On Saturday, I started my third class at Spool. And, for added fun, C Doggle, Trish, and I are classmates!

The class is being taught by Michael Fulkerson — creator of the now-famous bird mobile (bird pattern available here) — and utilizes the Birdie Sling pattern from Amy Butler.

I agonized over choosing fabric, because I wanted the bag to be something that I would actually carry. My wardrobe tends toward basic black, so while I really enjoy looking at bright, colorful quilting fabric, it doesn’t fit easily with the rest of my clothes and shoes. I also tend to like things that are a little off-beat — maybe even a little creepy — but also tasteful (and, if not tasteful, at least artful). When you’re talking about quilting fabrics, this combination can be a tall order (can’t wait for Spoonflower!).

But, in the end, I found the most amazing fabric:

And, by some incredible stroke of luck, Hancock’s of Paducah was selling it for less than $4.00/yard. It’s currently out of stock at Hancock’s, but The Virginia Quilter has it for $8.79/yard.

The fabric also led me to Alexander Henry Fabrics, which, if polygamy were legal, I would totally marry. I love them that much.

I’ll post pictures when the bag starts to take shape.

The ‘A’ in A-Line apparently stands for Anger. So far, this has been my least favorite project.

I made this skirt as part of a Sewing Basics II class, which was offered by the Philadelphia Sewing Collective. The instructor was Christine Phillips, a local fashion designer. The fabric was purchased at Spool.

On the hanger, it looks like a typical A-Line skirt; nondescript and nothing obviously wrong with it.

But, underneath, lurks a disfigured monster that I am now referring to as…

Franken-skirt!

Everything started out well, but, after the whole thing was put together (of course), I realized that it was about 5″ too small in the hips. I had to add fabric inserts on both sides to make it fit. I started out with tapered inserts, but, the skirt kept puckering, so I had to go with straight inserts.

I am still extremely confused by how it could have been that small. According to the pattern (Simplicity #4036), the hips were just one inch smaller than the A-Line skirt from Betsy Ross Patterns. If the measurements were accurate, it should have fit perfectly, because I have a little bit of room in the Betsy Ross skirt. I can understand sizes being different (i.e., a size 10 in one brand, is different than a size 10 in another brand) but, in this case, we’re talking about standardized units of measurement (specifically, inches), so I’m not sure how they can be that far off.

I’m inclined to believe that Simplicity is the problem, rather than Betsy Ross, since another pattern I bought from Simplicity created a garment that was way too big. Although, after re-reading my last post, where I thought the Betsy Ross skirt was going to be 5″ too small, maybe I’m just inclined to give Betsy Ross the benefit of the doubt, since the skirt I made from their pattern actually fit.

The inserts weren’t long enough.

I felt like I needed to rush to get the inserts completed during class, since I needed help from the instructor. Consequently, they wound up being too short. It wasn’t the end of the world, but now my hem looks weird.

Adding inserts also made the waistband too short.

After installing the inserts, I had to make the waistband longer. I measured the skirt, and factored in enough fabric for the seam allowances, as well as a little bit of extra at the zipper. Unfortunately, it still wound up being about 3/4″ too short. As you can see in the above picture, I had to pull a Frankenstein at the end of the waistband, otherwise, it wouldn’t have attached properly to the zipper.

Although a lot went wrong, some things also went right…

I was able to install another zipper.

And, I got to practice some more darts.

Overall, I guess the skirt looks fine from the outside, which is one of the great things about sewing. However, the inserts have made the skirt too wide at the bottom, so I’ll probably still have to take it to the dry cleaner for tailoring. That sort of defeats the purpose, doesn’t it?

I can’t decide which project has made me happier, the outfit for my cat, or this A-Line skirt for me.

This A-Line skirt was made as part of a 3-week class at Spool. The class used a pattern by Betsy Ross Patterns, and was taught by Aimee Pflieger Dolby, the company’s founder. Believe it or not, the fabric came from Jo-Ann.

I expected darts to be hard. They weren’t. 

I installed a zipper. Badly.

I was convinced that it wasn’t going to fit, and was totally sweatin’ it during class, because the measurements indicated that it was going to be about 5′ too small

I swear, when I tried that thing on during class, and it fit, I think I heard angels singing.

I still don’t understand measurements. They never seem to match what the pattern says.

Philadelphia’s Fabric Row in the 1930s

The Philadelphia Sewing Collective offers a tour of Fabric Row that is really worth taking. Christine Phillips, a local fashion designer, was our guide.

The tour helped me to better understand which fabrics can be used for different types of projects. In addition, it made stores that cater to professional designers a lot less intimidating. I really never felt comfortable going into those places before.

We were also provided with a card, good for one year, worth 10% off purchases at all of the major fabric and notions stores on 4th Street. Nice!

A tour of the Garment District in Manhattan is being planned for the Fall.

It takes a village to teach me how to sew. Not only am I taking classes offered by the Philadelphia Sewing Collective, but I’m also taking classes at Spool. Spool has a beautiful selection of popular quilting fabrics (e.g., designs by Amy Butler and Michael Miller), and their classes are very laid back. Class size is limited to 6, so you receive lots of individual attention.

I wanted to learn how to install a zipper, so I took Spool’s ‘Zippered Pouch’ class on May 3rd. The class was 3 hours, and was taught by Laura Singewald, one of the co-owners of Spool.

Here is the finished product:

Each person chose their own fabric, thread, and zipper.

We were able to choose matching or contrasting fabric for the inside.

No, I was not drunk when I was doing the topstitching.

In one place, the fabric is too close to the zipper, so the zipper kind of sticks. But, for my first attempt at installing a zipper, I was happy that it turned out as well as it did.