Friday, 24 June 2011

Let's get this party started!


I have finally started cutting out my pattern!  I'm so happy to start sewing. My pattern is so pretty (a little scary difficult). 

This is the book that I'm using for the pattern and instructions.
The dress I'm making.  
The main dress fabric.
The fabric for the ruffles.
 
I had expected to have a thick paper pattern from which to trace my pattern pieces.  I wanted to trace them instead of cutting them so that I could save the pattern for different sizes.  I was so excited, but when I opened the pattern it was a tissue paper pattern. So, I used thin muslin to trace the pattern onto.  It wasn't easy because the tissue was so thin it was hard to see it through the muslin.  

First one done.  Second one I had to redo twice, but I still could not get it right.  By this time I was almost in tears.  Then mom goes "Oh baby, I forgot all about tracing paper.  It will make this so much easier."  So mom got me tracing paper.  Tracing paper is chalky on one side and clean on the other.  You put the chalky side of the tracing paper on the fabric and the pattern on the tracing paper, and with a tracing wheel go over the pattern.   God bless person that made tracing paper.  It done in about an hour or two.  
  



A picture of the tracing wheel.

Do you like my make-shift weights?  They work!


I have cut all the pattern pieces out of muslin, now I will cut the dress out of muslin.  The instructions said that was the best way to check your fit and make any alterations before the expensive beautiful material was cut.

I'm sorry about the crooked pictures.  I have worked on it for 2 days trying to get them looking right.  I've finally given up.  And I don't know why some of the pictures are on the left side and some aren't.  And I don't know why some of the font is different.  I have spent several days just trying to figure out blogging.  I begged my mom for a while to let me have a blog.  I'm starting to wonder, why.

Score:  Lizzie-0; Blogger-1 2 3!

Thursday, 16 June 2011

From A Beginner to...

Hi, I'm Lizzie, and I am starting to sew for two reasons: 


First, the Proverbs 31 woman makes her own clothes, and I would love to be like her. (Who wouldn't?)


Second, I love clothes.  But I'm more modest than the everyday girl.  The clothes on the market are not the most modest or very cheap.  This way I can make clothes I want, with the fabric I want, the length I want, and the price I want.  I don't want much.


I love vintage patterns.  I am hoping to improve my skills enough to take old vintage patterns and give them a modern twist.


Follow me as I go from a beginner sewer to a expert better beginner sewer.
  
I'll start on my first project in a day or so. I promise to post a lot of pictures, my mistakes along the way, my victories, my hopes and dreams for the future (just kidding about that last one.)

PS-I'm also hoping to use this as a place to post about my knitting hobby and yarn spinning obsession.