tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8156496455591726592024-03-13T22:54:04.718-04:00so i sewed this…creations of a novice seamstresssoisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.comBlogger103125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-45985754146678855882015-12-24T12:06:00.001-05:002015-12-24T12:10:01.950-05:00Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, and Goodbye!<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I just wanted to take a minute to say Goodbye! I haven't posted since March, and I just haven't felt like writing. Too many other things on my to-do list. But I'm still sewing! Maybe even sewing more. I just finished my 5th pair of ginger jeans, and I've been wearing this pair non-stop. Working on a casual jacket now. Also a few months back I won the most amazing (and very expensive) Pfaff sewing machine. Sews like a dream. I feel so lucky and so spoiled now. I also took another trip to New York in the fall and added to my fabric collection (had to sit on my suitcase to get it closed! So much great fabric!! Thankfully plane tickets to NYC are surprisingly cheap flying out of my city!). I'm hoping to reorganize my sewing space in the new year and hope to make a cutting table so I can stop cutting on the floor. (If you're still cutting with scissors, stop and get a rotary cutter and large cutting mat asap. So much better!) I'd also like to get a dress form, buy a book or craftsy class, and try my hand at draping. So that's what I've been up to. I'm just posting on instagram now. It's mainly photos and much less text. If you're not on it you should join! If you are on it and I'm not following you already, please let me know your username! </span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Follow me at "soisewedthis" on instagram</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I still really enjoy reading everyone's blogs (usually during breaks at work and sadly my web browser doesn't always like to let me post comments). But I'm letting this blog go. I've been thinking about my priorities, how I spend my time, simplifying, and this blog just fell by the wayside, so I'm letting it go. It's been fun, and thank you for all the helpful comments and tips. I've certainly learned a lot! Anyway, hugs! And let me know if I can find you on instagram!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-11610183443054860912015-03-05T16:35:00.000-05:002015-03-05T16:37:52.365-05:00Black Ginger Jeans and a Lane Raglan<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">These black Ginger Jeans are my new favorite project I've sewn! In fact I've worn them at least once a week (sometimes twice a week) since I finished them. I already owned a pair of store-bought black jeans and I haven't worn those since finishing these Gingers. I may never wear those rtw jeans again. They're probably destined to head to Goodwill soon. That's how much I love the fit of these Ginger Jeans. Never buying jeans again!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">These are a solid jet black (lightened a bit in the photo above to show detail) from fashionfabricsclub.com. Got it for 50% off during a sale, and their prices are very low even without a sale. That made me question the quality, but these actually have much better recovery than the blue denim in my previous pair (fabric from hancocks). But if you're looking for cheap denim for a practice muslin, the stuff from fashionfabricsclub worked fine. I have one more pair of ginger jeans in progress in a light grey also from fashionfabricsclub. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I've since purchased some fabulous high quality blue denim from GreysFabric.com. I'm looking forward to sewing those up! And I pre-ordered some of the fancy Cone Mills Denim when closetcasefiles and workroom social offered it last week, yay!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I've realized I actually really love doing topstitching. And my cheap Brother machine is still chugging along doing nice topstitching. My serger however is having issues now, and is in the shop again (it's also a Brother....in the future i'm dreaming of upgrading...i keep hearing better things about janome, juki, pfaff, and bernina models $$$) I'm considering flat felling the seams on my current light grey Ginger Jeans... </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This pair of Gingers has hot pink polka dot linings. I posted a few photos on Instagram. I did the pocket stay this time and love it! (tutorial on the closetcasefiles sewalong) I also used the lining fabric to interline the yoke pieces for added stability. I took another wedge out of the waistband this time to make it curve in a bit more. And I lengthened the rise by 3/4" so they aren't quite as low. This is View A, the stovepipe leg, but it's fairly skinny on my fuller-than-average calves. I'm considering tapering my light grey pair down from the calf to the ankle for more of a skinny look, maybe?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I also whipped up this Lane Raglan tee, cut and sewn in a Sunday afternoon, everything done on my serger, except for the hem on the bottom. I prefer a hem on the bottom rather than a band, but a band could easily be used to make this a serger-only project. (Although now my serger is in the shop because it started skipping stitches, sad face.) This is a size small, and if I used a heavier fabric I might size up to a medium for more of a sweatshirt look. The only change I made was to add 2 inches to the length, partly because I'm tall and like my shirts long, and partly because I hemmed instead of doing a band at the bottom. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The knit fabric is from Mood when I went to New York in October. It's soft and washes well and has a really nice drape. I think I ended up running the print the wrong way technically, but I liked the stripes running horizontally better, and it worked fine because it still has a little stretch and this isn't that fitted. I used pieces of the wide selvedge for the white neck and arm bands. I did a 3/4 sleeve instead of the long sleeve that's shown in this pattern. I wear 3/4 sleeves more often than long sleeves because of our very mild winters. I will definitely be making more Lane Raglans, and have plans to lengthen into a cute dress! (If I could just get my serger back...)</span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I just love the back box pleat detail, and the yoke is a great opportunity to use a small contrasting fabric or even some lace. I went all one fabric this time, but would love to mix up the yoke if i can find the right fabrics. I've had this fabric in my stash for awhile and it feels like a silk (and was priced like a silk) but i don't remember and i bought it before i really paid attention to fabrics (i didn't know what i was doing!). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Silky fabrics can be a little tricky, but just by doing a few things it was fine. Actually the hardest part was pressing it. i need to buy a new iron! the steam kept stopping and i really needed to steam steam steam!!! Also a sharp, fine microtek needle was a must. And i used my rotary cutter and mat to cut the pieces flat. So much easier than scissors! Less shifting. More accurate. Faster. Win, win, win. The other thing I've done before is use some spray starch when pressing seams and hems. It makes it easier to sew, and the starch washes out. Speaking of washing, to prewash, I just threw my fabric into a Tide garment wash bag, and washed it in the machine on cold and then hung it up to dry (and then pressed and steamed it like crazy with my iron). And that's how I'll continue to wash this top. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The last thing is to just hold the fabric taut while sewing. This keeps the fabric from getting sucked down into the needle/throat plate, and keeps things from getting wavy. Hold the fabric behind your needle with your left hand and hold your fabric in front of you with your right hand and pull the fabric taut, not stretched, just taut. Hope that makes sense! And you don't need to pull or push the fabric, the feed dogs will move the fabric for you, just keep holding and adjusting your hands so the fabric stays taut. And i'm not an expert, that's just what works for me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi70cSk5KHmcfkEa_huf2UOS-vp5dZDejQ5ZJIeUpAdIpNjluzBNzSHEWnUrCrHHDEz5zILy-k4gVBPBoDGFbefkBqCterNzDRUnl5XtWYJsg1uiwFrFpR0kKzWUb8a7mXqBajKYqZ49tqV/s1600/suttonftont.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi70cSk5KHmcfkEa_huf2UOS-vp5dZDejQ5ZJIeUpAdIpNjluzBNzSHEWnUrCrHHDEz5zILy-k4gVBPBoDGFbefkBqCterNzDRUnl5XtWYJsg1uiwFrFpR0kKzWUb8a7mXqBajKYqZ49tqV/s1600/suttonftont.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I didn't make many changes. I sized down a little. My bust put me in a 6/8, my waist put me in a 4, and hip in a 6, so i just decided to do the 4 because it's a loose top. I lengthened it by 2 inches because i'm on the tall side and wanted to make sure it would be long enough. Also note that this pattern has a center front french seam, so I considered pattern matching, but then decided to just make it easier on myself and staggered my pattern pieces so that there wouldn't be an obvious repeat and so that i didn't end up with a large pink flower on each boob. You have to watch out for these things! :) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I love the instructions for the hem with side slits, it's very clever and results in a nice clean finish. There was also a <a href="http://truebias.com/2014/11/sutton-blouse-sewalong-schedule.html">sewalong</a> on the True Bias blog, so there are a bunch of great photos to see all the steps. The only change I'm making to the pattern for my next sutton is deepen the v-neckline by about an 1.25". This pattern is really great for any silky drapey lightweight fabrics. I wore it out to dinner with my ginger jeans, and on another day wore it to work with some dress pants. I threw on a cardigan because it's chilly, but the sutton top will be perfect for the summer! And now I want to go shopping for more lightweight silky fabrics!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-26219558928673420192014-12-05T11:16:00.003-05:002014-12-05T11:32:33.805-05:00Ginger Jeans - Finished!<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">On Sunday I finished the last steps of my Ginger Jeans... belt loops, button, and hemming. And today is casual Friday, so I'm wearing them to work!</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Ta-da! I made jeans and I'm wearing them to work!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">They are super comfy. This denim is really soft, but still a decent medium weight like normal jeans. It has 3% lycra, which makes fitting more forgiving. Hopefully they won't stretch out too much by the end of the day. But I never wear my jeans more than twice without washing, because my regular jeans tend to stretch out a little. I usually buy jeans from banana republic or gap and my favorites are the trouser-style jeans. I only own one pair of skinny jeans because they usually don't fit me well. My calves are on the larger side, and when jeans fit in the calves they are always much too large in the waist. So making my own jeans is an awesome solution! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I never thought I would make jeans and I'm so excited about how well these turned out. This is an excellent pattern and the photos in the sewalong really helped me visualize how to do the trickier parts like the front fly zip and attaching the waistband. And after I worked those out, they really weren't as difficult as I thought! If you've sewn a dress, you can sew jeans. These are actually also the first pants I've sewn. Never made pants before, just skirts, dresses, and tops.