Amazing Fit #2

After my success with Simplicity 2648 with my wearable muslin, I decided to have another go pretty much straight away. And no, still not an LBD, but a pretty go-to-a-wedding dress (congratulations Alanah and Luke!). I had some dark blue with white, pink and tangerine flowers stretch sateen in my stash - sounds weird but I love it - that was earmarked for a frock one day.

No significant mods beyond what I had already done with the muslin. Pattern placement was important as the flowers were distributed in bands across the fabric. I wanted to maximise the pretty flowers! I just managed to squeeze it all in. I decided to give the short sleeves with folded back cuff. I think it turned out really well - good fit, good pattern placement and very suitable for a warm January afternoon beach wedding.

Sorry, no wedding shots (of me!) yet.

Amazing fit wearable muslin

 I have been wanting an LBD for a while now (in 2014 planning  but I've not yet got to one. The main reason is that I've not found a pattern that I'm happy with. So I've started looking for one. First try is... Simplicity 2648 an Amazing Fit dress with bodice and skirt cut separately and princess seams down the front (darts at the back). I was intrigued by the idea of Amazing Fit. Different bust sizes (a,b,c) as well as straight, average and curvy shape. Given my shape and previous Simplicity pattern experience, I decided to try a B cup and straight shape. The final measurements including ease reassured me that the fit would be close. I find the "as constructed" measurements invaluable.

I picked the cap sleeves. Or as the pattern calls them "flanges" (yuk!). And a round neck. This pattern called for all of the princess seams and darts being constructed and then the side seams being basted to allow for fit adjustment.

I also decided it was wearable muslin time. So I headed down to Spotties and found some stretch sateen that I liked. I was a little nervous as the regular 4-petal pattern black-on-white needed to be treated like a check (plaid). I spent lots of time carefully laying out the pattern pieces. Making sure of both directions on as many seams as possible. The princess seams posed a challenge. But then the mathematician in me kicked in. Using the regular pattern, I could offset pattern pieces and still try for pattern matching. And I did it. Well, nearly 😉 the princess seams went well.

I also lengthened the bodice by 1/2" (usual pattern mod for me). This is where I came undone (just a little). The horizontal lines were not quite right. I contemplated throwing my hands in the air and throwing the whole thing into the furthest corner but then I took a breath and finished making it up. On my final fit I grabbed the nearest belt I could find. It's amazing how much of a slightly out-of-kilter seam a belt can hide.

I wore it to work the next day (with a belt of course) and My Miette and received not one but three complements. Job done! Please excuse the photo. The dress had been in my wardrobe for a day and was a little crushed.

Wardrobe shot. Apologies for the wrinkles

Blog catch up #2

There are a few more makes I need to update.

Knit Hoodie. After the success of the pants sewing, I decided to buy another Craftsy class. Sewing with Knits with Meg McElwee. I've sewed with knits before but I've never been confident that I'm doing the right thing so sitting down with a pro (in a virtual sense) is something that I've been wanting to do for a while. Whilst I really want to do the tshirt, I decided to start at the beginning (!) with the hoodie. I have some left over poly? knit that feels a bit like a lightweight ponte from when I made X a dinosaur constume when he was 4 (ok I'm now officially feeling old). It's been in my stash for so long now, using it for a test piece is fine. I'm sitting between a S and M in sizing so decided to cut an M.

I stitched along with Meg. Gee, she's lovely! Between her fab smile and great techniques, it was a pleasure having he in my living room :). I spent more time cutting out than I would usually but I think the result was worth it. I laid out the pattern pieces, weighed them down and marked them out with tailors chalk rather than trying to cut using the pattern (thanks for the tip Meg). No distortion. None. I am going to try this with other patterns that use heavier weight paper in the future. Knits and not-knits.

I was worried about attaching the hood with the crossed over front. I couldn't  visualise the instructions. This was the only bit that I struggled with. So I took a big breath, and stepped through (very slowly) Meg's instructions. And guess what? It worked! The finish is great. I must admit to being a bit nervous about using the twin needle to finish hems, but again, Meg's instructions were great and there were no problems. So that's another thing off my CTT list.

Knit Tshirt. Whilst I was still on a roll, I grabbed some lightweight cotton knit and trialled the tshirt from the Craftsy course "Working with Knits". This is the second of 5 pieces made in this course and builds on the first, the hoodie. The best thing I learned from making this top is how to make a flat self bound neck. And yes, it really is flat. I decided to make the 3/4 length round neck T. There are other sleeve  and neck options. This was made up really well and I'm very happy with the result.

