Archive | November, 2011

Still in Florida

28 Nov

By now on a parental trip, I’d have posted half a dozen times. But, I’ve really been relaxing on this mini-break. I started taking photos of  Thanksgiving food, but got too hungry. Here’s the main thing to know:

This peach cobbler was my breakfast for three days. Which could be one of the many reasons I’ve actually gone running twice since I got here.  Is anyone on Nike+ / Nikerunning.com? I think my profile is public and I’m listed as Fussbudgit.

While here, I have been doing quite a bit of sewing. My Aunt Judy bought this outfit for my mom on a recent trip to Ghana. I didn’t take before photos. It was too big in the back, upper bust, hips and waist. Now, it fits nicely. . It’s remarkable how much easier it is to fit another person. It’s also remarkable how  differently we carry weight. I’m all saddlebag and boob. She carries weight in the mid section.  My waist is the only small thing on me.

The details are really neat. The applique leaves are cut out from the material and hand sewn together. This makes trim for the bust, back, center front and are the actual cap sleeves!

Alterations are the devil. For reals. Ugh.

The bodice and skirt are underlined.

And the stabilizer in the sleeves, waist  and hem is just paper!

Check the zipper. It goes all the way up along the back pieces. Nice and decorative. Would be totally fun in a metallic teeth, right?

Oh, I also made my dad two bow ties for Christmas. I’ll just leave them here and my mom will give them to him next month.

Have I mentioned how glad I bought a Singer 301 *just* for here?

I’ve also decided to give the warmer of my red trench coat a go. I’ll work on that this evening. I fly out tomorrow and am back in my own bed Tuesday night :)

I Bought A Dress

23 Nov

As I noted last month ‘we’ have won re-election. That means there will be an official evening ’gala’, not unsimilar to this one four years ago. I had grandiose ideas of making a dress. But, succumbed when I realized the event was going to be in early December, not mid January.  I had a vintage dress in mind, but it kind of came down to just not having the ‘right’ material. I wanted a 4 ply silk and it’s just not in the budget.

It’s an odd feeling because I am  *so* used to making fancy dresses! I look forward to every bit of the process. You get to sew something you normally wouldn’t wear and you have a dress no one else has. But, it wasn’t in the cards this year. I also suspect I’ll be asked all night if I made my dress and will have to hang my head in shame when I say, ‘no’.

So, I found this dress at Neiman Marcus Last Call. It’s a beautiful navy and a gorgeous, thick silk. It was originally $540 and I paid $120.  Mine is longer than the model’s. Err, rather, I am shorter than the model. I  may take it up an inch or two.

That doesn’t mean I won’t be sewing *anything*. The actual swearing in will be outside. In December. For two hours. Brrrr. I do have a good winter coat and shearling boots. But, I need a warm outfit too that can transition into a reception following.

Oh, and before you ask me about shoes. I, um, don’t have any. I’ll make my mom go looking with me in Florida this weekend. I think she actually likes shopping. But, I’m open to suggestions on Zappos for under $100. Ideally, $50.  But, beggars can’t be choosers. I’m an 8.5 wide or a 9 in a pinch. Thanks in advance, LOL!

Being On Trend

22 Nov

I’m still waiting for the Burda Easy Fashion with the shearling bomber jacket pattern to make its way to me from Oh, Canada!

I have this gray and black shearling from FabricMart for it. I think I will not have enough skins to make the jacket happen. But, I definitely have enough for a vest. I wanted the pattern to come before I left town for Florida / Thanksgiving with my parents. I was going to lay it all out and see if I had enough material. I’m so obsessed with this idea that I won’t be able to think of much other sewing until.  If I did come before I leave (Wed. night), I figured I could cut it at my parent’s place and leave my mom to contend with all the bits of cut fur / wool…. But, it’s not here yet.

I was thumbing through my crack US Weekly and saw this awesome faux shearling from H&M. I thought it was *so* cute. I thought, ‘Oh, if I had a jacket just like that! Where is my Burda Easy Fashion!’. And then I realized, ‘Crap. Dumb Dumb. You bought that jacket three weeks ago.”

You see, I bought it three weeks ago but at $50 I wasn’t sure it was ‘worth’ it. Not because I’m cheap. But, because I knew on a good sale I could get enough ‘real’ shearling to make this up. So, it’s been in a bag in my living room while I decided if I was going to keep it.

I really liked how it was sewn and wanted to keep it around for construction technique. But, after having my taste validated in a gossip magazine, I’ve decided to keep it. It’s super cute. And warmer than you would think. Warmer, but *not* breathable.

I’ll need to look out for the next FabricMart shipment of shearling. Actually, I’m pretty sure when they get it again I’ll finally just roadtrip out to PA to purchase. Then, I can make sure I have enough material.

