Here's my sign

Posted by Alexandra at Studio Alexandra

I don't feel like the brightest bulb on the string today. This afternoon, as I was working on the black twill skirt, the right back yoke just would not line up with the main right back piece. I had too much ease in the yoke. So I ripped it out and went for a stroll around the base with DH. Fresh air and sunshine do wonders for the soul, right?

I get back to the studio, chalk the seam lines so I can measure them - sure enough, the yoke is 3/8" longer. WTF? All I did was take the adjusted PMB skirt pattern, drew a yoke, cut apart, and added seam allowances. How could it possibly be longer? Hmm.. okay, whatever, I'll just whack off the extra 3/8" at CB and call it good. Pin, sew, looks pretty good. But just for the kicks, I pull out the pattern and put the back yoke pattern piece on top of the corresponding fabric piece. Ha! Corresponding my foot! The curve is all wrong! The pieces don't line up at all!

At this point, I'm thinking, "I must be off my rocker." Then I recall this foggy memory of fusing the interfacing to the back yokes and seeing the same misalignment. I'd chalked it up to the squirmy nature of the interfacing and just recut the pieces to fit the yoke. And then I had this bright idea: I put the front yoke pattern piece on top of the back yoke fabric piece... and guess what... they lined up perfectly! Good !@#$%^& grief! I had been trying to sew a front yoke to the back main piece - no wonder the seam lines didn't match!

So, back to the cutting table to cut out new back yoke pieces. As I was moving the pressing board off the table, the corner of it caught the ailing iron (the shot of steam button stopped working a few weeks ago) and sent it flying, tip-down, to the floor. Slow motion. Thud! Well, any hopes I might have had about saving the lovely Rowenta and maybe even repairing its steam button evaporated the moment I picked it up - all of the water was gushing (gushing!!!) out of its heel.


What a day!

Catching up and reading

Posted by Alexandra at Studio Alexandra

It's been a busy week. I haven't had much time to do anything sewing-related, not even read blogs. I logged into Bloglines this afternoon to find 88 new posts. Eighty-eight!!! I finally finished reading them all.

I've been tagged by Shannon and Karen to open the nearest book and post the 6th, 7th, and 8th sentence from page 123. Well, here goes:
Zaim seemed to be unconscious. Blood plumed from the side of his head, and Bourne guessed that he, too, had struck a rock. With one arm around the limp form, Bourne kicked out hard for the surface, banging the top of his head sooner than he had anticipated against the ice sheet.

That was from The Bourne Betrayal by Eric Van Lustbader. I haven't read it yet, just brought it home from the library where it caught my eye because I'd enjoyed reading the Bourne trilogy a few years ago. It's sitting on my computer desk waiting for me to pick it up and curl up with it for one of those long reading sessions that last into the wee hours of the night because the book is a such a page turner. (And after such sessions, I'm usually afraid to turn off the lights and go to bed because there's a bad guy hiding in every shadow. Yes, I have a very vivid imagination.)

On the sewing front, I have cut out a black cotton twill skirt, fused the interfacing, and serged the seam allowances. Now I'm just waiting for a nice chunk of Saturday sewing time.

Project #11 - black cotton pants

Posted by Alexandra at Studio Alexandra

I finished these pants on Thursday. They are from the same black cotton twill as the capris (or more correctly, pedal pushers, according to Easy Guide to Sewing Pants by Lynn MacIntyre) and the same TNT pattern. I hemmed them about 1/2" too long to account for any residual shrinkage.



I love them. Just as comfortable as all my other pants (could it be because they're all from the same pattern?), they look somewhat less dressy than wool crepe and are appropriate for most occasions in my current life.

I didn't put any pockets on these pants. I'm not a fan of pockets except on coats so I leave them off. I think it results in a more streamlined silhouette. In fact, the only pants from this pattern that have pockets are the jeans and even those have only back pockets. (I wanted to make them look like jeans but feel like regular pants, and the back pockets were a nod to the authentic jeans styling.)

I'm getting ready to cut out a skirt in the same cotton twill, and after that I'd like to start making some tops.

School is out!

Posted by Alexandra at Studio Alexandra

Yippee! I took the last test of the semester today and now I can breathe freely until mid-August or so. Breathe and sew, actually.

I haven't finished the long black pants yet - I still have to sew on the waistband and hem them. Instead of sewing, I've been enjoying my husband's company now that he is home again after multiple back-to-back TDYs (military equivalent of a business trip).

I wanted to make a nice fly facing/underlap for both the capris and the long pants and I wanted some contrast but not a completely different color, so I used a piece of black/gray cotton batik I had left over from a class.

