Summer Essentials: Pinto the Picnic Shirt Terminado! (M6076)Sleeveless Princess-Seamed Shirt

Nothing like the neighborhood Fourth of July to inspire me to finish sewing Pinto the Picnic shirt. (I've blogged about my work fitting M6076 - both for Pinto and Western Winds numerous times  ) Pinto is such a cool, comfortable - not to mention cute (!) summer essential. I'm  looking forward to wearing her when I bike to summer chorus and also when buddy Marilyn and I next meet for a cup of tea. I know I'll also reach for her just any old time I reach into the armoire, looking for something to pickup my spirits. I sure hope to create a few more of these sleeveless wonders before fall.

Western Winds Princess-Seamed Sleeveless Shirt- Terminado/Finished!

I talked about the process of altering the princess-seamed shirt, commercial pattern M6076, back in Fitting Western Winds . I used my sloper to work in conjunction with the pattern.

Fitting + sewing made it such that I put off finishing the project. It means the project took a little longer. And yah know how 'tis.... when I don't sew every single day a project looses it's oomph. I wanted to get going with something else new when I had time to sew.

Good thing I had a trip to visit with my dear cousin in San Diego  motivating me to finish my Western Winds shirt. I loved wearing it on the trip, and have worn it several times since. It's still summer-warm in my part of California. Aren't I glad this good warm weather basic didn't become a UFO, because it's been adding a lot to my just-doesn't-feel-like-fall-yet wardrobe.

BTW I simply used bias tape to finish off the inside of the armscye. Por que no? It works great and I had it already.

Fabric was from the "Japanese Cottons" section at Stone Mountain and Daughters in Berkley (in my materials inventory for about a year and a half) 

Horsey buttons were in my buttons inventory - scored them free somewhere. They give it that true western feel, don't you think?

Holiday Crafternoon Tea - Finished my Beaded Cap (Terminado!)

First Marilyn made us a lovely festive tea! Doesn't she set a lovely table? And then we watched "Miracle on 34'th Street" (the original with Natalie Woods and Maureen O'Hara of course!), and worked on our craft projects together. OK, we also talked non-stop.

 I finished beading my faux-tapestry cap. You remember it? That's the project I started in Vancouver. I talked about sights, sounds and sewing inspiration in Vancouver in my (Episode 26) November, Enchanted By Sewing audio/podcast. You can find out more about that episode and listen right on the web, or download it to your mobile device, by clicking on the show notes at http://enchantedbysewing.blogspot.com/2014/11/ench-by-sew-026-embellishment-via.html.

Terminado! - Ivy's Ready for the Holidays - Raw Silk Shirtdress

I'm really happy with my new shirtdress, Ivy. She's perfect for holiday occasions, and can also be accessorized for a variety of more casual situations during the year.

I created Ivy from deep green raw silk, also known as silk noil. I purchased this fabric last year from Exotic Silks/Thai Silks in Los Altos CA. They have an online store as well.

I used the same pattern I used for Peaches and Cream. I talked about altering and using this pattern extensively in my September Enchanted by Sewing podcast.

~ ~ ~ Web Resources ~ ~ ~ 

Enchanted by Sewing Audio Podcast- Shirtdressing
Includes pattern links and a number of blog postings about altering and creating my first version of this shirtdress.
http://enchantedbysewing.blogspot.com/2014/09/ench-by-sew-024-shirtdressing-and-fall.html

Mrs. Obama's arms inspire shirt dress sewing
http://meencantacoser.blogspot.com/2014/11/romancing-dress-mrs-obama-arms-inspire.html

Terminado! Retro Polka Cowl Neck Knit Top (M6078)

Hey! I got that remake of my retro-style polka dot knit top finished!

It's McCalls M6078.

I blogged about my experiences altering this pattern, and sharing my attitudes towards I Love Lucy:-) in  Reworking a Retro Style Polka Dot Tee

I've been focusing more on wardrobing in my sewing. (How about those red accents!) I talk about wardrobing and my pattern alteration experiences, in the October episode of my Enchanted by Sewing Audio Podcast. 

Jeans Sewing: Skirting the Issue - Terminado!/Done!

¡Que Bueno!
Huzzah! 

Worth the Work
I created this jeans-style denim skirt
in order to work
on jeans sewing skills
I do feel more confident about approaching my
first jeans project.
I'm also really looking forward to wearing this
great new addition to my wardrobe!

