Jalie 2908 jeans: Finally in white!

About a year ago, I made a cute pink eyelet top and Carolyn suggested that it would look good with white jeans. And I think she's brilliant, so I immediately went to the Mood website and ordered some white stretch twill. Then when it arrived, I was in the middle of something else and the jeans got buried in the queue.

But I finally pulled them out and made them up.

And I love them! What was I waiting for!

I know white pants seem like the opposite of practical for a busy mom of three messy kids, but in fact, they are the essence of practicality.

They go with everything, since crisp white is a perfect neutral, and if they get gross, well that's why God made bleach, y'all.

I made this with my old faithful jeans pattern, Jalie 2908. I debated between skinnies and flares, and in the end decided that with white, I think flares are more flattering. And white flares - come on. Had to do it!

Since the fabric is a wee bit sheer, and white isn't known for its opacity anyway, I underlined the pants to the knee with white swimwear lining. It's nice and stretchy, so it doesn't restrict the give of the twill.

I added a couple of premade appliques to the back pockets. They're a little silly, but I like them.

The rivets are turquoise and I love how they pop against the white. I got them from DIY Studs and Rivets on Etsy. I love this shop and get pretty much all of my rivets from them.

Fit-wise, I'm not completely thrilled, but they are wearable. The twill is quite stretchy, and I elected not to interface the waistband, which was a mistake. I think jeans waistbands should have some give, but this was too much. So, I have a bit of gaping in back. Otherwise, I'm pleased with the fit, and they are crazy comfortable. I'm going to wear the heck out of them.

I really debated the topstitching for these, and in the end I went with plain white. I really wanted them to be a wardrobe workhorse, and I though the white would be the most versatile. I really like the clean look it has.

I had a ton of fun styling and photographing these. For this post I paired them with my leopard Burda blouse, vintage brown blazer (which I altered, but did not sew) and for a completely different and casual look, my Maria Denmark Kimono Tee. Maybe next I'll actually wear it with the blouse it was sewn for. :)

Simplicity 5755: Tris gets all glammed up.

Mattel has capitalized for many years on the popularity of Hollywood (and Bollywood!) stars by releasing "inspired by" Barbies designed to look like leading ladies, pop icons and even the occasional historical figure. One of the latest Hollywood Barbies on the scene is Tris, from the movie Divergent.

I think Mattel did a fairly good job capturing the look of the actress Shailene Woodley in her face and coloring. The doll comes with the black outfit Tris wears as a member of Dauntless, but I thought she was so elegant that she needed a gown.

I pictured a long, gold backless halter gown with a train. Sometimes, having a very specific mental image can be problematic, but this time I think I achieved it.

I started with Simplicity 5755, and used the halter top pattern. I scooped the back lower and extended the side seams down to the length I wanted. Then sewed up version one... And version two...

Finally, after tweaking the length, the depth in back, the width everywhere, attempting (and failing at) some ruching and other minor changes, I finally had the look I wanted.

But it is a good thing Barbies don't need to breathe. Cuz we ain't got room for that nonsense.

The fabric is a sheer metallic mesh knit from Hancock Fabrics. I used it to make Myra's Merida costume. It's crazy itchy, but my model has vinyl skin, so she doesn't care. I didn't line it, as I like the glow it has.

I also made her belt, which is a necklace clasp and several very slim gold chains. Her bracelet and shoes were originally made by Mattel, but I added glitter. Everything is better with glitter. I got the hoop earrings from the Etsy seller, April Jewels.

I like it with the red shoes, too. Actually, I'm pretty pleased with the whole look! Now, who to do next... Katniss or Dana? Who would you like to see?

Monthly Roundup: March 2014

March was a personally very trying month, and I definitely didn't have the time I would have liked to sew. I did a lot of quick projects and I sewed a ton for Barbie. My mojo kind of crashed (mostly from sleep deprivation) in the middle of the month, and about the only thing I could convince myself to sew were teeny weeny dresses, so that's what I did.

