Scribblings ending Midnight 29 March 2020

Useful information  from the week's comments - Thank you Paige, Anita P, Vivienne and Tracy Davis.

Alice and Co Patterns are extending their size range gradually.  Currently there are only 2 patterns in their range that go up to size 22 but more are on the way.  If you are interested in being a pattern tester for up to size 22 then sign up for their newsletter as they give a shout out when they need testers.  Alice and Co are a lovely London based mother and daughter team.  They drafted the 2 free patterns linked to the V & A 's recent Mary Quant exhibition.- the Mini Dress  and the Georgie Dress.  Download them now if you haven't already done so.

Lots of on-line sewing events taking place. The SEWCialists blog have posted a list of some of them. https://thesewcialists.com/2020/03/26/good-news-in-sewing-sewcial-sewing-through-covid-19/
Anyone like to join the Frocktails on 4 April? - a chance to wear one of your special dresses.

Sewing Tips
Here is a tip from Mariella Walker's blog, a great way to alter a pattern for rounded shoulders and forward neck
 https://www.mariadenmark.com/2020/03/fitting-rounded-shoulders-head/?utm_source=MariaDenmark+Sewing+Newsletter&utm_campaign=a6a58f4bc1-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_03_08_01_20&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_08112198fa-a6a58f4bc1-107101089&mc_cid=a6a58f4bc1&mc_eid=33eba9e5fb

 Nice clear blog post on how to add sleeves to a sleeveless bodice. I was looking for something just like this last year.
https://byhandlondon.com/blogs/by-hand-london/how-to-add-sleeves-to-a-sleeveless-bodice-pattern

 Foundations Revealed (http://foundationsrevealed.com/) will be open for enrollment on April 4, and as usual for them, they are offering a three part free webinar in the weeks before for a limited time. This time around it's all about sleeves (how to fit them, how to modify them, how to set them in, etc) and the first part is available here: https://cathyhay.lpages.co/sleeve-workshop-part-1-mar-2020/

Social Media 
 I viewed this youtube video by "Inside the Hem" on using Pinterest, Instagram and Youtube for sewing help. It was also interesting to me to learn how people make a living as sewists from these media. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pt09PPuv-DM
 This prompted me to ask what social media members used.  Here are some of the replies.
For style -Trinny Woodall on Instagram  I believe she also has a Youtube channel
For sewing and style - Emily Hallman on Instagram .She also has a blog but the last post was in January 2020
If you like vintage patterns and seeing what people have made from them, Tracy loves these two groups - Vintage Pattern Nerds - https://www.facebook.com/groups/VintageSewingPatternNerds/ and We Sew Retro - https://www.facebook.com/groups/WeSewRetro/
Mimi G- sewing and style.  She blogs  and has a youtube channel with sewalongs and runs an on-line sewing academy for beginners.
On Facebook- Sewing in the UK and the sub-group Sewing in Greater London.  Also The Foldline Facebook page where you can ask for help with solving sewing problems from finding a pattern that matches a RTW garment, asking why your machine is misbehaving or showing a picture of a fitting problem and asking how it might be resolved. The Foldline also have a Youtube channel featuring reviews, style trends, and sewing news.
If you have a favourite on social media please let us know in a comment below.
If anyone has other suggestions for sites that provide help and inspiration, be it blog, Instagram, Facebook, Youtube or other media then please let us know in the comments below

Shut-in Sunday Scribblings

Scribblings ending Midnight 22 March 2020

Useful information  from the week's comments - Thank you Alix and Giselle

Free patterns.
1.https://www.mybernette.com/en-US/Sewing-projects.html.
2.  From Alix-Heidi Parkes’ #scavengerhuntquilt which is an 8-week long free sew along for a completely hand-stitched modern improvisational quilt. Heidi is giving a new clue every Friday over on IG. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCa5hMffhvnp2utY_w9J0WfQ
3.  Useful list of Free patterns just updated- https://sewstainability.wordpress.com/2020/03/22/free-sewing-patterns-list-2020/#more-1777


