I'm working on my spring/summer/beach wardrobe

Isn't this a cute summery dress.  I wish I had a wedding, shower, party, or some place to go so I could wear it!  I also wish I had a tan and could lose that last 10 pounds... and a bag of $10 bills wouldn't hurt either....

The fabric on this dress is from Vera  Wang Lavender Collection.  I love that I can buy the fabric... at... a buck ninety five a yard and make something that will be in the same fabric in RTW for over a few hundred bucks!   This dress is also completely lined.  I love having my dresses lined, no slip, needed and the dress stays nice all day!

 Here's the details:

Pattern Description: Slightly flared dress, mid-knee, has princess seams, very loose-fitting bodice with yokes, forming cap sleeves, above waist midriff and left side zipper closure.

Pattern Sizing: Misses 8-24

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? yes

Were the instructions easy to follow? yes.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I liked everything about this dress, the gathers, yoke, waist.

Fabric Used: this is a Vera Wang fabric from the recent Fabric.com clearance. it is a poly that has a really nice sheen and texture. I ended up going back and buying more the minute my order arrived because I liked it so much. I also lined this dress entirely with another VW poly in a tan color. Not sure how all this poly is going to feel, but it sure is pretty!

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: The only thing I did differently is lined the entire dress. It makes for a nicer neckline, I think, when you can line the entire edge, sew it RST and flip it out. Otherwise, the pattern wants you to use binding around the neck. I also didn't do the topstitching. My machine with nice stitching is in for repairs, and the machine I am using doesn't have a really nice stitch, so I didn't want to take a chance with ruining it with crappy top stitching.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? I would sew this again. It's a cute summer dress.

Posted by sue at 2:39 PM PST

Updated: Thursday, February 18, 2010 2:55 PM PST

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ok, so it's about time I add my backside into this jalie jean sew-a-thon that's continuing longer than the Duracell rabbit over at PatternReview.com !

Pattern Description: Misses jeans; boot cut, back pockets, back yoke, fly zip, low rise and medium rise.

Pattern Sizing: Jalie's wide range of sizes child to adult. One pattern gives you every size for most everyone

Were the instructions easy to follow? I didn't have any problems with the Jalie instructions, but I did make them 5 times and so by the 3rd time, I wasn't looking at instructions. I did however, use Sandra Betzina's fly zip install instructions on from Threads Click Here for tutorial
but, Betzina's instructions do not have a fly shield, and after zipping up my gut (ouch!), I saw this latest YouTube from Hot Patterns which is a nice variation of Betzina's and includes a shield! (Pair #4 will definitely have the shield). Click Here for HP's tutorial

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? Jeans, jeans, jeans, I live in jeans, pretty much. And these have been reviewed a zillion times, not sure what makes them different and so workable, but they work! they fit with very little tweeking, and they don't look like "made with loving hands at home".

Fabric Used: denim, WITHOUT stretch. Yes, the pattern calls for stretch denim, but I didn't find it necessary. Pair #1 (which were too small) did have stretch; pair #2, (which were too big), didn't have stretch; pair #3 (which were too high) didn't have stretch; and I forgot what was wrong with the others, but in either case, stretch or no stretch didn't make a difference. Oh, I remember, what #4 problem was. I did a 4 part curved waistband and it was too tight, so consequently pulled the pants up higher and were uncomfortable.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: Each pair, I messed around with the waistband: cut on grain; cut on bias; cut on bias w interfacing; cut on bias w/o interfacing; and 4 part curved. I ended up coming back to the bias cut with interfacing. I narrowed it a bit. I also raised the center front of the low rise about 1/2". Because I found them a tad too low.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?yes, yes, yes.

Conclusion: If you haven't gotton on the jeans bandwagon, do it! do it. I don't think I've every messed with a pattern as much as I did this one. I generally make something 1 or maybe 2xs then move on to the next, but I stuck to my goal, and got myself a great pair of jeans. Now, all I have to do, is figure out some sort of interesting pocket design, change the leg width narrower or wider, and use different denims and I got lots of new jean styles! Oh, and add some rivets ...

I was just looking at the photo and see that I can take a bit more out of the back... eek! and I notice the overlap on the fly where the button is could be a bit longer....  Pair #6.... here I go.

Posted by sue at 10:55 AM PST

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Pattern Description: Slightly flared dress, mid-knee, has princess seams, very loose-fitting bodice with yokes, forming cap sleeves, above waist midriff and left side zipper closure.

Pattern Sizing: Misses 8-24.  I made my usual size 12

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? yes

Were the instructions easy to follow? yes. Although I generally just look at the photos as a guide.

 What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I liked everything about this dress, the gathers, yoke, the nipped in waist.

Fabric Used: this is a Vera Wang fabric from the recent Fabric.com clearance. It was a buck ninety eight a yard as was the lining!  It is a poly that has a really nice sheen and texture. I ended up going back and buying more the minute my order arrived because I liked it so much. I also lined this dress entirely with another VW poly in a tan color. Not sure how all this poly is going to feel, but it sure is pretty! I generally don't use a polyester, but it was so pretty, I couldn't resist.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: The only thing I did differently is lined the entire dress. I love having my dresses completely lined.  It makes for a nicer neckline- sew it RST and flip it out and edge stitch the lining down. Otherwise, this pattern wants you to use binding around the neck which is ok for a tee, but not a dress, IMHO. I also didn't do the topstitching. My machine with nice stitching is in for repairs, and the machine I am using doesn't have a really nice stitch, so I didn't want to take a chance with ruining it with crappy top stitching.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? I would sew this again. It's a cute summer dress.

Conclusion:
I wish I had a wedding or shower to go to, this would be the perfect dress.

Posted by sue at 11:19 AM PST

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When it's so beautiful outside it's hard for me to sit inside and sew!  I gotta get out.  Yesterday my sisters, their families, and I went for a hike up Haines Canyon.  Haines is in the San Gabriels and was devasted by the Station Fire.  At the mouth of Haines there's a debris basin which has trucks and excavators working around the clock to keep it clean and clear to protect the homes below.  We hike up Haines about 3 miles.  It's barren, black, and ash.  The rocks and everything burned, and what hadn't burned has been moved, and moved some more by the mud flows of the recent storms.  The road is filled with deep (2-3 feet) rain gulleys, the check dams (I suspect that were built during the 1930's by the Conservation Corp) are blown out, and boulders precariously hang over the trail.   But, under all this devastation is lots of things that had been hidden for years.  Bottles, fence posts, pottery, utensils, cans, toys, house foundations, an old army camp, tools, and Buffalo nickles just to name a few.  You walk up the trail looking down for things half buried, and looking up for what may have been a house. 

This collage shows my nephew sitting on a wall on what used to be a house.  The stove in the background.  I wonder who lived there?  We spotted the stove hanging over the edge above and hiked up to it and found the foundation of what used to be a fairly good size house, with a great view of the San Fernando Valley.    You can also see in the photo pictures of new growth coming out of the burned area, trail markings, the dams, and the view down the canyon.

I love having these mountains in my "front" yard and the Verdugo Mountains in my "back" yard.  It's another beautiful day, not sure I'll sit inside to sew, but I know I'll be back out exploring. 

Posted by sue at 9:29 AM PST

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