Ahoy Maties!

I'm finishing up my navy skirt today. I love nautical wear for Spring and am planning a mini-wardrobe towards that end. These are the fabrics I have selected from my stash here at home.



And I'm experimenting with the details for my skirt. I think I will do buttons in a faux sailor closing, but they need to be larger than in the pic below and definitely red as I will be top-stitching the skirt in red. I've decided, however, to nix the fabric ruffle at the hem. It's not sewn here, simply scrunched and laid out for me to get the effect. It doesn't look nautical to me. It simply looks messy. I am thinking about replacing it with a crisp red cotton pleated trim. Will make a dummy length and see how it looks before deciding. I only have these embellishments to finalize, a zipper to set into the side seam/waistband and the hemming to complete the skirt.



The pattern is used is Simplicity 5304. It's a nice basic skirt with a very comfortable contoured, lowered waistband. The pattern has them drafted as mini-skirt. I simply added length to put it more into my comfort zone. The only thing I didn't like was that the skirt is not lined. So I added my own...



Okay...still trying out different design ideas. I decided that the buttons don't look right without being on an actual flap. So I'm going to topstitch on a panel to mimic the look of a sailor's bib opening. I will make buttonholes (but not cut them open for durability) and THEN put on the buttons. I think this will look much more authentic. I'm dropping the idea of any kind of hem treatment or the whole thing will slide into kitschyhood.



Charity

Skirting the Issue, The Sequel

Okay....I still haven't mustered up the courage to tackle the rest of the embellishment on my suit. Do you think it would look really bizarre if i just finished sewing it with one side done??? Sigh, love the look. Little patience for detailwork. But it is the details that really make the difference between a couture look and that frumpy homemade look. So I WILL get back to it soon.

But I am doing one more quick skirt from the same pattern used in the houndstooth skirt below. This one is from a navy salt and pepper tweed in a fabric of mysterious patronage. I've had it so long in my stash I don't remember what the fiber content is or even where I bought it. It resembles a very coarse linen. Almost looks hand-woven. Because of the very loose weave of the fabric, I was concerned about the butt bagging out. So I decided to line the skirt. I decided to take advantage of the lining's presence to add a design element. So I will create a ruffle from some red stretch tulle/mesh fabric from my stash and add it to the skirt's lining. Sort of a crinoline effect. I will hem the skirt's exterior shell so as to allow the ruffle to peek out a bit at the bottom. A double row of buttons will be added at the waist/abdomen to mimic sailor pants since the skirt will be part of a Nautical Chic wardrobe I'm sewing for Spring. The skirt will be top-stitched in red.

I'll post a pic when I get it done. I have to make a run to Anchorage soon so it might not be till tomm. that I'm able to finish this.

Charity

Skirting the Issue

Okay...so it's a very bad pun. But I am taking a brief break from all that beading and am "skirting" around the wool suit for a few hours. This is the year I've decided that, other than a few projects already in the works, I am finally going to sew for myself. Even if I'm not at my perfect weight. I'm dressing the body I have now. And I have...drumroll, please...about 800 yards of fabric in my stash. That is an obscene amount of yardage. I've made a pledge to try to sew exclusively from my stash this year. So since my eyes were aching from all that beading, I decided to give them a rest and whipped up this quick skirt in the meantime. Very bad picture. Sorry. I couldn't get any good lighting and there was no one to help me shoot a quick pic outside. Thus the ubiquitous mirror shot.

A-line skirt with contoured waistband from largescale black and white houndtooth twill with a good dash of spandex. This is one very, very comfortable skirt. And it only took about 1.5 hours to make.



Now back to the beading...

Charity

One Down, One to Go

Oh boy...this is taking a LOT longer than I thought. I just finished the embellishment on one side of the jacket front. Now I get to repeat it all over again. I have the felted wool pieces cut out and ready to go for the other jacket front. I'm debating a small touch on the back yoke as well. Probably another day and a half of embellishing, interspersed as it is with school runs and laundry and pet care and closet cleaning and...

Here is a very bad photo. I finished this pretty late and there's no natural lighting to be had. I'm happy with the look. It reminds me of those vintage beaded sweaters from the 50s.

And Sew It Goes

Still pressing on with this wool suit. I'd really like to finish it up by Friday afternoon if possible. Probably an unreasonable expectation, but I'll try. Casey is spending the weekend with his older brother (a college student about an hour away). They will be going snowboarding and then brother will return him Sunday evening in time for both of us to attend a Boy Scout Eagle Ceremony. So if I can finish the suit before I make the drive to town and back, then I'll have the whole weekend to work on a new project or finish up one of many WIPS (Works in Progress).

My camera battery is in its charger. As soon as its ready, I will post a pic of the embellishment so far. I am just LOVING it. Don'cha love it when something turns out just as you imagined it. One side has the appliques all sewn on and I am starting the hand beading. I am doing one side completely at a time. That way I can more accurately mirror the finished look on the other side.

