wear the clothes we sew for ourselves

I love making my own clothes.Sometimes I get a dud fabric, but most sites send samples, and I have learned which ones I trust. yes, the rule is wear it 3 times + at least one wash / clean.
And just to add that DH and I have adopted (in many things) the crafters' acronym SABLE:
Stash
Acquired
Beyond
Life
Expectnacy

trapeze dress in viscose is perfect for this heat today, very airy, not sure about showing my unattractive old legs but heyho, I am not ever going to try and snare a man so what does it matter. I may well make the next one a bit longer but this one does cover my knees modestly. My african-type fabric trapeze has not much drape so is one I only wear beltless in the house or belted outside where neighbours can see me. It is washing right now because that colourful cotton one is beyond perfect for the expected high temperature tomorrow. That one was my muslin, the following ones have a neater neckline which was modified on the pattern copy

Btw sewing room is now a sewing room but I am holding back until I have done a wardrobe sort. Looks very nice, with a comfy armchair

I've given up making clothes but my real joy is getting a good quality dress etc from the charity shop and taking it in/up or altering the shoulders etc on a sleeveless.
You know what will suit you and if it's a disaster, at £4 or so for the item it's not the end of the world.
It also means that I actually get dresses that fit my size 15 top and size 18 bum!

I've never liked anything that I've made for myself.

My father was really surprised when I asked for a sewing machine for my 21st birthday as he was convinced that I'd never use it. But I made one of my bridesmaid's dresses, several (seldom-worn!) things for myself, even trousers for DH, as well as some really nice outfits for DS when he was little. Now I sew for DGD and have made her several dresses but she'll probably soon grow out of wanting to wear handmade clothes!

I am in love with vintage style retro dresses. I received 3 and will be keeping them, so stunning and fit beautifully. I had an e mail today giving me even more money off, so I have ordered more and the dearest is costing me £31 and two are £28. Very well made out of good quality and beautiful fabrics. Ok I will have to remove old things from my wardrobe for the charity shop but these dresses will do me almost 2/3 of a year with a cardigan added. No joy of sewing these, not at that price for full and waisted dresses, the £28 ones have added petticoats and I know they fit me perfectly

Thats me in town, the one wearing the retro dress, with a large sun hat and carrying a whicker basket

yes very easy farmor and I wore it happily the whole day yesterday but with a belt and it looked very retro. I remember using my chalk puffer stand to get the hem straight

craftyone - I was a bit puzzled about what a trapeze dress was, till I looked at that clothkits link. In the 60s we called them A-line. I still have patterns from then. Trapeze sounds more exotic.?. Very easy to make.

look at the price of these

clothkits.co.uk/products/merchant-mills-dressmaking-workshop-trapeze-dress?variant=4921815302178¤cy=GBP&gclid=Cj0KCQjwjMfoBRDDARIsAMUjNZosRor-gzRvwjuUqJPrIwOrB9FGpNC8I5UJXtzvGQl1F2HCbLub_yUaAt1BEALw_wcB

I have several merchant mills patterns and they look like sacks on the envelope but are super nice to sew and wear. My trapeze has short sleeves and probably cost me £25. No zips or darts
drapersdaughter.com/products/merchant-mills-trapeze-dress

I bought patterns from drapers daughter or direct from merchant and mills, they have a big fanbase

I have made 3 trapeze dresses, all from fabric stash. The first one was basically going to be a muslin but it felt very nice to wear so I adapted the neckline, which is now a nice fit. The fabric was a bit wrong for the design ie I think it was batik cotton and it tends to hold its own shape too much. It is very bright, reds blacks yellows, from croft mill I am sure. I added a red belt this morning and the dress is transformed and is now curvy and looks very nice on me as well as being cool on. The other two skim me better, they are slinkier fabrics but wow I am already looking retro, like I remember my mothers generation

I have just done what I don`t normally do. I have ordered a couple of retro dresses online. I need to see if these styles do anything for me. They were not expensive and the co has very good feedback. I would rather do that than make the dresses to find they are not suitable. I can always send them back if they don`t look good

When I was at school, we made knickers in needlework class - by hand! Mine were purple lawn and unwearable, being very much like my grandmothers' 'drawers'. Yours sound much more civilised, craftyone, but I'm far too lazy and will stick to M&S.

oh and if you have never tried making knickers, well they are so easy, made mine from tea shirt fabric and t shirts. They are so comfortable and wear much better than (expensive) sloggi. I use stretch shiny bias around the cut edges

Its hard to adjust clothes solo but I am managing, I have this special tape measure that slides through a loop. Details on a craftsy video called `fitting solo` by Linda Lee. The video is expensive at the moment but they have big sales several times a year. I own dozens of videos online with craftsy. They always inspire me and get my mojo going

So dresses in vintage style
jaycotts.co.uk/products/s1459

jaycotts.co.uk/products/m7433-misses-inverted-notch-collar-shirtdresses-and-belt

I have just ordered the second dress pattern, first one would make me look like a pea on a pumpkin but would look fabulous on a smaller size

So my plan is to do the pattern alterations on a traced pattern so as not to damage the original. Then do the alterations and use the swedish paper as a (drat cannot remember the word) draft dress before I go near the final fabric

Frustrating really as I have not yet got my cupboard installed and most of my sewing stuff is still packed. No harm in planning

I absolutely love fabric. I go to see the various exhibitions of clothes at the V&A or the Palaces just to ogle the fabrics. Some are breathtakingly beautiful, and the skill, artistry and dedication that goes into making these fabrics, including the little worms? is a wonder.

Thanks craftyone . I’ll look out for Ottobre- might look at their children’s patterns. I’ve 3 granddaughters (girls are easier to sew for) and lots of fabrics.

I used to sew a lot for the DC but I've yet to make a thing for the DGC.
You're right, it's the cost mainly and the lack of tempting fabrics.
I came across a stash of things I'd made which I'm loath to part with. So many memories!
I still knit though. I even unpicked a ripped sweater of DH and after much washing and rewinding, knitted a jumper for DGS.
DD can sew much better than I can so I must have done something right!

Wear your hand made clothes with pride.....that's a talent I would have lime to have.

I've made summer dresses (a few lined) and wear them when it's hot. The original pattern has a zip (can't zip up at the back) but as it has a fairly large neckline I sew up the back and pull it on which seems to work. They look fairly elegant in my eyes. It's taken a lot of trial and error to get the shoulders right. It saves a fortune to make them yourself if you can.

I have done couture dressmaking and pattern cutting classes for years and have learned all the professional techniques. Drawback is it takes time to do things properly. Commercial patterns are fine, but making your own patterns to your individual measurements is the best, particularly with trousers and close fitting dresses. It does make you dissatisfied with ready-made clothes in high street shops which are poorly finished in nasty synthetic fabrics and obviously not made to last. I made my eldest daughters’ wedding dress, four bridesmaids dresses and my own outfit. That took me a year. A “ Chanel” style dress and jacket in pink and blue tweed with a pink floral silk lining took me about a year as well, but I still wear it and love it. Making something is so creative and satisfying so dust off those sewing machines!

also direct from ottobre, with much better online pictures

www.ottobredesign.com/en/

oh yes I remember those magazines, my mum was Dutch. Ottobre is similar but with much better pictures and layout. Much cheaper than buying patterns and the fit was very good. Dots n stripes sell it in the uk and it is in English. Oh dear, I am going to get another one or two. There is ottobre woman, they also do beautiful designs for children.

I use swedish tracing paper for patterns. It was so good to use, I helfd it down with hm weights, little bags filled with sand. I was terrified of it being discontinued, it was hard to find, so I stocked up

craftyone - yes, I remember Clothkits. Got a lovely cord dress for daughter from them.

My OH is from India so I’ve been there many times. I found buying saris was a great way to get nice fabric for dresses for special occasions.

Years ago a Dutch friend introduced me to pattern magazines Neue Mode and Burda. They had all the patterns on complicated looking sheets with lines all crisscrossing, but once you got the hang of them, they were great.

farmor that brought back a memory, I made my wedding dress and 4 bridesmaids dresses and the wedding buffet and 3 tiered cake. Don`t know how I did it, I was working full time. I was aged only 22. I started learning very early in life, sewing on a singer treadle when I was 9

So does anyone remember clothkits? I loved those clothes, the gorgeous childrens clothes and skirts and pinafores for me and my goodness they lasted well

I got my collection of fabrics online from very good suppliers, none of them were cheap but some were bargains from the likes of croftmill. One of my best sewn garments is a parka type coat, lined with a hood, pattern from ottobre women, fab value patterns with multi sizing that needs to be traced

I am feeling an urge to make some dresses like Kirstie Allsop wears, the shirt collar, buttons, waist, sleeves and flaired skirt but am sitting tight, for now

Maybe you are normal sized farmor, I am short with small shoulders and a short waist and I have to alter all the patterns bar skirts. I do a fba (full bust adjustment) to make sure that darts point to the right place. The clothes I make are far more individual from the ones in the shops, I have dozens of indie patterns and very unusual fabrics

Like Alima I used to make a lot of my own clothes, all types, and also for friends and my children. I never had the experience of craftyone of not feeling confident in clothes I made. I made my own wedding dress and ‘occasion’ dresses for my daughters who were very happy with them.

The problem nowadays is lack of availability of fabric and the relatively low cost of clothes. When I did sew more, I was very particular about the details and finish - I never wanted anything to look ‘home-made’.

It has taken me 53 years to be able to put in an invisible zip without it puckering, showing, or gaping at the top or bottom. Two years ago I discovered you can get an invisible zip foot that gives a professional finish. When did they start making those?