The Winter of Two Patterns

Fast forward several months and I’m still getting organized. Can you believe it? Simplify has become both my middle name and my mantra. I’ve tossed most of my old clothing. A few things I’ve been able to alter - but most? No, not worth the time or effort. Even though I don’t have many garments, my closet has nine boxes of fabric along with a floor to ceiling stack of neatly folded two to three yard lengths.

I have been sewing, just not blogging. The quality of my photos gets the blame. Usually it is late at night when I take pictures of my projects. I don’t know if it is the camera or the lighting (or both), but the photos are awful and I end up deleting them and then not blogging. I either need to find a decent lamp or a new camera…

Jalie 3245

This winter’s sewing focused on two patterns. One for tops, Jalie 3245, and the other for pants, Burda 2-2007-120.

Burda 2-2007-120

Why only two? Well, once home after working all day and fighting traffic (both coming and going), I often didn’t feel like tracing new patterns and wondering if I was going to end up with something wearable. With so few garments in the closet, I needed a sure bet and took the expedient route. Boring, utilitarian sewing with incredibly bad lighting (really, really bad!) produced enough business casual garments to get me through the winter.

The pants are straight forward, nothing fancy…just pants, but I like that back yoke seaming that meets the pocket seam on the side. For me, sewing a yoke seam is much easier than marking and sewing waist darts, especially with dark fabric and INCREDIBLY BAD LIGHTING. I didn’t include the cuffs. Sewn entirely on the machines.

The tops came together with whatever knit fabric I could extract from the stack without knocking it over. Some even came from the Fabriconda. Those were the most interesting as I had to combine fabrics to have enough to make make a top.

This cotton tunic is my escape from the Winter of Two Patterns. I bought the fabric at Super Textiles in Dallas. It is just down the road from the Golden D'or Fabric Outlet. Interesting place. Go there if you get a chance. Haven’t worn it yet as it is waiting for a pair of white Capri’s. The pattern is Burda 8918, and long OOP.

Burda 8918

I did my standard "add an inch to the neckline at the shoulder" maneuver. I also left off the ties and went with a narrow elastic loop and a button instead. I didn’t want to fiddle with a skinny bias loop. Simplify…

News? Well, DD#2 got married and it was a very happy wedding. Their new puppy even showed up! I ended up purchasing my MOB dress. I shopped for quality fabric, both online and off, that would be flattering and a good value and was unsuccessful. I think it would have helped had I had a definite style in mind. Anyway, no complaints. The purchased dress was kind to my budget and appropriate. Plus, it fit and I was comfortable the entire evening. A win all the way around.

Here we are at Easter:

What else? DD#1 graduated with her MBA. I’m so proud of her!

Will work on the lighting thingy…

One Step Forward...

Once home, I made quick work of getting those Golden D'or Fabric Outlet pieces inspected and washed. After serious culling, the remaining fabrics are worth the seven dollars paid. The picture above is a sampling. Don't know that I would do that again, but it was amusing to see what was in that bag!

Before the Dallas trip, I completed a pair of capris (Ottobre Woman Every-Woman's Pants 05-2008-16), the Classic Flares (Ottobre Woman 02-2013-20) and a pair of cropped pants using Burda 7068. They were all made from the same $1.99/yd black windowpane cotton fabric purchased from FabricMart.com. Same fabric, same thread and so I couldn't help but put them together assembly line style. Did it save any time? Maybe yes, maybe no. But it was satisfying when I had three new garments all at once. I didn't take photos mainly because details on black fabric do not show up well and besides, nothing you haven't seen me make before. Just pants.

Soon after the assembly line ended, I started the Vogue 1247 Rachel Comey top and was pleased that I'd pinned the pattern to the dress form before cutting the fabric. The top would have been way too large had I gone with the size that matched my measurements. I chose a less-than-wonderful floral polyester and all went well until I went to overlock. The usually dependable Kenmore was skipping stitches and I blamed it on the polyester. I switched out needle sizes and types and unthreaded and rethreaded the machine. It didn't help. Finally, I removed all thread and rotated the hand wheel. Yep, sure enough, the looper was hitting the back of the needle plate. It wasn't loose nor did it look odd. I removed the plate and laid it flat on the table. Flat? Shouldn't it be flat? Nope, it was like a rocking chair...

