August 17 - Shirt Done

August 16 - Almost Finished

Got the body done, just the buttons and button holes to go. 

August 15 - More shirt progress

Some sewing time today. Along with some laundry and such. 

Shirts

Been making some shirts lately. The blue one is for my son's birthday. Lots of things to get right in a man's dress shirt. Love the challenge, and don't mind the time it takes to do all the bits and bobs required. Getting better and better. Not perfect yet, but it is a great shirt that will serve him well.  

After spending the time and concentration of making a dress shirt, it is fun to whip together an every day shirt for hubby. They only take a few hours start to finish and this one will get lots of use. A fabric he and his friend picked out a couple years ago. 

I also made one for his best buddy. We will take it with us when we visit later this year. This is the third shirt I will have made for his friend. This one might finally be just right. The last one was too short, as his buddy is a big guy. Can you tell? 

I do an extra step these days on the inside of the collar. Makes a difference in the finished product.

I not only tuck, I also stitch the fold down and hit it with that little hammer. The hammer, I believe, belonged to my mom's mom. It is a rather dainty little hammer, perfect for hitting a fold to really get it locked in. And it makes me happy to think of her. I still miss her and she has been gone over 30 years.

See how sharp?

August 1

This month, I have decided to focus on sewing for me. I haven't really done much for myself this year. I did one dress for a wedding that I attended, and some experimental tops, to see how to work with specific fabrics and new patterns. I do have to concentrate on fitting issues, since my figure has changed since I last sewed much for myself. I love sewing for my family and friends, but have done enough of that lately. I know it will start up again in the fall as I do holiday gifts, with jammies, turtlenecks and men's shirts, but just for the next 31 days (ooo I get a bonus day!) I will focus on me.

So, I hope to turn this pile of fabrics, muslin and patterns into something FABULOUS!  We'll see!

But first, I have to wrap up July. I didn't finish this in time to get it into the blog before August actually started, but here is my last project for a loved one until September. I do plan on blogging every day, even if I only do one stitch, but hopefully there will be plenty to report each day. 

This is hubby's "resort wear" that he will be wearing to a cruise wedding this fall. I have the same fabric (yes we dress like Twinkies) and that will be one of the projects I will be working on. 

The last two shirts

I have made seven of these shirts, and now the whole team at hubby's work is ready for their next conference. I was thinking that making the same shirt over and over was not the most fun I ever had. I think I like a challenge, like fitting someone to make the clothes look nice on their particular figure, or working with new fabrics, styles and patterns. 

The one thing I did enjoy was my old stand by . . . sewing and praying. I happen to know the women who will be wearing the last three shirts that I made. I know that they have each had some challenges in their lives over the past years, and I know that praying for them was easy to do. So maybe I wasn't challenged in the usual way, but it was still a pleasure to sew for them. 

A shirt for son

My son's birthday will soon be here and a shirt is, these days, the traditional birthday gift for the men in my life. Happy Birthday to my boy. 

The CAR shirt

This is a long promised shirt for Bro#3. It took me a while to get around to making it, but I finally did. He wanted a different fabric, but it is no longer available. I like this because it reminds me of him when he was little. He would sit in the car any time we went anywhere and announce each and every car that went by, saying the make, model and year! Annoying to a big sister, but I was also very impressed with his ability. He is still a pretty cool guy and I am glad to have him as one of my brothers. This one seemed particularly easy to line up the front closing and the pockets. Impressive! 

On the model! What a cool guy. 

The Blue Shirt

This shirt is for SIL#1's birthday coming up. He picked out the fabric earlier this year. At first I thought it was rather a heavy fabric and wasn't sure how it would turn out. Turned out nice and he is one of those who is always a tad cooler than the rest of the world, so the heavier fabric will suit him well. 

The Mustang Shirt

I have gotten better and faster at getting the shirt front and pockets to match up.  This one is for a brother who is soon to have a birthday. Still takes a bit of extra time and fabric, but makes for a really fine shirt, and I appreciate the details. We seem to share our creative gifts with one another. He does some mean woodworking. 

Sewing for the youngest

The sewing room has been neglected lately, but I keep plugging along and have an occasional afternoon in my favorite quiet/alone place. I recharge my batteries and accomplish something along the way. 

Yesterday was spent mending, skirts and jackets, pockets and such. So it's been all about the youngest and her better half lately.  

 This blouse is a copy of another blouse that she really likes. I measured, fussed, made a pattern and then finally made the shirt. Cute. 

 This skirt is super simple and from another skirt that she particularly likes. 

Shirt for mom

My mom picked out this vineyard print and because the shirt pattern is so simple and I have made quite a few, I was able to pull this one off before we took her back to bros. I have another shirt, skirt and top to make her, but other things have floated to the top of the list, she will have to wait a bit. 

One HOT shirt!

A shirt, let the sewing begin . . . again.

It has been forever since I have sewn with any type of regularity, since all those jammies way back when. So glad I was able to get those done as delivery is eminent. Now that I seem to be sewing again, I will attempt to have a few things for the family to open when we celebrate the holidays together, when ever that might be. I would do this sewing anyway, but save it up for the "holidays".  Basically shirts for the guys, a couple of dresses for the oldest, and some other things to wrap up for the youngest. We don't "do" Christmas beyond what it is really about. I love what it is truly about, but not so fond of the cultural pressures that our society has gotten thoroughly carried away with. Thankfully I am one of those people that thinks it's a holiday every time we get together! It's a celebration, fun and special, no matter what! 

This lovely Michael Miller fabric makes a great casual shirt. Someone will surely enjoy this one. 

Three more shirts

I have a friend who hired me to sew for her. Actually earning a bit of money while doing something I LOVE, cool! She picked and purchased the fabric, thread and buttons, and gave me an old shirt that I used to make a pattern. Here is what she gets. Three beautiful shirts.

These buttons were the only tricky thing. They require extra gentle handling because they are made of real wood, but they sure are cool.

Love this fabric, the colors, the movement, the buttons. Really nice.

Two more shirts

This one is for our anniversary. 38 years, and he gets a girly shirt! A nicely MATCHED in the FRONT girly shirt.

This one is for our FIRE extinguisher party that we are having next weekend in the neighborhood. And Pentecost, of course!

Twinkie time

Found this fabulous pink flamingo fabric. I think everyone has a pink flamingo story. There is actually a rouge flamingo popping up on lawns in our neighborhood currently, and my kids each had a teacher (the same one over a 7 year period, for science) who used flamingos on a regular basis. A ploy to be entertaining as well as informative. Hey, a teacher CAN teach and be fun at the same time. Also there is a guy in Alaska who ties them to trees on a little island. We saw them on our cruise a few years back. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_flamingo will enlighten you to all things pink flamingo.

So here are his and hers.

His with star buttons.

Hers with pink buttons.

I have been practicing matching the front of the shirts. In my mind, SO easy, but in reality, there must be a trick, as hers was slightly under overlapped and his was slightly over overlapped, so his buttons are slightly wonky, but hubby never wears his shirts unbuttoned, whereas I do. This one will look super cute with a black, pink OR white t-shirt underneight, OR buttoned up tight.

Two shirts