Make Your Own Dress Form

Several years ago, Connie Crawford came to the Houston Chapter of the American Sewing Guild to lead a pants pattern class and a dress form making class during a sewing retreat weekend.  Due to some amazingly weird problems... like the venue declaring bankruptcy 72 hours before we were to meet and over 100 attendees working with only a 1' x 3' of space each, the pants pattern making took up the whole weekend so the dress form making was postponed for a few months.


Dress form making is all the rage with many online seamstresses but if my experience is typical, it would be better to save your pennies and buy a pre-made dress form.


For example, your partner who is doing the wrapping needs to be very strong to lay on the layers of tape snugly and consistently.  If the taping is not uniformly snug, your final product could be very lopsided.


Secondly, do not gain or lose significant amounts of weight after your dress form is made...unless you want to go through it all again.


Thirdly, be prepared to stand perfectly still for at least one hour for the taping to occur.  I think I was required to be still for over an hour (more like two) and, by the end was feeling faint and parts of my body fell asleep.


Fourthly, at least four layers of tape are required to make an adequate form, three on the body and at least one more after it is cut off you.  In all I think mine ended up with six layers including one on the inside to firm up weak spots like the waist and where the cutting was done.


And another thing...the form needs to be stuffed after you are done.  Stuffing is hard to find and can be expensive.  For a dress form that you can stick pins into you need many pounds of cotton wadding..not batting as for quilts but loose cotton fill...and you must fill the form very firmly.  At the time it was very hard to find the filling locally and mine was never filled.


Why am I going on like this about an old project?


Well, my dress form has been sitting around the house since it was made.  It was int he dining room for a while, then the sewing room and it finally ended up in the back of a closet.  In one of my rare moments of cleaning, I pulled it out the a couple of weeks ago and sat it up on the bathroom counter.  I thought if I saw it often enough I would be motivated to finish the dang thing.


After much thought I tossed it out in this week's garbage.


After all the time, effort and money spent on this dress form would I toss it away?


Let me count the ways....

1. I have lost weight since then so it is too big.
2. Although the dress form has a sway back, I do not.
3. One breast was wrapped as a double A while the other looks like a triple E.
4. I have a small butt, and have never had much of one, but my dress form had none at all....completely flat.
5. More financial investment in this project seemed stupid.
6. Frankly, I didn't like Connie or her attitude and just seeing that dress form on the bathroom counter brought back all the bad feelings I have of the whole experience. 

So there it is on the side of the road waiting to be picked up and sacrificed to the landfill gods.


Rest in peace!


If you really want a dress form just buy one online.  I can't for the life of me remember who sold me mine but the basic form came from Paris, there were three covers for it and around 20 little foam bits to made adjustments to more properly match your shape and it has a lovely oak stand.  It may have come from Fabulous Fit.  I do not see my model on their website and it was certainly less expensive than I see there now, but it is still the best way for me to how a garment will look on me.

Letting the Fabric do the talking

While deciding on which fabrics to use in the making of wheel chair bags this month I came across a piece of fabric that I have no idea where or how I acquired it.


It is a mystery fabric with no information on the selvedges about the manufacturer or fabric content.


It is very light weight with a lovely drape and I knew immediately what to make with it... another bog coat.

In less that an hour here is how it came out:

It needs a press and I may add a closure but it does work the way it is and it definitely honors the 4,000 year old bog coat tradition.


I have a lot of posts of bog coats but if you need a reminder, extensive instructions are here.


Also, check out the current Threads magazine for even more no waste projects.

Rocker Girl!

After a few months or so the walking harnesses of Alex and the Girls really need refreshing.  Since they are tough to wash and dry in the machines (metal bits do not like laundry machines and visa versa) I have begun to make their harnesses.


I purchased them once and have been recycling the clips and rings into new harnesses for them.


Kelis's was getting pretty ratty so last night I made her a brand new one.


Check out my Rocker Girl:

Although I took about 15 shots of her on our walk this was the only one that turned out without Alex horning in on the action, Kemora blocking the view or Kelis shaking about.


This time I actually made a pattern and kept notes on what I needed to make her a harness so I will not have to remember how I did it.  As she uses this style of harness everyday, I see myself making at least a couple a year.


Why this style of harness?  Dachshunds are known for having extremely tender spines and leading them about from their collar only exacerbates the problem.  This style of harness actually puts any stress on their whole chest area and is extremely effective is keeping Alex and the Girls under control when needed.  One other benefit is that they cannot slip out of their harness like they can from their collars.  Even if the velcro belly band comes undone, the neck band has velcro and is also held together by standard dog collar hardware.  Even Alex cannot get out of it! 


