Welcome Spring! My mom keeps counting the days till spring. I try to tell her the weather might not improve on the 20th of March. I think we are in for another Nor’easter. I think that is 4 big storms in less than a month. Other than preparing for the storms I have been sewing to past the time inside.
I recently lost 62 pounds this year and am trying to take in all my spring clothing to fit. It is a huge task. I refuse to buy new clothing right now so I am trying to be creative. I have cut off at least 8 inches on the sides and tucked the necklines so they are no so large. The next step is to shorten sleeves and lengths. I like my clothes and it would cost a fortune to replace all these clothes. My goal is to lose 60 more pounds in the next year. I will be happy with working on a pound a week. At some point I am sure I will need a new wardrobe, not now. One thing I have to say is thanks for knits!
I started a Pinterest page on Creative Clothing and Vintage Clothing and I look at the ideas every so often to get inspired. The pictures remind me of what I would like my clothing to look like. The sewing market has changed so much in recent years. The picture of the shirt waist dress will give you an idea of what I was sewing in junior high school. I made a dress identical to the blue dress and wore it a lot. Full shirted shirt waist dresses were also very comfortable. Today you might not find the Peter Pan collar but I think I could find a shirtwaist dress in a pattern book.
In the early 1970’s I started sewing pantsuits with double knits. They were main stay in my wardrobe. I fell in love with knits.
There was nothing like going into a fashion fabric store and seeing the drape and feeling the fabrics. Locally all we have is Hobby Lobby and Walmart. I miss the fashion fabrics that were coordinated to tell a fashion story and the fabrics would be mixed and matched to make pants, jackets, dresses and shirts. I can remember spending hours buying fabrics to make entire fall or spring wardrobes with. I do not have the need for such wardrobes of clothing now but I still desire style and comfort. I will probably never wear another dress, but you never know. I grew up in the 60’s and 70’s when I think clothing nice fit and style. 
I look forward to sewing clothing again. I have tried the shopping on-line approach but it takes much longer to resear
ch and find that special fabric. I do have a few fabrics in my stash and I think I will be able to embellish the fabric to make a special look for myself. One of my favorite embellishments is piping. The bag picture shows you some self-made piping. I think I can place the piping in the seams and on the edges and always used the piping foot to make it an easy insertion.
Another embellishment is topstitching. The walking foot really helps keep the stitches even and straight. I have used 2 top threads placed through the same needle eye to get a defined stitching look. To help you get the best look on your topstitching I have a kit that is on clearance. Get the walking foot, guide ruler, a 1/4″ foot and a free motion foot all for the price of a walking foot. Kit fits all low shank sewing machines.
I have a student using this kimono pattern in a “Continue Sewing” class. I like the garment, it is a great jacket and really dresses up the plain top and pants I already have. This garment gives the sewer plenty of challenge with facing, interfacing, border prints, and learning to under stitch. The fabric for this kimono is also a challenge. If you are looking to advance your basic skills I suggest you plan 2 or 3 lessons on the jacket.
I hope you are planning your Spring sewing to include a new wardrobe garment. Have fun and enjoy the sewing till the warm weather comes!
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