London blazer. Yep. I'm on the bandwagon. And very happily on. I've made a London jacket designed by those fab gals at By Hand. Love! I wanted to try the cropped version first. This would fill a gap in my wardrobe. I wanted a plain fabric. Maybe with a cheeky surprise for a lining. I decided on white sateen - just a little bit of shine. And my lining is some poly/cotton poplin that has both strawberries AND polka dots on a pale aqua background. I really like this fabric.

The outfit came together well. I was a bit nervous about attaching the collar/lapel - I couldn't visualise the end result in my head. This is not common for me. But I slowed down and followed the excellent instructions and it all worked out. No problems at all.

Blog catch up #1

I've started to plan for 2015 but before I articulate my ideas I want to finish off 2014. I have a bunch of projects that I haven't blogged about and I want them on the record. Unfortunately not all are photographed, sorry. These are listed in no particular order.

Hello Sailor! The Princess was in a drama production in June. She was a sailor. We spent a wonderful time working through costume options. What fun! She decided on a pair of wide-legged pants and a stripy t-shirt, with a bandanna and sailors hat. Trousers (Simplicity 4206). A plain jane version would fit the bill here. So we found some cotton drill and I made them up. We also found a t-shirt pattern (New Look 6241) and made it up in a simple blue and white striped fabric. It's a little on the small size but it completes the costume. I used the techniques I learned (or confirmed!) during my Craftsy Knits course.

First knit. This pattern (Burda 7871) and a black cotton knit had been languishing in my stash for years (gasp!). I have spent my sewing career avoiding knits. Lots of reasons really. Didn't have the headspace, too many other things to do, it looks too hard. Now I've done it, I'm wondering what all the fuss was about. I think I was lucky though - good fabric, freshly serviced machine, good pattern. I chose the longer skirt of view A and the short sleeves of view B. It did take a bit longer than I had hoped. I had to rework a couple of seams and ripping black seams at night was hard. I used a twin needle for the hems. How good are these? I could never get such a tidy hem otherwise.

I interfaced the seam allowance along the neck, as suggested by the directions. It took a bit of time, but the effort was worth it. The extra bit of stability was helpful. There was a bit of puckering along that seam but I'm still happy with it. I struggled with setting the arms in as well. Easing knits for arms is not so easy.

Whilst the end result is a bit plain. It's a great basis for some more exciting pieces. I've just picked up a pair of cute cobalt blue earrings to match leggings. The three together will be great!

Colette Jarmies. More stashbusting! Patterned and plain polyester satin that has been earmarked for PJs since before X was born. Nothing like some re-found fabric to get the creative juices flowing. I can't believe I let this move to the back of the cupboard. I love it! Navy, antique gold and burgundy. Roses and paisley.

I started with the patterned satin to make a Sorbetto top. I bound the neck and arms with navy satin bias (not me-made). After my first Sorbetto experience, I decided to move the dart points up slightly. I just pivoted the point. Next was the bottoms. I was considering boxers. I like the idea of comfy boxers. But are they cute enough? Hmmmm... THEN I saw Colette's Madeleine bloomers. That's more like it! So plain navy poly satin with gold ribbons.The grand unveiling to the family got a resounding CUTE! And they are!

Trousers. This year, I made my first pair of pants since X was born. Nothing like having a baby to mess around with body measurements (and image... ASIDE have you read this great article by Karen (did you make that) which she blogged online at The Guardian? Seriously resonated with me). I knew I had to take the plunge and make my own pants again. I am long waisted/crotched with almost no hips so finding a well fitted pair of RTW pants is impossible. I have done a couple of Craftsy classes already and Sandra's class on fitting pants came along at just the right time. She showcases her Vogue 2948 pants pattern.

Sandra's pattern has princess seams. I like princess seams on most things and these pants are no exception. I sat though her class and re-watched plenty of it. I found Sandra's conversational eclectic style really enjoyable. It was like she was in my living room with me, chatting about fitting issues. I also learned that I have a slightly swayed back.

I spent ages drafting and redrafting pattern pieces. I had promised myself that I wouldn't work on anything else until I had got this pair of pants finished. Working full time is not conducive to completing the calculations, recalculations and reflections that this project required. Some nights nothing got done. I would rather take more time than stuff something up. Plus I quite liked the slower pace. So this project was measured in weeks.

I made the "mistake" of using stretch cotton sateen which is great to sew but not a recommended fabric for this pattern. Oh well, I just took in an extra 1/2" on both side seams to ensure a good fit. The end result was slightly skewed centre seams but they are camouflaged in the fabric. These pants fit me well. Happy!

