Sunday Style Set: Greener Grasses

Hello Friends!

The Grass is Always Greener by miss-mt featuring leather shoes

I don't know about you, but I can definitely relate with the "grass is always greener on the other side of the fence".  I can be gloriously happy with the spring sunshine, cool breezes, and flowers popping up everywhere, and inevitably one day, I will catch myself thinking "gosh, I can't wait until fall!  The boots, the scarves, the sweaters!"  It's not that I'm wishing for cold weather... oh no!, I just love wearing boots and scarves.  So here is my, glad-it's-spring-but-wish-it-was-fall inspirational board.

What is your favorite season to dress for?

xo

Sunday Style Set: Perssimon & Pistachio

perssimon & pistachio by miss-mt featuring floral rings

Emma Pillsbury Inspiration

Ok friends,

Truth time.... who watches Glee?  Miss Emma Pillsbury has the cutest freaking clothes!  I know, there is even a blog devoted to What would Emma Pillsbury Wear.  Proof enough that she is adorable.  Well, late the other night, while catching up on some Glee goodness, I stumbled upon this little number.

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I couldn't find a good picture of the entire dress, but if you haven't seen it you'll have to take my word for it.  I'm pretty sure that you could use the peony pattern as a base, change the neckline, add a peter pan collar.  Throw in a box pleat like from the sorbetto, add some ruffles, some pearls, make a full skirt and add a belt from the same fabric.  A-dor-able!  I'm seeing this in my future.

My Closet: Plum Peacoat

Hello friends!

So, remember back a ways, when I was telling you about some of my favorite pieces from my own wardrobe, a la Colette Sewing Handbook?  I told you about my Hunting Skirt and my Bikes & Top Hats Sorbetto.  Well, next up, my favorite Plum Peacoat from Macy's.  

I first saw this coat in the Macy's window while strolling down Main St. one early fall afternoon two years ago.  I drooled.  And then I drooled some more.  Then I took my roommate to see the coat in the window.  Then I showed the boyfriend.  Then I gushed about it some more to my roommate.  Then my roommate dragged me into the store, made me try it on, and then made me buy it.  True story.

As I mentioned in my last post, the boyfriend (he's so great!) he generously helped me take some photos around town while we were on a nice little saturday afternoon walking date.  So, while I show you pictures of the coat, I thought I'd show you a few fun pictures from around my adorable little town.  You don't mind, do you?

Plum awesome!

Ok, how fantastic are those buttons?!

A 'bikes & top hats' underneath for good measure!

The boyfriend (who oh so wonderfully took these photos for me!)

So hard to get a non-blurry photo when no one is behind the camera!

My favorite part of this coat is the second hem!  I love how the coat ends, and then 'surprise!' there is another bottom waiting to peek out! (Oh, and I'm standing in front of one of the winery tasting rooms)

Our great little candy shop, Brights!

More candy

Gigantic lolli!

The local record store

So there you have it!  My favorite peacoat, and a few little glimpses of my home :)

Sunday Style Set: Dreaming of Spring

Hey Friends,

I'm going to try something new.  I really need to get better at putting together outfits, so in order to push myself I'm going to try and post a set from Polyvore every Sunday.  Truly, you can ignore brand names etc, I'm just trying to better grasp colors and styles.  I have found a wonderful blog Design Seed, and she says that her inspiration boards can be used on blogs, so I'm using her color schemes and basis for the style set.

Let me know if these are something you enjoy :)

Dreaming of Spring by miss-mt featuring jersey t shirts

12 in 2012 Project!

Hello friends!

Have you heard about the challenge that Suzie, from Su Sews So So is doing?  She is calling it the 12 in 2012 challenge.  She has picked out 12 projects, 12 skills, and 12 techniques that she wants to accomplish in 2012.  I really think this is a great idea and want to join!  I wasn't really sure what techniques and skills I wanted to do so I decided to just make a list of 12 projects and will talk about new techniques and skills that I may have learned or used when I blog about each completed project.  So without further beating-around-the-bushage...

