Sweet Give-A-Way time!

In the blogosphere, two weeks can feel like two years.  Due to a sort of family emergency, I wasn't able to update my blog like I would have liked but be that as it may, I am back in business.

Since I had promised more give-a-ways last time, I want to make good on my promise and announce today's prize up for grabs.  You guessed it! More art! I want to thank all you kind and grateful people for helping me to clean out my stash in my studio.  I'm literally up to my ankles in stacked canvases of cupcakes!  So for this week's give-a-way i'd like to offer a set, a cupcake diptych if you will.

They are both on 8x8 inch gallery wrapped canvases, ready to hang.  Imagine your kitchen adorned with the sugary, vanilla scent that these two lovely cupcakes will provide.  (actual scratch and sniff scent not included. hahaha)  Seriously, these were so fun to paint!

I'm going to run the give-a-way until Saturday midnight (Pacific) so you have a few days to get in on the give-a-way!  To enter it's easy! Go to my Facebook page to look for the details.

Americana Gothic on Facebook!

Good luck everyone!

Spring Dresses to Sew Lineup

I'm trying to thoroughly enjoy dressing the heck out of winter since we are almost out of "winter week 2015." I'm rotating through all of my wooly black sweaters and turtlenecks to make sure they don't die in the closet over another summer.

I have a habit of buying duplicates or even triplicates of an article of clothing I really like and feel comfortable in.  For the winter this usually means black wooly turtleneck sweaters.  I enjoy looking like a beatnik female version of Steve Jobs, or in the case above, Joan Crawford 1927.  The black turtleneck is a classic!

However, all that i've been thinking about lately, is sewing some spring dresses.  Living in the desert has its challenges, one of which is dressing comfortably for the heat while trying to retain a modicum of personal style that doesn't revolve around shorts, polo shirts and flip flop sandals.  (what? That's a style isn't it?)  So, I went through the cache of patterns that I own to find a few that I will use for the spring dress sew-a-thon.

First on deck is my good ole faithful Vintage Vogue pattern that i've literally made a dozen dresses from.

I've even used this pattern to make my wedding dress from, granted it was in silk brocade but still...I eloped so time was of the essence in throwing together quick and easy wedding attire.   I would say Vintage Vogue #2267 is one of the easiest to work with.  I've gotten so adept at making this pattern i can sew it together (minus serging time) in about 30 minutes.  (not including the jacket.)  The lines are flattering to most figures, it doesn't require yards of fabric for a circle skirt, and the straps are wide enough where you don't have to use a special bra.  You can make the dress in 3-4 yards depending on your size...if you make it with a good quality novelty cotton, you've just spent less than $16 dollars making this dress.

This would be my second favorite dress to make. Vintage Vogue #2902.  This dress is super fun to wear but not for the faint of heart.  The skirt alone uses about 4 yards of fabric as it is a true circle skirt.  That is a lot of hemming!! Not to mention, it comes with a liner (which I leave out since I will wear a petticoat with the dress anyhow.)  The only thing I truly would change about this is the length.  It feels more like a tea length, even with the petticoat underneath taking up some real estate, it feels a tad long.  I have made this dress four times.  I altered it slightly one year to look like Grace Kelly's dress in the Hitchcock film "Rear Window." 

 I used black velvet for the top and champagne colored organza for the skirt. Sadly that dress is no longer in my possession. I will probably make another version of this very soon.  You can see one of the versions of this dress in the blog banner.  I am wearing a petticoat underneath and a sweater over the top.  It is a fabulous dress to go dancing in!

My absolute least favorite Vintage Vogue pattern to make is #2903!  This dress has unrealistic standards about where the shoulders and sleeves should start and begin.  I've tried so many times to alter it to fit more squarely on my shoulders but it always ends up feeling like an over the shoulder dress.  PASS!  I simply cannot go without a brassiere.

Now there are a few patterns that i've not tried to make yet as they are slightly more intimidating and require a bit more finesse when constructing.  But since it is a new year and I am going to be challenging myself a lot more to go outside the boundaries of what I am comfortable with, it is high time I take these patterns on!

