SewBaby News

Have you heard that 1920's fashions are making a comeback?  I have always romanticized the roaring 20's and especially love the fashions from that era. Somebody said that my recently made coat looked like a flapper coat, so that reminded me of a hat pattern- Vogue 8844 that I bought specifically for View B, which looked like a flapper hat to me.   I had some leftover fabric from my last two projects- the black camelhair and mocha melton, so I decided to do a colorblock version.  

My family and I went to Scandinavia last summer, and when we were in the big cities, I got to snoop shop in some fun stores.  One of the stores was Acne , and they had the most beautiful coats.  A lot of them were oversized and a few were in this cocoon shape.  The price tags on them were in the 1000 Euro range.  So when I started thinking about making a new coat, I thought it would be fun to try this completely new to me shape.  Acne Cocoon Coat  I remembered this Anne Klein pattern from a few years ago- Vogue 1128.  It's out of print now. There was only 1 review of the coat part of the pattern on Patternreview.com, and that review didn't have a photo, so that should have been my first clue that maybe I should skip this one. Anne Klein Vogue Pattern 1128 I have mixed feelings about it.  First of all, you can't tell this from the photo, but the fabric is really fantastic.  It's a melton from Marc Jacobs and is real...

This is my first camel hair project ever!  I have had this piece of black camel hair in my stash for a few years now, and I decided to bite the bullet and cut into it.  Camel hair is is supposed to be lighter and warmer than regular wool.  For such a nice fabric, I wanted to make something that wouldn't go out of style, and I chose McCalls 6172 . And I have to say that I am in LOVE with this pattern.   The instructions are so detailed, with so many tips, that it's like taking a class!

 What gets you inspired to sew?  Is it a pattern, a fabric, or something completely out of the blue?  For me, it's often accessories!  I love jewelry and shoes, and sometimes don't have anything to coordinate with them, so that starts the creative juices going. I've been eyeing this color block tote from Eloquii for a long time.  I was waiting for the price to go down, but now that it is on "final clearance", I had to bite the bullet and push "buy".  

My waistline has been expanding recently.  Now if I were to look at the glass half empty, I would be very unhappy about that.  But as a seamstress, I can look at it as an opportunity to make new clothes!

This is my latest project- Hot Patterns 1013- Plain and Simple Iconic Shirtdress.  As you may remember, I've been having a Hot Patterns crush lately.  The ones that I've made so far, have fit me without any alterations, and I've been loving that.   This one was no exception.   This is a shirtdress designed for knits, and I used an ITY Snow Leopard Print Jersey.  It's a little bit out of my comfort zone, but I'm feeling pretty good in it so far!

This last weekend, I made up samples for upcoming sewing classes that I am offering through Parkland College in Champaign.  The first is Sewing for the Home, which is Wednesdays, Oct 17, 24, and 31st from 6-8 pm in my studio.  Students are always telling me that they want to make pillows, so that will be the first project!  We will be making an envelope style pillow that you can easily change according to the season and your mood.  The sky is the limit on what you can use- try satin, velvet or brocade for a formal setting, or linen, fur, suede or canvas for a more casual setting.  I anticipate class participants can make 4 pillows in the first class.