Un personne, un weekend.

My weekend was lovely. I had the house to myself and had absolutely no plans. Here's what I did with all my free time...

~ The housework got done ~

~ The washing was put out to dry ~

* I did not make this quilt.

~ Some magazines were borrowed from the library ~

~ An old woolen picnic blanket found a new home ~

~ The most amazing vintage store was discovered ~

~ Some vintage items may have been brought home from said store ~

~ Spring sewing preparations were made ~

~ Spring sewing began ~

* * * * * * *

I also did an 11km walk and a spot of gardening. I am now feeling very refreshed and don't want to go back to work tomorrow.

How was your weekend?

Sam xox

My vintage Simplicity 1430 blouse.

I have been feeling in a bit of a sewing slump recently. As fellow blogger Amy put it, I think I lost my sew-jo. I was beginning to get a bit worried, as I really wasn't feeling in the mood to sew much at all. On Sunday morning I sat cross legged in the middle of my sewing room and laid out all my patterns on the floor. I stared blankly at them, trying to select one that I could make in a day and that wouldn't be too much in cost for the fabric.

I really feel like sometimes I am my own barrier, like I build up some of my patterns in my mind to be harder than what they actually are. I know I do it, and am thinking of taking up Tilly's challenge and journaling my sewing productivity.

I think that might give me a little insight into my sewing routine. You see, Sunday morning I was sitting deflated on my sewing room floor, and by that evening I had one blouse completed and three other projects lined up ready to sew. I think I definitely need a happy medium between apathetic and obsessive :-)

As promised, here are the photos of the blouse I made. I used the Simplicity 1430 pattern I purchased from Etsy a number of months ago. Why did I wait so long to sew it? Well, I purchased this pattern early on in my 'discovering vintage' stage and did not understand what "unprinted pattern" actually meant. You can guess my surprise when I opened the envelope to find a bunch of shaped tissue papers with nothing on them but holes of various sizes. It was like sewing Morse code! I was scared half to death and placed the envelope at the beck of the shelf.

After a few months, and much vintage sewing blog reading, I finally understood how to use an unprinted pattern. On Sunday morning I went to Spotlight and bought this black fabric plus a cute floral print for Tasia's Crescent Skirt pattern (more about this later this week).

Sunday afternoon was spent sewing and watching the Formula One Grand Prix. This pattern was an absolute breeze to sew! Seriously, the pattern has very clear instructions and the finished garment has a very polished look to it. The pattern suggested fastening the sleeves with snaps, but instead I made use of self cover buttons for the fastenings.

I also made a few other small changes.

- I removed one of the waist darts so that it better fit my pear-shaped body.

- I didn't include bias tape around the neck as the fabric was so sheer.

- I used buttons on the wrist of the sleeve instead of snaps.

This blouse took me around 4-5 hours from cutting to finish. Like I said, it was a very straight forward pattern, and my size only used 1.2 meters of fabric, which made it a very cost effective sewing project.

~ I am so happy with how this turned out ~

~ Side view - you can see how the waist darts give a more 'fitted' look ~

~ Button up at the wrist ~

~ Bow ~

I have this Liberty of London fabric on my shelf, and I think I will use it to make View 1 from next...

Thanks also everyone who left me comments on my last post. It was really nice to hear your good wishes, and thanks heaps to everyone who pointed me in the direction of gluten free help! You're all gems :-) I will let you know how I go.

Sam xox

A thrifty refashion.

I am super excited about this blog post! Do you remember this pillow case I thrifted a few months ago?(If you look closely at the pile of clothes photo you'll see it poking out). I thought the pattern was simply beautiful, and for only 50c, I thought it a steal. I admit at the time I had no idea what I would actually do with the fabric, I mean, it was only a single pillow case right?

The lovely bundle has been sitting on a shelf in my sewing room for a while now, probably thinking it had been forgotten. Not a chance! Inspiration struck me today, and with a little courage I took to it with scissors and thread, and within an hour I had whipped up a cute autumn skirt.

The first thing I did was stitch the hem down. First reason being I hate hemming and figured why not get it over and done with first. The second reason was I wanted a straight hem line so I could line the fabric up with the selvedge of some neutral calico I wanted to line it with (I wanted to keep the selvedge on the calico and make it a feature, by letting it fall a few centimeters lower than the hem of the floral fabric

I then cut out two rectangles of neutral calico the same width as the floral fabric, with the hem of the floral panel sitting slightly higher than the calico selvedge. I then secured the two fabrics together using a large gathering stitch. I stitched the skirt together down one side.

I cut a long thin rectangle from both fabrics and sewed it together to form a thin waistband. I then sewed the waistband onto the skirt.

I then sewed in a side zipper and finished the side seam, and voila! My less-than-one-hour-50-cent-creation was complete!