Promised pic soon...

I've started on the beading. There will also be embroidery with crewel thread. Here's one front of the jacket.



And here's a close-up. This isn't completed yet, but it's getting close to what I had in mind.



Charity

Pedal to the Metal Time!

I'm hoping to get some serious sewing done today. I lost too much time earlier this week and need to really push the pedal to the metal now! I will post updates as progress continues on this project.

Created bias trim for facing finishes
Completed Hong Kong finish for front jacket lining facings



I'm getting ready to bag line the jacket next. I guess for reference point I should link the pattern I'm using for the jacket. This is one of Simplicity's new Project Runway patterns. I'm modifying it slightly to make it a tad more classic. I'm afraid that too extreme of a cropped length or the ruffle finish on the sleeves would make this piece dated and unwearable in a year or two. So I'm creating a slightly more mainstream version.



I'll update this post as I sew along today...

Update...10:45am Alaska time: I have just finished the last of the lining construction. It's now ready for bagging into the jacket. I forgot that before I line the jacket I need to do the embellishments. Otherwise I would be stitching and beading through the lining. Duh! This will be the time-consuming part. It will probably take me a couple of hours to cut out all the little pieces for the vine, leaves and flowers from the felted wool. Then to free-motion embroidery them onto the machine. Then, finally, all the hand embroidery and beading. The embellishment will probably take me about six hours of work. Then I line the jacket, set the sleeves, bind the sleeve seam, do the buttonhole (am doing a one button closure at the top and hidden hook and eyes for the rest) and I'm done! I'll post a few pics of embellishments as they develop.

Completed Lining with Hong Kong finished facings


Charity

Lost Day

Not much new happened on the crafting/sewing front today. I had a dental hygiene appointment which meant a whole day lost. The drive to Anchorage, during a heavy snowfall, was horrendous. Lots of blowing snow made visibility very difficult. The roads were icy and several cars were in the ditch. Our usual car, the one with those really great new gummy snow tires, was in the shop. Those tires are wonderful. I have felt really secure this winter. Not many things live up to their hype, but we are sure pleased with that product. But while my reliable winter car is in the shop, I have to drive the massive Suburban tank with the bad tires. So the driving today was very stressful. I barely made it back in time to pick Casey up from school and was in no state of mind to sew upon reaching home. I just wanted to crash.

So the only sewing progress today was on my wool suit. I had gotten up at 5 am this morning to do a little housecleaning and sewing. I sewed and lined the second sleeve and steam-tailored both sleeves on the sleeve roll. They are now ready for setting. And that was the full extent of today's progress. Only 15 days remain till the contest deadline. I'm hoping tomm. will be a full sewing day for me.

One bright spot in the day...At my usual thrift store stop, I found a discontinued Vogue dress pattern that I have been wanting for awhile. A basic sheath with a reverse facing neckline, banded sleeve edges, welt pockets and buttoned back closure. And for .69 cents. I want to make it in Fuschia and Navy for Spring. Or Kelly Green and Navy.

Charity

One More Quick Note

In the post previous to my password meltdown, I mentioned some children's wear I was sewing for a family whose Dad was returning from Iraq. I never had a chance to post the finished product. I don't have a photo of the kids in the outfits but here is the finished product. Sorry about the poor photo quality. Mom and Dad were very happy with the outfits and the children looked very sweet in them. The photos show a pinafore alone, but it had a dress exactly like big sister's.





charity

At Last

I finally made it back! I have had password problems and been unable to log into my blog to post or update. So sorry about that and thanks to those who emailed wondering where I've been. I hope to start catching up in the next few days. But just a quick catch up on some of my current projects.

I'm making a winter white 100% wool suit. It consists of a long simple bias skirt, fully lined. The jacket has a round yoke and collar. It is also fully lined. I am working on an embellishment idea that will involve cutting felted wool into shapes and appliqueing on a vine design that will be further embellished with hand embroidery, bugle beads and pearls. Here's some rough pics of what I've gone done so far. The skirt is done except for hte hem. The jacket is about 60% completed. If I get this done by the deadline (January 31st), this will be entered in a Sewing With Wool contest.




Also on the sewing table is my copy of a Katy Rodriguez design that I just love. I will make my skirt a little longer and the blouse will be a bit more polished and tailored.



I was unable to find a navy plaid wool boucle anywhere in Alaska or online. Tried all the online stores as well as Ebay. I finally found something pretty close in my own stash. It's not an exact match, but it will catch the spirit of the design. The blouse fabric is almost an exact match so I was very happy about that. I will start on this as soon as I finish up my suit.

Here are my fabrics...



I'm also starting sewing lessons with some of my favorite girls in the whole world, Emily and Sarah, daughters of my best friend, Pamela. They came today and we started in on their fun projects. We had such a great time and it will be hard to wait a whole week until our next session together!

Gotta run. Will chat more later.

Charity