Fashion Doll Stylist Goes To See Thierry Mugler

 https://fashiondollstylist.blogspot.com/2021/12/thierry-mugler-couturissime.html

Oh just go read this and look at all the beautiful photos

Are we really out of ideas now? Summer Jumpsuit Romper Playsuit, 2nd Edition

I think my mom made me one of these.

Hello sailor boy!

These overalls are a thing, all over the interweb, you will have to go look for it, I don't want the link-backs:

mrswongyeo.com/home/beaton-linen-overalls-review

Or perhaps:
https://ralphpink-patterns.com/products/florence-play-suit

This is a classic, and a first sew for a lot of folks:
https://www.peekaboopages.com/2012/07/vintage-pillowcase-romper.html

 Kari Jumpsuit, Seamwork photo

 https://www.seamwork.com/catalog/kari

from the webpage: "If you’re craving a garment that’s the ultimate for summer comfort, sew the Kari romper. This romper has a trapeze silhouette that disguises as a dress in drapey fabrics. Shoulder ties add a playful detail and make for easy fitting—and yes, it has pockets!"

One style to rule them all?

McCalls 8165, website photo

"Very loose-fitting pullover dresses & step in jumpsuit have sleeve & length variations." Does not come with pockets as a part of the pattern.

Amy Jumpsuit, Closet Core Patterns photo

https://store.closetcorepatterns.com/collections/sewing-patterns-all/products/amy-jumpsuit-pattern

"The Amy Jumpsuit is comfort and breezy elegance all in one tidy, minimalist package. With a figure-skimming silhouette and ultra-wide, cropped legs, it's got the soul of a floaty slip dress in the body of a jumpsuit you'll never want to take off." Pockets optional, included with pattern.

I know I had one of these that my mom made as a kid in the late 60s. Searching patterns I came up with 

https://www.ellieandmac.com/collections/adult-romper-patterns

https://www.etsy.com/listing/841476661/the-paschima-harem-jumpsuit-digital?

Oh, just go search on the term 'baggy linen overalls sewing pattern' and you'll get the idea. Also so many freebies for the self-drafters!

Meanwhile, in real sewing news,  a  link to  Spitalsfield Life: church embroideries and the broderers. You know, skip all the jumpsuits and read this great profile of the ladies who keep the faith shiny.

https://spitalfieldslife.com/2021/06/02/the-broderers-at-st-pauls/

What I learned from Bragust and AlteritAugust: Link Party

I like theme month sewing challenges until I don't. I can follow and be impressed/inspired by the wide variety of responses, and then worn out by the repetition. 
These two do pique my interest, as two of my sewing failings are the bras in my life, and the stack of mending and altering that grows without any effort on my part. Both #braugust and #alteritaugust live on Instagram, but that does not mean you have to contain your interest to that platform.

I'm not sure how evident my alteration work is on this blog anymore. I still do a lot of it, it's just not as novel or photo-worthy (that Sjoden top being an exception), and it's done as soon as I think about taking a photo. And how interesting are photos of things in the machine in process? Not much to me. But alterations are most of my sewing, either for me or friends or money from friends.  My thinking on this has moved towards preservation rather than refashioning. The main point is I want to see sewing bring life back to stuff, while preserving the original intent if possible. At the end of the day, it's just stuff.

Sew North started #AlteritAugust a few years ago, to bring back to life things she'd made or worn and get them back into regular use. https://sewnorthco.com/alteritaugust-2020/  This is positivity talking. Any talk of alterations reminds me of this series on Ikat bag, which really gets to the nut of the issue: 

http://www.ikatbag.com/2011/12/alterations-making-choices.html

Altering an item involves respecting it's making and its purpose. Ikat has a series of posts on this topic, but this one discusses why you might not want to. The purpose of alterations is to create new value and use for the current owner. If you can, it's good to retain as much of the original in the seam allowances (see Mrs Mole https://fitforaqueen.wordpress.com if you want to see this in action). If that's not a concern, respect the process and do it right. Take your time. Measure twice, cut once and only after heavy consideration. And if you do bodge it, there are workarounds, or maybe you're just going to do what you can and put it in the donation pile. Or salvage the bits and use them later.

Sewcialists has #Braugust, and they are putting out some goodness 

https://thesewcialists.com/2020/07/28/all-chests-welcome-resources/ reminds me that Melissa Fehr has put a lot of time and attention into describing her techniques. The post https://blog.fehrtrade.com/inspiration/4723/elastic-edges-three-ways/ can be summed up with suggesting  "A walking foot for your sewing machine. I cannot stress enough how much of a difference this will make to your activewear sewing success!" 

