Fashion Sewing Supply

My friend Pam over at Fashion Sewing Supply is having a 4th of July sale through the 8th! If you haven’t tried her interfacings, you absolutely must. The quality is top-notch, better than anything you’ve tried before: no shrinkage, no bubbling, no boardy feeling. The sheer is a great all-purpose interfacing and the weft is wonderful for all of your tailoring projects. The low-temp interfacings are great for fabrics that are too sensitive for traditional fusibles.

Fashion Sewing Supply

Check out Pam’s notions while you are there – I’m crazy about the seam gauges I bought from her. Pam is an incredible sewer as well, do have a look at some of her inspiring projects. She just completed a vintage shirt for her husband that now has been combing Ebay and Etsy for men’s shirt patterns!

That’s it for me for the next week or so. I hope to be well-rested and raring to sew when I return. TTFN!

Jalie 2794 – Take One

Here’s what I was working on last night: the Jalie Sweetheart Top. This is the first time I’ve made it so I have some more tweaking to do. I made a size R and did a 1″ FBA which I eased in at the side seams. That should have been more than enough but it still felt too snug through the bust. When I really analyzed it closely, I came to the conclusion that the yoke is the problem. I should have seen that coming but you know how it is! What I need to do now is simply move the dart to directly in front of the yoke so that the fullness will actually be where I need it. Other than that, it’s a really nice top that I know will become a favorite basic for me.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I was a bit aggravated last night! My coverstitch machine always purrs along beautifully but here’s what I got instead:

Ack, skipping! Right needle breaking! What is going on???? So, I rethreaded the needles and checked everything several times. It still skips so I change both needles. Still. Skipping. So I decide it’s time to rethread from scratch and notice this:

The right needle thread has somehow become wrapped around the spring on the back of the machine. I take care of that and have another go. Will. Not. Stitch! I investigate and find this:

The looper thread has broken. No big deal, I rethread it, clear my needle threads and begin again. And again. And again. I finally decided that it must be a bad cone of Maxilock. I rethread and Yay! I finally finish my hems.

Yes, I do own downturn fellers but I never use them. It’s just not all that important to me to have the raw edges completely encased by the looper thread. If I don’t get close enough to the raw edge I simply trim the excess with my pelican scissors.

Needless to say, by the time I finished the hems I was very ready for a cocktail!

That’s it! I’m going to bed.

So, I was trying to finish up one last vacation top tonight and things just weren’t going my way. I’m not 100% happy with the alterations I made to the pattern – in spite of the down-and-dirty muslin I whipped up on Sunday. Then my coverstitch machine started acting up. I did figure out what the problem was – the needle thread wrapped around a spring at the back of the machine. I fix that, manage a few stitches and the looper thread breaks. And breaks again. And again. Sheesh! I think it’s the Maxilock thread. Of course, all of this happens while I am trying to stitch the sleeve hem in the round, on a flat-bed machine!

Here’s my sewing contribution for today: another vintage pattern I purchased on Etsy today. I am always looking for casual tops that are a little different. At first glance, this doesn’t look all that special but check out the shapes of the pattern pieces! Yes, they actually have shape.

I don’t think I’ll get any more sewing done this week as there’s still so much to do before I go away. I know what I need to do to fix the pattern I was working on tonight so I may try to squeeze that in while it’s still fresh in my mind. I tell you, it is going to kill me to be away from my sewing machines!

New Vintage Patterns

As I mentioned in my last post, Phyllis had sent me a link to a gorgeous 1970s coat pattern on Etsy because she knows I have a weakness for that sort of thing. Well, I am trying to stop buying coat patterns because I so rarely need a coat.

So, I bought these instead:

These two will definitely need a cami!

I want to make this top (without the embroidery!) in cotton voile for my vacation.

Loooove this dress. Shortened, I thought it would be a nice dress for work.

What was I thinking with this? Yes, it’s very pretty but I can’t imagine where I’d wear it. It’s pretty revealing! Maybe for some sort of island vacation…

I thought this would be pretty in a drapey silk for summer. Probably will also require a cami. How creepy are the mannequin’s faces? They look like Stepford Wives!

Kwik-Sew 2845 times two

This pattern has been a TNT favorite of mine for years (note that I added sleeves). I especially love it with long sleeves in the summertime for a bit of protection from the strong southern sun. Since we’ll be doing a bit of sightseeing on our vacation these will really come in handy.

Both fabrics are from Textile Studios (who, sadly, no longer carry fabric). This first one is the one I showed a couple of days ago. I couldn’t decide whether or not this was a bit too young for me but I liked the stylized flowers and the colors work well in my wardrobe.

The sheer pink/white devoré jersey has been in my stash for a few years – probably four or five. I kept looking at it, wondering what to make with it. It hit me this morning that it was perfect for this pattern and I LOOOVE it! It is so light and wispy, perfect for a sweltering summer day.

I had originally wanted to use my Merrow perling machine (model 2DNR) to make a tiny serged finish on the edges of the hems but the fabric would not cooperate. I also tried a narrow coverstitch which seemed to overwork the fabric. I finally settled on a narrow 2.5mm twin needle which was light enough and suited the fabric well. I couldn’t eliminate the slight tunnelling so we’ll just call that a design feature. I did consider a raw edge a la Ann but my fabric tended to run a tiny bit so I abandoned that idea. I’ll definitely use it when I make my mesh top!

