Sewing Lessons & FAQ

[sophia la shok]

so i made my first skirt. was a 2 day job. and that was only really afternoons. have to say the most confusing bit was cutting the patterns in the first place. i had to fold the material 3 seperate ways cos i made a swing skirt. eugh. BIIIIIIIG pattern.
but worth it tho.
i used a polyester lining material (cos it was cheap and just the right thickness) in a chocolate brown. it was really nice to use. i managed the zip ok too. i gave up with the instructions for the zip because it sounded like jibberish and figured it for myself. which worked much more to my liking. intuition=1, stoopid instructions=0.

i havent gotten round tp takin pics yet, but i shall do just as soon as i figure where my camera has gone. hmph.

so, big big thank you to Lady Day who, quite frankly is my inspiration. her story in her website was just the sweetest tale. without her to look up to i dont think i would have even bothered. so thanks. i'm now enrolling in part time college next year for dress making.

also cheers to all t'other girlies who inspired me to get my act together with the needle and thread.

xxx

 

[Lady Day]

so i made my first skirt. was a 2 day job. and that was only really afternoons. have to say the most confusing bit was cutting the patterns in the first place. i had to fold the material 3 seperate ways cos i made a swing skirt. eugh. BIIIIIIIG pattern.
but worth it tho.
i used a polyester lining material (cos it was cheap and just the right thickness) in a chocolate brown. it was really nice to use. i managed the zip ok too. i gave up with the instructions for the zip because it sounded like jibberish and figured it for myself. which worked much more to my liking. intuition=1, stoopid instructions=0.

i havent gotten round tp takin pics yet, but i shall do just as soon as i figure where my camera has gone. hmph.

so, big big thank you to Lady Day who, quite frankly is my inspiration. her story in her website was just the sweetest tale. without her to look up to i dont think i would have even bothered. so thanks. i'm now enrolling in part time college next year for dress making.

also cheers to all t'other girlies who inspired me to get my act together with the needle and thread.

xxx

:eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap
Yay you made a skirt! Whooop!

And thank you so much! That is very sweet of you to say! Made my evening

LD

 

[mrswheats]

Question- I have always sewn on cotton in the past-easy to preshrink. Now that I'm buying rayon, they say to hand wash cold and hang dry or dry clean. Do I still have to pre-shrink? Will hand washing and hang drying even do it? Any tips? Dry Cleaning will cost about $2 a yard

When I get rayon ready to sew, I just pre-wash it like I would any other fabric (especially since I'm not about sewing anything I have to dry clean).
If I'm particularly worried about it, I'll cut a good size piece and do a test run first, then see how the fabric does. As far as drying it, draping the fabric over a curtain rod works great. I've also laid fabric out over my cutting table to dry, and then I don't have to iron it before I start cutting the pattern

 

[Idledame]

That is great to know. I was not looking forward to hand washing all my material. Thanks!

 

[Laura Chase]

I'm not sure if this is the right thread to post this, if there is another thread more appropriate, then please move my post.

I have a question about repairing holes in a dress... I bought this lovely dress but it had two large moth holes in the back, right on the derriere... So I tried to patch them with some fabric from the hem, but oh so unsuccessfully...

What should I do? I can remove the patches, but I don't know how to sew them on more invisibly, the fabric unravels when I try.

I was thinking of making some of that velvet appliqué in the back too, but maybe it will look bad because I can't make the applique look exactly the same. But it seems like that is the only solution. If so, how do you think I should make the appliqué pattern, should it go from the front right side and then to the back, or how do I avoid making it look misplaced?

I'm heartbroken because this dress is so lovely. The fabric is some sort of
wool crepe, I believe.

Dress

Holes 1

Holes 1

Velvet appliqué 1

Velvet appliqué 2

I'm bumping this post just because I'm still heartbroken over this dress and I haven't done anything about it yet and I need more opinions... I'm not very good at sewing so if I am to do this myself, it has to be a very simple solution. Nikki has suggested a peplum or a swag to cover the back side, and although I think this would look good and be easy to make, it would also make the dress look more fancy, and I'd prefer to keep it simple as it is.

If anyone here would help me with this dress by replacing the entire backside with a new piece of fabric, I would be very happy to pay you, so just please PM me.

 

[Smuterella]

I can't help you but I feel your pain

I'm sure there is a way it can be rescued

I think I would try removing the patches and patching from the inside with an iron on type patch....but this might cause more damage

I just accept moth holes now, unless they are new ones of course

am resisting moving in with the gf as she has clothes moths and I just can't move my collection into here until they are gone

ooh, new thread!

 

[Darhling]

I am not sure if this belongs here or in the vintage pattern thread, but I have seen a dress from Stop Staring that is just beautiful and I would love to find a pattern that recreates the special lines of this dress - I hope it is okay to post pics from stop staring, if not the Bartenders can remove it. It is called the Sydney Dress from Stop Staring.

any directions for fabrics would be awesome aswell

I am a RTW size 6/8

Thank you in advance!

