LOLA

Tag: Sewing

  • No. 41 Scam vibes, muumuus, and my Limelight

    OMG Yalllll. I’m back over here and I ain’t never leaving again! I learned my lesson the HARD WAY! Lemme tell y’all what happened. So y’all know I sew right? Right. I wanted to incorporate my houseplants somehow into my blogging. If you didn’t know I grow over 150 houseplants and they are so pretty y’all OMGGGG

    Anyway, after milling over ideas of how to share ’em like I share my sewing I thought I needed a new blog dedicated especially to them. Don’t ask me why I just didn’t use this one; I knew I should’ve. I told myself so many times before I actually agreed to that foolishness that I shouldn’t. Chileeee against all my better judgement I did.

    Now I didn’t want to immediately complain but I have no choice in this situation. As soon began to build the site I got irritated. The site was so fukkin BASIC. I didn’t think it would be so fancy because the site itself looked prehistoric by damnnnnnn. The features were so difficult and downright odd. Whole site just seemed to be against any user ever. After studying how to personalize everything I managed to get a post up. It was an absolute mess too! Everything was out of place. I never seen anything like it! I was irritated ASF to say the least and after a short while I decided I would cancel the subscription effective immediately.

    *Blood pressure rising rapidly*

    Attempting to cancel the subscription was the most ridiculous part of the whole embarrassing debacle that was my houseplant site. Now of course there was no one to talk to about cancellation; only AI and an email. It took me over a week to actually get the “subscription” cancelled because it took them over three days to answer the mandatory email I had to send for help!–insert eye roll– Imma stop here because I can literally go on and on smdh Anyways, I decided to incorporate my houseplants into this blog. I have a subscription for this one too and TBH I’m not sure why I even wanted another one. This one never presented a single issue; the other site WAS an issue. I kinda thought it would kinda be better to keep them separate. I do want my two loves together in one place though! Expect more of my tropical family along with my sewing okay? Okay.

    *Blood pressure rising rapidly*

    Now lemme update y’all on my sewing stuff. I’ve only finished that striped dress that I blogged about last as a patterned project. I free-styled a muumuu for myself a couple weeks ago too. I used a piece of olive green colored linen blend that had been in my stash for eons. I kinda wanted to test a few decorative stitches on one of my machines so used my impromptu muumuu project to do that. I used purple thread and it ended up being so cute. No pictures though; it really wasn’t for show. (I can show you guys if you insist) What I have been doing is a lot of mending; for myself and my bestie. She bought a whole buncha ready-made muumuus but they were too long. A few of them were gifts were other folks too. I fixed those up. She came and got those and brought a few more of her own for hemming but they’re still on my sewing table LOL I’ll get to em soon. I do have a matching separates idea in mind but I need some kinda fleece something to pull it off.

    I didn’t plan on including any photos in this post either y’all; it was mainly to gather my peeps in one spot again. My plan is to take a few photos of my most recent plant purchase and share with you guys. So that means I’ll be back soon. I gotta get a few photos of this pretty gal. I’ll give you a clue who it is. Some of my folks that follow me elsewhere may have seen here already. She’s completely NEON and her leaves are on the larger side. Feel free to add your guesses to this post. I’ll be back soon too share her pretty self and some information on her journey here!

    Talk soon,

    Christy

  • No. 39 The desert sunshine, Happiness, and Lola made a Lolita

    Yall how is everything? I’m doing well; woke up and had a slight crisis but everything seems to be on the up and up again. I’m usually super organized and I just want everything in order. Sometimes things just happen and I promise you it drives me insane! I have to remember that life has lemons, but I love lemons and lemonade! Bring on all the life! Now let the ranting about my new coat begin!

    Now y’all know that where I it’s usually always very warm and sunny but I just love, love, love making coats and other outerwear. Yeah I hardly get to wear them but when I do they are soooo darlin’ and actually keep me toasty too! I’ve made a few coats before; I have a trench coat that is fully lined and a shorter trench that isn’t. My new coat is fully lined too and it’s only because it looked cuter that way. I make a lot of mods to my projects because of where I live. I used silky lining fabrics on both versions of this coat.

    I’ve made this pattern before years ago and tbh I literally just winged it. I hadn’t made a pattern as extensive as this one at that time and the coat showed it. I loved it so much despite its many mistakes; in fact it’s up next for some mending to fix it up. I knew I would make the coat again and I knew exactly what modifications I wanted to include when I did even back then. Sifting through my fabrics is how this coat came to. A new dress was up next but the fabric I used for the coat was standing out. Of course, just like that my whole motion was changed and a new coat idea was on my cutting table. My Lolita pattern had been on my mind for a couple weeks too so I suppose my new coat was meant to be.

