Vogue Patterns Magazine October/November 2011

In my e-mail inbox this morning was the October/November Vogue Patterns Magazine notice.  I usually skip right over this notice, but I’m glad I opened it today!  I like the featured cover article about grey.  I’ve been dying to try out a grey dress after seeing two of Michelle Obama’s dresses (the Derek Lam dress and the Narciso Rodriguez wrap dress that reminds me very much of V1239).  But there are 2 other articles I would love to lay my covetous eyes on:  “Beyond Vintage” and “Hidden Treasures.”  Based on the synopsis in the promo e-mail, “Beyond Vintage” has the magazine staff making vintage Vogue patterns more up-to-date and “Hidden Treasures” is a “guide to finding materials for your next sewing project in thrift stores.” (quote from the e-mail). 

I have seen blog guides to sewing with thrift store finds, but many of them are for teeny-tiny girls or young women.  I’m hoping to see what treatment VoguePatterns gives the topic.  And, armed with my trusty 40% coupon,  I’m off to Joann’s this tonight.  Does anyone know if Joann’s accepts coupons for magazine purchases?  I didn’t notice magazines on their exclusions list…

Self-Stitched September 2011

I, JuliN of The Happy Homemaker - Redux, sign up as a participant of Self-Stitched-Sept '11.  I endeavor to wear at least 1 item I made (sewed, refashioned, crafted) and/or altered each day for the duration of September 2011.

http://sozowhatdoyouknow.blogspot.com/2011/08/self-stitched-sept-11-join-me.html

Wow, I finish sewing 1 dress and get all excited!  I think the challenge will be good for me & I have a number of things I have refashioned that can make their way out of hiding and into the light of early fall!  (Sadly, I must face facts that summer has been over in my neck of the woods for about two weeks.)

FBA Class Update - Pattern #1

I finally got a full bust adjustment (fba) right!  I’m thrilled!  This post is about my process working with vintage Butterick 4125.  Once my kiddie photographers come home full-time, I will have snaps of me in the dress.

Pattern Manipulation

This was the first pattern I have worked on using the fba process I learned through taking the bust adjustment class through PatternReview.  Before working on the fba, I sized up the pattern (it was a size 18, bust 36) as needed and (I thought) added 4” to the length.

For the fba, I did the exercises for a side bust dart first.  Then I asked about my pattern choice on the class board and worked on a paper tracing of the dress (I made a horizontal cut at the natural waist of the pattern and worked on only the top half).  After working on the paper tracing for a bit, I figured out that the pattern has a modified dolman sleeve and therefore the side bust dart would not work.

Thankfully, another class participant talked about making a french dart.  A french dart, what’s that?  Thank goodness for the Internet – I googled it.  And then I tried it.  The first dart I made was HUGE!  So, I turned the 1 dart into 2 and tested my two new darts with soil separator.  Everything looked to be a go, so I drafted the pattern onto my standby – clear painter’s dropcloth.

Sewing

7 hours of pattern manipulation later…I was ready to get on with sewing the fashion fabric!  (I’m a slow worker – especially when I’m falling asleep over the work!)  Sewing the dress was pretty easy.  It is just a front, back, front band/facing piece, and neckband.  I left off the sleeves for this first version.  I used some brown linen I had in my stash (Color = “Potting Soil” from Joann’s sometime in the last 2 years).  After sewing together the front and back, I found that I forgot to add 4” to the length in back…oh well.  I lopped off the added length in front.

The neckline instructions include topstitching instructions (which is shown on the tunic view only) so I blindly followed the instructions and wound up with a topstitched front band.  I just added topstitching to the cap sleeve and hem to complete the look.  I actually like it now.

(Plain Pattern Project Dress #1) The Verdict

I was so pleased with myself for finishing a wearable item, I wore the dress to work last Thursday!  The fit’s not perfect, but I thought I was super-cute – lol!  I wore the dress without a belt or sash and it looked more like an a-line shift.  MeToo (my duct tape dress form) modeled for me after work.

I do have to change the angle of dart #2.  I just have to remember that with darts, all roads point to the bust apex…though the darts do remind me of arrows that way.  I also have to remember to add the 4” in length for my next dress!

Next up, working through the princess seam fba!

Thriftin' ain't Easy but Somebody's Gotta do It!

I never knew how much work it was to be a weekend parent – the commuting for the handoff alone exhausts me!  But, summer vacation is over in three more weeks and the twins will be back home with me.  Yay!

We have been thrifting up a storm when we are together.  There is a GW Outlet about 20 minutes from home that we've been going nuts at for over a year.  I love the "treasure hunt" aspect of it and the kids love the sheer volume of things they can get for a little!  Most of my fine fabrics (silk, wool, leather) and upper brand name items (some with the store tags still on them), and a lot of our furniture is from the Outlet.  Most items are by the pound money or very cheap individually (25₵ paperbacks, leather coats for $4, luggage and other bags for 99₵, toys by the pound…).

The kids and I went off to the Goodwill Outlet last weekend (oops, two weekends ago now!).  It was an awesome day of thrifting!  The Little Miss needed new sneakers and a lunchbox for school.  I told her we had a $10 budget for both items and sent her off to find some sneakers.  She found a pair of Easy Spirit sneakers that fit and she liked.  Then she called me over to help her find a lunchbox.  I usually look in the clothing bins, but off I went to help her find a lunchbox.  We found an old-school plastic Care Bears lunchbox.  Mission accomplished for under $10.



Bins & Bins of Stuff



While looking through the "stuff" bins, I came across a pattern – which happens sometimes.  But when I dug a little more, there were more and more patterns – vintage patterns!  All together, I found 59 patterns – mostly vintage, in the GW Outlet bin along with a Coats & Clark A-Z sewing book.  I was totally geeked by this time.  We found a few other good things – craft supplies, a couple of toys for the Little Mister, some videos, and a few clothes – on our trek.  Total = $27.

This past Saturday, we did it again!  But this time we (me, the twins, their soon-to-be stepsister on their father's side, my sweetie, and my mom) went on a caravan trip to the Notre Dame Church tag sale in Durham.  The church holds a giant tag sale/flea market the first Saturdays between May and September.  Flea vendors' prices can vary, but the church's prices are super low.  Bags of clothing are $2+, glassware, costume jewelry, toys, craft supplies, small appliances, linens, and more!  I found more patterns, most of which are vintage!  I also got a good-sized box of sewing supplies, a weaving loom set, a skirt for me, a corduroy skirt to refashion and two waterfall art prints for just $5!  The kids got stuffed animals, rings, sunglasses, and a scooter for less than the $5 each I gave them to spend.  My mom got a self-inflicted torture device exercise machine for $6 and my sweetie found some vintage sports cards and Pez dispensers for less than $10 total.  We spent more on food and drinks than on items we purchased!  We had a great time! 

On the sewing front, I worked through the FBA class hosted by PatternReview and think I got the vintage Butterick 4125 adjusted properly.  I cut the fashion fabric out last night – fingers crossed that the sewing goes smoothly!

Special thanks to my little photographer!