Growing up I would watch reruns of Gilligan’s Island before my mom would come home from work. I loved the show for one thing only and that was Ginger. She was, as most know the beautiful red headed movie star stranded on the island with 6 others. I fell for Ginger more so than Mary Ann I think largely because she was so beautiful and … Continue reading Born On This Day – Tina Louise
I’ll be honest… I’ve reached a point where I have too much fabric to remember off the top of my head what is there. (And when I do remember, where the heck it is.) I’ve been storing most of it in boxes, stacked sideways so you can see an edge of each piece. Still, I find myself ripping everything out of the box when I start a project so that I can feel the weight of the fabrics. (Must touch the fabric!) I’ve seen other bloggers do various organization techniques with swatches and decided that was just the ticket for my handsy approach to finding fabrics from my stash. Continue reading “Fabric Swatch Cards + Plantain Contest Update”
I have a RTW (ready-to-wear) top that I found at a thrift store that I have always loved – it is a V-neck ruched top that is snug fitting and comfy. It is the one on the left in the collage and the tag says “j.t.b. petite”. I have always wished I had more of these tops so I was pleased to find a similar pattern by Kwik Sew.
Continue reading “Kwik Sew 3915 – Ruched Neck Tops”
If you haven’t checked out eHow Crafts yet, you should! Continue reading “eHow Crafts “Smittens””
Over my sadly sewing-free Christmas vacation I had been window shopping (or whatever you call the on-line equivalent) for laser cut shirts. I don’t think the ability to laser cut fabric is that new, but for some reason I’ve been seeing a lot of really cool applications of the technology lately like lace patterns in leather. Of course I don’t have a laser, but with knits or other fabrics that don’t fray you could do the same with a scissors. I saw one shirt with a lattice / grid type pattern that I thought would be easy to duplicate. I was planning on just buying a RTW T-shirt and chopping it up, but then French indie pattern company Deer & Doe released a free knit T-shirt pattern, the Plantain T-shirt, that was exactly the swingy shape I was looking for. And then they announced a contest for said pattern and I figured, hey, why not kill two birds with one stone?
Continue reading “Lattice Cutwork Plantain T-shirt”
For my fourth 
project I made a denim skirt for the letter D. I have a favorite light blue, above the knee denim skirt which I bought at a thrift store many years ago. It’s looking tatty now though, so I thought I’d try to recreate it. Continue reading “D is for Denim”
Denver Sewing Collective had their first Saturday Sew-In on January 25th. And, boy was it a glowing success. Lynne was able to score her housing development’s club house that had lots of tables, natural light a kitchen and even a fire place and couch. At one point there were 16 of us sewing away like so many mad seamstresses. Lynne’s husband Frank even brought his … Continue reading The luxury of sewing all day
After having made two Kwik Sew 3891 Batwing tops that I *love*, I remembered that I made this batwing-like top over the summer, hoping to look like the lovely lady on the pattern envelope, casually posing with her bicycle.
Have you ever wanted to get into a stranger’s boxers? I have and I did (shhh, don’t tell my husband). And here are the photos to prove it! Continue reading “Getting Into A Stranger’s Boxers”
I have a running hypothesis with just about all pattern magazines that the number of patterns I like in an issue is inversely proportional to the attractiveness of the cover. Hence I was stoked to receive this month’s issue of Burda UK in my mailbox because… well, just look at that fugliness! It reminds me of the color scheme of every bathroom in the Midwest I can remember from the 80’s. Let’s see if the patterns live up to the cover… Continue reading “Burda February 2014 Review”
Okay, I’m the first to admit that I’m thrifty. Really, it’s a genetic thing! My ancestors were all frugal Yankee farmers – I can remember my relatives wrapping stray bits of string into a big ball and making sausages from scary scraps of meat. I learned from them to be frugal with my purchases, but recently it occurred to me that perhaps my thrifty ways are not as cost-effective as I thought. Especially when it comes to purchasing my sewing patterns. Let me explain what I mean. Continue reading “Indie Patterns – Worth The Price?”
