A Caftan Top

The Vogue 1181 misses' caftan that I converted into a top is completed. Working with silk charmeuse has been super tricky and the thing unraveled on me on quite a few occasion (the bottom part before it finally got hemmed). 

This was a slow project for me because of that (and the fact that the 20 mth-old Bean likes to climb on my chair while I work, or pull things off the table), despite it being an okay  to follow pattern. I think it probably took me a week at least, eversince the conclusion of Faye's Starting at the Top Challenge 2012.

As the pattern sleeve describes, this top have overarm dart, front opening and shaped middle section. I left out sewing hook and eye for the opening closure, hence the gaping at the neck. I am going to test wearing it this way with a tank top underneath of course and see if I am going to need a closure or leave it as it is. Either way is good of course, but with such a print, it is going to closely resembles my Malay traditional dress too much and I want a more casual easy breezy type top in this project.

Front view:

The caftan looks like the pattern sleeve IMO, other than the fact I left out the bottom panel and adjusted the middle panel. It now falls around my upper hips I think.

Back view:

So... :) One more top to wear in May for the Me-Made-May'12 thankfully...
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added:
Verdict is that I will sew the hook and eye at the top of the opening as suggested by pattern. It's such a hassle without :)

V1179: take 3

This is my 3rd top for the SATT-2012 challenge. I've made this pattern (Vogue 1179) twice before, and I think this is one of my favorite patterns so far. Maybe because I like the neckline and shape and it gave me the least trouble when adjusting pattern (because indeed the shape is roomy, hence forgiving...) Easy means you wanna make more, and the more you make the faster it comes together no? :)

For this version I just added long sleeves (like 2nd version), and shortened the length to upper part of the hip on me.

The fabric I got from FabricMart and I love it. It's still for sale on their website for cheap on clearance!

The features that I love about this pattern: cowl neck and pleated front:

The pattern instruction tells you to stitch in the ditch (the cowl neck), but I usually handstitch it down on the inside so that messiness will not show on the outside...
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This week is my wedding anniversary week. I will need to sew me a dress to celebrate, so I will have to take a pause on the challenge which ends on the 15th! But I reached my target of 3, so I'm happy with that, but I have a lotttt of tops I have in my mind that I want to make...

I haven't decided what to do yet... I know I am not going to use the brocade-y eggplant fabric I first earmarked for the anniversary dress - I think it is not season appropriate... So, do I make another V1179 dress in a silk jersey print fabric I've been holding on to, knowing that it will be faster to put together? Or do I make a summery cotton dress which means hassling with pattern adjustment and I might not finish in time for the day but probably get done by the weekend when we will go out for our family anniversary dinner (or not)?

We'll see...

Starting at the top challenge 2012 - Top #3

Faux wrap knit top, version #1

I got the "trendy knit rose florette" fabric on sale from Fabric Mart some time last year and finally found a pattern that I wanted to try out: McCall's M6513, View D (In picture of pattern sleeve is the light blue top but with long sleeves).

The pattern being by Palmer/Pletsch includes tutorials on fitting, which I of course have a problem with... Even with pictorial instructions I still managed to end up with a bigger top which doesn't fit well :) I cut a size 16 for shoulders and then to 22 towards my hips (AND ON TOP OF THAT ADDED AN INCH THROUGH THE MIDDLE TOO!!!). I don't have a size 22 hips, but I was imagining that this will better fit my mommy tummy... (I always seem to approach fit more like an experiment... and then forget about the ingredients afterwards...)



While on paper pattern I felt that this might be okay, upon basting the fabrics together realized that it was too big, so I sew a 1.5" seam. And it is still fitting poorly IMO. It was a bit big on the shoulder for my liking, and then loose under the armpits and on my back (like butterfly). Oh, and of course I knew this beforehand but somehow still manage to miss it: pattern placement on print fabrics... As you can see, a huge rose florette is highlighting my worse area: tummy! Uggh! In this picture it is not that terrible, but it is cringe-worthy in other pics.

It wasn't loose around the bust area simply because the front pieces crossed each other giving a nice snug look in the area.

