Creativity

Making Room to Sew Again

~ Michelle

It seems my sewing was interfering with my family’s ability to eat at the dinning room table. I actually had complaints. To be honest, I did leave all my projects out and did take up the whole dining room and part of the living room. So, I packed everything away thinking I’d still do some things, just bring everything out when I wanted to sew and pack it all away again when I was done. That didn’t happen. And I became the one complaining. I miss sewing! Have I mentioned I miss sewing. I really miss sewing. Do you know I’d rather sew than do almost anything else?

My DH got the message and we’re re-arranging a space in our house so I can sew again! And make jewelry because lately my jewelry components have been all over the dining room table. 🙂

So here’s the mess I have to organize today.

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I have to find a new home for all of this.

And then there’s this:

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And I won’t show you the huge pile of sewing stash etc. in my bedroom! But we’re reclaiming our bedroom even. So I have a little work ahead of me before I can sew. But I’m hopeful!

A few posts ago I mentioned I couldn’t wait to clone my newest bra. I did copy everything out and now I’m going to have space to work on it. I’m also thinking of sewing another Sewy Rebecca. I do like the way the bridge fits on that one, and the cups too. I didn’t love the back though, so would change that. Well there are a few changes I’d make, but those have more to do with fit than style.

Here is part of the cloning process.

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These pattern pieces show the seam allowances have been added to each piece. It’s really not a difficult process. The hardest part is the cups because you have to move the material a little and even remove pins as you make them flat. Depending on the cup size, it can be a bit more challenging. I usually do one side of the cup and then remove most of the pins, flatten the other side and start pinning that side.

So now that I’m making a space for myself, I hope to blog a little more often than I have lately. I’m so happy to be setting up my little area today!

Happy creating!

More Poppies and Demo Items

~ Michelle

I decided to look up felt poppies and so many more wonderful ideas were out there.

Take a look at this:

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Aren’t these adorably charming? These are from Agnes and Cora and you can find them here. So sweet.

And I found these too:

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Again, so beautiful. There are such wonderfully creative people out there! These lovely poppies can be found here.

And although this one is done with a stamp, I think it looks great!

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You can read all about how she made her poppy here.

I got the felt I bought from eBay, and have made a couple of patterns and started cutting out poppy petals. In fact, I’ve made 20 this past week, and have 24 more cut out on my dinning room table.

Here are the few that I’ve made so far. I wanted to try a few different ones, and decided I have a favorite. It’s the one on the bottom right. I really like the black felt backing; I think it makes the red stand out more. The top left one is inspired by Mary Engelbreit’s flowers. The double red one is inspired by a poppy I found on the web: here.

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And I thought I’d post a few pictures of what I’ve been making when I do demos at the store.

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Here’s a bracelet I made that is very similar to one a friend of mine bought for $85. She saw it at a spa, and fell in love with it. But it was too small for her, and she had me add beads to it to make it larger. This one uses the same beads, but on this one I added little beads that ‘hide’ under the ring beads and peak out as you move and those rings move.

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And I like those beads so much, I thought a fun little pair of earrings to go with the bracelet. Again, those little ring beads at the top will move around, so they’re very playful to wear.

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I really love this one and think I’ll have to make one for me! The blue and gold beads are so charming and bright – definitely bringing out the best in each other! I used what I have on hand for wire, but I think I would use gold wire for the one I make for myself.

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And lastly, here’s the detail at the end of the Y design on the blue & gold necklace. I used a few of those same beads from the bracelet and the rings hang loosely over the blue and gold beads at the end.

There are lots more, but these are my favorites. I’ve definitely been having fun!

Happy creating!

Some Summer Reminders

~ Michelle

I don’t like to think that it’s already almost the end of July. I am enjoying the wonderful warm weather, and fun things like the pool party I’m going to tonight make summer so enjoyable – I want it to last a LOT longer than it will!

But summer is known not to last that long. So I try to keep little reminders for the rest of the year: photos of my favorite flowers in bloom, berries from either my raspberries or strawberries that I hide from my devouring family and freeze, I’m always looking for some way to make the season last longer and my enjoyment of it last too.

