WIP - Summer Nightie

I've had this extraordinarily lovely fabric for some time.  Here is my WIP.

It's a cotton voile - and rather sheer.  I was considering making a lined dress with it, but I rarely wear white, and I stay away from wearing large prints in public as they just make me look larger than I already am.  At home though, I have no qualms about sporting some loud big prints.

I need a new summer nightgown - and this seemed to fit the bill.  At first I was thinking of making Butterick 6838 - but the reviewers were against it on sewing.patternreview.com - so instead I bought Simplicity 9012 on Etsy.

I decided to use the rayon seam binding tape Hug Snug for trim, as well as some cotton lace.  I had doubts about the hug snug at first, but I think a little solid dark color in the trim makes it look nicer.  I'm making french seams for this delicate fabric.

Last night, while assembling the yoke I sewed through my left index fingertip.  The needle went through the side by my nail, and I jerked back my hand which probably caused most of the damage.  When I got home from a trip to CVS for bandages, it was still in the down position.  Thank goodness I was using microtex - hahaha - very sharp and small.  I probably won't be able to finish the nightgown for another week or so because my finger needs to heal :(

Cardigan-Jacket-Top?

I just finished sewing (well, actually I didn't hem the bottom, so it's not really finished) McCall's 6844 - one of the 2013 "Patterns of the Year" as judged by sewing.patternreview.com

I wanted to make this in a pretty royal blue sweater-knit, but alas I did not have enough fabric because the damn wool shrunk (cold water wash still means shrinking).  So, I grabbed some ends from other recent projects and cut it out.  

I cut a 36, as I heard it runs large.  I also altered the arms to be 1"wider because I heard they run small.

 


I used my Lola sweatshirt fleece for the bodice and arms.  I didn't have quite enough to cut the full bodice back, so I cut it a little shorter.  Good thing, because it is exactly at my waist with the 3/4" taken off.  The peplum is in that fleecy-spandex-neoprene wannabe fabric that I used to make my yoga pants.  I left the fleecy side out for this one, and it's very soft and fuzzy.  Also, the peplum drapes better with the smooth side down.

Blue Archer

I'm wearing my blue Grainline Archer shirt today, and thought I'd snap a couple of photos.

Someone needs to get out the sleeve board, and iron (laaaaazy days).  My top-stitching & turn of collar are really quite improved for me - I am impressed with this shirt's details.

I'm not a showgirl, but the name is Lola

I just finished Victory Patterns' Lola sweatshirt dress.

DAMN this thing fit horribly when I first sewed it, even with tissue alterations.  So bad, that I didn't even take an interim snap.

Here's the final product, I guesstimate it's a size 10 top, 8 waist & 14 bottom from their original.  I also added 2" in length.  If you've got nice legs, don't bother as I'm not sure the extra length makes it look better, but I like to hide that part of my body.  Finally, after reading other reviews of this one, I took some advice and cut the pockets to the same size as the side panels.

It still makes my butt look big, but is that so WRONG?

Fabric is organic cotton sweatshirt fleece, in teal, with black ribbing.  Here's a little detail of the triangle front, with my still-lopsided-but-improving-every-garment topstitching.

Super comfy, and a blast from the past of my teen years in the 1980s!!!

Lady Skater 2

I finished hemming my second Lady Skater this morning.  This time, altered 2" shorter in the bodice length, keeping my 1" higher neckline from before, and also skimming about 1/4" off all side-seams for a total 1" off the waistline.  It's a nice fit!

My fabric choice is a ponte de roma from Joanne Fabrics.  It was much more stable to sew up, and is warmer & has less stretch than my rayon version.  This is my first garment with ponte, except some leggings.  I now know to use a press cloth with it, because so much shine & seam show-through happens when you press this stuff.  Seam roll & ham make no difference - this stuff is not iron-friendly.

In the ponte, the rear photo shows some pooling this time.  The rayon just slinks down so this didn't happen last time.  I think part of it is because the skirt is caught on my butt due to cotton leggings underneath, but I could get a nicer fit if I take about 1/2" out for swayback I think.

A Lady Skater and my Kenmore Twins

On a whim yesterday morning I purchased and downloaded the pdf to the Lady Skater pattern.  I started assembling the pattern at 8:00, was all cut out by lunchtime, and had a finished dress by dinner.  I don't have a serger, so that's all on my standard Kenmore sewing machine from 1978, with a couple of built-in knit stitches.

