Alabama-style stitching - Part 2

[missed Part 1?  catch up here.]

8. BONDING

This was my first ever try at freezer paper stenciling, and info on what heat setting to use when ironing the freezer paper onto fabric was elusive. I took a break with the finished stencil in place, and did some research.

Of the many online tutes turned up by a Google search, only one addressed iron temp, and recommended "hot." I didn't trust that. My iron packs a lot of heat, and I was wary of scorching the paper, so I turned off the steam and tried the "silk" setting first. It was was not hot enough: the paper adhered while warm but loosened as it cooled.

I pressed again on "wool" and that worked beautifully. The paper had good adhesion, and didn't lift off as I applied the paint, but peeled off very easily afterward. Here it is pressed (edges trimmed before pressing). I pressed on a folded towel on the counter because that was easier than relocating to the ironing board in the sewing room.

9. PAINTING

I've never used fabric paint before, so wasn't sure what to expect. One reason I stalled on getting started on this project is that every time I thought "fabric paint" I thought:  mess, clean-up, ugh.

I'm pleased to say it wasn't that bad. I used acrylic craft paint, 'cause that's what was available at the crafts store here in town. It's those little bottles in the pic above. The nice lady at the store advised to also get the fabric-formula goo and mix it in at 2 parts paint to 1 part FFgoo. I started with a tablespoon of paint, which turned out to be not quite enough; next time, for this size stencil, I'll mix up half-again as much.

My inner six-year-old (who likes all things tacky and bling-ish, and whom I usually keep under strict control when making wearable decisions) woke up in the paint department and insisted that we really, really wanted to use SILVER paint.

Uh huh. Metallic. Fabric paint. On a T-shirt. This is not the sort of look the grownup me goes for, so I thinned the paint with water and hoped it wouldn't be too glittery.

I used a round sponge-on-a-stick thing and tap-tap-tapped the paint onto the open parts of the stencil. Quick and easy!

I think the silver paint turned out okay. There's a teeny bit of glimmer to it (accentuated by the flash, below), but overall it's more of a tarnished silver look, which is exactly how I hoped it would turn out:

I cut the stencil into pieces as I removed it, because I hope to reuse at least some of it on the back. The stenciled shapes are nicely sharp-edged, by the way. Don't know why they look a bit blurry in the photo, but if you click on the pic for enlargement you can see the edges came out very well.

I still need to heat set it (iron again, with a press cloth), and then stencil the back and fill in at the sides for more of an all-round effect. The paint needs a good while to dry, so it will take another day to get all the stenciling done.

Alabama-style stitching - part 1

My sewing plans for the weekend include collecting my courage and diving back into the next pants muslin. Shortly after my last post I got new front and back pattern pieces revised with latest best-guess modifications, then decided to set it aside during the workweek with hopes of returning to it refreshed; I'll report back on how that goes once I've sunk my teeth into it.

In the meantime, I finally stopped just looking at my Alabama Stitch and Alabama Studio Style books and decided to use my play time this week to start making something. However, I'm way past my personal-best mark on the current fabric embargo, and hope to keep on going until my eagerly-awaited Portland shopping binge coming up in the fall. Which means no splurging on lovely new organic cotton jersey until then. Old tank tops will have to do for a foundation.

I agree: it's crazy to apply such an extraordinarily labor-intensive process to old tank tops that are showing their age. But it's what I've got, and I'm not going to shop.

Here's where I am with it as of this morning:
[disclaimer: I did not do this all in one day. Steps 1 and 2 happened weeks ago, then I had to get around to shopping for fabric paint, and then I had to get around to getting back to this project. Step 3 and onward happened Wed-Fri this week.]

1. INSPIRATION
All I had to do was look at my lap. Which, at the moment this photo was snapped, was clad in my most-favorite so far Amy Butler print (it's a bit faded, as it has been worn and washed many times):

2. IMITATION
I disrobed, spread the skirt out on the kitchen counter, placed a sheet of tracing paper over it, and did a quickie capture of several motifs with a ball-point pen.

3. DUPLICATION
I photocopied my tracings at 200%, and then made another copy of the enlarged leafy one at 78%. This produced almost as many pieces of paper as one of those downloadable PDF garment patterns, but without the helpful line-up points. Tracings on the right, photocopies on the left:

I'm extremely grateful to be able to do this on the multi-function copier-printer in our home office; if I had to go to Kinko's for enlargements it would probably never happen.

4. MANIPULATION
After some fiddling, I got the various motif pieces sorted out and taped together.

5. PREPARATION
My top fabric is a blue "Haines Perfect Tank" size Large, a couple years old and purchased at WMart for around $6. I slid two open file folders between the front and back of the T to keep the fabric paint from bleeding through onto the back. Works out nicely, because they are a good width to keep the T spread flat without stretching or wrinkles. Here's how I laid out my stencil motifs for the front:

6. TRACIFICATION
When the motifs were in place, I tore off a piece of freezer paper and lay it over the whole shebang, plastic side down, and traced the motifs again. I did a super-quickie slapdash job of this, just as I had with the original tracing:

7. STENCILFICATION
The freezer paper became a stencil in many short sessions throughout most of the day Friday. My current "real work" project is at a tedious and fiddly stage, the kind of thing best done in short sessions with frequent breaks to prevent brain fatigue and stupid errors. Which, coincidentally, is the best way to approach a large stencil design that you realize (too late) could have been simpler, and which is going to be way more time-consuming and tedious to cut than anticipated. So I spent the day alternating between bouts of tedious, mentally numbing computer work, and tedious, mentally numbing stencil cutting:

I used both a craft knife and embroidery scissors on this, and came to the conclusion that there is no way easy to do it. I cannot imagine doing this with template plastic or posterboard. You'd have to be crazy.