I am bumping this - I hope somone can help me

ALSO, any good, but cheap pinking shears outthere? i have only found a very limited selection here and they cost 40$ and up..

 

[mrswheats]

Darhling, I have a pair of Fiskar's pinking shears that I like a lot (and they were around $20), but I don't know how easy they are to find in Sweden.

 

[ShrinkingViolet]

All the pinking shears I've seen here have been quite expensive. I'm using a pair that belonged to my grandmother although they are really dull. I wonder where I can get them sharpened nowadays. Isn't Fiskars a Finnish brand, actually?

 

[TheKitschGoth]

Hope one of you girls can help me, last week (I think) someone posted a link to someone selling a book (it may have been a pdf file) on making hats/skirts/etc. which was a vintage book that the seller had scanned and made look newer, it was on ebay and I saved it my favourites.. or rather I thought I did, but it's no longer there. And, of course, I can't remember the seller, the titile, or which thread it was linked in. I also can't remember the context it was mentioned in, so don't know where to look for it. So.. it's a really vague description, I know, but it's all I can remember. Can anyone help?

Randopm stuff I remember that may narrow it down, there was some mention of it being out of copyright but that the seller had their own copyright on it. Does that help?

 

[Joie DeVive]

All the pinking shears I've seen here have been quite expensive. I'm using a pair that belonged to my grandmother although they are really dull. I wonder where I can get them sharpened nowadays. Isn't Fiskars a Finnish brand, actually?

I'd say to try asking at your local sewing shop. (Assuming you have one, of course) Some in my area send them out to be sharpened, but even if yours doesn't, there are often people in such shops who do sew, and are willing to share their recommendations.

 

[Mary]

too big bathing suit

Hi ladies. I've got a bathing suit that's to big for me. It's in a rather stiff fabric and is made up of fours pieces in the front sewn together. It's a fifties model so it's supposed to form fitting. At least I think so.

Is it allright to put some photos of it here? And you could tell me where to sew it in and if I should add some stretch or a zipper maybe.

M

 

[Mary]

I've taken the photos but I can't resize them in photobucket.I've really tried but it doesn't save the changes I make. What should I do?
Is there a tread for computer support? I've read the FAQ and looked around a bit.

M

 

[Smuterella]

Right, I think I am being very slow but can someone please explain how much fabric I need

The pattern says the following:

35" material (without nap) = 2 1/8 yards
39" material (with or without nap) = 1 7/8 yds
54" material (without nap) = 1 5/8 yds

The material I want is checked wool, therefore has a pattern (nap?) and is 60" wide. I'm thinking two metres (2 1/8 yd) but am I getting this totally wrong?

should I order more to ensure I can get the patterns to "fit"?

the actual sewing I think I can do, its understanding the instructions I seem to have problems with!

*blush*

 

[Sunny]

I think you'll be fine with 2 yards/meters. 54" is near enough to 60" to make no difference. Unless you've got just enormous pattern pieces, it should work. If you're worried, mark out a space on the floor and lay out the pattern pieces to see if they'll fit. I've done that in the fabric store with patterns I haven't even bought yet! lol

Nap is technically when a fabric's weave has fibers standing up from it in a particular direction, like velvet, and you have to cut out the pattern with the same "up" and "down" direction. Nap can be very subtle; often you can't see it until you drape two pieces side by side and the sheen makes the difference. Functionally, though, just assume that your fabric "has nap" if it has any kind of texture, print, or twill. It just means that you can't turn the pattern pieces up and down.

 

[Smuterella]

thanks for the advice Sunny, I really appreciate it!

 

[dani]

sewing question

i am really wanting to start sewing my own outfits, so that way i can get exactly what i want. i have sewn a little in highschool, but never any clothing. what are some easy things to do for practice, untill i get good enough to make clothing? also what are some good machines, there are all kinds of them at wal-mart, and have no idea which would be best.

 

[Joie DeVive]

Hi Dani!

Good questions. We have a thread that will really help you out with those questions here: http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=11070&page=75
In fact this thread will probably be combined in there as a matter of housekeeping.

Pillows with straight sides are perfect for beginners. Once you get going pillow covers are an excellent way to practice zippers. Aprons are pretty straightforward too. If you are ready to take the jump into clothing, a simple A-line skirt is where I started, and it worked out well for me. I can't recommend new machines though. All mine have been hand-me-downs.

 

[Miss Neecerie]

Hi Dani!

Good questions. We have a thread that will really help you out with those questions here: http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=11070&page=75
In fact this thread will probably be combined in there as a matter of housekeeping.

and so it is!

 

[Idledame]

Mary, I've found that one day I can photobucket or AOL photo to do what I want and the next week I can't. I don't know if it's them or me.