Happy New Year's Everyone!

May 2009 have lots of lovely things in store for you!

Chrissy Pressies!

Gorgeous Things was asking readers what they got for Christmas this year.
Better late than never, here's some of the goodies I received:


A "seven rings of good fortune" necklace , a "Small food" cookbook and a Christina Aguilera DVD from my husband Rod.






A cute Jag coin purse from my friend Aiden.







A lovely beaded bracelet -handmade by my friend Fleur- and an interesting blown glass set.













Plus (even though I actually brought it myself) a leather bag featuring a South Australian Aboriginal Art design, from the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory .

The best present however was getting spend time with friends who came up to visit us just before Christmas:) It definitely helped to banish the homesickness bug!!!

Kwik Sew Dress/ Top (altered) - finished!

Well after many days of procrastination I have finally finished the top muslin made from this Kwik Sew pattern.
I have to say after mucking around with it for so long I am actually quite disappointed with how it turned out. This is by no means the actual original pattern's fault- as I have always found KwikSew patterns to be easy to use and make- but rather is most likely due to the fact that I am very inexperienced in doing full bust alterations.
Plus I kind of "winged" it with this one, not being totally sure what to do.
The main issues are:
- Lack of room in the "bustal" area. I think any extra space I added was taken away again by my extra wide darts, putting me in no better place than I was to begin with.
-The darts themselves: looking at the photo I can now see that the side dart is too high up, and both are too long. Also I got funny wrinkles/ "poufs" at the dart tip which didn't go away no matter how much I pressed them!
- The way in which I did the FBA caused the seamline under the bust to curve upwards, thus making the fabric underneath puff out in a rather unflattering way underneath.
-The lining fabric for the bust (sheeting) has absolutely no give whatsoever. Which is unfortunate as the seersucker floral does.














One thing that I did like was using a tip I read from an old back copy of Australian Stitches to put elastic inside the straps. This stops them from slipping off your shoulder when wearing the top. I used clear elastic for this, however I think I pulled it a little too tight-the straps now dig in like Wonderbra ones! Next time I will cut the elastic only slightly smaller than the strap, not a good inch or so.

All in all I think I can chalk this down to a learning experience. I am not too keen to try and work out the kinks in my alteration as I am pretty sure there must be a better (and easier) way to do it.
If I feel tempted to use this pattern again I would probably look at using a fabric with some in-built stretch, plus follow these guidelines put out by KwikSew on making bust pattern adjustments.

The good, the bad .....and the nineties.

After flicking through my "new" bundle of circa 1990's sewing magazine I realised that most of the projects therein could be divided up into the above categories.

So without further ado I give you:

The Good

Some examples of the reason why I like to keep an eye out

for older sewing patterns/ magazines when op-shopping.

Some of these patterns would still look quite fashionable today.

A rather nautical styled 1 piece bathing suit pattern from Burda June 1993. Made all in black it could fit right in with the recent trends of Grecian styled dresses (the ties around the waist) and deep V/ slashed necklines. As to whether it would suit me without alteration is another thing...

Below you can see a nice simple jersey dress.
Unfortunately the English instruction booklet was missing from this June 1992 edition of Neue Mode, however as the pattern is quite basic it shouldn't be too hard to "wing it" without.


Two bustier patterns. Bustier on blonde- Burda June 1992. Bustier on Brunette from Neue Mode May 1992- it appears each pattern was only available in select sizes in the Neue Mode. This bustier was for a size 36 only.


















Another 1 piece bathing suit, this time with asymmetrical top, from the same June 92 edition of Burda as the bustier above.
















Next up we have:

The Bad

Now I don't really care much for cherry sprigged seat covers even with matching red piping!I think if you can afford a sport car you would not be making these babies yourself. .

Next to continue the horror we have a lovely matching floral set that looks more like it would be at home in a bedroom (covering pillows maybe?) than on this model. Still it was the nineties and Diana magazine seems to be catered towards the more frillier aspect of that decade.


