Bad Blogger

I know, I know! I haven't been around, but I have been reading and commenting!  School FINALLY ended and I have a 3 week vacation.  Woohoo! The last two weeks were a little rough, but I survived and am pretty sure I did really well :)

To catch up, remember when I said I made this shirt:

Well here is my version:

Not the best, not the worst.  I have nothing to wear with it!  This is the best I could come up with and it needs a belt.  I lack accessories.  I made the short version, because I am on the shorter side, and the tunic was way to long and looked awkward when I tissue fit it.  

I think the fit is pretty good.   I added shoulder darts for a little more room in the back for my prominent shoulder blades/beginning of a hunch back.  I also did a significantly large sloping shoulder adjustment.  

My mom bought me these really pretty glass buttons to go with the shirt at an expensive little designer fabric boutique in Newport Beach.  Beautiful fabrics well out of my price range. I have seen similar designers on Emma One Sock or Gorgeous Fabrics for a fraction of the cost.    The buttons were expensive, but I think the shirt is a lot prettier with them.  The chambray was $3 at a rummage sale for over 3 yards. So the price balanced out in the end.  

Tried to get a detailed shot of the buttons....The placket is actually straight and so is the topstitching.  Its not nearly as wiggly as the picture portrays.  

Is it a keeper, or a wadder?  I'm definitely keeping the buttons!

Oh, and I mentioned I found my first doll I ever made....Here is the ugly little thing:

I  think the doll was part of a pantyhose doll kit. I used a pair of my mom's old panty hose, some random scraps of fabric that must have been in the kit, the ugly fuzzy hair, and barbie shoes that I sewed through.  I remember the plastic was very hard to get the needle through.  I believe I made this doll after seeing much better versions at a doll show.  I was obsessed with Ren and Stimpy, hence the ugly mole.  The doll is now in the trash now that I have a picture.  It was really too hideous to keep, but I thought I would document probably my first sewing experiment (at least that I can remember).  

I'm going to try to keep posting throughout the weekend! Lots of stuff to share. 

A few more Gifts and Followers

Just a quick post showing you a couple more gifts I made.

First is the doll tutu for the AG Doll:

I cut the pink tulle into strips and then attached them to the ribbon.  Eventually, I will make a leotard.

Also to go with my sister's cardi-wrap, I made a peacock feather fascinator:

Don't know if she likes it, but it was inexpensive and fun to make!  I got the clip and the peacock feather at my local swapmeet and the purple feather base in the L.A. Fashion District back in September.  

Also.......

Thanks to another Follower, I now have 50!  Yay!  Thanks June! 

I think I'm going to finally have that zipper giveaway! I also found some other unusual zippers that I will add to the pile.  More details to come later:

Jama Gifts!

We exchanged gifts with my older sister and her family on Christmas Eve and on Christmas morning we were sent these pictures:

This is why I haven't sewn for myself :)

I originally only bought enough of the striped fabric for the kid's and doll pjs.  Then I decided to make a matching adult pair.  Went back to the fabric store and they were out of the stripes!  Luckily the solid pink matched.  

Merry Xmas!

FINALLY! A little time to sew...

ie.  Homework Procrastination.

Sorry for not posting ANYTHING!  School has been kicking my ass. (Actually, I've been kicking its ass, but it's been taking up almost all of my time).  I finally gave in and sewed something and now I have something to post even though its completely lame.  

My mom bought doll clothes patterns for the American Girl Dolls.  She is giving a doll to my niece for Christmas.  Well, my mom started working on some of the clothes, and I decided to help. I stopped working on my Fashion Sketching homework to sew something for the first time weeks other than mini samples for my Industry Sewing Class.

This is what we made:

I cut out the pattern, my mom made the p.j. bottoms and I made the top.  I did not really use the instructions for the construction.  I tried to treat the top as a mini version of a real pjs.  This way I got practice on not using instructions and clean finishing the seams.

My mom cut out the pattern for this cute little dress, started sewing it, and I finished it.  I was really unhappy with the instructions on this one so I took apart what my mom had started and treated the dress as a real garment.  The facing was inserted the way I would a real dress and everything was clean finished.  Because they are just doll clothes, I pinked some of the SAs and the bottom of the facing.  

The clothes just barely fit the American Girl dolls!  Maybe, we made the S.A.s a smidge too big.  That's the only thing I can think of.  The top fits great, the bottoms and dress are snug.  Any suggestions other than cutting the pattern a little bigger and using smaller S.As?

Here is the Pattern Review:

Pattern Description:

18" Doll Clothes including top, camisole, vest, skirt, pants, jumper

Pattern Sizing:

one size.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you 
were done sewing with it?

Yes, for the most part.

Were the instructions easy to follow?

The instructions were awful.  Very confusing and made construction more difficult than it needed to be.  I wish the instructions were more like instructions for real clothing patterns.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?

Clothes were cute.  Many variations.  They were very snug on an American Girl Doll.  Almost couldn't get the jumper on the doll.  It would be very difficult for a child.

Fabric Used:

Cotton flannel for the pjs, quilting cotton and rick-rack for the jumper.
Velcro for the closure.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:

Nope.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?

It's snug. Probably won't sew this pattern again unless I use smaller SAs or cut it out a little bigger.

Conclusion:

Instant gratification project.



And thank you Rachel and Penny Pinching Pixie for becoming my most recent Blogger followers!

(As I was typing that a little spider crawled up my arm! EEEWWWW!)