Ahhhh! Less than a month until the Vintage Market! And silly old me promised to wear a vintage inspired dress. Oh, and I have to actually MAKE the dress. Don’t worry, I won’t disappoint. I’m actually ahead of the game! I’ve learned a few things in the process so far, and I want to share them with you, along with some of my favorite sites and blogs for a budding sewist. Then I’ll give ya a little sneak peek of the dress so far. Yeah, i know, you can hardly stand the excitement.
First, what I’ve learned so far. Number one – I hate cutting out those stupid tracing paper patterns. That’s the worst part of the whole process for me. See how annoyed I look?
Wait. you can’t tell. Maybe it’s because I’m practically in my pajamas, and wearing no makeup and if my husband had taken a picture that showed my face in it I would have…well, it would not have been pretty.
Second, a seam ripper is your best friend. Especially if you happen to sew one sleeve on perfectly and one sleeve on UPSIDE DOWN. Sorry, no pic. I was just too annoyed with myself. But it makes your friends laugh. Here’s a little article about how to sew a set in sleeve. Preferably the right side down…
Third, an actual sewing tip! When you’re making a dress with any sort of collar, the lines on the pattern won’t line up perfectly. There’s something called a “roll” that makes the collar stand up a little and hide the seam that attaches the collar to the dress. Here’s a post that explains how this works.
Probably the most important thing I learned is that the sizes on sewing patterns is very different from the dress sizing you are used to. Be sure to take your measurements (yeah, I know, boooooooo) and check them against the size chart either on the back of the pattern or a sizing chart online. The pattern size I ended up making was 2 sizes larger than my usual dress size. Great for a girl’s self esteem.
Here’s a pic of the lonely bodice. So far, I LOVE it. The print on the fabric is a bit bigger than I imagined it, but I still think it’s perfect.
So, now onto my favorite sewing sites and blogs. There are tons and tons and tons of sewing blogs out there, and most of them are pretty awesome. These are just a few that inspire me.
Merricks Art
I discovered this blog about a year ago and read the whole thing in a few days. Not only does she sew and refashion, but DARN, that girl’s got style! I love every outfit she wears, and usually she’s made it herself. Her clothes are always modest, too, and she shows that you can still look great and not show too much.
Oh Fransson!
Oh Fransson is mostly about quilting, but she has tons of great tutorials. When I was first learning to sew, I checked out Elizabeth’s blog, like, daily. She’s not posting a ton lately, but I’m sure she’ll be back and better than ever soon!
Made by Rae
Cutest. Kids. Clothes. Ever. Rae shares tons of great tips, and she has some adorable patterns. Her buttercup bag was one of the first bags I ever made.
HELLO my name is Heather
Heather Bailey’s blog is sheer drool-over-gorgeous-fabric bliss. Heather is definitely my favorite fabric designer. Amazing color and pattern everywhere! Ahhhhhhhh! Did I tell you how I had lunch with Heather? Yeah. I did.
And the motherlode –
Sew Mama Sew
I don’t think you will find a better source of tips, tutorials, reviews, etc, than on Sew Mama Sew. I found this site when The Little Bee was four months old and a sewist was born. Sooooooo many fun projects. And every tip you could ever imagine.
Sewing has been such a fun part of my life! It’s so cool to see a piece of fabric take shape, and I love being able to create one of a kind things for my family and friends. I hope that sharing this project with you has inspired you to take out that sewing machine, and play around a bit. Thanks for reading about my latest adventure!
