Workout Tank Tutorial + Pure Barre Love

I don't think I've talked about it on here much or at all, but over the last few years (post-college) I have been working hard to cultivate a lot of healthy habits. This ranges from sleep quality + quantity to nutrition to water intake, but my favorite is absolutely my newfound love of fitness. 

Let me take a few steps back: a few years ago, I knew nothing about working out. I would dabble in jogging and yoga or pilates videos, but nothing stuck because I never enjoyed any of it, and I could never get myself to work through that initial soreness that comes from working out the first time. And then I graduated, and got an office job, and realized I had to find a way to move intentionally, because the majority of my day was spent sitting on a computer. So a few months into my job, I joined a gym through work and went with a friend to a Zumba class. I loved it. We went back, often, and went to all sorts of other classes: the kind where you do burpees, jump up and down from steps, and try not to throw up. And - man, I didn't love the burpees, but I had realized that group fitness was 100% my thing.

This led me to sign up for a Pure Barre class with another friend, in March of last year. At that point, I had lost weight, gained muscle, and felt pretty good about my fitness capabilities. I figured I'd be able to handle a barre class, no sweat. 

I was so wrong. There was a LOT of sweat. It was really, really hard. My muscles were shaking like Jell-o Jigglers, and I was so confused about what to do for many parts of class, and it was really painful in a really great way. I immediately signed up for a month package, mostly because I just wanted to get better at this crazy class. Additionally, everyone at the studio was kind, friendly, and it was the best workout atmosphere I had ever experienced. I couldn't get enough!

4 months of Pure Barre, comparison photos.

And now, almost a year and a half later, I am more obsessed than ever. I go every day. At 6 A.M. I never thought I would be that kind of person. But I am so much healthier, happier, and energetic for it. It makes me a nicer person. I've made amazing friends there, and I look forward all day long to the class the next morning. And to be perfectly straight forward, the results help keep me going. The changes in my muscles are so fun to watch, and I love knowing I'm strong enough to do most anything I need to. Almost 300 classes in and no signs of stopping!

January 2017 > June 2017, Pure Barre nearly every day. 

December 2014 > May 2017

 So now that I have gushed about barre long enough to totally lose y'all, let's get to the meat and potatoes of this post. I do a lot of workout laundry, and I have even been wearing things out. I want to endeavor to make more of my workout wardrobe, because that stuff is expensive. I also want to share more tutorials with you all, so this seemed like a perfect opportunity to dive in.

I made this out of an old t-shirt that was a little too stretched out and pilled for daily wear, but would be completely acceptable for working out in. This took me, even with filming, less than an hour to put together. It has been years since I have done a t-shirt reconstruction, but I think I might have to get back into it. The results are so gratifying, and it is so quick to do! Plus - it's FREE.

So check out the video, and let me know if you make one! Also feel free to let me know if there is anything you'd like to see me make a tutorial for. Now that I'm not planning a wedding, I have a lot more time to rediscover all my other hobbies!

Follow along:

                  

Four Leaf Clover Tee Reconstruction

So many reconstructions! I'm not really sure where this shirt came from, but my mom handed it to me & asked if I'd be able to use it. I couldn't turn it down! It had this great huge clover in the back, but the front had some silly, girly text that I had to work around. This is what I came up with:





I have tried before to do this kind of bust and the fit was always off. But finally, I've figured it out! It has slightly puffy sleeves, a side pocket, and piping detail which is actually more like trim than piping.





I'm so excited about this. I have a couple Threadless tees I want to reconstruct in this style, so maybe I'll get to those before I leave home!

"Midnight Showing" Reconstruction

More Threadless love! This is an incredibly awesome shirt printed with glow-in-the-dark ink so it has a secret design on top of the run-down movie theater. I reconstructed it into a style much like the "My Crony" shirt that I did a while back, but I gave this one puffed sleeves. I made it this afternoon, and my friend Hannah photographed it this afternoon. (She's brilliant & I'm planning to bribe her with clothing to take photos for me this summer.)









The above is what the design looks like in the dark. Amazing, isn't it? I've never been to a drive in movie, but they seem so classic and terribly romantic. I'm so ridiculously excited about these pictures. They're exactly what I wanted. Hannah just totally got it! The shirt is listed HERE, if you're interested.

Okay, I'm off to sew again. I'll post about NYE (& what I was wearing) soon. How's 2010 going for you so far?

"Wolken" Reconstruction

My pile of Threadless shirts never exactly shrinks. It seems like every time I start working away at the ones I have, Threadless holds a sale, and the deals are too good to pass up. Like right now. This is a shirt I purchased back in March. Actually, I got two--one for me, one to sell. I haven't reconstructed mine yet (because that's just how those things go), but here's what I did with the other one:







It's the most adorable design, and I couldn't possibly resist that little fox. I paired it with natural colored bamboo, giving it a v-neck, side pocket, 3/4 length sleeves, and a contrast back.

