A little book I found

I have a lot of pictures to share today of this vintage book I found at an antique shop near Ithaca.

The book is called Steps in Clothing Skills.

Here is a picture of the index page.

What amazed me so much about the book weren't the (cheesy) lovely pictures or the fact that the book was published by Avon Products company.

What amazed me about this book is what it contains. It doesn't just discuss simple sewing techniques for the beginning sewer (I'm assuming the book was a textbook for high-schoolers, by the looks of the pictures and subject matter). Actually, most of the book is taken up with grooming tips for the pubescent teen.

They learn things like how to sit up straight in their chair (posture), how to apply deodorant (to your toes?), and how to take a proper bath.

Here is the bathing section. Notice how they cover every possible type of bath a girl can take:

And here it tells you to put deodorant, not only under your arms, but between your toes:

I have to ask, how many of you out there has used deodorant between your toes? Of course, this may be a very private issue and if you don't want to share, I totally understand. I've personally have never heard of doing such a thing, but if you are the type of person who tends to have a lot of toe sweat, then this might be the thing for you, I suppose. I'm not judging, I'm simply making an observation here. There very well may be millions of people who use this method of staying dry between the toes and I'm simply one of the other half of the world who hadn't heard of it until now. Now, I am not above having toe sweat, but I have always just used simple talc powder or corn starch to help alleviate any issues with it. But I do suppose deodorant could work. Maybe tomorrow before I put my sandals on when I leave for work I should dab a little Speed Stick between my toesies. I'll let you know if it works.

After rambling on for over a hundred pagets, the writers finally get to the actual clothing information on page 122:

On page 268 (over a hundred pages later) we finally start discussing clothing patterns:

Now, while I was amazed that half of this textbook was taken up with things like deodorant to the toes and the various wonderful ways to take a bath, I realized something. Teens these days do not have this information in their classrooms any longer. I certainly never had these subjects discussed in any of my high school classes. However, I now wonder if kids these days would benefit by having a classroom textbook which discussed these subjects. How many teens these days really NEED a lesson in how to wash properly? How many teens need information on sitting up straight? It is interesting to think about how a textbook like this would go over in a high school classroom these days. The students would probably laugh it out of the school, but that may be because of the way society has changed over the last 40-50 years since this book was printed. I truly believe, after reading many sections of this textbook, that there are probably about 30% of the high school students out there who would greatly benefit by this book and a little instruction in how to take a bath, dress properly, iron their clothing, and to mend it.

Ahhhh, the good ole days.

My favorite sewing blogs

I work full time as a Program Coordinator for those with developmental disabilities, I have a teenage son, 10 cats, a dog, three goats, a cockatiel, a duck, and about 15 chickens. In my free time I work on my Etsy.com store.

And in the few spare seconds I have each week, I sew.

And when I'm too tired to work on any of the above items, usually while I'm eating my breakfast in the mornings, I try to read some of my favorite sewing blogs on the Internet.

I thought I'd share them in case there are others who are in need of some inspirational words of wisdom from other like-minded people. I remember how thrilled I was when I came across the blogs of fellow seamstresses and seamsters (I like this word, it works for what we need here even if it isn't a real word, so please humor me)

In no particular order (ahem), here they are:

1. Male Pattern Boldness

Peter never fails to make me laugh or at least chuckle at his spectacular wit and charm. He and his identical cousin, Cathy, make a great team. Peter sews and Cathy wears many of the creations on her jaunts around the world.

2. Gertie's Blog for Better Sewing

I think that most of my actual sewing inspiration has come from her. She is a daring sewer, never afraid to try a new technique or try a new pattern. Her blog was so fabulous that she garnered a great book deal. I can't wait until it comes out!!!

3. Erica B.'s DIY Style

More of my sewing inspiration came from her blog. Her color palettes, her enthusiasm and great personality have made for great reading and great pattern reviews.

4. Vacuuming the Lawn

I love the down-to-earth, wearable outfits she creates. I get inspired simply by the ease of which she makes her clothes.

5. A Fashionable Stitch

Previously known as The Cupcake Goddess, I follow her items on Etsy.com. She creates tailor hams and other sewing notions in great prints. When I can spare a few dollars on myself and not on my home or animals I believe I'll be purchasing one or three....



These are probably the top 5 blogs I follow although I do have a long listing in my favorites file in my browser. I thought I'd share my inspiration and perhaps lead some of my fellow seamsters (sounds like Teamsters, eh? -- perhaps we need a union) and seamstresses to their own inspiration!

Enjoy!

My new Etsy.com store!

I've finally started selling items on Etsy.com just as I've always wanted to do!!!

Please check out my new Etsy.com store: Thimble N Thread

Gucci and Pucci

In line with the latest trend, I, too, have fallen prey to the allure of vintage clothing. I have found myself, over the last few months, searching more and more for vintage patterns, vintage clothing, and appreciating more vintage styles.

