Casual , Comfy , Cozy Dresses.

 

First thing I do when  I get home from work is get straight out of my good clothes . It protects them from me but also gets me out of the being at work mental  zone  . During winter my favourite down time uniform is a pair of trackies .You just can not beat trackies for comfort and feeling relaxed and dagginess ! My last pair had bagged out so badly at the bum and knees that even Saggy Baggy Elephant would have felt sorry for them so they are in the gardening clothes pile now. With no trackies  left this was an opportunity to significantly up my casual clothes style. 

Pattern combo for the purple stripe /spot dress. 

Both fabric pieces came from Clear It bought at the end of last year . I used Butterick 6883 for the blue and grey argyle knit dress . This is a really fantastic pattern that also comes with pants , a sleeveless vest and the dress shortened into a top. The pants are definitely a contender for upmarket trackies too ! I love the front angled seams with pockets , the curved neckline with an interesting collar and dropped sleeves . Even the upper back has a curved inset piece. This makes for a very comfy dress with lots of design possibilities. I sewed this dress during a very busy period . Sometimes I only had time to sew up one seam at a time but over a couple of weeks I managed to complete it so it is a relatively easy pattern as well. The only changes I made were to lengthen the dress and I added piping to the neckline . The piping is woven  so the neckline is a little bit tighter but luckily I can still get it over my head easily enough. 

 The pockets bag out a little bit  but the pros of having them greatly outweigh that factor and after all these are just trackie replacements so I am not fussed by that. 

The purpley striped and dotty knit dress was made using a collaboration between a Kwik Sew 2900 top , Vogue 2101 dress  and a pocket from an old Burda WOF mag. Although I have made KS 2900 many times it has been a few years now but it was always my go to pattern for T shirts . I like the shaping of the vogue dress being slightly pegged  and knee length. I did double the width of the KS collar piece so it was a rollover collar rather than just a turtle neck. This was also a very easy make although attempting stripe matching required a bit more care. 

  

I used some of the dark purple stripe knit to bind the pocket edges and make it just a bit more interesting. 

I am pretty happy with my new dresses ( now just have to wait for the cool weather ) . Such a step up my usual casual outfits . I won`t be embarrassed answering the door now to unexpected visitors ! 

New Comey Vogue 1503 and Old McCalls 2094 and How Long Do You Keep Your Clothes For ?

I love the colour red and in particular red tops . This is the fourth summer red top / shirt I own !
I finished sewing this red  rendition  a few weeks ago and was initially disappointed in the outcome but I have come to realise that the bottom piece I wear with it is essential to its success.

The pattern is Vogue 1503 and I made view A . There are lots of lovely details . The back pieces extend over the front shoulders and the front has a gathered peplum but the back piece is plain so avoiding extra width in this area. The sleeves are finished with bands creating a  neat look. The front and back necklines are finished with self made bias binding.  The instructions include french seams and  bias binding covering exposed seams so the inside looks very professional.
I used a very fine red dobby polyester with small white and green dots and black dashes which Mum gave me over three years ago. A fine drapey fabric is needed to make that gathered peplum work.

These photos were taken with me wearing a loosish pair of linen pants and the combination did not look good . However later on I tried a pair of skinny navy pants  and I liked my peplum top much better.So for now it is a keeper and it will match up with newly completed embroidered skinny jeans ( have to get photos taken of those yet ) . As an aside I really love the long sleeved version too and will make that one day !
I should say there was one small mistake in the instructions. They forget to tell you the finish the back  neckline with a bias strip after staystitching. The pictures show the bias binding though. Apart from this the instructions are fine and the pattern is easy to follow.

I have been reading  a few  blog posts about how many times we wear our clothes and the number 30 seems to have been chosen as representing environmental value. It seems a quite random number and I am not sure if there are any studies which proves its worth.

The above red and white floral broderie anglaise shirt would fulfil the 30 wearings number ( as would my other red tops) .

I made it using McCalls 2094 in 2007 which makes the shirt 11 1/2 years old. It is probably one of the best fitting shirts I own and I still love it. In all honesty the upper back is starting to get a bit yellowed as is under the arms but nothing that can not be covered with  a cardigan or jumper .  This is not the oldest shirt I own though. 

