For a Small Person and What's Next

UPDATED

For the past two weeks I have been sewing for my granddaughter. Pictures of clothes laid out on the floor are not the best so you'll have to use a little imagination but my model is an hour away and I wanted to show that I have been sewing. These are both McCall's 9227.

I have also been using up small pieces of leftover fabric to make shorts and these capri pants.

I'm probably going to take these to her later today.

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Now I'm really wanting to sew something for myself but I really don't need any more clothes and I'm getting to the point where I can't stuff one more thing into my tiny, overstuffed closet. But, on the other hand, I have all this fabric. I do have three more pieces for the granddaughter and lots more leftovers that might also be enough to make little clothes so maybe I should keep working on that.

I "decided" that I would spend some time altering and fixing some things that I love but that are not quite right one way or another and I actually did one of those. I'm pretty sure something new is coming soon though because the urge is irresistible. I have two new Vintage Vogue patterns that I am excited about: 9106 and 2960. I'm excited about these but also anxious because I'm pretty sure I'm going to have some fitting issues with both. And 9106 is crazy. Those skirt pieces are huge and it requires 60 inch wide fabric. There is not a lot of 60 inch cotton available but I do have some on order. It's a solid color! Can you believe it?

UPDATE: I just got done cutting out the pattern pieces of Vogue 9106 and I have figured out two things. 1. I think the designer might have been high. 2. Although the pattern only gives yardage and cutting layouts for 60 inch wide fabric I'm pretty sure I can make it out of 44 inch fabric. I just need to figure out how much I will need. Probably a lot.

Scary Pants

Some time ago I got a wild and crazy idea. I wanted to make lounge pants (that's trousers to our friends on the other side of the big pond) out of minky! I didn't rush out. I took my time looking around. I thought maybe a paisley or an animal print, maybe a floral. Something crazy, you know? Then I saw this fabric and knew this was it. The name of the design is You Scare Me. Isn't that delightful?

I think the little creatures are supposed to be monsters but I think of them as space aliens. And no, I didn't pay any attention to the placement of the creatures. It's okay, they're just lounge pants.

The pattern? Well, I don't know because I couldn't find the pattern I started out with. It was just a starting point for several different styles of pants and I haven't used, or even seen, that original pattern in years. This time I made them a little looser, with a flat waistband (because I hate elastic waistbands for thicker fabrics) and made a pocket hidden closure. The buttons are just a pair of leftovers that I had.

And they feel so good! Too good. I'm going to be petting them all weekend. The husband hasn't seen them yet. He's going to have so much fun making fun of them but that's okay. That way we both get some happiness from them.

And yes, I will probably do this again. Maybe paisley next time.

A Pretty Comfortable Outfit

This is another New Look 6963, my current favorite loose, comfortable shirt pattern.

I absolutely love it! The 100% cotton fabric had been in my stash for a year or two, I think. I had originally had in mind a shorter, more fitted blouse with short sleeves but I'm glad I changed my mind and made this instead. Sometimes you get an idea and you just know it's the right thing.

I also made the knit slacks.

Not much about them worth showing off but they are comfortable and the color goes with several tops that I already have. The fabric is a soft drapey 10 ounce cotton spandex from Nick of Time Textiles. You never can tell exactly what you're going to get when you order knits online. Even knowing the weight and percent of stretch doesn't tell you much because two fabrics that are allegedly the same weight and stretch can be vastly different. Anyway, I'm pleased with this fabric and the other one I ordered even though it's not exactly what I was hoping for.

One thing I was not pleased with was the shipping charges. Nick of Time is located in the northeast which means shipping cost is so ridiculous it almost seems criminal. Not blaming Nick of Time, not even really blaming UPS but I really wish someone out here in the middle of the country had a good selection of good quality cotton spandex.

Other than being made from a soft drapey fabric, they might be just a tad too long which would account for the wrinkles but they are comfortable and not so long that it will be a problem. When I worry about making things too short I make them too long and when I worry about making things too long I make them too short.

Sorry, No Pics

It seems like it's been ages since I've had any new sewing to show off. My latest thing was a pair of black denim trousers. I'm calling them trousers* because they have none of the usual jeans details. They're just plain. I did take a few pictures of them and was going to post but when I saw the pics I chickened out. They're nothing special anyway, very basic. (*Also I'm trying to be more international and saying "trousers" instead of "pants" even though it feels weird.)

I just started a purple top which I should be able to show off in a few days, maybe next week. I'm already worrying about the end result though so I don't know. I've been having trouble getting started on anything. There are a bunch of things I want to make but I don't know which I want to do next so instead of just grabbing something at random and starting it like I should I've been procrastinating.

I think maybe the weather is a big part of my problem. (It's always easy to blame the weather isn't it?) It's been lovely almost all winter, just like spring, but now, the last official week of winter it has turned cold. I think Mother Nature is schizophrenic. Or maybe she just has a drinking problem.

What I really need to do is some of the alterations and re-fashions that I've been putting off forever. It's always more fun to sew new things though.