30 Day Sewing Challenge day 7 of 30

DIY Infinity Dress

So as you know I talked about the FAILED infinity dress here. After totally screwing that up I decided to try it again. Stopped by Joanns to see if I could find something that was thin enough and the color that I loved. I put a forest green in my cart and thought that was going to be my choice. I strolled over to the Red Tag section and found the Sea-Foam Green fabric for $5 a yard. I wasn't sure if I was in love with it but it was cheaper than the forest green and much thinner. So I gritted my teeth and got 5 yards.

I used the same  tutorial that I used the first time. This blog is very helpful however I think when sewing the waistband I should have added a few more inches only because now I can't get it over this butt of mines. I have to pull it over my head every time, and that's a struggle. I am in love with the tutorial and chose it because I have large breast and not sure if I can go without a bra so with adding the tube top it makes me feel safe wearing it all day. After sewing it up I think I will do away with the tube top it looks a little bulky with it. When I sew it again I won't make the straps as long it kinda got in the way. I made the straps because I'm still thinking I'm 50lbs heavier. I went down in bra size and still very scared they are going to fall out lol.

I planned on wearing this to a friends wedding that will take place in Hawaii however I'm sure I want to wear it to my sons graduation. The only problem is that its going to rain that day :-( as I said in a previous post I was working on two outfits for that day so I guess I need to work on a 3rd now. Both dresses brush the ground even with my heels on and I don't want them to be muddy. I have a short dress that I have been thinking of making but I will have to wash the fabric ASAP.

I hand stitched the hem in the skirt because I was afraid of the puckering. I was told that I should get a walking foot and ladies I think I should this fabric look so nice but you can truly tell every stich that was made.

Please forgive the wrinkles I folded it up and planned on ironing it when my camera man got home but I forgot then when my friend stopped by I stole the chance to take as many pictures as I could.

Tomorrow Goal: regal maxi skirt

30 day challenge day 6 of 30

DIY Infinity Dress FAIL


SOOOOOOOO a few months back I made an infinity dress and it was a fail. I guess I should have did some research before starting the challenge (sew your own wardrobe) to sew the infinity dress. I'm not sure of the name of the fabric but it has that slinky stretch to it, its also very heavy. After the Infinity was complete and I tried some of the styles I noticed that it was too heavy and most of the styles look homemade......back to the drawing board. I wanted to make a jumpsuit out of the material but wasn't confident enough in making pants, I now wish I would have tried it.

I first made a top with a peplum at the bottom using a tank top as a pattern. I used one of the long wrap portion to make the top. I used the same seam I had already stitched for the dress, cut out the sleeves (two big squares) and peplum and stitched it all back up. When I was done I notice that it was extra long. It now can be worn for Day or Night

I then took the dress portion added elastic to the top, took it in 2 more inches and now I have a maxi. I never cut the bottom when I made the infinity so I didn't loose any length. I styled it whit my favorite DIY OBI belt.

I don't know what I will work on tomorrow but I only have a week to make an outfit for my preschooler  graduation. I'm going to spend the night washing up some fabric to sew up some outfits for next week. I have no clue as to what I should make so I better look at my patterns tonight for some ideas

30 day Challenge Day 5 of 30

DIY M6173

So recently I lost 50 lbs and for what ever reason I can't get those numbers correct in my head. Mostly everything I make is too big and today is no different. I cut the pattern out a week or so ago and decided yesterday to sew it up today. Again my bright self wanted to change up the pattern and make the waistband wider like yoga pants. I cut a separate waistband 6 inch long. I read the direction to the pattern but didn't follow it, I did stitch it twice on every seam. After sewing the legging up I had to take them in about an inch and they still don't fit like I will like for them to fit. the legs was too long and the knees fit like a pair of jeans :-( the are very comfortable and easy to forget you are wearing pants. However I think that after a few hours in them they may become very loose and sag in all the wrong places.

 This is after taking in a few inches and chopping off all that extra fabric at the angle. These need a lot of work before I wear these, I'm setting them aside until I have completed the challenge unless I find some free time.

The good thing about this pattern is that I have a piece of fabric that I purchased a few months back that I would love to make a pair of skinnies with. I'm thinking because of the fit  this is the best pattern to make them. I just may sew up a muslin with it tomorrow to try to adjust the fit and see if this will work. The material has very little stretch to it. So wish me luck!

30 Day Challenge Day 4 of 30 V1282

DIY V1282 Donna Karan Vogue Pattern

My goal for today was to work on two totally different  outfits that I plan on wearing to my sons graduation, however I came home and decided to sew up V1282 or shall I say finish it. I cut it out a month ago and sewed up the back seam a few days ago. I seen a few reviews and I agree this is a very easy pattern to sew. I haven't sewn off of a pattern in over 4 yrs and when I did sew with that pattern I had a lot of help. I'm not to sure of the sewing terminology sew  it took me longer than expected to read the patter.n. I'm still not very sure I did it correctly but its finished and looks great on.  I must agree that it is a little sexy (too sexy) for me so I did sew it up a little higher than what the pattern suggest. I need to redo the front because its a little off centered. Ill do that after I get off tomorrow. I also don't think I did the arm holes correctly because I pressed the life out of the this shirt and it still kinds of lay twisted around the arm area. I also added my self made pattern weights (pics below).

So with that said look at the pictures an tell me what you think...

Pattern Description: Loose-fitting, bias, pullover top has draped front neckline with weight, no side seams and stitched hem. Very close-fitting, below waist pull-on skirt has elastic waist with contrast facing, pleats, front extending to side back, no side seams and right side back slit. Self bias binding finishes hem.
 
