Crime Scene Adele

The second top I finished on THE WEEKEND was the StyleArc Adele top which is a lovely tee with an asymmetrical point on the hem.

Why do I call it the Crime Scene Adele? Take a look at the fabric I used!!

Thought it would go well with my red Barbs.

The only change I made was to lower and widen the neckline a little as the girls need their space. I also had to cut my own neckband as I had changed the pattern. I used the shorter sleeve version and did not sew the side slit.

I held the pattern up against me and thought I wouldn't need to make the 2 inch (5cm) lengthening adjustment I normally make to StyleArc ( I am a tall chick) however looking at the pictures I think the front could come down an inch or so. For my next version (I do like it so I will make another) I will add the inch to the front by way of lowering the point rather than just adding an inch to the pattern as I think the point needs to be bigger on my bigger bod.

The fabric is a cotton rib that I purchased online from Denver Fabrics and has been marinading in my stash for a couple of years. I do love the fabric but a touch of lycra would have been good to give it recovery.

I was a little worried on how to do the point on my coverstitch and ended up starting at a point and sewing around to the back point. Then starting again at that point. It worked okay. If anyone has a tip on how to do points with 2 needles I would be very interested.

Overall happy for a first go at this pattern. I don't like doing muslins but I will call it a wearable muslin. I am considering putting darts in the bust of the next one. What do you think? There are some that don't like darts in knits but I think the girls might need them.

Still need to hem the other items from the weekend. 

Wot I dun on the weekend by BeaJay

First let me apologise for the title of this post. I have just finished 4 weeks of training Certificate III in Business and some of my students were just out of school and insisted on calling me "Miss". Groan groan. Took me right back to kindy.

Anyway my weekend was wonderful.

I have had a fabulous couple of days down at Stanwell Tops! I was joined by about 29 other sewing ladies from the Australian Sewing Guild and in particular the Rhodes and Alexandria groups, for a weekend of stitching our way through tonnes of fabric.

This is picture heavy but I do have a new outfit picture at the end of the post for show and tell.

This is where we stayed:

Arial View - Picture from The Tops Conference Centre website

Outside view - Picture from The Tops Conference Centre website

Accommodation - Picture from The Tops Conference Centre website

It had a real fun camp feel to the weekend and I couldn't help but sing Kumbaya. The air was fresh, the sky blue, the surrounding countryside an amazing green and food was delicious.

Here we are stuffing our face - they didn't stop feeding us.

Above are some great friends from my sewing group.
Front left Sharon from Petite and Sewing
Jinty - no blog
Kristy from Lower Your Pressure Foot
Sandra - no blog but you can see her marvelous work on Pattern Review where she is Dilliander
Cathy - no blog
Gail from My Fabrication
A new friend who's name I can't remember
And Wendy ( in green top) - no blog


Below is our sewing room with Wendy industriously at her machine.

Here is my area with my weapons of mass construction

Someone brought a friend. Babs was highly annoyed that I didn't invite her. I told her there wasn't room in the car. She is still not talking to me.

Here is Kristy, Jinty and Di hard at work cutting and prepping.

Wendy from Costumes from a Shoe Box is always highly entertaining and makes it even more of a fun time.

Here is the view from our sewing room:

I managed to rustle up almost 6 tops. I say almost as one was a UFO and only needed finishing, 2 have been completely finished and 3 need hemming. After making all of my different coloured Barb pants I needed tops.

Here is the UFO now finished - sort of. I do want to bring the sides seams in a bit.

It is Butterick 5855 which I have sewn before but this time I kept the "sleeves" shorter as the first time I was trying to incorporate a border. It is pictured with a pair of lime green StylyArc Barb pants that I have cut off at under the knee to make capris. I thought a full pant in lime green might just be OTT. I also gave the Barbs a tiny "flare" at the bottom. Warning warning warning - put on your sunnies. I can direct traffic with this high viz gear.

Photo by Sandra (Dilliander) - thanking you

The wrinkles on the bengaline pants are from hours sitting and sewing. The Bengaline is from StyleArc and the groovy 60's top fabric is from Vogue Fabrics.com. It was labeled as a knit but is quite a firm knit with very little stretch. I must admit that I do like the flashback deco look of it. It is still available if anyone else wants to be safe at night. It has now sold out.

All in all a very comfy outfit that will do well for my weekend wear. I see more Barb capris and Butterick 5855s coming up in my future. Maybe more toward our Spring as we will be starting Winter in 5 days - not that you would know it with a balmy 28 degrees Celsius (82.4F) forecast for tomorrow.

