Doppelganger

[I wrote this yesterday...] Da da, it's my birthday! Da dum, it's my birthday! And my Mum is getting BETter! It's been a tough 6 weeks but things look like they are finally moving in the right direction.
So about my birthday - I've only been thinking about getting a dressmaker's dummy for about 30 years and today I got one.

My Dad is here for the day and since he has a car, we drove to the Fabricland where I wondered if I'd have to order a dummy. But no! Not only did they have lots in stock, they were 40% off just until tomorrow for members only. Woot!

It's not fancy but I am really looking forward to finally using a dummy for more than just fitting. I might even, eventually, sign up for that pattern making class at the college where I teach. It's part of a larger program but they might let me take just the one course.

She's a nice pink colour and she's as small as this size gets - unfortunately, when I get upstairs to the sanctity of my sewing room, I'm going to have to crank open those dials almost all the way for this size. However, I have been going to the gym - it's one of the main things that has helped during Mum's problem - and I have actually lost an entire pound. Yes, I did say "one pound". When I was 20 I weighed 25 pounds less than what I weigh today at age 49. Not horrible and I call it my "survivor fat" - if I fell off a boat tomorrow, I'd be able to live for a while on it - but I'd still like to be a little lankier than I am now. Never mind. Que sera, sera and all that.

2 shirts finished

Where does the time go? Mum is doing better - thanks to all who have commented and sent their prayers. She is awake and starting to show frustration, which is a sign that she wants to get OUT of hospital and we are all cheered by that. But as "What About Bob" said, it's baby steps to the elevator.

In the meantime, I finally made it to the Fabricland for shirt buttons and got enough for both the striped shirt and the camp shirt. I made all the buttonholes on Friday and sewed 17 buttons on Friday night while watching tv. Therefore, I was ready on Saturday morning to wear the striped shirt to visit Mum.

She had bought me the fabric one day when we were both at the store together. In the photo, I am also wearing the very first jean jacket I made from that Vogue pattern I use all the time - it is a lightweight cotton twill. When I got to the hospital, I pulled up my gown (she is in isolation) and flashed her my bright clothes and told her that the shirt was made from the fabric she bought me. She totally reacted and formed a face that went "ooh, ah!" and so I was thrilled (she can't talk due to a tracheotomy).

I only took a photo of the other shirt before I did the buttons but here it is anyway. Now I only have to make three buttonholes on the grey suit jacket and I'm done all those UFOs and can start on something new. DressADay has inspired me to start "sewing with a purpose" or SWAP. The second link is to the page where SWAP is described and the root url of that page is a woman who sells fabric in Nova Scotia. She has a contest and I won't be ready to enter it this year but maybe next year. In any event however, it's all about not just sewing this and then that with no direction. (That's a heckva sentence, sorry.) I have two lengths of twill - one in a mid blue and the other a kelly green - that could form the basis for the two solid colours part of SWAP. And a couple of weeks ago, I was actually inspired to give away about a half dozen skirts I never wear (waistbands too small) and dress pants I'd bought from Sears and now never wear (same problem) so I actually have an inch or so of open space in my closet. I have to do the same with the blouses I have that are polyester and therefore don't work well with my body chemistry. I have to stick to cotton and rayon.

Anyway, I now have to go study project management - I'm taking a course in it at the dame college where I teach. They offered it for cheap to staff but I am finding it interesting and it is possible it could add to my resume. I'm going to do some proper planning for my SWAP but I'm also going to give myself the "out" to sew something else from my stash, just for fun. What was really interesting was that when I went to buy the buttons, I walked around for about 10 minutes with a remnant bolt of some nice 100% cotton for another camp shirt but in the end, I put it back and didn't buy it because it wouldn't necessarily have gone with anything else in my wardrobe. You CAN teach an old dog new tricks!

Continuing with the Camp Shirt

Happily, Mum has started to regain consciousness! We have toe wiggling on command! I'm so looking forward to seeing her this weekend. By then, she'll be way past toes and into eyebrow raising I hope. I thank everybody out there who is wishing her well or praying for her.

