#sewover50

I’m enjoying a creative spurt! This is the #sbccpatterns Gibson Blouse from rayon in my stash. I like the gathers and the hemline. It feels feminine but not too girly. #sewingproject #sbccgibson #sbccgibsonblouse #isewmyownclothes #sewover50 #memade #memadeeveryday https://www.instagram.com/p/CnrgIbDOa3i/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Some sewing perspective thanks to @sewover50 . We are our own harshest critics, specially in the social media world of "perfection." Remember that we all have our own paths and timelines, progress is good goal to have. . . How do you rate your sewing self? 🤔 . . Do you feel inspired or angst when you see other’s sewing? 😳 Do you lack confidence and think twice before posting? Do you double guess what people might be thinking? Do you think “will my post get any likes?” and that little voice of self doubt creeps in? Or do you just look? . . . . The SewOver50 community is very supportive from beginners (yes, we all started there so we know what it’s like 😃) to intermediate to our gifted couture sewers. The only difference is practice....not passion or you wouldn’t be here with us. 😊 . . So, share your passion. Suspend that self doubt and post. After all, when it all boils down to it we’re not in it for the “likes” we’re in it because we ❤️ sewing. . . . #sewover50 #sewinclusive #costumingbts #sewcialists #costura #historicalgarments #sewingcommunity #sewingisforeveryone #memade #costuracreativa #isew #handmadewardrobe #costumedesign #sewistsofinstagram https://www.instagram.com/p/B0_gI8lhoSh/?igshid=154mutx2beo4i

POP UP SHOP today 12 - 8pm... Easthill Studios, 82 Easthill, Colchester Essex co1 2qw (Above the THAI 1 restaurant.....please use the side door next to restaurant door for access) Kiki @kyannachannell wearing her Claudette Joseph floral swing dress and browsing the rails. #fashiondesigner #sewover50 #designer #womenswear #contemporaryclassicwithatwist #modernclassicstyle https://www.instagram.com/p/Ce5ZDQAq_k5/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

I have worn MeMades every day this May. It’s the first year I have stuck to it all month! I got photos every day but am weeks behind on posts. Expect too many starting now! (My postings stalled when Insta thought I had posted inappropriately. That’s fixed now.) This purple linen came from @seamsfabric in East Lansing. It was deadstock and it’s an incredible fabric with amazing weight/drape. The pattern was from a tracing I made of a dress I purchased. The jacket is the same weight linen... a vintage 1960’s/70’s find from Etsy. Earrings from my Sis in Love @otterwise; the necklace I assembled myself. #madeWithSeams #SewOver50 #meMadeMay2022 #IMakeMyOwnClothes #FBA #FullBustAdjustment #IAddedDarts #ProudGarmentRepeater #ProudOutfitRepeater #sewistsOfInstagram #FavoriteMakes #quiltingCottonGarment #TnTPattern #triedAndTruePattern #usedGarmentAfficionado https://www.instagram.com/p/CeP8DvrtiRl/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

This is another #MeMadeMay dress made from the tracing of a favorite dress made in Africa (I asked what country... they didn’t know). This one is made from 100% cotton twill (like jeans but not blue). It was intended as home decor fabric, but I pre-washed/dried it on hot/hot and went for it. (The texture is not perfectly smooth but I enjoy the very-slightly nubby texture.) I used a somewhat squared neckline that’s relatively small, to hide bra straps and potentially show off a special necklace. I wore it with a 3/4 sleeved collared shirt given to me by my friend Helen. It’s a luxurious 70% silk/30% linen, so it holds a crease, has a bit of body, and is buttery soft without that annoying catches-on-my-skin feature of some “china” lightweight plain-weave silks. The earrings I made about 20 years ago at a polymer clay workshop with Pier Voulkos. The wires (except the earwires) are colored standard telephone wire. Cool, huh? (Also: The white clay I used in these earrings actually glows in the dark. Just because I could.) #SewOver50 #meMadeMay2022 #IMakeMyOwnClothes #FBA #FullBustAdjustment #IAddedDarts #ProudGarmentRepeater #ProudOutfitRepeater #sewistsOfInstagram #FavoriteMakes #quiltingCottonGarment #TnTPattern #triedAndTruePattern #usedGarmentAfficionado https://www.instagram.com/p/CdoswKLpm8g/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