Interested in making a walking harness for your favorite pooch?  Here are a couple of notes on lessons I have learned:

• Measuring accurately is essential.  Around the neck, around the chest, width at the shoulders and from the neck to where you want the harness to stop.  Several on-line resources are available as well as commercial patterns and books can also help guide you.
• Be prepared to make up a couple of test harnesses before you get the desired fit.  Use oak tag (for durability) for your final pattern while swedish tracing paper makes a great sample garment with little cost.
• Seam allowances are not needed if you bind the edges of your harness as I do.
• Do not leave a lot of excess space at the neck, as you would for a collar, as this style is only used for walking and not for all day wear.
• Consider using a dark color for the lining to hide dirt.
• Only a light weight interfacing is necessary to reinforce the cotton fabric. 
• Velcro for the neck and belly straps should be at least four inches long, or even longer at the belly, for security.
• Dog collar and leash making supplies are available from Creative Design Works .

Next up...a new harness for Kemora.

Cold Weather Sewing

The past couple of weeks have had many days of brutal cold for us in the south of Texas.  Down below freezing on many nights in a row and some friends have had to contend with frozen pipes.


My own home is well insulated but with a large expanse of windows in the living room and floors that are mostly tile things get very cold downstairs.


I found myself running out of clean hand knit wool socks and having to resort to my old ski socks in order to  keep my feet warm.


The dogs have loved it all as they have slept with me on many nights.  They are a little ticked at me as I have had to wash the bed sheets frequently to keep down on the amount of dog fur that has rubbed off of them.


Keeping warm feels like a full time job some days.  My feet have done well but other parts of my body have not faired so well.


My hands, in particular, have not been happy.  Not so much my fingers, but my wrists and hands have been very achy.  Not sure if its the cold or the RA but it really puts a damper on things when your hands just want to be in a pair of fluffy mittens.  


Another part of body has not been happy either.  Essentially my upper torso... shoulders, back and chest have been very stiff and cold.


I knew I needed a solution that did not include more bulky sweaters or hiding under the covers all day.


Solution #1 - Polartec vest:

Yes, its not pretty but it is nice and warm.  Made from a kit I bought years ago at an ASG conference, this simple vest is like shearling on the inside and like velour on the outside.  Its a little big but it works at keeping the problem areas warm.  The pattern is from Kwik Sew but any basic vest pattern would have worked.  


Solution #2 - Polartec gauntlets:

Made from scraps left over from the vest making.  Essentially a tube with a slit for my thumb.  In use on both hands as I type and boy do they feel warm!


Now that there is a warming trend this weekend I may not have much time left to use my new cold weather accessories but I am very happy to know that I will have them for next year.


I hope your weekend is going well and that you have not forgotten to get your loved ones something for St. Valentine's day.  The dogs are getting bully sticks and Paul is  getting his bank statements balanced.


No-one ever said I was a romantic!


PS - read about the story behind Polartec here and here.  I am so happy that the company still exists and continues to make fabulous fabrics.  This is NOT your average fabric store fleece and their newest products are very intriguing.  Next year I might look into their battery operated heated vest...but that might just be going a little overboard for a southerner like me.

Happy Finds

The worst thing about doing a complete clear out of the sewing and craft supplies is that you sometimes come across things that you thought you had already used or discarded.


The other is that you find things that you had looked for in the past and had given up on ever finding.


A couple of days ago both of these things happened for me for a fortuitous marriage of two accidental finds.


The first was a piece of brown cotton/linen blend fabric from Japan.  I thought I had used it all up in various projects but I found about two more yards of it.

The other was a copy of Threads Magazine from the summer of 2008 (no. 137).

What if I used the brown fabric with the Five Rectangle Jacket pattern?

An hour or so later this is what I came up with:

Yes, it is a lot like a bog coat.


Yes, it is shapeless.


Yes, the fabric should have been reversible.


BUT it fits well, is the perfect weight for spring and summer here, begs for some additional embellishment (big button?  silk screened circles? paint stick highlights?) and it made me use the mitering skills I had learned from Linda Lee, of the Sewing Workshop, many years ago.


I like it and think I will get a lot of use out of it.  I may try it again with a wonderful linen that just reappeared but maybe a little longer to cover my flat butt.


I hope I find some more accidental pairings while I s-l-o-w-l-y get things sorted out in my sewing space. 

Aloe Bog Coat

The other day I was browsing the local fabric store's clearance section looking for dress fabric.  I am taking a class in dressmking and needed something a little opaque, light weight and a flattering color to use in the class.

I did not find dress fabric but I did see a light weight canvas with a black background and a light aloe leaf printed all over it.

At $4.00 per yard plus other discounts I just couldn't pass up buying three yards of it.

Heck, it might even get made into a dress some day.

I took it home, washed and dried it and then sat on the couch with it straightening the edges and realizing that it would never make it into a dress.

Consumed with guilt about buying another useless piece of fabric, I was prepared to throw it into the donation bin when inspiration struck.