In the meantime, I'm making that camp shirt.

The pattern calls for front facings. I have learned the hard way that if I spend a little time finishing the raw edge, I won't get fraying threads later on after I wash it. I iron on the interfacing and then iron down the free edge. Next, I sew it down with a zigzag stitch.

Sometimes, I use a straight stitch but the zigzag looked okay on this busy print. I know no one sees the inside or wrong side of one of my shirts but me, but still, I like the inside finishing to look nice.

You can't see them in the photo but I marked the four corners of where the pocket goes with blue chalk. Then I put pins in so I'll be able to see the dots on the outside or right side when I turn over the left front piece. In the photo, I haven't ironed down the dart yet either.

Next, I take a piece of uncut fabric and line up the stripes with the front piece where the pocket is going to go. Then I put the pocket pattern piece on the fabric so it lines up (vertically) with the pocket markings. I usually cut out the pocket piece with pinking shears so I don't have to otherwise finish the raw edges once they are folded to the inside. Check out a store-bought man's shirt and you will see that the raw edges of the pocket are not finished either.

With the pocket itself, first I iron over a little fold of the top raw edge and sew it down. Then I sew the top, right sides together as the instructions indicate, along the sides at the top and turn it right side out.

Then I iron down the top and continue down the sides and across the bottom, to make the pocket look finished. At this point, I also sew down the top fold so that you see one line of stitching on the right side. There are two lines of stitching on the inside of the pocket top because I have already sewed down the little fold. It's over-kill I know but I tell you, my pockets never come apart! :)

Once I have the folds all ironed, I unfold the bottom corners and turn them into mitered corners. Again, who cares? But I do because I think it makes them neater.

There's that darned yellow cast to the photos again. I think that happens when the flash doesn't go off. Anyway, when it came time for me to place the pocket on the front for sewing, that's when I noticed that, as cleverly as I had lined up the stripes vertically, I had neglected to notice the horizontal pattern! And the pocket therefore doesn't match the shirt front exactly. I could have just made another pocket. But I didn't. And so I decided to rationalize that I like it better this way, where the pocket doesn't entirely disappear into the shirt front. And the reason I did that was because I didn't notice the horizontal issue until after I had sewed the pocket to the shirt. sigh.

A summer shirt

Last day of January, although not of Winter, I know. Erin at DressADay is waiting for summer and I have decided (at least for now) that so am I. I have been thinking about this shirt I made some years ago and how comfortable it is and have decided to make another. It is what LLBean might call a camp shirt - short sleeves, spread collar, straight (not fitted) body. I wear this shirt a fair bit in the Summer because it is cool and not fitted but it also isn't too baggy. I made it out of something that is probably rayon although, since I got the fabric as a remnant, it didn't say what it was.

The problem comes from not remembering which of my patterns I used when I made it. I got out the most likely pattern and laid the paper over the shirt and it seems to be the one, Simplicity 9210 (not the puffy sleeves version!)

So then I went looking through my own remnants and rediscovered this rayon from which I had made a dress even more years ago. At the time, I was wearing dresses to work every day and I made "several" (read "many") using this one pattern that was so easy and nice to wear - McCall's 8017. However, I also made them fairly short and now that I am several years older, I find myself approaching (if not already at) an age when skirts above the knee don't really work for me any more. Which is to say, I may not wear the dress made from this fabric any more so I am okay with making a shirt out of it.

As far as my Mum goes, she's still in hospital and still asleep. Her doctors call it it a real conundrum but they are all interested in how to get her back to normal and working really hard at it. I think it helps the doctors to work harder because all kinds of family visit her every day and it is clear that many people care about her very much.

A new skirt

It's been a heckuva a week, with my Mum in hospital with no clear diagnosis or prognosis. So I kept myself busy and, among other things, finished the skirt.