Special Offers
1. From Alix- Gertie of Charm Patterns and New Blog for Modern Sewing fame is putting up day by day her complete 4-hour long tutorial class for her Lamour dress, this time on YT. This was a $75 class that she’s now giving away free for a couture style 50’s prom dress with steel boning etc. It’s in depth, complex and very beautiful if anyone feels like a major commitment! I’ve done 3 of her online classes and have learned so much from her, so this is a generous offering. The project is called Sew A 1950’s Halter Dress and is on her YT channel.
2. From Alix- I just looked at my old Craftsy now Bluprint account. They are offering 14 days free trial of the new all-access subscription model, and there are hundreds of courses in all aspects of sewing: pattern cutting, dressmaking, quilting, other fibre crafts plus lots of others so a lot could be squeezed out of a two-week access if you were disciplined! That’s over on bluprint.com
3. From Giselle- Jaycotts.co.uk has a half price Butterick pattern sale. Some quite nice designs, needs combing with a fine-toothed comb... Prices are around £4.75/£5.

Reccomendations, tips and other things
1. From Giselle - I can recommend Mettler's Seralene overlocking thread, it just flies through the machine! Because I use black for pretty much anything (except white and very light-coloured items) I can leave this on my overlocker and just go whenever I start a garment.
https://www.amann-mettler.com/en/products/details/action/show/product/seralene/
2.  Check out Giselle's blog post of 22 March 2020 with tips on fitting. The club blog is here .You will need to go to the Blog Archive to read this post, which is entitled "I came across this great fitting post"

I came across this great blog post on fitting

This is a great blog post on fitting:

https://www.thesewingdirectory.co.uk/accurate-fitting/
Written by Lorna Knight the author of 'Complete Dressmaking Skills' and 'Dressmaking to Flatter your Shape'.

The article is a very good no-nonsense description of how to pick the size to cut out, test sew a garment (i.e. as a toile, also called a muslin) and to pin the areas that need adjusting. What I like a lot is that it sets out all the general steps that help with fitting, and covers all the main issues.

I particularly liked her suggestion that you can iron interfacing to the back of your pattern tissues once you're happy with the fit you achieved.

This article gives good basic advice but it is not a guide on advanced fitting so if you run into specific fitting issues that you can't solve yourself then you need to look at one of the many fitting advice  books that are out there.

Useful advise on the more advanced fitting solutions are to "follow the draglines". When an ill-fitting garment pulls, these drag lines will often point to the area of concern. Say you have sewn a test top and these diagonal dragging folds point towards the bust area: chances are that you need a full bust adjustment.

If you cannot pin an area tigher on a test garment because you need more space rather then less, then you can undo a seam to see if more fabric in this area solves the issue. Some guides advise to slash the fabric itself open, but you do need to carry on the slash to the edge of a garment - fabric is a flat, two-dimensional material that needs darts and seams to shape it into a threedimensional construct. You can't creat a sticking out bump in the middle of a flat piece of fabric. There needs to be a seam or dart somewhere.

The other great fitting tip I came across:  if for example the seat of trousers looks a bit tight but you can't quite pin-point just what kind of change you need to make to your pattern - have a look for 'grab'. Where does the fabric (or tissue if you are tissue fitting), "grab" your figure? Is it across more than in an up and down direction? Is it both?

Again there might be some draglines, really tiny ones, that point the right way but if a garment is only a little bit too tight then you may not be able to see them. But looking for 'grab' instead is a great way of figuring out where the pattern piece needs to be bigger.

If you need a swayback adjustment on a dress or tunic that has no waist seam (you can pinch out the extra material at a waist seam): you may be able to raise the inside shoulder point. This is the corner of your pattern where the shoulder seam ends at the neckline.  Mark off the amount that needs pinching out vertically down from the shoulder seam (or a bit less) and then redraw the slope of the shoulder seam. You will then to lower the entire back neckline to the new lower level. There are blog posts about this out there (that's where I've got this tip from. Apologies, I can't remember right now where I saw it).

A rounded upper back can present some fitting issues because the shape of the area makes different kinds of adjustments necessary. For some you may need to increase the darts at the shoulder seam, but for others you need to slash the back bodice piece horizontally, from about mid shoulder slope across to the centre seam or fold. You then raise the pattern piece above the slash. This is the adjustment I need and I had no idea for a very long time. It seems counter-intuitive.