I remembered that when I was in Barcelona several years ago I bought some black trim that I was going to use in making a Chanel style jacket.  I did not make that jacket but I still had the trim.

Falling back on that jacket staple, the bog coat, I made this the other evening:

It looks a little crappy on a hanger but it looks great on with black jeans and a t-shirt.  The trim gives it just a little bit if glamor.  The trim, whem I dug it out of the trim box, turned out to be a little stretchy so it went around the neck and collar areas without any fuss. 

I think I may add a closure but I haven't found anything I like in my drawer of closures.  I 'm sure there is something in there that would be perfect but I need to dig deeper.

All in all a well spent couple of hours.

BUT I still had fabric left over.

I could have tossed the rest into the donation bin but I realized that it was a great weight for a toe bag.... a really huge tote bag.  I have a need for a really huge tote bag to hold all the fabric I have on hand for the Once Upon a Time Bee. This is what I came up with:

Not very glamorous but I boxed the bottom to the size of a bolt of fabric and it is now holding six bolts of fabric and a lot of other bits ready to go to our next sew-in.  It came out at about 24" wide by 22" tall and 12" deep.

Waste from these two projects - from the fabric the little bit I cut out for the neck of the jacket and the little strips from straightening the fabric; from the trim about 2" from the frayed ends.

As I go off and feel smug about my thriftiness I hope you are enjoying the fine fall weather.  If you get a chance, do a rain dance for us here in Houston.  Between no rain for three weeks and lots of little paws running around protecting the back yard from those evil squirrels, my lovely grass is down to dust and weeds.

Summer Bog Coat

If you are new to these musings you may not realize it but I am addicted to the Bog Coat.  For a 4,000 year old design, I am continually finding new fabrics for this ultra-simple pattern.  My adventures began two years ago and that revelation and the pattern can be found here. 

Most recently I found a lovely Madras type print that is shot thorugh with random metallic threads.  I  found it on the sale shelf at Time Treasured Quilts locally a couple of months ago and recently figured out what to do with it.....that ever versatile bog coat pattern came immeadiately to mind.

My goal was to make a light weight cover-up for when I am wearing plain sleeveless t-shirts and I need something that I can wear in the air conditioning.  I also feel that I need something to cover up some of the itchiness I have been experiencing lately and this rendition of the bog coat really fits the bill.

A little wrinkled, but I think you get the idea of what a nice fabric I used. 

The construction was ultra simple... I serged it all together and serged the edges as well and cleaned it all up with top stitching.  This construction was great because it added very little bulk to this light weight fabric however I did have a bit of a problem with keeping the arm pits smooth.. but if you can see that problem you are probably too close!

The other day I wore it to an ASG neghborhood group meeting and got way more compliments than the difficulty of this pattern deserves.  All the credit really goes to the fabric.  One thing I did do is to make it about mid thigh length...sort of a short duster.... so I can practice my Katherine Hepburn pose.

I really encourage you to try making a bog coat for when you have a special piece of fabric.  This pattern really lets the fabric shine and the sewing skills you need are minimal to have a great result.

BTW Time Treasured Quilts is a fabulous shop with a terrific range of fabric.  From wacky cartoon prints to sophisticated oriental styles they really have fabrics I enjoy using.  Their web site does not do them justice so, if you are in town, please take the opportunity to visit them and be prepared to be bown away.  

New Spring Clothes

Not for me but for Alex and the Girls. 

The harnesses I bought last Fall for them were getting pretty ratty.  I decided to use the old harnesses as a pattern for making new ones from some sweet Japanese fabric I purchased recently at Sew Crafty Houston.

Aren't they cute?

Alex's has little trucks on it.

Kelis's has cupcakes

and Kimora's has chocolate hearts.

I did learn a couple of things while making these.

First off, although I hate big box stores, a 24 hour WalMart, that still carries sewing supplies, is a godsend at midnight when you run out of pre-made bias binding.  Kimora nearly did not have a harness for this morning's walk when I realized that what I thought was bias binding tape was actually hem tape.

Secondly, all Vecro is not alike.  I used the extra soft kind for these harnesses while the originals have extra-strong Velcro on them.  There really is a difference in holding power and, although I have not had any troubles keeping the harnesses on them (yet!), I will probably have to replace the wimpy stuff before too long.

Thirdly, those little screws that hold you presser plate on your sewing machine can get lost in the workings of your machine.  Even though you pick it up, turn it upside down and shake it for all it is worth the screws will not fall back out.  Fortunately I had a couple of another machine that had screws that fit.

Note to self:  buy more screws for the next time this happens.

This whole project cost me about $12.00  as most of the supplies were stash items and I re-used the fittings from the old harnesses. 

Next up... new leashes.

Until then, have a good weekend!

I LIED!

I have lied to you. Yes, your online correspondent has been watching the Olympics during almost every waking hour since the opening ceremonies, BUT I have also been cleaning up some projects as well.