I love that this fabric is very light and sheer but not sheer enough to show my bra. This is a really good style for this type of fabric because the details make it not as revealing as it would be in a plain tee.

Tomorrow I’ll show you the vintage patterns that Phyllis made me buy on Etsy. Well, she didn’t make me buy them but she did provide a link to a certain fabulous vintage 1970s coat pattern which led (’cause I’m on a vintage coat pattern diet, living in Florida and all) to me being forced to buy other really pretty vintage patterns… Okay, okay, I’m just weak.

Light Table

This is – or used to be – a sign that hung in my friend’s shop window advertising a brand of machine that he sells. He said this one hummed when it was on and so he was sent a replacement. He mentioned that these signs make great light tables once the cellophane is removed and asked if I wanted it. I didn’t hesitate! I have always wanted a light table but they are expensive and I wasn’t willing to spend a lot on something I need so rarely. I can’t even imagine what you’d pay for one this size – it’s 24″ square. UPDATE: A light table like this one in an 18″ x 24″ size is $399 at Dick Blick – yikes!

Yes, it does hum after it’s been on for a few minutes but I can live with that – or I can just replace the ballast.

I’m off to get my nails done and then I’ll be chaining myself to my sewing machine for the rest of the day! My honey says I have a break in my sprinkler line under the black olive tree out back. He is going to come over and take care of that for me but promises he will not interrupt my sewing or ask for tuna melts. He’s so sweet – I’ll just make the tuna ahead of time.

New Fabrics!

Last week Carolyn wrote about Vera Wang Lavendar fabrics at Fabric.Com. Carolyn has very good taste so, naturally, I hopped on over and added three pieces to my cart! My fabrics arrived a couple of days ago and I am very pleased. I exercised some restraint and only bought three pieces: two solid jerseys and the “Scratch” silk twill.

It was the green jersey that started it all. It’s really hard for me to find just the right green and this one appeared to be good. Yes, we do take a chance when ordering online but considering the wonderful pieces I’ve acquired online I gladly take that chance. I’ve been disappointed less than a handful of times and that was long ago in the infancy of internet shopping. Considering the very reasonable prices available online there isn’t much risk involved, IMO.

I also received my fantabulous piece of Instantly Heirloom Cotton from Gorgeous Fabrics – it is so soft and lovely, perfect for a beautiful summer blouse or tunic! I could even see this as the most delicious summer robe for the sweltering Florida heat. Trust me, the photos do not do it justice. Yum!

Ahhhhhh, I really do love adding new fabrics to my collection. It pleases me.

Kwik-Sew 3120

I had such high hopes for this pattern. To be honest, I found the fit a little strange. I made this a few years ago and knew it ran small through the bust and loose through the torso. I made a 1″ FBA (for a total of 2″ extra through the bust) and then removed the extra width below the bust. It’s still too snug through the bust and too loose through the waist! It looks like I need to remove about 1/2″ more at each side seam but didn’t bother doing that on this top. There is something about it that I don’t like and I think it’s the fabric. It feels too Patio Sportswear to me. It’s probably the colors – you do get Tropical Color Overload living in South Florida! I will definitely make another version so I gave it the wearability test yesterday so that I can alter the pattern. I guess I’ll keep it and just wear it around the house with shorts.

Notice that I didn’t match the stripes at the raglan seam. There just wasn’t enough fabric and the repeat was really long so I fudged it as best I could. I think it looks okay.

Here’s a closeup of the lacing detail. I originally intended to use self-fabric cord but I didn’t like the look so I cut a 1/4″ wide strip of Ultrasuede from my collection.

On the cutting table: I bought this from Textile Studios a couple of years ago. Ricki has given it her stamp of approval!

Coverstitch machines

Shirley had asked about my coverstitch machines so here they are. Both are Kansai Specials. This is the W-8103F for collarette binding. The special binders slip onto the post to the right of the foot. This machine is designed for binding only, not for flat work. It has three needles and top and bottom cover.

This is the WX-8803D, a flatbed coverstitch machine with three needles and top and bottom cover. There are attachment holes in the bed for binding plates, belt loop folders, downturn fellers, etc.

A Perfect Sewing Day!

It started out good – last night’s leftover Mexican food for breakfast – and only got better from there. Up until 15 minutes ago, I was still in my robe SEWING!!! For my VACATION!!! Then reality set in and I was forced to go to the pool store. Now I’m back and ready to cut out a few more tops but, first, I wanted to share my last two (for now) versions of Kwik-Sew 3616. Both are sleeveless with buttons/loops at the center front.

The first is a mystery fabric from my collection. Someone gave this to me and I wasn’t that wild about it at first but it’s grown on me. It is amazingly silky-soft! I thought about matching the print across the front but I thought it would be too much of a horizontal where I don’t need it.

This is one of those fabrics I can’t seem to resist: a challenging print! This one came from Bestonline Fabrics (link on the sidebar). It was actually kind of difficult to find a pattern with pieces that would fit the panels. Still, I had to cut the upper fronts across the grain to fit them in – thank goodness for the 4-way stretch.

This is the back. Here you can see what the yardage looked like as a whole.

I found these *perfect* buttons in my collection. This is why, unless you live near the garment district, you also need a button stash! I think I bought these about 10 years ago. It’s kind of hard to see but they are clear acrylic with tiny rhinestones.

Back to the cutting room!