BWOF 05/2009 dress 131 - Finished

I finished this dress tonight (and have to go to bed soon), so the pictures are not complete. Here's a peek at the finished garment.I've been really bad at putting up reviews on patternreview, so I need to get round to that sometime. I made this in a size 46.

BWOF 05/2009 dress 131

I completed the muslin for this dress last week. Here are some quick pictures I took.
The only real change I wanted to make was to raise the neckline at the center front by about 1 inch. I also planned to have the straps fasten a little lower on the bodice.

Next project

Before I go on, I want to thank all of those who took a moment to comment on my last (first) dress project. I really appreciate the encouragement and suggestions! The dress made its debut at church two weeks ago. In spite of the fit issues, I felt very comfortable in it, and can't wait to make another one! I also really liked the lining in the Kona cotton muslin fabric. The muslin itself wrinkles easily, but does a great job of keeping the outer fabric from wrinkling. This dress helped to to realize the importance of that concept.

This past Sunday, it seemed like all the ladies were wearing sleeveless cotton dresses like mine. I guess I was one week ahead of that trend! I will have to work on the pattern some more to perfect the fit, but for now I wanted to try another simple dress. I chose the dress pattern from the May 2009 Burda World of Fashion (Dress 131)
As you can see, it's a simple dress. The muslin was completed yesterday and fits relatively well. The only change I will be making is to redraft the V of the front neckline so it is not as low. I will post a picture of the muslin as soon as I get a chance to do so! Hopefully I'll be able to start on the actual dress tomorrow evening.

Out of town

I've been quiet lately because I'm out of town for a conference in Boston. Hopefully will sew another dress or a top this weekend...

My first dress! Simplicity 4118

I made my first dress this weekend - which is so exciting for me! The pattern is Simplicity 4118, a Threads pattern.

(still needs hemming) I made minimal changes to the pattern, and actually did make a muslin first. I can see if I make this again I will have to do at least the following:
1. Swayback adjustment
2. Use the original side seam allowances and blend to a larger size in the hips.
3. Figure out how to keep the top of the center back seam (see below) from sticking out.



I used a cotton print from Joann and lined it with Kona cotton muslin. It's very comfortable...

I also used an invisible zipper, so I had to change the construction steps a little. It was surprisingly easy, although I still didn't get it quite even at the top.

I'm ready to try another dress pattern. This one will probably get hemmed and worn - in spite of the fitting issues. It took me a day and a half to make, but the instructions were pretty good, and great for a first dress.

Almost finished...

I recently joined the American Sewing Guild, and have attended two of the neighborhood group meetings for my area. My group is made up of some wonderful ladies, all with a plethora of skills. Our last meeting was a UFO (unfinished object) challenge, where we were supposed to bring in something we had finally finished the week before.
Well, it's still not finished, but it was pretty close, so I brought in the Simplicity 3628 jacket. Here are pictures taken during the meeting (thanks Peggy!).

What's left? The hem and buttons/buttonholes...

A little progress

I've been procrastinating on my current jacket because I absolutely LOATHE putting sleeves in. Here is what is done so far. I messed up the binding on the corners of the collar, so I have to figure out how to fix it without having to take take the collar off completely...
I also realized (after stitching a pattern into the sleeve hems, of course) that the sleeves should probably be much shorter than they currently are.

Honestly, I'm sewing a lot in my head - I have a closet full of summery cotton blouses and fabulously fitting pants and jeans already(in my mind) - if I could just make that a reality...

It was a busy day at work yesterday and I wanted something quick and easy to work on. I have been into making my own earrings lately, so I decided to make a bracelet to match a pair of earrings I made recently. Well, 4 bracelets and two pairs of earring later:
I already had the top left and bottom right earrings made, but everything else was started and finished this evening. I'm still an amateur, obviously, but it's so amazing how easily and cheaply some jewelry can be made. All the beads are glass or polished stone. I had fun!

Memorial day, more nails, and new project.

Memorial day weekend was gorgeous. My in-laws came over on the Saturday of the weekend, and we spent most of the day like this...
That's my mother-in-law and my niece - faces blurred for privacy, of course. The water felt awesome!

Next I give you... more nailpolish pictures! I know, I know, this is getting ridiculous. But hey, I'm just starting to get my sewing mojo back, so there will be a finished project soon.

Sation - "18K gold", covered by Sally Hansen "Gold Star"


Sally Girl - "Pea-body" - an exact match to a ring I got at Laila Rowe a few months ago. These are cute polishes in mini-bottles for 99 cents (89 if you have a Sally card) and are great for trying out colors you wouldn't normally wear.


On the sewing front: I had a jacket cut out for a few weeks and finally started working on it Monday night. Of course, after such a long sewing hiatus, I had to do something wrong, right? I sewed the wrong two pieces of the front together. If you notice, one side has the blue line running the length of the grain, and the other doesn't. Sigh...
More on this jacket - and the piping dilemma on the collar - later!

It works :)

I sat down and cleaned up the new machine this afternoon. It was actually quite clean already, just very dusty on the back - which means it was probably stored away for a long time. I also temporarily moved the knee pedal to the floor since my legs are too long to fit under the table. I plan to get some risers later today so the machine can sit higher. Then I'll put the pedal back to the knee position.
Then I tried it out - adjusting the tension, trying out a buttonhole, trying out a few cams. It works beautifully. It's so interesting to see cams make the same stitches that are now automatic in modern machines. I also was amazed at just how quiet this machine is. It has an engine and belt, so I expected it to sound like an industrial, but no way! I'll probably give the machine some oiling before I use it properly. Nice! Now I just have to figure out what to sew next. I have a short sleeve jacket cut out. We'll see if I get to it this weekend.

Since I'm not sewing, more nailpolish

I didn't sew. So what else is new? Here are pictures of polish I had on this last week, however. I'm trying China Glaze for the first time because they have a lot of non-standard colors I'm attracted to. I tried the colors "Recycle"(gray) " and Shower Together" (blue) . Love the colors, but neither seemed to stay on as long as the Sation brand that I've recently been using.