PR Sewing Bee Round #2: A Bias skirt

I was in my (parked) car when I read the email from Pattern Review revealing the challenge for round #2: Make a Bias Garment.  I didn't cheer, I didn't groan, my reaction was more of a "Hmmm..."  Since I was already in the car out and about, I headed over to Joanns to peruse the pattern catalogs. McCall's patterns were on sale that day and I was hoping to find one of their patterns that would be interesting and which would work.  Nope.  Simplicity/Butterick/Vogue? Nope, nope nope.  I did find a New Look pattern, for a slinky dress, but when I pulled the envelope out of the drawer it said it was a juniors pattern!!  Nope.  Deflated, I realized I would never wear a slinky bias dress, so it was better that I not waste my time.

Then I went where I had never gone before...to Burda.  Right away I knew I would be able to find something that would work.  Their patterns were interesting and different.  There were different styles and interesting seamlines.  I know there are a number of sewists/bloggers out there who love Burda, but I've never had a need.  I do own 4 Burda Style Magazines but have never made anything out of them.  I found 2 great patterns for bias skirts, but the one that won out was Burda 6572.

I meandered through Joann's and found what they called brushed cotton windowpane plaid in black and red.  It was perfect! I love black and red together, it would look great on the bias, and it would be much easier to match than a more complex plaid.  

There is really interesting seaming on this skirt.  The front and back are on the bias, the back yoke is on grain, there is a front yoke and pocket that look different altogether.  The top of the pocket lines up exactly with the back yoke and I wanted to highlight that cool continuous looking line using dark red piping.

The red piping looks like it is continuous around the side and back of the skirt. It also provides a visual break between the skirt back, which is cut on the bias, and the back yoke, which is not. I was very concerned about the thickness of the piping at the CB seam and invisible zipper. Invisible zippers don't like bulk, so I discovered a clever idea to keep my piping but to make my zipper happy. I was able to slide the cord (inside the piping) out of the covering and cut 5/8" of it off. I then slid the cord back inside the covering and voila! no bulky cord at the seamline! I did this on the side seams as well. 

The hardest part about making this skirt was dealing with the bias, both in layout/cutting, and sewing so that the seams didn't stretch out.

#1: Cutting out the pattern pieces and making sure the plaid was on the grain lines. The flannel was very pliable and would shift easily off grain. On my pattern pieces for the front and back, I drew extra grainlines that would line up with the windowpane pattern on the fabric. Starting in the center of the pattern piece, I folded the pattern, placed it on the fabric aligning my grainlines with the red lines in the fabric and pinned in it place. Working from the center outward, I continued folding the pattern, aligning the fabric, and pinning it in place. It was tedious and time consuming, but to me (and my perfectionist tendencies) it was necessary.

 #2: Making sure seams didn't stretch out or skew before sewing. In order to prevent the curved seam line around the front yoke/pocket from stretching out or shifting while sewing, I used small strips of fusible interfacing along the concave curve on the front skirt piece. I was worried that manipulating the fabric and sewing this curve would stretch out the fabric and make my seams pucker. I also hand basted the pocket/front yoke to the skirt front, then machine basted, and then did a final stitch to make sure the curves laid flat. I also used strips of fusible interfacing at the center back where the zipper was installed to stabilize the seam prior to sewing in the zipper.  At the center front, where the bias front piece is sewn to the inner facing, I sewed a strip of 1/8" twill tape along the seam to be absolutely sure it didn't stretch out.

Here are the final photos:

I am once again happy to report that I have advance on to PR Sewing Bee Round #3.  --It's a doozy!

Endless Combinations!!

Hello! I have been sewing like mad!  When I discovered that Hancock Fabrics was going out of business, I went a little nuts buying fabric.  By "a little nuts", I mean a little more than a little.  ;)

I started sewing up my new-found stash and then discovered the Endless Combinations Contest going on at Pattern Review.  It was fate I tell you!!

Let me describe my entries in the following ways:

1.  Using cool fabric

2.  Replicating a cool pattern envelope photo

3.  Replicating a long gone and memories-attached jacket

First up. A skirt made from a blue/white/navy/green swirly ITY knit.  I used the trusty McCall's 6654:

Cool fabric isn't it??  Since the going out of business sale at Hancocks had 2 yard minimum cuts, I had plenty left over for a top to match.  Enter Vogue 8390:

My previous version of this pattern was in a brown knit and I still love it (but it did need some tweaks):

When the 2 pieces are worn together, it looks like a dress:

On a side note, I have started running...and apparently my waist has returned!!

Part 2 of my thoughts for this contest was replicating the Jalie Eleonore pattern cover.  In particular, the light blue capris and the striped top:

Jalie Eleonore Jeans

The model seemed so springy, cool and comfortable.  It is very unlike me to copy a pattern photo, but it happened this time.  I even bought similar shoes!!  

My attempt at the cover pose

I did a split hem on these, using this excellent tutorial from pattern~scissors~cloth.

