SSSCCRREEECCHHH!!!.... Change of plans

Soooo.... We had another great Sewing MeetUp today... I got to meet some other friendly New York sewers and I picked up some very nice fabrics plus some extras... I hadn't initially PLANNED on spending 60+ bucks on fabrics today. But I consoled myself in saying that I would have paid more than 24$ if I saw the dresses in the store....

I have put the Butterick 5029 on hold, in favor of remaking the Simplicity 2925 again in a different fabric...

I found this black eyelet fabric at A&M Farbrics on 39th street. We ended up there just because they happened to be open on a Sunday!... The service was pretty good, and because we were the first customers they had all day, I got a pretty good discount... 8$ a yard, down from 15...


I really liked the scalloped detail on the selvage. I'm trying to figure out how to lay the pattern so I can get that detail for the hem of the dress...

I ended up going to P&S Fabrics in Chinatown to get a lightweight black lining (the black equivalent of the off white lining I found to use with B5029) It's not the same tone of black, but I think its a complimentary combination.

After we left the fabric district, we headed over to M&J Trimmings.

I ended up leaving with some feather embellishments for my Derby hat this year.
I wore the same hat last year, so I decided I needed to add a little something extra to jazz it up a bit... I picked out the fuchsia and black feathers above along with these peacock feathers...

I wasn't sure which I like better at first, but I think the pink/black combo will be the ultimate pick this year... (Special thanks to Elizabeth for all her critiques... great eye!!)

I also got this FFAABBUULLOOUUSS printed charemuse at A&M fabrics.. another deal at 8$ a yard....
I was thinking of making some derivation of these dresses...
I also like these two...
I know I have seen a pic of the exact dress that I'm thinking of, but I cant find it yet... But I'll keep you posted...




Holla!

...Back in the saddle!

So, it hit me that it really is Spring again and that means Derby season is upon me... and as I'd previously committed to making my Derby outfit this year, I figured it should snap to it.

That being said, I still haven't decided exactly what dress to go with, so I've decided to try to make two...

This Simplicity 2925, View B (the white dress)...

and Butterick 5029 ....

The first of which I made today... I decided to go with the 2925 1st as it seemed to be the, well, the simplest..

I used the gold-splashed printed cotton/linen that I got from the going out of business sale at Paron's East last year. I think it come out pretty much like the pic, but I still need to taper the skirt seams as its a bit wider at the hem than I'm wanting.

I'm also kind of proud that I installed my first working invisible zipper in an actual garment with this dress!! SUCCESS!!

For the B5029, I really want to use this this fabric I got at one of my fav cheap fabric resources, Fulton Fabrics, in downtown BK.

It's a really pretty light linen-ish (lol) fabric that was only 3$ a yard....However, it's wwaayyyy sheer!

So I'm trying to figure out how to get around that. I was thinking either cut it double, or maybe buy some really light weight linen to use as an underlining....

Since Kentucky Derby is the first weekend in May, the weather is usually pretty temperate. But sitting out in the sun for 8 hours on even the mildest of days can get a little uncomfortable in the wrong fabrics.

Anyway, since I have a little over a month, I think I should have enough time to piece this one out... pun intended.

Holla!!

Ooopss! Almost forgot!!

Many thanks to my favorite person in Austin TX, the uberClever Antoinette!

She nominated me for the Sisterhood award!!

Holla (.... and thanks!)

It's....IT'S AALLLIIIVVEEEEE!!!

... Yes it, I mean, I am alive.

I just have not been able to get myself together to get behind the machine for the last several weeks... largely due to the crazy cold weather we were having here in NYC and now due to the crazy warm-ish days that keep popping up here and there.... not warm enough to completely erase the chill in the air, mind you. But warm enough to get my allergies nice and flared up, nice and early for spring....sigh.

All that and the fact that the last handful of projects that I've started have all fizzled out like a half empty can of soda left out in the sun... double sigh.



But! In anticipation of getting things moving again, I signed up for my first quilting class yesterday!! YEA!!

The City Quilter is a one stop quilting shop literally a hop, skip and jump away from my office. After realizing that I was going to need a bit more hands on instruction than just the free tutorials that I was finding online, I went in yesterday and signed up for their next session of beginner quilting classes .... good news, I was only the 2nd person to enroll and didn't get shut out like I did for the last class... bad news, I have to wait till the end of May for the dadgum classes to start!!

Apparently, quilting instruction is a brisk business in NYC. Who knew?

My next thing is my intention to sew my Kentucky Derby dress this year... please note how I said it is my INTENTION!!.... seeing is I haven't exactly decided WHAT dress pattern to actually make, I'm already behind the 8ball... But more on that later.

Holla!