Sunny yellow low back dress with vintage hem

Sometimes you don’t need to buy a pattern. I saw this dress, (swipe right to see) liked it and it inspired me to make something similar. So I did! Went to town on this one, it’s underlined with a vintage hand-sewn ribbon hem and an all in one facing. It’s heavy, feels quality when it’s on. You can’t put this in your hand luggage!😀. 

💕#designer#nopatternrequired#missjsewswithnopattern #missjsews#ilikeitihaveit #memade#sewersofinstagram#blackmakersmatter #dresstoimpress#ootd

This is one wide hem to be hand-sewing!

Hand-sewn vintage style ribbon hem. 

 

Strapless Evening ( or day) dress what long full skirt and beautiful pattern matching across the bodice!

Anyone remember @gertie18 Sew Retro perfect Bombshell dress class? Used the bodice from that for this and a self-drafted skirt.Made last minute for a work Xmas do and put the bow on to hide where I burnt it with the iron😂🤣#bluprint #sewersofinstagram #craftsy#memade

                                                                  This print is gorgeous!

                                                 Look at that pattern matching across the seams!!!

 

Gone Dotty!

This is the outcome of my pattern hack to Style 1273 - a 1980s summer dress with buttons down the front.  The 80's sleeves had to go and I wanted to have a yoke at the front without the buttons. The changes I made were:

amending the from buttons to remove the Button placket and closing it up.  Adding a zip to the back. Now, I didn't have sufficient fabric so I had to carefully pattern match across the dots at centre front.  Can you believe that? Laborious or what? Happy with the outcome though!

There's a new chick coming though on here....

If you follow this blog you'll be familiar with this model.  This is the lovely tailors dummy who is usually front and centre to model whatever I have created.  She's been great. So versatile and requires very little pay! As much as I love my tailors dummy, she is not exactly me. I'm shaped just a little differently and at the end of the day, the garments are made to fit me.  So, I'm afraid you're gonna see a new chick coming through on here. 

So here I am, out of the shadows and front and centre. Not your average model but then again who wants to be average!

It’s a vintage vibe. 50’s style dress with boning, lining & horsehair braid. It certainly stands out in a crowd! I used Burda 5/2001#122a & Butterick B6019 for the circle skirt as I was lazy to draft my own. As usual there were some shenanigans with the fabric as I didn’t have enough.🙄 #50sdress#sewersofinstagram #sewersgonnasew#vintagestyle #rockabillystyle#memade #fashionista#missjsewsusesapattern #missjsews#sewingproject #fabricland

Horse hair braid on the outside of the lining. It's itchy!

I've only gone and made a free mask tutorial and pattern!

Check out my new free face mask pattern and tutorial! Elastic free, clear instructions. It's a beginning to end sew along.  Look good while doing good! It's on YouTube at https://youtu.be/K38x5bXogdo or Instagram TV @missjsews.  😁

Now what you know 'bout matching your mask to your garms?

Hello!
It's been a long time, I shouldna left you!

Hope you've been fine!  I'm good but life as they say, got in the way, and just as I'm preparing to come back to public life, the world that I knew changed.

Well, I figure I just gotta change right along with it.

Today, the Scottish Government recommended members of the public wear face masks while out in public places in agreement with the Mayor of London.  The UK Government are not making such a recommendation.

As PPE is reserved right rightly for care personnel, I've designed and produced my own cotton masks for wearing out and about and using my sewing skills for practicality and aesthetics.

Not using elastic for these as from my understanding, when removed, these masks are best washed in hot water and ironed to keep them clean. Don't think elastic can stand up to that drama on a regular basis.  I realise that these masks are not considered as germ resistant in the way that medical masks are, but at the very least assist in preventing me from infecting anyone else, but are not a substitute for social distancing.... Now less talking and a finally a picture.

I've drafted the pattern to ensure that the mask fits snugly under the chin and over the nose.  Thought that this African wax fabric inspired print dress and mask combo would help with getting used to this new normal.  I call it sewing my way out of sadness.

Ain't nothing wrong with keeping stylish even during these times!

What's your thought on my providing a free pattern and maybe even a tutorial?

Thanks for stopping by, see you again soon!

xxx,

J.

Strapless Cherry Dress with full skirt or I've been a good student of the sewing school of life- I won't be naughty and rush a frock again!!

I was sent back to school on this one!

Lesson No.1
Never make a garment in a hurry with unrealistic timeframe

Lesson No.2
Pattern matching requires tracing paper

Lesson No.3
Don't make a circle skirt when you're short on fabric.

Lesson No.4
Patternmatching takes additional fabric (see lesson No.3)



 The bodice on this strapless cherry frock is based on Burda  The Bustier Dress with Draped Detail 5/2011 #122A (see the one I posted previously http://missjsews.blogspot.co.uk/2016/04/tiki-dress-perfect-bombshell-dress.html the skirt is a basic circle skirt from Butterick B6019 as I was so short on time I didn't want to take time to draft my own.

Did I mention that there is horsehair braid and boning in this one.  All stuff that you do when you're in a hurry right???

The cotton lining

I was so fixated on getting the frock finished to wear to my event that I rushed headlong into this project.  On the bodice I managed to pattern match the back but at the bust and side bodice pieces I opted to try and place the cherries in a nice way.

Looking back, I could, with tracing paper and more fabric and time have matched the pattern across many of the bodice seams. Can you believe I sat through a pattern matching class before doing this.  Ha!

Now I cut the bodice before the skirt only to realise the fabric was insufficient.  Damn it!

Fortunately the cherries are fairly random, so I turned the skirt along the weft and then horror of horrors, had to put a seam in the front of my skirt to make it fit.

Now, here I put my foot down with myself and decided that pattern matching was a must on the now mandatory front seam.

Cue frantic searching for repeat patterns and finding the match on the other front skirt piece and a heck of a lot of glass head pins.

The pattern matched cherries are horizonately across the photo

Did I mention that I underlined the bodice and lined the skirt?   I allowed the skirt a couple of days  hanging time for the bias and wow, did that lining show under the skirt.  Put my horsehair braid to give me that swing, and wouldn't you know it, the lining is still showing under the skirt.  I mean really showing so wavy and uneven that looking at it could make you seasick.   Aaaahaahaahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!
If you've ever unpicked horsehair braid when you've stupidly sewn it on with your machine on 2 stitch length, you'll know it takes time.

Horsehair braid

The waist stay

Well now, out of the mouth of disaster comes a wearable garment.  I'm well peeved coz I was sewing in the horsehair braid back in on the day of the event and had to leave the dress, unfinished, and wear something else. Just another half hour would have done it!

Anyhow, my dress form is looking rather lovely in her new frock. I've still not worn it it.

My cherry print full skirted frock

I've been a good student of the sewing school of life- I won't be naughty and rush a frock again!!