Wiksten Tank, Finished!

I don't know that there is much more to say about this tank. I really love it, and it's definitely a fun summer wardrobe builder. The hem line is great, and if you're looking for a fast and easy project, this is it.

We can talk about my hair though. It's a little bit out of control today.

I'm almost finished with the vintage pajama pants! Hope to post about those soon.

Fabric Mart...

Fabric Mart, you evil temptress.
Unless you've been living under a rock, you've surely heard about the amazing sale they're having through August 20th. No? 50% off many fabrics, some of which are even *designer* fabrics?!

First Up: Maggy London Rayon Challis. In a clover print. Swoon.


Next Up: Cotton Voile in White, with Tangerine, Rose, Daffodil.


Probably my favorite of the bunch, a J. Crew heathered floral knit that I have been eyeing for aaaaaaaages. Isn't it just sweet!?



Last, but not least is this awesome Cotton Lawn. It's got a vintage feel in purple, lilacs, grays and olives.


I'm excited to work with all of these wonderful florals for fall! I've never been one to sew on trend, so I honestly have no idea what's being forecast as "hot" for fall wardrobes. I received the Cambie Dress pattern and I definitely see it being made up in one of these vintage feel florals. Not only is the fabric perfect for the office or cocktails with the ladies, but that particular pattern is as well.

I'm also working on a pair of pajama pants in a vintage (legitimately vintage, more on that when I post the finished product!) flannel cotton polka-dot print. Just need to hem and put the waistband in.
We're up for some actual summer weather soon, and I've been out and about so we'll see when it gets done. I am not going to put pressure on myself to sew, otherwise I start to feel guilty and nobody wins. 

Parting Shot:

Monkey puzzle tree!

This is a monkey puzzle tree, and is my very favorite tree. What, you don't have a favorite tree? I happened upon this one after going to a bicycle parts sale, and it always makes my day.

Happy Wednesday!

Winter Goal...

Just a quick note to say that this winter I'm going to sew through my stash and aim to make a quilt with all the bits and pieces I've got.

Because this? This is nuts.

I just keep asking myself "WHERE DID IT ALL COME FROM?"

I think I have some ideas, but for the most part I really feel like I should be on the Hoarders TV show right now.

I think I smell a giveaway coming up!


And that's not even all of it.

Wiksten Tank

In yesterday's post, I let you guys know that I'm working on the Wiksten Tank.
I'm so excited to finish this project that I want to share my progress, even though due to my iron outage I won't be able to completely finish until Thursday.

Super fun geometric print	Fun hemline	Great neckline

I love this tank pattern and will be making a bunch more. This is a cotton sateen from Lisette's Fall 2011 fabric collection. My friend Devon bought the sister fabric in a set of reds, oranges and browns. She's currently turning it into a Colette Jasmine blouse with a contrasting tie. Can't wait to see it finished!

The instructions to assemble the Wiksten tank are simple to follow. I omitted the pocket, but may possibly add a contrasting one to break up the pattern a bit.

Finished with Bias Tape	French Seams

This tank top is only 2 pieces, really. I opted to finish all the seams with grey bias tape. You guys, I actually hemmed this piece. BEFORE I DID ANY OF THE OTHER OPENINGS. I got the hem and neck done, and half way through one of the arms before my iron died.

I'll post a photo of the finished product, but I'm really looking forward to making up a few versions of this.

RIP Iron

A moment of silence, please.

In December, I splurged and replaced my iron. I had a coupon for a good deal at Joanns, so I picked up the Rowenta DX 1930. (Essentially this iron.) It was love at first steam. I was replacing a $20 black and decker job I received for Christmas when I was 18 and first living on my own. How I made do with that iron for as long as I did is a true testament to the concept that you don't know what you're missing out on until you've tried it.

The Rowenta had So. Much. Steam.

Made in China!

It wasn't meant to be.

I loved the cord reel function. I loved the heft, the steam, the 90 seconds to heat and the smooth sole plate. When my lovely Rowenta started leaking into the cord reel base, I learned that I do not love Rowenta's website. Their website is absolutely awful and it was nearly impossible to locate any information about their warranty and service centers.

Obviously I need to dust. Pay attention to the cord reel base and it's LEAK OF DOOM.

It's a slow leak, but a leak none the less. I started to research new irons and have found positive feedback on this model. I was able to find another good deal, so my new iron should arrive on Thursday. I'm going to try to get this model set up for some warranty service, but we'll see what happens.