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Tucked in part of my shirt so you could see the waistband, I do not wear my shirts like that! haha</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I picked the size based on my hip measurement at the widest part, and my natural waistline (narrowest part of the waist, not where the waist of the jeans will actually sit). Both of those numbers fell exactly on one pattern size so I didn't need to grade between sizes. A few people have mentioned sizing down, so i might do that if your denim is super stretchy and/or if you like a very tight fit. I don't generally wear very tight jeans, so these were just the right amount of tightness for me. Now if these stretch out too much, I might consider going down a size, but that's yet to be seen. Also these are View A, the lower rise stovepipe version. Since my calves are fairly large, these feel like skinny jeans to me. I could taper the ankles in more, but I like the way these fit the way they are. I am considering raising the waist a little bit next time. These aren't super low rise, but I think my other jeans are slightly higher. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">pulling my shirt up so you can see the back</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I love how you can move the pockets to flatter you best. I left them the same size and nearly the same position as in the patten. I did move one of the pockets over slightly so that they would appear more centered. I basted the jeans before doing any major sewing or topstitching, and the only change I decided to make was to take a small wedge out of the back of the waistband piece, which is on the fold, so it results in two small wedges taken out, and this creates more of a curve to the waistband, and solves any back waistband gaping that you might have if you have a swayback or a little extra in the booty department. I used my denim for both sides of the waistband. Next time I will do the pocket stays option that Heather mentioned in the sewalong. And I may interline my back yoke pieces with the same cotton that i use for the pockets, just to give the back yoke more stability. I used some really cute red with white polka dots for the pockets of these.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivHTfDTOBWRSorWQtB0dpzsBZ2Y1A8P6P9jA1soqDtW-e1dyjvO3mHKPvRXDuAnU9CQy9yAdhyphenhyphenrR4P0N9f9ZPDQpiZASJtsnsz-2BfDvHdjzRoFAFL3Wx9noCh7rde5QPZyP0XhUEEkfBs/s1600/JeansInside.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivHTfDTOBWRSorWQtB0dpzsBZ2Y1A8P6P9jA1soqDtW-e1dyjvO3mHKPvRXDuAnU9CQy9yAdhyphenhyphenrR4P0N9f9ZPDQpiZASJtsnsz-2BfDvHdjzRoFAFL3Wx9noCh7rde5QPZyP0XhUEEkfBs/s1600/JeansInside.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I ended up using red thread for the button hole because my machine wasn't liking the topstitching thread when making a button hole. I didn't have any matching gold regular thread, so I opted for red to match the pockets and it's not really noticeable since I usually wear shirts that are longer than the waistband. Oh I did have a little mishap with the coin pocket. I lined it up based on the dot on the pattern and the curve of the pieces, but I think it got a little stretched out the first time and I think I also tried to align the side edge of the coin pocket parallel to the hip side of the pocket piece, but actually it's more important to make the t0p of the coin pocket parallel to the top of the pocket piece, so that your coin pocket will lay parallel to the waistband. This is because your hip side seam angles outward, so if you make your coin pocket parallel to that then it will be at a slight angle as well. If that makes sense? Probably more info than you needed...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3Kt7h61tv_U4z0VgVtGQIDLJpHPAeMglc4n08MW0zAggTAU875BsfMvWkT583KHS6usL00Ymq782cIZEdkfMNeK3o-DL3u0cmJbSPqdrBopeA3AGvfi96LXDaPYYzq_VkDsvbaFuRP7CG/s1600/FrontandBackFinished.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3Kt7h61tv_U4z0VgVtGQIDLJpHPAeMglc4n08MW0zAggTAU875BsfMvWkT583KHS6usL00Ymq782cIZEdkfMNeK3o-DL3u0cmJbSPqdrBopeA3AGvfi96LXDaPYYzq_VkDsvbaFuRP7CG/s1600/FrontandBackFinished.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I did some testing to figure out what would work best with my machine and the feet that I have for topstitching. I posted a reference guide on my instagram with the settings I worked out (find me at "soisewedthis") so that i can remember and maybe it will help someone else. I used a 3.5 length stitch, but for the tight curve of topstitching around the fly, I switched to 2.5 for the curved part and then back to 3.5 for the straight part. I just went really really slow. Patience is a virtue when topstitching. And make sure you have a full bobbin! (Regular thread in the bobbin, not topstitching) The first belt loop gave me problems, and I thought I'd have to hand sew them on, which would've taken forever. Just do a test one first with scraps, and then start with the back ones, by the time I got to the front belt loops, I had the bartacking down to a science with my machine. And my humpjumper was a huge help, but you can use a piece or cardboard or something similar to lift up the back of your foot. i also used the hand crank on the side when stopping and starting topstitching or bartacks or over any large seams - this helped with accuracy. If you have any questions about all this, please comment or message me and I can explain further! And the sewalong also goes into more depth.</span> <br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I have denim for 2 more pairs already, a black and a grey. But I would definitely spend more on top quality denim now that I know how well these worked out. I really wasn't very confident at first and thought they might be a big ol' fail. I thought sewing jeans was way beyond my sewing skill set. I was wrong! And I'm so happy I was wrong! I may never buy jeans from a store again! Yay for sewing jeans! Thank you to Heather for the great pattern and thank you to all the other bloggers who sewed them up before me and gave me the push and inspiration to try it myself. I feel a huge sense of accomplishment from this project and it really amped up my sewing mo-jo.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-58660427788028198942014-12-03T16:17:00.001-05:002014-12-03T16:17:13.762-05:00Cranberry Knit Dress<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">First off, I finished my ginger jeans! I'm very excited to have tackled that project. I posted quite a few pics on instagram (find me at "soisewedthis" and you can view lots of other great ginger jeans by looking under #gingerjeans) but I'm hoping to get a few slightly better pictures taken before writing up a blog post. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIj-y_FQEB19ufqXY5bfTmopsZ7CNbhk7IGcrdEn2aWJ8mKFXsECFlqUGE-pFdOO1yYZZZPD6KKCuuTGJTH-rvYUMhRZTOJjYtGWDHuUG-PtCbA-zAWXncXHNh2CUY-S-aoh8I5Vle1uzo/s1600/crandress.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIj-y_FQEB19ufqXY5bfTmopsZ7CNbhk7IGcrdEn2aWJ8mKFXsECFlqUGE-pFdOO1yYZZZPD6KKCuuTGJTH-rvYUMhRZTOJjYtGWDHuUG-PtCbA-zAWXncXHNh2CUY-S-aoh8I5Vle1uzo/s1600/crandress.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The sewing project I finished prior to my gingers is this cranberry lady skater-ish dress. I decided it's "cranberry" because I wore it to Thanksgiving dinner. Maybe the color is a little more cran-grape... Either way it was stretchy and not restrictive as far as eating large amounts of food, which is why I picked to wear it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This is the softest bamboo knit fabric and it washes amazingly well. Yay for a fabric splurge that pays off. On the other side, it was so drapey that I decided it wanted to be a gathered skirt rather than the original A-line of the lady skater pattern. This time rather than just doing a big gathered rectangle, I slashed and spread the A-line skirt pattern piece out to make it wider so that I could gather it. I think the gathered A-line makes a prettier shape than a gathered rectangle, so I will stick with this method for the future.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I had been having issues with the sleeves and armscye of the lady skater pattern. On my first (blue) lady skater I had to hack them down after I had the dress nearly finished. On my second (leopard) I went down several sizes in the sleeves, but also ended up making it too tight in the bust. So this time I hit the books and the internet and tried to learn more about fitting sleeves and sleeve drafting. I decided to redraft the bodice and sleeve pieces, making changes based on what I had read and also drawing from the shapes of a store bought knit top that fits well. Ok in the end I basically just ended up tracing it, he he. And it worked wonderfully. Tracing garments that already fit for the win! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I also made the waistline go straight across this time, as I had seen someone else do to theirs. (Thanks!) And the neckline on this one was a happy accident. I was going to do the binding method that Megan Nielsen wrote a nice tutorial for awhile back, but my band was too wide and then I wasn't getting an even line of stitching. So I started hand stitching it down invisibly, but that was driving me nuts. My hand stitching is never even and it wasn't at all invisible! so I cut the band off. but I left the serged part around the neckline and noticed that that created enough stability that I could turn it under and topstitch it down. it looks really nice and clean, but it's not at all what I had planned on doing. This time improvising worked out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-8069289952011998212014-11-11T15:37:00.000-05:002014-11-11T15:37:31.692-05:00I'm sewing jeans! Ginger Jeans by Closet Case Patterns<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Ask me a month ago if i was going to sew jeans this year and i've told you "No, why on earth would I sew jeans?" I have multiple pairs of store-bought jeans and two pairs that are my favorites that I basically rotate out. I can only wear jeans to work on Fridays, but jeans are usually my go-to for weekends. But still, sewing jeans wasn't even on my radar.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Enter <a href="http://store.closetcasefiles.com/collections/frontpage/products/ginger-skinny-jeans-pattern">Ginger jeans by closet case patterns</a>. I kept seeing them pop up and heard reviews about how good the instructions were for the fly front zip. And that got me thinking... I've never sewn a fly front zip. I love learning new techniques. This would be a great way to learn. And how cool would it be to say that i've sewn jeans. It's very impressive sounding. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBxqZbLqeSrKT3TsNecepDDTq92itk-Nv09xqrdeCwpkrsT8aX69ThLy0TovejOTZs6XwmHMiFjKMYJ5dFWdOvRSBhCR9vtzXAu2EDLzeRxK_abkdN8WFr5tLictoznwX7qmJ2QhhO7i7r/s1600/Ginger-Jeans-Sewalong-Button_300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBxqZbLqeSrKT3TsNecepDDTq92itk-Nv09xqrdeCwpkrsT8aX69ThLy0TovejOTZs6XwmHMiFjKMYJ5dFWdOvRSBhCR9vtzXAu2EDLzeRxK_abkdN8WFr5tLictoznwX7qmJ2QhhO7i7r/s1600/Ginger-Jeans-Sewalong-Button_300.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">http://closetcasefiles.com/closet-case-file-sewalongs/ginger-jeans-sewalong/</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I couldn't stop thinking about it. I started looking at places to order denim (couldn't splurge on the kit). Ordered a swatch from girlcharlee. Kept re-reading the posts about the jeans... I do realize there have been other jeans patterns out there. But these came with a sewalong. And I'm very much a visual learner, so if i can see photos of how to do the zip fly, that's better than any amount of words. In fact, i usually don't read sewing pattern instructions, just look at the images. So I finally clicked "purchase" and bought the pattern. No turning back now.