Finished 1940s Housecoat, a New Project, and what I do when I'm not sewing!

So it is done! My 1940s housecoat is finished and ready to wear! Good thing too, because it has started to rain here again, and a flannel housecoat sounds oh-so-nice. Since my last post I covered the shoulder pads, sewed them in, and hemmed the housecoat.

Here's a picture of the completed garment:

You probably can't tell that the shoulder pads are in there, but trust me, when worn they make all the difference, especially if you don't have broad shoulders.

I had to take a good 8 inches off the bottom so the housecoat doesn't drag when I wear it. I'm a little on the petite side, but oddly enough, not in the torso, which makes making garments a bit tricky.

Now the housecoat just brushes the ground, exactly what I wanted! How often does that happen?

Well that's a wrap on that project, here's what's next:

Butterick 5748

This pattern is rated easy, which is kinda what I'm thinking. The patterned view has a bow on the front and the back, the other views has no bows. I'm thinking of making the dress with a bow on the front, but not on the back, it just seems strange to me to have one on the front and back. I'm going to use a basic cotton, nothing fancy. I want this dress to be light and wearable for summer. 

Here's the fabric:

Yeah, it was actually ironed before I clumped it all together and put in in the chair, lol. Oh well. 

Aside from that, I thought I'd let you guys into what I do when I'm not sewing. Well, I knit, a lot. Right now I'm knitting a cowl and developing its pattern to sell on Etsy as a digital download. Look for it soon! I also knit items (sans pattern) that I sell on Etsy. Here's a link to my shop if you're interested: 

https://www.etsy.com/shop/ClosetFullofYarn

Yay for shameless self promotion!

Well that's all I have today folks!

Ta ta for now!

1940s Housecoat Nearing Completion

I've been a bad blogger. I'm almost done with my 1940s Butterick housecoat and at my last post I hadn't even attached the sleeves! My bad! All I have left to do is cover and sew in the shoulder pads and hem it. But let me try and walk you through what I've accomplished:

I attached the sleeves to the bodice and was surprised at how easily it went. No unseemly bunching! The cuffs were a bit confusing. After applying the fusible interfacing, I had a bit of trouble interpreting the section of the instructions pertaining to attaching the cuffs to the gathered edge of the sleeves. For a while I couldn't figure out how to attach them in the way that prevents any seams from showing. So I took a few days break from this project, came back to it, and figured it out pretty easily. Funny how that works. 

Next I had to sew the pockets to the skirt pieces, not too hard. Oddly enough, the hard part was attaching each skirt piece to the other correct piece. I don't know why, maybe I was having an extended brain fart. 

Next I sewed the skirt to the bodice. Not too bad overall, but I kind of fudged the gathers on the bodice, some probably don't look fantastic under close scrutiny. Oh well, its a housecoat. I don't plan on wearing it outside. After that I hemmed the waist tie, super easy.

That's what I've done this last week, should have it finished this week.

Happy Sewing folks!