Jezebel: Sewing

This Awesome Purse Is Incredibly Easy To Make (Here's How!)

Jenna Sauers — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 19:00:00 EST

If you've never made a purse before, this just might be the purse for you. My last bag, the envelope clutch, was a great opportunity to explain the basics of leather working and bag construction. But that project had six major seams and nine minor ones. This bag, on the other hand, has two: the bottom and sides are sewn in one long seam, and the zipper is attached to the top in another. And that's it! If you can sew two seams — and no, you do not need a sewing machine — you can sew this bag. It's a simple but versatile design, and if you haven't worked with leather, this would be a great project with which to learn. More »

How To Winterize A Coat

Jenna Sauers — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 17:10:00 EST

I was raised in a temperate climate — New Zealand, to be precise — but it didn't take me long to grasp the absolute, primal importance of coats in much of North America. (Moving to Minnesota in January will teach you the value of a proper winter coat in, oh, about 15 seconds. Which is about the time it took the parts of my wet hair not covered by my hat to freeze one morning, oh happy Midwestern memories!) The problem is, as any card-carrying member of what Garrison Keillor called God's frozen people knows, is that the most stylish coats tend to be the least warm. Bunchy ski-wear made with Gore-Tex and studded with elastic drawstrings isn't really cute — and fuck me are those things expensive — but it does a much better job of keeping you warm than your average lined wool-blend shell from Old Navy. But if you're nonetheless drawn, for reasons of aesthetic preference or the necessity of maintaining a "professional" appearance, to non-sporty coats, there are some ways to trick them out. With basic sewing skills you can take any plain old coat and turn it into a piece of performance sportswear — on the inside. More »

How To Turn A T-Shirt Into A Pillow

Jenna Sauers — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 18:30:00 EDT

You know what I have too many of? T-shirts. There are t-shirts in my closet that I've had for years and never worn. Band t-shirts, random promotional t-shirts, fun-run t-shirts, hand-me-down t-shirts — whether scoop or V or crew, t-shirts basically go to my wardrobe to sit around in neatly folded piles, collecting guilt. One day this summer, I was "talking" with Lux Alptraum, the proprietor of our wonderful sister blog Fleshbot [which is thoroughly and definitely NSFW] on IM, which is how I communicate with all of my colleagues because I am antisocial and that way nobody has to know when I'm not wearing pants, and she told me she'd recently turned a t-shirt into a pillow. The shirt had a cool design on the front, but it was too big for her and she never wore it. The pillow looked really cool. Probably a lot cooler than the original shirt had. And there is probably not much that's easier than turning a t-shirt into a pillow! You cut it out, you sew it, you stuff it, and you're done, folks. I thought 'We have to turn this into a DIY!' So, one recent Saturday, Lux came over and we made t-shirt pillows. The shirt I used bore the name of the college I graduated from. I believe my parents bought it for me at one of those ubiquitous Made In China school-memorabilia shops in 2005 or 2006; when I pulled it out of my closet, it still had tags on. This is a vastly better use. More »

Living Like A Pioneer Now Cutting Edge

Erin Gloria Ryan — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 14:00:00 EDT

Did you hear about the newest trend? It was invented in prehistoric times, and we've spent thousands of years developing technology so that we don't have to do it, but now urbanites are discovering it and so it's cool again! It's sewing! More »

How To Alter A Thrift Store Dress

Jenna Sauers — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 18:20:00 EDT

I feel like this happens to me all the time: I'm browsing the racks at the SalvA, skipping past unfortunate housedresses and schmattas of little significance when I spy something astonishing. Something really gorgeous. And this something only costs a few bucks, and I simply must have it. Only problem is, it doesn't quite fit. The dress is too long, it's too short, it's too big, it's too small, the arm holes are too high or they're too low, the waist gapes or the hips are tight, or maybe it just doesn't generally sit "right" — whatever the problem is, the astonishing dress is just not quite wearable as-is. More »

How To Make A Pair Of White Short-Shorts

Jenna Sauers — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 18:10:00 EDT

Okay, so your shorts don't have to be white. You could make them blue, red, yellow, teal, cerulean, seafoam, hyacinth, striped, spotted, dip-dyed, appliquéd with your home-made N*Sync fan art, or printed with a mosaic of stills from Rebecca Black's "Friday." Mine just happen to be white, because something about white shorts says "summer" to me. Like white wine, white weddings, and white-cresting waves. But this is a set of directions for making shorts, period. Choose the style and the fabric that you want. This is a moderately challenging project that you can finish in about an afternoon. Even if you've never set a fly before. Promise. More »

How To Make A Quick Beach Cover-Up

Jenna Sauers — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 18:55:00 EDT

It's summer, and while we're all sweltering in the 98° heat, our thoughts turn naturally to cooling, natural, beautiful, necessary water. The seaside. The local pool. The river. The nearest lake. And when you've had your swim and you get out and towel off, reveling in that unfamiliar feeling of our body parts not sticking to each other with sweat, you wanna throw on something that suits your weightless, relaxed, newly cool mood. More »

How To Make A Custom Dress Form: Part Two

Jenna Sauers — Fri, 27 May 2011 18:45:00 EDT

Having a custom dress form that matches your body shape is a boon to any home sewer. Especially any home sewer who'd like to more precisely alter commercial patterns, or venture into pattern-drafting and draping. The problem? Cash money. More »

How To Make A Custom Dress Form: Part One

Jenna Sauers — Fri, 20 May 2011 17:45:00 EDT

To any home sewer and pattern-drafter, the appeal of a custom dress form is obvious. Commercial forms don't resemble the human body in the slightest: nobody I've ever met has that weird, smooth monoboob like on the Wolf forms, nor that cleft-less so-called "ass." Plus, those things are like $400 used. Adjustable forms, though cheaper, are if anything even more limited. They collapse when you're trying to pin things to them, their articulated planes wobble out of alignment, they are riddled with gaps, they suck. More »

Ten Reasons To Love On The Road With Austin And Santino

Gretchen 'Gertie' Hirsch — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 18:30:00 EDT

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Okay, so it doesn't have the gravitas of Mad Men. But nothing can else on TV can fill me with such unmitigated delight as On the Road with Austin and Santino. Here's why. More »

French Bliss

Anna Holmes — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 16:10:00 EDT

[Vienna, September 10. Image via Getty]

XXX: When Patchwork Is "Pornographic"

Sadie Stein — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 18:00:00 EST

Quilter's Home has rocked the needlework world to its foundation with its exploration of adult themes in quilting. "Shocking Quilts: We Show You the Controversial Patchwork," says the (plastic-wrapped) cover! Hey, it's a recession! More »

Made to Measure: Or, Broken Dreams And A Wool Jersey Dress

Sadie Stein — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 17:40:00 EDT

I've always wanted to be the kind of woman who could sew her own clothes. It's a skill that combines practicality and creativity - always desirable - and, theoretically, is thrifty, too. What's more, how great would it be to be able to whip up a replica of the dress she wears in The 39 Steps, and when compliqueried, nonchalantly throw off an, "Oh, this old thing? Made it." The reality? I'm incompetent. My first experience with custom couture came at the hands of the social studies teacher at my elementary school. We all had to make skirts for our sixth-grade graduation and I selected my bolt of apple-green gingham with great anticipation. Each step - pattern-pinning, cutting, basting, pleating sewing - was carefully supervised. Even so, my pins were crooked, the deliberate pace of the project frustrated me, and the sewing machine, with its dials and buttons, was terrifying. More »