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I was too eager to get started that i didn't want to wait for ordering fabric online, so I decided to just hit the local chain stores over the weekend. If only I had known i was going to want to sew jeans - i was in NYC last month and walked right past rows of denim!!! Oh well, this was going to be a test version anyway, so i didn't want to spend a lot of fabric. Looked at joann's first but left empty handed... too stiff, too heavy, not stretchy, too light... (and i had a 60% off fabric coupon! but who else gets annoyed that those coupons are only good on Regular priced fabric. well practically everything is already slightly on sale, so what can i use my 60% off on??? the denim was on sale 30% off, so i wouldn't be able to use the 60% off coupon. booo. and the denim they had wasn't super cheap. it was around $13/yard)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Anyway so i headed to hancocks. thought i wasn't going to find anything there either... but all notions were half off so i decided to stock up on needles and pick up denim needles while i was at it. but off to the side they had one small row of denim, and i managed to pick out some that might be okay for a muslin. (plus they actually let me use my 50% off coupon so it was only $6.50/yard!) so i rounded up a zipper, buttons, and thread (also all half off!), and impressed both the lady who cuts and the cashier when they asked what i was making and i replied, "oh just some jeans". super casual. haha. so i washed and dried my denim immediately, and on sunday cut everything out. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia2lzEsSR1C3YfZmakN7dOMAJjUbW34tFWegoVwUs7GIfgjKt4xKZvnem6lmozjmedc2Vdj-4NBpTVPZ-YI3QOT1_4Nfjg8h6DZPSLC0aLkpMFwrgce65yULWy_EBdIlVNdfUmL6z1NBq-/s1600/photoJEANS.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia2lzEsSR1C3YfZmakN7dOMAJjUbW34tFWegoVwUs7GIfgjKt4xKZvnem6lmozjmedc2Vdj-4NBpTVPZ-YI3QOT1_4Nfjg8h6DZPSLC0aLkpMFwrgce65yULWy_EBdIlVNdfUmL6z1NBq-/s1600/photoJEANS.JPG" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Next, I'll baste it up to see how it fits. hoping it fits ok without too many changes, but we'll see! also hoping my topstitching turns out okay, since i picked bright gold which will really stand out. but, this is a test, this is only a test...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I'm really looking forward to this sewalong and seeing the jeans that other people are sewing up. Let me know if you're making the ginger jeans or if you've made jeans before! Did they make you feel like a sewing ninja? I'll try to post more progress shots on my instagram "soisewedthis" and also using the hashtag "#gingerjeans". </span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-17917371320150008912014-11-06T10:38:00.001-05:002014-11-06T10:44:39.429-05:00Answer me these questions three... (or four)<div class="name">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The lovely Maggie of <a href="http://stitch-n-thyme.blogspot.com/">Stitch-n-Thyme</a> nominated me to participate in the Blog Hop that has been circulating. She has great style and everything she makes looks so classy and perfectly-constructed. I was flattered to be included since I'm not a very consistent blogger....</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Here's the definition she gave and i'm going to borrow it: "</span><span style="font-weight: normal;">Blog Hop: One fun blogger nominates two other fun bloggers to
participate by answering a bunch of questions and then forwarding it on
to two new bloggers. A way cooler version of a chain letter."</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">I remember doing a chain letter when i was in like... middle school maybe? It was a chain letter to join the "Pencil Club". You send a pencil to person A. You send the letter on to 5 (slacker) friends. You get zero pencils in the mail. It was a failed ponzi scheme. You may be asking, "Why would you want to get pencils in the mail?" Well this was in the era of Lisa Frank, and having fancy pencils to match your trapper keeper was hot stuff. (Does anyone relate to this or even know at all what i'm rambling about? haha) </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Ok, let's see, here are the questions:</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Why do you write?</span></span></h4>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I started this blog back in July of 2012 (had to look back to check) and I was just starting to learn to sew. I had a machine and didn't know at all what I was doing. I did a ton of research on how to sew and various techniques and the best answers came from sewing blogs. And there were a ton of sewing blogs. i had no idea this was even a thing. I entered a facebook contest from Mood Fabrics and surprisingly won (hey it was a random drawing, i didn't do anything special). they sent me some gorgeous fabric and i thought to myself, "hey i should start a blog and then when i sew something awesome with this gorgeous fabric i can post pictures on my blog!" but i was intimidated by the fabric because i didn't know what i was doing, so it's still sitting in the bag... 2 years later. i know, i feel so bad. i'm sure you have fabric that you're hesitant to cut... now i should really make something with it since i finally think my skills are up to the challenge. also Karen of the blog Did You Make That was hosting a pattern pyramid (also similar to a chain letter) and I wanted in on that, so there's another reason this blog was born. and then not too far into blogging, i remember seeing that i had 8 followers, and i was like "I have 8 followers!!!! People read this!!!" and that interaction with fellow sewists is what has kept me going.</span></span></div>
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How is your blog different from others of the same genre?</span></span></h4>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Well, my photos are sub-par, which i would love to fix, but don't feel like investing in a nicer camera at this point. I actually took 2 courses of senior level photography in college and can even process photos in a dark room old school style, so i'm extra ashamed that my blog photos are blah. (i had a fancy camera and it was stolen...) anyway, pity party over. i do wish i had a special niche, something that made my blog super unique. but i also don't commit a lot of time to it, i feel like i should do more, but i'm not trying to make this a job or anything. that would be sooo much work and i already have a full time job. i just really love connecting to other sewing bloggers, people who share the same interest. every time i get a new comment i get excited. and so i keep going. </span></span></div>
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What are you working on now? </span></span></h4>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In the middle of a purpley/cranberry colored bamboo knit dress. trying to perfect the lady skater pattern to fit my shape better. it's a really nice, comfy go-to dress pattern. i had issues with the sleeve width and then my adjustment made the bust too small/tight. so i've been doing a lot of research on sleeve caps and pattern drafting and looking at shirts i already own that fit well and inspecting the sleeve piece shapes. basically nerding out. and re-drafting the bodice and sleeve. i also slashed and spread the skirt to make it gathered but still have a nice a-line shape rather than being a rectangle (as with some gathered skirts). i like the regular lady skater skirt pattern piece, but this bamboo knit is just so drapey that it would hang flat against the body anyway and risk VPL, and i don't want any of that.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLrNorXN1PNjsV4ru2sP14HiIFAKlbHy6hD3Hka9TkFcrKttK_PwLCuH6jzMmLiac-mGozsrcLmu0XOgVB7RQwtOqSFmfMIknqkjJvJ8pC6VFHzVID7hhyphenhyphen56WImoyws1tktjhaZnryZMiH/s1600/dress2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLrNorXN1PNjsV4ru2sP14HiIFAKlbHy6hD3Hka9TkFcrKttK_PwLCuH6jzMmLiac-mGozsrcLmu0XOgVB7RQwtOqSFmfMIknqkjJvJ8pC6VFHzVID7hhyphenhyphen56WImoyws1tktjhaZnryZMiH/s1600/dress2.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: x-small;">in progress, i'm not cool enough to wear this as a crop top and skirt combo, so i'll have to attach them...</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">What is your writing process? </span></span></h4>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">stream-of-consciousness. i just type. i don't think about it too much. i don't go back and edit (my apologies!). if i catch a typo or bad grammar i'll fix that, but that's about it. there are lots of fragments (and run-ons), but i think it's ok, because at least i realize they are fragments (i actually did really well in english classes, promise!), and i want to think it makes this more informal and relatable... i don't plan either. so i'll type up a post in a half-hour or less (guess I'm the opposite of you Maggie!), whenever i feel like i have something interesting or funny to say... or if i have a finished project and i'm hoping for some compliments... (just being honest!) or if i have a halfway completed project and i need serious help (and boy have i gotten a lot of helpful feedback, thank you guys!) i want my blog to be exactly as if i were just talking to you. and i do try to inject some humor. and often some sarcasm seeps in, but it's all meant in good fun. but i think that's just how i am in everyday life as well.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="name">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Thank you again Maggie for the nomination =) Being included makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. And now to continue this chain letter along, I'm supposed to pass it on to two more bloggers. </span></span></span><br />
<br />
<h4>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><b>So my nominations are:</b> </span></span></span></h4>
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<div class="name">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="http://puusdooroftime.wordpress.com/">puu's door of time</a></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"> - she has such a fun style and i'm really admiring the chanel-esque jackets she's been sewing (and now i really want to make a cute jacket...)</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="http://eleynagomez.wordpress.com/">simply E.GO.tistical</a> - the dresses she makes are so cute (and hot!) and all those awesome workout leggings... so impressive</span><span style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></span></span></div>
<div class="name">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Hopefully
you guys haven't already done this blog hop and if so, how did i miss
it, please send me the link! and if you are anti-chain letter it won't
hurt my feelings (well i'll pretend it didn't hurt my feelings, but hey,
you won't know! hahaha)</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Sitenote: I'm really loving this #bpsewvember that's going on on instagram. love seeing all of the sewing related photos and the comments back and forth have been really fun. Follow me at "soisewedthis" and let me know where i can find you. And if you're not on Instagram, try it - it's fun and it's not that hard. promise. (i actually prefer it over the other social networking sites like facebook or twitter) Happy sewing and happy photo-taking! </span></span></span></div>
soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-16138467581465464472014-11-03T11:07:00.000-05:002014-11-03T11:07:21.774-05:00Do you Instagram & #bpsewvember<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Ok just a quick post, but are you on Instagram? Let me know below in the comments what your Instagram name is, so I can follow you and admire your beautiful photos!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I'm "soisewedthis" on Instagram, so come find me =)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I've had a personal Instagram account for awhile, and I do sometimes post sewing photos, but it's mostly photos of my dog, because she's just so adorable. So I finally started an account just for my blog, and it will be all sewing-related photos (although i can't promise a cute dog photo won't slip in occasionally, haha)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I'm starting this because...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSt9ZALfbWqzk82f92m46bOByIwddblBGK-5csgZ5GaVlr1nlcTOQZnaolE7zYPpYCC3FVpmkARERTnTrjOtBrCoXUQQ3RJrstxwI_EjrkjFBjGhI5-_jOc3bvoHoqWdH9cl2NTwupSobv/s1600/bpSewvember-badge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSt9ZALfbWqzk82f92m46bOByIwddblBGK-5csgZ5GaVlr1nlcTOQZnaolE7zYPpYCC3FVpmkARERTnTrjOtBrCoXUQQ3RJrstxwI_EjrkjFBjGhI5-_jOc3bvoHoqWdH9cl2NTwupSobv/s1600/bpSewvember-badge.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This photo-a-day Instagram challenge is hosted by the lovely and hilarious Amanda of <a href="http://bimbleandpimple.com/">bimbleandpimple.com</a>. I'm a little late to the party, and I was originally just lurking everyone's photos, but decided I wanted to play along. Hoping I can keep up! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqEMaVpQ0ik1oj2NLTKXmxEBeIEnRHLCAJn9BQuc9oo7kBINJGoeHz4FVf2pa3cVgxFH9IBx8XLp7b2VZ8I4uc2pJXU-2NMxtP4Xp03VevAwPjXVgbH0urzIiwRe4c84LPOB13WzHZyphF/s1600/bpSewvember-photo-challenges.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqEMaVpQ0ik1oj2NLTKXmxEBeIEnRHLCAJn9BQuc9oo7kBINJGoeHz4FVf2pa3cVgxFH9IBx8XLp7b2VZ8I4uc2pJXU-2NMxtP4Xp03VevAwPjXVgbH0urzIiwRe4c84LPOB13WzHZyphF/s1600/bpSewvember-photo-challenges.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Are you participating? And please do let me know your instagram name, whether you're playing or not =) Happy Monday!</span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-16995810383438583512014-10-31T13:01:00.001-04:002014-10-31T13:01:13.926-04:00#sewingproblems<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The other night I was about to start a new project and I wanted to make sure I had matching thread first, in order to avoid taking a trip out to the fabric store... If I didn't have some matching thread on hand I was going to just pick a different fabric to use. That's how much I didn't feel like driving to the store.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">So I was looking at my fabric and had two really close thread contenders. Urgh, but I couldn't decide which was a closer match! One had been used before and one was a new spool... Do I just use the thread that had already been partially used for some other project? Or does the other thread that hadn't been used yet match better??</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I wrestled with this for several minutes going back and forth... I'm very indecisive... Until I noticed...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZVN7HGz7Mfrfeqn7WPn13s5xsBpAeI2HVbXeFBITY0Jv0sPxx5xN7H9KiEnjXgzDycYYcDD6jB55IzvEyIMwHoaxMg9JhneAw_JkP1PUeUqtLbYBOQdvtmjxsYRQJ7csqhj7JyAFB0lMF/s1600/photo-4best.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZVN7HGz7Mfrfeqn7WPn13s5xsBpAeI2HVbXeFBITY0Jv0sPxx5xN7H9KiEnjXgzDycYYcDD6jB55IzvEyIMwHoaxMg9JhneAw_JkP1PUeUqtLbYBOQdvtmjxsYRQJ7csqhj7JyAFB0lMF/s1600/photo-4best.jpg" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The labels on the ends. #939. on both. They are the exact same color! Argh! Has this happened to you before? Or any other hilarious sewing problems that only someone else who sews can sympathize with? Please share!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">(Also note that even after I knew they were the Exact Same Color, I still wasn't convinced... Had the older spool faded... What if there was labeling fiasco in the Gutermann factory and something went awry... Am I too OCD... that's probably it.)</span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-37037959321940416932014-10-20T14:51:00.000-04:002014-10-20T14:53:45.119-04:00New York City Fabric Shopping Guide, A Tourist's Point of View<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The first weekend of October I got to take an awesome trip to NYC and shopping the garment district was our main goal. It really is a sewist's dream. Within two blocks there were more fabric stores than I have visited in my lifetime. I did a bit of researching before we went, and learned a lot while we were there, so I thought I'd share.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">We stayed on the 37th floor of the ONE UN hotel (which is 38 stories tall) so we had a great view. The hotel felt like it was in a "safe" location, since we didn't really know our way around NYC. But it wasn't super close to a subway stop. So my advice would be to also factor that into your hotel choice. We bought a groupon for the hotel room and saved a lot of $$, but it was kinda a pain since the hotel "didn't receive the reservation from groupon" blah blah blah, eventually we got it straightened out. But the view made us forget about that....</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoCbQyJCJ6nfgDv_viTCG015Gf0ZwlTnscXcs26Aczj0vnU5DDwI7pxH8CC_xgMJa9O1QrF0o2Wi7ATKL2Vx7O3gpllwxA02MIQhTBbvavDFe_DOPs9BEbKpfEUHG_yGcAIt-uGUvqxIPh/s1600/photo+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoCbQyJCJ6nfgDv_viTCG015Gf0ZwlTnscXcs26Aczj0vnU5DDwI7pxH8CC_xgMJa9O1QrF0o2Wi7ATKL2Vx7O3gpllwxA02MIQhTBbvavDFe_DOPs9BEbKpfEUHG_yGcAIt-uGUvqxIPh/s1600/photo+3.JPG" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">So since we weren't super close to a subway stop, we used Uber quite a bit. if you haven't heard of it, it's a pretty smart idea and the process is super smooth with their App. Plus we each got a free ride when we signed up and another free ride for referring each other, so lots of free rides! And then we walked A LOT (wear comfy shoes).</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK5zA_1IMaF82ADIsmZidS8vOjWf9dIB517oKV-XbAVDhE7_dklvhJW7_D22tsvvyqGHI-RAmglh3CX7NUAa8zfC6dACkvyJCkcmCILdW0ARHFnerIBoh6g-1PGFBQk5w0JiQZrQetvrgM/s1600/photo+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK5zA_1IMaF82ADIsmZidS8vOjWf9dIB517oKV-XbAVDhE7_dklvhJW7_D22tsvvyqGHI-RAmglh3CX7NUAa8zfC6dACkvyJCkcmCILdW0ARHFnerIBoh6g-1PGFBQk5w0JiQZrQetvrgM/s1600/photo+2.JPG" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">On to the best part: Fabric stores. If you can, plan your trip to include a weekday, like a Friday or Monday because a few stores (including one of my favorites) are only open weekdays. Also take into consideration if your trip will be around a holiday. Think about other religious holidays as well, as some small family-owned shops may be closed. Here is my list of my favorite shops in order with all the pertinent details...</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Mood</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Hours</u>: Mon-Fri 9am-7pm, Sat 10am-5pm, <u>Closed Sundays</u> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Address</u>: 225 W 37th St, you will see the Mood Home Decor store from the street, for apparel fabrics go into the lobby to the right of the Mood Home Decor store, and take the elevator to the 3rd floor for Mood. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Tips</u>: Give yourself plenty of time! This store is HUGE. 3 stories, you'll want to look at and touch everything, excellent selection of knits on the bottom floor. Zippers for $1! Less crowded early in the day. Prices range, but everything was pretty well labeled. I can't imagine only having a very short amount of time to shop at Mood (like the Project Runway contestants). I needed several hours, if not an entire day.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Metro Textiles</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Hours</u>: Mon-Fri 8am-6pm, <u>Closed Saturdays & Sundays</u> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Address</u>: 265 West 37th.
(between 7th & 8th Avenues) Suite 908. This one is a HIDDEN GEM! Go into the lobby area of 265 West 37th and take the elevator to the 9th floor. Then walk down the hallway toward the back til you get to Suite 908. It's basically just a long room full of bolts and bolts of fabric.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Tips</u>: The owner Mr. Kashi is one of the Nicest people we met in NYC. Seriously. Awesome. Make friends with him because he's the best. It's a tight space and prices are not marked, so I was a little skeptical at first. But Mr. Kashi will happily tell you any prices, just ask him. And he gave us Excellent prices. Great quality and diverse selection. He also knows his stuff, so he was able to find fabrics when we told him what we were looking for and also pulled out some great silks that I might not have seen. This came close to being my favorite shop, but Mood edged it out simply because Mood is 3 stories. But seriously, make sure to plan for a weekday so you can visit Metro, although Mr. Kashi mentioned to call him to see if he'll be in on a weekend if you want to shop.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Paron</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Hours</u>: </span></span>Mon-Thurs 8:30am-7pm, Fri 8:30am-6pm, Sat 9am-5pm, Sun 11am-4pm </div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Address</u>: 257 W 39th St</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Tips</u>: Paron had some of the best prices. I think it was the only place that had a sale section. I scored several fabrics that were marked 50% off, so I was pretty excited about that since I shop on a budget.</span></span>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">B&J</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Hours</u>: </span></span> M-Fri 8am-5:45pm, Sat 9am-4:45pm, <u>Closed Sun</u></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;"><u>Address</u>: </span><span style="font-size: small;">525 7th Avenue (near corner of
38th street, by the Starbucks) Go into the lobby and up the stairs and then there's an elevator to B&J<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u> </u></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><u>Tips</u>: B&J has some fancy fabric, so if nothing else, go there to look. If you have something very specific in mind, you'll probably be able to find it there. They have superb quality stuff and so it's priced accordingly. They also have a large selection of Liberty fabrics for all you Liberty fans. I just drooled at all the lovely fabrics (but not literally because I would've gotten in trouble.) There was a gorgeous floral fabric that I picked out for... $210 a yard. It cost as much as my plane ticket. Very fancy. No, I didn't buy it... I wish!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">If you wander around the blocks where those fabric stores are, you will come across a million more: Chic Fabrics, Fabrics Garden, AK Fabric, M&J Trimmings... I can't even remember all the names! There were also quite a few shops that would be perfect if you were looking for sparkly sequins and fluffy feathers, perfect for your super sweet sixteen birthday dress or your next ice dancing costume...</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">But seriously, the selection at most of these fabric stores was amazing and I came home with a great haul:</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjHrM-vs6sbTS4caoGR17IMcH6XQtDt1i4oxV6_y2gfB3FaDOmY1zwnJWE5SMOibeWj1Azdv9IKK-tIufw1as_b8f-VxT8WR5YvaXGvNQyicxl-xdG6uTbwOAQgaprDdXJY373unGr_xdU/s1600/photo+5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjHrM-vs6sbTS4caoGR17IMcH6XQtDt1i4oxV6_y2gfB3FaDOmY1zwnJWE5SMOibeWj1Azdv9IKK-tIufw1as_b8f-VxT8WR5YvaXGvNQyicxl-xdG6uTbwOAQgaprDdXJY373unGr_xdU/s1600/photo+5.JPG" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The top three are silks and the rest are various knits. Super excited about these! I'm having a hard time deciding where to start. Idea overload.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Oh and one last highlight of the trip: meeting the adorable and famous Swatch </span></span></div>