For my first project, I decided I would give myself a little leg up...  I've already made my Peony dress, but it was a goal that was totally on my list before Suzie came up with this fantastic idea.  So, why not cheat a lot a little and put a completed garment on the list.  My peony!  Blogged about here and here.
And since I said I would talk about techniques and skills used when I blog about the piece (which I didn't do) I'll talk about it now!  This is the very first dress that I have ever put pockets into!  It was a great learning experience that I have since used on other patterns.  I also used Colette's technique for inserting invisible zippers.  This was a dream!!  I will never put one in another way.  I also moved darts for the first time!  The waist darts were too narrow and I moved them outwards about 1/2 inch each.  Very easy to do, but still a good skill to learn.  Along the same lines, I also shortened the waist to meet where my actual natural waist was.

What is my second goal you ask?  Why, my Minoru jacket of course!  Which is coming along quite nicely, if I do say so myself!  I'm itching to show it to you!  Can I be super honest with you all and tell you a secret?  I may have already finished my jacket... shhh!!!  *ahem* I mean...  I'm strictly following the sew-a-long, and will unveil my finished Minoru jacket along with everyone else.  But just in case you missed the preview of my fabric or *gasp* forgot, here it is again.

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Third.... bomb, bomb, bum..... Bombshell!  I bought this Craftsy course quite a while ago, and I watched the entire video and thought to myself, "wow, I can actually do that!"  then promptly didn't.  You know how doubt creeps in... that voice in my head can be a real little rascal sometimes!  The rational side of myself says, "oh I'm waiting until I have a little more experience under my belt before I try something that involved."  So this darn dress is for sure on my list of 12 in 2012.  I need to just do it!

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I have been dying to make a circle skirt!  I'm pretty sure my love of circle skirts started with Sunni's skirt.  And then I found the wonderful blog Casey's Elegant Musings, and discovered that she had a fantastic Circle Skirt Sew Along.  I was reminded again how much I wanted to sew a circle skirt when I saw Lauren's fan-frickin-tastic version here!  So, needless to say, if you didn't already have it monotonously repeated into your head... I want to sew a circle skirt.  

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Gertie's Gathered Skirt Tutorial!  Gah, this skirt makes me go weak at the knees and want to put on heels and dance around like a lil' trollop (in a good way, mom.)  I just mean, looking at the skirt makes me feel sassy, and spunky, and utterly feminine at the same time!  Yes please!

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Numero Seis...  A tailored coat.  Through A Good Wardrobe's wonderful list of indie pattern designers, I discovered Jamie Christina Design and this adorable coat pattern!  The Abby Coat is so fun and flirty, with an adorable peter pan collar detail.  I would probably add a few details to really make it my own, but I want to go through Gertie's Lady Grey tutorials and really learn how to tailor a coat, and apply the principals toward the Abby Coat.  I am torn though, because the original Lady Grey pattern is so darling!  Oh the choices!

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Next project on my list to tackle is a good pair of jeans.  I have actually been quite terrified of this idea until I stumbled upon the Jean-ius course that I blogged about here.  I'm so thrilled to be taking a class taught by Kenneth D. King, and he makes it all seem so easy and manageable.  I actually have two different pairs of jeans that I'm considering copying.  One pair is a boyfriend fit jean that is oh-so-comfortable, and the other is a skinny jean that has a slightly more relaxed fit than most. 

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The Chantilly dress pattern by Colette Patterns is a dress that I have lusted over, ever since I saw Tasia's version.  I have some fabric stashed away exactly for this project, but I've been putting it off because the fabric is slippery and I'm going to have to not only line, but probably underline most of the dress.  

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What is one wardrobe staple that every girl should have?  A basic pencil skirt, yes?  I think so.  Probably one in black, and probably one in just about any other color imaginable ~grins~  I do love me some color.  My roommate has a knack of calling them "Montana colors", and then I tease her about her increasingly gray wardrobe!  I don't know exactly which pattern yet, but I think the Jenny, by Burda would be a good place to start.

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Next on the list, the Pendrell blouse by Sewaholic Patterns.  If I'm being truly honest with you about it, I've made one before and was really unsatisfied with it.  But it wasn't anyone's fault but my own.  I used fabric that was too thick and had too heavy a drape to it.  I just didn't fit right.  I also needed to chose a smaller size, because the pattern has so much ease and I like my tops to be slightly more fitted.  

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So, I am an American, but will everyone forgive me and/or accept me if I say that our friends in the UK have a much better idea with the word knickers!  Underwear is just so blah... but there you have it.  I want to make my own knickers!  It seems like such a fun idea and a fairly easy pattern.  There would also be so many fun colorful fabrics and bits of lace that I could add.  Suzie, who actually came up with the whole 12 in 2012 idea just posted a lovely tutorial for making lace knickers!  There are also several lovely tutorials to be found on Pintrest.

