BlytheLife.com opened in July 2010 and is a blog and resource hub for all things Blythe!
A little success goes a long way
Written on July 19, 2010 at 11:45 am by MichelleFiled under: Musings with tags: sewing
Occasionally, I get a ‘what on earth am I doing?’ feeling when I’m sewing. Especially when it’s on a machine and I haven’t touched it in a few months (or, erm, years?). But then I find a pattern that I want to try, and it has great and clear instructions and I happened to have a new iron that’s not finicky and doesn’t make me want to throw it out the window along with some new fabric that I actually think is cute. Then I decide to give the whole ‘sewing thing’ another try, and I end up with something like this:
And while it’s not the fanciest dress ever, and everyone else has probably already tried and been successful with the pattern, it was an accomplishment for me because I followed the pattern, sewed the neckline and it didn’t come out looking wonky, and (best of all) it fits! Which is the most important part, of course.
I looked up a lot of sewing tips too, mainly on Plastic Paradise. I used a fray-stopping product on all the raw edges, I ironed the fabric before cutting, I ironed the bodice piece after inverting it and the hems for the skirt portion before sewing. I even snipped along the curved parts on the bodice so it would curve better. All in all, I think I may have caught the sewing bug!
I used the Blythe Empire Dress pattern from Puchi Collective.
Great job on the dress!! When I first started sewing this pattern I wanted to rip my hair out! 😛
I had a really difficult time with the ‘gathering’ part, I just could not figure it out, so I just did little pleats on my own, lol. It looks okay, but I really like the gathered look that others have, although this poofs out less 😀
You did a great job!!! Can’t wait to see the next one you make!
Everyone has to start somewhere to get into sewing for Blythe. PP does have a great
“Better than a Fig Leaf” section for sewing. Lots of great tips there and the people share knowledge freely. I love that section and it is one of my favorite on PP.
You did great. I’m learning (slowly!) too.
As Mama Lisa mentioned; More than A Fig Leaf is my favourite section on PP too!