See that triangular piece on the right of the needle plate? It was bent. I took pliers to it and that corrected the skipped stitches. No clue as to how it got bent. Not trusting it to remain flat, I bought a replacement from eBay, swapped them out and the the machine stitches like new. Now, in my panic before I determined the problem was the needle plate, I overreacted and there is a similar model (via eBay) on its way.

The quilt? It is resting as:

• I ripped the Supreme Slider by catching it on the needle when removing it from the Bernina. I'm hoping I can find some type of tape that will keep me from having to buy another one anytime soon - any ideas? I also somehow managed to stitch through it.

• I quilted to the edge of a panel where I should have left a seam allowance. Yes, I have some unstitching to do and I'm not happy about it...

 

In other news, DD #1 gifted me some Robert Kaufman fat quarters from the Passage to India collection. I love the prints and was able to find more online. I'm in no hurry to decide what these fabrics will become. Aren't they beautiful?

Little by Little

It is dark here. Rainy and dreary too. And, I’m embarrassed to show you these photos. I’ve tried, (really I have!) to come up with better looking ones.

The jeans were finished almost two weeks ago and the shirt is slowly coming together. No longer entertained by needles breaking and flying while zigzagging belt loops onto several thicknesses of denim, I’ve decided to sew fewer of them. This explains why you see two, not three belt loops on the back. I’m not liking the look, but hey, I don’t wear tucked-in shirts and no one (other than us) will ever know. This is my solution until I can figure something else out.

 

Oh, now don’t fret about the collar stand – it isn’t yet attached to the shirt; it's not even pinned. As you can see, I haven’t made it to the sleeves either even though I’m anxious to see if the cap/bicep adjustment is going to work.

 

Once I get a pattern I like, I plan to step up to the opportunities for tabs, pockets and maybe some pintucks or ruffles. This round is simply to let me know if the sleeve is better. Call it a muslin or toile. Take your pick...

 

Along with the new sleeve pattern, I am also trying out a new-to-me fusible interfacing from Fashion Sewing Supply. This one is Pro-Woven Shirt-Crisp interfacing. You can’t tell from the photo, but the collar looks great! However, I’ll hold off buying any more until I know it’s gonna survive the washer and dryer.

I am curious to see what happens to this stuff. I don’t hand wash any of my clothing (does anyone?) but I make considerable use of the delicate cycles. It needs to take a few trips to the laundry room and come back looking good. I think that is a fair test.

Side seam at hem of worn Lands' End Sleep-T

 

I’ve noticed my Lands’ End Sleep-T’s have seen better days. I’ve worn dozens of these over the years in various colors and prints. Usually, I order several at a time, all the same size, color and print (translation: whatever is on the overstock page in my size) and wear them until someone tells me I should be ashamed…Well, I am ashamed but they are now $39.50 each. I have to admit they are worth every penny, but I’m realizing I could buy a lot of fabric and/or other sewing goodies instead. Therefore, planning ahead, I am going to take the worst looking one and make it a pattern. The way I see it is there isn’t much to loose if it doesn’t work…

Bernina My Label Tailored Shirt Pattern

In looking at the sleeve cap of my BML shirt pattern, I decided that it really wasn’t too wonky looking. You know – having an obvious bump that is begging to be smoothed out. I could take some off the top of the cap to help it fit better into the armhole. However, it occurred to me that I had added to the bicep measurement in the style settings before printing the pattern and that likely added more fabric than necessary. What would happen if I reprinted the pattern using my actual bicep measurement? Would that correct the cap?

To find out, I’ve reprinted the pattern using my real bicep measurement. The clear pattern on the top is the original pattern printed in 2010 while the white paper is the new one.