This year I decided to do something I haven’t done for years. I dried some of my flowers – my peonies to be exact. I have both white ones and dark pink ones. I cut both so I’d have a long stem once they were dried, and then shook them good to make sure I wasn’t bringing any ants in the house with them. I gave them another quick spray wash in the sink, and shook them off again. I found another couple of ants this way. Then I hung them upside down to dry.

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These are the white ones. They’re freshly cut so the heads are still big, fluffy and full.

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And here they are after drying for a week or so. You can see how much the heads have shrunk down. By drying them upside down like this, the flower heads close rather than open while drying.

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And finally I felt these were about as dry as they were going to get. I almost didn’t want to cut them down. I rather liked them hanging on the wall on either side of my dinning room.

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Here they are in a vase on my dinning room table. I’ve had to alert my dear hubby about them too. I did this years ago and had a vase of red ones on the table. He saw ‘dead’ flowers’ and threw them out on me! So hopefully with the heads up, these ones will last well into winter.

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And one last photo. This close up photo shows the detail of the petals. They’re all dried and will stay upright like this; and in the middle of winter, this lovely reminder will say that something beautiful will bloom again!

On a sewing note, I read that Andrea from Satin Bird Designs just finished her first Shelley bra. You can read about it on her blog. Good for her! The Shelley is a wonderful pattern. Makes me want to sew another bra so badly! But I’m determined to lose some more weight and see what sort of difference it will make for me. I’m really hoping I’ll be able to find fitting easier, but so far that’s not happening. We’ll have to see. I may just break down and sew something just because I’m missing sewing SO much!

Happy creating!

My (Nearly) Finished Wine Cart

~ Michelle

My little blog has been SO neglected recently. But our family has been quite busy. My oldest son got a new job, a new car and is set to start in a week, and my youngest son graduated from high school. So both of my boys have kept me busy.

There hasn’t been any time for sewing recently, so I packed up my sewing machine and put it in my bedroom. I didn’t want the reminder that I had no time to sit down and work on patterns or sew.

However, I did find a little time to finish up my wine cart.

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Here is the cart – I painted the whole cart in Midnight reloved Vintage Paint. And then did some dry brushing on the edges to make it look distressed. For the dry brushing I used Storm paint by reloved.

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This shows the dry brushing a little better. I wasn’t trying to be super neat about it. Often distress on a piece of furniture isn’t uniform or ‘neat’ – so unlike sewing!

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Here’s the tray – all black, with a bit of ‘distressing’ along the sides. The only part of my cart I’m still undecided about is how I’ll finish the bottom of the tray. I have a couple of ideas, but did decide against the decoupage.

One possible tray bottom

Here’s one idea I have for the bottom of the tray. I have a few pieces of cotton paper. It’s lovely paper and I was thinking I’ll put some Mod Podge over it to make it more water-resistant.

another possible tray bottom

And here’s another paper I have. It’s the same material, just a different pattern. I haven’t yet decided between these two, but did have a couple of other thoughts too like using lace or a doily. I’ll just wait until I find that perfect ‘ah ha!’ and go with that.

But until I do, it is ‘finished’ enough to use.

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Here’s my not-sure-if-it’s-finished wine cart. I do have to say I really enjoyed working with the reloved Vintage Paint. No priming at all – that’s my kind of painting. I do have 3 other furniture makeovers planned for the summer. Two antique end tables and a bookcase, but those are all big priming-involved-projects – stripping, sanding, staining and sealing. Whew. But I’m sure they’ll be lovely when they’re done and worth the effort.

Happy creating!

A Little of This, A Little of That

~ Michelle

That about describes what I’ve been up to; Doing a little of this, and a little of that.

One thing I did this week that I’m so pleased with is a re-vamping of a couple of sundresses I made last summer. When I first made them, they were so easy. I bought the material with the smocking already done. I sewed them up and added some straps and hardly wore them! So much for so easy.