I am not sure what material this fabric is, maybe rayon polyester, or rayon jersey? It is very very soft and very comfortable to wear. However I think this is a 4 way stretch type fabric, so eventhough I added stabilizers (as recommended) on the shoulders and at the side gathers, I feel that this top will expand even more over time. And that since the front part are 2 pieces of fabric crossed and sewn together on the sides (faux wrap) and the sewn to a 1 piece back fabric, the front is heavier and so it pulls the top to the front (because this fabric is so soft and maybe less stable?). The pattern does recommend stabler knits.

This top is not a home run for me because of the too loose fit and the type of stretch of the fabric I used (but I still love the fabric, sooo silky soft, but it is already pilling after wearing it out to the mall with a handbag across my body...) I am not about to ditch the pattern - the neckline and the look I love. I think rather than move on to the other stuff, I will make more of this top to get the best fit for me. I've already made adjustments on the pattern, and planning to make it with a cherry wine colored ponte knit fabric I have (pic below, on the left, from Fabric Mart).

If and only if I get a satisfying fit, I will make another version using the leopard print ITY jersey pictured above (bought from Gorgeous Fabrics)...

Red & black date dress

Yesterday afternoon the date dress was finally completed. I am emotionally exhausted. Spent. Has any sewing project did that to you?

There are some fit issues that I've identified that I can do better for next version (yes I do like the pattern McCall's M6518 , or the shape really) but after so many times ripping the seams, resewing and so on, I won't mess with this one anymore. The issues are from my own limitation re my fitting, and not from the pattern.

I might shorten the hem to follow the pattern sleeve picture. Right now with the knee length and two color it's looking too corporate-ish, officey. Shorter hem will make it look more fun. I'll do longer than knee length when I do an all black version someday.

Might get the hubby take pics for when I am all cleaned up and dressed for our dinner out, but here are the pics for now:

Silk skirt to blouse

Found a very pretty & simple A-line skirt earlier last year at a thrift store. I love that it's made of silk, and the pretty print, and knew that I just have to take it home, and refashion it into something.

Over the year I've considered it for a project or another, like as a lining for example, but it didn't feel right. Finally last week after finishing up my wool knit sweater dress, I decided to just go ahead and I worked on that into this:

The skirt has a few french seams to it, and I didn't want to rip them unnecessarily, so what I did is I took my adjusted Sorbetto pattern pieces to it and pinned and then cut. I had enough fabric for a little cap-pish sleeves and binding for the neck, so I was set. I incorporated the french seams to the front (near the bust darts) and also the hemmed bottom part of the skirt (which showcased its border print).

I usually do hongkong seams when working with nice but raveling fabrics, but for this project I pulled out all the stops, hehehe, and practiced my french seams, in line with the original ones :)

For the neck binding, I used the same fabric (from the waist band of the original skirt - has a thin interfacing that i just left in) and did not cut it in the bias as i want the print not to be skewed looking. The interfacing, or that it is not cut in the bias may have caused it to be looking a lil wonky, but it's nice i think.

This blouse is joining Recycled Fashion Finds #32 at:

Cozy yummy yellow sweater dress

I've sat on this Marc Jacob's yellow wool knit fabric for a while, trying to find the best pattern for it. With winter looking like it's coming to an end sooner and not as harsh as the previous years, I know I had to get cracking fast. I bought the pattern Butterick 5523 after I saw a couple of bloggers trying it or a lookalike pattern, and once the pattern arrived set on making it.

I made adjustments to the pattern and some sort of muslin last week, and over this last weekend with hubby looking after the Bean worked many hours on the dress. Had to take the seam ripper to it a few times, and let me tell u, wool knit and a matching colored thread made the job of ripping the seams sooooo difficult! I finally attached the back tab and buttons last nite, and I can say that it's ready, and phew!

The fabric itself is thick but not heavy, and my dress is kinda a lil loose on me (on the upper part), but I'm ok with that. The fabric i used as muslin was a tshirt type but with much less stretch, so i guess that was why the fit was not the same muslin to actual fabric? Or that I should transfer pattern pieces better! I hope that my dress will not stretch with time tho... Don't wool shrink instead of stretch?

So here is the dress:

(should iron the back pleat before taking this picture!)

The back looks like a coat no?

My test V1250 dress

Earlier this week I was able to finally be done with hemming my 1st version of Vogue 1250 dress. I used a thrifted jersey type fabric I have in my stash for the project, it's brown with cream colored roses.

