Christmas Party Dress

Yesterday I wrote about my Rose Dress and my Christmas Party Dress is made from the same pattern. I changed the darts slightly but otherwise the pattern was perfect. I wore this dress to my husband's annual work Christmas party. It was a huge hit and is my favorite garment I've made to date. I hope to get more use out of it on holidays to come. 🎄🎅🎁

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Rose Dress

Front of the Rose Dress

The Rose Dress came about from a desire to have something with a deep sweetheart neckline. I've wanted something vintage and romantic and feminine and this dress was the result.

Bodice Pattern

I drafted the bodice pattern from my personal measurements. The skirt is a simple gathered affair and didn't require a pattern. The skirt is a rectangle that's gathered at the top and hemmed to my knees.

Mock Up

My first practice piece (aka mock up) was made in left-over fabric and not meant to be pretty. I just wanted to test the fit and make adjustments. I ended up changing the neckline slightly and I took the waist in a little. 

Lining and zipper placement

The dress has an invisible back zipper and is fully lined. The lining is under-stitched at the neckline and encases all the raw edges of the skirt.

Back of the Rose Dress

The back of the Rose dress could have had the print lined up but I was running out of fabric. However, the invisible zipper really gives it a nice finished look.

I wore this dress for the first time to a friend's wedding and didn't take a photo of myself in it. Next time!

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Heather's Green Home Goods

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Hen and Chick Cloth- Etsy

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The Portrait Blouse

Scottie Dog Portrait Blouse- Front

The pattern for the Portrait Blouse came from Gertie's New Book for Better Sewing, page 137. I have all of her books and highly recommend them!

Scottie Dog Portrait Blouse- Back

For my blouses, I decided to lower the front neckline scoop. I have a heart tattoo on my chest that I like showing off and the higher neckline cut it in half. I also needed a larger size and ended up making myself a muslin so I could get the fit right.

Close up of the Scottie dogs and the machine embroidered heart

I made both of my blouses out of cotton and especially loved the Scottie dog and yarn heart fabric I found. I also machine embroidered a heart to the center front of the Scottie dog shirt. I did this before I cut out my fabric so I could get it positioned properly. I did my best to match the stripes on the Scottie dog shirt and they meet nicely at the shoulders.

Yarn Love Portrait Blouse- Front

Both blouses have a neckline lining. I tacked it down at the shoulder seams and at several locations along the front and back to keep it from flipping out as I wear it. That's one of my pet peeves so I tack down the lining even in store bought tops.

Yarn Love Portrait Blouse- Back

One side has an invisible zipper for easy on and off. I've gotten quit good at putting in invisible zippers and prefer them over regular ones now. You can even paint the pull tab with nail polish to match your fabric better if you can't find the correct color.

Invisible zippers are awesome!

I love wearing these around. They're comfortable and stylish. In the book, Gertie uses nicer fabric, but it's not necessary or practical for me. I live in the country and work at home. For the most part just see my husband, sons, and chickens, and they don't care what I wear. ;) But I like wearing pretty things and Gertie's books have a nice mix of everything I want and need.

Heather's Green Home Goods

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Winter Wool Coat

The finished garment

Last fall I took a couple college classes, one in pattern drafting and the other in tailoring. These two classes gave me the foundations I need for creating my own clothing and I have enjoyed making several items from scratch since then. In our pattern drafting class we had our measurements taken so we could pretty much design any kind of clothing we wanted from our basic blocks. 

I found this really pretty woven fabric from Mood and knew I wanted to make a winter coat from from it. I began with an idea I had in mind and sketched it out on paper first. I wanted a wide collar, an overlapping front, and it had to be knee length. Either way, I wanted it to fit my own frame perfectly.

Drafting the pattern

Mock up created from the original pattern

Coat Lining

The coat is fully lined in matching light brown satin. It's smooth and slick putting it on and taking it off.

Catch stitching the inner garment

The inner construction was very involved and isn't seen on the finished garment. I used traditional tailoring techniques and catch stitched in hair canvas. The woven fabric is 100% wool and easy to work with. Wool is such a versatile fiber and can be molded however you want with steam and heat and the hair canvas gives it a nice foundation to sit on.

Buttonhole mock up

While I was constructing the garment I knew I wanted bound buttonholes to fit my large 2" buttons. I took the extra time needed to do them properly and made a sample first so I could get the technique correct.

Creating the bound buttonholes

The finished garment fits perfectly and turned out beautifully. It was a ton of work but I'm glad I created it.

Mystahhhhry Shindig: Clue 5

I'm really behind on my Mystahhhhry Shindig! Better late than never!

Clue 5 brings us back to all those 3" triangles I previously basted. Now I get to attach them to my 6 "Grandpa's Socks" blocks that I made. :) I'm making the full-sized version so I needed to sew triangles to each end to create a diamond shape.

Looking good! I can't wait to see how these are attached to the main quilt. :)

~*~

You can find my posts on Clues 1 and 2, HERE;

and Clues 3 and 4, HERE.

Wordless Wednesday: WIP: Zest Cardigan

Find the pattern here.

Mystahhhry Shindig: Clues 3 and 4

Clue 3 we get to use a design called "Grandpa's Socks". I had to make 6 'socks' for this step and as you can see there are lots of little pieces.....

Clue 4 gives us a list of all the pieces and what fabric to use so we can go ahead and start basting. Mines coming along slowly but surely!

~*~

Find my post on Clue 1 and 2 HERE.

