Inspiration...Knit Skirt

 I am still looking toward planning (starting) spring/summer sewing.  This skirt would be very easy to include.  It would be a take along project once the pattern was fitted.  

This is the Helton Skirt by Alabama Chanin.  Price tag: $198.00.  Details:  slim fit, flared at knee, length is 25-inches, 100% cotton jersey, wide elastic waistband.

I did choose a darker color to showcase but there are several colors to choose from for this skirt.  The thing to remember with this type of skirt is that the cotton jersey will grow as it is worn.  So fitting is key.  The perfect pattern is this one:

This is The School of Making Swing Skirt pattern.  This pattern can also be found in the Alabama Studio Sewing Patterns book.

Hope you are inspired to create something beautiful.

Happy Stitching!

Technique For Hand Sewing Snaps...

One of the things that need to be considered for the Rhett jacket is finishing technique.  The jacket takes 3/4" buttons.  I am considering using snaps instead of buttons.   I was thinking that the Alabama Chanin way of hand sewing snaps would look interesting on the jacket.  I started looking for information on the technique for sewing the snaps on.  I really thought that it would be super easy to find and a tutorial could be found on the Alabama Chanin blog.  I was wrong.  Here is the information that has been found:

1.  Alabama Chanin Covered Snaps

2.  Alabama Chanin instructions on how to sew a snap on

The information from both of these posts may very well work for my jacket.  Let's see what happens when I get to the point where I can actually make a decision on this.   

Hope you found this information interesting.

Happy Stitching!

Pencil Skirt...

Back in February, I talked about the Alabama Chanin Pencil Skirt.  I could not quit thinking about my idea to duplicate the skirt.  Here's my finished version:

Pattern used:  The Magic Pencil Skirt pattern by Pamela's Patterns
Fabric used:  Fabric Merchants Cotton Jersey in black from fabric.com

Actual pattern changes:

1.  Folded 1-inch down from the top plus fitting changes.
2.  Straightened side seam at the hem line leaving pattern length.
3.  Add fold over elastic at waistline.
4.  Created a center back seam and added a small godet.

Progress Photos:

hand sewn darts and waistband

godet

felled seam


I did make a few changes to the pattern changes from the original list made in February.  Here's why:

1.  I changed elastic from an exposed 1-inch black elastic to a fold over elastic.
2.  I left the original hem length because I found out that the jersey is suppose to roll about 1-inch to the right side.


Conclusion:

I enjoyed the process of hand sewing a skirt.  I did make mistakes and had to restart but that is part of the learning process. The Magic Pencil Skirt pattern was a great skirt to use for this process.  It remains to be seen whether or not the fabric will work out well.  It was a little bit on the thin side.  I need to locate a company that carries a heavier type of jersey for future items.

Have you tried to duplicate any basic items from Alabama Chanin?  If so, how did it turn out?  Did you enjoy the process?

Happy Stitching!

The Adventure Begins.....

Ever since I discovered Alabama Chanin, I have been in love with the look -- all the embroidery and embellishment.  I have purchased all the books and read each one.  However, I have never had the courage to attempt something in this style.  Folks, this is changing!  In December, I purchased "The Swing Skirt Techniques & Construction" class at Craftsy.  I am going to do this and with luck, in the end it will fit.  The class includes the pattern and the stencil.

Today, I decided to start my journey by doing a couple of samples.  I copied the following stencil from the Alabama Stitch Book:

It is the Bloomers allover stencil.  This will allow me to create a sample which I can test the felt that I'm using and practice the technique with a spray can of fabric paint (Tulip Color Shot).  I have no idea how this is going to turn out but I'm hoping that it will be fun.  Now, I just need to locate some excess jersey to play with.  I know that there is some in the stash because I saw it not long ago.

The felt is an unknown.  It was something that I found in the stash that seemed like it might be stiff enough to handle the stenciling. The only thing I know about it is that it is wool.  There is a big difference in wool felt and felted wool.  Time will tell if this little stencil will hold up.  If it doesn't, does anyone know when I can purchase stencil plastic at a good price?  I don't believe that I have a lot of resources locally but I am near a very large university and there might be something available there.

Here's the jersey samples from my scraps:

Here's my first attempt:

I didn't exactly follow directions which stated to do this in light coats.  I did one rather heavy coat and decided that I liked the color saturation.   At first glance, the stencil is holding up.  Here's after 30 min:

I'm completely happy with the color of the paint.  However, the design itself is a little smeared.  The felt definitely lifted a bit when spraying it.  This will be good enough to practice.  I can say with confidence that if I had done this on the actual project, there would have been tears.

I was very surprised at how quick I was able to get this outlined.  Granted it isn't large but still it was done in about an hour. Of course, that gives you an idea of how long a whole garment would take to complete.  I used regular sewing thread for the sample.  The recommended thread would be much more noticeable.

I checked the back when finished to see how I had done grabbing both layers of fabric.  I thought it looked pretty good.

Here is the finished product.  I'm happy with my very first sample of this technique. In real life, I would never have combined these two colors but I like the way it looks.  Maybe I will try a t-shirt before starting the skirt to practice a little bit.  What do you think?

A slightly different view of the sample.  I realized that I had not trimmed enough away on the applique.  I think it looks a wee bit better.

Have you tried any of the techniques in Alabama Chanin books?  How did it turn out for you?  What paint did you use?  What technique did you use to apply the stencil?   As you can, see I have a ton of questions.


Happy Stitching!