Gift for You! Free for a week

As many of you know, from time to time, I send out 'thank you' gifts for you, my loyal subscribers.  For one week, you can claim your new Fashion Leaflet 'the Princess Line Blouse'  After July 21, 2015, there will be a nominal fee for this newest Fashion Leaflet.

So many of our SFD sewists ask for directions to make a basic blouse and how do you size up for just a little more wearing ease from your finished bodice blueprint.  These directions tie all the concepts together for you.  Please enjoy!

Princess Line Blouse

You'll be using your Sure-Fit Designs Dress Kit bodice to design this great-fitting princess line blouse which can be worn open or closed.  The blouse features:

• shoulder princess line detail
• 'V'd Center Front
• CF Placket/band
• Collar & Stand
• Shirttail style of hem
• 3/4 Length Sleeve
• Inverted 'V'd Sleeve hem detail

 It's yours free for a week - until July 21 - as another one of my gifts to you, my loyal customers, subscribers & followers.

New Fashion Leaflet - Click Here 

Happy Sewing

Glenda...the Good Stitch!

Read More

Slinky Issues!

At a recent Fit Retreat, we got into a discussion about sewing with Slinky.  Or should I say 'fitting with Slinky'?

Here's my black Slinky shell.

I rarely wear sleeveless tops/dresses, so I stitched up this diagonal hemmed cardigan to go over top of it.

And if you've ever sewn with Slinky, you know it can present some stretching, fitting and sewing problems...or should I call them 'issues'?

Slinky is an elastic acetate knit.  It's available in different weights and stretch and is sometimes combined with spandex to help eliminate the bagging that can occur.  It is really soft and comfortable to wear, has a supple hand and really drapes well.

For the pattern design, keep it simple with few design lines, minimal seaming, elastic casings, loose sleeves or sleeveless.  Avoid real close fitted styles.

Let me pass on some tips on working with Slinky.
1.  Pre-treat Slinky in cold/warm water (no bleach) and throw it in the dryer - cool/warm temp.  When washing after wearing, wash in cold  water and line dry.
2. You can definitely sized down your pattern at least 1- 2 dots in all circumference areas.  Everything is going to stretch - both horizontally and vertically - so you're likely safe to 'dot-down' at all points on the SFD master pattern.
3.  Add 5/8" seam allowances.  This width will make it easier to handle.  Then after you've basted and adjusted the fit, serge/trim to 1/4" allowance.
4. When cutting, make sure that none of the fabric hangs off the cutting table.  It will definitely stretch out of shape.
5.  Treat Slinky as a napped or one-way fabric with all pieces headed in the same direction.
6. Cut with extremely sharp fabric shears or rotary cutter.
7.  Decide which side you want as the 'right' side and mark with a visible marking pencil or place a piece of plastic tape on the 'wrong' side and write 'wrong' on the tape.
8.  Use a 'walking foot'.
9.  Test sewing on remnants.  Stitch horizontally, vertically and diagonally.  Use long embroidery pins.  Since the fabric does not feed evenly, stop periodically, raise the presser foot, smooth the fabric then continue stitching.
10.  Baste - baste - baste with the longest stitch possible!  Test the fit.  There is no way to gauge how much your Slinky is going to stretch vertically or horizontally until you put it on.  Adjust the fit to your comfort level.  If the Slinky is a very dark color, baste with a bright contrasting color thread.  It will make it much easier to pick out.
11.  Always stitch directionally i.e. from the hem up.
12.  Then when you are satisfied, to complete the seams use a long straight stitch but not necessarily a stretch stitch, trim or serge/overlock the seams.
13.  If you're sewing pants, the length of the crotch seam WILL stretch vertically.  Stabilize with a narrow flat, clear elastic as you stitch the seam.  This allows the seam to have a little give, but not stretch excessively.  Shoulders, necklines and long side seams can also be stabilized with clear, flat elastic.
14.  To bind the neck and armhole edges, as I have done on this tank top, cut the ribbing and binding strips on the crossgrain approximately 25-30% shorter than the edge to be finished.
15.  Hemming.  They say you can use fusible webbing, but I couldn't get mine to 'melt' and adhere the 2 layers together, so I simply top-stitched the hem in place.  But since Slinky isn't going to ravel, you could just cut and leave the hem as a raw edge.

