Mood Fabric Projects

Besides getting the fabric for Lea's dress at Mood, I also picked up this green and white floral cotton for my own use.  When I bought it, I originally did not know what I was going to do with it, but then I decided to make a skirt, which I wore a lot over the summer.  I used the same skirt pattern that I've always been using, New Look 6843.

When I finished with the skirt, I still had some leftover fabric, so I decided to make a shirt for the first time.  I bought New Look 6356, which is a really simple and basic shirt pattern.  Since it was the summertime, I made the sleeveless V-neck shirt.  The hardest part was making the point of the V in the V-neck because there was a lot of extra fabric bunching up there.  I ended up having to cut some away.

In the end, the shirt turned out really well and fits me nicely.  Sometimes I wear both items separately, but other times I wear them together so it ends up looking like a dress.  However, I've had to put these two away now until spring.  Time to make some fall/winter clothes!

High Waisted Pencil Skirts

Recently, I had to go to a conference where professional attire was required every day. Since I really didn't own many professional outfits before the conference, I figured that I would just whip up some skirts.

I used the pattern that I've been using for all of the other skirts that I've made, New Look 6843. This time, however, I altered the pattern by making the waist band twice as wide. I did this because I knew that I would be tucking my blouses into the skirts, so I wanted it to look nicer with a thicker waist band.

As for fabric, I made the same skirt in two different fabics: black polyester with pink pinstripes and black-and-white houndstooth woolen polyester. The two fabrics are different enough that its not too obvious that they're the same skirt. I really wanted to make them in neutral colors so that they could be worn with different outfits. Since I was traveling to the conferences, I didn't want to have to pack too many clothes. These could be worn with different tops, and, honestly, no one would know the difference!

All in all, this was a great, quick project. I didn't really have much trouble except when putting in the zippers, but I'm planning on working on that as time goes on. As soon as I get pictures, I'll be posting about the newest dress that I made!

New Patterns!

I have exciting news! Today I took advantage of a pattern sale at my local fabric store and bought two new patterns: Simplicity 2588 and Simplicty 2848. They're both dresses from Simplicity's Project Runway Collection. I can't wait to get started on one of them.

Just glancing over the directions, they look much harder than the skirts and aprons that I've been making -- which is only be to be expected. I'm going to have to spend some time learning how to make the dress properly. In the meantime, I can always whip up a few more skirts, since I've been able to finish those off in about two days now. I'm hoping to make one of the jumpers from Simplicity 2848 in August, just in time for going back to school. I'm liking the one with the flaired skirt and they round neckline. The great things about these patterns is that you can mix and match the pieces.

Recently, I've been working on another skirt from the New Look 6843 pattern. It'll be finished as soon as I hem it. I also dug up a surprise from my basement, so you'll just have to wait to see what it is! As for now, I hope that you're all doing exactly what I told you sew.

Project #1:Green Skirt

I made this green skirt using one of my favorite patterns -- New Look 6843. I decided to go for the shorter, less-full version of the skirt to wear during the spring and summer. During my latest rendezvous to JoAnne's, I came across this green linen embroidered with white flowers, and I instantly loved it. Since it is linen, it does wrinkle pretty quickly, but the embroidery camouflages it nicely.I hemmed the skirt just above my knees, which was about two inches from the original pattern. One of the problems that I did have with this, however, was trying to find a zipper that matched the color of the fabric, but in the end I opted for the closest one that I could find. The zipper is in the back, so it doesn't' show anyway. The waistband from the pattern was also too short, so next time I plan on using the waistband for the next size up just to have a little leeway when I'm putting the hook in. All-in-all, though I love the patterns from this envelope, and it was a really simple skirt to make.

Later, I plan on making a clutch to go with the skirt from the excess fabric that I have left. I chose to match this skirt up with a white scoop-neck tee-shirt that I got from Lord and Taylor's, which isn't too dressy, and good for wearing out.

Next, I want to sew a vintage apron to use as a sewing smock and another skirt from this envelope using some fabric that I got from China. Until then, don't forget that I told you sew.