Sage green cotton linen overskirt that ties over the separate white overskirt with a ruffled hem. Both are sitting on a petticoat I made that sports 5 layers of tulle!

White blouse has shirring in the back & sleeves. I did those pintucks manually (it was a pain). Last thing I need to do it attach the buttons & make the button holes on the blouse, trim the drawstrings, and probably wash off that blue fabric marker.

My serger was not functional while I was making this, so it's all rolled hems & French seams. 💀

I have several more pieces, both bags & clothing, and I'm going to be vending at a teeny tiny local convention this weekend! Doubt I'm going to sell much of anything.. but I hope people will at least appreciate it all! It's all much prettier in-person.

Everything is self-drafted.

Thanks for checking it out!

I've gone and bought myself one of those vintage Singer automatic zigzag attachments. A swiss made one, specifically. I did so with the knowledge that they would be more or less nothing but a gimmick.

Online, most people are very much in general agreement that these attachments are useless for actual work. They can't do edges properly and they aren't reliable when it comes to width of stitches. They're hard to steer and, as I said, pretty much a gimmick. The general consensus seems to be "they're fun, but buy a buttonholer instead".

Now, I disagree. At least these Swiss ones are perfectly usable as long as they're oiled up and adjusted. And this is the whole reason I'm making this post. Because maybe there's someone here on Lemmy who's been wondering about it.

The example picture above isn't an edge seam made after tens of hours of struggling. That's the second piece of test cloth I put under it after taking the thing out of the box. Is it perfect work? Definitely not, but it's the first time I tried to do an edge with it. This is a piece of cotton bedsheet cloth folded once, so pretty thin. I didn't press it, and I didn't think much when I did it. Since then I've used it on 4mm thick felt for edges. Works fine.

I just felt the need to say this. Maybe it's not that relevant to most people - hopefully it's useful to someone.

Thank you for coming to my LEMtalk.

So I have a serger / overlock machine that has a manual specifying that it uses a needle type called "HA-sp1" needles. Alternatively, they are also called "HAxsp1" and "15xsp1". They're all the same thing.

So I was in a bind because I had no needles for the machine! And I'm on a deadline!! Those needles aren't sold locally, and I don't have a day to spare.

Turns out, the Schmetz company low-key confirmed that their 11/75 & 90/14 "Stretch" needles are very very similar to the HAxsp1 needles.

!

I tried it, though I was not optimistic. Hours later, no breaks, strikes, or any other funny business! HALLELUJAH!!

Change to the proper needle specification, when you can, but, as a temp, it seems to work just great!

So, to summarize:

All these three needles are literally the same thing: HA-sp1 , HAxsp1 , 15xsp1

The alternative needle if you're in a pinch: Schmetz Stretch needles, size 11 or 14, depending on how heavy your fabric is (11 for light - medium & 14 for medium - heavy).

Happy sewing!

hell yeah

!

And a replacement button with a similar color scheme :)

!

At some point I also wanna get some mini patches to go where there's currently the little embroidered polo player. The theme is lavender lemonade, so a little lavender and a little lemon would be cute :)

Didn't think it was anything too special but my family loves how these colors went together. Credit to Choly Knight for the pattern.

I recently got an embroidery machine so this little one is part of my practice for learning how that works. If anyone has any tips or suggestions that is welcome.

I just made an almost no-effort cloak, but when I tried to wear it outside I was disappointed to find that the wind cut right through the single layer of no-pill fleece I had cut into a U-shape and draped over my body. Who could have predicted that! 🤦‍♂️

I'm currently puzzling over how to upgrade my project into something that could protect me from the wind a bit better. I've got two main ideas:

1. Add a layer of polyester or vinyl to keep out the wind, plus an additional layer of fleece. That way, the wind can't get through, and it's still decently light. But will it be loud?
2. Make it out of heavier fabric. I don't care if it's waterproof, I just want to have something that both stops the wind and can be easily thrown over my shoulder like the ultra-wide scarf it is. But my poor little sewing machine 😢 might be too weak to puncture thick blanket material.

That said, I am new, and i don't know which fabrics are best for which roles. I would prefer a fabric that stops the wind, doesn't make a lot of noise, and can stand up to an iron in case I get some questionable ideas later on about waterproofing my cloak with wax.

Please comment what sort of fabric you think suits my needs best. If I'm completely on the wrong track here, please tell me so; i have never had any common sense at all and never will.