For fabric, I’m using this black striped stretch cotton ordered from Fabric.com. To me, it looks like it should be sewn into a manly country western shirt, complete with pointed yokes and pearl snaps. I had expected pant weight fabric. Thank goodness I paid less than $6.00 for it! Just know I won’t be crying too hard if my changes don’t work. Yet, I sure hope they do…

In other breaking sewing news (hold your breath), I started another pair of jeans. My favorite cropped jeans came from Ottobre Woman 05-2008-16.  For this pair, I've lengthened the leg, changed the back waist darts into a yoke, added a coin pocket and traced the back pocket from the only RTW jeans in my closet (Eddie Bauer). As always, I guessed to their placement.

OttobreWoman 05-2008-16

I’ll probably be able to get another project or two from the roll before it is used up and I need to be deciding what type and weight the next one should be.

Happy sewing and Happy New Year!

Again with Burda 02-2007-129

Recently, I haven’t had large chunks of sewing time. I grab ten minutes here, twenty there and I really just wanted to sew something without any style or fit challenges. As it was, it took about two weeks to complete this pair of jeans. Using a pattern that already had the kinks worked out was golden.

Burda 02-2007-129

The waist is good: not too high, not too low. I can’t say that the front pockets are total perfection but they ain’t bad either…and big enough to actually be useful.

I did change up the back pockets as I really liked the shape and size of the pockets (from Burda 8059) I’d sewn on my recent Burda 7284 jeans. I felt this pocket pattern deserved to go another round.  My trusty Clover pocket curve template made quick work of the corners.

 

I was able to enjoy sewing. Mindlessly. Yes, check out the zipper topstitching. I’d forgotten to topstitch the seam before sewing in the zipper. No seam ripper was going to spoil my fun and so I just did the best I could after the fact…

I have spent the past several months figuring out how to sew myself pants. Next, I want to tackle the classic shirt. Thanks to the BML (Bernina My Label) software, I do possess a shirt pattern that fits (see this posting).  There truly isn’t a need to chase other patterns. And, even if there were, I already possess several; enough that I should be forbidden from buying any more…

My BML shirt pattern works but could be tweaked. The most obvious issue is the sleeve cap - there is a bit more ease than necessary on the back. Common sense tells me to take scissors to the pattern, even out the cap and see what happens.

I sewed lots of denim in 2011. May 2012 be the year of the shirt…

Ottobre “Mom” Jeans, a Jacket and More

Seems like forever since I last blogged, but it really has only been a few weeks. My routine has been predictably boring and once I have taken care of the requirements of the day, there's not much energy left for sewing. It is just too easy to substitute a glass of iced tea and a sliver of Key lime pie.

I did finish the Ottobre “mom” jeans. The pockets were embroidered with randomly dialed stitches…nothing planned at all. To help tie the front and back together, I continued the embroidery onto the front of the jeans. Even though they are not my favorite pair, they do fit and I’ve already worn them to the office and put them through the washer and dryer. This is how they look straight from the dryer.

I traced the pattern for an unlined jacket, Burda 08-2008-127, and pinned it on the dress form to get a rough idea of how it would fit. It has stayed there for two weeks. With the heat, it is not pleasant to think about trying on anything long-sleeved.  There is, however, a piece of mystery brownish black/gold brocade that is a wonderful candidate for the pattern.

Burda 08-2008-127

The downside: due to the loose weave, the fabric will need to be block fused and then underlined. Also, bound buttonholes would be best. I’m thinking that this is a bigger investment than I am willing to make with an unproved pattern. And, since there is still plenty of denim, I’m gonna try it out with that (no block fusing/no underlining required).

While tracing the jacket pattern, I went ahead and traced a top pattern, Burda Style 08-2011-138. I like that the front and back hemlines are different. The buttons on the back add a nice detail, but I’m betting they are more decorative than functional and so will pass on them for now.

Burda Style 08-2011-138

Jalie 2806, a  top pattern purchased months ago, has patiently waited on the sewing table. It promises to be a basic and versatile style for me. Problem is, I can’t decide what size. Overlaying my BML (Bernina My Label) t-shirt pattern, it looks like my size incorporates three different pattern sizes. I keep stalling as I don’t want to waste my time or my fabric with a poor sizing choice. Purely illogical as I have a $1.00/yard knit that is perfect for testing; not much to lose if it doesn’t work.

Julie - Thank for your shirt pattern suggestion (Silhouettes Classic Blouse, #600). I have several projects in the works but hope to order this soon.

