the Sewing Bee watch part II (it might be over, but we're still sewing)

[UniqueAndAmazing]

I thought I'd better start a new thread so that we don't lose it!

Original part here...

Background - flubba got excited by The Great British Sewing Bee and we all piled in too

friend has got a brand new sewing machine that has an automatic buttonholer (desperately jealous. mine's fully manual!)
byt she hasn't got a button tin.

I want to make her one! can't post it cos it'll be heavy but might be able to get my parents to take it round (they visit me at the beginning of june)

saurus you need to learn shirts then

oooh, or accessories!
bags and wallets and stuff.

Thank you, I think it is a lovely dress too!

I nearly fell over laughing at the though of teenage boys in A line skirts

I thought I'd look through the Vogue/ McCalls/ Butterick patterns for a decent boys' shirt pattern and I can't believe that there wasn't a single traditional shirt pattern. There were a couple of casual patterns but I want more of a formal one.

The only thing that I can think of to make for my two year old boy is pyjama bottoms. He hasn't really realised that the new cushions on his bed were made by me

you can make loads of things for 2-yo boys.
you can make toys and trousers (not just pjs - any trousers with elasticated waists!) and shirts and waistcoats and dressing up costumes and bags and things for storage (those hanging jumper holders kind of thing) and teeshirts (if you've got an overlocker) and coats and slippers and boxes to put things in (you'll need board to make then stiff) and toys

this is what i've mainly been making at the moment:

shoulder
neck
hand
full teeshirt

they're pyjama tops for dd to stop her injuring herself whwn she scratches at night. (seams on the outside so they don't irritate)
i'vre made 5 so far, all from old teeshirts of mine or DH's.

Hi I have always been a knitter/crocheter and have done some sewing before but was inspired by the sewing bee to do some more! My dcs are at their dad's this weekend so have been working on a dress for my 7yr old dd.
It is a simple dress with bodice, short sleeves and full skirt but I have used a blue material with little white polka dots on and printed white poodles around the hem. Just have to attach the skirt and put a zip in down the back which I am dreading as I have only done 1 zip before a long time ago!
Hoping to finish it in time for our holiday a week on friday but think I will manage it.

You can make loads of things for 2yo boys. I'll post you some links when I get to my PC but for the moment Google the Melly Sews Sews blog - she's a friend of mine with two boys under 5 and she sews loads of stuff for them.

(there should only be one Sews in that blog title)

Well, I did get the sewing machine out briefly this weeken and started on the new toille for my jeans and a skirt one (which it's clear is going to take a lot of adjustment.

I also made a little bag to keep DS2's inhaler and bits in as the paper bag we did have it in has disintegrated..

Unfortunately this has shown up a problem with the buttonhole programme on my fairly newly-serviced machine and the buttonhole foot has got plastic fatigue and isn't as good as it was.

Next job - sort buttonhole foot!

should be cheap enough for new buttonhole foot.
i love feet.
(i don't love changing them, though - the are never the same size grip, so sometimes i don't have to move the screw much and sometimes have to take it right off!)

i repaired the zip in my charity shop skirt yesterday. god knows what was wrong with my machine, though - the tension was all over the place and DD wouldn't leave me alone!
i changed the needle a couple of time, adjusted the bobbin, rescrewed and unscrewed the bobbin holder thingy, and all manner of other randomnesses.
i think i sorted it eventually, and managed to sew the zip back into place.
that's where annoying feet come in, i had to use the invisible zip foot for the zip and the normal zip foot for the seam below the zip.

after that, i really couldn't be bothered to alter the waist. I'm wearing it today to get an idea how much it needs to be altered.

I know this isn't in the spirit of the thread but would it not have been easier to hand stitch the zip back in?

I have not got the guts to try changing feet yet.

Any idea how difficult it is to draft a pattern from an existing item of clothing?

I have a top I love. I have some nice summery fabric. What could/should I do now?

hair yes it probably would.
but I still would have needed to sort out the machine so...
might as well sort it out when I need it for something small as waste time when I'm doing something big.

depends on the item of clothing.
turn it inside out and lay it over the end of your ironing board. that will help you see the shape.

changing feet is lovely really. it's more exciting having the perfect foot than it is scary to change it.

that no onecommented on my eczema reeshirts :(

I thought the eczema reeshirts were brilliant!! Sorry.
I think you could actually have a market for this. You should look at patenting it for development.

thank you :)
not an original idea, I'm afraid. totally stolen from www.eczemaclothing.co.uk (or com) but tgey use flatlock seams, which lie flat (so look like star trekky )
they don't do the coloured ones anymore, only the white organic fabric.

I could still make and sell them somewhere like etsy though, they're hard to get hold of and quite expensive.

less star trekky

I think it's a brilliant idea. It may save some children trips to hospital if they can't access their skin. My friend's dd could have done with something like that when she was younger.

I like the idea of making them a bit more interesting too.

Hellesbelles I have a book from the library on just that! It's called "DIY couture" by Rosie Martin, and shows how to use your own clothes to get measurements and shapes to make new clothes.

You can use masking tape to work out the pattern pieces -- basically cover all of a fabric section (up to surrounding seams) with overlapping masking tape, mark in any darts etc., then peel off the masking tape. If there was a dart then cut down where it was so that you can open up the dart shape (but it's much easier if the original garment doesn't have darts). Then you stick the masking tape shape down onto (e.g.) brown paper, draw round it and add seam allowances.

Repeat for each fabric piece you need. If there are facings etc. then easier to redraft them from your new pattern pieces than try to masking-tape the facings. Similarly plackets etc.

Look at instructions for AN Other generic garment of the type you're copying to get an idea of order of construction in sewing it all together.

Thanks InMySpareTime I will be heading to the library to order that.

Thanks for the masking tape idea tolliver how would that work with gathered shoulders and cuffs?

It would get tricky. Personally I'd try to get as much as possible of the gathered section taped over, and all of the non-gathered edges, and hope that was enough to reconstruct the shape (you could also look at basic outlines of similarly-shaped pieces on other garments). But with any garment with fiddly bits like that I'd want to make a toile/muslin (possibly a wearable muslin if all went well) to make sure my version of the pattern worked before I cut into my good fabric.