These tips should help you out on your next Slinky project.
Kindly,
Glenda...the Good Stitch!

Read More

Fun & Easy Color Blocked T-Shirt

Color blocking is super simple and easy to design into your sewing patterns.  Of course, you all likely know that color blocking is definitely back in fashion.  But do you know where it all began?

It all dates back to a Dutch artist - Pieter Cornelis Mondrian (1872-1944) - nicknamed 'Piet'.  He was one of the principal members of the Neoplasticism art movement.  In 1919 he began producing grid-based paintings for which he became renowned for the rectangular shapes, solid black lines and random placement of primary colors.

In the 1960's, Yves St. Laurent popularized his 'Mondrian' dresses using Piet as his inspiration.

Color blocking has become popular again and of course, you can do this with your SFD patterns.  Creating areas to color block on your patterns is creative and easy to do.  Just start off with Sally Silhouette as your croquis and experiment with where you'd like to draw your style lines for color blocking.

If you don't yet have your copy of Sally Silhouette, you can download her from the Free Stuff page in the SFD Learning Center.  Click Here.

And now there is also a new downloadable Fashion Leaflet for color blocking your new SFD T-Shirt that I introduced to you last week.  There is a nominal cost for this leaflet, but if you read the SFD newsletter from January 12th, you will be able to download this leaflet completely free for a limited time if you use the link that is provided in that newsletter.  It's my 'get busy sewing gift' for you to jump start your 2015 sewing projects.  In addition to this...it could easily be 'Made in a Day'...just another quick, easy and rewarding project.

Have fun and don't forget to send photos when you get yours done!  I'll put together a T-Shirt collage and show off all your work.  Send to info@surefitdesigns.com.

Thanks so much,
Glenda...the Good Stitch!

Read More

Squishy, Spongy, Stretchy!

Topstitching a fabric that is squishy, spongy and stretchy is no fun!  And on top of that, the fabric I was using was a leather-like stretch, which meant once the needle pierced the fabric, it left distinctive holes.  And on top of this, the fabric would not press flat, which made it very difficult when turning and pressing seams.  No second chances on this project!

Here's what the finished jacket looks like.

It's a Sure-Fit Designs knock-off of a jacket I saw in NYC.  Exposed zippers are ever so popular.

Mine of course, being all black, doesn't have quite the bizazz appeal like the black & white ready-to-wear, but it's still a stunning jacket.  And the SFD version does have a shoulder yoke - just not as deep in toward the armscye area.

This blog is going to focus only on the topstitching process and tips that I'd like to share with you if you ever come across this type of situation.  Since I knew I had one chance only to get it right, meaning evenly spaced, straight, no skipped stitches and no puckers, testing prior to the final topstitching was definitely required.

Yup!  This fabric is great to look at, but it sure did have it's challenges.  It just simply wouldn't feed well when the leathery side is face up.  I'd purchased both a solid black as well as a perforated patterned piece.  I got them both in the Stretch House during my NYC excursion.

I combined both these fabrics in this jacket.  With a traditional seam, if right sides were being sewn together, it wasn't a problem, but if you needed to topstitch...well - watch out!  It has kind of a leather-like look and a little bit of a sticky feel.

The feed dogs didn't like it.  The walking foot didn't help feed the under and upper layers equally.  Perhaps a roller foot would have worked, but since I didn't have that machine attachment another solution needed to be found.

After much testing, I settled on a paper-like tear-away stabilizer.  I had 3 different ones to test and ended up using this Sulky Tear-Away.  It's years old and I'm sure the price is more than  $1.99 now, but for this project, it worked the best.

