Every machine I’ve ever owned had stitches on it that I’d never used. The challenge this month was to try using some of those mystery stitches on something, anything. Continue reading “November Challenge – New Machine Stitches”
Well I failed on my “I’m not buying any new sewing books” pledge. I’d previously vowed not to purchase any more sewing books until I made a project from each of the books I already own. Oops! I recently bought a LOT of new-to-me sewing titles. My favorite is “ReSew – turn thrift-store finds into fabulous designs” by Jenny Wilding Cardon. This book includes 20 easy-enough-for-beginners refashioning projects using thrift store finds. Easy, thrift-stores and sewing? Those are 3 of my favorite things, so this book is perfect for me! Continue reading “3 Shirts to Dress Refashion”
Well, this was unintentional, me posting a kimono right after Jamie. Plus, we’re having a Kimono night at the Denver Sewing Collective’s next meetup. I’ve got kimono on the brain. This was an super easy jacket to make. Basically a rectangle folded over and the side sewn where your arms go through. I like the drapey band that Butterick has here. I bought the fabric from … Continue reading Butterfly Kimono from Butterick 6065
This make is a month old already and was just meant to be a wearable muslin, but I wore it to the last ASG meeting and Kitty talked me into posting it. It was a muslin I made up to test the kimono pattern I used for the silk kimono from the October challenge. The pattern is Simplicity 1318 but I pieced it together to remove the center back and sleeve seams. Continue reading “Simplicity 1318 – Leopard Print Kimono”
Well the highly anticipated Brother Dream Machine is finally here! I think many potential customers are intrigued by the possibility of creating their own embroidery designs on the machine. And I am certainly one of them. So let’s see what it can do. Continue reading “Brother Dream Machine – My Design Center Review”
I just attended the annual Quilt-A-Fair in Longmont, Colorado and discovered this new type of cross stitch from Mill Hill that uses beads! I used to love doing counted cross stitch but it just takes so long to finish a project that I gave up on the hobby. But these new kits from Mill Hill are sewn on perforated paper. It’s a little like plastic canvas, but it is flat so it is much easier to sew on. And they also mix beads and traditional cross stitch for a shiny, dimensional effect. I love it! Continue reading “iPad Assisted Cross Stitch”
Kwik Sew patterns are a favorite of mine. One of my first successful garments was made from a Kwik Sew pattern, and that success, after a string of failures with other pattern lines, inspired me to keep sewing. So during a recent Kwik Sew sale I stocked up on seven of their new 2014 patterns. Kwik Sew doesn’t go on sale as often, and isn’t as deeply discounted, as McCall’s, Simplicity, and Butterick, so … Continue reading Kwik Sew 4093 – A Patchwork Purse
My husband and I belong to the Mile High Hook and Ladder club in Colorado. Their website is a little out of date, sadly, but you can find them on Facebook here. It’s for owners and lovers of antique fire trucks. They have a lovely 3-color logo that I thought would be perfect for a little exercise for my own personal amusement. Continue reading “Logos, Applique, Rhinestones and a ScanNCut”
October’s challenge was quite a doozy and we saw some really nice garments and crafts made from fabric we feared to touch. This month, we’ll offer a lighter challenge. How about those sewing machines of ours? Perhaps you purchased a machine with 300+ utility and decorative stitches. Perhaps you own a solid machine with a few basic stitches. I would bet that there are stitches … Continue reading October Roundup & November Challenge Announcement
For our first group sewing challenge at DenverSews, Jamie challenged us to use a fabric we’d been holding on to for a long time. Wow, I had so much leeway with this challenge! Almost all of my fabric has been in my stash for a very long time. In order to narrow the field, I focused on making sure the fabric I chose was something I was absolutely terrified to use. For me that meant choosing an expensive fabric which also had sentimental value. Most of my fabric stash consists of cheap thrift store fabrics, and I’m not afraid to use those – if I mess up with thrift store fabric, it can easily be replaced. Continue reading “October Sewing Challenge – New Look 6036”
I was quite excited about the first sewing challenge and knew straight away what I was going to make. But, then I became paralyzed with fear in actually cutting it. I thought I should have a few options as back up in case my fears got the best of me.
First off I have an apron that I made from fabric that my mom recently gave me from the 70’s or 60’s. I remember this fabric well. My mom made my older sister a dress with a Humpty Dumpty appliqué on it as well as a matching purse. I remember getting the purse later (most likely I just took it). I didn’t have much left and I thought an apron was perfect. This apron I will use, and every time I’ll think of my mom and sister in her Humpty Dumpty dress.
