Fun Saturday with Barbara & A New Top

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Most of you are familiar with Barbara of Cat Fur Studio. I'm very lucky that she gets to Omaha once in a while which is close enough to me to make it easy to meet and visit. We've had some wonderful adventures in past visits. We've visited the Pendleton Outlet in Nebraska City, she's come to see my sewing studio, and this time, we shopped and lunched in Omaha's Old Market area. It was a beautiful day, and we had a great time! Barbara won the Best Shopping award, and I helped. I did buy a hat. It's a nice, warm one, although stylish as well, I think. Today is windy, cold, rainy, and I may try my new hat sooner than I thought.

You can see here that I'm pointing out one of the features of Barbara's new Hot Patterns Primavera dress. I enjoyed seeing it and the great cape she made recently. Both very nice, and great wardrobe pieces; just what we all wish for as an outcome when we sew.
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I will also say that the top I'm wearing is a new one. I used the FSG #1960 Top pattern (my go-to Tee pattern) and cut the neckline deeper and added the floppy collar. The fabric is one that I got from a member of the Omaha ASG group. She was moving and retiring from sewing, and donated all of her fabrics, etc. to the group for distribution with donation. It's a wonderful blue/rust cross-woven french terry. It changes with the light and I love it. It's really soft and comfy as well. You've seen the little knitted Gedifra vest before. It's the one I finally overdyed a couple years after I finished it, to improve the color. Now it goes with lots of things, and I wear it much more often.

Kudos to Barbara's wonderful husband, Nick, for taking these great photos! I think we look good, although we did get a little silly when encouraged to "be dramatic", but we had fun, and he got some nice photos.

I have to show off the darling notebook Barbara found for me. Its covers look like pattern instructions. What fun! I will be using it with pleasure. x Photo Link

I think I will be making more of this style now that winter is upon us. I hate to tell you this, but it's SNOWING here today! Ick, I hope the warm-up predicted for tomorrow will come and do its best. I'll leave you with the very sad view out my back windows. I just don't really like snow, especially not this early.
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Swimsuit With A Zipper

From Drop Box

I used the same fabric as the first suit I made to make another one which is almost the same, except for one glaringly obvious diversion. It has an exposed zipper right in the front. The suit I copied and my first two copies all have a hook at the CB. This is fine, except it's sometimes hard to hook since it's fairly high up in the back, and it's tight fitting. I feel like I ought to be able to dress myself at this stage in life, and I have had to ask for help with this once or twice. I began to try to think of a better closure option.

From Drop Box

A center front zipper seemed the obvious choice, and so far, I like it. I've worn it twice now, and it's fine. I plan to make more like this as I need them, and perhaps several fairly soon. I have a few of these zippers on hand, and I might as well use them if they happen the right color. Finding swimsuit fabric is the trick. Here's the back view.

From Drop Box

I used Fold Over Elastic for all of the edges except the legs. Maybe I should put it there too, in future, but I'm not sure that would be worthwhile. I sort of guard the FOE, since it's a little hard to find. White isn't so precious as colors, but none of it is available locally.

You can see the inner structure. It's the same as the others except the zipper goes right through it. I use a powernet shield in the front bodice area. It has a strip of 3/4" elastic at the bottom, which floats free, and the powernet is basted to all corresponding edges of the front, and constructed as one. This gives it great support, just about like a sports bra, and perfect for water exercise.