The Anna Blouse...

I'm having a bit of 'blog' writers block at the moment. There's a lot to say, but words just aren't coming easily this week. So, a short and sweet sewing blog post with mostly pictures will have to suffice this time round.

This is the Anna bodice turned into a back button-up blouse. Pretty sweet huh?

I actually made and took photos of the blouse before we moved into our new house. I was hoping to find the time to make up a tutorial to go along with this post but unfortunately, that just hasn't happened yet.  If you would like to know how I did it, let me know in the comments and I'll rustle up a tutorial for you.

And just quickly, while we're on the subject of the BHL ladies, have you seen their kickstarter page? I've had the honor of meeting (and fabric shopping with) Elisalex and Charlotte, and they are such lovely ladies! There are some pretty sweet goodies available for all pledges (big and small), so if you can pledge anything towards their project, you can do so here. 

I'll be back this week with a sneak peek of what's been eating up my life at the moment (and has taken up all my words. And it ain't just the house, though that has been taking up plenty enough on it's own). Can't wait to share...

xx
J

The Kate-Franken Dress...

So, this is my Kate Middleton-Blue-Engagement-Franken dress. Number three on my Winter Time Sewing List.

Not as pretty as hers.

In fact, not the prettiest dress I've ever made. But wearable, and really, what else do you need?

My version is made up of so many different patterns I don't even know where to start. I found the front bodice bones in the form of a vintage Vogue dress pattern from the 1950s. The back is self drafted (a back that I had drafted for a little knit peter pan collared top I was selling in my Etsy store some years ago). The ties are taken from my wrap blouse (altered and lengthened) and the skirt is 2 rectangles of fabric gathered all the way around. The sleeves are from my Apples in Winter dress, lengthened.

The knit is a super stretchy wool mix of dubious quality, but I loved the subtle pattern and the colour. And it is so stretchy in fact, that I didn't need to use a fastening of any kind. I can happily slip it over my head, wrap the waist ties around and BAM! Instant waist.

It is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. The bust gathers drape strangely down across my arm pit (I needed to make the shoulder a bit smaller I think) and some of the gathers underneath the bust sit kinda funny. But for a complete experiment (using mostly bits of patterns that were never meant to be made with knits) it's turned out wearable. Well, wearable enough to go to the pub for a drink anyway.

This is my second knit dress and I still feel like I don't really know what I'm doing when sewing with them. But I guess I've made two wearable garments so far, so I must be doing something right.

Have you ever had luck with piecing different patterns together to make something completely new?

xx
Jen

Me Made May - The Final Week

 Mochy makes an appearance on the final day...

I did it! Me Made May is over and I stuck to my pledge to wear one me-made garment everyday for the month of May, post my outfit to flickr and instagram daily and have a weekly round up on my blog.

How did you guys go?

Like many others, I really struggled towards the end. But it was a great exercise in making me go through all of my me mades, wear them and find out why I maybe hadn't worn some of them since they were finished. It was also great for figuring out the gaps in my wardrobe that really need filling.

Pants are my number one must make at the moment (after I've finished a little early-60s number I began last week). I made a muslin a few weeks back of a pair of 40s pants and we didn't hit it off. I knew when I was cutting the muslin that they didn't look right and that they looked almost nothing like the front cover, but I didn't trust my gut to make some very basic changes to that initial muslin and low and behold, they looked awful!

Don't you hate that? When you know things aren't looking right but you charge on ahead because the pattern must be right! You would think I'd know better by now...

Any way, a new sewing list will be coming up soon to replace my Summer one. I ended up making quite a few items on that list (and also started but didn't finish a few more) and found that having it really did help to keep me focused on what I really wanted to make and what I really needed to make.

Day 28 - 
My birthday! A new MacBook Air and a huge box of chocolates.

Wearing - Billie Jean Polka Dot Dress

Day 29 - 
Plaid and bonus glasses today!