(By the way, the lake looks very, very different now, a short month after these photos were taken!)

xo!

From Oops to Awesome

I am finally working my way through my huge stack of Threadless shirts (in early anticipation of their $5 Holiday Sale in December. ^_^), and I was excited to have finally figured out what to do with their adorable "My Crony" design. I was getting to the end of it and everything was working perfectly when I tried it on to check the fit. I looked in the mirror, and realized that I had made an awful, hilarious, and glaring mistake. See:



Obviously, having a huge circle printed on the stomach is not a selling point. I found my problem hilarious because the design would've worked with most other shirts, but I just had to choose the one that would fail.

I asked my online buddies for help & suggestions, and then, while lying in bed unable to sleep, it came to me. I'd put in a side pocket, shift the print over, and although there'd be a seam in front, it would have an obvious purpose.

It worked out much better than the original design would have, I thought. It adds a lot more interest, and the print looks fabulous when it's all shifted.





Forgive the less-than-stellar photos! I'll be taking nice pictures and listing this within the next few days.

(Edit: New pictures!)





For sale here: www.mateycouture.etsy.com :)

Awesome! Don't you think?

New Recon!

Well, old recon, but I'm finally getting around to posting it. This is for the TBGuild's "White" themed treasury. I used a Threadless "Let's Go Parasoling!" tee which I had on my shelf since December, and mint green trim that I searched for long and hard because I wanted the perfect color to match the umbrellas on the shirt. It's got a deep scoop in back & cute little ties. There are tabs at each side with little white buttons. It's super cute and chic. <3




When I saw that the lake was steaming yesterday morning, I knew I had to go photograph some clothes. But, you know, it was steaming because it was about 25 degrees out. Brrr. It was worth it!

Psst, it's available here: www.mateycouture.etsy.com

Reconstructions!

First up, the most recent! My mom had this vintage wool/poly skirt in her closet, and it then sat in my "to cut up" pile for a couple years. I finally took it out again about a week ago, trying to figure out what to do. Then it hit me--high waisted-skirts are very in, and I have several that I wore all summer, but I don't have any for fall! So I shortened it (because the length it hit me at was dowdy) and handstitched the hem so it would have a polished finish. Paired with a black lace top my mom & I made 4 years ago, I think it looks trés Blair Waldorf. All I need is a headband!




This was a t-shirt recon that I did last year, and actually don't wear very often anymore, but it's still pretty neat. It was inspired by a shirt I saw on Threadbanger. (I couldn't find the post, sorry!) I gave it an off-the-shoulder neckline, trimmed in red polka-dotted fabric, darts in front, ruching on the sleeves, and a button & loop in back to make it nice and fitted. I like the fact that you can't quite tell at first that the darts messed with the Coca-Cola logo. It's sneaky. :)





I currently have a huge pile of Threadless tees that need to be reconned. Hm, maybe a good project for the afternoon?

Threadless "Foxy" Reconstruction

I had a lot of fun with this shirt. I really like the print, and although orange isn't the easiest color to work with, there was enough black in the print itself that I could add black fabric and not overwhelm it.

Before:

After:

Much better! I love the triangle insert... and there's a pocket there, too! It was cool to play around, seeing how I could incorporate the black fabric into it more subtly.

Right now it is raining, but they say tomorrow will be in the 70's here, so if it is nice I'll dress up in my new sundresses and take some photos for you. :)

Threadless "Liberty" Reconstruction

Oh, Threadless. How I love thee. I've been absolutely drooling over this shirt for ages, and a couple months ago (time flies!) they had a 5$ tee sale... and I had to get it! By the time I was ready to order, they had only 3XL. I ordered two--one for me!--and waited impatiently for their arrival.

These are so amazing. First, the name "Liberty" is fantastic--we all know I go for that stuff. :) The color is unusual for a Threadless shirt, and I really like it! And, of course, the print. I lovelovelove it. The bird glows in the dark, too! How awesome is that?

Anyway, I resized one for me, because I wanted just a regular tee, and then made the second one into this. It has a ruched bust, a super long cut, and capped sleeve-style straps.




So. It's spring here! I'm suddenly going to become overwhelmingly busy for the next few months (I have three jobs this summer!), so if I'm not around much... that will be why! I'm going to try my very hardest to at least not neglect my shop, and when I update that I'll try to post here as well. Bear with me, and know I'll be back to posting regularly this fall!

Sometime destroying is more fun than creating.

Razorblade + tee = awesome

Inspired by Joodito.

Sorry for these less-than-wordy posts. I'll be back up to my usual chatty standards in no time, I'm sure.

A thing or two and a link or two!