    When I made the coat originally it was kinda too big for me. If I was able to layer in the cooler months it would be perfect. But when I took photos wearing the first coat I was wearing thee thinnest knit top this side of the strawberry patch! No layering necessary! (it was in December too) This reminded me that I could take the coat in a bit to make it more fitted. The pattern is designed to look more tailored already which helped a whole lot. The length was another thing I remembered I wanted to modify; I shortened it quite a bit by taking almost five inches off the hem. (I want to wear a mini dress with thigh high boots with the coat). I also changed my mind, probably too many times about the closure. I added a smaller button but when I put it on I wanted a much bigger button. Just today I finished the new button/buttonhole mods with a bigger button/buttonhole. Tried it on and let me just say I LOVE it and the mods were exactly what the coat needed to fit me how I wanted it to. Now I do want to add that the pattern sizes are super inclusive with the smallest size being a 2 and the largest being a 24. The flounce is the star of this coat; it’s the flounce pattern piece for me! I already gave it the final press and hung it up in my closet.

    The pattern of the hour is the Spearmint coat from Lolita Patterns; pattern #5013. It debuted in 2013 and it has been a favorite of mine ever since. On Pinterest I had pinned a wool baby pink coat that looked exactly like the Spearmint before I knew the Spearmint coat existed. I went looking for a pattern to make a similar one for myself. The indie patterns companies did NOT disappoint. I sewed up view A and size 16 again; that size eliminated the need for me to worry about the bust area fitting well. The coat pattern has 18 pieces though *gasp*. I must include that this pattern is not beginner friendly either; it’s rated four out of five for difficulty (the difficulty of the Lolita patterns are measured in skulls and this one has four out of five skulls bolded) This pattern has some of the coolest pattern pieces though. I’m glad it’s in my stash and it’ll remain one of my faves to sew up.

    Okay I’ve rattled on and on and I still have a whole lot to say but I’ll stop myself because y’all know how I am about sewing! As always if you have any questions or comments share em with me. I can talk sewing any day, any time and I never get tired! This was a slower sew so I was able to get a lot of progress shots. I can’t ever include them all but I always share the process of all my makes on my other video socials. Let me know if you wanna join me elsewhere; I share my handles!

    LOVE,

    LOLA

  • No.38 Summa Fashion, a pair of shorts, and shine

    Hey y’all hey! I’ve been in my sewing space tinkering around kinda on a daily basis nowadays. I am making sure I keep that UFO basket somewhat clear. (I may be weird but I love mending clothes) Currently thinking about pulling an all-nighter because I have this idea for a mini dress for the cooler weather in my mind that will not let me rest. I also pulled out my Marfy book and my Merchant & Mills Workbook too! I have so many ideas I’m having a huge creative block right now. So I decided I should blog then sew.

    Now this rant is about a top and shorts combo I whipped up last month. I really do try and choose fabrics for projects but my fabrics have always chosen for themselves. I’ll pull out a piece of fabric and a pattern then end up sewing with a completely different piece of fabric and pattern. I’ve even made a jumpsuit out of tablecloth fabric! Earlier I was all set to take photos and blog earlier but when I pulled out the heels I wanted to wear in the photos I was surprisingly reminded that the last time I wore those heels I had fun! LOL! They were damaged and scraped along with a little dirt. I’m going to keep and refashion them somehow; I still like ’em a lot. I did a video blog of the outfit on my Tiktok and Facebook accounts if you guys are interested in seeing the outfit in action! (Come say Hi on Tiktok using: @lolastitches15 and on Facebook using “Lola Bunnee”)

    Now where I live it’s still going to be over 100 degrees or the next couple weeks. I quickly decided that I wouldn’t start sewing for the cooler weather just yet and show this outfit since it made more sense. For the top the pattern I used is Simplicity S0399 Summer Fashion Super Jiffy. It was just one huge pattern piece; the shorts had about five pattern pieces. I made the shorter version of the top because I wanted to show my shorts off too! I used a fabric from my stash that I snagged from Fabric Mart a while ago. The fabric is just so pretty; it’s described as a “Sky Blue 100% Polyester Corded Stripe Netting”; I had three yards. For the shorts I used another fabric from my stash but I have no idea where I bought it from; I had about two yards. Usually when I can’t remember where I got the fabric from I found it on one of my thrifting trips. The pattern I used for my shorts is Simplicity 1165 View B. Both pieces can be worn separately but they do match as I used the mesh I sewed the top with for the shorts pockets. (One of the pictures I added shows the matchy-matchy thing these two pieces have going on)

    I’m starving so bad right now and I wanna have frozen yogurt for dinner so I don’t get lazy for this evening’s sewing sesh. But I have chili fries and a cheeseburger on the brain too. I’m going to try and wrangle some of these ideas down to one or two and find some fabrics that wanna help me! I’ll stop rambling now because I can go on and on about anything sewing. Of course I’ll add a few photos following this chat and until next time y’all!

