After another frustrating wrestle with some pant fitting, doing a proper muslin & tweaking it then adjusting the pattern only to find the pant legs are doing some fancy twisting, I threw my hands up in the air (I just don’t care) and decided the only thing to do was make something fast & trendy!
McCalls 6725
Welcome to the Mullet Maxi! McCalls 6725. This is a Stitch-n-Save pattern with two views, which can also be found in McCalls 6567 along with 2 other variations. I made view A, but added a waistline casing like in view B (view A has a waistline that turns over to make the casing) to fit a 1 1/2″ elastic. Here’s my finished version:
This baby is long! I wanted a maxi-length in the back, and this skirt has no other changes to it other than adding the waistband. Now usually, being 6 ft tall, I normally add about 4″ in length to any pattern, so if you like this skirt, check the length. Also, I wanted it more fitted at the hips/waist with less gathers than the typical elastic waist skirt, so I cut between the Small and the Medium based on the finished measurements of the pattern. Notice, not only is it trendy, it incorporates pantones colour of the year, emerald green!
I fused the hem with fusible web for a quick finish, et Voila!!
On the table is a simple, fitted sheath dress from Burda Style in a really gorgeous embroidered cotton:
I’ve had my eyes on this fabric at Fabricland for ages (in an ends bin, in a few different colours) it’s soooo pretty. It’s a Missoni-esque novelty knit that I picked up for about $4/m. Unfortunately it was off grain (that is if a knit can be off grain?) and my first go of a burda cardigan pulled so much because of the twisted grainline it was unwearable. The second version, McCalls 6708 turned out much, much better.
This is a super great pattern & I can’t wait to make a fall/winter version up in a boucle knit. Or maybe another colourway of a similar fabric to this; now I know to check the grain in-store before I buy it.
The pattern has 6 variations of this cardigan – talk about value for money! My version is View E – but instead of bust pockets I made a faux welt (by just using the binding piece, sewing it on, flipping it up and tacking the edges down. I also used some great jersey ring snaps from Prym which are big and funky instead of buttons.
The binding was made from some fine silk/rayon knit jersey, interfaced with wonderful interfacing from Fashion Sewing Supply. Luckily they just had a sale so I have restocked my stash of weft interfacing as well as ordering a couple of yards of Pam’s new couture interfacing. I used Prosheer Light for this, which was just enough to stabilize the bands to hold the snaps but not make it too stiff. The back neckband gapes a bit because I had to cut it on the lengthwise grain instead of crosswise from the remnant I had. I also shortened the sleeves to 3/4 length. I hand sewed the little patch pockets to get a good match on the knit.
I’m very happy with the results! I’m wearing it here with a bias cut linen skirt and Simplicity 2599 My next projects are to tweak some skinny crop pants from a Burda pattern; (as it’s pant fitting I’ll have to make a muslin) and make some skinny jeans from my TNT Jalie Jean pattern (seen previously as white jeans, red cords, skinny cargos and basic boot-cut jeans - which makes this the pattern I’ve sewn with most often!)
Just before I made three easy knit tops (2 Cool Cowl Tanks and the Ivy knit top) I had 3 epic fails. One was a McCalls dress, where I cut out the pattern wrong as I was distracted with a work issue; the fabric hopefully is salvageable. I remade the dress in a silk jersey but it is unwearable. Bad fabric choice; clingy and static in all the wrong places and a beautiful sherbet orange that completely washes me out. Before that I used a great faux Missoni knit to make a Burda cardigan, the fabric was twisted & the whole thing was too small. Luckily I had enough fabric left to make McCalls 6708, which turned out great – I’ll post pics when I get some; here is the pattern:
So with the fails under my belt, I wanted something super easy and flattering; so I wanted to try a cowl tank. I needed a white t-shirt – I made a quick muslin in some b&w rayon knit and moved onto the white fabric. It’s from my stash, not sure how long it’s been there; but it’s also a rayon knit with a crepe texture.
This is my first foray into In-House Patterns, who drafts specifically for a D-cup bust. Here’s the pattern from the website (it’s a PDF pattern)
This is a super pattern! I tried it out as printed in a large. Once I made the muslin, the only changes I made was to widen the armhole bindings as the ones drafted were a little narrow and fiddly. I also took the pattern in about 1/4″ under the arms to bring it closer to my body. The arms and hem are bound with a band; this is about a half hour job start to finish once you have the fit tweaked. I didn’t lengthen it either, and it is a perfect length on me. It does have a very low neckline though, so be warned! I would recommend a muslin, mine is perfectly wearable. Here is the back, which I think fits great:
I know there have been some discussions of the pros and cons of PDF patterns, but you certainly can’t beat them for instant gratification!
Yes, I’m Sue and I’m a Style Arc Addict. The overwhelming allure of the just off the runway styling. The exotic appeal of fashions not available in Canada. Welcome to my Style Arc Monkey. This week’s monkey (oh yes, there are many little monkeylets) is called Ivy; and she’s a beauty. She may remind you of her expensive cousin, Marni.
Here she is:
This is a great t-shirt pattern. I didn’t want it too oversized, so this is a size 12 (my measurements suggest a 14) I didn’t lengthen it – which I usually do. It’s sewn up like a regular t-shirt, so there’s not much to say other than baste the necline band first before you sew it; each knit fabric behaves differently and I had to trim 2″ off the neckline to get it to lay flat. The fabric I used are remnants from my stash, both some designer ends from Pink Tartan, a high end designer label from the wife of the originator of Joe Fresh, Kim Mimran. The grey is a silky, heavy weight rayon knit and the white is a fine rayon knit with lycra and a bit of sheen. The other great thing about this pattern is that it’s handy for using up some stash fabrics, you’d need less than 1m of each depending on your size. Here’s the back, it has a high-low hem:
Another great Style Arc pattern!
A quick postscript; looky what’s coming for fall from JCrew; couldn’t you see this pattern in two prints!!
Living in Toronto, we have a fantastic library system. And I consider it a sewing notion! With a library card, you can reserve material and have them sent to your local library for pick up. You can get reminders to return materials/pick up your hold items e-mailed to you. You can check out e-books (I haven’t tried this yet). And you can return your books to any branch, not just the branch you borrowed from. It’s pretty awesome. Thanks to Gillian from Crafting a Rainbow to remind me of this!
So what did I borrow? The second Drape Drape book, Alabama Studio Sewing + Design and Gerties New Book for Better Sewing (which is still in transit). Last year I checked out Twinkle Sews.
I think each book deserves it’s own post, no? By the way, the Trusting Canadian Library also includes the actual paper patterns in the books. So I can trace my heart away and get the patterns too! The Twinkle Sews book had a CD so I just copied the pattern jpgs.
Alabama Chanin
In all my hours spent on sewing related internet stuff, I just recently – like in the past 2 weeks discovered Alabama Chanin. CAUTION: YOUR MIND IS ABOUT TO BE BLOWN!!
Seriously high-end sustainable couture sewing & embellishment totally hand sewn. The whole garment. Skirts retail upwards of $900, that’s how high end this is. Made in the USA with locally sourced materials where possible, and hand crafted by skilled artisans paid real wages. But wait - it’s accessible too, as the owner of the company realizes that the cost of many of these items is out of reach for the average person. So she has published several books with patterns and detailed instructions on the techniques used to create these unique garments. Here’s a sample so you get the drift:
The garments are created with cotton jersey (which they sell on their website – I’ll put links at the very bottom of the post) and ‘organically’ embellished with several techniques; stencilling; applique & reverse applique. All of which is further embellished by hand embroidery and/or beading depending on the complexity and use of the finished garment. And the garments are all SEWN BY HAND folks. Yes, including the construction. Here are some samples – the price is for a sewing kit, not the finished garment:
Here is a sample of a heavily embellished RTW garment:
Little Folks Wrap skirt: $2,250.00
The book covers all of the techniques used to make these stunning garments, and includes patterns/instructions for tops (t shirts, tank top, tunics), dresses short and long, skirts short and long, bucket hat, poncho, wrap and fingerless gloves)
There are 3 books with techniques and patterns, some include home sewing, this book features garments only and is the latest. The studio also sells materials and has workshops. Here are some fun links:
A trench coat has been on my to-do list for some time; I have collected quite a few patterns – and I liked this particular pattern as soon as it came out because it was classic, tailored and had some nice details like a seam across the bust, a 2 piece sleeve, double breasted styling and a slim fit. I waffled back and forth on a ruffle at the bottom (see previous post on this – and thanks for all who participated in the voting!) and eventually left it off because:
1) I was not going to make a muslin
2) I didn’t have enough fabric
3) this coat took so long to sew anyway I’m glad I didn’t add the complexity of a self-drafted possible wardrobe fail to the mix!
This coat took me over 30 hours of sewing time. There were 24 pattern pieces in this baby! I didn’t make a muslin, I cut a size 14 & simply added 1 1/2″ to the length of the sleeves and body. It’s fused with pro-weft for the fusible bits; and has topstitching and edgestitching throughout, a topstitched welt pocket, a separate undercollar (cut on the bias) and collar stand. It’s fully lined and has sleeve belts and belts. There are 4 buttonholes marching down the front (which gave me the most worry). The fabric is a wool gabardine in a classic camel from Fabricland, marked down to $10/m from $30/m. It sewed up like a dream. The rayon lining came from my stash. The finished coat feels substantial, but not heavy.
