Some New Additions

Back in December, I had a big clean out and sold a heap of stuff on Ebay. With a surprisingly healthy PayPal balance, I decided to treat myself to some new patterns. 

One of my favourite places to shop (online) when I have some spare cash to splash is Patterns from the Past. I find the redesigned site a little cumbersome for searching but if you have some time to browse, your efforts are likely to be rewarded.

New York 1612

Simplicity 3802

As you may recall, I'm a massive Vogue fan, mostly actual vintage era but I won't pass up a new Vintage Vogue if the price is right. Spotlight were offering all patterns at $5 each, plus members also get another 10% off which meant I scored my Vintage Vogues for $4.50 a pop! Too good.

 

Vogue V8812

The above pattern has been re-released as V8788 and is dated 1954, but looking at some of the design features, I'd say it's more like 1956. Either way it's a super cute wrap dress which needs to made ASAP.

Ebay has also been good to me in terms of bargains, which seems to be somewhat of a rarity these days. I picked up a Butterick repro & a real vintage Vogue for less than $10 each.

 

Butterick B5708

 Vogue 7505

Ahhh, so many beautiful patterns, so very little time to sew.

- Tamara

Bombs Away!

Last winter I compiled what I thought would be an achieveable wish-list - there were a total of three projects, only one of which was actually completed. Due to school commitments, I knew I wouldn't have much time to complete more than one project this winter, so decided to make the Vogue jacket from the 2012 wish-list.

Vogue 7146

I've loved this 1950s bomber jacket for years but have never had the courage to start it. So many bound buttonholes to line up, not to mention the welted pockets and slashed sleeve openings - it was a little advanced for me at the time. These days, bound buttonholes are pretty much the norm and I've perfected the slashed sleeve so it was time to crack on.

 

 

 

This is actually one of my first serious projects using 100% wool fabric. More often than not, I sew with cheap, blended fabrics for the simple reason that I rarely bother to make a muslin. I figure, if it ends up a disaster my financial loss is minimal. But what a difference good quality fabric makes! The wool was so smooth to sew - my machine barely made a sound - and it held the ironed in creases beautifully. If only I could afford to sew with good fabric all the time. Sigh.
 

 

 

As you can see, I've rocked the slashed sleeve opening - turns out all I needed was a really sharp pair of scissors. Previously, I'd been too afraid to cut the slash right down to the stitching line and could never get the ends to sit right. Now that I'm cutting it right down to the wire - seriously, there only needs to be a couple of threads of fabric left - the facing folds in neatly and are then topstitched into place.

The welted pockets and bound buttonholes use basically the same technique, but with a Y shaped cut at each end of the slashes. The Y shape folds in to create a nice, neat edge for the buttonholes.

Sadly, the bottonholes aren't as pretty on the inside, but at least you get to see a small splash of the teal green fabric I choose for the lining. Oooh, pretty.

I can't tell you how much I love this jacket! It had quite a few outings this winter and with plans for a few more pants/skirt options, it's likely to be popular next winter too.

- Tamara

Girl in Da Hood

After all the fiddly sewing on my wedding dress, my next project needed to be something a little less taxing. I've been in need of some new additions to my winter wardrobe and I thought this pattern would be just the thing to ease me back into sewing.

Vogue 8423

Vogue 8423 is ridiculously simple; it has two pieces in total - front & back - and can be made using one metre of 150cm wide fabric. Happy coincidence, I'd just picked up exactly that amount of random, $3 p/m fabric at Spotlight. 

 

Long-time readers will know I don't tend to bother with a muslin, I'm more of a 'crack-on' type of gal. I'm pretty confident with my measurements and I know from experience that I always need to remove 1" from the bodice length - no need to waste precious sewing time on mock ups!

 

Thanks to my trusty overlocker, this project was done in roughly three hours. In fact, I was so pleased with the result, I wore it the very next day.

 

I did try to add extra to the sleeve length for warmth, but when you've only a metre of fabric to work with, you just have to make do.

 

 

 

 

Despite my fabric being fuzzy on the inside, I couldn't help but line the hood with jersey - much more hair-friendly if you wear the hood for any length of time.

 

 

 

 

 Although, it's not likely I'll be zipping up the hood when out & about...

 

 

 

I have wings!!

 

Perfect, should I ever plan on going into stealth-mode!