First of all, I found instructons for making a thingy to cook baked potatoes in the microwave. It uses a fat quater of fabric and about 9" x 21 in batting. Cut the fabric into two pieces about 9" x 21". Put the pieces right side together on top of the batting. Sew up the short ends only and turn so that both fabric pieces are right side out. Top stitch both ends, lap the ends over each other, sew up the sides, turn the raw edges into the interior and voila you are now ready to bake. Wrap a potato in a paper towel, heat in the mricowave for about eight minutes and enjoy! You can also use this to heat tortillas or buns in the microwave or use it to serve these items at the table. Here's my rendition with my potato for supper.

I have also been cutting up and sewing Bath Towels into things to wrap your hair up in after a shower. You can get two out of each bath towel. Here's mine which I have already used and love. I don't have the pattern in an electronic format but I am searching for one. The person who demoed it for us at the Kingwood Neighborhood meeting of the Houston ASG Chapter calls it a Twirly Towel - a very apt name.

Also, I have finally finished a new bog coat. I started off planning to make one from some silk yardage I had the I had died orange and green. I also used some stencils with some spray bottles of dye. I should have left well enough alone. I ended up ruining the sleeves so came up with using it as a lining for a piece of fabric I have add in the stash for many years. I still have a couple of tweaks to do to it but I love the colors for the winter here.

Not as busy finishing things as I have been in the past but when I can't take being glued to the TV set I have been trying to work through a kntting project. Its called the Ballet Camisole and I found it here on Ravelry. Its not so much that I need another sleeveless top but I need to practice more on knitting evenly before taking on anything more challenging. I just finished the decreases for the waist. Next up, I will be knitting evenly before the increases needed for the bustline. I am using a yarn caled Hempathy made out of 34% Hemp, 41% cotton and 25% Model. I think it will be great under the bog coat or over a crisp white shirt this winter.

What have you been working on during the games?

Fashion Show

Are you in a rut with your fashion sewing, whether for yourself or for others? I have the cure for you. The American Sewing Sewing Guild conference, this past July, a fashion show. The website has been updated with pictures from the runway show. Check this out. There are about 80 photos so it will take a while to get through but I guarantee you will be inspired. There are articles modeled by several icons of home sewing, (like Shirley Adams) by teenagers in their first show and some wonderful local members with their creations. The best part about this runway show is that a lot of the clothing modeled could be worn by regular folk in thier real lives and not just as costumes for once in a life time events. Even if you don't sew clothing you will be inspired by the fabric manipulation used in many of the garments. Heck, the white 3/4 length style jacket that is embellished by Mondrian style art is fabulous and should inspire many quilts, accesories, paintings and scrapbook pages. (Thanks, Lou!)

During the commercials during the Olympics, watch this show, and be prepared to be dazzled.

Quick Alteration

I own a pair of lightweight denim capri style pants that I love to wear. The downside is that that they are quite large at the waist... especially since I lost a lot of weight this past year. I had three options n what to do with them - Take them apart and put them back to gether agin, only smaller; Alter them without completely re-doing them or Use them as fabric for other projects. The first option is way beyond me and the third just made me sad. I really like the way these pants fit in the legs and did not want to give them up. I altered them just enough so that they fit at the waist but not enough that it became a huge sewing project.

Here is what I did:

I slit open the waist band on the inside of the pants about half way between the center front and the side seams. The slit is only on the interior and went the width of the waist band without cutting into the original stitching or through to the outside.

I then took some sport elastic that is about 1.25" wide. I pinned one end at one slit and threaded the rest throught the waist band to the other slit. This was a little tricky as I used a huge safety pin to thread it though the waist band. As it was a tight fit I did sweat a little over it and, in the end, the pin opened up about six inches from the end... when I really began to sweat.

At this point I re-pinned the starting end within the first slit and used a three-step zig-zag stitch to secure it into the waist band. I went over that first end about six times and was surprised that it was almost invisible from the right side. It took a while to make sure that the elastic was flat in the waistband but it finally worked. For the loose end I pinned it as tight as I thought it should be, about four inches shorter that the length of the waistband it was it was inserted into. I did about four try-ons before they fit at the waist without too much fullness in the body of the pant.

I then cut off the excess and zig-zagged the second end within the slit about six times. I contemplated sewing over the elastic for the whole length but that would have meant removing and reattaching the belt loops which seemed like too much trouble for an inexpensive rescue mission.

The whole thing took only about an hour though it seemed like many hours of untwisting elastic and try-ons.

They fit much better now BUT, since I pretty much hate the look of elastic waist pants, I only wear them with my shirt out instead of tucked in. When the weather cools down I will be able to wear them with my shirt tucked in with a sweater to cover the elastisized portion of the waist band.

