Tuesday 27 January 2015

T-shirts for days

At the start of every summer I'm amazed at how few t-shirts I have, or more truthfully, how many t-shirts I have that I actually feel good wearing.  Making t-shirts isn't the most exciting project and as I was sewing these production line style, I wondered why I didn't go out and buy some (now that my RTW fast is over!).


Like most basic items we choose to sew, the answer lies in the fit.  I struggle to find t's long enough - I don't like worrying that my stomach will show or ones that ride up my back when I sit down.  I feel most self conscious about my stomach so I don't like t-shirts that are tight across there.  All things I struggle with in RTW tops.


I've mixed two patterns together to create one I'm pretty happy with.  I always liked the fit through the body of the Sewaholic Renfrew, but the shoulders/arms were too small.  I made a few Tessuti Lola t's late last year and I liked the fit through the shoulders, arms and bust but the body felt too big.  I feel like Goldilocks, because combining the two is just right!


The mixed fabric tops were inspired by an Anthropologie t-shirt I saw on Pinterest and were great for using up some larger scraps and I couldn't resist buying the cobalt blue jersey in the Tessuti sale earlier this year.


So, not exciting sewing, but they filled a gap and have been in high rotation.  Excuse the total lack of ironing in these photos!

Keeping track of my fabric purchases is actually encouraging me to sew the fabric up a lot quicker than I normally would - two other purchases have been cut and one is nearly finished.  

Wednesday 14 January 2015

A lucky buy

If you've been sewing for any length of time I'm sure you've struggled with pattern storage at some point.

  

Mine have been stashed in a spare cupboard, everything thrown in together.  It had got to a point where I was too scared to buy any new patterns because I wasn't sure what I had!  

I was pretty excited when Mum mentioned that she'd seen a local Spotlight selling an old pattern cabinet on Boxing Day.  I was so worried that someone else would have snapped it up but when Wade and I went down first thing the next morning it was still available and Wade even talked them down on the price.  It's a good thing he supports my sewing because we had to put the cabinet on the car roof rack for the four hour drive home!


Once we got it home Wade gave it a fresh coat of paint and I transferred over my patterns.  I'm not even close to filling it but it was fun to go through all my patterns, remembering all the plans I had. Funnily enough I discovered that I had nearly three times more dress patterns than any other type, which seems strange as I wear more separates than dresses.


Here it is in all it's repainted goodness.  I'm loving the extra storage space on top of the cabinet nearly as much as the pattern storage and going through all those patterns has got the mojo roaring.  Here's hoping I can translate the enthusiasm into actual finished garments :)

Thursday 8 January 2015

StyleArc Ivy Knit Top

It was back to work for me this week so I made myself a new top to ease the pain.


This is the StyleArc Ivy knit top and I think it's a winner.  I've used a straight size 12 with an extra inch in length added to the hem, which it really doesn't need.  


I used a bright rayon knit to make this up, it doesn't have the best recovery so by the end of the day the sleeve bands are quite relaxed.

You can't see the style lines very well in the fabric I used - here's the picture from the StyleArc website.

New square shape T-shirt with design lines
















I will be making this top again because I want to take advantage of the colour blocking opportunity. I really like the way this top in put together with the side seams wrapping around to the front on an angle.  The neckline on this top isn't crooked, I was just in a hurry to get the photos taken and didn't think to make sure everything was sitting correctly.


You may notice I now have an additional page at the top of my blog.  For my own interest I was keen to keep track of what I buy and how much I spend on sewing each year.  Feel free to take a look, I had a little splurge during the last day of the Tessuti online sale to ease the pain of going back to work!!  Each piece of fabric bought so far has been for a specific project so hopefully I can bring my plans to life.

Thursday 1 January 2015

Happy New Year - new happy pants

Happy New Year!  I've chosen to skip the reflective blog post this year and dive straight into 2015 and I couldn't be happier with my first make.


These are the Papercut Anima pants and they were all done a couple of days ago apart from the cuffs.  With the rest of my household sleeping off a very, very late night I enjoyed a few quiet minutes in my sewing room completing these.


The Anima pants come together really quickly.  I've made a medium in a french terry knit from Girl Charlee with a couple of minor adjustments. I added an extra two inches to the length - one at the hem and one at the cutting line for the knee length version.  I also added an extra 1.25 inches to the depth of the pocket bag.  I like to be able to use the pockets in my clothing and as drafted they just felt a little shallow.  The only other change I made was to leave out the draw string and associated top stitching on the waistband because I knew I'd never use it and it would only add bulk to an area that doesn't need it.  


Over the last few months I've come to the realisation that I've fallen into quite the rut.  I find/make something I like, wear it until it falls apart and then replace it with an exact replica. So I'm extra happy with these pants because it's the first time I've used this pattern company, the first time making this style, and I believe it's also the first time I've owned patterned pants.  And I love them.  My only trouble now will be restraining myself from making multiple copies!

Wishing you a happy and wadder free 2015 :)