Camisole Inspiration, a sew along, no serger required

My daughters and I love camisoles. My two daughters wear them almost everyday. My younger daughter wears them all by themselves on hot days and to bed; she’s still little. My older daughter wears them underneath other shirts and dresses for modesty. Here’s the kicker: most camisoles are not designed for modesty. She is constantly adjusting in the front, causing her to feel awkward and self-conscience.

Well, we did find one company that makes more appropriate fitting camisoles: Shade. Thank goodness for a designer who doesn’t believe all Americans dress as if they are on a soap opera. We did get a few on sale, but $12  each for basic colors is more than we want to spend, especially when considering how much she wears them.

So we are making our own. We have a fantastic fabric store in town, locally owned, that sells an outrageous number of knits, knits of all kinds, and best of all: none of it is made in China.

Jalie 2564 is gonna help us in this adventure. One pattern for all three of us.  Sweet. The directions are, well, a bit on the short side. The pictures, well, aren’t really that descriptive, either. But Camisoles are super easy and fun to make–  No serger is needed (in fact, the only step that you use the serger for is the side seams),  and with the continuous binding/strap method, excellent results are very achievable for most sewing levels.  SO…I thought I may be able to inspire some other sewists to do for themselves what designers won’t do:  make it modest, and help our daughters keep their personal dignity 🙂

Grab the pattern.  Jalie makes several camisole patterns.  This style was what my daughters wanted, but others should be fairly similar to sew up. Sizing is pretty accurate. For my 10 year, I used “L” for her camisoles that she runs around in during the summer, complete with a shelf bra. Because it fits a bit looser, I used one size smaller for her tankini tops.  Jalie patterns allow you to adjust the pattern for a custom fit. For my older daughter, I traced “T” for the bust, but tapered in and traced size “S” along the waist and hips. I also added a bit of length for both girls.

To sew a cami, you’ll need:

• a knit fabric, less than one yard (refer to your pattern for exact requirement). The fabric I’ve chosen is a special fabric my daughter chose (I also have some wicking jersey knit fabric to use)
• a very small amount of knit fabric for shelf bra
• felt backed, picot trimmed elastic
• fold over elastic
• thread
• stretch needle, and a stretch twin needle
• if using a serger, then woolly nylon thread in the loopers makes the camisole more comfortable

After you trace and cut out your pattern, you will have 4 pieces cut out if you are adding a shelf bra:  a front and back, a front shelf bra and back shelf bra {{or 2 pieces if not, as  I have done for my older daughter}}.

Step 1

Pin front and back together, having right sides facing, and sew side seams. Do the same for the shelf bra. If you do not have a serger, use a stretch stitch (sometimes called a lightning stitch) or a slight zigzag stitch.

Step 2

Place shelf bra on top of cami, having right side of  shelf bra facing the wrong side of camisole.In other words: with both shelf bra and camisole inside out, place camisole inside shelf bra. Match side seams and notches together.  Pin all around the top edge, keeping raw edges together. Use a zigzag stitch (and stretch needle) to baste the two together along the upper edge.

Step 3

Cut a piece of fold over elastic the length of the front top of cami, or follow pattern’s measurements. Pin fold over elastic to cami, sandwiching the cami in the center and  the fold over elastic folded over the upper edge of camisole, as shown.

Use a twin stretch needle to sew it in place. Sew with the right side of the fabric facing up.  Make sure to remove pins as you sew, because sewing over straight pins is bad (very bad).  *Remember not to back stitch when sewing with a twin needle. Please note: you can also sew the fold over elastic on using a zigzag stitch.

Step 4 (One continuous piece method for binding and  straps)

Using the  measurements given in your pattern, cut another piece of fold over elastic. Mark the center of the piece of fold over elastic and pin it to the center back point on the cami (along that upper edge, folding the fold over elastic over the upper edge, and sandwiching the camisole in the middle). Continue pinning the fold over elastic in place along the upper edge. When you get to the front, continue to fold the fold over elastic onto itself, creating straps.

Using a twin stretch needle, sew the fold over elastic, beginning on the end of fold over elastic and continuing onto the point where the cami is sandwiched in the Fold Over Elastic, and all the way to the other end of the fold over elastic.  Make sure you will be sewing with the right side of the cami facing up–otherwise you will have a zig zag stitch showing on the outside, instead of a double row of straight stitches.

Step 5

I like to hem now, since my machine is already set up with a twin needle. You can also use a zigzag stitch to hem your camisole, but my daughter prefers the twin needle look.