Continue reading “October Sewing Challenge – Jill’s Results Burda 8155 and more”
When Jamie threw down the gauntlet to use a fabric you’ve been hanging onto a longtime, I knew this was the push I needed to finish/redo my failed attempt with Cynthia Rowley’s Simplicity 2406. Continue reading “October Sewing Challenge – Jane’s Results: McCalls 6346”
I purchased a little piece of leather suede from Colorado Fabrics a few years ago with the intention of trying to make something out of it someday. That day finally came with Jamie’s challenge! I decided to try two things: general sewing and machine embroidery with suede. Continue reading “October’s Sewing Challenge – Suede”
Does this fabric look familiar to you? A month ago I laid down a challenge to my fellow DSC bloggers:
Use a fabric that you’ve been hanging onto a long time. We probably all have fabrics in our stash that we love so much we’re afraid to cut into them… but they’re not doing us any good sitting in a closet. Be brave and cut into it! It doesn’t have to be silk or anything fancy, just something you’ve hung onto for awhile. Continue reading “Anna Sui Silk Kimono (October Challenge)”
Having a hard time fitting patterns? Learn more on how patterns are made, a history of pattern co. and more. Continue reading Off-Topic: An analysis of why commercial patterns fall short in fitting standards
Most of us that sew a fair amount consider ourselves either Advanced Beginner or Intermediate sewers. We’ve moved past sewing straight lines and we can do things like insert zippers, make wearable clothing sometimes, and tackle a more complicated craft project like a bag with numerous pockets and closures. But what keeps us from calling ourselves Advanced sewers? This is the Question of the Month. What would it take for you to call yourself an Advanced Seamstress? Continue reading “QoM – What does it take to be an Advanced Seamstress?”
I love making small things! Lately I’ve wanted to make a mini quilt. I have Carol Doak’s book Easy Paper Pieced Miniatures from 1998. She sells the pre-printed foundation pieces for each quilt from the book on her website here and they’re currently on sale. So I purchased two, one for the Scrap Stars and one for My Little Town. Each quilt is 12.5″ x 12.5″ when finished, so they’re pretty tiny! Continue reading “Some Small Things – iPad Stands and Mini Quilt”
Volunteering certainly has its perks. Meeting people and making new friends while helping out in my community makes volunteering an enjoyable experience for me. But getting things for free doesn’t hurt either! Last week during my volunteer shift at the Humane Society Thrift & Gift store, my friend Sally noticed that one of the donated blouses had stained sleeves. Sally handed me the top and said “Here, we can’t sell this, but you could cut the sleeves off”. Yup, Sally knows me so well! Since the blouse was from Chico’s, my size, perfect except for the bleached sleeves, and in a color I love, I took it home for refashioning. Continue reading “Chico’s Blouse Refashion”
Two big reasons I joined American Sewing Guild are Denise Woodson Ofria and Jan McMinn.
I met Denise and Jan through DSC and consequently learned a lot about the current leadership’s efforts to bring the Denver chapter back to its roots of promoting the art of sewing. Not just quilting, not just garments but the “Art of Sewing”.
Why did it take me so long?
My past experience with the ASG local neighborhood groups has been not so enthusiastic. I checked out my local neighborhood group and was told it was only a quilting group and there was no offer of help to point me in another direction, so I formed my own group. Continue reading “Why I joined American Sewing Guild”
I love the fall because that’s when the best jacket patterns come out, and the cover for Burda’s October issue did not disappoint. More pictures below of this jacket in a plainer fabric so you can see all the details. The lapels and peplum are both flounces (pieces of fabric cut in a spiral so that one edge is longer than the other), and they … Continue reading Burda October 2014 Review (International Edition)
As a follow-up to the ScanNCut class I just took, I thought I’d try to make something that is otherwise difficult to make by hand – a Patchwork Puzzle Ball. In Patchwork Puzzle Balls by Jinny Beyer (published 2005), there are numerous patterns for making stuffed balls using basic shapes such as triangles, squares, pentagons, hexagons, octagons, and diamonds. I made these before I had a ScanNCut and so I used plastic templates and hand-cut each piece. With the ScanNCut, I thought I would try and make one of the more complicated puzzle balls. Continue reading “Patchwork Puzzle Balls with ScanNCut”
As you may have heard I am sewing a core wardrobe. A core wardrobe is a set of pieces usually in one color (to start) and are timeless pieces that are suitable for your lifestyle and fit your needs. I’m using a basic set of pieces similar to what you see below.
