McCalls 6404 Re-do

Sadly, in the world of sewing (as in nearly everywhere else), you get what you pay for. (Except when it comes to bargains like Craftsy classes on sale or McCall's $1.88 pattern sale, both which are happening right now. You're welcome).

I'm sure there are exceptions to this rule, but in my experience I'll always regret using cheapo fabric — especially if I want, you know, to, like, actually wear the garment in question. 

Today's Exhibit A is my leather patch leggings, which I sewed from McCall's 6404, a pattern I liked even though it had a wacky amount of ease built-in (I took them in to reduce wrinkling after this picture was shot):  

Ease-y rider

But then I was riding the bus with my preschooler on a rainy day when I noticed little black specs all over her hands. "What have you been touching?!" I asked her, alarmed. 

"Nothing!" she insisted. And that's when I noticed, it was all over my hands too! Looking around, it became clear that the culprit was my leather-patch leggings, the knees of which were shedding a layer of ...what? plastic? Ick!

So I threw them in my sewing bin, hoping something could be done to salvage them eventually. I loved the main fabric (a soft and lovely double knit) too much to toss them. But clearly the el cheapo pleather patches were not up to the task of actually being worn. Rage!

Luckily, I had just enough of the gray double-knit left to make knee patches (hurray for hoarding!). Unpicking all those seams last weekend was an unpleasant experience. In the middle of it, I was considering other hobbies. My sister-in-law just began log-rolling classes. That sounds fun.

Incidentally, that double-knit cost twice as much per yard as the faux leather. And when I re-did these leggings with knee patches made in the same fabric, I finally got what I paid for:

Not the best photo in the world (I suck at selfies!), but I'm very happy to now have a pair of very wearable leggings (though the back rise on this pattern is dangerously low for me; I have to wear a looooong top to keep my underpants under wraps when I bend over or sit down):

I like the subtlety on the seaming now. To anyone considering this pattern, I would suggest adding a few inches to the length (and the back rise if you have a round butt!), and sewing the smallest size you think woud fit you. There was so much excess in these after my initial pass at this pattern.

Is there any case in which cheap fabric doesn't come back to burn you? What's your biggest fabric fail?

Project Runway — What Did We Learn This Week? Season 11, Episode 5

This is the debut post in a new weekly feature wherein I recap all the lessons I learned from this week's episode of Project Runway. 

The challenge in Episode 5 of Season 11 was to create both a stage outfit and red carpet look for country star Miranda Lambert, a curvy (we are told MANY TIMES) blonde bombshell whose image is "a little bit country, a little bit rock n' roll." Nearly all of the contestants opted for leather, fringe or navy with varying degrees of success. (I know: Navy? Huh? The "dossier" must have said Miranda likes it).

I find Project Runway to be instructive in many ways — for example, fabric choice is always a hot topic during critique with Tim Gunn, and styling is nearly always a factor in judging. Last week's episode was no exception. There was plenty to glean from the double-pronged challenge that saw everything from a goth cheerleader get-up to a gigantic dirndl skirt on the runway.

Lesson 1: "Stinkpot" is what qualifies as crass for Tim Gunn.

This season of Project Runway is all about the team challenges, and in his charming way, Tim cautioned: "You could have the most stunning look on that runway, but if you're paired with a stinkpot, it doesn't matter." While Tim Gunn's words contain an important lesson for the contestants, I think the way he delivers his warning is instructive to people like me, who have a tendency to be crass (I reign it in on my blog because I don't want this site to be pulled up on Google using certain search terms). His anachronistic sentiment (a "stinkpot" is actually defined as an unpleasant person) is characteristic of his special brand of refined grace. He stands out as from another era in this shameless age.

I just love Tim Gunn. He's high on my list of "Celebrities I DON'T Want to Meet Because I Am Afraid I Will End Up Embarrassing Myself By Crying." Michelle Obama and Mr. Dress-up (Canada's Mr. Rogers, essentially) also rank high on this list (and yes, I am aware that Ernie Coombs went to the great Tickle Trunk in the sky many years ago now).

So what's the lesson here? Unusual epithets make you seem interesting.

Lesson 2: "Soutache" is a technique of decorating fabric with narrow braided trim manipulated into shapes.

Daniel, the quirky Texan with the Salvador Dali 'stache, used this technique to embellish a halter-top bodice with what appeared to be squished up pieces of metallic leather that he gleefully snaked all over the poor torso of his grimacing model. This technique likely died with the last Confederate soldier because it appears to be as outdated as the hoop skirt. (Though searching for more info on it, I did discover it makes an appearance on Downton Abbey, so perhaps some of you more vintage-minded sewers would beg to differ).

The judges, meanwhile, were not happy with the result:

I actually didn't think Daniel's look was all that terrible. Nineties beauty queen, yes. Awful hem finishing that resembled a flea market napkin, sure. But did he deserve the proverbial spanking he got from Nina? That brings us to:

Lesson 3: If you produce incredible work (like Daniel has in previous challenges), don't ever think for a moment that you can coast on that. You will be eviscerated 10 times worse than the consistently mediocre (Cough, cough, Stanley). You're only as good as your current project. Nobody cares anymore that you made this a month ago:

The judges like to keep us guessing by praising both simple, flattering designs and intricate, unwearable weirdness like Patricia's Native American-inspired fringe apron (on the left), while bashing the equally odd "linguine bib" (on the right) by Michelle (actually one of my favorite designers this season, if only for her spot-on impression of Nina Garcia, which had the exact cadence of Project Runway's most withering judge):

Which leads us to....