Wearing - Mad at the Plaid Dress

Day 30 - 
My little 50s Sailor Sweater deserves a post all of it's own!

Wearing - Self-drafted Black Circle Skirt

Day 31 - 
Freaking out and trying to get everything ready for my first market the next day.

Wearing - 40s knit dress aka Vogue 8728

And what did I wear on June 1st when the challenge was over and I didn't need to wear a me made? I wore the exact same outfit from Day 23. It was comfy, warm and 'put together' enough for my first market (which was fun by the way, I made new crafty friends and sold out of my bird tea towel!).

xx
Jen

Me Made May - Week 3

Another Me Made week down!

I don't know about any of you, but it's starting to get harder to get dressed in the morning. I find myself checking my instagram far too often to figure out if I've already worn a combination before or to make sure that there have been sufficient days in between before I can wear the same piece again.

It's been great for forcing me to think a little more creatively about what I wear each day, to pull out those Me Mades that don't get any wear and to not just throw on the same old thing each day. But it's definitely becoming a challenge.

All I can say is, thank goodness for cardigans and their ability to transform the same outfit into something new.

Day 14 - 
It's started to get much cooler in the evenings here now. Today I invented a new fashion - pj's under dresses. Comfy and warm!

Wearing - Polka Dot Billie Jean

Day 15 -
I can't even remember what I did that day... but I really like those shoes.

Wearing - Self-drafted Grey Circle Skirt

Day 16 - 
Today you got a bonus glasses shot. No, they are not 'for show'. I wear them all day every day so I can see you :)

Wearing - Stripes and Stripes Dress

Day 17 -
I did baking today. I made a gluten free version of these. Yum.

If you plan to make them, put chocolate chips into the muffin batter as well. You won't regret it. Promise.

Wearing - Self-drafted Black Circle Skirt

Day 18 - 
It's Saturday! We went to look at art and made an impromptu stop at the Australian Museum. They have snakes and lizards there. Awesome.

Wearing - 60's McCalls Wool Skirt

Day 19 - 
Mostly couldn't be bothered getting dressed today. But I did get a lot done. Watch out for a bunting tutorial coming up on the blog this Friday (with a free downloadable pattern I drafted!).

Wearing - Vogue Violet Wrap Dress

Day 20 - 
Ahhhh Monday, we meet again.

Wearing - Self-drafted Blue Circle Skirt

xx

Jen

 

Patterns and Spots

So, something quite exciting happened a few weeks ago. I was asked to be a pattern tester for a new indie pattern company that Abby was starting called Blue Ginger Doll. I was quite chuffed to be asked really. I've never done any pattern testing before (except for my own adventures in pattern drafting) and so I jumped at the opportunity to be involved.

I received a lovely big package in the post a few weeks later that turned out to be the pattern for Abby's first dress, the Billie Jean.

It's a truly lovely pattern to work with. I didn't really need to make any alterations besides the ones I normally have to make to most patterns.

I did end up pinching a bit of excess out of the neckline though, probably about 3cm all up. The dress straps are designed to sit off the shoulder but I wanted to be able to wear the dress as an 'every day' dress and so needed to be able to wear a bra without the straps showing.

This is really very easy to do - simply cut out the front pattern piece in a muslin, place it on yourself or your dress form and pin the shoulder straps where you would like them to sit. Pinch out the excess on the neckline evenly on both sides, iron the excess down so that you have a flat pattern piece and redraw. Do the same for the back pattern piece so that the shoulder straps line up. You will need to slightly true up your pattern piece around the neckline after that, but it's really very minimal.

I made version 2 of the dress but made the skirt less full. My version is made from a light cotton black and white polka dot fabric and is lined in the same fabric.

The Billie Jean dress is Abby's first pattern and is available for pre-sale at the moment in both downloadable pdf and paper variations. Check out her website for other variations of the dress, you'll see that it's really a great pattern for mixing and matching different fabrics and styles.

xx
Jen