 Also using McCalls 2094 is this sleeveless shirt made using some cotton lawn . I sewed this in 2001 so it is now 17 years old ! The cotton is so soft and wonderful to wear on hot days. It is not stained or holey.I simply can not bear to get rid of it and I can see no reason to . 

So am I weird to have clothes for so long ? Does anyone else have clothes this old which are worn over and over ( past the magic 30 number !) 

Vogue 8793 Tilton Top - Scrapbusting Extravanganza.

So happy  to be able to be back sewing again after a three month momentous hiatus.

I finally finished the fourth pair of New Look shorts and then contemplated sewing up a` new` piece of fabric. However I have had my little basket full of scraps sitting in my sewing room for over 6 months so thought I should just  sew them up and then have a fresh start. I am  glad about that decision because I am very pleased with my completed top .
I bought Vogue 8793 after seeing Sham`s and Jilly`s versions .
I have used 5 different scrap  fabrics in this top and only one was new !
Front made from black /white eye crossing poly - from New Look T 6405 - October 2013
Other front from black, red , grey rayon lycra - from Butterick dress 5523 - July 2014
Back from a garish floral `vintage ` spotlight poly  knit - from New Look  dress 6429 - March 2006
Inner collars pieces from Cleggs Bamboo knit - from Kwik Sew 2694 - May 2013 .
Outer collars and cuffs used small scraps of the above prints .
Sleeves from the only new fabric - black cotton lycra remnant from Darn Cheap - bought April 2014.
I didn`t have enough fabric to cut the front in one but this turned out to be a great design feature .

I did also have to buy two  new zips but basically it is almost made from scraps  which is very satisfying  .
I was concerned that the zip feature around the neck might be scratchy but it is not at all and I just used the stock standard cheap zips from my local store because that is all I can access anyway. I could not get a zip long enough so had to piece together the zips but this is only noticeable to me .
The T shirt itself has a relaxed but not too baggy fit with slimmer fitting arms so will be a good basic top even without the neckline zip focus. I really like the artsy funky feel to this top - it is my new favourite.
Well it just goes to show that it is definitely worth saving those scraps and I am not just a bit crazy to do so.

Issey Miyake Maxi Skirt -Vogue 2796

 I bought this pattern on the strength of the many glowing reports on Pattern Review many many years ago and only now finally making it up for me. The main issue was really finding a suitable fabric so when I saw this denim look knit at Darn Cheap I knew it was the one ( bonus it was on the $2.00 table as well )
I have a uniform of sorts . I prefer separates and mainly wear plain bottoms with a patterned top , less commonly a patterned bottom with a plain top and even less frequently dresses or completely plain separates worn together. So I was basically looking for a plain knit but with some  interest to it. This knit is in denim blue with silver grey threads in it.
The pattern itself is rather conservative for this designer but despite its simplicity it has some lovely style lines with a curved side front and back. It is hard to see but I top stitched along this curved seam with some silvery grey embroidery thread .This pattern is very easy to make especially if you ignore some of the instructions ! I did not add the waist band or zip. Sewing is meant to be a stress buster not a stress creator and I can imagine adding a zip in knit fabric would  be crazy . It's just not necessary anyway - the skirt stretches over my hips easily enough .
With its maxi length and swishy curved sides I feel just a bit trendy wearing this one and think I  will pull it out for Xmas Day - the stretchy waist band will be rather handy as well ;) .
Happy Sewing Janine

A Tale of Two Twinsets .

THE GOOD 

Using a combination of the Style Arc Abby Cardy and Kwik Sew 2965 and a cream lace knit .
I`ve made the Abby Cardy before but the top was a new sew. I was wearing this set to work a little while ago and someone commented that they hadn`t seen a twin set for years !  Well I suppose they haven`t been in fashion what since the 50s ? Another great reason to sew - you can wear what you want and not be dictated to by a higher fashion authority .

THE BAD AND THE UGLY 

This twinset was made using Vogue 8559 a Marcy Tilton pattern. I used a lovely slubby capuccino coloured knit but as there was not enough to make both pieces I had to use a remnant of a spotty knit. I have only worn this twice since making this a year ago ! Once when I had finished sewing it and for the photos.