 

Sadly, my hood disaster isn't an easy fix. It's cut in one with the bodice and I'd have to pull the zipper out, among other things. The only thing I can think is that I needed to take an inch out of the length of the neck/hood.

 

 

 

 No matter, I still love it!

 

 - Tamara



Perfecting Procrastination

Those who know me are well aware of my awesome ability to procrastinate. Despite having ample time to complete a project, I will invariably leave it 'til the last minute - all the while declaring: "I work better under pressure!"

 

True to form, I even procrastinated while sewing my wedding dress. I had allowed myself a good three months to make the dress - plenty of time to do other things, instead of working on the task at hand.

Late last year, I treated myself to a couple of Wearing History patterns, an early Christmas present if you will. We were heading into scorching hot summer, I desperately wanted to make myself the 'Chic Ahoy!' halter top. It looked like a fairly simple project that wouldn't take too long to complete.

As suggested in the instructions, I made a muslin before cutting into the deco-patterned skirt I picked up at Target for $8. The skirt itself was awful but I adored the pattern and could imagine it made into a halter top of some sort. 

 

 

In my excitement to get started, I didn't notice the print was lighter on the inside. No problem, I'll just cut two more collar pieces.

 

 

There was barely enough of the skirt fabric left to line the collar so I made up the rest with some lining from my stash. This is where my simple solution went south. I didn't cut the lining on the same grain as the skirt fabric so it wouldn't sit properly when I tried to finish off the bottom. It was in to the UFO for this 'quick' project - I had more important things to do.

 

Two seasons later, I've completed the entire ensemble and have been waiting for a spare, sunny afternoon to take some pics. Please forgive the absence of smiles, it was freezing!

 

 

The top still doesn't sit right but it's wearable. And the pants, oh the pants! They're extremely wide - I took 1.5 inches off the outside leg - but so very comfortable. This pair is made from crepe but I think they'd work just as well in a soft cotton. Perhaps in a more user-friendly colour next time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Chic Ahoy outfit makes me feel like I should be lounging at the beach,

not shivering my way though winter. There's always next year...  

 

- Tamara

The Devil's in the Detail

As I mentioned in my last post, it was far from smooth sailing with the construction of my wedding dress. 

Regardless of whether I'm using a vintage or modern pattern, I always need to take an inch out of the bodice length. Ordinarily, the 'shorten/lengthen' line is marked on the tissue, but due to the Empire style bust line there's no allowance for it. To remedy the problem, I took an inch from the top of the skirt to bring the curve of the side seam up to my hip line, where it should be.

With this adjustment made, I set about making a muslin to check the fit. I'd purchased some crazy cheap silk satin from Thailand for the job and boy, could you tell it was cheap. You could hear the needle sawing through the fabric and it felt like I was sewing two pieces of paper together! Ugh!

 

 

 

 

As you can see, the waistline is in the right place but the cowl is outta control! If I was going to wear this version, I'd be flashing my boobs all day; not to mention the amount of food that would find its way in there. I had no idea where to start in order to fix the excess fabric in the cowl and was so peeved with it, I threw the muslin on the ground and stomped all over it in disgust.

 

Several days later, after I'd had a chance to calm down, I took a second look. From what I could tell, I would need to remove at least an inch and a half from the cowl piece itself. With limited pattern making skills at my disposal, I decided to wing it and take out an up-side down triangular piece, starting at the mid-point of the bust. I had to make another two versions of the bodice from an old sheet before the cowl had just the right amount of fall. I didn't take any photos of the progress but here's the final result...

 

 

I hadn't really planned on adding any extra embellishments to the dress, other than the pearl strands, but when I came across a trim made up of beaded fans with tulle in Tessutti, I knew it wouldn't be complete without them. After carefully separating each fan, then reinforcing the edges so they wouldn't fall apart, they were sewn on by hand using invisible thread. What a pain in the butt that stuff is to use.

 

 

 

 

 

Behold the beauty that is my crazy, long train.

The hem took a good seven hours to sew!

 

Photo: Indie Lane

For some reason, the elasticised continuous loop trim is difficult to source these days so I had to make my own button loops. There should have been twenty buttons down the back of the dress, but I had terrible trouble getting them in quantity. After much trial & error with nail polish and various types of buttons, I just had to go with less buttons - I was only able to find fifteen.

 

 

 

Photo: Terry Hartin

Despite the fitting issues, not to mention the bruised elbows caused by hours of hand sewing, my perfect wedding dress was well worth the effort. 