    Love,

    LOLA

    Creating and watching murder shows per usual LOL

  • No. 37 Big Cats, Zebra, and Safari Demure

    How is everybody doing? I’m doing just fine this evening; keeping it cutesy and very mindful. Very demure. I cannot stop saying that even if I tried LOL! I love that gal on TikTok and I swear I’ll never delete that app…it is just hilarious! Now this post is about a pattern mash-up I daydreamed up one day in June; Sunday June 16, 2024 to be exact. I kept thinking of a halter maxi dress and these two fabrics that I’ve had in my stash for eons. Quite often I’d pull both of the fabrics out and admire them but never found anything to make with them. When my ideas came together for the halter maxi I immediately fished those two fabrics out to make my new dress. The two fabrics have the prettiest Safari prints and went beyond well together. When I first got them I loved ’em a whole lot. I’m also still sewing for hot weather because our forecast is still well over the 100 degree mark. Now on to the deets on the dress and patterns.

    To create the dress I used two McCall’s patterns; the halter portion of M6083 and the skirt portion of M7834. I’ve made M6083 before quite a few times before. (View D of M7834 only one time though) I had almost three yards of both pieces so it was more than enough to create the tiers on the skirt. I fussy cut the fabric to showcase the prints because they really are what makes the dress special. I cut a size 16 from both patterns and the fabrics are some kind of buttery cotton blend. They are sooooo soft. I sewed it up using two of my machines because I had one set for all the gathering the skirt required and the other one for the regular construction. It was a super fun sew but kinda extra with all the fabric that the skirt portion called for. The bodice needed some fixing up because it was too big when I tried it on. I ended up taking it in an extra 5/8 of an inch. Overall I LOVE it.

    Imma show yall the pictures now because I have the internet guy coming over to install a new modem and fix the wall outlet. Got a sweet potato pie in the oven too! I’ll talk to you good people soon I promise! (There’s a video at the end of the dress right after I finished it)

    Love,

    LOLA

  • No. 36 Two Goddess robes from “back in the day” and a bonnet

    Well hello hello everybody! It’s almost 7pm around these parts; I just got off work a few hours ago. I’ve been having crafting mania lately along with wanting to sew up everything and I’ve been sewing myself crazy! Last weekend I went to buy a new plant and explore the neighborhood. I found the elusive Cebu Blue pothos! I was starting to think it was a phantom plant! It was already on a moss pole and he is so handsome! I’ll show him off later on in this post. On the way home with my new plant I noticed directly across the street from the Home Depot was a Joann Fabrics. Now those that know me can tell you I don’t shop at Joann’s unless it’s an emergency. I always get an interesting vibe when I go in; it kinda distracts me from sewing because of all the cool craft stuff. I get so sidetracked in there and wanna do everything but sewing when I visit. One day I was browsing there and almost left with a candy making kit! But this time around was everything sewing in there y’all! I spotted some super cool denims, linens, and so much more! I’ll be back to snag a few pieces but not until I get my coupons together on the website so I can save some coins. I also just followed this sewing diva on Insta (I forget her name but if you wanna know just shoot me a message and I’ll check my Insta for her handle) and a lot her makes feature the dyeing technique Shibori. I had that coolness on my mind when I went in. By the time I left I had three tshirts, a Simply Sewing magazine bundle, two tumblers, a Shibori dye kit, some iron-on letters, and some invisible tape. I paid $75.00 dollars even; me and the cashier thought that was lucky! I’ve personalized two of the t-shirts already with the iron-on letters and some patches I had in my stash. I also added some rhinestones to the one with my Huny’s name to give it a little razzle dazzle LOL…I’ll share those another time though…

