Refashion: Eyelet skirt becomes Eyelet top

Just when I thought the mercury was rising enough for me to wear tank tops and shorts, the cold wind blasted me back to reality this morning. It was 5 Celsius this morning with strong wind. There is a frost warning for tonight. Seriously?

Well, it didn't dampen my mood. I was determined to make some summery garments. I thrifted this warm sunny yellow cotton eyelet skirt last year for $6.99. It was very big on me but it was about the only shade of yellow that looked semi-flattering on me.

I took off the lining (yes the same shade of yellow cotton voile lining - another top perhaps?) and the zipper and traced my self-drafted woven tank pattern on the skirt. I have previously used the pattern for this refashioned top. The yellow skirt was just a little short on the material so the top is a bit tighter than the other one. But I'm pleased that I now have a yellow eyelet top to wear this summer:

Another quick and easy refashion project! Can't wait to wear it when it's warmer!

Me Made May 2014 - May 9 to May 16

So we are into the 2nd week of Me Made May 2014.  The weather had been all over the place this past week: hot and humid, rainy, rainstorm, cold and grey, etc. I am still hoping that I can debut my newly made shorts before the end of May!

May 9:
Top - Me Made grey sweatshirt cowlneck top
Bottom - Me Made red skinny jeans
Purse (not shown) - Me Made red faux suede cross-body purse

May 10:
Top - Me Altered denim shirt (I altered the back darts)
Bottom - Me Made white slim jeans (McCall's 5273 again!)
Necklace - Me Made glass and metal necklace
Purse - Me Made red faux suede cross-body purse

May 11:
Dress - Me Made antique gold polyester brocade dress (I was hoping to go somewhere with this dress but my daughter threw up on me!)
Necklace - Me-Made jade and metal necklace

May 12:
Dress - Me Made zipped front stretch cotton denim dress
Necklace - Me-Made coral and tiger-eye stone necklace
Purse (not shown) - Me Made red faux suede cross-body purse

May 13:
Jacket - Me Made coated cotton topper jacket (Butterick 6900)
Dress - Me Refashioned XL red ponte dress
Purse (not shown) - Me Made red faux suede cross-body purse

 

May 14:
Top - Me Made knit floral tank top (Simplicity 3532)
Bottom - Me Made grey slim jeans (McCall 5273  again!! - I love creating different jeans pocket designs)
Purse (not shown) - Me Made red faux suede cross-body purse

May 15:
Top - Me Made poly knit faux wrap top
Bottom - Me-Made black cotton stretch twill slim pants (McCall 5273 - yes again!)
Necklace - Me Made Swarovski cross on silver chain
Purse (not shown) - Me Made red faux suede cross-body purse

May 16:
Top - Me refashioned grey sweatshirt top
Bottom - Me Altered RTW jeans
Scarf - Me Made remnant fabric scarf
Purse (not shown) - Me Made red faux suede cross-body purse

Pattern Review: Butterick 5044 and MAGAM May Project Completed!

I have completed my Made A Garment A Month May project! Yay! I made 2 pairs of quick and easy linen blend shorts for the summer with Butterick 5044. I made the black one with a drawstring waist and the green one with an elastic waist. Initially I made the black one size Medium because I usually wear a size 12 bottom with the big 5 sewing patterns. However, I found them too loose so I re-cut and resewed them into size Small. They are a little snug around the waist but the rest looked much better. I also sewed the green pair in size Small as well.

I never tuck my tops into my shorts/pants/skirts but I just want to show you how they look in its entirety:

And here is how I would actually wear them:

They look so much better with the shirts untucked, right? I figured that linen shorts in black and green should pretty much go with all the summer tops in my wardrobe. I'm now debating if I should make a pair in another solid colour or even a print fabric. I have lots of summery prints in my fabric stash!

This pattern is so easy and quick to sew (no side seams just the inseams) and the pockets are so useful. I'm pretty happy with the pattern and the resulting garments. I can't wait to wear them and I hope I'll get to wear them a lot this summer.

Me Made May 2014 begins!

May just kind of crept up on me! Yes I signed up for 'So Zo's Me Made May 2014 Challenge again. This is my 3rd year in a row I think. My pledge this year, is to wear at least 2 pieces of me-made, me-refashioned, me-altered garment and/or accessories every single day for the month of May. This is actually a very easily accomplished goal because I carry my Me-Made cross-body purse every day already and 70% of my closet consists of Me-Made clothing/accessories.

So here are some pics of my outfits for the first week. I'm only naming the me-made or me-altered garments and accessories.

May 1
Top: Me-Made black ponte knit faux wrap top
Pants: Me-Altered RTW jeans (I shortened the length)
Scarf: Me-Made fabric stash remnant scarf
Purse: Me-Made red faux suede cross-body bag

May 2:
Sweater: Me-altered Thrifted grey merino wool sweater (I narrowed the body)
Pants: Me-Made grey checkered pants
Purse (not shown): Me-Made red faux suede cross-body bag

May 3:
Shirt: Me-Made turquoise cotton button down shirt (Simplicity 5204)
Scarf: Me-Made fabric stash remnant scarf
Pant: Me-altered RTW white brocade pants
Purse (not shown): Me-Made red faux suede cross-body bag 

May 4 - I forgot to take a picture. Booo! But I was wearing the me-made grey checkered pants and I was carrying my Me-Made red faux suede purse!

