Buried in tracing paper

Yea, you read that right.

I have been a busy bee tracing patterns from my Burdastyle magazines as well as my my new fave sewing book, The Colette Sewing Handbook.

Since many of you don't use Twitter, you wouldn't have seen my delighted tweet when I purchased the book a few weeks ago.

I purchased the book for the Meringue skirt pattern (just like Carolyn) and discovered that it is a delightfully well-written sewing book.

I had a detailed review for you but managed to delete the post instead of publishing it.  And I'm too tired to rewrite it.  So another day dear readers!


In the meantime you can check out the reviews on Amazon. But I'm warning you...you'll want the book.

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Minneapolis Pattern Review Celebration (PR Day 2011)

Every year, after the PatternReview weekends I would lurk among the PR boards reading about all the fun.

I'm not ashamed to admit that I was green with envy.

After all I was reading about late nights filled with wine and laughter, shared dinners and inside jokes, fashion shows and fabric shopping, and of course the bonding between sewing friends. As much as I've wanted to attend one of these events, finances just haven't allowed it.

Which is why I jumped at a chance to take part in the PR Day 2011 being held worldwide Saturday, Nov. 19.

Ten of us began the celebration early and met for dinner at the Mall of America the night before.  Dotes wore her lovely animal print coat making it easy for us to spot her outside the restaurant.  We let out squeals of delight when we reconized one another and finally had the chance to meet face-to-face.

The bond was immediate and 10 almost-strangers began friendships that night.


The conversation over dinner could have lasted all night. Now I really understand why all those late nights during the PR weekends.

On Saturday - THE BIG DAY - we met at our favorite fabric warehouse, SR Harris.

Everyone was greeted with a lovely little welcome packet.

We then got down to business. After all we had less than three hours to get through the entire building.

By the time we were ready to head to our next destination - the uber-cool Crafty Planet - the first snowstorm of the season had begun.  With some discussion as to whether or not we should reschedule the group, in true hardy Minnesota fashion, plowed ahead.  (No pun intended...but it would have been nice if the plows had been out as the roads were getting icy. )

The short commute from SR Harris to Crafty Planet took a bit longer than usual but everyone made it safely.

And only one person almost had an accident. Me!  On the cloverleaf to enter one freeway a car spun out in front of me and came to a stop sideways on the road. While I was trying to stop my car on icy road I was also trying to decide which ditch would be less likely to cause my car to rollover.  Fortunately my car came to a stop partially off the road, the car behind me managed to stop and the car that had slid slowly manuevered their way back onto the freeway.  And that was my welcome to Minnesota winter driving.

Okay, back to fun stuff.

We were able to participate in the Fabric-by-Fabric One Yard Wonders book release party being held at Crafty Planet.  This second book is just as great as the first one!   I'll have a review and a giveaway of the book in the near future as part of the book blog tour. 

I recognized my project immediately as Alee Marsh, Storey Publishing publicist, had it on.  Isn't she adorable?

After signing books and posing with the authors, Rebecca Yaker and Trish Hoskins (Crafty Planet owner), I rejoined the rest of the group who was busy oohing and aahing over all the great cotton fabrics, designer patterns, yarns and trims that fill the store.

We regrouped at Fat Lorenzo's for drinks and show and tell...

The group shot...

And celebratory chocolate cake...

Which we ate BEFORE dinner :-)

I've long known that the online sewing community is (for the most part) warm, friendly, giving and talented.  And this group is no exception.  The projects that were shared would amaze you - there is a lot of talent in this small group.


Due to the weather we had a smaller group than what was originally planned and ended the evening sooner than we might have otherwise. But we've already begun talking about a gathering after the holidays. Although we're not too sure we can wait that long.

Now,  not only do we have our own inside jokes but we have the beginnings of life-long friendships due to PR Day 2011. 

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The two-hour knit top aka Jalie 2921 Scarf-Collar Top

At this weekend's local PatternReview celebration (and I'll share more of that with you after I get all the photos downloaded) one of the participants was wearing a scarf-collar knit top. Being the PatternReview.com lurker that I am, I immediately recognized it as the Jalie 2921 scarf-collar knit top.

After a quick discussion on how the sizing ran for the brand and tips for sewing the top, she shared that it only takes her about an hour to make one.

