Iiiiiiiiit's John Boy!

Maybe this makes me a lazy sewer -- and really, is there any doubt that I am? -- but I really like to be entertained while I sew.

Traditionally I've listened to podcasts while sewing given the aural nature of that medium, but while working on my latest quilt I started watching The Americans. I'm sure I'm missing a lot of nuance and visual cues and whatnot, but I'm enjoying the show anyway, and if I like it well enough I can always rewatch it later. Or I guess that would be "watch" it, instead of just listening.

The Americans: This is a casual pose that I also engage in regularly.

Oh right: Here's a brief taste of my latest sewing project to remind you that this is a blog about sewing.

Do you ever have one of those moments when you realize literally everything is connected, or at least your brain makes crazy connections? I had one of those this morning on my way into work. Are you ready for it? 

I'm driving into work this morning, listening to the latest episode of My Favorite Murder. This is definitely one of My Favorite Podcasts and I listen to it often while sewing. On this episode, the hilarious hosts start talking about John Boy from The Waltons.

Good night, John Boy.

And all of a sudden my brain synapses start firing and I almost run off the road...BECAUSE all of a sudden I realize why this one character on The Americans looks so familiar.

He's still got it....and I'm talking about the mole.

It's John Boy! John Boy is Agent Gadd from The Americans! 

And THEN, I realize that....

...there is a prominent quilt displayed behind the main characters' bed on The Americans.

Is your mind blown yet?

Isn't it crazy how interconnected things are and, like, how Richard Thomas still has a career? You don't even know who I'm talking about because who would even know what John Boy, the actor's, name is unless you were doing a Google search trying to find pictures of him? 

Should I be worried that my primary form of communication is memes and pop culture references? No? Yes? Yes. Yes? Nah I'm fine.

Anywho, I've been working on a quilt for AAT's room. I usually choose bright colors for quilts and AAT already has a lot of color going on in her room so I purposefully went looking for a more muted color palette. She also has a lot of pattern going on in her room so I wanted to choose a more low-key, less shape-y pattern. I was suitably inspired by this quilt below, found on Beech Tree Lane Handmade.

via Beech Tree Lane Handmade

In my infamous shopping trip to JoAnn, I had picked up some Cloud 9 Organics Cotton, all I believe from the Cirrus line. Colors are, I think, Ash (Greige color), Shadow (Gray), Ocean (Navy), Rain (light blue), Petal (light pink), and Lilac (light purple - not pictured).

From this raw material I will create a passable quilt.

Beech Tree Lane Handmade had a great tutorial on making Half Square Triangles in bulk, which was critical for this pattern. I followed the instructions to make 8 at a time, and then I followed the instructions from another tutorial online to make the hourglasses.

I knew I was making a Twin-sized quilt, so I needed to do math to figure out how to do 70"x90" and also to make the most of my half-yard cuts of the colors.

I started with the half yard assumption -- what is the biggest square I can cut out of a 44" wide x 18" tall piece of fabric? I figured out I could cheat two 18"x18" squares and then have enough left over to do any extra pieces I needed to create to fill in the blanks.

Using the super helpful size guide:

You have to take into account that with each time you sew and cut, you're losing half an inch in seams. I figured out that if I cut 2 - 18" squares, that would mean I would have 8 - 8.5" HSTs, with a finished size of 8" for each hourglass. That meant when it was sewn into the quilt with .25" seams, each final hourglass would measure 7.5". That meant I needed to have 10 squares wide and 12 squares tall.

7.5" * 10 = 75" wide

7.5" * 12 = 90" tall

Once the math was out of the way (or "maths" as my British readers would write), I got to cutting and sewing, while The Americans kept me company.

Through the magic of the Internet, all my hours of hard work are complete within the blink of an eye and I had a fat stack of each color. 

I had to go back to JoAnn to get more fabric, and picked up the lilac then, so that's why the purple color isn't in this picture. I initially did the math all wrong for how much fabric I needed because I haven't taken a math class since 11th grade and also my reading comprehension skills are low while I'm fabric shopping so I misread the full-size mattress size as the full-size quilt size. 

