The Sewing Place
The Emporia => Fun with Fabric => Topic started by: Efemera on April 30, 2017, 09:10:33 AM
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I've just read Elephun's thread about a sheers Craftsy class and it got me thinking....I never sew with sheer fabrics, or silky stuff. It's just not something I wear, I feel like I've got my nightie on. I would say 80% of my sewing is with knits and the other 20% with wovens
So what do you mainly sew with?
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No knits or sheers - don't like see through clothing - and I only sew mid-weight wovens such as cotton sateen or poly mixes. Even viscose is a problem as it is thinner and I find it hard to cut accurately. :(
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I sew all sorts, probably an increasing amount of knits for me. Wovens for the missus, for shirts, but all sorts of weights and fibres. The steampunk stuff is all sorts, and I'm not unduly phased by fine, sheer or slinky fabrics, although they aren't all that prevalent in my wardrobe. I do love silk, in all its forms though!
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I tend to buy whatever I would want to wear and pay little regard as to the ease of sewing with it. Then regret it later :|. Actually come to think about it I wouldn't be put off nowadays by knits, sheers or velvets (I love sewing with velvet) what does put me off is pattern placement. You know those quilting cottons that look lovely on the bolt but if you're not careful you end up with a kitten strategically placed on each breast, or, as I managed to achieve, an elephant trunk coming out of a seam without the elephant which looked rather phallic. 0_0
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Pattern matching is for pussies! Remember my five legged rainbow zebra? Right on my bum crack. FABULOUS! I pointed it out to everyone...
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You do know Fairy that muv occasionally comes on here to monitor how rude I am being about her, and this comment may well have just ruined her Sunday!
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She's used to me! :devil:
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For what it's worth, the fact that you like cutting out, can hand sew a zip and not afraid to use different fabrics does put your credit points higher than your debits it cannot be denied. However, to her, not pattern matching is definitely in the Thin End of the Wedge scenario. Which usually involves the family joke of muv spending half an hour telling you how words fail her or that she is speechless!
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I think the reason pattern matching has failed to make much of a dent on my consciousness is that for many, many years, I only sewed solid colours. Not a stripe, not a flower. Now of course I like mad prints, and just tend to go for it. I have done a little careful pattern placement from time to time, I didn't want a zebra face coming out of my fly, but a five legged one on your bum has to be a good thing! They were RAINBOW ZEBRAS!
(https://thedementedfairy.files.wordpress.com/2015/04/dscf63761.jpg?w=300&h=225)
I just realised it's SEVEN legs not 5. Brillianter and brillianterer!
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That actually works! Love it :*. After all when you're a rainbow zebra why not have some extra legs too.
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I will have a go at almost anything except I've never tried leather or it's substitutes. If I have a problem then I refer to my 'friend'
https://www.amazon.co.uk/More-Fabric-Savvy-Resource-Selecting-x/dp/1561586625
I've had this for a few years now and use it quite often. I've never sewn a seven legged rainbow zebra though 0_0
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I just realised it's SEVEN legs not 5.
And you teach maths, missus. 0_0
I don't pattern match, although I do avoid 'targetting' certain parts of the body.
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Over the years I've probably sewn with just about every kind of fabric I would think.
I love wearing knits and use those a lot. Love cotton lawn for ease of sewing and nice to wear. But love wearing viscose and have no trouble cutting or sewing it. I thought crinkle silk chiffon might defeat me but lots of thought, planning and sampling made it go like a breeze. Like you DF I love silk of any kind.
Probably the worst fabrics I've worked with have been a very soft drapey velvet and a metallic fabric which blunted needles like mad. I got through at least 5 on one garment. Heavily beaded fabric was interesting and I realised that a zipper foot was going to be the best for that job. I even managed to do a narrow zig zag with it! Would definitely recommend hand cranking to check that first!
I'm game to work with anything. You just need to know how to handle it. Ripping fabric across the grain is a quick way to straighten it, unless it's faulty of course. Slippery fabrics need a layer of tissue paper or similar for laying out. I always draw a pencil line along two sides with a large set square so I have a guideline for placing fabric. The fabric is then pinned to the lines along the selvedge and top. Then the pattern is placed and pinned. I cut the whole lot together and only remove pattern pieces when I,m going to work on it.
