The July Sewciety Box and Matching skirts....

My July Sewciety box contained a skirt pattern from the independent designer Twig and Tale called the Meadow Skirt.  It has a couple of different options: gathered all around or pleated in the front, longer or shorter, waist tie or not. A button front was an option, as were pockets (which I never like) and even a maternity panel.  Clearly, the designer tried to add options to make everyone happy. 

I received a bright and cheerful floral, and opted for the pleated front option, since I'm not a huge fan of the gathered waistline: I don't need to emphasize the ol' gutsy any more than it already is.  In the end, I had 30" of fabric left over, which was just enough to make matching grandma/granddaughter skirts for 2 of my 3 girls!  But, let's face it, the baby is too small to wear a skirt anyway.  People who can't sit up because they're 4 months old should just stick to onesies, right?

The Meadow Skirt is a little different than most skirts out there.  It has a high waist with a waistband.  The directions call for the pleats to be pressed in, then just stitched across the top and end of story.  I decided it would be better to stitch them down for 6", so they have a chance of still looking like pleats after the first washing.  Plus, they wouldn't stick out at the waistband, which would be a plus to me (see comment above about the gut).  The skirts for the girls were simple "paper bag" elastic waisted skirts, which goes something like this: cut a piece of fabric twice the waistline by whatever length you want plus 2", run a single seam up, turn up a 1/2" hem, turn under 1" to 2" for the elastic casing and seam top and bottom for said casing, add elastic, iron, done.  So, these are the 3 together, laid flat on my table.

Nora was here last weekend, and we need to match THAT DAY.  Of course, she likes to clown around for pictures.  And if you look at the reflection in the second picture, you can see the back of my skirt.

Maddie was here this weekend, so we matched yesterday.  Thatcher felt that he needed to be part of the "fashion show" with Grandma.

Maddie refused to take her skirt off for bed last night (although she did wear her PJ top), and put on a clean top but wore her skirt home today.  So it looks like she really loves her new Grandma skirt.

What I liked about the pattern: Good directions, including links in the PDF for videos showing each step as it's done (the back waistband was a little fussy, with a double casing, so that confused me for a minute).  Nice flexible design.  Wide range of sizes.  What I didn't like at all: This was a PDF download pattern, so the pages had to be taped together for use.  This one was not very well done, so every single page had to have all 4 sides trimmed.  Doesn't seem like a big deal, except that many independent pattern companies have theirs print so they can just be overlaid without trimming.  When you have to spend time assembling your pattern, the lack of trimming is a big deal.

Overall, Sewciety did a good job with this box: pretty pattern, really nice fabric, and, as usual, the fact that they include everything you need for the project right down to a spool of thread is fantastic.

Happy Monday, everyone!  I hope you've had a great Labor Day weekend!

Purple Bundle from April

Yes, from April.  I'm so far behind it isn't even funny.  And if it seems like I'm sewing more than I can wear, you aren't wrong.  Sometimes, it's what I need to do.  And I give some away, so there's that.

This was from a bundle I purchased last September.  I think I sorted my bundles by color after that trip, because I'm finding that the bundles I have now have coordinated, but not matching, colors and patterns in them.  In any event, I wanted purple that week.

First, I made what I call my Lines Dress.  It is Butterick pattern B5559, and it has pintucks emanating in a sunburst pattern from the waist at one side.  The relative from Denver was wearing something similar when she came to visit a few years back, and I absolutely coveted it.  So when I found the pattern, I had to have it.  Then I didn't sew for 3 years.  Ah, well, the pattern waited for me.  And when I saw this gorgeous royal purple, I knew what it wanted to be.  The picture of the dress hanging shows the details, but the one of me wearing it is the true color.

I also made a tee shirt dress from the same color, this one short sleeved.  I've no idea what pattern I sued, because it's pretty generic.  But I've worn it several times, because, again, I love this color.

Next up: pale purple.  First, a V-backed dress from a soft knit fabric.  This is McCall's pattern M7628.  It has some great detailing at the waist seam, which zig zags up and down by about 3", but this deep vee back is really the star of the show.  It also has a slightly asymmetric hem, which is interesting in appearance.

And there was a little bit of this left over, so I made Maddie a little dress to match; hers has a pocket on it, so she can carry around her valuable things, like stuffed animals or crayons.  The shoulder ruffles were just because I could.

I just hope her Mama is smart enough to check her pockets to be certain she's not washing crayons, because I assure you that if the crayons make it to the dryer, not only is that entire load of laundry ruined, you'll probably have to throw away your dryer, unless you're a stubborn old mule, and studiously clean the entirety of your dryer drum with nail polish remover.  Take it from this stubborn old mule.

Happy Wednesday, everyone!

Bundle Sewing

When I go to Sew Camp, we always make a trip to Fabric Mart.  They are a small, unobtrusive storefront in a small city, with a surprising collection of fabrics for sale.  Much of it is designer fabric, so everyone who attends camp really looks forward to the trip (one lady even calls it "Disney World for Sewists!").

One of the things you can find at Fabric Mart is bundles.  Some of them are bundles of smaller pieces, generally under 1.5 yards, and some are bundles containing a smaller number of 2 to 3 yard cuts.  So, one day in July, I woke up feeling enthusiastic about a bundle of smaller cuts:

I had some ideas about what I should make from them.  This pattern is a new favorite, and I"m looking forward to wearing the top.