Hancock Fabrics recently had one of their 99c pattern sales for at least one of the big 4 companies. They also had a sale on Kwik Sew patterns. I always give Kwik Sew patterns a look – they seem to have a lot of nice looking basic, functional patterns for wardrobe building. I was perusing the catalogs looking for a nice basic skirt pattern for my daughter, whose next cosplay outfit is going to be Jade Harley wearing God Tier. She’s from something called HomeStuck. Continue reading “My Favorite Pattern-of-the-Week: A Batwing Top”
Christian Dior, always a favorite among the sewing and fashion set, was born January 21, 1905 in Normandy, France. For fashion historians and lovers of vintage style Dior is best known for his “New Look” which emerged right after World War Two. The “New Look” was presented in 1947 and was seen as a fashion revolution that brought women out of the boxy, rationed designs from the war years into voluptuous, excessive glamour. Dior is cited as being the designer who brought fashion back to Paris with his “New Look”. Continue reading “Born on this day – Christian Dior”
For my third project, the letter C, in my quest to 
I chose a Christine Jonson Pattern. Recently Christine Jonson had a holiday sale and there was a 30% discount on sewing patterns. That was enough of a savings on a single pattern to cover the shipping cost. Since I can never pass up a bargain, the time was right for me to try the Christine Jonson pattern line! I immediately ordered pattern #107, the Tie-back Top. Continue reading “C is for Christine Jonson Patterns”
I’ve been making dresses all summer long – mostly sleeveless ones from stretchy polyester fabrics. I love wearing dresses! They’re comfortable and cool. I think men are definitely missing out in the comfort department.
But it always seems to me that as soon as September rolls around, it starts getting cold mighty fast. Then I usually abandon my bright-colored floral dresses for darker colored pants. But my waistline seems to “improve” each year, making it harder and harder to fit into the small selection of pants that I purchased in 2007. Thankfully I’ve been slowly adding stretchy yoga-type pants to my wardrobe. Continue reading “Seeking a Winter Dress – Kwik Sew 4026”
“The Wardrobe Wake Up” by Lois Joy Johnson.
I love books on wardrobe building so I loved “The Wardrobe Wake Up” by Lois Joy Johnson. I thought it brought forth a lot of sound and moderate advice. For anyone who sews, this information will work as a guide to help you find the right patterns to build your wardrobe from scratch. I did think the book could have used more detailed photos – like on how to tie scarves. I also think many readers would have loved to see some of Johnson’s ideas in plus sizes, i.e. the cropped pants. Continue reading “Wardrobe Wakeup by Lois Joy Johnson – A Review”
The Pattern
The self-proclaimed “Fast & Fabulous” La Strada T-Shirt is a recent release from Hot Patterns. I received it in the mail a couple of weeks ago and sewed it up immediately since it did seem like a quick project. There are only four pieces to the pattern: front, back, yoke, and front facing. It took a little longer to put together than a regular t-shirt with all the gathers, but I think the extra effort was worth it.
Tish Gance will be teaching members of Denver Sewing Collective how to obtain perfect fit with sewing patterns at the Fit Fest. Tish owns the sewing studio HISS Studios – in Denver, Colorado and we are so lucky to have her present this class. Tish has been sewing for over 30 years and started sewing about the same time she started working on cars as a teen. … Continue reading Tish Gance of HISS Studio – A modern sewing studio
For my second Sew All 26 project I chose a Burda pattern for the letter B. Burda 7739 is the first Burda pattern I’ve ever sewn. I made the dress in the center. Continue reading “B is for Burda”
My daughter attended Nan Desu Kan 2013 last September. 2012 was the first year she attended but this year she wanted to go in costume! One of her favorite anime shows is “Attack on Titan” and she wanted to attend as one of the soldiers:
I nearly had a heart attack! She would need a custom made shirt, jacket (with embroidered patches), strapping, and a “skirt”. Thankfully I knew I could buy the pants and the boots. And I would need to complete all of this in about a month. Continue reading ““Attack on Titan” – A Cosplay Jacket and Shirt”
Maybe I had too much free time over the New Year to browse the Internet, or maybe a lot of people were inspired to release new patterns, but my to-sew list grew quite a bit over the last two weeks! Here are some new releases I’m excited about. (All images should click through to wherever you can purchase the pattern.)