Fold fabric 3/8 of an inch toward the inside (toward the wrong side of fabric) and press. With right side of fabric facing up, sew  hem, using a long straight stitch with a twin needle, keeping within the hem allowance. Sew past the point at which you began sewing, overlapping your stitches for an inch or so. On the inside you can trim any fabric that did not get sewn down by your twin needle.

Step 6 (Optional shelf bra)

Cut felt backed elastic according to pattern. Sew elastic  into a loop. Divide both elastic loop and shelf bra into fourths, using the cami’s side seams as 2 of these points. Pin the shelf bra and the elastic together at these marks. You will want the fuzzy side on top, picot trim on upper edge, and pin elastic to the right side of shelf bra.

Sew it in place with a zigzag stitch, stretching the elastic to fit shelf bra. Trim raw edge of shelf bra. Flip the elastic over toward the inside (wrong side of fabric). Sew in place with a zigzag stitch.

Step 7

Put camisole on to determine how long you want the straps. Pin and sew straps in place along the back of camisole, having raw edge of strap on the inside. Trim any extra strap.

Done and done 🙂

I would hate to think we are limited to wear what is available out there in mass production land. From my own experience with my teen aged daughter, it is a challenge to find clothes that don’t reveal too much. It’s horrible to feel exposed and uncomfortable in one’s clothes–AND we shouldn’t have to give up being fashionable or trendy.  But  if the designers only put out that type of clothing, then what’s a girl to do? DIY!!

Hope you find this sew along helpful! If any steps need more clarification, please don’t hesitate to ask.

~Erin

Summer Sewing

A service project of mine is sewing with the youth at our local shelter and I have been amazed with their enthusiasm. They patient and determined,  and are turning out some great projects. Many have never touched a sewing machine before.  Unfortunately, I have been forgetting to bring my camera most days. I did remember last time and have a couple pictures to share.

One youth made a Cinchy Cinch bag, with which to tote his stuff around town. These bags are very handy to have, and a great beginner project. Red seems to be a popular color, but I am clearly challenged when it comes to photographing red fabric and projects. He didn’t want to stop, so he made a self-lined pocket and sewed it into his bag.

Another youth chose to make this zipper  boxy bag, which I wish I had designed it to be a bit bigger.  She had a little sewing experience and  worked hard to create this amazing little bag. These youths have a stick-with-it-ness that is sure to serve them well in their lives.

Here’s a photo of the lining:

The youth seemed very proud of their accomplishments, as they should be. They worked hard and their projects look great!
I highly recommend doing a service project like this in your community. Maybe you have another skill or craft to teach, or an activity to do with the youth in need within your community. It speaks volumes and is most rewarding.

Connecting with these youth is an experience that I would not trade for anything. It also widens my perspective each time. I hope this connection is something that the youth will take with them through their lives and remember that they are valued and though they may not have a physical “house” temporarily. They are not homeless–they belong, they have a home within their community. This distinction should be made clear. After all, home is where the heart is. These youth have heart. We need to take the time to nurture them. Now.

I hope this post inspires you to reach out and connect with someone in need. Whether it be through  teaching, spending an afternoon, or even just through a warm smile and friendly “hello” in passing. This idea is similar to “pay it forward,” serial reciprocity. Touch the lives of others, and they will go on to touch others in positive ways. Kindness and gifts are meant to be shared; ever present, they will gain mobility. In this way, improving the quality of life for a community can start with one person, one act, one gesture.

If you have children, this idea is important to share. There are numerous books that illustrate this concept: we affect those around us and shape our own environments. Charlotte Zolotow is one of my favorite authors; she is brilliant and has such a fantastic way of sharing important messages with young people–lessons us grown-ups also need and can learn from.  Her book entitled, The Quarreling Book demonstrates what happens when we are too preoccupied or busy to connect in positive ways.

~Erin

Play it Safe–Summer Dress Tutorial

A pillowcase dress tutorial. Perfect for summer. But done in a safer way. I don’t mean to be a hater… but drawstrings around necks are not safe and actually have not been allowed by the CPSIA for many years, before all the recent hype. This is why hoodies do not have drawstrings, but elastic instead. Anyway, I completely understand why people prefer the drawstring dresses–they are very cute! They are also much, much faster to make. Even Ottobre has a pattern for one  in an old issue. That said, I prefer this look and don’t mind taking the extra time to sew it.

The main difference is in the  bodice. I use elastic instead of a drawstring, and I use under arm facing to finish the armscye (underarm area); I like how clean and finished it looks. So I’m sure that there are more than enough pillowcase dress tutorials and patterns out there, but not sure that this method is readily available. I’ll share how I do it. I think the end result has more of a vintage feel.

