Tuesday, October 18, 2011

One step closer....

Yep, I'm one step closer on those jeans (Silhouettes - Lana's Jean). Everything is cut out and I added a 1/2" to the outside seams. I'm waiting on the jean stitch to show up. I don't really expect these jeans to fit right out of the package but I'm willing to give it a try. I may be pleasantly surprised.

I did go shopping last weekend and found 1 pair of pants (knit) and two skirts. I was doing a happy dance. There was a couple of casual tops thrown in. I was really excited about the pants. Over the past month I have tried on probably 50 pairs of pants - various stores and brands. I have purchased two pair. I'm really puzzled over the fit problems that I'm seeing in RTW. If the hip fits, the waist is many inches to big. ???? I understand that each manufacture has a particular model that they fit but I find it hard to believe that every pair of pants has an apple for model. My waist is only about 8 inches smaller than my hips and there could be a smaller difference than that but the 90% of the pants I've tried on lately has needed at least 4-5" removed from the waist. I have almost decided that the tailor will be my new best friend. I'm going to give myself one more go at making some pants. If it doesn't work out, I will visit the tailor.

Ok, jean stitch will be here tomorrow. I'm hoping to start sewing tomorrow evening. I thnk the hardest part is going to be the zipper.

Happy Stitching!

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

School project....

I thought I would share a project that my son did at school. It's a rock:


Isn't he cute? I ended helping with this project because my son did not complete during the sewing portion of his class. He was extremely frustrated with the school machine and his teacher. He claimed that she yelled at him every time he a problem which apparently was non-stop. So, I volunteered to let him bring the project home and use my machine. He proudly brought home the pieces of the project (apparently the teacher had taken it apart) and said "Here Mom, you can finish my project for me." To which I laughed and said "I don't think so. This is your project and you are going to complete it. You will use my machine and I will show you how to thread it properly and you will make you project."


First thing I did was pull out the instructions and the pieces. I decided very quickly that it needed to be broken down even more than what the teacher had done. I saw why my son was having a problem. When I pulled the bobbin from the bag, it wasn't properly wound. The thread was very loose. When working on the frog stitches, I could tell that the stitch length was way to small. It was at the default 2.5mm. Blah! Now when the kid sat down to sew, I realized that he was scared of the machine. He would not put his hands near the needle. No wonder he couldn't get it to feed the project correctly to get even stitches/seams. I also realized that I had to remain very calm. I would explain what he needed do, show a little, and walk away. If it needed to undo the stitching, I would tell him that was it for evening. Over the course of four days, we finished his project.


Remember I said that I wasn't going to sew for him. Well, please notice that the rock has feet. Yep, that meant that there was a tiny little circle that has to be sewn to tiny little legs along with tiny little shoes and he's afraid of the needle. I gave up sewed those sections for him but he did do the rest. In the end, I'm proud of him for putting forth the effort. He HATES sewing because of all the problems he has had at school. I would have gladly volunteered had I know that the teacher didn't have any help with a class of 30 kids. Of course, I would be able to help her all day maybe just one or two classes.


Now, for opinions. This project was considered to a Level 3 project which for my son means that it is the third project he has ever completed. Each sewing session has had a least one school year between and only lasts about 4 weeks. Does this look like an appropriate project for a beginner? Fur and tight little curves. I admit I was a little bit intimidated by this project because of the fur. What are your thoughts?


Off to work on my project...lol.


Happy Stitching!


Saturday, October 8, 2011

Comparing patterns..

After spending a couple of hours trying on clothes and not finding anything that fit well. I came home and pulled out a couple of jean patterns. I have never made a pair of jeans but now is as good a time as any. Here's the jean patterns that I chose:



The first pattern is Silhouette patterns #3300 - Lana's Jean. This pattern has all the sizes the Peggy Sagers offers in her pattern line. I measured my hip as indicated in the pattern. Ugh! I choose a Size 18 based on that measurement. I have traced out the pattern and double-checked that it had been traced correctly. Although, I did note that there were notches missing on one of the patterns pieces.
The second pattern is McCall's 5894. This is a Palmer/Pletsch pattern. Unfortunately, I purchased the wrong size in this pattern but I decided to compare the size 16 to the Silhouette pattern size 18.

Much to my surprise the width of the patterns matched but that was the only thing that matched. The crotch curve is different between the two patterns with the Silhouette pattern having a more scooped curve (ok, this is an adjustment that I have done to other pant patterns in the past). I'm guessing that this would mean that the Silhouettes pattern actually has a little bit less ease that the McCall's but may fit the back a little bit better. As in it would cup the area better.

I will need to dig through the stash to find the denim that is I know is hidden there. Hopefully, I can get a muslin made in the next week or so.

Happy Stitching!

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Another week...

Another week has gone by.  I didn't sew this week but I did spent time cleaning.  The wood floors look wondering again.

I spent some time this morning looking at the new patterns at the various companies. It is kinda depressing. I rarely seen anything that I find interesting. I did find two items to share.



 The first one is Butterick 5673.  This is the one I think I will purchase. The lines on this dress should be very flattering.  I'll have to check the neckline but otherwise I really like this dress.


This pattern is McCall's 6433.  I really like the look of the dress.  The neckline is lower than what I would like to wear but I really like the pleats down the side.  This is a maybe on my list.

The other thing that I noticed was the number of poncho patterns.  How many ponchos can a person have?  I also saw a pattern for gauchos (?).  I know I'm telling my age by calling them that put I don't know what they are being called now.  That look is right out of the mid-70's.

I guess that it for today.  I would like to clean some in the sewing room and dining room today.  Of course, laundry is in the works already.  It seems like a very lazy day but it raining.  I also need to put some thought into a dinner of some sort.

Happy Stitching!