Sewing Goals for the New Year

I sewed my first A-line skirt in March 2012. Since then I've sewn several clothing items but have never felt like I have a clear sewing plan that fits my lifestyle.  What better time to form a vision than the New Year?  I stay at home with my kids so I need clothing that is realistic for that lifestyle but still looks pulled together.  I live in the Midwest where the weather is constantly changing so I think it will be easiest for me to stay on top of my goals if I break them down by seasons.

Winter 2014:

1. Colette Anise: My first project is going to be a Colette Anise in a teal wool/cashmere.  I know I just said I need clothing that is realistic for a stay-at-home mom, but I bought this fabric at Mood in LA over the summer and I have been dying to turn it into an Anise. I'll just look extra dressy at Toddler Open Gym.

2. Grainline Archer shirt:  Instead of throwing on a cotton t-shirt and cardigan I would love to put on a button-up and cardigan.  I have the pattern and the fabric and it's second in my queue.

3. Sewaholic Renfrew: I've had this pattern for quite awhile but haven't managed to produce one because I'm afraid of my serger and sewing with knits.  I've purchased a Craftsy class for the occasion as well as the fabric.  Now I just need the nerve.

4. Jean-ius: I have a habit of hoarding Craftsy classes but then never actually viewing them.  This was the first one I purchased.  If I can somehow figure out how to reproduce my skinny jeans from Gap I would be over the moon!

Big goals for winter and only a few more months to accomplish them!

Spring/Summer 2014:

1. Sewaholic Saltspring: At first I wasn't that excited about this pattern but when I saw the versions popping up around the blogosphere I decided I would like it.  I have rayon challis ready for this one. 

2. Sewaholic Cambie: I made a muslin of this over the summer but got derailed by other projects.  My first version is going to be in a rayon challis I already have purchased.  I have not one but TWO weddings (one in May and the other in June) this year.  If the dress comes together I'm going to try to make two more for the weddings.  My current plan is to use a dark silver silk georgette from Mood for one.  Nothing like aiming high......

3. Sewaholic Thurlows: Continuing with my Sewaholic theme, Thurlow shorts with a Renfrew top would work wonderful for a summer uniform. 

4. Colette patterns: I'm not sure how fast I'll be sewing, but I would love to make another Parfait or try out the Lily dress. 


Fall 2014:

The only item I'm adding for fall is a coat using a burnt orange wool I bought last year.  I'm going to wait and see what patterns come up this year!

Advent Pocket Calendar

I'm in the middle of several Christmas projects.  I've had my eye on several advent calendars on Pottery Barn but they always sell out before I can pull the trigger.  I found this pocket Advent calendar on Etsy and decided I like the design better because I don't have to hang it on the wall and risk the kids getting into it (or ripping it off the wall) when I'm not looking. 

It was easy to construct.  You make the pockets out of 25 4x12 strips of wool felt folded into a pocket and embroidered with numbers.  Easy! The embroidered numbers and buttons add some hand sewing but it's still a quick project to complete. 

Polka Dot Minoru

I finally made a Minoru!  I wanted to make this months ago but never got around to it.  It's a good thing I didn't because I recently found this navy and white polka dot polyester fabric online at Mood and it's perfect for this jacket.  It's a nice quality reversible polyester that is easy to press and easy to sew.  I love it!  The top is a size 4.  The midsection is a size 6.  The bottom is a size 2 but I could have gone down to a 0 simply because I'm not pear shaped (not because I'm a size 0).

These is nothing to say about the Minoru that hasn't been said already.  It's a great every day jacket with easy to follow instructions.  I did French seams everywhere but where I attached the collar to the main jacket.  I added inseam pockets using the Burdastyle tutorial and figured out how to sew them with a French seam using Debra Moebes tutorial over at Sew Mama Sew.  My pockets are at a comfortable place for my hands but I should have put them in an inch or so higher because they run into the hem. 



You can see the reversible side on the wrong side of the hood (sort of). 

 

 

The back:

 

The lining is a bright gold polyester satin from Hobby Lobby.

 

The jacket was completed 48 hours ago and already I've worn it walking my dog Winston.....

...cheering on the KC Chiefs to a victory...

...and hanging out at the pumpkin patch.

Make a Minoru today.  You won't be disappointed!

 





 

Advanced Means Advanced: The Henry Shirt

 

 

 

This is my version of The Henry Shirt from the book Sewing For Boys.  This is my first project from the book and I think it was a big success even though I almost wasn't smart enough to figure out certain steps of the pattern.  I am not an advanced sewer.  When I saw the pattern was marked as advanced I thought, "How hard can a shirt possibly be?" Everything was smooth sailing until I got to the steps attaching the yoke and sleeves.  I sat and stared at this shirt FOREVER to try to figure out how to put it together.  I'm including pictures and details for attaching the yoke and sleeves at the end of this post to help out anybody else who might be struggling while reading this! I'm not a sewing teacher.  It's just what worked for me.