I begin by finding the perfect vintage pillowcase. They are crisp and cool feeling to wear, and many are without side seams, making it even more special. The above dress was made from an antique pillowcase that must never have been used. It still feels new, no stains, holes, and fabric is not worn down at all. The flowers were hand embroidered, and the edge is slightly scalloped.

If you have a pattern use it, but adjust the top–reduce it for a smaller casing. If you don’t have a pattern, no worries. Measure how long you want the dress or top to be. Now measure up from the pillow case hem that amount, plus one inch for the elastic casing.

Use a  straight edge and fabric marker and draw cutting line straight across the width of pillowcase.  Cut along this line. I like to pin parallel to my cutting line, to keep the fabrics together and prevent the fabrics from shifting during my cut.

Now to cut the armscye, or underarm shapes. This need not be perfect, it is a very forgiving design. You will be cutting “J” shapes on each upper corner. For my then 9 year old, my “J” pattern is 3 inches in from the side along the top edge, and 4 inches down along the side. For smaller children, it should be a smaller “J”. Feel free to ask for help on this, as I do have patterns for “J’s” in many sizes that I would be happy to share. If you child has a camisole,  you could use the J on that as a guide to draft a pattern as well.

Finish the underarms (armscyes): Pin single fold  bias tape to underarm “J”– open one of the folds and pin right sides together.

Press bias tape toward seam allowance.

Understitch: Sew a  row of straight stitches close to the fold along the seam allowance/bias tape. This helps the facing to stay on the inside of garment.

Fold bias tape toward inside of garment and press with hot iron. Sew in place.

Fold upper edge 1/4 inch toward wrong side of garment and press. Do this for both front and back. Fold again 5/8 inch for 3/8 inch elastic, or 3/4 inch for 1/2 inch elastic, and press. Stitch close to fold to form casing.

Measure the child’s chest along the front–this is the length of elastic you will use. Place a safety pin on one end of elastic and insert it into casing. Work it through, stopping before the elastic gets sucked up in on the other side. Pin and sew it in place.

Now work the safety pin the rest of the way through. Sew it in place.

Straps: you can use bias tape, folded and sewn.  Sew each strap to top of the “J”. Tie the other ends into knots and you’re done.

Alternative method for the underarms and straps: Do your front and back casings and elastic first. Cut bias tape long enough to cover armscye plus the length of 2 straps. Pin bias tape to dress with the dress sandwiched–placing the center point of bias tape  with the side seam or lowest point of the underarm. Sew the bias tape folded and to the underarm in one step, beginning at one end of strap and ending on the other strap’s end. Repeat for other side.

Well, that’s how I do it 🙂 Hope you like this tutorial and try it sometime. Enjoy the sunshine!

~Erin

Swim Skirt Sew Along

Summer for us means a lot of swimming! I love sewing swimsuits!! Though I have been sewing most of my life, I always thought sewing swimsuits would be difficult and not worth the hassle. Well, I was wrong. Not only are they pretty easy to do, but they’re so fun!  It’s a very rewarding experience, especially considering how ill fitting store bought suits  lose what little shape they had so fast. Handmade suits last a lot longer. The keys to making a great suit? Buy quality fabric (preferable made in USA, not China–support our economy, not theirs)  and use a good fitting pattern.  More about suits later. Right now, it’s about the accessories 🙂 Swim skirts are so fun, and make running around in your suit a bit more modest.

Update: To draft your own swim skirt pattern, start here

For my younger daughter who swims a lot, I used Kwik Sew 3605. For my older daughter (a teenager), I used the skirt in Jalie 2215 and omitted the built in panties. You could easily do this without a pattern.

• Grab a pair of bikini bottoms that fit the person you are sewing for.
• Use that finished waist measurement, without stretching, adding 1/4 inch on each side for seam allowances.
• Use a ruler to draw a slight A-line for the sides. Measure about how long you want the skirt to be and stop you side cutting lines there.
• Draw the hem line. Curve it slightly. I use a french curve ruler to draft my hem lines like this. If drafting for a teen or adult, then you’ll want to add 1/4 to 1/2 inch to the length in the back. This accommodates a tush and ensures the hem won’t be higher along the back side.

✿After cutting out your fabric, with right sides facing each other, pin the sides together. If using serger, pin parallel to stitching line and out of the way of the knife and needles (as shown).

✿Use a slight zigzag stitch, 3 step straight stitch, or lightning stitch to sew side seams with a traditional sewing machine. Or Serge side seams. (Be sure to use stretch needles in your traditional machine and serger for this project)

✿Cut elastic according to pattern. Sew into loop. If you’ve drafted a pattern, then cut the elastic slightly shorter than the waist (about 1/2 inch will do).