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Last, but not least;  Mary from Idle Fancy has totally inspired me to make a dress.  She continues to make Simplicity 2215, which is a button down dress that is so lovely!  I'm dying to give it a go, I just have to find the right fabric... and belt, and cardigan, and shoes, and.... I feel like I'm finding excuses to go spend money.

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So there you have it!  My twelve projects I hope to accomplish this year.  I don't expect to do them in order, but I will try to do them all!  Geez, it seems a little daunting, doesn't it!  How about you?  Have you joined the challenge, or do you have a personal goal list?  Do we have any goals in common?  I'd love to hear from you!

P.S.  Maybe you have already noticed, but I've added two pages to my blog.  One is a little more about me, if you're interested, and the second is a page with audiobooks that I enjoy, since I'm usually listening to one while sewing.

Jean-ius

Hello friends!

Isn't amazing how sometimes, just when you throw a question out to the universe, an answer bounces right back at you?!  Remember how in the last post I wondered how best to make garments that are more wearable for every day.  Well I found a solution that not only helps out my scrubs problem, but also with making jeans, which if I'm honest with myself, I wear almost everyday when I'm not in scrubs.  The answer is jean-ius!

The course is taught by Kenneth D. King, and he teaches you how to copy your favorite jeans without harming them at all.  And he uses a method similar to the rub-off method that Shawnta (one of my readers!) mentioned on my Sewn Wardrobe post.  

I'm so excited!  I was able to pick up some supplies while I was on a trip to Portland for the holiday weekend.  I can't wait to get started on them, but I am going to try and pace myself.

Speaking of Craftsy courses, they are trying to suck me in!  Gah!  Not only is there the amazing Starlet Suit Jacket by Gretchen Hirsch, but also the Couture Dress by Susan Khalje.  If I had no self control what-so-ever, I would just buy them all!!

Have you checked out Craftsy courses?  Are you just dying to take any of them?  I really love the format of how they teach their courses.

Hourglass Figure

Hello friends!

I was reading one of the posts that Sarah at Rhinestones and Telephones wrote, and I was intrigued by a few of the links she had at the bottom of her page that were referring to different body shapes.  I was led to this fantastic new-to-me blog Cardigan Empire which is currently having a week about falling in love with your body type.  In this post, Rachel even has a wonderful spread sheet for you to figure out your body type based on your measurements.

I have very recently taken my measurements, so I was able to quickly run through the spread sheet and figure out my body type.  Let me say, Rachel has a real knack for making one feel like your body is likened to a goddess!  I am an hourglass shape, which was actually kind of a surprise to me.  I am always my harshest critic when looking at my body (a fact that I'm trying to change).  I tend to feel like my middle has no definition, and that I generally look short and fat stout.

Once I discovered that I truly was an hourglass, the post written specifically for those with mythical curves had some great tips for dressing to enhance your body's most positive attributes.  There are also great posts for middle figured bodies, pear shapes, linear bodies, and upper figured body types.

Interestingly enough, I decided to look into my own Sew-spiration Board on Pintrest to see if I generally picked out clothes and wardrobe items that were recommended for me.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that my taste has improved since high-school, and that I do tend to lean towards garments that will work with my body type, such as the following examples.

Source: oasis-stores.com via Montana on Pinterest

Source: dorothyperkins.com via Montana on Pinterest

They really talked about for hourglass shapes, how it is wonderful to emphasize your waist.  They suggested a lot of belts, which is another glimpse into why I really enjoyed my peony so much!  Bring on the belts!

Source: modcloth.com via Montana on Pinterest

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One stunning historical example of an hourglass figure that I'm sure every one else was already screaming about in their minds is Marilyn.  Her iconic beauty is something that has started to finally come back into fashion today thanks to inspiring celebrities such as Christina Hendricks who plays Joan on Mad Men.  Kate Winslet also has a wonderful body that has been the subject of controversy ever since Titanic!

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So here is to enjoying our bodies, and being proud of the women that we are.  Embrace the joy that you get from knowing that not only are you beautiful, but that you can sew clothes that are tailor made to enhance every glowing curve, or lithe slender line you have to offer!  Go.  Feel beautiful today!

P.S.  I didn't even realize as I was writing this, that it is the perfect valentine's day post!  Show yourself some love!  Happy Valentine's Day everyone! xoxo