Missing the Boat

17 Nov

How did I miss the most recent Burda Easy Fashion? Currently, it seems to be published in French, German, Italian and Russian.

I used to have a subscription, but about two years ago realized I had just plain aged out of the magazine.  This morning I was looking online and saw some images from the Winter 2011/ Spring 2012 which came out in August 2011.

Most of it doesn’t appeal to me, but am totally digging this shearling aviator / motorcycle jacket. Methinks that jacket will be a very easy sew. Princess seams should make fitting easier than the first time I attempted one of these!

I also like the all-leather version of it they made up

I think the lingerie in this edition is super pretty. There’s this lacy kimono

And this chemise

And, of course there are the things that I wouldn’t bother with

Not meant for my thighs (and I’m annoyed by knitting patterns in my sewing magazines)….

Not meant for my life….

Not worth buying a magazine for

Since the magazine came out it August it is long sold out of GLP News. My backup is usually GCN News and they had a French language copy available!

A #WINNING Thank You!

16 Nov

I don’t know how to write the following without being a total and complete #HumbleBrag.  But, last night the Mobbies (Maryland Outstanding Blog Awards) were announced and I won. I won in every category I was nominated for. I took home Mobbie fedoras for Best Personal Blog, Best Lifestyle Blog, Best DIY Blog. And, amazingly. Like, seriously, overwhelmingly amazingly, I won Best Overall Blog for Miss Celie’s Pants!! Guys, I dropped the F-bomb I was so gobsmacked.

I know it seems like a silly thing to care about. But, I REALLY wanted to win so a sewing blog would be named Best Overall Blog. I meet people all the time who don’t understand what there is to blog about sewing. Or get that it’s a shared passion. I was so excited I was jumping and yelping. 

There were 30 categories. Here are all the winners in our fedoras.

I am overwhelmed with gratitude for your support and your votes.

I love to write. I love to sew. And, I talk too much. There wasn’t much left for me to do but start a blog about sewing.  I’ve made some of my closest friends through the sewing world. I’ve made personal contact with people all over the globe because of my blog and sewing. I met my best friend through this blog!  Blogging has given me a real platform to talk about the things that inspire me and the world around me.

What you did in voting for me (and putting up with my pestering) is immeasurable. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it. There really aren’t words to express my total and complete thanks.

I will tell you that the staff at the Baltimore Sun asked around about me because they couldn’t understand how I got so many votes. They wondered if I knew how to rig the voting.  A friend who works at the Sun told them I’d been blogging for a while and that my readers really are my friends. And, he knew I basically flunked computer science the first time I took it in university!  Not a lot of people sew for fun anymore. We really made them stand up and notice. You are the most loyal group of readers anyone could have!

Did I mention I have food blog too? Here are two of my co-authors Catalina and Liz. We placed 3rd for best food blog.

I said this on my FB page. I’m not a mommy blogger. I don’t have thousands of followers. I don’t have a book deal and I’m not on a TV show.  I’m just a girl who loves to sew. That’s it. What I do have are my friends, family and my readers and I wouldn’t trade that in for anything.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Truly.

And, I hate camera phone photos (these). They do not love black people in low light. I’m using part of my prize to get a point -and-shoot camera so I don’t have to lug my beloved DSLR to bars and awards parties :)

As for prizes….. I really just wanted to call myself an Award Winning Blogger. But, I’m happy to report that I will get some marketing help from the Baltimore Sun by way of banner ads on their site. And, as best overall winner I received a gift certificate to Best Buy. Nook Tablet (or iPad), here I come! Oh, of course I checked to see if Best Buy carries sewing machines. They do. But, no cover stitches, LOL!

DC Tweed Ride 2011 Cape: Burda 8-2008-101

14 Nov IMGP1463

Guys. I was seriously just plowing through this cape to have something for the 10-mile DC Tweed Ride. It wasn’t until I finished the cape that I fell IN FREAKING LOVE with it!!! With over 900 people registered for the ride, I was definitely in a color that stood out.

I think my neck may seriously be getting shorter and shorter...

The BEST thing about this cape is that so many tweed riders were in darker fall colors. This turquoise blue just *popped*. I was nervous in general about how bright the blue is. It’s not a color I normally wear. My original fabric was a dark gray tweed, but I ran out of material and used this blue from the Carol Collection instead.

The Girls

 A good indicator of your outfit on these rides is how many people ask for photos or tell you they like your outfit. Liz is wearing my Burda jumper, 10-2009-119.

 Liz and I did *ok* during the Seersucker Social. But, we were on fire at Sunday’s ride. I borrowed the white feather fascinator from her. I’d love to be in a hat. But, my head is just too big for vintage and even modern hats are generally pushing it. 

