Stacyverb

Lawn chair dress revisited

Lest you think I'm getting a big head from this recent sewing triumph and the huge increase in blog traffic that has resulted from it (thanks especially to Sally, for sending lots of new visitors my way!), don't worry.  There are several less-than-stellar projects tucked away in various corners of my house to keep me humble.

 

This dress--oh boy.  I'm so crazy about this fabric, and it's perfect for the swishy summery shape of New Look 6886.   But...the construction of this dress led to a teeny nervous breakdown one day last summer.  Later, I did rally and finish it.  I was thrilled!  So proud to have overcome adversity to complete the project!  Excited to wear the dress!  There was just one problem: it. does. not. fit.

 

Um, not even close.  Having no clue how to fix it, I threw a small tantrum (fellow sewists, I see you nodding your heads--we've all been there, haven't we?) and stuffed this dress into the closet.  Only in the past few days have I been able to look at it again.  I'm hoping that some of my many readers who sew might have some ideas. 

So, what went wrong?  A combination of things, I think.  First, I think I cut the sleeves in too big of a size for my narrow back and shoulders (and really, this wide neckline style probably isn't the best choice for anyone who has these fitting issues anyway).  Then, I messed up the elastic.  Because yes, there is elastic in there, which is supposed to help hold the sleeves in place.  But I suck at sewing elastic (this isn't the first time I've had to learn that lesson), and now it's sewn into the sleeve in the permanently stretched-out position, with no way to undo it.  So the sleeves are ridiculously floppy, as you can see.

What should I do, readers?  I'm determined to salvage this dress, but I'm at a loss.  I tried sort of gathering the sleeve, but that didn't work.  Or maybe I just don't have the skills to make it work.  I don't know.  Honestly, I'm considering just taking it to a tailor and paying a professional to fix it somehow (which pains my pride, but I might just have to admit that I'm in over my head here).  I'm good at sewing, but clueless about alterations (obviously).

HELP!

Finished: Sleeveless Simplicity 2501

Thank you to everyone who weighed in on my sleeve dilemma.  Based on the feedback I got here and from friends on Facebook, I felt overwhelming support to make this top sleeveless.  Which was great, because that saved me the trouble of making and attaching sleeves.  So double thanks for giving me an excuse to be lazy!

This fabric is so fabulous.  It's been aging in my stash since I bought it on my trip to SFO in 2009.  The print is kind of edgy mod.  It makes me think of this:

Andy Warhol's portrait of Debbie Harry

Which in turn reminds me of this:

Debbie Harry circa 1970.  Photo from Getty Images.

Debbie really rocks that black and white look.  Style-wise, the MTV article where I found these photos said of her, "she can look badass while looking sweet and NEVER appearing costumey."  That's no mean feat.  I'm a petite woman who uses a wheelchair--I get saddled with the "sweet" expectation by strangers all the time.  Meanwhile, I and those who know me well, know the truth: I am actually badass.  But dressing badass can come across as costumey, because unsuspecting people perceive me as too sweet for that.  (Oh please.)  Debbie, I could learn so much from you!

 

It would be awesome to have the gorgeous gams to wear shorts like Debbie's.  But I don't.  What I do have is nice arms (on display sans sleeves).  And a small waist (highlighted by the peplum).  And a sewing machine.

Stalled on sleeves

It's been a while since there's been any sewing content on this blog!  Let's remedy that.

 

Here's my current work in progress.  It's Simplicity 2501, which I've made before.  Right now I'm kind of stuck, though, because I can't decide what I want to do about the sleeves.

 

This is the version I made the first time, except I left off the bows because they just aren't me.  I like these sleeves, but I wonder if they're a little much for summer.

The sleeveless version is actually what I had in mind for this fabric originally, showing a little more skin for summer.  (Again, the ruffle isn't me, so ignore that part.)  But with my narrow shoulders and the peplum at the hips, I wonder if the blouse would look unbalanced without sleeves.

The third option would be to improvise some sort of cap sleeve that would be a happy medium.  I just can't decide!  Thoughts?

