Spring Collection: A Preview!

Never before seen on Matey Couture: Addie actually smiling as she models! (Oy, third person rocks.)

No, really, I think this is the first time. I posted a picture of me smiling a few posts down, but it wasn't a modeling shot. Here I tried to smile winningly at the camera.

Before: Saturday Morning Reruns Threadless Tee.

After:

Details: Capped sleeves, keyhole in back, scoop neck, tabs at lower sides. I fell in love with the print the minute I saw it, but hoarded the tee until I could find the perfect fabric to match it. Turns out Hancock was having a sale on cotton jersey knit, and they had this color-- it was so perfect! I'll probably add buttons on the tabs & at the top of the keyhole, but I haven't found the right ones to put on it yet. I'll be taking real photos of this for my shop on my vacation.... you'll just have to wait to see the awesomeness, but know that it'll be epic, especially because of where I'll be taking the photos. :)

Oh, and I entered it into Project Threadbanger & got second place!! (By the way, I won last month, but by default because nobody else entered. :\ Still, it was exciting.)

Hope you're staying warm, wherever your location may be! Here in MN it's crisp & below zero--and I can't wait for t-shirt weather!

Granny Dress Reconstruction

Some of you may have seen this over on Threadbanger, or maybe I've shown it to you myself, (or maybe, if you're one lucky girl who probably isn't even reading this, you own it!), but I'm posting it here anyway.

In the beginning, I had this dress:

It's a sheer floral fabric with a white underlay. It had potential. Lots of potential!

I ended up with this:

(Because it's, um...raining inside?)

I used the skirt and the elastic-ruched panels of the old dress to make a new one! The elastic is in back because I had to make the fit semi-variable as this was a gift. It has a crossover bust, and a little built in belt in front, with knife pleats in the skirt. It is so perfect for summer! And it's a fantastic show of recycling. Reconstructing is terribly satisfying, especially if you remember to take "before" pictures.

In other news... I have been here for over a year now! Actually, a year and a week ago I posted my very first, very dull, introductory post. (Don't go back and read it. Instead read this post, or this one--there is more, hm, substance to them.) I like to think that my style has evolved in this last year, and I know my skills certainly have. However, there is a part of me that is nostalgic, almost, for last winter. It was a time when everything was new and exciting. I had just gotten my serger. I had the joy of constantly discovering new ways of doing things, new inspiration. It was rather like being a kid in a candy store.

Part of me is terrified that I'll become bored with my sewing. That I'll move on to newer, different interests and hobbies, and never look at a machine again. So I suppose it is natural to wish I could still have the delightful experience of standing on the brink of it all, as I had last year. I feel firmly cemented in my craft right now, of course, and I still breathe & dream in sewing mode, so no worries. :)

The best way to keep the "mojo" flowing is to have a clean, organized workspace. With some help from Mom, and thanks to some outlet wiring from Papa, I have an incredible re-organized, clean sewing room. Pictures will be forthcoming, as soon as I finish everything in it. But I finally have enough space for my fabrics, believe it or not! My sewing machine and serger are set up in an L-shape, for quick and easy switching between machines, and I even have a comfy desk chair that I can wheel around in. It's so exciting. I haven't actually set to work in there yet, but surely tomorrow I'll make the time to.

Have a snazzy Thursday!!

Cassette Tape Wallet

Although I was born too late to give/be given a mix tape, I always thought it was the cutest way to let someone know you liked them. ♥ Months and months ago (April? May?) I mentioned on here that I wanted to make a cassette tape wallet. I never got around to making one until today. It took me two tries (the first failed to such an embarrassing extent that I'm never going to post it on here, and this is the last time I'm going to mention its existence. Ever.)

Mom had this awesome orange and black cassette, and I had the perfect orange zipper to match! I took apart the tape (luckily, it was one with screws, so I didn't have to worry about prying it open), used pliers to break off all the plastic bits that were sticking out, and then sewed the zipper to the fabric band & bottom. Pulling out my trusty glue gun (haven't used one in years, actually!), I glued in some lining and then fit the sides/bottom/zipper part in. It's not the neatest job ever, but things get tricky when you're at the end and you have hardly any space to work with.

But this is the result, and I'm super proud of it! My old wallet was... well, very old, and this is funky & the perfect size. I'm making an LP purse to go with it. :)

I'm sorry about my recent neglect of the blog! I've been mostly working on spring clothing which I probably won't be posting until much later (when it's actually spring time), and for a while I just couldn't figure out what to work on at all. I call that losing my mojo, and sometimes a girl just needs to switch crafts for a little bit! So I've made envelopes and jewelry, and now a wallet.

Don't worry, though, I'm sure I'll be posting more soon. Just gotta get pictures.

I'll leave you with a lovely (haha) photo of myself:

I made the hoodie & the dress (which is not finished!) and Mom made the amazing blue hat. It's the softest Merino wool ever, and a beautiful cable pattern. (Mom is so awesome at knitting! Seriously.) It's adorable & slouchy and it's my new favorite thing to wear. ♥♥♥