100 Acts of Sewing - 2017

Back when twitter was fun and not overrun by literal nazis, I used to spend a fair amount of time talking to other moms, most of whom were homeschooling their kids. I knew several of them did quilting and it was around 2017 or so I learned about 100 Acts of Sewing.

I had played around with sewing clothes in 2010 when I took a sewing class, but I'd never done much more than trying to make pajamas and the odd halloween costume. When I discovered 100 Acts of Sewing patterns, a whole new world opened up. The patterns were pretty simple and approachable for beginners, plus the dresses were comfortable and versatile.

This was the very first thing I made. It was more like shirt length and I remember making my own bias tape for this project. I had no clue what I was doing!

Helper cat there...

I made an extra small one out of a thrifted bedsheet for my kid.

We had matching ones out of this thrifted duvet cover. I learned that this fabric can be a bit staticky and tend not to sew with it if I can help it. I think it's microfiber and over the years I know it by feel, even if the tag is gone.

I made this one from an old sheet. I also made a pair of pants from that sheet and had someone stop me in the Trader Joe's parking lot to ask me where I got them.

The chicken dress! I made all of these in 2017 and I still wear the chicken dress.

Narwhals were a thing back then. Anyone remember that song about narwhals swimming in the ocean, causing a commotion? I ordered enough of the blue narwhal fabric from fabric.com for me and the youngest to have matching dresses, but they didn't have enough and so I had a light purple dress. Still fun though!

I must have made 15 dresses that summer, between ones for me and the youngest. I loved that I could choose my own fabrics, modify the length, and they were so comfy! I'd sometimes wear them on their own, but usually I wore them with tights.

Since then I have bought all of the 100 Acts of Sewing Patterns and tried almost all of them. Haven't worked up the courage for a couple, but I'm getting there! I haven't made a dress no. 1 in a while and I'm actually working on one now. I'm making it patchwork and piecing everything together is taking me a while, but I can't wait to share!