Quality vs. quantity

Last weekend, I boxed up a bunch of clothes to drop off at the thrift store.  Among them were quite a few me-made garments.  In the past, I've been reluctant to get rid of handmade items.  But my standards seem to have gotten higher, and now I just want these things gone.

 

Here’s a me-made blouse I've been wearing since 2005 or so, despite several problems that I kept rationalizing.  Such as: I sewed the cuffs on backward (oops).  There’s a little stain in front (I can just wear a sweater over it).  It doesn’t actually fit right (oh that).  This was one of the first "tailored" garments I made for myself, and I was quite proud at the time (backward cuffs notwithstanding).  But let's be honest: it's poorly tailored.  The whole body is too wide, and the shoulder seams hang way below my actual shoulders.  In the years since I made this blouse, I’ve figured out how to deal with my very narrow shoulders when I'm sewing.  So now I’ve finally reached a point where I look at this garment and go, NO.  It has too many problems.  I no longer feel cute in it, just sloppy.

 

Speaking of sloppiness, here are three skirts I've been wearing with safety pins taking in the waistbands, because they're all way too big (the downside of regular exercise).  Yet I continued to wear them.  The orange one in the middle is me-made, and I’ll need to replace that soon, because my summer wardrobe depends heavily on having an orange skirt in the mix.

The other two came from thrift stores anyway, so why cling to them?  I almost got rid of the black one during a previous closet purge, but I thought, "No, you need a black skirt!"  As if another black skirt (that actually fit) would be so hard to come by! 

The white flowered one I shouldn't have bought in the first place.  It was too big when I bought it, but I was blinded by its beauty.  And it was $3.29.  I figured that judicious use of safety pins would make it work.  Ditto a pair of me-made black pants (not even worth photographing).  I've kept “making do” with all these too-big garments that wanted to slide right off my body because I figured, hey, I'm sitting down anyway, so there's nowhere for them to go.  Ugh!  I’m now realizing just how many of my garments are wearable only because my wheelchair holds them onto my body.

Anyway.  I'm tired of making do, and no longer interested in keeping clothes that are almost fine.  And honestly, although my sewing skills have vastly improved over the years, I'm clueless about alterations.  So these things are going bye-bye, to make room in my closet for new things that fit and are flattering.

Do you hang on to clothes unnecessarily?  If you make your own garments, do you find it harder to get rid of those, even when you know they're not working?

Finished: "Magic Beans" Simplicity 2614

Those of you who come to this blog for sewing content haven't had much to see in a while.  But today, I present to you my fourth version of Simplicity 2614! (Here are my first, second, and third versions.)

This time I decided to make the short cuffed sleeves from View C, although I didn't make View C's tie neck.  The tie neck really isn't my style, plus I'm trying to focus on making tops that are more simple and less fussy in the collar area.  During some of the me-made challenges in the past two years, I kind of became known as the authority on wacky-print, button-down blouses.  It's a mantle I bear proudly, but I also think there's a fine line between having a trademark look and being in a rut.  So for my spring and summer sewing at least, I'm aiming for no collars, and fewer buttons.

Simplicity 2614 is the perfect answer.  The views without the tie neck have a simple, faced (collarless) neckline, and with the fabric cut on the bias, the top has enough give to pull on over the head without any buttons or zippers.

 

The fabric selvedge said the name of this print is "Magic Beans" by American Jane for Moda Fabrics.  I got mine at Whipstitch, where they also had several other colorways in stock.  After I bought this fabric with S2614 in mind, I briefly had second thoughts, because with such a definite stripe, the bias-cut sections would end up looking diagonal.  But I'm glad I went ahead with it, because I actually really like how it looks.  In different parts of the garment, the print looks variously horizontal, diagonal, and vertical.  The print becomes much more dynamic instead of just being a static repetitive stripe.

 

Oh, Simplicity 2614, how I love you!  Readers, I have a feeling you haven't seen the last of this pattern on this blog.

I just know some of you out there have made this top.  Leave me some links to your versions--I'd love to see them!

Spring fever

[How about those storms last night, local readers?  Glenn Burns was having a blast with his stormtracker radar thingy, instilling panic in citizens throughout the metro area.  I can't say he totally over-reacts, because I know things did get bad in some places.  But right here, we had mostly gentle showers all night, apparently with some thunder and lightning around 2 am, which I slept through.  We awoke to minor drizzle, gray skies, and birds tweeting. And now the sun's out.]

