Some lovely links for y’all this week! (And a few pretty pictures too.) This week (like most lately!) seems to have been a bit on the crazy side with lots of unexpected popping up. But the upside has been that the weather is slowly but surely cooling off! I am so, so excited and admit I may have jumped the gun on autumn already and had my first pumpkin spice latte and bought a teeny bag of candy corn (my autumnal treat–but I’m making this one last!). Longtime readers know I adore this time of year (I missed it the three years we were in Florida), and although this year looks like it might have some less-than-exciting things going on in the autumn, I’m still trying to enjoy the little moments.
- 15 things home sewers can learn from industrial sewing!
- How to make your own retro-style necktie.
- Autumn means apples! This year I won’t be making my usual homemade applesauce (boo!), but I might make some apple chips.
- Psst! Have you heard that Gertie is hosting another coat sew along?
- I haven’t been doing a lot of vintage hairdo’s lately, but Brittany has a great idea for a super cheap hair rat.
Can we also chat about the new sewing patterns over at
Colette Patterns (pictured above)?! I got a teeny, tiny peek at them as they were being developed, and wow–was I sad that I won’t be making those trousers any time soon! lol. The
Anise jacket really spoke to me though, and I think I could easily get away with making and wearing unbuttoned while the weather is still mild. I don’t really have any proper, short jackets anyway (besides blazers), so this might be wise to add to my fall sewing wishlist. I really want a cream or white jacket, but knowing my propensity to spill things on myself (and thinking post-baby), I think that probably isn’t the wisest choice. I already have a navy blue coat, red, of course black, and houndstooth. Perhaps I need a green jacket? Or maybe mustard yellow…
Stay tuned for tomorrow’s post! It’s the first in my maternity style series. I am nearly 14 weeks right now (well, they keep moving my due date around, so the latest is that I’m nearly 14 weeks… lol. Either this baby is just growing fast–which would not surprise me since I was a big ‘un when I was born–or the ultrasound is lying. haha!), and let me tell you: I have had to pack so many clothes away this week! My wardrobe suddenly shrunk a lot… Goodbye, pretty vintage clothes (and waist)!
September 16, 2012 ·
24 lovely thoughts
posted in links
·
- I love these suggestions for fancy ice cubes. I need to make a tray of coffee ones for my afternoon cup o’ Joe!
- I may not be pregnant, but I’ve pretty much wanted to copy every maternity outfit Mandi has posted…
- Portia shares some helpful tips on refashioning trousers.
- An interesting discussion on Charlotte’s blog about the narrow definition of “vintage” in popular media that seems to have cropped up.
- Lauren shared some scans of gorgeous summer shoes from 1938!
- Make a cute summer accessory: a hairbow made with a scrap of vintage fabric.
- Peter shared some tips on how he makes the waistbands on pants.
Whew! I hope y’all are staying cool if it’s summertime where you are! It’s been a hot week, and even after enduring three Gulf Coast summers, I’m still feeling a little wiped by the weather (and this week in general–it’s been one of those weeks both SH and I are glad is over!). But happily I have my 40s playsuit to wear–so I can stay cool. hehe!
I want to note really quickly that I’ve been getting a lot of emails about images being down on specific posts. My apologies: I had a bunch of images hosted elsewhere and my “pro account” has lapsed and I decided not to renew. But the process of moving and changing the url’s on all the images is taking time! I’ve gone through and redone the one that was most pressing: the circle skirt sew-along. But other posts may take a bit longer. Thank you for letting me know of the missing images and your patience!
Another thing you may have noticed lately is that I’ve been skipping posting on Wednesdays. My old schedule was Monday, Wednesday, Friday (and Sunday for links)–nice and evenly spread across the week. But lately my personal schedule midweek has gotten a bit more crowded, so I’ve decided to move things around a bit and testing a new posting goal: Sunday, Monday, Thursday, Friday. Hopefully this will work a bit better for me and not leave me scrambling to get posts formatted!
Have a lovely rest of your weekend, friends!
June 24, 2012 ·
8 lovely thoughts
posted in links
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weekly visual moodboard | be sure to click on the image to view picture sources.
- This tutorial from Steph on removing excess back-thigh fabric on pants is so helpful!
- Beautiful shoe scans from 1939-1941. Drool worthy!
- I love these easy, homemade pickles recipes (no canning required for those of us who don’t know how!).
- A thoughtful discussion on the merits and pitfalls of .pdf sewing patterns.
- Have I shared a link to Mid Century Menu with you yet? I think not. Go check it out. You won’t be disappointed!
weekly Instagram photos (my username is “elegantmusings”).
