Free Sewing Event in the Chicago Area

I am very excited to share news about a new organization in the Chicago area, Urban Threads Studio. They are a non-profit organization that hopes to use sewing and other textile arts as a means to strengthen the community. They are holding a free event this Wednesday, May 1st called the Mending Cafe. They are located at Bridgeport Art Center – Studio 5405, 1200 W. 35th Street, Chicago, IL 60609.

Mending Cafe Flyer

Urban Threads Studio seems to have many interesting projects in the works, from free community workshops to summer camps to youth outreach programs. I am looking forward to supporting this new organization on Wednesday and learning more about their mission and vision.

If you like what you see, register for the Mending Cafe, check out their other workshops or share the news with others. I will be back to tell you more about Urban Threads Studio after I attend the workshop this week.

Sewing Plans: Laurel Shift Dress

I am quite a fan of the shift dress, so I was excited to see the newest addition to the Colette Patterns line. Laurel is a very classic shift that is billed as being blank canvas for interpretation and embellishment. Over the last couple weeks since the pattern came out I’ve been gathering inspiration and supplies from the Colette Patterns website, flickr group and Laurel Extras e-booklet, and from fabric stores in two states. I’ve finally got a plan for my Laurel pattern and I’m ready to cut into some fabric today. Here’s what I’m thinking.

I have two Laurels planned in two quite different, yet quite similar fabrics. As Sarai, the owner of Colette patterns has said, this pattern is a great showcase for a special fabric. This first fabric I bought is this cotton sateen designed by Amy Butler for her Alchemy Studio Collection while I was visiting my sister. This fabric feels as smooth as silk and has a subtle sheen. It’s a lighter weight than many other cotton sateen fabrics I’ve bought in the past, but it is still substantial enough not to require a lining or underlining, I think. This fabric was a splurge, so I don’t want to cut into it until I know that Laurel is a good fit and match for me and for this gorgeous fabric. I’m planning to make Laurel version 1 (dress length without pockets) or version 2 (dress length with pockets) from this fabric if all goes as planned.

I bought a second fabric so that I could make a practice version or wearable muslin. (I’m not a big fan of sewing things I can’t use, like a plain white muslin garment, so if I need to sew a practice version of a pattern I’d rather use a fabric I still like but that I wouldn’t be devastated if I ruined.) I got a real bargain for such a nice fabric, so I know I won’t feel like the money was wasted if my practice version isn’t wearable, but I still want it to turn out well. It is a striped linen fabric that is a nice medium-light weight. What I haven’t decided yet is whether I want the stripes to run horizontally or vertically. At this moment, I’m leaning towards horizontally because I think it would look neat to use the selvedge (that white stripe is part of selvedge) as the bottom edge, which would also save me the step of hemming. I’m planning to make the shirt version of Laurel, version 4, from this fabric.

When I put these two fabrics in the washer together to pre-wash them, I was struck by how similar and how different they are from each other. Both fabrics have a gray background with a striped design in shades of pink, purple, blue and green. Yet, even though they share a color scheme and pattern, they are very different in “personality”. The cotton sateen is smooth, shiny and very feminine with a floral design making up the stripes. The linen has a slubbed textured, and is relaxed and natural looking. I plan on wearing the sateen dress to the rehearsal dinner for my sister’s wedding and the linen top with shorts or jeans for a casual day around town. If this pattern works well in both of these fabrics, I predict that this pattern becomes a tried-and-true favorite of mine.

Sewing Room Reflection: Power

 

Power is a word with both negative and positive connotations. Putting aside the negative connotations associated with power and focusing on the positive, to have power is to have strength, control, influence, authority or a certain capacity.  So, why am I bringing up the subject of power on a sewing blog? Well, because sewing is empowering.

When I’m sewing, I use my physical and mental strength to join pieces of cloth. I need the strength of my hands to hold a slippery piece of cloth as I cut, press, pin and sew it into shape. Through the strength of my feet and legs, my sewing machine comes to life. My brain is perhaps the muscle that gets the best workout in my sewing room though. With the strength of this muscle I can envision a finished dress or jacket before I’ve sewn a stitch and solve problems in fit or construction.

When I’m sewing, I’m in control. I choose what pattern to sew, what fabric to use, what notions I’ll need. After that I can still control whether I change my mind or follow through on my original ideas. As the seamstress, I have the power to decide what a piece of cloth becomes. I control the destiny of that cloth.