Luckily this pattern by Burda Spring/Summer 1993 didn't catch on as a fashion must have. Who would have thought that terry towelling shorts- with front pleats- would look baggy and unattractive in reality?

Finally did anyone actually look at this photo before deciding to run it in the Jun 1992 edition of Burda? This child is obviously unhappy people! Was this truly the best shot they could get- or was the budget limited to one shot per shoot only?








And lastly we have...

The Nineties

Yep in all its pastelled, puffed and padded glory.

You can betcha I wont be using any of these stylings in the near future!

Wow how bouffy is that hair, teamed with a ruffled and square padded shirt it somehow reminds me of "Dallas".


Despite the overall hideous-ness of this ensemble from Diana (complete with matching handpainted scarf!), the white camisole underneath actually doesn't look too bad.

Is it just me or does those shoulder pads make this girl look like a quarterback? And the peter pan collar.....










Finally


It's interesting to note that Burda used to also publish a "Miss B" magazine, obviously aimed at the younger (teen?) sewer. I would love to look through one of these if I ever get the chance.


Also look at how much information you got in this 1992 Burda magazine- step by step instructions for tricky areas on all patterns! It appears they stopped doing this around 1993, a pity as some of the modern Burda magazine instructions still really need it.

Merry Christmas!!!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Hope you have a wonderful holidays however you choose to spend them.

May all your sewing projects in 2009 be "wadder" free!

(P.S. above is hubby's Chrissy table centrepiece- cute!)

More retro sewing finds!

While one of my BFF's from Perth and her partner were visiting we decided to take them to one of the many outdoor markets that are part of the Darwin lifestyle.

Usually these markets consist of stalls selling locally grown Asian fruit/veggies (Dragon fruit, papaya, breadfruit and snake beans all available!), plus a few local craft stalls selling jewellery and clothing.

However this Sunday we decided to check out the Nightcliffe markets, next to a charity store that luckily for us girls was open (the boys weren't interested). Not only did they have a tonne of fabric and sewing haberdashery in store but also a stack of sewing magazines and patterns.!
All up I spent about $4.00 total, which considering the money is going to a good cause, is pretty excellent in this day and age. Although the sewing mags are from the early 1990's I spied a couple of pattern that wouldn't look out of place today. Also zippers, Kwik Sew and Simplicity patterns for 10-20cents a piece, who can argue with that?

Browsing around...

Hey folks!

I have had visitors lately up here in the top end, AND have started a new full-time job in one of my local libraries (join one today!).

Therefore not having much time to actually make anything myself I give you the best of my net-surfing over the past few days:

First up is Stacy Sews (http://www.stacysews.com/) I have to admit this was the first sewing blog I read that I felt related to people in my age group. Stacy sews stuff that is trendy, useful and up to date. Also now her talented daughter -Taylor- has taken up the sewing bug (and doing it really well!)

Also every Thursday Stacy posts a bunch of useful sewing related links AND she contributes to the Burdastyle website- just more good reasons why you should read the Stacysews blog.

Next up is Burdastyle - brought to you by the fantastic people who publish Burda World Of Fashion magazine. If you sew and haven't already found this website then please go there NOW! It has the most fantastic FREE fashion patterns- all drafted beautifully! Plus you can see what others have made (with and without patterns) and participate in a whole new realm of discussions, competitions and exchange of fashion ideas....

If you haven't heard of Burdastyle and you are into dressmaking/couture/fashion sewing, then please beg, borrow or buy (remember karma always comes back to you) a copy of the Burda World of Fashion Magazine.

If you are not sure what this is about check out the pattern reviews on sewing.patternreview.com- it will give you an idea of what type of patterns are available in this wonderful magazine. Also there is a website here that you can directly order the magazine from- plus they offer a few FREE downloadable fashion patterns from back issues!