 To start with, Vintage Vogue #2371.  This style is a touch outside of the decade of aesthetics that I am used to.... but every time I see this dress I can't help but to think of Joan Crawford.  Nothing says "Don't F*ck With Me Fellas" like a good strong shoulder pad!  Remember the old soaps Dynasty and Falcon Crest? Yes, all the crazy ladies had shoulder pads out to there! But look how smart Joan looks in this ensemble.  Sadly I'd probably never wear this except to somewhere really special, as it would go grossly under-appreciated here.

That is something I truly miss, being able to wear really decadent, tailored suits.  When I lived in NY it was easy to do so, it was obviously a lot cooler for a lot longer, but NY is also obviously far more fashionable.  Maybe I need to up the ante and just take one for the team and bring sexy back!  Yes, maybe I do need to wear my pea green Tippi Hedren suit to run to the grocery store!

"Hey guys, I'm just running to the supermarket to get some toilet paper, brb!"

At this time I would like to thank Edith Head for her uncanny ability to design the hell out of one great suit!

Well, I have to be realistic.  Even though I would love to wear my finest when I just need to go out and about, or go on a Costco run, the reality is that I am going to spend the majority of my time in light and airy cottons that can be easily thrown into the wash and dried without wondering how they will come out the other end.  That is why I love to sew my own dresses, i'm like the Samsonite luggage gorilla.  I need a dress that I can ride hard and put it away wet.  

For this spring i'm going to do something different from my tried and true novelty cottons. I'm going to expand into using lighter weight fabrics like crepe.  I found this pattern and I can't wait until to get started on it.  It is another Vintage Vogue pattern, #8999.  

I bet I could make this dress in a hundred different colors and never be satisfied.  The darting and pleating are going to be a little bit of a hassle, not too much though, but they will really make the dress.  Nothing beats a well tailored dress to accentuate a wasp like waist line!  If you don't have a wasp like waist line, this is a good dress to help you fake it.  I will probably do one in a ballet pink crepe to start out with just to see how I like it.    I better get a move on,  unlike Joan Crawford, i'm not one to be a lady of leisure for too long!

What are you sewing for this springs wardrobe? Happy sewing friends!

Love,

Desi x

SAS Fabric store trip!

Forgot to take pic of outside, duh, thanks to quiltville for theirs.

I guess the world belongs to the easily amused (THAT'S ME!) because I've never had so much fun for so little money as I do going to my favorite fabric store in town.  The place is called SAS and I'm not sure if that stands for "Save and Sew" or "Sew and Save" but either way, it's basically a Disneyland for anyone who sews or crafts, and you are always sure to walk out of there with a bag of goodies you didn't think you needed.  (At rock bottom prices.)  Google "SAS Fabric" to see if one comes up for where you live.  Ok, and now without further ado, like the Christiane Amanpour of the crafting world, my photojournalistic journey of my day at SAS.

So I tried my best to get two panoramic shots so you could see how massive this store is.  I would say that the store is about 2/3 of the size of a standard Joann's Fabric.  Though, it is all fabric, notions and sewing accessories.  Try to have a solid breakfast and bring a snack to power up, you will be here a while.

 

don't be afraid to spend some time spelunking through mountains of fabric!

My first stop was in the novelty nylons, charmeuse and satins.  These giant bolts with the starburst print caught my eye!  I got a half of a yard of two colors, the sea foam and silver to make scarves with.

Most of the prices in SAS are super budget friendly, I paid $3.00 total for 2 scarves, that even though I will have to sew a rolled hem around, would have cost me much more to buy.  Besides, who couldn't use more practice doing rolled hems.

What all can you make with Charmeuse?  I have a love hate relationship with it.  It shows needle marks, need to use fine pins, its slick, but HELL AT A $1 A YARD i'm making all my pj's with it for the summer!

But my favorite bolts of cloth are the organzas (followed up by a close second is the novelty cotton prints.)  This wall of organzas is heaven.  Prom gowns, bridesmaids dresses, fancy house coats, summer evening dresses.  Organza is so lovely.

But nothing is more fun than digging through a 6 foot pile of remnants.  I love going through the upholstery remnants as I always find some vintage looking novelty fabric that almost always brings a project to mind that I could use it for.  Recovering chairs, or making pillows for the outside patio furniture...these two patterns were calling my name!

