The Dila Dress

 

Not quite sure how I would describe this design. Monastic? Faux angelic? I can tell you it is very comfortable, cool and flow-y,  and I like it. I think it will be great for summer days when I am in cool air conditioned areas, like the market or for summer evenings out. It is the Dila Dress from Notches patterns. 

Pattern:  

This pattern, the Dila, from Notches,  is very versatile and a great value for the money paid. It comes with 27 design options. What I made and you see here is what we call locally, "the full boat", the long dress with the v-neck and long sleeves. You can make a short dress, and even a blouse with this pattern. You can vary necklines and sleeves on all.  I look forward to making a sleeveless blouse with the Dila design as I really like the shape of the raised waistline and the hidden seamline of that waist under the band. That shorter top  may look a bit prego but I can get away with that and would suggest that it would be great for ladies in waiting.  The waist gracefully dips from front to back. 

A bit about the designers at Notches: One, Evelien, is an architect, publisher of numerous sewing books in Europe, and was a designer/pattern maker for the Belgian sewing magazine, "La Maison Victor" for several years. 

Britt, the other half of Notches, has a degree in journalism but also studied design at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp. She wrote the "Big Sewing Guide" book for Maison Victor and developed men's and children's patterns. This is a really strong team here! I love their designs. I found their directions very clear and logical, the logic being often the issue for many indie patterns. I recommend. 

Just a reminder to research your sources with indie patterns. There are hundreds out there today, some good, some not so much. Remember, anyone can call themselves anything so do your homework when plunking down your cash. 

Fabric:

This dress was made from my favorite: Kaufman Essex yarn dyed linen/cotton blend. It is a pale lilac warp with an ecru weft, very soft in color. I always have a stack of Essex colors on my shelves, ready to sew. I buy them on sale whenever I see them. They are now being carried at Joanns. I've always paid around 12.99 or close at local quilt shops or online. When they hit the floor at Joann's they were priced at 6.99 a yard for one week. I stocked up. Watch for the sales. This is a great basic for pants, tops, dresses, you name it. I sew with it all the time. I pre-wash it and throw it in the machine on cool delicate after construction. It holds up beautifully and requires little ironing. 

Construction:

The magnificent detail on this dress is it's sleeves. Please go to the website to get an even better picture. Here is why: my short arms don't do them justice. Every pattern I make, I end up taking out two inches of length. After making a mockup of this sleeve in muslin I knew i had to do the same here, but where and how? Starting at the top, the sleeve consists of blank space, then two big pleats, more blank space, then 3 big pleats, THEN a circular section , all bias, then the cuff. 

If you look at the garment on the website, you will really appreciate the importance of the circular piece next to the cuff. It turns the sleeve into a lantern shape that is quite distinct. I did a half inch tuck above the first group of pleats at the top and then another half inch tuck above the next group of pleats. This gave me my two inches to remove. I know I could have gotten all mathmatical with resizing all the pleats but I just wasn't up to that. So, I sort of missed out on the drama of the lantern effect, but it is still a beautiful sleeve. The sleeve has a strong cone shape. 

I did no other adjustments before construction. I did go in after the fact and reduce the waist by a couple of inches. The bodice is very wide and boxy but you know I am very narrow there so for most of you it may be just fine. I like boxy bodices but it was just a bit too much for me so I pulled it in. Next time I will reduce the width by a couple of inches before cutting.  I made the smallest XS size. For comparison's sake I normally take a size four in a top.  I really like the way the band covers the gathering on the bodice,  very pretty. 

In Conclusion:

Bottom line: This is a fun dress. I think it may have its own time and place but will look great once there. Every year my daughter and I like to go to the giant and wonderful Sunapee Craft Fair in New Hampshire. This will be perfect to wear for that, also for family cookouts and such. I will fill the neckline in with some jewelry. It all just makes me feel rather festival! In reality I am off to replace another zipper for a client. Do give the Notches designers a try. They have some really lovely designs that are very well made, with that definite European vibe. There will be more Dilas to come............Happy Sewing... Bunny

An Imby Plus Chiffon Upcycle! Can you translate Mandarin?

 

                 Pardon no makeup and eye puffs. Still dealing with blefaritis. 