 I cannot sew elastic to fabric without failure. I was hoping for some advice on sewing  elastic to lace somewhere in this month. Lacking that, I am falling back on Nancy Zieman

http://www.nancyzieman.com/blog/sewing-general/the-absolute-easiest-way-to-sew-elastic-to-a-waistline/

There are a lot of sewing advice gurus, but if I'm sorting through a pile of results from a search on a sewing issue, and a Nancy link comes up, I go to that one first. She wrote so much, recorded so many programs in so many places, and she wasn't afraid to try something new. Even if I disagree, I learn something.

Sophie Hines, from IG Stories, Lingerie Sewing Tips

https://www.instagram.com/sophie_hines/

https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17947844347182034/

Sophie Hines has a tutorial set in her stories on Instagram: Lingerie Sewing Tips. I'm sorry that's the only location I can find for it, but they are there. She uses a jillion pins. And she sews over them! Ahhh! In this tutorial, she has some of the best action shots of construction and sewing I have seen. She makes very simple advice make sense.

A happy discovery has been the Ginger and George LBB bra, specifically the YouTube tutorial showing how to construct one. 
because.....
There's No Sewing Elastic To Knit Fabric.
Is Miracle!
(youtube link)

This lime green is from Em's scrap pile (the ultimate in repurposing: giving someone else your scrap bag of leftovers), I only made one layer to check the fit. It's remarkably close right out of the box, using a couple of hints from the tutorial. I highly recommend watching the YT tute. It's a simple, clever pattern with few moving pieces that is easily hacked and altered. There are a trillion cup sizes on the PDF, which is layered to reduce vision strain, and has a guide as to which pages you'd need to print. 
There's a free code in the video for this pattern, but I liked this so much I GAVE THEM MONEY FOR IT. 

As it turns out, from reading all of these: what I need to do is this: 1) reduce the pressure on the pressure foot, 2)put the most stable layer on top while sewing, 3)match elastic to the edge of the fabric and the seam allowance and trim excess fabric AFTER stitching. I need that extra bit in there to make a stable seam. Last but first: I'm going to need to make samples to test different stitch lengths and needle types (and sometimes thread) to determine which works best for what I'm doing, so samples will be necessary from the scrap from cutting out my project.

And sorting out that tension

http://dragonpoodle.blogspot.com/2020/05/necchi-bu-nova-and-tensioner.html

We all make the same mistakes with where we think the tension has gone wrong. Dragon Poodle is here (second half of their post) to set you (and me) straight.

And you know I'm leaving this here so I won't lose it

Honestly, if the only thing I did all day was point you to their website, I'd consider it a good day's work.

Thank you benevolent scrap bag.

Men's shirts and collar stays

Somebodies already did the work on this topic.
I'm just making mashup contrasty pictures of it.

https://notesfromamadhousewife.wordpress.com/2013/02/20/collar-stay-channel-tutorial/

https://notesfromamadhousewife.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/img_95372.jpg

I like her version the best. It's almost just like all the real ones I've seen, and she gives you the instructions for assembly.

But this is hard to see.

And there's a free pattern for a similar thing, which we're going to borrow. But let me make this clear, this is Mad Housewife's Idea. This is.... the children's book version.

https://threadtheory.ca/products/free-collars

If you combine her ideas with their pieces, you get a pretty nice collar for free. Her recommendation to stretching the smaller undercollar and showing the results is sweet.
Go read it on her page!
Then come back.

Looking at the shirts in the family closet, I mocked this example up. I used contrasting scraps to show the fabric layers.

The grey is the under collar, the dark grey is the pieced section. Make sure you cut them ongrain; small pieces go wrong so fast if you don't. You would make them of the same colors, unless you are Robert Graham and then you would not.

 https://www.robertgraham.us/

My spouse has a couple less flashy RG shirts. They can be very worth that extra money, though we bought his at the thrifts. They hold up well.

Folded over the edge once. I'm not anticipating a lot of fraying in this place, so I didn't finish it

I have wandering collar stays around the laundry area, picked a random one. They vary a little, but generally are about this big.

Roughly there

Marked it

Stitched it

It is important to leave enough clearance to get that stay into the slot next to the interior collar seam fold. You could leave a lot more and the stay wouldn't wander. Except in the wash, and they do that anyway.

This is the wrong side.

 Marked where seam lines go.
This collar point is a little weird to me, but to each their own.

The actual stay in the actual shirt it was made for. My thumb is pointing to where the fold meets the collar stand seam. Yes, this collar point is a lot different.

With similar layered piece thinking and a button loop, you could do this

No finished products, just half samples today. The holidays are busy with family and managing disappointments. 

William Blake mosaics and a fine fine blog suggestion

It's a holiday week in the US, and while it's got a shopping day in it, I would like to give you a present.

