Jumpsuit - Fashion Trend 2009

The chic jumpsuit is back!
Best for:
Tall, lean frames

How To Wear it:
Solid dark color, with a nipped in waist or a belt

Versatile:
Wear with jacket
Wear to work
With fancy heels, it's a sub for a cocktail dress

Buy it:
$396, Winknyc.com or make it!

Options:

Spring! We're Anxiously Waiting

Over the weekend the midwest started to experience a warming trend. By Tuesday it was 61 degrees in the afternoon, and when leaving the office (5:30pm) I noticed a gleamer of sunlight. Spring is on it's way and I'm so, so happy with the anticipation of sweet smelling of flowers and green grass.

On the sewing table are several garments cut from heavy fabric: a skirt, vest, jacket. While Spring is definitely on my mind, winter will stick around Chicago for at least another six to eight weeks with a occassional day of warm weather. We have had snow storms as late as April. As we experience intermittent days of Spring, my thoughts are on what I want to wear this Spring.

Starting with color; fuchsia is a favorite becoming a focus point in my wardrobe about every eight years or so. This Spring it's named as a trend color by "Real Simple" magazine.

Best For:

Women who aren't afraid of a second look

How To Wear It:

Bold dress, break it up with a belt or jacket
If you are busty or have full hips, avoid it in those areas.
Blonds in hot pink is a no, no.


Worth the Investment:

YES! Buy one great piece; not to be worn every day, but a beautiful compliment to your wardrobe.

All items posted can be purchased at Nordstrom.com.

Celebrating African-American History Month -NL6147

This is a review of the second outfit made for a friend.

Pattern Description: Misses' Coordinates: unlined jacket, pull over top, elastic waist pants and skirt.

Pattern Sizing: 10 - 22. I used size 20. Views E and C





Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Pretty much. I made a slight change to the back of the skirt (making a vent instead of a slit). Finished vent.

Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes. Nothing confusing.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? Ms. Bonnie requested some simple skirts that could be easily put together. This pattern fits the bill.

Fabric Used: Cotton from WalMart

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made: The only change was making the vent in the back of the skirt.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? Yes. I originally bought this pattern for the top. So I will try it for myself.

Jacket on Table


Headwrap made from leftover fabric, cut 8"X50"


Conclusion: This is an easy pattern that I would recommend to beginners. You can sew up some easy coordinates in no time at all.

Celebrating African-American History Month -McCalls 3145

In celebration of African-American History Month, one of my church friends wanted two Afro-Centric outfits made. So she asked if I would do the honor. She basically wanted skirts and head wraps. This is the first of the two projects that I made for her in January.

This skirt is easy, easy. I've made it for myself, clients, and one of my sisters countless times. It sews up really fast and can double as a cover up over a swim suit.

Pattern Description: MISSES' WRAP SKIRT IN THREE LENGTHS: Wrap skirt has back darts and opening in right side seam for tie to pass through; all edges of skirt are narrow hemmed

Pattern Sizing:4 - 22 (x-small to X-large. I made Large. View B

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes it did.

Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes. This is a make in 1 hour wrap skirt.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? Everything to like; no dislikes. It's quick and easy and a classic style. Plus Ms. Bonnie like it as well.

Finished Skirt on the Table




Fabric Used: Cotton print from Wal Mart

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made: None.

Ms. Bonnie requested a head wrap to wear with this skirt, which I made from the scraps. The head wrap is about 12" X 36". Ms. Bonnie is quite the creative one. She gave me a mini head wrap tying lesson when I delivered the two outfits to her on Tuesday. Here are a few photos of the various styles.








Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
This pattern is out of print. But if you have it in your collection, do try it.

Link to all photos.
Conclusion: It's a great quick project. Good for beginners.

PS - Forgive the boots. It's cold, wet, and messy in Chi-town.
Happy Sewing!
C

The First Aider's Dress Using McCall 4432

One of my church friends asked me to make the one and only junior first aider's a uniform. She told me what she had in mind, so I looked through my pattern collection to see if I already had something that I could use to make the uniform. No luck. So I searched the pattern books at Hancock's and found McCalls 4432, which worked perfect for this project.

