Finished Project: Simplicity 1779, aka "Pointy Peter Pan Collared, Flutter Sleeved, Blue Watercolor Floaty Object"

Biceps. I got 'em. Chunky ones. Great agrarian sheafs-of-wheat-hauling ones. (Disclaimer: I have never hauled a sheaf of wheat in my life, but ancestral vestiges linger)

Flutter sleeves? No thank you, ma'am.

So why did I make a top with flutter sleeves? Because I had a remnant, and there was exactly enough fabric to make a top with flutter sleeves. Not an inch more. And you know what? In this floaty, drapey polyester crepe de chine from the Hancock remnant bin, I think I can actually live with how they look on me.

Special technique: Making an FBA for McCall's 7053

Last time (Finished project: McCall's 7053, "An Homage To Two Eras -- Now With Salmon"), I promised to show you the Full Bust Adjustment (FBA) for this pattern. Here 'tis.

To recap: McCall's 7053, View B, is a loose-fitting blouse that includes a scarf-like drapey cowl neckline.

Photo Source: McCall's 7053

Will that gorgrous scarf detail cause complications when it comes to FBA? Yes and no. Yes, because it seems like the FBA would need to be incorporated into that cowl somehow. Can you even imagine the eighteen-dimensional thinking required to add the right amount of fabric, in the right places, for an FBA on that thing? Only a Guild Navigator could do it. Luckily, we don't need one, so before you start overdosing on Spice, listen up: the cowl is immaterial, as it turns out. We can make a perfectly adequate FBA without it.

Finished project: McCall's 7053, "An Homage To Two Eras -- Now With Salmon"

Oh, look! McCall's resurrected this loose-fitting retro blouse pattern from their archives.

And it's amazing how the line drawings are nearly timeless. In different fabrics, one or both of these blouses could fit into nearly any modern decade, no?

Finished Project: New Look 6184, "Silky Camo Sophisticate"

New Look 6184 has been a stalwart standby in Simplicity's stable for, oh, about eleventythousand years. Why? Because it's versatile and interesting, yet easy to make. If you are of average bust (I'll get into that later), I predict you'll get a lot of mileage out of this gal.

Troubleshooting an FBA gone horribly wrong

PICTURE IT:

It was another ordinary afternoon in what she called called her "studio" -- a tiny corner in a dingy shared room, overstuffed with fabric scraps and strands of thread littered across the stained carpet like spider's legs after a cat's been playing. Outside, a greasy drizzle dripped from the sky, mixing with the street grit of the city in a way that made puddles crunch when you dragged your two-bit shoes through them. 

She was smiling. Smiling like a dirty politician who knows where the missing ballot boxes went. Because today, she had decided something. Today was the day she was going to murder a neckline. [CUE STABBY MUSIC]

Yep. Killed me a neckline, I did. But I had a good reason: self defense. The thing was literally causing me to go crazy*.

Photo source: BAMF Style, Bogart in The Big Sleep, Birdseye Wool Suit. By the way, have you ever visited BAMF Style? Go, look! Now! It is a series of detailed reveries on the tailored suits and other garb of Bad Ass MoFo characters in film and TV, described exquisitely by a writer who clearly knows his man-clothes. How have I not stumbled across this site before? Not to self: add to blogroll tout suite! 

* (not literally)

Let's explore the crime scene, shall we?

Finished Project: Cynthia Rowley for Simplicity 2215, aka "Hayley Mills High On Creamsicles"

Confession: I've always had a thing for a look I'm calling Mid-Century Gamine Picnic-Wear.

Casual and comfortable, but also polished, these outfits usually involve some kind of rolled-up jeans, ballet flats or saddle shoes, and a crisp gingham slightly-cowboy-influenced "camp shirt."

Love the gingham. So wholesome. So not in sync with my dark, ironic soul.

Unexpected essentials: Swedish tracing paper

Have you ever used Swedish tracing paper? If so, you understand: nothing but the most extreme glowing hyperbole can do it justice. If you haven't used it, you're going to think I joined a Swedish tracing paper cult. Just wait. You'll see. Join us. Join us. Join us.

Mmmmmm. Swedish. Photo source: askarsgard.com

In the BSTP (Before Swedish Tracing Paper) era, I was tracing patterns and making adjustments on regular grocery store wax paper.

Finished project: McCall's 6503

This pattern is quite the popular lady! See the different versions that sewists have made already: McCall's 6503 on PatternReview (you might even see an abbreviated version of this review on that site)

McCall's 6503 in an embroidered cotton lawn

I opted for View D, with its gathered bust closed with buttons (or not), pleated skirt, and no sleeves.

Girl's Smocked Dress Sew-Along #10: The completed project

Here it is: the big reveal! After nine sessions and a veritable carnival of techniques applied to this thing -- from the idiosyncratic Burda pattern method, to the honeycomb smocking style, to a handmade loop closure -- we're ready to step back and take a gander at what we accomplished.

Here it is!

Wait, what's that turquoise embroidery around the neckline, you may ask. It's a little somethin-somethin to tie it all together.

Girl's Smocked Dress Sew-Along #9: Hem sleeves and skirt

You're back! That's good, because it would be a shame to give up now. We're in the home stretch of our BurdaStyle Girl's Smocked Dress Sew-Along.

Ready to apply the finishing touches to the last raw edges of this thing?

In this installment, you will hem the skirt, finish the sleeves, and optionally secure the sleeve rolls with permanent stitches.