A Classic Striped Shirtwaist Dress

Gollies. I am so touched by all the comments on my last post, and the #mybestrosieface pictures on Instagram had me grinning as wide as I can! Thank you, thank you, dear readers! I continue to be so grateful that blogging has giving me so many truly wonderful and kind sewing friends, and that we can meet on the internet daily to gab and giggle (and sometimes lament) over this craft we all love.

Today we return to business as usual - silly smiles and shirtwaist dresses. This pattern is my own design, one I drafted in my pattern making class and have been slowly tweaking. I call it The Hallettsville dress. 

I had such fun plotting how I could use the stripes to their best advantage. I chose horizontal on the bodice, vertical on the skirt and sleeves, and a bias-cut cuff at the sleeves. Then I did a touch of piping around the neckline and down the front to really make the shirtwaisty-ness stand out. There's an invisible zipper in the side, too, so I can easily get in and out. Although I think I might lower those darts just a touch looking at these close-up snaps.

The fabric is cotton sateen from Hart's Fabric, and it was an absolute dream to sew. Amazingly, I have never sewn with cotton sateen before, and boy have I been missing out. It's so soft that I hardly wanted to take the dress off to go to bed the first time I wore it! 

An instant favorite! There's just something about stripes that's so comforting, yet stylish. Don't you think? 

Experimenting with Some New Poses

It has come to my attention that some readers are tired of the sameness of my poses and my intense smile. Completely unrelated, Jenny of Cashmerette recently dared a few of us bloggers to imitate the poses from this article. Sweet serendipity! It was just too much to pass on the chance to address your feedback, AND accept a dare.

So, in an effort to kill two birds with one stone (and show you that I do not, in fact, have lockjaw, which would explain all this smiling), today I show you my most recent sewing project, The Blanco Peplum Blouse, through a variety of new poses inspired by POSE ARCHIVE. And I invite you to participate in the fun! I dare you not to burst out laughing while trying to do this.

In all seriousness, these comments tickled me (well, at first I was like, "HOW COULD YOU SAY SUCH THINGS, I AM DELIGHTFUL", but then I settled down and chortled), and I hope today's post comes off in the good spirit and making-fun-of-myself-ness that was intended.

You'll likely never see the hunched shoulders and pouty faces of a model on this blog. That's just not me! I'm silly and excitable and generally cheerful, especially when it comes to sewing. Although I do have a fair bit of sass, and perhaps some deeply, deeply hidden model talent judging by today's exhibition.

I hope you enjoy the projects I post, that they inspire you, and that we will continue learning from each other. I certainly have enjoyed it over the last year and a half since starting Rosie Wednesday!

Now it's your turn. Show me your pose!

All images not of me are from Tarrah Krajnak's Pose Archive.

The Blanco Peplum Blouse

This top combines two design features that I've really taken a fancy to lately - peplums and scoop backs. I drafted this one myself, and I 'm totally in love with it. I've been naming all my designs after Texas towns so far, and I've dubbed this one The Blanco.

The fabric is from Stitch Lab in Austin, and it's absolutely sensational. I went nuts over the color combination. The buttons also hail from Stitch Lab, and are part of Leslie's amazing stash of vintage buttons. I always get to the end of a project and find I'm in a pickle without a good button, so I was pleased as punch when I remembered I had these.

The scoop back adds just the right amount of sass and pizzazz. I finished the neckline with facings, so I made sure to understitch so nothing would peek out from the inside. I also hand-tacked the facings down at the shoulders and a few places along the back. I've worn The Blanco (doesn't that sound mysterious and exciting?) a few times already, and all the facings stayed put quite nicely. 

My friend and I snapped these photos outside of the gorgeous Hotel San Jose here in Austin. They've got a great patio bar, and I enjoy the atmosphere of it so much I've actually stayed here on a stay-cation before. It was the perfect setting to show you the Blanco Peplum Blouse! 

Crazy for Coco

Today, I thought I'd share with you a little summary of my love affair this spring with Coco by Tilly and the Buttons. You'll see the adjustments I made to the pattern, my likes and dislikes, and a few tips I learned along the way in making these four versions.

1. Floral embroidery, 2. Red and navy stripe, 3. Laverne style, 4. Black and white stripe

My adjustments: 

• Shortened the sleeves. This isn't included in the pattern as an option, but I used a sleeve I like as a guide for the length. Texas is hot! I can get more wear out of a short-sleeved tee. 
• 3/8" forward shoulder adjustment.
• 1/4" added to top of sleeve cap so the sleeve hem would sit straight across my arm (as opposed to riding up a bit at the outside, which I find makes my arms look chubbier). 
• Sewed up the vents, as I found they made me look too hippy.

