The Snug Bug tour of fabric shops part one… S.R. Harris.

Good morning velveteen rabbits and other assorted much loved animals. Speaking of velveteen… we got in some of the new Anna Maria Horner fabrics this week at the shop and there’s VELVETEEN!! Gah. I love her fabrics so much. There’s voile on the way too, I can hardly wait.. For poor rabbits with no access to local retail outlets, I just noticed that the fabric’s up on our etsy site. Mmmm… velveteen. Don’t bother going for Lovesme Lovesmenot in Goldenrod. I plan on buying the whole bolt. My entire wardrobe will be different pieces in large-scale print velveteen….

Speaking of retail outlets… I was scurrying around on a fabric hunt yesterday afternoon and decided to do a few posts on the shops we have here in Minneapolis/St. Paul. While we’re a reasonably sized metro area, we are in the heartland of the U.S. and there could be more choices. But we’re lucky with what we have! Of course, I WORK at one of the fabric shops here in Minneapolis… but I think I’ll save my shop for last in the series (or when I have absolutely nothing else to blog about and need a quick subject!) Today, we’ll tour S.R. Harris, the giant, scary, mecca for design students, prop masters, decorators and other assorted oddballs such as myself. Here it is in it’s panic-inducing glory.

What’s my style? Rambling and plotting my next projects…

Evening bumblebees. I have no new finished items to show off today. Normally I skip these days on the blog – I’m more of a show and tell girl than a waxing philosophical girl. At least, as far as the blog is concerned… but I’ve been mulling over a thought all day which led me to to a google search chock full of big hair, 80’s fashion and a slight identity crisis. And here’s what got me started.

Taking the pledge again!

Here’s my pledge taken directly from BOTH comments on So ‘Zo…

I, Patty of Patty the Snug Bug, sign up as a participant of Me-Made-March '11. I endeavor to wear one handmade piece of clothing each day when the temperature's under 40F and ALL handmade when the temps over 40F for the duration of March 2011

Darn! I forgot! Addendum to the pledge - refashioned items count too!

Harumph. I need two tries for EVERYTHING! And I just realized I left out knits. I will inevitably wear RTW cardigans, no matter what the temperature. Ah well.

I’m sure most readers know all about Me Made March, Self Stitched September and such… for those who don’t, check out Zoe’s site – I did it last September and it was super fun and I felt curiously bereft on October 1st. Except that Halloween was coming up! To celebrate fond memories here are all my Self Stitched September posts… and here’s my wrap-up picture! Now go forth and sign up… you’ll be glad you did!

My upcycled, hot glue, anthropolgie-esque, rose garden cardi…

I lied. There was no hot glue involved with the making of this cardigan! This is the next piece of my Spring Palette Challenge – the upcycled cardigan. I’m very particular about my sweaters – I like them on the shorter side, perfect for wearing over dresses! As anyone who shops for RTW clothing knows, most cardigans my size are giant tents of sweaters and I’m not sure if I’ve ever even seen an XXL cashmere cardigan that fits me! I took a trip to Savers and stocked up on man-sweaters that were either cashmere or cashmere and silk blends. My first attempt, while cute, ended up being a little too snug (no photos, alas), but I’m pretty pleased with my second attempt which is based on my worn-in-every-reveal-photo-shoot cardigans that I got last spring from New York and Co. These sweaters are perfect – crew neck cardigans with a nice fit and some flowers on the yoke which makes ‘em interesting. I have one in mustard, green and white. And they’re wearing out… So without further ado… here’s the after shot, taken in the classic Facebook profile photo pose!

And out of left field… elastic. Hot Patterns Marrakesh Drawstring Pants

Happy Monday fellow flamingos! Here in Minneapolis we’ve gotten another foot and a half of snow, pretty much ensuring that Minnesota, at least, is entering a new ice age. Luckily, my manic focus on making trousers will serve me well in these new, colder times. Also, my dog-eared copy of the Mammoth Hunters will enable me to catch my food after the inevitable breakdown of our industrialized society. Does anyone remember how exciting it was when Ayla invented the sewing needle?

Hunting and gathering aside, I’ve actually got a real, non-muslin pair of pants to show you today! And there’s elastic involved!! I’ll give you a moment to recover from the shock… OK. Welcome back. Here’s the thing – I mentioned at the end of my last post that I was going to try the Hot Patterns Marrakesh Drawstring pants. What I didn’t realize was that these pants not only have a drawstring, they have a clever drawstring that involves elastic. Who knew? Anyway, after all of the fitting and butt-shots of the recent past, I just wanted to get a nice pair of pants for wearing around the house. While I would gladly wear dresses every day in the summer, I really don’t have an actual need for trousers (you know, pricey fabric, lined, matching suit jacket also in closet)– I just really want to make some that fit! Pants, though, I’ll wear those. I thought the Marrekesh drawstring pants looked just the thing. And, it turns out, I really like them and think the pattern may work well for some NON-elasticized versions! In keeping with my recent theme – here’s a butt shot…

Pants! Pants! All over the place! Hot Patterns Everyday Pants and Razor Sharp Pants.