You can't see any detail because the fabric is so dark but I wore it to teach on Thursday and got Peter to take a photo when I got home. Those are the tall suede boots I wear when it's below 20 below. And the jacket I made (of course) from some lovely thick wool that Mum got me years ago. I don't sacrifice warmth for fashion!

First, back to the beginning. I sewed a piece of lining to each fabric piece - there are only three pieces for the skirt - one front and two back. I made the darts first.

I put pins in about every inch-and-a-quarter, so the fabric wouldn't have a chance to stretch and go into folds as I sewed it to the lining. I used a wide zigzag stitch close to the raw edge to stitch the two pieces together, except at the top where I used a straight, basting stitch because I knew I was going to trim the seam when I was finished attaching the facing.

Once I had all the lining attached, then I sewed the two back pieces together and hand basted where the zipper would go. I chose hand basting this time because I thought when it came time to rip out machine basting, I might find myself snipping the wool fabric itself because the fibres are so loose. It also gave me the opportunity to use a contrasting thread so I could see it better. Then I pressed the seam open and pounded it with my clapper to get as sharp a folded edge as possible.

Because the fabric is so loose, I also basted this zipper in before sewing it, something I don't often do. I can be a bit of a lazy sewer and don't do much basting but it does pay off if you want to be careful.

I had bought a dark brown zipper the last time I was out at the fabric store but I also picked up a black one while I was at it and when it came time to choose the zipper, I went with the black one, as the fabric really is very dark.

With the vent at the back, I made chalk marks on the inside (or right side) of the lining, so I would be able to see where to stitch. In the photo, my fingers are pointing at the chalk marks and I can see them but they are pretty faint for the viewer, sorry. I also folded over, pressed and stitched the long edge of each side of the vent to finish the edge.

I folded the vent over to one side following the pattern instructions and stitched a line of basting along where I had put pins to mark the stitching line. I also pinned the vent into the proper position and took the pins out as I sewed the vent. For the hem, I machine sewed some of that lace seam binding along the raw edge of the skirt and then folded the hem up and sewed it up by hand.

In wearing the skirt, I can see faint evidence that the wooly fabric wants to behave differently from the lining and there is a little bit of bagging because of the way I stitched the lining directly to the fabric. But I found that I can just twitch that away when I stand up and anyway, the fabric is so dark, that you hardly notice anything happening. For a remnant, I think I'll get a fair bit of wear out of this skirt and it doesn't owe me anything.

An old coat

Just a tidbit until I blog some more about the skirt - stuff to do in the meantime, unrelated to sewing.

I made this coat maybe 5 or more years ago, out of some fleece that was on sale (no! imagine that!). I lined it but it's not double-lined so I wear layers under its roominess for warmth. The cuffs are folded up on purpose - I could have put contrasting fleece there - and so they are an extra source of warmth. It's the perfect size and length and everything. And I made a headband out of the left-overs. I also made the pale mauve fleece I'm wearing underneath and my Mum knitted my mittens (which I'm not wearing in the photo). If I ever learn to knit, I may never leave the house.

And now another skirt

I can't believe I don't have enough shirt buttons in my stash! I have finished the candy striped shirt except for the buttons.

So cute! Anyway, until I can get to the store for buttons, I have turned my attention to the big remnant of brown fabric that I used for the yoke on the orange skirt I just made. The only thing I could think to make with it, because it is quite thick, is the plain, straight skirt of which I have already made many. That is McCall's pattern 3830 and I generally make the second longest view B.

The fabric totally didn't show up in the first shot, so here it is in closer and with better lighting.

I've already got it cut out and some lining too. In spite of what happened with the purple skirt, I am going to sew the lining directly to each skirt fabric piece only I'll be better prepared for the potential stretch. With a long vent in the back of this skirt, arranging the lining so it doesn't show can be tricky. If I sew the lining right to the skirt pieces before they are assembled, then the lining moves directly with the skirt.

