named patterns alexandria peg legs - two ways (+ giveaway winner call out)

when named patterns released their ticket collection for SS15 i was drawn to most of the patterns, but particularly the alexandria peg leg trousers and the inari tee dress.  i've made two inari tee dresses and both have been duds, but i'm determined to try and make it work.  luckily the peg leg trousers were a winner pretty much straight up.

for my first pair i made a size 40 which is the size that most closely matches my measurements.  the result was more lounge pants than peg leg.  so for this version made from a cotton from the fabric store i sized down to size 38.  i made no alterations other than to increase the width of the waist band to accommodate 3cm wide elastic instead of the 2.5cm that the pattern calls for as my local fabric store only had 3cm wide elastic. i also omitted the drawstring.

the pattern instructions are easy to follow and the pants came together easily.  here's a close up of the fabric as it is hard to photograph from a distance.

i made another simplicity 1366 to wear with the pants.  i have been wanting a black one for ages and made this up in a bargain ponte from fabric.com that actually has a sparkly silver leopard print on the right side, which is on the inside of this top.

   

these pants are so comfy (more work gear that are really secret pjs - side cheers) i decided i needed multiple pairs so i also made them up in a light weight dark chambray from joys fabric warehouse in geelong. these ones are really comfy and perfect for casual or more dressy wear.

i also got two set on this pair and made a maria denmark kimono tee from a spotlight knit, my previous kimono tees can be seen here.  simplicity 1366 and the kimono tee are definitely my go to summer tops. they make up very quickly and i like the lines of both designs.

i've been making shorts lately - hopefully i will blog them soon, but really do want to get back onto that inari...

finally, a shout out to deadlycraft who won my giveaway - apologies i should have included 'giveaway winner in my last post title.  i've been keeping an eye on my junk mail but haven't seen a message from you.  please resend or email me and let me know in the comments so i know to check my junk mail.


emma

darn cheap fabrics seasonal challenge - winter 2015

it's darn cheap fabrics seasonal challenge time again.  lara went shopping for the fabric solo and the first  photo she messaged me was a scuba fabric with bright colours 'splashed' on a black background.  i messaged back saying that i loved it - so much so that i already had bought some after seeing it on chooktopia's instagram feed! i am constantly amazed at how many of the same fabrics lara and i are drawn too and why this challenge is so fun.

i had recently seen nikki's itch to stitch lindy petal skirt and was very keen to give it a go. i was drawn to the overlapping curved front panels as a point of difference from other knit skirts.  i messaged lara and said that i was going to make a 'new to me' skirt and also a top from another DCF fabric i had in my stash that i purchased on a previous shopping trip with her.  she messaged back saying she was going to make a skirt too and wondered if it was the same one?  i wrote back saying mine was a free indie pattern and she wrote back saying hers too! snap!

so here's my version of the lindy petal skirt.

using lara's advice that the sizing was true (she finished her skirt first), i made a straight small as the measurements matched mine perfectly and i am very happy with the fit.

lara also mentioned that the waistband application was not what she expected.  i checked the instructions and decided to do my waistband differently.  firstly i made mine 3/4"wider so that i could use 1 1/2" wide elastic, a width i like for knit skirts.  secondly i attached the waistband to the skirt, making a traditional casing to insert my elastic through rather than stitching my elastic to the waistband fabric as the instructions suggest.  i always get nervous that it will go wrong stitching elastic directly onto the waistband fabric and prefer to do a simple casing instead - it worked out fine.  i stitched the casing seam allowance down to the skirt body using zig zag stitch which you can just make out in the photo below.

lastly, i finished the hem using my twin needle.  this is such a quick, fun make - the pattern went together beautifully and the fabric was a dream to sew, it reminds me a lot of the fabric i used to make my recent simplicity 2054 dress. i will definitely make this pattern again, most probably in navy or black ponte first.  

nikki mentions in her blog post that she would be happy to pay for this pattern and i totally agree - it's such a great pattern and itch to stitch have gone to a lot of effort providing detailed instructions.  i would highly recommend the pattern.

i also made another grainline linden to go with the skirt, my first linden is here.  this time i made view b which has a cropped hemline and short sleeves.  i added cuffs to my sleeves and hemline after seeing cutcutsew's great versions.  i also made a size 6 this time and am happier with the fit, with the exception of the sleeves which sit a bit twisted.  they seem to be cut on grain so i'm not sure what happened, nonetheless the twisting won't stop me wearing the top!

another very successful DCF seasonal challenge, thanks lara - i am so keen to pop over to your blog to see your version of the lindy!

