PR Wardrobe Contest 2020 Round up

Well the PR Wardrobe Contest was done and dusted in November of last year and I am very happy to say that I got my entry completed!  Sometimes the reward is in finishing a goal you set yourself.

You can find my contest entry here and it links to all the reviews of the individual pieces.  

My most favorite piece is the bag.  

I prefer sewing clothes to bags but I am really happy to have made this bag and use it all the time.  When I show my sewing buddies they are surprised to hear I made it myself!  The "suedette" it is made from has also proved itself to be very easy to clean, which is good as the light colour seems to invite marks to happen.  Review is here.

The next favorite and most worn is the StyleArc Nova dress.  It was a very useful piece in the wardrobe over Christmas and had a few outings.  Review of the Nova is here.

My least favourite is the Ottobre tee shirt.  The shirt fabric is too stiff for the swing style and the print maybe a bit too childish for my comfort zone.  It is in my re-model pile and I will probably turn it into a tank top.

It wasn't in my original plan either but I subbed it as a quick make to get finished on time.

All the other pieces have been in use and I am glad to have taken part in the contest as it did push me to make a bunch of coordinating pieces in a short time frame.

Thanks for following along.  My sew-jo has been firing lately and I have sewn a few new items since the contest and have participated in another contest - the Fabric Stash contest and have managed to bust 9m out of my stash!  I will post soon about some of my favourite pieces from that sewing.

Ciao for now!

Pussy bow blouse - Ottobre 05-2015-13

My wardrobe needs more woven tops.  I made a ton of tees a while back but have very few dressier tops. I also do not have enough tops with full length sleeves.  I tend to favour 3/4 sleeves and while they look lovely, they don't work in the middle of a cold, windy winter.

So I went through my Ottobre mags and this is the one I found that appealed to me.  I like the pussy bow as it makes a nice change from a collar.  I also like the soft gathers from the front yoke and the sleeves with a bit of fullness for drama.

In the stash I found a piece of georgette (I think?). It would be a polyester but has a nice drape and weight.  The print is a bit darker than I normally go for but I really liked it when I saw it.  I bought it at East Coast fabrics last year.  The only issue with the busy print is that it is hard to see the details of the bow.

The only alteration I made to the pattern was that I did not make plackets and the narrow buttoned cuffs.  I thought it would be difficult to make the narrow cuff in this fabric so I decided to keep it simple and just sewed a casing at the sleeve-end and inserted narrow elastic.  I quite like the effect.

Pretty proud of the pattern matching across the blouse and the sleeves.

This photo of the shirt was taken before I had made the buttonholes.  I used very small black buttons to blend in with the shirt as I didn't want the buttons to detract from the bow.

The bad news was that my automatic buttonhole failed and would not complete the last return row and last bar tack.  <insert sad face>  So the shirt sat idling while my machine was in the shop (for far too long!)  As the length of the visit away lengthened, I asked a friend if I could use her machine to complete the buttonholes so did end up finishing it and have worn it weekly since then.

I did borrow a sewing machine during this time.  This sewing machine my mother bought in the early 60's.  We cleaned and oiled it and it was quite usable for straight stitch but I could not get the zigzag stitch to balance properly so I am thinking I might take it in for a service soon.  It is really a very fancy machine, which I did not realise when I learned to sew on it when I was 14.  It has all the cogs needed to make a tonne of different stitches and will wind a bobbin while you keep sewing!

I have downloaded the manual for this machine as the manual that my Mum gave me was for a slightly different model.  If I spend some time going through that I might get the stitch balance fixed.

I have a dream to make a frock for myself from a 60's pattern.  A 1960's machine and a 1960s pattern for this 1960's baby.  I like it.  

Ciao kittens, more soon...

Tried and true... Ottobre faded stripes tee

I have a need in my wardrobe for some new summer casual clothes.  I have well and truly worn out the current ones I have!  I have devised a plan of action to add some more tees and some casual pants to my wardrobe which is my preferred week-end wear.

First off the block my TNT Ottobre faded stripes tee.  I have made this four times already and only one is left in the wardrobe now looking very tatty!  You can see them all here if you are interested ---> Tees.