Fashion Icons

So I went to the Fashion Icons exhibition at the Art Gallery of South Australia. This exhibition has been brought over from Musee des Arts Decoratifs, Paris. 90 pieces showcasing fashion from the 1940s to the 1990s. What can I say, other than fan-bloody-tastic. It felt like a dream walking through clothing designed by some of the most famous people in the world: Chanel, Dior, Yves Saint Laurent. I did find myself struggling to even breathe. As I progressed through, things improved so I could really focus on design and construction elements. Sigh! There was so much to see. At times I thought my brain would burst! How to keep it all in there. Whilst not every piece got me excited, I could appreciate the work put into it all. The fabrics (or plastic or metal or glass!) were phenomenal.

I did want to take a few pieces home with me. Ok, I would have taken any of it home with me, but there were some extra-special pieces. The beading on the jacket of the evening suit by Yves Saint Laurent (black on pale blue velvet) was divine. The jacket was quite fitted and was paired with a short full black skirt - so typical of the 1980s. It took me back 😊.

The ball gowns were amazing. For me, this is the quintessential component of French fashion. The first gown in the exhibition was a 1948 Dior ball gown with huge amounts of tuille in the skirt (I think someone said 90 metres!!!). Just amazing. The piece is exhibited on a mannekin but with a wonderful photo showing how it could have been worn at the time. Just beautiful!

But my take home piece was the Chanel gown from 1996 right at the end of the exhibition. And typically for me, it was the most expensive piece of the exhibition 😉. But of course that wasn't why I loved it. Firstly the fabric - gold (literally) beading and threads stitched onto black velvet in a pattern that mimics panelling in Chanel's own apartment in Paris. Then the sillouette - fitted bodice and a straight skirt over the hips and to the knees and then flared. And finally, construction. One of the best parts of the exhibition is that you can see 360 degrees around almost every piece. I spent a good deal of time, especially this piece, with my neck craning to see details of the back or side or hem. The beading details were breathtaking.

I picked up a copy of the catalogue so I can flick through it for years to come. A glance at the photo will bring back memories and the written content includes a wealth of technical details as well as interesting stories about the designer, the collection or fashions of the time.

The exhibition is on for another two months. I plan to go again. I wonder what elements I can incorporate into my own sewing.

Vogue 1071 #3

I blogged about cutting this shirt out a while ago.  And I sewed it up a while ago too. Plenty of other things to do other than blog :)

One thing I didn't blog about was my pattern placement, or lack thereof. I was limited due to the fabric meterage and, to be honest, didn't really think about it too much. But now I've made it up, I've realised that I could have done better. Check it out.

This is view B of Vogue 1071. I cut out a straight size 12, as per my previous versions of view A. I really enjoyed making it up. The fabric is just as fabulous to make up as cut out. I used many of the techniques developed over my sassy librarian blouses, including understitching the facing and easing the sleeves. I also got to use some of my favourite buttons ever, bought of course from The Button Bar.

I struggled a little with the rear neck edging. I followed the instructions but the final look looked wrong - too wide, which meant that it wouldn't sit flat. So I rolled it over again and it looks much better. There is a little distortion and gathering at the neckline but it's not too obvious. I think I've been pretty successful. Some of my topstitching could have been better but I received compliments the very first time I wore it. One of colleagues asked me where I had bought it and didn't believe that I'd made it :)

Socks!

I try to knit a pair of socks every year. Our mild climate doesn't require any more than that. This year I thought I'd give a crocheted pair a go. I had found some sock weight nylon-wool blend at my local Spotty's called Regia's. I searched for their patterns and found knit and crochet ones. I picked a toe up. My last pair were toe up and I liked working them up. This pattern was pretty straightforward - rounds of single crochet with the heel inserted. I made one up, fitting as I went and then I started the second. And... meh. I wasn't excited. I think it's a mixture of the variegated yarn being lost in the crochet and the lack of stretchiness.

But I still had the "sock bug". I still wanted a pair of socks. So I pulled out my dpns and searched Ravelry for a suitable pattern. I took a moment to come up with a few "wants" - not too complex so I can relax, not too complex so the self striping stands out (hmmmmmm... is there a theme developing), toe up knitting (I wanted to practice this cast on again), a loose top bind off. And the winner is ... Lacery by Michelle Hunter.

I started knitting whilst travelling for work and spent a couple of quiet nights getting started. This was the perfect project for travelling. And once I got started (and travelled some more) I just kept going. Ravelry notes here.