Eventually, I got it done.

Next steps coming up, when I get around to posting Part 2...

Alabama Stitch Book

It may be Day 76 of my 120-day fabric and pattern embargo, which means 44 days still to go, but that doesn't mean I forego all sewing-related treats. My playtime budget allows for the purchase of one sewing book every two months, and this month I indulged in this one, which I have been lusting after for some time:

OMG I love, love, love this stuff. Natalie Chanin is a creative genius. I have spent hours perusing this book (and the flickr group) since it arrived in my mailbox a few days ago. A very different kind of sewing from what I normally do, and something I must try for myself.

I'm thinking of dipping a toe in these waters with something small. Like that ratty old 12x16 pillow on my deck chair. A new cover for that would be a good use for some old Ts from my closet. Like that pink sleeveless one with the lemon juice bleach spots on the front (oops), and the green one soiled by an oily salad dressing spot (darn), and hey, that tissue-weight turquoise top I spilled coffee on (drat). I see great possibilities here.

Or maybe I should put all thoughts of reconstructed jersey sewing aside and make myself a bib.

SoNP Skirt #3: Shabby Chic

This (originally plain, and somewhat "meh") pink skirt is flattering and comfortable, and delightfully fluttery about the ankles in action, and I hardly ever wear it. That's because I bought two, and when deciding which to wear I reach, over and over, for the green one. For the Summer of No Pants week 3 project I decided to embellish this one with some simple machine applique and turn it from a forgotten garment in the back of the closet into something I will wear.

I got the idea to use on-point squares from the Sideways Squares Skirt in this book. The plan was to use many different fabrics from the scrap bin, but over and over when I lay them on the skirt they didn't feel just right. Until I grabbed a half-yard piece of this Amy Butler print:

... and it clicked. The effect is much more subtle than I'd planned ("subtle" not being a word that is used often in describing my color preferences), and I love it.

The skirt is a long A-line with large and rather oddly shaped godets in each side seam which result in a bit of a handkerchief hem look. You can see the shape and my embellishment layout a little better here (this color is closer to accurate, but harder to see):

I cut fabric squares in several sizes: 5, 4, 3, and 2". Largest are at the bottom, and the smallest rest between the lower two rows. At first I'd planned to fold under the edges of each square, but after pressing a few that seemed laborious. Plus, the skirt fabric (a linen-cotton blend) is very floppy drapey, so unhemmed squares seemed like a better choice.  I trimmed each square with pinking shears, pinned them in place, and sewed them down with a zigzag stitch. After washing, they should get nice and fuzzy around the edges. I figure a good "shabby chic" effect will mean I never have to iron this skirt again.

Here's another look at the result:

This was so easy and fun and quick to do. I may have to rummage in the closet for more clothes to embellish.

Refashion #1

I've been toying with the idea of committing to a wardrobe refashion period, and have just taken the plunge with a 6 month signup. Not an official member yet (awaiting reply, verification), but am ready to go. I considered starting with a 2 month trial, but that felt wimpy.

Six months is the real challenge, because it will take me through a 5-day writing conference in early March for which I wish to be nicely dressed without purchasing anything new. I have in mind a few things I'd like to make by then. I'll be doing more stash-fabric projects than refashioning (I have yet to be bitten by the thrifting bug), but have a few dodos in the closet that could use reinvention.

UPDATE: Just heard back that Wardrobe Refashion signups are closed until January, and I should get back in touch after Dec. 15th. Sheesh, if you're going to put limits on participating, shouldn't that information be CLEARLY posted somewhere on the website and "rules" and signup pages? And although she already now has all my info, I'm supposed to mark my calendar and do it all again? Nuh uh. Don't think so. I'll go ahead and pursue this challenge on my own, but I'm not gonna bother joining a group that doesn't make it easy to participate.

Refashion #1 happened last night. I love these Blue Ginger rayon dresses, so soft and comfy and perfect for the climate in Hawaii. I have worn out (literally, to shreds) several of them. This is the only one left that's in okay condition (i.e., not completely worn out). Another crappy photo. Don't know why I'm having so much trouble snapping in focus these days. And horrible lighting, color is way off.


The problem is this dress started out short and after several years of washings is now even shorter: barely 33" from shoulder seam to hem, and that includes the teeny ruffle at the bottom. On someone petite, or 18, not a problem, but I'm 50 and 5'8" and even though my legs are good for my age, this dress is way, way too short.


So I cut it off just below the bust darts, ripped out the zipper (to be used another day), stitched up the zip seam, folded down the cut edge to make a casing (didn't bother to measure or press or pin anything), threaded with 3/8" elastic, and voila, a cute skirt that's a little above the knee: more flattering on me and considerably more age-appropriate. I can wear it in public (if I iron it)!


Total project time: under 45 minutes.Now I'm looking at what's left of the dress and thinking it could be a yoke for a smock-type something. Wonder what I've got that could go with it...