Fit Notes:
The only gripe I have is that the shoulders are a bit wide. I added shoulder pads (as called for in the pattern) but I would have preferred not to. It was too late to adjust the shoulders at that point, I had the sleeves set in and there was no going back! I think the photos look balanced, overall I would have preferred a closer upper body fit.
This is a size 14, and there is plenty of room to wear a garment underneath (in this photo I have a cardigan & silk shell under the coat) without looking too bulky. The sleeves are certainly wide enough to wear a blazer underneath, as well.
Construction notes:
I took some notes as to where my needle and feet were positioned to accomplish all that topstitching as accurately as possible. This helped a lot as there was much starting & stopping as I worked in timeblocks of an hour or hour and a half when I had time. The great thing is with a pattern with this many steps I was able to see progress after each task; even by breaking it into hour blocks of sewing. I also had to do the topstitching when I wasn’t too tired. It took over 3 weeks to complete, but I have a well made garment that will be worn for quite a few years, I hope!
You can’t see it but there is a buckle on the sleeve belt.
The gabardine pressed great and behaved beautifully with the exception of easing in the sleeves, which I should have known! They are the only part I wish had turned out a bit better. I also added 3 extra rows of stitching on the collar band, this is a RTW detail I liked when I scanned the interwebs. I had to cut the belt and sleeve belts a bit narrower than the pattern to accommodate the buckles I found.
Overall, I’m quite pleased. DH had me show it off to a couple of friends yesterday and I got the right reaction – gasps of amazement. One of them compared it to similar trenches she had seen recently at a Burberry outlet for upwards of $1400 (of course, with my time thrown it, this coat is priceless!!)
It feels good to be able to have this made just in time for the weather to be warm enough to wear it. Now onto some easier sewing projects!
I was lusting after the March Freebie enough to buy it & some others. Honestly, it was just to save the shipping, I swear! A couple of new McCalls also made it into my bag from my recent Fabricland trip; how did that happen?
Style Arc:
I see this made up in a woven as well as a knit, or perhaps a knit back, woven front:
And to try some pants, as everyone on the interwebs is raving about them:
The freebie:
New McCalls:
The “too lazy to draft one” skirt (planning a Maxi version):
McCalls 6725
This Henley style t was too cute & a great basic:
Now to work on a plan for Spring/Summer 2013 Sewing!
This is a project I finished earlier in March, before I began the long sewing odyssey of sewing my Trench Coat (finished today – yay) it is the Style Arc Marie Jacket. It’s a waterfall-type jacket with an asymmetrical drape closure which forms a cowl neckline. Great lines! It ended up a bit longer than expected; and the wavy zip is annoying…looks good open though…
The fabric is a mystery rib knit in a ponte weight from Fabricland. This is a 14 – I have since ordered 3 more Style Arc patterns and have gone down a size. I will make this again, but shorten the jacket. The style Arc patterns seem to be drafted long.
I can’t tell you of just how sick and tired I am of the cold weather. I feel that everything I own is black and dreary…I’m looking forward to making some clothes in spring colours. With the Trench done (I left off the ruffle, just because I didn’t have enough extra fabric for it & it would have been fiddly drafting it as well) I can get on to some easy peasy sewing. The trench took 3 weeks to sew, and about 36 sewing hours. Hopefully I can post some photos tomorrow!
Sewing a trench/spring coat has been on my wishlist for a while. Yesterday I took some time analyzing this with the often made and highly recommended McCalls 5525. So why did I choose this?
I liked the tailored fit and seam detail
it is styled like a trench, but a shirt style collar (with stand) instead of a big wide collar may speed up the sewing time and make it a bit easier
the Vogue pattern has a 2-piece sleeve
I have decided to take this project s-l-o-w-l-y. I cut out the pattern and fabric yesterday. Today’s task is interfacing. One day will be the lining (which I shall wash today) and one day marking then we will be good to sew! Now I have to source some leather buttons and belt buckle; luckily there is a members sale this week at Fabricland should I need more thread or interfacing.
The fabric is a camel wool gaberdine from Fabricland for $10/m. I plan on using pro-weft interfacing and leather covered buttons + belt buckle. The lining is in my stash, it will either be a rayon twill or a funky poly lining with a ‘Prada’ logo (a few years ago at Fabricland they had a selection of linings with faux-brand names)
I’m toying with adding a bottom ruffle if I can find some more fabric to copy this Burberry trench, just cause it’s so darn cute!
