Simplicity 3786- Third Time Lucky .

simplicity 3786 and cotton voile fabric 

close up of pintucks

inside seams of simplicity tunic 

Not really third time lucky , just the third time I have made this pattern but the first time it has ended up in my wardrobe having previously sewn a muslin and a version for my Mum.
I have been wanting to sew this for 2 years now - but you know how it is - too much to sew and too little time.
I am glad I finally did though. I love the little pintucks and the gently gathered  lower sleeves. The material is a cotton voile that just called out to me - I think it is the yellow colour and the smaller flowers outlined in taupe look vaguely native.
The pattern was easy once the pintucks were made - I just carefully mark and pin them - I do not have a pintuck foot.
THe only change I made was to shorten the tunic a few centimetres as I found it too long for my personal taste and I added some lace between the upper and lower sleeves.
I will definitely sew this pattern again - in a solid colour and want to try the other view as well.
Cheers for now , Janine.

New Fabric and Patterns and Sewing Plans

I love reading and drooling and getting jealous about others fabrics and patterns.
I have been very virtuous this year and last bought fabric in April but could contain myself no longer.
The top picture shows a royal blue, black. grey and white print knit - I love it and there is enough for a dress.
The middle picture is an animal print knit - I am trying to be more adventurous or try different styles. Previously I have only had one animal print anything - a pair of snow leopard print ballet shoes .When I bought them my eldest DD said to me ` Mum that is the only trendy thing you have in your wardrobe !`. Guess where those shoes are now.
The third photo and my favourite is a soft burnt orange jumper ( sweater ) type knit - I may make the above Burda pattern - a wrap style cardigan - but since this will not be made this year this plan could alter.
I am now off to cut out the animal print knit Butterick dress. Cheers Janine.

A New Pincushion and SSS Day 10.

Here is a little pincushion that I just whipped up - no  , of course it is an echidna. This little fellow ( or girl - who would know) hangs around our house about once a year for a few days before snuffling off somewhere else. This is such perfect timing because at the moment we have a Japanese exchange student staying with us for a few days.

Now SSS stands for Silly Sheep Saga. Last week we bought two whizz bang self shearing sheep ( SSS! ) - dorpers. A certain someone reassured me the paddock was sheep proof. The next day my youngest DD tell me the new sheep are in the next door neighbours  paddock. I checked this out and found a 10 metre gap in the barbed wire fence big enough for well sheep !The next day we spent 3 hours chasing sheep trying to get them back.Have I  mentioned I live on the side of a mountain , that the next door neighbours paddock is about 50acres with NO fences. We finally got them back to our property only to discover that a certain someone had fixed the fence and the sheep although they tried could not get back in !!Oh the irony .  They then ran off into some bush and haven`t been seen since. ( Don`t worry there are lots of waterholes and lots of green grass - they will be very happy ) . The only relevance to sewing here it that after 3 hours of running up and down hills etc I declared the next day to be a sewing day and neglected my motherly and housewifely duties . I made very good progress on my pintucked simplicity tunic and hopefully will have another finished garment to blog and wear. Cheers until then Janine.

Simplicity 2418 - Again !

 I actually finished sewing this last week but honestly getting someone to take a photo of this took longer than the sewing ! I think perhaps learning to use the self timer will be on my list of things to do.
I recently reviewed Simplicity 2418 view A and now I have sewn View B . The majority of my patterns are repeat performers  .Sewing the same pattern in close succession usually makes the construction easier and quicker.
I used a vintage cotton - pale grey with small white 3 leaved clovers . I only had 1.3 metres of this 90cm wide fabric so I was very pleased to be able to cut out this top. Fabric constraints meant one yoke was cut on the cross grain and I could not cut out the belt but this did not matter in the end. My small metreage also meant that I made  absolutely no attempt to pattern match but everything in the end did align up , even the fronts and yokes ! I suppose the closely placed print had alot to do with this but honestly had I tried I am sure I would have mucked this up. 
I really like this top - I like the yokes and the way they are constructed , I like the little pleats at the shoulders and the V neck is not too low but makes putting on the top easy. The top is nicely shaped and not boxy and too baggy. Also sewing with cotton is always a pleasure and this another op shop find was a treasure ( oh I am writing poetry now !)Overall  I would highly recommend this pattern.
I have made good progress with my next top today on account of a nasty sheep incident yesterday - I will explain all with my next post .Cheers Janine .

PS . DON` T WORRY . NO SHEEP WERE HARMED - IN FACT I AM SURE THEY ARE LAUGHING AT US RIGHT NOW.

