Arbitrary Sewing and Janies and Eliza Fabric Shopping .

For no particular reason my next sewing project was a two piece dress using some fabric bought on a whim. It is described as a ponte with navy blue roses on a pale pink background. I wasn`t sure about the fabric when I received it ( the risks of online buying ) but I'm always willing to give it a try because sometimes the end result can exceed my expectations and it certainly did this time.
                                                            
  I used an old favourite pattern Simplicity 4074 for the skirt and tried an old Burda WOF pattern  03/2005 which I have wanted to sew for over 12 years . Definitely better late than never because I love it and I think I will be sewing a summer version.

                                                                   
Simplicity 4074 is a classic pattern which I`ve made several times now , the skirt twice and the faux wrap dress once . Luckily the first time I  made the skirt I was bothered to lengthen the skirt at the proper lengthen/ shorten lines so it was a very easy matter to cut and sew the slightly flared elastic waist style.
The  knit T pattern comes in two versions . A short sleeve, tie neck , hem band variation and long sleeves , simple V neck and no hem  band so I made a combination of the two styles . The sleeves are a  two piece design which fits nicely and I know it`s hard to see but I used the tie neck pattern.

The older style Burdas come with two large pattern sheets so even though there were more different styles back  then there were fewer patterns per page so tracing was much easier. I even understood all the instructions this time ( miracle ) but stitched around the base of the V neck to prevent stretching which Burda doesn`t mention . 
Since the fabric was really easy to work with (  and I didn`t even have to stabilise the hems ) , this was an easy , satisfying , morale boosting project.  I`ll mention that the ponte came from Janies Fabrics  , a Melbourne based online fabric shop ( with a bricks and mortar shop as well which I`ve never managed to visit ) since it is still available . I`ve bought quite a few pieces from there now and usually I`ve been happy . Speaking of fabric shopping I went to Eliza`s in Sunshine last week. I`ve seen/ heard a few recommendations for it now and then read on Thornberry`s blog that it is closing. I thought I would regret not going so after an  hours drive ( not even peak hour - how I  hate you Melbourne traffic ) I thought I better buy something .

OK so ignore that the top and bottom pieces are not from Eliza`s . The green, blue and red are described as viscose spandex knits , the cream underneath is a textured poly knit and the plum under that is a wool / poly blend knit . All knits because my  existing fabrics are overwhelmingly wovens .
I`m not sure that I will get back to Eliza`s again but I`m now  thinking there were a couple of other pieces I could have bought . For 5 pieces of fabric measuring over 8 metres I paid under $29 . Unbelievable and a soothing balm for the preceding city driving .
My advice is to check out Eliza`s if you haven`t already and to save your old Burdas .

McCalls 2401 - Ponte - A Whole New World.

Bleary eyed photos -I have to grab a photographer when I can and in this case it was quite early in the morning . 

I love experimenting with different fabrics and patterns . I have seen so many ponte dresses and skirts which looked fabulous so I wanted to try sew with this new to me fabric too. I also have read that ponte can pill with only a few wearings/ washings . When I sew I want my clothes to last many many years not just one or two seasons . I have had good luck with fabrics bought from Knitwit in Western Australia so when I received an email about their pontes and saw a patterned one that really appealed to me I bought it ( late last year with my footy tips competition money !) It is the Daniela print and is a rayon blend ponte ( which I read tends to be better quality ) . It is plain black on the inside and a purple /bronze abstract print on the right side ( and still available last time I checked ).

I have never sewed with ponte before so I did some research on what I should be doing . I find Emma one Sock ( link here - http://www.emmaonesock.com/guides/kbponte.asp ) has excellent advice on sewing with fabrics .  Ponte is like double knit but with stretch so apart from using a pattern designed for wovens in all other respects I treated the fabric as a stretch fabric.
I used a ballpoint needle and sewed with a slight zigzag stitch .The website also suggested stabilising the neckline with some light weight stay tape  and the shoulder seams with bias knit interfacing . I used  the  selvedge edge  from  silk for the stay tape as suggested .

The pattern I used  is McCalls 2401- a slim fitting sheath dress  . This is a very popular pattern which has been around for a long time and still also currently available in the pattern catalogues . I eliminated the back zip and used a button/ loop closure . I also made 3/4 sleeves which was easy to adapt from the provided long sleeve pattern . I hand sewed all the hems.

Normally I steer away from form fitting clothes but with the ponte I think it was easier to get a good fit . There is some excess fabric above the bust near the armscye and it feels / looks a little thick with the neckline facing but overall I am pretty happy with the result and will be willing to try more slim fitting clothes if I find more ponte that I like.