Project MyWay #18–Silver Charmeuse Blouse

I did it again–we were invited to a holiday party last Saturday night and I spent all day Friday and Saturday making an outfit to wear (this blouse with the black velvet jeans in the previous post). I guess I work better under pressure, but just once I’d like to have my outfit ready and hanging in the closet while I take a leisurely bath and get ready to go. Happily my outfit did turn out great and I’m sure I’ll wear it a few times this season. Read more

Project MyWay #17–Black Velvet Jeans

I made these velvet jeans with Burda 8085. I love them! They fit great and sewed up beautifully. I used cotton velvet. I didn’t make ANY changes to the pattern. They look just as good as RTW jeans that sell for over $100. That’s all!

Ta-ta for now!

Project MyWay #16–Phillip Lim 3.1 Knock-off Jacket

This is the first jacket I’ve made in a looooong time–several years…it was a fun project, if a little frustrating. Read more

Frumpy–”A woman regarded as dull, plain, or unfashionable”

 As the mother of a 22 year old, I’m at that stage in my life when some styles just aren’t attractive or appropriate anymore. My two biggest fears are looking like my mother and looking like my daughter. And, those of us who work hard to stay in shape walk a tightrope because we can wear just about anything (low rise jeans, skimpy tops), but there is a fine line between looking current and looking like a fashion victim. Read more

Alternatives to Sweats

I just found the blog, Of A Certain Age and I think it’s going to become one of my favorites. The post on trading sweats for wrap tops and yoga pants really hit home. Read more

Project MyWay #14–Theory Knock-off Skirt & Top

  I wanted that Theory skirt, in a different color which I showed you in Fall Wardrobe ‘08–Part 5. I decided on fatigue green (again!)–the color feels fall-ish and I love how it looks with black. Read more

Fall Shoes and Boots

I have a love/hate relationship with shoes and boots. I won’t buy shoes or boots unless I love them and they have to pass rigorous scrutiny to be loved. They must be:

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Instuctions for Sewing Felt Undercollar

1. Before you cut into the felt, suede, or ultrasuede trim away all the seam allowances  surrounding the undercollar pattern piece
2. Cut out one whole undercollar on the fold
3. Pin this undercollar to the interfaced uppercollar, which has the seam allowances turned under (miter the corners of the upper collar), and catch-stitch the undercollar to the interfacing at the upper and side edges about 1/2″ inside the seam lines
4. Baste the lower edge of the undercollar to the neckline seam allowance, placing the cut edge of the under collar along the stitching line
5. Baste the undercollar to the uppercollar about 1/4″ (6mm) from all edges, then trim a scant 1/8″ (3mm) from all the raw edges
6. Using a small blanket stitch, sew the undercollar to the uppercollar and neckline seams. (See diagram below:)

How to Use a Narrow Hem Foot

I’ve had a wonderful top-of-the line Bernina for 15 years and I had never purchased a narrow hemming foot! The problem with narrow hemming the other way (turning and stitching, trimming and turning and stitching again) is that by the time you stitch around the hem twice on delicate fabric, it almost always starts to flutter.

Here is a narrow hem technique I saw on a very expensive designer silk skirt (Project MyWay #1):  The skirt front was narrow hemmed, the skirt back was narrow hemmed, then the side seams were sewn. If you’re careful to have the side seams of the fronts and backs end at exactly the same place, this gets around the fact that the first half inch in of a hem using a narrow hemming foot looks horrible, as it’s hidden in the side seam.

Here is the best tutorial I’ve found for narrow hemming from Jan Andrea, at Home on the Web., it has great pictures and instructions:

http://www.sleepingbaby.net/jan/Baby/hemming.html

Even with this great tutorial, I was still having trouble catching my stitching on the folded hem. Finally, I changed from my single hole sole plate (which I always use on fine fabrics–keeps the fabric from getting shoved down into the throat plate) to the zig-zag throat plate and set my needle position to the right. This worked pretty well for light weight fabric.

How to Insert an Invisible Zipper

I don’t think I’ve ever installed a “perfect” invisible zipper. My Achilles tendon is the bubble that wants to form at the bottom of the zipper, I think  because the fabric stretches in one direction when you sew the first side of the zipper and then stretches in the other direction when you sew the second side.

That said, my invisible zippers look pretty damn good and by far better than lapped or centered zippers.

Here is the best tutorial I’ve ever seen on inserting an invisible zipper. It has clear pictures and instructions.

One thing I can add, if you can’t find the perfect color zipper, the zipper stop (the only part that shows on the right side) can be painted with model car paint available at hobby and toy stores. This gives many more options to match the color of the zipper stop to your garment.

Here’s the article:

http://sewiknit.blogspot.com/2006/03/invisible-zipper-tutorial.html

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