I'm very happy with the results and so-o-o-o happy that I don't have to move these pants out of my wardrobe. I also see this as a good solution for thrift store finds that are a tad large at the waist but fine elsewhere.

Let me know if you try this. I think it would work for a less drastic makeover, like when you just need to add a little shape at the waist.

PS - no pictures as the pants are in the wash, again. I have worn them a ton of times since I did this and the elastic has not stretched out so this is really a successful alteration. I am now looking at some of my other too big pants to see if any others might benefit from an elastic insertion.

Finny and Donk's Sewing Adventure - May & June Part 2

You may remember this skirt from a month or so ago. I made it way too large but I'm going to cut it down so it is more wearable because I really like the pink and black combination.

My second attempt was still too large but I finally figured out that this skirt sits just below the waist so it is definitely salvagable. I intend to use buttons as a closure rather than the satin blanket binding I used in my first attempt. This fabric is really lovely... a mid-weight denim embroidered with faded thread used for jeans construction. I haven't found the right buttons yet but I know they are somewhere in my stash.

My third attempt is definitely a keeper. The fabric was bought last year for a light-weight coat but I like this application better. The base white fabric is slightly stretchy and the embroidery and raw edge cutouts are not. I don't think the difference in stretchiness makes any difference in this application but it might in something with sleeves or pockets than canbe pulled out of shape. This time I measured very, very carefully, added a couple of extra darts than the pattern called for and used a squiggley stitch pattern to attach the satin blanket binding. I think I could even make this someone else and have them end up happy.

This pattern has been a real learning experience for me as I created the skirt based on written directions rather than by enlarging a printed pattern. The skirt has nice drape and now that I know I can really do this pattern making business I think I can adjust it to a standard A-line skirt with a regular waistband and pockets without too much trouble.

Trust me to finish this up on the last day of the challenge!

Bitten

I was in Steve and Barry's the other day abd saw a really cute sun dress in the Sarah Jessica Parker Bitten area. It looked a little tiny on top but the fabric had a wonderful print. As I am always looking for sun dresses to wear around the house or while working in the yard, I thought I would give it a try. You can see the whole line here and, if you do go to the site, you will see that this little sun dress is shown with two t-shirts under it. I can see why you would need the t-shirts but it seems to defeat the purpose of wearing a light weight summer dress to weigh yourself down with additional layers. Here's a picture of the sundress by itself.

As you can see the bodice is extremely tiny ... way too small to contain me but I still liked the border printed, light wieght, cotton fabric. And there is lace trim along the bottom for a nice girly touch. And it is fully lined so there is no annoying show-through in the sun. I decided to redo the dress as a skirt as the band under the bodice was close to my waist size. It was a simple change. I removed the bodice, shortened the side zipper and added a closure at the waist band. I kept the tie belt at the same length which ties around my waist about three times. I may remove it later so I can wear a t-shirt without having to tuck it into the waistband but I am keeping my options open.

BTW - everything at Steve and Barry's these days is priced at $8.98 per item so this little skirt cost me less than $10.00 and about twenty minutes at the sewing machine. Not a bad deal.

Bog Coat Fun Continues

I attended the Kingwood Area Quilt Guild meeting last night. Besides being nominated for the role of Corresponding Secretary on the Board I was completely blown away by the bog coat one of the members of the Wearables Bee created. During our meeting last month I presented a brief how-to on Bog Coats. One of our group was looking for a simple jacket to create for a wedding and the Bog Coat seemed like a great idea. She used blocks from a Mary Mashuta workshop the month before and this is what she came up with:

Doesn't she look wonderful! There is no batting in it so it is quite light weight. The lining is a wonderful orange batik fabric. I especially liked the way she attached the bias binding - instead of tediously hand sewing the front side she used a wavy sttch on her sewing machine to make sure it was all firmly secured. Her final jacket for the special occasion will be made out of silk. I can't wait to see it.


On a personal note, I must admit I was very puffed up with pride to see someone take something I had taught and turning it into a great garment. I know I had nothing to do with the actual construction, and my color sense may have a lot to be desired, but I walked around all evening with a big grin on my face after seeing her coat. I better watch out or I will start taking credit for all the good stuff out there.

Have a great weekend! I hope that I wil be able to get a post up on the great class I took today with Gabrielle Swain today. You will be amazed!

Puzzle Blouse - Update

I finally hemmed my second attempt at the Puzzle Blouse. The original was based on a 38" x 40" rectangle of a very light weight linen. This second attempt is based on a 36"x 40 " rectangle - 36" to go around me, 40" for the length. As everything is on the bias these measurements may seem a bit off but they seem to work. Now that I have worn it for most of a day I am now thinking that I take take it down another couple of inches in the width and play around with the armholes.. The too bright pictures below are an attempt to see what a sleeveless verion might look like. As I only folded the extra fabric under my bra strap its not a true rendition of what it would look like but its close. I think I should make another template, for the armhole, to go with my template for the neck and have another go at it.

