Should I or shouldn't I?

I don't know about you but I've been bombarded all day with email after email after email tempting me with "Cyber Monday" specials.  Ten percent off this, 20 percent off that, get this free if you buy that, free shipping...the list goes on.

So question is, should I or shouldn't I?

The fabric sales called out to me and I even peeked at the online offerings. But one look at my stored fabric drew me back to reality as I realized I already have a dream wardrobe just waiting to be sewn.

Of course the 25 percent off shoe sale at DSW was an interesting one as I do love new shoes. Even more so when I can find a good deal. But do I really need any more? Nah, not really.

One that really tempted me was the Vogue ($3.99)  Butterick ($1.99) and McCall's ($1.99) pattern sale. Did you notice the sale prices? Yep, the same price as when they're on sale at the local fabric stores. Not only that but I wouldn't have to drive to any store hoping the ones I want are in stock and in my size. A big bonus in my opinion.


Hmmm, I don't really need any new patterns either. I'm still working on a number of previously purchased designs.

So the question is, should I or shouldn't I?  

Too late. I just couldn't resist purchasing that Maggy London design - Butterick 5559.  I even have some ponte knit on hand that should work beautifully for this dress.  I suspect we'll be seeing this dress pop up on a lot sewing blogs in the near future.

 (Image from Butterick.com)

Of course to receive free shipping I needed to order $15 worth of patterns so a few more were added to the shopping cart and are on their way to me.

What can I say? I'm weak...

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Weekend Wrap up

Whew.  Why is it that four day weekends seem to fly by faster than the usual two day weekends? Is it the anticipation of four days in which to accomplish a multitude of tasks?

No matter what the reason I find myself at the computer pondering where the past 5,460 minutes went.  

Thanksgiving Thursday
Actually I guess it would have been a three day weekend - only 4,320 minutes - because Thursday was spent celebrating Thanksgiving with family.  That's just a day of fun!

Unfortunately, my daughter was getting over a nasty cold and she choose to stay away from the family celebration due to my son's weakened immune system. After six months of chemo treatments he's reached the point where his blood counts are very, very low. Low enough to require a transfusion and the delay of this last round of chemo.  She didn't want to risk exposing him to something that his body couldn't fight off.

Black Friday shopping
None for me thank-you-very-much.

I've worked full-time since my kids were toddlers. During many of their growing up years I added a second part-time job to my schedule. You know, just to make ends meet. As a single mom receiving no child support those part time retail jobs were a life saver.

However, after working retail for way more holiday sales than I care to remember, I vowed if I ever reached a point where I didn't have to work a second job I would not go to any stores during their holiday sales.  (Take a breath Sharon. You don't have to say it all in one sentence you know.)

For the most part I've kept that promise. Black Friday was no exception. I was going to spend the day sewing, but we ended up painting instead. By "we" I mean my husband as he hates the way I paint. I do the prep work and help with the clean up but he does the actual painting.

Oh yea, I'm the safety inspector also.

But I'll let you in on a little secret. I did do some shopping. From the comfort of my home using my computer. Great deals, free shipping and delivered right to my doorstep. Nice!

Saturday cookie bake
Saturday was the annual cookie bake day. Yummy, right? 

Joining me this year was my daughter as well as some of my nieces and nephews and their friends. The young people ranged in age from 16 to 20 and were so much fun to have around. Even if I didn't quite understand why they kept making unicorn cut out cookies and talking about "Charlie the Unicorn".  Thanks to YouTube I now know what they were giggling about.

We spent all afternoon baking tons of cookies.  And do you know how they repaid me? They took all the good looking cookies and left me all their ugly cut outs!  LOL!   

My biggest - and only - regret about hosting cookie bake day was that I had to pass on the chance to meet Dana (Lean Mean Sewing Machine)!!!!  Super duper bummed. She was in town and had plans to visit SR Harris and wanted to meet there.  I seriously considered letting the kids bake while I took a trip to the meet her, but common sense ruled. Cookie Bake Day is an annual tradition in our family that we look forward too. I'm sure we'll have another chance - right Dana?

Sunday sewing

Actually this subtitle should read Sunday wanna be sewing.  I never turned the machine on.  But I did clean and organize the sewing room. That kind of counts, right?

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Continuing to build the skirt wardrobe - Vogue 8355

When I'm pressed for time to sew I fall back on my favorite instant gratification projects - skirts and simple tees.  This past week was no exception. With my husband away entertaining himself by hunting deer and tent-camping on snow covered grounds in bitter cold weather (that seriously does not sound like much fun to me) I pictured myself spending those seven days in my sewing studio.

Well, I didn't get as much time sewing as I had hoped (and my husband did not bring home a deer as he had hoped) but did manage to complete a skirt and a few tops.

The skirt is from Vogue 8355  a Divine Details pattern I originally purchased with the intent of sewing the entire skirt suit. I still might but not until the weather warms up again.

It's a very basic tapered skirt and the only "divine" detail being the bottom band. 

Because I used a tone on tone plaid I cut the band on the bias to add a subtle detail to the band. I played with adding piping or lace between the band and skirt but neither really worked that well.

