SSS Day 15

I’ve made it to the HALFWAY POINT!!! And with only 2 non-self-stitched items (RTW Jeans on Day 11 and a RTW Shirt on Day 12). I’m pretty proud of that, but I must say I had an emotional moment the night before Day 15 and wanted to scrap it all, or at least part way….

I’ve made it to the HALFWAY POINT!!! And with only 2 non-self-stitched items (RTW Jeans on Day 11 and a RTW Shirt on Day 12). I’m pretty proud of that, but I must say I had an emotional moment the night before Day 15 and wanted to scrap it all, or at least part way. I’m noticing that most of my SSS is brown and pink and I miss black. I miss some of the easy-to-wear tanks and, well, the other half of my wardrobe in general. I teeter between “Well, I’ve made it this far, that’s pretty good, just relax!” and “I’ve made it this far, I can’t stop now!” lol. So we’ll see how it all plays out.

I think I wore something similar on day 15 to what I wore exactly a week ago on Day 8, which is a bummer because I have a very early Women’s Bible study where last week was the first meeting and this week was the second so now they’ve seen me in the same outfit! Eeek! It’s okay – even someone who knows about my SSS didn’t notice. I wore my Flared Denim Skirt again (Simplicity 5914), but this time with my pink gauze top from Simplicity 2892 and my self drafted white knit shrug.

...in the coolness of the garden...

What I’ve decided on the skirt is I will take it in on the bottom sides (someday). This skirt has a side zip and I forgot to top stitch it so there will be no topstitching to take out…just remove part of the hem, sew the flare smaller and reinstall the hem. Plus, these are the seems I feel are the most trouble. I do not mind the front and back flares, so I think that will work out well!

The Gertie Lady Grey sew-a-long is in full muslin mode now, so I purchased some pattern tracing stuff (it’s not really fabric, not really paper) to transfer my pattern and get moving. There was some discussion about whether or not people trace their patterns or just use the original. For me, it depends on the pattern. On the Alice & Olivia pattern, I used the original, though now I wish I had traced it because I think I will use it over and over again. I traced the Anita Jeans pattern onto sew-in interfacing so that I could try it on and fit the “pattern”. Now I have a pretty messed up pattern (from all the taking in, adding on, etc.) so I plan to re-trace the altered pieces onto new pattern stuff/interfacing and then making further alterations from there. That way, I will be able to use it again and again without worry that the paper will wear out. Most patterns I don’t do this with as I don’t typically re-make a dress or top. However, this Lady Grey pattern was$18 (with the sew-a-long discount) so I feel like I’d like to preserve the original pattern for use later on. Therefore I will be tracing it. I bought this burgundy polyester suiting fabric from Hancock’s for $1.95/yd on the clearance tables.

muslin fabric for the Lady Grey Sew-A-Long

I think it has a similar weight and feel to the wool blend I will be using so it should give me an accurate picture of the fit of the pattern. I’m now trying to decide…do I round up the tailoring items, such as silk thread, special interfacing, sleeve heads and silk organza for the bound buttons or just keep it simple and do regular buttonholes, fusible interfacing (that I already have), etc. hmmm….decisions, decisions. If any of you readers are doing the sew-a-long, what have you decided?

See you tomorrow!

6 Comments

  1. I’m suffering through the same decisions on Lady Grey! First, i cut the pattern, and now am thinking that I shouldn’t have, because I think I might have cut too large, and with the armscye, if you cut too large, you actually are cutting off the smaller part!! Oh well. It’s done now!

    I’m actually working on multiple coat projects. The lady Grey is more casual – I’m going to do a full muslin with 1″ seams for practice, but go with all the interfacing I have at home (silk organza that I sew in – I hate fusible interfacing!). I’m still not sure on the bound buttonhole. For my husband’s coat, which is wool, I’m going for the ordered special interfacing – I want his more tailored and special!

    The one thing I would def. get for everything is silk thread. It’s so awesome for any sort of hand sewing/tailoring. It’s actually to the point for me that if I don’t have the right color on hand, it’s a project-stopper-get-in-the-car and go get some situation!!

    1. Well, Patty, I’m such an “A+” addict that I went ahead and got all the specialty items between yesterday and this morning. They’ll be coming in the mail…soon I hope! But we have some time. I plan to blog about it tonight for tomorrow’s post. 🙂

  2. I say “Hang in there Jamie!” from your SSS fan! 🙂 Even though I do not even attempt to sew clothes, your endeavor has truly inspired me to look at my closet and only keep the clothes that I truly love to wear. It is better to have fewer clothes that I love than a closet full of clothes that are just “ok-marginal”! I think you may have a place in the “What not to Wear” world or some other show about fashion. 🙂

  3. I just discovered you via Burda Style. Man, so glad to find another lady grey sew along-er! I am freaking out about this, it’s my first sew along and I can’t find any decent material around where I live, let alone a suitable muslin. Would you recommend anywhere online for ordering fabric? (I’m in the UK, but the US would be fine).
    Also, silk thread?? This sounds lovely and v fancy. What is it all about, and would it be a good idea to use??

    1. Oh! Glad you found me. This is my first sew a long too! I’m not sure that my sources ship internationally, but I got a washable wool blend and silk twill for lining on http://www.fabric.com. I got my silk thread, etc. at http://sewtrue.com and my silk organza on ebay. The silk thread is for padstitching – a hand stitch on the lapel that helps the collar roll and lay nicely (at least as I understand it). This is optional – we can do it the easy/normal way we all generally sew or learn the tailoring techniques from Gertie. Are you a part of the flickr group? If not, most of us are up there sharing our pictures and ideas in the “discussion” section. Maybe someone there would have a good UK source or know more than me in general! hahaha! Thanks for your question…off to check out your blog!

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