Spring is just about here.  Are you feeling it?  Here in the ATL, we typically don’t have much winter anyway, but this year it’s been even milder than usual.  But something switches on in my brain that says, SPRING!!! and gets very excited.

This winter hasn’t been cold, but it’s been gray and dreary often enough that my eye is craving COLOR.  Last weekend I took myself on a little shopping spree (for me, fifty bucks constitutes a spree).  I bought makeup, and bras, and tried on some clothes that I had no real intention of buying—I just needed some newness, or at least ideas for newness.

For whatever reason, lately I’m obsessed with this color of green:

Jade?  Malachite?  Whatever.  A cooler green than I normally wear.  I figured it was too far to the blue end of the green spectrum for me (blue makes me look barfy), but I tried on a top in this color, and it turns out that I look AWESOME in jade/malachite/whatever.  The style of the top wasn't great, so I didn’t get it.  But now I’m plotting what I need in my new color.  It's a gap in my wardrobe that must be filled!

Speaking of Closing The Gaps, I spent the winter knitting a brown cardigan that I need to show you, when I feel like having a photo shoot.  My hair has been going through an... awkward phase lately, so I’m not feeling very photogenic.  I’m kind of growing it out again, but right now it’s not yet longer, just wider.  It makes my head look three times bigger than it really is. 

I’m blessed/cursed with a ton of hair.  Seriously, I have to wear a size Large hat, and no other part of me is even close to large.  My hair/self ratio is freakishly out of proportion.  Sometimes I have fantasies of shaving my head (sort of kidding), but then I’m afraid my head would suddenly look really tiny (mostly kidding).  These are the things that keep me up at night (definitely kidding).

So, someday soon I’ll show you that brown cardigan, maybe with my head blurred out like some guy on Cops who didn’t want to sign a release form.  In the meantime, I decided I also really, really needed a black cardigan (and really, how do I not already have one?  I don’t know.). So I started knitting that, but I’m already bored with it because it’s BLACK and as we’ve established, I’m craving COLOR.

I also started sewing a new top.  It’s colorful, but it has also black in it, so my hope is that it and the black cardigan will want to play together.  It’s this pattern, which I’ve made three times before, but this time I’m doing the cuffed short-sleeve version that the model is wearing: 
and this is my fabric:

More details as all these projects progress!  What are you doing to get ready for spring?  (Or, for my southern hemisphere readers, autumn?)

Closing The Gaps: brown high-waisted skirt

Well, look at this: I finished a sewing project, without any drama this time.  Ahhhh, success!  So much better than failure and frustration.  Sometimes you just need a simple, straightforward project to cleanse the palate, get you back on the horse, or whatever cliche you prefer.

This dark brown skirt will be really useful in my wardrobe, coordinating with a lot of my print tops that have brown somewhere in their design (Closing The Gaps, baby!).  Also, be proud that I used a different pattern for a change.  No offense to my beloved McCall's 3341, but somtimes a girl needs to branch out, you know?  Being higher-waisted, this one has a bit more of a curvy shape rather than a straight A-line.  When I modeled it for my husband, he said (umprompted by me), "I like the waistline."  Rawr!  :)

PROJECT DETAILS:

Pattern: Butterick 5466, View E.

Fabric: Some kind of faux suede material, less than a yard (60" wide)

I'll be honest, there were better shots of this skirt, but this one cracks me up for two reasons: my feline co-worker, Bibi, made an appearance in the background; and the way I'm leaning makes it look like I have a giant Popeye arm.  Heh.  I'm easily amused.

The return of my sewing mojo?

I put a question mark on this post title because I don't want to get my hopes up, but I'm cautiously optimistic!

In case you missed it, I haven't had much sewing time this year, and the biggest sewing project I did try to tackle turned out unwearable (I haven't given up on that one, by the way, but I don't currently know how to resolve its problems, so I'm hoping fixing it can be first on my list of projects next spring).  I needed to dip my toe back into sewing with something simple.