This top had  a story, as most upcycles do. First, I love the results. My base came from Goodwill, a couple of years back. More on that in a moment. I never knew what I would do with the resource, just that it was beautiful and one day, inspiration would strike. It did, in the form of a competition. Being from a large family, competition is part of my DNA, and I always enjoying upcycling, I finally moved on this textile beauty. Inspiration? One of the various monthly competitions that is held by Pattern Review. It involved upcycling a pre-existing garment/s  into something for an adult, no kids or pets. It could be an accessory or garment. Immediately my resource came to mind but what to do????? Let's get this story and review going and fill you in. 

Pattern:  

For this top and it's ethereal fabric, I immediately thought of the Imby Flowy Top from Karmme Apparel.   It is a FREE pattern. The pattern is designed by Imby Lagenbach. She is not, and stresses this, a pattern designer. She designs handbags and fabrics, gorgeous ones. She has less than a handful of garment designs to motivate you to purchase her fabrics, which are beautiful. She apologized for directions, which are fine, and sizing, which is one size fits all, sizes 8-14 Australian. Oz sizes run two numbers larger than US sizes. On my second and third efforts I removed one inch from across the bodice with a simple slide over. I figure this gave me a size four. I did not adjust the bodice length. You could easily adjust this pattern either way with a muslin effort and simply sliding. I believe the sleeves and bodice have so much volume that they will fit anyone. My skirt was 76 inches wide when completed. This is not a difficult pattern. 

Fabric:

I was doing my semi-monthly visit to GoodWill a couple years back. I often head straight for the more formal dresses in the plus size area.  This dress, which sure did not look plus size, was on that rack. I checked the size tag, not that it mattered. I was desiring the fabric. All tags were still on the garment and in an Asian language. The only thing in English was "3XL". I don't think so but again, didn't matter. 

There were massive amounts of fabric in this beautiful border print. The colors were amazing. Was it silk? Turned out to be poly but no problem, still beautiful. 

You can see the waist and sizing above on me. I would guess maybe a size 14. The waist measured 36 inches. The skirt, 76.  I got it home, stared at it a few weeks, machine washed it, and hung it away. Then the upcycle contest arrived 2 years later and I knew it's moment had come. It was made for the Imby top. 

My only problem was the lack of fabric for the entire top. I didn't want a total chiffon top, anyway. I thought and thought and then decided to make this top more wearable I would make the yoke have a strong contrasting presence. It would be denim! I went to my stash of cut up jeans and was able to salvage the yoke, with pieceing from a couple of thighs, thanks to some jeans my husband could not fit into any more, too big! I don't think he ever liked them anyway. He hardly ever wore them and gave them to me a couple  years previous to use for mending. 

I measured my pattern pieces and  would JUST BARELY make my plan with the skirt fabric. I would make my ties from the waist band. It was all a go now. This is what I had left. 

Construction:   

This pattern is pretty straightforward.  There are two things to point out about the Imby top. There is a unique and very clever way to do the slit with tie on the Imby. 

The bodice/yoke has no facings or bindings, yay. It is two layers, being self-lined. First you make your ties. This is ONE long piece. Do not cut into two ties. Set aside. Next lay your bodice lining and bodice together,  then right sides facing and stitch the circular necklines together, NO SLIT SEWING, JUST THE CIRCLE. Trim and grade as normal. Don't understitch yet. With wrong lining side facing up, draw in the slit as directed. Now,  I drew the slit an inch shorter due to my height issues. Lift up the lining. Take your tie and place the center of the tie across the area directly below the neckline stitching at center back. Pin into place. That tie is tucked right up to the neckline stitching. Place the lining back down.  Baste or pin the slit area so it won't slide. Starting at the neckline edge with a 1.5 stitch length for an inch or so then back to normal length, stitch down to the point, two stitches across, then stitch back up the other side of the slit to the neckline edge again. When you approach the bottom of the slit click down the st length to 1.5 again an inch before and after. When you approach the neckline, do the same again. At the neckline edge you have sewn across the tie without even trying. Now cut down the center of the slit and grade, press and understsitch the neck and slit as much as possible. Don't force here.  You will have a tie on each side when done, sewn in with the 1.5 stitch length. It will turn the corners out beautifully. 

The only other challenge here is the meeting of the three pieces at this corner above.  This is not a pattern with a square skirt and square sleeves. There is definite shape to both, curves. There is also an angle where the yoke, sleeve and skirt meet. It is VERY, VERY important to sew only to the dot, not the edge of the fabric. Don't sew across the seam allowance here. You won't get the clean corner you see above if you do. This makes it very difficult to serge ahead and/or use French seams.  The seams are finished with serging after they were machine stitched together. Trust me on this. 

Being petite, I knew I would have to reduce the length or all this fabric could overwhelm. I removed 2 3/4 inches from the length at the hem. I first hemmed this top with a deep hem but found it flared and disturbed the drape of the fabric. I cut it way back and did a serged and machine stitched half inch hem. It draped better after that. So what you see on me is shorter than what you will see from the designer. The sleeves are the same. 

I did a bit of topstitching and decided it really added nothing to the party. I did no more. 

In Conclusion:

This is my third Imby top. I really like this pattern. It is a great fabric show-off-er. It works best with drapey fabric. I've seen it made beautifully with recycled saris. The yoke is just aching to be embroidered or painted, or to just be a foil to a wonderful border print. I think it was a great choice for my Good Will fabric. I never wanted to make that pretty dress into a dupe for me.  I just wouldn't need it. This I will wear a lot. I can see it fitting in well with my life. The denim really made the difference. Contrasts are good. We need more contrast in our life.......Happy Sewing, Bunny

Had to Refurbish This One!

 

 

About  6 or 7 years ago , during the dawn of the Zipper Trend,  I bought one of my rare retail items. It was a blush pink and black border print georgette blouse. It had a 9 inch metal zipper at the back of  the neck  The rest of it's style was completely plain as you can see in this pic:

I loved this top. The fabric was what hooked me. In all these years, I wore it twice. I could not stand the zipper. First, I never liked the zipper trend to begin with. Second, the weight of the zipper pulled the ethereal georgette up and back and choked me the  rare times I wore this top. The length did nothing for me but I sacrificed proportion for my love of the fabric. You know how that goes. When purge times came around, I could never rid my self of this top. I knew I would somehow remake it one day, even it it was just part of a scarf. Well, that day recently arrived. 

I removed the zipper and turned it into a button loop slit. I gathered the sleeves for a nice little pouf and my preferred shorter length. Then I tied a black grograin ribbon quckly around the waist to alter the length proportion. I hope to improve on the belt situation, but you get the idea. I also added bra keeps to keep the wider neckline from exposing my straps and in place. 

(Pardon the poofies. I didn't fuss.) Here is how I did it. I love it now and will be wearing it a lot.

First, I carefully removed the heavy zip. Then I  went to the ironing board and spray starched the zip area and pressed. This allowed me to neatly meet all the cut edges together. This is wrong side up. I fused a strip of near sheer fusible tricot interfacing to the zip area and a bit beyond. The orange lines indicate where the xip was cut out. 

On the front I laid down what would soon  be the  facing. It was  a poly mesh, pink blush color I had on hand. This was then topped with tracing paper on which I drew out my stitching template for the slit. I proceeded to sew the slit with a 1.5 stitch length. Once done I ripped off the paper and cut the slit down the middle and into a triangle slits at the bottom corners, classic slit cutting. This was then turned to the inside and carefully pressed, presscloth, steam and low heat. 

Above it is complete. The facing was carefully stitched down around the slit about a quarter of an inch back, with a simple running stitch and single thread. It does not show on the front The same poly mesh was used to make a new binding on the neckline as well. 

 

The zipper you see above is in the dress form so just ignore it. The forms print is so similar to the top that it is hard to distinguish, So sorry.  I did my button thread loop by placing 3 strands of embroidery floss on a piece of  Stitch and Ditch. They were about 8 inches long. this was so I could later thread them and sew them to the top. I lined up the strands on the paper and did a tight small zigzag stitch on my  machine over the  strands. It makes a really nice thread for the button loop. You have to carefully measure first exactly how much length you need to make the button loop function and get around the button. I drew that out on the paper. You stitch this in the very middle of your strands. This leaves you with floss on each end to put in a needle and sew on to the blouse and secure the loop. Hope that is clear. I thought of this one day and it worked out well. Give it a try. 