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soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-10468141320372743502014-08-12T16:20:00.001-04:002014-11-11T15:48:29.769-05:00Angel Baby Gowns<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I haven't been doing much sewing for myself lately. I did make a simple knit skirt a few weeks ago, which took only one evening, because I needed something to wear for a friend's themed party. But other than that, it's been awhile. I should plan a new sewing project for myself.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Instead, I've been sewing little gowns for a group called Angel Baby Gowns of Charleston, which a friend found through facebook. They use donated wedding dresses and turn them into tiny gowns for babies that don't make it home from the hospital. I can't even imagine having to cope with a loss like that. It makes me sad, but I'm also happy to help out. The gowns are packaged with loving notes and delivered to local (and also distant) hospitals.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmcUkuwJeKgWbWpwR5BAtqkTa_KQB-Ef11pZ47H1eD1EerZlJDm36OZiIIzQ2DQ6BvEBJV92B9_S_TYyhBR-DRQHDURGMBeMBHO0EtH3G0AbNhJ_LH33TAmt3ojR3n8Mui1Iqy3dLxA8eV/s1600/babygown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmcUkuwJeKgWbWpwR5BAtqkTa_KQB-Ef11pZ47H1eD1EerZlJDm36OZiIIzQ2DQ6BvEBJV92B9_S_TYyhBR-DRQHDURGMBeMBHO0EtH3G0AbNhJ_LH33TAmt3ojR3n8Mui1Iqy3dLxA8eV/s1600/babygown.jpg" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The gown above is one that had some beautiful lace details. I've also sewn little boy gowns that have vests with tiny buttons. Evidently there are groups that sew Angel Baby Gowns in other cities. I hadn't ever heard of this cause, so I thought I'd share.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">UPDATE: Our local newspaper recently published a story about a couple who lost a baby, and highlighted the Angel Baby Gowns group I volunteer for. The article is very touching and so many more people have reached out to the volunteer group! It's also </span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">eye-opening, because this subject is rarely talked about. </span>Here's a link to the story: http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20140927/PC1204/140929486 </span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-77861231615931693482014-07-07T14:50:00.002-04:002014-07-07T14:54:23.687-04:00Wedding banner<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I just wanted to quickly share this photo because check it out, my handmade banner made it in the shot! They hung it above the wedding cake, and the window looks out onto the beautiful harbor. And how cute are my friends! </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkZl6aavL7Rb7iVpAeM0-MTnT125S6Difk7zvLW-4fzPPNAC9oIvMot9qbOfK7OF4G67O9Mf86dYU0ISDYv2GgFEqo4p_mJg1-ESI-PUM6UzbxXd9jd1_Rvj_dxKNQa9LTApaBnzmp8Pfo/s1600/wedding.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkZl6aavL7Rb7iVpAeM0-MTnT125S6Difk7zvLW-4fzPPNAC9oIvMot9qbOfK7OF4G67O9Mf86dYU0ISDYv2GgFEqo4p_mJg1-ESI-PUM6UzbxXd9jd1_Rvj_dxKNQa9LTApaBnzmp8Pfo/s1600/wedding.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">credit: Liz Duren Photography</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Yay! Here's the <a href="http://soisewedthis.blogspot.ca/2014/05/burlap-bunting-banner.html">original post</a>. </span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-12128584598120889232014-05-07T16:02:00.001-04:002014-05-07T16:14:41.659-04:00Burlap Bunting Banner<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">A friend of mine had a bridal shower recently, so to help with the decor, I sewed a bunting banner. I used burlap fabric (found at Hancock's Fabrics) to go with her rustic theme, and mint ribbon to go with her color scheme. It was a fun project, different from the usual things I make, but it did take longer than expected to make (perfectionist here).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZyVcS_2N7T4FpSQNXkB5ai6WZMdMLbk7Drw3LM56SYILcIuNZ9b8Np9VaF70IkBumgYZft8HmWRkDZmceQeKpXfXUhjeVmPhfh4c5nlH7qt0qre9Qd-q8f_fQSR5RUM_HuwTPj1D7yvqX/s1600/banner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZyVcS_2N7T4FpSQNXkB5ai6WZMdMLbk7Drw3LM56SYILcIuNZ9b8Np9VaF70IkBumgYZft8HmWRkDZmceQeKpXfXUhjeVmPhfh4c5nlH7qt0qre9Qd-q8f_fQSR5RUM_HuwTPj1D7yvqX/s1600/banner.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I cut out large diamond shapes out of the burlap, butting them next to each other so
that no fabric was wasted when cutting. When the diamond shape is folded in half over the
ribbon, it makes the triangle shape. Before folding them, I used a
plastic letter stencil (from Michael's) and white fabric paint to paint
the letters (did the heart shape freehand). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">These Wonder Clips I got for Christmas were super handy - much easier than pinning! You can kind of see in the photo below how the diamond shape is folded in half over the ribbon to make the triangles. You could also just do triangle shapes and just sew the tops to the ribbon, but by doing the diamond shape, you get a doubled up triangle and it just looked better to me for this. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL0bQsw_yHIWKXoQGlxFSBRM-7BUcr7aYA1BhZ0LG5mk6DS1Y8GR2pkQK6AILmsY0KLpMCoYh9tZwkRttVEFiyJkWU57B1F6am3gTo1pjKPV0xoyQ1ft-DmZ8ONb8y4pSUTlVx-REvdYQV/s1600/bannerclose.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL0bQsw_yHIWKXoQGlxFSBRM-7BUcr7aYA1BhZ0LG5mk6DS1Y8GR2pkQK6AILmsY0KLpMCoYh9tZwkRttVEFiyJkWU57B1F6am3gTo1pjKPV0xoyQ1ft-DmZ8ONb8y4pSUTlVx-REvdYQV/s1600/bannerclose.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Then I just sewed all the way around the 3 sides of all of the triangles. I kept double-checking that I was sewing the letters on in the correct order, beacause it would be just my luck to finish putting it together and have it be misspelled. I was thinking about writing this post as a tutorial, but it wasn't that complicated. I just figured out what I was going to do as I went along and it worked out well, having never made a banner before. But it turned out cute, and I think the bride might even use the banner as a part of her actual wedding decor.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-4413662517272354692014-05-06T14:45:00.003-04:002014-05-06T14:45:41.426-04:00Sewing Scrub Caps for Children's Hospital<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">A little while back someone reached out on facebook looking for volunteers to sew scrub caps for a local children's hospital. It sounded like a really good cause, so I was happy to help. I don't have an unlimited amount of free time to sew, and I usually stick to sewing projects for myself. Well, occasionally I'll fix my friends torn jeans, hems, etc. for a barter of baked goods (I'm easilly swayed by cupcakes and brownies). Last year I hemmed some school uniform pants for children that are staying at a local shelter and don't have the funds to make sure their pants fit them properly. Doing small things like that really do make you feel good, and something small that you do can actually be really huge for the recipient. It also makes you think about how fortunate you really are. So I had been thinking about what else I could do, and sewing these scrub caps just popped up.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I made 13 total, and hope to make more if there remains a need. I used some cotton that was gifted to me in a swap. It's a fun green swirly print, but I've learned that I don't really wear clothing made of quilting weight cotton, so it was better to put the fabric to use for a good cause. These caps went to the MUSC Children's Hospital. There's more info about volunteering projects <a href="http://www.musckids.org/volunteers/shortterm.htm#crafts">through this link</a>. Here's the pattern they provide for the <a href="http://www.musckids.org/volunteers/Scrub%20Hat%20Instruction.pdf">scrub caps</a>. There's also a <a href="http://www.musckids.org/volunteers/blankdollpattern.pdf">pattern</a> and instructions for <a href="http://www.musckids.org/volunteers/Blankdollinstructions.pdf">blank therapy dolls</a>. There are also opportunities to make <a href="http://www.conkerrcancer.org/">pillowcases</a>, as well as knitting and crochet projects. (And by the way, I just took up crochet! Well I'm attempting to teach myself. More on that to come.) I'm sure there are children's hospitals all over that would love to receive donations of sewn/knitted creations if anyone else is looking to contribute. A little selfless sewing is good for ya! ;)</span><br />
soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-60129248089205222922014-02-19T15:33:00.001-05:002014-05-06T14:46:26.559-04:00Kitschy Coo Lady Skater Dress in Leopard<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">wow. so, way back in september i mentioned that i had new fabric picked out for my second lady skater dress. in october i had it cut out and i think i had it finished sometime in november. and now it's... february. and i finally took some photos. this dress would've worked perfectly for "jungle january" or even for "ferocious february" except that i finished it last year...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu0n4UWUv2tqk8d2abhlkFzJO3xVpUckQ2pbAueEu93Ci23GAnovVz7SdwUkUG6hKvhvIPdxv2Sr23b5A30_kkBAYfLirQ13jUlxq-Vl18EQUvSO-1IiSK81ZgYuc1Lu9zY0Jibnezcfn-/s1600/dress2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu0n4UWUv2tqk8d2abhlkFzJO3xVpUckQ2pbAueEu93Ci23GAnovVz7SdwUkUG6hKvhvIPdxv2Sr23b5A30_kkBAYfLirQ13jUlxq-Vl18EQUvSO-1IiSK81ZgYuc1Lu9zY0Jibnezcfn-/s1600/dress2.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">this is a leopard print ponte from fabric.com. in my <a href="http://soisewedthis.blogspot.com/2013/09/kitschy-coo-lady-skater-dress-in-royal.html">blue lady skater</a> the waist was too low, but now i think it's just slightly too high. i'll have to find a happy middle ground next time. i had to also go down a few sleeve sizes because of my tiny arms/lack of bi-ceps. but now this dress is a little too tight in the bust and i think i messed that up when i was trying to merge in the smaller sleeves. plus this ponte is not quite as stretchy. i found a link on pinterest for an <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/356277020493094940/">FBA on knits</a> so maybe i'll try that next time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">all in all i'm pretty happy with it. leopard print isn't usually something i gravitate toward, but i like this! and the colors are more cream, black, grey than it looks in these photos i think.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBi-LKIF-zY512I39yDaAbIsIPnfwobXSrivscuxfdsdkWE_AwBV5JmV-ORVwc21bE5NhKsL0Ons5D1cM3DaMNYoLNoNEzriYIM0FeriIqZ1DJ4XuSrPvPpvizndcNmbRLxHG-17MSqvMz/s1600/dress1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBi-LKIF-zY512I39yDaAbIsIPnfwobXSrivscuxfdsdkWE_AwBV5JmV-ORVwc21bE5NhKsL0Ons5D1cM3DaMNYoLNoNEzriYIM0FeriIqZ1DJ4XuSrPvPpvizndcNmbRLxHG-17MSqvMz/s1600/dress1.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">love a good knit dress! makes me do silly poses. i guess this is what i think an ice skater does? i already bought fabric for several more knit dresses, but i've been sidetracked by several other sewing projects: some volunteer sewing, mending/altering for a few friends, sewing a bunting banner for a friend's bridal shower. can't wait to get back to sewing for myself soon! </span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-50485456528221307622014-01-09T15:59:00.001-05:002014-01-09T16:00:28.955-05:00i caved in to pinterest<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i had been holding out so well for so long. but i'm sad to say, i finally caved in and joined pinterest.