 

 

- Tamara

Bye, Bye Belle

I know I said I'd be posting my news at the end of February, but life sometimes gets in the way and I've not had much spare time of the last couple of months. I've also had some frustrating issues with my computer (time for an upgrade), but that's another story.

Here's what I've been up to...

Photo: Terry Hartin.

I'm a Mrs.!

 

Mdblm & I met online (dating) and things were easy from the start. Our first date, we spent six hours together and we were never once lost for conversation. I also remember we laughed a whole lot too. He ticked all my wish-list items, bar one - he's not much of a dancer but we've been working on that - and he's the most awesomely supportive guy I've ever met!

 

That said, this being a sewing blog an' all, let's get on to the dress.

 

 

Simplicity Retro - Costume Collection 4566



I'd always thought is weird this pattern was filed under the 'Costume' section of the Simplicity pattern book; it's so beautiful and not at all costume-y. As soon as I saw it, I knew (someday) this would be my wedding dress. That was nearly six years ago now and although my sewing skills have vastly improved, I'd never undertaken such a large project. It was intimidating to say the least.

 

Thankfully, once the skirt part of the dress is sewn - it has French seams - it's two-thirds done. I did have some fitting issues with the bodice, there's no allowance to adjust the length, but I persisted, documenting every change as I went. It may have taken me three months, and several muslins to get it right, but it was well worth the effort.

 

 

Photo: Terry Hartin.

 

So there you have it! I think it's a pretty reasonable excuse for being a bit of an absent blogger these last few months. Although my life has become a lot busier of late, I hope to be back in the next day or two with more divine dress details.

 

- Tamara



Feelin' Old Skool

Last month my was 20 year high school reunion - yes, I am that old - and while some people approach these events with dread, I was really looking forward to it. There were a lot of people I had lost touch with over the years and some I had not seen at all; I was excited to be able to reconnect with some of these long-lost friends.

 

 

 

 

This beautiful woman and I have been friends since primary school. Our friendship has endured for nearly thirty years and although we don't speak often, when we do, it's like it was yesterday. It's been ages since we've had a night out together, and what a night it was!

 

We danced like we were teenagers again, toasting to memorable moments from our past, and before we knew it the night had ended, be it all too soon. It was wonderful to reconnect with the people I grew up with, not to mention the new friends I made; we may have grown older but deep down, people have generally remain unchanged.

 

While the reunion has got me reminiscing about the old days, it has also inspired a new sewing project!

 

Advance 2754.

Here in Melbourne, summer has been making its presence felt and I found myself longing for a comfortable, yet fun, all-purpose dress. This adorable 1930s tennis/day dress - Advance 2754 - was the perfect solution and, in honour of my old school days, I chose a blue and black tartan that has been in my stash since last summer.

 

As has been my previous experiences with Advance patterns, it fitted poorly and require a fair bit of adjusting of the seams. Besides having to double the seam allowance, it went together really quickly and is extremely comfortable to wear. Mission complete.

 

Anyone for tennis?

 

Look how well the button matches!

 

It also goes really well with my new umbrella!

 

Our first outing - the Costume Shop sale!

 

Hello new go-to dress for summer!

I think we will be spending a whole lot of time together from now on.



 

 

- Tamara

 

 

Coat of so Much Comfort

And, here is my lovely new coat dress! I must say, lining up all those button holes nearly killed me but it was well worth the effort. I didn't end up using the vintage buttons I found at Buttonfest - they were too large - but I managed to find some suitable ones in Lincraft.

 

 

Those of you with a sharp eye will notice there appears to be a button missing, I forgot to do it up! Unfortunately I didn't notice 'till we were done and there was no way I was going to take the photos again, so just pretend they're all there.

 

The welted pockets are not all that functional. They're placed a little high to put your hands in for any length of time but they will come in handy for carrying little things.

 

 

 

The tab collar is just one of the many things I love about this dress. To begin with it was a little too bulky for the button to fasten properly - it needed to hold down six layers of fabric! I ended up using a large press stud to keep the neck closed, sewed the button on the outside and the tabs now sit perfectly. Too easy!!

 

Oooh, just look how the back skirt swishes!

 

 

 

 My 50s coat dress is so comfortable; it's likely to become the 'go to' outfit for outings on cooler days. And, being spring in Melbourne, I may just end up getting to wear it a few more times before the warm weather sets in. Fingers crossed!

 

- Tamara