More later - I will take piccies of my other items when I can.

A big huge gigantic thanks to the lovely Sharon from Petite and Sewing for organising such a wonderful weekend.

A Bundle of Barbs - On trend or so last week?

Well you know I love me some StyleArc and I have finished 3 pairs of StyleArc Barb Pants in StyleArc Bengaline. They go together so quickly and I LOVE the way they feel.

As I had sewn them twice before - the first one in stone and the second (tweaked) one in cocoa I knew I was okay with fit (well - my version of okay - I haven't worked out if seams are right and what the pulls mean) and at this stage I am happy so I purchased new rotary cutter blades and cut the fabric for all three pairs at once. I then took them along to the SewInn at Tessuti's on the 8th and sewed them all up in the morning. I hadn't hemmed them though which is why they haven't had their photo taken until now.

Here is the version in Paprika Bengaline along with a previously sewn Cate top. Excuse the wrinkles - they have been out in the car and shopping.

Alright - alright - they are orange - but if StyleArc can call it Paprika then so can I!!

I had originally put them on with the spice coloured Michelle tunic but thought that it was much too much orange for one person in one outfit at one time. Am I finally learning restraint??? God I hope not.

Here is a hanger shot of Mint and Red..

I have also sewn (but not completed yet) a lime green adaption of the barb to be a more Capri length.

So - am I on trend with my bright coloured pants - or am I several leaps and bounds behind the herd?  ......... I am not that worried about trend - I just love my bright pants.

The style is something I wear a lot for business and purchase at Ezibuy but these are the colours available -

Oh joy - so colourful - not. They cost $50 per pair or 2 for $89. Now the cost of StyleArc Bengaline and my size makes it a little cheaper to make ($32) but not a massive amount- but oh the colours when you make them yourself!!!!

My cocoa coloured ones were Bengaline from the The Remnants Warehouse and ended up only costing $14 to make as their Bengaline is sooo much cheaper - a little thinner - but still good - but I love the colours of the StyleArc ones.

BTW - I just purchased a whole lot of Aubergine coloured Bengaline from StyleArc and sooo want to make another pair of Barbs but the colour is just so gorgeous I might make a work suit. Egad - that means jacket and skirt.

I am not putting these forward as my March garment for MAGAM - still hoping to get something "new to me" done.

Next up is my lime coloured capris and a lime coloured caftan top (maybe too much lime??)

What is on your sewing table?

Artisan's square 3PAC and more

First a heart felt thanks for all the support on my last post. The sewing community is such a fantastic group of people. It is also another "wake up" to me that many others are going through their own issues and problems

As mentioned in my last post, I have been sewing a lot the last few days (for me anyway!!) Here are the results.

StyleArc Barb Pants and Creative Cate top. These along with my newly fixed Island Ali top will form the first 3PAC of my Artisan Square SWAP

I have made both before and love the style on me. So - why mess with a good thing? I did change the Barb pants by slimming down the leg a little from my last pair. I shaved about an inch off the thighs. The fabric is a lovely bengaline from the Remnants Warehouse.I have thought about stretching my skills and doing a pattern with a fly front - but then I think there is no way I would wear anything tucked in so I don't need the details. I do think I shall try pockets soon though. The fabric is bengaline purchased from the Remnants Warehouse.

The Cate top is cool and comfy to wear and I love that pattern. With all of the tops I have made - I like the Creative Cate the best! The fabric is a really silky ITY knit of some sort of animal print from Fabric.com. I have been trying to work out what type of animal - there looks like some fish scales, some sort of big cats but in the end I decided the animal was a sloth as it was supposed to be finished for Anne of Pretty Grievances' Jungle January.

Next on the deck(my version of catwalk) is the lovely Michelle Tunic again from StyleArc. The Michelle Tunic is from their plus sized range however is similar to their Sandy top. I don't know why StyleArc have a plus sized section as they will do ANY of their patterns up to a AUS size 30. The Michelle was made up in a gorgeous poly chiffon also from the Remnants Warehouse. I decided to do the "stripes" running vertical instead of horizontal - more slimming I believe. The fabric has a tiny amount of glitter on it. I am not normally a glitter girl but it is so minimal it is just  a very pretty accent. You wouldn't even see it unless you looked up close.