When I’m sewing, I’m the authority, the one with influence. I decide what I want and have the authority to shape plain objects into what I desire. But I’m a caring authority figure. I take delight in my influence over these implements, but I respect them too. I treat my tools, notions, materials and those who supplied these items with respect because I know that without their presence I lose my capacity to sew.

I am empowered because I sew. I am empowered mentally by the challenges and problems I have solved. I am empowered materially because the objects I create have a purpose. I am empowered emotionally and spiritually by the sense of accomplishment and joy that I feel when I look at or use what I’ve made or when someone I’ve sewn something for feels appreciation for the item I’ve made.

While I believe that a similar sense of accomplishment can be found in almost any activity, I believe that sewing seems to be growing in popularity because it is so empowering. It’s a great reason to pass on this skill to young people. It’s motivation for experienced sewers to learn something new about their craft. It makes sewing valuable for anyone, male or female, young or old.

So, as you pick up your needles, thread and cloth this week, let yourself savor the power you have because you sew.

Black Shift for Easter

I know that black probably isn’t the first color that comes to mind when thinking of what to wear for Easter, but sometimes you just work with what’s around. That’s what I did at least. After playing around with some design ideas for turning a year-old muslin into something wearable, this is what I came up with.

Designing and sewing this dress was a fun process and very different from my usual. Normally, I start with a pattern and then choose fabric to fit the design. This is how I was taught to sew and it’s become my habit. (It also reduces the chance that I will develop a case of enormous-fabric-stash-that-I’ll-never-be-able-to-use guilt.) With this project I was starting with a basic shape that I couldn’t really alter and had to decide how to finish it. Once I landed on my idea, it was pretty easy to execute. I decided to add to pintucks to the center front to frame three square buttons and use simple fabric bands to finish the neckline and arm holes.

Design/Pattern: Muslin from the front and back of the Licorice dress pattern from the Colette Patterns Book

Materials: black Sophia double knit (I think I may have mentioned my love for this fabric.)

Techniques:

• serged seams
• darts
• pintucks
• fabric bands to finish the neck and arm holes (cut two inch wide fabric strips, folded in half lengthwise, stretched as I sewed/serged them to the neck and arm holes)
• decorative buttons

Alterations/Changes: My finished dress looks very different from the original Licorice dress pattern because I had limited fabric to work with. I had to come up with a different idea for the collar and sleeves, which I’ve described above. I also decided to take out the vertical darts on the dress front so that the silhouette would be a shift rather than a sheath.

When I started this dress I had no specific plans for wearing it on Easter, but as my spring break started I had this dress waiting in the wings. The day before Easter Sunday, I spent an hour or so working on my dress and didn’t have it finished. I told myself it wasn’t a big deal; I had other pretty things in my closet that I could wear. Easter morning arrived and my first thought as I lay in bed halfway awake was about finishing this dress. I just had to get up and spent another hour on it so that I could wear it that day. I’m so glad I did. It turns out that wearing a black dress for Easter isn’t such a bad idea.

How To: Corner Pocket Hot Pads

To go with my sister’s new fabric napkins, I also decided to use the scraps to make a set of hot pads. Here’s how I did it!

Gather your materials:

• fabric scraps
• 1 terry kitchen towel
• thread

Take out your tools:

• ruler
• iron
• pins
• sewing machine
• scissors

1. Cut two 5 inch fabric squares from your scrap fabric for the corner pockets. (Photos of each step appear after the written instruction.)

2. Cut 2 inch wide fabric strips. You will need an approximately 40 inch long strip. The easiest way to do this is to make a snip into the selvedge and tear across the width of the fabric. Do this once at the very edge of the fabric to be sure you’re fabric grain is straight. Do this again 2 inches below the first snip. You can piece strips together to achieve enough length or even use purchased bias tape. (Sorry for the weird coloring of this picture. I’m not sure what happened and did the best I could to edit the coloring.)

3. Cut your kitchen towel. I found that two 7 inch squares worked well for the size of my hand, but you could cut a larger or smaller square. I also, after trial and error, found that it was easiest to sew the binding if you trim off the towel’s edges because they are thicker than the terry cloth body of the towel.