You can just barely see that it's a different fabric. Oh well. Maybe next time I'll try a contrast color. Like red. Or purple. Then I could have different collections, you know, like the big designers - Blue Label, Purple Label - only mine would be Red Fly, Purple Fly...

Can you imagine? The Red Fly Collection by Alexandra.
All of the bottoms would have a red fly facing/underlap and all of the tops would feature the color red. Hmm... there's an idea for a SWAP. Too bad I didn't think of it before I started sewing these two pairs.

Project #10 - black capri pants

Posted by Alexandra at Studio Alexandra

Now that I have this cool dream board, I thought I'd start sewing. I made these yesterday using my TNT pants pattern and a mid-weight cotton twill from Michael's Fabrics. I wore them today for a stroll around the base, with the waistband held together by a safety pin because I still have to make the buttonhole and sew on a button.

I have also cut out a pair of long pants, using the same pattern and fabric. I plan to finish them tomorrow, then I can do the buttonholes and buttons at the same time on both pairs.

For the length, I debated hemming them above the knee for more of a city shorts look or at the mid-knee (for no good reason). When I asked DH, he recommended just below the knee "because you already have a lot of clothes that show your knees". Ah, as good a reason as any, right? As it turns out, I really like this length. (Well, I do now. Watch this space for a change of mind later.)

I'm not sure the red top is the best companion for these pants; I think 2" shorter would be more flattering. I'll have to try them on with several different things so I can decide.

All in all, a great pair of capris for the warm weather that is slowly starting to make an appearance.

SWAP - a new plan

Posted by Alexandra at Studio Alexandra

There's a discussion on Stitcher's Guild about coming up with the most versatile wardrobe of separates, complete with some serious math. In it, somebody mentioned Ann Taylor so I hopped over there to take a look. Lots of inspiration there - simple, unfussy outfits with great mix & match potential - just my cup of tea.

Using Sigrid's awesome storyboard tutorial, which you can download here, I came up with this:

These are the 14 pieces that make up the wardrobe:

And here are the combinations I can see myself wearing. If every bottom worked with every top, there would be 48 combinations. However, I don't like to mix prints so the printed skirt will not go with the two tops that feature a different print, though the colors may be the same. Similarly, I'm not likely to combine a casual denim skirt and a lapel jacket. So, I came up with 33 likely combinations.

I have finally analyzed my wardrobe needs (about time!!!) using Wardrobe Magic. So I can't pretend anymore and have to face the fact that I have no need for corporate chic, no matter how much I like the style. I am a full-time grad student (online learning so my "classroom" is my computer at home) and I volunteer 16-20 hours a week at the Ramstein clinic (I'm a nurse and this is an outpatient clinic so I mostly sit at a desk and talk to patients on the phone). Other than that, I figured in time to run errands and time for recreation, which usually consists of long walks around the base with my husband.

Broken down into clothing categories, it looks like this:
Office-worthy: 30%
My kind of casual: 56%
Gym & sports: 14% (already have)

I am not big on the really casual - I don't even own a pair of sweats, let alone be seen in something like that in public. My idea of casual is business casual. I think with the right accessories, I can look less business and more casual - think sandals instead of pumps, no hose, and chunky jewelry instead of pearls.

I think the wardrobe above will give me the right mix of office-worthy and casual outfits. Plus it will go with quite a few things I already own.

I'm not committing to any deadlines here. This is just my guide to creating a versatile wardrobe.

I've got mail!

Posted by Alexandra at Studio Alexandra

Overseas military mail service is a wonderful thing, occasional delays notwithstanding. We get bills (they could keep those), catalogs, and most importantly - packages.
Packages are like Christmas in July. Or April, in this case.

Today, a gorgeous piece of fabric arrived from Marji.
THANK YOU, MARJI!
It is a pink boucle with curlies of white, yellow/brown, and blue. There's enough for a sleeveless sheath and that was my original plan. Alas, this newcomer is quite outspoken and insisted on being paired with the blue denim in my collection (left over from sewing these jeans). That reminded me of the novelty tweed & denim combinations in Burda WOF from March 2005. Like this:


Doesn't it look pretty?







I'm going to let it percolate in my head a bit before making a final decision.

Last week, my order from White Lies Designs arrived. In it, this lovely book:

Lots of great knitting patterns - all feminine and flattering to the curvy body; nothing shapeless here. I'm really looking forward to knitting some of the camisoles and tanks. Stay tuned for updates. (Notice I didn't say hold your breath; I am a slow lazy knitter.)







One bad thing happened last weekend: the shot-of-steam button on my Rowenta Professional died. I can push the button but no steam comes out. Not cool. The rest of the iron works fine, it steams without a problem on the various steam settings; it's just that I prefer to have it set on dry and control the steam with the button.

Oh well. I have a new fabric and a new knitting book - I think I can get over the iron issue :-)