A very satisfying sew

Have you ever spent hours figuring out how to get the best out of a small piece of fabric, moving the pattern pieces slightly and then staring at the results for ages? Well, this is how this top was for me. I couldn't resist the pattern on the fabric when those lovely ladies in the John Lewis fabric department in Edinburgh opened the plastic wrapping of the £5 remnant just so I could feel the fabric and see what the heck that pattern was! I remembered to take a photo of the fabric before any cutting out-

It's a lovely, fine, satin-y fabric with lots of lovely drape to it but look at that pattern! The challenge is to get the pattern placement right.

Ah, yes, and it's a remnant. I haven't told you that there was just a metre of it, 150cm wide mind you so that was great.

The fabric is lying square and flat in the photo, there are no straight lines in this either. So now you realise the challenge! I used a really simple pattern for a cap sleeved top, View A Burda 7079.

I found it difficult getting the pattern placement right and the front and back are great but I did have to sacrifice the pattern not matching by about 1-1.5" but hey ho, you win some, you lose some! I'm still really pleased with how the top turned out and I've already worn it and washed it.

Here are photos of the front and back views not that there's much difference between them, really but at least you can see the pattern placement!

Just in case you're wondering, the photo on the left is the front view.

What I have decided to do in the future is to cut the back on the fold as it's easy to get in and out of the top without the bother of having a back opening. I hate sewing button sloops and don't make a good job of them. This is no exception! I just love this top and I can see me wearing it lots. Anyone got a good deal recently or been really pleased with how something has turned out? On another subject, I finished my first Vintage Pattern Pledge yesterday so keep in touch, I'll be blogging about that really soon!

Kind of a strange pattern...nothing new there!

This is another of my half-price-in-the-sale purchases from John Lewis. It's a lovely viscose/rayon fabric so has a lot of drape to it. It looks a bit olive in this photo, it's darker and more 'green' in real life if you know what I mean.

I bought a couple of new patterns for tops the other week just to make the selection a bit bigger so I decided to have a go at a raglan sleeved pull on top, New Look 6225. By the way, New Look patterns are half price at the moment, for a limited time only, but good to know!

There are no fastenings but some bust darts give some shaping to the body. I made View B, added 2" to the body length and made the sleeves longer. It was a fairly simple stitch together and didn't take too much time. Then I tried it on before sewing the side seams and the bias binding around the neckline. What I didn't do (or forgot to do?), was stay stitch the neck edges so, of course when I tried it on I got the shock of my life as the neckline rested on the edge of my shoulders. Yikes! So, when I started to attach the bias binding to the neck, hey ho, the binding wasn't long enough. It took a while but eventually I got it all to fit and sewed it on. It's fine now but what a schoolboy error! Next time, remember the stay-stitching...

There's not much more to add about this top except that I definitely will make it again as it's a good addition to my wardrobe and I love raglan sleeves! Just a bit too late for Jungle January, but maybe next year...

A wee touch of tartan

Yes, it's a very practical sew! A black skirt. Not much more to say or to get excited about but this one has a hidden secret because...on the outside it's a mild, mannered skirt but on the inside it's hiding red lining and tartan.

The black fabric is a 97% wool and 3% lycra that I saw in Edinburgh Fabrics a few weeks ago. I think it was about £25 a metre but it's just a lovely of fabric to work with and fits my aim to use better quality fabrics. I pre-washed the fabric but not the lining.

You can see a sliver of the red lining at the back split. I know you're supposed to sew the corner of the lining loosely to the skirt itself but I quite like the little bit of red showing.

Where's the we bit of tartan? Me eyes fell upon some tartan bias binding, which as a bit of red in it so I thought, perfect, I'll use that to stitch the skirt hem. Looks good!

So everything is lovely and neat and I really like this skirt. I'm pleased how it's turned out and despite it being boring black, the colourful innards kept my interest as I was sewing it. I used my tried and tested Simplicity 1559 pencil skirt pattern that I've made before. All in all, it was a breeze to sew and fit and it's added another basic piece to my wardrobe.

Anyone else added some hidden gems or secrets to their sewing?

Dogtooth checked trousers...finally

These have been a long time in coming! I think I've been sewing them on and off (well, mostly off!) for the last 6-8 weeks as other more exciting projects have come along and jumped the queue. But here they are.

The fabric is a black and white dogtooth check man-made fabric bought from John Lewis. I pre-washed it before cutting out view A from Burda 7123. I bought this pattern when they had the half-price pattern offer at the end of last year.

But then I made a total botch-up when cutting out and it's all my fault. I decided the crotch length looked far too short and added 10cm (why that much?!) As I sewed them up I added the side zip and tried them on and of course the crotch length was far too long (who'd have guessed!?). So, I then cut off the excess length which then meant most of the darts too! So, re-do the darts. That was better but the waist was too big so pinch out the excess there too. All of which meant lots of basting and trying on and more adjustments.

After that, it was plain sailing! The trousers have a waistband and I'm not sure I really like waistbands. I can't seem to get them to fit me properly and they are usually a bit too wide and with a slight gape at the back, but after all I've been through with these trousers I can live with a slight gape! I prefer facings to finish a waist area and I have so much more success with them, getting them to fit snugly, but sometimes, you know, you just like a change from the same-old-same-old and want to try something new. That'll teach me!

I've done well with matching the checks and inserting the zip, so I can say something positive about them! And as I'm sitting here at work typing this post I can say they are warm trousers, which is good. It's also a good sign that I'm wearing them as soon as finishing them too! I will say they are feeling a little bit loose, especially at the waist, but with all the messing about with them I'm not going to alter them. I think I have a habit of over-compensating and adding too much extra fabric just to be on the safe side.

