and now for something completely different....

I've been blogging for nearly two months and looking back over the posts I've made in that time has  made me re-evaluate my style. Are the clothes I make boring? (well maybe). But there's nothing in my wardrobe that says extraordinary, avant-garde, designer - WOW - set the world alight! I think what I make is SAFE: conventional clothes.

Leading up to the Christmas period I set to sewing stuff I would never have contemplated before. I rattled up a few things that I would probably never buy as RTW and pushed the comfort zone perhaps into mutton territory. Anyway, it's only you and me and a few close friends who have seen me in this stuff, so no member of the general public was traumatised or harmed in any way........and now for something completely different.......

Full length long haired white fur coat, patterned jersey scoop neck (sleeveless) T-shirt,
(p)leather Clovers.

The Clovers turned out just fine - though more adjustments were needed with a different fabric but not many. I omitted the pockets this time, really to save time but also to go for a smoother finish at the front.

The really good thing about the Clovers is that you can wear boots over them without the ugly and uncomfortable bunching up of fabric around the knees and they look just as good with a pair of shoes.








I avoided the invisible zip on this pair and went for a partially  exposed jeans zip - chunky metal teeth. A bit wiggly at the end because you only get to sew (p)leather once, so mistakes just have to be lived with.

 The problem with (p)leather is when you sew you puncture the fabric and every drop of the needle leaves a hole and no amount of steam pressing is going to take them out. Talking of pressing - use a pressing cloth - the last thing you want is melted (p)leather all over your ironing plate.  When sewing you can take in but never let out without a row of holes showing, so it's crucial that you're happy with the seams before you sew at all. Of course, you can't pin or tack (baste) either except in the seam allowance so trying on is somewhat difficult - bit of guess work really and just hope for the best. Sew large, try on inside out and mark up the take-in with tailor's chalk. One other thing - use a fairly large stitch length, minimum 2.5mm, as this row of puncture holes will act as a perforated edge and your trousers (pants) will just rip apart the first time you sit down!

The other problem is that the (p)leather sticks to the foot and the plate in the machine. You can buy a Teflon foot specifically for the purpose but time and £££ were an issue for me here. The Heath Robinson solution is to sandwich the fabric between two bits of greaseproof paper.  Once sewn, gently pull the paper away.

Try to sew as much as possible with the (p)leather to the inside to avoid this but hemming is the one place it can't be dodged.

I used a jeans needle in the machine too.

The T-shirt is McCalls M6078. Two pieces, front and back, both cut on the fold - wee buns!

It has a scooped neckline and the pattern comes with a variety of finishes and options. My fabric came from Tissu and is a four-way stretch lycra.

Burda 11/2011

The coat pattern is Burda magazine 11/2011 Fur Coat. I downloaded the pattern and printed it out; matched up all the A4 sheets and cut out a 42. With faux fur you want to keep the pattern as simple as possible - this coat has a back, two fronts and one piece sleeves. Each piece has to be cut out on single fabric as the fur was so thick the scissors wouldn't cut through. Also with fur, just cut the backing fabric not the fibres.

I made some alterations to the original - lowered the neckline and added a rolled collar with the intention of attaching fur hooks to the collar as a closure. I also lengthened the coat by 30cm (12") for a more luxurious feel.

The black satin lining is cut from the same pieces.

As most faux furs have a knit fabric as the base there is a little stretch inherent in the fabric. I used this to insert the sleeves before the sides were sewn. No easing of sleeve caps is needed as you sew the sleeve on the flat like a shirt sleeve. Sew the shoulder seams, mark your natural shoulder length on the fabric and match up the centre sleeve with the shoulder seam and pin the armhole edges together. Gently stretch the fronts and backs to fit the arm scythe as you sew. No easing, no wrinkles, no gathers.

The verdict?

When DH saw me in this, and I quote, "You're not going all glamourous are you?" So obviously he prefers the safe-look, or in his words, classic. However, he does like the (p)leather Clovers - as do I - so I think a second pair in tan or light brown might be just around the corner.

The coat is a no-no. It tickles my face and neck and is just too much Yeti for my liking. Added to which, I make a full-length fur coat and the temperatures here are sitting at a balmy 14 degrees Celsius, about 57 F.  Teenage son's friend wants some furry cushions for his bedroom/pad so this is probably where the coat will end up.

The T-shirt is grand - I'll keep it and make many more for summer time.

