I love looking at a pretty handbag as much as the next lady, but I certainly don’t love lugging one all over town, so I thought I’d try to find a pattern online for a wristlet purse that was just large enough to fit the essentials. Lucky for me, I found this awesome tutorial and have been making a bunch using my piles and piles of scrap fabric! The finished wristlet can fit my credit cards, cash, car keys, a compact and lip balm. Poifect!
I finally, finally made the leap from being a vintage pattern hoarder, to an actual vintage pattern sewer! I’ve been wanting a pair of high waisted capris, so I went through my stacks and stacks of patterns and found this:
So I made View #2, but added a cuff and button at the bottom of the legs.
They came out ok, except I found out too late that the pattern was made to fit a woman of 5 foot 7 and up (were women taller in the ’50s?) and anyone below this height would have to adjust the length of the crotch accordingly before cutting the fabric. Needless to say, I ended up with a very saggy backside which I attempted my best to fix, but as you can see, my alteration skills are lacking. Ah well. Now I know better. Overall, it was a fun project which I’ll definitely try again.
I finally, finally made the leap from being a vintage pattern hoarder, to an actual vintage pattern sewer! I’ve been wanting a pair of high waisted capris, so I went through my stacks and stacks of patterns and found this:
So I made View #2, but added a cuff and button at the bottom of the legs.
They came out ok, except I found out too late that the pattern was made to fit a woman of 5 foot 7 and up (were women taller in the ’50s?) and anyone below this height would have to adjust the length of the crotch accordingly before cutting the fabric. Needless to say, I ended up with a very saggy backside which I attempted my best to fix, but as you can see, my alteration skills are lacking. Ah well. Now I know better. Overall, it was a fun project which I’ll definitely try again.
Yeah, I know that it’s the wrong season to be making warm, chunky, almost knee-length house socks but my fingers were itching to do some crocheting. I’ve been sewing so much these days that I feel I’ve been neglecting my yarn stash, so I figured I could make these socks now and stow them away ’til winter comes. I just love the cozy look of aran fleck yarn.
The weather here in L.A. has been a bit odd, to say the least. Heat waves one minute, showers the next. Anyway, when the sun finally decides to come round for an extended stay, I’ll be ready with these lightweight dresses. Perfect for the office, I think. Though I actually work in an environment where just about any outfit flies which is great for me as I detest office dress codes. Guess that’s one of the pluses of working in West Hollywood.
Anyway, like my easy floral Anda, these two were made in a snap. I was even more lazy this time around and didn’t even finish the hems and armholes, but it gave them a more casual look — and I don’t have to worry about unraveling with this material. I also used the leftover fabric from my Built By Wendy Tunic and my Dolman Top. I really need to use the fabric that I’ve got before purchasing more, as I’m really running into a space issue in my sewing area. Of course I say this having just placed another order for another few yards of knit jersey…
So I’ve been drooling over these high waisted pencil skirts on Burdastyle (designed by talented Burdastyle.com member Kasia) and decided that this was the weekend I would try it out myself. But, of course, not without my signature shortcuts. Yes, that’s velcro you see holding the front panel up. Dear Lord, you ask — why velcro? I was feeling lazy, that’s why — and I decided that I would rather spend my time playing Guitar Hero than measuring and making buttonholes. Hehe. Anyway, when the front panel is up, the icky velcro is virtually undetectable. The buttons are purely decorative and were taken from a jacket that, sadly, doesn’t fit me anymore.
I also messed up somehow while making the gathered hip panels. They ended up very poofy, so I was forced to take some fabric out of them for a better fit, giving me two extra seams at the sides. Pretty sloppy overall, but I think it’s a pretty decent first attempt! I have some baby blue stretch corduroy that I’d like to use for my second (and hopefully much better executed) attempt at this fabulously designed skirt. And, yes, I won’t be using velcro the second time ’round.
I’ve been tagged by oona to carry on this little book “meme.” Now, the stickler in me questions whether this is technically a meme, but since it’s to do with books, I’m game! Here are the directions:
1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people, and acknowledge who tagged you.
The book nearest me is The Transcendence of the Ego by Jean Paul Satre, which doesn’t even have 123 pages… So, I must go with the book second nearest me which is The Concord Quartet by Samuel Schreiner Jr. — a work of non-fiction about four figures from the American intellectual renaissance of the 1830s: Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Bronson Alcott and Nathaniel Hawthorne. I’d read it a while ago, but pulled it from my shelf recently because I wanted to write a song in commemoration of these literary/philosophical figures of yesteryear. Yes, I’m fully aware of how geeky this sounds. Anyhow, here are the sentences from page 123:
Although it was not to Emerson’s taste, Hawthorne’s writing revealed him to be a keen observer, but his personal convictions about the events and characters that he rendered so vividly into fiction remained a mystery, as they did in social conversation. The man was almost pathologically shy. With their interest in children and their own brood to amuse, the Emersons staged outdoor entertainment for children of the neighborhood in good weather.
Sorry it wasn’t something jucier.
So with the weather warming up, I figure that a girl can’t have too many dresses–especially of the sleeveless variety. So I made this summer number using Built By Wendy #3835, but omitted the raglan sleeves to create this halter neckline. I seriously can’t move on from my Builty By Wendy patterns. They’re just are so versatile and easy to sew! The fabric with cool swirly print is a Marie Kelzer design which I was lucky enough to get in both purple and green–one of my favorite color combos.
The belt wasn’t part of the original design, but I’ve been seeing these terrific obi belts on Burdastyle like this one and thought that I needed to make a few of them for myself.
This weekend, I was also reacquainted with this blast from the past:
My friend Jed asked me if I’d had ever had an “It’s It” before, and I said “oh yeah, when I was a little kid and I remember loving them…do they still make them???” Well, thank you, Jed, for jogging my memory about these unbelievably yummy nostalgic treats. If you’ve never had one before, let me explain. An It’s-It is a scoop of all natural vanilla ice-cream sandwiched between two perfectly spiced oatmeal cookies, coated in rich dark chocolate, and then each and every one is kissed by the snack gods who sprinkle them with a mixture of fairy dust and crack.
Yes, folks, they’re that good. Pick some up today.
…hence, I bought some ribbed sweater knit fabric and sewed it together! Much faster. This fun little cardi was made using the ultra simple Burdastyle.com Sarah pattern — altered a bit. The sleeves on the original are rather wide and require pleats. I decided that I wanted cuffs instead in a contrasting fabric, so I narrowed the sleeves toward the wrists for a batwing effect. Yeah, it was a bit tricky sewing with sweater knit fabric, but after some online research I found out that I needed to use a narrow zig zag when joining fabric. Some of my seams are a bit jagged and weird, but I steam blocked afterward which helped a bit. A close inspection shows that it’s far from perfect, but I still wear it proudly! I’ve still got quite a bit of this fabric left over with which I plan to make a simple boatneck sweater.
Halfway through, I thought that this project was going to be a disaster. I can’t explain why, really, it just looked…wrong. It seemed too short and too wide — or, bubbly, I should say. Think Halloween pumpkin costume and you’ll know what I mean. But in the end, it all came together and looks pretty darned good, if I do say so myself! I’ll be making more of these for the hot months ahead!
I used Simplicity pattern 3882 and my material is a fun floral jersey knit I got at Fashionfabricsclub.com.
THE INCURABLE HOMEBODY 
