Halters - 1, Transcripts - 0

Stupid thing is, I think it took me longer to make -- correction, I am sure it took me longer to make this one with the machine than it took me to hand-sew the last one I made.  I'm still hounding Abigail for a photo of that one.  I mean, really, Equinox gym. She worked for them in NYC this summer and they gave her a men's XL t-shirt that I made into an uber-cool halter. She looks wicked good in it.  I think I'll withhold next semester's tuition payment until I get a photo.  Seems fair.

Unfortunately, I confirmed what I thought:  I am a menace with a sewing machine.  Luckily no one got hurt and I did not set the machine or the house on fire, but it is a very good thing I am working on cheap t-shirts and not anything good. My finish work is bloody awful. If you are good at sewing, you should be warned:  What follows may make you so disgusted that you will never be able to look me in the eye again.

I have done some sewing over the years.  Before Abigail was born, I made a baby quilt and a bumper pad for her crib.  We used it, but it was certainly nothing to write home about. Then when she was a baby, I tried to make her a few things, and I made her Halloween costumes over the years. Not good. There is something about sewing.  My heart races, my blood pressure rises, I get really hot and sweaty, and my muscles tense up so much that my back and neck hurt.  I cannot sew a straight line, and I tend to cut corners -- nah, I don't need to iron this hem before I sew it -- nah, I don't need to bother with buying any interfacing -- nah, I don't need to pick out and redo that seam that has a pucker in it.  I would like to get better, but I just don't seem to have an aptitude or the patience for it. 

This halter top is no exception.  It will wear very cute. And because it is specifically a remade/hippyish kind of ultra-casual garment, none of this will really matter, but oh, how awful is my finish work.  As I say, I cannot sew a straight seam.  I make mistakes and don't fix them properly. I do things too fast so they don't turn out right. 

On this top, for example, I cut a word out of a quote that was on the back of the shirt and made a cute little patch type thingy on the back.  Cute idea, poorly executed.  Then when I tried on the top, I realized that it had to be taken in quite a bit, because Abigail is a lot narrower than I am. But of course I had already sewn the little patch on.  I had to cut it off and take in the seam.  Well, of course I could have used a seam-ripper and saved some fabric, but do you think I was about to go hunting for the seam-ripper? Then, because of the cutting, the patch was too small to accept another seam without sewing over the letters on the ends of the word.  I tried to zig-zag it on, only to discover that I had not caught the patch in the stitches.  (you can see the zig-zags still there. I'm so bad.)

The original word I chose, which I thought was kind of cute, was "wild."  So I had to choose another word in the quote and sew it on.  But you can see all the mistakes and ickiness it resulted in on the back.   I reiterate:  Thankfully it's a free t-shirt and an ultra-casual garment, and it will look very cute on her even with the messiness.  And college kids won't give a care about its imperfections -- in fact, if this were from Abercrombie & Fitch, you know they'd have to charge an extra $149 because it's a mess.

I guess that's why we practice.  Maybe with enough practice I'll be able to make something half decent someday before I die, but I think it's rather doubtful.

After dinner, I made this skirt.  It required cutting, two little seams up the sides, and making ties for the hips. If it fits, it'll be darling, I think.

I think it was a rather creative way to use that very wide logo, but I fear that it's entirely too small. If it is, I'll just change it into a top. That book is full of clever ideas for inspiration.

Transcripts?  As I said - ZERO.  Which just means I'll have to do it this weekend.  But I soooooo needed an R&R day.

PUMPKIN WATCH!

I love the idea of a Pumpkin Watch.  You betcha.  Right here, baby.  :)

Comments

[Kim]

Please note...I'm FIRST, baby. Yep, that's right. Number ONE. :)

That halter is too damned cute. I'm coming up there so you can give me sewing lessons, k?
xoxoxoxoxo

[Kim]

btw, I love the Abercrombie & Fitch comment. It's SO true!!!!

[janna]

The halter is really cute, but I know exactly what you mean about sewing -- it terrifies me! I come from a long line of excellent seamstresses, but I'll sew almost anything by hand rather than use that machine that won't listen to me when I scream at it.