"Ha!" I thought. "That top is way too complicated to only take an hour.  Wow, she's really a good sewer!"

That thought was followed by "Hey! I have that pattern in my stash. I should use it because that's a cute tee"

So I did.

And it really is pretty fast.  Not one hour fast (I bow down to you Lori).   But just about double that.  So two hours for cutting and sewing a tee ain't too shabby is it?

The fabric is a lightweight abstract print from our fabric shopping at SR Harris yesterday.

Because it was an abstract print I wasn't too concerned with where I placed the pattern pieces. And I almost managed to give myself a bulls eye.

I laughed out loud as soon as I put it on as it's much more obvious in person. It's okay, you can laugh along with me.

The scarf/neckline on this tee has the greatest construction!

Attach collar to top. 

Roll top up into collar.

 Sew scarf and collar seam. (A teeny-tiny 1" is left open to allow for turning.)

 Turn right side out.

 Seriously. You should buy the pattern just for that.

And the fact that the fit and sizing is great. Pretty close to RTW sizing.  I sewed this with zero alterations. Yea, you read that right. Z-E-R-O! 

Well, and because it's a darn cute tee.

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Edit 11/21/11: Whoops! Got so excited about no alterations that I told a little fib.  But not on purposes! I completely forgot that I raised the neckline by 2".  Whew, got that off my chest.

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Full Bust Adjustment (FBA) Pivot and Slide method on Vogue 1261

Vogue 1261, the Alice + Olivia knit tunic I shared with you on my last post, is designed to be fairly close fitting at the bustline.  For me that meant I would need do an full bust adjustment (FBA) to achieve the intended look. 


On patterns that do not have a dart, like this one, I like to use the pivot and slide method to increase the bustline.

Here's how I do a pivot and slide FBA pattern alteration.

Cut the pattern out along the cut lines for the size needed. For this tunic I cut a small for the neck/shoulder and tapered to a medium from the bust to the hip.

Place a large sheet of tracing paper on a pinable surface.  I use a cardboard cutting board and tracing paper from Dick Blick.

Lay the pattern piece on top of the paper. Trace around the pattern piece. Be sure to trace the center front also and mark the waistline at the center front on the tracing paper. This will be an important mark later when you're pivoting the patter p

 At the underarm area, measure the amount you want to add.  Make a mark on the tracing paper.  In my case I added 1" to each side front.

 Place a pin at the shoulder seam where the seam lines would intersect.

Pivot the pattern so the side underarm seam aligns with the mark you place on the paper.  Pin it to the board.

Trace along the armhole of the pattern piece. This is the new armhole cutting line.

Remove the pin from the shoulder seam, but keep the pin in place at the underarm seam.

Pivot the pattern back to the original waistline.

Draw the new side seam.  My new armhole and side seam are shown below in black.

I know it sounds a bit confusing, and while you're doing the pivot and slides it looks like it won't work. But it will.

This provided just enough extra room in the bustline so as not to destroy the design line of this tunic.

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Pretty in pink - Vogue 1261

Did I ever show you this top?  It's the top from the photo shoot that happened a few weeks ago. The one the dogs kept interrupting to play Frisbee. 

I sewed it the end of October thinking I could pair it with a pair of skinny jeans and boots.  More about that later. Let's talk about the top first.

It's Vogue 1261, an Alice + Olivia knit tunic top.  Can I just stop for a moment and tell you that the pattern is rated easy - and it is - provided you do not follow the recommended construction.

Huh?  I know. That doesn't make much sense does it?  What I didn't realize until I purchased the pattern is that the seams are supposed to be folded under, butted together and then sewn together. Ignore that. Unless you want that design feature. I admit it could be a fun detail, but I was going to quick and easy so I ignored it.

I noticed when I pulled the pattern pieces out of the envelope was how tiny the width of the sleeve appeared to be.  I could tell just by eyeballing these that they'd need width added. Now I have little arms by any means due to a combination of my body type and working out. But I rarely have to alter my sleeve pattern pieces. 

I had expected a loose fitting tunic, but when I saw the finished measurements printed on the pattern piece I realized I'd need to do an FBA to achieve the slightly over-sized look I was going for.  

It's also a bit shorter than I had hoped,  but I didn't have enough fabric. And I had my heart set on sewing this tunic from a lovely pink wool knit I purchased recently from SR Harris. I'm hoping I can find more when I go for the PR Day celebration as it was lovely to work with.