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And you teach maths, missus. 0_0
I don't pattern match, although I do avoid 'targetting' certain parts of the body.
A real mathematician can prove that 5 IS 7 mate
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Mostly knits or stretch fabrics for me and cottons for the kiddos I would say.
DF where did you get those stunning zebras they're awesome
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A real mathematician can prove that 5 IS 7 mate
It's witchcraft. :devil:
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Well you know the old song 'A 7 legged friend, a 7 legged friend, she'll never let you down'. ;)
I sew most fabrics. Quite happy with jersey and sheers, wovens the lot. Don't tend to sew many sheers but I've just acquired some lovely Liberty silk chiffon.
As to pattern matching, well I do have a bit of the ol' tartan in the wardrobe so I pattern match when appropriate and tut disapprovingly at RTW clothing which should have been pattern matched but isn"t.
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DF ....you are the box of frogs!!!
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This is completely untrue, a foul calumny I tell you!
Reddit.
Wibble.
Millennium hand and shrimp!
Anyway, to answer a previous question, the rainbow zebras were from Fancy Silk Store a few years ago. ON one of my market trips with a horde of crazy sewing ladies, we bought up all they had left [some were on different backgrounds]
Lovely stuff, but I got too fat for them REALLY quickly. Dammit. I must salvage the fabric and see if I can squeeze a bag or something out of it. I love it.
Oooh ooh just remembered...I have rainbow ELEPHANTS waiting to be made up too!
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DF Just add a couple of extra zebra legs then they might be ok. 9-legged zebra??
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Until last week I had almost never sewn anything other than woven fabrics. I vaguely remember a foray into a patchwork of stretchy velvety type stuff, although I can't for the life of me remember (or imagine) what I did with it.
Last week, though, I made my first LDT and it will not be the last. I'm now on the hunt for knit fabrics - not an easy task as my local, lovely fabric shop has recently closed down. :'( I am also exceedingly fussy. I don't want clingy or sheer or too stretchy. I want mostly natural fibres. And, of course, I want lovely colours and patterns and designs. 0_0 www.myfabrics.co.uk is looking good, and I am waiting for a pile of samples from them.
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What's an LDT?
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Laundry Day T-shirt from Lovenotions.
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Ok I wanted them when it was rainbow zebras I absolutely must have rainbow elephants!!! I wonder if spoon flower has any.......
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DF Just add a couple of extra zebra legs then they might be ok. 9-legged zebra??
0_0 0_0 That would be an animal designed by committee, much like the camel.
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Pattern matching is for pussies! Remember my five legged rainbow zebra? Right on my bum crack. FABULOUS! I pointed it out to everyone...
You do make me chuckle :)
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Fancy Silk Store still has it, also puppies and...some other critter, can't recall, in the same range
I found the pic of the heffalumps!
(https://thedementedfairy.files.wordpress.com/2016/06/sewing-stuff-017.jpg?w=768)
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While not as fabulous as the zebras, they are rather irresistible. Maybe something for Pride weekend?...
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Fancy Silk Store still has it, also puppies and...some other critter, can't recall, in the same range
(https://thedementedfairy.files.wordpress.com/2016/06/sewing-stuff-017.jpg?w=768)
BIRDS
I remembered
Wibble
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I rather like the 7 legs zebra, it adds a je ne sais quoi.
I'll sew pretty much anything, but one foray into pleather was more than enough. Sheers, and other garments with issues, like wrap overs or strapless wotnots, or cling happy skirts have to be designed with a complementary underthing. Otherwise they're just a waste of space.
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This question reminded me of a phone call, from a posh sounding gentleman, i once had late one evening that went something like this;
"Good evening can you tell me do you work in leather?"
"I'm sorry, what do you mean?"
"A friend gave me your number, I am a clergyman looking for someone to work in leather for me"
:S OK i do have a pair of leather gloves and a whip (don't ask) but not sure i want him to know this.
It turned out he wanted me to rebind the sleeves of his cassock in leather as the old leather was worn, and yes he was a clergyman. We often had crossed wires when i did work for him.
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I had a bullwhip as a wedding present the first time I got married...
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I had a bullwhip as a wedding present the first time I got married...
We have friends with the same sense of humor.