The cape was finished on Friday. But, the buttons will NOT stay on. They are metal and shank. And, all four buttons on the opening edge have been resewn at least two times each. Three fell off on Saturday night. Two fell off before the ride on Sunday. Two fell off during the ride and now, on Monday morning, another fell off.  In fact, in the photo above Trena and I are with Claudia. She’s a DC dweller who reads our blogs. She saw the ride go by and happened upon us! Good for me, because she sewed one of my buttons back on!!

I *think* the rough metal shank is just cutting through the double strand of thread. I’m going to reattach with coat / button thread and see if that will help.

 I’m wearing a knit Burda jumper, 9-2007-121. It had a classic look with my shoes.  I lined the cape with a stunning raspberry material, also of the Carol Collection. It gives an amazing double whammy of color. The blue wool is fully interfaced, which happily did not stop me from having beautiful, crisp edges.

 

It can be worn open, and not buttoned. That does make it easier to *do* things.

Capes are totally and completely impractical, but I have a serious thing for them and trench coats. I guess it’s kind of that military influence, no?  The cape is PERFECT for this kind of ride and (I’m told) looks great while biking.

 Our ride took us around downtown DC. I couldn’t resist a photo in front of the White House. We also biked past the National’s Stadium, the Capitol Building, and through Chinatown. I’m not sure there is anyone Chinese in DC’s Chinatown….

The night ended at Smith’s just outside of Capital Hill with a live band, gin drinks and fun!

I fell in love with this guy’s vest. Someone (a UK National) recently told me I’d fetished the whole Brit thing. True Dat.

 We were wiped out oat the end of the night. I just love this photo! Liz has a folding bike so we popped that in the back seat. That’s Trena next to the bike with two more bikes out back!

 These rides are so much fun! You get dressed up, you get to bike and see the city and the people are all just incredibly cool. I’m already planning next year’s outfit!

Cleaning the Fur Collar and Cuffs

9 Nov

Can we give a big shout out to Aunt Toby of Kitchen Counter Economics? For real! Her suggestion of using ‘diatomaceous earth’ (d/earth) was brilliant. It never even occured to me that I could clean leather at home. I ordered some post haste on Monday. It arrived tonight and I couldn’t resist trying it out.

I did what she said and sprinkled the d/earth on the fur. Instead of a brush, I did use my vacuum attachment to remove the d/earth. How did it work? Well, let me first say that it didn’t occur to me the fur itself was dirty. Just the coat. So, I wasn’t expecting much.

Click to enlarge photos

Here is one cuff treated with the d/earth and the other untreated. Can you tell which is which?

Yeah. Subtle but significant difference! On the left is the non treated fur — yellowish tint. I didn’t notice that when I bought the coat. Now, it’s more of a soft gray. There are still some yellow spots in them, but not overall as it appears here!

So, YAY to the internet and people smarter than me! I’m sure this would work just as well (and cheaper) than corn starch.

I am on the lookout now for a little collar for this cape… the cape that I have GOTS to sew on Friday before Sunday’s ride.


I did send the coat to the $1.99 cleaner. Meh. I have some calls out to the local theaters for suggestions for a great cleaner / dyer. If I can’t come across one, I’ll save for a New York cleaner that was left in my comments. And honest, it’s better than before and I love it so much I’d wear it a little dirty :)

OK friends. Thursday is the LAST day of voting for the Mobbies. I’ve been knocked out of the Best Overall blog by a ‘mommy blogger’. A funny mommy blogger with a book deal and over 150k twitter fans.  This is my last chance to surge to the top, LOL!! Wouldn’t it be cool if the best blog in Maryland went to a sewist? I mean, lots of people are moms. How many people can sew? I kid. A little.

I’m nominated in Personal, DIY and Lifestyle. And, at the end you can also add a vote for Best Overall.

Click here to vote for my blog ... early and often

We won’t find out until next week at the 20s themed party who won. But, with your help, I’m hoping that I’ll be able to call myself ‘An Award Winning Blogger!!’,

Mid Course Correction

8 Nov

Down three spots! I’m dropping fast in the rankings for Best Overall Blog on the Baltimore Sun website! Please remember to vote for me today. Voting ends in three days. I’m nominated for Best Personal Blog, Best DIY Blog and Best Lifestyle Blog. After voting in these three categories, you can type in Miss Celie’s Pants to vote for Best Overall Blog. Wouldn’t it be GREAT if the best overall blog was about sewing? Remember, you can vote once  a day, each day.

Click here to vote for my blog ... early and often

I know potential spam and having to sign up is not cool. But, they are trying to cut down on ballot stuffers and make it a straight popularity contest :)

As I mentioned last week, this Sunday I’m going on the DC Tweed Ride with Trena and Liz. I planned to make Burda’s October 2008, #101 cape from a black and white herringbone. Friday night I was all traced and cut out with interfacing completed.