I have traced off the larger size I need now (oops!) and to make it a bit interesting I have used my new to me cover stitch machine for hemming and for the bindings.

This first one is in a cotton jersey bought from The Fabric Store.  I really like the finished tee, but sewing it was a PITA.  The edges rolled mercilessly and I ended up using a lot of spray starch to try and make it behave.  For this one I added the bindings in the more traditional sewing machine way that Ottobre instructs in their tips section, but chose to use the cover stitch machine to top stitch the binding instead of using a twin needle like I have in the past.  I was pretty happy with the result.

Next up was a cotton jersey which I am pretty sure I bought from Wattle Hill Fabrics.  It is very bright but I think I can make it work for week-end wear.  

This time the fabric was a bit better behaved so I decided to take a deep breath and use the binding attachment I have.  I practised a heap of times and then dove in.  First the neckline binding...

Success!  Then the armhole binding...

Ba-bow... The stitching sat in the binding to start with but went off track and I ended up with one stitching line on the binding and one on the fabric.  I have decided to leave it as it is. With this fabric print I am hopeful it is not real obvious.  Any tips on what I could have done to stop this happening?

Any other cover stitch or binding tips are most welcome my stitching friends.  Ciao for now kittens...

Holiday sewing

Just before Christmas I was offered an opportunity I could not turn down.  A chance to buy a great second hand Cover Stitch machine.  It was from a good sewing friend who has upgraded for various reasons so I was happy to take it off her hands.  It arrived just before Christmas but I had to wait until after Christmas to give it a try.  BTW it is a Brother 2340CV, before you ask. 

I have decided I will concentrate on getting the hemming reasonable before moving onto any attachments.  I played with wovens until I managed to get it stitching and then moved onto a jersey.  I know I should probably practice more before moving onto garments but I am too keen to sew all the things, so I made Vogue 1179 for the third time.  The first time here and the second time here.  I love this style of dress and it is so easy to wear.  The only difference in my third effort is that I had to make the collar less full as I did not have quite enough fabric.

...and to show the fabric in more detail...

 At this stage I won't show the CS hem but it is reasonable enough.

No more cover stitch again for a little while but I did do a make-over on a dress I sewed back in 2015 - this one.  I have worn this dress a lot as it is so cool and easy to wear.  However, being silk it didn't take to the heavy wearing and the fabric gave way at the backside.  I must sit too much!  I decide it was too good to throw away so I hope I will get a few more wears out if it as a top.  I marked and cut a new hemline (hi-lo) and sewed a narrow hem.

And as I am a bit of a messy sewist I decided I needed a little caddy to sit near my sewing machine to put all the bits and pieces I use often.  That way hopefully it will be easier to tidy up and dust than having it spread all over the place,

I did read some tutorials on-line and you can find many.  I just based this on those that I had read and made it to the size I needed.

A good way to use up some quilting fabric remnants.

Well I may be back soon with more cover stitch trials.

Ciao kittens... Happy 2018!

Ottobre dress 02/2016 15 Pieced linen dress

I had a piece of crinkled linen left over from when I made my Tessuti Eva dress.  It was expensive fabric and so lovely I have been waiting for the right pattern to come along to use it.

Enter Ottobre 02/2016 #15  Pieced linen dress which required crinkled linen and I had the right amount... big win!  I didn't think I would get a dress out of the remnant piece but as this is cut into many pieces it worked really well.

I really like top stitching and used the same thread as I used for sewing the dress but with a triple stitch to look like a top stitch.

The colour is out in this pic.  The next pic is more accurate.

It is hard to see the details in this photo but I love this dress... it also has pockets... pocket love!

Did you spot my necklace?  I have always coveted this necklace and there is a tutorial on the Ottobre blog to make it, but I don't have any of the jewellery making equipment so wasn't inclined to try.  However since entering the world of Etsy selling I discovered there are talented makers out there who will make custom orders for you.  I contacted Anita of Echidna Arts and Cards and she made me a beautiful version in gold leather.

I have worn this dress quite a bit since I made it and love it enough that I am making another version from a linen print.  I have reviewed the pattern here.

