Happy Halloween!

Wow! Today is Halloween and I have nothing to wear. Okay I do but not without making some huge alterations. Lets just say me and my weight are at war and currently i'm retreating to gather more strength for another frontal assault, so I guess that means my weight is currently winning the Battle of the Bulge. I shall not admit defeat, i'm just biding my time for the moment cause I need a really good strategy.

I'm a little disappointed with Halloween this year. I love Halloween even though I no longer have a little one for trick or treating or go to Halloween parties or events. I would love to dress up and go out, I just don't like how I look. Me and costumes haven't gotten along for numerous years now. It seems like every few years you get a big rush for Halloween stuff in all the stores and then it trickles down to practically nothingness a few years later, up and down up and down. I know we have the Halloween stores that pop up a month prior but they are overpriced on a vast majority of their stuff. Heck even the goodwill thrift store jacks up the prices for their decent stuff and crap that should have made it into the garbage. Example: Goodwill- bagged halloween outfit, used, some parts missing, $5 less than same item brand new unopened and all parts in package. Okay so goodwill is the only thrift store that I know of that jacks up their prices especially at Halloween. I was going to do a pirate costume this year to go with my mini pirate hat. I was going to make myself a poet/peasant shirt and a waist cincher with a peplum and some knee high spats to make my boots look more piraty. It didn't happen, maybe next year.

I've been meaning to post for the past few weeks but just never got around to it, okay, I avoided it. I haven't been happy with myself, well my sewing skills. I'm always unhappy with myself. Anyways, I finished the shirt I was all excited about. I don't like it. I'm not sure if it's the print that doesn't work or just the cut of the pattern itself. I used Simplicity- Sew Simple 1969 pattern. 1st, I cut the largest size in the envelope, fit but pretty tight across the chest area. No, I didn't do any alterations to the pattern, should have. I don't think i'm going to attempt to make this shirt again. Honestly, it needed more than just a chest alteration to the pattern. Sigh, for once i'd really like to sew something other than a circle skirt with drawstring or elatic waist, that fits without some fiddlin.

front:
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It really bums me out that my sewing skills suck. I think part of it is my machine, it needs some professional TLC. I want to get a serger, that's what I told the hubby I wanted for christmas or my birthday. I want a serger mostly for knit fabrics because my sewing machine refuses to sew correctly on knit no matter how much I fiddle with all the different dials, needles and so forth. I know, I just need to practice more. I'm trying but i'm really getting discouraged with making clothes. I think I'll try some very simple quilting next. I only have to sew straight lines for a simple block quilt, I can do that.

I really am feeling discouraged, so fat far, 3 shirts i've made, simple, simple, simple and they all bombed by my standards. No, my standards aren't that high, truly. If I didn't like this last shirt, i'd wear it to work, it's still subpar standard wise but doable. The other 2 shirts both knit material so that might explain it, oh and I thought I double checked which direction the stretch was going before cutting and some how I still managed to get the stretch going in the wrong direction. (smacks forhead)

My next project, underbust waist cincher (w/peplum-maybe) and a kitty bed. I also need to work on my kids quilt, I have the batting now. I think I'll start all 3 within the week.

Update on Muslin mock up

I'm almost finished with the mock up muslin shirt. I didn't do to bad, boy do I need to practice my sewing skills though. It's a perfect knock around shirt for cleaning though. I guess it's not all that bad, just not something I'd wear to work. I only have to hem the bottom, clip some threads and fix/add a few more pintucks. I want to make the shirt out of some lovely material I have but I need to get this pattern right.





1. I need to grade the pattern better. I guess that is the term to use.
2. Learn the terms and how to use them correctly. :)
3. Learn to copy a premade garment better
4. Practice pintucks. I think these are going to be a favorite little detail to add to some shirts to give them new life.
5. Get a tuneup on sewing machine
6. Learn to draft patterns
7. PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE
8. Learn to love my duct tape dummy dress form (I really hate that form)
9. More PRACTICE
10. Get better aquainted with my sewing machine and all of it's functions and attachments. The ruffler foot looks like some kind of alien probing device.


My machine is not a fancy schmancy machine, she's an old Kenmore 50-55+yrs old, give or take a few years. I love this machine and I even have a mate to match her. I also add an adorable pic of my kitty Guinness inspecting my sewing machine. He's almost a year old now, in fact he will be a year old on the 17th of this month. I've had him since he was hours old. As you can see both of my machines are Kenmores, marketed through Sears, way back in the day. The year i'm not exactly sure but it ranges somewhere between 50-60yrs old, both of them. I think I averaged them out to be about 54yrs old. This are true work horses, I don't think there are an plastic parts, just a few rubber parts and the only plastic is the stitch dials you load on the top to do decorative stitches with. One of my Kenmores is in a table top case and the other is in a carrying case which unfortunately for the case got damaged when it was shipped and only one thing got damaged on the machine. The damaged piece on the machine is a like a $3 fix, it's the metal rod that holds the spool of thread. No biggie. I have yet to use the second machine for sewing. I mostly got it as a just in case one breaks I have another or a parts machine. I've only come across one other Kenmore like mine and that was a few years back. I'd be lucky if I see another one of these for sale, I'd probably buy it.