This day in #MeMadeMay I wore another version of @100actsofsewing ‘s #DressNo1 (in a quilting cotton I bought the fist time I worked at @joann_stores ). I embellished it with a vertical column of hot green buttons which pop even on this busy, electric print. I wore it inside an air-conditioned space with a thrifted linen shirt that I’ve had for many years. Oversized shirts are great as an extra layer in the summer, both against air conditioning and against sunshine. In this version I made the front neckline the same as the back. However, I added darts in the front to help it fit my curves better. The a-line shape isn’t quite roomy enough to really fit well without that additional space. The hair scarf was a vintage thrift find many years ago. The crazy plastic earrings? They’re only a few years old though they look late ‘60’s; I found them at a dollar store, of all places. I also wore a fast-fashion thrifted snug tee shirt underneath it, in turquoise. I also bought that at resale fairly recently. I buy very few things brand new anymore. Shoes, undergarments, jewelry and tights are the notable exceptions. I honestly gave up because the quality at resale is significantly better much of the time. Also, resale shops carry clothes from many decades, so it’s really a great way to try on different styles that you’ve never tried. It’s not like the stores at the mall where every store has the same dress shape in different fabrics. Note: Please understand that the third photo goes with a different outfit this week. It’s not for this dress. I did make those beaded earrings. I just can’t seem to delete it after saving as a draft. #SewOver50 #meMadeMay2022 #IMakeMyOwnClothes #FBA #FullBustAdjustment #IAddedDarts #ProudGarmentRepeater #ProudOutfitRepeater #sewistsOfInstagram #FavoriteMakes #quiltingCottonGarment #TnTPattern #triedAndTruePattern #usedGarmentAfficionado https://www.instagram.com/p/CdmlrAaIwrd/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

It got warm this week. I got out my first version (wearable muslin/toile) of the @100actsofsewing #DressNo1 which is so comfy and so me, despite not being a favorite fabric. I love my semi-mini dresses, but there is a danger of a peek a boo if I lean over wrong or if I lift my arms too high. I have fortunately made a couple of sets of stretch choli (no need for a bra in hot weather) and “dance pants” to wear as a layer over my underpants in case someone could get a look that I didn’t intend. On these hot days, I can wear that matching set under the light cotton tunic/dress and get out of the house quickly. On my second photo I’m wearing the set alone, and I have added my measurements to add to the transparency I believe is essential these photoshopped/filtered social media days. (These two items were traced from commercially-purchased pieces that I wore a lot.) The third photo is me wearing the same dress in a previous #MeMadeMay #SewOver50 #meMadeMay2022 #IMakeMyOwnClothes #ProudGarmentRepeater #ProudOutfitRepeater #sewistsOfInstagram #FavoriteMakes #quiltingCottonGarment https://www.instagram.com/p/Cdkck4wOZEI/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

What day is it, anyway? I’m posting from several days ago for #MeMadeMay #MeMadeMay2022 - This vest is maybe the most fun thing I have made as an adult. It was intended to be a Halloween costume, but it’s so fun I wear it regularly. The front and back panels are printed with black cats (I had one for 17 years) and the side panels have smallish black dots that coordinated. They were Halloween fabric from @joann_stores when I worked there. I made a short purple batik circle skirt the year before, that is perfect with it (see final image). I couldn’t find it the day of this photo, despite it being hanging in the closet in it’s proper place that evening. Go figure! The top was thrifted years ago. The skirt I also thrifted around that time. It is knit, but not top down in a circle. It was knit from the back seam around to the back again, and then beginning/end sewn together. I needed it to be about 2-3 inches larger just at the top. I unpicked the seam at the top, inserted two layers of cotton-lycra/spandex black stretch knit as a triangle gusset and sewed it into the opening. It works GREAT! Since I don’t ever tuck things in, nobody ever could see anyway. Photos include the whole outfit this week, a close up of the restructured waistband, a look at the too-wide neckline which I’ll trim down next time, the vest laid flat on my cutting table, the pattern envelope and fabric samples, and a photo of me wearing it the first time, with the batik skirt. #MendMay @mendingMayhem #SewOver50 #sewistsOfInstagram #MendersOfInstagram #ProudOutfitRepeater #ProudGarmentRepeater #FixThatGarmentDontTossIt https://www.instagram.com/p/CdaAFZyu7Oq/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=