Opinions Needed: And the Winner is...

Linda pant front

Linda pant back

I mentioned in my Jalie Jean post that FabricMart had given me an extra 2.5 yards of the stretch cream Jones New York corduroy because it had spots. (They came out in the wash.) I decided to use the fabric whip up my fourth pair of Linda pants (from Style Arc) and do a side-by-side comparison.

So, what do you think? Do you think one pair is better than the other? One pair is sure more comfortable to wear than the other. :)

Linda on the left, Jalie on the right

Linda on the left, Jalie on the right

Thanks to the Labor Day holiday on Monday, I am looking forward to a 3-day sewcation! (Term borrowed from Carolyn.) I have the supplies for several projects and we'll see how it goes. I've also made up some eggless salad and roasted some veggies, so I'm ready to go!

I am still waiting to hear from two of the giveaway winners. I plan to put in my Style Arc order on Sunday night. BBinGA, please contact me! Where are youuuuu? :)

Giveaway Winners Announced!

Style Arc has put up their September freebie, so it's time to draw the winners for my Blogiversary Giveaway!

Without further ado, the WINNERS are:

• For the "choosable" Style Arc pattern up to $15 in value: BBinGA.
• For the Style Arc Samantha top in size 8: Mary! Mary, you left the following comment:
  

  

• For the $10 gift certificate from The Button Shop: Mary of the blog, Mary is Sewfast.

Did you see that Julie, owner of The Button Shop, has a special coupon for all of my blog readers, good through Sept 10th?

THANKS, JULIE!

Congratulations to all the winners! Please contact me via the email address in my blog description (upper left of this page). If I don't hear from BBinGA in the next few days, you will have to wait until my October order to select your pattern, because I am itching to put in my order. :)

Zipper Talk

Let's talk about zippers for a moment.

I love zippers. I loved zippers even before they were so "in fashion", but that certainly didn't hurt. I usually buy my zippers via mail order, or I pick them up at Britex or Stone Mountain.

When I made my cream jeans last week, I didn't have a cream jeans zipper, and I was in a rush, so I picked one up at JoAnn's. JoAnn's carries the Coats & Clarks brand, which I haven't used in many years.

Can I just say... ICK!

This zipper felt so cheap. The teeth are sharp and unfinished and the zipper tape is so inflexible and... it feels cheap.

If this is the brand of zipper that you are using, please know that there IS BETTER and your clothing deserves it.

My favorite brands are European, such as YKK or Riri. Riri zippers can be hard to find, though Marcy Tilton usually carries some, but they are often decorative/specialized.

When you just want a good, but regular, zipper, I prefer the YKK brand. In fact, if you look at European RTW brands, such as Deca Paris, they use YKK zippers. I see them used quite often in RTW. This brand is available at your better fabric store (which you should patronize), however, if that is not an option, let me tell you about my favorite online vendor.

ZipperStop is one of those special shops located in the Garment District in New York. I worry about them, as so much of our garment manufacturing is now off-shored, many wonderful shops in the Garment District are closing. It's very sad. I am very happy to give ZipperStop my business and to get the word out.

First of all, their shipping is super fast. I can get a zipper in a couple of days, with no special expediting. They have an amazing selection. They carry decorative zipper stops. And, (this is my favorite thing), they will cut a zipper to a custom length for a measley $1 fee. Do you need a medium-weight separating zipper with antique brass teeth in a 23.75" length?

No problem!

Their prices are very reasonable and I hear they are super nice if you call them on the phone, though I have never needed to. Shams says, check them out!

I have a few more projects in the hopper, but have also done some cleaning this weekend. I may have more things to show early this week, assuming my evening energy holds.

I'm glad that Irene wasn't the monster storm they predicted, although the inconvenience and damage seems bad enough.

Fix for Blogger Comments

I posted this in a comment on my giveaway post, but I want to elevate this so others see it. I have never had problems posting comments on blogger, but many people have. Gwen posted this fix. Give it a try!