Side story - For $20.00 you too can have a machine that sews like a dream.   I saw my free-arm machine on craigslist for $40 - much lower than other similar machines ($125).  I drove up to New Hampshire to take a look.  The seller had it on zig-zag and had the straight needle plate in.  There was a snapped needle in it, and a few big divets in the plate.  I asked if he had another needle, so I could sew a test.  No needle - it was his mothers old machine and he just wanted to get rid of it.  Clearly, this guy knew nothing about sewing machines, and needle plates.  I said "not if I can't see if it sews"  He immediately dropped the price to $20, put it in a box containing 3 feet, 3/4 of a buttonholer & the manual and handed it to me.  I figured, for $20 I could take a chance.

I brought it home, cleaned off the grime, oiled it up and purchased replacement parts from Sears (yes, they still have many available).  I named it "Kenny" after my dad - it is a KENmore after all.  A month later, someone else was selling a similar table-mounted model for a fund-raiser.  That one set me back $40 and came with a buttonholer, lots of pattern cams & a fancy set of feet.  I named it Lorraine (you guessed it, after my mom).  They're quite a pair this Ken & Lorraine - just like the originals.  They both have adjustable presser foot tension, the feed dogs drop, and are set up with thread guides & spool posts for twin-needle sewing.  They have 10 built-in stitches each, and Lorraine has a bazillion cams for decorative stitches, like ducks or tulips should I ever need them.

Back to the Lady Skater...

This is a great pattern, and there are fitting & alteration instructions on her blog.  I did a quick perusal for a small bust adjustment and missed it - the instructions are there to raise the waistline because the pattern is drafted for a fuller bust.  I will make that adjustment on my next version, this one sits about 3" below my natural waist.  I think part of that is the stretch of the rayon jersey, so I plan to remove 2" of height in the bodice.  I did raise the neckline, for my high bust - and it's perfect.

Interestingly, she also included a sway back alteration in the pattern, which is great.  I rarely have so much pooling that I need to do one, but this pattern hugs my spine all the way down - it's VERY flattering.  I always just assume that any swayback issues are really big butt issues, because they appear the same at first glance - pooling fabric in the small of the back.  I usually do a test in muslin, and cut a line up the center back from hip to waist, and see if the pattern lies flat when it can swing open to cover the derriere.  After this alteration, any remaining pooling is small for me.  Now I'm considering also doing a small sway-back alteration to get 0 pooling, because this pattern has NONE.

I did one other small alteration when cutting, to cut 1" lower on the center back panel, for my previously mentioned significant butt.  I think it was not necessary - the scoop lower on the back bodice takes care of most of the extra fabric needed even though the front & back skirt panels are cut from the same piece.  You can see here the uneven hem with the extra 1" in the rear

I saw another blogger's version with a little picot edge stitch on the collar band, and I copied her idea - it came out quite nice!  You can almost see it here:

The fabric I used is a rayon jersey from Joanne Fabric - with a little spandex for stretch.  I love this print, and the color palette matches the two colors I'm trying to sew basics in - royal blue, and teal green.  I broke my fabric diet to purchase it, but I have no regrets! They also carry this print in a bottom-weight woven - which was tempting.

I'll close with the obligatory twirly shot:

Tap Pants

So, I've been sewing, but not blogging.  The blue Archer and the grey Renfrew are done, and in rotation in my wardrobe.

I also made up a pair of kwik-sew yoga pants in a fleecy-lined spandex that I wear all the time.

 


Lately, I've been sewing some lingerie.  Ordinarily, I'd skip the photos - but since I'm in my shoveling uniform for today's Nor'easter - I have some to share.  I present to you the latest in yankee chic - thermal long johns plus flannel shirt with tap pants.

 These started as the "panties" from Vogue 8888 These are the second pair I made up.  The first were... indecent in the rear, despite some alterations to fit my substantial behind.  Here is the adjusted pattern for the ones I'm wearing here.  You can see, my behind & waist in no way corresponds to a standard size.  I have a 30.5" waist, and 45" hips.  These pink pants are still too large in the waist, but the bottom fits great.  I'm really enjoying fitting tap pants a lot more than fitting pants.  The alterations I make here are easily transferred to a pants pattern, but I don't have to deal with anything below the thighs for these - what a relief!

The fit in the back - I dropped them about 2"and you can see they just cover my booty.

I wore these yesterday under a skirt, over tights and they are very warm. I think I prefer them to a slip - they prevented my corduroy skirt from catching on my tights, but they didn't end up creeping up to my waist the way a slip tends to.  Practical AND pretty!!

Here's an image from Sears catalog reproduction where you can see what I'm going for.  I'll have to add a lot of height, and also a few more inches to the length to get a vintage pair.