It is a deliriously scorching day in San Francisco. In honor of our wee heat wave, here is an Instructable by the talented Carly or Antibromide on how to make a felt ice cream sundae plushie, complete with tuile cookies. Yum!

Here are several very basic hand stitches, the running stitch, basting stitch, and the gathering stitch, all illustrated and written up by the wondrously talented Gail, at Art, Beauty and Well-Ordered Chaos. Hand-sewing is perfect for making smaller items such as doll clothing or clip-on bow-ties, or for mending tears or hem mishaps. Hand-sewing is also invaluable for finishing more finely constructed or tailored garments; nothing can beat the art of a hand-sewn hem!

It is official; we are head-over-heels in love with Gail Art, at Art, Beauty and Well-Ordered Chaos. Here she gives step-by-step instructions with photos on how to make leather 1750′s fly-front (or French Fly) hand-sewn Braintan breeches. Being a bit button-crazy, I am particularly enamored with the carefully constructed button-fly and the buttons running down each leg. So you can plan ahead….Britex Fabrics carries leather hides on the 4th floor that are suitable for this amazing project.

Gail Art, clothier and blogger at Art, Beauty and Well-Ordered Chaos has made wonderfully clear tutorial on how to make hand-sewn buttonholes. Sarai comes through with reproductions of vintage sewing book buttonhole directions; three styles are depicted including plain, with a bar, and with a corded edge. We love how delicate, yet elegantly sturdy hand-sewn buttonholes look. Hand-sewing is an art that deserves to be rediscovered for everyday use. Remember, practice and silky buttonhole twist thread makes all the difference in the final quality of your work.

Here is another back to school project! Petchy at RandomnessByPetchy made up this tutorial for making elastic waist children’s pants. She calls them 10-Minute Trousers, and they truly are easy-peasy. They would be super stupendously scholastic made up in this Japanese alphabet cotton. This fabric is 43” wide, $14.99 a yard, and found on Britex Fabric’s 2nd floor.

Here are two tutorials for how to make a hoodie from a tee-shirt and some fabric, this one from Mezzi at Craftster, and the other one from Katia from Hollywood Renegade via Threadbanger! This is ideal for jazzing up your autumn or back-to-school wardrobe. All you need is a tee-shirt, some knit fabric for the hood and pockets, and a zipper. Britex has a plethora of thermal, jersey, tee-shirt, terry, and velour knits on the 2nd floor that would be fashionably snuggly for this project, and loads of unique zippers and zipper pulls on the 3rd floor to further personalize your new hoodie. This would be terrific for any age person….from nervous kindergartners, to surly youth, to adventurous grannies.

Britex Fabrics brocade and ecclesiastical ribbons are ideal to ornament Renaissance garments. You could duplicate Cecilia Gallerani’s gown and cloak as shown in this portrait. Her cloak is called a sbernia and is made of trimmed silk. Her hair is gathered together inside a sheer silky bonnet with a border appearing under a ribbon that is level with her eyebrows. Her gown has a quadrangular neckline with golden trim. Britex can assist with all but the silky, sweet stout that Cecilia cradles in her arms.

Here are ten tips on working with interfacing from Kathleen Fasanella at Fashion Incubator. It is often the behind-the-scenes construction that makes all the difference in how a garment fits, and even the reader comments following this post on interfacing contain valuable information.

Everything looks better with a bit of ball fringe! This swingin’ vintage apron from the gal at Tipnut takes only 2/3 yard of fabric and 1 1/8 yard of pom-pom fringe. Make an apron to wear at your next chocolate Guinness cupcake baking extravaganza and samba while listening to Harry Bellefonte sing Matilda!

Basting is crucial for constructing well-fitted garments. Chapter 8 from the book “Paris Frocks at Home” (1930), covers basic basting techniques, including armhole basting, basting tucks or pleats, and basting points and curves to ensure sharp points and curvilinear curves. (Thanks to VintageSewing.info for providing us with this resource!)