NPRINS

I love Liberty of London prints, however the price tag has stopped me from ordering thus far. They typically run about $35/yd, and are usually only 36" wide. That's too rich for cotton, even for my 'champagne tastes'. Textile Studio Patterns just put up a few prints for a great price, and there's an additional 10% off everything on the site right now as well. $24.95/yd 54" wide $16.50/yd 36" wide $24.95 54" wide And if you need some inspiration, J.Crew is offering a few styles with Liberty fabrics. At their usual bargain prices of course. :-) J. Crew $98

I'm not a big McCall's fan, but I do remember being vaguely interested in this dress pattern. McCall's 5658 Then while browsing shopbop.com I stumbled upon this number. Look familiar? I love it when knockoffs just fall into my lap. Especially when they are Diane Von Furstenberg. Diane Von Furstenberg Sirabe Dress, $525 on shopbop.com

I was really trying to finish up this dress over the weekend, but unfortunately I didn't quite make it. Okay let's be honest, when I say 'quite' I mean it still needs a collar, hems, zipper, and seam binding for the waist and armhole seams. So at least a half a day's work at my pace. * The inspiration: Michael Kors However it is starting to look pretty nice, even if I do say so myself. The fabric is a dream to work with, and the lining technique went so much easier this time around. I used the same procedure as described here by LauraLo, adding 3/4" to all the lining vertical seams. The last time I tried this I only used 1/2", and it wasn't enough. 3/4" was a little too much it turns out, but this was better than not enough. How much extra to cut is dependent on turn of the cloth, which varies for each combination of lining and fabric. LauraLo talks about that as well. Front Back I'm surprised at how well this technique handled curve

I managed to finish up this silk jersey top in time to wear it to the symphony last night. This pattern is a morphed version of Vogue 8379 ,which is a dress. The last version was done in a leopard print silk jersey. Yes I have a thing for silk jersey, now let me get back to stalking my online fabric sources for it. :-) I purchased this fabric at Michael Levine in LA. I made only a few changes in the pattern/construction, I was really happy with it the first time. The first change I made was to interface the cuffs with fusible tricot, they were too floppy without it. And secondly I took even more fabric out of the lower back on the pattern, I had done a small adjustment the first time but was still getting fabric pooling under the belt. The fit this time around is so close to perfect I'm going to leave it alone. And here's the inside, I don't have a serger so I make good use of my machine's seam/overcast stitch. I used it for all the seams. It has plenty of str

I just picked up this issue today for $6.99, there's lots of great articles, including one by Ann Steeves of Gorgeous Things on welt pockets. Here's the rest of the contents from the Taunton website: Spring Fashion is a special issue from Sew Stylish that previews the newest styles. As you create the featured fashions, you'll also master important sewing techniques that you'll use again and again. Just some of what you'll find here: Draping 101 - covers dress forms, designer techniques, and how to use draping to achieve different looks. Construction Zone - shows you how to master the bias, enhance your hand stitching techniques, perfect the welt pocket, and sew without instructions. It's So Fitting - includes easy sleeve fitting, beyond the basic dart, and adjusting pants from waist to seat. Best Kept Designer Secrets - gives you an insider's look at how to design by proportion and do-it-yourself modular design. Make It Happen Studio - offers a qua

At Cidell's suggestion I am turning this into a blog post, you seasoned bloggers seem to think of everything in terms of 'how can I format this for my blog?' (which seems to me, 'do I have a picture relevant enough to justify my blabbing about it?'). So here it is, hopefully someone will find this useful. I hate drycleaning. I wash everything, including silks, bras, wool sweaters, lined skirts, etc. I do however use delicate wash bags, a front-loading washer, and delicate detergents like baby shampoo depending on what I'm washing. About the only thing I won't throw in the wash is a blazer, too much structure to get screwed up there. One of the big benefits of sewing your own clothes (to me) is the ability to prewash fabric before making a garment. Most fabrics shrink up to some degree when washed; weaving and knitting processes can place a lot of tension on the fibers. When you expose the fabric to water, heat, and/or steam, the fibers relax and assum

The J.Crew boatneck top knockoff is officially done! I was having issues with the silk twill drooping lower than the cotton batiste underlining and was debating on whether to start taking apart seams. I decided to just do the hand hemming of the sleeves and hem and hope it turned out okay, this seems to have worked this time. :-) There was one bubble on the right sleeve that I thought for sure I'd have to fix, but somehow in the hemming and pressing it turned out fine for the 3 feet test. (If you can't see it from 3 feet away it's good enough!) Morph of New Look 6356 Back, showing my puckery hand-picked zipper Neckline Inside showing the hong-kong finished seams and hems And my new Consew iron decided to provide a nice little display of it's power, by scorching a brown spot into my sleeve. Notice how it went on the cream area of the sleeve? Not the brown where it would be unnoticeable? It's so smart. I may have to keep it anyways. Note to self: do NOT lay

Unfortunately it's not for me. :-) I offered to make a knockoff of this Michael Kors dress for a friend using this Vogue pattern . We've already done 2 muslins, and I think the fit is very good. However she is in Virginia, and I'm in California. Did I mention I agreed to do this long distance? So far the only part in my favor is she's very similar to my measurements, although she has a fuller bust and smaller hips. Sigh, life isn't fair. I've had her looking for fabric for a month now, she finally picked this gorgeous tweed wool from Emma One Sock . I had her ship it to my house directly, and I gasped when I opened the box. That tends to happen whenever I order fabric from Linda at EOS, she has the nicest fabrics. I'm super excited to start working on it, I just have to order an invisible zipper and get some more cotton batiste for the underlining. And I have to thank Cidell for awarding me my first ever blog award, not bad for only being around l

I was browsing through my local Hancock Fabrics today when I found this gem tucked in next to some hideous poly 'prom' fabrics. While inspecting the print more closely, I found the name 'Milly' scattered throughout the fabric, which is characteristic of the designer Milly. Sure enough, I found this dress on Net-A-Porter on sale for $412 right now. The fabric is a lovely silk charmeuse, it was labeled as silk but nothing more, for $16.99/yd. Milly Satin Bandeau Dress Does anyone know how Milly fabric found it's way to Hancock's??

I like J. Crew. A LOT. * Not only is much of my wardrobe from there, I often find inspiration for my sewing projects on their website and in the catalogs. As soon as this cami came out a few months ago I was smitten. J. Crew Joelle cami, $78.00 I decided to go out on a limb and make my own pattern, I won't even call it draping because I don't have a dressform and I'm sure I broke all the rules, whatever they are. I just took some muslin fabric and started pinning and cutting. Here's what I came up with: Now while I think I got pretty close to the real thing, I wasn't thrilled with it. I've been trying to figure out why and I decided it's just not that flattering on me. The gathers at the waist kind of poof out at the belly, and the pleats on the top just look better on someone with a smaller bust. Like the lithe J. Crew model you see here. I have 2 more colors of silk charmeuse ready to go that have been languishing while I mulled this over. Leave it