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 .

Burdastyle 04/2019 -Belt Bag Skirt .

I super love this issue of Burdastyle . There are so many designs I would love to make eventually.  But I got a quick start on the magazine by sewing up the skirt with the cute little belt bag pocket thing .
I used some really old striped twill which was leftover from a pants making saga ( more on that later ) . The fabric is at least 14 years old and I wonder if it just old enough to look dated , or old enough to look vintage or if I am ahead of a new stripey phase. Whatever,  it is 100% cotton, feels great and the colours in the stripes are quite lovely with pale blue, coral , soft browns and beige . And it was perfect for this pattern as the fabric was  narrow but long  and this skirt uses several  narrower pieces - two skirt fronts , backs and sides.
The skirt was fun and  not difficult to make but there are a lot of steps with the  zipped skirt , the belt , the loops and the pocket .  I made a couple of changes to the pattern. I  lengthened the button tab on the pocket bag to extend all the way to the top , just a look I prefer to the original and lengthened the overall skirt a few cms to stop at my knee . As per usual with Burda the fit was spot on for me.
As mentioned the fabric was left over from making some pants. Arguably pants are the  hardest garments to fit and I had basic issues from the start . It didn`t help that I was using a Patrones magazine in Spanish . I have now found with Patrones that it is hit and miss for me .  This is the pattern I used below.

Pants with two pleats at the waist , side zip , moderately loose fitting and tapering to the ankles.
The first version the legs fit great but I couldn`t get anywhere near to closing the pants at the waist . I went to the largest size and the waist fit but the legs were very loose. I then cut out my main fabric and took the leg seams especially around the thighs in .Of note I use size 44-48 for Patrones and size 38-40 for Burda , the sizing numbers are very different.  The pants are comfortable but not a success. I showed my family and asked if they were too baggy. My husband replied ` What for pajama pants ? ` !! My daughter was obviously diplomatic. I will wear the pants but not beyond the perimeter of my home.

Classic Skirts with Classic Mistakes .

 \
More catching upwith . I made this skirt a couple of months ago using this Burdastyle skirt from September 2012. I have made it once before using a denim look wool. This time I used what is arguably my best fabric I own , a cashmere / merino blend fine woven wool which has been in my stash for 8 years.  I had been contemplating how much longer I will actually work for and well I am in the home run part of my career . 5 years ? 10 years ? I am unsure. What I was sure about is this fabric is not something I would use in an everyday garment but would be perfect for my work . So I thought I better sew it up .

 Such a fine fabric deserves to be made into something that will be used in the long run and this classic A line skirt with a single deep inverted pleat is perfect .It is easy to sew but what I forgot from making this skirt before is that I added several cms to the length of the skirt when cutting out . So this version is a bit short for my liking ! Oops !

 If I wear the skirt with dark stockings I feel OK but I feel as if I have to keep pulling my skirt down.
On the plus side I only used less than half of the fabric so I will be able to make another slightly longer skirt next time . In the meantime I have worn this skirt a few times this winter so all was not lost.

I also made another classic skirt but instead of making it too short , I made it too big.  You see I used a Polish Anna Moda magazine pattern and I assumed that like most other European magazine patterns I had to add in the seam allowances . Not so ! They are included . The magazine is great with lots of good Simplicity and New Look patterns.

I made what is the equivalent of Simplicity 8175 , a very popular straight skirt with a front slit and curved waist band and slant  front pockets. I used some navy crepe with a slight stretch to it , left over from some Burdastyle pants I made last year . I did try on the skirt while I was making it and took in the side seams but the too large curved waist band and pocket openings could not be fixed . There are no photos , it just didn`t look good.  Such a pity . I used some lovely silk to line the waist band and pockets and invisibly hand stitched the hems. Writing up this blog post was the stimulus to donate the skirt so I hope someone gets to enjoy it. I will definitely be making this skirt again using some more navy crepe I have .

Only a 50% success rate but at least I used a ` precious ` fabric .

Burda Style 2/2018 Pencil Skirt.

I tried to get more interesting photos outside today if you count a capeweed lawn as interesting.  

 I have made a brown skirt to replace my previous  brown skirt but this version is just about as opposite to my old one as can be . My old brown skirt was plain , this is a print . My old brown skirt was a gored trumpet style , this is a pegged pencil skirt . My old skirt had a wide yoke , this one is high waisted with darts and no waist band.   My old skirt was made from an indestructible non stretch woven  polyester so that it still looked new , this one is made of a stretch  cotton sateen ( that I hope will also be a bit indestructible ) . The latter was one of the problems - I was just so sick of my old skirt .