The cream twin set works I think because both garments are made from the same fabric , the cream suits me and both garments are a flattering length.
The brown twinset fails on so many levels. I only had one metre of the  brown knit ( but the fabric was extra wide - at 200cm !) and was just trying to do too much with  too little  . The colour is not so complimentary and the cardigan is just too short and finishes where the widest part of me starts . I could not find a suitable trim so I used a dark brown lace ( which again is lovely ) which was too stiff . Also the spotty contrast tank  is just too much . It`s a pity because the brown knit is actually quite good and every image I have seen of this pattern made up looks great .

I love twinsets as part of my wardrobe because they really do reduce dressing thinking time in the mornings. Each time I wear them it saves precious seconds ( and as you get older those seconds get more precious !)

Happy Sewing Janine.

Stash Busting and Self Care .

Recently I attended a Girls Night Out and included were  talks from a McGrath breast care nurse and a lifeline counsellor. The take home message from the counsellor was the importance of self care.
I absolutely agree . Some women equate self care with being selfish. Self care is important at all stages of our lives whether we are students , new mothers , working women etc.
My husband and children sometimes encourage me  to buy new clothes. Like other sewers my interest in shopping has waned although I appreciate the eye candy and potential inspiration. For me though self care involves not buying new clothes but not feeling guilty in getting rid of old ones. I often keep clothes way past their best.  So with this sage self -care  advice fresh in my mind I did some stash busting and sewed up a pair of  new pajama  pants and a  singlet and promptly got rid of  the  old ones before I could change my mind.
I think as sewers we have a fair idea about self care ( unless we are constantly sewing  for others) and it is just another one of the multitude of reasons why sewing is such a lovely hobby .

 Anyway a brief note about the actual sewing. Here is a bad shot of the PJ pants a one seam pant from Vogue 7645 dated 2002 . I used a green /blue cotton plaid from my mother  stashed for several years . I added a ribbon on the front to make it easier to work out which is the front and back but this was entirely unnecessary since I mucked up matching the plaid at the front but it matched perfectly at the back ( another aspect of self-care - not berating yourself about trivia like matching plaids ) .

For the singlet or tank top I used Kwik Sew 2845 dated 1999  which uses only two pattern pieces. The fabric is a thin soft blush coloured cotton interlock also from my mother and also stashed for a long time. My sewing machine did not like this fabric whilst I was making the original  button hole ( to thread the ribbon through ) but I found by adding tear away stabilizer in both the front and the back of the fabric everything went smoothly the second time. Apart from that hiccup the rest of the sewing was easy and enjoyable.  I have never made this pattern before but it certainly will not be the last.

So here`s to daily self -care . Cheers Janine.

Vogue 2033 - The Geoffrey Beene Designer Band-aid Top.

I reckon it is pretty important to have a good sense of humour - it helps to  get  you through the tricky bits in life and there are lots of those and to not take yourself too seriously. I think I have a healthy sense of humour hence why I am posting this top I made.

I was given quite a few patterns back in the early 90s and through successive culls only a couple remain including this Vogue 2033 - a Geoffrey Beene designer pattern for three quite different and classical styled tops / shirts including the dropped shoulder loose fitting version . Lately I have seen tops around like this and delved into my pattern stash and thought it was time to give it a try - I mean
I have only had it for about 17 years.
 The fabric is a soft gold paisley jacquard with small white polka dots . It looks and feels like silk but it is not - I will not lie. I very pleased with this fabric and imagined wearing this top out to romantic dinners  and other such soirees .  I altered the pattern to add in bias cut bands for the sleeves  and added store bought white satin bias binding for the neck. I used french seams twice ( I took a too big a bite the first time and the top was too small for my liking ) and added a self fabric belt  .
Once finished,  with great excitement I tried on the finished garment and looked in the mirror and then A GREAT BIG OHH moment . - I`d just sewn a really large bandaid. The soft gold colour suddenly looked like a  flesh / beige tone and even the little white polka dots resembled  those tiny perforations you see on bandaids.

So learn from my mistakes - Do Not sew flesh coloured fabrics unless you are in need of bandaids.
PS - I quite like the pattern - I will use it again - perhaps in bright green or blue or pink  or anything but beige. Cheers Janine