Merry Christmas to me!

I've been a little self-indulgent lately and here's the proof, sitting under our (as yet undecorated) Christmas tree.

The most obvious item is a 1985 Bernina 930, complete with all accessories, that I picked up from an older lady today who likes to "collect" Bernina sewing machines. She mentioned several others that she was thinking of selling to winnow down her collection. Wonder why I bought a sewing machine that was built in 1985? Well, just type "Bernina 930" into Google, read the glowing opinions. They are Swiss-made workhorses with extremely powerful motors that are still highly sought after today (and bidding on them on eBay can get a bit ridiculous!) I was shocked to see a hit pop up on Craigslist and immediately contacted to the seller to find out if it was still available and try to get some more details. I was very happy to bring it home with me today, and can't wait to put move my Singer out of the place of honor and replace it with the Bernina.

The second item in the picture may be a bit unassuming, but that is real, authentic Blair clan tartan from a Scottish mill. One whole meter. That cost a lot. That I will turn into a very cute skirt using Gertie's tutorial so that I can use every last expensive bit of this fabric. I looked for fabric while I was in Scotland, but the Blair clan tartans are a bit harder to find. So I searched online a bunch after getting home and finally ordered my precious meter.

Modeled photos of my finished dress are still in order. Hoping to have more free time for myself after giving my students their final exam tomorrow morning. :) Yay! The semester is almost over!

Simplicity 2177

Thank goodness for Thanksgiving break! I really needed some time to relax and recuperate from a very busy semester that followed hard on the heels of a very busy summer. How busy? Well, I've racked up over 50,000 actual flight miles over the past 9 months, including 4 trips to Europe, if that's any clue. Even though I had grand plans to start working on the new class I'll be teaching next semester, instead I slept a lot, played some Wii with my husband, knitted and watched movies, and started and completed a new sewing project --- Simplicity 2177.

The fabric is a cotton shirting from Fabric.com that I picked up quite a while ago for $1.95/yard. I only purchased 1.5 yards, which was just barely enough for this dress due to the 44" width of the fabric. I couldn't fit the pockets in, so I cut those out of cotton voile (also ensuring that they wouldn't add bulk to the skirt). And I lined the entire bodice in voile to keep it neat on the inside and add a teensy bit more opacity.

The front bodice pieces were cut at a size 8 and graded out to a 12 at the waist. I cut a 6 graded out to a 10 at the waist for the back bodice pieces because I've realized that my back is a bit narrow and a size 8 has the tendency to gap. The skirt pieces were cut at a size 12.

I only used parts of the directions and mostly ignored them for the bodice. Instead, I used this tutorial combined with the instructions from Simplicity 2638 to line the bodice. The quick summary is that you assemble and sew the darts in the front and back for the bodice and the lining, sew the backs to the fronts at the shoulders only, then sew the bodice and lining together at the neck and the armscyes. Finally, you pull the bodice backs through the shoulder straps to the front, leaving all your seams enclosed between the lining and the bodice. It was a bit tight pulling the backs through the shoulder straps to the front, but it did work and I love how clean the result is. I don't have a serger, and lining the bodice looks much more professional than just pinking the seams or zigzagging them. It also provides a convenient base for anchoring seam tape or lace, which I use to enclose the waist seam where the skirt is attached.

I have gotten in the habit of using french seams for skirt pieces, but I wasn't sure what to do with the pockets in the skirt side seams. Luckily, I found this tutorial and realized it was no problem to have my french seams and my pockets too.

Finally, I installed an invisible zipper rather than the lapped zipper that the instructions call for. I like how neat and professional the invisible zippers look and I've been installing them in everything lately. Here's the back, with the invisible zipper truly appearing invisible.

All that's left is to wash it to remove the markings (I use Crayola washable markers) and then get some pictures of me wearing it. Hopefully I'll do both in the next few days. I was running out of steam by the time I got to hemming the skirt, but the cotton pressed so easily that it was really simple and went quickly. I'm just happy that I managed to finish the whole project this weekend. It actually only took me two days and I certainly was not sewing all day long.

