LLADYBIRD

Completed: Tongue-Tied Sweater

It’s been a minute since I shared a knitting project! I actually *have* been knitting – I always have at least 1 project on my needles at any given time (usually two – one for the couch, and a smaller/simpler one for the road!), and I always keep my Ravelry account updated! But for whatever reason, I never feel super compelled to share them on my blog. Anyway, here’s one today!

This is the Tongue Tied sweater by Poison Grrls. I actually chose the yarn before the sweater pattern – a very uncharacteristic knitting move for me (usually I have my pattern selected before I start shopping for yarn). To be completely honest – I wasn’t in the mindset for planning a new sweater when all this happened, as I was still steadily working my way through my last sweater (see! There’s one I knit and never shared here lmao). But this yarn caught my eye at Pintuck & Purl and once I got my hands on it, it was all I could think about.

The yarn is CashLuxe Spark by Sweet Georgia Yarns, a gloriously soft and cushiony fingering-weight yarn with this incredibly rich color and the cutest subtle sparkle! I’m not a super duper yarn snob (I love natural fibers, blah blah, but I don’t typically buy *really* expensive yarn. Although. That may now change haha) but I really, really, really wanted this yarn on my body. I initially considered socks – I mean, who doesn’t want to wrap their toes in cashmere? – but at $38/skein, that was a little rich even for my blood. So obviously it made sense to buy two skeins and turn it into a sweater, because that’s totally fiscally responsible.

I started this sweater right after I finished my last one, toward the end of December last year. It knitted up really fast – partially because, well, it’s a tiny fucking sweater, but also I just really enjoyed every part of the process. I LOVED touching that yarn, so so much. I actually would have finished this quite a bit sooner, except once I got to the point of picking up the sleeves I let it sit dormant for a couple of weeks while I worked on other stuff.

Not a lot to say about this pattern, but here are some notes:
– I knit the size Small, based on my bust measurement. My gauge called for size 2 needles (body) and 1 needles (ribbing).
– This is a really fitted sweater! I mean, I knew that going in – but trying it on, yeah, it’s basically painted on. Aggressively blocking the entire thing really well helped a lot, and now it skims my body perfectly.
– Because it was so tight, I did have some issues with getting a stretchy enough bind off (I actually had to re-do my bind off at the bottom AND the neckline twice!). I ended up using size 3 needles and a super stretchy bind off. With the neckline, that was mainly my fault for being an idiot. I thought I’d be super clever and do a fold-over neckband, but quickly discovered (while unsuccessfully trying to pull it over my head) that those don’t stretch at all. LMAO.
– Mod-wise, I added 1″ of length to the body, since I wanted to be able to wear this with high-waisted jeans (it’s pretty short!).
– If you think you see a yarn tail in the back, you’re right. I haven’t woven it in yet. I don’t know why.

I loved knitting this pattern! It was easy to follow, simple to knit (but not boring), and the proportions are just lovely. I’ve already got a few more Poison Grrls patterns in my radar for my next sweater. I love Amy’s aesthetic and I love that she uses fingering weight yarn – perfect for our mild winters!

Oh, I also made my pants, too! These are more Dawn Jeans, made in Robert Kaufman non-stretch corduroy from Pintuck & Purl! (I picked it out the same time I was fantasizing about that yarn haha). Not much to say about these that I haven’t already said – I made my normal size, this time with the wide legs and the cropped length. The cropped length isn’t actually that cropped – I ended up having to take off another 3″ or so (but I also have a 28″ inseam sooo take that as you will). I’m also not super thrilled about how the back fits, but I believe that’s just what you get with wide leg pants. The wrinkles are there because there is too much fabric at the inner thigh (the issue I had with my Calvin Klein jeans), but for true wide-leg pants you really don’t want to remove width there. Whatever, I’m not the one looking at my own butt so I don’t care.

So anyway, that’s my new sweater! Fun to knit, fun to wear, and the sparkles make me happy 🙂 Oh! And I still have some of this yarn leftover – so you better believe I’ll be making a tiny pair of socks 🙂 If anyone has suggestions for short-cuff sock patterns – preferably one with bobbles (I don’t know why but I’m feeling like I want bobbles on these), let me know!

Tags: cashluxe, completed, corduroy, dawn jeans, fingering weight, knitting, megan nielsen, pants, pintuck and purl, poison grrls, robert kaufman, sweater, yarn

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Categories completed projects - new

Completed: Rayon Crepe Magnolia Dress

4 Feb

LMAO for some reason I’ve been sitting on these photos since Thanksgiving, no idea why I’ve been dragging my feet to post this! Anyway, better late than never!

This is the Magnolia dress from Deer & Doe, this time in View A with the plunging neckline, long sleeves, and a very mini length (ok, so that’s not view A exactly, but let me live). I’ve made this dress before and wore it a few times this last year, and I was interested to try it again with some modifications.

My original Magnolia dress skews quite a bit more romantic than how I normally dress (and while I’m not quite ready to let it go yet, I will admit that it doesn’t get a whole lot of wear), but I loved the pattern and I wanted to try it with a more modern twist. One thing I have noticed with my OG dress is the bust is just a bit more generous than my actual body. As I mentioned, I sewed a different view, sized down to a 34 at the bust (keeping the 38 at the waist / hip) and made a quick muslin to assess the fit. Here are the changes I made:
– Took an additional 1/4″ out of the CB along the fold for my narrow back
– Removed a 1/2″ wedge from the front neckline because it was gaping (same as this method, except obviously on the front. Also, oh my god I miss that dresssss)
– Reduced the upper bust by about 1/4″ by shaving it off the princess seams to the bust point (I wanted to wear this dress without a bra and my breasts tend to be a little more bottom-heavy)
– Removed an additional 1/4″ off the side seam

Sounds like a lot, but it was just tiny tweaks! I wanted the dress to be fitted, but still skim over my body (rather than just be tight). Shortening the neckline to bring in the gaping was definitely the biggest thing; I knew I wasn’t going to wear a bra with this dress and I wanted to be CONFIDENT that there was no danger of accidental nip-slips. I’m not going to go into detail the weird gymnastics I performed in my studio to really test this theory, but believe me… the ladies aren’t going anywhere.

I bought my rayon crepe from Stone Mountain & Daughter Fabrics, back in March last year. I loved the autumnal colors and that beautiful drape! I took home 3 yards, and used nearly every last inch of it, despite this dress being a mini. Those sleeves took up a lot of fabric!

Construction-wise, I didn’t make too many changes to the dress beyond what the instructions call for. I did opt to self-line the entire top – the instructions just have you self-line the bodice, which I think is fine but why not the back? By doing this, I was able to eliminate all the bias facings, and have a completely clean finish. I also self-faced the waistband pieces, again, for a clean finish but this time on the inside. This is just personal preference; I don’t like exposed waistband seams in dresses and for the most part, I always face them. I don’t have any photos of this, so you’ll need to use your imagination.

To keep that neckline intact and immune to stretching out, I used strips of twill tape to stabilize the edges (here is a similar method to what I used). One thing I irrationally hate in clothing is weird gapey necklines that don’t stay close to the body, so I will do whatever it takes to keep that shit in check. Especially with a low-cut top like this, and again, especially since I ain’t wearing a bra with it! Anyway, the twill tape means that edge is nice and stable.

