Monday, July 26, 2010

Sewing n00b



Another hot, hot day. I think I ought to acquire a new show to watch, as I'm caught up on True Blood (sadface!), and Fringe only happens when Greg is available to watch it with me. Any suggestions? And don't even bother recommending Mad Men! I have heard enough about that show to last me a lifetime. I'll check it out eventually; I just don't have any special interest in the '60s (sorry about that guys, didn't mean to be so cavalier about your show, which is actually from the '60s and not the '50s!), or anything that doesn't involve vampires or space travel, quite honestly. Does that make me a genre snob? Or just a geek snob? We'll just say I'm a snob and have done with it. Any geeky shows I should know about?








I'm wearing: Anthropologie dress, F21 belt, Blowfish booties, Ralph Lauren sunglasses, necklace from a street fair in Italy.


Yes, I know, I've worn this dress before! Gasp. I hope it's not too soon, and you won't harbor a grudge against me for re-styling a dress so soon. Although, really, it is real life here. And I have no money to buy new dresses. Plus, I love this one so much! I got it in California while visiting Greg's mother. Good memories.

I'm thinking of making a couple skirts for myself this week. I have a brand new sewing machine that's only seen a few Renaissance-related projects, so I want to break it in further. I also have a JoAnn Fabrics gift card that's been lying around since Christmas, so I should really get some use out of that! Do any of you make your own clothes? Where do you find affordable, cute patterns? I'm a sewing n00b.



11 comments:

adventures of a mad scientist said...

Warehouse 13 just started its new season. You could always watch that :) Other than super old school Doctor Who, I myself am not watching much lately.

Catherine said...

Hahaha, I didn't even notice that you wore that dress before, completley different look. :)

And along the lines of TV shows, I don't have much to recomend, I like to watch the Discovery Channel (shark week next week), TLC, NatGeo, nothing with a plot.

Kayleigh said...

Burdastyle.com is a great place to start if you're new to sewing. They have a lot of free patterns available—though it is kind of a pain to print out all of the pages and tape them together. It's also a great resource for learning new techniques, and you can find some great inspiration from the other users on the site.

JoAnns will put its patterns on sale pretty often. Check their website and eventually you'll see Simplicity, McCalls, and Butterick patterns for 99 cents. Doesn't get much cheaper than that! I haven't seen the nicer vogue patterns for less than $3.99, but I like them a lot more so I think it's worth it. They're generally a little more difficult, though. I'd suggest looking at all of the offerings online before you go into the store. JoAnn's can get hectic when there's a sale going on.

If you're in Portland and on a budget, I'd suggest going to SCRAP to get supplies on the cheap. They have a huge collection of fabric as well as a bucket full of zippers and shelves of other notions. Their website is here: http://scrapaction.org/ They have patterns too, but when I was there I only saw a bunch of horrible 90s relics.

I've been sewing my own clothes for awhile now. I alter a lot of things I find at thrift stores and now I'm trying to draft my own patterns. I love it! Sewing gives you so much control over your wardrobe, though it does take some practice.

Oh! If you like supporting local businesses/want to drool over gorgeous but expensive fabric, go here: http://www.boltfabricboutique.com/ Their selection is absolutely beautiful, and they carry some great offerings from some of the smaller pattern companies as well.

That was a looooong comment. I get really excited about sewing. Anyway, good luck! Can't wait to see what you make!

Caitlyn, Honey Deer said...

Wow that dress is sooo pretty. Really love it. It also goes so nice with that belt. I love your style!

Skyline Eyes said...

I really love that dress (: And omg True Blood <3
Eerrrm, up until recently (when it finished) I was a huge Lost nerd. But then again if you miss one you pretty much have no idea what's going on, and also there's like six series of them.
Haha, thanks for the lovely comments (:
x

suzy said...

well...you know...we've been...ahem.
we've been watching family matters [steve urkel? remember? no?] on youtube lately.
it's kind of AWESOME.

Shelby said...

thrift stores have tooooonnnes of good patterns. lots of them are vintage too.

Fear is a Dirty Word said...

Oh my gosh you're such a cutie! I can't believe i've never seen you're blog before. I buy most my patterns vintage, they're cheaper and often more unique. Try Etsy or Ebay! Love the outfit :)

xoxo
-Sam
http://fearisadirtyword.blogspot.com

Nikki said...

Eureka. I <3 that show so much.

Also, check thrift stores for curtains with neat patterns. I used to make skirts for my sister out of the coolest curtain patterns/fabrics that I'd find for like 25 cents at thrift stores. I don't have time to anymore, but I would love to get back into it.

Teresa said...

I love Big Bang Theory! It's so geeky funny! I can so totally relate with all their geekery. Hehehe! Do you like that too?

I don't really sew my own clothes. I find it easier to deconstruct or reconstruct clothes I find in thrift stores. But you can find a bajillion sewing patterns in Joanns. They have a whole cabinet/library of it! :)

♥ Teresa ♥

Sarah said...

Beautiful look. The colors in this outfit are really nice and work well with each other. Very nice. Love the shoes!

thequeenofwanderlust.blogspot.com