What did I test before sewing the one and only chance I was going to get?
First, I recreated a seam scenario as close to what the finished jacket had - meaning the solid black fabric was on the underside of the lapel.  The perforated fabric was on the top side.
Then I tested:

• the best needle choice to prevent skipped stitches.  Of course, new is always preferable.
• stitch length - what would look the best on the finished edge.
• which stabilizer tore away the easiest without too much pulling and stress on the stitches.

This is just a photo of the test sample.  I did about 3 different swatches.

































After choosing the most appropriate stitch length, best needle and stabilizer, I prepared the stabilizer.  It had to be cut in the exact shape of the neck line curve so that I could lay it in place and see the folded edge of the seam.  I used the pattern's neck edge for this.

Then I took a deep breath, centered my thoughts and began topstitching.  Remember, I had only one chance at this - this fabric was so unforgiving that I couldn't pick it out if I happened to sew crooked.

 

Here's a close-up of the stitching before the stabilizer was torn away.

Next came tearing the stabilizer away.  Even this needed to be done with control - one side at a time for both the upper and under layers.

When it was all said and done, I was quite happy with the results, but I'd been agonizing over this final process for the last few days, knowing that it was one chance or the whole thing would be ruined.

Here's a close-up.

I am happy with the results.  Feel free to comment or add your opinions of how you would have tackled a similar challenge.  Also, watch for a new downloadable Fashion Leaflet describing how to modify your SFD bodice blueprint to achieve this jacket.  I hope to have that available for your soon.

Kindly,
Glenda...the Good Stitch!

P.S. Although this next jacket isn't quite the same (nor is it a Sure-Fit Designs jacket), when I saw it on Imogene Lamport from Inside Out Style - I thought it was so similar in design with the exposed zipper offset on one side, that I wanted to show it to you.  And what a difference it makes to sew it in white for a summery look...also notice the shorter hip length...more like the NYC jacket in white and black.

 

Read More

Do you have a Crotch Peak?

What in heaven's name is she talking about??

When you're sewing your SFD Pants pattern, when it comes to the front and back crotch curves being joined together, as your measurement increases, you'll often experience a 'flip up' or crotch peak.  It looks like this.

Let's analyze this photo.  You can see that both the Back and Front Crotch Extensions are relatively flat.  But as you look at the pattern pieces being joined together when you match at the inseam, it forces these 'flat' crotch extension points to flip up in a peak.

Why does this happen?  It's because the inseam takes a relatively dramatic curve inward.  Nobody wants the leg of their pants to be baggy and that's why the inseam starts to curve inward.  If you think about it, if you had a right angle (90 degree angle), from Crotch Extension Pt. #2 straight down the inseam, then the crotch wouldn't flip up but the leg would then be really baggy on the inside of your legs.  Because the inseam does curve inward, the more it curves the more dramatic the flip up will be which causes this peak.  This is an anomaly that will happen with any pants pattern, not just Sure-Fit Designs.

If you go ahead and sew it along the 'regular' 5/8" seam lines, this is what it will look like.

 A better way to sew this is to lop off (true) some of this peak.  It would look more like the long dashed lines indicated in the above photo.  Baste first - try on.  Depending on how this looks and feels on your body, you may need to flatten (meaning stitch straight across) rather than in a slight curve.

Here's another example of across to flatten that crotch peak.

 This tends to occur and be more obvious with larger sizes along with a narrowed, tapered inseam.

This issue is actually addressed in the SFD Pants Kit Instruction Book on page 11 where there is an illustration showing you to 'True' from Back to Front as you cross over the inseam.

If this happens to be a situation you've come across, now you know how to deal with it.

Happy Sewing,
Glenda...the Good Stitch!

Read More

Easy Front Inset Pocket in a Stretch-Woven Cropped Pant

I was given a remnant of fabric - just enough to sew a pair of cropped pants with an easy front inset pocket.  Since it was a stretch-woven, I did size down my body blueprint 1 measurement dot.  This seemed like enough at the time, but as can happen with stretch knits and stretch-woven fabric, I still basted the seams first - did a try-on - and ended up slimming the hip line even a little more.  You just never know how much it's going to give and how it's going to feel on your body.

