Papa Don’t Preach

I am very thankful for Rachel and her help with Simplicity 1998. With her help I managed to save it…kinda. After unpicking the neck binding the fabric stretched out quite a bit. And I was given the advice (thanks IngeMaat) to steam the heck out of it to make the fabric recover.

Unfortunately I forgot to do it. Totally forgot. And after attaching the neck binding for the fourth time since starting this dress, well, I wasn’t going to unpick it. But that’s okay. I will be sporting the boatneck/Madonna-circa-Papa-Don’t-Preach look. And I am okay with that.

Rachel measured me, all of me: high bust, full bust, shoulder width, hip to floor, etc. With these figures we realized that my initial cutting of size 22 was oh so wrong. I ended up needing a size 14 at the neck, left the arms at 22 for length, an 18 at the bust and waist and 20 at the hips. The dress is definitely not swallowing me like before.

It’s roomy in the back but not too much.

I’m quite happy with the results. I got a wearable dress and the fabric was not wasted. The neckline could have been better but I can live with the 80s look.

Making this dress made my bad sewing habits come out front and center.

1. I very rarely measure the flat pattern and compare the measurements against my own. Had I done this I would have seen that there was 16 inches of ease built into size 22! Just so you know, the size 22 was for a high bust of 44 and I’m 43.5 so I wasn’t wrong to go with 22. I was wrong to think the ease was minimal.

2. I never pull or manipulate my fabric to make sure the grain lines are even. Bad Mela.

3. I wish I would remember to use a pressing cloth. I always end up with shiny bits on my fabric. Yuck!

4. I want to learn to love the rotary cutter. Cutting knit would be so much easier if I would just learn to use one properly.

5. Fitting would go so much easier if I basted my stitches, checked the fit and went from there.

6. I must start looking up the proper settings for my machine depending on the fabric I’m using. And find out the proper needle size. I initially used a jersey needle in size 75/11 but it kept skipping stitches. After a bit of research I went with 80/12 and it worked perfectly.

Thank you Rachel for your help. And thank you Simplicity 1998 for making me realize I have some bad sewing habits to work on.

Party Makes

I love hosting parties. I really really do. I am a born feeder, always baking and sharing the results. So when it came down to finding a place to host a little sewist summer party, I volunteered. I had a blast making the decorations and baking a few bits.

Inspired by a few fabric garlands on Pinterest, I made my own. It used quite a bit of scraps and can easily be put away and used again for other parties. Highly recommended! It’s very shabby chic and brightens up a space quite well.

My me-made napkins finally got some use. I made these when I first started sewing so they have a special place in my heart. I kept them away in the linen closet and finally decided to bring them out. They are quite bright and cheery and dressed up the table nicely.

A party ain’t a party without some sweets…

Or savory bits…

So those are just a few snapshots of what I made. I also played bartender and made some cocktails, including a gin concoction that I need to replicate again so I can share the recipe. It’s much too good to keep to myself. Once I round up some gin I will try as many times possible until I get the cocktail right. It’s a sacrifice I am willing to make .

I am a true believer that sharing is caring. So for now I will leave you with the recipe for my go-to *honey margarita. Cheers!

Fill a 14 oz. shaker with the following ingredients:
2 oz. Hurradura Reposado
Splash of Cointreau
1 oz Honey
2 oz. Fresh squeezed lime juice
1 oz. Fresh squeezed orange juice
Squeeze half of a lime
Cover, shake and pour over ice in a martini glass.

*recipe adapted from a Blue Mesa Grill Agave Nectar Margarita recipe.

OWOP: Day 7 with Stripey Ginger

Yesterday was the last day of OWOP. I really had a great time doing this challenge. It forced me to think outside of the jeans-and-t-shirt box and spruce up my look a bit. I definitely felt extra special every day because I knew I actually spent time deciding what to wear.

A group of us celebrated the end of the challenge with a few cocktails and friendly chatter. Meeting up with fellow stitchers never gets old. On the contrary. I look forward to meeting up more and more. It’s nice to chat about your hobby with someone who understands what you’re on about. Poor hubby just grins and nods when I explain what I’m trying to do with a garment. Bless.

A great night is always guaranteed when you mix three things together:

1. Alcohol

2. Chocolate (Find my tutorial on how to make these lovely macarons/macaroons here).

3. Great company.

Stitch and Witter and House of Pinhiero

Pimp My Curtains

Did You Make That, Auxetically and Lazy Stitching

Pimp My Curtains and Claire

Tilly and the Buttons and Did You Make That

What fun!

Thanks to Tilly for thinking up an awesome challenge that got my creative juices flowing. Thanks to Karen for organizing another fab meet-up. And thanks to y’all who humored me by listening to me go on and on about The Tube. I am obsessed with that show!

Liebster Blog Award

Evie form Pendle Stitches has awarded me a Liebster Award. Many thanks, Evie!

“This Award is given by bloggers to other new bloggers who have fewer than 200 followers, to help spread the word about their blogs and to help them gain wider recognition. 

Liebster is a German word meaning dearest, favourite or beloved.

The Liebster award comes with four conditions that each recipient must satisfy when accepting:

1. Choose 5 up-and-coming blogs with less than 200 followers to award the Liebster to.
2. Show your thanks to the blogger who gave you the award by linking back to them.
3. Post the award on your blog. List the bloggers you are giving the award to with links to their site. Leave comments on their blog so they know about the award.
4. Share 5 random facts about yourself that people don’t know about you.”

And the nominees are some ladies that I recently found and started reading:

She was great fun when we met in Edinburgh and I look forward to meeting again. The Crafty Traveller
Her happiness is infectious. I love her happy approach to her posts. Struggle Sews a Straight Seam
I love her photos of sewing close-ups.The Secret Life of Seams
She picks the most darling fabrics for her makes. Darling Autodidact
She and her partner sew together! What, what? You’ll Find Me Whistling

So here’s where I share the five random facts about me. Nothing too embarrassing or silly, I promise.