When this all happened, I went downstairs to ask my 84 year old landlord what he thought about plugging it in and giving it a go. I didn't want to set the house on fire. I lament that I'm in the middle of a project (the Wiksten tank, which I love, love, love! I will be posting my progress tomorrow.) and assure him I won't plug in the water filled iron and set the house on fire. He offers me a replacement iron which I accept.

I get upstairs and upon closer inspection realize it is a cloth cord non-steam iron. It looks to be circa 1910's, perhaps worthy of being heated not by the electrical cord jutting out of it but the coals of a hot fire. Observe:

Flat Iron!

Off, Low, Ray, Wool, Cot, Lin. An array of heat options!

A few minutes later there is a knock on my door. He is offering me not one, but two more irons, for a total of THREE replacement irons to use. He insists I take them. The other two are cheap steam irons probably from the 80's or early 90's.

My mom made the joke that I would need to rent a storage unit for all the irons.

Sneak peak of the Wiksten Tank:

The iron crapped out just before finishing the bias tape on the armscyes.

EDIT! (8/9/2012)

My new iron has arrived, and it has about a billion steam holes. I can't wait to use it!

Ghost Town, USA.

You guys. I've been totally MIA. I flat out MISSED the deadline for the Made Men Challenge. (Still working on the dress, though!)

Fine, let's talk about the dress. These pictures are horrible, they really are. I'm SO CLOSE to being done. So Close. I can literally taste it. (No, I cannot.)


The inspiration dress is, of course, Betty's fabulous party dress in Season 2.

Photos from the fabulous Tom + Lorenzo blog

We can discuss the fact that I failed to read the directions, so the straps are being added as an "after thought" which involves a lot of hand sewing, which I do not find relaxing at all.

We can discuss the fact that I'm worried I bit a look easter-egg ish?

And can we talk about the back? Something went wrong. I know that it doesn't look like it, but trust me. The color blocks match up, which is great! But, the top doesn't. which is bad. This isn't an everyday garment and therefore should probably have had a little more attention paid it. the problem for me, is that I honestly don't know how to fix it without tearing the entire thing apart.

Frustrated!!!

Just now I tried the dress on to sew on the last strap, and I can't seem to get the zipper up. I'm setting this aside before I break the zipper and have to start all over again.

Guest Post - Fabulous Cushions!

I'm very excited to have my very first guest-poster!

Let me introduce Devon:

 

Isn't she awesome?? Here she is on Christmas Eve, ironing and bourbon'ing. In a cocktail dress.
That's just how she rolls. We solidified our friendship over sewing our Halloween costumes and accessories.

She put together some cushions recently and I asked her if she'd be willing to guest post while I frantically get the zipper installed for the Mad Men Dress. Home stretch! I'll let Devon captain the ship from here!

Hello, campers! Christina asked me to share a recent adventure in slipcovers with you.

I don't have a couch, and I was expecting a pile of people over for a party. To mix up seating, I thought I'd make some floor cushions. I got three pieces of pre-cut 2" foam, and a yard of 3" by-the-yard foam at JoAnn's (on sale- which they cut with an electric bread knife!), and I got the fabric at Ikea. It's a fully-printed cotton blend, so it ended up being quite heavy, and I sewed with basic black polyester thread.

I measured my foam and added a 1/2" seam allowance. I decided to just do a flap closure, instead of messing around with zippers, so I added a few inches to one of the large sides of the cushion and separated it into two pieces. To keep track of things, I took notes for dimensions on an index card.

Cutting those big pieces was a bit of a challenge! I had more than enough fabric, so I generally cut with some room for trimming. Once I had all my pieces done, I drew seam allowances on the wrong sides with a chalk pencil. 

I also marked lengths of the side pieces for the smaller cushions, so I wouldn't accidentally mix up the 16" and 18" long strips.

Then I started sewing! I had to do a fair amount of tension adjusting on my machine from my previous project, since the thread was fine and the fabric quite thick, which I tested on a scrap piece of fabric.

I did the big cushion first since I figured it would take the most time. The three little ones were a breeze after that.

One thing I modified as I went was cutting out the corners. Since I squared off all my corners instead of using a long strip around all the skinny sides, I ended up with a lot of bulk. Trimming them made sewing easier, and made smoother boxy edges. A little tedious, but they came out well. I also didn't worry about matching all the corners perfectly; there was enough bulk remaining that I didn't have problems with holes.

All in all, I was quite pleased, and guests found them cozy!

Thanks, Devon! I hope to be back later this week with my finished Mad Men Dress and a post about some supplies I have received. Oh okay, I will give you a preview: