Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Toddler Vest

So auditions are over for SYTYC and although I didn't make it into the competition, I still wanted to share my project with you.  Some of the other audition pieces were great, so I'm not at all surprised.  Especially since my project caters to such a small audience.  But since you read my blog and know what I'm about (which happens to be 50% girls clothing) I figured you might want to see it and know how I made it.  

Toddler Vest, 2 Ways

  

This project is super easy.  It took about 30 minutes to make both of them (probably another reason why I didn't move on in the competition....but that's how I roll people....simple and fast)

And it comes with easy variations.  There's the slightly-less-fast ruffled collar vest.  The pictures are crazy because the model is crazy.  The hem is not wonky like it looks in the pictures, it's just because she won't stand still for 2 seconds for me to take a pictures.

  


And the 'plane jane' white vest.

  


I didn't take pictures along the way, but it's so simple, I promise you won't need them.

Here's what you need to do:

1.  Measure.  
A: The distance between shoulders (armpit to armpit).  Mine- 7.5"
B:  From the top of the shoulder to the bottom of the armpit.  Mine- 3.5"
C: from shoulder to where you want the vest to fall.  I chose below the waist about half way down the leg, but it's up to you and the style you want to achieve.  Mine-17"
**Write all of these down so you don't get half way through and have to chase down your model to get them a second time.  

2.  Cut your rectangle.  Start with a rectangle of cotton jersey.  Use measurement A to calculate how long by tripling the distance.  Use measurement C to determine how long.  Since we're using jersey there is no need to account for seams unless you don't like the raw edges.  Mine ended up being 22" x 17".

3.  Cut your armholes.  Fold your vest in half and place a few pins to keep it in place.  Use measurement A to determine how far in from the fold to cut the armhole.  To determine how far from the top, use 3.5" for small children and adjust up to 6" for larger children.  This all depends on how large you want your collar to be.  Use measurement B to determine how long to cut the hole.  When you cut, you will be cutting both armholes at once so there is no need to repeat this process a second time.  No need to finish armholes because they won't fray.  My hole was 3 3/4 inches in from the side (7/2), 3.5" from the top, and 3.5" long.  

4.  If you wish to have a 'plane jane' vest like the white one, you can stop now.  If you want ruffles like the red one you'll first need to round off your corners.  I did this by tracing the lid of our clothes hamper onto the vest and cutting off the excess.  Then I cut a 2" piece of the same fabric (I had to sew a few scraps together to get it long enough) and ruffled it by sewing a gathering stitch (longest stitch length, highest tension, walking foot if you have one) and pulling the bobbin thread to get desired ruffles.  Then I pinned the ruffled strip around the entire vest on the outer edge and sewed directly over the gathering stitch to secure it to the vest. 

If you have any questions just ask!  Sorry for lack of pictures.  Hope it makes sense.  


Monday, August 15, 2011

Want to do something nice...

...then go over to So You Think You're Crafty and vote for your favorite Season 9 Audition project.  That would be very nice.

 Sometimes it's good to have a reason to sew.  It might help me get back in the swing of things.  So hopefully you all like my project as much as I do.

On a side note...I made my first set of curtains this past week for my sister's house.  They turned out great.  I'm definitely not putting up a tutorial because there are soooo many floating around out there, but I am compiling a list of tips and things that I learned for you guys.

Keep enjoying your last little bit of summer (if you still have any) and we'll be in touch.  Very shortly.  I'm off to the pool.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Excuses.

I thought about telling you guys why I haven't been blogging.  I came up with a pretty long list of excuses too.  Which are all pretty good ones, but the truth is I just wanted a break.  I know I've only been doing this for less than a year, but for some reason all I wanted to do this summer was hang out with my family and play at the pool.  So that's exactly what I did.  ALL.SUMMER.LONG.

See....


(Running away from Dad.  She's fast.)

Who can blame me?

I broke out the machines a few times to whip up a few projects, but mostly I've been catching up on some other parts of my life that needed attention.  So....please forgive me and please come back.  I love creating and knowing that someone else cares and I'm sad to have lost some of you.  I've noticed that I've lost quite a few readers this summer.  No biggie.  I understand.  When blogs I read take long breaks I tend to lose track of them too.  But I will be back...with projects.  Even if the machines haven't been turning, I have been sketching ideas all summer and I'm currently working on my audition piece for SYTYC.  I'll keep you updated.

Hope you are having a wonderful summer as well.