Last week I was reading in Andrea’s blog: Satin Bird Designs how she had remade a dress into a Maxi skirt. And I knew right away what I wanted to do with those sundresses!

Pink Skirt

Here’s the first one. Much more versatile than a sundress. I’ve worn it twice this week already!

I didn’t do much to remake it. I counted how many lines of smocking I wanted for the waist band, and cut it off in-between those lines. It was a bit funny when I was doing that because they weren’t perfectly lined up. I was wondering if I’d been drunk when I first sewed it. Then I remember a couple of things: One, I don’t drink. And two, the top was what I’d matched up evenly. So the material may have had a defect in it.

However, as Madalynne so recently wrote on her blog quoting from Norma’s book: “The only reason to tear out top stitching is if… it looks bad from 3 feet away.” So, my issue isn’t top stitching, but taking the heart of the message – I don’t think anyone is going to come up and start examining those rows of smocking and notice they’re not straight. Mind you, some of my friends may do that now. (smile)

And here’s the second skirt, which hasn’t been washed yet so is still a little stretched out in the waist band:

Black Skirt

To finish both skirts, all I needed to do was finish that new edge I’d cut. They were already seamed from last year. I didn’t want to change the look on them, so did a lettuce-edge with a small zigzag to cover the loose edges and keep them from fringing in the wash.

I did buy a couple of pair of pants this week that I’m going to cut off and make into Capri pants. The price was just too good to pass on.

My bra is still 3/4s of the way done and sitting on the dinning room table. I decided just as I was putting on the upper band elastic that I was going to change the bra. So no fabric straps on this one – this one is going to have strap tape & strap elastic for the straps – more similar to what I saw in the boutique. I’m just waiting on an order now from Bra-Makers to finish it up. This one is with a custom bridge from Norma’s book.

And lastly, my final bit of this and that. I painted the inside of the tray this morning.

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Wine Cart Tray

This is only one coat with a stippled effect. I may use some black over the top of it. I’m going to used the Midnight color on the outside of the tray.

Happy creating!

Something Other Than a Bra

~ Michelle

I must admit, I’m a bit of a bulldog when faced with a problem. I simply won’t give up, although I do say that I’m giving up from time to time. I stubbornly stay at something until I figure it out. That’s how I’ve been with getting my perfect bra pattern. But even I need a bit of a break every once in a while.

Here’s my latest distraction:

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This wine cart was one of those wonderful finds. My dear hubby and I were out hitting some garage sales and I saw this. I fell in love at once, and the price was incredible – only $15! I wondered why it was so inexpensive, but when I got home realized it wasn’t level. One of the wheels wouldn’t go in all the way. After trying many ways to get that wheel in all the way, I figured I had nothing to lose and gave it a whack with a hammer. The wheel went in and I haven’t messed with it since.

The one thing I didn’t love about this cart was the color. I’m not a fan of pine. I prefer darker woods. So, this one finally is getting a makeover.

I painting it with Reloved Chalk Paint in Midnight. I’m not done yet, but it’s looking so much better. You can see the original color of the pine on the tray.

The cart is going to be solid Midnight, but the tray is going to be Midnight on the outside, and Barn on the inside. I may mix the colors a bit to get a darker red, but I’ll decide after the first coat of paint.

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I’ve cut out some flowers to do a decoupage on the bottom of the tray as well. So, still a little work ahead of me, but I’m liking it so far.

And on some sewing news:

In some other surprising and sad news, ELingeriA is closing. They’ve set a closing date of May 31st. Currently they’re offering 20% off most items. Again, just click on their name to go to their website.

I will be sad to see them go.

And just an update, I worked on my new bridge over the weekend. I’m still not sure I’ve got it just right, but being as determined as I am, I know I’ll get it. Norma’s book , Demystifying Bra Fitting and Construction, has been a tremendous help. Without a doubt, I recommend it.

Happy creating!

A Short 70s Trip

~ Michelle

I was thinking it wasn’t a very creative week, but I did finish a Medical ID bracelet for a customer, and have another one to start for another customer; had a private jewelry-making lesson, which was very enjoyable, and made a few pair of earrings. However, I didn’t take any pictures.