... and speaking of Etsy, I have recently started a destash section in my shop and have listed one remnant of supplex.  It is not large enough to make a whole piece of clothing, but if you are after some supplex to use in a colour blocked piece, this could work for you... check it out here. 

I will be adding to the destash section over time, so there may be something there to appeal to a fellow sewist so keep an eye out.

Ciao kittens... back soon with a cool tunic!

More Ottobres Faded Stripes tees 02/2015 #17

Just a quick show and tell post... or should I say another one. :) 

My lifestyle dictates casual clothes most of the time and one of my fave tee patterns has been Ottobre 02/2015-17.  Made twice before for last summer and worn to death... in black here.... and in green here.  I love the simple styling of this top with shoulder details.  

In the past I made them in drapey rayon and love them but thought maybe I should size down a bit.  So for coming into this summer I had a cotton jersey bought at 40% off a few years ago from Lincraft and I decided to size down... Bo...Booow!  Silly mistake.  Of course in a different, more sturdy fabric the fit was quite different.  It is a tad small.  I can feel it in the arms and you can see it across the bust, but not so uncomfortable that I hope to be able get wear out of it this summer.

I have also been religiously patting a beautiful viscose piece I bought from Knitwit in the last year.  A viscose print from Italy.  I so loved this fabric and planned a 3/4 sleeved  New Look 6150  from it.   Then I got the flu which morphed onto Strep throat and I was out of it for ages (one reason I haven't blogged so much lately).  My lovely rescue dog Champ felt a little neglected during this time and expressed it by "loving" my favorite piece of fabric...

I had trouble looking at him for a day or two, but took a deep breath and washed the bit of fabric I had left and spent ages trying to lay it out to cut another Ottobre top from it (sans holes)

So another Ottobre tee was born and I love it.

and the back...

I am so hoping I had found all the holes in the fabric and none will form on wearing, but if I get a couple of wears I will feel happier than throwing this gorgeous piece of fabric out.

At least he has shown a very fine taste in fabrics... Ciao kittens an active wear top up next...

Sewing along with the Sewing Bee - Ottobre 02-2011-10 Capris

I have been a very quiet blogger lately, but it has been a bad winter and I am just getting over a very bad bout of flu which ended up as Strep Throat.  I still have a bit of a cough and my energy levels are non-existent, but I am getting a bit better everyday.  

So a lot of sitting and planning sewing has happened and very little actual sewing.  I did get a little inspired by the Pattern Review Sewing Bee and thought I might enter, but my energy levels did not match my enthusiasm so I didn't get my entry finished in time, but it has inspired me to make some capris. 

So far I have a muslin made from the Ottobre pattern 02-2011-10.  

The muslin fabric is similar in stretch to the fabric I want to use and is a little lighter in weight, and is one of those... what was I thinking fabrics!   So, you know about perfect for a muslin!

I took so long to make these as I really am not a fan of making pants and I have never found a fly tutorial that is really simple to understand... until now!  I used the instructions found in the Palmer Pletsch "Pants for Real People" book.  I will follow the instructions again when I make my real pair and I think it will be my go-to fly instructions now.

What do you think of the leg length?  Should I make the next pair a little shorter?

The boo-boo I made on these pants was to trim off the underlap in line with the edge of the fly... so I did not have enough overlap to sew a button/buttonhole to the waistband... duh!  I obviously don't do flys/waistbands often enough!  I have just sewn a hook and eye to hold the waistband together.  It has been noted in my pattern now, so hopefully I won't do that again next time.

I am very happy with the fit of these pants.  I thought I might need to add some fabric to the inside leg front as they felt a little tight when I first put them on, but on wearing them the fabric has relaxed enough that I don't think that it is an issue. 

 So this pair look a little grandma's sofa cover, but I think I will wear them a little this summer just to make use of the muslin.  My "real" pair are going to made in a camel/tan fabric that I think will work into my wardrobe really well.

Ciao kittens... hopefully back to regular blogging now...

Another Ottobre 02/2013-14 summer frock

I have finished my "proper" version of this dress.  I made my trial version and details are in my previous post here.   