A New Simplicity 5914

This is my third version of Simplicity 5914 (first version is here and second version requires some adjustments that I've been putting off). I LOVE this version of the skirt. Everything seems to have come together so well -- the fabric choice, the invisible zipper, the sewing, the fit -- and I will have to restrain myself from wearing this skirt every other day at work. It has this lovely little swishy effect at the hemline when I walk that I just love. I also really love the way this outfit came together, with a white cotton 3/4 sleeve cropped cardigan that I just got from Target, a black camisole, and my black boots. Although it appears I should remove the tag from the cardigan, since I can see it in the photo below.

Pardon the wrinkles in the pictures, I had worn this all day at work before getting James to take some pictures in the evening at home.

This is the a-line version of Simplicity 5914. I used about a yard of charcoal wool/rayon blend suiting from Fashion Fabrics Club that I picked up quite a while ago on sale for $5.75/yard. I cut a size 12, since that's what I need to fit my waist and the rest of the skirt didn't require fitting. In addition to changing out the lapped zipper for an invisible zipper, I had to shorten the skirt by about 3" (2.5" in the back graded to 3.5" in the front), I used french seams where I could because of the tendency of the fabric to fray along cut edges, and I hand stitched the hem with the help of pink seam lace.

The seam with the zipper was finished by slightly trimming the seam allowance and then zigzagging along the edges. I was originally going to blind stitch the hem, but the fabric was so nicely drapey that it was going to be a challenge, so hand stitching seemed to offer the most control while making the hem fairly invisible from the front of the skirt.

Everything seemed to line up just perfectly with the zipper placement and it truly is invisible. I managed to get the top of the zipper to match the top of the waist, so I skipped the hook and eye closure that the pattern recommends.

I've been restraining myself from immediately buying more fabric to make this skirt again and again. I need to plan the next version carefully so that I don't end up with 10 versions of the exact same skirt. I can already tell that this skirt is on the short list of things I've sewed that I'm really proud of and absolutely love to wear. Also on that list is this version of Simplicity 2638.

That's basically the extent of the list at the moment, although I'm hoping it will grow significantly.

What's next, you ask? Well, I think I'm going to try Simplicity 2614 with some leftover fabric I have laying around. I'm going to start with the middle view (basic top with cap sleeves). It looks like it will go together pretty quickly and it doesn't require any buttons or zippers.

The weather has been getting pretty chilly lately, although it's supposed to warm up a bit for a few days. Depending on how the top turn out, I may have a chance to wear it this week. I'm apparently one of those sewists who doesn't really care what the weather is doing but just sews whatever catches her fancy. Since this is just supposed to be a fun hobby for me, I'm fine with that and I see no need to plan out a wardrobe of winter-appropriate clothing. Besides, the weather will change soon enough to being hot and humid again, and I'll need plenty of clothing that I can wear during our long summers.

As a nod to the cold weather, though, I have started a new knitting project. I have a few others that I should finish up, but I hadn't felt much like knitting during the summer and I felt like starting something new the other day when I was snuggled with a blanket on the couch, so I did.

Simplicity 2638, Take 3

While I love the second version of this dress, I'm really happy with the new third version as well. I've just about convinced myself that no one will ever really figure out that this is the same dress, even if I wear them on two adjacent days. In the photo above, I'm wearing a black shrug from the Limited. I think in fact I've missed the warm weather and this dress will have to wait for spring before it is worn (I was cold inside trying to get pictures today!) Here's a shot without the shrug:

I cut a size 8, but in addition to shortening the pattern significantly and color blocking the dress, I also added an inch to the shoulder straps on the front, because the second version of this dress has the empire waistband sitting on my bust, not below it. I also gathered the skirt evenly across the top, rather than putting all the gathering in the front over my stomach. I've noticed I tend to have a problem with gaping across the back of my shoulders, so I tucked out a smidge of fabric in the back at the neckline on both sides (maybe 1/4" on each side). I put in an invisible zipper and a hook-and-eye closure, rather than a lapped zipper and a button. Here's a shot of the back:

To keep the inside neat and tidy, I used french seams on two of the skirt seams. And I sewed my first blind hem on this skirt, which turned out quite nicely. I didn't have thread that exactly matched the skirt and I didn't want to run to the store, so a blind hem seemed the best way to minimize the color difference in thread and fabric along the hem. The colors are off in this picture, but it was the best one showing the details:

I dove into my stash of seam lace to tidy up the seam where the skirt attaches to the bodice, as I did with the second version of this dress. You can see the inside here as well as the invisible zipper.

