Happy Easter!

My polka dot dress I'm glad to say is finished, but I'm not gonna be able to get photos of it up until Sunday as my husband/photographer is away for a couple of days.

But instead I thought I'd share some photos taken last weekend on a walk along the canal that runs near our housing estate.

Happy Easter everyone!

Sew Cinematic Inspiration Post: Slip

I have to admit, I'm not making a slip for this part of the challenge, I am however planning on sewing something very similar. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to try something different and make something i've been thinking about for a long time. What is it?? I hear you gasp!?
It's nightwear!

I've been wanting to sew up some cute babydoll nighties for ages, but I've yet to find the right pattern, until now.



Simplicity 4484

 Another ebay bargain! For your viewing pleasure here are a few images I found through google when searching for inspiration.

So what film am I basing this on? It had to be Grease (again, I know!). The sleepover scene at Frenchie's house is so iconic, I have to try and re-create Frenchie's babydoll & bloomers!

The fabric choice for this should make it quite interesting, I am avoiding nylon like the plague so no authenticity for this challenge! However on the back of my pattern the suggested fabrics are as follows:  Cottons & blends, broadcloth, batiste, crepe, challis, gingham, lawn, seersucker, voile, rayons, silks, and synthetics.

I also don't want it to be plain, but I may sew up a yellow version like Frenchie's for the challenge and then make another one up using something more interesting.

For inspiration I had a quick look on the website of one of my local fabric stores to see what they have to offer, I mainly liked the chiffons & georgettes.

So there you go, another project to add to the growing list! But I have to ask, have any of you lovely readers ever sewn up nightwear? Any suggestions on what fabric to avoid?

Style 4151: Update

I should probably start by saying that by some sort of nasty weather talking karma I have been struck down with a terrible cold. That's what you get for bad mouthing English weather I guess.

So my first summer dress is progressing slowly in between the Lemsip breaks & the coughing fits (anyone hear a little violin playing?). The pattern so far has been a little unconvential in regards to the construction, but that's probably because I haven't really sewn up a shirt-dress before.

I decided to line the skirt with some white polyester crepe due to me being paranoid that everyone will see my knickers as soon as the sun hits me.

This is what I got so far...

I'm loving the way this is looking so far, can't wait to finish it!

Old Hollywood Inspiration: Jane Wyman

Sarah Jane Mayfield (otherwise known as Jane Wyman) was born in Missouri in 1917.

She was signed to Warner Bros in 1936 and mainly starred in A & B movies which at times saw her alongside her future husband Ronald Reagan.

She got her big break as the wife of Ray Milland in the 'The Lost Weekend' in 1945.

The following years saw her appear in many celebrated and critically acclaimed films such as 'The Yearling', 'Johnny Belinda', 'Stage Fright' (my personal favourite), 'The Glass Menagerie' & 'The Blue Veil'

During this time she was nominated 4 times for an oscar but only took the prize home once for 'Johnny Belinda'.

During the 1960's Wyman made the transition to television starring in her own TV show for three seasons, as well as some made for T.V movies.

During the 1980's she starred in the popular soap opera 'Falcon Crest' as the shows matriarch Angela Channing. She stayed with the show for 8 seasons, but then left due to the strain of constantly working.

During the 1990's she had retired to California, and in 2007 she passed away in her sleep at the age of 90.

Is it Spring Yet?

If you live in the UK like myself, i'm sure you share that same feeling of uncertainty towards the climate when it reaches this time of year. If you live in a place that has definite seasons or guaranteed months of sunshine then I tip my invisible hat to you.

As I write this there is a bright gleam of sunshine streaming through my window, which is wonderful. But I'm still reluctant to leave the house without thick tights & boots. Over the past few years in the UK our seasons seem to have shifted, with our warmest months being in April/May and again in September/October, our typical 'summer' months are usually filled with horrid rain.

Why am I moaning about the weather you ask? Besides it being quite a stereotypical thing for a Brit to do, I'm left wondering if the past few years of English weather have taught me anything, maybe I should reorganise my sewing queue and start sewing things that are typically 'summery'?

With this is in mind & the sunshine as my inspiration, I've decided to sew my first new summer dress for this year.

The pattern I've chosen is something I picked up for £1 in my local charity shop, Style 4151 from 1973.

I'll be sewing up the short sleeve version in some blue polka dot cotton viscose.

Be sure to check back on Wednesday for a little update on it!

Sewing Fail - In need of some advice!

I hadn't planned on making a post today, but as I had a free afternoon I thought it would be the perfect time to have a little play around with some fabric.

I've had some t-shirting fabric in my stash for well over a year, mainly due to the EPIC failure that was a vest top I tried to make at the start of my sewing journey. But, a year on, I thought it was about time I faced my fear and tried again.

I decided to make a simple t-shirt using a pattern available in Burdastyle Magazine 06/2011. It was all going so well until the last hurdle. The last thing I had to do was hem the sleeves, and then BAM! the thread tension screwed up.

I was using a 3.5 length stitch which up to that point had served me extremely well, so after some playing around it turned out my machine then decided it would only work again if I reduced the length to 2.

As i'm sure you can imagine I am now left with wavy sleeves. Not exactly the look I was going for!

So, my question to you all is, have you sewn with t-shirting before? What's the best set up for stitching?Should I have made sleeve facings like the neckline instead of trying to hem? Or do you reckon my machine has lost it?