, but i just paid the standard shipping rate. i'll post pics when it comes and let you know how i like it. have you used their website before?
so then i also needed to run by the fabric store to buy a zipper to use in making her gift, and i found out that the store (Hancock's) was having their 99 cent pattern sale on all Simplicity and McCalls. ok, 99 cents!! i just had to buy a few. so i picked up these 3.
that last pattern is one that's been on my To-Sew list because i've seen several really cute versions of that dress (minus the big bow in front). i like the dart placement on it. it has 4 darts coming up from the center front. so then i started wandering through the fabric, and they have a lot of stuff, but i wasn't loving any of it and i didn't have any clear ideas of what i wanted, so it was time to go. i'm thinking i should probably keep using stash fabric, before my stash gets crazy. so i'm going to sit down and see if any of these patterns match up to fabric i already own. i will have to buy some more knit fabric though because i'm clean out of knits and i want to do the top wrap dress in a knit.
and why do i always want to sew dresses!!! i should really sew some more tops to wear with jeans on weekends or tops to wear to work. but once the weather gets warmer i'll be more inclined to wear dresses. i never really think to wear dresses with tights. it did get really hot this weekend (almost 80F) but now it's dropped back down to the low 60s.
anyway i hope to have the dress i've been working on finished tonight!!!! i want to knock it out. no more messing with the blasted narrow hemmer foot. i'm really excited to move on to a new project. yay! which reminds me… i need to buy some of that swedish tracing paper. but if i cut out those 99 cent patterns instead of tracing them, i think that wouldn't be the end of the world. eh, i'll probably trace them anyway, for making adjustments.
oh amazon, you know me so well. this is the email i received from amazon this morning…
ok, if you insist =)
Those amazing fit patterns are awesome. I've had really good luck with them. And I love wearing dresses. Get a couple of great pairs of boots and tights for the winter and you'll be all set. Around here 60% means you break out the shorts! g
ReplyDeletethat's great to hear! i hope mine turn out well. i'll have to remember to get some thicker tights and i don't own any boots. i'll should find some now because they're probably going on sale. it's hot here most of the year, but when it does get cold, i always just throw on pants. And today it's 48F. which is crazy because it was seriously nearly 80F last saturday and i was wearing a sleeveless top. crazy inconsistent weather!
Deletei love that middle Simplicity pattern. 99 cents is a great deal!
ReplyDeleteit has an option for a cute back cut out and i like the princess seams. i'll probably omit the little chain in the front photo. now that i think of it i have some seersucker fabric that might be perfect.
DeleteI always want to sew dresses too! I'm trying to make myself sew at least 1 item of separates for every dress I sew, but it's hard!
ReplyDeleteThe middle Simplicity pattern is lovely, would make a gorgeous summer dress. Very jealous, we never have 99p sales in the UK!
oh man the 99 cent sales are great! i wish i had bought 2 copies then, so i could pop one in the mail to you! next sale, i'll have to buy a few more and host a little giveaway or something.
Deleteand if sewing dresses makes you happy, then just sew dresses! i think my next project will be one of these dresses, but not sure which one or what fabric.
I agree the amazing fit patterns are great - I used a wrap-front one to make a dress for a friend who is quite a slim/athletic build but with a larger(than average)bust and it fitted really well.
ReplyDeleteoh great!! i thought it would be a really easy summer dress that i could throw on and even wear to work. just need to get some knit fabircs
Deleteoh i have that last one - it was a free gift in a UK sewing mag this month. i am trying to get roison AKA dolly clackett to find me a fabric via the medium of twitter - she uses the best prints!
ReplyDeleteoh fun, what fabric are you looking at? can't wait to see yours!
DeleteI'm waiting for another 5 for $5 Simplicity sale at Joann's so I can buy those top two patterns - they've been on my list since they came out!
ReplyDeleteRE: the narrow foot hemmer - when I use it, I find that I have to hold the fabric so that it stays curled under. If I hold the fabric too straight, it doesn't want to curl under the hemmer. Does that make sense? I would show you with pics but it's kind hard to hold the fabric and take a pic at the same time. I'll see if I can do it though.
oh and I have that swedish paper too - great buy!
They're finally building a Joann's near me! The sign is up on the store and they're moving boxes in! woohoo!! do you have a hancock's? that's where i got these. they do 99 cent sales around all of the holidays. this was the st. patrick's day sale. i think they're doing 99 cent Butterick for Easter.
Deletehmmm i tried holding the fabric so it curls in, but it kept wanting to come out and wouldn't stay even. maybe it i try on some cotton first? i was using the slinky fabric that i used on my dress since i wanted to do the dress hem.
try some starch to stiffen it a bit. but first test your fabric and the starch.
DeleteI wish there was a Hancock's near me - there's one like an hour and a half away by the beach. So a bit out there for me right now.
I starched the heck out of those seams. Spray starch is my new BFF.
DeleteYou guys are so lucky to have those 99 cent sales. In Canada the cheapest pattern I've seen was $6.99 and that was a mega sale! The three patterns you picked look great - happy sewing!
ReplyDeleteOh man that's not fair! Next time they do a sale, i'll try to post about it to see if anyone wants me to pick them up a 99 cent pattern and ship it to you. Or i'll grab more and do a little giveaway =)
DeleteThose patterns are so cute! Totally worth 99 cents. :)
ReplyDeleteI read on Gertie's blog today that narrow hem foots work best on stable fabrics cut on the straight grain. So a slippery fabric may not work well, and a curved hem probably wouldn't be super successful, either. But I don't have a narrow hem foot, so I can't speak from experience.
So a curved hem out of slippery fabric cut on the bias wasn't the best way to try it out? ;)
Deletewhat was I thinking, hehehe
I have also never used the narrow hem foot before, so I just do it the old fashioned way :) I am excited to see what the fabric from Spoonflower looks like, I have only drooled over their site and never pulled the trigger.
ReplyDeleteKeep plugging away at that dress! I can't wait to see it!!
I thought i finished the hem, but then i need to shorten the lining just a tad - almost there!
DeleteRoisin of dollyclacket.blogspot.com has made lots of Simplicity 2444s, and they are all fabulous. That is not a dress I could wear, but it is a great pattern.
ReplyDelete