Unfortunately, I do think I was a little overzealous with my neckline tweaking – I shortened the twill tape too much, because now the center front of the waistband rides up. It’s noticeable for sure, but it also looks intentional so we’ll just say that was the case.

Surprisingly, the sleeves were the correct length for me without any adjustments (I think having a gathered elastic edge makes things a bit more forgiving). And I believe I did shorten the skirt length further, but I couldn’t tell you by how much (sorry). It is pretty short, though I love it! I feel so sassy and groovy and a little floaty when I wear this dress.

Anyway, that’s all for this make! Short and sweet (both the dress and the blog post lol). I’d love to make this again in a solid color in the future, but for now, I love the fun print!

Tags: completed, deer and doe, magnolia dress, minidress, rayon, rayon crepe, sleeves, stone mountain & daughter fabrics

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Categories completed projects - new

Completed: Vogue 2442 Calvin Klein Jeans

7 Jan

Alright y’all, I’m back with one more jeans post – the ~Designer Jeans~ Edition!

Thanks to Vogue 2442, I was able to make my own pair of Calvin Klein jeans 😀

Before we get too far into the post, though, I just want to acknowledge how absolutely stupid this envelope cover is. You can barely see any of the details of the jeans (although the butt close-up is helpful, and to be completely transparent here, it’s a nice butt), and I don’t know why that woman is holding her leg up like that because you definitely can’t do it in these jeans. Nothing about this cover art (or lack thereof) makes me want to try this pattern, but nevertheless, I persevered. For science.

Anyway, here are mine!

I went down a little rabbit hole last fall while looking at vintage jeans. I reaaaaaally wanted some vintage Calvin Kleins, if only for the brag factor, but my budget currently doesn’t allow me to spend hundreds of dollars on someone’s used jeans (RIP, the vintage market). I considered sewing them, but recalled looking up vintage CK patterns years ago and they were going for obscene wads of money. Just out of curiosity, I checked again – and was surprised to see that there are plenty to choose from for $10-$20. Calvin Klein licensed his name to Vogue patterns a bunch throughout the 80s and 90s, occasionally offering a jeans pattern. There were loads of mom jeans to choose from (including a truly horrifying Vogue 2851, I mean, come on) but I went with the OG, the Vogue 2442 from 1980. In the effort of being as science-y as possible, I re-measured myself and chose the size that closely matched my measurements – in this case, the 8.

It took me a while to find a suitable denim to make these up – I wanted something non-stretch (as the pattern calls for – this was before stretch denim was really a thing!), but not too heavy, and a lighter wash. A bunch of the stuff I was coming up with ended up being way too lightweight, or had too much stretch, so this project ended up being shelved for longer than I would have liked.

As you can see, I did end up finding a great denim – from Art Gallery Fabrics, of all places! I’ll admit that Art Gallery Fabrics wouldn’t be my first thought when it comes to denim, but they’ve been expanding their denim gallery and I was curious to see what the offerings entailed. There is a great selection of lightweight (4.5oz, like what you’d use to make a button-down top or a sundress) denims, both printed and dyed various colors. The heavier denims clock in at 10oz (which is the lighter end of a pants-weight denim, and my personal preference), and come in a smaller selection of colors, nonstretch only.

After playing with some swatches, I chose the Crosshatch Textured Denim, in the Bubbling Brook colorway. My other choice was the Solid Textured Denim in Bluebottle Field, but that was sold out, so hopefully I can try it out in the future!

Anyway, about the Crosshatch Textured Denim! First off, you probably noticed that my jeans don’t exactly have a crosshatched design on them – that’s because you are looking at the wrong side of the fabric, baby! I actually don’t mind the crosshatch look, but upon receiving the fabric I fell in LURVE with the less contrasty wrong side of the fabric, so that’s what I went with on my jeans! My sewing project, my rules! The denim was pretty stiff and definitely not soft upon first receiving; but did get really soft and supple after just one wash. Be warned that it frays a lot, though – you’ll want to make sure you finish your seams (whether serging, or zigzaging, or even binding them) because otherwise the inside of your garment will get real hairy, real fast. If that bothers you, I mean. You do you.

Other than the fraying part, this denim was easy to work with. I recently got an Oliso Steam Iron (yes, the little iron that stands up when you stop touching it and yes it never ever stops being hilarious, no matter how much I use it) and this was my first real project to use it on. It doesn’t get quite as melt-your-hands-off-hot as my industrial gravity feed iron does (granted, this is cotton, so it doesn’t really need to be beaten into submission haha), but it heats up quickly, delivers a satisfying steam burst, doesn’t auto shut off every 2 minutes, oh, and IT STANDS ON IT’S OWN LITTLE FEET. My only regret in life is that I can’t find my stick-on googly eyes, because this iron needs eyeballs. Ok moving on.

So, more about the pattern itself! Like I said, I went with the size 8, which was based on my current measurements. I did not make any prior fitting adjustments or a muslin before cutting my fabric – I just went for it! I wanted to see what would happen! (this might be my new motto for 2020). Fit-wise, this was almost perfect right out of the envelope. I did end up making a few minor tweaks before I attached the waistband – because I am extra, and I like fiddling with things! – but if I hadn’t done anything at all these still would have absolutely been wearable.

Adjustments I made:
– Removed 1/2″ from the inner thighs, keeping the crotch length intact
– Scooped 1/8″ from the front crotch curve
– 5/8″ wedge at the center back yoke + waistband
– Cut 5″ total off the hem (I have a 28″ inseam, y’all lmao)

Sorry I didn’t take before photos, but these were all minor tweaks that didn’t translate very well in a photograph. Also, when I’m fitting, I don’t want to stop to take a bunch of weird ass selfies. Sorry, not sorry! Looking at these photos, I see I could have removed a little more from the inner thighs (as evidenced by the horizontal wrinkles pointing directly at my butt), but I can assure you this is a big improvement from the start, and I actually think they look worse in the photos than in real life! But, you know, it’s good enough. I spent far too much of my past sewing days overfitting myself to the point of frustration (and sometimes, actual discomfort). Nowadays, when I feel like I’m done fiddling with it, I just stop. As long as it’s not actually uncomfortable, I think it’s good enough! It has been very liberating and I encourage y’all to consider the same outlook 🙂

The instructions on this pattern certainly were interesting! As someone who’s made loads and loads (and loads) of jeans, these were a little more based on the home-sewer, rather than how RTW jeans are made (granted, I don’t have access to vintage jeans at this time, but the 1980s isn’t exactly the same type of vintage as, say, the 40s, and generally the construction methods back then were more similar to how they are now, i.e., serging seam allowances and such). As this is an older pattern, it wasn’t common for the average home sewist to have a serger – so the instructions include turning under edges, or finishing seams with a zigzag or overcast stitch. Interestingly, there is NO interfacing called for in this pattern (I interfaced the fly facing + outer waistband, out of habit and because I know that gets the me the result I like), but they do have you add twill tape to the top and bottom edges of the curved waistband to keep it from stretching out (that was a no from me, dawg). The other weird thing I noticed was that they have you double topstitch the side seams, and not the inseam. I also skipped that part (I prefer a stronger inseam, thnx) and did it my own way. However, I did follow the instructions for the most part.