 

The main fabric is a 2010 Alexander Henry called "Crayon Commute."  I purchased it at Sarah's Fabrics and unfortunately I bought the last of it.  I also purchased the gingham fabric at Sarah's.  Both are quilting weight cottons but they are such a nice weight that the shirts turned out to look and feel really sharp. 



Somebody didn't want to smile for pictures but I'm not naming names.  The shirts are pretty boxy so I think they will look best over jeans and a long sleeve shirt.  It's not jeans weather today so we're in shorts.

I like the box pleat in back.

And the contrast fabric on the sides.

Checking out his cars!

Now for the construction details.  I used French seams to attach the back and front panels to the sides.  I like how you can barely see the seams when you look inside the shirt. The shirts are so boxy that instead of the 3/8 inch seam the pattern calls for I used a 1/2 inch seam which made each part of the French seam 1/4 inch.

 

 

This is when stuff got tricky.  This is what Step 15 looks like.  Honestly I was so confused that I couldn't figure out what the underarm seam was.  Should I admit that?

 



 

 

You start in the center back and sew out to each sleeve instead of sewing in one continuous loop so I am just showing one side. Start by matching up the center seam on the yoke with your pleat seam.  Put a couple of pins in for a few inches but stop when you get close to the shoulder and look at the next picture.

 

 

 

Turn your sleeve inside out to get the right side of this point on the yoke (marked with the pencil)

 

 

 

To match the right side of this point on the main body of your shirt (marked with pencil)

 

 

 

Pin those two points together (right sides together). Then I tucked the sleeve inside the side panel so that the right side of the sleeve seam matched up with the bottom of the V on the side panel.

 

 

 

Pin the right side of the sleeve seam to the bottom of the V.  Now that you have those two points pinned, you should be able to see clearly where to put the rest of your pins in between the pins you've already used and start sewing. These are the best pictures I could get of the finished product.

 

 

 

Figuring out how to attach the lining is much easier because you start again at the center back and just follow your original stitching line with shirt body between the outer yoke/sleeve and the yoke/sleeve lining.  I had a terrible time figuring out how to sew in one continuous line so this is my best advice: Stitch from the center back to the underarm seam.  Then twist your fabric into a jumbled mess by pulling the sleeves in opposite directions to get right sides together for the rest of the sleeve. And yes this is the best picture I could get!   

 

 

 

Keep at it if you are a beginner/advanced beginner/ intermediate sewer like me because the end results are cute.  I picked up some cheap buttons at WalMart that I thought were perfect for this shirt. And I don't think they look cheap.

 

 

 

 

Overall I'm happy with this shirt.  There are no exposed seams inside and the construction details are really nice once you get the hang of it.  Happy sewing!

 

















The Simple A-Line Skirt That Took FOREVER

I made this skirt for the Sew Mama Sew Community Sewing Match. I followed the Design & Sew An A-Line Skirt course on Craftsy and loved it.  The instructor breaks things down and makes them very easy to follow.  I struggle with picking the right size on patterns and I always have fitting issues due to that.  This course really helped me understand my measurements. The biggest bonus for me is that since there was no pattern to follow, I really had to go outside of my comfort zone and figure out exactly what I wanted to do with my skirt.  As the instructor was talking I was thinking, "Oh THAT's how people do that!"  It made me realize how I can customize other patterns to my liking.  I can't recommend the course enough.  It was my first Craftsy course and I've got two more in my queue!

Why did this skirt take me forever?  A combination of things.  First of all, I am an incredibly slow sewer.  Maybe it has something to do with having two year old twins at home or maybe it's just how I work.  I would like to produce more but I'm not going to stress out about it. 

It also took me awhile to decide what I wanted to do.  I did an initial skirt pattern.  Then I fooled around with slashing and spreading to make a fuller skirt.  I browsed Pinterest for ideas and found an A-line skirt with a front pleat and decided I would do that because I had done a pleat like that on a shirt previously and liked the look.  Then it occurred to me that I had the pattern but no fabric.  I wanted to work with wool crepe and add a silk lining because I had not worked with either fabric before.  The initial dark plum wool crepe I picked at Mood was out of stock after I placed my order so a couple of days later I had to pick again.  I have to say that had I known "poppy" meant "incredibly bright orange to the point of almost being neon" I would not have picked it.  I didn't buy enough yardage to return it so I decided to forge ahead.  I do not wear skin tight camis in public.  The reason why I am wearing one in these pictures is because anything bulkier shows right through the fabric (and not in a good way).  I'm not sure how to style the skirt.

 

To make the pleat, I moved the edge of my original pattern away from the center 3 inches and then sewed down 3.5 inches at the original center mark.  I thought about just adding the yoke without the piping.  However, whenever I see piping I think, "I want to do that" but then I never do.  This time I decided I was going to no matter what.  It wasn't challenging and I enjoyed how it turned out. 

 



Somehow the piping matched on the first try when I added the invisible zipper.  I was nervous about that. 

This butterscotch silk crepe de chine is not this yellow in real life.  It started out as a lining and since I have no idea what I'm doing with linings it somehow ended up as underlining.  Arg.  After that I went straight to Amazon for a book on how to add linings.  I think my issue was that I followed the course instruction and sewed the yokes to the main pieces first and then attached them down the side seam.  I wonder how the lining would have turned out had I sewn the main pieces and yokes together separately and then attached them together with the lining.  I did enjoy using the crepe de chine.  It wasn't challenging at all.

I used a facing with the poppy fabric. I also had to use sew in interfacing because I could attach the fusible interfacing without the wool shrinking horribly. 

Another thing I've wanted to try is Hug Snug seam binding because of a post on Lilacs and Lace.  It also added to the length of time it took me to finish.  I chose a generic color prior to this project to see if I liked it.  The color clashes but I did enjoy using the rayon seam binding.  I thought I would like it if I used orange thread on the bias tape.  I don't.  Too late now!

Even if the color is way too bright, this was a great project for me.  I practiced several new skills and used wool and silk for the first time.  I'm counting it as a success!

 

 

My First Copycat Dress!

 

 

 

I am so excited about this dress!  I've always ripped out pictures from magazines and kept them on a bulletin board in my sewing room.  I know this sounds silly, but it never occurred to me to locate patterns to recreate those looks until Lori from Girls In The Garden posted about recreating an outfit from Pinterest.  Enter Colette's newest pattern Hawthorn.  I have had this picture on my board for probably 1-2 years:

 

Please excuse the cell phone photo but our scanner suddenly died tonight. You can't tell but it's navy gingham.  I cut off some of the item description, but the tag on the dress says "Milly" and it's listed as being for sale at Bergdorf Goodman for $295.  When I saw Hawthorn I knew just what I was going to do.  Actually, I saw an article online prior to it's release saying that the next pattern was going to be a shirtdress, so I purchased the fabric before the pattern was even released.  And it got even better when the pattern looked almost exactly like the dress in the magazine!

I attempted to slash and spread to add extra room in the waistline as well as doing a SBA.  That was a disaster that I won't go into.  After looking through a fitting book I decided I didn't need such major adjustments, so I just graded the pattern out at the waistline and used a bigger seam allowance through the bust.  I'm happy with the fit.  It's usually extremely hot here in the summer so I didn't want a skin tight dress.

The fabric was very sheer so I underlined the bodice with something I had in my stash.  I turned and stitched the sideseams and I'm happy with that result.

I always want my skirts to be lined but I've freaked out about doing it (or anything for that matter) if it's not in the instructions.  For some reason on this dress I knew just how I wanted to do it.  I bought this lining from Gertie's shop on Etsy and it worked well.  I cut the front lining pieces just to the line that indicates where to fold the facing back on the skirt front.  Then after stitching both the main skirt and the lining to the bodice I caught the lining in the edgestitching on that later step. It wasn't hard and I was happy I could figure out how to do it on my own without handholding. 

The skirt and the lining are both finished with French seams.  Unfortunately I inserted the lining with the seams facing out.  Nobody notices it but me so I'm OK with it.

BIG news:  I actually used my serger to finish the waist seam.  I discovered that I didn't have one of the needles threaded and neither needle thread was through the loop above the needles.  No wonder it wasn't working.  I fixed both things and it serged with no problem.

I enjoyed every step of making this dress.  This will not be my last Hawthorn.  I absolutely love Lladybird's dress in this post and I would love to do something like that.  I feel pretty proud of myself that I was able to recreate something that I've been looking at for well over a year. The pricetag on the dress in the magazine was $295.  My dress cost no more than $50 including fabric, thread and buttons.  I also participated in my first sewalong so that's good news too.  I'm slowly but surely getting better!

 

 

 

 

 



 

 



Sewaholic Hollyburn skirt

 

This Sewaholic Hollyburn skirt is my favorite of the things I've made so far.  It was my first time sewing with rayon challis and I liked it so much I'll use it again. 

I used a stabilizer to keep the fabric from shifting during the sewing process and tried not to handle it too much. 

I also chose to underline (again) the skirt.  I need to buy a book on how to add linings.  If the pattern doesn't call for a lining then I don't know how to add one myself. 

Once again I had problems with picking the right size.  This is the first Sewaholic pattern I've sewn.  Based on my waist measurement I chose a 10 and tapered down to a 4 in the hips for my muslin.  The waist was huge so I sewed a straight 6 for my final product.  I could have tapered down in the hips since there is a lot of volume in the size 6 for me.  However, during the muslin phase I discovered that I had graded down right in the middle of the pocket and that complicated things.  Also, I think grading that far between sizes is probably too much.  I should have done another muslin but I was too lazy. 

I like the tabs and pockets!

This skirt was super easy to make. I used the serger to finish the seams.  It was my best job so far but still not as good as I'd like.  I just noticed there is a Crafty class on serging which I desperately need to sign up for.

I did a catchstich on the hem.  It's a big hem to sew by hand but I just like it so much better that way.