That Downton Dress-II

One challenge with a vintage pattern is a scarcity of directions - even when the pattern is a repro, Much was assumed about the skill of the seamstress.  This dress has many handkerchief leaves in its hem, with no direction as to how to finish them.  A couture dress is distinguished by the hand sewing that goes into its production, so I decided hand rolled hems would be the most appropriate for this gown.  This is a painstaking process, but very rewarding in the end.

First, the raw edge is folded over and held in place with a tiny running stitch.  Then, a running zigzag is made, taking only a few threads into each stitch.

Here's another look in case my big thumb was obscuring your view.

After you've made a half dozen or so of these stitches, gently pull on the thread and it magically rolls into a beautiful rolled hem, which looks like this from the wrong side:

And, like this from the outside of the garment:

I'm super happy with the look of this, but there are a lot of them to do! Hope your week's sewing is going well!

Puzzle Me This

Since acquiring my two wonderful vintage Singer sewing machines, I've been on a quest for accessories.  While trolling eBay, I came across a listing for two Singer puzzle boxes.

A Singer puzzle box is a neatly crafted box of feet and other accessories produced by the Singer Manufacturing Company during the 19th and 20th centuries. The box was invented in 1888 by John M. Griest, a Singer employee who was awarded US patent 397980 on February 19, 1889 for the design. 

The accessories stash into a fold out rectangular wooden box which is lined in velvet or felt (if the lining is still intact).  An alternate name for these is a "style box".  The boxes include attachments for hemming, braiding, underbraiding, tucking, shirring, binding, quilting and ruffling, along with screwdrivers and spare needles.  Mine are not in the most pristine condition, but I will continue to look for more of these fascinating treasures!

Now I just have to clean them up and learn how to use them!  Any tips?

Butterick 4228 Sneak Peek

Hi everyone!  Hope your weekend was fantastic!  I hit some garage sales on Friday, and I plan to share my haul with you later in the week.  The rest of the weekend was pretty laid back, but I managed to get some sewing done on Butterick 4228.  The skirt is almost complete, so here are a couple of sneal peek pictures.

Well, just the zipper!  Just hooks and hems left on the skirt, with the top left to go!

Also, I have a new post up at SewMantra on getting out of a sewing or crafting slump.  Please stop by there to see it and make my day by leaving a comment!  Thanks!

AL. most. Done.

So close and yet so far.  I'm almost done with the dress portion of Butterick 4355.  I want to slow down a bit and pay attention to some details.  But here are some sneak peeks.

It has grown and grown on me as I worked on it.  I really like the hand of the fabric.  The zipper went in with very little trouble, but there was the internal lining to deal with.

And it still needs a hook and eye at the top of the zip.  There's a kick vent at the back hem which I really like, but that still needs reinforcing.

And, as you can see, the whole thing still needs a final press.  So, it looks like I was overly optimistic in thinking I could finish today.  The weekend is upon us with lots of plans.

We're supposed to be going canoeing with another couple on Saturday.  I say "supposed" because it's only predicted to be 50 degrees here tomorrow and windy.  Then, we're going out for dinner to celebrate my birthday, which isn't until Monday, but weekends were made for celebrations.

Sunday brings a celebration for Beltane (Maypole dance included) so I'll be at that for most of the day.  No time to sew again until Monday.  Tune in then to see the final result! 

Buttoning Things Up

Having worked all morning on it, the lining is in, tacked, hemmed, and generally looking good.  Or, at least I hope its looking good.  The jacket still needs some final pressing and the buttons and buttonholes.

Which is what led me to my button stash.  Modest I suppose, compared to my fabric stash(es), it's still always confusing to pick buttons for a project.  With the sailor dress, I really did not already have in my stash, the button that was needed for that project, but with this jacket, I was pretty sure I had something that would work.  That being said, it was more work than I anticipated to choose!

First I sorted a little by size and general appearance.  "The One" needed to be about an inch in diameter in order to be seen, but not so big as to steal the show.

Some were too brown for a grey suit, some were too bright.  I finally settled on these, a 7/8ths inch faux tortoise shell set.  I hope to finish this one tomorrow, but we'll see what the day brings!

Chipping Away

Just a short post today... I wanted you to see that I'm chipping away at the jacket.  The sleeves are in now, as well as the lining, though that is not complete, as it isn't completely sewn in and tacked in place.  After that, I plan to hem the sleeves, and then, more buttonhole and button fun!

Also, as you can see, the skirt I made to go with the jacket two years ago has been dug out of its place in the stash and pressed.  It looks nice on Betsy, and she needed something to go with the jacket. 

Better pictures once the whole ensemble has been finished, I promise!  Thanks for looking!