Myrtlewood muslin

Well, I got the muslin for the Myrtlewood dress put together.   It took me quite a while, mostly because the kimono sleeves have underarm gussets, which I've never done before, so I took my time trying to learn how to insert them.  I'm definitely going to need more practice before I do the real dress!

I'm just doing the bodice, since the skirt is a simple straight skirt, and I'll just tissue fit that.  I am pleasantly surprised at how good the fit is out of the envelope.

According to the envelope measurements, I am an 8, but that is based on my upper bust.  Since the design has a bit of extra ease at the bustline, I don't think I'll need an FBA, but there are a few drag lines around the bust I'm not sure about.

Sorry about the blurry-ness, but you can see the lines that point to my bust point, right along the line where I might add a dart if I were to do an FBA.  What do y'all think?  Side darts and kimono sleeves don't seem like a good combo to me, but I'm not sure of another way to fix those lines.

I did let out the back darts just a smidge, based on my tissue fit on my dress form, who is slightly bigger than me.

I think it looks pretty good in the pictures, so I think I'll keep it this way, but I'll be trying it on a lot as I go.

I did manage to get all of the other things I need to make the dress at the MLK sale at Hancock.  I decided on a dark brown dull satin for the hip sash and coordinating dark brown lining and buttons.  I also got the shoulder pads, which I needed for the tissue fitting. They make me feel like a linebacker.

Here is how it looks without them.  Yeah, I'm thinking I'll get used to them.

Conveniently enough, the copy of Connie Long's Easy Guide to Sewing Linings that I ordered last week arrived yesterday.  I'm planning on using her "quick lining" method to line this dress.  My wool fashion fabric is beautiful, but it sure is itchy!

ETA (1/19 @8:10AM) So after staring at these pictures this morning, it occurred to me that maybe those drag lines weren't pointing to the bust, but actually were pointing to the shoulder!  I noticed that although I don't like the shape of the bodice without the shoulder pads, the fit is actually better.  So, I let out the shoulder seam a bit.

Look!  I think I fixed it!  Thoughts?

Worth saving??

Since I already had this top cut out I decided to go ahead and make it, since I still need a few things before I can start on my Myrtlewood dress.  The pattern is available free from SewingPatterns.com.  It is a Lekala pattern, which is a Russian company that offers patterns drafted to your measurements that you can then print out.  There is an online version as well as CDs that you can purchase for your own computer.  It is an interesting concept, and I wanted to try it out, so it was nice that it was free.  This particular pattern is NOT custom sized.  It comes as a S/M/L, but without any accompanying measurements, so you are on your own to figure out the size you need.  I flat pattern measured, and discovered that the large had a 32 1/2 inch bust and a 31 inch waist.  So, she's square??  And since when is 32 1/2 inches large??  Anyway, that is the size I started with.  I added as much of an FBA as I could without distorting the lines of the pattern.  I rotated my dart into the cowl neckline and then just went for it.

Can you tell from the look on my face that I am underwhelmed with this top?  I haven't hemmed it or added the chain to the neckline - that's what the little tabs are for, and what I thought was cool about this design.

I'm not sure, but I think it might actually be worse from the side, because you can see how the "cowl" sticks out.  Not to mention that there are drag lines EVERYWHERE - across the bust, across the belly, down the back, up the sleeves - seriously, does nothing on this top fit me???
I may not be completely unbiased about this, though.  This thing has been painful from the beginning.  The pattern isn't drafted well.  I'm not sure if there are seam allowances.  The sleeves had too much ease - in a knit top for heaven's sake!  I'm not even going to go into the total lack of information in the instructions.  Poorly translated and sparse at best.  Confusing and contradictory at worst.
I think that I will put it aside for a bit, and come back to it later.  Then maybe I'll be ready to deal with the fact that I think it is too short and will need a band at the hem to lengthen it.

A home for lost toys

I rearranged my kids room yesterday.  It was getting out of control.  Of course, I totally used it as an excuse to sew something that wasn't the dress.  I'm really not good at sticking to long projects.  I'll get it done, but I'm much better at quick and easy.  So, I took a very short break from the Myrtlewood to make the quickest bag ever to store all of the kids blocks in.  Of course, I had to have a little fun with it, so I appliquéd the word BLOCKS in felt on the front.