Jared - You recently asked about my sewing machine and the denim I’m using. Most of my sewing (including the denim projects) is done on a Bernina 930 Record and the denim came from Safe Denim. And yes, it is holding up. The fabric is wonderful!

Okay, off for another glass of iced tea (decaf – it is late after all)…Happy sewing!

Ottobre's Every-Woman’s Pant - Finished

I finished the Ottobre cropped pants and have already worn them. Here is what they look like after two trips through the washer and dryer. Perfect for summer and I’m happy to have them.

From various reviews, I anticipated that the Ottobre fit would be more generous than Burda’s but I can't say that I notice a difference. The pants work and that has given me a green light to try other Ottobre pants patterns.

I still haven’t decided what to do about new shirt patterns but somehow I have to get it in gear soon. Motivation? Well, the tops currently in my closet are starting to look sad and I can’t find anything in ready-to-wear that fits. One would think that would be motivation enough…

I want to skip the trial and error part of fitting yet I know it has to happen.  So, in the meantime, I’ll just keep sewing pants and throw in a few TNT shirts until I can get inspired (or truly desperate).

I have traced and cut out the 5-pocket Ottobre Woman jeans (05-2007-10). I love the back pockets with the buttoned flaps but will be sewing the patch pocket for this first attempt with the new pattern. The waist looks a bit high – like edging into “mom” jeans territory but I’m going to sew “as is” for this round.

Ottobre Woman 05-2007-10

That’s all that’s new in my sewing world, though I have been spending a lot of time on eBay looking at old Pfaff’s, Bernina’s and Vikings. I don’t need anymore machines but I sure enjoy seeing what is out there.

Enjoy your week!

Every-Woman’s Pant - Ottobre 05-2008-16

Number 15 from the denim roll is slowing coming along. I’d traced the pattern and cut the denim last weekend. It sat by the machines, untouched, all week. This was after spending my sewing time the previous week pulling shirt and t-shirt patterns out of the file and comparing them to my BML (Bernina My Label) patterns. The comparisons made me understand why I bothered with BML. Many women that sew require a FBA (full bust adjustment). Well, I need a FBA too. However, my FBA is a full belly adjustment. To have a shirt fit, I have to do a full belly adjustment along with changing the sleeve length and shortening the shoulder to underarm distance. In addition, I often add length to the hem. A longer hem is a generally a preference and not a fitting matter.

Usually, I just straighten out the side seams and that will give me the extra fabric I need. The sleeve length is easy too – just a horizontal tuck in the sleeve pattern. More tucks for the front and back armholes and the sleeve cap. Not a big deal. Nevertheless, none of the new patterns I looked at were compelling enough to get me to make the necessary changes. Each time the overlapped patterns showed me what needed to be done, I simply folded the patterns and put them back into their respective envelopes.

Discouraged, I took myself to the San Marcos PremiumOutlets. I visited several stores and tried on many shirts. I came away with a new pair of shoes, a wallet and a renewed understanding of why I sew my own clothes.

I finally know what I have to do to a pants pattern to get it to fit. I want that same confidence with the shirts I produce. I have sewn several shirts that fit and I wear them often, but from my jeans sewing experience, I know that sewing one after another can work out my fitting issues.

While I’m getting my mind set to tackle shirts/tops, I have been sewing albeit at a sluggish pace. The Ottobre Every-Woman’s Pant (05-2008-16) is nearly complete. I added some back pockets (from Lekala 5742) and deleted the front waistband extension. Initially, I had included the extension but it just looked weird.

The waistband is yet to be finished: topstitching, belt loops, button/buttonhole and rivets.

Cropped Jeans with Hem Bands – Burda 7669

The growing t-shirt provided many laughs but hasn’t done much to encourage me to sew more tops. No, not much time or fabric was invested and my ego wasn’t damaged, yet I haven’t felt like giving the pattern another try. Eventually, I will - I just need to find some other knit fabric first. Cotton knits are what I’ve been looking for but I’m not coming across many that aren’t printed with little hearts, puppies or trucks.