After completing my Spicy Featherweight, the next wardrobe gap I wanted to close was my lack of a dark brown skirt.  I'm really attracted to the shape of the Beignet skirt from Colette Patterns:

I like how the high waist emphasizes the curve of the hip, and also I like the idea of a waist that's high enough for tucking in a top if I want to.  The buttons and tie belt are cute details, but I think the effect would be somewhat lost on me while I'm sitting in my wheelchair.  So Beignet might not be the ideal choice for me.  However, I do have this pattern in my stash:

It's Butterick 5466, and this is option E: high waist, darts from the waist down to a smooth front, zip up the back, princess seams in back for proper booty-fitting. Ding ding ding--we have a winner!

So I've been working this up in a faux-suede material that is a rich brown color I would describe as "coffee bean."  So far, so good!  It's mostly done except for the waist facing and hem.  As soon as I finish that, I want to make another one in a snakeskin print I scored a while back.  Hurray for using stash, sewing simple basics, and making skirts that aren't my fallbacks McCall's 4783 or 3341!

Finished: Spicy Featherweight

What did I just say yesterday--that I was tired of posting outfit photos?  Well, yeah, but I also said that when I have a new me-made garment to debut, I'll be posting about it.  And I do, so I am. :)

I'd hoped to debut this cardigan during SSS, but the weather didn't cooperate.  But today's the day!

I'm really pleased with this sweater.  It was enjoyable to knit (top-down!  no seams!), and I absolutely love the yarn.  It's very possible that I might make this again sometime in another color.

PROJECT DETAILS:

• Pattern: Featherweight by Hannah Fettig
• Yarn: Cascade Heritage Silk, color 5642
• Needle: US 4 (3.5 mm)
• I did the edging around the front in K1P1 rib instead of stockinette stitch, to keep it from rolling

I should also mention the dress, which I made two years ago but I don't think has ever appeared on the blog.  It's Simplicity 2703, made from a cotton print I bought on one of my trips to Surplus City.  Great pattern, and again, I could see myself making another version in the future.  If I do, I think I'll add a few inches of length to the bottom of it, because it does ride up a bit when I sit in my chair.

Perfect weather for a sleeveless dress with tights and a cardigan.  And this outfit will take me from day to night, as I have a date after work to celebrate eight years of marriage to my sweetie, Anthony (aka Adverb).  We'll be having dinner at this yummy Lebanese restaurant.  Mmmm...tabbouleh....

SSS: Days 28, 29, 30 & Review

Here we go: the last of my Self-Stitched-September photos! 

• Top: Refashioned from self-stitched shirtdress, from this post
• Necklace: Beaded by me

 

I forget what I was laughing about here.  Possibly I was just giddy because it was the penultimate day of SSS!

• Top: Butterick 3344 (OOP) (view A body with view D sleeves)
• Earrings: Beaded by me

 

• Skirt: McCall's 4783, one last time!
• Earrrings: Beaded by me

SELF-STITCHED-SEPTEMBER SUMMARY:

I'm glad it's over.  It turned out to be hard, in exactly the way I thought it would: the continued warm weather meant I had to keep wearing my summer clothes, most of which I'd already showed you during Me-Made-June.  So I got pretty bored, and felt dumb taking pictures of something that was boring to me.  (Of course, the weather was drastically cooler on October 1, and I finally wore something different!)

With all these wardrobe challenges, I always learn something, so what was the take-away from this one?  More than anything, I think it's that I need to make more summer clothes.  Or, really, make "not-quite-fall" clothes that might have similar cuts as my summer clothes, but in richer colors and more autumnish prints.  Our warm weather just goes on so long that I get sick of wearing the same things so many times.

I think this might be my last me-made challenge.  They've served their purpose for me, but I guess the thrill is gone.  This isn't a style blog per se.  I don't particularly enjoy posing for photos every day, or writing descriptions of my outfits every day.

This is not to say that there won't be outfit photos on this blog--of course there will!  Whenever I finish making a new garment, I will definitely be excited to share it with you.  But I won't be posting daily photos of myself wearing some random shirt I made ten years ago.  It's time to move on!

Once again, I want to send a grateful shout-out to Zoe for organizing all these me-made challenges and to my sweetie for taking my outfit photos!