A Retrospective - Burda dress 103 02/08.

While I actually do have a new top completed to blog about I do not have a photo with the garment worn so I decided to blog about a previously made dress which I do have a photo of .Last Friday my middle teenage DD and I attended a book signing with her most favourite author Maggie Stiefvater in Melbourne City - this photo is on a tram on the way there.  This dress is out of the box for me - I am a conservative person in a conservative job BUT I am extremely pleased with the result and this shows that I should challenge my style sometimes. I reserve this dress for wearing at more fancy occasions not  for work as this dress is close fitting and sometimes there is a propensity for the front wrap to open up revealing a bit of leg.
I made this dress some 18 months ago and it was very popular on Pattern review. I have made a comment on the envelope housing my pattern that I have referred to Pattern Review and the blog Couture et Tricot in the makings as there was some mild confusion about markings on the dress patterns. I do recall though that once this issue was sorted out that the directions from Burda did make sense ( if you read them long and hard enough ) and the dress was not incredibly hard.
I have used a very fine stretch jersey as recommended and this is good for the drapey parts - however I am not sure how long wearing this dress will be . The material was a great find in an op shop - 4 1/2 metres for only $5.00 ( sometimes I think I should rename this blog the Super cheapo sewing blog ! )
Anyway I would highly recommend this dress pattern to anyone.
By the way the book signing was alot of fun - Maggie was a very funny young woman and my daughter was in heaven and all starry eyed - so much so she managed to leave my handbag lying around unattended in a shop for a few minutes until I said where is my handbag ( middle DD had asked for my handbag to get her camera out and look at all the photos of the book signing ) !
Cheers until I can bribe my 12 year old photographer to take some shots of my new top.

Kwik Sew 3474 - The Spring has Sprung Top

I finally finished my Kwik Sew blouse - I have learnt how to add a Pattern Review Widget so I have done a fairly complete review if anyone is interested. This top was super thrifty to sew - I found the pattern for only 20cents and the fabric was only a couple of dollars - the most expensive part of this project was the thread which I had to buy new  . So really there was nothing to lose with this top - especially as I broke the Kwik Sew rules and cut different sizes at different lines - small at the shoulders and sleeves and side seams and large at the front .
I love the wrap front of this and the side shaping and front ties and cuffs with slits . I dislike that there is nothing keeping the upper part of the blouse together so I added press studs This is completely necessary as any movements will cause major gaping at the top and a significant case of `Hello boys` or being charged by the police with exposure. I  also understitched the facings which Kwik Sew surprisingly didn`t include in their instructions - having said that, this pattern confirms that I do love Kwik Sew patterns .
I wasn`t completely happy with my upper press stud - it is tending to show so I will wear this with a brooch. Next time I make this I think I will add a button .
I have some lovely soft gold paisley embossed silk look fabric and I am debating making an evening version of this above pattern but I am just not sure yet.
Anyway spring has definitely sprung here - we have a new born lamb with hopefully a couple more to come and our chooks are laying 10 eggs a day and the wattles and native jasmine are blooming ( and I am sneezing !) . It is lovely here at the moment. Until next time ( another top on the way!) cheers Janine.

A Nifty Dart Trick ( PHoto Heavy )

Just this week I learnt a really good little dart trick - I haven`t seen it elsewhere so I decided to show it here . Probably everyone else knows about this but you know the saying ` If it just helps one other person then it will be worthwhile. `.
I have always just left the threads at the narrow end part of the dart loose or before I knew better just  backstitched -gasp horror! I have seen a technique where you get a needle and insert the loose threads into the dart or just cut the threads really short. The technique I found is quicker than this . I wish I could lay claim to inventing this technique but I am strictly a follower not a leader. The below technique is from Singers The Complete Photo Guide to Sewing if my instructions and photos are as clear as mud. You can click on the photos to make them larger if this helps.

Photo 1 above shows the dart marked and starting to sew.

Photo 2 above shows the dart sewn - Continue until you just stitch off the edge of the fabric

PHoto 3 above  - Lift up the presser foot and pull the fabric towards you about one inch or 2 cms. This creates the length of thread above.

PHoto 4 - Set your stitch length at zero. Insert your material under the foot , lower your presser foot , insert your needle in the fabric inside the dart and stitch several times to secure the thread.

PHoto 5 above . Remove from your sewing machine and clip the threads close. As you can see the threads at the end are neat .

PHoto 6 - the outside of my ( unironed ) dart - see no puckers !

This is so quick. saves having loose threads inside and saves threading up your needle. I hope this is of some use.
Cheers Janine.