williamsews

 A shirt made of fabric printed with stylised trees. I have plundered the cache of quilting fabrics again and this looks good as a shirt; it's medium-weight cotton which will be perfect because it's almost autumn. This is a closeup, showing the trees. Nice stuff and very retro, reminds me of the type of designs from my childhood. Feels good to wear. A new idea (for me anyway) with collars & cuffs. I usually just pin the collar to the shirt with both pieces even but now allow about .5 of a millimetre overhang on the collar or cuff. The small amount of overhang makes a good fit when top-stitched. I don't think I can scrounge much more fabric from the quilting cupboard, so am going to the big city shop, Spotlight, for more fabric and notions. I am looking forward to rummaging. Take care, Regards, Will.

  I like this one, the fabric is a crisp polycotton. I started to make it with a lemon trim but the more I did, the less I liked it, so the unpicker came into play. The result is much better. A while ago I started pressing the sleeve plackets before I attached them, then for some reason, I went back to sewing them flat, but pressing them first makes the job much easier.  Pre-pressed makes the job easy. That's my lot for today, Take care, Will. 

  Flour sack fabrics were borne out of necessity and poverty during the Great Depression of the 1930s and the patterns endure today. Families were so poor that women made clothes; dresses, shirts, toys, etc, out of the cotton bags that contained flour. When the manufacturers realised this, they began to print the bags with fashionable designs. The patterns were quite beautiful. I have bought new copies of the fabrics and, along with US Civil War or Victorian patterns, they are my favourite. Reusable sacks were a wonderful idea, I suppose people don’t buy in such bulk anymore. It’s recycling at its best. Still making shirts but fabric is becoming scarce. I will have to face the world soon. Take care, Will,