Here's a happy smiling me because I've finally finished them! I wasn't fed up with them it's just I wanted them finished and I'm getting pretty desperate for trousers of just about any kind. So, they're fine but I'm starting to think about either making facings for future trousers from this pattern, or getting Sew Over it's Ultimate trousers...I'll have to have a look round the blogging world and see how they turn out. I need a good trousers pattern!

A quick fix top

So, after yesterday's post about a not-really-successful make, I'm showing you something that I've made that I really like. It's yet another of my favourite Simplicity 1363 tops that I seem to be on a quest to perfect the pattern. Well, after the (un)wearable muslin I needed a quick success-fix. Almost there in perfecting this pattern!

The hem is straight, it's just how it hangs on this hanger!

This time I tried adding an inch above the elbow and an inch below. I'd noticed on previous versions that the elbow dart doesn't seem to be in the correct place and I think that's because I used the pattern's lengthening lines to add my 2".

I added the usual 2" to body length and decided to use facings instead of making bias binding as this fabric is about the finest I've sewn with recently. The facings worked fine and were the right choice but I think I'm a bias-binding girl at heart! I'm not sure if I'll need to have a camisole underneath but it's been too cold at home to put this on I'll have to wait to see if the elbow dart placement is improved. That's why the coat hanger is modelling it for you! I know a lot of bloggers apologise for their photos but I'd rather see the finished garments than not at all. I'm a sewist not a photographer.

Here's a close-up of a good zip insertion, even if I do say so myself (!) -

Again, the pattern matching could be better but I can see improvement every time I try to do this better. The lines of pattern are absolutely horizontal in real life, honest! And here's a close-up of the fabric, in case you haven't seen enough of it already! 

I really did raid the John Lewis fabric sale. Twice! This is some of the fabric I bought but I've got tons at home, some of it just waiting for the right pattern, while others are in the queue in my head! I've sewn so much patterned fabric recently I feel I'd like to do some plain fabrics just to give my brain a rest.

What's on your sewing table? Or in the queue in your head?                                        

An (un)wearable muslin

Well, I tried a different pattern and also managed to use some fabric from my stash...but I have to say it was worth doing a muslin for this! I've learnt some lessons and things that I'll take forward and use in the next version I make.

The fabric was a large remnant, 2m x 1.5m of jersey bought when I was down in London in November last year. It's good quality and I pre-washed it before cutting out just in case it turned out to be a wearable muslin.

I used Burda 7678 and added the usual 2" to the lengths of the body and the sleeves. I think the sleeves are neither short nor long and I'd skip those extra 2" next time.

As for the body, well, it is very long. When I mean long I mean extremely long...long enough to be a dress and I'm 1.75m tall/5'9". In the photo above I've folded the lower band

over on itself to reduce length and tried to drape it as best I can. I know this style is draped and that's what I like about it but there is seriously too much length...oh the things I never expected to say in my lifetime!

The neckline is also V-shaped, which you can't cos my hands are in the way. Looking at it now, I'd prefer a round neck. I'm also not so keen on the fabric now I see it made into a garment. So, basically, I'm a bit disappointed in how this has turned out but I still like the style. In fact I've got 2 or 3 RTW tops that are this style.

I'd like to make it again but here are the lessons I've learnt:
1. maybe choose a finer, more drapey fabric
2. reduce the length of the body
3. either lengthen or shorten the sleeve length
4. make it with a round neck
5. Keep this unwearable muslin for reference and a lot of measuring

So that's that, then! It's not going in my wardrobe.

Square top...kind of!

I love the fabric! I decided to sew an old favourite pattern that I've sewn before here, here and perhaps less successfully here, Simplicity 1364. It's a reproduction vintage pattern from the 1970's but as I've obviously sewn it up so many times before, I don't feel it counts towards my vintage pattern sewing pledge!


So, easy pattern choice and I've sewn it quite a few times before but this fabric is quite fine. Because of the pattern I cut out each piece on a single layer in an attempt at better pattern matching than I've been doing up to now. Not difficult! Cutting took ages and I went a bit cross-eyed after staring at the pattern repeat for a good few hours.

Sharp eyed readers will see that I haven't finished the hem in the photo on the right. I grabbed my photographer as the light was reasonable, probably due to the blizzard outside which didn't half increase light levels inside! I have now finished the top and it's now had its final press and is hanging in my wardrobe.

Back to pattern matching. I have to show you the evidence of improved pattern matching. See how I didn't use the word 'perfect' there? Just managing your expectations! There is a zip in the centre back seam and I've done a good job at sewing it in. I just haven't managed to do up the hook and eye at the top. At least I've sewn them on though and that must be one of my least favourite jobs.Far too fiddly!

There are two places where the pattern match goes a bit off but hey ho, it took me ages to work it out with the long zip, plus a lot of hand basting. There's room for improvement!

I have to confess a bit of a 'challenge' with the back seam as I'd cut the two back pieces separately. Trying to work out the pattern match, anticipate how the zip was going in and adding a seam allowance to the pattern matching, all took their toll on my by that time frazzled brain. One of the edges had a miniscule seam allowance of barely 1/8". Not enough especially where there was a zip going in. So, I cut two strips of fabric and sewed it to the back edges, kind of like a facing, and then added the zip. A bit of a bodge job but it's better to do something now than have to try and repair a mess in the near future.

I also used facings to finish the neck because the fabric is finer and I though it would make it all sit better. I used ultra-light iron-on interfacing and that was the right choice for the fabric. I have to say that the facings may provide extra support to the neck area but they don't give a better finish than self-made bias binding. I think I'll revert to making my own bias binding the next time, because there will be a next time. I love this style and want to explore perfecting it. Maybe I'll add the belt the next time I make this, depending on the fabric.

Anyone else tried this pattern? I think it's one I'll be sewing for years as it's so versatile, especially if I can perfect it!