Today is a 2 for 1 with the posts. It is Fashion Friday where I post a look that I plan on incorporating into my own wardrobe. It is also the last day of the month and the means it is time for my July review. First is the Fashion Friday because I think it is more fun for me to plan out what I will be working on.
Fashion Friday
I have never had a really great trench coat! I have always wanted one, but never found one that struck my fancy. The one above is from Michael Kors and the one below is from Tommy Hilfiger.
Both are okay, but it is not entirely what I have been searching for. Maybe I am just to picky. I don’t know, but what I do know is that I have the skill to produce exactly what I want. I found this McCall’s pattern, M5525, that sparked need to do it myself.
The variations are different enough from each other that I will be able to combine their elements to get exactly what I am looking for. This project will probably be put on hold until January of 2010. That way it will be ready just in time for spring.
July Review
I was really good this month by not purchasing any new fabric! Woot for me. Whats even better is that I used just about 10yds of what I already had for other projects. Double woot!
I only accomplished 1 item on my July to do list, which was to make myself a new shirt. I don’t have a picture of it yet, but I will get one tonight. I used McCall’s pattern M5436 in view A. It’s the orange colored one on the pattern envelope. The best thing about this pattern is that it only takes me 2 hours from start to finish.
This is the second time I have made this top. I loved it the first time and then about a month ago I noticed it had a rip in the fabric. I was pretty sad to have to get rid of it since the print of the fabric had been so fun. The new one is made of the same white burnout paisley print as I used for this shirt. I figured I will most likely not be wearing them in the same season, so I could live with having two different shirts from the same fabric. This project only took 1.5 yds of fabric.
The next project I worked on is my husbands pirate coat. This has been a on and off again project for a year now. I used Simplicity pattern 4923. I never quite finished it in time for the faire last year and I just set it aside for the last 7 months. It is still not completed, but that is not my fault. He cannot seam to choose a set of buttons for it. Again, I do not have pictures of my version but this is the pattern envelope. I am making the coat in the top right hand corner.
I have actually made quite a few changes to this pattern. For starters it did not have pockets, just pocket flaps, which I hate. I am not a fan of when designers put in faux pockets. Anyways I added functional pockets to it. I also added a lining to hide the pockets, but mostly to improve the appearance of the coat. My second pet peeve is jackets without linings, I hate it. Without a lining I think jackets and coats look unfinished and cheap. Ok, stepping off my soapbox. I also took out the side godets. This was done for function as well. My husband wears a sword and neither he nor I wanted the look of the jacket to be distorted by the sword underneath.
The Simplicity pattern above is 3677. It is the pattern I am using for my pirate coat, top left corner. The coat is very similar to that of the one I am making for my husband, it’s just a little more tailored to a woman’s body. I am making the same changes to it as I did to my husbands. Except the lining for this one will be sewn to the shell and I will bind the seam allowances. I have cut all my pieces out for this and will start sewing it today.
August to do list
1. Finish my pirate coat
2. Make a toddler’s pirate costume for Isaac! I am excited for this.
This weeks theme is utensils and I thought my sewing box would be a great pic to show. I have just about every tool out there. My sewing box is actually a toolbox. I bought it several years ago to replace the small clear tote box. That box, and the utensils in it, met and unfortunate end when I left it on top of a friends car after we left one of our design classes. I went back to where it had fallen off and had been run over several times to retrieve what I could. Most was completely destroyed and totally replaced, the only item that had minor damage to were my Gingher pinking shears. They had a few scratched on them and just needed sharpening.
Currently, I am working on pirate costumes for the group.
I also made denim shorts from Simplicity pattern 3690 view B. I will have to get a picture and post it later. I liked using the pink thread so much on the skirt that I did the same thing with the shorts only with red thread.