Gwen's Fix for Blogger Comments.

Thanks Gwen!

Jalie Jeans - My Second, and Last, Pair

Almost exactly one year ago I made my first pair of Jalie Jeans. Initially, I was pleased with the fit and authentic RTW look. When I completed my jeans, there were already 70 reviews for this pattern on Pattern Review, so I didn't bother to add one more. I just checked and there are now 93 reviews of this pattern, which was ranked as one of the "best patterns of 2009".

Popular indeed.

As I wore my jeans, I liked the look of them, but I quickly realized that they were less than satisfactory. When it comes to pants, my shape is akin to...

The phenomenon boils down to this equation:

     Lack of waist + Smaller hips = Pants that fall down

I am not ready for suspenders, and don't ever expect to be (not with my bust!), so I resort to using a belt. But, even with a snug-fitting belt, my pants have a tendency to fall down. This is crazy-making.

And then there was that time that I couldn't find my belt, and I was in a hurry to get to work, so I threaded some elastic through the belt loops and left the house "Jethro style", hoping that the ends of the elastic wouldn't work their way out from where I had tucked them into my jeans, and peek out from under my top. (I couldn't risk a wardrobe malfunction at work!)

Sigh

There was one other annoying issue I had with my first pair of jeans. I had hemmed them in the traditional way, with a narrow hem top-stitched in contrast gold thread. From the first wash after the jeans were completed (I had prewashed the denim fabric more than 3 times), the hem flipped to the outside. No amount of ironing would make those hems behave. This drives me nuts.

I posed the question on how to eliminate the "hem-flipping-to-the-outside" problem, both to Carolyn, Jeans Queen, and on Stitcher's Guild. The consensus seems to be that the only way to avoid this is to use a wider hem. So that's what I did.

(By the way, I covet Carolyn's jeans and cords, in particular her purple jeans, her rust cords, and her black cords. I thought she also had an olive green pair, but I couldn't find them on her blog.)

I thought I would give the Jalie Jeans pattern one more try. This time I would put elastic in the waistband. The result? It helps, but already I can see that I will be tugging these pants up endlessly, even though I made the elastic fairly tight.

Pffft.

You know, I wish people would stop deriding elastic waist pants. For some of us, they work better than a more fitted pant.

Materials:

• Pinwale stretch corduroy, in cream, from FabricMart. This is no longer on their site, but it was a Jones New York fabric and I think it was 97% cotton, 3% spandex. I have seen pinwale corduroy described as lightweight, but this stuff is very beefy. Much heavier than the denim I used for my first pair, though that does not impede the stretch. I ordered 2.5 yards, but FabricMart sent me 5, along with a note stating that there were some spots on the fabric, so they had given me another 2.5, and to let them know if the spots did not come out, or if I had any other issues. Customer service, indeed. (The spots did come out in the wash.) I machine washed/dried the fabric twice to eliminate shrinkage.
• 1" elastic for the waistband.
• In addition to regular sewing thread, Guterman white top-stitching thread.
• A Coats/Clark 9" jeans zipper in white w/ brass teeth from JoAnns. (I cut it to length.)
• A pewter "heart" button from Fabrix.
• Scrap of a beige-colored flesh-toned silk charmeuse to finish the cut edge of the front pocket. (These were faux pockets because I didn't want the pocket bag to show through the cream fabric.)
• Scrap of beige-colored linen to use as fly shield.

Alterations & Modifications

• Inserted 1" wide elastic in waistband.
• Used a wide hem.
• I didn't want the front pockets to "show through" the cream fabric, so I made "faux pockets." I used scraps of silk charmeuse in a beige-flesh-tone to cut shaped facings to finish the pocket opening.
• I used a scrap of beige-colored linen to cut out the fly shield.

