Old Dogs and New Tricks

I think invisible zippers were invented when I first started sewing.  At least that's when I heard about them.  Unfortunately, I never could get the hang of how to put them in.

In my humble opinion if you can put in a zipper and it looks nice, why try to hide it.  The manufacturing world seems to think it's the only zipper to use but still I shied away from them.  I even put a statement on my website--I don't do invisible zippers.  It was something I tried several times to no avail.

Then I signed up as a student of Sandra Betzina's Power Sewing.  Wouldn't you know it she gave a tutorial on zippers.  I practiced on my granddaughter's Halloween costume.  Voila!  It worked.

I can now add these once bothersome notions to my list of accomplishments and I don't have to shudder when someone brings a garment with that dreaded zipper staring me in the face.

Introducing . . .

I'd like you to meet my new co-worker and model, Alice.  She hasn't been with me long but she's proven to be an invaluable employee.  Alice doesn't have a head for figures but then again she doesn't argue, she's always on time; and doesn't put nasty notes in the suggestion box.

I'm wondering why I waited so long to add her to my payroll.  And now, here's Alice modeling a bridesmaid's dress I just altered for a wedding this weekend.

I'm thinking of introducing her to my son's Karate dummy, Bob.  What do you think?

Local

I just joined http://www.weareathens.org (also known as Buy Local Athens on Facebook); an organization that promotes local businesses.

I may be a little late in joining since they started over a year ago but I'm looking forward to being a part of this group.

Go Athens!

New Life For Old Shirts

Recently at the Keep Athens Clarke County Beautiful Toast in the Garden event I donated a gift certificate for merchandise or services.  The winner had seen another apron at the event made from a man's shirt and wanted me to make one for her.  I didn't see the other auctioned apron so I made up my own patterns.

 For this apron I removed the sleeves of both shirts and made them into a skirt.  I took the pocket from the dark shirt since it was getting in the way of the top; made a similar pocket out of the plaid and put them on the skirt.  I got out my trusty seam ripper and removed the back and then re-stitched the collar.  After the back was removed from the dark shirt I angled the fabric from the collar to the waistband.  The backs of both shirts were used for the waistband and the ties.

For this apron I just used the front of the shirt by cutting a straight line just under the collar and then angling it to where I added the ties.  I removed the collar from the shirt and added it to a neckband that I attached to the apron front.  I sewed the front opening of the shirt down and then added ruffles around the edge from the contrasting shirt.  I made two pockets from the sleeves and thought ruffling might be nice for those also.  Ties were made out of the contrasting shirt.

Now we're ready for some fun in the kitchen!

Commercials

I love to go to thrift stores to pick up wool clothing so that I can make make purses.

Part of the process, after removing the lining and buttons, is to wash them in hot water to shrink them; or, if you like the technical term "full the wool". Rather than wash a couple at a time, which is not very energy efficient and more time consuming, I've found a product called Shout Color Catcher. It looks like a fabric softener sheet and you just throw it in the washer with your items. All the colors that would normally bleed onto each other bleed onto this sheet. Works like magic! I've even done white with dark colors with no problems. Being the skeptic that I am, I do use two sheets just to make sure. I learned this trick a while ago when I was in a laundromat. Two quilters were talking about pre-washing their fabrics and what a pain it was to pay to wash such a small amount for the same price as a full load. The tip was revealed and now I'm a happy camper.

Another tool I've found invaluable is Dawn dishwashing liquid. Let's just say that my love of chocolate and sewing don't always mix. Every once in a while I get a tiny bit of chocolate on a garment. A tiny dab of Dawn gets it right out. It also gets grease stains out of clothes. A long time ago some orange soda was spilled on a carpet I had and I couldn't get it out. I called the carpet company and they recommended mixing a quart of water with 1/4 teaspoon of Dawn and some hydrogen peroxide. Worked like a charm. Although I've read recently that if you don't rinse it properly the soap residue will make that spot turn gray.

One last tip. When I make bears there are times when I prick my finger with a needle and bleed on the mohair. The best thing to get that blood out is saliva. I think it has to be a natural fiber though because I've tried it on things that aren't all cotton or wool, etc. and it doesn't work as well.  As for the big stains of blood I've also heard that Dawn works well on that too.

Stay tuned to my StitchCraft page today. I finished the mole and he'll be posted as soon as I can get some photos.

Sew Simple!

I've been sewing for a lot of years (picture me with my hand over my mouth muffling the number).

Having said that I can still find things I didn't know.  I thought maybe I needed new glasses or larger eyes on the needle.  Even wetting the end of the needle instead of the thread worked better when trying to get that thread through that tiny eye.  I am fortunate to have a needle threader on my sewing machine.

Okay,  here's the tip.  Cut the thread on an angle before threading.  It's like magic!

Pressure

I have plans for this blog now that I've linked it to my Facebook page.

I recently donated a gift certificate to the Toast in the Garden for Keep Athens Clarke County Beautiful.  The winner of that certificate wanted an apron made out of man's shirt from a thrift store.

Today I bought the shirts and I will chronicle the making of these aprons (I never buy just one of something).

Give me a few days though.  I'm re-covering some outdoor cushions and putting the finishing touches on a mole.

Project Runway

After eight years I have discovered this show.  I'm amazed at what can be designed in such a short period of time.  I can only imagine the pressure those kids are under.

I bought several yards of fabric today just because I liked it.  I have no idea what I'll do with it and I can pretty well assure you that I'll need more than a couple of hours to design something and then make it.

For me, there is too much of taking everyone's inventory.  The judges are brutal.  I've learned in critique groups to do a sandwich--say something you like, tell how it could improve, and then say something nice.  I admit, I would have run home crying the very first day.  Got to admire the contestant's fortitude and very thick skin.

I don't know who I want to win but I'm anxious to see who the judges pick.

Passion

I'll admit it.  I'm a sewing nerd!

I get a high from seeing the inside of a garment look as good as the outside. Making something unwearable into something that you could walk down the street in is my cup of tea.  Taking thrift store clothes and making them into something usable is right up my alley.  I get a high from scraps of mohair that aren't big enough for much and turn them into all kinds of critters.

I don't know just what this blog will be about.  Right now it will be a companion to my StitchCraft page on Facebook.  There you'll be able to see pictures of what I've done.

My current project is a 1962 car coat bought at Agora.  The lining was pretty well shredded and pinned at the bottom.  There were holes at some of the seam intersections and it has seen better days.  After several tries to get the lining pieces to fit in the proper place, I am almost done--only tacking the sleeve and bottom hem and then re-sewing the back of bound button holes.  It looks good as  new.  I didn't take a picture of the before.  Black doesn't show up very well.  Maybe I'll try an after picture.

After the coat I have several more vintage pieces for the same customer.