Tag Archives: vintage

Spring Cleaning Giveaway

May 1, 2013

100_3334To start off my first Me-Made-May I’ve got a giveaway for ya’, and it’s a big un’! This giveaway has something for sewers and non-sewers alike.

First, I have some patterns to give away. I will mail these to fellow sewers anywhere around the world…

As I was going through my wardrobe and making my plans for Me-Made-May, I realized that there are several items that I made over the past few years and rarely wore or only wore once or twice. These dresses deserve to be worn and loved. I can’t bear to give them to a thrift shop, so I thought I’d see if anyone out there might be interested in them… Continue reading →

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Mad Men Sewing Challenge Dress Complete…Barely

April 22, 2013

IMG_6658I finished my Mad Men Dress, just in time. I was so glad to have an extension.

I aimed to have this dress done on Friday (the original deadline), but I’ve been distracted since Thursday. We’re redoing our whole yard. We’ve been pulling out concrete, filling the pool in, clearing, pruning, tilling, etc. I’ve had to dig up and temporarily pot a lot of plants to replant when we’re finished. Needless to say, I’m amazed that I managed to just squeeze this dress in by the extended deadline…

I used Butterick 2952 as a base pattern, and made a lot of alterations and additions. Continue reading →

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Mad Men Dress Plan & Liebster Award

April 10, 2013

Mad Men - Season 5, Episode 5 - Photo Credit: Ron Jaffe/AMCStrap in…this post has two subjects, but I hope you’ll stay with me.

Apparently, this is gonna be the year of sewing challenges for me. I learned something from participating in Sew for Victory: sewing challenges/sew-alongs make me more productive. I don’t mean just when it comes to the items made for the challenge. I see an increase in my general sewing productivity when I have a special project to work on. So, over the next few months I’m going to hop onto a few other challenges: Mad Men Dress Challenge, Me Made May, and maybe even the Great Gatsby Sewing Challenge.

Anyway, I’m excited about participating in Julia Bobbin’s Mad Men Dress Challenge this year, and I thought I’d share my plan. Continue reading →

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Last Minute “Sew for Victory” Dress

March 31, 2013

IMG_6318I learned about the Sew for Victory challenge really late in the game (this past Sunday), but I decided that I really wanted to try to complete a project for it.

I’m keeping this post really brief in order to meet the deadline, but I may add a separate post in the next few days with more details about the alterations I made to the pattern.

This dress took a LONG time. The buttons and belt added a lot more time to the project, but I would say it was time well spent. Continue reading →

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Mini Mushrooms Make Me Merry Dress

March 25, 2013

IMG_6102I know, I know, the title. I just couldn’t help myself with the alliteration. Besides, it’s a totally true title. Oops! There I go again.

I realize the title of this post could give some people the wrong idea. Don’t worry, I’m not on shrooms. The mushrooms on this dress do make me pretty happy though.

I found this material last year at a thrift store. I believe I purchased it for about $0.50. It was in excellent condition, with no stains or smells. After a good washing and pressing it was reinvigorated.

It appears to have been cut away from a longer curtain of some sort. The top was clearly cut by pinking shears. It had a hem on the bottom with weights at the corners, and each edge was finished. I had to take apart the hem and sides to get some extra inches of width and length. Continue reading →

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Blue 40s DuBarry Dress

March 14, 2013

IMG_5981I’m still here! I have sewed a few things, but I have been a very bad blogger and neglected to post for a while–which, unfortunately, means that I have already failed at one of my goals for the year. Oops… Although I sometimes go MIA briefly, rest assured, I will be back (As you no doubt have figured out, if you’ve read this blog for a while)…

OK, enough of the excuses! I’m making myself dizzy with self-disappointment. Here is a finished dress…

I made several alterations to the pattern. I didn’t add the yoke (I don’t like high necklines), and I used bias tape and top-stitched around the neckline. I also adjusted the shoulders at the neckline to account for the missing yoke. Many vintage patterns have unbelievable amounts of ease and this one was no exception, so I took the dress in a tad on the sides. The sleeves are also smaller than the original pattern. I ended up making them a little too tight for my taste, but they work… Continue reading →

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First Thrift Haul of 2013

January 14, 2013

IMG_5878I went on one of my thrift and flea market circuits this weekend, and I can’t help but share what I found. I hadn’t been out “thrifting” in months, and I almost didn’t go out this weekend. But, boy, am I glad I went on Saturday! Continue reading →

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Christmas dress & a new look for winter

December 29, 2012

IMG_5856I know I said I wouldn’t have a sewing post up again until January but I couldn’t resist sharing my Christmas dress that I finished at the last minute before we left.

I’ve had the material for several years, and I think I bought it at the thrift store in Moscow, ID. It’s a light pink and white with snowflakes and reindeer. It’s perfect for winter. It’s Christmas-y but not so much so that I can’t wear it at other times in the winter. Continue reading →

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The Louisa Coat: Pattern and Construction Process

November 15, 2012

As I said in my previous post about this coat, I modeled it after a favorite well-worn coat that I have had for several years…

The store-bought coat is an extra-small, so it has always been difficult to wear anything too bulky underneath it in the winter. Therefore, I sized up just a tad for the pattern, to make it more like a size small.

My biggest complaint with this jacket was always the sleeves and armholes. I could hardly lift my arms in the jacket, especially when it was buttoned. It was so bad, I had difficulty extending my arms out in front of me, parallel to the ground…

There were some other changes. I widened the welt pocket opening a bit because I could hardly fit my hand into the opening on the store-bought jacket (and I have small hands). I also changed the placement of the welt pocket. Continue reading →

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The Louisa Coat

November 14, 2012

Technically this was a muslin, and there are several things I will change about the pattern after making this coat, but I hope you’ll agree that this is a very wearable muslin.

The material is actually a vintage double-knit that I found at a thrift store several years ago. The pattern in the fabric is perfect for a coat. At first, I chose the material because there was plenty of it and I didn’t have plans for it otherwise. However, once I started cutting it out, I realized how perfect the material was for a coat…

The design is based on a well-worn and well-loved coat that I have had for several years.

Continue reading →

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