The New Century Begins – The 1900's

This new series promises to be full of information, education, and inspiration, as It’s Sew Easy TV time travels through the decades. Throughout the series they have included many historic photos to stir the imagination and illustrate the mood of different decades. 

The first episode is titled The New Century Begins – The 1900's, with snippets of fashion photos that include Edwardian era daywear. Recently I read that during the brief Edwardian era a woman's corset maker was more important than her dressmaker. Take a look at what was worn “underneath it all” in the early years of the century. 

Outer wear was certainly beautiful in many ways with embellishment trims galore and elegant details that must have taken months to sew. But just imagine the time it took to get dressed, let alone maintain a wardrobe with yards and yards of fussy fabric sewn into just one dress!
Having said all that, it is going to be a lot of fun watching this series and seeing contemporary interpretations  of  fashions and fashion details from past decades.

In the first segment Angela Wolf creates a kimono duster inspired by dusters once worn over long, full skirts and dresses. Quite literally these "coats" were meant to catch dust.  Today this is a flattering and versatile look for all ages and size ranges. It really is layered dressing at its best. Great for special occasions and everyday events too.  Watch as Angela shows you how easy it is to alter a basic pattern to make a modern day duster. I’m seeing this long or short straight coat style in current ready-to-wear catalogs as well as new commercial pattern offerings for Spring 2015. Angela’s own Evelyn Dress and Coat Pattern would be a great place to start. I also like Sandra Betzina’s duster pattern created for Vogue. CLICK HERE to take a look for yourself.

Next up you’ll see Kathy McMakin sew classic heirloom accents. Her instructions for sewing an heirloom fancy band are detailed and very easy to follow. Camera close-ups show the stitching order and materials you’ll need to create a precious heirloom baby bonnet. An ordinary zig zag stitch is essential for this type of sewing specialty. In addition, many machines like the Brother models used in the show include a multitude of decorative stitches. These extra stitches give heirloom sewing enthusiasts many more options. Wondering if your machine has heirloom stitches included in the menu? Chances are you have at least a few to choose from. Common names for this category include hemstitches, bridging stitches, and entredeux. Take a look at the illustration below for a few examples. Do you see anything that matches with your sewing machine's stitch menu?

Rebecca Kemp Brent starts the show with a fabric manipulation technique that is easy to master. She begins with flat fabric, adds texture with tucks, and finishes with a shape that forms a beautiful bolster pillow.  Rebecca shares tons of tips for making this “smocked” pillow project easy and fun. If you use a washable fabric for this project you’ll find it easy to remove for cleaning, making this a no muss - no fuss pillow project.

I think this technique would be nice as an accent on a garment too. I can see this as a yoke treatment for a jacket or used to trim cuffs, collars, and even baby bonnets. Just imagine this look on one section of a formal dress or perhaps the bodice of a wedding dress with hand-stitched beading as the icing on the cake. This is one of those embellishment techniques that makes my mind soar with possibilities!

Next up, you’’ll get some ideas for channel style quilting techniques applied to specific portions of a Ponte knit jacket. Angela Wolf is masterful at adding details that make the difference on custom garments. In this episode she quilts her clothing using the Brother digital dual feed foot, also known as the MuVit™ foot.  If you’d like to watch a brief overview of this foot click on the photo below and you’ll see this foot in action.

This new fangled foot is a close cousin of the walking foot and is perfect for pucker free stitching.  Instead of teeth it uses a smooth belt driven by a motor.  I used this same foot in episode 702 when I made a quilted tote bag. My favorite special feature of this foot is the ability to stray beyond the normal straight stitch. You can stitch through multiple layers using a variety of decorative stitches with side to side and backward movement. You simply cannot do that with a standard walking foot because a standard walking foot is designed for forward motion only. This means you are limited to a straight stitch and zig zag. That's not the case with the MuVit™ foot. Different settings make this foot ideal for stitching everything from silk to vinyl and makes difficult sewing tasks SEW easy!

In the last segment Janet Pray will show you how to stitch a two-step flat felled seam. You’ll see her demonstrate on denim but this seam is suitable for many fabrics. It's great when you want a sporty seam that’s durable but has a bit of flair from the added accent of topstitching. This is a practical seam you’ll want to master. It’s suitable for many items such as sportswear, children’s clothing, and it’s ideal for patchwork piecing on quilts, crafts, and accessories too. 

I hope you have enjoyed the It’s Sew Easy 700 series episodes. Why not start a sample book of the techniques you learned from watching the show? It could prove to be an invaluable reference for future projects. 

CLICK HERE to watch this week’s show. 

Fabric First - In this week's online episode the focus is on three select fabrics for specialty techniques. Get ready to learn more about free form sewing on silk dupioni, linen, and cotton sateen.

Featured fabric number one is Silk Dupioni. In my opinion this is one of the world’s most perfect fabrics! 

You’ll find silk dupioni readily available in local fabric shops and from online retailers such as fabric.com.  This type of silk simply begs to be embroidered. Two of the nine wraps in my Wrapped in Embroidery book are trimmed with embroidered silk dupioni. The sheen, durability, & versatility of this fabric set it apart from many other fabrics. I prefer to wash mine before using it for smaller projects. A “recipe” for my particular method of pre-treating silk dupioni is part of a bonus on the CD included with the book. 

For garment sewing, you’ll find this fabric is ideal for formalwear, jackets, and suits. The swishing sound is reminiscent of taffeta and adds to the allure of a garment sewn from silk dupioni. In this episode Angela shows a custom-made silk dupioni jacket with an interesting story behind it. To make the silk look unusual and interesting she distresses the surface using felting needles and a felting attachment on the Brother PQ 1500S.  Watch Angela transform the surface of the fabric with free form needle punching on the formerly smooth silk surface. 

Never seen a felting machine? Check with your local Brother Authorized Dealer for more information on Brother Model PQ1500S, the SA 180B Felting Attachment, and Felting Needles for the PQ Series. Barbed needles on a felting by machine are commonly used to embed fibers into a base fabric. With or without added fibers, this episode proves there are many ways to have fun with a felting attachment.

Next up, Tina Givens shows quilting with linen. She readily admits she's a rule breaker when it comes to quilting and she backs up her philosophy with casual quilting on classic linen. I would classify this as No Fuss Free Motion. It’s a bit foot loose and fancy free with free motion from the wrong side of the fabric. The result is a charming look that is relaxed and unpretentious. Tina will also teach you how to piece with linen and sew a quilt with a homespun finished look.

CLICK HERE to watch this week’s It's Sew Easy TV show online and don’t forget about the Free Project Downloads available for each and every show!

Part One: Janet Pray from Islander Sewing Systems shows a precise method for mitering corners. Master this technique and you’ll use it again and again, on placemats, table runners, wall hangings, pillow shams, and more. 

I love the fact that this method allows for anything from a narrow to a wide binding and provides a finish for four perfect corners. I suggest you watch this one with the intention of making a sample. If you can, watch and sew at the same time, pressing pause between steps until you have completed one corner. You can go ahead and put away your pins though, Janet is the queen of pin less sewing. 

Now, if you’re anything like me the word Biscornu is new to you. It makes me think of something served with tea or coffee in a café! It is however something that usually features hand embroidery and is made into a pincushion. Rebecca has some great samples that feature machine embroidery and even embellished buttons. I think these would be really fun to make for a sewing club gift exchange. There must be a million ways to embellish these little beauties!