I laid it out to get an idea of what it would look like. I wasn't loving the mixed up look for my own version so I decided to make "stars" of each color. In the pic below I hadn't quite gotten straight how I needed to rotate the hourglass blocks to get the pattern right. Thank god I figured that out before I started piecing it together.

But don't worry -- I'll make plenty of other mistakes to make up for it!

I put this project away for a bit and when I came back to it I laid it all out on the floor to decide on a pattern and then started sewing it together. But then it couldn't stay on the kitchen floor because cats and toddler and life and I wasn't done sewing it so I very cleverly* folded it all together in a manner that I would never remember later and I also very cleverly* did NOT take a picture of it before I did this.

*

And that's where I am now. I laid it out again tonight and have NO IDEA WHATSOEVER how I had it laid out originally.

I took a picture of part of the area I had sewed already just to give you, gentle blog reader, an idea of what it will look like. Figuring this out is a battle for another night!

 

I Wish I Knew How to Quit You, McCall's 6920

Some patterns just don't work out the way they're suppose to.

Remember McCall's 6920?

This gal made an appearance a few posts back as the pattern that ended up becoming my dress form. 

When I first made this pattern, I definitely chose the wrong fabric. I also found the shoulders to be super wide apart. When I sewed it initially, I also had some problems with the princess seams but that was user error, not a fault of the pattern.

What attracted me to this pattern was its simple lines and a style that, in theory, would allow for me to easily adjust where I needed to. That usually means pulling in the bust and waist, adding some extra width in the hips, and sometimes adding some length.

In my last post, I described a last-minute dress-making frenzy pre-wedding. Here's a recap of that, in case you missed it:

There was no time to snap pictures along the way, but I still have the 90%-finished dress as evidence of that fateful day.

I had this emerald paisley in my stash and it was just right for this type of project. I couldn't tell you exactly what type of fabric it is -- maybe rayon? I'm not normally a paisley person, but I'm a sucker for jewel tones and it reminded me of malachite. 

I made one critical adjustment by narrowing the shoulders. This is probably what took the most time given I'm not very good at altering patterns. It was tricky because of the 3 pieces of the front. I could probably pull out the pattern to see how I did it, maybe treat it as a learning experience because it mostly worked out, but what's the fun in that?

If I recall correctly, there were two big things that prevented this dress from happening in 3 hours.

1. I got overzealous and got ahead of myself and the directions. There was a specific order you were supposed to piece it together so that you could add the facing between the armhole and the neck and then turn it right side out and sew it all together. I missed that part and therefore had to unpick seams so I could fix it.
   
2. I did a sloppy job of attaching the zipper. One side was sewn in higher than the other, which basically made the dress unwearable. By the time this was apparent, it was wayyy too late and time to throw in the towel, especially since I also hadn't hemmed it yet.

In the pictures it's also quite wrinkly. The folds along the seams at the bottom of the skirt would disappear with a good ironing and if it was worn on a body with legs.

I don't know if I'll ever actually get around to finishing this one. I like it well enough but it's also not super practical for my life.

As for the pattern, it's probably time to retire M6920. While I love a good sheath dress, it's time for me to explore patterns that make more sense with the way I live my life now. It's kind of like the day I realized I was never wearing heels again because life is too short to have achey feet.

And on that note, I'll leave you with an inspirational message from one of the best movies of all time, She's The Man:

Bon-Dresses of the Vanities

ACT 1, SCENE 1

INT. SUBURBAN KITCHEN - MORNING 

Sometime in January 2016, an ABOVE AVERAGE INFANT coos adorably in a baby swing while her BELOW AVERAGE SEWER OF A MOTHER sips coffee, looking bedraggled. Her handsome HUSBAND is looking up directions on his phone. 

HUSBAND

If we're going to make it to my cousin's wedding in Connecticut, we should leave here in about 4 hours. 

WIFE

Imma let you finish but I must fashion a garment from scratch before we leave.