Continue reading “Core Wardrobe: Patterns that made the cut”
About a week ago while looking for Jo-Ann Fabric coupons on line, I stumbled across the Jo-Ann Fabric “Sew Your Style” contest on facebook. I was intrigued, so I read the contest rules. The challenge was to sew a garment using quilt (instead of fashion) fabric. Having recently read about a similar challenge on “Diary of A Sewing Fanatic”, one of my favorite blogs, I knew this endeavor might be difficult. But since I own lots of quilt fabric (even though I haven’t done patchwork in years), and I’m actively working at reducing the size of my fabric stash, I was highly motivated to attempt the challenge. Continue reading “Jo-Ann Fabric “Sew Your Style” Contest”
Quite some time ago Lynne and I (Kitty) split two different fabrics between us. The fabric Lynne shared with me became a top for each of us. The results of that fabric challenge can be found here. Now it’s time for the second shared fabric swap results to be revealed! The fabric I split with Lynne was a more difficult one to work with than her lovely floral knit. Mine was a bold print … Continue reading Shared Fabric Sewing Challenge #2
Still moving forward on my core wardrobe. This is the tough part, editing the closet. Twice a year I change from a spring/summer wardrobe to the fall/winter. And, every year I put a few things in the ‘Donate’ pile. Well, it’s about to get a bit ugly this year. With my goal of sewing a core wardrobe it’s important to get rid of things that … Continue reading Operation: Core Wardrobe – No Pain No Gain – Editing the closet
The Fabric Mart Fabricistas are currently running their second Fashion Sewing Contest! They’ve included a “play along” flickr page where the sewing public can post photos of their sew-along entries. I decided to give it a whirl! Continue reading “Copying My Favorite Ready To Wear Garment”
I usually am not the type of person who makes the same pattern multiple times, but I’ve been thinking that maybe my sewing projects would go a little smoother if I had a few tried and true patterns to work from. So, sorry to bore you, but I made another Archer. This is my 3rd one – I think three is a pattern duplicate record for me. Continue reading “Colorblocked Chambray Archer”
I’m so happy to have found an Advanced ScanNCut class being offered at Rocky Mountain Sew and Vac in Arvada, Colorado. There is nothing more frustrating than trying to get that darn machine to do what you want in the vacuum of your own limited experience. Even though there is a multitude of YouTube videos and online blog posts about how to use the ScanNCut, nothing substitutes for some hands-on use with a knowledgeable instructor and a classroom full of eager students sitting in front of their own machines. Continue reading “ScanNCut Class #2”
Recently I took advantage of a great sale at Craftsy.com. I purchased the class “Project Upcycle: Thrifty Sewing Projects” with Betz White for only $9.99. I’d already experimented with some of the refashion projects taught in this course like the felted tote, but the class was still well worth the price. Continue reading “Craftsy Project Upcycle: Kimono Wrap Skirt Refashion”
My husband loves his fire truck and no fire truck is complete without a Dalmation! Well we don’t have a Dalmation, but we do have Ginger Pickles. So I made her a little jacket to wear to turn her into a Dalmation when she goes out on “calls”. Continue reading “Fire Dog!”
Big news everybody! The Denver Sewing Collective has decided to start doing monthly challenges. We thought it would be a good way to unify the blog a bit and push us all outside our comfort zones once and awhile.
Everyone is invited to sew along with the challenges! The due date will be the 15th of each month. You can post your creations on our Flickr pool at https://www.flickr.com/groups/denversewschallenges/ , and we’ll do a round up post at the end of every challenge where we’ll show off whatever you post in the Flickr pool. If you like, you can add a description of your make or a link to your own blog in the comments of the Flickr photo and we’ll add those to the post as well. Are you ready to hear the October challenge?
Use a fabric that you’ve been hanging onto a long time. We probably all have fabrics in our stash that we love so much we’re afraid to cut into them… but they’re not doing us any good sitting in a closet. Be brave and cut into it! It doesn’t have to be silk or anything fancy, just something you’ve hung onto for awhile.
When I got close to the end of the alphabet in my 
series several friends asked me what I planned to do next for my DenverSews blog projects. Hmm, it’s a good thing that they asked, I’m not a planner – I had no idea! I answered one inquiry with a surly “I’ll sew whatever I want instead of something that starts with a particular letter.” But I honestly had no idea what I wanted to sew – my answer had revealed the truth, I hadn’t thought beyond completing Z. Luckily those questions jump-started my contemplation of this dilemma.