There was some changes I decided I needed and they were to:

• narrow the shoulder width a little 

• adjust the back for swayback.  

and I am pleased that my changes worked.  Particularly the sway back as I haven't done it too often.  The waistline seam made it easy to do.  I just took about 1.5cm height at the centre back seam along the waist seam of both the back bodice and skirt pieces tapering to nothing before the side seam.  The green arrows point to my alteration.

No fabric pooling in the back

Once again I used a facing and not a lining.  The facing is a combined neckline/armhole one and looks like this cut out. 

Click to see larger

 I was able to follow the instructions pretty much for inserting the lining to sew in the facing.  The only additional steps were to finish the lower edge of the facing (with the overlocker) and tack the bottom of the facing to the side seams (just to help hold it in place).

I wanted to show you my finished invisible zipper.  I was very proud of how the waistline seam matches up after inserting the zip.

I was thinking of making this version an inch or so above my knee but after consultation with my DH, I left the hem at knee height.

Here is a shot of the neckline without a necklace so you can see the shape of it.  A bit different to what you see about.  I quite like it but do cover it with a necklace as I don't believe the black/white is my most flattering colour.  

The fabric is a rayon twill I bought from Tessuti fabrics ages ago.  I think I had planned to make the suzy pants originally.  I obviously changed my mind and now I have a lovely cool summer frock (and a remnant to make another small item).

Ciao kittens - next gift making season is in full swing!

New summer frock ... Ottobre 02/2013-14

I wanted a nice cool dress to wear to a Christmas party/BBQ next month and I settled on Ottobre 02/2013-14 - the Jewelry dress. 

In the magazine they have used a gorgeous large pattern repeat type print.  I would love to find something like this to make the dress, but decided in the meantime I should use the fabric I have.  I have chosen a black/white viscose twill which was bought at Tessuti awhile back.

However this is such a nice fabric I thought I should muslin the dress first.  I decided to buy some fabric to make a trial dress as I know Ottobre fit me well enough to get a wearable dress. (Seems so much more productive than making a true muslin). So off to Spotties and luckily they still seem to have some nice rayons left.

I made the dress true to the pattern but subbed in a facing for a lining.  This dress is going to be a casual week-end dress for hot days so a lining was not needed.

I am pretty happy with the fit from the pattern, but plan to make a few adjustments to the next one.

• narrow the shoulder width a little so it looks more like the dress modeled in the magazine.  I think my shoulders are a size smaller than the size I used.
• adjust the back for swayback.  It was hard to photograph in this fabric, but I have a little pool of fabric at my middle back.

The dress looks longer on me as I am shorter than Ottobre woman.  I love the idea of having it shorter, but the legs are not really up to it anymore, so I will probably leave the length as is.  As the next one will be more of a party dress I am toying with the idea of making it maybe an inch shorter.  I shall see how I feel once it is made.

I love the darts on this dress.  The bust darts originate at the armhole and so you have a shorter dart and it does not interrupt the pattern so much.  There are also back neckline darts which make the neckline lie smooth against the body.  You see this in vintage patterns but not so often in modern patterns, but it makes so much sense to curve the dress to your back/shoulder curves.

I have marked my changes on my pattern so I am ready to cut my second one soon. I have been wondering how this dress would be if cut on the bias?     

Ciao kittens... hopefully another Jewelry dress next.

Sewing Bee round 2 - pics

Finished and I am exhausted.  This round was a tough one and I have put a lot of hours into this dress.  So I am not going into details here, but will put up a few photos.  If you want more info on this dress, you can find them here in my entry review.

The theme... "A day at the races"

The fabric I started with  - green linen from a swap table at the Brisbane Spoolettes high tea 2014.

The embellishment process... lots of careful marking, pressing and lots of thread!

The pattern - Ottobre 02/2015-04 - modified to remove the waist seam.

The front panel being cut out - had to be cut full, not on the fold.

The dress lining - not part of the pattern... needed to do a  little research on that before starting...

the dress finished....

and the back...

and in amongst all that I made a muslin and plenty of embellishment samples.  Enough sewing for now... now to wait on tenterhooks to see if I get into round 3 ... and what it will be!!

Ciao kittens...