Sheet Shirt...and a Haircut

I made this sheet shirt out of a thrifted sheet bought for $3. I had been craving a border print since I saw hers, and this sheet already came with one. I think it looks pretty cute, kind of a cross between a mexican guayabera and a 1960s blouse. I used the same pattern as the one I made for Jocelyn.

I'm wearing the shirt a lot. I also wear it under my favorite 70s dress that I've had for so many years but can't stop wearing. It's my Back to School look, even though I'm just continuing to go to work.

I also got a new haircut. Remember I was thinking a about a bob? I went to Bombshells of Beaverton (that's right, you heard me) and this is what happened. I haven't had short hair since about 2001 and I'm enjoying it, wishing, though, it would tuck under just a wee bit more on its own. Oh yeah! And I got that dressform for my birthday from Mr. Jones. It's the greatest.

Shelling Out

Click here to watch an animation by Dean Fleischer. It's called Marcel The Shell with Shoes On, and it almost made me cry.

I have the same regrets in life as this shell. And I, also, cannot lift anything up at all.

Smocking Saturday

I had the greatest day on Saturday. I went to a six hour smocking class held by The Rose Trellis, the Portland branch of the Smocking Arts Guild of America. Friends, it was the best day of sewing I've had in a long, long time. The class was taught by Cindy Foose, and the garments she brought along were absolutely stunning.

The class was held at the Presbyterian Church. I made a poppy seed cake. It was put by the organ.

We stitched and stitched. I learned so many techniques, all without the use of my pleater! I'm going to find a reason to to try them all again, in garments.

We had a lunchtime visit from the cutest baby in the world, adorning a stunning smocked dress.

I went from knowing no one who smocked, to meeting about twelve ladies who have been doing it for decades! They were so lovely, and I only hope my friendships with them, as well as my skill level with smocking, will grow.

It was such a unique and inspiring day! (More photos over at Modern Smocking)

Craft Quicky: Saddle Sneaks

My queue of projects just gets longer and longer. Sometimes it's overwhelming. Since I work all day my time is limited, but when I see a blog post like this one from Bluebird Vintage, I get so inspired. I had to make these shoes right away.

They took only a few hours. Now I have shoes to carry me through the rest of Summer.

Special Kneads: OLIVEr CRUMBwell

I made olive basil bread. I didn't have a specific recipe, just used what I knew from making this loaf, and adjusted accordingly. It's my favorite homemade bread so far.

I'm really enjoying the breadmaking. You can follow a new recipe and make an interesting bread from a foreign country, or use what you know, and add what you like. Kalmata olives and basil are definitely things to love.

The top might look a bit dark because I left the loaf in the oven a tad longer than usual. I brushed the top with melted butter, and it was amazingly good.

I've written up the recipe here, on a one sheet, should you want to make it. Just click on the image to enlarge it, drag it to your desktop, and print/use it as you'd like.

I named it OLIVEr CRUMBwell for its ingredients, and my Anglophile ways. Enjoy!

Water Days

It's been desperately hot here. So hot that I can't have a pile of wool on my lap to finish the sweater I've been working on for weeks. We've taken some trips to various river spots lately, where there is a breeze, and a tree to sit under, and people to watch, splashing. I've started a few more craft projects, and looked forward to the coming weeks of cool.

New Film Inspiration

I've been thinking new idea for a film I want to make. It's about children (there's a surprise, all my films are about children!). One of my great inspirations is old class photos. I got these from Flickr (click to enlarge). Aren't they amazing? The clothes, the faces...I could look at them for hours.

Shirt Tales

This is the shirt I made for my friend Jocelyn, who celebrated her birthday yesterday. I made it from Simplicity 4112 (sadly discontinued, I bought it off ebay) and a Liz Claiborne shirting that was some of the nicest material I've used in a long time. I got it at Fabric Depot here in Portland, and I might be buying more.

I changed the pattern by dropping the armpit by one inch (I hate shirts that crawl up into your armpit) and made the bottom squared by (measuring 7.5 inches from the low waist line on the pattern) so she wouldn't always have to tuck it in. I guessed at her size, but I thought the drapeyness of the fabric might be quite forgiving. She said it fits perfectly!

Jocelyn has been such a great friend to have here in Portland. You can tell by her blog that she loves the simple and important things in life, and she always loves things hand made. She makes my work days so much brighter. Happy Birthday, Joc!

As for the shirt, I'm going to try making myself one out of a bed sheet I thrifted for $3. I realize I run the risk of making the ugliest garment the world has ever seen, in which case I'm going straight back to the luxury shirting. I guess we'll wait and see.

Modern Smocking: I Heart Birthdays

Yesterday I turned 35. I had a great day, with only a few snafus (I'll get you next time, IHOP). One of the biggest events of the day was that I wore my first handmade smocked garment, a shirt that has been, according to Mr. Jones, "three years in the making". I call it the 'I Heart Birthdays' tank top, and this is what it looks like:

It has a smocked inlay. First, I pleated the fabric on my pleater with a friend's help (thanks, Jocelyn!) and watched this video on Youtube to learn trellis stitch, and heart cables. Before I got too far on the smocking, I inlayed the pleated material into a basic tank top pattern (New Look 6483)

I finished up the pattern with a button closure at the back and a half lining all around the inside, to protect the back of the pleats.

There were so many hours put into the muslin, the pleating, the sewing, and the smocking, that I won't be making a ton of these garments. Maybe just one per season. This is what it looked like on me, out to dinner last night. Don't I look older?

I've started a new blog devoted to smocking over here. I'll be posting my projects and inspirations , and won't bore you over here, if you have no interest in smocking. Hopefully you'll see more than one item every three years. If not, here's to age 38!