Hello, friends! Not a whole lot to talk about this week–it’s been a busy time for me! Happily busy, though. For which I am grateful. Now I’m just trying to get some sewing squeezed in before the new week really and truly starts. But so many ideas (and *ahem* deviations from my original summer plans…) are floating through my head right now. But my lack of serious sewing time this weekend really only has me to blame: SH and I have been spending a lot of time enjoying the sunshine and mild weather riding around on his motorcycle. (Hence the snapshot above of me with my new helmet!) But my summer clothes won’t sew themselves! hehe!
Have a lovely rest of the weekend!
June 17, 2012 ·
10 lovely thoughts
posted in links
· tags: weekend snippets, weekly inspiration
weekly visual moodboard | be sure to click on the image to view picture sources.
- Ever want to try hemstitching? There is a great tutorial from the Coletterie blog.
- A lovely example of a WWII era dress sporting a propaganda print.
- I’m really quite happy it’s summer right now (all my favorite sundresses can be worn!), but this cute outfit with it’s autumny colors and cape is making me wish just a tiny bit it were fall!
- I love this collection of 1940s summer snapshots. So many gorgeous vintage looks to inspire this summer!
- Faced with rain? Take some inspiration on classy vintage rainwear looks over at Couture Allure.
weekly Instagram photos (my username is “elegantmusings”).
Hello, friends! Seems I disappeared again toward the end of the week, eh? Right smack in the middle of the week I developed some weird ailment, that while it didn’t have me totally down, meant I had to take a trip to the doctor’s (not my favorite thing to do) and found myself really sleepy for a few days. I seem to be on the mend though from this Mystery Illness (yay!)–just in time for the weekend and spending some time with SH at some local events, soaking up the sunshine.
I want to say a big thank you regarding your enthusiastic response to the launch of the Pattern Grading 101 series! I am so excited many of you are curious about this and are eager to learn more. The first technical post won’t be up until next week, but I can’ wait to share some of the tips and tricks I’ve picked up over the years. I think LBC put it best about how pattern grading can revolutionize your sewing toolkit: “. I don’t want to sound hyperbolic, but it has honestly been one of the most empowering things I’ve learned in the past . . . I don’t know how long.” I was fortunate enough to learn about grading just as I was beginning to seriously sew with vintage patterns (about age 17/18), and it opened my world to a lot of new possibilities as I was no longer tied to the numbers on the pattern envelope! Which might be a bad thing considering how many vintage patterns I have… *ahem*
Enough rambling about pattern grading… I have a feeling that I shall do plenty of that in the next month over the course of the series! Hope y’all are having a lovely, sun-filled weekend!
June 10, 2012 ·
17 lovely thoughts
posted in links
· tags: weekend snippets, weekly inspiration
weekly visual moodboard | be sure to click on the image to view picture sources.
- Tasia shows how to finish the lining and zipper edge on a dress. It’s specifically for her new Cambie dress, but could easily be applied to other patterns!
- A great, easy tutorial for adding a cute, vintage-style skirt drape to a dress.
- Peter shared some thoughts on how to approach a flea market.
- Some good tips Tasha compiled on how to get yourself out of a crafting slump.
- I simply adore this beautiful 1940s green suit Johanna made!
Hello, friends! How has your week gone? I’ve been busy with all sorts of things, including starting to help write twice-weekly columns for the Coletterie blog. The first post I helped out with–a roundup of creative links–is already up, and there is another coming this week. I’m rather excited to be doing this as Colette Patterns is a company I have enjoyed helping in the past with various things, and you know I love the patterns too!
I’ve also been doing a bit of sewing–on that 1940s playsuit I posted in my summer sewing list earlier in the week. With the weather being as warm as it has been, I couldn’t help but start with something that looked cool and comfortable to wear! The midriff top is done (hence the snapshot above), but the rest of it is on a bit of standstill. I ended up having enough fabric for shorts and a skirt (although I’m a bit concerned about how sheer the fabric is for shorts, so those are still being debated), so I cut out the skirt and started on that. If you look at the pattern image, the gathering is centered in the front and back, and the sides are left smooth. Despite having a skirt with this exact gather pattern, this skirt was not flattering at all! I spent some quality time with my seam ripper the other evening and am just going to gather it all the way across. Hopefully that will remedy the problem!
My sister is also visiting this week–which is always a lot of fun! We have a few things planned to do, but I think the main idea is to also relax a bit and catch up. She didn’t get to come down to visit us last summer when we were still in Florida, and despite having had a couple visits in between now and then, she had been swamped with her thesis paper prior to graduation last month. So for the first time in a long, long time we’re actually able to have a homework/school-free visit!
Have a lovely rest-of-the-weekend! I shall be back tomorrow with some inspiration.
June 3, 2012 ·
6 lovely thoughts
posted in links
· tags: weekly inspiration