V1250 has only 3 pattern pieces, so it should be easy right? Ha ha. :) The pieces are 1) front & back, 2) back neck facing and 3) upper back. I cut a size 14 for the upper back and the armhole of front and back pieces, however I added 3 inches to the middle of the front and back by pivoting and sliding.

The thing is, whenever I buy RTW (ready-to-wear) clothes in the past, things never fit me right. If it fits great on the shoulder it means it's too small over my bust, and so on. Sewing for myself means I am able to have clothes that fit me better, in fabric I like, and patterns and shapes that flatter me better than RTW. And hopefully with better quality finishing than the RTWs. I'm still learning re fit. I think i'm not progressing as much on that, but maybe once i'm done wanting to sew a lot of "basics"(Right now I'm into making loose outfit that fits great on my shoulder and bust and then flow over my tummy - a problem area that I need to work A LOT on post c-sect.), i will then progress into accomplishing better fit by attempting different silhouettes...

This version will be worn with a belt definitely. For my next version (yes, there will be next versions, the first one probably in black - i still have tonnes of the black ponte knit!!!), I will change up the pattern by separating the front and back as that will work better for me rather than the original pattern that has the front and lower back in one fabric piece. (those who has worked on this pattern will know what I'm talking about re the pattern pieces for this. sorry, i don't have the pics to show what i mean...)

This weekend I am going to work on my wool knit fabric... Winter will end soon so I better get cracking (However, as I am typing this, it started snowing out there! hehehe)

Linking up my dress @:

2012!

Happy new year everyone!

2012 crept in and so did winter. Finally. Just as I was about to ditch my winter sewing plan, and dash into spring wink wink. Unfortunately, with crazy cold weather I hibernate even more. I haven't finished the 2 dresses that I started since the New Year hols (Vogue 1250 and Tracy Reese's Vogue 1225). Well, they are almost done, but I'm stalling because they aren't looking the way I envisioned them to look. I still have a lot to learn re fitting, and also, I have to also get in better shape. Both can qualify as my 2012 resolution then, hehe.

With V1225, i used black ponte knit as the top portion and a sequinned black fabric i got from a local thrift store for the skirt. I left out the pockets for this version. I bought size 14 i think and added some inches, and that's where the problem is when i tried it on. It was too big! I am so used of making everything roomy I (like tunic types) and really need to learn to make things fit on me better. After all, the top is made of a good knit fabric, i don't need to add. The skirt portion is okay, as i can pleat it a little. So, for now I just put it aside as my first 2012 UFO, to be worked on a later date. After all, I don't have anywhere to go with sequins ;)

I started the very popular V1250 2 weeks ago. Since my baby is getting older, errrmmm he is like 1.5 months already, he became even more so active and thinks that any chair is for him to climb on, esp when I am trying to sew, it meant no sewing for mommy when he is up. :) hmmmm unless of course i bring my chair and table for sewing into the kitchen area which is gated. That's not a bad idea. ...

Anyways, the deal with the V1250 dress is that don't have much sewing time with it, and also ehile it only have 3 pattern pieces and quite simple, again my fitting is off (i added inches to it by sliding and pivoting etc) so i had to take it apart and resew it. Now it is just not sitting right on me, and I will have to take some time t figure out what is wrong. Is it the fabric? Since I am also not that familiar with what type the fabric was (since it's my 1st V1250 version, i used a thrifted fabric, the feel is like tshirt material but has just some stretch). Is it the way i added inches and then take them off at some part and leaving some part as is? Maybe for the next version, I will separate the front and back like one of my favorite blogger did (although probably the reason she did that wasn't because she is clueless re fitting like me!!!) Hubby said that if i wear a belt with the dress it's better, so that's what i'm going to do. Once i finish hemming and sewing the armhole nicely. I really love the neck draping/cowl on me :) Pic will be in next post when the dress is done.