The fabric was from Laura's Fabrics and Gifts from her big sale last week. Its just a simple quilting cotton but I love the little pattern. I serged all the raw edges and used one of the decorative stitches on my sewing machine to secure the hems and sew down the seam allowances.

I can't believe I am playing around with this pattern so much. There's just something about playing with bias for a simple top that is totally intriguing to me. I think the next one I try will be cut a bit narrower but in a cotton knit. How does pink sound? I have some in my stash... if I can find it.

Have a great weekend!

A new look at Bias

This past Monday I had the distinct pleasure of attending the Dayton Texas neighborhood group for a session by Suzy Seed on making her Puzzle Blouse. The Puzzle Blouse is something anyone can make from virtually any fabric and be guaranteed of an excellent fit. In the past, I have worked on two similar tops - one designed by Carter Smith (and reviewed earlier this year) and the other developed by a fellow ASG member. The Carter Smith top is a little tough to tweak for a better fit and turned out too short for my taste. The other is a very clever design where a square of fabric, placed on the diagonal, has its corners brought to the middle and sewn up. This top also turned out too short for my taste and, while the front is on the bias, the bad remains on the straight of grain.

The Puzzle Blouse solves two problems for me - its easy to make the blouse as long as you want and the whole thing is worked on the bias so it drapes beautifully. I originally made the blouse as shown in the instructions. It also ends up with nice cap sleeves that cover a multitude of sins on me. The length was great, the fabric draped well but the width was just too broad for me. Today, I worked with a friend and determined that I needed to reduce the width I used by two inches to get the fit I like. The first blouse I made was of very thin/fine linen and I covered the long seam and one of the short seams with bias tape. To test the new width I increased the long seam's seam allowance by an additional one half inch and made another seam down the back to match the front. Here is a picture of what it looks like now .. which should encourage me to use real muslin for fitting rather than some lovely fashion fabric.

The one I made today has not had its edges finished but fits great. I will try to rope someone into taking a picture of me in it this weekend and post it later. If you are as intrigued as I am by this type of clothing construction here are the directions I used to make my second try. Please note that this pattern idea came from Suzy Seed and she should be credited if you use these, or similar, instructions with others.

Supplies
1 – 1.25 yards of fabric – suitable for all blouse weight fabrics, woven or knit, printed or solid. Avoid fabrics with an obvious one way design
Sewing machine and/or a Serger
Matching thread
Measuring tape

Measurements and Cutting

_____________ Width – Your high bust measurement or your high hip measurement, whichever is larger. Rip or cut your fabric along the selvage edge to equal this measurement. Mark this side with a pin or marking pen. (I ended up using this measurement minus two inches)

_____________ Length – if you would like your top to sit at your waist use your width measurement. If you would like it longer add two to three inches to your width measurement. Rip or cut your fabric from raw edge to raw edge to equal this measurement. ( I ended up using my new width plus four inches for the length)

Construction

Fold your fabric with length measurmeent along the fold - right sides together if you would like the stitching hidden or wrong sides together if you would the stitching to show on the finished blouse. Sew or serge a scant quarter inch seam along the short ends.

With your fabric laid out on a flat surface, folded edge toward you, fold one corner up to the open side. Mark where this corner meets the raw edge with a pin in one of the raw edges. This finds the true bias of your square/rectangle.

Holding the edge with the pin as one end of the seam, pull the raw edges apart to form one long seam. Serge or sew this seam with a scant quarter edge seam. The previously sewn edges may or may not end up aligned with each other. Do not be concerned as this will differ among blouses.

You will end up with a weird floppy square/rectangle with no opening, one side plain bias and the other with seams on it. The flat side is the back of the blouse while the seamed side will be the front but tha is your choice.

Shake out the blouse and lay out on a flat surface. Determine the bottom edge and cut a body opening from corner to corner. Do not cut through any previous stitching.

Determine the size of your desired arm holes. Eight to nine inches is typical but additional length can be added when you try on your blouse before finishing. Cut two slits for armholes from the shoulder down the sides.

Fold the blouse together along the center front so that the armholes line up with each other. To cut out a neckline, mark a point about four inches from the fold toward the shoulders. On the fold, mark a point about three inches below the neckline. Cut a curve from the mark on the fold to the mark on the shoulder. On the front only, cut another curve about one inch below the first, cut on the fold, to the mark on the shoulder. (I used a template from an old t-shirt to cut this hole)

Try on your blouse and adjust any of your cuts for the arm holes and neckline to suit your taste and body size. Simple tubular sleeves can be added as this point.

Finishing – The raw edges can be finished by serging, or serging then sewing a small hem, or sewing a small rolled hem or applying a bias binding.

Notes:

As an alternative to the blouse, this pattern can also make a jacket. In that case increase the width measure by an inch or two, add tubular sleeves to the arm holes and open the center front.

