scout pops and boo

i saw this new season spring 2015 liberty called pops and boo on tessuti's instagram feed recently and decided there and then that i really wanted some.  i quite like the colours and design, but am wondering if i am drawn to it because it reminds me of my kids drawings?! given the busy pattern i thought a grainline scout would work well.  i've made a few scouts previously, but have only blogged one of them.

for this one i used the same modified pattern that i used for my lurex one, which is just a bit tapered at the waist so its not as boxy at the original pattern.

i cut a size 4 and taper the the sides, although my measurements fit with size 4 for bust and size 10 for waist.  the fit i get is pretty snug, but i'm happy with it.  the pattern suggests you need 1 2/3 yards for a size 4, which if my google converter is correct is about 1.5m.  I bought 80cm of the liberty and comfortably cut the pattern with left overs for future facings - NOTE: see below for discussion on using contrasting bias binding.

 
the skirt is my last (for now) megan nieslen kelly in midi length.  its made from some fabric i bought at clear it at a melbourne blogger meet up.  i originally made it up into simplicity 2215, but found that the medium weight of the fabric was not great for the amount of pleats in the simplicity pattern, particularly around the hips.  so i cut it apart and re-made it into this skirt.  i am really happy with how it turned out and am glad i persisted.  the only reason i persisted though was because i bought the fabric at a fun meet up and wanted to make sure i put it to good use!

 
for my scouts (or any garment that requires bias binding finish really) i use a contrasting fabric, usually left over lawn or rayon or something similar.  i do this so i can keep my left over fabric of the garment i am making in a large usable size without a big bias cut in the middle of it.  for this one i used some lemon coloured lawn.

 
for the neck bias binding i used the pattern piece, but instead of making double fold bias binding i made single fold.  it worked out fine, however the bias binding finish is narrower than intended.  i also finish the sleeves with bias binding on the scout as the curved hem on the cap sleeves makes it a bit fiddly to hem - i find the bias binding easier.  all seams are finished with french seams.

i am sure this will get lots of wear for the rest of this summer and then SS2015 and sew on and sew on!


emma

a sewing schmorgesborg (a dress, a top and two skirts)

todays post is a sewing schmorgesborg of 1 dress, 1 top and 2 skirts.  i've been doing a bit of sewing lately, but not much photo taking.  so yesterday when it was 29 degrees in sydney in april i took the opportunity to dress up in the clothes i've made for autumn and winter and take photos.

first up is simplicity 2054, a cynthia rowley dress pattern for knit fabrics.  i have made this pattern a few times before and wore my black and white spotty version to the sydney bloggers meet up (see third photo of this post).

i got the fabric for this one from darn cheap fabrics in melbourne.  its a knit that is of medium thickness. i cut a straight size 10 which is the same size i have cut previously, even though i measure around a size  14 according to the pattern.  for this version however, given the thickness of the fabric i reduced the side seams to the edge of the foot.

i finished the neck and arms with black ponte bands and put 2 darts in the back to create shape as the pattern as designed is a bit baggy.  i also lengthened the dress a bit.

next is a grainline scout using the same altered pattern i used in the lurex mini challenge.  the fabric is a soft stretch sateen from spotlight that i bought with a birthday gift card from my sisters - thanks gen and caz! 

i constructed the top using french seams throughout and finished the neck and arms with some home made bias binding.  this top is extremely comfortable and great for work.

on to the skirts.  first up another deer and doe anemone in a cotton from darn cheap fabrics.  i love this pattern and was keen to make another after my first one.

i made this using the same alterations as my first one, but didn't try it on during construction as my other one fit so nicely.  this one is a little big as the fabric is lighter in weight than the ikea furnishing fabric i used for the first one.  its ok but i wouldn't be unhappy if it shrunk a bit after a few washes. i also made the length on this the largest pattern size, adding a fraction more length but still keeping it short.

lastly its new look 6228, which i have also made previously - wow it just occurred to me i have made all of the patterns in this post previously.  the black ponte part of this skirt started life as the cynthia rowley dress at the top of this post, but the black ponte was not very forgiving for my lumps and bumps so i never finished it.  i hate the thought of sending fabric to land fill though so kept it in a screwed up heap.

one day it occurred to me i could make it into a skirt, but it turned out i didn't have quite enough ponte to make the whole skirt and upon checking my other black ponte in the stash found that none matched. so i decided to go with charcoal ponte for the front side panels and black everywhere else.

i made this using a straight stitch on my regular sewing machine and used a twin needle for the hem. again this is a comfortable skirt which is great for work.

phew after all that i need to sew something from a new pattern.  lucky for me i did a tessuti pattern fitting class on the thursday before easter which was excellent and have a new to me pattern ready to make up in the next couple of days.

hope you had a great easter, i am just starting to think i should ease up on the chocolate...

emma

lurex mini challenge - shiny scout

the lurex mini challenge came about when kirsty decided to buy this fabric on our sydney fabric shopping trip at the fabric store.  i quite liked the pattern, but when kirsty mentioned it was 'lurex', i decided i needed some too.  and so the mini challenge was born - we both bought 1.2m and agreed to sew it up and reveal our makes at the same time on our blogs.  other than that there were no rules.

i was initially drawn to the pattern of the fabric (before being seduced by the lurex) and when contemplating what to make i did start to wonder why i am always drawn to fabrics that require matching and careful cutting!

i made a tessuti zoe muslin, but decided the style wasn't really me.  i then thought a grainline scout would be a good pattern as it has a nice shape, limited matching required and most importantly the large square checks would be maintained without interruption from darts or the like.  

i am pretty happy how this turned out.  i have made a couple of scouts before but felt they were a bit boxy on me.  for this version i tapered the sides on the pattern before cutting the fabric.  as i was a bit stressed about stuffing this up i made up a version in a rayon to make sure it looked ok. i am pretty happy with the tapering, but will make another slight adjustment to taper a bit further near the hem next time.

here's some pics at the side to see the matching. when cutting the fabric i tossed up between having the edge of the check squares at the centre front or to make the centre front in the middle of one of the columns of squares.  i ended up going with the edge of the squares for centre front - see pic below.  

when i tried it on for the first time i thought it looked a little off centre/balance, but now i'm used to it i really like how it looks.  i also like how the squares match at the side seams. 

this pic was taken outside and you can see how the fabric looks different in the different lights. i love how shiny the fabric looks indoors and under light shown in the top 3 pics.

i made bias binding for both the neck and arms.  i prefer to make bias binding to finish short sleeves as i find this a lot easier than turning up the hems.  as usual it hurt my head a bit working out how to match at least some of the pattern at the sleeves, but it worked out ok first time. i didn't go with a lining as i wanted to keep the top light and will just wear a black singlet underneath.

i constructed the scout using french seams following jen's really excellent tutorial - this is a great finish for the lurex. you can just see in this pic on the neck binding that some of the bronze coloured metallic threads pulled through to the underside when sewing.  it makes this top a little scratchy to wear, but not a fatal problem.  i really should have forked out the $13 for a metallic needle!

when i was getting close to finishing this top i thought it would be a great top for a night out at a bar, but that i don't really get out to bars that often.  it then occurred to me we had tickets to see eddie vedder at the state theatre in sydney last wednesday night. so my top got its first public run and i got mr flagg to snap a pic of me inside the theatre.  there were about 100 or so punters having a drink before the show started just to the right of me in this pic so was happy to get a quick phone snap. 

all in all am very happy with this make, though its not a difficult make or flashy (apart from being quite shiny!) i think i'll get a bit of wear out of it.  thanks heaps for being part of my first blogging challenge kirsty! make sure you check out her fabulous make here.

emma