    Now on to the robes I sewed up during a bout of sewing mania I had a few weeks ago. The pattern of the hour is Simplicity 5685 View 1; it debuted in 1973. I was so manic I sewed it twice back to back. The first one I sewed I used “Muted Berry Red/Rosewood Pink/ Multi Nylon/Lycra Floral Print Mesh”. I had three yards so it was perfect for the length I made. Both robes were whipped up using the short version. There are three lengths included in the pattern; a super short one, one that went a little past the knees, and an ankle length version. Basically mini, midi, and maxi lengths in dressmakers’ terms. I wanted to make a matching bonnet with both of them but I only made one for the second robe I sewed up. I also ended up giving first the one I just described to my daughter. I owe her the matching bonnet. The second one I sewed up I used “Blue/Lime/Red/Multi Polyester/Lycra Petal Blossom Print Stretch” fabric. I had four yards of this fabric but I still wanted to make the shorter version…That view was just so feminine with the fabrics I used. Both pieces are from Fabric Mart and had been in my stash for quite a while. The first robe I included the pocket but no matching bonnet; the second one I omitted the pocket and included the matching bonnet. The bonnet is self drafted; if anyone wants to make your own just let me know. I’ll help you out. I got the robe idea from wanting to look the prettiest when I’m lounging around my apartment while keeping cool because I live in the desert!

    Now y’all know I will ramble and ramble about sewing some stuff without stopping so I’ll quit now and show the pictures of the robes. I’ll include a snapshot of my Cebu too. I’ll be back soon I promise; until then be good folks for no reason. Wait; tell me if you have sewn up something similar lately or if you bought new plants because I wanna see em!

    Love,

    *LOLA*

  • No. 35 A Lola, a beachbag, and poplin sunshine…Did I mention zombie nurses?

    **clears throat and taps mic** Is this thing on? OMGGGG guys how is everybody? Yall know my life is like a movie and I cannot make up anything that happens on any given day! I won’t go into too much detail about my life’s happenings but I will share that I recently moved from my old place! I wanted to move so bad from that area and complex with a whole host of reasons why; I no use in going into ’em now because I’m already gone. Long story short I’ve been in my new place a little less than a month. I absolutely love it around these parts and my new sewing space. It’s pretty much sewing central just as I imagined when I decided to move. I always apologize for the long pauses in my blogging and sharing stuff and I’m here to do that again. Forgive me y’all! In my defense I thought my laptop was broken. My GRANDdaughter was using it one day and my GRANDson leaned on it and needless to say we all figured that was all she wrote. Or so we thought. But I didn’t get rid of it, I put it back in its storage bag and put it away. I couldn’t just throw it away for some reason. That was months ago. Fast forward to last night I took it out of the drawer and plugged it in. It powered right on! I was so happy because I love my little laptop and I really didn’t want to get rid of it or have to buy a new one. Okay now on to the patterns of the hour and a little bit about ’em…Even the newbies know I have a ton of patterns. Like a literal ton of them. For some reason I just could find no inspo in not even one of them. Sometimes I get like that. When that happens my go-to for sewing ideas are my sewing magazines and books. They never let me down. I ended up sewing a new beach bag and dress with same name as yours truly! If you’ve a sewing maniac like me you’re aware of all the sewing magazines on the market and have a few favorites. One of my favorite publications is Simply Sewing. I ended up pulling out Issue 44 and whipped up two of the patterns that it featured. The patterns of the hour are The Lola Dress and The Beach Bag. The bag is hugeeeee; its already one of my favorite bags I’ve sewn. I used a hounds tooth denim for the exterior of the bag; it was already in my stash. The dress I created out of a yellow-orange cotton poplin I’ve also had in my stash for a long time. I never throw fabric away; even its its “ugly”. My motto is one day it’ll be perfect and for the Lola dress the “ugly” fabric absolutely was. I started both projects on the 26th (of this month) and they were both fun, easy sews! But the star of both pieces are the zombie nurses! I lined the bag and the dress with a piece of “Beauties and Brains” fabric which is another piece I left in my stash until just the right time…Wait till y’all see the pictures!

    Now let me stop rambling because y’all know I can go on and on…I snapped a few pictures of my new makes and I’ll include ’em below. Yall can literally see the zombie nurses through the poplin on the dress which is quite literally my favorite part of the it (besides the pretty color); I’m glad my idea worked out. The set is giving Summerween which I don’t mind because Halloween is another one of my favorite days. *Good Friday and St. Patrick’s Day are a couple other faves of mine* I gotta check on dinner too; it’s in the oven. See now I’m talking and talking again lemme show y’all these photos! I’ll be back soon I promise!

    Love, LOLA

    Follow my TikTok!