The order was for a white jumper style dress that could be worn over a blouse. Fabric: something easy to care for, wash and wear. The little lady is about 10 years old and fits a size 10 child's pattern. Once I finished the seams on the serger, it took no time at all to finish the dress (uniform).


Pattern Description:
CHILDREN'S AND GIRLS' DRESSES AND HAT: Loose fitting, above ankle dress has raised waist, dirndl skirt and front button closure; A, B, C, D are sleeveless; E, F have short sleeves; C has contrast collar; D, F have a collar; A, B, C, E have pockets; B has contrast lower band; hat has crown, band, contrast brim and elastic back.

Pattern Sizing:
Children 3-6 and Girls 7-14 I made view B; size 10.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? The basic form was the same, but I changed my version a little by adding 1 1/2 inches to the bodice and shorten the skirt by 4".




Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes. There was nothing confusing about them.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? This is an easy dress pattern that you could easily create a variety of dresses for little girls. No dislikes.

Fabric Used: Linen blend for Hancock's

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made: As mentioned above I made two changes: I added 1 1/2" to the bodice and shorten the skirt by 4".

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? Probably not. But who knows.



Conclusion: This is a easy pattern to sew that only takes a few hours to make. Great pattern for beginners.

A Peak Inside the Gentleman's Over Coat

A few weeks ago, I was asked to altered a man's over coat (London Fog). The gentleman had lost weight and wanted the back and sides taken in a bit. Well in order to do that I had to take the lining a part to get to the inside of the coat to make the changes.

For the most part the manufacturer used the bag method of attaching the lining. The final seam of the lining was in one of the sleeves where they stitched it together after the coat was turned to the right side. After I opened the seam and turned the coat inside out, I was able to see the inner workings of the coat. This is all very interesting to me as I want to make more coats and make them better or as good as RTW.

Here are a few shots of what I found on the inside:


At the shoulder, armhole and center front padding is attached to help smoothing and shaping of the chest area.


The sleeve head is made of the coating fabric instead of interfacing or batting.


The shoulder pads weren't anything special. For the most part they were made of interfacing.


Each of the armholes has two rows of stitching: one to secure the sleeve to the armhole and the other to attach seam binding to the armhole.


Every stress point (pockets, around the armholes, along the center front, collar and chest area, along the hems and back vent) was interfaced for added durability. Finally, the lining was attached at various points of the coat: at mid sleeve, underarm, shoulder, and along the back side seams.

At first I was not that thrilled to do this job, but after I started taking the lining apart I recognized the value of doing this alterations. I hope this information is helpful to someone who is interested in making coats.

Happy Sewing!
C

And The Stitching Goes On

This weekend I got a lot of sewing done. None of it was for me, but it felt great to finish three projects. All of them for clients.

The first was a dress for a ten year ago first aider (church). One of my friends asked if I would make the dress for their young member. I agreed to do it at no cost except for the material and notions. I actually finished this dress the last Sunday of January. But took a look at the measured length of the skirt and noticed that it was too long. So I shorten it by four inches and re hemmed the dress. This was a easy, easy project. After the seams were finished, it only took a few hours to make. It's nothing fancy. White linen blend from Hancock's, four buttons, all work done on the machine except for the hem. Full review and pictures later this week.

Second project was two Afro-centric outfits for another friend who fellowships at my place of worship. The original order was two head wraps and two skirts. As we talked about what kind of skirt and how long, she decided to add a jacket to one of the orders. All of the seams were finished the week before. So Friday and Saturday I put the outfits together. All sewing done by machine. More easy projects. Full review and pictures later.

A forth project is altering to a London Fog coat for a gentleman. This is an interesting project. The coat is a little too big in the back and sleeves. So I started the process by opening the lining in one of the sleeves to get to the interior of the coat. The adjusts were temporarily stitched. I wanted the client to try the coat on first to make sure the adjustments were correct. Believe it or not, I was excited about this particular alteration. The inside gave me a bird's eye view of the construction of a man's overcoat. There is a lot of padding and even seam binding at the armholes. This is a neat little learning experience for me. I am for the most part, a visual learner. This helps me with future coat construction techniques. I'll show a picture or two of the inside.