Uniform Alterations

For the past two weeks we've been working on a large amount of alterations, most of them being WA State Patrol uniforms.  It required hemming the pants and sleeves and taking in the side seams of most of the shirts. Altogether we altered about 50 different pieces of clothing. It was a big task but we found out that uniform alterations is definitely something we want to get more into doing.

There was lots of hemming to be done

And a nice big pile of scraps from the many trimmings!

Eloise really liked helping us too!

Christmas Morning Peppermint Cocoa Twirls

Last night for dessert my friend Bethany and I created some yummy treats for our hot cocoa. It would be perfect for a Christmas morning treat! All you need is soft peppermint sticks ( or you could use candy canes) chocolate chips and mini marshmallows. First put your chocolate chips in a double boiler and melt them!

Next you can chop up one or two of your peppermint sticks. You can also slice your marshmallows.

Dip half of your stick into the chocolate and twirl around until evenly coated. Add the marshmallows all around the chocolate, drizzle with more chocolate and then add the chopped peppermint. Make up a cup of hot cocoa and enjoy dipping your twirl stick in your drink! It adds a delicious peppermint flavor to your drink.

On some of them we tried just dipping the chocolate in the middle of stick so you can have a second little handle when you have licked one side away! Just be creative and create these for your own personal taste!

How to Add Simple Elegance to a Dress...Pin-tucking

One easy way to add elegance to a solid skirt or a dress is adding pin-tucks. A pin-tuck is a fold or pleat in fabric that is sewn in place. I am making a dress where this pin-tucking technique adds so much character to this solid silk dress. 

Here's a tutorial on how to create pin-tucks with attached lace. 



This is what my pin-tucks look like.

  
For the next pin-tuck I measured 1 1/2" from my stitching on my last pin-tuck. (depending on how far apart you want your pin-tucks will determine that measurement)

Take your straight edge ruler and mark with chalk all along the skirt.

Fold your fabric from your marked line back behind the skirt and press in place.

Leave your fabric folded and bring it to the sewing machine. If you are adding lace or any trim, first determine how much of the lace you want to be shown. Then place your fabric on the 1/4" seam allowance and begin sewing. (remeber your lace should be past the 1/4" seam allowance so you can see it when you are finished.)

Here's how mine looks after I have sewed it. 

 Sew all the way across you skirt. Now press your pin-tuck down and you are finished.

Here's how it should look when it is completed. If you did it without lace then you should just have the fold and stitching line. 

Please feel free to ask me any questions about this tutorial!

Heirloom Christmas Party Dresses...

The last couple of weeks we have been sewing up some Christmas party dresses. The thing I loved about both the styles we made, was that they were heirloom dresses. What I mean by that is, they have unique details that you would see on a lot of dresses in the olden days.

Pintucks on the bodice, with hand embroidery over top, dupioni silk, flat piping on the collar, sleeves and bodice, and buttons down the back instead of a zipper.

On the second dress, we made it of a chiffon bodice, with elegant long sleeves, and a cuff with lace and buttons. The collar is edged in the same lace as a the cuff, and the buttons down the center front complete the look. The skirt is made of a suiting material that has a rose velvet print over top.

All the details on these dresses display a vintage look, that is appealing to the modern eye.

And the Winner of our Holiday Apron Giveaway is.....

Anna Townsley

Thank you everybody so much for entering our first giveaway. We had a great turnout and look forward to doing more giveaways in the future!