For my sleeves I simply zigzagged over 1/8th inch elastic. I also took the moment to try out the ban roll techique for the hem. It worked out well. The hem edges discolored, I assumed from hanging out in a storage unit for about a year. I soaked to no avail so I just cut off and rehemmed which was fine. 

I love my pretty pink and black top. I think it will be great for Easter dinner.  I have never been able to part with great fabric, whether in a garment I made, bought, or thrifted.  I believe it can always find some sort of second life. Happy Sewing, all................Bunny

The Velvet Bomber Jacket, V1877

 

Zipped!

Unzipped!

I absolutely love my velvet bomber jacket. I have worn it almost constantly since I finished it, with jeans, joggers, turtlenecks, you name it. I've worn it "out", to the market, and everywhere else. It is so versatile and so warm. There were times I thought I would throw it across the room and never look back but I am so glad my persistence won out, once again. I just can't walk away from a project. There is ALWAYS a way thru!

Pattern:

Bomber jackets seem to be all the rage right now but truthfully, they have always been in fashion. This design was usually seen on the testosterone filled side of the runway but like much in fashion, today it is universal in regards to gender. Yay, for that! It's comfort and versatility are certainly to be enjoyed by all. Being sewists,  we can make our bombers out of any fabric we want, a great opportunity for expression! I had a specific vision in mind and took to Google images for more inspo. What I found were two versions, one being just what I wanted, a shorter, fuller, version with a more defined waist. Most versions, and this definitely applied to patterns, were cut stright down from the chest to the hips, had no shape definition other than being rather closely fit, like this. 

What I had in mind was more of an "urban" look. These were fuller sleeves that were either dropped or raglan and ribbed hems that were closer to the waist, more like this:

I apologize in advance if the images disappear from their vendor sites. I searched patterns all over and could not find what I wanted. I settled on Vogue 1877. a unisex pattern, and did adjustments to achieve my look. Of course, half way through my jacket sewing, I happened on the perfect pattern, so I offer it here for you if you like this look: TCP4 The Bomber Jacket from Trend Patterns.  I found it with a search on The Fold Line. 

Fabric:

This was the interesting part! I've been doing a lot of reorganizing of my fabrics lately, mostly because of those labels I purchased that let me write down the yardage and other info on each piece of fabric I own. I have some really lovely pieces, some for a life I rarely live. I bought this beautiful cotton/rayon velvet online a few years ago with intentions of making a blazer type jacket for the holidays. My blazer days seem to be gone. If I made it, it would probably be a one and done.  Lately, fashion changes have given me permission to use more formal fabrics for more casual clothing. As I measured  out this piece for its label, it occurred to me that I could make a bomber jacket with it and could get a lot more wear out of it and it would be beautiful. I proceeded! 

The outer shell is a cotton/rayon velveteen. It has been machine washed and dried, no shrinkage and looks fine and lush. Washing velvets is something I have subscribed to for a long time. It makes them practical and changes their hand to a deep lushness. Don't  believe me? Wash a good sized sample on warm and dry. You'll see. 

I needed warmth and was not going to rely on just the velvet for that. This was a transition piece for 30 to 50 degree weather. It has worked out beautifully, very warm. It is lined with my favorite Kasha, a flannel backed Satin, perfectly luxe and warm. 

The rib knit was my issue. I am not experienced with rib knit other than on a long tee shirt or two. I've only used what I picked up at Joann's. I went to Etsy for nicer, heavier offerings and ordered what was for jackets, "great for varsity jackets".  Sounded good. It came in and damx, it was thick but I figure this was what I was supposed to use and proceeded. One of the first things to do on this jacket is install the zipper. Between the zipper, the rib knit collar layers, the Kasha layers and the velvet layers, this was incredibly bulky to sew. I pressed my velvet and clapped it down!!!  A stiff brush brought the nap back up pretty easily, which I owe to the prewashing. It was just a  very unpleasant experience all the way through, sewing all those heavy layers felt like stitching a rubber tire. I had to do a lot of the finishing by hand and that stunk as well. I was not excited to work on this so it happened in bits and pieces while I worked on alterations for customers in between to keep my sanity. Once done, I tried it on and was sooooo very happy. It was worth the aggravation. Then I wore it out on a 45 degree day and was overjoyed, wore it with jeans and a turtle to the supermarket. It felt so warm and nice. Persistence won the game once again.

