silk

26 Jul Sultry or Sunshine?

Posted at 08:11h in Mood Fabrics, sewing blogs, Sewing Skirts, silk, Yellow by goodbyevalentino 104 Comments

“Well if it isn’t Sultry and Sunshine!” blurted the drunk man upon seeing my friend and me. The year was 1984. My friend resembled Angelina Jolie and well, I just looked like myself, only 29 years younger. It’s not hard to know who was Sultry and who was Sunshine. I’m not sure what little Miss Sunshine was wearing that evening but I doubt it was yellow. There is no yellow in my home and I did not own any yellow clothes until two years ago after a Medium told me I needed more yellow in my life. (Blogged HERE and HERE) Now the color...

09 May Simplicity 2497

Posted at 10:00h in clothing designers, Ruffles, Sewing Tops, silk, Simplicity Patterns, Uncategorized by goodbyevalentino 0 Comments

While sewing my casual knits the ruffles were calling my name, and I answered. The craving to sew ruffles was stronger than any craving I've ever had for chocolate, but I tried to be practical and made an all-purpose white shirt. Of course it's all-purpose! Mood Fabric's Ivory Solid Goes with Everything Silk really does go with everything in my closet! It's perfect with my re-fashioned floral pants...

09 Apr The Regis Dress

Posted at 11:30h in Craftsy, Mood Fabrics, sewing bloggers, sewing blogs, Sewing Dresses, Sewing with Lace, silk, Uncategorized, Vogue Sewing Patterns by goodbyevalentino 203 Comments

Sometimes I make embarrassing mistakes, and for a while I thought ordering this white cotton/nylon lace from Mood Fabrics was one of those times. The flat lace reminded me of a tablecloth upon pulling it out of the box, revealing my inexperience in selecting lace. What can I say - I felt stupid for placing such an order when so many beautiful laces were available. B u t w h a t ’ s a g i r l t o d o ? After three worrisome weeks, I bought my first bottle of Rit Dye. Thirty minutes later….....

15 Mar New Arrival at K a t i e Spade

Posted at 16:06h in Kate Spade, Mood Fabrics, Sewing Tops, silk by goodbyevalentino 61 Comments

I’m staying at a lovely 5-star resort through the weekend (not our typical getaway) – one of those places where you swap your car for bicycles upon arrival. My husband is engaged in professional activities allowing me to bring along a suitcase of sewing paraphernalia guilt free. This morning when I discovered my white thread was left at home I called the concierge to request a sewing kit so I could hem my top. “My apologies Mrs. Gunn, but we do not furnish sewing kits.” My husband was slightly incredulous when I got dressed and pedaled to the nearest store to find some thread. I ended...

02 Feb Party Pep – Vogue 8815

Posted at 18:13h in Kate Spade, sewing blog, Sewing Tops, silk, Uncategorized, Vogue Sewing Patterns by goodbyevalentino 67 Comments

I'm a little late to the party with this pattern but I've finally arrived :) Vogue 8815 has received dozens of favorable reviews on PR. I came close to buying a Kate Spade zebra peplum made in the same style, but the "I can make this" mindset thankfully kicked in...

13 Dec Elizabeth McKay Inspired – Vogue 1323

Posted at 11:00h in Mood Fabrics, Sewing Tops, silk, Uncategorized by goodbyevalentino 52 Comments

I spent the first weekend of December in New York and was exhilarated by the Christmas sights and festivities throughout the city. I spent the second weekend of December visiting my parents in Southern Pines, NC thoroughly charmed by small-town Christmas celebrations including the cutest horse and buggy parade. I went from being among millions of people dressed in black to hundreds of people dressed in red inspiring me to do the same. On a mission to recreate this Elizabeth McKay top, I chose a red and white silk charmeuse from Mood Fabrics for my...

01 Nov WILL YOU EVER SAY NEVER?

Posted at 10:15h in sewing blogs, Sewing Dresses, silk, Uncategorized by goodbyevalentino 0 Comments

I w i l l . I will never buy a wrap dress again. This is the fourth wrap dress I’ve made since January and there is no reason to fork out the big bucks, or even ‘bargain’ bucks again for one of my favorite styles. I completed my one-year RTW Fast on August 31st and finally found my way into a dress shop in October. I bought the black sweater I promised myself 10 months ago after repairing moth holes in my trusty black cardigan during the fast, but as soon as I carefully examined a couple of $300.00 wrap dresses,...

11 Oct Tunic Time!

Posted at 11:01h in Mood Fabrics, sewing clothes, silk, Tunic by goodbyevalentino 0 Comments

If my favorite garments were ranked by how much wear they receive, this one would get the Blue Ribbon, the Silver Cup AND the Gold Medal.Now I get to see if my most recent tunic dress will earn its place on my list of favorites. Practicalities occasionally escape my aesthetic sensibilities, and I made the casual dress out of a silk charmeuse I bought at Mood Fabrics during my first, but hopefully not last trip to Mood in December 2011. [caption id="attachment_1910" align="aligncenter" width="284"] Butterick 5415[/caption] The easy structure, whimsical nature and versatility of many tunics continue to intrigue me. The trickiest part...

29 Sep New Look 6162

Posted at 12:11h in Mood Fabrics, New Look Sewing Patterns, Ruffles, Sewing Jackets, silk by goodbyevalentino 87 Comments

I sure have missed my blogging friends! I have been so eager to post anything just to say hello while I was taking care of a patient, hosting a party at my home followed by entertaining out-of-town company immediately upon returning from our unforgettable vacation to the Mediterranean. The patient is fine, the party was fun, the company found its way to a football game in Florida, and I hit the sewing machine after a four-week break. I imagined this beautiful brocade from Mood Fabrics as numerous garments.My husband suggested I make a close-fitting special occasion dress which would be beautiful, but...

31 Aug Celebration Time

Posted at 07:23h in Butterick Patterns, McCall's Sewing Pattern, Mood Fabrics, sewing blogs, sewing clothes, silk by goodbyevalentino 187 Comments

On August 31, 2011 I turned over a new leaf :) I gave up buying Ready-to-Wear clothing for one year and vowed to make my clothes instead. Today I’m celebrating because I not only set out to do what I intended, but I completed an experience that brought me great pleasure and satisfaction. I must have needed a challenge! I was spending huge amounts of money on clothes and was constantly shopping. I bought way too many clothes that looked alike, and had entirely too many clothes that were barely worn. One day I snapped, gave up shopping, began sewing my clothes and started a...