Loes Hinse Sweater Set

This pattern has been around for quite some time, but this is the first time I've made it up. I traced it out in a combination of Medium and Large, which is typical of  how I trace designs for this pattern line.

The fabric is an acrylic/rayon sweater knit that I discovered at Hancock Fabrics in the fall of 2011. It looks like wool and was easy to cut out and sew. I haven't seen any lately but it does pop up from time to time, so I'll be keeping an eye out for more.

I made both pieces of the set. Here's the shell, which has stash buster potential. It takes less than a yard of 60" wide fabric. There is a seam down the front, but that should be pretty easy to eliminate if a different look is needed.

And here's the cardigan all by itself. It also came together very easily, more so than some McVogueRick patterns that I've used in the past. 

I'll be making more versions of this pattern based on how well this effort came out.  I even have fabric for the next set picked out already!

Simple Project, Simplicity 3569 (oop)

Time for a new, simple pattern--a knit friendly nightgown. 2 main pieces and 2 facing pieces.

The fabric is a cotton knit that came from Hancock's or JoAnn's, I'm not sure which one.  I just remember seeing it and thinking it would be perfect for something like this.

It was easy to make, too.  Although I included the facings due to the V-neck, I changed the instructions a bit and topstitched the edge down to eliminate the potential of the facings flopping around. I worked on this for a small amount of time after returning from the mini sewing tour, and it was ready to wear to bed that night.

I cut a 10 through the neck and shoulders and a 14 for the sides.  The shoulders and facings were sewn with a regular machine using 5/8" seams. I made narrow 1/4" side seams, using my serger.   The finished length was dowdy on me, so I cut 8" off the lower edge before hemming with a 1/2" machine stitched hem. Now it's a little above my knees.

I'll definitely make this again, and I've already selected a couple other stash knits to use. This nightgown is so comfortable, but a step up from sleeping in a T-shirt.

More TNT Kwik Sew 2565 Tees

January was a blur of a month, with lots to do at work following the holiday season. I have a new manager, and probably another one after the former manager's position is filled. In addition, two members of my team were transferred to another client. Eventually they'll be replaced, but for now it's busy.

Fortunately, we haven't had the terrible frigid and snowy weather that everyone back east is experiencing, but we really do need some snow or else it will be quite a drought in the summer.

While I haven't been posting, I've been doing some sewing and wardrobe building. I made three new versions of my old favorite Kwik Sew 2565, which you've all seen many times before. And I used some stash fabrics too! 

First up is a faux ikat poly knit from JoAnn's:

Next was this rayon devore from Casual Elegance:

And last, a lacy poly knit from Hancock's:

Each tee had its challenges. The faux ikat is a 4 way stretch, so I cut the neck band along the lengthwise grain for a more interesting look. As a result the band was not quite as stretchy and it buckles around that front curve. Not too noticeable when it's on, but you know how picky we sewists are!

The rayon devore is a beautiful fabric that pictures do not do justice. It has curvy areas of sheerness, color variations, print, and glitter! Again, band issues because the printed design sits on the surface of the fabric and so does the glitter, meaning the stretch is not consistent across the fabric. So, I had a real struggle getting that band installed. It looks fine but in restrospect, fold over elastic might have been a better choice.

The lace knit's challenge was layout, not sewing. It was difficult to line up the fabric and keep it aligned while placing and cutting the pattern pieces. But once cut out, it was super easy to sew.

The devore and lace knit are both pretty sheer but I decided not to line them. I have some thin knit camisoles that I'll wear beneath. I put a black cami under both in the photos and you can barely tell it's there.

I have two more projects cut out and ready to start--an easy one and a more precise one. The easy one is a knit nightgown basically two pieces. I also have a TSW Zen shirt from some very nice blue shirting that I had on hand.

Labor Day Shopping

Sunday was a busy day--church, a hair appointment, and dinner out. I had a little spare time between church and hair, so I visited JoAnn's and Hancock Fabrics. I am trying to limit my fabric shopping for a while with limited success. Less fabric is coming in and I'm still buying, although I'm being more discerning. So partial success.

As expected, sales at both stores...and I'm not on a pattern diet. I found several patterns I actually liked and the price was right. Between them, McCall's, Butterick, Vogue and Simplicity were all on sale.