A blouse in the meantime

Well, thanks everyone for their compliments. I still went to the gym today (finally!) and lifted weights. I get a fair workout getting there and home again, what with the 20 minute walk and the same going home but carrying groceries. Anyway, I think I have broken my bad habit of not going and hope that those 10 pounds that make me squeeze into the coat will disappear before it is warm enough to wear the coat. And yes, I know it is more about what I eat than how much I exercise! It's the actual doing of it that's difficult.

In the meantime, I have been wondering what new project to start. I have all kinds of stuff here to work on without buying anything new, although I did get a gift certificate for Fabricland for Christmas! (Thanx, N!) While that has been percolating, I have still be debating about the buttons for the grey jacket. Here they are, pinned to the jacket to make them seem more realistic.

And here they are in extreme close up.

I know you guys didn't like the one on the right with the gold band, but I am still thinking about it.

In the other meantime, I have had a length of cotton hanging over the upstairs railing since way before Christmas, when Mum bought it for me off the extreme sale table. I wanted to make a shirt from the pattern I have used many times before and I thought it would be a good type of shirt to take to Florida. It is all cotton with a little bit of Lycra so I can make it in the close-fitting pattern and still have room to breathe. I decided just to cut it out and get going on it.

The pattern is Simplicity 9877 and advertises itself as a cowboy shirt but if you don't add embellishments and just make a shirt out of it, it is a very easy pattern. Plus, when I was cutting the fabric and my scissors were slicing cleanly through it and not getting hung up on fuzz and there was no shredding and fraying, I totally relaxed and knew I'd have the shirt made in no time, just for the fun of it.

I completed the shirt fronts with bands and darts in no time.

When you have Lycra in the fabric, installing the collar is a snap because you can just stretch the fabric instead of clipping it.

And so here it is, about half done. I am flat felling the seams (of course) and will put the sleeves on next so I can fell the shoulder seams more easily, before the underarm and side seams are done.

And the coat is finished!

Ta Da!

And with a large square scarf that I have had for years but whose colours work so well with this coat:

And now I see I really DO have to lose 10 pounds. At least.

Coat almost done and a button question

The hem in this coat is done (according to the instructions) like the hem on a lined suit jacket. Which is to say, you sew the lining hem to the coat hem and all the insides are sealed in. I decided to do it that way, partly because it was in the instructions but also because of how the fabric frayed. I sewed up the coat fabric hem first, taking large stitches that hid among the loose weave of the fabric on the outside.

After I pressed the hem flat, I pinned on and sewed the lining hem to the coat hem, like I would in a suit jacket.

Several years ago, I made myself a fake fur coat using a different pattern. This pattern instructions called for a free-hanging lining and suggested I do a couture type hem on the coat, which I did. First, I had double-lined the fabric as I did with the current wooly coat I am making, by sewing identical pieces of lining fabric directly to the coat pieces before I sewed them together. (And boy, is this coat warm!) Then I sewed a long, slightly bias strip of the "real" lining to the coat hem so that when I turned up the coat hem, I was turning up a good six inches of fabric. In the photo, you can see the gold lining which is free from the coat at the bottom. You can also see the hem of the "fur" part which has been sewed to a strip of the gold lining. I put this in as a contrast in methods.

Now for the buttons and the buttonholes. First I found the nice, plain mottled purple buttons. Then I made normal buttonholes with my automatic buttonholer. Because I feared all the threads of the coat fabric would pull away when I cut the buttonhole open, I zigzag stitched all around the nice buttonhole and got this mess:

Yuk.

I let it hang there on the door for a day, looking at the white blob every time I went by. Finally, I decided to pick out the threads (I used a seam ripper) and start over with a darker thread.

Much better. Now, I hadn't cut the holes open yet and when I did, as I feared, I cut half the original buttonhole threads (too much fluffy wooly stuff in the way) so I had to go over most of them and stitch them down again (a photo on that later). The next entry will be about the finished coat and hopefully, I will be wearing it! I'll be sewing the buttons on tonight while I'm watching the new CBC show "Little Mosque on the Prairie".