The pattern includes a back pocket topstitching design, front pocket stays (pocket lining is also from Art Gallery Fabrics, fyi!), and a two-piece curved waistband. The pants are fitted at the waist, hips and thighs, and then the leg goes straight down (which is not what the line drawing suggests; they look a little more tapered on the envelope). Since my denim is such a light color, I opted for a pale brown topstitching thread (my beloved Gutterman Mara 70), rather than gold or copper. I alter a lot of jeans for clients and one thing I’ve noticed is that most jeans use brown thread, not gold or copper! My rivets and buttons are from the Garment District (I think these rivets might actually be for bags, but whatever, I like them); I had 1 extra rivet so I attached it to one corner of the back pocket. I saw this on a pair of jeans the stylist I work with was wearing, and while I normally hate rivets on back pockets, I thought it was kinda cute.

My only issue with this pattern is the two-piece curved waistband. Since it’s in two pieces, that means there a seam at the center back – great for fitting, but it also means a lot of bulk at the center back when the inner and outer waistband are sewn together (and then later, a belt loop is sewn on top of that). I also admit that I was running on fumes by the time the waistband facing was attached, so it’s not my best work. But, it’s on the inside, so who cares!

Overall, I enjoyed making this pattern and I think the finished jeans turned out great! I love the high waist (better for wearing crop tops with!), and the straight legs are a big style departure from my usual look. I love the lighter wash and subtle texture of the AGF denim, and I love love LOVE how soft it is! I don’t feel like I even really need to break these in, which is wonderful! If you’ve been looking for a good non-stretch, not-too-heavy denim, definitely check out what Art Gallery Fabrics has to offer!

** This post was sponsored by Oliso. All fabrics were provided by Art Gallery Fabrics. As always – all thoughts, opinions, and weird ideas are my own! **

Tags: art gallery fabrics, calvin klein, completed, denim, jeans, pants, vogue 2442, vogue patterns

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Categories completed projects - new

2019: A Year in Review

31 Dec

Can’t believe this year is nearly over! As with my yearly tradition of wrapping up the year, here is my 2019 in review!

So… a lot happened this year! I think the biggest event was that I bought my first house!

It’s a 1958 ranch, in a small neighborhood in West Nashville. I closed in March, so the yard was sort of ugly and dead! It has been fun to see what grows throughout the year, although I’m a little salty that we missed out on fall foliage this year (due to an extra hot fall with no rain, then too much rain!), because I would have loved to see what that maple ended up doing! Oh well, next year!

Anyway, owning a house is really fun! It’s expensive, yes, but I can do whatever I want to the house and I love that! It’s also really great to live somewhere nice – and not a landlorded rental. The previous owner had lived here since 1969, so there was a lot of care put into this home and it shows! I’m really happy with my purchase, and have enjoyed spending time here and making it my own. It’s very small, it’s definitely not fancy, but it’s MINE and I bought it all by myself! I love it! I’ve been wanting to buy a home for years and it feels really good to finally cross that goal off my list!

The previous owner’s children committed the mortal sin of painting every room grey (why? why?) before putting it on the market, so I have been slowly repainting the rooms to better match the personality of the house!

Studio (I know! I owe y’all a tour of this room! Don’t remind me lol)

Bathroom (blog post here)

Living room

Dining room

Also the kitchen! (not pictured – but it’s white with {unpainted} knotty pine cabinets. SWOON)

I know a lot of people have been asking me to post room re-do’s on this blog, and honestly… I can’t guarantee that will ever happen (I like to keep this space strictly sewing-related). I do post them on my Instagram so you can always follow that! Next year, I want to focus more on the outdoor space!

In addition to the house stuff, I also did a lot of teaching this year! Overall, I taught 20 workshops from all over the place including New York, California, Florida, Oregon, Colorado, New Hampshire, Virginia, and Canada. All in all, I flew over 40k miles and earned Gold Medallion status with Delta lmao.

Here in Nashville, I taught lots of classes at Craft South, introducing many, many new beginners to the wonderful world of sewing! I also logged a bunch of hours of alterations and fittings with various clients, all of who were absolutely wonderful to work with and spend time around. And not just clients – I really love and appreciate everyone I work with. Stylists, photographers, assistants, reps, everyone is just awesome! Coming from an industry where I worked with some absolute asshats, it’s really nice to be able to work with people who I actually enjoy being around (and, as a freelancer – technically – I can refuse to work with anyone who I don’t like! Ha!). I also think the work is really fun, so that’s an added bonus!

Some other fun things in 2019:

– I attended (well, worked!) my first QuiltCon event, at the Craft South booth.

– I celebrated 10 years of being cigarette-free!

– I visited The Computer History Museum (Mountain View, CA), The Living Computer Museum (Seattle, WA), and The MADE Museum (Oakland, CA). I love old computers and video games, so people able to fit these excursions into my travels was such a treat! All are really amazing museums, but I think the Living Computer Museum might be my favorite since you can play all the machines! There’s a whole mess of images and videos from all of them in my Story Highlights on Instagram if you want to peek!

– I turned 34 and celebrated with a HAMBURGER CAKE at Darrell Thomas Textiles!

– I harness-trained Amelia! Well. “Training” is kind of a loose term here, I basically put the harness on her and she adapted to it immediately (she loves any excuse to go outside and I guess she figured out pretty quickly that this was how that would happen!). We really enjoyed going out this summer and exploring the yard. Also, walking a cat on a leash is pretty funny.

– I taught an enormous class at Camp Workroom Social – 16 students in total! Definitely could not have done it without my bomb-ass assistants Kelli & Gabriela!

– After years of pining for an industrial sewing machine, and realizing my tiny home studio would never fit one – I bought a Janome HD9! This machine is sooo fast and SO fun to sew on (and fits nicely in my studio!). If you’ve been interested in an industrial machine but don’t have the money/space for one, I do recommend this machine as a great alternative! I won’t be writing a review for this machine (I’ll be honest… writing machine reviews sucks, it’s boring as hell, and I don’t get paid to do it. So. I’m not doing it anymore lol), but your local Janome dealer can help you out!

– Speaking of things I’ve pined over for years, I also got a perm! Ha! This is a body-wave perm (meaning it is looser than the traditional spiral curl), which gives my hair lots of texture and body, and allows it to hold a style without very much effort. It still requires styling when I wash it, but the style stays. This photo was taken recently; the perm is about 6 months old and I haven’t needed to touch it up yet. I love it!

– I bought the most expensive piece of fabric I’ve ever purchased (it’s Gucci, and no, I’m not telling you how much I spent on it)

– I worked on my first music video! This was especially exciting to me since most of my work is in country music, which tbh just isn’t as fun as rock music.

– This one hasn’t come into effect quite yet – but I’m leaving my job at Craft South as the Education Coordinator. I have worked this job since 2016 and while I have enjoyed my time there and the wonderful people I worked with, I felt like it was ultimately starting to hold me back and thus it is time to move on. As of January 1, 2020, I will no longer be employed by the company and will be fully freelance. Yay!

