the table cloth skirt measure 1"from the top and this is where your zipper top will be. pin your zipper all along (the 6 inches that is left opened) make sure the zipper is facing away from you. and at the bottom of your opening (like 1/4" lower than your opening) place a pin sideways so you can see where you will need to cross over your zipper using a zipper foot, sew down one side (pull pins out as you go) make sure you are sort of close to the inside of your "teeth" of the zipper. when you get to the needle that indicates where the end of your zipper is suppose to be (the blue needle i put sideways), sew over the zipper, back stitch a few times to make sure you make enough of a "barrier" so your zipper will stop. next you want to sew up the other side still close to the zipper. when you get to the top make sure you back stitch. and cut off the extra zipper part on the bottom. the hardest part of the skirt is now done. you've just done a zipper. pat yourself on the back. i do. sew all around the bottom.
Keeping lace undarted in a fitted skirt My lace design has regular repeating rows of curlicues, scrolls and flower motifs that I felt would have been spoiled by waist shaping darts; also the lace fabric is quite thick and darts would not have sat nice and flat on the inside. Plus, they would have been visible through the wide holes in the lace. SO, I aimed to eliminate the darts from my skirt and maintain the integrity of the rows of repeating motifs in the design. Thank you so much to Robyn and Sharon who asked :)And I should mention straight off that I learnt this process from using Tomoko Nakamichi's Pattern Magic books of course...the point of which is to learn how to manipulate a sloper and fabrics in order to achieve a desired effect. I probably say that each and every time I mention the books, so please forgive me for repeating myself. I chose the skirt pattern Vogue 1247 as a starting point because:a. Draw the pattern piece with the dart marked. Cut along the outside edge of the dart. Cut off that top side curve.
messy dress tutorial In my opinion, every creative and modern gal needs a messy dress- well maybe not every gal- maybe just me? My 35th birthday is this weekend and there will be celebrating which means I need (or want) something new and funky to wear. Since I am on a fashion budget I decided to transform some cheap cotton dresses I found at Target with a little paint and my new favorite toy- the Tulip Fabric Paint Cannon Before I get started I just have to rave for a minute! The reasons I am so excited about this product- a.) it is non toxic and environmentally friendly- yippee!! b.) you can travel with it- great if you are a teacher. c.) it gives you the ability to create spray paint look on fabric (with fabric paint)- something that is challenging when working with wearable and not really possible to do with icky spray paint. d.) you can fill it with your own paint mixture, colors, etc- this I love because you are not limited with color! Ok...back to the project! I started with a plain cotton dress.
Tips on How to Sew Jeans Sallie of Sallie-Oh is one awesome awesome lady. She’s more than just another blog “friend,” she’s a fellow Philadelphian (well, not anymore but she used to be, which is good enough in my book). Our emails back and forth cover more than blogging garb. I could live in jeans. Scratch that. In this post I’m going to cover a few things I’ve learned about making jeans: 1) There are some things that RTW jeans get right, like the styling. Topstitching-thread color, placement, and width (if a double row of topstitching)seam finishes for pockets, inseam, and outer seamThe mechanics of the flyBelt loops – placement, and how they’re made and attachedBar tacks – where they’re at and what they’re purpose isRivets The combination of all these details are endless, and are great things to play with for more personality, but I found that following my RTW jeans as a guideline gave me the most professional results. These are all great places to start making your own jeans. Fabric. And finally! Sallie
Sewing Pattern: Unisex Boxer Short | craftpassion.com Be it a pair of boxer shorts or a pair of sport shorts… it is a perfect gift to celebrate father’s day for this summer! I made this for my hubby. It is from a pattern I copied from his old favorite sport shorts with some modifications on the front pockets. The cutting is perfect, and comfortable to wear too. I should have put this up earlier, but I was stuck with the paper pattern!!! The size is for maximum hip size of 40″, if you need more, just enlarge it. {CLICK HERE to get pattern & tutorial of Unisex Boxer Shorts.} Pages: 1 2 Print / Download PDF
Add walking ease in a lining How to add walking ease in a lining for a pleated skirt. by Diva Els Lining a skirt or dress which has pleats can be done on several ways, I will show you my way. I use walking vents on the side seams which are reinforced so they cannot tear. The piece of reinforcing lining is placed as above. Sew the piece to the seam allowance only as shown above. To stitch the other side, turn the lining and stitch from the top down. Press the reinforcement piece as above so that it will lay flat. Done! Like this: Like Loading...
