Kittys Drawings

Hi Everyone!

New sewing post comin’ right at ya! I recently finished this vintage mail order pattern from the 50′s (possible early 60′s?).

I’d originally made a black denim version of this but it doesn’t have any beading on it yet like I’d planned so I wont show it yet cos it’s not technically finished.
Straight after I put together the black one, I started this one in a grey wool blend from my original Savers stash. The fabric is a bit itchy so I lined it with some grey gauzy cotton.

The pattern is fantastic – very simple. Just two pieces with four darts for shaping on the back and front. It also has a kick pleat at the back and a centre-back zipper.

I made some changes to the pattern:

• Shortened it considerably!
• Made the bust much smaller
• Shaped it so it’s a more ‘wiggle’ fit – the skirt is normally very straight.
• Lined it – the patterns call for facings which I did on the black one and they’re annoying. Lining is so much neater!

This is the perfect work dress – and a very versatile pattern. I could easily make a scoop neck version in linen and embellish the neckline with fabric flowers. It would also work well with border prints or fabric that has a vertical or horizontal stripes. The possibilities are endless!
I really must trace this onto plastic (I’m very far behind in all that!!) so that’s more durable.
And it doesn’t even look too vintage – very timeless.

On another note – I found the navy belt at the Salvos recently. I’ve been looking for a good navy belt for ages and I’m so happy I found this one! I also picked up a cute pair of white cotton gloves from the same Salvos and a few metal zippers. For a measly total of $10.50!

Yay!

And I’m sorry for the supreme lack of drawing posts. It’s all in the works I swear. Its been mega busy here at home too. I may have a rather exciting announcement to make shortly – which is somehow related to this outfit…but until it’s all concrete, my lips are sealed.

Til soon!

Hi Everyone!
Oh boy, I am sooo behind on my sewing updates!!
I made this skirt a few weeks ago as I was in a rush to make something that would go with my work shirt. The shirt is blue and striped (and is horrible) so I had nothing that matched. I needed to wear the shirt to go see a customer and while I did finish the skirt in time it wasn’t without some hiccups.

I used the base of a dress pattern and just made my own waistband to fit.
Everything was going swimmingly until I got to the waist! I had made it much too wide and it was mega squeezy to get it on. Ugh.

It was still wearable even though I could barely breathe and I used a cream coloured zipper because it was the only one that was the right length. I managed to make it through the day and just covered the dodgy zipper and waistband with a belt. When I got home I was fiddling with it trying to make it more comfortable and of course the zipper went *pop*! Derp!

By that time I was well and truly over it but funnily enough the next day I found I had the energy to fix it. I took the waistband off and removed the broken zipper. This time I made sure I tried it on after every new section was pinned and also managed to find a black zipper. It was too long but I sewed it in anyway and just trimmed and finished the end of it so it wouldn’t come undone.

Now I’m quite pleased with it as it fits fairly nicely and it’s super comfy. I’ve shown the insides of it too as they’re quite tidy if I do say so myself….The seams are finished with a zig-zag stitch and it’s all underlined with a soft grey gauzy fabric. I used satin sew-in hem tape for the hem.

Since this was made I’ve also used the same pattern to make another skirt (which I’ll show later). I made some modifications so that it fits slimmer and is more pencil shaped and I like the new version better.

However I have one question for the sewists out there – Since I am using a dress pattern for the skirt, should I be taking some off the top of the pattern to give more room for the waistband? I find that when I try these on without the waistband in, they fit really great. But as soon as it goes in, the skirt tends to bunch near my lower back as if there’s not enough room for all that fabric between waist and hip.
Hard to explain! But I’ll show you what I mean when I do my next sewing post.

(bwahahaha look at Boofy’s FACE – he looooooves the pats. He’s all like “gimmegimmegimmeMMMMOAR”)

That’s about all for today. Don’t forget the GIVEAWAY of course – being drawn on Saturday so get your entries in quick smart!

Oh and the shirt I’m wearing in these pics was a Savers find – Genuine vintage for $6!! The label inside the shirt still uses the old Australian sizing method – its a SSW ;-P Which I think equates to a modern size AU8-10 or so. And that’s my new hair – Freshly red!

Seeyas!

Hi Everyone!
Just a quick post today.

More sewing stuffs.

A few weeks ago I “won” a bunch of patterns on eBay. Yay!

Aren’t these 40′s ones (on the left) amazing!

Since quite a few of them are fairly similar, I will use a couple for my GIVEAWAY!

So – Follow my little blog and when I get to 50 followers, I’ll host a giveaway with a couple of patterns and a drawing or two. PRIZES yay!

The first thing I will make from this stash is the skirt from this wiggle dress.

That awesome charcoal fabric I found today at the Salvation Army – $4!! There’s a good couple of metres of it – plenty to make this skirt and a blazer to complete a suit eventually. Really want to make more skirts. Especially nice slim pencil cuts.
I’m pretty sure it’s wool – if not 100% but at least a blend. Wow! It wouldn’t have come cheap to buy new. And it feels awesome – nice and weighty.

My current projects are the red dress – which is currently in the washing machine and turning navy. I bought navy dye in the hope that it would at least turn purple which would have been a satisfactory result – but it’s coming out a really deep, rich blue so far which is even better. Then it’s just a matter of adding the buttons and I’m done.

Why navy and not leave it red? Clashy clashy with tha HAIR. I’m compiling an unintentionally matched colour scheme for my wardrobe. I wear predominantly navy, black, blue, grey, white and red. Which all clashes completely with the splashes of green or yellow. Even though I LOVE green, I need more accessories that coordinate so I don’t end up matching all my green and looking like Kermit the frog gone ranga.

I’m also not far from completing a gorgeous 40′s dress in the polka dot crepe (?)….I just need to attach the sleeves, hem it, add buttons and the zip.

BUT – today I’m going to draw instead of sew. Because I haven’t done any drawing in almost a week. And this blog hasn’t all of a sudden become Kitty Sews

Time to pick up the stylus!

Ciao!

Sorry for the lack of arty posting lately. Been feeling in a bit of a slump. Still sketching daily but kinda not feelin it. However, I’ve got two client projects on the go which aren’t problematic at all which is excellent.
I think I have worked myself into a “MUST BUY NEW COMPUTER” mode and so trying to do anything on my clunky old laptop is getting me frustrated. I am entirely sure it’s just an excuse as I am known to do that. What for I know, it’s not like it’s benefiting me in any way to be always making excuses! TERRIBLE. But identifying the problem is only halfway (only a quarter even) there.
Soooo, even just writing this out is motivating me to get off my butt and back into it. Browsing the talent on ConceptArt always helps too.

But since I have nothing worth scanning at the moment, I shall show you some purchases instead. It was payday not long ago and of course I have a massive list of favourites on Etsy which I’m always itching to lay my hands on.
These are the items winging their way over to me from the US.

A stunning 50′s/60′s wool suit. Cos I don’t have a suit yet and this is so pretty and looks like a fabulous cut.

A navy vintage hat. I don’t wear hats generally and this is a good price and versatile colour so that I don’t feel too bad if it doesn’t look good on me. There are SO many beautiful hats on Etsy!

And finally, another dress….cos a girl can never have enough dresses. The colours are cute and summery and looks flattering. Thankfully I’ve gotten quite good at being able to judge what will fit me well without needing to try something on. There hasn’t been one online purchase I’ve made that doesn’t fit me.

I can’t wait til they all arrive! Cue postie stalking….NOW!

Ciao!