May 5:
Cardigan: Me-Shrinkened teal wool/silk cardigan (purposely shrinkened)
Scarf: Me-Made fabric stash remnant scarf
Pant: Me-Made black stretch denim skinny jeans (McCall 5273) - I should have ironed those jeans!
Purse (not shown): Me-Made red faux suede cross-body bag

May 6:
Jacket: Me-Made hot pink cotton sweatshirt jacket
Pant: Me-Altered RTW jeans (I shortened the hem)
Purse (not shown): Me-Made red faux suede cross-body bag

May 7:
Cardigan: Me-Made wool blend wrap jacket
Scarf: Me-Made fabric stash remnant scarf
Pant: Me-Made black cotton stretch twill slim pants (McCall 5273)
Purse (not shown): Me-Made red faux suede cross-body bag 

May 8:
Necklace: Me-Made semi-precious stones necklace
Pant: Me-Made black stretch denim skinny jeans (McCall 5273)
Purse (not shown): Me-Made red faux suede cross-body bag 

 So far so good! I think the weather will get warmer next week so I'll have to show you my newly made, hot off the press shorts!!

MAGAM May project idea

The weather is finally above 0 Celsius creeping into the teens too! Is it too early to think about summer clothing like shorts? I have had this pattern Butterick 5044 in my pattern stash for a while now (printed in 2007). The pattern is rated 'Very easy' due to the fact that the shorts/pants don't have side seams (only inseams), which should make them pretty quick to make.  I would like to make some comfy linen blend shorts for this summer. I have different colour linen blend fabrics in my stash already - black, dark green, light green and red. I think I will start with the black and dark green linen blend fabrics.

 (Source)

So are you sewing summer clothing like shorts and tank tops/dresses already?

Refashion: New Sleeves for a Torn top

I have a bunch of long sleeves cotton knit tops in different colours that I bought 5 years ago that I wear throughout the Fall/Winter/Spring seasons. They are fitted tops that I layer with sweaters, cardigans, sweatshirts, sweater dresses, jackets, etc. When one of them got torn by a metal zipper of my hubby's jeans in the washing machine, my hubby kindly said that it would be 'okay' for me to buy a new top. But my first thought was, 'Yay! Something for me to refashion!' C'mon hubby! I'm a proud Refashioner!

So from this:

I cut off the sleeves just above the ribbed hole. And with some remnant yellow cotton ribbed knit, it became this:

 I quite like the brown/yellow combination. It looks like some designer top I have seen. I hope I can keep wearing this for another few years! Another top saved!

Stash Busting: Fabric Scraps into Scarves

I get such a great satisfaction when I'm busting my current fabric/notions/pattern stash. And the satisfaction is even greater when I'm busting my stash of fabric scraps. I have been keeping 4 boxes of fabric scraps so far, hoping to turn them into something useful for other projects. They are all too small or narrow to be made into garments themselves.

I have been doing a bit of 'Spring Cleaning' of my current fabric/notions/pattern stash and I came across bits of scraps that I thought could make good scarves that can brighten my basic neutral outfits. I just cut them into long strips and used my serger to roll-hemmed the edges. That's it! It was so fast and so easy! I like fast and easy projects!! I hope I get lots of use out of them in the Spring and the Fall. Now I can't wait to sort through more scraps in my scrap boxes to come up with other scraps creations!

(Scraves from left: cotton/silk, polyester chiffon, cotton/silk, cotton)

Pattern Review: Simplicity 5914 Skirts

Now that the weather is warmer, we can start sewing garments that show the legs, right? I don't wear skirts often (since I have to chase after my 2 willful kids all day long and bend down and climb up, etc.) but it would be nice to have some flirty skirts in my practical wardrobe.

I have an Inverted Triangular body so fluted or a-line skirts are better for me. This stash pattern Simplicity 5914 looked like a good shape for me.  I used size 12 which is my usual for skirts with the big 5 pattern makers.

 
I rummaged through my fabric stash and found that I had just enough of this antique gold brocade fabric for this skirt (this fabric was last seen as a dress in this post). I lined the skirt with Bamberg lining. It's super easy and fast to sew. I didn't even look at the instructions. This is how it turned out:

(I don't ever wear pants or skirts with the top tucked in. I just did that for this photo so the skirt top can be seen.)

Since the brocade skirt turned out well, I thought I would add a suit-looking black stretch cotton twill with the same pattern too (also a stash fabric and I had just enough for this skirt). A black knee length skirt is useful for all types of functions, right? I tried to be creative and used a stash black satin binding for the bottom hem to make it more interesting. However, I think it made the skirt bottom too stiff and not 'swingy' like the brocade one. Oh well! I'm wearing it as is anyway. I lined the skirt with Bamberg lining and this is how it turned out:

(See how the hem is stiffened by the satin binding?)