The top was a new pattern: New Look 6384.   Let me tell you that the top runs big.  I cut a large and should have done a medium.  The neckline was both low and wide.  I took in the shoulder seams and also the center front.  The fabric was a white striped interlock knit which I used on this dress:

McCall's 6886 blogged here

I am not a big fan of interlock knit mostly because it has poor recovery.  My neckline was a wavy mess when I finished it:

I was industrious and used some stretch thread which I ran through the channeling made by the neck binding.  I did not follow the pattern instructions, but used Jalie's method of using a skinny binding. Here is a great tutorial to show how it's done.  Once the elastic thread was inside the casing, it was almost gathered.  After ironing, however, it came out perfect!  Quite the save!!

So my pattern envelope re-enactment was finished and last up was replicating a long gone and memories-attached jacket.  Back when I was 18, I was an exchange student in France (Western Brittany).  At some point during my year long stay, I purchased a white Gap jean jacket from the Kilo Shop, where everything is sold by the kilo.  I remember the jacket being a bit too big, and I remember adding velcro to the inner pockets to prevent pick-pocketing during my travels (I was really paranoid about theives).  I have fond memories of that jacket including learning that the French word for velcro was "velcro".  So when I needed something to create Endless Combinations, a white jean jacket would be perfect.

I used Butterick 5616 from my stash:

Butterick 5616

Most reviewers mentioned the pattern being boxy, which is something I meant to minimize, if not eliminate.  I wisely made a muslin and did the following changes:

1.       I tapered the center back piece to narrow at the waist.  As drafted there was about a 2” difference between the finished bust and finished waist measurement…boxy indeed!

2.       I did a swayback adjustment, taking a ~1” fisheye dart across the back & side back pieces, tapering to nothing at the side seam.

3.       I did a slight FBA adding 3/8” to the bust at the side front.

4.       Below the bust I shaved off ~ ¼ ”on the seam to fit closer to the stomach.

5.       From my muslin, I discovered that the shoulders were very wide.  I narrowed them about 5/8”.

6.       I lengthened the sleeves from ¾ length to full length.

7.       I made the sleeve cuff narrower to match the lower band and used 1 button instead of 3

8.       I added ¼” twill tape along the collar to stabilize it. 

9.       I added interior pockets to the front pieces (you must have interior pockets to thwart pickpockets!!)

10.   I added a coat hanging loop.

I had JUST enough fabric for this jacket.  This is all that was left:

"Big" Scraps

"little" scraps

I am very happy with how it turned out.  I did made a bit of a goof-up however.  The sleeves & cuffs were designed to be 3/4 length and ending at the forearm.  I made the sleeves full length, but I forgot to taper them both down to be wrist size.  I realized my error after the cuffs were attached and topstitched.  Sigh...   So I put the button on ~2" from the edge of the cuff to make them a more sensible size.  

My Endless Combinations were complete.  Here is my collage:

It is a great assortment of outfits, and I am very pleased with how they turned out.  

Mid-April I was able to tag along when my husband had to go to Miami for work.  Here is a photo of me on South Beach, all cool and windblown:

2 New Skirts

Ever since Pattern Review announced the Travel Wardrobe contest, I have been sewing up a storm.  Helping my motivation was an actual trip I have planned...to Mexico!  This contest was a great opportunity to finally sew up some things I have been thinking about for a long time.

First up was a refashion.  I purchased this Target brand, halter top, maxi dress at Goodwill for $3.  I liked the colors and patterns and knew it would be a simple transition from dress to skirt.

I forgot to take a photo prior to cutting it, but here you can get the idea.  I determined what length I wanted the skirt, added about 1.5" and cut!  Simply folding and stitching down a casing, and adding a length of elastic was all it took.  A 15 minute skirt!  :)

The next skirt I made was McCall's 6654:

Link

This pattern is a fantastic choice for easy knit skirts.  There are multiple lengths and either a straight or flared option.  I made the straight skirt using some striped ITY fabric purchased from Denver Fabrics:

Source...(sorry sold out)

I had initially thought of using this fabric to make a maxi dress from McCall's 6559 which was the #5 PR Best pattern in 2012.  After stewing on this idea for several months, I accepted the reality that I don't wear dresses very much, and a skirt would get more wear than a dress.


Here is the finished skirt:

Prior to cutting, I experimented with the stripes to determine which color stripes should be at the widest part of my hips.  As a definite pear shape, I was concerned about wrapping the widest part of my body in horizontal stripes.  Locating the darkest purple and raspberry stripes at my high hip was the most pleasing to me, after extensive raising, lowering, and flipping the fabric top to bottom.  I had plenty of fabric to match the stripes and (I must say), I did a great job :)

Next up is the tops I made to go with my 2 skirts...