 I've never actually made anything from this pattern, although I've had it for several years.  I was a little iffy about this fabric, but the relative in Denver likes bright colors - and looks great in them - so if I don't like it, I'll send it to her!

 This fabric is actually why I selected this bundle.

 This was one of 2 test skirts before I make a couple of maxi skirts to take on vacation in November.

I haven't worn everything I made yet - after all, long sleeves do not play well with 90 degree days (even though we rarely get to 90 here).  So, here they are, laid flat.

Except for this dress, which I love.  I started out intending to make a regular raglan sleeved tee shirt dress, then saw a dress with off-the-shoulder sleeves, and decided that I could do that, with the addition of shoulder straps to hide foundation garments (which are an absolute must for a grandma).

Oh, I'd love to claim that I'm all kinds of clever and drew this up myself, but, really, I used McCall's pattern M7122 with a few alterations.  But the weather is changing - we haven't even reached 70 since last Thursday - and next week, I'll be forced to concede that summer is indeed in my rearview mirror, and start thinking about sleeves.

Happy Tuesday, everyone!

Sunburst Dresses!

At the last Sew Camp, I bought 2 panels of this fabric.  At alternating times, it has looked to me like either a sunburst or a flower, maybe a dandelion about to explode or some kinds of mums.  In any event, while working with it, in my head, it became a sunburst, so I'm going with Sunburst Dresses.

Figuring out the layout so I could maximize the impact of the pattern was a little tricky.  For the first one, which was a raglan sleeved pattern, I used long sleeves, laid out the front centered upon the panel, and the back so the ends of the sunburst almost meet in the back.  In that way, I figured that I'd look like the sunburst was wrapping around.  I then laid the sleeves at 90 degrees to the grain of the fabric, since it had 4 way stretch, and again, made the pattern look like it was wrapping from front to back.

 Not bad, I thought.  I like the pattern's effect.

Of course, I haven't worn it, since it's been hot here and this thing has 3/4 sleeves.  Maybe in September.

Since that only took one panel, I decided to use the second panel a little differently.  I have a pattern that I love, given to me by a friend several years ago, and it occurred to me that it could be very interesting with this fabric.  I laid it out so that the front and back had the top of the sunburst, and the bottom was pointed toward the hem on both sides.  I put the (short) sleeves on the solid white part, so the design wouldn't spill onto them.

This dress came out a touch too big, but wearing it with a belt helps.  And since I wear every other version of this dress which I've made with a belt, that's what I've come to expect to do in any event.

So, this Sew Camp fabric was a great find, and these dresses are pretty interesting!

Happy Friday, everyone!

August Sewciety Box!

My sewing subscription box for August arrived today.  It's a little on the pricy side, but I enjoy it.  The Sewciety provides a pattern (paper or digital download, depending upon the month), fabric sufficient for any size to make that pattern, and all notions: thread, buttons, interfacing, whatever.  They also include a helpful sewing thing, not a notion, but a thing, like the fabric marker shown here which magically disappears from the fabric when it's ironed.  I love it!

Additionally, they include a couple of small cuts to make a "petite project" each month.  Once, they sent materials and pattern for pot holders (which I made for my daughter-in-law), once it was a travel bag (which I gave to my granddaughter to hold her crayons), once it was a thread catcher...you get the idea.  This month, it's materials for a small pennant, including fabrics and a wooden dowel, plus printed directions.

It's always fun to get the box; it's like a little surprise gift I gave to myself some time back.  Sometimes I love the patterns, and a couple of times I've been indifferent or even disliked them, but I've always enjoyed them nonetheless.  August's project probably won't get made until September - things with grandchildren planned for the next 2 weekends - but who can't use a pretty gray top?

Princess Seamed Dress

Readers of my primary blog may remember that I have a subscription box from The Sewciety, which sends me a pattern, an appropriate cut of fabric, a smaller cut of fabric for a "petite project," and all necessary notions, right down to the thread.  It's a nice box.  I loved the fabric in my February box, however, I hated the pattern.  I made it up out of a fabric to which I was wildly indifferent; it was a dolman sleeved dress, and even after I took about 1/3 of the intended fabric out of the sleeves and armpits, it still looked absolutely dreadful.  Hence, I was delighted that I had saved my fabric!

I knew when I saw this fabric that it wanted to be a princess seamed dress.  My favorite pattern for that style is Vogue 9376, which I must have purchased in 1995 when the House of Fabrics here was going out of business and holding a deeply discounted sale. 

I've made this one up any number of times, and did it again for this fabric.  The exception is that I eliminated the sweetheart neckline, and instead made it a rounded neckline.  A simple alteration, to be sure, but one I felt necessary given the pattern on the fabric.

There's nothing extraordinary about the construction of this dress, but the skirt has a nice amount of flare and twirl, while being nicely fitted through the body to the hip.  Hence, it has survived nearly 25 years as one of my favorite patterns.  And, let's be honest, it's a classic line, so not likely to go out of style.

Happy Wednesday, everyone!

Marjie Ann Sews: An Introduction

I've been blogging as Modern Day Ozzie and Harriet for over a decade now.  Mostly, that has involved food and life with a large family; lately, I've been doing more sewing, and wanted something to record that.  So, here we are.  Maybe someone will find me, maybe not.

And, really, what's not to love about documenting my adventures with all of this?