So I'm going to be a bit of a grump about this dress. I jumped on Colette's pre-sale of the Dahlia dress, mostly because I always need work dresses (especially wool!) and I love raglan sleeves. But when I received the pattern I was immediately disappointed...first off, the dress isn't lined (wool dress - lining… Continue reading Dahlia in baby wale corduroy
See this blazer? I designed, drafted and sewed it myself! And since I'm no longer actually attending lecture (conflicts with my teaching schedule), I'm using the book and my professor's office hours to get the job done! (By the way, here she is, walking through the construction of the jacket on YouTube. She's an amazing sewist!)This… Continue reading Self-drafted blazer!
A slim fit wool skirt such as the Charlotte really begs to be lined. Adding a layer of smooth and slippery fabric makes a wool skirt more comfortable to wear (especially with tights) and extends the life of the garment. Sewing a lining is fairly simple, however, there's another technique that serves the same purpose:… Continue reading Tutorial: Hong Kong finish + underlining in one step
The Charlotte from By Hand London is a lovely high waisted, slim fitting pencil skirt, with a below-knee length. It's a great shape for work, but with all the walking and stairs I have to do around campus, it's a tad narrow around the legs. In this tutorial, I'll show you how to draft a… Continue reading Tutorial: drafting a kick pleat for a pencil skirt
Okay, there are three posts associated with this lovely tweed skirt, but after that, I promise: no more skirts! I'm sick of looking at my bottom half, and I'm sure you feel the same! Don't I look grumpy about it?This final pencil skirt is a project for Britex. The fabric is a truly incredible silk/wool… Continue reading Month of the pencil skirt: (Part 3 of 3). The Charlotte Skirt in silk/wool tweed.
So my pencil skirt project for Pattern making II is jumping the line because it's done and due tomorrow (and thus won't be back in my hands until next week). I sewed it today, taking a little more time than normal since the inside finish of the lining is very professionally assembled (I had to… Continue reading Month of the pencil skirt (Part 2 of 3)
Gosh, it's been a while! Sure, school starting back up (for the kids, and fashion classes for me) and prepping for my quarter teaching biology (which starts next week), have really slowed down my sewing. But the main reason I haven't been too active here lately is because the contractors put one of our toilets… Continue reading Month of the pencil skirt (Part 1 of 3)
It might be somewhat surprising, but my son's pre-school classroom at the Google Childcare Center doesn't have computers for the children's use. Instead, (and among many other awesome features, like a real woodworking station) they have a sewing station, with two regular sewing machines, an iron, fabric cutting table with a large Olfa mat, and… Continue reading Starting ’em early!
At the suggestion of several readers (thank you for rescuing me from indecision!) for uses for this striped canary ponte knit from Mood , I went with the Vogue. Here's a refresher of the pattern (Vogue 8663) envelope, now out of stock:What is most distinctive (and worth sewing, in my opinion) is the pleated neckline.… Continue reading Last vestige of summer dress–Vogue 8663
After exposing my bra to my friend (and most likely many others) while wearing my original Myrtle top out for drinks the other night, I decided to reduce the depth of the cowl for my second Myrtle. If you are less well-endowed than the C cup Colette designs for, this might be a good adjustment… Continue reading Tutorial: reducing the cowl neckline on the Myrtle dress
Bea & Lucille 