  

Sewing for kids

I managed to do a bit of sewing for my girls this Christmas.  First up is a blue corduroy skirt that I made using Jalie 2908 (yes, the jeans pattern) for a starting point.  I wanted to replace a denim skirt that she had loved to death, and I could not find a fly front denim-type skirt pattern.  This was my result:

I used gray topstitching thread for all of the topstitching. The pockets and fly shield were made from light blue poly crepe.

 

 

I made the length of the skirt a few inches below the knee and added a kick pleat to the back. 

Altering my pattern from jeans to a skirt was very straightforward.  I angled out from the widest point of the hip creating a flare for the front and back.  For the center front and back seams, I drew a straight line extending the center front at the fly, and center back at the widest part of the hip, down to my new hemline.  The only change I made was rotating the lower edge of back pockets outward toward the side seam.  As located per the pattern the pockets were a little odd looking and too parallel to the center back seam:

After rotating them outward...much better:

 

Next up for my Christmas sewing was a Jalie 2566 cardigan made with an argyle interlock knit.

 

My buttons were small pink hearts.  I thought I should use them while my daughter is still young enough to think they are cute.  She really likes this top.  I think the band lays strangely at the top button.  My version of this cardigan has this same issue, perhaps it is a pattern issue rather than an operator issue.  Much to my surprise, this pattern seems to be OOP.

 

Next up are 2 long sleeve versions of McCalls 6787 for my youngest.  The first one is made from a printed cotton jersey from Spandexworld.com.

 

 

The second version used a rayon knit for the top and a quilting cotton for the skirt.  I think it came out adorable:

 

 

 

That's it for my Christmas sewing.  It was a big success.  :)

Happy New Year everyone!   

The Great PR Sewing Bee : A - Line skirt

Pattern Review has started "The Great Pattern Review Sewing Bee".  The first challenge is to sew an A-line skirt that has the following:

1. Zipper
2. Lining
3. Button/hook or any other closure
4. Waistband
5. Hem

Rather than drafting an A-line skirt from scratch, I began with my trusty McCalls 3830 Pencil skirt pattern and turned it into an A line skirt with a waistband.  I used Winifred Aldrich's excellent reference book "Metric Pattern Cutting for Women's Wear" to do this. 

I traced my pattern pieces for the pencil skirt and started making changes.  For the front piece, I cut a vertical line through the center of the front dart down to the hem.  I then rotated the piece closing up the dart.  This swings the hemline outward.  I then added 1" to the width of the lower edge of the pattern piece and drew a straight line from that point at the hem up to the hip.

For the back piece, there was one 1" wide back dart.  I am very curvy in the back and did not want to remove the back darts entirely.  Instead I turned the 1" dart into a 1/2" wide dart, using the same cut and rotate method as for the front piece.  I added 1" to the width of the lower edge of the pattern piece as well.

Contest or no, if I make something, I want to wear it, not have it languish in my closet.  This A-line skirt needed to be a staple that would get a lot of wear.  An A-line skirt can be a great item for a capsule wardrobe.  I decided on a brown corduroy that I purchased in India and have had for several years.  In fact, all of the fabric and notions for this project came from my stash.  The lining is a brown and pink houndstooth charmeuse satin from Fabric.com.  I previously used this lining fabric on my second Simplicity 2057 jacket, and there is still some left. 

McCall's 3830 does not have a waistband, so I needed to make one myself.  I cut a straight waistband 3" wide and a few inches longer than my waist measurement.  I used 1/2" seam allowances so the finished waistband would be 1" wide.  I like to make my waistbands extra long so that I can sew them to the precise length after the skirt is assembled and fitted.  I shifted the original center back zipper to the left side an inserted a lapped zipper. 

Waistband

The contest requires a lining for the skirt.  I used the front and back pattern pieces for the lining.  The original pattern used front and back facings which became unnecessary with a lining and waistband.  This was my first time lining a skirt and I must say that I love the result.  Smooth slippery fabric next to your skin is fantastic.  I attached the lining at the zipper by machine and after a few passes, it looked quite good. 




Machine sewn lining at zipper

The trickiest part of an A-line skirt is hemming it.  To eliminate bulk at the hem, I serged the raw edge rather than turning the raw edge over.  I put the skirt on my dressform, pulled out my handy laser level and marked the hem.

Marking the hem

 
Once the hem was folded up and pinned, I hand basted it in place along the fold.  Then I hand sewed the hem, easing in the fullness.

Hem: basted and hand sewn

I used a similar process for hemming the lining.  I pinned and pressed it to the correct length and basted it in place near the fold.  Since the lining fabric was very prone to fraying, I turned the raw edge under and basted the raw edge only using the longest machine stitch.  Before hemming, I pulled the bobbin thread on the basting stitch and eased in the fullness before sewing the hem by machine. 

Lining hem: Eased fullness prior to sewing

Then the lining was done:

Lining Complete!

The finished skirt on display with some new scenery:

Front View

 

I am very pleased with this finished skirt.  I really took my time to do a nice job finishing the lining and hem. This will be a great skirt to wear this winter with tights and boots.