There’s been no sewing all week. I think that’s a first for me since I got my new sewing machine last year. My previous machine had a few problems, and had been such a frustration, I’d put it away for quite a while. I must have gone into withdrawal and not even realized it.

I did sort through my sewing stash, and did my best to re-organize it all. Maybe the announcement on the calendar that it’s now Spring got me in a cleaning mood. I have a few items that I’m not going to keep, and I did organize things a little better, but came to the conclusion that I need more room and more storage.

Last week when I was looking around for information on the Milady, I read something about a ‘Spacer Bra’ on the Prima Donna web site – and it reminded me of the 70s.  Just the name of the bra itself made me think of the Cross Your Heart bras – you know, the ‘lift & separate’ ones. Do they still advertise that way?

It made me wonder if that style was coming back into fashion. So many other fashions are looking like a flashback to the 70s. Maybe bras will go there too.

Just to help with my curiosity, I had a second look at the Spacer bra, and although it doesn’t look like it’s a lift-&-separate style bra, what they had to say about the bra still reminded me of them:

“This spacer bra covers your breasts completely without making them look bigger.”

Well, what normally makes us look bigger? Pushing things together and lifting them up; creating cleavage. Hmmm. Still sounding a little lift & separate to me.

I can handle that, just please no bullet bras!

Happy creating!

Love at First Sight.

~ Michelle

This post is just a short one, but I think you’ll fall in love too!

While out for coffee with my friend, Valerie, we’d sat and visited for a while and then  were wandering around Chapters looking at everything from cookbooks to craft books. We made our way towards the magazines and she picked up Altered Couture and innocently asked me if I’d ever seen it before. I hadn’t. She stared to flip through the pages and there was a bra!

If you’re thinking I’m a bit obsessed with bras, then I think I agree. But they’re so pretty, and practical too. (I say in self-defense.)

I’ll let you decide, but for me, it was love at first site. The article is Corset Collection by Amy Relf.

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Actually, it’s a long-line bra. Here’s a close-up of the bra front:

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Isn’t that charming? I have ideas for all those little bits that aren’t enough for a full cup. Bravo Altered Couture magazine, bravo!

Amy Relf has a blog: atelierdami.wordpress.com; Beautiful work, Amy. Really beautiful. You’ve inspired me. And thank you so much for allowing me to share a bit of your work.

I encourage you to get the magazine and read Amy’s article. I’m not going to share everything, but I think just this will inspire you too.

Happy creating!

Beautiful Gifts

~ Michelle

I was out for coffee with a friend from my college days. We’d been roommates before either of us got married. She married her boyfriend – the one she’d been dating while we were living together – I traded up a few years later. My former roomie and I always got along very well and still keep in touch all these years later.

My friend, Valerie, is very creative. And she’s always encouraged me to stay creative. She’ll remind me if I’m not doing something, that creative people need to do something to stay happy. She’s right. She wants me to pick up knitting again. I want to reply, ‘Right or left-handed?’, but usually tell her I’ve fallen in love with bra-making. It takes up all my spare time and a good chunk of my thought process.

Back to knitting, I did learn both ways of knitting. Right-handed knitting is something my Mum taught me. I understand it’s English.

But not everyone in the world is English.  A friend I met from Japan teased me about throwing the yarn when I knit, and she taught me left-handed knitting. It’s a much ‘tighter’ way of knitting. Your hands barely move, just the fingers. And the needles stay relatively motionless – not a lot of up and down movement going on.

I must say I prefer right-handed knitting, even though it does go more slowly because we really do ‘throw’ the yarn around the knitting needle tip, however I’ve done it this way for many years, and it’s what is embedded in my brain.

Valerie is an Artistic Fibre Specialist, and is incredibly talented. I was privileged to be on the receiving end of her talents this week. Valerie brought me a couple of gifts.