I came up with several ideas for subsequent series. Being a non-planner, a series is a more efficient use of my time, allowing me to spend my time sewing instead of spending my time trying to figure out what to sew for each individual post. And with my giant sewing collection I had lots of different series possibilities to choose from! Continue reading “A-Z is Complete. What’s Next?”
If talcum powder was a fabric it would be a tissue knit. Good Lord, this stuff is so amazing against the skin. I want to be married, carried and buried in it. I bought this on a whim (no?) at Hancock’s discount bin. There is no manufacturer or fiber content information available. All it came in was white. And, I wish I would have bought the whole lot of it. The wonderful feel and absolute lightness of it more than makes up for the ginormous pain in the tuckus that befalls those who choose to work with it. Continue reading “Working with Tissue Knits and a Review of Vogue 8536”
I had a plan for the the PatternReview.com “One Pattern Many Looks” contest to make up a bunch of Grainline Archer button-up shirts. I’ve made this pattern before and really like it, and I figured that since I wear blouses more than any other type of garment it would be a good thing to have several of. Now, Kitty tried to warn me that making up multiple button-up shirts in the span of a few weeks was a bit ambitious, but I was too stubborn to listen. And to make things worse, I chose this drapey silk-feel polyester that is perhaps the shiftiest fabric I’ve ever worked with. Seriously… I cut the button band exactly along the selvedge and by the time I lifted the pattern piece it was a crazy wiggly worm of a strip of fabric. Eeeesh. The reverse of the fabric has a ribbed look to it so I think perhaps the weave pulls it in a wavy line, because I swear I cut it straight! Continue reading “Grainline Archer Buttonup Shirt”
For the last post in my series, the letter Z, I chose to sew a skirt with a zebra print panel from the Simplicity Amazing Fit Collection. My pattern is Simplicity # 0503, a Misses’ and Miss Petite skirt in 3 lengths, with individual pattern pieces given for slim, average and curvy fit. I made view C, the above the knee-length version, in the curvy fit size 14. Continue reading “Z is for Zebra Print – Simplicity 1541- A Pattern Review”
My first knit dress had a definite learning curve. It was not an “1-Hour Dress” as the pattern envelope claimed. McCalls 6074 is a basic Pullover dress with front elastic casing detail, deep V-neck, flare skirt and a stitched hem. I made view D with cap sleeves and a length of about 2″ below the knee. Continue reading “McCalls 6074 – My First Knit Dress | Jane Dugger”
A Denver Sewing Collective member, Sylvia, asked me weeks ago to digitize a rose design that was referenced in Threads Number 161 July 2012. The article is by Jennifer Stern-Hasemann. The project is to cover a bodice with a bouquet of sewn roses and it is quite lovely: Continue reading “Sylvia’s Rose”
My husband and I’ve were recently invited to a party to celebrate the elopement of some dear friends. The happy couple wed in Hawaii last December and then planned a Hawaiian style dinner party in Colorado for their friends. The outdoor event became a summer bash because Colorado in winter, while beautiful, really doesn’t instill that tropical feeling. Continue reading “The Tie-On Dress Hawaiian Style”
Last week Wednesday the theme for Sew ‘N Sudz (which I didn’t end up actually making it to) was skirts, so I decided to start sewing a skirt on about Monday. I bought this stretch athletic mesh after looking forever from a seller on Etsy because I had plans to use it as an overlay on the contrast panels of some Fehr Trade PB Jam Leggings. But by the time I found the right fabric for winter skiing tights it was May and I lost my mojo. I’ve had the mesh sitting out for months and every time I look at it I think of new things I want to use it on – I wish I would have bought more! If you can’t tell by this rambling story, my sewing is less “Sewing with a Plan”, and more… Continue reading “Athletic Mesh Cutout Hem Skirt”
The idea of sewing my core wardrobe has been growing for the past year. I’ve taken the last 6-9 months or so to plan for it. Not that it needs to take that long to plan for a wardrobe, it’s not like we’re climbing Everest here. Or is it? The first steps in sewing a Core Wardrobe that looks and feels smashing is to determine … Continue reading Operation: Core Wardrobe – What shape am I?
If you’ve forgotten Burda is a German magazine, the Oktoberfest theme throughout the September should remind you. What? You don’t have dirndls and fabric pretzels at the top of your September sewing list? Fine, I’ll start with the (somewhat) normal stuff. If you remember from the preview last month, I called this lovely pic “Grease extras with a wardrobe malfunction”. Burda apparently calls it “Oh so very British”. Who can keep those English speaking countries straight anyways?