the GIVEAWAY winner from my last post is deadlycraft - congratulations! please message me at elhitchens(at)hotmail(dot)com and i will send your fabric to you.

emma

quilted knit linden sweatshirt - the not the inari tee dress post + giveaway

i did try to make an inari tee dress in this quilted knit fabric that i picked up at the crazy scramble that is the clegs** boxing day remnant sale, but it was a BIG time disaster.  the cocoon shape of the inari dress is more suited to fabric with a nice drape - unfortnately this fabric is more wobbly than drapey.

so after getting over the disappointment of wasting my time on something that was doomed to fail from the beginning, i started to think about how I could save the fabric.  luckily for me at around this time the lovely jane from melbourne offered me an excess copy of the grainline linden sweatshirt pattern she had.

dud inari tee dress then became super wearable linden sweatshirt - phew.

i could salvage nearly enough of the fabric for the front and back but not sleeves, which i didn't mind as i thought a contrast sleeve would would well with the quilted knit fabric.  i used a black merino sweater knit from the fabric store that i bought during one of their recent 40% off sales.  i also used a black ribbing for the cuffs and bands.

according to the size chart for the pattern i am a size 6 bust, size 12 waist and 8 hip.  based on some google searching of finished lindens and the finished measurements for the pattern i decided to make a size 8.  wearing it, i find it just a tad big so am going to try a 6 next time.

i said above that i had nearly enough for the front and back from my salvaged fabric.  i was a little short so i pieced two panels on the back at the sides with the stripe pattern going horizontal - i am actually pretty pleased with how this worked out.

as most bloggers have noted the sleeves are lonngggg! (have i mentioned before just how much i appreciate the on-line sewing community giving you a head start at knowing how a pattern will make up?!)  i removed 5cm from the length as rachel posted on IG that she removed 5cm and i kinda thought our arm length may be similar(!) so i went with 5cm and am happy with the finished length.

from dud to wearable - i'm happy.

giveaway

i recently passed 150 followers of my blog.  i am very appreciative that people want to follow my blog and it encourages me to keep going.  to celebrate i have 1.5m of a mystery tessuti fabric to giveaway - mystery because i can't actually remember what it is.  i am terrible with fibre contents, but it is a soft lawn or voile (or perhaps rayon???) kind of fabric.  if you would like to become the new owner just leave me a comment saying you would like the fabric and details of how i can contact you.  i am happy to post anywhere.  i'll announce the winner next post, so you can enter up until my next post.

emma

** at time of posting i think the quilted knit fabric was still available at joys fabric warehouse in geelong victoria.

it's all about the fabric - pitt trading double knit (cynthia rowley simplicity 2054)

in my sewing i often seem to sew a lot of one type of garment for a while before swapping to another garment type.  at the moment its dresses, and more particularly the knit dress.

the fabric is a double knit from pitt trading.  i was drawn to the fabric as soon as i saw it on the pitt trading IG feed.  i wasn't able to get in store so called and ordered the fabric over the phone - the service was very helpful and quick.

the girl i spoke to at pitt trading initially called the fabric 'scuba like' when i was describing it.  i was a bit worried as i don't find thick scuba suitable for dresses, but she assured me it would be ok for a dress and she was right.  i have worn this many times already and the material breathes fine.  the fabric is also reasonably slippery so perfect for wearing with tights.  but the thing i love most about this fabric is the COLOURS!! the bright colours are perfect to brighten up dull winter days.

the pattern is my tnt for knit dresses - cynthia rowley simplicity 2054.  i have made this pattern many many times before.  i make a size 10 even though my waist and hip measurements are between size 14 and 16.  i vary the seam allowance width depending on the stretch and thickness of the fabric - for this fabric i used 3/8".  i also add two darts at the back to get a fitted result.

for this version i went for 3/4 length sleeves as i was worried that the fabric would not breath well - but as i said i haven't had any troubles with this.  the pattern has a binding for the neckline but for this dress i turned the neck under 1/4" and used a twin needle which worked out fine. 

so yes its definitely another 'no iron work wardrobe' win woot woot and yes i really need to make a grainline morris blazer as i only have one rtw work jacket and a whole bunch of cardys.

while i do love this pattern i am keen to try some new knit dress patterns too - next on my to make list is the named inari tee dress, hopefully i will be blogging one soon!

emma

darn cheap fabrics seasonal challenge - autumn 2015

woot woot it's a blog post, it's been a while and i am very happy to be back posting.