You may also need to rotate the shoulder seam forward when you have a rounded upper back. This makes much more sense: if your posture isn't totally upright but instead you carry your shoulders turned forward a little, then you are going to need more material in the back piece and a little less in the front at either side from the shoulder seam.  This adjustment is really easy: tape the back and front pattern piece together at the shoulder seam, draw in your new shoulder seam (keep the inside corner where it is and only change the angle of the seam), and cut apart. Done.

Whatever your fitting issue is (once you know which it is), it is very useful to search online - there may be youtube videos and/or blog posts about that very issue. Chances are that you'll find the answer. If not, come along to one of our LDC meetings and ask us! We may have the answer or be able to point you in the right direction.

This is a great blog post about fixing a gaping back neckline with the help of darts:
https://inhousepatterns.com/blogs/news/6229370-back-contour-shaping

Check out the book "Fit for Real people", it can be very helpful.

I will look for some more guides on fitting and blog about them as and when. Happy sewing!

Lorna Knight who is the author of Complete Dressmaking Skills - See more at: http://www.thesewingdirectory.co.uk/accurate-fitting/#sthash.IYAbWy1e.dpuf

Lorna Knight who is the author of Complete Dressmaking Skills - See more at: http://www.thesewingdirectory.co.uk/accurate-fitting/#sthash.IYAbWy1e.dpuf

Sewing Aches and Pains

Having suffered some aches and pains in the past, I thought it might be useful to share some tips that I have found helpful, or have had recommended*.

*This is not medical advice, just some helpful tips. If experience a lot of pain it's always good to be checked out by a professional. 

1. Posture

I cannot stress this enough. A soon as you can establish a good sewing posture, the better you will feel. There are lots of tips online about this, but the most consistent information I have found, and I try to practise this when at my machine. 

Image curtest of SquareDanceSewing.com

For those of you that have to lean down to see the presser foot and needle of your sewing machine, you can bring your sewing maching closer to towards you (I have done this) or some people add a wedge underneath the back of the sewing machine so it tilts towards you. It is worth giving it a try and seeing if it makes things easier :-)

2. Sewing chairs

I have to admit, I am not lucky enough to have an ergonomic sewing chair. If you have the space and the option to have this, I would definitely recommend this. Ensure that you sit in your chair correctly, ideally you should have some back support. 

The image above demostrates the important posture points. If you don't have an erganomic chair for sewing, it can be adapted with a lumbar support cushion. 

When I am not at my sewing machine - for example I have alot of hand basting to do, I move to a more supportive chair in my living room. We have one of the famous Ikea armchairs which supports my back and neck. 

3. Lighting

I only got daylight bulb in my lamp 6 years ago, and it changed my life! Daylight bulbs come in alot of different bulb types, so it is usually not necessary to buy a new lamp. 

If you are looking to invest in a new craft lamp there are lots of reviews online about the best ones. Here is one for example: https://teachyoutosew.com/crafting-room-lighting/

And sometimes you can find deals at the various craft fairs (such s the knitting and stitching show).

4. Massage cushions

This is my lifesaver! I tuck this behind my neck and shoulders and have a massage as I stitch. I use this for hand stitching in front of the TV, and when I am doing embroidery. I have this model shown below. It was really affordable (compared to the cost of a massage)! However, there are lots to choose from, for example a small cushion to a full seat. 

5. Heat creams

I tend to use these when I am moving around, and can't use my massage cushion. For example, when I am moving to and from my sewing machine, or am out and about at a stitching meetup. I have quite a few in my stash, and I do really like those that do not have a strong smell. This Deep Heat Muscle Rescue travels with me on work trips too, and I tend to apply it before getting on a long flight to relieve muscle tension.

Another famous muscle rub is Tiger Balm. It works really well, although tends to have quite a strong smell. If you know that you are going to be stitching for a while, I sometimes use the 12 hour heat pads that you can stick to clothing. Again, they are also great for travelling. 

These are just some of the items that I have found useful. It would be great to know what products, tips or techniques you use to minimise aches and pains whilst stitching.

Hi there, found some pictures of a Dynasty styled, Joan Collins sewing pattern I had purchased on Ebay