August 11, 2008
One quilt month 1
I'm doing a collaborative quilting project, One Quilt, where each month one person sends fabrics and maybe some guidelines for making a block, then we all send her our finished block.
I always psyche myself out over group projects and swaps and stuff because I feel like I really need to do something awesome and super creative, and then I get paralyzed when I don't get any good ideas, stop doing any crafting for a month, and then end up sending it late after just deciding to do something simple. :/ Sorry tumbling blocks.
I do like how it turned out, though. I've never worked all diagonally before, and there's a little bit of fussy-cutting at the top and bottom points.
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July 19, 2008
Vinyl wallpaper wallet
kids craft tent crafts: wallet made of 70s vinyl wallpaper book samples and hot glue
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July 12, 2008
fabric-covered button pushpins
Made some pushpins using button-covering kits. All you do is pull out the wire button loop before using the kit. The little size ones seem made for this application: a thumbtack fits right in the back. I used hotglue to attach the thumbtacks. Couldn't be easier, and a nice reason to rummage through the scrap bin.
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July 06, 2008
alterations weekend
No really exciting sewing this weekend after all. I did figure out how to (sort of) use my BRAND NEW SERGER. My labmates got it for me as a going away gift (awwwww). I have plans for a couple of skirts and reworking some vintage dresses, but so far I'm just practicing. Also, I forgot it needed cones and cones of thread and only got around to picking that up today. I like the Seattle chain fabric store, Pacific Fabrics. There's one pretty close to where I live, and the people who work there are way friendlier and more helpful than I'm accustomed to at the Jersey Joanns. Oh, and it didn't hurt that I won a drawing for a bag of craft books the first time I went there. :)
Anyway, even sans serger, I did some sewing of the mending variety this weekend: put a new zipper into a modaspia skirt that's been sitting on the pile for a couple of months now. The zipper was unfortunately poorly set when I bought it, and it only sort of worked if you pulled really hard on it. Then one day I could not unzip it. My husband literally had to cut me out of the skirt. Annoying, but the skirt's really cute, so I put a new zipper in it and it's back good as new, or, rather, better than new. :P
I also finally altered this unflattering skirt I made a long time ago. Rereading the old post now, I can't help but laugh that I originally sewed the thing in 2 hours, then took 2 years to make it fit properly. I replaced the drawstring with a new waistband (interfaced and with a facing, even!), sewed new side seams, and put in a side zipper. Probably should've added a couple of pleats, but it's got plenty of volume as it is now.
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July 04, 2008
Built By Wendy Shirt
I'm planning on some sewing over the long weekend, and realized that I never posted my shirt that I finished a long time ago. It's BBY-4112 Shirt Pattern from Built By Wendy. The short sleeves+bias trim are shamelessly stolen from Angry Chicken. I was able to get through the pattern without too much problem, but the fit was really disappointing. With a huge amount of help from Amy and Becket, I reset the collar (it was too big and set too high or something, which made it all droopy when tied), shortened it, and added shaping both in front and back. It looks kind of shapeless on the hanger, but it fits pretty well now. I think it was such an ordeal that I have never actually worn it. Weird. Looking at it again now, though, maybe I'll go back to liking it.
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June 20, 2008
Pencil bag
This linen+colorful bits idea has apparently been percolating in my head for 3 years, with a sidetrack using gray wool a while back. The pattern's made up as I went along, but it's a pretty basic design that's all over the Japanese craft books. I was very pleased with myself for getting the zipper+lining topology right on the first try. :P
I rather like it plain, but I'm tempted to add some embroidery, or maybe Gocco or stamps like Scrapabee's awesome stuff (warning: her site has music on autoplay).
Sketchy instructions: you need a 9 inch zipper, 10x12 inch rectangles of the lining and outer fabrics, and 13 inches of binding.
1. Stack your materials like this: lining right side up, zipper right side up with the tape edge along the 10 inch side of the lining fabric, outer fabric right side down and with the 10 inch edge aligned with the others.
2. Use a zipper foot and stitch pretty close to the zipper (takes a little feeling around since the zipper is inside.)
3. Fold back the fabrics to expose the zipper. Iron flat.
4. Topstitch along the zipper.
5. Trim the other 10 inch sides to be even if needed.
6. Fold everything around to make the same zipper sandwich on the other 10 inch sides like you did for step 1. Sew like step 2.
7. Now when you go to fold back the fabric and expose the zipper again, you'll end up with a tube. To topstitch, you have to upzip the whole length, and scrunch to get the very end where you can't unzip any more. It works, I swear.
8. Zip it up and iron flat, making sure the zipper is centered. Trim the ends straight, and so you only have about half an inch of zipper tape at each end.
9. Fold binding around the corner and over the raw edges. Sew on with a zigzag stitch, folding the end around the other corner. Repeat for the other side.
Hmm, this is hard to explain without pictures. Well, good luck if you try my instructions.
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June 16, 2008
flower dish
A little fabric dish from a Japanese craft book (ISBN 4834722996). It turned out a little flimsier than I expected, so I'd use heavier fabric next time.
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