firstly, i should note that my blog graphics have been vastly improved by the very talented alex from when all you need is...  she has done an AMAZING job for me and am really happy that my graphics now reflect a bit of the real ernest flagg.

back to the challenge - a seasonal challenge where lara and i use the same fabric from darn cheap fabrics and make up whatever takes our fancy.  i had some surgery on my leg and haven't been able to travel to melbourne for a while so lara did the choosing this time.  when she messaged me a pic of the fabric i loved it immediately, if i had been at dcf with her it is definitely a fabric i would have been drawn to straight away. lara's message said it was a poly knit, almost like a fine gauge jumper knit. its a lovely fabric and very stable to sew.

my make is a moneta / lady skater mash up and i am thrilled with how it worked out.  i have never hacked patterns together before but figured a knit would be very forgiving so went for it without a stunt run.

i have made the lady skater previously, a great pattern but the main problem for me, as rachel points out is also an issue for her with the dixie diy ballet dress is that it hugs the tummy a bit too much for me.  hence i thought the moneta would be a good option as it has a gathered skirt.

i bought the colette moneta pattern before googling for reviews.  once it was in my inbox i started to look for some reviews and rachel's was one of the first that came up.  she points out that she got excess fabric in the upper bust area.  when i stuck the pdf together it struck me that the bodice looked like a weird shape at the side seams so i decided to do a mash up with the kitschychoo lady skater.

i did the following simple mash up:

• used the lady skater bodice, straightened off the bottom and added the moneta neckline
• used the moneta skirt

i used 3/8" seam allowance throughout, except for joining the bodice to the skirt where i used 1/2" to give me a smidgen more allowance to help get some nice gathers. when joining the bodice to the skirt i started the gathers in ernest from about 1 and 3/4"from the side seams so that i don't get extra bulk near my hips.

i constructed the entire dress on my overlocker (a first for me) and used a twin needle on my sewing machine for the neckline and hems.  about a minute after sewing the shoulders and sleeves on it occurred to me that i really should have lined the bodice but at this stage i couldn't be bothered unpicking the sleeves. its ok, but i might look into getting a slip to wear underneath it for a bit of extra warmth in winter.

this will be a great dress for work and works well with a black jacket.  it is a perfect addition to my 'no iron' work wardrobe. win!

doing all of the construction on my overlocker made this an incredibly quick make and i will be on the look out for another suitable fabric to make this dress again to add to my no iron work wardrobe. i am quite new to turning under necklines and sewing them down with a twin needle.  does anyone have any tips on how to approach the shoulder seams? my machine struggles getting over the seam bulk.  having said that i really should just start using my cover stitch machine now i seem to have conquered my fears with overlockers… 

even though its been a while since posts i have been doing a lot of sewing so if i can get some photos taken i have lots more to show you in future posts.

now i'm excited to go and check out lara's make.

emma

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

darn cheap fabrics seasonal challenge - summer 2014/15

welcome to instalment no.2 of the darn cheap fabrics seasonal challenge - summer 2014/15.  for background info on the concept see my post on the first challenge.

my family had christmas in melbourne which gave me a chance to visit dcf with lara (and a bunch of other great melbourne bloggers) to choose our challenge fabric. it was really fun shopping trip!  lara and i settled on a summery linen printed with pineapples, toucans and zebras.  we could have actually settled on a few fabrics as we purchased 3 of the same fabrics and a fourth that we both bought in a different colour.

i went for another megan nielsen kelly skirt lengthened to be a midi.  i made one in pineapple linen from darn cheap fabrics recently and really like it so i decided to make another - actually it's my third as i have made another from the african wax print i bought in johanesberg shown at the bottom of this post, yet to be blogged.

there is not much to say about the construction of this skirt that i haven't said in previous kelly posts.  i am just really rapt with how it looks.  one thing i didn't mention in my pineapple kelly post is that the black tee is a maria denmark kirsten kimono tee (a free pattern!) that i made to wear with the pineapple skirt.  the fabric is a soft dkny jersey from the fabric store.

as with my other kellys i bound the pocket seam, in purple bias this time and did french side seams. 

this is my second last kelly midi for the moment. i've got another in black that i am nearly finished, i just need to sew the buttons on.  but my midi love affair is not ending as i am eyeing off the sewaholic crescent skirt which i want to lengthen to midi.  i also want to start making a few shorter a-line skirts for winter too. skirts skirts skirts!

i saw a sneak peak of lara's make on IG but am very keen to see the full dress and make up the pattern myself!

i'm already looking forward to the next challenge - autumn 2015.

emma