Some Random Musings

Friday the 24th was my 7-year sewing anniversary!! January 24, 2013 my husband asked if I wanted to get a sewing machine and we hightailed it to JoAnn. I had NO idea what I was doing and chose something that was in the middle of the road price wise. I got the Singer Talent 3321 and was off to the races! :)

Looking at old pics, I realized the first few things I made were RTW ruboffs! This is something I hardly EVER do now because it seems like so much to consider and yet as a rank newbie, I was for it! LOL!

Recently, I sewed NL6150. The last time I sewed the pattern was in 2013, soon after learning to sew. I pulled it out and oh my gosh. Parts of the pattern was cut in a size 14...some parts in a 16. It was so random! I look back and just laugh at myself.

Within 2 months of buying a machine I'd made shorts, fly front pants, button front shirts, a pencil skirt with zipper, knit tops and dresses...I had a fabric and pattern stash too! I'm telling you, I jumped IN!

It's been such a fun and incredible journey and I am happy to have what is, quite frankly, a life-changing skill and hobby.

I finished up Simplicity 8948 this weekend. OH EM GEEEEE. I used a polyester georgette and I am mean mugging everything because I hated each and every second of sewing this top but I love the top so much! Review to come - soon!

I've also recently finished up my Vogue 8772 tie neck shirt. The sleeve fit is *just* a bit off and as I was thinking about that (and my desire for a bodice muslin), I decided to take a little time and draft and muslin a sleeve.

I had my husband take the measurements (so much easier when someone else can do it) and used a tutorial from Threads Magazine to draft it.

When I took a tuck out of the front sleeve, it brought the shoulder line in position and resulting in needing more in back which makes sense, IMO and fits with my recent questioning on whether or not I need a forward shoulder adjustment. I've seen two adjustments for this and one is basically what I did here. Slash and overlap the front which opens the back. True the curve and carry on. This from Threads issue #184. The other has you make a horizontal slash through the cap, shift the sleeve, and true the curve. I'm going to try the Threads fix first.

I'm working on B6183 (more below) and merged my sleeve with the pattern so we'll see how that works out!

If you look closely, you will see a picture on my belt. My husband stuck one of his mini school-pictures on ALL sorts of stuff. LOL!

 

A couple years ago, I made this coat from Burda 8/2017 (blog post). I wore it this weekend and 1) the belt is a little short. I really cut it close on fabric when I made this and had to piece the facings and the belt.

 

I'm wondering if I should add a buckle to one end to make it more useful. I did decide to add 4 large snaps and it looks like, 1,000 times better! I am so mad I didn't do this sooner!!Will post pics once I'm done...sewing in 8 snap pieces is a lot of work when you have non-cooperative hands.

Last year, I found a local woman who refurbishes and sells knitting machines. She demoed a Brother Kh965, I fell in love, but that was a bit too far out of my budget. She thinks she has a Kh910 and I'll find out more this week. YAY! But, I've been on a tear for a knitting machine for awhile. I periodically check Craigslist here, in WI, in Chicago, in Atlanta, in Phoenix...places where I have people who can snag it for me. And so far, nothing much that isn't way out of my price range. I also check the shopgoodwill site on a regular basis. I check there for knitting machines and hopes of snagging a Brother PE series embroidery machine for a good price.

When I checked Saturday, this BabyLock Imagine was at $251. It's gone up another $100 so far. The auction ends tonight and I'm curious to see how much it fetches.  It looks to be in excellent condition too.

My next project was going to be my version of the woven hoodie/top from Burda 1/2020 (it's going to be lace!).

I went to SR Harris to see if I could find fabric for the cuffs and picked up a woven remnant, 1 yard for $4. It felt a little heavy and has a very slight sheen. I did a burn test and it behaved mostly like cotton but ALSO had silk properties. I washed it, air dried it and then popped it in the dryer for a few to remove wrinkles and I am thinking I scored a yard of cotton/silk blend twill for $4 y'all!

The remnant was 1 yard plus 12" or so (cut irregularly) and I squeaked this top out of that 1 yard section! I purchased this trim on my first trip to the local designer (Kokoon) warehouse sale and knew I'd use it for B6183 once I found the right fabric. I think this is a match made in heaven!

I posted a video on my IG stories and here are a couple stills (hopefully not too grainy).

 

 

trim is hand basted with silk thread. mmmmmm!

I'm pretty much basting the entire bodice together to check for fit before moving on. I'm so excited for this top!