Finally, I still haven't done the buttons on the grey suit jacket I was sewing before Christmas. I'm going to use one of these buttons from my stash but am still undecided. What do you think?

Fleece and a great bike ride

This entry isn't really about sewing but it is partly about clothes. Yesterday was so mild - it got up to 4C and it was sunny - that we decided to bike to the MEC to look at sports clothing. That's a 20km round trip -- in January! I wore my old but favourite Pearl Izumi sports pants (the kind with an ankle zipper) and a fleece jacket I had made over a turtleneck, all under a GoreTex bike jacket. I also wore an ear band, mitts and a neck gaiter, all of which I took off on the ride home. I was ostensibly looking for new stretchy pants to bike in but I always keep my eye open for "technical" clothes that I don't or can't make myself. I like making my clothes but sometimes, it is nice to buy some that someone else made. And I can't always find the "technical" fabric, like really good fleece that doesn't pill. Since I don't have a serger, I also rationalize buying things like t-shirts.

Here are the clothes I got at the MEC - two long sleeved t-shirts and a fleece jacket a lot like the one I made. I especially loved the green of the fleece and the t-shirt. Also on the bed is the mauve fleece jacket I made (even if you look closely, you can't really see the pilling but it's there). I was also lucky to finally get some YakTrax in my size. Peter has been looking for them but they have been sold out everywhere. Yesterday after we were finished at the MEC, we stopped across the street at the Expedition Shoppe and he found YakTrax! I am tired of falling on my ass during episodes of freezing rain, and after I passed 40, I realized I don't bounce like I used to and it hurts more to fall.

Last evening, I sewed up the hem on my coat and expect to finish it today. I got buttons on Saturday and will show photos and blog about the coat in the next entry.

Two Skirts Finished!

I always feel clever when a plan comes together. Here are all the pieces of the orange wool skirt, laid out and ready to sew. It's a nice simple skirt pattern so there are four gores in each of the skirt and lining, three yoke pieces and three yoke facing pieces, plus of course, interfacing.

You have to sew the yoke to the skirt before you can put in the zipper. In spite of the slight differences in fabric weights and stretch, the dark brown sewed to the orange "wool" just fine.

Because I didn't want to go to the store, I just used the 23cm black zipper I had, instead of getting an 18cm dark brown skirt zipper. I am sure it will work out fine. Then I attached the lining to the bottom of the yoke by pinning it to the now ironed-open seam allowances where the yoke is attached to the skirt. I have to topstitch the seam allowances on the right side and I figured I could secure the lining with that topstitching. First I pinned the lining on the inside, to make sure it was properly lined up with the seam allowances. Then I put pins in around on the right side, so I could take them out as I sewed. I have decided it is bad for my machine to keep sewing over the pins as I have done all these years and although it slows me down a bit, I now remove pins as I go.

Here is the lining pinned both from the inside and the outside. Once all the pins were shifted to the outside, I sewed two lines of topstitching around on the yoke and skirt and the lining was attached. After that, I sewed the yoke facing (in black broadcloth) to the skirt and stitched it down by sewing in the "ditch" - the actual seam on the right side, between the yoke and the skirt.

I sewed the hem by hand. Often, especially on cotton and casual skirts, I sew a narrow machine hem but on these wool skirts, I decided to go by hand.

Once the skirt was finished and pressed, I cut off the excess lining fabric that showed past the finished wool hem. I had cut the lining gore pieces to the same size as the wool pieces so the hem of the lining would show if I just hemmed it up like the skirt. I had to make the lining shorter than the skirt and I decided to cut off fabric and make a narrower hem, rather than folding up the lining and making a wide hem.

I ironed up a fold of the lining and then a second fold and then I just sewed around it on the machine because it doesn't show.

Because the lining was only attached around the yoke, I decided to sew it to the zipper tape on the inside so it wouldn't get caught in the zipper when putting it on or off.

Finally, here are both skirts! You can see the purple one is shorter than the orange one and I am glad I used the dark fabric for the yoke, both for the extra length but also for the look. Now it's back to the winter coat!