General Projects

I was late with the back to school outfits this year so the girls didn't have them until the third day of school. This year I did regular clothes as I knew I'd never get smocked garments finished in time.

Megan's outfit was easy...A simple jumper from McCall's 8978 in a black, white plaid with dark red line occassionally used and a purchased knit t-shirt that matched the red in the plaid. I remember my mum having outfits like this when I was growing up. Matching the plaid was time consuming but not difficult. The pocket flaps are mock with gold tone buttons.

Laura's outfit took a bit more time because I got the brillant notion I would do an embroidery design especially for it. Laura chose the design and I set to work on the Pfaff software to make a design. After much work and rework, I finally have a design I think is very nice. This was my second attempt at the software, the first being a terrible design! The blouse I did is McCAll's 7833, from a cream Kona cotton with contrasting ruffle edge and sleeve cuffs. The jumper is Townley's Tabard by Primrose Lane in a printed microcheck cotton. The Tabard pattern worked up very quickly. I used a cute apple button pair from Leslie Beck's button collection to attach the tabbard at the front.

If you would like to add this PCS embroidery design to your collection, click here to download the zipped file.

Okay, here it is for all of you who have asked - a picture of me!! Can you tell I hate having my picture taken?

This is the *third-time's-a-charm* skirt with the vest and shell I mentioned several months ago. Originally, the skirt was to be from a mauve fabric I bought at a local shop. Unfortunately, the crinkled fabric didn't work up as I expected so that skirt found a home with a friend. Then I read an article in a recent Threads magazine on dyeing with a pleater. Among other things, the article mentioned that pleats in polyester fabric could be permanently set by placing the fabric in a pot of boiling water for a couple of minutes. Well, that solved my problem of how to set my broom-stick creases. I bought some cream poly crepe from the BX and set to work making a three tier skirt. Unfortunately, the article was wrong about poly not taking dye. I used a nylon to hold the skirt in pleats (suggested in a pattern I had read) and I ended up with a lovely broom-stick skirt in cream with suntan lines where the outer folds touched the fabric. GGRRRHHH!! So, skirt three: this time using peach poly crepe. And I didn't hold the pleats together with a nylon. Success!!!! The vest was made from a beautiful tapestry type fabric also from a local shop. I used McCall's 7255 and it came out without problems, other than minor taking in under the arms. The shell was made from Martha Pullen's shell pattern in Heirloom Sewing for Women. I did my first frame embroidery design on a garment, Pfaff card 1. I used the single color rose design centered at the neck opening in the same coral color as the skirt.

Megan is of course into the "Marsha Brady" look so I made her some oversized overalls. She was really happy with the finished outfit and said they looked better than store bought. I used the jeans topstitching thread from YLI to edge the bib and pockets and down the outer legs. Megan liked the watermelon design by Lovina Berger from the Pfaffie's May 96 design share. I used a McCall's pattern

These jumpers were made last Fall from a McCall's pattern (can you tell that's all the BX carrries?) The pattern called for a mock button front and a zip back. At the time I was sewing, I didn't have any zips so I made the front button opening and added a placket for the overalls and the poor boy knit t-shirt. below the button opening. The gathers of the skirts hide the split in the fabric. I plan to use this trick again if I make a romper so they can dress themselves without needing zipped up.

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