First Outfit of Spring

Well here it is the first outfit of my spring sew season. I started these two peices to be part of Pattern Review Mini Wardrobe competiton. All though I did not complete the 4 pieces of the competiton I did get a good start on my spring summer wardrobe with these 2 pieces.

The first piece is Burda Plus Fashion 02-2010-410. This tunic hip length tunic can be made in a woven or in a knit. I chose to make mine in a stretch jersey knit with orange and teal dots on it from http://www.fabric.com/. I'm loving how carefree it is but I'm not liking the fact that it makes me look pregnant which I am not. you can read my review of the pattern here on PR. I used some new idea/techniques on this top that I learned from some books in my sewing library. The titles of the two books are The Stretch and Sew Guide to Sewing Knits by Ann Parson and Easy Guide to Sewing by Lynn MacIntyre and Marcy Tilton. I will most like make this top again in a solid color because I really would like to try to create a casing that would make the drawstring go completely around you body instead of resting on your back and gathering all in the front.

The second piece is Burda Style 03-2010-136. This is a wonderful lined pencil skirt with real neat front darts that come off the side seam. Just what my belly needed. Ah! I can not tell you how comfortable this skirt is. This was the first time I lined a skirt. Let me just say every skirt I make will have a lining. Being a rectangle type of body I just want to say pencil skirts look so great on us. I believe O shapes/apples would look great in a pencill skirt too. It's all about the legs baby. I made this skirt out of some 100 % cotton white denim from Hancock Fabrics. Just can't tell you how great this denim was to sew. And did I mention the china silk polyester lining from Fabric.com. Yeally enjoyed this project it went together so well. I did have to shorten this skirt about 4 inches and add about 2 inches to each seam to the waist make it work. Resources I used to help make this skirt; for the kick pleat I consulted Easy Guide to Sewing by Lynn MacIntyre and Marcy Tilton. For the waist I used Nancy Zieman's Pattern Fitting with Confidence. Did I mention that I put 1/4 inch elastic in the seam of the waist band so it could expand and shrink with me a little. You can read the review here on PR.

My hope is to complete the 4 pieces I had planned for the PR mini wardrobe compatition and ad two more pieces to it so it is more like a Stitcher's Guide Summer six pack (six piece summer sew-along). My theme colors are still orange and white for this collection. Next up is a pair of white denim crops from my tnt pattern, Burda Plus Fashion 02-2009-411. Happy sewing.

How Do You Plan

Well mini wardrobe competition is done on PR. Like usual I ran out of time. Good thing I got two items complete and did not lose my sewing mojo. My completed items are Burda Plus Fashion spring/summer 2010- 410, which is a tunic, and Burda Style 3-10-136, a pencil skirt. I love both pieces and will photo and review them soon.

Today's temperature is not going to be above 60. I was perplexed at how hard it is to figure out what to wear for days like this. I'm sick of sweater, pants and many other RTW clothing hanging in my closet. I realized the majority of the clothes I have made are for summer and I have very few items that are for spring. So out came two of my favorite pieces (see picture). They are my favorite Khaliah Ali drawstring pants, S5074 and my favorite t-shirt B5398. Some how the two worked for my casual look of the day and I'm content and comfortable with my choice.

Back to the question how do you plan your wardrobe, SWAP or mini wardrobe? With two jobs at what seems like opposite ends of the trend pool answering this question can be difficult for me. With a degree in fashion merchandising and many years of retail behind me I'm ashamed to admit every year I buy new books on wardrobe planning. Currently on my shelf I have Nothing to Wear, Instyles Secrets of Style and Fashion for Dummies just to name a few. But it seems some how I still lack the skills needed to build a wardrobe that is functional and comfortable all year around. So I've decide that my sewing and fabric buying needs to take a more planned approach. Instead of just plopping out individual items I will be creating mini collections of 4 to 6 pieces that all relate and work together. Instead of trying to make all the items fit both jobs I will try to center each collection on one job. A few pieces might be able to cross over and that's great. Most of all I'm not going to get mad because I have to add a few RTW pieces. I know I don't have the time to create everything. Instead of worrying if I'm in trend or on point with the outfit I'm going to work on comfort and fit. Not sure if I'll every break the addiction to new fabric but hopefully holding onto some type of plan will help.

So what is your plan? How do you decide what to sew or buy?

Spring is in the air and so is.....

Spring is in the air and so is PR's Mini Wardrobe Contest. This years contest runs 3-16-10 to 4-15-10. The goal is to create 4 pieces that can create 4 distinct outfits. Every year I look forward to these competitions and every year I seem to lose my sewing mojo once I enter them. This year I'm hoping to trick my mind and not enter until I have at least 3 of the 4 required pieces finished. All week I searched my Burdas and switched my fabric stash baskets from fall/winter fabric and colors to spring/summer fabric and colors. Did not have quite all I wanted so fabric.com and my local Hancock have been searched for white denim and a fun colorful print. Today I spent the day playing with my Burda line drawings. It was fun playing paper dolls. I have more than 4 patterns I'm playing with so I will need to narrow it down. The goal was to create some funny and some serious looks. Below and above are a few combinations I created and laughed about. This weeks goal is to pick my 4 patterns, trace and paper fit them, and prepare my fabrics for the contest. So excited.

M5881 Has hit the .....

Well it's official I have tossed my daughters Spree dance dress. M5881. It was not a difficult project just not very motivating. Daughter didn't even take the time to try on the dress well I was working on it. Tonight, the day before the big dance, I finished it up and she tried it on. To say it was a little disappointing and didn't quite fit correctly would fit the bill. Promised Daughter we will try the dress again hopefully for prom of this year. On to the next project. Not sure what it is yet.