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Isn’t this exquisite? I was so impressed with this lovely scarf. Almost made me push my sewing machine aside and take up knitting again. I settled for wearing it the same day I got it.

This is the second lovely gift I received.

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Valerie does incredible work and not just to give away as gifts. She has an Etsy store. You can see more of Valerie’s designs here:

Intricate Knits

No time for sewing for me this week. I’m making Anointing Oils for a Ladies’ Retreat, and a Custom Medical ID Bracelet – one of my favorite designs:

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This is a Triple-strand Bracelet made with Gold-filled beads and Swarovski Crystals. It’s a very elegant Medical ID Bracelet – you can see the ID tag hanging in the back.

I have a treat coming later in the week, or early next week. All I can say is it was love at first sight. And I’ll be starting a bra for a friend next week. She only wants something basic, but I’ll still take pictures and post them.

Happy creating!

Here a Change, There a Change.

~ Michelle

Just a follow up from last week’s post: I don’t prefer Vertical wires. I wore them for a whole day, then on the second day I took them out. I put in my regular Long wires and am much more comfortable. That just goes to show, some women dealing with the Omega shape will do better with them, others will not. There really are no ‘set’ rules, are there?

So, I had altered my Sewy Rebecca pattern for my needs – smaller lower cup edge to fit into the smaller wire frame I need. But I decided to do a few more alterations. Here’s why:

There are things I do like about the Sewy Rebecca, and there are things I don’t like about the pattern. There are also things I like about the Shelley Full Band pattern, and a couple of things I’d change. So, I decided to see what would happen when I put the two patterns together.

I was joking with Andrea from Satin Bird Designs saying I was creating a monster; she dubbed the new bra the Franken-bra. Thankfully, it turned out very well and much prettier than those monikers sounded too.

Here’s what I did:

1. I really like the upper cup on the Rebecca – it’s just a little straighter across the seam line, so gives a little more lift. So, I used Rebecca as my starting point.

2. However, I like the split lower cup on the Shelley, so I split the lower cup on the Rebecca.

3. I also changed the shape of the Rebecca  power bar to look more like the Shelley – especially at the top where it joins the strap. In the English instructions for the Rebecca only strap elastic is used for the straps whereas the Shelley uses a fabric strap, which is my preference.

4. So I added the fabric strap.

As cute as Franken-bra is, I re-named her Shelley Rebecca. Here she is:

Front View

Here’s the front view. I used a non-stretch lace (Floral Lace Fabric) I bought from Bra Makers Supply. I really like this lace fabric.

Here’s their description:

“All-over woven lace with a floral design with virtually no stretch – making it perfect for bra cups. We would recommend stabilizing the fabric for the frame or the straps but it certainly could be used for the entire front of the bra.”

I really like this material. One thing I like about it is the seams virtually disappear into the fabric because of the texture of it. The other is it really is non-stretch, so can be used all over.

Side View

Here is the side view. Nice smooth fit into the wires, so I’m very happy. (If you’ve been reading along, please notice my restraint here in what I’m NOT mentioning.) A nice small underarm area, so again happy me! Do you see how those seams blend so well. I had to lighten the photos to get the seams and other details to show at all. Black on black really isn’t the best for photos.

Back View

Hmm, straps felt a bit too far apart still. I need to go through my patterns and make a back pattern I’m completely happy and thrilled about.

Again, I used a straight stitch to tack down the eyes, and then this time I also changed my width for the Zigzag to a wider than 2.5 stitch, which is standard for sewing lingerie. Both of these helped it go on nice and neatly.

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This is just to show in a little more detail how the seams virtually disappear with this fabric. I was quite impressed with this. It also shows where I put the seam in the lower cup of the Shelley Rebecca.

Strap

Here’s where I changed the top part of the power bar. I also changed the direction it faced at the very top by cutting off the top and taping it back on ‘backwards’. I think I preferred it this way as I need the straps in a little more normally.

Well, I have more sewing to do, and a medical ID bracelet to make too.

Oh, and I used the foam cups to fill the bra cups this time. I’m still undecided which looks better.

Happy creating!