RUFFLED TOP & Weekend designer Featured: Abaete Lauren Top Ever the chic choice, a simple shell blouse is the definitive feminine look. With cascading sleeves and a universally flattering shift shape, this sweet style is a fabulous day-to-evening option. You will need: approx. 2 yds. [2 m] of fashion fabric, 45″[115 cm] wideCoordinating thread1 – hook and eye set Bust – measure just under arm around fullest part of chest. Waist – measure around narrowest part of torso Armhole Depth - measure from top of shoulder to underarm level. Back waist length - measure from nape of neck to waist level. Blouse: Square down from 0 and square across on the pattern paper. 0-1 = back waist length + 2″ [5cm]; square across. 0-2 = armhole depth measurement + ¾” [2 cm]; square across. 0-3 = 2″ [5 cm]; square across Extend distance between 2-3 beyond centerback line by ½” [1.25 cm]. 2-4 = half bust measurement + 2″ [5 cm]. 4-8 = midway 2 and 4 plus 1″ [2.5 cm]; square up and down to locate 9 and 10. Shape back neckline with a shallow curve as shown.
Back Pleat with Lining Very rarely do I look for something on the internet and don’t find it, but that was the situation when I needed a tutorial for a kickback pleat with lining. I eventually worked out what to do by staring intently at a RTW dress of mine and scratching my head. Here’s the tutorial. Enjoy (no need to hobble in that pencil skirt no more)! How to Sew a Back Pleat with Lining In this demo, I’m using scraps but on a dress or skirt, you start here after you’ve attached the centre back zip but not yet sewn the seam below. 1 Apply fusible interfacing to the pleat seam allowances of the outer fabric and lining. 2 Hem the lining 3 Apply tailor tacks at the point where the vertical and the diagonal stitching lines intersect 4 Clip to 2mm of the tailor tacks 5 Pin lining to outer fabric, wrong sides together, matching seams and tailor tacks. 6 Press under seam allowances of fabric and lining on left side of pleat only (i.e. right side of garment) 7 Pin and stitch 9 Clip corner and turn right side out. 13 Done
How to make a High-waist corset skirt In this tutorial you will learn how to make the pattern and how to sew together a skirt similar to the one below. You will need-measuring tape-paper (the bigger the better)-pencil-eraser-ruler (as long as possible)-cloth-thread-pins/needles-corset boning - if possible the kind you can actually sew on the cloth.-eyelets-invisible zipper-fusible interfacing-ribbon, lace etc for finishing touches-sewing machine Taking the needed measures: A - waistB - hipC - under bustD - distance from the waistline to the hip-line (it's usually around 18-20 cm / 7,1 - 7,9 in depending on the person)E - distance from the hip-line to the desired skirt length.F - distance between the waistline and the under bust-line (desired height) Making the pattern Start off by creating a box system like you can see in the image below.The distance from point 1 to point 2 is half of your HIP measure ( let's say mine is 95 cm - the distance from 1 to 2 is 47,5 cm for me then). Line nr 4 is the hip line. Okay.
