Finished Project: I’ve Got Your Back Quilt

Last Sunday was Melissa and Derek’s 1st anniversary. When I took on this project I told myself I wanted it done in time for that date. I did get it done, labeled, and shipped on time. Then I had to sit on the photos until it arrived. Unfortunately it didn’t arrive on Friday as I had planned because I had mailed it with a Signature Request so it didn’t get dropped on a front step somewhere at Missy’s house and then rained on or damaged. Of course as luck would have it, she wasn’t home when it was initially delivered so it went back to the post office and she had to pick it up on Monday. It’s all good. It arrived, Missy loves it and my heart is full.

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McCall’s 6282–knit cowl dress

Another week, another dress. I’m sure this crazy sewing mojo is going to drop off or be replaced with something else soon but I’m riding the wave while it lasts. I’ve been spending a lot of time at Sewing Pattern Review lately. I joined there years ago but never did much. Now I’m getting  more involved and posting reviews of the patterns I’m sewing. One of the best features is the Review Gallery where the latest reviews of patterns are posted by users. You can also search for a pattern to see how others have made it, how it fits, etc. I like that I can see a pattern that I’m considering on bodies that aren’t exactly like the pattern illustration or model. I’ve also inspired to try patterns that I wouldn’t have given a second thought to or fabrics that I’ve avoided in the past. For example; knits. I’ve been ‘afraid’ of knits for years. Even after I bought a serger I still wasn’t confident sewing knits. I’m still working out a relationship with them but it’s getting more companionable.

This dress is the first made out of ITY jersey knit. It seems to be all the rage in the knit sewing world right now. I ordered a couple different pieces from Fabric.com recently during a big sale. I found it to be a little tricky to sew. It is slippery and tends to roll along the cut edges. The end result is worth it though. I have a couple tops from Coldwater Creek made out of this type of fabric and they are light-weight, stretchy, launder great and hold their shape. I knew it would have the perfect drape for this dress.

What I like about this pattern: The cowl has a nice drape without being too loose and risking of a boob flash if you have to bend over at the waist. The sleeves set in easily. Center back seam that aids in fitting.

What I didn’t like about this pattern: Waist gathers; gathering fabric is a pain in the butt anyway, but on slinky knit it is particularly annoying. I played with doing it on my serger but my skill set isn’t at that point yet. The resulting gathers do a nice job of hiding the bulges that a clingy knit tends to accentuate so it is all good.

Two features included in this pattern that I chose to discard were the center back zipper and the lining. This knit is stretchy enough and the neckline gives more than enough room to pull this on over the head. I’m sure a lining would give it a nice couture finish and eliminate the need for a slip. Because I didn’t have any tricot lining fabric on hand and because I have a couple nice full slips, I chose not to line this dress. Also, ITY knit is opaque enough that it really isn’t see-through and I wanted a lightweight summer dress.

I’m kind of torn about my opinion on the finished dress. It is really comfortable and easy to wear. I wore it all day at work today and I didn’t have to fuss with it at all and I didn’t feel self conscious about the fit or anything. Today I wore it with a pair of high-waisted Spanxx instead of a full slip and I think it controlled the tummy bulge better than the slip I wore when this picture was taken. I will probably just have to either have to suck it up and start hitting the gym again or accept that I have a belly and will just look like this in this type of dress.

When I posted this picture on Facebook and PatternReview I got comments about the scowl on my face. It was just that Steve was being my photographer again, something he doesn’t particularly like to do nor is particularly skilled at so I was mid-photography lesson when he hit the shutter button. Also, the late afternoon sun was right in my face. I intended to crop my head off the pics anyway to save the internets from having to be assaulted by the deadly combo of my scowling mug and my bulging belly. My apologies.

Vogue 2532

Not sure how I feel about the concept of “dress shorts” but I may have made a pair anyway. I know that I recently said I don’t like to wear shorts, especially in public, but I’m allowed to change my mind. The thing is, I found this pattern for pants and I liked it and wanted to try it. But I didn’t want to buy enough fabric to make a pair of pants that may or may not turn out or fit. I found this grey & black stretch cotton plaid on the sale table and thought it would make a nice pair. I could try all my fitting stuff on the cheap. As you can see, I still need to work on the fitting. But I do love this fabric and am kind of kicking myself for not buying enough for slacks. It would make a nice pair of work pants. Once I get the fit thing right I may go grab more before it is all gone.

I carefully measured myself and compared it to the pattern and the envelope. Because this is a stretch woven I allowed myself to go a little smaller than I would normally be comfortable with in a tight woven. So I cut a size 22. Even that had a smaller waist than I have but I went with it anyway. I have been cutting size 20 in dresses and tops lately, I guess I need to trust myself and go with the 18/20 sizes. But I’m always afraid to have stuff too small.

