Finlayson sweater - a new winter favourite

After sewing all those pretty laces I needed a change of pace.  I had planned on giving this to Wade for his birthday but just didn't get it done in time.  Given how often he's worn it since it was finished I think it's a winner even if I was finished later than planned.

You've probably worked out that this is the Finlayson Sweater from Thread Theory.  This is the second version I've made for Wade and I've made myself one too!  

This version is made up in a really nice merino fleece from The Fabric Store (Wade wanted something warm).  It's obviously the hooded version, which I've lined in nice soft grey knit.  Wade was happy with the hood - plenty of room and it stays on your head.

I've made Wade a large and the only adjustment I made was to trim 1 inch off the sleeve length and to reduce the seam allowance on the cuff as the fleece doesn't have a huge amount of stretch.

This is another easy sew.  The collar/hood is the only tricky bit but it's really not that bad.  The corners on mine always look gently rounded rather than nice and sharp but I like the way it looks so it's not an issue for me.

Wade does look like a bit of a criminal with the hood up but I thought I should lead with those.  He'd just decided to cut his hair ridiculously short and his bare head is almost glowing in the pictures with the hood down :)

I highly recommend this pattern.  It's great to wear (I made a size medium with no mods for me) sews up quickly and will be a real winter staple, in fact I'm kind of surprised how often I reach for mine.

I'm not sure what my next project will be but with the long weekend coming up I'm planning on spending a good chunk of time in my sewing room.

Christmas Shirt - Negroni 1014

I've been thinking about making Wade a shirt for a while, but have always put it off.  My sewing time has been too precious to sew for others!!

Then I found this check/plaid fabric and the colours just seemed like a good match for Wade.  I decided I'd start with the Colette Patterns Negroni shirt.  This is a nice pattern with good instructions and Wade loves the fit.

I used the size large and the only change I made to the pattern was to remove two inches of length from the sleeve.  I also left off the pockets and used a different method to hem the shirt.  This is my first time check/plaid matching and I used this tip from Jen at Grainline Studio and I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out.  I got the picture below when I asked him to raise his arms to show you the matching at the sides!

The drafting for this is wonderful.  There is very little ease in the sleeve cap and it just makes it so easy to put together.  I was running really short on time (I might have sewn the buttons and button holes on Christmas morning) so I didn't use flat felled seams for the sleeves and side seams, but I will try it next time.

I did change the way the top was hemmed.  The instructions have you fold the hem up once, fold again and then stitch.  This shirt has a front facing and I just thought that it would be bulky and messy trying to do it the way the instructions suggest.  I turned the facing to the outside (front shirt and facing are right sides together) and stitched where I wanted my finished length to be.  I then trimmed the facing to reduce bulk as shown below.

Then I turned the facing back to the inside and pressed, which gives a really neat finish to the front.  Then you finish the rest of the hem as you prefer, either overlock/serge and stitch or double fold and stitch. Hopefully this makes sense.

I'm classing this as a winner.  The fabric didn't sit in the stash for long, I really enjoyed the sewing and Wade loves the finished shirt.  Hopefully I can post my Christmas outfit tomorrow to finish the year on a sewing high.  I'm really enjoying everyone's end of year posts, but I'm not joining in because I can't seem to find the energy :)

More for the man - Jalie 2918

It has been over a year since I made anything for Wade and he asked me recently to make him another couple of t-shirts.  Apparently he really likes the fit of the tops I made him last year, he wasn't just wearing them to keep me happy!

So I searched the fabric cupboard and found a couple of pieces that he was happy with.  So far only this one has been sewn up, but the others will hopefully follow soon.  I'm can't exactly remember what type of fabric this is, I bought it from gorgeous fabrics several years ago.  It's beautiful quality, has a 'terry cloth' look on the wrong side and is a grey marle with a really fine orange stripe.  All wrong for my colouring, but looks great on him.

I made this up exactly the same as last time using a straight size 42 with no alterations.  Men can be so easy to sew for.

I used orange thread in the overlocker and liked it so much that I also used it for the twin needle finish.  It took me three sessions to make this top, but it was so lovely to be able to duck into my sewing room for ten minutes at a time and just sew a couple of seams.  Very therapeutic.  I have actually made a couple of other things recently but...well, they're not failures, but they're not winners either if that makes sense.

Anyway, Wade loves his new top.  He wore it as soon as I finished it and told everyone he saw that I'd made it for him.  It's nice to feel appreciated!