On that note, I had to share these lovely vintage finds I discovered while perusing a few websites for inspiration.

The first is this 70s Gucci metallica silver and black blouse with a ruffle on one side.




I adore the high collar (I'm a sucker for mocks and mandarin collars) and the way it comes down straight over the hips is sure to be flattering on almost anyone. I'm not sure if the ruffle is part of the front closure or it is an extension of the collar, perhaps in a drop scarf. I wish I could get my hands on it to study it!

Next, I found this gorgeous 60s Pucci blouse in a diagonal stripe.



I love the front placket created from almost a Native Indian styles triangular design. The same design is repeated on the collar, sleeves, and the bottom of the blouse. Some may think it a bit busy, but I believe it is just right for the bold personality (like me!). I'm sure I will never see this kind of fabric, or anything even close, in my lifetime, since I'm sure it was made exclusively for Pucci, but the pattern for the blouse is very simple and I'm sure, easy to recreate. I may have to look for a few bold prints the next time I hit the fabric store!

If you are looking to purchase these lovely confections, you can find them here at Rice and Beans Vintage Clothing

Le Crueset Giveaway

One of my favorite blogs, Some Like it Vintage, is giving away an adorable Blueberry Petite Casserole. I can already picture this dish on my dining room table filled with steaming roast stew or brimming with homemade tomato soup!

Here is the link to enter the contest for yourself: Le Crueset Giveaway

New Year

Ok, so I haven't written in here in like, forever. I have a busy life, including my sewing life. Since my last post, I have made several sets of pillowcases (Snoopy, Winnie the Pooh, and Debbie Mum) for my partner. She adores novelty pillowcases. I think she now has one set for each holiday plus a bunch extra. I made her four sets this last holiday. I've also made a linen and ultrasuede button down shirt with a military style mandarin collar. I'm still finishing the hand sewn buttonholes, but it is pretty much finished. I will try to have pics soon, but this computer's SD card slot is broken and that makes it more difficult for me to get off my lazy butt and upload the pics. I've also made several fabric covered boxes for storage around the house, plus two pairs of pajamas for Xmas gifts. Oh yeah, and a visor organizer for my partner's truck. I got the organizer pattern from the book Sew and Stow. I love this book, and had bought it last year, but this Xmas was the first time I'd made anything out of it. I am also working on the six pocket wall hanging storage right now from the same book.

One thing I realized while making these items was that I have sooooo many sewing and knitting books and I probably only make one or two items from them a year. How many other people do this, too? Or is it just me?

On another note, still no luck getting a full time teaching job. My student loans started coming due last month and it has been difficult making the payments, especially around the holidays, but I've been trying to get as many substitute teaching jobs as I can. I'm a bit discouraged, though, since hiring at schools is usually only in the summer and I did put out 39 resumes and applications this last year. I just don't know what else to do. I have three certifications and they don't seem to be worth the paper they are printed on. Sigh.

The weather here has been depressing, as well. Cold, cold, cold. And lots of snow. Every day we've gotten about two inches. I can barely take the dog for a walk in the back yard. She has to jump over the snow or risk getting lost forever. And we're getting more snow tomorrow, another 4 inches or so. I think I should go sew and not look out the windows for the next few days... how does that sound?

Ok, so I'm bad at blogs

It has been FOREVER since I last posted and I am so sorry for that. I have been mega busy these last few months. I did finish my "yellow" inspired collection and it turned out fabulous! I also created a few other things. Right now I'm working on dog coats for our local Humane Society. I found this awesome pattern on Martha Stewart's website (can be found here: http://www.marthastewart.com/article/doggy-coats?lnc=bb1e0f7ef140f110VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&rsc=article2content_pets&rsc=related_test) I am almost finished with the first one and I will post pics as soon as I can. I have three more planned, each a bit different. I have to say, this pattern is extremely easy. And if you don't like using bias tape around the edges, there is a way to bag this pattern so you don't have to deal with them.

I figured out who it was

Here is the link to my inspirational blogger who is using yellow this year in her sewing:

http://sewingfantaticdiary.blogspot.com/

She is an experienced sewer and I love reading her posts. Check it out!

PICTURES!!!!

Yay! I finally have pictures to share!

First up is the jacket I attempted to modify -- the pattern turned out very well... it was the stupid fabric that drove me crazy.

First picture is the scratches that were in the fabric. By the way, I realized that it wasn't my fault the scratches were there. I originally thought that I had inadvertently pulled the fabric across a piece of masking tape on the edge of my table. But this was not the case at all. The fabric, it turned out, was riddled with long scratches all over the material. I never noticed it, of course, until.... I had already sewn half of it together. That's what I get for cutting out a new project at night, I guess. I ended up lining the entire jacket with self fabric because the scratches were on the front and the yoke on the back. I recut the pieces I needed and used the original facing pieces as my jacket pieces... putting everything together as needed. It worked out well, for the most part.