This pic shows the faux front pockets (the back pockets are real), the pewter heart button, and the elastic in the waistband, which I ended a couple inches from the front so I could make the button and buttonhole.

The back of the faux front pockets. You can see the silk charmeuse (on the left) that I used to face the pocket opening.

Conclusion

I can see I will still need to wear a snug belt with these pants. I think in future, if I need jeans, I will adapt the Linda pant from Style Arc. I have made 3 pair of Linda pants, and none of them fall down. :)

Oh, these pants are garment #4 in my Autumn 6-pack. I have 2 tops and a jacket left to make. (Yes, I know that is 7 pieces. :) )

More Pictures

I took these pics at 8:30am today (Saturday). It has been so dark and foggy the last couple of days. After I took these pics, I took this picture of my street.

I then turned and took this picture of the alley, where I take most of my pictures. Can you see the car coming down the alleyway? It's not that far away but, with the fog, you can barely see it even though they have their headlights on.

And speaking of weather, I hope everyone in the path of Hurricane Irene stays safe, and with electricity! I hope to see new projects that happened because folks are staying indoors. Even if said project is a baby or two. ;)

Blogiversary Giveaway!

I promised a Blogiversary Giveaway, and here it is!

This giveaway involves some personal sacrifice, but I think it will be appreciated. You might have noticed that I order 3 patterns per month from Style Arc. I do this because, after that first month when I ordered more, the shipping was *really* high. Chloe, of Style Arc, suggested that I tweak any future orders to stay at the $33 rate, which is usually 3 patterns. (Though it can be less if the pattern is very large.)

So, for my giveaway I am going to give away one of my three patterns for September. If you win this giveaway, you can select a pattern from the Style Arc website, with a value up to $15. Tell me the pattern number and size, and I will add it to my September order, in place of one of my three. I will then mail it to you.

Good, eh? In addition to this, I have a Style Arc pattern to give away. A friend ordered the Samantha Top in a size 8. According to their size chart, a size 8 is designed for a 34.3" bust. When her pattern arrived, she was surprised at how much negative ease this pattern features - the finished bust measurement is 29-3/4" – over 4" of negative ease. She kindly gave me the pattern to offer as a giveaway.

In addition to these, I am also giving away a $10 give certificate to Your Button Shop. I discovered this site because it is run by the owner of my favorite sewing forum, Stitcher's Guild. Julie has some lovely button and bead offerings.

So, to summarize, there are THREE items you can win:

• A Style Arc pattern valued up to (and including) $15.
• A Samantha Top pattern in a size 8 (29-3/4" finished bust).
• A $10 Gift Certificate to Your Button Shop.

Please leave a comment on this post indicating what you are interested in. If it's all three, that's fine.

Here's how it will work. In early September (wow, that is SOON), I will draw names for the three prizes. I will mail the Samantha top to that winner, and I will email the gift certificate to that winner. The lucky winner for the choosable pattern will let me know (within a few days of the win) their pattern choice and size. I will add it to my order. It takes a couple weeks to arrive. I will then mail it to the winner. So, feasibly, you will not receive your pattern until the end of September. If you need longer to decide, you can get into my October order, but you will then receive your pattern around the end of October. Capische?

Thanks SO much for all your supportive comments and well wishes on my blogiversary post. I am very grateful to all of you!

Second Blogiversary!

Today, August 25th, 2011 is my second blogiversary! WOOT! (Details of first blogiversary.)

Table of Contents

• Statistics
• Year in Summary
• What Have I Sewn?
• The Coming Year
• Celebratory Giveaway

Statistics

I have made it to year #2 of blogging and a simultaneous return to sewing. And I still love both. First up, some statistics, 'cause it's fun:

End of Year	Number of Posts	Number of Followers	Number of Subscribers (via Google Reader)
1	125	130	Was Google Reader in use?
2	107 (232 total)	341	482

Hmm.... fewer posts than last year. I suspect that was due to a dip in mojo (with some family/work distractions) in the late spring. Also, some of my garments this year have been more involved.