The pattern can be enlarged to make a dress by doubling your length measurement and completing as noted. It can also be used for a skirt by adding about twelve inches to the length and adding an elastic waist band.

The neckline can be adjusted for a variety of shapes – a slit or V can be made about eight inches long. A collar can be added if desired but required additional fabric.

The addition of an elastic waistband would result in a blouson edge.

If you have some time and want to try a unique bit of clothing sewing try out this top. I don't think you will be displeased with the results.

THANKS SUZY! YOU CONTINUE TO INSPIRE ALL OF US.

BTW - Dayton Texas has a lovely store in it called The Vineyard. It consists of a series of boutiques selling knick knacks, flowers, clothing and accessories. There is also a great little cafe that sells wonderful sandwiches, salads and a tempting looking daily special. The clothing area had a discount rack and I scored a brown French Terry sweatshirt for $10.00. They also had a large variety of unique purses, including one made of candy wrappers and some of the most beautiful pajamas a girl could want. Definitely worth a visit if you are in the area.

Peace T-shirts

I mentioned previously that Kelli over at AfricanKelli was collecting t-shirts to be given away during her trips overseas this summer. I committed to making two but it took me until today to get them in the mail. I machine embroidered/appliqued snails on the butts of two onsies. I think any little kid will look cute crawling around with a snail on their behind. I had originally planned on doing the work on the chests of the t-shirts but realised that one - I couldn't figure out how to get the onsies into the hoop and two - that the embroidery could be itchy. They fit on the butt easily and any itchiness will be absobred by diapers. I hope Kelli is able to fit them into her luggage for her first trip this summer.

See more t-shirts that Kelli has received for this project here.

Bog Coat Fun

Last week I had the pleasure of presenting a program on the Bog Coat to the wearables group of the Kingwood Area Quilt Guild. This was inspired by my experience with making this coat:

Below are my notes on making a bog coat including references that include a set of instructions from the 2003 Bog Coat challenge done by the Houston Quilt Guild wearables group .

THE BOG COAT

A bog coat is a garment constructed out of a rectangle of fabric with the only waste being the opening for your neck. The label, bog coat, was developed as some of the earliest examples were seen in excavations of old bogs In Denmark. Other examples date back about 4,000 years. The style has gone in and out of favor at various times throughout the world. A more contemporary example of this design can be seen in coats made from Hudson Bay blankets in Canada.

The design appears to be based on garments made from animal hides, excluding the extremities. The size of the fabric rectangle is determined by how long and how wide the final garment needs to be. I have attached a set of instructions from the Houston Quilt Guild Wearable Arts Bee challenge from 2003 as a starting point in your design.

Measurements needed:

1. How wide do you want the sleeve to be? This measurement is done from the tip of your shoulder, over your bust to 1 – 2” below your bust. This is typically 11 – 12”.

2. The length of the coat is the next measurement. From the point where you measured your sleeve width at the shoulder, measure down over your bust to where you would like it fall. The length is entirely up to you but can be anywhere from your waist to ankles.

3. Next determine how wide you want your garment. Measure your biggest bit… bust, tummy or hip.

Now you can calculate the size of your rectangle -

Sleeve width (1) ______ plus garment length (2) _________ = _____Side A.

Width (3) _______ plus 6” = __________ side B.

Example: Side A - 12 + 30 = 42 inches
Side B – 40 + 6 = 46 inches
Size of rectangle = 42 x 46 inches

Any and all fabrics can be used for a bog coat as long as they have a bit of drape. Having measurements in hand before you buy fabric can really help in fabric selection. In the example above one side of my rectangle needs to be 42” … a convenient size for quilting cottons if I am not going to quilt the garment. If I were quilting the garment, I may opt for creating the rectangle out of two lengths of fabric, joining them to create the final size plus 2- 4”before quilting.

Cutting out the Garment

There are four cuts that have to be made. The first is for the center front on a side that equals your width. Cut into the middle of this your sleeve width plus 4”. Make a neck oval about 6” wide at this point. Discard this oval or use it for a patch pocket. In the example measurements this cut would be 21” from one side and 16” long.

The third and fourth cuts are from the length sides. Cut into the rectangle twice the width of the sleeve for ¼ of the width. In the example size, these two cuts would be 24” from the side you cut the center front for 11 ½ “. See your pattern template of the Houston instructions for clarity.

Garment construction

Anything goes here – seam the sleeves and around to the center, bind all the edges and sew the edges butted together, join the edges with ties so the garment can become a blanket, serge the seams together, add decorative bands down the front and around the sleeves and on and on and on.

References:

Beyond the Bog Coat by Linda Halpin, RCW Publishing, 1993, Out of Print but available as a pattern directly from the Author – I used this book as the basis for my reversible bog coat with Afghani and Seminole patchwork bands.

