Cathy Models the Pink Tweed Couture Suit!

Friends, is there any more luscious fabric than pink wool tweed?

Finishing Up My Haute Couture Construction Class

Goodness, where has the time gone?!

Sewing For Children

Readers, I can hardly believe it, but my little twin niece and nephew are about to turn two!

My Haute Couture Construction Class at FIT!

I'm back at Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) this fall!

Style Maker Fabrics Fall Blog Tour -- My Color Blocked Shirt REVEAL!

I was excited to be invited to participate in the Style Maker Fabrics Fall Blog Tour this year -- I love this kind of challenge and it's always fun to see what other people make.

Streaming Online Sewing Classes -- YEA or NAY?

 Readers, have you ever taken an online sewing class?

First Vintage Sewing Machine Purchase of 2018!

Do you recognize this sewing machine, readers?

Return to Color Blocking

Readers, how do you feel about color-blocked shirts?

Cathy Models the 1959 McCall's Luis Estevez Dress!

I know many of you never thought you'd see the day when my cousin Cathy Lane returned to modeling.

Adventures of My Bernina, Part 2: The Dramatic Conclusion!

My Bernina 930 is back home again, readers!

What Would YOU Make With This Lemon-print Fabric?

When life gives you lemons...

The Adventures of My Bernina, Part 1

Readers, I have owned my Eighties-era Bernina 930 for more than five years now and have never had it serviced.

MPB DAY 2018 -- Wet, Wild, and Wonderful!

Friends, I won't lie: when I saw that the forecast for yesterday's MPB Day festivities called for scattered thundershowers, I was worried.

MPB DAY PREP + Could it rain on MPB Day?

Friends, my staff has been working round the clock and I'm happy to say that on MPB Day tomorrow I am going to look my glamorous best. 

Drafting a Men's Shirt Pattern From Scratch

Readers, it is time I drafted a shirt for myself entirely from scratch.

Listen to My (Free) THREADS Podcast!

I think you already know that I currently contribute online content to Threads Magazine as their first "Digital Ambassador."

The Finished Double Gauze Shirt!

My shirt is done! (and I think I know what I'll be wearing on MPB Day)

Sewing With Double Gauze

Gauze.

It's beautiful.  It's lightweight.  But it can be a PITA to work with.

Cathy's Comeback Dress?

Big news, readers!

My identical cousin Cathy, who hasn't been seen on this blog since 2014, is planning her return, tentatively scheduled for mid-August.

INSIDE OUT? My New Reverse-print Hawaiian-style Shirt!

Friends, I'd had roughly three yards of a super-saturated Alexander Henry hibiscus print (quilting cotton) in my stash for a while now.

Ladies African Wax Print Tailored Jacket!

This week I finished a client project I'd been working on for the last couple of months: a lined, notch-collar tailored jacket made from an African wax print from AKN Fabrics and Textiles, a store just south of the Garment District that specializes in them.

Michael Models His Octopus-print Shirt

Friends, Michael's octopus-print shirt is finished!

How Do You Like My Octopus (Fabric)?

Did I mention that, in addition to my mermaid-print fabric, I also purchased an octopus-print fabric to make a shirt for Michael?

A Mermaid-Print Summer Shirt!

Last week Michael and I were on vacation in Sanibel Island, Florida, and naturally I insisted on visiting the only fabric store on the island, Three Crafty Ladies.

MPB DAY 2018 -- SAVE THE DATE!

Friends, its official!

Saturday, August 11, we'll be holding our eighth annual MPB Day celebration!

So What Else Have I Been Up To?

One (of many) of the frustrating things about social media is that there are simply too many platforms and it's extremely time-consuming to participate in more than a few.

I find Instagram (where I'm @peterlappin) to be much more spontaneous (i.e, faster and easier) than a blog, which is why I'm most active there these days.

Is There an Embroidery Machine in My Future?

Readers, embroidery machines -- I can't stop thinking (and reading) about them.

Wedding Photos From All Three Weddings!

I have some lovely wedding pics to share with you today, readers!

How Do You Feel About Polka Dots?

Friends, I generally avoid polka dots.

Meet the Misses, PART 2 (including the Cathy outfit YOU NEVER SAW!)

Oh, readers, once I started excavating the sewing atrocities, I realized that there were many, many more fashion fiascos than I had originally thought.

Meet the Misses!

Friends, when you sew as much as I do -- which is almost daily -- inevitably you're going to make some things that just don't work.

Things I Don't Get, Vol. 19 -- Cosplay

Friends, as someone whose relationship with comic books starts and ends with Millie the Model, I'm not likely to have any profound insights into the world of cosplay.