I did some non-selfish sewing for a friend recently, and in getting out fabric for it, I went through my bin. I found a tiny remnant of some handkerchief white linen I bought back in 2014 to make an 18th century shift. I messed up the first iteration and ended up starting again with the bleached IL019 linen from fabrics-store.com and an actual pattern, but I kept my messed up pieces because the linen was so fine. (Word to the wise on the fabric link: I'm not entirely convinced this is the same fabric I bought before, because I'm pretty sure what I bought was 100% linen, but since my receipt link takes me to this listing, I can't be sure).
I used some of it to line the inside of my 18th century stays, and just had a bit left. It was the bit from the top of the shift, and one of the many things I'd messed up was cutting the neckline (I was using a period-appropriate diagram to cut the shift that has you cut everything in squares and rectangles to make most use of the fabric, but I somehow missed the note about fabric width differences, so all the proportions were wildly off. I blame averaging 2-3 hours of sleep at the time).
In any case, the neckline came out way too wide, and what was left after lining my stays was a folded rectangle of fabric with a too-wide but shallow neckline cut out.
In glancing at it, I realized there might just be enough to get an Emerald out if I cut the facings from something else. It was a squeak, to be sure, and I had to make the shirt 1" shorter than my other versions, which made me nervous, but I soldiered on. There are fumes of fabric left, not even enough to pass on to Birdie for her little projects.
I initially thought to make facings from the leftover linen from my shift, but the textures and weights were so different I thought it would look weird. I had some white bemberg, but was leery of using it after making facings from rayon for my remnant Emerald.
I also have a yard or two of mystery white cotton fabric that is very smooth and tightly woven that I bought a long time ago for something or other, but never made. I used a bit of it to make the pocket bags for my Gzhel skirt, and decided it would work well for the facings on this blouse too, since it was light and sheer. (I think this fabric is lawn, and it is probably from the Robert Kaufman Cambridge line, but can't be sure. I wish I did know, as it is a really nice substrate and I would try to find other colors).
My only complaint about this shirt was the amount of time it took me to make it, not because it was complicated, or had problems, but because I had a run of days where the minute I tried to sew anything, something came up with the kids that needed my attention. (call it #thatlockdownlife). I pretty much had to sew this shirt one seam at a time. Which is not generally how I roll. But once I finally got it done, I was happy with the result.
I did have a slight panic when I put it on yesterday, before I had my skirt on. The 90s called; they want their clothes back! But then I got my skirt on and realized it was fine. I could probably use just a smidge more room across the bust, but I made French seams at the sides and shoulders because of the fineness of the linen, so it would be a bit of a Job to unpick and let out slightly.
It's fine, really. I'm wearing white tops a bit more this summer, so it will be good to have one more to rotate through in this heat and humidity!
You can see our container garden is doing fairly well! The tomato plants are bursting with fruit, and at least two are going to be ready for harvest today or tomorrow.
The cukes have female flowers, so hopefully they will mature in the next week or so. Still waiting for flowers on the bean plants, but they were planted from seed, so it's early yet. Our volunteer wild strawberry seems to have some nascent flowers too, so perhaps we'll get a fruit off it this year! (I'm going to try some strawberry roots in a tiered pot next to the big containers, just to see if we can get fruit. We had transplanted raspberry plants in one of the big containers but all three died of heat and transplant shock, so it would be nice to have some fruiting plants this year. It's all a big experiment anyway).
In any case, the neckline came out way too wide, and what was left after lining my stays was a folded rectangle of fabric with a too-wide but shallow neckline cut out.
In glancing at it, I realized there might just be enough to get an Emerald out if I cut the facings from something else. It was a squeak, to be sure, and I had to make the shirt 1" shorter than my other versions, which made me nervous, but I soldiered on. There are fumes of fabric left, not even enough to pass on to Birdie for her little projects.
I initially thought to make facings from the leftover linen from my shift, but the textures and weights were so different I thought it would look weird. I had some white bemberg, but was leery of using it after making facings from rayon for my remnant Emerald.
I also have a yard or two of mystery white cotton fabric that is very smooth and tightly woven that I bought a long time ago for something or other, but never made. I used a bit of it to make the pocket bags for my Gzhel skirt, and decided it would work well for the facings on this blouse too, since it was light and sheer. (I think this fabric is lawn, and it is probably from the Robert Kaufman Cambridge line, but can't be sure. I wish I did know, as it is a really nice substrate and I would try to find other colors).
My only complaint about this shirt was the amount of time it took me to make it, not because it was complicated, or had problems, but because I had a run of days where the minute I tried to sew anything, something came up with the kids that needed my attention. (call it #thatlockdownlife). I pretty much had to sew this shirt one seam at a time. Which is not generally how I roll. But once I finally got it done, I was happy with the result.
It's fine, really. I'm wearing white tops a bit more this summer, so it will be good to have one more to rotate through in this heat and humidity!
You can see our container garden is doing fairly well! The tomato plants are bursting with fruit, and at least two are going to be ready for harvest today or tomorrow.
The cukes have female flowers, so hopefully they will mature in the next week or so. Still waiting for flowers on the bean plants, but they were planted from seed, so it's early yet. Our volunteer wild strawberry seems to have some nascent flowers too, so perhaps we'll get a fruit off it this year! (I'm going to try some strawberry roots in a tiered pot next to the big containers, just to see if we can get fruit. We had transplanted raspberry plants in one of the big containers but all three died of heat and transplant shock, so it would be nice to have some fruiting plants this year. It's all a big experiment anyway).
The garden looks great and so does the top! My garden is languishing. I need to get out there, but it’s 90° today, so....
ReplyDeleteThanks! It's been punishingly hot here too--we are getting the torential rains of Tropical Storm Faye today, but it is humid as all get out. I was out too long with the garden yesterday and feel quite sleuph today. (Sleuph: dutch word meaning sluggish, sleepy, unproductive)
DeleteI really don't know what I'm doing, but at least it is fun!