@sewing first muslin of McCalls 7652. Because it's vintage, I am starting out with a pattern that is 2 sizes too small. It came out a bit small but the FBA and petite adjustments seem to be ok. I do need to get more muslin before I can size up, so that's it for today. I think having a deadline is really helping me stay motivated. I will probably go get some tomorrow. \#sewing

@sewing I was concerned that a denim jumper/pinafore dress would read as "preschool teacher) but I am quite happy with a fit of this Persephone dress from Made for Mermaids. \#sewing

Excuse the pun in the title. I've got it to work, but looking around doesn't give much info. I'm assuming it might not be an original Singer part. Does anyone know anything about it?

edit: I should clarify that this box contained accessories mainly for the Singer 66k. Most of them identifiable.

edit2: I've found it on this page (in french) towards the bottom. It is indeed an adjustable hemmer without any further info. Might be a Singer part, might not be. Guessing not since it is not marked with a part number.

I love my Brother CP60X, but the thread does not play nice on the holder. It tends to get stuck in the plastic lip and then break. So I made a simple felt barrier like that many sewing machines come with. Works like a charm! Now the thread spool doesn’t spin erratically and instead has just enough friction to maintain tension…and not tangle on the plastic lip. 10/10 recommend.

https://pixtagram.social/p/itchick2014/751276514782646923

My most recent finished project.

Dress was self-drafted. I used rayon challis for the dress, polycotton for the bodice lining and crinoline for the skirt lining.

Send me a message if you're interested!

Maybe this isn’t the right community to post in, so apologies if this seems odd. But I figure we sewists may have specific needs or thoughts when it comes to garment care so this is the first place I thought of to ask.

My washer is throwing error codes this morning and googling suggests it might be related to some computer panel or other, and I’m a bit worried that repairs are going to be so expensive that it might mean a new washer is in the cards. We’ll see.

Are there any features that you love in your washer, wish it had, or downright hate?

Also, back when we bought this thing, front loaders were all the rage. It seems like top loaders are back in fashion. Does anyone know the story there and/or why a top loader might be a better option?

I’m all ears for opinions about dryers too!

Thanks in advance, y’all.

Hello folks!

I'm finally close to finishing up some home projects and am going to try breaking out the old Singer 99k for some summer clothing as it's starting to warm up here in California. Something that I've wanted for ages but haven't found reasonably priced is a summer weight robe for around the house.

I'm leaning towards a linen or cotton-linen blend for airiness and cost-effectiveness but am open to other recommendations. I'm generally not a huge fan of waffle weave but could see utility in the back and seat to promote airflow.

So, the main question is: Anyone have recommendations for a good pattern (doesn't need to be free - professional pattern designers deserve to make a living) for a men's or unisex robe that would fit the bill and be possible with a straight stitch machine (I didn't yet have a zigzagger)?

Hey sewers! Anybody got a duck plush pattern that my wife can use to sew a duck for our baby? Thanks!

Or were you too busy running after children on a sugar rush ?

I finished a pink jacket, but I am allergic to the fabric so I had do gift it to a friend. Pictures here

Next on the sewing plan is probably a similar one, but hopefully without allergies. Or finiding some use for the huge amount of blue fabric that I own. Or an attempt at a jumpsuit. Probably not a blue jumpsuit, as it would read "work overall".

I had a master plan of diminishing The Pile^TM of things to finish or repair, and it's going farly well. Some of it was really quick and easy, some of it was surprisingly fun to do, some of it was a bit boring. \ I have a plan of making a ... kind of cardigan/vest/jacket thingy by next week end, and I had to pack all of my sewing away until tomorrow. I am not positive that it will work but it would be cool to wear the new thing on the week end getaway. \ I have taken pictures of the fancy black trousers, but I forgot the back and I still need to find the energy to write a coherent text.\ Do not despair, it will happen ! Someday.

What are you working on ? Are you having any difficulties, surprises, wins ?

I am currently in a bit of a low sewing mood after finishing "The Pants Journey^tm". I still need to take good pictures of it, then I'll tell you about the adventure that it was.

I have decided to reduce my WIP pile and finally shortened a tank top (after several years). I have a green skirt that I need to modify a bit and add a petticoat under it. Shouldn't be too hard but I don't want to cut fabric.

But I am also exited about the cardigan, which will come after the skirt. (or maybe not, we'll see). I want to take it to the little week end gateway in two weeks, that would be perfect.

Also, beeswax wraps have been added to my project list, do I need to hem it or does the wax acts as fraycheck ?

Also, does anyone have discovered new sewing content on the internet recently ? I've been watching some Ash LG videos, they are really nice !

The grumpy apple core. I think it's so cute, I love it.

Do you know of any other cute little pattern like that ?