If you live in Western Australia, Town of Vincent public library did have the Burda WOF available for loan (and inter- library loan) as part of their collection. I am not sure if they still carry this title but for the price of a few minutes of your time (to join the library) I am sure it is worth a look if you want to check this magazine out in proper paper format.

Finally : Fehr Trade. What can I say but that you have got to admire a girl who can take IKEA shower curtains and see in them a dress suitable for the Glastonbury Festival. The author of Fehr Trade- Melissa-lives on a HOUSEBOAT (former floating hotel) - how cool is that? Plus she holds fashion shows of her work-truly an inspiring experience for the stuck at home sewer.
Happy holidays everyone!!!

A few of my favourite (sewing) things...

While I am faffing around with the Kwik Sew 2955 top I thought it would be a good idea to show some of the sewing tools that I find handy (and cheap to buy).

First up is this elastic grabber/threader/tube turner thingy:















The thingy I am talking about is the one that looks like a pair of tweezers with a ring on. This is the most useful thing for threading elastic through waists and turning tubes. Basically it is like a pair of tweezers, except the end have blunt, jagged "teeth" that interlock together.
The ring slides up and locks the teeth together on whatever elastic/ribbon you are threading, then when you have threaded it you slide the ring down to release it- easy! To turn tubes insert the blunt end into the tube, close the teeth onto one side of the tube end, slide the ring up (while inside the tube) then start feeding the "tweezers" through until you come to the other end of the tube, turning the tube as you go. The teeth don't damage whatever fabric you are using and the ring makes sure it is quite secure until you are ready to release.
The blunt needle like threader came with the "tweezers" as part of a pack however I never use it, it is just that much easier to use the "tweezers".


Japanese glass head pins- I brought these as a present to myself from Knitwits in Nedlands. Originally I was a bit skeptical as they were quite pricey at $9, but after reading about how you should have good pins for sewing I thought I would give them a go.
Now I have used them I am totally converted. Good pins make pinning, cutting and sewing up so much easier, plus I don't get snags in my finer fabrics any more from imperfect/blunt pin ends.
These babies are sharp!


Plastic bobbin tidy - I think this cost me about $10 from Janome in Balcatta. Buying this has meant that I don't have to spend forever untangling bobbin spools in my sewing box. Ideally I would like to have more bobbins pre-wound and sitting ready ...maybe one day :)


Finally a "universal" invisible zipper foot that I brought from Textile Traders a few years ago. Not by any means the best one on the market, but a cheap option when starting out. If you can get the hang of using this dodgy number, by the time you can afford a proper one you'll be inserting zips like an expert:)

A full review of this item on Sewing Pattern Review is available here.

Kwik Sew 2955 Dress (WIP)

I brought this pattern a few years ago when I went through a phase of only wanting to sew Kwik Sew patterns.

I found the pattern really good when getting back into sewing, as the instructions are really clear and all the pieces are printed on good quality thick paper.

I have made this dress up a couple of times already, however due to weight gains over the past year it no longer fits properly in the bodice- at least when made up in a fabric with no stretch as here:

"Squooshed" cleavage overflowing into armpit area!

So I have been trying to figure out how to do an Full Bust Alteration on the bodice area. My "Fit For Real People" doesn't have an exact how-to on this style of bodice (I'm not very experienced), nor has any web sites I've looked at yet (I was hoping someone on SPR may have reviewed this but no such luck!).

So I have kind of been muddling through trying to do it by using a slash-and-spread method. This is my progress so far:

Original bodice section with red lines drawn in for slashing + spreading of bodice (original dart in blue).

Slashed bodice section.





Trying on the slashed bodice to see if its going in the right direction....

Putting tissue paper under the bodice and taping slashed sections down (trying to make centre and side seams sit where they should).

Trying to flatten the slashed+ taped altered bodice and work out how many darts (pluswhere to put them!).

Finished bodice redrawn with new darts (sorry about the pic being side on - I am having issues with loading this one)