Seam Racer
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Hi! I'm Kelly. Welcome to my 'home' on the web. One of my goals here is to document making a creative sewing project from each year between 1920 up to the 1990s, with a little modern, historical, and whatever strikes my fancy in between.
Seam Racer
3d ago
It has been awhile since I posted something historical, and I’m remedying that situation right now with a sweet little camisole in the fashion of about 100 years ago. This actually happens to be my most recently finished sewing project, so you are getting the freshest blog post material possible!
With this piece, I’d like so brag that I now have my first completely hand-sewn item. After all these years sewing, this is so exciting for me!! You see, last week’s “Spring Break” time off of school for our son meant we ..read more
Seam Racer
2w ago
As it is March and St. Patrick ’s Day is coming upon us, my strong Irish heritage compels me to post the habitual green-themed project on my blog, as I do annually. I have quite the unique piece to share this year – an oddity called the “dinner dress”. This very sophisticated design with an unusual intent is a great way to further comprehend the amazing variety of options that vintage fashion can provide. My feminine yet flashy dinner dress has the best of the classic features for 1939 and completely justifies why that year is practically my favorite ..read more
Seam Racer
1M ago
We have an extra day out of this month! What should we do with a gratuitous day for 2024? Here on my blog, you get to see my handsome little man for your leap day bonus! For your viewing pleasure, this extra day is my opportunity to post a recent unselfish sewing endeavor, a new coat for my son. I told you at the end of last year (in this post) that I would be putting my skills to use for filling in the gaps of my son’s wardrobe. This time I put lots of care and attention into the fine details of a puffy parka coat and customized it to his ..read more
Seam Racer
1M ago
In these last few years, I have found myself immensely entertained by the character of Fran Fine from “The Nanny”, a 1990s era American television sitcom. Together with my relatively recent appreciation for campy 1980s and 1990s fashion, as well as my itch to discover more designers of that time, it was only a manner of “when” and not “if” I fell head-over-heels for the irreverent originality of the Italian designer Franco Moschino. Recently, I happened to acquire a cut of authentic Moschino brand fabric and knew it was time to sew my newest designer fascin ..read more
Seam Racer
2M ago
You probably have heard one of the most popular facts about a zebra of Africa – the stripes of each animal is one-off, likened to the fingerprints of people. I love how such a point is a great parallel to help humans instantly relate to these animals with awe and respect. However, being the individuals that they are in their hides, I am impressed over a different fact. An estimated 300,000 zebras are the third largest dominant herd of the Serengeti ecosystem in Africa (according to UNESCO). They may be the prey of all the other non-dominant herd ..read more
Seam Racer
2M ago
What do you do with leftover presents from Christmas which you do not plan on keeping? In lieu of donating or re-gifting, and in order to keep up the original memory connected to the gift, I have been challenging myself to re-use some of these items. This year, I found the perfect combination for acting upon this earth-conscious idea. Starting with an oversized scarf which came from my parents Christmas 2022, I reworked that item into becoming a vintage jumper for me to wear for Christmas 2023 celebrations. I see it as a gift they didn’t intend on gi ..read more
Seam Racer
3M ago
I have recently been discovering how my hometown has important ties to the history of “Tin Pan Alley”. This phrase refers to the songwriters and publishers behind popular American dance and ballad music which prevailed for the first few decades of the 20th century. I cannot think of a more definitive link to the loud and bold style of my glittering 1920s outfit than the crazy fun and lively energy of the music that grew in fame through Tin Pan Alley’s branch in St. Louis, Missouri. I have a soundtrack going on in my head whenever I wear this fun dress ..read more
Seam Racer
3M ago
I want to send you and those you love the best of holiday wishes! May you enjoy health, happiness, and the beauty of the season today. I insisted on having my little fur baby share the spotlight with me in my picture, so you can know he wishes you good treats and a cozy bed. Merry Christmas ..read more
Seam Racer
3M ago
With such a titillating title, you might think there isn’t an article of clothing to talk about in this post. Yet, there is a very special garment to share in commemoration of the fact I share a birthdate with the great water beauty Esther Williams. I can relate to her as we both have brown eyes and hair, similar round faces, are athletic, and love elegant swimwear. Thus in order to step into the “shoes” (as the phrase goes) of a famous swimmer, I instead made a deluxe, detailed, glittering bathing suit straight from the golden age of Hollywood!  ..read more
Seam Racer
3M ago
When you sew gifts for others, is your contribution more about the time you are putting in or the effort you are making? Is it the gift of originality that you see as being singular or is it the way you are catering to the tastes of the receiver? My sewing of presents for others is a mix of all of these reasons.
Yet, being a practical person myself, my favorite kind of sewing for others is probably when I can fulfill a special need…create something that cannot be found, when the want is there. For example, our son is of ..read more