However, part two of my problems was the fabric -- peachskin polyester. I will not.... WILL NOT... ever use this fabric again. Except perhaps as a lining fabric.... MAYBE. This fabric was awful to work with. It is worse than acetate or satin. Not only did it fray, but no matter how much I lowered the tension on my sewing machine, it STILL puckered when I sewed it.

First up, here are some of the scratches I found:

The material appears orange here because of my flash and because I worked the image so the scratches show a little better. If any of you have worked with peachskin before you will know the type of nap/shine it has going in one direction. This is probably how I missed it the first time. These scratches were found in about 8 different places all over the fabric.

Ok, so after I reworked the jacket to ensure it was fully lined, then I had to deal with the problem of sewing this kind of fabric. It sewed up terribly!

The next picture is the fabric puckering on the front of the jacket after I finished topstitching it with a -3 tension (the lowest I can go on my Singer):

It is a bit wrinkled from being stuck back on the shelf for three days after I got frustrated with it and began another project.... oopsie.... but you can still see how it puckered around the edging where I topstitched the edges. It was awful!

Here is the pattern I was working from:

Now, I hate, hate, hate admitting that I may be wrong about something..... (who does?), but, while this fabric is awful to work with, I have finally come to the conclusion, after thinking about for several days... that perhaps the fabric wasn't THAAAAT bad. Perhaps it is my MACHINE that is awful. I did purchase it at Wally World, after all, and we all know that sometimes companies will create a product specifically designed FOR Wally World... and said product is sometimes, well, not the same as the regular product that is sold elsewhere (case in point is their HP computers and Dell computers -- those bundled packages for such a GREAT price are made specifically for Wally World and no place else on the planet). So, anyway, I am going to play around with the fabric again (not the jacket, it is a lost cause because the topstitching cannot be pulled out without ruining the fabric, unfortunately.... I tried), but my scraps. I have over a yard left, too, so I think I will play around with different stitches and see exactly if it might be the fact that my machine won't allow a lot of tension adjustments. It will only allow adjustment for the top tension, not the bottom and the feed dogs can't be adjusted at all. Maybe it is the machine and not the fabric. I may have to begin saving up for a better machine, even though I paid around $180 for it.

Ok, on to funner things (is that a word?) ---

Here is the project I stopped the jacket for:

I purchased a blouse from C.J.Banks (my absolute favorite clothing store of all time) a few months ago that I absolutely LOVE to wear. I wanted to duplicate it with other colors and fabrics so I found this pattern and modified it accordingly. The blouse is almost done and then I believe I will make one more in another color before I move on to my sunshine yellow linen wardrobe projects. Here is the blouse so far. The neckline needed adjusting because the pattern was actually cut very short (more like a juniors), so I added 2 inches to the top all the way around (raglan style sleeves on this, so it was fairly easy). Then I added two inches to the bottom and took out the rounded bottom, straightening it up. I also put in a bit of a rounded back adjustment and also widened the bottom so it would flare nicely. I plan on smocking the top section a little bit (maybe) and then adding a tie string that goes from the sides to tie in the back. This should add a bit of interest and waist definition. I wanted to add something around the neckline, but didn't want to add ruffles or anything too frilly because the pattern is overwhelming enough. I thought about a bow, but I'm not sure. I figured I'd play after I get it together.

Then, for the coup de grâce ----

This is the wardrobe I want to make with the sunshine yellow linen, the pastel striped linen, and the pale yellow cream lace. Let me know what everyone thinks. It will be mix and match. I'm not sure which should be which, but because of one of the other sewing bloggers who is making a lot of items in yellow this summer, I was inspired. I don't have the link to the blog right now, otherwise I'd say who it was (it is on my other computer) and right now I can't decide between 2 possibles....

Here is the selection of fabric I chose:

It looks a bit more yellow than it really is, I think because of the lighting. If you notice the pattern picture above, also looks a bit yellow, so I think that is what happened.

I hope these look good together. I will have to modify the patterns a little for things like rounded back, etc., but I am getting to be a pro at it now since I bought that Fit for Real People book. I highly suggest it if you have problems with fitting your patterns to your body shape.

Well, that's all for right now. I will update as needed in the next few days as I finish the blouse. Sorry for the long post! And sorry for having to wait for pictures!! Have a wonderful weekend all!

Free patterns

A quick post to let everyone know where to get a few free patterns. You give them your name and email address and they email you directions on how to print the pattern. There are a few McCall's patterns in the selection. Most of them are dresses. I think they switch them around once in a while, too, so check back every once in a while.

Click here to go to Sewing Patterns

Yes, I know it is the weekend and I am working on getting my pics on here. I spent the day sewing yesterday. I can't wait to finish that jacket I am making. I will post the pics later today....so check back!