Posts from — July 2009

I’ve still been busy at the machine…both sewing and embroidering.  I recently got some dishtowel blanks and of course I had to use them right away.  I’ve liked these dog designs since I first saw them but couldn’t think of anything to put them on.  I’ve decided when in doubt, do a towel!

This pig/dog one is for my mother in law who has been remodeling her kitchen.  Jim took it to her when he visited this weekend and it was hanging tidily on her oven handle when he left.

The shirt was for a friend of a friend.  He is Greek and she wanted to do something for him in Greek letters.  We settled on this golf shirt that says “fifty”.  It was my first embroidery on a piece of clothing and it turned out perfectly (whew).

Finally, I did this throw blanket for my niece’s wedding shower (design here).  I purchased a lightweight polar fleece from JoAnn’s, cut it to size and finished the edges with a simple zigzag stitch.  If you ever need embroidered gifts, keep me in mind!  I plan to have something set up on my website for custom orders soon.

I really need to start doing my blog post right after finishing a pattern, I forget way too much!  You’ll remember I had some issues with Simplicity 3877 before, short bodice, wonky facings, fabric, etc.  I decided to try a different fabric as well…the busy print just didn’t work well with the godet skirt.  I wish I could tell you it came out beautifully this time, but unfortunately, I cant.  I did a full lining on the top which definitly looked better than the facings, but it was a PITA to try to figure out how to turn a wrap front.  I also lengthened the bodice (I still don’t think it’s really long enough and I’m short waisted to start with).  I sewed the neckline first since that is what you see the most then the collar which left me turning it through the armholes.  This did not quite work.  I had do do some fanagling and sewing each armhole half at a time to get it to work out.  Whew.  I also left part of the skirt side seam open so I could do a longer zipper to make it easier to get in and out of and did an invisible zipper instead of the regular.  Somehow, all of those alterations to the pattern worked out but it still just doesn’t look good on me.  Also, as serveral people at Pattern Review mentioned, the neckline is very low (NOT in a good way).  Which led me to McCalls 5874…more on that soon.  I’ve already finished it and it’s WAY better than this debaucle.  Take a good look at these pictures because it’s the ONLY time you’ll ever see me in this hideous dress.

You may think this is turning in to a sewing blog, but we will return to your regularly scheduled programming soon.  For now, I’m going to tell you about my first pair of jeans. The pattern is Jalie 2908. It has gotten rave reviews at Pattern Review and it has been discussed extensively in their Jeans sew along thread. I may never buy a pair of jeans again! I really like the way they fit (although they definitely need some refinements) and they are very comfortable. Plus, since my machine has embroidery there are endless ways I can play with the pockets (this is the design I used). There are two versions a regular and low rise. Since I’m short waisted I chose the low rise. They actually look lower on me since they’re pretty loose in the waist and other areas (see explanation below) so keep that in mind if you decide to try this pattern.

Unfortunately, I finished these over a month ago so my memory is fading about the whole process. There are a few important points I can remember though that might help if you want to try this pattern (many of these were mentioned in the jeans sew along thread and I stupidly decided to do them as written the first time). First, the seam allowance is only 3/8″. This was not enough for me to finish the edges properly. Adjust accordingly for your preferred finishing method whether that be serging, flat felled seams or any combination. Next time I am going to serge the edges of the legs before I even sew and increase the seam allowance on the yoke so I can do a flat felled seam there. Second…the placement of the pockets as given got in the way of my second line of stitching on the yoke. Moving them down as little as a 1/4 inch would solve that. Third…I had major issues with the waistband. Not sure if it is my own ineptitude or some small issue with the pattern. I’ll have to read all of the reviews over again to see if there was any mention of that. The waistband did not go over far enough to cover the fly extension so I had to sew on an extra bit of fabric and it was so stretchy from cutting it on the bias that it just didn’t want to go in easily. The whole pair gets stretched out pretty quickly when I wear them (thighs almost look like saddlebags on the side and the waist rides way down. Fourth, if you decide to use cool printed cotton for the pockets like I did, be sure you cut it so that the right side will show on the inside of the pants, NOT the inside of the pockets (duh).

Don’t let jeans scare you. If you have a machine with power enough to go through a few layers of denim try it. The instructions are great (with pictures) and I think even a novice sewer could get good results. I got my fabric at JoAnn’s when it was half off and only spent about $13. I found even better deals lately on their denim in the clearance section for only $2.50 a yard!