Personal sewing-wise, this has been slooooow year for me. Partially because I’ve been gone so much, and working just as much – partially because my needs have shifted dramatically (I know I talked about this last year but I’m really not into the maximism thing of ~owning shit in every color~ or trying something just for the sake of making something that everyone else is making) – and partially for unrelated reasons. I’ve definitely been sewing less, while trying to stay mindful about the things I am making. And I’ve been blogging even less, which is absolutely no secret. Like most former bloggers, most of my content has shifted over to my Instagram (just compare my 2019 blogged makes vs my Instagram 2019 tag). I’ll admit it is just easier to snap a quick photo with my phone, write a blurb, and post away – rather than drag out the camera equipment, deal with editing, writing an entire post (where I always feel compelled to make it at lengthy as possible), and then replying to comments – all of which require sitting at a computer. Which, I should add, computer time is something I’m constantly trying to reduce. However, I don’t want to kill my blog so I’ve come to terms with less frequent posting. It’s ok. I do want to thank y’all who continue to follow my blog – and continue to post feedback in the comments. I read every single one of them and I really appreciate the continued support!

With that being said, here are some of my favorite makes of 2019! Sorry, most are on Instagram 😛

The Dawn Jeans (blog post here). This was the jeans pattern I’ve been waiting for – I love the high, high rise and the rigid, vaguely uncomfortable but so flattering to my booty nonstretch denim. I have worn this particular pair all year and even have them on as a type this! Yay for Dawn Jeans!

Black Dawn shorts. I made these over the summer in a nice black denim and they truly go with everything! I was very sad to put them away this winter, and early anticipate reuniting with them next summer. ha!

Dolce & Gabbana Crop Top. This was made using the StyleArc Ariana dress pattern as a cropped shirt, using leftover Dolce & Gabbana cotton lawn from my birthday dress. I really enjoyed putting this together, I think it’s cute AF, and get a load of that unintentional pattern matching at center front!

Leopard print lace bra. I used the Berkeley Bra pattern from Orange Lingerie, and leopard lace from Tailor Made Shop. I made a lot of bras this year but this one is definitely my favorite!

I also updated a couple of old makes to make them more favorable:

Minor, but I added a cool tiger patch (which I bought in the Garment District in NYC) to my beloved denim jacket.

I also cropped this old hoodie dress and added a cool sequin cat patch (from the same place in the GD as the tiger patch – I actually bought them at the same time lol) to make the cat hoodie of my dreams! I’m so glad I updated because this gets way more wear than the dress ever did. It makes me so happy!

On a more serious note, 2019 has been a very hard year for me. A big part of the reason why I stopped sewing and blogging as much was due to struggling with depression for most of the year. I have never experienced depression before, and honestly I wasn’t sure how to even deal with it. It consumed a large part of my year and I’m only just now starting to crawl out of the hole I was in. I started seeing a therapist amongst many, many other things (including daily journaling, changing my diet, and a daily yoga practice), all which helped a lot. The real breakthrough for me was using psychedelics – including psilocybin and ayahuasca – which allowed me to break out of the awful depression loop that I was stuck in, and start actually addressing what was wrong instead of trying to hide from it or self medicate in ways that were destructive. I still have a loooong ways to go and a lot of emotions to unpack and address, but I finally feel like I’m living my life again instead of constantly fighting it.

In a lot of ways, this entire decade has been incredibly painful for me and it was a relief to say goodbye to it after my final ayahasuca journey on 12/14.

Anyway, I share this not to start up a big discussion here about psychedelics and mental health – I am, of course, always open to a chat if you are curious! (if you have something negative to say, please keep it to yourself and read a book instead, thanks) There has been a lot of scientific research on the effects of psychedelics on mental health, including depression, addiction, and even PTSD. My research is primarily limited to what I have read, and my own experiences. I did want to share what has been going on the back end – not everything is always fun and rainbows, even if it looks like that way from a carefully curated Instagram lens. If you are struggling, you are not alone! The biggest piece of advice I can give you is to GET HELP, whatever form that may be. There is no “level” you need to reach before it’s ok to ask for help, no one is going to call you out for not being “depressed enough.” I wish I’d wasted less of my year and done something sooner. You are worth the fight. Don’t give up on yourself.

It’s interesting to think of how much has changed for me in the last 10 years. This time in 2009, I was living in a shitty (but very beautiful and old) apartment in midtown Nashville, working a soul-crushing job with people I didn’t get along with. I was in a lot of debt and always stressed about money. I was sewing back then, too (I have always been sewing) and even blogging (here’s a particularly cringe-worthy one from December 2009. Sorry in advance about the broken photos), but certainly not at the level that I am now. One thing that hasn’t changed – I still have good ol’ Amelia. The little asshole is now 12 years old!

Anyway, here’s to 2020!

Tags: 2019 Year in Review

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Categories misc

Completed: Black Dawn Jeans

11 Dec

Hello everyone and welcome to my third installment of Operation-Jeans-Drawer!

This time, I’m sharing the Dawn jeans by Megan Nielsen. This is another great jeans pattern that, again, has some major differences from the other 2 that I previously shared. I don’t like to say that I have a “favorite” jeans pattern – since they are all so good and serve different purposes! – but right now, I gotta say, this is the one that is getting sewn the most in my studio these days. I shared the first pair I made at last year, and they still get lots of wear (they’ve truly broken in beautifully). I’ve actually made the shorts several times this summer, but this is only the second time I’m sharing the pattern here on this blog.

So, again, I can’t really compare these jeans to the Ginger or the Claryville since they are very different – but I’ll tell you what their key features are:
BODY TYPE: I don’t think these are necessarily designed for a specific body shape? I will say that they fit me pretty well straight out of the envelope. I did not make a muslin, just cut according to my measurements on the envelope.
FIT: These are slim-fitting, rigid jeans with a high, high waist! Like, the rise will completely cover your belly button (I love it!). If this is not your jam then this definitely is not the pattern for you lol. They aren’t a true “mom” jean – the legs and hips are a little more slim fitting than that – but they do have that suuuuper high rise. I should also add – the standard size pattern comes in sizes 0-20, and there is also a Curve range that includes sizes 14-30! Yay!
FABRIC: You want rigid denim for these! No stretch whatsoever! The good news is it means you don’t have to interface anything except maybe the fly facing (yup, I don’t interface my waistband! Not even at the button hole! Fight me!). The not as good news means that these are not gonna be the most comfy jeans you ever wear. I don’t mean to say that they are uncomfortable… I just mean, you can’t do, like, yoga in them (I can, and have, done yoga in my Ginger jeans lmao). I would not say the jeans are tight so much as they are restrictive. I hope that makes sense. Think pencil skirt vs circle skirt. I love them and I wear them all the time but I will be damned if I wear these on a 5 hour cross country flight, you know what I mean? Also, there is no law saying you can’t make these with stretch denim (def size down tho) but why? Just use a stretch pattern, save this one for those cool rigid denims, twills, and corduroys that you don’t know what to do with!