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i was so resistant because i didn't want something else sucking up my time. i hear how easy it can be to get lost in pinning things to pinterest boards and then hours pass by and you're still pinning things, and then you never actually get around to doing any of the adorable clever crafty projects you pin. i already have a limited amount of free time, so i really have to prioritize. i never joined twitter, barely use facebook, and my instagram (which is also fairly new) is mostly just pictures of my dog (love her! she's just so cute!).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">but i came across a very useful way to use pinterest: to store and organize all of your bookmarks in a clean, visual way. awesome idea! my bookmark list in firefox was a mile long. so i started a pinterest account and moved all of my bookmarks onto pinterest boards. i made 4 boards: "<a href="http://www.pinterest.com/amberjena/sewing-tips/">sewing tips</a>," "<a href="http://www.pinterest.com/amberjena/free-sewing-patterns/">free sewing patterns</a>," "<a href="http://www.pinterest.com/amberjena/free-sewing-patterns-baby-gifts/">free sewing patterns - baby gifts</a>," and "<a href="http://www.pinterest.com/amberjena/sewing-inspiration/">sewing inspiration</a>" (haven't pinned anything to that last one just yet). it's great! i can see everything and it's organized! i tried to keep it to tips and patterns i will actually use and not let it get too crazy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">are you already using pinterest to organize your bookmarks? and do you have any sewing related pinterest boards? let me know so i can check yours out!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="http://www.pinterest.com/amberjena/">here's a link to my page</a> and you can also find it under the "<a href="http://soisewedthis.blogspot.com/p/free-patterns-tutorials-i-like.html">free patterns and sewing tips i like</a>" tab up at the top of my blog page. i moved all of those tips onto pinterest too! woohoo! anybody else get excited as me about getting things organized, ha ha!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">and i'll leave you with an adorable instagram shot of our dog:</span><br />
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soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-32195843979836061262013-12-17T11:39:00.000-05:002013-12-17T11:44:07.483-05:002013 Sewlution - Mission Accomplished<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I was actually on the ball about my 2013 sewlution that i tossed into Karen of the blog <a href="http://didyoumakethat.wordpress.com/2013/01/01/put-your-money-where-your-mouth-is/">Did You Make That?'s jar</a>. She kept everyone's sewlutions ("sewlution" meaning a sewing-related resolution) in a jar to hold everyone accountable that wanted to participate. i'm not a fan of waiting til the last minute before a deadline because i hate that stressful feeling of being rushed, especially when it comes to sewing which is my hobby which means it should be fun and not stressful. but seeing as the deadline would be a whole year away when i made the resolution last january, i had plenty of time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">so i decided to get right to it. my resolution was to make something fully lined because i hadn't done that yet. by april i had it completed! for some reason i made it difficult for myself. i should have picked a pattern that included instructions for a lining, the sewaholic Cambie would've been a good choice, but instead i used a pattern that did not have pattern pieces or instructions for a lining. i just used the main pattern pieces to make my lining and i also drafted a facing. i picked a slinky fabric, which also made it more difficult. i should've just used a cotton for my first fully lined project. but after a little bit of back and forth (maybe a lot) and some google searching for tips about the right way to go about things, i did fairly well. my main hurdle was inserting the invisible zip so that it was sandwiched between the main fabric and the lining. i just had to actually do it in order to wrap my brain around the process.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i <a href="http://soisewedthis.blogspot.com/2013/04/sewlution-complete.html">posted about the dress here</a> and then<a href="http://soisewedthis.blogspot.com/2013/04/in-case-you-needed-some-proof.html"> more details here</a>. it turned out pretty well! however, i only wore the dress out once. i'm not a huge fan of the color and the smallish print on me. it's just so-so. not exciting. i just don't love it, so something else always wins out when i'm picking what to wear. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">the dress on me</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSWKwp8YSh2TmwSBZ1j0lPYvHLgYq563MUV8cWOxlbEGe8REn6z1V31ND_i5EVtLV-ublY6htgKjq5J95VTb_TMm1Qv_6NcqBkAsYr12W_-RQt8gMl4lKP-rWRm5N514AyBu7X_9-uG5cA/s1600/DRESS1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSWKwp8YSh2TmwSBZ1j0lPYvHLgYq563MUV8cWOxlbEGe8REn6z1V31ND_i5EVtLV-ublY6htgKjq5J95VTb_TMm1Qv_6NcqBkAsYr12W_-RQt8gMl4lKP-rWRm5N514AyBu7X_9-uG5cA/s1600/DRESS1.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">the dress</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh93UPmDUwWN8ENZewYTDhpHE8HeWLQ7joGn57y4vMAINZiVZez2_LloBCd0HJNBMmmMwIVlsxvUEmw96l6bnmchwgtqJPDL6HmfJZDODjVXJn7lTiVHbu4hFAy5ODzdlNNjxbB19DAVGVS/s1600/DRESSINSIDEFRONT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh93UPmDUwWN8ENZewYTDhpHE8HeWLQ7joGn57y4vMAINZiVZez2_LloBCd0HJNBMmmMwIVlsxvUEmw96l6bnmchwgtqJPDL6HmfJZDODjVXJn7lTiVHbu4hFAy5ODzdlNNjxbB19DAVGVS/s1600/DRESSINSIDEFRONT.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">front view, insides</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN5Hv5oL126ueYWgprFKmzGhZOkdnth78XnpnZaenAfBuYaBLc7xA3eDB9V_REzTKTc4oLV83trfAzyzBg5EJL_IiuDlQoobd9xRthX_9su0DaCih6732liOfSl0kMvcYAeZwXjwt5LgwD/s1600/DRESSINSIDEBACK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN5Hv5oL126ueYWgprFKmzGhZOkdnth78XnpnZaenAfBuYaBLc7xA3eDB9V_REzTKTc4oLV83trfAzyzBg5EJL_IiuDlQoobd9xRthX_9su0DaCih6732liOfSl0kMvcYAeZwXjwt5LgwD/s1600/DRESSINSIDEBACK.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">back view, insides</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">later in the year, i did a second fully lined dress, but with no zipper, so it went together much quicker. this time it was the sewaholic saltspring. <a href="http://soisewedthis.blogspot.com/2013/09/sewaholic-saltspring-dress-and-mini.html">details here.</a> this pattern included a lining piece for the bodice and then i just added a lining to the skirt mainly due to the lightness of this fabric. it worked well, and i'm sure i'll make another when spring rolls around.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">second fully lined dress</span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">so, yay me! 2013 sewlution complete!! did you complete yours? and now what goal should i make for 2014?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-25105616824362269222013-12-03T16:09:00.004-05:002013-12-03T16:09:55.483-05:00Little Dress Kits' Dungarees in Action!<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Back in september i made a pair of <a href="http://soisewedthis.blogspot.com/2013/09/little-dress-kits-adorable-car-dungarees.html">dungarees/overalls</a> for my friend's one year old's birthday. Recently she sent me these photos! and they fit now! so cute!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-37430348885978216542013-10-21T13:48:00.000-04:002013-10-21T13:48:02.258-04:00handmade gift - vintage cameras pillow<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">after making an <a href="http://soisewedthis.blogspot.com/2013/08/elephant-pillow-for-friend.html">elephant pillow</a> for a friend's birthday back in august, i knew i wanted to sew up another cute pillow for a friend whose birthday is in october, actually this friday.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWcsOHHecz_2X2s9hTloD__5hQ8v_Q8aqglIZd4zVER7CthDGIRqpURzzTtrssDjqz7oadd3CVOyQaV9VqXhdL3stDqUdzsELBggkyz6iaFjwD0xUco7Tl7a1aaocRt60-KDqUIHDzeVZT/s1600/pillowfront.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWcsOHHecz_2X2s9hTloD__5hQ8v_Q8aqglIZd4zVER7CthDGIRqpURzzTtrssDjqz7oadd3CVOyQaV9VqXhdL3stDqUdzsELBggkyz6iaFjwD0xUco7Tl7a1aaocRt60-KDqUIHDzeVZT/s1600/pillowfront.jpg" /> </a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">this was really quick to make, just 2 squares and an invisible zip. and i think it looks really cute and it incorporates 2 things my friend loves: photography and typography. she also collects vintage cameras. the fabric is from fabric.com: <a href="https://www.fabric.com/buy/0265640/times-of-your-life-cameras-blue">Times of Your Life Cameras Blue</a> and Moda Odds & Ends Junk Drawer Rosebud Red (which is out of stock on fabric.com at the moment, but can also be found on <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/109233015/odds-ends-junk-drawer-in-rosebud-by">etsy</a>)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWROcBzbGfh5P5NVbxcP52t10TAolgqgQOpqsrSWgJCQOV2i8pTKfeX6K333e7A2a4UpMUivA-WAqvEoWercYhdZ-4oUb7LUes-r9mkLflnIMkOdIjV2xaEwvJNag8wfN9evEZVDJ3d6nD/s1600/pillowback.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWROcBzbGfh5P5NVbxcP52t10TAolgqgQOpqsrSWgJCQOV2i8pTKfeX6K333e7A2a4UpMUivA-WAqvEoWercYhdZ-4oUb7LUes-r9mkLflnIMkOdIjV2xaEwvJNag8wfN9evEZVDJ3d6nD/s1600/pillowback.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i love how these fabrics ended up working together. some of the cameras on the front pick up the red color from the back.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOv7yw6SvK9jyuGgWEU7t0TVK_sLEtcsKaRNbiRgRkJ3Rafszejb6-SsL3iVDoLcfqaVxvEjQ5J3_pzEBnkOh5G_xM4XO4_JD3ZAFaz7gbO2kwB4KAVKnAZ9T7NWb2rxaDo-2RqTZLIcJP/s1600/pillowside.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOv7yw6SvK9jyuGgWEU7t0TVK_sLEtcsKaRNbiRgRkJ3Rafszejb6-SsL3iVDoLcfqaVxvEjQ5J3_pzEBnkOh5G_xM4XO4_JD3ZAFaz7gbO2kwB4KAVKnAZ9T7NWb2rxaDo-2RqTZLIcJP/s1600/pillowside.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i can't wait to give it to her, and i hope she likes it! what are your thoughts on giving handmade gifts? love it? loathe it?</span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-68502950735578938482013-10-16T16:09:00.003-04:002013-10-16T16:09:55.760-04:00Finish those serged seams!<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i came across this tip somewhere (if you originally came up with it, let me know! although i'm sure several people thought of it and it's hard to track down who really came up with something, plus it's probably in some sewing book somewhere or maybe it's something they'd teach you if you went to school for sewing... ?) anyway. this tip was very helpful in finishing off the serged seams on <a href="http://soisewedthis.blogspot.com/2013/09/kitschy-coo-lady-skater-dress-in-royal.html">my recent lady skater dress</a>. in the lady skater pattern they have you sew the neckband and armbands on flat and then sew up the shoulder seam and side seams after, which leaves you with a serger thread chain at one shoulder and under each arm. if you were to sew the shoulder seams and side seams first, then sew the neckband and armbands into circles, and then attached them, this would solve the serger thread chain issue. but again, the other method is a little faster, less finicky, and some people aren't OCD about serger/overlocker thread chains.