#1 Workout Wear by Fehr Trade
Fehr Trade has been one of my favorite blogs for a long time, especially for pattern magazine reviews, but Melissa has really outdone herself with these two new pattern releases. The leggings description says “the design lines carry around the sides so you look good from all angles” which is something SO many RTW leggings patterns overlook, and they have a hidden back pocket big enough for keys and a cell phone. The top pattern has a built in bra which can be adjusted independently of the top, and the pattern testers (up to a DD!) seem to agree that it’s enough support without an additional sports bra. I may be making a lot of these! Continue reading “New Patterns I’m Excited About – Plus a Freebie”
The last time I had fun at the mall I was with my boys. We were looking for back-to-school clothes for them. They were obnoxious on the escalator and we stuffed our faces with fast food. I got a coffee drink at Sbucks and I let them wander around unattended for an hour. So, the mall was fun on that day. And it was fun because I was shopping for them, not for me. Continue reading “7 Reasons Sewing Is Better Than A Cinnabon”
Way back in July, BurdaStyle.com made an announcement that they were working on a release of Burda magazine for the United States. For those of you that aren’t familiar, Burda is a sewing pattern magazine that originates in Germany but is translated to many languages and sold in about 90 countries around the world. A sewing pattern magazine looks kind of like a fashion magazine with spreads of styled photo shoots, but instead of displaying designer clothing the garments are made from patterns which are included in a sheet that you trace from. Continue reading “Burda US versus UK/International Comparison”
I’ve joined in on an idea from no big dill to . Sew all 26 is a pledge to sew an item for each letter of the alphabet, from A through Z. My A project is this sweet angel. Continue reading “Sew All 26 – A is for Angel”
Great sewing friends will give you the shirt off their back… so you can test the fit, of course! I had seen the Tessuti Fave Top on other blogs before, but passed it over because I generally shy away from anything that is “one size fits most”. That is, until Jill wore her version to a Denver Sewing Collective meetup and let me try it on. I’m kind of amazed that the exact same top looked good on the both of us, so I decided to sew up my own version. Continue reading “Tessuti Fave Top – The Ombre One”
This freebie pattern from Tessuti Fabrics was highly praised by Jill, who made her own in a lovely grey/silver fabric. At our last meetup, we were discussing whether or not this particular top would look good on all of us. Jamie tried it on and though I missed actually seeing her in it, I heard that everyone said she looked great in it.
It took a little while for me to come around, but I finally decided to give it a go. The pattern is free, after all, and I did have some appropriate purple stripey fabric just waiting to be used. Continue reading “Tessuti Fave Top – The Stripey One”
I love the Tessuti top! It’s a free download from Tessuti Fabrics, a fabric store based in Australia. All levels of sewers will love this top. It sews up quick and provides lots of opportunities for customization. On mine I lengthened the sleeves about 3 inches and didn’t interface it or even do bias binding, I just folded over the edge and stitched. I wrote a bit more on this top HERE. All in all I love the top, belted or not, and it’s one of the tops that I reach for time and time again. What do you think? Love it or not so much? Continue reading “Tessuti Fave Top – Jill’s Favorite Free Sewing Pattern”
I love the New Year. I can’t help but get excited to leave the old year behind and fully embrace the New Year coming. Like many sewers, quilters and crafters I like to think about all the wonderful new things I’ll be sewing and creating. What new techniques will I tackle this year, what new fabrics will I create with, who will I be inspired … Continue reading Sewing and the New Year!
If you own and use a sewing machine, likely you do so in isolation, in the comfort of your sewing room, bedroom, closet or dining room. We have our machines set up just so, our notions and fabric stashes in handy locations, or not. The idea of sewing with others is often a foreign one. If your machine is heavy, there’s some reluctance to try … Continue reading Welcome to Denver Sews!
Denver Sewing Collective 