The pattern is from the  most recent Burda Style that I own  , 2/2018  , pencil skirt 119 , part of this beautiful suit . The most interesting ( and trickiest ) part of the skirt are the rectangular insets which also incorporate one of the pair of front darts. The rectangle extends across both the front and backs of the skirt. Because I usually do not tuck my tops into my skirts this feature will never be seen . Now Burda Style have a gazillion pencil skirt patterns and I really only chose this one over the others so I could at least have the satisfaction of having used the magazine. ( I bought this magazine for jacket 105 -a kimono inspired jacket with interesting front bands ) .

I did quite a good job of matching the print at the sides but a not so good job at the back.centre seam .  However I am gratified that this does not show up too badly in these photos. But what I can not really get past in my other photos is that the hem looks uneven in the front because of the skewiff print . I hate going back fixing up finished projects but I might just be forced to do something about that hem . 

Till next time , happy sewing. 

( PS- I had enough of this fabric left over to make my middle daughter a  skirt as well. I used another Burda Style pencil skirt pattern but did not get photos. ) 

Style Arc Winnie-The-Top .

I have been continuing on with the sewing theme of making alternative casual comfy winter wear to tracksuit pants. I ordered this black and white jacquard knit online and it was quite a surprise when it came. I wasn`t expecting the print to be so large and so  loud - ah the hazards of online fabric shopping. A positive though was I received a generous cut .
I used my Winnie Top pattern from Style Arc , a freebie when I bought the Blakeley jeans pattern. Sometimes I wait to buy Style Arc patterns until I really like the free offering and this was one of those  patterns. It reminds me  of the popular Toaster and Talvikki sweaters .

This is an easy top to sew but has stylish features - the funnel neck , the hem splits and the just right amount of modern ease . The instructions on this one were easy to understand and I like how they construct the hem split which looks professional and very  neat.

Included in the patterns were little name tags - a lovely bonus . It sure came in handy too because telling the front from the back is near impossible. The only difference I could see is in the cut of the armscye .
As I said I received a generous cut of fabric so there was just enough to cut out a skirt . I chose to resew a Knipmode skirt that I made last year but was a total wadder due to the fabric but also operator flaws. It is just a simple pull on  slightly pegged elastic skirt but the elastic does not extend all the way around the front . I was determined that such an easy pattern was not going to defeat me. This time I cut out the notches marking the top of the skirt pieces and the waist seam. Once the fabric is cut out and held up it looks like a rectangle but this is deceiving and is one of the reasons my skirt failed last year . It also helped that although this fabric has some stretch it has good recovery as well unlike the fabric that I used last year .

      
The loudness of the print is growing on me and  I might or might not wear the skirt and pullover together but overall I am pretty happy with the results .  I will definitely be sewing Winnie again.

Acute Angles Black Skirt ( Burda WOF 02/2006 )

At the beginning of the year I gave away my good summer black skirt to my middle daughter which of course gave  me an excellent reason to sew another one just in case anyone should have  asked  "What are you sewing another skirt ?" " Yes ,but I gave my black skirt away and everyone knows that having a black skirt for summer is essential like brains and  baby goat yoga  ."
I have had this embroidered black cotton in my cupboard for only about 10 years . It counts as one my special fabrics because it came  from another closed down fabric store and it  is  lovely quality.

                                                            

I pulled out lots of skirt patterns that I would like to sew but eventually chose an old BurdaWOF pattern from the large pile I bought from the op shop earlier this year .

This is from Burda WOF February 2006 which is probably about how old my fabric  is so this choice is quite appropriate really. I  liked the deep cross over front pleat and shaped yoke which I find quite flattering and comfortable for me. The pattern was rated as easy . I could not see how the pleated pieces were joined but I went ahead and cut out my pattern believing all would be revealed as I sewed up the skirt.

Turns out that the two front pieces are not joined together !  The skirt was at least  easy to sew up as promised .
First a deep self facing is turned to the wrong side .

Then the right front is lapped over the left at some markings.

Finally the left front is folded over the right side  at the pleat marks ( I marked the pleat lines with  yellow stitching  to make this visible  and easier - obviously I pulled this stitching out later ) .