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i, on the other hand, am OCD about serger thread chains, which you probably realize from this post. i don't like to just lop them off and risk all my hard work coming apart. and i tried tying them off in knots. but then you have little knots sticking out. some people use fray check, but i don't have any on hand. plus i really like this method.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitl5EpLMsMKJUqmN7RK1QRFloPMqEJOaEaii3RL_yOT1-oKxjfDp_ljhBSQ9SslxxdhPVVWEpYhBzO_zXjDBxv8aY_rwmqACJnLNdINBcRRr59wM9m656WAOxMAuKDixjOU67xUqsd-1IM/s1600/step1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitl5EpLMsMKJUqmN7RK1QRFloPMqEJOaEaii3RL_yOT1-oKxjfDp_ljhBSQ9SslxxdhPVVWEpYhBzO_zXjDBxv8aY_rwmqACJnLNdINBcRRr59wM9m656WAOxMAuKDixjOU67xUqsd-1IM/s1600/step1.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">first, get a needle with a large eye. this one i "borrowed" from my mom's sewing tools many years ago. it was for sewing couch cushions. it's perfect for this. insert the needle into your serged stitches as shown in the photo above. do this first, because if you're like me and thread the needle first and then try to bend the needle back toward your stitching it won't work because you clipped your serger thread shorter than your needle. or just leave a very long serger thread... but this way works well. stick the needle in first, then thread it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">you might have to twist the threads together, wetting them also helps, so that you can get them all through the needle eye. again, a needle with a large eye is the way to go. or they sell needle threader thingies if you're so inclined. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip3HZ-KFXKGbQrehgzDCM0l2MG0ru5R1MAUqBrwcZmFL2zI1OLM3BgS76vUfTSj9vXIYrv-d8ZXq24sfqzdUP7gU7UYj6-Ge27qgl8IPtByZbPTAaUSiHrAU_LS7qYkcXQQbO2D4sN4rsz/s1600/step3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip3HZ-KFXKGbQrehgzDCM0l2MG0ru5R1MAUqBrwcZmFL2zI1OLM3BgS76vUfTSj9vXIYrv-d8ZXq24sfqzdUP7gU7UYj6-Ge27qgl8IPtByZbPTAaUSiHrAU_LS7qYkcXQQbO2D4sN4rsz/s1600/step3.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">then just pull your needle down, and your thread chain is held in place underneath your stitches! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">yahoo!!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">trim it and you're done! (did you notice the fun fabric i'm working on? i'll save that for the next post!)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-49973906697165435912013-09-30T11:40:00.002-04:002013-09-30T11:41:48.215-04:00Kitschy Coo Lady Skater Dress in Royal Blue<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i love this dress pattern! this is the <a href="http://kitschycoo.bigcartel.com/product/the-lady-skater-sewing-pattern-for-teens-and-women">Lady Skater Dress by Kitschy Coo</a>. i finished it last week and wore it out over the weekend. it's easy to just throw on and look put together. it would also be so comfortable for traveling. i used a royal blue ponte knit on sale from fabric.com. be careful if you use a ponte because they don't all have a lot of stretch and might not work well, because this needs a knit with a decent amount of stretch. but the ponte i used was fairly stretchy so i gave it a go. and i think it worked out well!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">the fabric was labeled "medium weight" and i think the weight of the skirt is pulling the bodice down a bit, so i'll probably raise the waist up a little on my next one. maybe an inch. on the sleeves i ended up taking 1.25 inches off the sides of each because the sleeves were too loose, but that's probably a "me issue" because of my lack of biceps. on the next one i'll try taking a wedge out of the center of the sleeve pattern piece beforehand to see if that works better.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKDgXtGPdpj25jZG4lowzSGD8Thmv2boTaw5XtzcH4JW3Iy2JTgn2lOn5jnYaFRmr2aGXNN-hzDKXr5aVoMMes43UNOWrx2nuMTm5eOibcdXBwUn_V-BV5MFjcAHoJyY8ZXKQskSTg8Tpr/s1600/back.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKDgXtGPdpj25jZG4lowzSGD8Thmv2boTaw5XtzcH4JW3Iy2JTgn2lOn5jnYaFRmr2aGXNN-hzDKXr5aVoMMes43UNOWrx2nuMTm5eOibcdXBwUn_V-BV5MFjcAHoJyY8ZXKQskSTg8Tpr/s1600/back.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">this was actually my first time using a pdf pattern to sew a garment for myself. i've used pdfs to sew some baby clothes and purses, but those had only a few pages. the pages of this covered nearly all of the empty floor space in my sewing room, but it really wasn't too bad. i found that it was quicker to just trim the right and bottom sides off of all of the pages and then layer them and tape together. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">be sure to transfer all of the markings on this one! confession: sometimes i'm lazy and i don't transfer all of the markings. well it kicked me in the butt this time. there is a very important mark on the neckline that shows where the center of the neckband will meet. i sat in confusion for a good ten minutes before i looked back at my pattern piece and found the mark that i forgot to transfer to my fabric, oops! but it worked out! and the neckline looks super awesome. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i already have my fabric</span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> picked out for my next lady skater dress! i'm going to do the
3/4 sleeved version because it's finally starting to get cooler here. and i'm using a patterned knit fabric that's not my typical style, but i think it will be fun, yay! </span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com27tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-48590224702827463862013-09-20T14:17:00.001-04:002013-09-25T11:16:09.447-04:00sewaholic saltspring dress and a mini wardrobe malfunction<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">honestly i was on the fence about the saltspring dress pattern when it was released. reason being - the tiny straps meant i'd have to go strapless bra with this, which i avoid when possible. i've seen versions with thicker straps and considered that option. but what pushed me over was seeing all of the lovely versions everyone has been posting. plus the fact that many people said you could omit the zipper, yay! and i had a couple drapey fabrics sitting in my stash just waiting for a pattern like this.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">so i finally broke down and ordered it. thank you <a href="http://www.pinkchalkfabrics.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=39_75_800&products_id=14681">Pink Chalk Fabrics</a> for the super quick free shipping. (all of their patterns ship free within the US). you know i love some free shipping.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">as soon as the pattern arrived i actually stopped the project i had already started so that i could start this one. i traced my pattern onto swedish tracing paper (love!) and omitted the center seam allowances on the back skirt and back bodice pieces and cut those on the fold, omitting the zipper. i did a straight size 8 to fit my bust and waist measurements. because the skirt just flares out, i ignored the fact that my hip measurement is not in line with a sewaholic size 8. so my skirt feels a bit too wide and full. next time i will grade the skirt down to a 2 in order to more closely match my hip measurement.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizoe_YFzUOBJdTNTFIoayqelcavuJvAzL-08JwZJn5Sp-VvgCoefGBKkJX5wJ3jcuS0nTgV4omi8TsJm0-fPwKl-uolO7s-EG-byLmbHxAaFNdDuZp68Hf2Wb9jY0HzPnRhr7wFLrFXex5/s1600/saltspring.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizoe_YFzUOBJdTNTFIoayqelcavuJvAzL-08JwZJn5Sp-VvgCoefGBKkJX5wJ3jcuS0nTgV4omi8TsJm0-fPwKl-uolO7s-EG-byLmbHxAaFNdDuZp68Hf2Wb9jY0HzPnRhr7wFLrFXex5/s1600/saltspring.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i fully lined the dress bodice and skirt using some white cotton voile that i got on super sale from fabric.com. the outer fabric is a blue and white paisley type print from joann's. it's very slippery and kind of shiny so it's probably some sort of poly blend. also i used clear elastic for the waistband (also from fabric.com), which i like better than regular elastic now because it's less bulky and it has good recovery.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">it was a really quick project. i traced my pattern and cut the fabric last week on sunday night and by wednesday night i was hemming the dress. a little spray starch does wonders when hemming fabric like this and also when pressing the straps.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz_Zl2l1AGRugnRgO4HixBUUi5MzSpKqP1zKMl1QxiF-g35ylgvAvCoi2bmksH7EdwVtHOKYTJuIJ7w5NCVWh_i9ccdr4_KUca_0DRQou3PcMpTBuwATJZouZ6YdLQ-v9g-f6GPOm-3J6j/s1600/saltspringback.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz_Zl2l1AGRugnRgO4HixBUUi5MzSpKqP1zKMl1QxiF-g35ylgvAvCoi2bmksH7EdwVtHOKYTJuIJ7w5NCVWh_i9ccdr4_KUca_0DRQou3PcMpTBuwATJZouZ6YdLQ-v9g-f6GPOm-3J6j/s1600/saltspringback.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">speaking of straps. that is a sad point. before i started sewing the dress, i skimmed through the sewalong that was posted on the sewaholic blog to see if there were any tips that might be helpful. i vaguely remembered something about trimming the ends of the straps closely on the inside to reduce bulk. with this fabric. bad idea. or i guess i just did an awesome job of trimming closely! ha ha. next time i will definitely not trim those straps down much at all, and i will do a lot of back and forth reinforcing stitches where the straps meet the bodice points.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">so here's the story. last friday night i decided to wear the dress to go out with some girlfriends. well i drove to my friend's place and then when we were leaving her house to go out, i sat down in her car... and snap. my strap popped. i had knotted the straps so that they wouldn't come undone, and i know they weren't too tight because a few times they started to creep down my shoulders, so i probably could've tied them tighter. but it must've pulled on the strap too much when i sat down, so the left strap came unattached from the bodice back. first i considered tucking one or both straps down into my bra and pretending the offending strap didn't exist. then i decided to go back inside my friend's house in search of a safetypin, but no luck. plus that probably wouldn't have looked so good anyway. instead i ended up borrowing one of my friend's dresses. sadness. so my saltspring barely made it out of the house.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">plus, slightly embarrassing that my me-made dress came apart, since my friends knew i made it. i felt like that reflected poorly on my sewing skills. but thankfully, friends don't judge, so they didn't think anything of it. at least my strap didn't come off when we were somewhere more public! yikes. so when i got home i hand sewed the strap back on and reinforced it like crazy. and then i went back and did a ton of hand stitching to reinforce the other straps too.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">so hopefully next time i wear this dress out, it'll make it further than the car! ha ha. have you had any wardrobe malfunctions while wearing your sewing projects? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-64392987494627075502013-09-16T12:37:00.001-04:002013-09-16T16:26:28.881-04:00blue green colorblocked knit dress<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i want to sew with more knits, but i haven't been thrilled with the knits at the chain fabric stores nearby, and ordering knits online is a gamble. if you remember, the last striped knits i ordered online ended up feeling slinky almost like a swimsuit, but i used them anyway for my <a href="http://soisewedthis.blogspot.com/2013/08/stripey-dress.html">stripey dress</a>. so this time i wanted to pay attention to fabric content and weight. i wanted something mostly cotton for that soft feeling, with some stretch for a nice recovery, and something at least medium weight. i didn't want to end up with something tissue thin.