This will also be my entry into the February Make a Garment a Month Challenge

The sideways tilt is because of my hip and only apparent from the back

Glitter

This was a bit of a learning curve for me. I hadn't sewn with chiffon before but I used Lena Merrin's gelatine method and it worked a treat. Didn't even worry the glitter. The fabric goes in a nice thin flowing chiffon and when it dries it is like organza - stiff but malleable and more controllable. I actually love the look and feel of it like this but of course you buy chiffon for it's soft and floating qualities and you also can't get the fabric wet when you have gelatined it. It irons and everything with the gelatine in it. Once you have finished sewing you wash as normal and wow - back to flowing chiffon. Brilliant. BTW I was rushed for time so instead of leaving it soaking for an hour as per instructions I only soaked for about 20 mins. It still worked well.

With this top I added two inches in length - used a one size larger pattern than I do for the knit at StyleArc and made the mistake of extending the slit at the bust thinking that I do like low cut - the girls do need their space you know - but I cut it way too low. I will need to take a couple of stitches to close about an inch. I also don't have much luck with v's. the top stitching to hold down the bias doesn't look great and I always have difficulty with the "turning over" the end of the V.

I was going to try another skill - French seams - but I couldn't work out how that would work with the vents at the bottom of the side seams - so I used the overcast stitch on the Elna to tidy the edges and did a normal seam at the sides. I did find it puckered a bit so on the advice from More Fabric Savvy from Sandra Betzina - I used a tiny zigzag stitch. Very slow going but did not pucker the fabric.

Overcast stitch on overlocker / seger - haven't used this before - it is good for light fabrics

Using narrow hem foot

Outcome of narrow hem

Looking at the photos I think I might have some fit issues. Everything feels good on - I will have to wear to my ASG meeting on Saturday and get some fit feedback from the experts there.

And finally here is the Island Ali top fixed - see before and after. This was because I misread the instructions and only cut two side panels instead of 2 PAIR of side panels. I also scooped the neckline lower. The girls were happy. Also the first pair of Barb pants and the modified slimmer ones.

I am keeping my second Michelle tunic until my next post. This one was picture heavy enough.

What I have learnt:

• The Gelatine Method works great - thanks Lena!
• How to make a bias strip (well - not great outcome but it did work)
• How to sew a bias strip instead of using facings
• That it really does work better for me when I buy the bias strips instead of making them. Especially from chiffon!!
• How to use the overcast stitch on my serger / overlocker.

I will leave you with a pic of Supervisory Special Cat Elle inspecting the quality of my fabrics.

Until next time may your sewjo mojo flowso.

Sewing day and PPP

Thank you for all of your kind words on my Franki Dress and Island Ali Top.

Franki will remain a dress but is relegated to weekends as it is too short for me to feel comfortable with clients.

Well the Tess Girls (Velosewer, Dilliander, Sharon, Kristy, Wendy, Margaret and I) got together again for another day of sewing and talking at Sew Inn at Tessuti's in Surry Hills.

How wonderful to sew surrounded by lovely women and gorgeous fabric.

The incredible Maria (Velosewer) spent some time drafting a pattern and chatting to the wonderful Colette, one of the owners of Tessuti, who never fails to make us feel so welcome as if we were part of the Tessuti family. It really is a joy going there.

Maria then helped me with the fitting of the Busting Butterick jacket that I have been spasmodically working on. Maria is working on fit a lot. We moved darts and took it in somewhat and the fit is much better. Thanks Maria. (side on is not my best profile!!).

If you look carefully between Maria and I you will see a bolt of fabric that both Kristy and I were eyeing off and yes - we both went home with some. (only one day after I pledged to TRY not to purchase fabric - but it was staring at me all day!!!)

I wore my new outfit and found a couple of things...

Island Ali top - way too high neckline and kept choking me. Sharon said that I may need a forward shoulder adjustment as well.

The lovely Lara from Thornberry alerted me to the fact that I have left out some side panels which would give me an extra 8 inches in width DOH DER DOH... now wonder it was tight, pulling and the flanges or sleeves don't look right. I will be spending quality time with my unpicker today......

Barb pants - well - they do need elastic after all. But still very happy with them.

To other news...

There is less than a week for the Plus Sized Pattern Pyramid draw on my blog. Can you help to spread the word? People who enter must be prepared to pay for postage to send it on.

So far the votes are saying that it is wanted, needed and to keep it going. This is very pleasing . Let's help spread the word,

Are we ready for the Jungle: AKA I have been sewing

We exercised vigorously to make sure we were fit for the trek into the Jungle.

We have made sure everything is packed for the trip.

We looked closely and checked that all paperwork, visas and passports are in order.

And now it is off to Anne from Pretty Grievances' Jungle trek.