I managed to sew:
1) Ottobre 04/2013-12 tee for Myra
2) Kwik Sew 526 PJ pants for me
3) Kitschy Coo Trifecta Top for me
4) Simplicity 3949 apron for a school raffle
5) Barbie bed & Bedding  for Barbie photo shoots
6) Ottobre 06/2012-3 tunic as a baby shower gift
7) Ottobre 06/2008-2 leggings as a baby shower gift
8) **TBA**
9) **TBA**
10) McCalls 658 bustier for Barbie
11) Self drafted pencil skirt for Barbie
12) McCalls 658 corset for Barbie
13) Simplicity 8333 peasant dress for Barbie
14) Mini Penny Pinafore and shorts for Myra
15) McCalls 658 negligee for Barbie
16) Kitschy Coo Trifecta Top for me

That is a total of 19 items and took 15 yards of fabric. Barbie clothes are small, and don't take much yardage, so they aren't very impressive for stashbusting. I did buy some fabric this month. I added a total of 21 yards to the stash, so my yearly totals are 59.75 yards sewn this year and 49 yards added to the stash. At least I'm still 10 yards ahead, so I'm not going to beat myself up over it. But I am going to earnestly endeavor to do better next month.

April is going to be dedicated to recovery and preparation. We're starting to get ready in earnest for our big move at the end of June. I hate moving, so I'm really dreading it, but I am very much looking forward to settling in to our new home so I'm trying to keep my focus there. I'm not going to make any firm plans for the coming month, but I did cut out a pair of jeans, so maybe a recovery of the mojo is in progress. I also have a super fantastic Barbie gown to photograph. I can't wait to show it to you!

Kitschy Coo Trifecta Top: Tokidoki style

Look! I sewed for a grown up human!!

After my last post, I decided that enough was enough, and I just needed a quick pick me up project to rev up my mojo.

Of course, I made a Trifecta Top. I sewed it in this fun Tokidoki style jersey from Nature's Fabrics. They actually still had a few yards left as of this post. You can find it here.

From the back, you can see the cool print a little better. There are Asian looking pinup style faces, interspersed with cartoon-y skulls with an overall camouflage appearance. The base fabric is a heathered grey, and the print is several shapes of pink, ranging from a deep burgundy to to a pale cotton candy shade.

I decided to do the sleeves, sleeve bands and neckband in black rayon lycra jersey from FabricMart. It is so soft and I love the way it makes the pink pop.

For this version of the Trifecta Top, I decided to cut the cap length sleeve and use my shaped hemline. I think one of the mojo blockers I'm trying to get around is the change in seasons. The weather has been ridiculously unpredicatable - swinging from the 20s in the morning to the 60s by afternoon. Sewing for Winter seems silly, but I'm not sure I'm ready to start sewing for Spring.

I think this is a good start though. A simple but fun tee, perfect for my actual life.

Now, what to do next? Jeans are nice and trans-seasonal, and I always seem to need more of those. Of course, there is this houndstooth ponte knit that wants to become a moto jacket... We'll see what speaks louder to me.

McCalls 658: Sleepytime for Barbie

I don't know if you've noticed, but I've been doing a lot of sewing for this girl and her friends lately. I don't know why, but every time I head into my sewing room, intending to make something for an actual human, I just haven't been inspired. My mojo is slumping big time, but I'm still enjoying sewing tiny things, so that's what I'm doing. I hope you don't mind my occasional dip into Barbie and Midge's fantasy world.

I think one of the appeals of sewing for fashion dolls is that I can make things that have no place in my real life.

Bias cut satin negligee and dressing gown? Yes, please! If I tried swanning about it this, I'd trip over it, or run the feathers through a mess.

But I think it suits Midge. The golden satin goes beautifully with her blue eyes and red hair.

Both pieces of the ensemble are sewn from McCalls 658. The fabric and lace trim are from a camisole that has been in my refashion pile for at least 5 years. So glad to finally find a use for it! And I reused the bias tube cami straps, so I didn't have to make my own.

The only change I made to the pattern was to take in the bodice about 1/2 inch. I wanted a nice snug fit. I also made a little sleep mask. Poor Midge doesn't have functioning eyelids. Tragic.

The dressing gown really makes the look though. All those feathers, framing her face and figure - I love it. It brings back old Hollywood glamour for me.

I did end up taking in the gown significantly at center back. I added a seam there for shaping, and took 1 1/4 inch out of the seam. Yowza! It was seriously oversized. The shoulders were very wide, and despite having a nice tailored sleeve cap, they looked sloppy. I also reshaped the neckline to fit the new back width.

What a lovely way to start the day!