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Thank you so much for sharing that! It gives me a great visual. I have five little kids and long sleeves seem to always get in the way so this looks better for me.

I bought my dupioni silk bridesmaid dress fabrics (in person but you can buy swatches) from here: https://www.thaisilks.com

For your must have’s: one step buttonhole feature, needle down position, ability to lower feed dogs AND your price point and more… I have to recommend my sewing machine. It’s the Janome DC4030 (I have the pink ribbon edition that is no longer available but it is VERY similar to the standard DC4030). I bought it from a Janome dealer who told me…[Read more]

I made the Gallery dress with short sleeves. Here is a picture.

both the skylines5 and brother innovis 700 really have all the same feet, maybe the brother has a few more that I don’t even use. but the janome is more expensive which not sure if that price difference will justify a better machine.

when you call stores that sell both get mixed suggestions. some say janome better quality,others say brother…[Read more]

Great! If it still doesn’t lie flat after a good pressing, maybe try hemming it again? If your machine tension is off that could make the hem wavy. I think it’s just one of those things that gets better with practice. Glad you’re having fun with it!

great. I was hoping it would be that easy. Thanks!

I just used cotton, so not that. I think maybe I accidentally pulled the thread on the basting stitch a little.
Thank you so much for responding. I am really excited and eager to sew more now that I have found your wonderful patterns.
I’ll give it a good pressing. 🙂
I’ve been wearing it all afternoon because I find it so comfortable so even…[Read more]

What kind of fabric did you use? Slippery fabrics are more difficult to hem then more stable fabrics, so maybe that had something to do with it? Also, a good pressing can often solve a wavy hem…

It’s pretty easy to shorten sleeves. Just decide where you want them to end, add a hem, and cut the sleeves at that point on the pattern piece. Or wait until you can try it on and decide how short you want them to be then. You can always pin them to see if you’re happy with the length.

Completely agree, Sarvi. In fact, I think I wrote something similar in this post: https://oliverands.com/community/blog/2014/12/ask-me-how-to-buy-a-sewing-machine.html

That is a great thought to go on, exploring new fabrics and sewing techniques. I might just jump over the top, not your everyday type of sewing. I done so much of that. I think if I challenged myself that could help. Maybe it is due to a sewung rut? Anyway at least I finished Sarah’s Easter dress from last year.