The construction went rather quickly. I'm loving the wide deep cowl and the slight asymmetrical hemline.  Oh, and get this.  The hem is left unfinished with a double row of topstitching about half an inch from the edge. 

Anyway, back to the wanting to wear this with skinny jeans and boots. I do think it would look great worn that way, but on the right person. Not gonna happen for me. Remember those not-so-skinny upper arms I mentioned earlier? I have the legs to match.  They're also on the muscular side and skinny jeans are not my friend.

I'll post photos of the method I used for the FBA in the next day or so.

All in all I'm pleased with the pattern and will sew myself at least one more.  It'll be a great top to toss on after work.

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Pattern Review 10th Anniversary - Minneapolis / St Paul - Saturday, Nov. 19

Many of you are quite familiar with PattenReview.com - in fact I would guess some of you were there when it first began in November 2001.   I didn't discover PatternReview.com until August 2002 and joined immediately.

It was such a joy to find an online community of folks who sewed....and sewed clothing! In my day-to-day it was rare for me to run into someone who sewed. And when I did and they discovered I sewed my own clothing the response was usually "oh, I used to do that. but now I just quilt."

Reading their reviews were fun and I couldn't wait to do my own review.  I still remember being so envious of those that had digital cameras and were able to *actually post photos* to go along with their pattern review! Wow, how times have changed in 10 years.



On Saturday, Nov. 19, Pattern Review will have a worldwide 10th Anniversary celebration.  And if you sew and live in or near the Twin Cities you're invited to join us.

Friday, Nov. 18
For those who like to get the party started early, dinner reservations have been made for Friday, Nov. 17, 6:30 p.m. at Tucci Benucch, Mall of America. The reservations under "PR Day".  If you can't make it exactly at 6:30 that's okay, come anyway. Please leave a comment or send me an email (sewingbysharon at gmail dot com) if you plan on attending Friday night so we can make sure we have enough space reserved.  


Saturday, Nov. 19
Noon - 2 pm:  We'll meet at SR Harris Fabric Warehouse for some fabric shopping. After all, what would a sewing meet-up be like without fabric? Feel free to start shopping earlier - they open at 10 am.  If you haven't been here we promise to help pick your chin up off the floor when you walk in the doors. It's wall-to-wall fabric.  Or check out this little video from one of my past shopping trips.

2 - 2:15 pm (or so): Travel to next location.

2:15 - 3:30 pm: Crafty Planet where they're "saving the world one stitch at a time".  You'll find great yarns, independent designer patterns, books, notions, trims and quilting cottons galore in this fabulous independent fabric store.  Most people only get to shop them online. But you're not most people are you? 
BONUS!  The One Yard Wonders 2 book release party is happening from 2-5 p.m. so we'll get to join in those festivities also!
(P.S. Pre-order your book if you want to purchase a copy that day. Details on their website) 
(P.P.S I just received my preview copy for the book blog tour and it's fabulous!) 

Oh, if anyone prefers, they can visit Treadle Yard Goods in St. Paul instead and meet up again at Fat Lorenzo's. 

3:30 - 4 pm: Travel to next location

4 - 7 pm:  (or ? ) Fat Lorenzo's in Bloomington (thanks to PR member, Laura)

• Show and Tell - we want to see what you bought! Bring anything you've sewn that you'd like to share with the group.
• Pattern and fabric swap - are you like me and accidentally by duplicate patterns during those 99 cent sales? Ordered fabric online that just wasn't right? Bring pattens or fabric for a swap BUT if it's not taken at the end of the night you have to bring it home. Anything left unclaimed will be donated. Although that's pretty unlikely with this group.
• Dinner - everyone will be responsible for purchasing their own dinner.
• PR Anniversary cake 
• Door prize - 1,000 Clever Sewing Tips book
  

Of course the best part of the day will be meeting and hanging out with sewing friends.
 
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Feel free to join in all day or just the times that work for you.

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Please consider bringing a food shelf item to Fat Lorenzo's.  We'll collect everything and donate.

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Make a name tag so we know who you are.  I'll have the "hello my name is...." stickers if you forget or don't have time.

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Please leave a comment - or email me - letting me know you'll be there so we can watch for you.

Looking forward to seeing everyone in a few days!
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