So, with that out of the way – here’s my newest pair! I wanted some black jeans because I made black shorts for the summer (also with the Dawn pattern) and I got a surprising amount of wear out of them. This fabric is a rigid denim from Darrell Thomas Textiles, which I bought when I was there this summer for a Jeans Workshop. When I say “rigid,” I mainly mean denim with no added stretch. A little bit of mechanical stretch is good. I have learned that I don’t like the suuuuper rigid denim that does not stretch at all; I find them hard to move in (granted, most of my moving involves a lot of squatting and crawling around the floor so maybe that doesn’t apply to you lol). Anyway, this is a nice denim and no I don’t know the weight! I felt it, it felt good, I bought 2 yards.

My only grief with this style of jean is the time that it takes to properly break in. Ugh! Like I said in my previous post, washing them a lot up front does help quite a bit. But you do still have to wear them around and get the wrinkles to soften up and have the denim mold to you body. One of these days I’ll woman up and sit in a bathtub full of warm water with the jeans on and let them dry that way. I’m not brave enough quite yet to try that tho lol. Please don’t be scared of my talk about the breaking in… it’s really not that bad, and it is ABSOLUTELY worth it. But if you make these jeans and they are super uncomfortable… that’s why! Give them some time (and WEAR THEM!) and they will soften up quite a bit.

Anyway, this denim wasn’t too bad as it was already pretty soft. I washed it three times before I cut it (I always do this with new denim) and that helped a lot. As you can see in these photos – it does relax out (compare these to the Dawn Jeans in my first post and you’ll see what I mean. They are the same size, those were just more fresh!). What you’re seeing is a pair of non-stretch jeans that I wore for probably a week without washing. They don’t bag out so much as they just relax. Yes, there are wrinkles under my butt but they are there to help me move. Otherwise I don’t think I’d be able to sit in these things haha.

Size-wise, I made a straight 4 but ended up letting the hips out a little. I think my hips are more in the size 6 range now, which makes sense (when I originally made these, the size 4 was fine but since then I have gained weight and also had to let my original ones out lol). I also reduced the height of the yoke by 1″ because it was too tall for me – I just ended up with a 1″ fold right in the middle when I put them on, so I cut it off the top. Finally, I also adjusted the pocket bags on this pattern. They are CRAZY deep. Like… I understand wanting deep pockets (I guess, I dunno, I don’t really use my front pockets) but with pants this tight they are absolutely fucking useless. I just cut the bottom curve off so now they are straight. Mainly it was really annoying trying to push them back into place after using the bathroom, and not being able to reach the bottom. They were THAT deep. Absolutely useless.

I kept these pretty simple, with black topstitching thread, black rivets and buttons (matte black from Blackbird Fabrics and I love them!), and a black leather back patch. One of the back pockets actually has a design topstitched in it (yes it’s the TCB lightning bolt, thanks for noticing) but it’s quite subtle. I am hoping that over time, as the jeans are washed and started to fade and crinkle, the design will be more noticable. We shall see! Oh, and you can’t really read the tag in the back pocket, but it says “You Can’t Buy This” Ha!

Forgot to say – this is the slim leg version, with the short inseam (and yes they are actually hemmed in these photos haha). This pants pattern comes with 4 different leg versions – skinny, straight, wide, and shorts – but I’ve only tried this one and the shorts. I have plans to make a pair of cropped wide-legs out of some corduroy, but we’ll see when I actually get around to it (not anytime soon now that I can’t leave the house without socks on haha).

Anyway, that’s it for this post, as well as for this series of “Lauren Talks About Her Favorite Jeans Patterns While She Also Revamps Her Pants Selection”! I have one more pair of jeans/pattern to share, but I need to sew them first (it’s been a busy month!). Hoping to get that accomplished before the end of the year, we’ll see!

Have you sewn jeans yet? What’s your favorite pattern?

Tags: completed, darrell thomas textiles, dawn jeans, denim, jeans, megan nielsen, you can't buy this

Comments 30 Comments
Categories completed projects - new

Completed: Claryville Jeans

2 Dec

I’m back with another jeans post! Two down, one more to go!

This week, I want to focus on the Claryville Jeans, a pattern from Workroom Social.

The Claryville Jeans are a new release from Workroom Social, but hardly a new pattern – Jennifer has been working on it for at least a couple of years at this point! I actually sewed an earlier version of the pattern (before it was finalized), but I do like the small updates of the new one better! It was cool to be able to “work” with Jennifer on this pattern – I put that in quotes because she definitely did ALL of the work – I didn’t even test the pattern – but I offered lots and lots of opinions, both from an instructor perspective and as someone who has sewn a lot of jeans! Overall, I think the finished pattern is absolutely fabulous and I’m really proud of Jennifer for all the work she put into it to make it so great!

Anytime I mention this jeans pattern, the very first question I get (like, every single time lol) is “How does it compare to the Ginger Jeans pattern?” The short answer: It doesn’t. They are very different patterns, made to work with different types of denim, and fit in a different way on different bodies. You can’t really compare them, I’m sorry. What I can tell you is some of the key features of this pattern (this is all in the official description of the pattern, btw, which most companies should be including anyway!):
– BODY TYPE: This pattern is designed to fit a pear or hourglass shape; i.e., one with a large hip-to-waist ratio. If you are more straight/square, it probably won’t work for you without some adjustments.
– FIT: This is a mid-rise fit (right below the bellybutton), with a close fit through the hip and thigh, with a bit of extra room for the calf. It is a true jeans pattern, not necessarily “skinnies” or “jeggins” like the Gingers tend to veer toward.
– FABRIC: The Claryville uses denim with a very low stretch (I have heard rumors of people using non-stretch fabric to make this with great results, although I haven’t tried it myself), unlike the Gingers, which are stretch. You *can* make these in a stretch (just size down!), but the pattern is designed for low to no stretch.

Construction-wise, these go together like any other pair of jeans (although I will give a big shoutout to the 3/4″ side and inseam allowances which make fit tweaking SO MUCH EASIER!). The fly is constructed with multiple pieces (rather than a fold back fly like the Gingers), which definitely intimidates the shit out of my students when they first start the class, but honestly, it’s really easy and fun to do! TBH, I find it quite fool-proof and I think the instructions given are **far** easier than any other multi-piece fly instructions I’ve come across.

My favorite parts about this pattern are the small back yoke (so flattering!), the giant back pockets (there are 3 sizes to choose from, depending on the size of your butt! These are the small pockets), and the extra calf room (lord knows I need it). I also like that it uses a low-stretch fabric; it certainly is not as melt-on-the-couch comfortable as a good stretch denim, but they are quite nice regardless after a solid break-in. My pro tip for quickly breaking in your jeans: Wash them a LOT! I basically throw my jeans in the wash/dryer every single time something goes in there. After 5-10 washes they soften up considerably.

Fit-wise, these are great for me right out of the envelope. I made a size 2, with no adjustments other than length (these are 31″ inseam and mine is like… 28″ lol). The waistband is straight, and is supposed to be eased into the top of the pants which will naturally create a curve. In my workshops, we baste the inner waistband on first and check the fit, which is easy to adjust if you tend to get waistband gape.

I know someone is going to ask me about the denim I used, and here’s my answer: I know nothing about it! It’s from Workroom Social, the same denim that we use in the Jeans Intensive classes. I think it’s Japanese. There, now you know everything I know!