HUSBAND

You have many fine dresses in our closet. Why do you not wear one of them?

WIFE

Because I hate everything I own and feel ugly. And it's very important that I look amazing at this wedding because surely I am at the center of the universe. A new dress sewn by a below average seamstress will outshine anything produced in a factory by people who have literally perfected garment creation.

HUSBAND

You're going to make a new dress in the next 3 hours? Because you still have to shower, and help me ready our child for an overnight trip...

WIFE

Have I ever given you reason to doubt me?

HUSBAND

. . .

WIFE

Don't answer that.

ACT 1, SCENE 2

INT. SUBURBAN KITCHEN - MID-MORNING

1 HOUR LATER.

Pattern pieces and cut fabric litter the kitchen. It looks like a deranged monster filled a piñata with pins, scraps of fabric, and crinkled paper directions and then bashed it in repeatedly as one does with a piñata.

The WIFE is bent over a sewing machine, industriously piecing her pattern together. Her HUSBAND, fresh from the shower and holding THE MOST ADORABLE INFANT, passes behind her.

HUSBAND

How is it going, wife of my heart?

WIFE

Great! I'll totally have this done in like half an hour! Piece of cake! Easiest pattern ever and surely it will fit like a dream unlike any pattern I have ever created before!

HUSBAND

You DO know how time works?

WIFE

Time? Of course I know how time works! Psh. Do I know how time works? This guy...I invented time! I perfected time!

HUSBAND

If you say so. I will take care of all of the things you are neglecting in this fruitless pursuit you have engaged in.

WIFE

What? Yeah, whatever. I AM IN THE ZONE!

ACT 1, SCENE 3

INT. SUBURBAN KITCHEN - NOON

2 HOURS LATER

The WIFE is crouched on the floor in her nightgown, holding her knees and rocking back and forth. Inexplicably, she is smeared in mud. She could easily be confused for a feral child. 

The DRESS she has been working on is mostly complete on the dress form, but lacks a zipper.

WIFE

I followed the directions...well, I sort of followed the directions. Why do bad things happen to good people? How am I not myself? If a wedding guest spends all morning sewing a dress but doesn't wear it to the wedding, does the dress exist? Can I just pin it in the back? I'll wear a cardigan... nobody will notice...

The HUSBAND, dressed handsomely for an evening wedding, returns from loading the car, their INSANELY PRECIOUS CHILD strapped to his chest.

HUSBAND

I feel like I knew this was going to happen.

WIFE

(Snarls.)

ACT 2, SCENE 1

INT. SUBARU FORESTER - EVENING

The WIFE is, needless to say, not wearing the dress she worked on all day. She is applying mascara while trying to give her LONG-SUFFERING HUSBAND directions from her phone.

WIFE

So stressed! I hate being late to things. Why does Hartford have so many one way streets?!?

HUSBAND

ACT 3, SCENE 1

18 MONTHS LATER

INT. A DIFFERENT SUBURBAN HOME

WIFE unpacks a bin with half-finished sewing projects.

WIFE

Oh right, this dress. I should finish this dress.

WIFE calls through the door to her HUSBAND.

WIFE

Hey you!

HUSBAND

You bellowed?

WIFE

Remember this dress? I should finish this dress, shouldn't I?

HUSBAND

(Breaks the fourth wall, directly addressing the audience.)

I am a good person and I don't deserve this.

Front view of The Dress

Back view: note the absence of a zipper.

Side view.

Sing to the tune of "Someday My Prince Will Come": One day, my zipper will come....

Identity Crisis Dress

I frequently find myself attracted to dresses that are basically sacks. I think it's because they always seem classic. Casually elegant. Unfussy. 

Not to mention easy to sew and make fit.

This shirt dress seemed like the kind of simple dress I could throw on to to get brunch with the girls or wear to a relaxed summer barbecue.

Unfortunately I don't do either of those things. That should have been the first clue that this dress was not a good fit for my lifestyle.