 

The fabric was purchased last year during the $1.95 Vera Wang blowout sale at Fabric.com.  It's definitely a color out of my comfort zone. While I like the color I must admit I'm struggling a bit with what colors work best.


Brown and black will certainly work but both feel uninspired. Cream doesn't do any favors to me when worn close to my face.

Now gray I like. I thought gray might work so I cut out a gray jacket that I hope to sew in the next week or so.   In the meantime I checked out the color combo by photographing it with a gray sweater I own. I like it, but then I'm quite the fan of my sparkly sweater :-)

Then, when I saw the skirt Rachel sewed with her fabric and how fabulous it looked with her teal jacket the hunt for a teal sweater or jacket began.  You know what? They aren't that easy to find.  I found this one but it's more blue than I wanted. It's unworn with tags still attached so it may be returned. 

I'll come up with something - after all I sew.

In the meantime, let me do a quick pattern review for you.

Vogue 8355 skirt pattern review

The skirt has front and back waist darts with a center back zip closure and back walking vent.  As usual for me, I substituted an invisible zip.

The skirt lining is sewn in the same manner as the skirt leaving an opening for the back zipper and vent.

Note that the lining is added before the bottom band is attached so you'll want to check the finished length of the skirt first as it is longer than many of the skirt patterns currently being offered.

After the lining and skirt are basted together at the waist, the grosgrain ribbon facing is added. It calls for 5/8" ribbon, but I only had 7/8" on hand. It works but it makes it more difficult to make sure you're only sewing the called for 5/8" seam allowance at the waist.

The bottom band is self-faced.  My fabric was too heavy for that so my band is faced with lining fabric. The band is sewn to the bottom of the skirt with the facing kept free. The facing is then slip-stitched in place.

After sewing a hook and eye to the opening above the zipper the skirt is done.

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Another LBS (little black skirt)

Almost exactly one year ago I wrote about my LBS - my little black skirt. Actually that should be LBS plural as I have many little black skirts in closet.  Unfortunately, most of them are now a bit too large as I've been working out on a semi-regular basis and lo and behold it's finally starting to work.
 
Yes, I suppose I could alter them, but honestly it's just easier to begin sewing new ones. And definitely more fun!

Here's my latest LBS.  Looks like a pretty basic little black skirt, right? 

Ah ha! Until I turn around that is.

Surprise!

Not so basic after all, is it?

There's two rows of flirty lace ruffles in the back sewn into the center back of the princess seamed skirt. 

 From the side the stand out a bit probably because it's a double layer of fabric. The bottom is the stretch wool with lace yardage on top.

The pattern is McCall's 5523, which I purchased way back when it was first released. The pattern stash contest at Pattern Review gave me the incentive to pull it out and sew a skirt (or two).

It's a princess seamed skirt, which is great for fitting, with a faced waistline. Mine ended up to be between a size 12 and 14 and is sewn from a stretch wool and unlined. I may regret not lining it, but I'll wait until I wear it all day before I decide if that was a good or bad idea.

It is so simple that I was able to crank this one out in less time than it would take me to drive to the mall.  So why would I buy a new LBS when I can sew one?


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Thoughts on The Sewing Workshop's Urban T-shirt pattern

Back in June I attended a trunk show with Linda Lee (Sewing Workshop) which inspired me to purchase a purple and gray striped knit to use for the T-shirt from the Urban T-Shirt and Pants pattern. (Whew! That sure was a long sentence.)

Well, it only took me five months but I can now tell you the t-shirt is done.


Do I like it? Meh, it's okay. I just don't like Sewing Workshop designs on me. On others, I find them artistically attractive but on me I feel downright dowdy. Sigh, you think I'd learn.

Anyway, let me tell you about the pattern.

Sizing
First of all, it's been awhile since I've sewed a Sewing Workshop pattern so I choose my size based on the measurements on the back of the envelope, which place me on the smaller side of a medium. So a medium it was.

This baby ended up huge!

On each side seam, beginning at the armholes, I removed 1" tapering to 1-1/2" at the waistline tapering again to 2" at the hemline. That meant I removed 2" at the bust, 3" at the waist and 4" at the hip. As you can see, it's now more fitted but certainly not skin tight.

Be sure to flat measure this one if you choose to sew it. If - and that's a big if - I sew this again I'll begin with a small.

Fabric
If I remember correctly, the fabric was a rayon blend knit. I'm guessing it has cotton in it based on the feel and the drape. It's a medium weight knit and perhaps I'd have been more pleased if I'd used a lighter weight knit.

I deliberately choose a stripe because - well I guess because it was illustrated in a stripe on the cover. Pretty original huh? The backside of the fabric coordinated nicely, so I sewed the pocket and neck binding using the wrong side.

Sewing
The sewing itself was straight forward with excellent instructions.

I stabilized the shoulder seams by fusing a strip of lightweight interfacing to the seam line before sewing the seam.

I sewed the sleeves in flat before sewing the side seams rather than set them after the side seams are sewn as instructed.