Always do a stretch test by picking up 10" on the crosswise grain and stretch it comfortably.  This stretched up to 13" meaning it's a moderate stretch knit.  It should only need to be sized down one dot, but what this doesn't account for is the fabric's ability to rebound or recover.  This particular piece didn't have great recovery.

Now on to the easy inset pocket in the pants front.  The upper and under pocket is all one piece of fabric.

Then you fold the pocket lining - in this case - the beige fabric - up so that the lower cut edge meets back up at the waistline.

If you'd made the pocket lining out of the same fashion fabric, then you would not need to face the 'under' pocket.  But that's not always suitable or practical if the fashion fabric is too heavy.  In this instance, the next step was to cut a shaped facing piece and sew it on to the right side of the waist edge of the under pocket lining.

 

You can also see that the inside edge(s) of the pocket bag have been sewn/serged together.  (Likely best to sew the topstitching on the pocket opening before sewing this inside bag seam).

 

Topstitch the pocket opening if you wish.  Then with the pocket in position, baste through the pocket bag and the side seam and the upper pocket edge to the pants front at the waist edge to hold it in place during the remainder of the construction steps.

This very easy pocket designing and sewing technique is found on page 22 & 23 of your Sure-Fit Designs Pants Kit Instruction Book. It's a Jeans style of pocket without the fuss of a separate upper and under pocket.  If you haven't yet, try it to see just how easy it is.

Kindly,
Glenda...the Good Stitch!

Read More

Made in a Day!

WELCOME...Made in a Day!

I'm opening up a new page in this blog called Made in a Day.  You'll see this page on the top navigation bar immediately to the right of the Home button. The garments you'll see featured are ones that could generally be easily made in a day.

I know some of you sew faster than others.  I know we often have unforeseen 'oopses' that take longer than we wish they would to correct.  And I know that many of you due to family and work commitments don't have a full day to devote to any project, much less a sewing project.  But all things considered, the projects you'll see will all be ones that could be made in a day under ideal circumstances.

Simple to design...simple to sew...that's the objective.  There are all kinds of designs already offered within the Sure-Fit Designs instructional materials and information that would fall into this category.  So for those of you who are either new to sewing or new to designing and sewing your own garments, these suggestions would be excellent starting options.

Sometimes there might be a Fashion Leaflet that shows you how to design/sew the item.  Sometimes the project will already be featured in one of the kit instruction books or in one of the designing books (Pants that Mix n Multiply or Beyond Bodice Basics or Sew Sensational Shirts).  Sometimes I might have produced a video for your instructions.  Other times, it might just be instructions within the blog.  One way or the other, you should be able to access enough information to make the project.

You'll be able to recognize the project by the new logo 'Made in a Day'.

I'd love to hear what you think of this idea, so please use the comment box below and let me know what you think.

And for those of you who have your own blog, please feel free to share this SFD 'Made in a Day' page with them...the more the merrier!

Kindly,
Glenda...the Good Stitch!
P.S.  I'd love to know what sewing projects you've made in a day (or ones that would fall into this category).  And I'd love to see your photos.

Read More

Just a Reminder...

Many of you ask for help. And all of you know, or should know by now, that I am more than willing to offer input, suggestions and solutions for whatever your issue happens to be.

But...I do need to remind you that sometimes your verbal description of what is going on can be 'Greek' to me. You all know how it is so easy to mis-interpret what someone has written.

A picture really is worth a thousand words.

What am I talking about??? When you ask for help via email, please include a photo (or photos) of whatever your question is about. That way I have a better opportunity to evaluate your situation, figure out what you've done (some times I can...some times I can't) and offer suggestions.

There is a page on our websites dedicated entirely to our Customer Support. If you haven't yet run across this page, please click here - Customer Support.

If your question happens to be about the fit of your body blueprint, please make sure you have watched this video first.

Even though I'm demonstrating on a Pants pattern, the same concepts and general cautions also apply to all the Sure-Fit Designs master patterns. How you've drawn your pattern is extremely important.

