I Love to Sew -- Or Maybe Not

I want, want, want to sew something. Almost anything would do, although if I could craft a garment that would fit me perfectly and make me look like a starlet (even a middle-aged one), that would be the best.

Thing is, I haven't been able to get a project together without a little help from my friend Kathy or my sister Pam.

The Kathy project, a quilt, is on hold, and may remain so indefinitely.

Pam and I managed to make a Barbie dress from a vintage pattern a few months ago. Pam did all the heavy lifting, though.

My lack of sewing accomplishment is embarrassing primarily because I have a pattern store on eBay. Potential customers occasionally ask me sewing-related questions, and I am usually too ignorant to answer them without lots of hemming (har!) and hawing.

This is not because I've never sewn; I used to sew quite a bit. But it's one of those activities that can be hard to pick up again. Ever since we moved in 2000 (resulting in the several-months-long virtual burial of my machine), I have not been able to see a sewing project to completion.

Oh, wait! I did actually sew a pair of boxer shorts. I was going to make my husband and two sons EACH a pair of those OR a pair of pajama pants for Christmas gifts. I had some nifty flannel fabric with ski-lodge graphics (I think it's vintage -- but if not, it definitely has that look; also, Timberline Lodge, an Oregon ski destination, is represented).

However, I made a cutting mistake right off the bat that meant I had to go with the smallest waist size and couldn't make any larger-size shorts or PJ bottoms. So, all I made were the shorts for my younger son. He said they were too big in the waist (despite my accidentally cutting them to the smallest size -- he was quite skinny at the time), so I think what happened is that he gave them to his dad (my husband John).

So, yes. I've finished one garment by myself: A pair of boxer shorts with another mistake in them besides the cutting thing detailed above. I used to be able to do much better.

I think it will boost my confidence to list here what I've sewed in my lifetime. It's not very impressive compared to what most sew-ers accomplish -- but believe you me, if my friends see this, they'll be amazed. Most of them have never known me to thread a needle of any kind.

A-line skirt: I made this for a summer class I took right before 9th grade. Three other girls and I "studied" the Bishop sewing method from a classmate's mother in her kitchen. We were supposed to make an apron, the skirt, and a dress (if not more), but the skirt was the only thing I finished. I bungled the zipper (or at least the hook-and-eye above it in the back), but I loved that skirt. This was mainly because I adored the fabric I had chosen for it -- dark blue, small-wale corduroy with tiny lighter-blue-and-white floral print -- and could hide my sewing imperfections with a simple navy blue pullover that ended lower than the waistband. Sigh. I wish I still had that skirt, just to look at. (It would have ceased to fit for many years now.)

Boy's Tank Top and Shorts: That's right, I didn't sew again until I was out of college, married, and the mother of a toddler. I happened to see a vintage Singer Slant-O-Matic in some store, and...well, it wouldn't be quite accurate to say I fell in love with it. I'm guessing I thought it was a bargain, and it must have sparked within me an interest in taking up sewing again (not that I'd ever really taken it up before). The first thing I made was an extremely '70s outfit for my then 2-1/2-year-old son. I was very bad at choosing fabrics (and have not improved much since). Hence, I made his little shorts and tank top from light blue terrycloth with royal blue ribbon trim around the armholes, neck, and scalloped leg edges. You remember the basketball uniforms of the late '70s? That's what this was patterned after. Of course, Danny didn't care what he wore then -- it was before his phase, one summer, of wanting to wear jeans, socks and tennis shoes with no shirt at all, day after day. That was when he started to care what he wore (but his taste improved over time). Luckily, when his mom sewed him this very questionable shorts-and-tank ensemble he wore it without a care -- and we shortly thereafter moved, so he never had to suffer any humiliation as a result of it.

Boy's Pajamas: Danny was again the victim of my sewing endeavors, and still didn't mind humoring me by wearing the results of my labors. This number was a set of pajamas made with woven fabric, not knit. The top was a standard snap-front, shirt-style top, and the pull-on pants had slightly flared legs. I made it out of a vintage (i.e., pre-1981) length of flannel material (grayish-blue with a small diam0nd print). Dan's preschool had a pajama party, and I was desperate to finish his swank PJs so he wouldn't have to wear his worn polyester duds. Luckily, my sister Pam was in town, and was able to do the hammer-snap thing that I was afraid to attempt. Voila -- the pajama top was close-able and the outfit was finished! Danny attended the soiree in style.

Witch's Costume, etc.: While Dan was in the same cooperative preschool, I agreed to make some dress-up clothes for the kids. This wasn't my idea for a contribution (the director asked me), but for reasons I've forgotten, I made no attempt to change my assignment. The result was that I got better at sewing, due to the pressure to perform. I remember making a witch costume, but I'm not sure what else I accomplished. However, I do know I fulfilled my duties.

Clown and Pirate Costumes: By this time my younger son, Joel, was in preschool and Danny was in grade school. I made a clown costume for Joel and a pirate costume for Dan (which Joel received as a hand-me-down later), and together these efforts represented the height of my sewing achievement. The clown thing was actually kind of challenging -- and I did very well with it. The pirate get-up was easier, but again, it turned out great. I chose the fabrics wisely, and the pirate thing even looked like the picture on the front of the pattern envelope. Neither child was embarrassed (not that Joel remembers the occasion), and both received plenty of candy and were not taunted. Of course, at their then-ages they were accompanied by one or both parents, so that wasn't likely to happen anyway.

Charlie Chaplin "Tramp" Costume: Actually, I didn't finish this costume, which was to have been for grade-school-aged Joel. I got partway finished with the jacket and noticed I'd been constructing it inside-out. I handed it over to my mother-in-law, hoping she'd just fix it. She had worked in men's alterations for years, and could have done it easily. What I didn't know was that her job turned her off sewing in her free time. She set the tramp jacket aside and returned it to me a few years later, unchanged.

Hawaiian Shirt: Unfortunately not the rayon type that's so popular now, but an all-cotton version -- red, with tropical-type flowers, like maybe hibiscus. I gave this to my brother, then wore it myself later after he either got tired of it or got tired of pretending to wear it. (He has since told me he won't wear flowers; I think if the fabric had shown surfboards or woodies it would have been fine.)

Men's Necktie: This turned out pretty great. I gave one to my brother-in-law Bill (Pam's husband) for his birthday. I gave one (less great, probably my first attempt) to my husband. Someone had given me tags that read "Handmade by Bonnie," and I think I stitched these onto the back of the narrower end of the ties, where you'd normally find a manufacturer's tag. Or at least I did that with one of them. The fabric was in a cornflower blue with a paisley pattern (the paisley things had muted reds and yellows in them, I think).

Two Dresses: ...that I never finished.One would be considered so ugly today, even for '80s nostalgics, that I'd disavow any involvement in its creation (beige, sack-like, and so on). The other was just an exercise in...well, sewing. I made it from some vintage scraps of pattern pieces, I think, with vintage scraps of blue and white polka dot fabric. I knew it wouldn't fit me. I gave it to my niece Sara, not as a gift but just for a dress-up item she could keep in a box with any tiaras, tutus, and high heels she had around. Not that it would have been any fun to dress up in.

I seem to become a worse seamstress over time. This makes no sense. I need to get back in the saddle with this, but am not sure how to start. Ah, well. Maybe I can lure Pam back up here, and do more of my share of doll-dress sewing next time. Sounds like a good plan to me.