Sunday, January 28, 2024

A New Shirt Pattern : Simplicity 9858

 It seems like I make the same shirt patterns over and over again.  So, when I spotted Simplicity 9858, I decided to give it a try.  Of course I bought it on sale for $1.99.

I made view A, but added the collar from view B. I also used a tower packet on the sleeves instead of the square one in the pattern.

I used some heavy cotton material I bought at the thrift store for 99 cents.  I made size medium with two inches added to the sleeve length.

For being a shirt that says "easy to sew", it has some more involved sewing like flat-fell seams and a separate button placket.  It also has set-in sleeves.  

I used my Bernina 640 to make it.

I serged the arm holes with my Brother 523.



Here it is:






This is a heavy duty shirt, almost a shacket.

Thanks for stopping.




Thursday, January 18, 2024

Christmas Shirts

 I found six yards of shirt material for $1.49 at the thrift store.  I decided I would make two short-sleeved shirts with it.  One for me and one for Joe.

Simplicity 7330 instantly came to mind as it is my goto pattern for Joe.  I made him an extra-large and me a large, just so they would be airy for the summer.

I used my Singer Touch Tronic 2010 to make Joe's shirt.  I just picked this up at Goodwill.

I used my Singer Touch Tronic 2001 to make my shirt.  I picked this up at Goodwill a few years ago, 2016 to be exact.


I used the automatic buttonholer with both of them and they both made beautiful button holes.

I used my Singer 6268 to sew a J on Joe's shirt and a W on my shirt to be able to tell them apart easily.


I think they turned out nice.




We promise not to wear them at the same time, except for this photo.

Thanks for stopping.


Monday, November 13, 2023

Gray Wool Flannel Shirt

 Fall has definitely hit our area.  It has been in the sixties the last few days.  With this in mind I decided to make a wool shirt with fabric from my stash.  I used Simplicity 8427 in size 40, with two inches added to the sleeve length.


I used my new to me Singer 403 I bought at the thrift store for $3.99. What a bargain!



I used my Singer Professional Buttonholer.  It needs a zigzag machine, so my 403 worked perfectly with the width set at two.


I flat-felled the seams.  This takes a lot longer than serging them, but makes for a nice inside finish.

I have worn this shirt several times and I like it, it is warm.



Thanks for stopping.


Thursday, October 12, 2023

Lap Quilt for Joe's Mom

 Joe's Mom asked me for a lap quilt, so I started on the hunt for a fitting pattern.

I like Elizabeth Hartman's patterns, but I couldn't find a lap quilt that I liked.

Then one day I was looking on Etsy and found the Cat Scratch Quilt, made by Art East Quilting Company. It could be made in two sizes, and I thought the 40" by 40" would be perfect.

Once I looked through my fabric stash, I found all but the backing and the background fabric.  Joann's had the fabric I needed, so I went home and started cutting.

I put all the pieces in individual sandwich bags with labels so I could find the piece easily once I started sewing.

Speaking of sewing, I decided to use my Singer C240 Featherweight for the piecing and my Kenmore 117.959 for the quilting.




My quilting consists of using clear thread and sewing straight lines to form a grid.

Here it is:




The best part of doing this quilt was delivering it in person to Juneau, Alaska where Joe's Mom lives.  We live in Northern California, which makes for a fairly fast flight, with a stop in Seattle, Washington.



I hope Judy gets a lot of good use out of it.

Thanks for stopping.


Friday, September 15, 2023

Revisiting Islander 228 Shirt

 I have a whole lot of shirt patterns.  I like most of them and have my favorites.  One pattern I like is Islander 228.  I have had it about 5 years and I first found this pattern through a Craftsy class.  Of course I purchased the class on sale and it included the pattern.  Now the pattern is separate.

It can be purchased here.  This is a download, but a tissue pattern is also available here.





I decided to sew this shirt in medium with my White 571.  I have had this machine 8 years, but haven't used it in a while.  If my memory is correct, I think I paid seven dollars for it.

I made the button holes with my Singer Professional Buttonholer.



I used my Singer Quantum Lock to serge the seams.


Here it is in a lightweight cotton blend I had in my stash:




The back has darts

The tower packets are easy

A matching mask for Covid.

Thanks for stopping.


Monday, August 21, 2023

Summer shirts

 While shopping at the thrift store I found some lightweight shirt material for $1.  I thought a while, then decided to make a short-sleeve shirt in medium with McCall's 4079.



I used my Bettina 717 to sew my shirt.


I used lightweight interfacing in the button plackets, the collar and stand, and in the top of the pocket.

I decided to serge the seams with my Brother 534.


I used my White 571 and Singer professional buttonholer for the button holes.


Here it is:



Then I made one with the same pattern and my Singer 7470.  I also serged the seams with my Brother 534.



Here it is:



I have worn both several times and like them a lot.

Thanks for stopping.









Friday, June 9, 2023

Butterick 6916 Shacket

 Being it is Summer, I found some wonderfully thick flannel on sale at Joann's.  I also found Butterick 6916  which is a shacket.  


I decided to make a muslin to verify sizing.  I made size medium with two inches added to the sleeve length.

The sizing looked perfect.  I did not add the cuffs, so the sleeves might look a little short.





I used my Necchi Esperia for the muslin.  This is a Necchi from 1959 that was free on Facebook Marketplace just a few miles from me.  It is a wonderful straight-stitcher in a beautiful desk.



I decided to use my Lana machine to make the shacket.  It is a very smooth straight-stitcher I bought at the thrift store.





The pattern didn't call for an inner yoke.  I added one to make the inside look a little more finished.  Since the sleeves were set-in, I decided to serge the seams with my Brother 534.


It had interesting sleeves where the cuff attached.  Instead of a placket, there is simply an opening.

 


I used my Greist buttonholer with my Lana to make the buttonholes.



I used my Bernina 840 Favorit to sew on the buttons.



Here it is:






This shacket should come in handy when the weather cools off.

Thanks for stopping.