4. Fold your pocket squares in half to form triangles. Press and then edgestitch along the fold.

5. Press the long edges of your strips to meet in the center to form binding. Use a pin to create nice, even-width binding. Stick a long pin into your ironing board cover, slide your fabric strip underneath with the folds in position, stick the other end of the pin into your ironing board cover on the other side of the fabric strip. Pull the fabric strip underneath the pin as you press it. (I recently read about this tip somewhere and have forgotten where. I used it for the first time with this project and found it easier and less fiddly than using a bias tape maker. I have a feeling that this technique will be my new favorite method of making binding.)

6. Place the pocket triangles in two opposite corner of your towel squares; the stitched edges should be parallel to one another. Pin the binding strips around the towel/hot pad body. Tip: Be sure that a tiny bit more fabric extends to the bottom side of the towel/hot pad body so that as you stitch you are catching the top and bottom of the binding. At the corners, overlap the excess created by turning the corner. Leave extra binding extending.

7. Stitch around all four sides, about 1/8 inch from the inner edge of the binding, to secure the binding around the hot pad. Start stitching about 2 inches from the beginning of the fabric binding (you’ll need the ends loose so you can sew them together a little later). At the corners, I found it somewhat difficult to be sure that I was catching both sides of the binding. This tip made it easier: Stitch past each corner by one or two stitches, then backstitch to where you want to turn your corner. Make sure your needle is down in the fabric, then lift the presser foot and turn your fabric. Stitch to the next corner and repeat for the remaining sides. Stop stitching an inch or so before you reach your starting point.

8. Twist the excess at the beginning and end of your binding strips so that they are right sides together. Determine where they should meet to complete the trip around the hot pad and place a pin in that spot. Sew the strips together where you pinned. Trim the excess and finish sewing the binding.

9. You’re done! Give your hot pad a try as you make something delicious.

Some ideas for variations:

• make the hot pad a circle or other shape instead of a square
•  use matching thread instead of contrasting colored thread, especially if you are less confident of sewing the binding on straight
• use purchased bias tape instead of making your own strips
• add an extra loop of fabric at one corner so that you can hang up your hot pad

Bi-color Cloth Napkins

My sister is getting married in May, so I threw her a shower. I had a great time planning all aspects of the shower, but it wouldn’t have been complete without something I had sewn. I chose a set of cloth napkins as the inspiration for her gift and made this pretty set.

I chose Kona cotton in four colors and used a project from the Purl Bee as my guide. It was a very simple, but gratifying project that I put a lot of love into. Best wishes for my big sister and her fiancé!

Blue Collar Dress

At the beginning of 2013, I made a resolution to sew a little bit every week. With the exception of two weeks, I have kept my resolution and finished one dress. The progress isn’t fast, but it’s better than if I didn’t promise myself I would make time for sewing each week. My first finished project of 2013 is a knit dress that’s perfect for throwing on with tights and boots and heading out the door. I’ve definitely chosen a good project to start the year with because I want to reach for it as soon as it’s out of the dryer.

This project feels like it came together pretty easily even though it took a few weeks to get it all done. I cut it out one week, put the bodice together the next, then pleated and sewed up the sides of the skirt, after that I sewed the bodice to the skirt, and finally hemmed the skirt and sleeves. It was very enjoyable and relaxing to do the construction because it took basically no fiddling to complete it. Sometimes I just need a “hole in one” type of project, and this was a very satisfying one.

Design/Pattern: Butterick B5523

Materials: blue Sophia double knit (in my top three for favorite fabrics–I have used this fabric in different colors here and here), matching thread(and not-so matching-I’m still too intimidated by my serger to rethread it with a different color for every project) 

Techniques:

• serged seams
• pleated skirt and sleeve caps
• draped/cowl collar (Instead of following the pattern directions, I folded the collar in half lengthwise, sewed both layers to the neckline, and edge-stitched the seam allowances down.)

Alterations/Changes: As I mentioned, I followed my own instincts for how to attach the collar. I also had to shorten the sleeves to 3/4 length because they were about 1 inch too short before hemming them. If I had paid more attention to the pattern envelope, I might have noticed this on the model too. She has the sleeves pushed up in one picture and a chunky bracelet on in the other, but they are too short on her too.

Other than the shorter sleeve length, this dress turned out exactly as I had envisioned. I love when that happens! It’s a great winter dress and a great work dress, although I do need to a wear a scarf or camisole with it for modesty’s sake. The neckline is cut rather low under the cowl and if I move just so it reveals more than I think is professional. I’m really happy with this dress and would recommend this pattern if you like easy to wear knit dresses that still look polished.