Construction: 

First there was the zipper. A facing of the velvet was attached to the Kasha lining. The coil zip was in between the outer velvet and the the velvet facing. At the very top it met the corner of the rib knit collar. I set the collar back about a half inch and was glad I did. It gave the end of the zip a little extra space for all the bulk involved there. 

This pattern had two collars, one a big camp collar and the other a high stand up collar. I wanted a real rib knit bomber collar. No pattern!  I pinch hit and it came out OK. I just folded the rib knit and cut out a crescent. Fingers were crossed and whew,,, it worked. Every seam was bulky. The next thing that was a bother were the shoulder seams, a definite pattern issue. I have seen this on more patterns, both indie and the big guys. The pattern gives you a clear dropped shoulder. Then it has you attach a sleeve with easing. There is no bump, lump or bone for the fabric to go over where these seams meet and therefore no need for ease. Well, you've got it and you are left with unsightly easing puffs in the middle of your bicep. I steamed the bejeepers out of this seam to rid the sleeve of this easing puffiness which would have been fine if the sleeve had to go over a shoulder bone. Someone behind a computer, at some point, stuck a regular sleeve on a dropped shoulder, never having the knowledge that no enlargement would be needed as the sleeve draped straight down the bicep. Trust me. Take a look at dropped shoulder patterns. You will see this mess everywhere. Check any dropped shoulder patterns you do so you can eliminate the extra before sewing this area. Luckily, my velvet took the abuse well, as you can see above. 

The jacket had welt pockets. While I like welt pockets, these are uncomfortable to use. They are set too high and in just a weird spot. Having looked at other such pockets in my research, they were also set in the same weird spot. They don't look bad. They just feel bad. You can't lower them because the pocket bags have no place to go. Nature of the beast, I guess. They are pretty, though. It had been a while since I had done welt pockets so I watched a lot of vids and did many samples before committing. If you do a mockup for your bomber jacket, make a pocket, just one, and make sure you like it. If you don't, just do a faux pocket, a lot less work.  Also, just look closely at the pockets in the pics above and you will see what I mean. 

Fit:

Lately, in my body changing journey, my shoulders have started to slope down. This jacket really emphasized that. I added 1/2 inch raglan shoulder pads and it GREATLY inproved the fit. These are tools that are out there for you to use, not just laughable objects from another era. This pattern specified a lot of topstitching. I did the yoke first and did not care for the look. I did not do any more. 

I reduced the length of the jacket by 2.5 inches. I tightened up the rib knit hem band by to be closer to  my natural waist rather than hip size. To make the jacket bottom fit the smaller band, I did tucks in the back and front. It was all too heavy for gathering. It worked out fine but added even more bulk for sewing in those areas. I shortened them an inch but kept the fullness in the sleeves as I saw that fullness a lot in the versions I liked. See the brown jacket above. There is a lot of ease in this pattern as I have often found in unisex patterns. I kept it and did no FBA or petiting.

In Conclusion:

I love this jacket and foresee getting a lot of wear from it. All parts have withstood my  prewashing so I can see it giving me years of joy and warmth. It is so comfortable and warm and just perfect for when our temperatures are not brutally winter but still chilly. It can also be casual or dressy. I love it and highly recommend the pattern as well as being a little daring and making it up in a bold fabric, perhaps a brocade or velveteen or how about a beautiful organza? I hope this inspires you. Happy Sewing........Bunny

Three tops and more to come!

 

I have three tops to share with you, made between Thanksgiving and New Year's , I think. With the old year behind us, much is blur. These are part of last year and I am now working on this year's projects in earnest. You have seen me make these patterns before. They are tried and trues. I like to think the fabrications are unique and make them worthy of a second look here. I've tried different techniques each time. The first that you will see are two new Eureka tops. I believe they are number 6 and 7.   A search will bring up the others. The Eureka top is a very basic cut on sleeve tee shirt from the Sewing Workshop. It is the simplest of designs, therefore lending itself to all sorts of interpretations and play. It is large, boxy and so forgiving of fit. I highly recommend it. I did a bit of research and found that McCall's 7721, view B,  is nearly exact to my ruffled sleeve version presented here. I think it may just be a bit less boxy. 

I could wear it now with a turtleneck underneath but will save this for warmer weather. The fabric is Lady McElroy and it is called "EPIC Spectacles". Make sure if you order it you ask for Epic as you may get the tiny faces as I did on the first purchase! Stone Mountain and Daughter carry it and were the ones to eventually provide me with the Epic version and were great to do business with. For the ruffles I simply cut a six inch wide strip the length of the sleeve opening and made that double the length of that opening. Next I sewed the short ends together. It was then folded in half, pressed and then gathered and applied to the opening, very simple basic ruffle technique. Seams on here were French seams except for the ruffle attachment which were machine stitched then serged. 

The Eureka pattern has no closure. I wanted one and I also made the neckline opening a bit  wider. 

I made a simple facing for the slit area and backed it with woven interfacing. Because I did not want any bulk to show through, I zigzagged and pinked the edges of the facing. No bulk! I did a simple thread loop by hand for the tiny vintage button and applied a bias binding as I always do.   I think this shirt is great fun and can't wait to wear it in the warmer weather. 

With the second Eureka, the party is all in the back. 

Pardon the photo. For some reason the fabric is really shiny. IRL, it is not. 

On this Eureka I did the sleeves as directed in the pattern, with a simple fold-up cuff. I always cut the extra small size.  This is a big garment and I like it.  

 

The back got a square cut out and I tied it across at the top  to prevent gaping. I also didn't want it hanging open for viewing to the public as I moved  around. The facing was understitched but also held down with French knots all around. I also ran a strip of boning in a channel across the bottom edge of the square cutout. It fits in very snugly and you don't even know it's there. Its snug fit keeps it in place and I can easily take it out for laundering. The cutout square stays nicely placed on my back with the weight of the bone and no facing rolls out. I gave it a trial wear to make sure.  What type of boning did I use? A white electrical tie, cut on the ends in a curved shape so not to irritate. 

The fabric was the fun part here. It came from a floor length tee shirt dress that also had white ribknit neckline and cuffs, Think golf shirt. I got it at Good Will and  was size XXL. On my first trip there in a long time, I saw it and fell in love with its hand painted water color style. I left it on the rack. I went back a couple weeks later and it was still there so I grabbed it. It was a very cold day and this type of garment would not be moving easily out of the door into the winter's cold right now. I brought it home. The fabric is all poly, I know, yuk, but I felt the lovely print would make up for any issues I might encounter with heat. The design of the top and its  loose demeanor make me think it won't be too hot. I really like it. 

On to top #3!

Oh, how I love the Imby top by Karmme Apparel! I didn't use a shower curtain to make this one! I did use a lovely fabric. It is a rayon slub, near sheer,  leftover from a prior project. You can see more on the original project here. 

The bodice lining/collar were made of a really nice rib knit. 

 The bodice was topstitched pretty much everywhere and the lining was understitched with a triple zigzag up to the shoulder seams. I hand stitched the collar down with a hemstitch underneath. It just kept wanting to turn back. If I did it again I would interface the turnback area. There is no interfacing in here now. The Imby top is a lot of fabric and should be heavy but it looks best with a light fabric making up the skirt and bodice so is very comfortable to wear. I think it will be delightful this summer and great with white jeans. I need to get some of those! (that fit)

The Velvet Bomber Jacket is c'est finis! I am just hemming the lining area by hand. This was not difficult, just extremely bulky to work with. The ribbing was like working with a rubber tire. Add in the heavy lining and fashion fabric and it tried my patience at times but I got it done. It could be better and I think it was one of those patterns you had to work thru the first time and then get it right the second. I'll review as soon as done, hopefully in the next few days. Then it will be on to sewing for summer and my vacation at the end of June. Happy Sewing..............Bunny