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?

Winter/Spring Travel Packing for 1 week

As mentioned before, we had a car trip to visit family and friends who live 700 km away. That's about a 6.5 hour drive with 2 kids under 5 and all the winter gears for a family of 4. We only have a small family car so packing efficiently is a mandatory skill. My stuff (clothing, toiletries, accessories, magazines) only took up half of a small carry-on suit case. It was basically 3 key outfits that can be mixed and matched for various functions: outdoor ice/snow fun, family dinners and perhaps something more somber. And here are the things I brought with me (I guess I should have ironed the clothes before taking pictures):

1. Outerwear

• a black 11-year-old down jacket that's very warm and still going strong. The colour and style makes it very versatile for outdoor play or dinners or funerals.
• a red self-stitched wool hat based on Simplicity 5799. It's made with red wool coating and lined with cotton broadcloth. Very warm and I love the colour.

2. Middle layers

• a self-stitched, unlined, blue/green wool blend boucle jacket that has been refashioned. It's easy to wear like a cardigan but also looks more dressy than a regular cardi. Can go from day to night easily. And it's warm too!
• a refashioned comfy grey/silver sweatshirt.
• a 15 year old black wool cardigan. This can be worn with the silk camisoles in the section for a dressy look or layered with the boucle jacket if it gets really cold!

3. Under layers

• 3 long sleeves cotton tshirts - black green and silver
• 2 silk camisoles to be worn under the tshirts for warm. Can also be worn with the black cardi above for dressy dinners.

4. Scarves

• a thrifted red/black polyester scarf
• a beige alpaca scarf
• a self-stitched wool paisley scarf (I just bought the wool fabric and bounded the edges)

5. Pants

• a pair of self-stitched Polartec Windbloc pants based on McCall's 5273. It's warm and water repellant. Good for outdoor snow/ice activities. The dark colour also makes it look more dressy for dinners.
• a pair of self-stitched jeggings also based on McCall's 7273.

6. Pajamas/Loungewear

• a pair of black leggings
• a hand-me-down men's PJ top

 

The weather during the trip was between -15C to 5C and on the last day there was a snow storm. This wardrobe took care of the varying weather.  I wore the bulkiest stuff during the trip: the silver sweatshirt, the Polartec pants with a camisole and long sleeves tshirt, and of course the down jacket and hat. The rest fit snugly inside half of a small carry-on suitcase with my toiletries bag. I was able to wear different-looking outfits for the week. The only thing I had remember was to do a wash every other day. Luckily I was staying with friends and family and they have washing machines and tumble dryers.

So do you have a tried-and-true packing list that you use for different seasons?

Copycat Fashion: A Tribute to McQueen and Sherlock Dress

When I used to travel frequently by air for business, it was always difficult to pack business clothes when I had to visit clients' sites in the American South in the summer. The lined linen jackets always stuck to my skin and made me really uncomfortable. I would sweat profusely even on a walk from the air-conditioned car to the air-conditioned office. I didn't know this then but what I really needed was some professional looking short sleeve dresses that would eliminate the need for a separate jacket. And of course they have to pack well in my tiny carry-on suitcase.

.....which leads me to the creation of this garment. As with many, I'm a big fan of the BBC Sherlock series (a modern adaptation of the classic Sherlock Holmes stories). In season 2 episode 1, I was 'in love' when I saw Irene Adler in this dress:

 (source)

This is actually an Alexander McQueen dress with faux jacket flaps in the front. The back is completely smooth. I thought it looked vintage, professional and feminine all at the same time. I had been looking through my pattern stash to see if there were any patterns I could adapt this look to. I tried drafting the extra pieces based on a few woven sheath dress patterns but with no luck. I couldn't figure out how to incorporate the lining pieces into it. Eventually I decided it would be easier to try to copy this dress in knit. I searched my fabric stash and found a small piece (less than 1 metre) of grey polyester moderate stretch knit that I had for at least 6 years. There was just enough to do this dress. And the polyester knit is travel friendly too!

I used my go-to moderate stretch knit pattern Butterick 6771 (again) as a base and then drafted the faux jacket front flap, the facings, modified the dress front neckline and shortened the sleeves. It was actually pretty quick to sew. It only took me a couple of nights to get it done. And here is my Tribute to McQueen and Irene Adler dress:

 

(I guess I should have ironed the dress front more.....oh well....)

 

I am happy with how this has turned out. When I was thinking and planning for it in my head, I was totally prepared for this to be an unwearable 'proof of concept'. The fact that I was able to use stash pattern, stash fabric and stash buttons for this was great for me. I think I can wear this not only for the office, but perhaps for a school function, or even a wedding, depending on how I'm going to accessorize this. Another travel friendly versatile dress and I'm busting my fabric/notions stash again! Yay!

Refashion: XL Silk blouse to Wearable blouse?

In the colder months, I always like to layer my sweaters with a silk blouse. The temperature-regulating properties of silk give it the ability to warm and cool the body at the same time. It feels great against the skin, and it is non-bulky to wear or to pack - making it quite travel friendly. I would layer a silk blouse on top of a silk camisole and then put the wool sweater on top. It gives me a smoother shape than if I was wearing a cotton t-shirt.

This is an XL ladies silk blouse I thrifted from my local Thrift Store last year. It looks a bit matronly to me but I thought it would make a great layering piece.

First, I chopped off the sleeves:

Then I used the PPCS (pinch-pin-cut-sew) method to remove the excess fabric on the sides. I still wanted it to be a bit loose fitting so I can tied it in the front. I then cut the sleeves to a shorter length, and gathered the cuff with elastics.

I tried to wear it as is but it still looks matronly to me.

I tried to tie it in the front:

And finally I wore it the way I had intended - layering it with a sweater:

So what do you think? Does it look matronly as is? Any suggestions on how I can make the blouse less matronly?

Refashion: Travel Friendly Silver Sweatshirt

I used to travel by air for work frequently. There was a particular year when I would be traveling by plane to clients' sites every 3-4 weeks for a 3-4 day stay. I know some business people would travel on the plane with their suit jackets on but that's not for me. I had experienced too many airplane delays, sitting at the boarding zone for hours, sitting inside a stationary boiling hot plane for hours, cancelled flights, etc. So I always made sure that I was wearing something comfortable for the travels. In the colder months, I would just wear a big comfy sweater or sweatshirt, which felt like having nice blanket on me and helped me to nap on the plane.

This XXL sweatshirt was part of the RTW purchase with the gift card I received for X'mas. It's big, soft, comfy and it has silver threads in it for a bit of glamour! And it only cost $3.97 so I bought 2 of them.

I decided to do a simple refashion to make it less overwhelming on me. I used the usual 'pinch-pin-cut-sew' (PPCS - LOL!) method. I removed the excess fabric from the sleeves and the body. It's still roomy for me but more wearable now.

And since JCrew had reinvented the sweatshirt look, there are so many ways to wear this sweatshirt:

This plain looking sweatshirt has a little unexpected feature: little openings at the cuff for the thumbs to warm my hands in cold weather!