Finalist for Burdastyle Sewing Vintage Modern Contest

Woo hoo! My dress has made it into the final for the Burdastyle Sewing Vintage Modern Contest.
I didn't intend for this dress to be the "one" for my entry because I didn't read the fine print where it said you can only enter one dress. I had plans on making another amazing out fit to enter, hee hee.

Anyway, I am really pleased I am a finalist but also a bit deflated as I am not getting any votes.
There are some incredible dresses in the competition and deservedly getting the votes.

If you are a Burdastyle Member I would love it if you could give me a vote here pretty please...

Joni Bell Sleeve Top

This is my second project out of the BurdaStyle Sewing Vintage Modern book.

I really loved the look of the bell sleeves on this top, very "hippy, bohemian" inspired.

I had a gorgeous black Japanese 100% Cotton seersucker with self print and eyelet detail in my stash which I had picked up from Tessuti a while ago and thought this would be perfect for it as it has a lot of body and should suit the style perfectly.

I had to draft a new pattern based on the shift dress pattern which I had already made up. It was very simple to modify and the instructions were very easy to follow. I did note a typo on instruction number 5. Measure down 8.5mm from the waist point should read 8.5cm.

A very easy pattern to sew but I still made a mistake! Dang it (as my 7 year old boy would say). The facing which you would normally sew onto the inside of the garment is actually topstitched to the outside.

The armholes were too tight as usual with Burda patterns (for me anyway). I cut off a few centimeters from the bottom of the armhole and then it was perfect. I usually pop the garment on my dress form and draw a line with white chalk to get a visual on how I want the armhole to look and then cut away. Brave but it works.

I love the buttons on the back. I bought them from Spotlight thinking I could just pick up some cute (cheap) buttons but as usual my expensive taste got in the way and I ended up with Italian buttons which were about $2.50 each!! Ouch.

I'm really pleased with the blouse though and the buttons are a feature.

I've already worn it a few times and it feels super comfy to wear.

I was going to make a pair of jeans from the book which I have already cut out but I have been side tracked by a dress I am making from some Dolce and Gabbana fabric (post to come soon).

 Hopefully, will find the mojo to complete the jeans soon.

Awesome Music Video that must be watched

Sewing enthusiasts please check out this music video made with embroidery and sewing implements.

Is this  Directed, filmed, and produced by Christophe Thockler the clip uses 10,000 photographs of needles, thread, cloth and embroidery, mixed with clever lighting techniques to produce a fun video for Favorite Place, the latest track by US pop rock band Black Books.

http://vimeo.com/58893010

hem your own jeans

If you are like me and a wee bit on the short side, you will most likely need to hem most of your jeans. Even though I am a sewer, I dread doing it for some reason. Perhaps it's the mundanenus of it. But hemming jeans to fit is a cinch and you can save bucks on alterations.
You really do only need basic sewing skills.
Denim is thick and a bit tricky but if you use the right needle it's easy.
Also, buy a top stitching thread to match and they can look just as good as the original jean.

Here is what I do:

Get yourself

Jean thread that matches your jeans usually Antique Gold. Buy a good quality one like Gutterman.

A jeans needle
Fabric scissors
Measuring tape
Pins
Iron-Very Important!!
Sewing machine- of course.

How to Hem Jeans

Decide on the length. At this point it's great to have a friend to mark for you as bending down to measure doesn't always work out that well as I have discovered many times. Or a full length mirror can help.
Pop pins in all the way around, take them off then press to get the new hem line.

Measuring hem width

Decide what width you want the hem. I usually measure the existing hem (in this case 1.5cm) then double this measurement.

Pop a pin in where you want to cut

Then measure down this measurement (3cm) from where you want your new hem line.

cut off at pin

Cut off fabric where your pin is.

fold the hem width and press, make sure you press well this will give a neat professional look

fold again , press well and pin in place

This is the important part, test your stitch length and tension. When you are working with a different size needle and thread the tension will vary greatly. I had to do a few tests on this particular fabric. My tension ended up being around 8!

Now on the right side of the fabric top stitch all the way around feeling with your fingers for the edge of the folded hem. Pull the fabric gently whilst stitching. Your stitching needs to be a few millimetres from the edge folded underneath.
For example if your hem is 1.5cm wide your top stitching will be 1.3cm from the hem edge.
Now press again.

There you go, not so bad after all.