I’m sewing under a strict deadline and have really been busting my butt to get this shirt done. I told myself I wanted to finish my fall capsule by October 1 and I still have another Archer to do after this one. Following the sew-along has been super helpful, and there is just a smaaaallllll chance I may finish in time. One more week after this!

Date: Monday, September 18

Time sewing: 15 minutes

What I did: Since I haven’t been able to get out and buy the dang thread yet, I leisurely tucked in my serging tails while watching Outlander.

Date: Tuesday, September 19

Time sewing: 20 minutes; 45 minutes

What I did: I plan to head out later today to get thread, but since there is not too much I can do, I spent the morning going through the Archer Button Up sew-along posts. There were a couple of new things for me, but mostly it was a good refresher. I generally hate long sleeved blouses or button ups, so I have shockingly never made a cuff or sleeve placket. The step-by-step visual instructions were super helpful and I feel pretty confident I won’t mess them up. But then, in the afternoon, I couldn’t resist the siren call of my sewing table, so I took that new thread, wound it into bobbins (yes, two.) and started sewing. I decided I would try out the sew-along and got the button bands completed.

Date: Wednesday, September 20

Time sewing: 1 hour

What I did: I spent a looooong time prepping and placing my pockets. I cut the pockets on the bias, so I wanted to make sure that I didn’t have huge Xs over my books. I also ran into the problem of the pockets stretching because they are cut on the bias. This made for a lot of pinning and steaming. I had a feeling I should maybe interface them, but, out of laziness, decided not to. I also go the yoke on today and am happy to report that I managed the burrito roll method just fine. I also cut the yoke on the bias, so had the same stretchy issues. I will definitely interface anything I cut on the bias (and don’t specifically want to stretch) in the future. I’m feeling pretty good because I blew through three days of sew-along in one.

Date: Thursday, September 21

Time sewing: 1 hour 5 minutes; 20 minutes; 10 minutes; 10 minutes

What I did: Today, I worked on the sleeve plackets and setting the sleeves. The plackets were fiddly, but simple, though I didn’t quite finish before the baby woke up so I sewed while she watched. I continued on to set the sleeves and sew the side seams. The sew-along suggested top-stitching the side seam to give the appearance of a flat-felled seam, but I decided against it. I dislike finishes that can’t be taken out in the event the fit needs to be changed. And it’s a good thing, too, as I sewed in the sleeves on the wrong sides, putting the placket at the front. Grrr. I spent 20 minutes in the afternoon un-picking those seams. Determined to not lose my steam, I also re-did as much as I could without taking out the iron.

Date: Friday, September 22

Time sewing: 1 hour, 30 minutes

What I did: I pressed my sleeves, sewed the side seams and did the collar. I must say, the sew-along was super helpful and took any stress out of putting it together. I am still on track to finish before my deadline!

Date: Saturday, September 23

Time sewing: 1 hour; 15 minutes

What I did: I got those cuffs done! I’m quite please with how they look and am surprised at how easy they were.

Date: Sunday, September 24

Time sewing: 5 minutes; 30 minutes; 40 minutes

What I did: I took a few minutes in the morning to figure out where I’d place my button holes, then I took a half hour two sew and cut them all. This took way less time than I thought – I always procrastinate button holes for some reason. In the evening, I leisurely sewed on the buttons and voila! Finished!

Total time sewing this week: 8 hours 5 minutes (um, holy cow!)

What I learned:

• Sew-alongs are great! I’ve never done one before (and I feel super behind the times as this one was actually done in 2013) and absolutely plan on doing this again. The visual instructions make everything sooooooo easy. I would absolutely commit to doing one in real time.
• Interface anything you cut on the bias but don’t want to stretch. I knew there would be give, but it ended up being so much that it really slowed me down. Just going ahead and stabilizing would have saved me time.
• I’m amazed at how much I sewed this week, but a little nervous about keeping it up next week…