Neuroscientist + Curious Mind + Passionate Maker
I keep coming back to this pattern because I spend most of my time in the winter wearing joggers. They're warm and the bottoms don't get wet in the snow. Given my recent blog about how to measure for pants, I thought I would do a comparison with some patterns now. I hope this will... Continue Reading →
As fall and winter approaches, I need to sew pants with wider legs. I've done a lot of hiking this year, and it shows. I got thinking about how to widen pant legs and what happens to the grain line. How do I add width to pant legs and maintain the placement of the grain... Continue Reading →
I only had to make one adjustment to the Willamette shirt from Hey June Handmade, and that was a forward shoulder alteration, an extremely common alteration. I thought it would be helpful to provide a tutorial on how to do that since the Willamette shirt does not have a standard set-in sleeve. SHOULDER WIDTH I... Continue Reading →
I know it's been a bit since I've posted anything. I got buried with prepping and teaching a new university course. The semester is not quite over, but I'm getting close to freedom. At the end of September, I posted a picture of a t-shirt pocket on Instagram that got a lot of attention. One... Continue Reading →
Ready to start talking about torso forms? I think I've made a good start on my pant form that I thought it was time to tackle the torso form. Who's ready? DUCT TAPE TORSO FORM Here are the supplies you'll need: 2 rolls of duct tape saran / cling wrap scissors permanent marker The method... Continue Reading →
My jaw dropped to the floor when I started comparing the self-drafted trousers pattern for Ryan to actual sewing patterns that I had in my collection. The style and fit of my self-drafted trousers were closest to Thread Theory's Jutland Pants, with a few modifications to leg fit, pockets, etc. Over a year ago, I... Continue Reading →
The first pair of trousers I made from my duct-tape sloper was a pair of stretch skinny jean shorts. I had previously made skinny jeans so I was able to compare my self-drafted version with an altered pattern. This time around, I am trying a new pattern, Alina Sewing + Design Co. Chi-Town chinos Expansion... Continue Reading →
This blog post is going to be another technical post, but isn't that my shtick?! Over the past few months, I've been getting into the nitty-gritty of fitting pants. I tried to work through patterns and make numerous test pairs to get the fit right. I was methodical and very precise about documenting my alterations.... Continue Reading →
Raise your hand if you: struggle with altering patterns, don't know how to get pants to fit right, have no idea what your crotch curve should look like, and so on! I have been sewing for less than five years, and pants are still a bit elusive to me. I can sew pants blindfolded with... Continue Reading →
Whenever I travel for work or personal, I really want to check out the local fabric shops. On a trip to Washington, D.C. for a conference, I took some time to visit Stitch Sew Shop in Alexandria. It was worth the metro trip for sure. I've never been to a shop that specializes in garment... Continue Reading →
We recently upgraded our queen size mattress to a king size mattress by way of getting two twin XL mattresses and shoving them together to make a king size mattress. I needed to make new bedding!!
Last year, I found this great tutorial on how to sew a collar to a shirt: http://foursquarewalls.blogspot.com/2013/09/sewing-collar-different-order.html. However, I was still not fully satisfied, because the last step of folding the bottom of the stand resulted in an uneven and bulky seam. Here's my improved method for getting a crisp, clean collar on a shirt.... Continue Reading →