I am pretty happy with them. They are both actually very versatile: for the office, for a dinner date, for a school concert, etc - as long as the kids and I are not going to be deep in mud! They can be paired with a tonne of different tops, jackets, shoes, accessories. Hopefully they will become my wardrobe staples for a long time!

Refashion/Resized: RTW White Brocade pants

What says more about Spring/Summer than a pair of white pants/trousers? A pair of White Brocade Pants! Brocade as casual day wear has been in style for a couple of years now. I bought these too big RTW White Brocade pants at the clearance rack with the store gift card my friend gave me at  x'mas. It was a couple of size too wide but they were only $5.99!

Then I wore them inside out and used the usual PPCS (pin-pinch-cut-sew) method with these pants.

Lastly I opened the side seam on the waistband and inserted an elastic into the back waistband. My weight can fluctuate 4 or 5 lbs during the course of a month (PMS time) and my waistline expands with it too. So an elastic back waistband is always a safe thing to do for me for these non-stretch fabrics.

So here is the final result:

It's not a big refashion but I'm happy with how they turned out. I hope I don't get them dirty the first day I wear them out!

Pattern Review: Simplicity 1688 Cynthia Rowley Jacket

So here is the final product of my MAGAM April post. It's been a while since I have sewn with a more recently released pattern, instead of sewing from my pattern stash that are all Out Of Print years ago. It was a $1.5 Simplicity sale that I couldn't resist. The little crop jacket caught my eye in this pattern. I found some remnant of this red heavy linen in my stash. I made a not-so-successful dress from this fabric before. I just had enough of this fabric for a short sleeve jacket.

I cut a size 14 (I'm usually either 12 or 14 for Simplicity patterns). I first pattern fit myself and the jacket was short, even for a short waisted person like me. It was just above my short waist. So I added 5cm to the lower band, cut a short cap sleeve, and drafted front and neck facings since I didn't want to add a lining for a breezy summer linen jacket.

The jacket went together fairly quickly. I didn't look at the instructions since the pattern pieces spoke for themselves. The fabric was a bit stiff and there seems to be a bit more ease at the sleeve cap so I added a little inverted pleat at the top (a total improvisation because of my lack of skills). And this is how it turned out:

You can see that the back is quite loose fitting, which is fine with me. Of course being the oddball who can't follow rules, I added more features to this jacket - inseam pockets:

And here is the little 'dimple' (inverted box pleat) I added to the top of the sleeve cap:

I can see this jacket  being very useful for layering over sleeveless dresses, tank tops for this spring/summer. It actually looks nice enough for the office too. Here is how it looks with jeans:

I'm happy that this little jacket turned out to be a wearable muslin. And I was able to use the stiff red linen remnant too. I think I may just tweak this pattern a bit to reduce the boxiness at the back. I am itching to sew this pattern with other fabrics in my stash too!

I just joined Make a Garment A Month!! My MAGAM plan

As soon as I found out about the Make A Garment A Month (MAGAM) community, I wanted to join it. I really enjoyed reading all about the fantastic sewists' projects and their final products. I realized that I also make at least 1 garment a month. I just wanted to be a part of it. And now I am! Thanks to Sarah Liz for organizing everything!

For my MAGAM project for April, I think I'll make a jacket for Spring that can be worn in the summer as well. I recently bought some newish sewing patterns (as opposed to sewing with patterns that are 6-14 years old) and I am liking the look of the jacket on Simplicity 1688 by Cynthia Rowley. It looks like a boxy little jacket that I can wear with jeans or a dress.

 I'm going to use stash fabrics as I really just have too much of a fabric stash. This red medium to heavy weight linen may just do the trick. I used it last year for a pullover dress and that didn't work too well. But the weight might work well for a jacket. What do you think?

April is Spring Sewing Month!!

Is Spring finally here yet? In my part of the world, you just never know. Right now I'm still seeing snow out on the sidewalks. I remember one year when it was still snowing in the first week of May, and then the next week it was between 5-10 Celsius, and then the week after that it was in the 25+ C. So Spring was only for a few days between Winter snow and Summer heat!

Since Spring is so short here, I'll concentrate on making summer clothes and layering (jackets, cardigans, etc) on top in case it's not warm enough yet. But the colours will definitely be more cheerful than the usual black, grey, navy, dark greens that I wear all through Fall and Winter. And the fabrics will be lighter and airier. I can see polka dots, and florals too!

Here are just some of the spring/summer looking stuff in my fabric stash and my refashioning stash that I'm considering working on:

(from left clockwise: patterned silk, brocade, teal silk, red silk, white embroidered linen/cotton, red linen)

Do you have a long Spring season in your part of the world? Do you have a specific Spring Wardrobe? How is your Spring sewing coming along?