Please, enjoy this other person's blog, specifically:

https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/11/27/in-william-blakes-london/

It's an avalanche of photos of mosaics concerning William Blake, but it's mostly a fine fine exhibition of art in an unlikely location. Just the kind of art I adore.

Photo by the gentle author of Spitalsfields Life

And generally,

https://spitalfieldslife.com/

And in honor of promotional sales events 

https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/10/15/tim-hunkins-fulfilment-center-machine/

and the machine in action

https://youtu.be/Nr4fdXtRJXQ

Designer Luxury At American Motors

"Semi-fitted, buttoned jacket is lined and has patch pockets, ribbon details" - from envelope

Oh yeah, ribbon details.....

Pattern Vault has more on this Gucci lite pattern

https://blog.pattern-vault.com/2019/08/06/fall-2019-designer-pattern-highlights/

I saw this Vogue pattern in the catalog and it immediately made me think of this:

https://oppositelock.kinja.com/cars-you-didnt-know-about-the-gucci-amc-hornet-863022472

Yes, the 1970s AMC Gucci Hornet

photos from Oppositelock website

My boss' mom had one, and as I understand it this was the car he drove to high school. He did not tell me this story in a positive voice. No, he has no photos.

The king of licencing, Pierre Cardin, and the AMC Javelin

This photo appears in several blogs, source unclear

Go check these links out: there's more photo goodness.

https://howlingpixel.com/i-en/Pierre_Cardin

AMC did several collaborations/refits with designers

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMC_Hornet#Gucci_Sportabout

And of course, Oleg Cassini's AMC Matador

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMC_Matador#Oleg_Cassini

promo photo of Cassini from AMC

My son pointed me to the Cadillac

https://www.carscoops.com/2011/08/bling-from-past-1979-cadillac-seville/

Check out the photos of the car and the brochure

Matching luggage sold separately

How bad at selfies am I? LInky party over at Anne's

I erase or heavily edit most of them on my computer so you don't have to see them.

But if you have some you would like to share with others, 

Anne M Bray is having a linky party of the collective missteps.

http://spygirl-amb.blogspot.com/2019/04/bloopers-outtakes.html

Head on over and play!

The only mirror anywhere near work is at the post office...

Doing the work: Linky Party Time

Conservation Practice

http://www.musee-mccord.qc.ca/en/conservation/in-fine-feather-the-conservation-of-a-balenciaga-dress/

Doing the practice is the journey that is the work

https://www.instagram.com/violincase/

Hilary Hahn's Violincase: 

Official. Creator of #100daysofpractice. Violincase of touring 3x-Grammy-winning violin soloist Hilary Hahn. 

A brief conversation on IG that I had with Professor KDKing, about who succeeds and who doesn't, led to two book suggestions

http://geoffcolvin.com/books/talent-is-overrated/

Colvin is an editor at Fortune, ho hum, but the summary is the point: it's about putting in the time, not what you bring to it.

I know, this seems so sad. I've bored you with the schpiel about the potter who makes a living at it from my college classes, 
AND IT'S TRUE.

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/art-fear-david-bayles/1101156158?

https://kk.org/cooltools/art-fear/

https://artistryinaction.files.wordpress.com/2016/03/david_bayles_ted_orland_art_and_fear.pdf

Boiling it down: the people who make a living at an art are the people who just keep at it. It's why ants are successful: they don't stop. 

I know, I hear you say: but where's the inspiration? Well, you bring that. But you can't wait for it to come to you. It's there while you put in the 10,000...no, wait, the every day hours you put in. 

Love the process. Don't stop. 

"Fail more.

Fail better."

- Samuel Beckett

Meanwhile, this is what I'm doing

Almost all of them.
Oy.

Strawberry Thief Washi Tape; I Love Jet Pens

Yes, I have a real post coming up shortly, but this was so pretty, it was hard not to mention. And it's just more whining about the Tilton, and needs one more photo.

And it's so pretty
https://www.jetpens.com/MT-William-Morris-Washi-Tape-Strawberry-Thief-50-mm-x-10-m/pd/24189

You're welcome

also
https://www.jetpens.com/MT-Slim-Washi-Tape-Very-Slim-Matte-Black-3-mm-x-10-m-Set-of-3/pd/24195
$4.50, plus ship, 99feet, 3mm wide

which seems like a better deal than

https://www.amazon.com/Draping-Pattern-Fashion-Plastic-Durability/dp/B00P2YCIT0

23$ for 5 rolls, 49 feet each (that's with shipping)(17 without but there's no without)

23 for 245 ft  0.093 per ft
17 for 245, 0.069

4.50 for 99  0.045 per ft

Plus if you spend 20.5 more (about a couple of nice Koyuko pencils for me, plus that Morris washi tape), you get free US shipping.....