Likes about the pattern: 

• Great introduction to sewing with knits, especially if you rely on Tilly's Sew Along. This was my first time sewing with knits, and it was a superb pattern to start with!
• Fast to sew up. Nothing like getting a new top in just a few hours of stitching.
• Easy fitting. Knit is so forgiving! 
• Great everyday style with lots of ways to customize. 
• Nice shape. There is quite a bit of curve in the side seam, which I really like. 

Dislikes about the pattern: 

Not one, I'm crazy for it don't ya know?

I did have one, but Tilly is amazing and already fixed it! I bought my pattern and fabric online at the same time, and originally the shop page for Coco had fabric requirements for the maximum amount (the dress with 3/4 sleeve). I ended up with way too much fabric. I contacted Tilly, and she amended the shop page to clarify fabric requirements for the different pattern variations. Note that distinction is already in the pattern booklet. Tilly is the best!

Tips:

1. Take special care that your stay stitching is accurate.
   You'll use this as a guide for turning your neckline, so if it's wobbly, your neckline won't look right. I guess I'm usually sloppy with my stay stitching, as I had to rip some of my stay stitches after finishing the neckline on my first version.
2. I preferred ribbon to stay tape for stabilizing the shoulder seam and neckline.
   It's much softer. At the shoulder seam, you'll feel whatever you put there against your skin, and I found the stay tape to be a bit scratchy.
3. If you're using a serger, attach the ribbon at the shoulder seam when you serge the seam.
   I saw this on Dixie DIY's "Never Fear Knits" series. I found that seam to be a little bulky, so it helped not to have an extra row of stitching. Plus, it's quicker!
4. Baste the underarm seam before you stitch it to make sure it matches.
   This is challenging to navigate on a serger as it is, so it's nice to have that step out of the way. You can also make sure your seam allowances are pointed down when you baste. 
5. When matching stripes, use the first half of a cut pattern piece as a template for the second.
   This is the easiest way I've found to match patterns while cutting! See a photo with this stripe-matching technique. 

Striped Coco and a Dirndl Skirt

What's that you say? Another Coco? Why yes. This is my fourth. To make things a bit more exciting for today's post, I took the photos in a wacky toy shop called Toy Joy that is an Austin favorite. I also stitched up this dirndl skirt to match!

Since this is Coco #4, it was fairly straightforward to make. I will say, I still get a thrill every time I am able to execute a well-matched stripe. My poodle friend here is pretty thrilled, too. You just can't tell because she only has the one expression.

The dirndl skirt is made out of a black cotton. If you haven't made one before, you just take a square and gather it into your waistband, then finish it off. This one has an invisible zip and hook-and-eye closure. I made it mid-way through Me-Made May when I realized I needed more basic skirts. I've worn it loads already, and twice during Me-Made May alone. It goes with everything!

Stay tuned Thursday for a round up of all four Cocos, plus some tips I learned along the way from making them!

Me-Made May 2014 Part 2

We did it!! Me-Made May is officially complete! I loved having the sewing community with me each morning as I set off for the day, and it was so fun to get to be a part of everyone else's day in a small way.

These photos are especially fun to watch Oxford's progression from interest and excitement to boredom and exhaustion. I particularly enjoyed his look of, "Why are we still doing this." on the 26th and the yawn at the very end. Silly pup!

Day 15, Simplicity 3833

Day 16, Pattern Unknown! I made this about 10 years ago and can't remember!

Day 17, Newly made dirndl skirt

Day 18, Navy and Red Striped Coco 

Day 19, Tulip Emery Dress

Day 20, Laverne-Style Coco and the dirndl skirt again

Day 21, Embroidered Simplicity 1873

Day 22, Colette Truffle

Day 23, Pink Circle Skirt with Ric Rac Trim

Day 24, Picnic Blanket Skirt

Day 25, Wearing History 1940s Overalls

Day 26, Foxy Wiksten Tank

Day 27, Vintage Vogue 2903

Day 28, Bumblebee Shirtwaist Dress

Day 29, Hawaiian Floral Shirtwaist Dress

Day 30, Colette Hawthorn Swan Dive Peplum

Day 31, New Look 6587

I don't know about you, but I just feel so right and good and me when I wear something I have put my imagination and time into creating. After a month of wearing handmades, I'm more energized than ever to keep on sewing my own clothes. I heard a wonderful quote from the dressmaker in the BBC show "The Paradise" that I thought was spot on,

"A dressmaker, a real dressmaker, an artist, he needs to know flawless stitching, how to cut finely, he has to have a delicate eye. But more than anything else, he needs to know people. A woman will love her dress because it was made to fit her character, not just her body. " 

- "The Paradise" 

Hear, hear! Tell me, how did Me-Made May go for you?