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.

Wednesday, April 5, 2023

Kwik Sew 3504 Jeans

 I was away from my sewing machine for three weeks.  This was due to a record-setting snow storm.  Joe and I got out of the snow and went to stay with my mom.  Once the snow melted and the power was back on, we returned home.

During my sewing hiatus I bought some denim on EBay.  It was 60" wide, so I purchased two yards at $10 a yard.  The denim brought to mind Kwik Sew 3504.  This is my goto jeans pattern in medium with three inches added to the inseam.  I used the straight leg version.



Once the material and pattern were picked, I needed a sewing machine.  I decided on my Free-Westinghouse model SL.  This is an import from Japan unlike my other Free-Westinghouse that are made in Illinois.



I used my Singer 6268  with embroidery attachment to put the Fleur De Lis on the rear
 pockets.

I used my Singer Quantum-lock five to serve the leg seams.




I used my Bernina 840 for the top-stitching.


Here they are:





I should get some good wear out of these.

Thanks for stopping.

Friday, February 24, 2023

Wool Flannel Shirt

I have some Pendleton wool shirts.  I have had them at least 30 years and paid I think around $25 for them.  Now they go for $175 at my local clothing store.  So buying the blue plaid in the window was out.  But I thought about making one if I could find the fabric cheap enough.

 I finally did it.  I purchased some wool on Etsy for $12 a yard. It is 53" wide, so the 3 yards available to purchase worked perfectly.



Then came the hard part. Deciding which pattern to use for a long sleeve shirt.  After searching through my pattern stash, I decided on Simplicity 7330 in medium with two inches added to the sleeve length.  And a squared off bottom, because I never tuck-in my Pendletons.  I also substituted a tower packet for the continuous sleeve placket.



Simplicity 7330 is my go-to pattern in large for Joe.  I decided on this pattern for me because it is not fitted, and since I always wear a t-shirt under a wool shirt, this pattern worked fine.

Once the pattern was chosen, I needed to decide which machine to use.  I wanted a straight-stitcher, so I picked my namesake, my Wilson Rotary.  This is a White that is badged Wilson.


I used Pellon 950F interfacing in the collar and collar-stand so they would be stiff.  I used pellon featherweight in the cuffs.


I sewed on the buttons with my cute Bernina 125.



Here it is, in the middle of a snow storm.




I ordered more wool fabric, so more to come.


Thanks for stopping.