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">so i ordered 1 yard of a <a href="https://www.fabric.com/buy/205888/michael-miller-stretch-cotton-blend-jersey-knit-green">green michael miller knit</a>. at almost $13 a yard, that's around the top of what i'm willing to spend on a yard of fabric. (and a $20 yard of fabric for me is a splurge.) but i'd rather pay a little more and get something i like, than cheap out and then be unhappy with it, because that would be a total waste. but what am i really going to do with just 1 yard. i really wanted to make a dress. i'd need closer to 2 yards. the green was now out of stock (but it looks like it's back in now) and even if it was, i'd risk that chance of getting fabric from a different dye lot and it might not be exactly the same green? so wheels in my head spinning, i decided to color block it. i thought a navy blue would look good with this green. so i ordered this <a href="https://www.fabric.com/buy/233657/michael-miller-stretch-cotton-blend-jersey-knit-navy?cm_vc=756b1813-cbc1-43b3-84bd-29889bf8fb7b">navy blue michael miller knit</a>. note that both times, of course i ordered several other things to push my orders past the $35 mark so i could get free shipping. fabric.com you are so clever with your free shipping offers.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">well what i received was not really navy. it was more of a royal blue. in fact it was almost exactly the same color as the royal blue ponte knit that i'd also ordered. usually i'd be like, who cares, close enough, but i wasn't sure how this blue would look with this green. and now that the dress is done, i still wish it was a darker navy, but such is life. but i will add that fabric.com's customer service was very helpful and even sent me a refund on the navy, when i contacted them to check and make sure there wasn't a mix up because the color was so different from what i saw online. and i know that colors on computer monitors can appear differently, so i wasn't expecting a refund or anything, just verification that i was sent the correct fabric. anyway thank you fabric.com for restoring my faith in customer service. esp. after the nasty lady at joann's... i promise i'm not a crazy demanding customer, but i know that people should be treated civilly. hopping off my soapbox now.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">so this dress is a similar shape to my stripey dress, but i re-drafted the top to change the back. the skirt is 2 rectangles with 2 narrower rectangles sewn and topstitched to the bottom. i was very careful to get all the seams to line up. and i added pockets. i just used the same pocket pattern piece i made for my last dress. overall i'm happy with it. it is Super-Comfy. i love this fabric. it's exactly what i'd want in a knit. thank you michael miller! (although i wish you made your navy darker.) i used the clear elastic that i also ordered from fabric.com and i like it a lot more than the regular elastic i'd been using. it's a lot less bulky, and i'm using it on the lady skater dress that i'm working on right now.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i wore this dress to work last week and then out to dinner with friends. it's not exactly work-wear, it's more like weekend wear, but i got away with it since our department is business casual and with a sweater (since the AC is freezing) it's less weekend-y. i got zero comments on it, which at my office is a win! ha ha, the women around me all know i sew, so they're always asking me "did you make that?" but no one asked me about this dress, so i'm thinking that means it looked store-bought. that's what i'm telling myself anyway.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-66503269756931952502013-09-11T14:15:00.000-04:002013-09-11T14:15:05.216-04:00Butterick B5748 for a wedding<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">this dress is one of my favorites things i've sewn. i really love how it turned out. the pattern i started with is Butterick B5748, which i posted about <a href="http://soisewedthis.blogspot.com/2013/08/retro-butterick-b5748-in-navy-paisley.html">here</a>. i think my favorite thing about this pattern is the way the back of the bodice scoops down. i didn't do the full lining that the pattern calls for, i just drafted my own facings. this fabric had a nice drape and was opaque enough that a lining wasn't really needed. i only had 2 yards total, so after cutting the bodice and facings, there was not quite enough for the very full skirt included in the pattern. i shortened another skirt pattern and it worked out just fine. i also copied some pockets off a RTW dress in my closet and added those because i thought pockets would be a plus. i wrote a little more about the construction <a href="http://soisewedthis.blogspot.com/2013/08/dress-finished-in-time-for-wedding.html">here</a> if you're thinking of trying this pattern. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i'm sure i'll make this one again! i think i'm starting to do a better job at pairing fabric and patterns that work well together, AND result in something that i'll actually wear. i'm taking a little more time to really think things out before i get started and being pickier in my fabric choices. and plus i've realized that i don't need the pattern company's instructions to sew a dress. so that's a confidence boost since i've been sewing for only a little over a year now. i'm riding on a little sewing high from this dress and have already cranked out another dress (yet to be blogged) and nearly finished yet another dress that just needs a hem. seriously i have been making some time to sew every night. and enjoying it! - which is the whole point, right.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">but look! the back of my dress made it into one of my friends' wedding photos!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvTJaNt1cIi04eT-qXluD-WB08lQHelRKOdQUOLgzPtNH2yHOm0bjc1pW7yqC5u0rOZe-Pm-hde5e8on7TwB2fMXhoMH6nK_EHrUAvyX3asWCGL-bunZemSXw6y2wmAoP-jURToqO9MBgU/s1600/brownwedding2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvTJaNt1cIi04eT-qXluD-WB08lQHelRKOdQUOLgzPtNH2yHOm0bjc1pW7yqC5u0rOZe-Pm-hde5e8on7TwB2fMXhoMH6nK_EHrUAvyX3asWCGL-bunZemSXw6y2wmAoP-jURToqO9MBgU/s1600/brownwedding2.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">aren't they cute! and they got married at the same location we used, so that was kinda fun to see the ceremony from a guest's side rather than as the bride. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i managed to get a friend to snap an iphone photo of my husband and me at the reception. he was a groomsmen, hence the suspenders and boutonniere (not his usual choice of attire).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt2A0q2nTeMRk0JUjbBGKOkgLmWxPAIRqGUoJO2F2tJXKYp_zBqlme9TBeWe0-QgIp1RXuwGJKu00fIE2LDB4Y2ARb8A7DaiafQxkww6d75kyYI8c2tRasuC6ujVR4xvHpjJg8VnQZK3_b/s1600/brownwedding.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt2A0q2nTeMRk0JUjbBGKOkgLmWxPAIRqGUoJO2F2tJXKYp_zBqlme9TBeWe0-QgIp1RXuwGJKu00fIE2LDB4Y2ARb8A7DaiafQxkww6d75kyYI8c2tRasuC6ujVR4xvHpjJg8VnQZK3_b/s1600/brownwedding.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">and just for you, i attempted a 10-second-delay self-timer photoshoot. ohhh my, the outtakes were pretty ridiculous. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ0WujRgd3LNqtwbgZOMorkWAbnJyb5EDLdaMvFjIDp7sTForpiDF5mQr-qpMTRoP598bjv_xO27dC7dvED3GGQ3pC1BSuxxCpvciXYTfm4DqTI2Ro11XOde-GZaTtTWEOOUo5FwmAciZG/s1600/dress.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ0WujRgd3LNqtwbgZOMorkWAbnJyb5EDLdaMvFjIDp7sTForpiDF5mQr-qpMTRoP598bjv_xO27dC7dvED3GGQ3pC1BSuxxCpvciXYTfm4DqTI2Ro11XOde-GZaTtTWEOOUo5FwmAciZG/s1600/dress.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i really need to invest in a better camera. and one with a remote. oh and a tripod. i'm using one of those fun bendy gorillapod things on my point-and-shoot. it's sad. actually what's sad is that i did a senior thesis in photography in college (developing in a dark room, the whole shebang) but my super nice vintage manual camera with all the lenses and tripod were stolen when our house got robbed. sad face. but enough on that. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">oh and just in case you are wondering, thankfully, no, our entire house is
not wood paneled -just the laundry room that leads onto our back porch.
our house was built in the 50s, and actually the paneling in this room
has kinda grown on us. i'm calling it "charm." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">one last shot of the back of the dress, which is probably the best part.
although some friends were more impressed by the pockets. either way, i'm happy!</span><br />
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soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-815649645559172659.post-50923206348106271932013-09-05T15:31:00.001-04:002013-09-05T15:31:21.292-04:00Little Dress Kits - Adorable Car Dungarees <span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">i don't have any small children or babies of my own, but plenty of pregnant or new-mom friends, so i was super excited to win a giveaway on <a href="http://stitchandwitter.com/">Stitch and Witter's</a> blog! plus who doesn't love sewing baby clothes - they are so small and cute! and eat up much less fabric.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">the giveaway was for a sewing kit by <a href="http://www.littledresskits.co.uk/">Little Dress Kits</a> - check them out they are super adorable! and look they have an <a href="http://www.littledresskits.co.uk/product/coming-soon-elephant-print-summer-dress/">Elephant Print Dress</a> coming soon! swoon. i got the <a href="http://www.littledresskits.co.uk/product/car-button-needlecord-dungarees/">Car Dungarees Kit</a> for ages 6 to 12 mos, so cute. my friend's baby boy is turning one and having a party on Friday, so i thought these would be perfect. she said "no gifts" but who follows that? i couldn't resist. also i checked with the aunt, who says the baby boy is on the small side, so i think they should fit.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">but to be safe i decided to do a 3/8 seam allowance instead of the standard 5/8, to give it a tiny bit more "growing into" room. what i didn't consider is that the front and back pieces have a center seam, but the lining is one piece, so if you don't do a 5/8th seam allowance and you don't adjust the size of your lining, then the lining and the outside fabric will not line up. oops. that's what i get for not following the rules.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">so i went back and fixed it and all was well in the end. anyway the kit includes all the fabric you need, matching thread, buttons, a label, pattern pieces and an instruction booklet. and the pattern pieces are peel and stick! how cool is that? i'm now wishing all of my patterns came as peel and stick. no pins needed! the instruction booklet was very clear, and i had no problems, other than my seam allowance goof up and the fact that i was doing speedy sewing around the first shoulder strap and couldn't navigate the curve. did that one like five times. learned my lesson and slowed down and the other straps were fine. the fabric is a navy corduroy with blue gingham for the lining, and little red buttons, plus a tiny car button for the pocket. so cute! thank you again Little Dress Kits!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>soisewedthishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11132339220603233156noreply@blogger.com4