All in all, two out of three ain't bad.




Thanks for reading. Ruth

Zen and the Art of Zip Insertion

“Is it hard?'
Not if you have the right attitudes. It's having the right attitudes that's hard.”
― Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry into Values

If you have been flipping through this blog (thank you) or even been following the posts (thank you), then you will be aware of my difficulties with zips. I can manage to construct a fairly creditable garment up until the point of when I have to insert a closure. I particularly fret about invisible zippers because mine are NEVER invisible.

I break out in a cold sweat, I'll leave the skirt for days on Doris just so that I don't have to confront my demons, because I know that this is the crucial moment and everything done up 'til now could be wasted with a badly inserted zip. I put myself under such pressure that for sure - it will be a disaster and I'll be looking for coordinating long cardigans....(to hide the zip).

I have read every (and I mean every) blog, tutorial, book and magazine about How To Insert a Zipper. My brain knows what to do, but my hands don't seem to be very good at following orders. Added to that, the machine can feel my fear and regresses to a 3 year old throwing a tantrum. Then I regress to a 2 year old and my tantrums are so much more impressive that the machine's. Word goes out through the house, "Mummy's putting in a zip, let's leave quietly."

I read so many blogs illustrating perfect sewing projects - they are inspirational and create the desire in one to try harder and do better - but, if we are perfectly honest we all have sewing room mishaps, we all have to rip out and start again at some time; so this blog's intention was always to show the good with the bad - especially for sewers who are just beginning.



This was a recent misadventure in zip insertion - Paco's half-circle skirt. I even had the audacity to document on this very blog 'how to insert a zip' and this was the result!













Early projects had varying degrees of calamity:

1                                                                       2                                                                    3

1 - Resorted to stitching across the bottom of the zip to try to flatten the end and seal the seam

2 - This one was put in by hand to avoid annoying the machine and then topstitched for strength because my skirts are under a lot of pressure at the hips.

3 - Just crap and the zip doesn't even match

Then we move to the slightly better: but still..................

4                                                                               5                                                                           6

4 - Wiggly seam at bottom of the zip

5 - Uneven sewing (or something) at the bottom of the zip

6 - Straight, but visible.

The right tools are essential for invisible zips:

• An invisible zipper foot, (metal, not plastic). Plastic ones do not have enough weight to hold the zip's teeth out of the way while sewing. I have a plastic one. See? But I'm thinking of updating the machine and don't want to buy accessories for the Janome if I'm moving to a Brother.
• Normal zipper foot to close the seam beyond the zip's end. This allows you to get really close to the previous sewing lines.
• A positive, can-do attitude. This is the hardest tool to acquire. A confident mental state and tenacity to achieve.
• Practice, practice, practice (Art Attack's advice to me on inserting zips)

We all possess skills or talents that we excel at; for some it's designing, for others it's choosing fabrics that compliment, some have endless patience, some are just brilliant, for others it's all of the above and inserting zips.

And some of us are still searching.

Thanks for reading. Ruth

Paco's Skirt

This is GOOD NEWS! What do think of that zip then?

The speckled bit on the back is just damp from my pressing and the pins are holding the waistband fold over (this needs hand sewing).

But just brilliant, especially after last night's fiasco. But then I always put zips in twice.

The lining was cut and sewn in too this evening - and looks really professional if you follow Paco's instructions - not a stitch in sight.

Paco's skirt is heading for the finish line.

Sunday Sewing on Monday

 So, this evening I thought I'd get back to work on the swingy skirt - all cut out and ready to go. I decided that the zip would go in perfectly first time - I took extra time and thread traced the seam allowances on the front and back slightly longer than the zip so that I could match up the seam after the zip was in. GREAT.

Then I pinned the zip to the thread tracing, put the invisible zipper foot in the machine and off I went.

 Did the same on the other skirt side and just look at this result - ABSOLUTELY PERFECT. Unbelievable! A zip that I've put in the first time and it's so good. :)

 Changed the invisible zipper foot on the machine to the regular zipper foot to stitch below the zipper end closed ...........  and this is when it all went wrong.

 1. Ran out of bobbin thread

2. Thread tension went to war with me

3. Dog feeds wouldn't hold the fabric

4. Realised that I should have sewn the waistband on first as the zip goes into it

5. Useless zip position

6. Ended up with holes in the skirt 

Anyone know of a skirt pattern that doesn't need zips?