Category Archives: clothing

Spring and Black Velvet

Posted on February 29, 2012 by Janice| 2 Comments

It may seem that Laurel’s  black velveteen dress is out of season.  But the weather this time of year in central Florida can be freezing or almost hot.   Today, it is 80 degrees (I’m not complaining!) but a week ago it was freezing.  So her church clothes wardrobe requires seasonal variety.

The black velveteen basic yoke ’10 Christmas dress still fits, though the hem had to be dropped.  Hurrah for 6″ hems!  With a few 6mm twin needle tucks and a border of serpentine stitching the crease was invisible and the skirt was long enough.

Sugarplum Fairy embroidery on pinafore bib

As I began planning a collar to go over this dress, I recalled a box of ready-made collars that was packed away. Continue reading →

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Posted in girls, shadow work

Wedding Veil and Flower Girl Dress

Posted on February 26, 2012 by Janice| 7 Comments

Judy Day continues to dazzle all who see her flawless, elegant sewing projects. Recently, she made a wedding veil for a bride for whom Judy’s granddaughter was the flower girl. Her creative approach to design and problem solving are inspiring.

In Judy’s words: Continue reading →

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Posted in girls, Judy Day's creations, wedding

Zig Zag Bonnet

Posted on February 22, 2012 by admin| Leave a comment

In November, 1995, when this bonnet was featured in Creative Needle magazine, I was absolutely enchanted. Chery Williams’ reproduction of this 1920’s simple, unique and charming chapeau screamed “MAKE ME!! MAKE ME!” so loudly that it went to the top of my grandmother’s hope chest project list. But life got in the way and it was only recently that I was able to get to it.

Basically, the pattern consists of a single piece of batiste 15″ X 9″ with deep zig zags along the front and back. This measurement allows a little excess around the edges for hemstitching.

My Brother Duetta 4500D does beautiful hemstitching, even through the two layers of Swiss flannel and lawn.   This  bonnet shows off the pretty entredeux stitch, worked with a reduced width setting.

Embroidery, by hand or machine, is worked into the front points and then the entire perimeter is hemstitched, either commercially or with a machine made entredeux stitch. Lace edging is joined all around.

The embroidered points are folded back to serve as a brim and the back zig zags are hand stitched together. Ribbons are attached at the sides and, bam! You’ve got a dynamite baby bonnet. Continue reading →

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Posted in baby accessories, heirloom sewing, infant clothing, machine embroidery

Baby Bunny Bubble

Posted on February 18, 2012 by Janice| 5 Comments

It’s time to get started on Easter outfits for the grandchildren. In fact, I woulda/shoulda started before now but I am busy working up a design and embroidering tee shirts for Robert and Laurel’s Odyssey of the Mind competition next week.

I’m especially grateful for the 1000 stitches per minute that my Brother Duetta puts out.  The shirts are pretty ugly, but beautifully embroidered (film at 11, or after the competition).  There are other must-do’s but very soon I MUST at least have a plan.

For sewing mothers and grandmothers, there is no greater thrill than to see their little darlings decked out in their most elaborate and special garments, created with love in every stitch.

Those of us who have labored long and hard on these very special holiday garments often find that specific recollections of each Resurrection Sunday are tied more closely to the Easter outfits made that year than to the calendar year. Continue reading →

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Posted in baby accessories, Freckled Laundry, girls, hand embroidery, heirloom sewing, infant clothing, machine embroidery, techniques

Tiny Daygown for Tiny Girl

Posted on February 14, 2012 by Janice| 8 Comments

This preemie daygown was made for a tiny baby girl who was born last week weighing 3 lbs. 9 ounces.  Almost 8 weeks before her due date, she is doing quite well in the neonatal intensive care unit at an excellent hospital.  But she is sooooo little!

Her mother was one of my daughter’s classmates and one of my favorite students in my children’s sewing classes.  Now she is a wife and new mother to a precious baby daughter who will probably be in the hospital for some time.

I had planned to smock a daygown for this little darling, but she arrived before I even began.  So I whipped up this simple A-line so she would have something girlie to wear over her itty bitty institutional nappies.  If I can find a little more time, I’d like to make a bonnet and blanket. Continue reading →

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Posted in heirloom sewing, infant clothing, machine embroidery, White Wednesday

New Look for an Old Dress

Posted on February 8, 2012 by Janice| 5 Comments

Heirloom sewn children’s clothing is nearly timeless. Bishops, basic yokes and button-ons have been around for so long that you can hardly tell the old from the new.

Laurel, my 7 year old granddaughter, wore this dress 28 year old dress to church last Sunday.   Perhaps you can tell that it is not new because it is not black and hot pink or lime green.  But still, I think the color and style do not scream “HAND ME DOWN!!!” (Please advise me if I am wrong.)

The dress was made for my daughter Rebecca in 1984.  The fabric is a Rose and Hubble lawn.   How I wish that company were still in business, making almost Liberty quality lawns!

