Guess Denim Skirt Copy

I made a "rub off" copy of a denim skirt I wear all the time.  I used a version of the fly and fly facing from Vogue 8774 and drafted the waistband based off the curve of a leather belt I wear all the time. I made my own pocket pattern for this, I wanted deep pockets I could shove my hands in; the dinky pockets most RTW has are so pathetic! I made this in about 8 hours, give or take.

I'm mostly happy with it, the inside of the waistband doesn't look great but there is always next time for that.  I made it about an inch longer than the original, and copied a lot of the topstitching ideas for it from the original as well.  I did not do any distressing on this, I may try that for the next one.  It takes just under a yard of denim and a quarter yard for the pockets (I wear an altered Big4 14 for reference).

I may make some minor adjustments for the next time I make this.   I think the yoke can be a little narrower in the center back, and I'll reduce the seam allowance on the waistband to 1/4 inch.  I may also play with the back pocket placement a bit.

Wardrobe Planning for 2017

I took a staycation week off from work, and in that week got a crazy idea; what if I made all my clothes for next year, and only purchased things I could not/won't make for myself (shoes, underwear, socks, certain pieces of outerwear and athletic/technical gear)?

I've attempted to sew with wardrobe plans in mind before, with abysmal failure.  I spent some time thinking about why and now believe I have a plan for success now.  After looking at several different wardrobe planning ideas, I've decided to work with Jennifer Skinner's idea on 6 bottoms, 12 tops, a few pieces of outerwear that interchange, and a handful of small capsules focused on a specific function.  With this in mind, I've decided to start with a couple looks that suit my lifestyle (work from home most days with a couple days a month in the office) that would be easy to sew.  This gives me the flexibility to incorporate colors that may not necessarily go together (I've picked a pale pink and medium teal as my Spring accent colors, which do not go well with red, a color I generally look great in and love to wear on occasion), as well as not forcing myself to make things in a "Core 4" set that I may or may not end up wearing in the end.

The basic look I'll work with for Spring/Summer is either a mariniere top or a woven button-down top with leggings.  A third layer could be a cardigan-style top or a sleek leather jacket.  I've chosen New Look 6402 and Vogue 1440 as the patterns I would work with.  I can use the jacket from V1440 or Vogue 1517 for dressier looks, or McCall's 7055 for something simpler.

I'll plan on setting aside a few hours each week to work on my wardrobe (at least 4 hours, per this Seamwork article).  I know I can make a knit top in around 4 hours, and if I make the same one multiple times I could get really fast at it!

Colors: Black, Grey, White neutrals with Pink and Teal accents
Patterns: NL6402, V1440, V1517, M7055

Pattern Review - Zakka Sewing Tape Measure Cozy

I've been meaning to make this for some time!  I bought a couple square Clover tape measures last year for the project, and have finally gotten around to making it happen.

I did not use the pattern provided in the project (photocopy and enlarge, ugh).  But fortunately the plastic part of the packaging on the tape measure served as a perfectly sized template to make a pattern.  I also did not add the circle charms and so made one continuous side panel for the cover.  I did make an applique for the "button" on the tape measure, which is not included in the instructions.

This was an easy enough project, definitely good practice for your ladder/invisible seam hand stitching!  It's also very easy to adapt the pattern and just use the idea for your own tape measure cozy if you can't source any of the square Clover ones (they are available on Amazon, btw).

One of these will be for one of my sewing kits, the other will be sent to my mom as one of her birthday gifts next month.

Pattern Review - NanaCompany's Well-Traveled Sewing Book

Amy from NanaCompany blogged about this very nice sewing travel 'book' pattern she put together, based on her adorable needlebook pattern.  It comes in two PDFs, one for the book "cover", and one for the "pages".  There is enough blank space to serve as inspiration, to put your own pockets or bits of embellishment, and I added my own vinyl pocket and divided up the pocket on the first page.  I flipped the side the felt needle pages are attached on; I'm left-handed and this seemed more ergonomic for me to use.

Initially I wanted to scale the pattern up a bit, in order to accommodate my 7" embroidery hoop, but the more I thought about it I decided I would just stick to the pattern instructions.  Now that I've made it, it feels a little large and am thinking I may try to scale it down to a 3"x5" size sewing kit for dance performance emergencies.  I like the pattern very much as there is a lot of room to customize it for your own purposes.  I like the use of interfacing to make the pages stiffer, and I want to try making a needlebook with interfacing and see if I like how it turns out.

I got my zakka labels (from Fort Worth Fabric Studio) and name labels (from Heirloom Labels, did not realize their cream ribbon would come out so dark!) in time to add these in as embellishments as well.

Get your own pattern here.

Grown-up Wrap Ballet Skirt

About a yard of polyester chiffon and some 5/8" ribbon will get you a lovely little wrap skirt!  It's about 14" in the back, tapered to 12" in the front, and made for a grown-up woman.

It was easy enough to draft, but I am considering digitizing the pattern and making it available on Etsy and Craftsy.

Note For Future Me: Smooth Rolled Hems on Chiffon

Serger settings (Babylock Diana):
Stitch length - N
Differential - 1
Stitch width - N ~ 1.5 (closer to N)
Keep even tension in front and back of the needle plate.

Pattern Review - Vogue 1160

Photo by Sarah Tomlinson

Spring Tango Dress!  I made this for the Spring Tango Festival in Austin this year.  I finished it just in time (hemmed it the morning I drove down to the festival) and wore it later that evening.  I made the slip for it but the hem had lengthened beyond the hem of the dress and I didn't wear it.  I'll need to fix it later.

Fabrics before pretreatment and cutting

Fabrics: "Moonstone" silk charmeuse from Mood (slip), Liberty silk crepe de chine in "Shinjuku" charcoal colorway from Fabric.com

Slip Fitting/Alterations:
Added 1" total width to the front bodice
1" swayback, took it from the top of the skirt (pivot and slide technique), added an extra inch to the bottom of the hem because I wanted to retain the "high low" look
Moved in the strap attachment points on the back towards the center back 1"
Instead of cutting spaghetti straps, I bias bound the top edge with 1" wide self fabric (same width as the straps).  This turned out really nicely.

Completed silk slip

Dress Fitting/Alterations:
Added 1" total width to the front bodice
1/2" sloped shoulder alteration
I made several muslins to get the front band fitting right, I still don't think it's right but looks OK
1" swayback/short back length alteration (pivot and slide technique)
1" full bottom adjustment (made at the top of the skirt pieces)

Somehow when I cut the dress out I cut the back bodice out so that the back bodice and band match perfectly.  I don't know that I could do that again even if I tried.  I used a bit of fusible interfacing to stabilize the zipper, and I want to hand overcast the edge anyway.  I hand overcast the armscye seam.

Bodice in progress

Perfectly matched back seam.

My bicep is an inch larger than Vogue's standard model; the sleeves as drafted came out a tiny bit snug but they don't bother me.  I didn't find the sleeve instructions to be difficult to follow.

 

Nearing completion

I am really happy with how the bodice fits.  The neckline doesn't gape at all on me, and the bodice overall fits very well.  The next time I make this I may fiddle with the front band some more, but it doesn't ripple when I wear it and I have plenty of breathing room.  I used the recommended zipper size and don't have a problem getting it on or off.

Photo by Sarah Tomlinson

Photo by Sarah Tomlinson