[Dave Daniels]

Ok, Norma Ray, just watch those fingers when you're sewing. Remember, those fingers are the source of your livlihood.

[Kathy]

Very cute halter! And, as an October baby, I love the idea of a pumpkin watch.

[Carole]

Practice on the sewing machine and SLOW down.

[Vicki]

I love the patch and all the stitching! My girls used to cut words and art off of t-shirts and use them s patches on others, or on sweatshirts or backpacks -- showing an extreme aversion to needle-and-thread in all its forms, they would attach them with safety pins!

[caro]

It's funny to me that so many of us would frog back 4 rows and reknit but we won't take the time to unpick a sewn seam. Somehow the quickness of sewing makes that time seem too valuable. T-shirt knits aren't the easiest fabric to sew with, but those halters look cool. Nicely done!

[Marcia]

Remind me someday to tell you of my Not-Quite-Martha Moment with my sewing machine one Thanksgiving morning when I was rushing to make napkins for dinner. Needle through thumb, didn't realize it had broken off inside...not pretty. But listen, if you can use one of those transcription thingies, you can master a simple sewing machine!

[Scout]

Wow. Um yeah.... I bet you'll get better with practice! :)

[margene]

You sew just like I do!!!

[rock chick]

One word. Serger. Suddenly life will make sense. Well, as far as sewing is concerned.

(And why is it whenever I say the word serger I want to intone it as Professor Kingsfield would in The Paper Chase?)

[Chris]

Ha! Good to know I'm not the only one with that way around sewing machines. I did learn to rely on the guide lines on the foot plate to help with straight seaming, though. Now if I could just remember how to thread the damn thing.

[Laura]

When I started sewing after leaving home when I was a kid I never re-did anything. But I really really loved sewing. Everything I made for quite some time was really really embarrassing. Or so fawked up that I couldn't wear it at all (cotton corduroy shrinks - I promise). But eventually, with some experience and maturity, it got better. If you seriously want to sew, you will. If you have better things to do then it won't be any big deal. Kinda how people are about knitting or any other needlework kind of thing. IF it's something you really want to do well, you will.

[Cookie]

And here I thought you could do anything really well...

I love you anyway.

[S.Kate]

Rethink the skirt? I don't think I'd want "Steamboat" across my butt.. ;- )

[Julie]

Gotta tell ya - nobody sews as poorly as I do! When my daughter was 5, I made her an adorable clown costume - problem was I decided to reinforce the leg seams. When I was finished, I got up all set to show it off to Hubby, only to discover that I had sewn the 2 legs together - AND REINFORCED THE SEAMS! Betcha can't top that :-)

[Kim]

Oooh, Rockchick said the "S" word. Serger. That word sends chills down my spine. Norma, I have the same sewing machine experience as you. Carole says to slow down, eh? Does that work, Carole? I've tried slow, very slow, r e a l s l o w, and still can't sew a straight line to save my soul.

Serger????? That would be SUCH a nasty seam to try and use the ol' ripper on. Wouldn't it?

[Lucia]

Sewing machines and I totally don't get along -- how do you get the damned thing to sew at something approximating a normal speed? -- and I am more Sewing Impaired than even you can imagine. My sincerest sympathy.

[Tish]

I'm a follow the pattern type sew-er. I'll make adjustments and alterations to the pattern, but I like a pattern as a starting point. My daughter (just turned 23) is a fearless, seat of the pants, I've got an idea in my head that I sketched on a scrap of paper so give me the scissors and get out of the way sew-er. We both have a similar philosophy about finishing. If it works, it's good even if it isn't someone's idea of perfect, and never underestimate the value of a bottle of Fabri-tac (fabric glue, available at Michael's, Wal-mart, JoAnn's...). It is great for hems, sticking on little patches (or words), glueing on gaudy "jewels" and rhinestones, sticking on decorative edgings.... Oh also- a SHARP seam ripper is the sew-er's best friend!!! Relax and enjoy. It's supposed to be fun. (A quilter's trick for straight seams- stick a piece of self-stick weather strip or fun foam along the edge of the machine at the desired seam width from the needle. Butt the fabric against the strip and it will guide the fabric along for you.)

[Sara]

I *love* ripping out seams... the bad part is the putting back together!