sewing sweaters

At first, I was terrified of sewing sweaters.  It had to be hard, right?  Well the answer is no, not really.  I mean, I did ruin one, but it wasn't as cute as I thought it was at the store anyways.  Probably was fate working in my favor, preventing me from wearing it out in public.  One of my favorite people gave me a green sweater with polka-dots, which fits in perfectly with my recent obsession with mixing prints, but did not fit me perfectly.  It was a bit big for my taste, and the sleeves were ridiculously long.

I wanted to keep the cuff of the sweater, so I created a fold right above the cuff and chopped.

Then I set my machine to very low tension and did a straight stitch to attach the cuff back to the sleeve.  Make sure you don't pull it at all or it will stretch.  Since the sleeve hole is fairly small, I had to sew inside the sleeve.

Then of course, add a zigzag stitch right next to your straight stitch and cut off the extra material.

Because the sleeve was wider where I cut it, plus a little stretching from the sewing, I took it in a little along the inside seam.  Then I took in the armpits, just as I did in this tutorial.  Keep your machine on a very low tension to do the seams here.  I did not cut the extra material out of the armpits here.  It wasn't very much material and, being my first time sewing sweaters, I wasn't sure how it would hold up.

Now it fits perfectly!  I wore it to work.  And then I wore it everywhere else.  I'm a cardigan kind of girl!

This is my power pose.  Ever since I watched Amy Cuddy's TED talk about using your body language to trick your mind into feeling more powerful and calm in high-stress situations, I'm always power posing.  Check it out!  It really works--I do a different pose every time I make a presentation, have an interview, or generally any time I'm stressed.

sometimes i cry at the thrift store

It's true.  Sometimes, when I up to my elbows digging through clothes from lives lived long ago and I find an absolute gem, my eyes get all misty.  Gems come in all shapes and colors. Sometimes it's just a fabric that I really love.  And other times, it's a brand.  Recently, I found a hot pink Girogio Armani blazer.  At. The. Clearance. Center.  I always ask myself--Is this real life??  Somehow, this hot little number managed to not sell at the regular store long enough to get shipped out to the clearance center.  And I got lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time to snap it up!  It's times like these, when all the stars align for me to find the most amazing clothes that seem to just be waiting for me, I shed a little tear.

I have to admit, this jacket was a bit too big when I bought it.  Enough so, that it looked a little frumpy.  And Armani is never meant to look frumpy.  I stayed up for weeks at night thinking about how to go about taking it in.  Instead of counting sheep, I imagined ripping Giorgio seams and piecing the lining back together.  I constantly worried, wondering if I should even try myself.  I struggled, letting this perfectly-pink blazer sit in my closet for over three months.  I found tons of tutorials on how to take in blazers, but it's Armani!  I didn't want to take the risk.

Then I just took it to the tailor.

I could do it.  I know I could.  But oh my goodness I wouldn't have been able to breathe the entire time.  People can't hold their breath for two hours.  And you wouldn't want to be within a mile to hear the litany of cursing.  It was better to send it to the tailor.

crazytown pants to sk

I found these posh pants at the clearance center and knew they would push my style limits. I imagined wearing them with a black button up shirt and blinding my coworkers while strolling down the hall to the water cooler, acting like a boss.  One of the top things I've learned from this project is to try patterns.  Last year, I never would have picked up these pants.  Mostly because I would have never paid full price for them, but I wouldn't have considered them for any price.

I was extra happy that they were name brand.  Liz Claiborne for $0.99?  Done.  I brought them home and everyone agreed that they were blinding, but I was determined to wear them.  I first took them in by sewing along the inside of the inseam from one foot, up through the crotch, and down the other side.  It wasn't an entire failure, but my goodies felt a little uncomfortable, and I had a few stray wrinkles to direct further attention down there.  For my life I could not get out the wrinkles.  Please, do not follow my lead by taking in pants this way!

As no one needs attention drawn to their knees, they certainly don't need it to their crotch.  I put these pants away and waited for a day when I was feeling a little more randy.  Needless to say, it didn't come.  Instead, I decided to turn them into a skirt.  I ripped the entire inseam (yes, the one I just put in) out to open up the legs, sort of cowboy style.

Then, I folded them along the seams I just ripped and cut off the desired amount of length. Chip, chop, doodle dop!

After taking off the length, I put on the skirt inside out and pinned the open pieces together.  I might should get a dress form, because I looked like a contortionist to do it.  Sew up the seam you just pinned.  I sewed the entire seam, past the part where I ripped apart for extra security.  I like my skirts pencily-tight and never want them to split down my backside.

All that's left is to hem it up!  Mine was a little tight around the knees and I wish that I had left a slit in the back before I closed it all up and hemmed, but I can still walk without looking like a Barbie doll.  I think as a skirt it is a little less blinding too.  There have been no reports of vision loss from my coworkers when I strut it up the hall to the water cooler.

i'm boycotting new clothes!

For one year, my goal is to not buy any new clothes.  Instead, I'm going to build my wardrobe entirely on thrifted or handmade pieces.  And I'm going to look hot doing it.

Here's why:

1.  I want the challenge of working hard for my clothes, feeling the pride in how I dress myself.  I've been stuck in the same boring jeans and tshirt forever.  I wear boring, safe colors and very few patterns.  It's time to find fun new clothes, take chances, and get out of the boring box.  I want them to represent who I am.  And I don't want people to think I came from the boring box.

2.  I want to reduce the clothing waste in the landfills.  Do you ever think about what happens to the clothes that no one buys from your thrift store?  They get squished into a huge clothing cube on a pallet, shipped to my clearance center, dumped in big rolly bins for people to sort through, and sold for $1.29/pound.  And when no one buys the clothes at the bottom of those bins, they get sent to the landfill.  Why buy new clothes when there are so many awesome pieces that can be bought for $1.29 a pound?

3.  I want to improve my sewing skills.  I'm starting this project with a basic understanding of my sewing machine.  And by basic understanding, I mean I can basically only sew straight lines.  Hems and curtains.  Through refashioning my thrifted finds, I want to learn how to sew, so I can eventually sew new pieces from scratch (from recycled materials, of course!).

I'm doing all of this with my sweet little sidekick, Olive Ant.  She's the cutest cat, even if she is anti-helpful with sewing.