As you can see the back fits pretty much dead on. I didn’t alter the back piece at all and sewed it on the seam lines. But the front is all kinds of weird. I took in the front darts almost an inch from the way they were drafted. I should’ve added a second dart so the one isn’t so deep. The crotch is just the right depth, no sag, not tight. Maybe it is just because I have such a round belly that I’m doomed to have baggy pants between my center front and hips. Any seamstresses out there with ideas or suggestions I’d love to hear them.

This front on shot really shows the problems I have with them. I think next time I will have to try using the size 22 for the back pieces and the 20 or even 18 for the front and then leave out the front darts.

Things I do like about this pattern are the side pockets and hem vents. I used the Palmer/Pletch method of putting on the waistband. I cut the waist band along the selvage and after turning to the wrong side and pressing I stitched in the ditch from the right side with a fine thread. With the waist cut on the selvage it doesn’t have the stretch the rest of the shorts have so it stabilizes them. I didn’t put belt loops on them because I never wear a belt. I also have a problem with the top of the fly where it meets the waist band. I don’t know why it wrinkles like that. I have a few RTW pants that do that so I may also be a product of my body shape.

Birthday Towel

I made this quick and easy but very cute towel for a friend’s birthday last weekend. She is one of my theater friends and played Miep in The Diary of Anne Frank with me this spring. Miep was known for bringing the Frank’s supplies while they were in hiding and there is a scene in the play where she brings them spice cake for the New Year. Heidi is also known for bringing us all baked treats during the run of the show so this design was quite fitting for her. I got the design from Urban Threads. I really love their designs and the prices are very good.

This is a raw edge applique design and I stitched it on a waffle weave towel. Here is the direct link to the design: Take the Cake

Kwik Sew 3378 & New Look 6674

I did some more sewing this week. I’m really on quite a roll and loving it.

Here is Minerva modeling the Kwik Sew 3378 top. Poor Minerva never gets to wear anything new and modern. One of my next projects needs to be to add some padding to her to match my own and to make her a nice knit “skin” so she can model more of my stuff. Her upper chest and shoulder are just about right but she has a tiny Victorian sized waist and a lot of junk in her trunk.

 

 

Here’s me modeling the same top. As you can see I am decidedly thicker than Minerva! As far as the top goes I am very happy with this pattern. The wrap is in just the right place for me (my friend Nic says it makes me look like I have HUGE boobs. Her words, not mine.) The pattern couldn’t be simpler or quicker to make. I used my serger for most of the construction seams and my Bernina 180 for the top stitching and hemming. If I had had more thread in the appropriate color (I was down to a tiny amount on a spool) I would’ve double needle cover-stitched the neckline, sleeve and bottom hems. This might also be a good pattern to try the decorative flatlock techniques featured in this month’s Threads magazine. Regardless, I am adding this pattern to the queue to make some short sleeved T’s for summer.

 

I think I found my summer wrap dress pattern. This is also a New Look pattern, similar to this dress but with a few minor differences. First of all the 6349 pattern only goes up to a size 18 and in the right fabric it would fit okay but is tight in a few key areas (arms, boobs, waist) Also this pattern has an interfaced midriff band. This gives it just a bit more definition and adds the option of a contrasting fabric which is a really slimming look. 6349 is a true wrap dress with ties that go all the way around, through a slit in the side seam and this pattern has a button on the inside and ties at the hip. Both styles have their good and bad points. The true tie wrap style is more flexible and adjustable. I cut a size 20 in this pattern and that gave me all the extra room I needed in the arms and waist. Almost too much room, I can tie the ties as tight as they will reach, but this makes the neckline nice and tight and the V-neck from being too low.

Overall I really like how this dress turned out. A wardrobe of simple dresses like this would easily replace all the shorts and T-shirts in my closet for casual easy summer wear. I’ve gotten to the age and body type now that shorts in any length just aren’t flattering on me and not fit for public consumption. The last note on this dress is the fabric. It is a woven cotton with some lycra/spandex in it. It has a great crosswise stretch that makes this dress really comfortable. I wasn’t sure about the print at first but with luck I managed to cut and assemble it without one of the ellipse shapes falling in an unfortunate spot. I do seem to have an irrational fear of misplaced prints. I do think that the patterns and colors bring to mind semaphore flags or something quite nautical. This is one of the fabrics I picked while in Michigan at Fields Fabric. I think this dress cost me less than $10!

Just a couple of quick construction notes on this pattern. I didn’t modify anything other than using my serger for as many of the seams as possible. This is a woven fabric and I’m sure this dress will get a lot of wear and washing so I wanted the seams to hold up and look good. The instructions would have you turn under 1/4” on the raw edge of the inside of the midriff band and then stitch-in-the ditch from the outside to catch the folded edge. I opted to just over-lock this edge and then stitch-in-the-ditch. This gave me more fabric to catch with the stitches when sewing “blind” and a smoother, less bulky edge at the waist line. I did do the hem and front skirt edges as instructed but I don’t think it would have been a problem to also over-lock those raw edges, turn up and topstitch. I used the woven fusible interfacing that I recently ordered from Moda. I am really happy with it. It bonds great with a hot steam iron and adds just the right amount of body without being stiff.