✿Divide skirt waist edge and elastic into fourths. Mark with pins or fabric marker. Pin the elastic to the wrong side of skirt–match marks and only place pins at these marks.

✿Sew elastic to waist. Stretching elastic in between the marks to fit the fabric and keep elastic even with the raw edge of fabric. Remove pins before sewing over them. Use a zigzag stitch or serge. If using a serger, you may want to disengage the knife.

✿Turn fabric over elastic, toward wrong side of fabric. Either use a twin stretch needle or zigzag stitch to sew fabric on top of elastic. Sew with right side of garment facing up. make sure your fabric is neatly folded along top edge of waist, and keep it even for best results. If using a twin stretch needle, then remember not to back stitch. Instead, overlap your stitching about 1 to 2 inches (meaning: sew past the point where you started sewing, to prevent seams from coming undone). For proper threading of your machine when using a twin needle, see this post.

✿Now hem your swim skirt. Using a Dritz EZ Hem, fold  fabric toward wrong side 3/8 of an inch and press.

✿With right side of fabric facing up, sew hem using a twin stretch needle or zigzag stitch.

✿Trim any threads, and go to the beach and enjoy!!

If your fabric is thin, you’ll want to use the narrower twin needle(2,5/75). Here’s what happens when using the wider twin needle (4,0/75) on too light weight of a fabric:

See how it puckers and bunches (right side)? This suit has a front lining, so the wider twin needle worked just fine (left side), until I was sewing the back, which was single layer (right side of pic). It really depends on the weight or thickness of your fabric. The striped and pink fabrics are not necessarily the thinnest available, but clearly did better with the more narrow needle.  Test on scrap fabric if you’re unsure. This goes for t-shirt fabrics as well.

Additional tips for sewing swim skirts and swimsuits:

✿You don’t need a serger. In fact, my daughter’s favorite suit was sewn using only my traditional machine. Be sure to use a slight zigzag or lightning stitch for seams. Edges do not need to be finished, because they do not unravel.

✿Use stretch needles!

✿Use regular thread in the needles, but use wooly nylon thread in both your machine’s loopers (upper and lower loopers) if you’re using a serger machine.  This makes it much more comfortable to wear. A 3 thread overcast is also best when sewing knits–allows more stretch.

Here’s the striped suit with its skirt. When working with stripes, matching up the stripes in the print will give it that attention to detail found in higher end designers. It just looks better.To do this, fold the fabric and cut all pieces along the same place (fold when cutting out your fabric). Front pieces along same fold line (making sure you have folded it straight), and back pieces along the same fold line.

Hope this sew along helps! Let me know if anyone is interested in a pic tutorial of how to draft a simple swim skirt pattern using a pair of swimsuit bottoms, and I’ll get right on it 🙂

UPDATE: I’ve posted how to draft a swim skirt tutorial here 🙂

~Erin

Too many ripe all at once…

Which means we need to freeze much of our blueberries. We will be in supply for a while, so to keep the picked ones edible, we freeze them. We cannot eat them that fast 🙂 we have so many. It’s best to freeze right after picking. Blueberries freezing method is very specific, but simple. First, we wash and remove twigs, leaves, and other undesirables. Allow your berries to dry for a bit before going on to the next step. If you pour water onto your trays along with your berries, the water will make your berries will stick together.

Line a baking sheet with wax paper or freezer paper. I use freezer paper;  it not only prevents the berries from sticking to the lining, but it also is stiff, which is easier to pour the berries into freezer containers later.  Lining the baking sheet is not completely necessary, but I find it’s helpful for when you  pour them into containers, once they’re frozen.

Fill the baking sheet with a single layer of berries. Shake the baking sheet slightly to spread them evenly. Several large ones will usually hang out on top of the rest. Just move them to an open spot, or eat them 🙂 I also remove any unripe ones. In my pic, you can see a couple reddish ones. Those are not ripe and will be tart. Blueberries, when ripe, lose all they’re reddish appearance. In the sun, they will look all black.When you have a burst of ripe ones, it takes for every to pick them all when you are too choosy. So we have  many that were not ripe yet in our colanders.

We then place the trays in the freezer. It doesn’t take long to freeze them. You don’t want them to stay unprotected in the freezer for too long , because they may get freezer burn, so plan accordingly.

Once they are frozen completely, pour them into freezer containers, freezer bags, or use your handy dandy food saver. You’ll want to do this fairly quickly and handle them as little as possible, so they stay frozen. Be careful when pouring them into the containers or freezer bags–they are like little marbles–a lot of marbles — they can and will roll all over the place!