~ That's calico popping out underneath ~

~ The calico lining ~

Drum roll please! As I was home alone and couldn't find my tripod, please prepare for a photo with a quality so bad it's really not worthy of being on a blog, but here goes anyway...

~ If you squint you can see the skirt on me ~

I am super impressed with how this skirt turned out. It was super quick and easy to make, and best of all, I don't think it looks like a pillow case anymore.

Sam xox

psst! Just wanted to wish my lovely Jamie a happy 12 year anniversary (of when we began 'dating'... not marriage. We didn't get married when we were 14) :-)

Simplicity dress 4310 complete.

I purchased this pattern on Etsy about two months ago. It says it is for ladies 5'1" and under. Being 5'5" I was a tad concerned but I loved the dress/jacket combo so much I took a risk and bought it. The patterned turned out to be fine for my height.

As I worked a 6 day week this week, the only time I had to buy the dress fabric was Thursday evening. I made a quick dash to Lincraft (a standard large scale 'craft' store) and navigated my way through piles of hideous (and highly flammable) fabrics to find something that somewhat resembled a vintage print. I was lucky and found two fabrics.

The first was a fabric with a pink rose pattern printed on black, and I used it to make this dress. I decided not to make the jacket to match as I was worried that it might just be a bit too much on the... um... floral side :-)

This dress took me a day and a morning to make. I could probably do it in a day next time, but as it was my first time I had to make a few modifications to the pattern. As most women out there, I am not a standard body shape. My hips are two sizes larger than my bust, and my waist one size smaller than my hips. This pattern was my bust size, so I had to add 2" extra to the skirt pattern, and added an extra pleat too.

The dress fits like a glove thanks to having an adjustable dress form.

Ok, I have to be honest here. That is the first time I have ever inserted a back zipper the 'old fashioned way' with the bit that folds over. I was very impressed with how neat I had sewn it... the only hiccup coming when I realised it was sewn in about 2" to the right of the centre back. Woops.

I borrowed Casey's method of covering up serged hems with pretty lace. Love.

I am super happy with how this dress turned out. I would highly recommend this pattern!

Sam xox

Scalloped edges.

As you know I am loving the "Betty Draper" suit jacket Tilly made recently. I finally found the pattern for sale online last week in my size - so now it is on its way to me. Finding people's blogs who have made vintage garments I like is pretty exciting! If I love the garment enough I go in search of the vintage pattern they have used on eBay, Etsy, and other online vintage pattern stores. This search can take many weeks, sometimes months, as I search and wait for the pattern to appear for sale in my size. Does anyone else find this the tricky part of vintage clothes making? Actually finding the pattern in your size?

What I like about this jacket is that it is lightweight enough for Australian autumn/winter weather. I also like the femininity of the scalloped edges. I think they are a really cute feature and help the jacket to look good when it is buttoned up.

Speaking of scalloped edges, the Burda Style website recently wrote a brief piece on sewing scalloped edges. Even if you are not considering making a garment with scallops any time soon, it is still worth checking out for the gorgeous photos of vintage clothing. Just lovely.

On a side note, I have been working on my Sewing Homework this week and will be "handing it in" on Friday :-)

Sam xox

Capes.

I just had to share this amazing vintage cape creation made by the very clever sewer Molly! I came across her blog when she posted about this cute cape on the vintage blog SewRetro. I absolutely fell in love with it and knew I had to try making my own! The swing style of the cape is such a nice alternative to most jacket patterns I have found. I love the collar and the way the arm holes are sewn into the sides. And I love the choice of colour and buttons Molly has used on hers :-)

It did not take me long to find the vintage pattern for sale on Etsy (how good is Etsy?!) and it is now on its way to me.

As my sister-in-law Ally pointed out to me over our Skype chat last week, it is smart to plan and sew for the coming season, rather than for the one you are currently in - Ally has learnt this recently as she rushes to knit enough warm clothes to dress her family suitably for their very first winter in Germany!

Finally, a big thank you to Molly for allowing me to use her photo and share her beautiful cape on my blog. You can visit her lovely blog Molly's Sewing and Garage Sale Adventures by clicking here.

Psst! I have finished my retro quilt top. Will post photos later this week...

Sam xox

Doily.

I purchased this crocheted cropped jacket today. I have been making an effor these past six months to only buy clothes if I need them for work. This is not work wear, but there is no possible way I could crochet a vest like this! I love it so much I just had to show you all...

It reminds me of a vintage crochet doily... which Jamie thinks might not necessarily be a good thing. Regardless, I fell in love with it!

It is a rainy Sunday evening here in Sydney. Jamie is spinning his legs on his indoor trainer and I am relaxing listening to the radio.

Maybe we will start thinking about dinner soon.

Sam xox