In my fitting classes, I see all kinds of ways and attitudes about what someone thinks is accurate and how fastidious they are in taking care that the dots and connecting lines are accurate....and then I see others who also think the same thing, but the pattern reflects less attention to detail. This same lack of attention to detail is often reflected in their sewing technique, which of course can change the finished result. Please take your time. So many of you know that the pattern drawing process is truly easy to do and doesn't take much time, but you also know that attention to detail will affect the resulting fit.

And, if you are wondering about a particular style or design or process and wondering where the information is found within the Sure-Fit Designs system, please, please, please download this free Sure-Fit Designs INDEX (which was compiled by Sara Gray - a SFD customer).

Just go to FREE STUFF and scroll down the page. You'll see it. Sara did a remarkable job of indexing where all the information is found within the SFD fitting system materials. It's easy to read and easy to find what you're looking for. Please look here first. Then if you can't find what you're seeking, email me for help.

And last, but certainly not least, if you are wanting help with fitting suggestions or how to design something, you might likely just find the answer in the SFD Video Library - http://www.sfdlearningcenter.com/Video_Library.html or in the Article Library http://www.sfdlearningcenter.com/Article_Library.html

Each month I try to add at least one more video or one more article. I don't always have time to announce these in the newsletter (or anywhere else for that matter). But it really is worth your time to check back to these resources regularly to see if anything is new.

Thanks so much for continuing to be a loyal Sure-Fit Designs user and customer. I truly do enjoy hearing from you.




Kindly,

Glenda

Read More

The Double Welt Pocket

The welt part of a welt pocket is the narrow strip of fabric that forms the decorative and functional upper and lower lip of the opening for the pocket. Welt pockets can have a single or a double welt lip. These directions will be for a double welt. As with many construction techniques, there are many different ways to do most jobs. This is just one way that seems to works well.

Though there will be a pocket bag inside, the finished double welt pocket looks very much like a large bound buttonhole.

1. Mark pocket position on right side of fabric with your choice of marking method - tailor's chalk, tracing carbon or machine basting would work.

2. Cut the welt strips 1" (2.5 cm) wide for a finished 1/4" (6 mm) wide welt and at least 2" (5.1 cm) longer than the desired pocket opening.

3. Fold welt in half, raw/cut edges together. Place the welt on the right side of the garment. Place the fold of the welt toward the outside and the cut edge is on marked pocket position.

4. Stitch down the middle of each welt. Backstitch at both ends. Lines of stitching must be perfectly straight and parallel. If they're not, this won't turn out properly - start again!

5. Cut the pocket opening. Cut down the middle stopping ½” – ¾” (1.3-1.9 cm) before end of pocket. Clip diagonally to backstitched points. Keep diagonal triangle longer, it’s easier to work with. 

6. Turn welts toward inside, carefully press. The welts should just fill the opening with the folded edge of the welts just touching one another.

7. Inside pocket bag - cut the pocket bag the width of the welt plus double the depth you want the pocket to be.

8. On the inside, begin by stitching the (upper) edge of the pocket bag to the cut/raw edge of the top welt. With right sides together, begin on the welt extension, then as you stitch, you'll also sew through the fashion fabric on exactly the previous stitching. Be careful not to catch the triangle in this stitching.

9. a) Fold so that the lower welt is positioned to expose the cut edge of the welt and the bag is "down".

9. b) Then fold the remaining edge pocket bag up to meet the cut edge of the welt thereby covering up the pocket opening hole. Flip over so that you can see where to stitch, then sew beginning on the welt extension through the fashion fabric toward the other end.

10. Fold the fashion fabric back to expose the welt extension and the triangular wedge tab. Stitch across the triangle flush to the body of the garment, stitching through the welt extensions and pocket bag.

11. Trim pocket bag width as desired. Then sew sides of pocket bag together including welt extensions.  

If you've never sewn a double welt pocket, I highly recommend creating a sample from fabric that is lightweight, yet has a relatively crisp 'hand' so that when you press the fold in the welts and when you turn the welts to the inside they will press nice and flat.

Read More