This method keeps the blueberries from sticking together, which would make using them later pretty much impossible, unless you are making smoothies or mush.

It’s not such a bad thing to have too many ripe all at once. We just have to make sure we aren’t too busy to take care of our blueberries. Hope you all are enjoying your summer as much as we are!

~Erin

What Summer Brings

Summer has finally come to our little town here in Oregon. It is well worth the wait! First we went to pick these in late June:

My youngest used these fresh picked Oregon Strawberries to make homemade jam, which she will be entering at the county fair at the end of July. She had extras, which we gladly ate, but we picked so many that we needed to freeze some–will make wonderful milkshakes 🙂 These are the best tasting berries!! Sweeter than any store bought strawberries!!

We couldn’t resist these, which were the next crop to ripen at one of our favorite local farms (less than 10 minute drive):

We ate these in smoothies and on top of vanilla ice cream (yum!), as well as just ate them all by themselves.Raspberries grow wild and can be found just about everywhere in town. Many bike/walking trails in our town have them lining the paths.

Mid July has brought our most favorite: Oregon Blueberries!!

We own several blueberry bushes. My son has been watching them all summer. He kept saying, “Not yet. They need a couple more days.” Well, he was right on. Yesterday, we picked so many that we were able to freeze 6- 8 cups worth, make blueberry cobbler for our family, and our favorite: blueberry pancakes, for several days.

Our bushes have a bunch that are almost ripe, and lots of green berries that will keep us with a nice,  fresh blueberry supply. My kids love picking berries, especially blueberries. They still quote and imitate Sal from one of our favorite children’s books, “Blueberries for Sal” by Robert McCloskey, eating all of the berries in their buckets.  Fresh, organic, and homegrown–straight from the garden blueberries taste like nothing we could get living in California. Ah, but they have all the avocados, don’t they?

A family tradition of berry picking has always been a favorite. We love living in Oregon for many reasons: lack of urban sprawl, clean air (our town was voted one of the top ten green cities in the US!), and fresh farm grown foods all around us. Some are found right in our garden. Cherries are next to ripen in our backyard 🙂

This is what summer means in Oregon to us. If you have never gone berry picking–do so now! The fruit is so much sweeter and more flavorful than anything you can buy at the store. The difference is amazing.

What are some of your favorite summertime activities or traditions?

~Erin

Summer Romper Sewing Tutorial

Rompers for girls are available everywhere! Since they are so easy to make, I thought I’d  make my daughter several. The first one has a spaghetti strap top and uses woven fabric.

I began with 2 patterns designed for woven fabrics: Kwik Sew 1317 (I think it’s from the 80’s) and Burda 9490, then morphed them to become one. A pillowcase dress style pattern would also work well for the top. I used the button down front top, because I wanted a classic oxford look to go with the seersucker striped fabric. I also wanted it to be a bit more fitted, but still easy for my daughter to put on and take off herself.

The pattern for the top part may need to be modified before it will work for this project. Use the shorts pattern pieces to estimate how wide the top can be. Place the shorts pattern pieces to their corresponding top pieces (ie. front shorts to front top) and adjust the width of the top to match the shorts.  The Kwik Sew pattern is a more fitted shorts, so I made the top more narrow, removing width from the center front and the center back.

Now cut out all pattern pieces for the shorts and work through them according the pattern instructions, but do not finish the waist.

Pin your top pattern pieces to  your  fabric. Fold your shorts in half, so that you can double check that your widths match up. Adjust pattern again if needed.

Cut pattern pieces out of fabric and work through the top pattern, but leave it unhemmed.

Again, check the widths. As you can see, my top was still a bit wider than the top edge of my shorts. You can either mark the difference and sew the top narrower, or add a bit of gathering (easing really). I chose to  add gathering stitches along the center front and back at the hemline of the shirt, and gather it slightly to fit the shorts.

Place the shorts inside the top, right sides together, matching side seams, and having the shorts sticking out about an inch. Pin in place and sew together.

Fold the raw edge of the shorts over 1/4 inch and press in place.  Open up shorts and top and press the shorts waist up toward top. Sew close to the folded edge to form a casing for the elastic. Make sure to leave an opening through which to insert elastic. Measure child’s waist or use recommended amount stated in your pattern.  Attach a safety pin to one end of the elastic and feed elastic into casing, working  it through until it comes out the other end of the opening. Sew ends of elastic together. stitch  the opening closed. Trim all threads.

Your romper is all done 🙂

Hope you enjoy this tutorial! Let me know if you’ve used it to create a summer outfit for someone–I’d love to hear how it turned out 🙂

~Erin