Continue reading “Burda September 2014 Review (International Edition)”
I had the chance to check out the latest top-of-the-line home sewing and embroidery machine from Brother courtesy of Rocky Mountain Sew and Vac in Littleton, Colorado. It’s called the Dream Machine and it truly makes you dream. Note: I am not associated with Brother or with Rocky Mountain Sew and Vac in any way. I am just an interested consumer of sewing and embroidery machines! EDIT: For a more recent review of My Design Center, see this blog post. Continue reading “A Look at the Brother Dream Machine”
UPDATED! January 2019 I’ve seen a few promos lately for a free downloadable Style Arc pattern if you join their mailing list. Since I’ve been sewing a lot of Style Arc patterns lately I thought I’d evangelize a bit and pass them along… I swear I’m not a shill for the company! I just really appreciate it when I find a company who puts out … Continue reading Try a Style Arc pattern for free!
For the 25th post in my series, the letter Y, I’ve chosen a “You Sew Girl!” pattern, the A-Line Skirt. This 2011 pattern is from Australian designer Nicole Mallalieu. Nicole Mallalieu began her pattern drafting career as a handbag and hat designer, but once she ventured into garments her A-Line Skirt also garnered excellent reviews on PatternReview. Although I already have several A-Line skirt patterns, when I read “the skirt is a great … Continue reading Y is for You Sew Girl! Patterns
When I talk about sewing a core wardrobe I find that women are either really excited about it or find it too limiting for their particular creative journey.
For me, sewing and building a core wardrobe is the exact kind of injection I need to give my sewing a bit of discipline and structure. I sew a lot and I think I own only a handful of garments that I truly love wearing and that look good on me. Secondly, this summer alone I’ve sewn about a half dozen skirts but I have no tops that match, so I resort to wearing a tired looking t-shirt or worse I don’t wear them at all! Continue reading “Operation: Core Wardrobe – Sewing a core wardrobe”
Foundation piecing is so much fun! I love that you can make a picture from fabric with only straight line seams. It’s like putting together a jigsaw puzzle.
I’m almost finished with Carol Doak’s Scrap Scramble block-of-the-month project that she’s been running on her Yahoo! Group here since last fall. You’d think that it would by easy to keep up with one block per month, but I managed to get 4 months behind! Now I’m caught up and and I’ve sewn all up the whole thing. It still needs a border, batting, quilting, and binding, but it’s at a good pausing point. Thanks to my hubby for helping me with the photograph! Continue reading “More Foundation Piecing!”
For the 24th post in my series, the letter X, I made McCall’s 6751, a summer top with a cool X-back design. Continue reading “X is for X-back Top: McCall’s 6751 – A Pattern Review”
I own a 1962 Airstream. We bought it on a whim, literally drove by it and stopped to inquire and wrote a check. I love the Airstream, but it really is a money pit and we’ve often thought about selling it. But, then when we take it out, we vow to hold on to it and keep working on it. And, it needs work. EVERY year something goes wrong. Like this trip the toilet didn’t work and we didn’t have hot water. We usually stay at RV parks surrounded by very upscale RV’s. As in $300,000 kind of upscale. And, there amid all the glitz and glamour sits our very old Silver Twinkie. But, I love it.
I’ve always wanted to sew in the Airstream and this year I did. Here are a few pointers for sewing on the road. I am no expert but if you decide to sew on the go these might be helpful. Continue reading “Sewing On The Road (In A 1962 #Airstream)”
Well I don’t even know what to say about pants fitting. You may recall that Jamie, Kitty, and I attended a Silhouette Patterns one-day seminar in Denver last month. We all had our pants muslin’s fitted by Peggy Sager. And it was with some excitement that I returned home to see what could I could do with my new muslin. Continue reading “Sigh. I Hate Pants”
For the 23rd post in my series, the letter W, I made a Wrap Dress from a vintage 1994 pattern, Butterick 3485. 3485 has been in my stash for quite awhile – I purchased it for 30 cents at a thrift store in Arizona at least 5 years ago. This pattern is rated Very Easy and I totally agree with that assessment. The only closures it has are ties, and with only 4 pattern pieces, what could be easier?
Continue reading “W is for Wrap Dress – Butterick 3485 – A Pattern Review”
Denver Sewing Collective 