Have you Noticed how Sew Bossy Pretty Grievances is? And other Musings…

Hi everybody!! I have to apologize to folks whose blogs I normally drop by and delight with about their makes and progress as well as chums on Twitter and Instagram. I have missed all of you!!

I have been completely out of commission for the last month or so. About half of that time, I have actually been bed-ridden. The kind of bed-ridden where you have an internal debate as to whether it will be worth it to get up to use the restroom. Every time I did stand up and try to move around for more than a few minutes, my blood pressure would plummet and I would end up lying on the floor. I was suffering from mental confusion, blurred vision, olfactory hallucinations (remember this?)

stomach troubles and lost almost 10 pounds (4kg), which I was not trying to do. It’s all been very strange and unpleasant and even a tad inexplicable, but it can be blamed on an undesirable reaction to medication I was prescribed.

And, to top everything off…my sewing machine broke down and I’ve not been able to purchase a new one yet. Sigh. I have my mind set on a Janome. What do you think? What sewing machine do you use? Anyway, I appear to be on the mend now; a lesson to all to be very aware of any medication they are prescribed in order to catch any negative effects early!

I received a Sew Bossy package in the post today from Anne at Pretty Grievances. She sent three patterns and some fun bird clips.

(Mom, stop reading here!) the Butterick 5785 is my mom’s size and style and I am going to make version D for her. Anne also sent Victory Patterns, the Simone dress/top. I had recently been debating between the Hazel and the Simone

as I liked them both and ended up purchasing….the Hazel!! So, I plan on making the Simone in this lovely and flowy fabric she sent to me. What kind of fabric is this, Anne? It appears to be a kind of chiffon.

I am planning to make the dress version and I have this fabric that I’m going to use for the back and front ‘bib’ contrast!

It has branches and leaves on it, to match with the fabric Anne sent and also birds with touches of navy which I really like paired with this burnt orange colour. I also have a pair of tights in the same colour and plan to wear with the finished dress to “gentle-ize” (that’s a word) the hi-low (mullet) hem and blend everything together.

She also sent this book. It actually brought tears to my eyes, I was overjoyed. And Kitty, being an exceptional cat, is also set to delight in and learn from this book.

An excerpt: “L’Etiquette–J’ai l’honneur de vous offrir ce suisse presque completment mort.” (Etiquette–I have the honour to present you with this mostly dead chipmunk.)

I am also WAY behind on my Fall For Cotton and The Monthly Stitch Vintage Patterns make. I was originally going to make this

1960s Vogue pattern in, yup, those are horsies on the fabric and line it with the yellow cotton batiste, and still have plans to do so. However, due to the fitting requirements and the many sizes it needs to be graded down AND the fact that my sewing machine is on the fritz and I’ve not purchased a new one yet, I simply won’t have time to finish it for this month. So, I thought, what a better time to put my overlocker to good use!?! My new plan is now this:

What screams vintage pattern made with cotton knit fabric more than Diane Von Furstenberg??!! I plan on making two versions of this dress, both in knit cotton jersey type fabric.

I’m going to make the long sleeved round neck version with the necktie in the blue/lime/teal geometric shapes fabric and make a belt out of the navy jersey. I then plan to make the short sleeve, scoop neck version out of the brown/orange/teal dots with a belt in this same fabric. The blue patterned fabric is actually a four-way stretch. Will this be a problem in making a dress with it? The brown fabric is thicker and a two-way stretch so it should work out well.

I’m pretty excited about it, since for the most part, I don’t wear or sew dresses in knits, nor have I used my overlocker to sew together a garment, only for finishing, so this will be an exciting change for me! I don’t know how much blog ‘catch-up’ I will be able to do, but I look forward to seeing all your finished Fall For Cotton and Monthly Stitch Vintage Pattern makes.

Filed under: Dresses, SewAlongs, The Monthly Stitch, Updates Tagged: 1960s sewing patterns, 1970s sewing patterns, Diane Von Furstenberg, Fall For Cotton, Sew Bossy, The Monthly Stitch Vintage Patterns, The Monthy Stitch, Victory Patterns, Vintage Sewing Patterns, Vogue Vintage Patterns