Butterick 5296

Butterick 5296, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Brr....it's cold in Minnesota. This was a fast and easy pattern. "Yes to easy, no to fast." Have to keep in mind sometimes slow sewing is good. This jacket is made from a beautiful velveteen that has been the stash for years.

Butterick 5296, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

I love the lining, even though I hate to sew linings. The lining magically grows or shrinks every time. I also added buttons to this so I can stay warm.

Butterick 5296, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Here is the pattern. I might use this again. I have an old blanket that might work well for this. I would omit the lining and either turn over the edges or bind the edges.

Remember this?

Simplicity 3563, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Version two below. I like both versions.

Simplicity 3563

Simplicity 3563, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Here is the new version. The fabric is from Vogue Fabrics, it is a stretch corduroy, very comfortable. I wanted to use a new pattern, but I couldn't get it to fit.

McCalls 3718

McCalls 3718, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Here is the dress that started the project. I like the fit and the style of the pattern, but I don't like it just by itself, so I added on until I got something I felt comfortable in.

McCalls 3718

McCalls 3718, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

I like to wear the dress with this vest that I purchased.

McCalls 3718 and Butterick 5473

McCalls 3718 and Butterick 5473, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Vest and dress together, just a little too much. It was my plan to be able to mix and match, but I'm happy with two seperate outfits.

Butterick 5473, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

The vest needs a little toning down with the green shirt. I do like this pattern and plan to use it again, maybe with some pattern mixing.

Butterick 3014

Butterick 3014, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Here is the skirt I like to wear with the vest. Very happy I learned how to use the narrow hemmer foot.

Patterns, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Here is a visual for the patterns used. Most have been in the stash for quite awhile.

Simplicity 5590

Simplicity 5590, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

I ended up making this twice because I liked it and it was so easy to sew. The fabric was from Hancock Fabrics last year, and this year they have a bright red. I promise not to make another jacket!

Simplicity 5590, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Purple version.

Simplicity 5590, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

McCall's 5109

McCall's 5109, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Just needed a lighter colored skirt for winter.

Vogue 8938

Vogue 8938, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Another pattern from the past. One skill that came in handy on this dress is using the narrow hemmer foot. I have tried using this foot many times in my many years of sewing and could never get it to work. The trick is to press the first part of the hem and almost push the fabric in to start it. Once you get it, it is the easiest and greatest tool.

Pattern Mix

Vogue 8938, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

One good thing about a good collection of fabric is that they come together naturally.

Vogue 8938, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Here is the pattern.

Butterick 5567

Butterick 5567, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

I love this fabric. I had made a jacket out of this when I was in my teens, then later (in my 30's) I found the fabric again in a vintage store. So, it sat in my stash for many years until now to be made into another jacket.

Butterick 5567, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Here is the pattern.

Three in a row!

Kwik Sew 3539, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Don't you hate it when you get bad sewing karma? Even though it did not turn out well, I think I'll keep the pattern because it does have kind of a vintage feel, just next time use a woven fabric and make the appropriate adjustments.

Kwik Sew 3539

Kwik Sew 3539, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Here is the dress, way too big. My last one way too small. Hopefully my next one will be just right. I should have cut the pattern smaller since it was a knit and I should have sewed the sleeve and side seam altogether so things could have been adjustable, oh well. It does look okay with a jacket on so not a total loss.

Another near miss!

Textile Studio, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

I've made this dress two times before and it fit well and was flattering so I thought I was safe. I could get it on but it was skin tight, and I didn't want it just laying around waiting for me to lose weight so I cut it off and made a skirt. Not ideal, but it worked.

Barcelona Dress, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Here is the dress right after I chopped the top off.

Salvaged Skirt

Salvaged Skirt, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

We have to get used to photographing indoors since the weather has turned. It's funny how many people in Minnesota hate cold and snow.
I loved this fabric, so I'm glad to be able to wear it. They have some colored elastic at Hancock Fabrics, so I might have to stock up on more colors for other skirt fixes.

McCalls 2909

McCallss 2909, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

I've had this patten forever. I kind of just copied the gold one on the pattern front. It was almost a wadder, but stuck it through.

McCalls 2909, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

The skirt is where I started having problems. I thought I would just turn over the top edge with elastic but the elastic got way too stretched out and just did not fit. Since I have short legs I could just cut off that elastic. I put on the waistband and added elastic to that. I ended up liking this, yeah!

McCalls 2909, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

One thing I like to do on thicker knits is do a normal straight stitch seam and then zig zag finish the seam allowances. I think the brand name was called Multiples that used this method of seam finishing.

Simplicity 3563

Simplicity 3563, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Simplicity 3563

Simplicity 3563, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

I did this in polar fleece and I just used this pattern again, but in corduroy. It's sitting in the sewing pile just waiting. I wanted to use another pattern for the corduroy, but not enough fabric. It's nice to finally use patterns that have been in the stash for such a long time!

Simplicity 3563, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Vogue 8717

Vogue 8717, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Vogue 8717, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

I have to wear sandals until the last possible moment.

Vogue 8717, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Here is the jacket with the dress.

Vogue 8755

Vogue 8755, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

I like this pattern because it is so simple. I'm planning on using this pattern again. In my next look I have been loving the Louis Vuitton Fall 2012 styles and want to channel that look. So, I will actually make the tunic version with cropped pants.

Vogue 7914

Vogue 7914, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

I've had this pattern for quite awhile. I've made the skirt before, so I knew it was safe to cut into my silk. I like this pattern because it is easy to sew and wear.

Vogue 7914

Vogue 7914, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

We all decided to wear purple to work on Sunday. Purple just happens to be the Minnesota Vikings color, but alas, nobody noticed.

Vogue 7914, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Vogue 7914, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Sometimes you just need to take a strange photo!

McCall's 6503

McCall's 6503, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Luckily we are going to have a few more days of summer, so I could photograph this dress. My fall outfits are still in the planning mode.
This pattern is great, I cut my standard size and just sewed. I did line the top so the fabric was more stable, I do learn from my mistakes.

Paris Fabric

McCall's 6503, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

After checking out Jessica's blog, Green Apples I was motivated to go to S.R. Harris since I'm not that far away. I wanted the Tannis Keefe blue cats, but I searched in vain. No worries, I did find other fabric to buy, shocker!

New Look 6587

New Look 6587, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Just trying to sew up the summer outfits. I just did my closet maintenance, where you move all the fall and the winter to the front even though I don't want winter to come. But I did find some cute clothes that I had forgotten about.
This pattern went together very well. I just finished a dress with this same collar and it was painful. Hopefully it will fit and I can get a picture of it if the weather holds out. Sometimes global warming is good...if you live in Minnesota.

New Look 6587, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Here is a close-up of the fabric.

Vogue 8469

Vogue 8469, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Vogue 8469

Vogue 8469, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Vogue 8469

Vogue 8469, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

This is one of my favorite patterns. I have just cut this pattern out in black and it's waiting to be stitched up.

close-up, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Cute fabric and I had this old packaged bias binding that goes really well.

New Look 6133 and McCalls 3654

New Look 6133, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

Here are the two patterns that make this look.

McCalls 3654

McCalls 3654, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

I've had this pattern forever and finally got to it before it went out of style. I like how easy it was and it fits perfectly with no alterations.

New Look 6133 Jacket

New Look 6133, a photo by becky b.'s sew & tell on Flickr.

It's funny how some things you love to sew. For me I love to sew darts and set in sleeves. I hate notched collars and any hand sewing.
Unfortunately I look better in notched collars.