Fabric: Woman's Best Friend

Readers, my fabric stash is out of control! And you know what? It is oddly satisfying to look at those mountains of glorious fibers.


So, how did my fabric stash go from a bit large, but manageable, to taking over? Well, you see, my aunt cleaned out her fabric stash, which I immediately raided. This got me an entire trash bag stuffed to the brim with fabric. Then, you may recall, I went to an auction, where a huge box of fabric followed me home for the paltry sum of three bucks. Fast forward a few weeks, and I stopped at two estate sales where at least 20 more yards came home to live with me. I guess I should also mention that about 80 or so vintage patterns came to live with me too, but the majority are, or will be in the near future, listed on Etsy.

My stash has been multiplying like rabbits, while finished garments have become an endangered species around here. I am still plugging away at my jacket, but at an snail's pace. I fear that my jacket is going to look a bit "mature", so some of my enthusiasm has dwindled. I only need to attach the collar, make buttonholes, and sew on the buttons to have it finished up though, so I don't want to end up with a 75% completed UFO.

Now, let's look at all the fabric loot.

Isn't it gorgeous?

I LOVE stripes! I think this may be rayon.

I think I have enough of this to make a jacket.

Please excuse this horrid photo. I didn't realize how bad it was until it had uploaded and my laziness prevents me from dragging it back out.

Yummy red corudroy

All for $3, plus some awful lime green polyester that I chucked and two holey chenille bedspreads that I put in the dogs bed to keep her warm

All from my aunt's stash, except for the blue polka dot piece that somehow made it into the pile.

Oh so lovely. It told me it wants to be a vintage button back blouse.

It didn't make it through the wash. :(

What I'm Working on And What in the World Should I Make Next?

Hello all my lovely readers! I thought that I'd give you all a peek into what I'm currently working on. I feel like I have been sewing it forever, since I have finished every single seam with a zig-zag stitch. I so want a serger! It would be such a wonderful Christmas present, mom.....

Now, let's take a peak at the pattern and my fabric, shall we?

I am making the short version of the jacket. The outer fabric is some sort of synthetic suiting that I picked up from a thrift store for about $2 and the lining is a crisp white taffeta lining acquired from fabric.com.

Let me just say, taffeta is not your friend when trying to sew. It looks nice and crisp as a lining once it's all sewn up and  is very reasonably priced, but the actual sewing process will have your cursing. You have been warned fellow seamstresses!

I hope to have this all sewn up by the weekend, but I do have a bit of hand sewing to do, so don't hold your breath. 

Now, let's move onto to what I should sew up next. Like most seamstresses, I am always ten sewing projects farther along in my head than on my actual sewing machine. So, here is your chance to play a part in what I sew up next!

First up is this modern McCall's modern jacket pattern. I have a few yards of this lovely camel colored coating, but I would have to acquire some lining fabric for this. What color would you line this with? I really really like fun, bright linings.

Pros: I would have a super cute and unique coat for winter.

Cons: I'm not 100% sure I want to take on another lined and time consuming project right away.

 Next up is this vintage Simplicity pattern, and I'd be making the dress. If you've been reading this blog for a while you know that I've, ahem, attempted to sew this dress up once already. Shoddy, and rushed, construction and an unfortunate incident with the iron led to it's eventual trip to the trash though. Enough time has passes though that I think I'm ready to tackle it again.

Pros:  A super cute and fitted dress that should sew up in a reasonable amount of time since it isn't lined.

Cons: I am almost positive I don't have a zipper that matches so I would have to make a trip to Joann's. Also has a pretty tricky back kick pleat that could cause a bit of frustration.

Next we have another modern McCall's pattern, this time for a cute fitted dress. The outer fabric would be this lovely stone colored cotton poplin and the hot pink broadcloth is for the lining. I told you I like fun linings! Plus, I still have yards of the stuff even after making a super full dress and a skirt. It might be the best $2 I've ever spent. 

Pros: I've been dreaming about this particular dress for a while and would love to be able to actually wear it soon. 

Cons: A full lining is not going to make for an instant gratification project. I could also run into some potential fitting issues since I envision this dress being quite fitted. 

Last but not least we have this Vogue skirt that I've already cut out. I cut out the one in the top right hand corner that has six button embellishments on the front.The outer fabric is a thick, synthetic, thrifted, navy blue suiting and the lining is the remaining piece of white taffeta lining from my aforementioned jacket. 

Pros: It's already cut out which saves me an almost guaranteed back ache from hovering over the table. I already have all the needed notions.

Cons: I have to put up with sewing the mean taffeta again. I don't think I have any top that will match this currently in my wardrobe so it wouldn't be immediately wearable.