Fun, eh?  I used a piece of grey gingham that has been sitting in my stash forever.  I think it was given to me, since I can't imagine why I would buy a 3/4 yard piece of grey gingham...  The felt was half given to me and half scraps, so it was pretty much a free project.

Logan quickly figured out that bags are for dumping.

I think it makes a nice addition to this little corner of the room.

And in another move to worsen my sewing ADD, my first two issues of Ottobre came today!

For those who may be unaware, when you get a new subscription to Ottobre, you get a free back issue of your choice!  There were so many wonderful ones to choose from!!  I finally settled on 01/2009.  I've seen so many cute things from that issue, both on PR and on Beangirl's blog, I had to get it!  My first subscription issue 01/2010 came as well.  So many yummy things to sew!!

Kwik Sew 2881

The fancy new elastics came in from Sew Sassy, so it was time to try them out on a second pair of running shorts for Mitch.  He loves this pattern, and we have refined the fit so it was time to use the nice Spandex!

I know - I still can't convince him to model them.  Anyway, I really like this Spandex!  It is the Matte Moleskin from Spandex World.  It is an 8 oz. weight, so it a smidge heftier than the average stuff, but still breathes really nicely.  It is actually more slick than the shiny stuff, which is what Mitch was looking for, but it wasn't any more difficult to sew.  It is a winner!  And since I can easily get two pair of shorts out a yard, it is a ridiculous bargain.

Here is a closeup of the fancy gripper elastic in the legs.  Mitch really likes this.  He tells me that you can't find unpadded shorts with grippers, so score one for home sewing!  I asked him how much he would expect to pay for shorts of this quality and he laughed.  He tells me that he generally pays 30-40 dollars for his shorts, but that they are not this nice (ie don't fit him as well, are of cheaper material and don't have the gripper elastic).  These were less than 10 bucks to make (for materials - the pattern was on sale for $8, but I've already used it twice...), so score two for home sewing!!

In case you are wondering, I am working hard on the Myrtlewood.  I've never sewn anything with quite this many pattern pieces before, and I made it worse by adding lining pieces.  It's moving along, though.  I'm still very much in the prepwork stage - interfacing, sewing darts, constructing the collar.  Oh, that collar is beautiful!!  It is cut on the bias and seamed at CB, so my herringbone fabric makes a lovely chevron effect.

See what I mean.  I'm so excited about this dress!!

Sew Chic 7401 - the Myrtlewood

Have you ever had a project that you Just. Couldn't. Stop.  That happened last night.  All of the pieces were prepared and the dress was ready to be assembled, and I just HAD to do it.  So I did!

I wore it to church today, and got some very positive feedback from those who knew it was in progress.  I'm very happy with the way that it turned out.  Mitch was dubious about it when I started the project, but he really loved it when he saw it on this morning.  It a winner!!

I'm making a funny face, but you can see the dress better in this shot.  Turns out that I really love the bow after all.  I'm so glad that I took y'alls advice and put it on!  It really makes a difference in the look of the dress.  And I don't feel frou-frou in it.  Actually, wearing it was a total pleasure today.  It is comfortable, easy to move in (and jump in Logan's Primary class!) and since I made it in a cozy wool, I was the only person who was warm enough in church today.

Let me tell you about this pattern.  It was designed by Laura Nash at Sew Chic (formerly Nostalgic) Patterns.  You can get your own here, as well as peek at her other wonderful designs.  This pattern is beautifully drafted and the instructions are very complete.  Since diagrams aren't included, I did refer to my trusty Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Sewing to help me out with the sleeve gussets.  I'd never done them before and wanted a pictorial reference.  Laura's instructions were spot on though and I'd have done fine without the diagrams, I think.  The only place I had a little trouble was in assembling the hip sash. It is pleated and then basted onto a stabilizing layer of lining fabric, but I never did figure out what I was supposed to do with the fashion fabric at center front as there didn't seem to be a seam allowance there.  Since the FF is cut on the bias, I just seamed it with the tiniest SA possible and then stretched it to fit the underlayer.  It worked out fine.  I'll write a  more complete review on PR, but that is the gist of it.

I added a full lining with the help of Connie Long's Easy Guide to Sewing Linings.  I initially thought I'd use the quick lining method, but the front facings are cut on, so I ended up doing a traditional sew in lining.  It went in beautifully, and I am feeling pretty good about the skills right now!

Here is the lining.  It is so awesome.  I'm going to be adding a lot more linings from now on!