Lesson 4: Just because you botch one project doesn't mean the next thing you make/create/undertake won't be a masterpiece. I really thought Benjamin dodged a pair of sharp Ginghers when he wasn't eliminated for this dress two episodes ago:

This painful-looking, flesh-colored monstrosity is among the garments that my husband has said he could make — on "Project Dumbway," a fashion competition show in which regular dudes like my husband attempt Project Runway-style challenges. (It doesn't exist. We just like to imagine the outcome of such challenges when attempted by people with no talent or experience. And whenever we see something like this come down the runway, we yell "Project Dumbway!" in unison. Married life is fun).

But then Benjamin went and made this stunning gown, which I thought was just as lovely as anything on the red carpet the other night:

So remember: We are not as bad as our worst project. We are as good as our best work. (Which, I am aware, totally undermines Lesson 3, but this is Project Runway — and what the judges like is an enigma wrapped in a paradox concealed under seven layers of silk organza.)

What lessons did you learn from last week's episode of Project Runway?

Work(Almost)-in-progress: Sew Fearless Mommy Poppins Bag!

Do you follow Jodi Bonjour's blog Sew Fearless? She's a super cute crafty lady with four five kids and a poet for a husband. (Not to be confused with my dear friend Andreae, who also blogs, has four kids and is married to a poet. It must be hard, it seems, to refuse the advances of an amorous poet).

Jodi is also a patternmaker with a small line of cool projects for kids and super useful tutorials on things like adding nursing openings to empire-waisted tops/skirts. (I'm bookmarking that one even though my husband's not a poet and I'm planning on being pregnant anytime soon).

And she also has the best tag line ever: "Over come your fear of needles." Love it.

So of course I'm super excited to be testing her latest pattern, the Mommy Poppins bag, a carpet-bag-style diaper bag.

This is Jodi's bag. To see more version of this bag go to her blog: Sew Fearless

Please nobody tell my husband I'm sewing a diaper bag. He may get nervous and start checking the condoms for holes, a la Rick Moranis in Parenthood.

Ok, so it was a diaphragm. This movie is from 1989. I was 11 then and didn't know the difference.

I think this bag is a great design for a larger, NYC-sized purse or bag you might bring on an all-day outing (every day in New York is an all-day outing, and every woman in NYC is carrying two purses right now. Seriously: Google-streetview any Manhattan address and you will see a woman standing on the corner with two bags on her shoulder. We all need massages, stat!)

Actual Google Street View pic

I'm using fabrics I had on hand, the main outer bag being Marimekko's Lumimarja print (which we had hanging over our bed for years. But I recently changed things up and was waiting to find the right project for this fabric. I love it — plus it was pricey, so I better not mess this up).

The accents will be sewn in the pale brown chambray Gingermakes sent me (she gets a shout-out nearly every post for being so damn generous!). I also have some suede that I hope to use as an accent if my machine will let me. Check out the cool hardware Jodi sent me:

I've never sewn a true purse before. Did you know there are so many things you need to make a handbag? Stabilizers and sheets of plastic, closures, buckles, three kinds of fabric....I ordered up supplies from Hancock Fabrics, hoping to avoid a trip downtown to the Garment District (not because I dislike going there. It's just a big deal for me to get the time to myself to travel all the way there from the Bronx). But already I've discovered other stuff I forgot to get before I can proceed....more interfacing, lining, and I don't want to skip the rivets that Jodi includes in her perfect-looking examples of this bag. I do believe sewing this bag is going to be a major learning experience for me.

Why have I never sewn a purse before? I've been dubious that my sewing machine could handle stitching thick layers of durable fabrics or leathers. Also, I've filed handbags under the "Looks better when professionally done" category — a header that also includes jeans.

How about you, readers? Anyone dabble in handbag construction before or after getting their start in garments? What's keeping you from sewing a handbag?

I'm on Facebook! ("Like" me if you like!)

I've been on Facebook for years, but only just finally created a Facebook page for my blog. It didn't really occur to me how important it was until I noticed how I almost never miss a post by those blogs I follow on Facebook. (In particular, I find it hard to keep up with Wordpress blogs, because they don't show up in my Blogger feed. Also, my time for blog-reading is limited, so I appreciate the ease of seeing posts all in one easy-to-read-on-my-phone place). So to help those readers who may not be blogger members themselves stay connected, I created a Facebook page. "Like" it and my posts will appear in your feed, so you never miss anything!

Finished Object! LBD? No! LND!

How good are you at colors? I thought for sure this easy dress I made using a lovely ponte knit given to me by my virtual friend Gingermakes was black:

But then I wore when I met her in person (even though it was a Saturday afternoon and I had no good reason to dress up other than to prove I made something with the fabric she gifted me). She (and everyone else at hand) thought it was actually navy:

Which is great, because I have navy pumps. All dressed up like this, my daughter said I looked "as pretty as a Gangnam Style girl," whatever that means:   

(So of course I did the Gangnam Style dance)

I used McCall's 6319 to sew this dress. I didn't line it (the pattern calls for lining in tricot, which I couldn't pick out in a lineup nor pronounce properly, so I opted instead to wear a slip if need be):

I really love the pleated, drapey details at the shoulder and the waist. I think this would be a great dress to wear to a wedding, belted with something fancy. You would look put together but when it comes time to dance, watch out!

The exposed shoulder zip is another great detail. But it's not like you need it to get this thing on. It has alot of stretch. My only quibble is the armscye dips a little low. I don't mind (because I know will get sweaty in ponte knit and need the ventilation), but depending on your undergarments, it may be a problem for some wearers. I also think when I make this again (closer to Spring; it's freaking cold today in NYC!), I will turn the skirt into a slight A-line. I have wide hips, and I don't like when skirts pull at the hip because then they start to head north as I walk: bad news!

Classy. Simple. And in navy (instead of black): unexpected?