Black and White Strapless Dress

I worked on this dress in the early fall before it really started cooling down. I had hoped to be able to wear it once or twice before it got cold. Unfortunately, I made it too large and never had time to adjust it. My full-time college classes took up whatever extra time I had in the day and fixing the dress was put out of my mind. Finally my classes ended in December and I was able to get back to work on it. It's done now and stored away for Spring. I can't wait to wear it with a cute cardigan and some matching heels. Pattern: McCall's M6956

Peacock Caplet

This past summer, I began experimenting with dying yarn. For this yarn I combined several different blues and a deep purple to create the peacock colorway.
It turned out really well!

 I really wanted to make something with the peacock yarn that I could wear in the fall to my college classes. I found a pretty simple caplet that knit up quickly. You can find the Traveler's Cape on Ravelry. I did add the extra cable down the center back to mimic the front cables but otherwise the pattern is the same. I completed it just in time in late summer to wear once it started cooling down.

I have plenty more one of a kind yarns for sale in my shop: Color to Dye For!

Cherry Halter Top

Some times you just gotta squeeze in a project for yourself, you know? I made this halter top last week. I've had it cut out since last fall, along with 3 other tops for myself. I figured it was time to get to work on them! With my back all tattooed up now, I really wanted some clothing to show off in. Plus, I love the vintage vibe! I added rick-rack along the bottom for them hem and hand stitched in the side lapped zipper. I'll share the other tops as soon as I can get them done too. :)

Heather's Weekly Gazette, Issue 3

Things have been busy as always around here! I took a little downtime this week to work on easy things since Nature has decided to bloom, driving me inside with horrible sinus headaches. I’ll survive fortunately. :)

WIP’s (works in progress)

Open-Backed Dress Mock-Up

I finally completed my test sewing on the new pattern. The fit is going to be really nice and I've decided to add bust cups to the final product. I think the dress was designed for a stick, and I am not.

• Dress Style 1: Triangle Back

I only needed to do a minor adjustment on the back. One of the triangles gaped open oddly so I just cut off the bottom of the triangle.

• Dress Style 2: Strappy Back

This dress also needed minor adjustments. The top front gaped open a little so I measured what needed to be removed and took it off my pattern.

• Lastly, on both dresses I altered the necklines for a completely different look. :)

Mending

I've also done quite a bit of mending this past week…. torn pants, holes in quilts, that kind of thing. Nothing really fancy but I’m so glad it’s all crossed of my list now!

There were several other things I worked on but those were just the highlights. ;)

The Yarn Alcove

I finally finished hand winding all that new yarn I got! The turquoise yarn is so beautiful!

I’m still slowly knitting away on my Woodland Shawl. Sorry I forgot a photo of it for this week. Hopefully it’ll be longer (and prettier) next week so I can show it off then! You can find me and the shawl pattern on Ravelry. My handle is hgreenhomegoods over there and I'd love to connect with more yarnies! :)

UFO's (unfinished objects)

Oh boy, UFO’s… one in particular has been a thorn in my side. When I got this project, I was in love, ‘oh, this is nothing!’,I said... ‘I’ll have this done by Christmas!’, I said. Little did I know how involved this project was! The Canvas Log Cabin has gotten most of my attention this week. I’ve stitched while watching TV. I’ve stitched in-between projects and chores. I spent a whole day stitching (and watching Season 1 of S.H.I.E.L.D.- yes, all 12 hours of it). And I STILL don’t feel like I’ve made much progress on it. I’ve gotten the whole interior stitched up but not put together. I have a few bits here and there to stitch up before I can put the second floor loft together and stitch it to the interior. BUT, I’m so much further along than I was a week ago. Progress, one step at a time.

New Toys

I hit up a Hancock’s fabric store that was going out of business this past week and bought some good stuff on sale. I found some fun fabrics but also invested in another pair of Gingher scissors. If you don’t have good quality sewing shears or are in the market for new ones, get this brand! I also got a Sidewinder by Simplicity. The verdict is still out on this one for me. I think it’s a little flimsy but hopefully it’ll save me some time winding bobbins. And lastly, I got a couple vintage style patterns. I love Vogue sewing patterns but at $20+ each a pop buying them isn’t usually an option. I managed to get these for $4 each! :) I think that’s a win!

Home & School

My college classes are still going. I’m starting to feel like they’ll never end. I’m not particularly enjoying my Merchandising 2 class which probably has a lot to do with the way I’m feeling. My fingers are crossed though that I can still pass everything with flying colors. 6 weeks and counting!

My dryer has been giving me a headache this past month. First, the heating element went out & we had to wait 2 weeks for parts and repairs. Then, the panel with all the knobs need a clip replaced and the repair guy shorted out my dryer. He actually blew the fuses while replacing the clips. What repair guy doesn’t unplug or ask for the breaker to be turned off before working… apparently this guy. After doing our own trouble shooting and being thankful we had new fuses my dryer was back to working. Hey, I only had to hang 1 load on the laundry line. I got really lucky with my busy schedule. Things could have been much worse!

Lastly, my youngest son is starting Kindergarten next year (grab the tissues!) and we’ve been busy with Kindergarten Round Up & Screening. He’s going to do excellent in school. He got high marks on everything at the screening. We both also went to have our eyes checked. He’s never had his done and it was all kinda strange to him. I had mine checked too just to show him it’s ok and not too worry (and because it’s been 15 years since my last check up)! He’s not color blind and has 25/25 vision- those letters are tricky for a still learning 5 year old! And I have 20/20 vision, with an excellent report. I had a photo taken of the back of my eye and the Dr let me take a photo. lol It’s kinda weird looking!

OK, so now that I’ve grossed you all out I’ll sign off with a little something to look forward to….

Look for details this week!!!