1. Spanish is my first language. Originally form Puerto Rico, my grandparents migrated to Brooklyn in the 50s. We spoke Spanish at home and English at school. Sadly, my Spanish has gotten ridiculously horrible and I am too embarrassed to speak it when I go home to visit. I answer in English and accept the side-eye they might give me.

2. I graduated from an all-women’s university and I loved every single moment of it. It truly was four of the best years of my life. Uni provided me with the opportunity to meet people from all over the world, travel the States and go abroad. It was during my study abroad in London that made me decide I wanted to live here again.

3. The Imperial War Museum is my favorite London Museum. A close second is the V&A. I spent a bit of time in the IWM reading rooms. I read letters and diaries from WWII for my dissertation on women and the home front.

4. I can’t swim. I tried learning when I decided I’d love to participate in a triathlon. I just can’t tread water. Not to save my life. Literally. But I can happily float on my back.

5. My first car was named Harry because I bought him in Harrisonburg, VA. When Harry was replaced I named the second car William. Yeah. I think I was always destined to live in England.

So there’s just a bit about me. I enjoy reflective exercises like this. I love going back through memory lane.

Okay. I’m off to get ready for the final day of OWOP. Looking forward to meeting up with fellow OWOP participants tonight. Yay!

Jasmine+Madeleine=Happy Mela

From all the Victory Patterns it was the Madeleine pattern that I was most drawn to. I love how flirty flared skirts look. When it came to making Madeleine I was quite nervous. At the time I hadn’t made a lapped zip or top-stitched a garment so heavily. I actually experienced my first thread emergency. I ran out of top-stitching thread and had to run out to Rolls and Rems to pick up two more spools.

Sewing up the skirt was relatively easy. I graded the pattern up one size and cut off 3.5 inches from the hem. The only real issue that occurred was that my waistband still came out short. I had to improvise and make a loop to catch the button on the back. Worked pretty well, I think. The only other hiccup occurred when some of the top-stitching DISINTEGRATED on one of the pockets. I had to stitch it again by hand because the dress was already completed. Upon inspection you might notice the crooked stitches but I doubt anyone will be looking that closely.

The inspiration behind the fabric color is my upcoming 10 year (!!!) college reunion. Recently I purchased my plane ticket and I pictured wearing a green Madeleine on the flight. Our university colors are green and gold. Although I didn’t pick the right shade of green I much preferred the kelly green. I purchased the fabric from an eBay seller and I am really considering buying more to make a cropped pair of the Colette Clover. The cotton drill is so soft, has a bit of stretch and it worked beautifully.

After I finished making Madeleine I knew a great compliment to it would be a Jasmine blouse. I used some navy floral fabric I picked up during Karen’s Fabric Fandango. Now that I look at the two together I’m not sold. I swear the look worked in my head. I am totally not on my way to a dairy farm or to sing in the hills of Austria.

But I will admit. I LOVE the way the navy floral fabric compliments all the details in the skirt.

Great roomy pockets to smuggle in candy into the movie theater (Muahahahahahaha). If I make the skirt again I definitely will trace two lines on the right side pockets instead of one. My second line came out a bit wonky without a line to follow.

I bought these buttons from Totally Buttons and I love them. They are so so sweet.

My improvised button loop. Can I just say that the lapped zipper might be the way to go? So pretty and easy.

I think I am going to sport the skirt with a simple t-shirt. The skirt is such a statement piece that it should not compete with a top.

This is my second Jasmine. I made it especially for the skirt but have decided to wear it on its own. It’s a bit roomy and I am thinking I will take it in on the sides a bit. I don’t know why with dresses and blouses I under-fit or over-fit. It seems skirts are just my thang. Working on making them all my thang.

After so much modeling I happily rewarded myself with a nice cup of coffee. Oh! Notice the headband? Skirt scraps I turned into a headband. Won’t be pairing that with the skirt in fear of looking too matchy matchy but I love the way it looks with the new Jasmine.

Meet up in Ed-in-burr-ə!

Crafters’ Ceilidh

All the lovely crafters. Photo credit: Debi Fry

What an amazing meet up! Thank you Debi, Kristen and Kestrel for such a wonderfully organized get-together! I am so tired but all that shopping and browsing was so worth it. I met new bloggers and got to re-connect with old ones. And some people I didn’t get to chat with at all! I am so so sorry. I promise I wasn’t being rude. I always find it hard to exchange words with everyone in a big group. I get a bit overwhelmed.

Anyhow, here are some of my photos from the day. I posted some more scenic ones at my expat blog if you’re curious.

Kristen talking Itinerary

Scruffy Badger and Did You Make That discussing shopping strategies, perhaps?

Vintage pattern search

Marching on, two by two!

Debi needs "that" pattern.

The Voodoo Rooms: a great end to a great day

The Haul

I am glad I went shopping with a list (interfacing, buttons,tartan fabric, fabric for another Jasmine and one for Lisette 2246). The only fabric I didn’t intend on buying was the brown and black check ones. The brown one was on offer so it had to go home with me. The black check would look great as a long-sleeved Negroni for the G man and he’s due for another gift. He’s that rad.

The haul. I *will* learn to match checks!

This will go in my future sewing room. Eventually.

Looking forward to the next meet up! And maybe Dibs and baby Noah can join us? Hope so!

Scotland meet-up? Yes, please

Maybe finally I can find my dream tartan fabric so I can make a dreamy circle skirt.

Edinburgh, are you ready?

Looking forward to meeting up with some lovely ladies and hitting up the fabric and knitting shops of Edinburgh.