You Got Any Change?
So, I am not one for regret. I don't see the point. You might regret something, like a choice you made, but you can't go back and choose differently. On that point, I have been thinking lately about going back. Back to the past. Back to fix some of my mistakes. One of my first creations was this:
I love this dress. I got the slightly tropic flowery fabric at Joann's on clearance (naturally), but sadly I made some mistakes that have rendered it a 'one time use' dress. I am totally going to fix it. But I was completely unaware of the button hole feature on my mom's sewing machine, and therefor was very sloppy with my button holes. To fix that, I was thinking about taking a spare scrap of the leftover fabric and making a placket of sorts to re-do the offending holes. The pattern I used was for a slightly retro looking button up dress.
I loved the look of this dress and desperately wanted to make it. But I am impatient and I got frustrated easily as this was my first attempt at a dress pattern. So, instead of following directions, I would give up on a certain dress feature, like the princess seams. When I looked at the pattern and back at the fabric in my hands, I was confused. I even called my husband in there to assist me, but he was as stumped as I was. So I gave up. I made a new set of front bodice pieces and made my own button up version, which actually turned out pretty nice. But I don't like half-assing things if I can help it. I have since done another dress with the same princess seams, and once I figured it out, it was easy! You might be asking why I was having trouble when most things are clearly marked on the pattern itself. I'm not processing the patterns like I should be. There are notches, folds, gatherings, etc. My issue is that I tend to not mark them when I'm cutting out my fabric. I got a fabric marker pencil thingy and it doesn't work worth a lick. I've used a bar of soap before, so I dug it back out. It works ok, but I still don't mark like I should. The soap breaks off if I try to sharpen it to a workable point. And I cheaped out on a pencil. It was $1 and I am not happy with it at all. It's way too stiff and won't mark anything other than jeans, and that's only if I press very hard and run it back and forth, back and forth. It's almost like using an actual pencil on fabric... So that is my bad for cheaping out.
Another thing I was thinking about was trying dressmaker's carbon and a tracing wheel. I read about that on a very cute blog about sewing www.tillyandthebuttons.com and thought I would give it a shot. You place the carbon in between your fabric and pattern and trace the important bits with the wheel, like the pattern itself, darts, etc. Then everything is clearly marked. Or I could try another pencil thingy. I need to make a trip to Hancock's for a couple of things, so I guess I'll do some more research on it.
I like the rest of the dress and wouldn't change anything else about it. I made the front hem just slightly shorter than the back, kind of like a hi-low dress, but not as extreme as some of them can be. I was thinking about going back and adding the princess seams/ front bodice pieces that I had left out, but I might just leave it the way it is.
I love this dress. I got the slightly tropic flowery fabric at Joann's on clearance (naturally), but sadly I made some mistakes that have rendered it a 'one time use' dress. I am totally going to fix it. But I was completely unaware of the button hole feature on my mom's sewing machine, and therefor was very sloppy with my button holes. To fix that, I was thinking about taking a spare scrap of the leftover fabric and making a placket of sorts to re-do the offending holes. The pattern I used was for a slightly retro looking button up dress.
I loved the look of this dress and desperately wanted to make it. But I am impatient and I got frustrated easily as this was my first attempt at a dress pattern. So, instead of following directions, I would give up on a certain dress feature, like the princess seams. When I looked at the pattern and back at the fabric in my hands, I was confused. I even called my husband in there to assist me, but he was as stumped as I was. So I gave up. I made a new set of front bodice pieces and made my own button up version, which actually turned out pretty nice. But I don't like half-assing things if I can help it. I have since done another dress with the same princess seams, and once I figured it out, it was easy! You might be asking why I was having trouble when most things are clearly marked on the pattern itself. I'm not processing the patterns like I should be. There are notches, folds, gatherings, etc. My issue is that I tend to not mark them when I'm cutting out my fabric. I got a fabric marker pencil thingy and it doesn't work worth a lick. I've used a bar of soap before, so I dug it back out. It works ok, but I still don't mark like I should. The soap breaks off if I try to sharpen it to a workable point. And I cheaped out on a pencil. It was $1 and I am not happy with it at all. It's way too stiff and won't mark anything other than jeans, and that's only if I press very hard and run it back and forth, back and forth. It's almost like using an actual pencil on fabric... So that is my bad for cheaping out.
Another thing I was thinking about was trying dressmaker's carbon and a tracing wheel. I read about that on a very cute blog about sewing www.tillyandthebuttons.com and thought I would give it a shot. You place the carbon in between your fabric and pattern and trace the important bits with the wheel, like the pattern itself, darts, etc. Then everything is clearly marked. Or I could try another pencil thingy. I need to make a trip to Hancock's for a couple of things, so I guess I'll do some more research on it.
I like the rest of the dress and wouldn't change anything else about it. I made the front hem just slightly shorter than the back, kind of like a hi-low dress, but not as extreme as some of them can be. I was thinking about going back and adding the princess seams/ front bodice pieces that I had left out, but I might just leave it the way it is.
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