Pencil Skirt: Construction One of the reasons I'm so proud of this skirt (aside from the fact that it's awesome) is because I put a lot of thought and consideration into it. All too often, I rush headlong into a project without thinking things through, and then don't get the stellar result I was hoping for. This time, at each stage I stopped to consider how to proceed. My original intent was to make this a lined skirt, just because I usually line skirts. Here's a quick rundown of the order in which I constructed the skirt - it's a little different from the instructions (which I've now read). 1. It looks like a lot of steps, but they're all easy, short steps :-) And of course there's pressing after each step. Now, some particulars. I noticed that I've been getting kind of sloppy with my darts lately, so that they're dimpling at the ends. Sunni has a lot of great information on pencil skirt sewing on her blog. Here's a picture of all the serger-finished edges. Here's the coverstitched hem:
Choosing fabric: weight vs. drape {click to enlarge, and feel free to repost!} Weight and Drape Most of us understand the concept of fabric weight. Even neophyte seamsters can tell the difference between a heavy fabric like denim or a wool coating vs a light fabric like silk crepe or chiffon. I think the concept of drape is a little more elusive. But drape is often confused with weight. To illustrate, I made the chart above of several natural fiber fabrics. Choosing Drape and Weight When you choose a fabric for your sewing project, ask yourself these questions to decide on an appropriate weight: Should my fabric be sheer or opaque? And to decide on an appropriate amount of drape: Will the fabric have enough drape to flow the way I want? Test for Drape To test for drape, unroll a little fabric from the bolt and gently drape it over something (other bolts of fabric work, or you can drape a little around your neck or waist if your fabric store has a mirror).
Fabric Notebook I first found out about Willow Rose one day when I stumbled upon her adorable blog. She posted lots of stuff that inspired me creatively, so I decided to find out more about the woman behind the blog. What I found out – excitingly – is that she’s a beautiful woman living in the UK who creates neat hand-made treasures. I fell in love with these fabric covered notebooks she custom-makes for people. All of the fabrics she personally sources herself, and she’ll even cover actual books if you’d like! I love the idea of having one of my favorite books made special by covering it in beautiful fabric. For this week’s DIY, I’ve asked Willow to show us how we can make one of these notebooks at home and she was kind enough to share =) To find out more information and see Willow’s other projects check out her boutique website. Tags: fabric
The Convertible "Infinity" Dress: How it almost defeated me, and ... I made this thing. It’s pretty cool. It’s a convertible dress that’s basically a circle and two straps, so it’s really easy, inexpensive, and crazy versatile. It’s been around forever and everyone seems to love it (in fact, part of the reason I’m posting this is to answer some questions for people I’ve run into), and I can hardly believe how close I came to not making it at all. I first found the instructions at a blog called rostitchery, and then I came across a second set at Cut Out + Keep. So I bought some material, spread it out in the living room, cut out my pieces, and… …stopped. I didn’t understand the next step. Turn the skirt inside out? And what’s this about making them overlap each other? There’s, like, a band of fabric involved? What? I figured I was just being thick. So I folded up my circle and my straps and I put it all back in the bag it came in. And I went upstairs to watch TV. I was wearing my new dress after about half an hour. Select a stretchy knit with spandex in it.
shaped pockets tutorial Good morning, friends! Thank you so much for all your sweet words on the skirt I posted Wednesday. Today I’m going to share with you how I drafted those pockets; it’s very easy. Here is a snapshot of essentially what shapes we’ll be creating (sorry for the quality; it’s just a snapshot from inside my sketchbook!). Supplies you’ll need: pattern tracing paper (I use this, but large-sheet tracing paper, non-fusible interfacing or banner paper will work), marker/pencil, paper scissors, straight ruler, and a curved ruler is helpful too. Begin by tracing the front of your skirt piece; we’ll be doing all adjustments on the tracing (you don’t want to ruin your original pattern!). Draw the shape of your pocket. Draw an outline for the pocket pouch; connecting from the waistline to the side seam. Lay another piece of pattern paper over top the pocket you’ve just drafted. With another piece of pattern paper, Trace the outline of the pocket pouch and shaped pocket opening.