Shifting the Lines and a Whole Lot More

Did you know that a shift is commonly confused with a sheath? Not me. Both are unfussy dresses that end at the knees. However, a shift tends to be less fitted at the waist and hips (like this Mary Beth creation) and a sheath clings to the body much, much more. I'm glad to know the difference and I'm afraid the shifts rule my dresser although not my closet. In fact, I know for certain there no sheaths in my wardrobe. Which brings me to another term that gets used pretty loosely in the design world. Couture? It actually refers to a tradition of custom-made clothing that originated in France. My friend Eia says that true couture hats are completely hand-sewn. Yes, from start to finish. So my handmade strawberry-shaped cocktail hat I made would fit the bill, I'm proud to this say.

Some more interesting tid-bits for those of you who sew, especially with vintage machines. Zig Zaggers wants to hear from you. I'm not a good candidate now because my grandmother's Singer is is sitting in the storage unit a couple of floors beneath me. I don't plan on unearthing it this year even for an interesting blog post. However, my sister has my grandmother's other machine that she actually got fixed up with a new motor and all, but never uses! I do have a creaky newish serger that I don't like at all, so I don't see it as blog fodder at all. I will likely donate it to this organization for a tax credit when I get around to organizing my linen closet.

If you've got children who want to learn how to sew, here are some tips. It seems like young boys are especially eager to get their hands on sewing machines; they're a little more fearless with it than girls. They just want to put their feet to the pedal and see how fast the needle can stitch. Girls are a little more timid, like they're afraid they might overrun a finger or two.

If you like to crochet, you can actually enter a crochet bag contest for $5. That looks like a ton of fun. Something like that could actually inspire me to use my vintage 1930s cordet, but I will probably procrastinate. It turns out there are only three spots left. Yikes!

What else? Gigi has found an excellent way to organize her paper rolls for next to nothing. It's such a great DIY project that really needs to be written up in Readymade or Craft Magazine. I'd do it too, but I need to borrow her boyfriend, but seeing that Florida is quite a ways from Illinois I just might have to improvise for the moment.

Moving along, I like this hat idea but I'd probably add some netting and turn to the whole thing into a hat-on-a-cocktail-hat concoction. It'd be just thing to wear to a square-dancing event or even to a street festival such as this one.

I'm running out of things to write about on this springy Wednesday morning (summer doesn't begin until Saturday). I'm wearing two things I made today - the chartreuse assymetrical skirt and my long black-and-lavender sweater coat. Will I sew today? Probably not. But I might do some knitting, probably along a long bus ride or something. I'm looking for some inspiration today but not finding it. Pre-bedtime these days, I find myself seriously considering making up Simplicity 2885 in either a white eyelet with red topstitching or using a lightweight lawn I bought at Vogue Fabrics more than a year ago. Or I could just finish up that third bathing suit I started this past weekend. I think I need a little sewing inspiration. I just might need to go to New Machine Party (yes, it's all in caps) at Vogue Fabrics on Monday. Play-time with some new toys always gets me in a sewing mood. Now if there are some complimentary chocolate cookies and juice, I'm so there. How about you? Where do you find your sewing mojo when you feel like it's slipped under a couch cushion?