The collar is ivory linen with hand fagoting stitches joining the bias strip and lace edging.  The same edging is fagoted to the linen sleeve binding.

NOTE:  On SewForum, I posted a picture and description of a daygown with fagoted lace.   The word “fagoted” was “beeped.”   I wonder what their censorship program would do with “roll and whip?”

I need to mend the mitre on the bias.

Continue reading →

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Posted in girls, hand embroidery, heirloom sewing, machine embroidery

Valentine Pettiskirt Ensemble

Posted on January 26, 2012 by Janice| 3 Comments

Judy Day made these darling Valentine outfits for her granddaughters. As my granddaughter, Laurel, would say, these are “cool!” Judy has a knack for seeing one thing and envisioning another. The Valentine ensembles clearly demonstrate that ability.  Here are the details from Judy.~~~~~~

I typically don’t make Valentine specific outfits, as I want my granddaughters to wear the things I sew for them longer than this short season.

Purchased “blank” items can be transformed into personal outfits with just a little embellishment here and there, as these outfits attest. Continue reading →

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Posted in girls, hairbows, Holiday Projects, Judy Day's creations, machine embroidery

It’s Over

Posted on January 8, 2012 by Janice| 4 Comments

DIL Shelly's fleece throw completed

Christmas 2011 is finally over.  I know, I know—-you probably put all your ornaments away before the pumpkin pie was gone and already have your Valentine’s decorations up.  I bet you are set to bake red, white and blue  cupcakes for Presidents’ Day and have a bunting ready to hang on the front porch.

Not me.  Our at-home celebration with our children and grandchildren began Dec. 27th and ended Jan. 3 when they had all left.  So we are a little  lot slower wrapping things up.

The pre-Christmas bug that kept me in bed and, more importantly, out of the sewing room,  is the reason I am still finishing up a few gifts.  The microfleece throw for my sweet daughter-in-law was embroidered with one of my favorite machine embroidery collections, Sandy Jenkins‘ Paisley Alphabet  from Martha Pullen.

I especially like to create an applique’ for the solid portion of the design (gold show above). Continue reading →

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Posted in boys, machine embroidery, Nana fun

Blossom Basket Blouse

Posted on January 4, 2012 by Janice| Leave a comment

I hope 2012 is off to a good start for all of you.  For us, the new year was kicked off in the midst of chaos rather than the cozy family gathering we had planned for our Christmas #2 celebration.

First our pilot son was called away for a last minute flight to Denver. Then after the bonfire and s’mores, the grandchildren’s plans for a loud welcome to the new year were foiled by 6 year-old Robert’s battle with croup and Laurel’s virus.

Finally, after unsuccessfully trying to soothe his cough with the cold air humidifier, my son-in-law and I left at 2 a.m. and drove 40 minutes each way to Robert’s home to retrieve his croup medicine.   The remaining adults tended to Robert and Laurel. Being on the roads at that time was a little worrisome, but we arrived home safely.

The best part of the new year was that our daughter and her family were here for a whole week.  However, this left me not a free moment as 2 year-old Alastair claimed my undivided attention. I loved every minute of it, but there was no time for blog writing, sewing or picture taking. Consequently…

For Faded Charm’s  White Wednesday, this is a rerun of an earlier post. I hope you find a tidbit or two that interest you.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Continue reading →

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Posted in clothing, heirloom sewing, lace tape, ladies, machine embroidery, Madeira applique, techniques, White Wednesday

Christmas ’11~First Celebration

Posted on December 27, 2011 by Janice| 1 Comment

I hope you all had a happy, merry Christmas day, filled with family, friends and love.  We’ve just had another joyous celebration with our daughter, Rebecca, Harvey and 2-1/2 year old Alastair.    Regrettably,  I took very few pictures the entire two days.

Christmas Eve was spent with Harvey’s family, who seem like our very own.  At Carol and Alan’s absolutely gorgeous, huge, decorated-to-the-nines country home, we enjoyed a delicious supper of gumbo, homemade slaw, special bakery bread, fresh strawberry pie and bread pudding.  Our son-in-law Harvey grew up just outside New Orleans so it’s no surprise that his mother has significant expertise in Cajun cuisine, not to mention everything else edible.  The company was as good as the food.

Alastair wore his Christmas suit and was, of course, the star of the evening, shining for his adoring grandparents,  89 year-old great-grandmother Ruby, aunts and uncles.   Why didn’t I snap a shot of him charming Ruby or showing everyone how high he can jump?  Why didn’t I take a picture of him alone in the music room playing (well, hitting the keys) on his grandmother’s baby grand piano? Or pulling back the curtains to examine the electric candles and the outdoor lights?  I missed so many photo ops. Continue reading →

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Posted in boys, embroidery blanks, Holiday Projects, machine embroidery