I'm really quite proud of how this dress turned out and I wish I had gotten around to making it sooner while the weather was still warm enough to wear it. Seems like I need to switch to some more fall/winter appropriate sewing, but I may continue making cute summer dresses or skirts for a while since I know they will get a lot of use, even if I'll have to wait a few months before wearing them. Then again, I may curl up with a blanket on the couch and put more effort into my knitting instead. It's cold by my sewing machine. :P

New Look 6643, Take 2

I did end up wearing this to work on Monday (or was it Tuesday?) with a sweater and my tall black boots. I got home a bit late for pictures outside, so I managed to throw it on again and get some pictures inside this afternoon. The pictures aren't the greatest and the dress isn't hanging properly in this shot, but oh well, the dress is finished and here's the proof. I was a little happier with it today than the last time I put it on. Maybe it will grow on me a bit. The fit isn't perfect, but I still think I'll get some wear out of this dress, especially when the weather gets hot and humid again. Here's the back:



I was really proud of how the invisible zipper went in on this dress. It was only my second invisible zipper and I think it looks great.

FO and next project

After fiddling and tweaking and fiddling some more, I've decided that I'm finished with this version of New Look 6643. I had to redraft the top of the pattern since the smallest size is a 10 and I'm closer to an 8. While that helped a lot, it still wasn't quite right and required some extra work to get it to fit properly. I've gotten it close and decided for now, it's close enough.

Any further changes would likely have to be done to the pattern before cutting it out. And I'm tired of fiddling with this project, frankly. Pictures coming tomorrow, hopefully.

I'm planning to make another version (third time's a charm, right?), but not yet. Although I'm determined to finish editing this pattern to get a basic sheath dress pattern I can rely on, right now I need a project that will be finished much more quickly and not give me so much trouble. And while the summer weather is probably gone for good around here, I can still wear this next project with a light sweater on our warmer fall days. So up next is Simplicity 2638 again, because I've made it before, it goes really quickly, I know it fits, and it's a dress I wore quite a lot over the summer. But this time, I'm color blocking the dress so that hopefully it will look completely different and my coworkers won't realize I've made the same dress twice.

I bought some inexpensive poly/cotton broadcloth at fabric.com a while ago with this dress in mind ($10 total fabric cost). The top will be white, with a black waistband and an azure-ish colored skirt. I'm sticking with a knee-length skirt, rather than the full length that is drafted in the pattern. And I'm going to substitute the lapped zipper for an invisible zipper this time. It should end up looking something like this:

And hopefully I'll have it done later this week. If so, you'll know about it because I'll post pictures. It will be nice to have a quick finished product, rather than spending a month scratching my head, ripping out, resewing, ripping out, thinking, etc. Work is challenging enough that I don't really want a sewing challenge right now. :P

Busy busy

We're well into the fall semester here and with so much travel right before the semester started and then the usual interruptions and myriad other details to take care of, I've rather neglected this little blog, along with my sewing and knitting and pretty much every other "fun" thing I'm supposed to find time for. Except reading. I guess I've been reading in my bits of spare time because it requires no moving whatever, especially on a kindle where only a tiny pressure from the thumb will turn the "page".

I know this sounds terribly lazy, but I've been exhausted lately. One thing I did find the time for was to go get a new cell phone. I finally dumped AT&T and their lack of customer service or recognition of brand loyalty or any of the other niceties you might expect from a company you've given hundreds of dollars to (probably a few thousand at this point since I've been with them since 2000). And finally got rid of my Ohio phone number, which was a few states back in the saga of my residences. I've joined the year 2011 with my technology, and am now the proud owner of a Droid Incredible 2 (ok, not the newest smartphone on the market, but it was only $50 at Costco!).

Isn't it snazzy? I'm looking forward to having google at my fingertips no matter where I am, and being able to use the odd moment usually spent waiting for the train or whatever to check my email if I like and have one less thing to do at home or the office.

I know that I will probably drastically underutilize the capabilities of this phone, but whatever. I can figure out how to do the most complex remote login tunneling session later if I want to. It only took me a few hours yesterday to get the basics down and customize everything, so for now, that's good enough for me.

I plan to try to finish that dress today, you know, the one I posted about a month ago or whenever that was. I don't have that much to do, just finish the neck, armscyes, and hem the bottom. Honestly, I haven't even had the energy for that lately. But I've decided today is the day. We'll see. Pictures soon, hopefully.