Whew!  I was really starting to feel like this project was lagging, so I was so happy to really get jazzed about it yesterday.  Tomorrow, on to some tops and a new month - with new goals!  Onward and upward!

Simplicity 2733

After working on the Myrtlewood for so long, I needed a quick and dirty knit top for some instant gratification sewing.

This probably shouldn't have been it...  I made so many dumb mistakes making this top!!  Fortunately, it's a nice forgiving ITY, so it is still pretty wearable, but I'm definitely not in love with it.

Here is the side view.  I really like the pleated and gathered sleeves.  They are so pretty in this drapey fabric!

Back view.  This fabric is so cool that I really wanted to use it on something interesting.  I chose this pattern for the interesting wrap detail, so that I could really take advantage of the cool stripe.  I think this may have backfired though.

This pink stripe that runs across the bottom of one boob makes it looks smaller than the other.  Oops.  You can also see in the picture my rookie fitting mistake.  The bodice is two layers, and under layer that is just a plain scoop neck and the wrap over layer.  I did a traditional FBA on the under layer, but for the wrap layer I just lengthened the "legs" of the wrap, but neglected to alter the upper bodice section of the wrap, so the two sides didn't match up.  I should have re-cut the piece, but seriously, y'all, I was just lazy, so I eased the long one into the short one.  That's the gathered bit.  It looks OK, since the lower section is gathered anyway.  It's still not making me jump for joy.  Since I didn't alter the entire wrap bodice, it is too small overall and pulls the side seams to the front.  Again, not so bad as to make the top unwearable, just enough to make me unhappy with it.

The pattern was basically good, although I did have a few gripes with it.  Primarily because it is a Project Runway pattern and therefore supposed to allow you all of these different options, which it does, but I think it does so at the expense of common sense at times.  For example, the neckline is just a basic turned under hem, which is fine, except that you hem the wrap overlay first, then sew it to the unhemmed underlay, seam the shoulders and then you are supposed to hem the back and underlay together, except you can because the wrap overlay is in the way.  This would work fine for the basic scoop neck without the overlay, but they just didn't think through the way that the overlay would effect the construction.  Lazy!

Will I sew it again?  Maybe.  I like the idea of it and I think if I worked out my fit problems and avoided the stripes this would be a super cute top.  I can also see it as a great maternity top, for sometime much later, when I need one of those again.

Simplicity 4378 again

Whew!  These took me forever, and I fudged so many things on them.  Don't look closely at the breast pocket.  It is completely in Mitch's armpit.  I'm not sure how I did that, since I used the same placement markings as last time and the pocket is fine on the last set.  And the shoulder pleats are facing the wrong direction.  WTH??  Anyway, Mitch declares them wearable, so I'm calling that good enough!

Like the cheesy pose I talked him into?

It just goes to show that when you aren't really excited about a project, you won't really have your mind on it.  My head has been occupied with other things.
My Sew Chic Myrtlewood pattern arrived, as well as the pink and brown herringbone wool from which I am planning to make it.  Now I just need lining fabric and an accent piece for the hip sash.  I was planning a trip to Dallas yesterday with my mom to go to the Golden D'Or in search of the perfect thing, but Myra developed a stomach bug, so I stayed home with her.  Now I'm waiting for some swatches of Ambiance and some silk dupioni to come from fabric.com in hopes of a color match.  We'll see...
On the houndstooth coating front I've nearly decided to use Simplicity 2764, although I am very nervous about pattern matching.  The front isn't actually a princess seam, but rather a shaped release tuck.  Interesting construction, but we'll have to see how it plays out in real life.  The cover picture shows a plaidish fabric, so I'm hoping that bodes well for my houndstooth, but I am worried about how my inevitable FBA will distort the lines.  We'll just have to see.  I'd like for this to be an early foray into learning some tailoring techniques, specifically stabilizing the raglan sleeve with a stay and building in some structure with interfacing.  I'm also planning to add a lining, which the pattern does not include.  It should be an interesting adventure.
These two projects have totally taken over all sewing portions of my brain, so I really can't be responsible for my actions in the sewing room right now.  I think I may have to shove aside my January plans in favor of this dress and jacket.  How fun is that!?
And before I go - another cheesy shot of my cute hubby!

Monthly Roundup - January '10

Well, this month sure hasn't shaped up the way I planned!  In my head, I was going to do my own little solo Month of Tops, but I was distracted by a fun new pattern, and a beautiful fabric.  Still, I had a ton of fun sewing and learning new things this month.