I actually finished one dress during Christmas break. It was actually supposed to be a prototype for my yellow wool knit from Marc Jacobs bought online. Prototype because I don't know yet what look/pattern will be best for that fabric, so I decided to come up with my own. LOL. I used a knit of unknown materials that I thrifted. :) Pic below:

It is very loose which is what i like, i love the sleeves and pretty chuffed with the buttons added. Come to think of it, the shape is kinda like my traditional dress, baju kurung. Except that for our traditional dress, i still need a long skirt to go with it! :) Maybe I will make a skirt to go with it and i can wear it for events that need me to wear one :)

I've been looking high and low for the perfect pattern for my fabric, and after weeks of looking, I bought the Butterick 5523 pattern. Should be here anytime now. Can't wait!

Happy New Year! May 2012 bring happiness, love, blessings and prosperity to all :)

Gratifying sewing - V1179 part deux

After patchwork sewing for days on end I was super ready to sew clothes for me! Didn't want to mess with having to make muslin, I settled on V1179, a pattern I made before. It did took me the 3rd day to finish it though. Didn't do anything on the second day coz being hogged by the little Bean and was too tired. Sure glad to be able to work on it a lot yesterday.

I use my stash of black ponte de roma knit (still have probably 5-6 yards left! no problem,i have a lot of patterns to try and a girl needs lots of black outfits.. at least this one does since she (moi) is building her own handmade wardrobe from scratch...). I added a long tapered sleeves, and made sure that the inside is as neat as the outside as possible. A lot of topstitching. .

I also made the cowl collar thicker, i like the snood look. Also, i stitched down the pleat at the chest a little, i think I read that this was what Carolyn of Diary of a Sewing Fanatic did too? My first version i just basted and let em out as per pattern instruction/picture on packet, and i liked the look, decided to try stitching for this one, and liked it too.

Haven't worn it yet, so here's photo of it on hanger:

This V1179 is definitely a pattern that I can make more and more of! However, for the sake of learning, i will attempt other shapes... :) Another dress or 2 i think. After all it's the holiday season,hehehe...

A dress and a necklace

Over the Thanksgiving break I was able to finish my I am Tiny Tuck dress from the I am Cute Dresses book. Not able to write long today, but here are the pictures of the dress:

I also made a necklace out of semi precious stones (lapiz lazuli and white stones I don't know the name of) and silver:

My Teal Silk Tie Front top

I had this silk teal shirt/blouse for a while now. I think I got it at Goodwill for $0.25. I love the color and the print and that it is silk :), and that I am going to make something out of it.

I decided to make a tie front top, and will need all the silk for the ties and binding so I bought a coordinating color top to be the back. I found this linen blouse (the color in this photo is too bright) at Goodwill last week (while working on this project). It is heavier than the silk (rookie mistake), but you live and learn, eh. :) The inspiration for this project was actually a tank top I bought from Banana Republic. It's a simple silk front with jersey/light knit back.

I used the silk fabric to bind the armhole, and also to finish the side seams inside. :) It's pretty neat.

And hand stitch the inside of the armhole binding (and also the collar tie's inside).

I lurve tie front blouses! :) I still have to do better about fit though... So far it's been hit and miss... For this one, it's very roomy around the back and armhole (I don't mind that it's roomy on the front). Maybe I will feel better if the back fabric is as light as the silk? I will keep on experimenting...

Linked to

2 sweater dresses

Ok. I've completed my 2nd sweater dress (refashion project) and it's time to post them both. I am not so thrilled with the end results - they look severe/a little too formal - but I will still be wearing them this winter with chunky belt and boots. And since I can't function when it's cold, you can usually just only see my face under layers of scarves, and extra large down jacket, I suppose it doesn't matter. I am not hating them. Just not loving them.

Sweater dress #1:

The top part of the dress was made from a thrifted merino wool sweater that I bought for my husband. He loved it, wore it once, and then poof! I accidentally shrunken it! Oopsie. The bottom/skirt part is from thrifted XL men's cotton sweater. It's very heavy and warm.

Firstly, I cut off the sleeves, side seams and the bottom band of the merino wool sweater (The sweater was all wonky now that it's shrunken). It was smaller than before of course, but the fit at the shoulder for me was not right too. Hence the reason why I chopped it off. I used probably one of my TNT bodice and sleeves pattern to scale it down and shape the sweater and sew. I cut off the sleeve bands and just left them as they are.