I kept these pretty simple as far as embellishments go, and used red for the bartacks and zipper, to match my pocket lining. The pocket lining is just a fat quarter, which is my FAVORITE fabric to use for pocket lining. It is sturdy, it is colorful, it is inexpensive and easy to source – what’s not to love? One thing I see a lot of students bring to class is cotton lawn (Liberty is especially popular for this) – my biggest advice is DO NOT DO THIS. Cotton lawn is very lightweight and not really suitable for a pocket bag. You will rip your pockets far before your jeans show even an inkling of wear. I cannot stress this enough.

My favorite part, though, is the back pockets! I had a stroke of a good idea earlier this year and decided to give them my initials 🙂 It is subtle for sure – and really fun to hear people make the connection!

To do this, I drew the lines with chalk and a ruler, and stitched over them with topstitching thread. Easy!

I also snuck a little L on the coin pocket bartack, because why not?

Ok that’s all for these jeans! If you want to learn how to make the Claryville Jeans with me next year, you can sign up here at Workroom Social! Please be aware that my classes are in March, July, and November. There is a May class, but I am not instructing it 🙂 Just FYI!

Tags: claryville jeans, completed, denim, jeans, pants, workroom social

Comments 13 Comments
Categories completed projects - new

Completed: Ginger Jeans, With A Heart On

25 Nov

Fun fact: I am wearing this same outfit as I type this blog post. Don’t be fooled, though, I took these photos months ago! I don’t know what my deal is, but for whatever reason I’ve become the sort of “blogger” (I am putting this in quotes because I think I’ve maybe written 6 posts this entire year lol) who takes photos and then… hoards them? Whatever.

Anyway, here’s a new pair of jeans to share! I think I’ve made enough pairs of Ginger Jeans to probably warrant never needing to post them again – students always ask me how many I think I’ve made, and the answer is I actually don’t know! I’ve lost count! – but I feel weirdly guilty about all the blog neglect this year, so I’m posting for the sake of posting something and keeping the ol’ stomping ground alive.

Also my hair looks really good in these photos, so there’s that. Gotta take those small victories wherever you find them!

Even though I’ve made tons of jeans, I recently reached a point in my wardrobe where I realized I was in pretty dire need of some wearable bottoms. My wardrobe goes through a lot of shifts and purges – things don’t turn out the way I envisioned, the fabric or fit is weird (let me tell you right now that no matter how much you sew or even use TNT patterns, you will never be immune to making these mistakes from time to time!), it’s a strange color or style I don’t actually wear, my weight has fluctuated and it doesn’t fit anymore, or I’ve worn them so much they are wearing out and need to be replaced. The last 2 reasons have really hit hard this year, when it came down to me owning 1 pair of (very poorly fitted) shorts and maybe 2 pairs of jeans. So I’ve been on a pants and shorts making binge which has been quite fruitful!

I used 3 different jeans patterns to really round out my pants wardrobe, so stay tuned for the other 2! Today, I want to talk about the Gingers!

If you’ve followed me for any amount of time, you probably know I have a mad love affair with this pattern. It’s one of my TNTs (tried’n’true), and like I said, I’ve sewn it so many times that I’ve literally lost count of how many pairs have passed through my sewing machine. I don’t know if it’s my favorite because it’s actually the best, or if it is just familiar. I do like the style and the fit works quite well for my body, though! It also helps that this is the pattern that I use for my Sew Your Own Jeans weekend workshops, so I feel like I truly know this pattern like I know the back of my hand.

I haven’t made this pattern since the end of 2017, and while I love that pair and still wear them regularly, I can see that they definitely have an end date – they are starting to wear very thin in some places, and the lycra is losing its elasticity. I think they still have quite a bit of life left to live, however, I think it’s always good to secure your back-up plan before it’s needed!

My fabric is a wonderful stretch denim that I purchased from Crafty Gemini back in August when I was in Florida for a sewing retreat. Usually whatever shop hosting my class will carry the specific denim that I recommend (this one from Robert Kaufman!), however, some shops like to source their own and that is also fine! In this case, Vanessa was able to get her hands on some very nice, dark indigo US-made stretch denim, which everyone in the retreat used. I was kind of jealous of how nice their pants were turning out so I decided to get a couple of yards for myself, too! This denim is just as stretchy as the RK, but a little heavier – maybe a 9 or 10oz. The color is nice and dark but I haven’t noticed as much dye rub-off as I tend to see with the RK denim.

I decided to go up a size in these jeans, which turned out to be a mistake. As I mentioned, my weight has gone up a bit this past year – mainly in my hips – so I’m sizing my new makes appropriately, and while I could squeeze into those 2’s if I really put my mind to it, I wanted some jeans that were a little less… painted on. Unfortunately, these ended up way too big so I should have just stuck with the 2’s! They look great now, but I did have to size down the side seams, and after taking these photos I also took in the waistband and center back a bit more. I think the issue is that 1. I’m exactly in between sizes with Closet Case Patterns (a little bigger than the 2, and a little smaller than the 4); and 2. My denim is very stretchy (about 25% stretch, the same as the Robert Kaufman that I usually use) which typically warrants sizing down, not up. Anyway, it was a fun experient and it all worked out in the end so I’m not mad about it, just making a mental note for next time!

Other than the sizing stuff, I did not make any other changes to this pattern. I added 1″ to the calf (ages and ages ago), but otherwise I get a pretty good fit out of the envelope, so that is nice and easy!

I did change the front pockets to be actual pockets, and not a pocket stay. I am fully aware that I am the minority in this thought process, but I HATE HATE HATE those pocket stays! I find them rigid, uncomfortable (which is all kinds of wrong when you’re wearing stretch denim, I mean wtf) and they make the fly area incredibly bulky. I know people loooove their pocket stays so please don’t @ me with your defense, just stating my personal choice here! Free-hanging pockets FTW! I have no issue tucking my pockets back in if it means I can eat a plate of nachos and not feel like I need to unbutton my pants! Fight me!

For some fun customization, I used contrasting thread to do my bar tacks, and stitched this cute little emoji patch on the butt pocket. Mostly because it makes me laugh, but also because I love any excuse to tell people I have “a heart on” lulz omg.

I also do not use the back pocket markings as suggested in the pattern, because in my experience they are too low and kind of unflattering! I think a high-waisted jean needs a high pocket, so I always place mine a little higher. In my Sew Your Own Jeans workshops, I custom place these on each booty (oh yeah I bet you didn’t know that fee included a nice hand down your pants!). For me when I’m sewing alone, though, it requires a lot of basting, trying on in the mirror, removing pants and unpicking stitches, rebasting, putting pants back on again, repeat ad nauseum. Fortunately I’m at a point where I have a general idea of where the pockets should be placed with just a good confident eyeballing, but my point is that you too can have good pocket placement, even if you don’t have the luxury of a second person to help you! Just be prepared to take your pants off a LOT and also maybe consider taking photos of your butt (why is this starting to sound like a Tinder conversation… ?).

I left the jeans unhemmed, because I’ve learned over the years that no matter how much you pre wash your denim (this one was 3x!), the length will continue to shrink in length over several more washes. I used to just hem my jeans on the long side, but these days I don’t bother hemming at all and just wear them rolled for a few months until I feel like they’ve gotten their shrink out. These are hemmed as of this posting, but were not as of the photographs.