On the final evening of Labor Day weekend,  I finished the jeans-style denim skirt (  Palmer and Pletsch M6361 )  I've been blogging about over the last month. (*) The task was acquiring the tenor of a forever-more sewing project. Those are deadly! Sometimes I get so tired of long-term sewing projects, that they get popped into an in-process bin and you know what happens next, right? Often, by the time I return to the bin it's even more intimidating. Or maybe it just looks silly or dated. I didn't want to have my skirt become a UFO (What Lori often referred to as UnFinished Objects in the Sew Forth Now Podcast). So I kept at it, even when other sewing projects sung out, and they definitely did! You can just bet I never let myself take that jeans needle out of my machine.

My skirt looks so official
with it's jeans button
I lined the waistband with a light weight
cotton batiste print
I interfaced it with a medium weight
fusible. That was a big decision and
I'm glad I did interface it now.

I really wanted to shelve the skirt many times, because sewing that heavy weight 11-oz denim (like Levis 501's ), figuring out where to find and apply rivets, jeans button, when to do the topstitching (I wanted complete lines of stitching because it sure shows when it's not), not to mention addressing the faux flat-felled seams, was just a lot of unfamiliar-to-me work and techniques. I never managed to get the real kind of flat-felled seams to to roll around and stitch straight, though I'm good with the faux look for now. I blogged about that a couple of weeks back.

Oh and don't get me started on the curved waistband! I think the topstitching and waistband seam and top of waistband finally go straight across on either side. I sure checked those (and pinned, re-pinned, hand and machine basted and re-basted) to get those areas crisp and clean. I did have to add a snap on the inside of the fly. I think  that was because I over-fitted the garment a little and the fly band gaped a little. I over-fitted because otherwise the a-line skirt didn't 'a' out. At least for me, that heavy denim is not at all easy to work with. Maybe it's simply different than what I'm used to sewing with.

I'm really proud of myself for doing something hard and new-to-me. When I get ready to sew my jeans project for the Pants Drafting class I'm currently taking at Cañada, I'll have a head start on some of those techniques. I'm sure they won't be perfect, but they will be lots better than if I hadn't sewn this skirt first.

Another thing I'm glad I thought to do. I sewed several fly-front zippers (FFZ) in trouser and shorts project over the last year or so. So, although I still don't love doing a FFZ, they don't overwhelm me. And that was important when learning to work with heavy fabric, different threads and needle-type, new-to-me techniques and hardware.

I didn't make the cute pockets or belt loops I meant to do (I know how to use a double needle to make those belt loops professional too), cuz I was just done with it. I'm planning to prep the pockets and belt loops for my jeans project first , because those are really the fun part. In this case I'd had enough and just wanted to move on with life. That's the way it goes with me, when I'm learning something new. In software application development (and probably other fields as well, I imagine), we called that MVP - minimal viable product.

Sometimes I just want to be finished/terminado!

Now I'm planning to do some fun and familiar sewing for a bit. I have another one of my favorite shirts to finish up. I last blogged about it as Kit 1 (here's a link). I'm now calling it "Lilacs and Liberty". It's a romantic fem style - lilac Robert Kaufman gingham with accents in a darker purple and green Liberty of London Tana Lawn print, (which I recently identified as the Liberty print "Mauverina") and sparkly'ish buttons. Bet it will look cute with the denim skirt too....

The challenge of acquiring new sewing skills, and the pleasure of returning to comfortable and favorite sewing projects, keeps me....

Enchanted by Sewing!

~ ~ ~

* All the posts about this project, begin with the phrase "Jeans Sewing, Skirting the Issue"

1) I began writing about the project, fitting and pattern selection on August 9'th http://meencantacoser.blogspot.com/2013/08/jeans-sewing-skirting-issue.html

2) When Zippers Fly

http://meencantacoser.blogspot.com/2013/08/jeans-sewing-skirting-issue-when.html

3) Resources

http://meencantacoser.blogspot.com/2013/08/jeans-sewing-skirting-issue-resources.html

4) WAISTing Time

http://meencantacoser.blogspot.com/2013/08/jeans-sewing-skirting-issue-waisting.html

5) Absolutely Riveting

http://meencantacoser.blogspot.com/2013/08/jeans-sewing-skirting-issue-absolutely.html