Group Sew-Along musings
2010-Nov-11, Thursday 01:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
chebeI find something very calming about reading blog posts. Gets me in a nice head-space. So much so, that I'm motivated to write my own! Sorry for being absent, I'm in the middle of the semester at college and assignments are really starting to pile up. Actually, I've a few essays to write, a precis, an ethics essay, and some regular write-ups. If I'm not ashamed of them they might end up being posted here.
But, what I want to talk about now is the sew-along I mentioned in my last post. Gertie runs a popular retro sewing blog. She's fun to read and provides clear instructions on many aspects. Thanks to her I've learned how to do tissue fittings and a proper narrow hem (I'm obsessively reading the archive from the beginning).
In December she is starting a Sew-Along project, where she'll step-by-step go through the making of a garment. This time it's going to be a wrap dress, at beginners level. Details.
I managed to get someone else interested in giving it a go with me, and then it occurred to me that there might be others too. I'm not an expert by any means but am confident in being able to handle this dress, so I've offered to help out where I can. I suspect that the dress will require some machine stitching, so I'm offering up the machines in TOG, and my mentorship should you need it. I doubt you will, Gertie is very good, but sometimes you just need terms explained.
If you are interested you can get the pattern from themanufacturerdesigner in the States (20% discount code for this month in Gerties blog post), or even more handily for a beginner, you can use a pattern pack (pattern, fabric, interfacing, and thread, for about a 27% total saving) from a UK company, SewBox.
There are a few things that Gertie intends doing that I don't know much about. She says to start with choosing a light to medium weight, cotton or cotton-blend fabric. (The difference between version 1 and version 2 is the shape of the neckline, and that the sash/tie in version 2 is a contrasting colour. So if doing version 2 like Gertie get two fabrics in colours that go together.) She intends to do a muslin mock-up before hand, underlining the dress with cotton batiste, and staying the neckline with silk organza. Each of these steps will require more fabric, but no further details yet. And they're optional, extra techniques to help you achieve a really great garment. If it really is your first time maybe stitching to the basic pattern will be easier, and learn about these others techniques so you can apply them next time.
I intend to post progress pictures here, and possibly on the TOG site. If you're interested in taking part just let me know and we'll see what we can do.
But, what I want to talk about now is the sew-along I mentioned in my last post. Gertie runs a popular retro sewing blog. She's fun to read and provides clear instructions on many aspects. Thanks to her I've learned how to do tissue fittings and a proper narrow hem (I'm obsessively reading the archive from the beginning).
In December she is starting a Sew-Along project, where she'll step-by-step go through the making of a garment. This time it's going to be a wrap dress, at beginners level. Details.
I managed to get someone else interested in giving it a go with me, and then it occurred to me that there might be others too. I'm not an expert by any means but am confident in being able to handle this dress, so I've offered to help out where I can. I suspect that the dress will require some machine stitching, so I'm offering up the machines in TOG, and my mentorship should you need it. I doubt you will, Gertie is very good, but sometimes you just need terms explained.
If you are interested you can get the pattern from the
There are a few things that Gertie intends doing that I don't know much about. She says to start with choosing a light to medium weight, cotton or cotton-blend fabric. (The difference between version 1 and version 2 is the shape of the neckline, and that the sash/tie in version 2 is a contrasting colour. So if doing version 2 like Gertie get two fabrics in colours that go together.) She intends to do a muslin mock-up before hand, underlining the dress with cotton batiste, and staying the neckline with silk organza. Each of these steps will require more fabric, but no further details yet. And they're optional, extra techniques to help you achieve a really great garment. If it really is your first time maybe stitching to the basic pattern will be easier, and learn about these others techniques so you can apply them next time.
I intend to post progress pictures here, and possibly on the TOG site. If you're interested in taking part just let me know and we'll see what we can do.
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Date: 2010-11-12 12:30 am (UTC)So far all I've made is a drawstring bag (still drawstring-less, but that's not a sewing issue).
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Date: 2010-11-12 01:20 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-12 10:32 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-12 10:44 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-12 12:53 pm (UTC)I seem to be busy every weekend, but if we can't meet, I'm sure I'll find someone else to help me.
Thanks!