Great, another hobby

It might be more appropriate to call this a hobby within a hobby - collecting sewing machines. When I found out about the Singer Genie, I had to have one. And eBay auction and $10.50 + shipping later, and yes, it was mine. It's That 70s Sewing Machine! Look at its adorableness! It should play the theme from the Austin Powers movies!

Sadly, it came without a presser foot so I haven't taken mine for a test drive yet. I'll let you know how it sews though.

celebratory sewing

I passed my prelim exam! Yay! To celebrate (yeah, this girl knows how to party!) I did some sewing - I worked on Advance 9427. I had an issue on the bodice in the front and the back, where the center seams meet the facing - what a mess. I'm not too good at seam intersections like that. I have enough fabric to cut out another bodice if I need to, though I may move on to another pattern; those little kimono sleeves built into the bodice may not be the best choice for a full figure.

Survivor: Grad School Edition

Whew! I have just survived an exhausting point in my grad school career: prelims, a week chock full of essay-writing madness. It's an initiation, some might even say a hazing, into the realm of academia. But if I passed it means that I've actually learned something after two years.

One of the benefits is that my coursework is winding down. This semester is pretty light, and once it's done I have one more class I'll have to take whenever it's offered. Of course, the down side to this is that I have to start thinking about my dissertation...

But for the moment I can savor the fact that I should never have to take another test for school. Ever. I'm itching to do some sewing, but my brain is feeling a bit uncooperative. I'd probably sew something backwards and inside out. Tomorrow I should be recovered and able to work on a project, ideally my latest vintage dress project.

Meanwhile, I've decided that I need a new serger. My current one is an early 90s White that is the most difficult to thread piece of equipment ever created. I go out of my way to avoid changing the thread, and even with the old knot-tying trick it usually comes undone and I'm left trying desperately to weave the threads into an improbable path. Sewing is supposed to be fun - there's no crying in sewing, to paraphrase Tom Hanks. After years of putting up with this annoying thing, I've finally decided to pony up for a more upscale model, one that will actually help in the sewing process and not add to my collection of grey hairs. So it's off to the area Baby Lock dealers, as my research has shown that they are pretty easy to thread.

We interrupt this craft blog -

-for the blogger's preliminary exams! A week filled with writing essays; I guess that's to be expected since I'm an English major. Anyway, the exams start tomorrow, so posting will be light if any for the next week. A danger for a young, growing blog, but it can't be helped.

Do check in because at some point I'll share a picture of the now-shortened skirt from my last post - took about a foot off! - and I am about done with another 1960s A-line dress so a report on that may show up.

Cmon baby, finish whatcha started

Don't you hate finding halfway completed projects? Like a pattern that's been cut out but that's it, or a dress that's mostly done but why didn't it get finished? Well, no more - for me, anyway. I've promised myself to finish one project before starting another.

So here is the newly completed Vogue 9959, a now-discontinued pattern for LONG skirts. At the time I was thinking that long was the way to go, after all, I'm 5'8" so I can carry it off, right? And the drawings look so very fashion-forward. Only now that I've seen myself in it I'm thinking it's a bit too long. Which is very easy to fix. Besides, how will people see my knee-high, black, lace up Mudd boots with such a long skirt? The fabric is that wonderful skull bandanna fabric in black. I have to resist the urge to buy more of it whenever I see it.

Sewing is so relaxing...

...except when things don't go my way.

Case in point: I figured I'd take a little break and cut out a skirt, Butterick 4743 (view E). I figured I had enough fabric, since it called for 1 3/4 yards and I had maybe an inch or two to spare. So I start the layout (following the directions exactly as I've learned the hard way not to try to outguess those layouts) - and I can't get the pattern pieces to fit. ???? Could there be a typo? Not according to the Internets. Finally, in desparation, I took the liberty of measuring the width of the fabric ("Little Ladybugs" by Alexander Henry, cute but not cutesy), and guess what?

The fabric is 43" wide. Not 45" as the pattern calls for. Just two inches short. Two inches! Well, that was an hour spent fruitlessly, and now I have to get back to studying. Hrumph.

It's Hard Work

Wow - I've just spent some time setting up a store on Etsy for my extra sewing patterns. It's not easy, even when you are listing unused ones. There's research to see what the going price is (if you can even find the pattern elsewhere on the Google), you have to photograph it and scale the photo, type in the description... Sheesh!

So, after putting all that work in and seeing the effort it takes to sell patterns on-line, I don't feel so bad paying for extra-special vintage patterns like this:



Found that little gem over on Grandma's Patterns. Can't wait to make it!

Maybe I have some patterns you need?

Steampunk ATC

How embarrassing to be late on a swap you're hosting! That's me. Over on Swap-Bot I devised a steampunk ATC swap, and today I got around to finishing the cards.



I'm especially happy with the one on the left, "The Aeronaut". This morning I came across some ephemera I bought from Manto Fev a few months ago; one item was a playing card, probably from the 1950s or 60s, with a model ship on the back. With the neat telescope prop next to the ship, I knew I wanted to use it for one of my steampunk cards. A Google search uncovered Rosebud's WWI and Early Aviation Image Archive, a treasure of great pictures. It's a must-study for those interested in steampunk. That archive led me to this "Public Warning" poster and the ominous "Zeppelin of Death"...inspiration for the second ATC, yay!

I understand there are some ATC artists who look down on computer-generated art. Maybe they think it's too easy. I try to incorporate other elements beside images I print and/or create via graphics programs; these cards give you an idea of how I do that.

messenger bag - see&sew 4583

Here's a messenger bag I recently made up for a Swap-Bot swap. I have so many tote bag patterns; they all look great, but when it comes time to make one up, the directions all seem confusing. I blame all the reading I've been doing for prelims. This pattern, Butterick 4583 (a See & Sew) was gentle on the ol' noggin. I love love love this fabric - whenever I can, I pick up a few more yards of it, I love it that much. I will make a dress out of this one day, oh yes, I will.

I need to find a better interfacing for heavy-duty jobs like this, lately I haven't been happy with the results of the stuff I've been picking up at JoAnne's. It's not awful, but it's not perfect.

Adventures in the A-Line Zone

I recently completed a dress using my first vintage pattern - Butterick 5681, an A-line dress from the late 60s or early 70s. It's not an exaggerated A-line, that's for sure, it nips in nicely at the waist and the darts are flattering too. It does need a belt though for optimum effect. It went together easily, except for the fact that my serger came unthreaded, which is always a major sewing heartache, though one that really can't be blamed on the pattern. The other snafu concerns the zipper. It's been a while since I've installed one, and forgot that there's a real good reason the directions specify that you sew in one direction only. Yeah - a bit wobbly on the top. But that's fixable.

The fabric is a Tracy Porter design I spotted on clearance at Jo-Anne's. I'm not sure why it called to me, but it did. It was one of fabrics that you see and instantly adore, even though it's nothing like what you usually gravitate toward. (What? I'm the only person who does that? Never mind then.)

I prefer more of a scoop neckline, so I'm not sure if I will use this pattern again. I would give it three out of four thimbles.

Obligatory Introductory Post

I've found it difficult to maintain multiple blogs; I have a nice LiveJournal that does the trick for my general "life and whatnot" posts. I'm going to try a separate blog here to document my crafty endeavors.

I'm a graduate student who just happens to like sewing and other artsy-fartsy activities. Sometimes this is a good thing - creative outlets are a must when you're studying your brains out. Other times, it's a too-fun distraction. For example, I should be studying for my prelims which are less than a month away. What am I doing instead? Making a blog. Priorities!

Lately I have been collecting vintage patterns, and I've signed up over at the Vintage Sewing Patterns Wiki, so I'll try to cross-reference my posts there and here. I will also use this blog to document the progress of whatever I'm sewing or crafting. I should warn you that I quilt, sew clothes, sew costumes, make jewelry, paint, cook, and garden. I'm a regular June Cleaver - except for the kids. I'm going to give birth to a dissertation in a couple of years, does that count?

So wish me luck, I've tried to maintain more than one blog before and it is tricky. Hope to make some new friends here.