Swimsuit performance

So yea…I did make a swimsuit for vacation…and you’ll never believe it…it stayed on in the pool!! (I know you are saying, well of course, that is what it is supposed to do…well, I had minimal faith in my first swimsuit and am now pleasantly surprised!)

Vacation fabric shopping….

Ok, not as lucrative as the Europe stash but I did find some stuff….

Here are the places I visited:
Calico Cat and Bernina Too – Auburn, WA (quilt store)
Nancy’s Sewing Basket – Queen Anne, WA (fashion fabrics, even designer with prices to match!)
QuiltWorks Northwest – Bellevue, WA (quilt and bead store)
Fabrications – Healdsburg, CA (quilt store)
Material Girl – Santa Rosa, CA (quilt store)

All in all…I did pretty good…no pics as I put everything away as soon as I got home but you’ll see stuff made soon, I’m sure….

In process…..

A couple things going on….working on a t-shirt quilt for a friend. The cat is assisting….
The silk chiffon is still not done. I am trying to make the Kwik Sew 3505 pattern with it. Yea…so this doesn’t do well for being serged so will need to just do a small zig zag stitch to put it together. Good lesson in playing with silk and patience!
Got a couple others I am working on. V1420 (red/white striped version) is coming along. Just need to add cuffs, collar, and buttonholes/buttons, oh yea, and hem it.

Vogue 1420
Copyright 1994

Vogue Attitudes pattern rated average. Misses shirts: very loose-fitting shirt has collar variations, extended shoulders, front bands, yoke with forward shoulder seams, back tucks, stitched hem facings and long sleeves with pleats, placket and button cuffs. A: fitted through waist, contrast collar, collar band and cuffs, side front seams and shaped hemline. B: collar band. C: contrast collar and cuffs. B,C: wrap, front pleats and tie ends.

A shirt pattern designed by Byron Lars.

Couple changes I had to make:

1. used size 8 rather than the size for my bust as this is VERY loose-fitting
2. added 1″ to center back on the yoke to put shoulders in the right place
3. did 2 small pleats on back piece to fit to yoke
4. make french cuffs
5. omitted the hem facing

I thought for sure, based on the picture that I’d have to raise the collar because it seems to fall so low BUT with making a size 8, it is perfect!!! Can’t wait to see the finished product!!

I am also working on the Claire Scheaffer jacket from my last post. I, again, am in a situation where I did not have the pattern size to fit my bust measurement. I got the pattern (V8333) at the last Joann’s sale ($3.99 each plus 10% discount for being an American Sewing Guild member). I picked it up on my last day of work before getting on a plane for vacation so could only go to the Joann’s by my house. Well, they only had the 6-8-10 size pattern; I needed the 12-14-16 pattern. Based on the envelope, I should be making a size 12. Well…I gambled and decided to get the 6-8-10 and just grade up. How hard can it be?! Besides, I was hours away from vacation!

Somebody must be looking out for me. A size 10 finished bust is 35″ and I measured a 34″ bust plus I am petite – a nicer way of saying, I’m short – all over…..thanks mom.

So I did the tissue fit…and Dawn says to me as I am walking away with Linda (the instructor), “oh now we get to see what kind of freak you are.” Well, here is what kind of freak I am:

• size 10 looks great
• waist is in the right place
• bust point is in the right place
• shoulders fit right
• length is great
• add 1″ from stitching line on the side front, side, and side back pieces

That’s it!! (I am sure Dawn hates me now..I not only knowingly bought the wrong size pattern but I seem to have a theme here – buy Vogue too small and it will fit.)

So during all this other stuff I am doing, I am DYING to cut out and make Jalie 2787 in the sleeveless version. So, I think I’ll be sewing the entire weekend…maybe even cutting out a bit early tomorrow!! (I. LOVE. WORKING. FROM. HOME.)