Consequently, no new tops to tell of…however, I did sew some denim. I made myself another pair of cropped jeans using Burda 7669. The hem bands are what got my attention and this time I didn’t deviate too far from the line drawing. I left off the belt loops, topstitched a bit more, and added some rivets. I also sewed twill tape into the pocket seam to keep the bias-cut pocket from stretching out. The lighting I had to work with was terrible and the photo above is the best photo produced. The details don't show up very well but I figured it was better than no photo...

The new cutting mat, by the way, is wonderful and I wish I’d gotten it sooner. I didn’t because it is just too easy to buy sewing things I don’t really need and with little space, I work hard at keeping non-essentials away. In spite of this, I want to use my sewing time wisely and if there is a tool available that will speed things up and/or help produce better looking garments – well, I’m willing to do some rearranging.

My goal for this coming week is to sew a comfortable summer-weight top. Fabric? Makes no difference - as long as it isn’t matte jersey…

Pleated Cropped Jeans - Burda 11-2009-122

This pair of cropped jeans has been finished since Sunday. Well, almost finished, as I didn’t get around to sewing the tops of the belt loops onto the waistband until last night. I wore them to the office today and I have to tell you, that due to the comfort provided by the pleats and the handy front pockets, this is my favorite pair! I intend to make other versions of this pattern, both full-length and cropped.

Burda 11-2009-122

Along with the usual jeans topstitching, the other departures from the pattern included the addition of back patch pockets, rivets and a cropped length.

The back pockets came from Lekala 5066, yet another free pattern download. I randomly dialed up an embroidery stitch on the Bernina and kept it simple by embroidering only one horizontal line. I’m learning if I get my pockets too busy, it is more difficult to coordinate tops. Simple just blends better. The shape of this pocket appeals to me and I’ve put a copy of the pattern into my pocket file.

If I don’t sew some new tops soon, I’m going to have to pay a visit to La Cantera. Even so, I think it’s a pretty good bet you’ll be seeing more denim here…

Project #12 – Jeans: Burda 02-2007-129

Not only has DD#2 recently graduated, but this week I also began a new job! I’m still sitting in front of a computer for most of my day, but the dress code is decidedly more relaxed and wearing jeans to the office is an option I’m looking forward to.

I sewed this pair, little by little, over the past few days. And, as most always, I hadn’t a plan but sewed as I pleased at the moment. I like doing that. One thing though that I have been doing ahead of time is sewing belt loops. Using my rotary cutter, I turn scraps into one inch strips and run them through the belt loop folder on the coverstitch. I use what I need, then put the rest in the drawer for next time. That has been a great time saver. Also, by the time I’m ready for belt loops I’m anxious for the project to be completed. It’s a mental thing…

I was reading someone’s blog a few nights ago and they mentioned the Russian pattern company, Lekala. Up till now, I’ve not paid much attention to it. When I visited, they were offering, for free, all women’s size 44 sewing patterns. I wear a size 44 so you know I downloaded several. There is a good chance that I won’t actually sew all of the patterns as many were downloaded because of a pocket or collar that caught my eye, not necessarily because I liked the garment. I will make an effort and print out one of the pants patterns soon and compare it to one that fits. If it is horrible, I may delete the whole lot but I’m really hoping they work.

To dip my toe in the water, I included a Lekala back pocket and flap (from Lekala 5468) onto my Burda 02-2007-129 jeans.

I didn’t convert the back darts to a yoke this time. Instead of making the darts go away, I topstitched them. I also didn’t think to reinforce the pocket flap area prior to sewing the flaps down so I applied rivets. I bet you think I just wanted to play with the rivet press...

Burda 02-2007-129

With this project, I’ve finally started a file of pocket patterns. I’m placing copies of my favorites in the file so I have quick access. This way I’ll have an array of choices without having to dig through pattern envelopes. Change the pocket on a garment pattern and it ends up looking totally different.

I don’t know how to get more consistent colors of out my camera. Eventually, I need to figure that out. The color of the denim in the scrap basket is what the denim really looks like. Trust me, it isn’t grey!

The Burda pants have been working out so well, I really should give the Burda shirt/tops patterns a try…

Make it a wonderful week!