Easy Experimental Cascade Ruffle Skirt

By |2024-03-06T06:35:36-05:00March 6th, 2024|Uncategorized|

Have you ever seen a picture of a garment and you absolutely had to have it? When you can sew clothing this can be a fun problem… but you may want to make everything you see! I saw an Instagram posts that showed this skirt with these simple steps. That was it, I was inspired […]

Year of Better Canceled!

By |2020-08-03T07:50:40-04:00August 3rd, 2020|1950s Style Fashion, Uncategorized|

Every year I have a little mantra for myself to become a better person. 2017, “Tracy the world doesn’t revolve around you, keep your mouth shut and move on.” This was to help me not personalize every little thing.

2018 was the ‘Year of Less,” use it or let go. This was after we closed Sew […]

Shhh, Don’t Tell…

By |2020-02-10T06:53:54-05:00February 10th, 2020|1960s Style Fashion, Table Cloth Dresses|

Would you believe this blog post originally came out in 2014 with only these three terrible sentences?

This dress was made with a fabric remnant from my days of working at Hancock Fabric and an old table runner my mother gave to me. My favorite part of the dress was the butterfly collar. The total cost of […]

Flourishing Creativity

By |2019-12-16T06:05:11-05:00December 16th, 2019|Art made by Tracy McElfresh, Costumes|

Making something with no plan truly lets your creativity flourish naturally through play. We can spend countless hours researching the next project and planning it out perfectly although many times the best creations are made on a whim. I hope you enjoy my very simple visibly stitched wrap bolero and how my creative process works.

I […]

No Readers Glasses Needed

By |2019-09-23T06:02:14-04:00September 23rd, 2019|Uncategorized|

Large Print Motifs and Designs

According to my 1970s Vogue sewing book large prints and large print motifs are strictly for tablecloths. I am here today to share with you that they are not! I’m writing about how I used the panel print to make a jacket and sharing other large print garments I have made.

A […]

The Mindful Wardrobe

By |2019-06-24T06:37:22-04:00June 24th, 2019|1950s Style Fashion, Makes of 2008, Table Cloth Dresses, Uncategorized|

We are all seeing a movement called “Mindful Clothing.” The trend is popping up everywhere again. It’s a few things, fixing and mending what you own, buying handmade clothing, buying vintage, up-cycling and staying away from fast fashion. In the 1940s there was the “Make do and Mend” movement, a time heavily influenced by WWII […]

Swimsuit Replica

By |2019-05-27T09:10:35-04:00May 27th, 2019|1960s Style Fashion, refashion, Swimwear, Today's Fashion, Tracy Designs Dresses|

I’m on a mission to use up all of my fabric stash this year! So far I have been successful. I had quite a bit of fabric left over from last years striped swimsuit project that needed to be used, but who needs two striped suits?

Easy Hippie Dress

By |2019-04-22T07:29:13-04:00April 22nd, 2019|Art made by Tracy McElfresh, Tracy Designs Dresses, Uncategorized|

What makes a garment easy to sew? No closures, no lining and very little advanced techniques being used. The only fancy thing here was the welted pocket. You may leave that out or do a patch pocket.

You may remember my other quilt top jelly roll dress from last fall. Some of […]

Fat Quarter Bundle Zero Waste Skirt

By |2019-03-25T06:25:07-04:00March 25th, 2019|1920s Style Fashion, Sewing Tips and Tricks, Today's Fashion, Tracy Designs Dresses|

Everyone has been asking how I made this skirt and so I would like to share the entire experience. It was super bowl Sunday and I needed something fun to do. On my way out of one of my favorite sewing shops, Sew to Speak, I spotted a bundle of soft […]

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