Every Tuesday we share projects from Treadle Yard Goods employees (The Treadlettes) and our customers and fans!
We love how @mn_jess_makes used this double-sided fabric for her Sew Liberated Cosecha pants. Double-sided fabrics are ideal for highlighting unique style lines like these. Plus her bare feet make us feel positively summery!
It's Memorial Weekend! Treadle will be closed Monday so we can get some rest and relaxation, and we hope you can too!
Memorial Day is typically the beginning of summer. Swimming pools open, the weather is heating up, and visiting the beach is looking pretty good, so today let's look at a selection of vintage swimwear!
Before the mid-19th century, people generally swam wearing little more than nature gave them, but in the 1850s, mixed-sex swimming beaches became more common, so bathing dresses were worn.
1850s bathing dresses generally consisted of a knee-length tunic, full trousers gathered to the ankle, stockings, shoes, and a cap.
It would have been difficult to swim athletically in this ensemble, but it worked for splashing around and having fun in the water.
As the 19th century progressed, swimming costumes retained the same basic idea of tunic and loose pants, but became shorter and cut closer to the figure.
The 1870s example shows quite a difference in the amount of fabric used! Sure, it's still a whole dress AND pants, but it's shorter and slimmer, and has little cap sleeves instead of big full-length poofs.
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By the 1890s the shoes and stockings could be ditched and occasionally the skirt was left off, leaving a loose romper style.
It wasn't until the 1920s that the skin-tight leotard style came into fashion for women, and it was another decade before it was universally the norm.
This style often included a faux skirt either just in front or all the way around.
After that, variations on the basic leotard continued into the strapless, two-piece, and eventually the bikini.
Many modern swimsuit styles have moved back toward more modest coverage, often due to concerns about sun protection, but also because it's great to have options!
Every Tuesday we share projects from Treadle Yard Goods employees (a.k.a. The Treadlettes) and our customers and fans!
Treadlette Melissa made this cute version of the Sew House Seven Tea House dress, a fun, easy pattern with a tied waist and cute cuffed sleeves.
She used Essex Speckle, a linen and cotton blend with fun tiny little contrast colors sprinkled subtly throughout.
Today we're talking about beeswax!
This is one of my favorite essential sewing notions. Use beeswax when hand sewing to smooth your thread and generally make your life easier.
For hand sewing, cut one arm's length of thread, then drag the entire length of thread through the wax (going through the slot in the wax holder). Once is usually enough!
Then, scrape with your thumbnail 4-5 times to remove the chunks and embed the wax into the thread.
Finally, use a sharp scissor to make an angled cut at the end for easy needle-threading!
It's also great for threading needles for machine sewing or even embroidery floss! For needle threading, just wax the very end, not the entire length. It's like licking it, but more effective and less gross!
Get yours here! It's a must-have in every sewing kit.
Every Tuesday we share projects from Treadle Yard Goods employees (a.k.a. The Treadlettes) and our customers and fans!
Treadle customer Kelly shared this adorable quilt that was 100% Treadle-sourced!
We love the combination of colors and prints - some of which might have been in her stash for a little while.
Kelly, we appreciate you supporting us! Thanks for visiting a neighborhood business and sharing your lovely work.
Poofy sleeves are in again, and you won't believe how easy it is to modify your pattern and sew this style!
I drew some sketches for you for this one, and keep in mind that I Cannot Draw, so hopefully this gets the point across, though it won't win any art prizes.
All you need to start with is a basic sleeve pattern, a pencil, some extra paper, and tape.
We're going to add volume by slashing the pattern and spreading it. Then you can simply gather the sleeve into your armscye for extra poof!
Because you're gathering the sleeve cap, the measurements don't need to be exact. You can afford to estimate here!
First, draw vertical lines down the entire length of the sleeve.
Then cut along the lines and tape them all to a big piece of paper, spreading your pieces out. Keep the bottom edge aligned.
Connect the edges and smooth out the jogs (a curved fashion ruler can help with this! - get one here)
Gather the extra fullness into a cuff or just let it stay loose!
This works just as well for a short or long sleeve.
If you prefer to keep the sleeve cap smooth, but still want some fun floof, hinge your cuts so that the sleeve cap stays the same, and add only to the lower edge.
Then you can gather just at the bottom for a puff at the wrist, or leave it loose for a bell or flutter sleeve.
Bonus tip: You can add a little more fullness to a cuffed sleeve by adding a couple extra inches of length, too! That's how you get those romantic poet sleeves.
I had a lot of fun making doodles for you guys, so I hope they inspire you to modify your sleeves with confidence!
Check out all our Friday Fun Facts in the archive here!
Every Tuesday we share projects from Treadle Yard Goods employees (a.k.a. The Treadlettes) and our customers and fans!
Julie made two of these fantastic canvas aprons for herself and her sister! She copied the pattern off an existing apron and worked through how to make it in our Continuing On class.
It's a simple shape, but it's full of fun details! Contrast topstitching, strap hardware, and a triangular scissor pocket make this apron special.
I've got cartridge pleats on my mind!
I recently used this pleating technique on a dress and was thrilled with the result, but a lot of people asked me what the heck a cartridge pleat is and what's so great about them?
If you have a LOT of fabric you want to cram into a small space, and you enjoy a little hand sewing, cartridge pleats are for you.
This technique was quite common in the 15th and 16 centuries, and probably existed far before then.
Unlike your typical knife or box pleat, the edges of cartridge pleats aren’t sewn into a seam, but stand at a 90 degree angle to the garment they are sewn to.
They’re made by creating multiple rows of long running stitches along a finished edge.
These stitches are made with a strong thread, then pulled to gather into perfect little pleats.
The pleats then have to be hand sewn in place; they’re far too bulky to be sewn by machine.
This is a great way to create lots of dramatic volume in a garment!
(This is also a great way to illustrate the effects of different lighting on your fabric colors!)
You can see a simple tutorial on this technique here.
Check out all our Friday Fun Facts in the archive!
Treadle student Chineze has been taking sewing classes with us for a couple years, making lots of different projects, but here is her first complete garment made from a pattern.
She used a soft cotton voile and Vogue pattern 1698 to make this cute spring dress.
We're so proud of all the hard work and dedication Chineze has put into sewing class these last couple years. Way to go, girl!
