Post-Konmari Sewing Room Tour

My sewing room has gotten quite the reorganization after finishing the hobby Konmari section! I promised you guys that I'd share the finished project with you so here it is!



I was able to get a lot more empty space in the main area since I got rid of one organizer and put the other one in the closet. It's so nice to have all of that extra space for cutting out fabric now! I also was relocated my table so I can enjoy the nice view while I create! Plus I finally got some art out even if it's not on the wall yet. (And one piece needs new glass....)

If you missed the before tour, here it is also!

Pattern Sale Part 1

As you may have seen, I recently Konmari'd my sewing patterns and decided quite a few of them needed new homes! I have quite a few patterns that I'll be listing and there will be a second batch tomorrow.

Patterns are complete unless otherwise noted. Prices do not include shipping from the US.

 Simplicity 2801 dress pattern late 1940s Size 14.5 bust 33 $10

 Simplcity 4759 dress and jacket pattern 1950s size 11 bust 29 $5

 Butterick 9274 blouse pattern 1950s size 10 bust 31 $7

Advance 5588 dress pattern 1950s size 15 bust 33 $15

McCalls 5079 1950s/1960s blouse pattern size 14 bust 34 $5

 McCall 8423 1950s dress pattern size 14 bust 32 $10

Butterick 4433 1950s gibson girl style blouse size 14 bust 32 $5

McCalls 3973 1950s summer blouse pattern size 12 bust 32 $5

Simplicity 3010 late 40s early 50s dress pattern size 14 bust 32 $10

If there is something you want or if there is something else that you are looking for, please email me at girlwiththestarspangledheart[at]gmail[dot]com.

My Konmari Journey Part #18: Sewing Tools

I'm finishing up the sewing stuff today! We're almost through Konmari and I'm so excited! Check out this video to see how I do in this last category.



Once I finish up my Konmari, I'll owe you guys another sewing room tour. I'm still working on it but I have moved a lot of stuff around. If you missed the first one from right after we moved it, here it is!

The End of Summer

Ah, August! That month which conjures up both thoughts of long summer days and the excitement of back to school. For me, August always means those sweltering, too hot to handle days that plagued Ohio at the peak of summer.

Of course, Florida has months of this type of weather. So I've been sewing up even more summer appropriate pieces to keep up with the heat.

I picked up this appropriately summery printed cotton at JoAnn's earlier this summer and grabbed some red stretch shirting to make coordinating separates.

The blouse is made from Simplicity 3144 which I had originally purchased to make a red shirtwaist dress. I was a bit surprised when it arrived to realize that it was a blouse and skirt pattern, not a dress! Oh, well. It worked out for the best and I did end up making half of the intended project.

The blouse was a pain to make though. I usually stay away from anything with stretch because it can be difficult to wrangle but this fabric was the perfect color and weight so I went against my better judgement. My machine did not appreciate it. In fact, the button holes turned out so bad that I left them closed and just sewed decorative buttons on top. This blouse actually closes with snaps. I have a vintage dress that has the same feature so we'll go with it's "authentic".

The skirt pattern I made from Butterick 6309 which is a suit pattern with a rather asymmetric neckline. Anyways, it has extra volume in the front but is slimmer in the back. The challenge in the skirt was print matching. I was able to do an awesome job print matching on the center front but I had to do some piecing and did not have enough fabric to even attempt print matching on the back.

 Note to self: just get ride of the seam next time and save yourself a lot of drama. I had originally planned to also make a blouse from the tropical fabric but I don't have a lot yet. I may be able to squeeze out a crop top. (I've been eyeing the Lana crop top pattern but I have to dig out my leftovers and double check my yardage first.)

 I actually felt a bit out of love with this outfit once I finally finished it but a bit of separation was all I needed to fall back in love with it!

 Oh, and I dyed my hair black again and I love it! :D I'm just a dark haired person and that's how it is.

Are you squeezing in a few more summer projects before fall truly hits?

Fall Sewing Projects and Plans

I've been trying to plan out my fall and winter sewing projects. There are several stash busting projects I'd like to sew up and a few others that will materialize if I find the right fabric.

I have some light weight navy wool that I had earmarked for a 40s winter suit. When I checked, there was less than I thought so I may end up with a skirt and a vest instead. We'll see. I'm thinking of one of these two patterns for the skirt but haven't decided which yet.

I want to make a blouse from the remainder of my Egyptian fabric. I think this lovely 30s blouse pattern will do nicely. The 30s had some really cool blouses and I think I need some more in my wardrobe.

Speaking of the 1930s, I'm going to make this pattern out of some lovely plaid suiting. It's definitely more of a summer pattern but made up in fall colors, I think it will be perfect for a Florida fall.

There are a few other 1930s patterns that I'd like to make for fall. I think my issues with previous 30s makes were picking fabrics with not enough drape so I'll be keeping that in mind for further fabric shopping.