Fabric Used: A two way stretched I picked up from my local fabric store for $4 a yard

Pattern Sizing: I cut the 18

Were the instructions easy to follow? I guess I really don't know its all foreign to me lol

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I love the fit on it

and how It hangs on me

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: Other than what I did to the arm holes by mistake. No I tried to keep it the same

Would you sew it again? Yes, I plan to make it a few more times, may even try to sew it in a dress

 I added a dab of glue and placed each coin together sandwiched them between the clip and left it until I was done sewing. Worked great for me.

Tomorrows Goal: McCalls 6173

 

30 Day Sewing Challenge Day 3 of 30

When I got home my guy surprised me with a new charm for my Pandora bracelet (a gift for my birthday this year). After figuring out where I wanted it to be place I realized that it now looked uneven so we ran to the jewelry store before it closed to get me another charm #spoiled.... spent way too much time in there and when I got home I had just enough time to finish a already tackled top :-(

A few month back I made an angle wing dress for a friends wedding and after deciding that it was too cold and nasty for me to wear the dress I also figured out that it was just way too big. The problem is I made a test one first out of some old and stained fabric I had and that was too tight so I adjusted the pattern ( well not really I used a tank top as a pattern) and made the second one too big. I took it in once and still didn't like the look on it so I decide to make a peplum.

The peplum was so nice and I was in love with it because of the fabric. Its a Ponte Roma that I picked up from Joanns. The proplem is that again this was too small because I used a tank top as my pattern and did'nt add enough seam allowance. As you can see the fat was sitting on top of my belt...YIKES...... I sent out a mass tex message and informed my friends that first person to tex back could have it for $5. I had enough material for one more peplum  so I made another one and sold that also. So I took one dress and made two tops that I don't even have the pleasure of wearing SAD SAD DAY

Any-who that 2nd  one I never finished it, because I never see that friend and knew she wouldn't bug me about it. So today with only an hour to spare I finished her hem.

Please excuse the pictures my son took a few and the the one on my double looks bad because the shirt is too small to fit lol so I tacked it down and took the picture.

Tomorrow goal: I have a pale green infinity dress that needs elastic and a hem, a coral maxi skirt that's waiting on a sash, and a blue infinity dress that needs to be made over. Don't know if I can tackle all however I will get to one.

30 day sewing challenge Recap day 2 of 30

DAY 2

Well today was such a busy day and I didn't get anything completed that I thought I would. My son had a basketball game at 8:45 am and another at 10:00 am 45 min or so away from our house so after we got back we all had to rush and get dressed for my cousin High School Graduation (we are so proud of your Jay) that started at 1 pm. It was a very small graduating class so it was over very quickly however my oldest son wanted to go back to his house for a small celebration. After asking my 5 year old a million times was he coming home with me, he finally decided to stay (only took an hour).....So when I get home out of my cloths and ready to sew the day was almost over. So I pulled out a dress that I should have finished for a client last week and started to work on it. She is going to be in a wedding next Sunday and they wanted to add a little to the all white dress. The dress came from KMart for $24 (great steal for a flower girl dress) I added a canary yellow sash and flowers to the dress along with making her a hair bow. I think that the dress was cute when the mom purchased it however I'm in love with the extra that I added to it. I will deliver the dress this week and can't wait to see the look on Joi face. Hand sewing is for the BIRDS. The sash I used my machine but the flowers made me used two bandages. I really enjoyed it after getting over the fear of messing it up. Put it down for a while to make sure the bleeding stopped and once I picked it up again I was all smiles.

BTW I never mentioned I HATE sewing for others. I know what I like and if I mess it up, don't get done in time or decide that I no longer want to sew I can walk away from my own projects. I feel like sewing for other becomes a job and takes away the joy that I have for sewing. It adds a lot of stress on me and I really don't need anymore. This project may be the turning point to me telling people NO I DON'T SEW lol

Most time's I complain and in the end step back and look at my work and think "why are you so fussy and it took you no time to complete"

Tomorrow I plan to finish some more unfinished projects such as the leggings, dress, skirt or shirt I have waiting to be completed. I also have 4 skirts for my God Daughter that have been waiting to be cut out for weeks and possibly a bow tie for my son preschool graduation on the 13th of June. Sew much to do in the month of JUNE!!!!

:)

30 day Sewing Challenge Recap of Day 1 of 30

Today is day one of the sew something every day challenge, and I'm stumped with my current project. All week I have been thinking of working on a top that I seen here and fell in love with it. I wanted to make it but because I'm so unique (jk) I wanted to change it up and make it my own. So the ruffle neck is done (gave me so much trouble) the front and back are stitched together (WAY too big), created a peplum for the bottom and it just don't look right. Its so big that it has that maternity look to it. I'm now thinking of adding some elastic to the waist to make it a little more snug and for sure taking in the sides. I really like the look and want to keep it but just not sure.

I also worked on a Vogue pattern that I cut out weeks ago but never got around to sewing it for fear of reading the pattern instructions (scary). I tried my hand at it today and yup I was confused, but I think I'm going to just do it my way and complete it so I have a lovely top to wear to work on Monday.

Meanwhile I'll leave you with a picture of something else I made a while back......

Puff Sleeve Top / Dress

I made the top using this YouTube video, I purchased the fabric from my local fabric store and paid something like $9 a yard for the solid and $7 a yard  for the lace. I used a old tank top for the solid and traced it out and added an inch for the seam allowance.  Cut the top a little too long so I then sewed a casing into the seam of the shirt and added elastic to both side. I cut the sleeves like the video instructs and YIPPIE I was done..... 

I wore this to work however its long enough that I can also wear it out if I pull it down. Its very short so trust me I don't think it will ever be a dress ;=)

Tomorrow is a busy day however I'm going work on a dress for a coworker daughter and finish up some pieces of my own