  • No. 18 Pineapple slices poppin’ with New Look

    Well now how is everybody this good Wednesday afternoon?!  I’m more than all right because I actually felt like taking pictures and blogging today!  Yayyyyy me amiright?!  Yall know I sew like the dickens but flicking it up and writing it down has been just  escaping me lately…I said I was going to change that and why not change it on the 1st of August?  Something about new beginnings make me feel like I’m not so out of touch with what I feel I should be doing…..

    Now on to my dress yall….I loves me some pineapple and fabric even more so when the two combine its always a big arse YES from me……you never wanna not buy the fabric you know?……I snagged this fabric quite some time ago from Fabric Mart so when I decided to make New Look’s S0802 View C I took to my stash….I usually sew with knits so sewing with rayon this go ’round was a refreshing change…..the description on the fabric was “Burgundy/Pale Yellow/Sunflower Yellow Pineapple Slices 100% Rayon”….it didn’t slide around too much; if at all and the dress came together with no issues (I usually sew straight out of the envelope and hate the hell out of alterations)….I whipped this dress up on June 2nd this year and have worn it at least twice; I love this little dress!…it just slips over my head with no hardware–I omitted the button in the back because I didn’t have any elastic cord at the time and was too damned lazy to make a fabric loop instead….the pattern only had five pieces and it was labeled “easy”….I cut the size 16 and sewed it up using my guy Greyson, my Heavy Duty Singer sewing machine…..Since the fabric was so light and flow-y I used a heavier thread and sewed double lines on the hem and neckline to give it some weight~~it worked like a charm!….

    Okay here are the pictures; my husband decided he would take them for me, it’s already 100+ degrees and these are really the best we could do before we passed out from the heat! LOLOL….Talk to you good folks soon I promise!….oh and if you want me to check out your makes just share em with me!….

    **MsKRS**

     

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    my neighbors need to get the trashcans huh?….shiddddd its HOT!  LOL!

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    MsKRS

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    My cat snuck outside when we were taking pictures; she is quite nosy!  Yall see her on the porch?…

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    Now off to brave the heat because I need to go to the grocery store accckkkkkkk

  • No. 13 Purty pink Tweed w/ a side of tomato Red

    Good evening all!  I hope all is well; and I am all right over here too….It has been a super chill weekend for me; I didn’t go anywhere!….I went straight home after work on Friday and been here ever since…Its been raining off and on all weekend so I’m taking full advantage of the natural cleanse….I am so spent with all the unfortunate events that I’ve personally experienced lately that I ultimately decided I should just stay home and recharge my batteries so to speak….Overall I’m not complaining but to continue to maintain I have to stay to myself for a bit and gather my thoughts….

    Now alone doesn’t mean without my machines; and I’ve been leaning heavily on my craft lately for coping….If I’m not sewing then I’m looking at my magazines for ideas or adding cool pins to my Pinterest boards for inspo….I’ve been sewing stuff since Friday too; I’ve sewn a blazer and matching skirt but my latest make prompted this post….I’ll probably blog the blazer and skirt when I actually wear it so I can show off a pair of my favorite boots….

    After my first makes of the weekend the sewing bug kept biting so I decided to whip up Simplicity’s 1950’s Vintage Pattern #1319 View A….I thought about View B; never considered View C until I looked at it a little more closely…..I had cut the pattern out a while ago but I had never got around to sewing it….the pattern only has 7 pattern pieces including the lining…I took to my stash: Pink/Magenta/Multi 100% Novelty Weave Boucle’ Suiting and Tomato Red Poly/Lycra ITY Knit by Maggy London….I snagged ’em from Fabric Mart quite some time ago…they worked well with this pattern and sewed up good!….I made two mistakes while sewing this project and let me tell you that unpicking tweed is real beast-y….it was quite messy too; I mean fibers all over the damn place….No pain, no gain yeah?  Yeah.

    I scanned the pattern instructions before I got started and wrote down a few modifications…I added extra bunching on the sleeves by using a knit for the lining; I lengthened them too…the mock pockets were omitted as well although I still might add those one day….I always love when my ideas make sense and actually work out!…Now when I took the pictures I didn’t take any of the flip side…If I remember to when I wear it I’ll share ’em….And speaking of pictures let me share some…..Talk to you good folks in a few!

    **MsKRS**

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    Tis’ purty huh?….I told yall!

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    Side one….sleeeeeeevvvveeeesssss!!!!!

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    Back shot….tweed-y goodness!

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    Side two…

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    Yesteryear for today my way…..