I have not yet worn the skirt out in the wild .However it was a positive sign  when these photos were being taken that  I got the seal of approval from my eldest daughter who said she would wear an outfit like this . I am hoping that the deep pleats will prevent flashing at the first breeze I encounter otherwise well it is going to be a very cool summer skirt indeed  but just not for the kind of  work I do ! (  Or I might add in some hand stitching but time will time .  )

Until next time may every day be a Sewday for you .

Three By Two Piece Dress.

I have been gradually stash busting during 2017 and turned my attention to a piece of knit purchased from Frou Frous in 2011 .It was a terrific little garment fabric shop which shut down. By the time I managed to get to the closing down sale the shop was quite bare and I may have made a few impulsive buys which I would not normally have done including the knit above. I ordered 2 metres but received a very generous 2.5 metres. Now this fabric is very loud and bright, something I am a bit shy about wearing and thought it might be a bit too much as a dress. So then I had the brilliant idea ( tongue in cheek ) to make a two piece dress and to be able to mix and match and water down the loudness. By being very careful I was able to make a skirt and two tops from my 2.5 metres.

I used three patterns to make up this outfit. The skirt has 6 gores using 2 pattern pieces with an  elastic waist .I used Simplicity 4074 . I have made the dress from this pattern which I made in 2008 and still wear heaps and have always wanted to make all  the other views . Now I just have the top left to make .  I lengthened the skirt as the dress I made was on the slightly too short side. I am much happier with this length which hits just below my knee. ( I am 169cm tall - used to be 170cm !!)

The  gathered raglan sleeved T-Shirt was made from Burda 02/2013.  I have made this before but not successfully and have always wished to retry it again with modifications. I added width to just below the waist line and also cut the neck band a lot shorter . The finished neckline measures at 75 cm and this is the length that Burda says to cut the neck band hence why mine appeared floppy. The longest piece of fabric I had left was 66 cm and this was lengthwise so not as much stretch as the crossgrain but it turned out much better. I will not make this T-shirt again but there are lots of other patterns I want to try from the magazine.

The cowl neck top was made from New Look 6470  . I have never made this pattern before and wish I had made it earlier now. I had to cut the back from two pieces because of my limited fabric but this was just as well because I had serious gaping issues at the back neck. Instead of just overlocking the neck edge and turning in and stitching down as instructed I made some narrow strips cut on the cross grain to apply. I did the same for the armholes. I was  very careful about applying this but in the end with the gaping I had to unpick it all so the back of my neck from being neat and tidy is a bit messy but at least it is not gaping anymore. I would like to make this pattern again and will be aware of making alterations to the top of the centre back or again cutting the back from two pieces.

So there is my two piece dress which will be able to be worn multiple ways.  I do love the handful of  dresses I have but I tend to wear more separates and with some hot weather coming up this week I will be able to start wearing this one straight away.  

The Wave Skirt - Burdastyle 12/2012 .

skirt front 

I`m still choosing my next projects to sew by trying to get through my recent unused Burdastyle magazines hence making a summer skirt in the slap bang middle of winter. And yes a five year old Burdastyle is recent for me !
I bought this piece of batik in 2010 from the op shop but it was only small - just over one metre in length and only 115cm wide . I also  had this piece of aqua linen bought  from another  op shop but from  years before and amazingly they match really well .(  I have  already previously made a skirt from the aqua linen and after cutting out the contrast waves there was just enough to cut out a top yet to be sewn . )

skirt back 

I saw this skirt in the December 2012 issue and thought it might be an interesting and different way to use my batik . It is a slight A line skirt with 4 darts in the front and back, a centre back zip  and a narrow waist band. The lower bands are gently curved.
I lengthened the main body of the skirt by a few centimetres but did not make any other changes.

right skirt side 

 When I was tracing out the skirt patterns I was lazy and only traced out one back and one front. This made  cutting out the fabric harder because the curves are different on both sides. It meant I was cutting away curves on the tissue paper and then having to add them again when cutting out the contrast bands. It got a bit confusing and I made one mistake luckily rectified. So if anyone reading this wants to make this skirt I would trace out a complete front skirt and two separate backs and follow the layout diagram Burda provides. This would have been much  quicker in the end !

Considering I only had a small piece of batik I was pretty happy in the end with the pattern matching on the back and it is OK on the sides - good enough for me anyway . I will not make this wave skirt again but might make the basic A line skirt pattern . Overall I am happy with the result and only have to wait a few months to wear it now.

left skirt side