B5398 Has Me Purring

Butterick 5398 has me as happy and content as a purring cat. This top is the second piece in my Persian Leopard Collection. Thinking this may become a TNT top that I will make over and over again. It not as playful as my dress in this collection is, but I'm excited about it.

Pattern Description:
Misses' jacket, top, dresses, skirt, pants and scarf. This is a knit lifestyle wardrobe.
I made view B a close fitting top.

Pattern Sizing:
XS-XXL. I made a mix of the L and XL

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
Yes

Were the instructions easy to follow?
Yes simple enough. I did not really find any fault with them.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
Can you say bust darts with me? I was so happy to find a top that could be used as a t-shirt or a tunic top that had the bust darts.

I have not found something I really didn't like yet with this pattern.

Fabric Used:
I used leopard printed jersey from Hancock.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
In my attempt to cheat having to make a FBA I instead used a L at the shoulders, XL at the bust and waist and back to a L at the hips. This seems to work well with my rectangle body. So no FBA on this one.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
Yes I think I may have found a TNT T-shirt top. Yes I think this is a good pattern for others.

Conclusion:
I love this new knit top that I left at a tunic length. This will be my new TNT t-shirt top. It is also the second piece to my Persian Leopard collection.

Next up
M5881. My daughter is in need of a dress for her Spree dance coming up in Febuary.

Sew It Begins

So the birth of a new collection begins. I was unable to finish my PR SWAP and instead took a short break from sewing. I am back. What you see here is the beginning of a new collection called the Persian Leopard Collection. This will be a mini wardrobe that will reflect the fun playful walk on the wild side of me.
This great dress is Butterick 5415.

Pattern Description:
Close-fitting dress with front darts and back zipper. This dress offers 3/4 sleeves variations of necklines and contrasting bands.

Pattern Sizing:
XS-XXL I used a combination or L and XL
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
Yes with exception of changes I made.
Were the instructions easy to follow?
Yes. This is a very easy pattern great of a beginner or advanced beginner.
What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
What I liked is that it was a simple style that tends to look very good on the rectangular body type. The style is a classic and can be found often it RTW. What I didn't like why a zipper in a knit?
Fabric Used:
Cotton Jersey from Hancock.
Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
I made view C. Well let’s see I traced my pattern shoulders, arm holes and bust in a size L and waist and hips in a sixe XL. I ended up not needing all the room in waist area and took it in 2 inches. I decided I did not like the contrasting bands so instead add gray and black ribbon to the neckline. I also shortened the length about 5 inches.
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
Yes I'm hoping to turn this into TNT. Yes I think it a great pattern.
Conclusion:
Ok this is the beginning of my Persian Leopard Collection. My hopes are this mini wardrobe will be fun and a little bit of a walk on the wild side of me.

Next up is B5398 Top B

This week my local Goodwill had some great finds. I was able to purchase a copy of The Vogue Sewing Book Copyright 1975. Has a lot of grat info about line, color, proportion and styles that work. I was also able to score a copy of The Stretch and Sew Guide to Sewing On Knits. Book review will come soon.

Homecoming 2009 and SWAP update

It's been some time since my last post. My sewing has just about come to a stand still. Seems to be my curse every time I start a SWAP the sewing muse leaves me. lol Any way SWAP update I have finished BWOF 4-2009-134 and S2948. The pants and cami turned out well. Once I have one whole outfit done I will post pictures. The Butterick 4985 blouse became a wadder. I've decided for now I'll stick to knit and non-button front tops for a bit. My mom being the great mom she is decided to try to jump start my sewing again. She purchasing me some fall clothes. Thank you mom. Nothing like a few new RTW outfit to remind me why I like to sew.

Once again my oldest daughter asked for a just right dress for Homecoming. Months ago when my burnt orange satin knit arrived from fabric.com my daughter asked if she could have it. I told her not a chance. Little did I know that one of the many great sewers on PR would recommend B5383 to someone for s special Officers Ball. I saw the pattern and showed it to my daughter who remembered the orange fabric. B5383 had just enough youth mixed with the classy look my daughter was hoping and looking for. My daughter does not wear a lot of color so the fact that she wanted an orange dress to begin with was daring for her. The complements she got I'm hopping encourage her to wear some more color. We have 2 or 3 more formals this year.


Pattern Description:
This is a Maggy London Dress. This is a close-fitting tapered dress with side zipper and side front gathers. It has above or below the knee options. The bodice stay is lined.
Pattern Sizing:
AA (6-8-10-12) EE (14-16-18-20) we used an 18

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
Yes except my version you cannot see the side gathers.

Were the instructions easy to follow?
Yes the directions where easy to follow.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
This dress is very versatile. It can be dolled up in many ways because of it’s a classy cut. Worked perfect for my high school but would be perfect for someone of an older and wise age as well.
The one feature that I most want to show was the side gathers. They did not show in our fabric at all. Next time I will correct that.

Fabric Used:
Burnt orange satin knit from fabric.com

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made:
We shortened it about 3 inches, and omitted the zipper.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
Yes already have a winter formal version rolling around in the brain. Yes I would recommend it.

Conclusion:
This was a great dress. Great for an advanced beginner or intermediate sewer. For my daughter it turned out to be a positive way to try a new color.

Up Next:

On my cutting table is Simplicity S2948, part of the Khaliah Ali Collection. I will be making the jacket and a cami.