Of course. I run out of fabric (no, seriously!) right as the rush to get things made for Christmas starts in.

Go figure.

I had my things at a Christmas Sale last weekend, and sold a few pieces to lovely people, and met more lovely people! Crafty folks are really the best sort.

Note to self: Christmas presents and things for the shop are more important than things for your own closet. Okay?

Ah, but the lovely thing of being able to sew is that you get to keep all your prototypes for yourself. Thus, I am mastering new techniques just as an excuse to keep things all for myself. Oh, yeah, and to learn the techniques. This last month, I've learned how to make a cowl neck, split cowl neck, and just today I did a yoke. It looks like a bib. Next time I'll go more square and less...bib shaped. But it's all part of the learning process, right?

So, things I have made:

Threadless T-shirt Recon! Long sleeves, puffed sleeves, cowl neck. Penguins rock!

I generate a lot of scraps. Sometimes I just throw these away, but other times they are definitely large enough to keep, because if I throw them away I get this huge guilty feeling--I am supposed to be recycling fabric, and besides, it costs money! Why should I throw away perfectly good fabric?? To help ease the guilt monkeys, I made this tank top!

That's right, you probably recognize most (all?) of those fabrics. It's pieced together with electric blue thread!


Last minute I used leftover fabric from the hoodie in the post below this to make a short sleeved pullover hoodie. It features puffed sleeves, small side pockets, and three hand appliqued hearts!

It's all for sale here: http://www.mateycouture.etsy.com

I have so many more pictures and projects I have been working on, but it's late so I'll save it for another day. I will, however, leave you with a couple links.

Where is a seamstress without her inspiration? Or, say, a person she obsesses over because they're just that good? Or really really pretty clothes she wants to buy? NOWHERE. That's why I have a bunch of crafting sites, etsy sellers, and....Gibbous. May I present to you folks, the ultimate in avant garde & alternative fashions? Based out of San Fransisco, CA, Gibbous fashions is a line of clothing put together using incredibly detailed and beautiful quilting techniques. They have bits of everything in their clothing--I've seen keys, chains, and flowers. Please. Check it out. Your life, as mine was, will be changed.

Also, it took me three tries but I finally got a treasury on Etsy! It's filled with beautiful pieces of artful goodness, all gold themed. Please check out these awesome artists and their amazing work! http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=35993

I leave you with that: the amazing art of people much more talented than I! But, if you do want to buy something from me, there's FREE SHIPPING ANYWHERE on anything red in my shop... hurry, it ends Monday at 11:59 pm!!

More Hoodie Goodness! (And a Happy Thanksgiving to you!)

Alrighty, folks, it's been a little longer in coming this time. But I come bearing photos! I have been very busy lately, and definitely sewing up a little storm. Unfortunately, being a ripe 1:00 in the morning right now, I'm not sure how much I can post and how much I will have to save for later. But here goes, anyway! I'm posting right here the INCREDIBLE hoodie I recieved from my swap partner! She did such an awesome job, and, actually, I'm wearing it right now. It's soft and cozy inside, and the sparrows are so, so beautiful. She has stencilling skillz, man.

Oops, dorky expression alert. But trust me, nobody will notice the look on my face because this hoodie really takes all the attention away from me.

I LOVE HOODIES. Need I really say more?

I had my first Etsy buying experience (something I really should have done long ago: I'm a seller, after all, and should understand what the transaction is like from the buyer's side of things!) recently. I have been searching for anchor-printed knit for a really long time, and finally it occured to me to search usin the Supplies section on Etsy. Voila: Anchor/Heart printed French terry fabric! I purchased two yards of it promptly, recieved it three days later, and two days after that I had this hoodie.

When making this, I had a small dilemma. I wanted to make it a zip-up, but I had two choices in my zipper collection for seperating navy zippers: 18" flat metal, or 26" chunky plastic. I decided to work around the challenges of a shorter zipper and go for the 18 incher. I am super pleased with the result: a scoop-necked hoodie! The hood IS on there, trust me, I just didn't post pictures with it up. It has nautical tabs on the side with anchor buttons, contrasting hood lining and trimming, and a little pocket on the side. It's comfy, super long, and definitely one of a kind.

It's, um, also for sale here: www.mateycouture.etsy.com. Don't forget about the free shipping all weekend, starting midnight tomorrow and ending at 11:59 p.m. Monday.

I'll be definitely posting more pictures soon! I also recieved my order from Threadless T-shirts today (www.threadless.com) --they're having this huge holiday sale with 5, 10, and 15 dollar t-shirts. Act fast, because they sell quickly. Lucky for me, sizing didn't matter so much since I'll just be cutting them up anyway, but I got four awesome shirts with beautiful artwork on them and will be reconstructing, listing, and posting them all soon! In the meantime, go check out the website.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!!