Back from American Sewing Expo

Hello, readers! I spent the last several days in Novi, Michigan teaching at the American Sewing Expo. It was a fabulous time and I got to meet lots of cool sewing enthusiasts.

One of my favorite things about the expo is the shopping, of course. Here are a few key purchases:

I bought some white tonal striped silk from Haberman Fabrics, and some bright green basket weave wool from The Wool House to make a blouse and pencil skirt. And then I found the perfect vintage green buttons for the blouse!

In fact, I found lots of great vintage buttons! Most are from Nifty Thrifty Dry Goods.

I stocked up on my favorite pins: Clotilde glass head pins in red and white. Also: adhesive thimbles!

An expo must: purchasing fusible stay tape from Emma Seabrooke.

I went momentarily insane and bought 4 yards of sparkly pink ruffled mesh. 

What can I say? It spoke to me. 

Also potentially insane? This quilting cotton.

Perfect for jammies, right?

Anyway, it's great to be back and working on my book again. Henry has been following me around since I got home--I think he missed me!

Fabric Options for Butterick 5953

When my Butterick pattern designs are released, I'm excited as anyone--mostly because I can finally sew the garments for myself instead of a model! I don't have a lot of free sewing time these days with those 35 garments for the book, but I'm determined to make Butterick 5953 soon. So I thought I'd let you in on my fabric selection process.

The pattern envelope recommends "woolens, crepe, taffeta, linen, broadcloth." For the sample garment in the photos, I used a thin stretch wool gingham suiting for the body and a light weight black wool gabardine for the contrast fabric.

The two most important fabric issues to consider for this design are comfort and thickness. The dress is unlined, so you'll want something that feels nice against the skin. And because there are two layers of garment wrapping over each other in the front (plus facings), you'll want to avoid anything too bulky.

I came up with two options. The first is a wonderful Marc Jacobs blue wool crepe with sparkly black polka dots from Mood.

I would use black cotton sateen for the contrast and shiny black buttons.

The second option is a purple doubleknit. I love the color!

I would pair it with an ivory contrast fabric and vintage-y ivory buttons. I love this color combo; the ivory is much softer than black contrast.

I'm leaning toward the purple since it has better drape and is thinner and softer against the skin. Of course, the sparkly dot wool crepe would need to be made into something else, soon!

Rocking Out

Hi readers! I know I've been scarce around these parts. Have I mentioned that I need to sew 35 garments by the end of next month? That's when we're shooting book #2.

In the mean time, I did have my big rock performance (see above) and it went well. I finished the leather accent dress but then didn't wear it (I know, I know). I was feeling more casual and I threw together a quick outfit with a bustier top and capri jeans. Photos of the dress are coming soon though!

Also: cutest Henry picture ever, thanks to my friend Martin.

I seriously want a tattoo of his face.

Okay, back to the sweatshop!