Of course we had to dress to blend in..

This is the StyleArc Frankie dress.

Although looking at the photo it is way too short for me so I will be cutting it down to a top.

When I made the Creative Cate top the first time I mentioned that I would like to make it into a dress. Rather than mess with the pattern I purchased the Franki dress which is similar in shape but a whole dress. I think I will try the Creative Cate as a dress as I think I would prefer it to the Franki.

The cowl keeps wanting to turn to the outside but a little tip from the Gorgeous Ann from Gorgeous fabrics has fixed that. Thanks Ann.

The armholes were too big and the band for them too small. I ended up cutting bigger bands which helped fill in the armhole.

I also wasn't sure about the length and it ended up being a bit too short so I have hemmed it with a narrow hem.

I have already added sleeves to the Cate and I think the cowl is a little different too.

I do like it - but I don't love it. It will do it's time in wardrobe probation until I decide if it is a bad Franki or a good Franki.

Here it is with a cardi (RTW) which is how I will wear it - even as a top.

Next two items are the StyleArc Barb pants (sewn in StyleArc's Bengaline) and the Island Ali Top from StyleArc.

Alright alright - the top isn't exactly animal print but surely a trekker gets extra cruise bar credits for wearing the actual jungle itself!!!

The Barb pants are my December item for Make a Garment a Month and the top is my January item.

Simple review (I will do a detailed review on PR)

Barb - Love them. They are more slim lined than Linda and perfect for the Bengaline that I have been amassing. I also made the waist band double the width and slightly smaller than the body of the pant and therefore - no elastic needed.

Island Ali - hmmm - love the style but maybe a little tight (all that Christmas pud and cake - what - who said and wine????). This was a little more of a complicated sew than I am used to. Lots of concentration. Thanks to JillyBe for the guidance on her blog.

The neckline is too high and will have to come down a couple of inches (even though I had already taken some off)

I haven't added the elastic - a bit too tight for that.

One thing that confused me greatly was the side panels.. They were not symmetrical and no indication of whether the higher bit went at the front or back - so I just guessed. It looks like this.

I thought what better fabric to create an Island Ali in than this gorgeous fabric from Knitwit.

New things

- Using my rolled hem foot for knits (thanks JillyBe)
- Using FOE (Fold over elastic) - liking this but not liking the fact that it is not readily available - I still have envy of the wall of FOE that Alison came across in NZ. I did buy some on ebay but having the right colour available at the right time isn't easy.

Reflections

There have been a lot of reflections and top 5s around the blogisphere which I have enjoyed immensely. When you read someone's blog on a regular basis you loose track of all the wonderful items they have made and a snap shot of the year is like a smorgasbord.

I am not going to do a top five - simply because my sewing isn't at the stage where I can pick 5 I am totally happy with, nor will I do a five misses. Just some reflections on the year and on a few different items.

One of the things that I am heartily sick of is pilling.

Killed by the pill - these have gone into weekend wear as my gentle front loading washing machine has pilled the fabric already. Both the dress and the top didn't hold up. All my other garments are doing fine but these were 2 of my favourites and were quickly killed by the pill.

Most worn outfit for 2013.

Last year was the year of the dress and I enjoyed making and wearing them - and will make more - however this year (the beginning anyway) will be mainly separates to try to build up my wardrobe with the exception of today's Franki dress and the dress for my SWAP.

I also enjoyed initiating the Plus Sized Pattern Pyramid and Scary September.

Ahead in 2014

I have joined Sarah in the RTW fast. I have only purchased 2 items since I started sewing 2 years ago (with exception of undergarments ;-) and want to keep that up. This is one of the reasons that my wardrobe needs to be built up (my sewing has been slow and sporadic in successes LOL). I may have to break this fast to purchase an interview outfit as I will be hitting the sidewalk looking for a job soon and my sewing isn't up to job interviews just yet.

I shall also continue on with SarahLiz's Make a Garment A Month Challenge.

One of the things I am committing to in 2014 is purchasing quality fabric. Now you will still see some cheap and nasty fabric appearing in my sewing and that is because I have already purchased it. I want quality now.

I actually need to do a fabric purchase fast too but I have tried them in the past and failed dismally.

In just the short span of days of this year I have purchased the following:

*sigh* that doesn't even count what I purchased at the end of 2013.

I make this pledge - I will TRY not to purchase any more fabric..... I will TRY to only use fabric from the stash.... I didn't really stretch my skills last year. I will TRY to do better this year and try to incorporate new skills.