Completed projects:
1) Kwik Sew 2881 bike shorts for Mitch, twice!
2) Kwik Sew 3570 zip front turtleneck for Mitch, also twice!
3) New Look 6816 sweater for me
4) Simplicity 4378 scrub set for Mitch
5) Simplicity 3765 baby pants, twice for a girl baby and once for a boy
6) Lekala 5674 top for me, nearly completed, currently considered a wadder...
7) Ottobre 03/2004-9 for a birthday girl
8) A bag for blocks
9) Sew Chic 7401 - the Myrtlewood dress for me

That totals up to 12 individual garments, one bag and one wadder, which I may yet rescue, so maybe I'll call it a UFO...

New skills I worked on:
1) Inserted, exposed zip placket - twice!
2) sewing Spandex
3) Inserting gussets in kimono sleeves
4) Drafting/sewing a lining for a faced dress with a classic skirt vent

I didn't really sew outfits except for the dress, but I made the top I did get done to go with items already in my wardrobe, which I think counts!  For my other 2010 goals, I didn't do quite as well.  I didn't sew from burda style this month, and way less than 50% of my projects were from stash fabrics, although I did sew several stash patterns, so that is a bit of an improvement.

For February, I think I need to start thinking about Easter.  I'd also like to finish up the tops from January.

But before Easter is Valentine's Day!  Mom plans to embroider some tees for the kids on her new toy.  A matching skirt for Myra is also in the works.  I offered to complete the look with pants for Logan with stash fabric and a pattern from one of my new Ottobre mags - 01/2009-21.

I thought topstitching in white would be nice for Valentine's, and Mom suggested that they'd be great for Independence Day as well paired with a ring striped tee in navy and white, which I also happen to have in stash!  Perfect!

On to my Easter plans --
For Myra -

New Look 6575, view A in white crepe with a blue floral overlay.  These fabrics are from my Mom's stash and according to her tags (she's amazing at documentation) were purchased in 2005.  Now that they are fully aged, they're ready to be made into a froufy Easter dress!!

For Logan -

Ottobre 04/2004-15 pants of navy twill and 04/2004-14 shirt of quilting cotton that I let him choose.  In a surprise move, he went for Thomas the Train instead of Lightning McQueen!  I was shocked!  I find that if I let him choose his own fabric he's much more likely to wear the finished garment.

For me -

McCall's 6024.  I'm still not sure about fabric for this one.  I'm not sure that I have anything in my stash that I love for this.  I would like a floral print in something floaty, I think, but I'm concerned that since both sides of the flounce will inevitably show, a print could be problematic.  I'll be on the lookout...

For Mitch -
He's recently lost a significant amount of weight and needs dress shirts that don't balloon around his waist.  I've gotten an excellent fit for him from vintage McCall's 3439, which is quite fitted in the body.  I'm not quite happy with how the collar is coming out, though, so I think that I will use the collar pattern pieces from McCall's 4530, which has a more modern size and shape.  I've some chocolate brown shirting on it's way from Fabric.com and I'll start there...

Goals wise, I am not using much stash fabric here, just for Myra's dress and both of Logan's pants.  All of the patterns except McCall's 6024 are from stash, so I'll call that OK.  Still no burda style, but seriously, y'all, I wanted to sew my dress from burda style, but out of the 10 issues I have, none of the dresses said Easter to me like the McCall's, and I've learned long ago not to sew something that I am lukewarm about.  During my perusal of my mags though I found some great tops and skirts that I'll be sewing soon, so it wasn't a total loss!

Blog Love!

Hey all you blogging ladies, have you heard about this great pattern sale just for YOU?

Sew Chic Patterns is offering 30% off her fabulous vintage inspired patterns just for sewing bloggers!  Use the coupon code BLOGLUV 2011 at her Etsy shop.  All the info is on her blog, here.

I have sewn 2 of her designs, the Myrtlewood and the Fantasia.  Both patterns were beautifully drafted, with a complete, easy to follow instruction booklet and they fit beautifully!  Her designs are beautiful and unique.  I get tons of complements every time I wear one of her designs.  Strangers literally stop me on the street.  Awesome!

I might have just ordered this one...

um, and this one.

Hurry!  Shop!!  You only have until Valentine's Day!