I'd love to have your input dears readers! What should I tackle after I finally finish my jacket?

P.S. I've added some more patterns to my Etsy shop, so check it out! I have lots more to add soon!

Fall Sewing Inspiration

Hello? Hello? Is anyone out there? It seems I have been badly neglecting my poor blog these days. Shame on me! School has kept me quite busy lately, and I was out of town almost the entire week last week plus the weekend.

So, as you might imagine, not much sewing has been going on lately, though I REALLY want to be sewing. I'm working on a modern Butterick jacket that is lined right now. I would have more done but the fashion fabric and lining both fray like mad, and I've been finishing every seam. With. A.Zig-Zag. Stitch. Slow doesn't even begin to describe the process.I'll get some pics of it up in the next few days.

But for now, let's delve into some ooey gooey fall fashion goodness, shall we?

This little Shabby Apple number is to die for! I love the mustard color and the gargantuan collar.

This Kate Spade coat may just be the best thing ever, but has the worst price ever at over $600. Lucky for me, I have the perfect vintage pattern to recreate it, but unlucky for me I have no idea where one finds reasonably priced hot pink wool.

 I am practically going gaga over this amazing vintage number. I will find out a way to recreate this masterpiece one day.

Now this is a fabulous coat if I've ever seen one! Maybe if I start sewing a knockoff now, I'll have it completed by, say, my 40th birthday.

Well, there you have it my lovely readers, so great eye candy to start off the fall sewing season. Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to get some serious amounts of sewing done and post a sneak peak of my jacket. What is everyone else planning to work on for fall?

Finished: The Dainty Dot Blouse

Hello my lovely readers! I finally have another finished object to show you all, even though it didn't turn out quite as I envisioned it. Let's just say I shortened it by a wee bit too much, and now it appears that it has already shrank in the dryer.

You see, the original pattern was for what appeared to be a tunic, so before I cut out my fabric, I shortened the pieces by 2 inches. In hindsight, this was a terrible idea, but alas, you live and learn. Well, in this case you sew and learn.

Pattern: Simplicity 7446
Year: 1976
Size: Large 16-18 ( If I make this again I will fold at least 2 inches out of the center back before cutting it out)
Fabric: A cotton/poly blend shirting from fabric.com, which if I recall correctly, was $2 a yard
Notions: Zip, zilch, nada
Time: Way longer than it should have due to my icky cold
Make again? Probably not as a top, but I would consider lengthening it wear as a bathing suit cover up, if made in a super light fabric

Obviously, I used the pattern on the right.

So, there you have it, another finished object!

I have cut out a Vogue skirt to sew up next, but I am considering starting a McCall's dress instead. Stay tuned to see which I choose!

Also, over the weekend I hit up some estate sales and came home with about 80 patterns and 20 yards of fabric. About 90% of the patterns will be going up on Etsy in the next week or so. If you need petite patterns there will be quite a few so check out my Etsy shop!

An Update With a Side of Rambling

Hello my amazing readers! If you follow my Facebook page, you know that I said I was going to have a new finished object post up soon. Unfortunately, I came down with a nasty cold that has had me doing nothing but sleeping and drinking Nyquil with a bendy straw for days. So, hopefully I will have my new finished object post up in a day or two, or whenever my Rudolph nose fades.

So, feeling as if death were eminent ( I don't deal well with colds), I have had plenty of time to waste perusing the interwebs.More on this in a few minutes though.

I was feeling a bit better today, and did a bit of shopping my with mom. Oh my goodness, sewing has made me a clothes snob. I've always been a check the price first kind of person. I don't care if it is "I love it with every fiber of my being and will not be able to live without it" cute, once I see that price tag I can change my tune at the drop of a hat. Nothing, and I repeat nothing, is ever $50 cute. You see, now I check tags, and not just price tags. I want to see what the fiber content of everything is. Is it polyester? If no, proceed with cuteness and price check. If yes, start with the price tag. Is it more than ten dollars? If yes, put that little sucker back on the rack as fast as you can.. Polyester is cheap and it's not coming home with me. Well, it's not coming home with me if it costs more than five bucks. So, when the day was all said and done, I came home with one tank top from Ann Taylor loft, two mini hand sanitizers, and some 80s patterns. The moral of the story? Sewing has positively ruined my ability to be ignorant about fiber content and shoddy construction.

Next, remember how I said being sick has given me copious amounst of time to surf the internet and get drunk on Nyquil? Well, this works to your advantage readers. Have you ever seen this website? Do not, at any cost, click that link unless you have, at a minimum, two hours of free time in your immediate future. What is this magical, time sucking site you ask? Well that site would be Wish Book Web, where you'll find entire copies of various Sears catalogs from the 30s to the 80s. There are also some Spiegel catalogs and Lord and Taylor catalogs. The best part? They're completely free to download and enjoy!