I am happy to see new followers – I truly appreciate all of you and you know I love your feedback!

Year in Summary

I scanned through my posts of the last year to see what I was up to. Good thing I can refer to that, because I don't think I'd remember much, otherwise.

• I participated in Self-Stitched-September 2010 (wrap up here). That was a great learning experience. I then participated in Me-Made-March 2011 (wrap up here). I had to push myself to complete it. Finally, I participated in Me-Made-June 2011 (no wrap up). I petered out on the photographs and on challenging myself, though I did wear me-made every day. Until I have a motivating reason to do this again, I'll be taking a break from the me-mades. But to do it at least once is very educational and I highly recommend it.
• I am participating in the Year of 12 Jackets and Coats (blog posts here), which ends in December. I am a bit behind schedule, with only six of the twelve completed and here we are at the end of August, but there is still time. I have several in progress, so just finishing those would get me back on track. Adding jackets to my wardrobe has filled a real need and I may do this again next year.
• I am participating in the Autumn 6-pack on Stitcher's Guild. In the past I have not been successful at Sewing With a Plan, but it seems to be working out better this time, so maybe I have learned a thing or two. ;)
• I figured out my "new way" to do an FBA so that it doesn't create too much volume at my hips. This has had a huge impact on the fit of my clothing. I have no dedicated post on this, but I've described the technique in several blog entries.
• I took a fabulous fabric acquisition trip back east where I met several wonderful bloggers. In fact, this was my year of meeting bloggers both local and distant. I met Peggy, Carolyn, Noile, Rose, Georgene, Robin, Beth, Jean, JillyBe, Joan, and Ann Smith. (I apologize if I've missed anyone!) What a rewarding experience it has been to meet all of you! I hope to meet even more internet folks in the coming year.
• Besides fabric (which we won't talk about), I also acquired a few great tools this year:
  
  • My Janome 725 felting machine.
  • My Reliable Digital Velocity v100 iron, which.I.LOVE.
  • A hand made pressing ham which was smaller than I expected, but has become a beloved tool.
  • Just last month I got an iPhone. I wouldn't mention it, except that I have been playing with some of the fashion/sewing apps that are available. Nothing to rave about at this point, except I do like to play Boggle. ;)
• I found a new pattern company which I have been loving: Style Arc. Last year was my year of Au Bonheur des Petites Mains, but this has been the year of Style Arc. (Though I also made some Au Bonheur patterns this year.) This is aside from Vogue and Burda, of course. I also made my first KnipMode garment this year (which wasn't particularly successful).
• My local ASG group leader asked me to give a talk on Sewing, Blogging, and the Internet. I gave the talk last Friday and it was a lot of fun. I doubt I created any new bloggers, but I know I inspired several folks to start using Pinterest!

What Have I Sewn?

Good question.

Well, I don't actually keep count and I don't really want to start, just as I don't want to count how many yards are in my stash. ;)

I have continued to play with techniques. Most particularly, felting:

I have made some great patterns this year. Some of my favorites (besides the aforementioned felted pieces):

The Coming Year

I have a few goals for the coming year ('cause you know I set my goals now, rather than in January when I'm too busy sewing to stop and take stock):

• Complete the Year of 12 Jackets and Coats.
• Make even more jackets and coats.
• Complete the Autumn 6-pack, which I have well underway, with 3 of the 6 garments finished. (I actually plan to do more than 6.)
• Push myself further creatively. I feel that I haven't done enough this year, except for the felting. And I do want to do more felting.
• Continue to have fun, which means I often just follow my muse and do what I feel like. I don't like to over plan because it then starts to feel stressful. I keep very loose lists of ideas and plans. Like most sewists, I have more ideas than I could ever make.

Celebratory Giveaway

I have planned a giveaway to celebrate my second blogiversary. Look for another post with details very soon. :)