The picture above is of the cotton sweater I used for the bottom/skirt part. Because the sweater is thick and heavy (and because I always wear tights), I chose not to line it. I cut off the neck area straight across and also the sleeves. I made sure to zigzag the areas where I cut into the sweater as they unravels, unlike with the shrunken merino wool top. After that, I stitched the sides to close where the sleeves were chopped off, making sure that it will fit my waist/tummy area.

Then I just sew the top part to the bottom. And thus I have sweater dress #1 done (last week). I wore it once when we went to the mall. Dress, belt, tights, boots, and a black leather jacket. I was a little warm that day in the mall, but perfectly fine when we were walking outside. It is getting colder and colder this week though.

Sweater dress #2:

This project was a lot of work. The "raw materials" are a thrifted plaid wool jacket, a thrifted sweater and a thrifted black cotton knit skirt.

Here is the picture of the plaid wool jacket before I took the seam ripper through it:

It is actually my size, but it was too long so looked a bit dated on me. I did purchase it (and a few others) to be refashioned anyways, so I don't have any qualms about "harvesting" fabric from it. And there was a lot of fabric from this jacket! So I decided to make a tie front top with bust darts. (I've made a tunic with this kind of neckline last month from a thrifted cotton plaid set - i love plaids- of top and skirt from Land's End brand. Initially I thought they were pyjama set, but probably not with the pleated skirt.)

I started this project with the sweater that was to be the skirt of the dress. It is acrylic material, super soft and unravels a lot. I cut off all the seams and sleeves, and used the thrifted cotton black knit skirt as a lining to the skirt (My thought is that it will add structure and warmth). I used an A line skirt I have as a pattern guide to shape the skirt pieces.

I used the sweater's sleeves as the dress' sleeves after adjusting the size a little. I attach the sleeves to the bodice, then attach the front of the skirt piece to the front part of bodice and the back piece of the skirt to the back part of the bodice. Then I just sew straight on from the sleeves to the bodice to the skirt, both sides....

I had to baste and handsew a lot for this project, so it took all week to complete. I work on it when I can - when the baby naps, and when I am not distracted by the internet.... I can't say how long it would have taken me if I work on this straight :) I like this dress better than the first one. I like the color better on me, and it's looser fit too, which I prefer.

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I will still be making more sweater dresses in the future I'm sure. With a more casual style that suits my life. I have some ideas, but will have to see if I have all the materials I needed to make them. We'll see.

Vogue 1261 - view B

I'm a slow worker. It took me 5 hours to cut the fabric for this project. Then abandoned this project for 2 days. And then spent the whole afternoon and night of Saturday sewing this. Why it took me this long? Because I decided to work while watching all the episodes and seasons of Say Yes to the Dress that are available on Netflix, and the latest Project Runway on their website (we don't have cable). And got distracted big time. That's why.

But it's all done. And I wore it the next afternoon on Sunday - impromptu picnic with my family at the park.

About the tunic:

Pattern: Vogue 1261 - I made View B (the white tunic with cowl collar).

I decided to just cut the pattern size 16 after adding 3 inches to the length. When I cut the fabric, I added 2 inches to the abdomen area to by sliding and pivoting... I didn't make any muslin this time...

Fabric: Black ponte knit from FabricMart.com. (Still have at least 8 yards left)

Notions: 2mm twin needle & 2 1/2 yds of black ribbons (i used 5/8" rayon ribbons that was meant for seam/hem finishing from my stash that I got from thrift store). The ribbons to be used for the back seam for decorative purposes like so:------------------------------------>

The black ponte knit I used made the tunic feel nice and warm as it is a little heavier than cotton jersey and such. The tunic does look like the pattern picture even though in black it's difficult to capture the details in photo.

detail on the shoulder-sleeves seam

However, I think I needed a smaller size for my shoulder (and I will alter that part in my future version if I make any), but the chest and so on fits me well. I even like how the sleeves fits me, just not the shoulder. I still need to learn more about fitting obviously. I will also take out the 3 inches that I added to the length. Current length made me look shorter. I didn't mind the 2 extra inches that I added to the abdomen area. But next version I will can leave this out.

Ribbon detailing on the back seam

The cowl collar turned into mini hood! (who knew) Next time I will make this collar deeper, so that I can have the hood covering my whole head. Good for windy days...

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Until the next project!