Oh, I also made my top! It’s a True Bias Nikko Top, made with some really fun chartreuse knit that I bought at Fancy Tiger Crafts when I was there in June! I was very drawn to the color, but wasn’t sure how it would look on me – it took a lot of convincing from Bob, and then another few months of me staring at it on my shelf wondering if I had made a mistake. Honestly, though, I LOVE how it looks on me! I think it really works well with my skin tone and hair color, and it’s also a color that just makes me happy! So, Bob was right and I stand corrected!

Ok, I’m wrapping up this long-ass post with a photo of me + Amelia. Don’t be fooled by the bitchface, she loves me and was purring very loud during this photo haha.

Want to learn how to make your own jeans? Join me in 2020 and let me teach you how!

Tags: completed, crafty gemini, denim, ginger jeans, jeans, pants, sew your own jeans weekend workshop, workshops

Comments 21 Comments
Categories completed projects - new

Announcing Sew Your Own Jeans 2020 Workshop Dates!

19 Nov

Friends, readers, and random people who just dropped in via an interesting Google suggestion – I’m happy to announce that my 2020 dates are finalized and I’m ready to announce my ~2020 workshop tour~! Yay!

I’m trying something a little different this year and announcing everything at once, rather than as they are listed and available for registration. Last year, it felt like a lot of people missed out on signing up because the seats would sell out before I even had a chance to announce them! I also felt like I was posting WAY too much about workshop stuff, which I completely understand can be super annoying for those who are not interested in ever signing up for one! My hope is that this burst of dates (as opposed to the slow trickle last year) will allow everyone interested to plan in advance, and be informed when the seats are available to sign up for.

Please note that not all the classes are listed as of this posting (I will update as they are!). I strongly recommend that you follow the shop hosting the workshop, to be notified when the class is listed so you can sign up quickly and hopefully secure a seat! I will update my classes page as workshops as listed, however, I cannot guarantee they won’t be sold out by that point (this happened quite frequently last year!).

All dates and links are listed on my WORKSHOPS page, as well as in this post. For more information, including pricing, please visit the shop’s website or send them an email!

A few notes and frequently asked questions about my workshops:

– These are the ONLY workshops that I am offering for 2020! I am completely booked! Once they are sold out, they are sold out (i.e., I will not be adding additional dates) so I encourage you to sign up ASAP!
– For my jeans classes, we will be sewing the Ginger Jeans from Closet Case Patterns. This pattern is a high-waisted, stretch denim jeans pattern that is available in sizes 0-20. Plus sized? Girl, I got you! You can make the Cashmerette Ames Jeans, which is available in sizes 12-28 and includes options for both an apple shaped torso or pear! Dudes or Non-Binary, i.e., don’t wanna wear girl pants? Yo, I got you too! You can make either the Quadra or the Fulford jeans pattern from Thread Theory. Jeans for everyone!
– “I don’t wear high-rise jeans – will we have the option to make this change in class?: If you are interested in sewing a mid-rise jean, there is a Mid-Rise Ginger jeans pattern available for purchase on the Closet Case Patterns website that you are welcome to use instead. Additionally, there is a Flared Leg add-on if you don’t do skinny! Unfortunately, there is not enough time in class to make drastic changes to our patterns, especially with adjusting the rise, outside of minor fitting issues. It is definitely something that we can go over in class, though, so you can apply the changes to all your future jeans!
– Required Skill Level: You don’t need to be a Sewing Master to tackle this class, however, you absolutely need to have experience using a sewing machine and following a sewing pattern. All skill levels are welcome!

+ + + 2020 LLADYBIRD Workshops + + +

JANUARY
Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
January 10 – 12, 2020
Urban Sewciety, Westfield, NJ

Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
January 24 – 26, 2020
Crafty Gemini, Gainesville, FL

FEBURARY
Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
February 21 – 23, 2020
Craft South, Nashville, TN

MARCH
Jeans Making Sewing Intensive
March 7 – 8, 2020
Workroom Social, Brooklyn, NY

Sew Your Own Classic Shirt Weekend Workshop
March 20 – 22, 2020
Hello Stitch Studio, Berkeley, CA

APRIL
Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
April 17 – 19, 2020
Blackbird Fabrics, Vancouver, BC

MAY
Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
May 1 – 3, 2020
Pintuck & Purl, North Hampton, NH

Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
May 29 – 31, 2020
Darrell Thomas Textiles, Ottawa, ON

JUNE
Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
June 12 – 14, 2020
Josephine’s Dry Goods, Portland, OR

Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
June 26 – 28, 2020
Fancy Tiger Crafts, Denver, CO

JULY
Jeans Making Sewing Intensive
July 18 – 19, 2020
Workroom Social, Brooklyn, NY

Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
July 31 – Aug 2, 2020
Darrell Thomas Textiles, Ottawa, ON

AUGUST
Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
August 14 – 16, 2020
Crafty Gemini, Gainesville, FL

Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
August 28 – 30, 2020
Blackbird Fabrics, Vancouver, BC

SEPTEMBER
Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
September 11 – 13, 2020
Stitch Sew Shop, Alexandria, VA

Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
September 25 – 27, 2020
Fancy Tiger Crafts, Denver, CO

OCTOBER
Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
October 2 – 4, 2020
Hello Stitch Studio, Berkeley, CA

Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
October 30 – Nov 1, 2020
Pintuck & Purl, North Hampton, NH

NOVEMBER
Jeans Making Sewing Intensive
November 14 – 15, 2020
Workroom Social, Brooklyn, NY

DECEMBER
Sew Your Own Jeans Weekend Workshop
December 4 – 6, 2020
Sew With Sonia, Menlo Park, CA

Whew! I was going to share a pair of my own recently finished Ginger Jeans, but I think that’s enough for this post! Actually I have 3 pairs of finished jeans so stay tuned for a ~Jeans Extravaganza~ here on this blog shortly! In the meantime – who’s taking a workshop next year?! I am so excited!!

Note: All photos in this post were taken at my workshop at Blackbird Fabrics this past April!

Tags: lladybird, denim, jeans, sewing classes, classes, ginger jeans, workshop, workshops, jeans workshop, sew your own jeans weekend workshop

Comments 8 Comments
Categories misc

Completed: Simplicity 9215

30 Sep

I don’t know exactly how long I’ve had this Simplicity 9215 pattern for, but it has been at least a few years. Maybe even a full decade.

I originally bought it for the lol factor. I love these old licensed patterns – not necessarily anything hilarious about that – but the cover art is just something else. How cool is that kid with his (handmade)(but properly licensed) Garfield tshirt, matching shorts, and FANNY PACK*? How about those drawings? The cool sk8r boi with kneepads? The coonskin cap (and, bizarrely… wrist guards? Which would make more sense if he was also on wheels). Everything about it delights me to no end. I love it so much.

*It’s a fanny pack, y’all. Stop calling it a ~belt bag~ and get real here.

Even better – the pattern still had the Garfield iron-on transfer intact. It was just a matter of time before I set about making it myself.

