Burda Style 11/2012 . A Warm Snuggy Pullover in Summer !

Last year I made a pledge to myself that I would sew my 2016 fabric acquisitions in 2016 . A friend joked that I would be crazily sewing at 11.59 New Years Eve . Well , not quite because I like having flexi-solutions not resolute- lutions . But this pledge does explain why I have sewed a ` woolly jumper ` in Summer . I bought this knit late last year - another op-shop find so of course I couldn`t resist at $3.00 plus I have never seen fabric like this before. It has a fuzzy print on the outside with a smooth plain wrong side with only a small degree of stretch. I liked the abstract print in neutral colours too .
To fulfill another pledge to use my un-used patterns I found a pullover from Burda Style November 2012 which has been very popular. It is a very simple pullover , the main style aspect being the uneven width front and back hem bands which are sewn on separately.

This is a very popular patterns and checked out lots of reviews and took my fellow sewist`s advice. I made size 38 instead of my usual 40 , I did not add any seam allowances to the bottom thereby shortening the pullover slightly and raised the neckline by an inch . The neck line is still a little too low and I feel like the shoulders are a bit too wide but not too annoyingly so. The sleeves are longish but the narrow bands help to keep them off my hands. I didn`t use the bias binding for the neckline but  ironed on  fusible tape , turned this inside and stitched it down.

It was very easy and satisfying to sew and when the cooler weather arrives I will be able to warm my body and my soul with my home made jumper.
Happy Sewing Janine.

2016 Sewing Overview.

My favourite garment of the year. 

For some reason I really love ❤️ reading 📖 about everyone's annual reviews of their sewing and their plans for the coming year. I actually find these musings fascinating and  inspiring. We all have the common denominator of loving sewing but have different perspectives in how we fulfill that love.
My take on sewing is to sew slower so my output is not high. I am not a perfectionist but hate it when things don't go right. However once a garment is completed ✅,  no matter what mistakes , it goes in the wardrobe and I don't seem to care anymore . A few years ago I went through a phase of churning out  more clothes and was a bit slapdash so I have had quite a turn around in attitude. I prefer how I sew now because I have fewer failures .

So in 2016 I sewed 42 items which sounds like heaps. 24 were for me and the remainder of 18 for my daughters mainly but also a friend and Mum.

The 24 items for me included one ☝️ total wadder , 3 underthings, 1 camisole , 1 nightie and 1 pair of long PJ pants. I didn't blog about these but I will have a post about my wadder in the future.
The 18 items for others included 9 short PJ pants , 5 tops and a couple of scarves.
A major goal for me was to use what I had and move a bit more fabric out than what came in. FINALLY after so many years of trying I succeeded with only 9 pieces of fabric in and quite a bit more sewn up. It was also my intention to sew the fabric acquired in 2016 in 2016 ! I almost managed to do this so I found myself have a little cutting out frenzy on the second day of January !

Apart from my one wadder I wore everything I made quite regularly apart from my vintage burda dress which was a special occasion garment anyway ( and my middle daughter likes it so is going to use for a function later this year ) .
 This year I basically just want to continue on with the same theme -  just plodding along really doing my imperfect best and making the most of what I have.

Knipmode White Patchwork Tunic .

  

Happy New Year ! I`m off to a flying start finishing off this white tunic and I have cut out two further projects as well.  All of which satisfy my own little resolutions / challenges which I set myself last year.
First off the tunic came about as a combination of using an old but unused knipmode magazine I have been mulling over for ages and my personal competition  to use up smaller scrappy pieces . I had a bingo moment when I realised this dress  pattern from October 2010  would be perfect for my remnant challenge as it is made up of several small pattern pieces. Win/win !

The dress has a front yoke , cuffed two piece sleeves and the lower front is divided into central and side front pieces with pockets . There is even a separate lower front . In other words the front of this dress has 8  pieces ! The back too has 6 pattern pieces so perfect for using small fabric scraps . There are no zips or other closures in this dress.
I used a total of 4 different white fabrics . The front yoke and front side pieces are made of dotted swiss cotton. The back and lower centre front is made of a pintucked , lacey cotton and the sleeves are constructed from  a self patterned white paisley design. The facings uses a self checked cotton. All fabrics were remnants from long ago projects but  just too good or sentimental to throw away.

I made a few  alterations to the pattern , the main one being that I did not make the dress  but left off the lower front/ back pieces and made a tunic length garment . The front slit was quite low so I stitched this up another inch but the tunic is still quite easy to put on .  I also deleted the pockets concealed between the side and central fronts but this is a nice little detail in the original design.  Finally I elongated  the front yoke facing piece to be same length as the front yoke because the dotted swiss is quite see through and a shorter facing shadow would have annoyed me. Otherwise as per usual the knipmode pattern is well drafted and all the pieces went together well. I used a kwik sew pattern to help me with the sleeve vents and this was the hardest part of the whole project. 

Overall I am very happy with my new tunic - a great way to start the sewing year. I extend my wishes for everyone to have another safe and healthy and happy 2017 . 

Happy Sewing Janine.