My New Sewing Room

We added a place for me to sew.  I am so proud of my space.  We purchased the desk, chair, and the dressform from Craigslist.  I stored my patterns in a collapsible organizer and some sewing books (hello Half Priced Books and Amazon).  For now, I store my fabrics in a plastic storage bin.

Now, I will focus on making some clothes and getting better!

Finding the natural waistline

I mentioned that I have problems finding my natural waistline (evidence from Simplicity 1368).
I found some references for the natural waistline from various blogs:

Lolita-Tips Blog

Reneet Bouchard Blog

Sew Store Bought Blog

Project: Simplicity 1368 - Elastic Band Skirt - Fail

I took another JoAnn's sewing level 1 class - making an elastic band skirt.  I took pride in almost making a skirt in 2.5 hours!  I had to thread the elastic when I got home (about 30 mins).  I used a safety pin, which I found to be tedious. I bought a bodkin which used for another project; the bodkin was much better!


Pattern:  Simplicity 1368, View B
Details:  Pattern Size 18 (I used the largest pattern size, with the intention to bring it in)
Changes:  Enclosed the waist band, used a less thick waistband
Outcome:  When I tried on the skirt, the waist was 5" too big.
Lessons learned: I don't how to interpret the measurements in the envelope. I don't know where my natural waist is. I took my waist measurement around my belly button, which is wrong. After research, use your natural waist, lean over sideways and look for where your torso bends.  For me, it pretty high, but that is your natural waist.  I also learned a lesson that the fabric makes a big impact to your clothes.
Future Alterations: Next time, I will add another 3-4" to length.

My First Attempt

I found some references for the natural waistline:

Lolita-Tips Blog

Reneet Bouchard Blog

Sew Store Bought Blog