I picked up McCall's 7120 a while back at one of those $2 a pattern sales that I am a sucker for. I also had 3ish yards of Nicole Miller "abstract print" twill hanging around.

Project Cost:

Pattern: $2

Fabric: $36 - estimate. Fabric is $20/yard online and I wouldn't have bought it unless I got it for 40-50% off.

Total: $38

The initial result:

I sincerely wish I had taken a picture of the dress once I assembled it sans sleeves. Here's a rough idea of what it looked like, except one must remember that although I am not a model it was proportionately large on me but I didn't look half as fetching:

 

Suffice it to say it was large, unstructured, and more hobo chic than boho chic.

You know what that means. It was time to....

Please go to iTunes and download the theme song to MacGyver as you read this next part.

I was not content to let this abomination stand. It was time to give this sad sack of a dress a new identity. A strong, independent, female identity. 

To Do: Add Curves

My body has curves and gosh darnnit so should my dress.

Time for some major surgery. I found my natural waist and cut the dress in half.

That's right. Because I'm a maverick.

I did this so I could adjust the bodice and skirt separately. As I've mentioned before, my upper half is a full size or two smaller than my bottom, so I knew I'd be conducting major surgery on the top, and some minor surgery on the bottom, and somehow I'd have to make the two meet.

Once I had the top and bottom separated, I found the middle of the front and the back of the bodice and pinched until it started feeling more fitted. Fixing the back was easy because I just created a seam and sewed it up. I then adjusted the back facing the same way.

The front was trickier because of the v-neck. Now that I'm thinking about it, I made it more complicated than I had to but it actually turned into a design feature of the dress.

For the front I pinched the fabric FORWARD, sewed it, then flattened the pinched part and sewed along each edge, like so:

This necessitated some fixes to make the v-neck work and the facing strip, blah blah, I made it work and that's all you need to know.

Then I threw in a bunch of darts in the front and back of the skirt to take out the extra width from the waist, tapering to the hips where I definitely needed the extra width.

I had to take in the darts even more until I got the fit just right, and I actually took the sides in a bit more too.

I got everything fitting nicely in the torso and skirt, then I had to get them to fit together. There was still a bit too much ease in the waist area of the bodice, so I took the sides in a bit more. I still need to go back and taper that in a straight line up to the bust dart.

That left me with this:

I still have to hem the bottom and add the sleeves, although I'm on the fence about the sleeves. 

Mistakes:

1. Should have realized the pattern on the fabric should have been centered along the fold lines of the front and back. It's slightly off center and I wish I had paid attention.

2. Should have realized this pattern would be terrible for me.

Current Conclusion:

I'm not done with this dress yet, but I think I did an OK job of salvaging it from the "never going to finish" pile, even if it had to undergo an identity crisis to get there.

Sewing the pattern as created would have taken me like 1.5 hours once I was done with cutting. Instead, I spent like 3 hours with all these adjustments (and still don't have a finished garment).

At the end of the day, I'm not sure I would ever purchase this dress in a store. I think that's the biggest problem with most of my sewing projects -- I spend the time and money creating something that I would have returned to the fitting room attendant.

I suppose I have to admit I enjoy the problem solving aspect, even if I am not ending up with my dream wardrobe. At least I can see myself wearing this to the places I wear dresses -- like the wedding I'm invited to once every other year or a work trip or something. 

Yeah, that's definitely more my style.

10 Things I Hate About Not Having a Serger

1. I can never have any fun because sergers make every project easier.

2. Nothing ever looks finished the way it would with a serger.

3. Sewing with knits is annoying.

4. I break so many double needles.

5. Zig zag stitches just aren't that nice.

6. I don't actually know that much about sergers...

7. ...which means I probably don't even know the extent of what I'm missing.

8. Because I want a serger but don't want to buy a new one I'm forced to look at sad Craigslist listings where people spell "sew" like "sow."

9. Not having a serger is definitely the number one thing preventing me from becoming average at sewing.

10. This list definitely doesn't end with me saying I don't not hate it, not even a little bit, not even at all.