Canvas has a multitude of uses, aside from making your own canvasses for paintings, what can you use it for?

wall of canvas bolts, every weight, size, and sizing

Or if recovering all of your davenports in velvet is your thing, it's a bargain at $2.99 a yard!  They had a beautiful avocado velvet that I wanted to buy, but alas I don't have any furniture to re-upholster and I have put a moratorium on buying project fabric unless I actually have a project in mind for it.  I don't want to end up the crazy fabric hoarder lady! (wait, yes I do!)

Plastic sheeting for table cloths, to cover the

nice table cloth underneath, like grandma used
to do!  Or you can cover your davenport in
plastic, just in case, you know, if you ever have
disaster pants at home... hey, ruin your undies
but save those couch cushions!

(no actual Pimps were used in the production of this blog post)

I would love to make myself a fake white mink coat, but we only have one technical week of winter here in Tucson, and we are in the middle of it, so maybe another year.  But yes, I could use a few yards of that big bird yellow fur, to uh.. make a giant nest out of in the middle of my room.

Note to the wise however, the fake minks in piles are weighed, not measured by the yard, and even though you can make yourself a pimp jacket for under $20 this is one of the big ticket items that will add up if you aren't careful.  I had to put back my white pile of goodness because the piece I wanted weighed in at $18 for the one piece. (It was large, but it was outside of my $20 budget for the day.)

I think my favorite thing about SAS aside from finding every imaginable color, texture, pattern, of fabric that exists, (and of course the prices) is the fact that I can buy huge oversized pieces of fabric, I'm talking about flannel or fleece in folded bolts that are big enough for king sized blankets (without cutting or sewing.)  If i had the energy to blanket stitch a million inches of fleece, I would have gotten a big gigantic piece of fleece to use as a winter bedspread.  Also, i probably would have spent more on embroidery floss trying to do a nice blanket stitch than the actual cut of fleece itself.  Hmm.. I may go back and get it though.

The fleece at the very bottom of this pile  (and the brown plaid in the middle) is calling my name. Would do a turquoise blanket stitch and turn into a bedspread.

Enjoy this picspam of the bolts of naugahydes, felts and other stuffs that caught my eye.

Holy sweet and sour Naugahyde Batman!

I'm feeling these felts.  Walked away with $5.30 cents worth of felt squares! I would love to make a felt coat one day!

Tulle and ribbon by the yard!

A wall of buttons, some were older than I am! Great for fixing those vintage outfits that are missing a button. 

Ribbons as far as the eye could see. And this was only half of them! 

 These clips come in handy for making pins, brooches, hair clips, etc.  The lady gave them to me for 5 cents a piece.

I didn't know I needed grosgrain skull ribbon, but eh, I think I do!

zippers in every size, flavor, color, and material.  99 cents! (or less) 

even the hubby got in on finding some cool buttons for his shirts!

Those aren't tribbles in the back, they are curtain or upholstery swag..?

OH Novelty cottons, I never tire of you!!

when your novelty cotton needs to make a statement!

One of my favorite sections.  The fabric suiting! How many Chanel suit knockoffs can you make? Oh, dozens...

So all in all I walked out the door under $20 not including tax. It wasn't a big shopping day for me since I really need to complete some projects before I start up new ones.  I already have a dozen dresses in queue that I need to complete for the summer before I dare buy another bolt of novelty cotton.  Although, i was quite tempted to make a summer dress from the "Lady of Guadalupe" novelty cotton!  (Was vetoed so it was a no-go.) :(

I did end up buying some silver sharkskin fabric to make a pencil skirt and a clutch for a show I am going to a week from today, as well as some bows, buttons, pins and clips to complete some hair accessory projects I have in mind.  As far as all that felt goes, I'm getting into making felt brooches. Pinterest sort of sucked me in ... and now I am down deep in the rabbit hole of making all the things with felt!

I hope you enjoyed my pictorial journey through one of the treasures that Tucson has to offer, and if you are ever in town it's one place you have to visit if you are an avid crafter or sewer (sewist?)

What projects are you all making??

Love,

Desi