I have also become quite obsessed over pinning things to Pinterest. Do you pin? Can we follow each other? It would be awesome to be able to pin things and have other people suggest patterns that would be suitable, and to be able to help others out with the same thing. Does anyone know if you can make teams on Pinterest? If you'd like to follow me, you can find me here.

So, hopefully I will start feeling better and get to sewing soon! So, readers, I have some questions for you. Have you become a clothes snob since you started sewing? How much time are you going to lost on Wish Book Web? Do you pin?

An Auction and The Fight For Patterns

Hello lovely readers! I thought that I'd share with you today about my auction experience. A few days ago I saw an auction posted on Auction Zip ( a great place to find local auctions), that stated they had sewing patterns. Hmm, sewing patterns I thought, I'll be there. Having frequented auctions before, and picking up sewing goodies for a few bucks a pop, I figured I'd have no problem having my pick of the patterns for thirty or so dollars. Oh my goodness gracious, wrong I was!! I would offer an educated guess that there were about 200-250 patterns, which sold for almost $300. At an auction with only about 70 people there at the busiest time! The patterns were the priciest item to sell all day, beating out all of the furniture.

Readers, I wanted those patterns. I was drooling over those patterns. From the moment I laid eyes on them, they were "mine" in my mind. I was picking out fabric and dreaming of sewing. I bid the patterns up to $100, which was pushing my comfort zone price wise big time, but had to back out when the price got to over $100 and showed no signs of slowing down. I did hold back the tears since I didn't want to be seen as the weirdo crying under the shade tree. I was already the youngest person there buying things, crying would have only compounded the looks I was getting. For a brief moment, I may have considered beating someone up for those patterns. I'm sure it couldn't have been more than a misdemeanor and I'm sure one of you lovely readers would have bailed me out of jail. Right? Right? What if I told you there was a whole box of Advance patterns? Would you bail me out then if I slipped you a few of the under the table?

Luckily, the entire day wasn't a bust though. I managed to buy a huge container of buttons for only $10, a real steal when you consider how much buttons cost at Joanns. I bought lots of goodies to load up my Etsy shop with, along with some lovely goodies to hoard myself. Before today I never knew that I needed a vintage badminton set for a dollar. Despite the fact that I have no children two mid century-ish kids chairs followed me home. ( Well, barely followed me home, as I had my little bitty car loaded down in true hoarder fashion.) I did manage to get a large box of fabric for $3 which contained some red double knit which will be a dress for winter. Actually, given the amount I have I think I could make each and every one of you a dress for winter. Almost all of it is polyester but for $3 I can use it for muslins cheaper than I can actually buy muslin. You've gotta love being thrifty!

So, let's see round one of my auction goodies! ( Some of it will be in the shop soon if you're interested.)

These were only 50 cents each!

I bought 5 T.V trays for $1. I think they'll be cherry red soon.

Who could resist that box?

A punch set for $1? Yes, please.

It completely folds up. How cool is that?

Suitcases are great for storage, especially when they're a dollar!

I had to buy a HUGE box of mostly crappy ( think dollar store felt stockings) Christmas stuff just to get these vintage balls.

Mad Men party anyone? It cost a quarter!

I'm not parting with these pretties!

This is THE creepiest snowman ever created by mankind.

A quarter? I'll take it!

Ladies and gentlemen, I bought even more stuff than this. For a grand total of $37, and the buttons were $10 of that! If you like seeing goodies that I dug out of "hiding" check back soon for my other treasures! I'll post my newest sewing project that I will hopefully have time to start next week soon.

Finished: The Oatmeal Dress

It's a finished object post! Can you believe it? Today, I present to you, "The Oatmeal Dress". I have had this dress cut out for about three months, but just recently got around to stitching it up. In hindsight, I should have sewn this up sooner as I am in love with it. Thankfully, this project went together without extreme hassle. I did sew one of the skirt pieces on backwards, which I was able to easily fix after a few quality moments with my seam ripper.

I pulled out all the stops for this dress. I finished every single seam, hand sewed the facing instead of my usual stitch in the ditch method, used a vintage metal zipper, and applied hem tape. This dress is the creme de la oatmeal of dresses!

The details:

• Pattern: Simplicity 2176
• Fabric: Lightweight linen from Goodwill
• Notions: Vintage metal zipper, thread, hem lace
• Make again?: Perhaps next summer
• Recommend to Others?: Most definitely

If you'd like a more detailed account of the pattern, you can find my pattern review here.

Happy Sewing!