Cut My Cote by Dorothy K. Burnham, Royal Ontario Museum, 1973, Out of Print – This little gem has many pieces of clothing constructed with little or no waste in their construction.

Quilts to Wear by Virginia Avery, Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1982, Out of Print - This book has beautiful quilted garments, all of which can be adapted to the bog coat concept.

Google ‘Bog Coat’ on the internet for many examples of bog coats, construction variations and a plethora of fabric choices. One technique I am anxious to try is one similar to the Folk Wear Tibetan Coat pattern that uses gussets for additional shaping.

Houston Quilt Guild Instructions - http://www.thequiltercommunity.com/Wc8f1c1a1f8b9e.htm.

The wearables group has decided to have a challenge of our own over the next few months to construct our own bog coats. I am so looking forward to seeing what everyone comes up with as a one of the women came up with about a dozen variations in about two minutes after we had taken our measurements. I wonder what I will create?

Finny and Donk's Sewing Adventure - May & June

Well, the sewing adverture continues. The project we are working on next is a simple wrap skirt. Yup, that's right a skirt, without a pre-printed pattern. I gasped when I saw the choice but realized that after my guerilla sewing adventure with the Seams Possible challenge, I could do this. Things have gone from 'defnitely doable' to 'completely laughable' in a few short days.

My measurements are a tad different from the ones used to constrict the skirt in the book but there were no instructions on how to adjust the suggested size. Taking my pencil and tape measure I determined that I would need to make a skirt that with a waistband that would be my waist size plus four inches for ease. Starting from there I then drafted the pattern with the shape of the original design. Though the project looks pretty good it wraps around me significantly more than the original intent by about EIGHT INCHES. Only after I tried it on the first time did I discover that I should have added only about one to two inches to get the right waistband size. Measure twice and twice more and re-check the additional ease twice more again is a lesson I never seem to learn.

Fortunately the fabric I used was a black linen/cotton blend so the extra over lap is as noticeable as it would have been with a lighter weight/color fabric. I embroidered a bunch of flowers on it with a pink varigated thread and I think it looks pretty good from a distance. The waistband and ties, in the instrctions, called for three inch wide satin ribbon. I went to the fabric store and discovered that three inch wide ribbon is kinda pricey but that satin blanket binding, prepackaged from Wrights, is the perfect size, prefolded, inexpensive and comes in great colors to boot.

I will be re-drafting my 'pattern' to incorporate the lessons I have learned. Since I do like skirts, especially wrap skirts with a significant overlap, I forsee several in my closet once I get the fit right. Anyway, here's my first attempt at the wrap skirt project. Please don't chuckle too loudly!

Have a great weekend!

UFO # 9

Today I finaly finished up a dress that had its inspiration in a challenge for the Seams Possible ASG Neighborhood Group. This project started here last October. I needed to make something with mauve, using a stepped satin stitch and inspired by the movie Sergeant York (1941). The color was the easy part as I had just picked up seven yards of fabric that had mauve in it about an hour before someone gave me the challenge. The stepped satin stitch was also easy to incorporate as it is nice decoratve stitch. How to incoporate these elements with the movie seemed impossible until I re-watched the movie and noticed that York's mother wore a mother hubbard type dress in a couple of the early scenes in the movie.

Mother Hubbard dresses are essentially big sacks with the shaping coming from the apron that seemed perpetually tied on to keep the dress clean. I decide to make a modern take on this style of dress. I cut the fabric into four long pieces, two for the front and two for the back. I then pleated each piece at the eventual high waist. I then discovered that four pieces would make a dress for someone the size of my car so I discarded one of the peieces. I then sewed up two of the pieces from the hem to about four inches above the pleating to form a loose v-neck.

At that point I sewed up the sides. I then separated the v-neck open to about five columns of colors and sewed shoulder seams. I then noticed that I had no arm holes so I cut a couple of holes for my arms and rolled over the edges to neaten them up. I took the seam allowances at the shoulder seams and sewed them into casing for a ribbon I thought I would be using. I made the casings and cleaned up the v-neck with that stepped satin stitch. I also experimented with a couple of ways of shortening the shoulders by using ribbon ties but neither way works satisfactorily. More experiments needed. Here's how it all turned out:

I think the basic concept works but I also know that to make this a street ready garment several things would need to be changed. Firstly I would need a really long slip if I wore it out on a sunny day. The fabric is pretty heavy for the application. Something more thin and drapey could make this concept into a pretty party dress. A nice obi style sash would add some class to it. I experimented with a couple of belts but I don't have anything that is wide enough. My final criticism is that the dress does not look like anything the people of Sergeant York would wear... more of something a mountain family in Japan would wear for working in the fields.

I will be bringing this to the Seams Possible meeting tomorrow to see if they agree that I have fulfilled the challenge. I just hope they can hold their laughter until I am out of the room.