 And this is the lizard who was watching me right outside my sewing room window. There is usually one on that tree but this guy was staring at me.

Being Adventurous

Sorry about the lack of posting lately. It's been raining and raining and raining and raining which makes it hard to get outfit photos! Anyways, all of this rain means more time for sewing and therefore, new outfits!

Tada! This is the first of my adventurer inspired looks which I made using some Downton Abbey Egyptian print fabric. I paired it with a lovely thrifted linen blouse which I'm really wishing I'd had all summer instead of getting it just recently.

I used McCall 7032 for the skirt. The pattern is a great basic pattern from the late 40s but it really could work for any number of decades depending on fabric, styling and hem length.

I added some topstitching details and used a cute brown button to finish off the skirt. I was a bit worried that I wouldn't end up liking wearing this much print but it's so cute!

And I got my hair chopped again. I was growing it out in the hopes of being able to do pin curls and updos but with the humidity, that's not going to happen for a while. So it's short for the rest of the summer. Plus I have been wanting to add a bit of 20s flair to my wardrobe too.

All the better to show off these earrings from Egypt. In high school when I was obsessed with ancient Egypt, I would go to this shop called the Nile Gallery in Cincinnati which is run by a lady who married an Egyptian guy and whenever they go to Egypt to visit family, they bring back things to sell in their shop (and also teach belly dancing lessons).

You may also have noticed that this outfit contains exactly one thing from my Project 333 wardrobe (shoes!) and the rest are cheats. Oy, I didn't even make it a month. I think part of the reason I quit so early is that I'd basically already been living out of the pieces in my Project 333 wardrobe for a few months and I was bored already.

 Ah, well. I will try again another time. Right now, I've decided that I'd rather enjoy my clothes than do something that was not fun. I still haven't unpacked my other clothes from the boxes so I'm really just adding in the pieces I've made/purchased/dug out of the boxes for my "fall" (now late summer) wardrobe.

Depending on how lazy I'm feeling, the other stuff my stay boxed up for a while... or until I think of something in the box that I want to wear and go digging again.

Now I just need a really fabulous cloche hat!

Changing Keys

Every once in a while, something comes along that causes you to break one of your own fashion rules. One of the things that I've learned about my style is that I'm not a huge fan of all over prints on myself. Separates, sure. An entire dress, not so much. And today I've gone and proven myself wrong. I'm changing the musical key of my wardrobe, so to speak.

Music has always been a huge part of my life. I adore singing and have always wanted to live in a musical. I played flute for 8 years. I've taken music theory, philosophy of music, and piano classes. While I don't get the chance to play or compose much anymore, I do sing in the shower and rock out to music in the car. This print would also be great for swing dancers.

So when Wearing History offered it's melody print in one of my favorite fabrics, rayon, I knew I had to have some.

My original plan for this fabric was very different from what it ended up as. First, I envisioned a 1940s evening gown in this drapey rayon. But when the fabric got here, I changed my mind. It's a lovely rayon with a great drape. It's not too wrinkly or slippery to work with like some other rayons I've used.

And while this fabric would have been fabulous for an evening gown, when the fabric got here, I knew I had to make it up into something that I would wear more often. And when fabric speaks to you, it's a good idea to listen to it.

So I dug through my pattern stash and after a quick shout out to Facebook, I decided on Anne Adams 4832. I've made it before in a mid-weight linen which I wore on the 4th of July but I decided to make a few changes in this version.

I decided to bind the neckline instead of face it with a casing. I also moved the gathers from the center to off to the sides which gives more of a square-ish neckline. And I went with the optional patch pocket. The only other change I made was a narrow shoulder adjustment.

Between these changes and the difference in the behavior of the linen and rayon, these two dresses feel completely different! The rayon sewed up beautifully. Sometimes rayon can be super slippery and difficult to work with but this one behaved.

Something to consider when sewing with this pattern is that it is large and busy. It is best suited for a pattern with a simple design and not too many seam lines. A design with lots of crazy seam lines would get lost in the print and the print would get chopped up by the seam lines.

 On the up side, the print is so cute and would work for a wide variety of decades including modern styles. And the color palette is great-navy, pink, green, blue and white. It's got great potential for accessorizing in any of these colors. I also think it would be super cute in a color blocked dress.

Since I had originally planned on making an evening gown, I have some extra fabric. I really want to make up some coordinating accessories. I really want a navy jacket or bolero lined in this fabric to wear with this dress in the winter. And I'm saving all my scraps to trim a hat to match.

Love that music print so much!

 I finished this dress just a week ago and I've already worn it twice! So, overall, I give this fabric a thumbs up! If you'd like to have some of your own, you can find it here.

 Disclaimer: Fabric provided c/o Wearing History for review.