The drape in the front is simply folded over and stitched in the ditch after attaching the neck band. Nice and easy and takes away the need to match stripes or worry about what the back side of your fabric looks like.

The neck band could be tricky but just follow the instructions to a tee and trust me, it'll look just like it should.

Conclusion
The Urban T-Shirt, with its front drape and side pocket, is an interesting take on the basic tee. Be sure to check the pattern measurements and choose your size based on how you want this to fit as it appears to run large.

While it's not going to be one of my go-to tees it is not destined to sit forlornly in the back of my closet. It may not get many opportunities to venture outside of the house, but it will be worn as as a wear-it-around-the-house-on-the-weekend tee.

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Shopping at the sewing expo and other fun

Cheryl's booth at the Minneapolis sewing expo was steady most of the day and neither one of us was able to break away until mid-afternoon. Thank goodness I've worked with Cheryl before (and a number of trade shows before that) and packed snacks (grapes, carrots, cheese and the all important chocolate) to keep us from falling over from hunger.

Don't you love the jelly roll apron I'm wearing? One of her most popular designs (can be purchased in her online shop), it' was really comfortable to wear and is just darling.

Believe it or not, I only managed to get to visit one other booth.

Well, okay, okay, that's not quite true.

I actually managed to visit two booths, Trim Treasures and Vogue Fabrics, but only spent money at one. Bet you already know which one convinced me to open my tightly closed purse strings.

Yep, Vogue Fabrics.

Although the trims were gorgeous - and I do mean gorgeous - I had nothing specific in mind and didn't want to spend money on something that may never get used.

Hmmmm, that's funny, I don't seem to have that same problem with fabric.

Anyway, I know you will want to see what I bought, so here you go:

From left:

• Vivid violet woven something with a somewhat stiff hand and tone on tone horizontal stripe. Purchased to make a dress, but now that I've brought it home it's saying it would rather be a casual jacket.

• Beautiful lightweight navy blue wool with a fine tone on tone vertical stripe. It was labeled dry clean only but I washed and dried it this morning with no problems. I will admit that I use a front loader washing machine that has a special "wool" setting. This will become a skirt using Vogue 1092.
  

• Gray slinky knit with a floral design and "rips" on the top layer exposing the black back. It almost has a quilted look with the stitched squares. Thinking maybe a cowl necked pullover top.
  

• A pink and green paisley print knit, possibly an ITY. I don't generally choose greens for my wardrobe, but think this has enough pink in it for me to be able to pull it off. Again, I'm not positive on the pattern. There was only one yard and I want to make sure the pink and not the green is closest to my face. That means I'll need to really pay attention to the layout.

One of my favorite parts of working at the expo (besides helping Cheryl with her business) was meeting and talking to the many visitors who stop by the booth. Oh, and the security guys outside the entrance were pretty entertaining too. I still have the "H.R. PUFNSTUFf" song going through my head. See? You never know what kind of conversation you might have :-)

And I was thrilled to have one of my new sewing friends from the bra workshop stop by at the end of the day. Not so thrilled with her photography skills ...

Just kidding Patty. You knew I wouldn't be able to resist teasing you.

It was also fun to meet some of you lurkers (you know who are :-) And I'm so glad you stopped by! I wish there would have been a bit more time so I could hear more about you, your sewing interests and what brought you to the expo.)

While I'm hopeful to make it back to the expo for a short time tomorrow that may or may not happen. If not, there's always next year.

In the meantime, I have to get busy sewing myself one of those jelly roll aprons.

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Visit me at the Minneapolis sewing expo

Tomorrow you'll find me at the Minneapolis sewing expo.

I'm not heading to the expo to partake in one of the workshops, gain knowledge in one of the classes or lighten my wallet with shopping.

I have something even more fun planned.

What? More fun than shopping in a sewing-infused environment.

Oh yea, much more fun.

My friend Cheryl, designer and owner of Homestead Specialties, is once again attending this expo. I have the privilege of working with her in her booth all day Thursday. While I know we'll work hard, we'll have a ton of fun doing so.

You must stop by. I promise you we have fun. Seriously, people. Her booth is always the booth with most laughter.

If you doin' the expo tomorrow stop by and say hi.

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Hey you Twin Cities sewers: MNfashion needs you!

MNfashion put out a call looking for skilled volunteers to help with Voltage 2011. What's Voltage you say? Check out this clip,

Some of the needs include grading/sizing, patternmaking, cutting/markers and general sewing.

Send an email to volunteer [at] mnfashion.org with questions or to ask for the link to an online application. There's lots of chances to get involved, so what are you waiting for? Let's keep working on getting the recognition and support our local designers deserve.

Speaking of local, the MNfashion Holiday Bazaar is coming up Saturday, Nov. 13. While shopping for goodies to give as gifts you'll be able to "sip complimentary cocktails and cocoa, nosh on decadent appetizers from Ginger Hop restaurant, sample sugar sweets, all while perusing one-of-a-kinds and beautiful finds." I couldn't have said it better myself. Sounds pretty sweet, right?


By the way, you don't have to be a Minnesotan to support MNfashion. Learn more about the non-profit here.

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