The pattern actually has you applique the image, using fabric scraps for the main colors and then black thread for all the outlines. I intentionally bought very soft, lightweight knit fabric to sew up the shirt portion, and I was afraid the applique would make it too stiff and it wouldn’t hang right (and while I considered using jersey for my applique pieces, I didn’t want to go through the headache of trying to find the right colors that were also a similar weight). So rather than use fabric, I decided to paint the entire thing directly to the front of my shirt. I did still use the iron-on transfer to get the lines in the right spot – but as this pattern is over 30 years old, it didn’t *completely* transfer so I ended up re-drawing a lot of the lines before starting to paint. After that was done, I spent an afternoon with a small paintbrush and tulip brand fabric paint (this is literally the same brand I bought, and yes it’s from Walmart. Keepin it cheap today, guys!) filling in all the areas with color. After a few coats, I outlined everything with puffy 3D paint (obviously black, not turquoise, but I’m not seeing black on the website for some reason).

Here’s a fun (and also disappointing) fact about modern puffy paint – it’s not actually 3 dimensional! All the beautiful dimension totally flattened as it dried (and before you @ me, I will point out that I grew up during the Puffy Paint Renaissance and yes I know how to apply this shit properly), which is a little surprising considering that they say right on the bottle that it should be 3D. Alas.

I let my masterpiece dry for a few days before moving onto step 2 (also, hello sparkly cat patch!). Step 2 was sewing it into a shirt, spoiler.

Yes, I used the pattern pieces to make the shirt! My copy of the pattern was already cut into a size Small, but after comparing the finished measurements to my own body measurements, I knew that it would fit me just fine. I added about 1/2″ to the side seams for some extra insurance/wiggle room, but ended up removing it when I tried the shirt on. I probably could have swung a little FBA to add more boob room to the front but tbh I’m not that concerned about it.

The fabric is a wonderful organic cotton jersey knit from Blackbird Fabrics (I used a light heathered grey colorway, which I’m not seeing on their website at this time). I was aiming for an “old and loved vintage tshirt” look, which I think this perfectly emcompasses. It was also relatively stable, which meant it was easy to paint on. I used my serger to sew everything together, and coverstitched the hems and sleeve and neck bands.

The fabric paint instructions have you heat set the paint to keep it bright and intact, but since I was going for a vintage look I chose to skip that step. Look at the difference between the finished Garfield and the one I’m wearing – it faded quite a bit! All of the fading happened in the initial wash – I’ve worn and washed this piece plenty throughout the summer and it really hasn’t faded more than what you see here. And if you can’t tell from the photos – the paint dried to a nice flexible finish, so the image isn’t stiff at all. It feels pretty similar to a screen print.

These photos were also taken at Clutch Camera while teaching my second jeans workshop for Josephine’s Dry Goods while I was in Portland OR earlier this year! All weird poses are courtesy of me feeling awkward in front of the camera (I mean, that’s not new – but having an audience is).

We also had a fog machine available, so I’d like to introduce you to my band: LLADYBIRD and the Jeans Queens. Unfortunately I did not have time to make a proper pair of graphic shorts or a fanny pack, sorry.

Anyway, this was a fun project that gave a nice breath of fresh air to the things I’m used to making. I feel like it focused more on the artistic/creative side of sewing (not that sewing is not creative, but I was literally painting a picture to make this piece), similar to the stuff I was into when I originally started making my own clothes. I used to dress real goofy, which is something I’ve lost over the years (prob because I’m not 16 anymore, who would have guessed?), and it has been fun trying to incorporate a little bit of that back into my sewing practice + wardrobe.

Tags: blackbird fabrics, completed, garfield, knit, simplicity, tshirt, vintage

Comments 22 Comments
Categories completed projects - new

Updated: Sequin Cat Hoodie

13 Sep

Y’all remember that Stella Hoodie dress I made last year?

It was real cute for sure, but I think I literally wore it twice after completion. The fabric was a little too heavy to be comfortable as a summer garment (and I’m sorry, but a mini / sleeveless dress *is* a summer garment, fight me), and it was also real, real fucking short. Like, butt-cheeks-peeking-out-to-say-hello-whenever-I-lifted-my-arms short. And while I think it would make a good swimsuit cover-up, still, I’m gonna be real with y’all and point out that I go swimming about twice a year. There is no room in my life for a swimsuit cover-up.

So, overall, this garment was pretty useless. I thought it might work as a shirt, though, so I kept it around waiting on inspiration. After announcing the 2019 OAL, I went through my UFO drawer and decided to see if I could salvage the dress into something I might actually wear.

Turns out all it needed was a little chop and some bling! And thank god I saved it, because this is seriously one of my favorite shirts now!

This was a really easy refashion. I removed the kangaroo pocket and tried on the dress to determine how long to make it, then cut about 2″ longer and used that as a hem allowance for a nice deep hem (I chose to make my hoodie cropped, as I’m really into the cropped shirt / high-waisted jeans look these days, but since the hem is so deep I can always un-crop it if I decide I want a longer shirt someday). I then stitched the hem with my coverstitch machine, same as the original dress hem. I was initially planning on sewing the pocket back on, so after hemming I tried the top on again to determine pocket placement, and that’s when this big ol’ blingy cat patch caught my eye…

Isn’t this patch AMAZING?! I bought it at Hai Trim in NYC when I was there over Christmas. Honestly there are loads of cool patches in all the shops around the NYC Garment District, but I think Hai Trim has the best selection (and most are $12-$18, which I think is a pretty reasonable price). I bought it without any idea what I’d do with it, and have had it hanging on my wall in the months since. When I held it up to the shirt, I couldn’t stop smiling. As far as I’m concerned, it’s a perfect match.

I sewed it to shirt using Invisible thread, which is a thin nylon thread that kind of looks like a spiderweb. Usually when I do this sort of sewing, I just use regular sew-all thread – but I had recently read a Threads Magazine article that mentioned using clear thread to applique and I thought it sounded like a fun experiment to try. You load your bobbin with standard polyester thread, and use the clear thread in the top. Then you zigzag around all the edges, being careful to position the needle so that it lands inside and outside the edge of the applique with each zigzag. I would show you a close-up – but it’s literally invisible lol. So hopefully that makes sense! It is definitely more forgiving than using colorful thread, since you can’t see it at all – so if your zigzag strays off course at all, it can just be your secret.

However, the thread is really delicate and prone to breaking. I found that I got a better experience by loading my thread in a thread stand so that the thread comes from the top of the spool, instead of out the side (whenever I loaded sideways, it would eventually twist around the spool pin and break).

So far, this has held up fine in the wash! I turn the shirt inside-out and then wash/dry as normal (cold, regular cycle, etc). The threads did pop in one small section, but I think that was because a dog jumped on me lol. I just stitched it back down and it’s fine! All good!

BTW if you’re wondering how the hell I got these BOMB-ASS PHOTOS (tbh the only reason this post is even warranted haha), we shot them in a professional photo studio in Portland, OR when I was up there earlier this year for a jeans workshop at Josephine’s Dry Goods! Since Josephine’s is such a small shop, we opted to move the workshop to this place so we’d have more space… and a great backdrop to take photos (which obviously I took full advantage of). I can’t take any credit for the quality of these photos as Bini’s husband set it all up- as well as let us use his equipment – but hey they are cool and I got some neat jumping shots!

I really like my hair in this one 🙂

On a final note – I was creeping on Gucci recently and I was surprised to see this cat all over their F/W 19 collection, but specifically these sneakers–