Circle Skirt Sew-Along: Supplies and My Almost-Demise

Supply shopping will be the death of me. This I know. I made my first outing to Jo-Ann Fabrics the other afternoon and was just about ready to take a butter knife to my eyes. I'm convinced it would have been a more pleasant experience than what I went through.

First there was the fabric selection. I won't go into the gory details but it involved five different phone calls to Mary before I finally made it out with this flannel black and grey houndstooth. You might recall I had great hopes of a green plaid but in the end, common sense won. This is my first* sewing project, after all. Can you imagine the horror of mucking up a skirt that used $25/yd. fabric? My $6 options were limited, so grey/black houndstooth it is. This will actually look quite nice with my black suede pumps with the floral applique and I can still see it paired with a really fetching hat.

Don't think my shopping nightmares ended there. After the fabric selection it was on to the notions and my gawd, the indecision. It took me almost three hours to buy all my basics ranging from a cutting board to hem tape. The process might've been easier had I been able to find anything but I'm convinced the overlords of Hobby Lobby are also running J0-Ann Fabrics. Nothing was in a logical place, everything was picked over (thank you, Labor Day sale), and there wasn't a single employee available to assist with questions. The cutting table line was 10 people deep and when I finally managed to check out I missed one tiny little package and had to cut back in line so I could pay for it with cash and get the hell out of there. Yes, I was that person.

The good news is when I made it home I wasn't so exhausted that I didn't want to whip out my sewing machine and try a few things. I managed to thread a bobbin on the first go, thread my machine, and I even sewed a straight line on a shirt I plan to throw away. It's the little things that count and better to get them out of the way before we jump into the actual sewing bit of the CSSA.

Do any of you dread supply shopping? Is it recommended that I stick to online purchases from now on?

*If you've read my bio, you'll know this isn't my first sewing endeavor. I actually had a daycare lady who was a phenomenal seamstress. I watched her every step from quilting to bed-skirt-making to dressmaking. Under her tutelage I made an apron, a two-piece pajama set in a funky sunglasses print, a drawstring tote, pillows (I liked to make bolsters for my daybed), and many other crafty items. It's just been, you know, years since I did those so for all intents and purposes we're calling this my first sewing project.

-Stephanie

Circle Skirt Sew-Along

Did any of you see Casey's Circle Skirt Sew-Along (CSSA) over at Elegant Musings? I hemmed and hawed about it but finally decided to join! I'll be posting comments on Casey's blog as "Stephanie J." If you're also doing it, please post a comment so I can keep an eye out for you and give you a virtual wave.

So far we're on step two of the CSSA with step one being the inspiration/details. Tonight's task was to take measurements and when that consists of only the waist measurement and the skirt length it makes me very happy. Mary can attest to my stress about getting measurements correct. I have fears of buying a fantastic fabric, starting a pattern, and ending up with one whopper of a disaster when I find out I didn't buy enough fabric. I'm sure there are ways around this but I'm a newbie and have great hopes of getting everything right the first time around. [cue laughter]

I'll be going with a classic knee length on this one. The fabric decision is eluding me at this point but there's a vision swirling in my mind. Imagine an olive green skirt paired with cognac boots, a crisp white blouse, and a saucy cloche hat. I have a love of menswear interpreted for women and while this is a decidedly more feminine take with the skirt, I think it will look divine. The pattern of the fabric will be key on this so I better get on with my research.

Have you ever sewn a circle skirt? Will I get to see any of you over on the comments of the CSSA?

Greetings Fellow Sew People

Since we're on the topic of sewing machines, I thought it was as good a time as any to introduce myself. Hello, my name is Stephanie and I'm a beginner sewer. I grew up with a sewing machine in the house and I've completed a few projects in my day including a pair of pajamas, a drawstring backpack, an apron for a school play, and a skirt that I sewed for party in college. (Witness incrimiating picture to the right.)

That would be circa 2006 at our Harry Potter Halloween party. I was Fleur Delacour, can you tell?

Let me tell you the joys of making up my own skirt pattern the day of the party when I hadn't touched a sewing machine in at least seven years. It's a good thing I had a top that covered the waist because boy, was it scary. Scary enough that I didn't touch the machine again.

Fast forward to 2010 wherein Mary ventured into the sewing realm and as I do with many things, I followed! The fabulous dresses she made for our writing conference last summer blew me away (read: I wanted to look just as good) and that's when I put a sewing machine on my Christmas list. When Christmas day came around I was shocked and delighted to find a Singer 2273 Esteem II beneath the tree with my name on it! Thank you, thank you to my lovely Mum for that one.

Sadly, there hasn't been too much progress since Christmas. Mary added me as a contributor to this blog and I started pulling inspiration photos for the Colette Spring Pattern Challenge but the actual sewing has been zilch. I suppose finding a pattern and some fabric would be a good start? Until then I'll pour over my Singer instruction manual.

How did you get started with sewing? Do you recall your first project?