Saturday I went to sew and realized I forgot to cut out the center front pieces and was totally and completely out of fabric. GRRRRR!!

I went into the stash and pulled out this blue wool from the Carol Collection.  This is actually kind of fortuitous as I really thought the herringbone needed body from underlining, but just didn’t have the time or energy for it.  This blue was block interfaced while I was in NYC last November. The color isn’t very Tweed Ridish. But, it’s definitely more ‘me’.

Here are the buttons I’m going to use. They are appropriately British looking.

The basics are together, including the facings sewn in. Because it’s fused  , I’m going to have to line it. Something I wasn’t planning on doing with the herringbone version. I may even seek out some flannel back satin or flannel interlining to up the warmth factor.

Happily, I have Friday off for Veteran’s Day and can finish most of it then. Gah. I wonder if I can also squeeze in a skirt….

Vintage Blue Coat

6 Nov

Click here to vote for my blog ... early and often

It appears I’m on a bit of a vintage kick! I stopped by my favorite vintage store today and scored a gorgeous pastel blue wool coat. We were on a Civil War History Bike Ride and the store was across the street from the starting point. How convenient! I was thinking about a fancier coat for special events. This fits the bill perfectly!

It was so much fun showing you the construction of my yellow vintage dress that I thought I might do the same here. This time, I took photos in the coat :)  The first thing I noticed is the coat is fully interfaced, with more interfacing under the arms.

While inspecting the coat, I also noticed that it was underlined too with more wool!

The interlining underlines the lining and is treated as one throughout

Here’s a photo of the back of the coat

The seams inside are narrow, about 1/2 inch or less. They are left unfinished.

The coat collar attaches to the left

The lining actually feels kind of acetate. Thick acetate. But, acetate.

LOVE this coat and am super happy

But, and this is a big but. It’s filthy :(

I’m debating removing the fur myself and sending it to the drycleaner and reattaching the fur after it comes back. Perhaps even add snaps so that it’s easily removable.

Or, should I send the entire thing to a furrier? My fox fur and leather hat cost a MINT to clean. More than I paid for this coat. But, I bargained the price of the coat down because of cleaning costs.

It’s pretty dingy with some stains on the back. The shoulders are brownish / dingy in parts too. If not for all the interior structure, I would soak it in the tub at home myself.

Oh, an anyone seen looooong cream or gray gloves for sale?

Thoughts on cleaning? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?

It’s day SIX of TEN for voting for the Mobbie Awards! Thanks to your dedication, I’m still in the mix for the top prize of BEST OVERALL BLOG!!! Do you mind going in and voting again today? Remember, you can vote every day until the bitter end.

The weekend is a great time to vote as points are cumulative. I’m hoping my fellow nominees have shame and don’t bug their readers, friends and families to vote today too.

Click here to vote for my blog ... early and often

      • Best Personal Blog
      • Best DIY blog
      • Best Lifestyle Blog

And after you cast your votes, you have an opportunity to vote for me in Best Overall Blog.

I’m getting closer and closer to calling myself an AWARD WINNING BLOGGER!!

Tweed Ride Sewing

5 Nov

Tweed Run 2010

The DC Tweed Ride is on November 13th. Like the spring Seersucker Social, vintage style is a bit of a must.  I got a LOT of eye candy and ideas from the Ralph Lauren sponsored Tweed Run in New York. I don’t have a lot of time. So, I’ve decided the most important element of my outfit will be a cape. I selected this cape from the October 2008 issue of Burda. As an aside, I SWORE Burda had a zillion capes. I could really only find two that would work. I got this one traced out overnight. Now, the question is underline or not underline….

I’m using a black and white herringbone from the Carol Collection in black and white.

I’m not sure what I’m going to wear under the cape yet. But, am on the lookout for a floppy black hat.

Introducing the Rugby Ralph Lauren London Tweed Run from RugbyRalphLauren on Vimeo.

Thanks again!!! I’m back in the top spot for Best Overall Blog! Woot! Woot! Now, it’s the weekend. And voting goes until the 10th! Can you please keep up the awesome work and vote for me again?

Click here to vote for my blog ... early and often

I like using the Control F or ‘Find’ function for searching my blog’s name. There are so many entries it just pulls up the three reference in

  • Best DIY
  • Best Personal
  • Best Lifestyle

And, at the end you can vote for Best Overall Blog. The other categories are bragging rights. But, best overall comes with a Best Buy Gift Card. If I win Best Overall, Imma be all over an iPad. All. Over.

Thank you again guys! I could see the difference in rankings because of your support yesterday!!

Now, I’m off on a Civil War History bike ride!

← Older Entries