Alright duck billed platypies. I’ve more pants for you. These pants are quick and dirty and not pleasant to look at. And unlike the last post I don’t have much for you other than pictures. Over the last day I’ve thrown together the Hot Patters Razor Sharp and Everyday pants, and then a hybrid…

First trousers were the Hot Patterns Razor Sharp trousers – I cut between a size 26 up to the hips, then veered to a size 24. For the muslin (a poly wool blend) I taped up the pieces to skip the pockets and I also left off the fly. I give these pants a so-so rating – they have an incredibly angled crotch curve – like an L – and it’s very, very deep in the back. It’s actually quite an odd feeling… here’s a photo of the pattern envelope – all the action shots will be lined up together below. I will say this, though, they are QUITE comfy!

Fitting trousers (Simplicity 3688). Now we have a nice, pac-man ghost shape….

Sorry for the blogging blackout. I’ve literally spent every spare moment poking myself with pins in an effort to figure out this &(#^&)@ trouser fitting! Must teach Mr. Bug how to drape. I have lots and LOTS of photos of my failed experiments for you, but I’ll just jump to the end. With the help of the wise ones on Pattern Review, I now have a reasonably well fitting pair of trousers. Of course, they are lacking in shape, but we’ll get to that later. Here they are in their completely unpressed glory, with me holding a temporary waistband on to see if I like the look…

To pleat or not to pleat…

I have good news and bad news. The good news is if you’re in the mood for a blog post that meanders aimlessly with no finished projects to show off or clear direction as to fitting trousers, you are SUPER in luck. The bad news is that I didn’t bring enough popcorn for all of you. Let’s just jump in, shall we?

I posted the beginning of my search for trousers the other day, and included a shot of my three major contender patterns – Hot Patterns Razor Sharp and Everyday pants, as well as one of the ‘vintage’ reissues from Simplicity (4044). I cut the patterns and re-read through Pants for Real People (honestly, they need to restyle that book. It burns my eyes.) I couldn’t decide which pattern to start with. The Hot Patterns ones seemed so frumpy, the Simplicity pattern… well… it has pleats. I pulled the back pattern pieces and laid them out to compare. First, The Razor Sharp pants – a faced waistband, front fly zip, angled pockets, creased and supposedly wider leg.

McCalls 5094–the February Dress. A little roses and lace.

Yay! It’s done! The February dress. After the never-ending string of muslins, I just did one final tweak (shaving another inch or so from the bottom of the center of the front bodice piece) and went ahead with the real-life dress. Behold!

Why I do not want wear the pants in the family. Snug Bug goes on field trip to the Mall of America.

Alrighty, jackrabbits. First up, old business. Yes, Lady Katza, I’m planning on doing a quickie how-to on making the sweetheart Sencha. And for those who suggested that I start draping (Andrea? K-Line?) I was sort of thinking of that too – except that I’d have to get a dress form. And then I’d really need to do something to make it more me-shaped than just a plain old dress form. Then I’d have a me-shape, lurking in the guest bedroom, freaking me out during early-morning mouthwash forays. And finally, as to all the wondering why the torture of a thousand muslins, when I already have a perfectly good Parfait pattern that fits… fair point. I will refrain from pointing out all the significant differences and clearly state that the February dress is much, MUCH more close-fitting than the Parfait – nearing corset-style snugness in the bodice area!

I’ll be getting back to the February dress in the next day or two – all the pattern pieces are cut, I just need a few hours to sew. I’ve also been working on a rather extensive thrift-store-cashmere-restyle project as part of the Colette spring palette challenge. There are satin roses involved. It’s very anthropologie-slash-hot-glue-gun-tragedy. You will roll your eyes extensively at the unveiling. Here’s a sneak peek on the sweater-restyle project…

The February dress…McCalls 5094. The dress of a thousand muslins.

Good day cats and kittens. It’s currently 54 degrees in my house (give or take 20 degrees) and Lucy the stenchhound is earning her keep as a foot warmer. This isn’t stopping me from my dreams of sun and sundresses and flip flops and all other good things. Which brings us to the February dress, a cute dress that’s been a bear to fit. Mostly because of all the tweaks I added. Here’s the muslin… (note the elegant footwear)

Simplicity 2601… cherries and checks!

It’s done! After slogging through my pattern adjustments on Simplicity 2601 (see my first round of alterations here), I managed to get a wearable shirt! The fabric was delicate, prone to fraying and unfortunately, easily torn with exuberant seam ripping. Also, it was impossible to topstitch. And it was slightly crinkly. Despite ALL of that, I love the finished product! Here’s my wobble-headed posing (and yes, that’s the cherry cord fabric… I’ll get to that in a separate post!)

The Negroni shirt–version 1!

At last! Mr. Bug and I managed to get a few snapshots of the finished Negroni shirt! I had to darken most of the images significantly so that the details show a bit more. Also: the secret to getting Mr. Bug to pose… let him play with the hound during the photo shoot!