We shall see what eventually gets made and when. I think I was really in a jacket mode when selecting patterns, though.

Butterick 3257 (OOP)

These are the fabrics I'm using for the latest vest from this pattern. The main fabric is this:

The face of the fabric is on the left, the back is on the right. All of the pictures in this post were taken with flash, as there's minimal natural light in the Sewing Cave at this time of day.

As I mentioned in the last post, it's basically fleece, but it has an additional layer attached. Hence, my nerves. Would it melt, would all stitch marks show permanently? How would it be to attach the zipper? Since it was a small remnant, I had minimal scraps and no way to re-do any of it.

So I did some testing before going any further, and it turned out that my fears were unfounded. The fleece can be pressed with a warm iron and steam, rip outs are not obvious, and the zipper went in with minimal angst.

The vest also has a lining. This is a poly charmeuse from the stash. It originally came from JoAnn's several years ago. It was on sale at $1.88 per yard, so I got several yards of it. There is still plenty left.

Here's the vest so far:

It looks a little shlumpy, but there are still seams to sew, pockets to make, and finishing to do.  But my fingertips are sore right now. The thick layers of fleece and the zipper tape required some hand stitching "in the ditch" to anchor all parts accurately before machine stitching, and to bury thread ends. I also hand stitched the lining to the zipper tape.

However, the collar and the zipper are complete--the most stressful parts are over. Yay!

Material Girls, November Edition

What a nice way to end Thanksgiving weekend--sewing with friends. Our location is closed on Sundays, but we still get an opportunity for shopping since it's a sewing store. Great if you're missing some notions or see a fabric you just have to have.

I cut out a long sleeved T from Kwik Sew 2565, a TNT that I retraced to my current size at last month's meet up. This one is something of a prototype--I'm using a mystery knit that I bought a few years ago at  Fabrix in San Francisco. I added a generous 1" of "fit insurance" to all vertical seams. Hopefully it won't be needed, but good to have if I do.

I also worked on a UFO from last year, the OOP Butterick 3257 vest. After making the fur one, I cut another from an interesting polarfleece remnant I found at Joann's Hancock's. The base is regular polarfleece, with a plastic-y layer laminated on top. The resulting fabric looks like quilted leather! Unfortunately, I didn't it get it done last winter and lost interest after the weather warmed up, so it's been languishing in a bag all year. Fleece garments are perfect for Albuquerque weather, so the timing is again right.

The mojo is back just a little. Thank goodness for TNTs and UFOs!

Simplicity 2254

I recently completed this top that I cut out at last month's Material Girls. This has been a bit more of a project than intended, so the jury's still out on whether I'll make another one of these or not. I do like the completed top, but it took a prototype and several adjustments to get to this point. And as I mentioned before, the sewing instructions were unnecessarily complicated.

At least I like wearing the completed top. It's perfect for summer--a lightweight, breathable fabric combined with a relaxed, airy fit. I've worn it to work once already with jeans.

Material Girls, June Edition

It's been so hot, I've almost totally lost my sewing mojo.

Thank goodness for Material Girls! I'm good at attending meetings, so having this Neighborhood Group (ASG lingo for a sit and sew) kind of forces me to do sewing-related things. Our latest meeting was last Sunday, and I cut out 2 garments while socializing--second versions of TSW Ann's Cardigan and another attempt at Simplicity 2254.

I started sewing it this weekend. The last version--well, let's face it. It was a muslin. The new version incorporates a higher neckline,  extra circumference (sigh) and a FBA. The fabric for this one is a thin rayon challis print I picked up on the cheap from Hancock's Fabrics in 2007. Even though it's black, the garden print looks like summer to me.

So far so good since cutting it out last week. I've completed the upper bodice, including the PITA bindings. Next time, I have to remember to assemble the bodice sections and bindings flat. It has to be easier than assembling fronts and backs at the shoulder seams then joining everything together. Ugh.

After all of the effort, I realized the binding's seam was totally lost in the black background of the print.

Good thing I have a lace stash. I found the perfect one to follow the seam line and create some interest. Isn't this a lot better? And keep in mind that it's just draped into place and not even sewn down yet.

I also need to audition some buttons for center front. The pattern calls for nonfunctioning loops with buttons--but really, why? I saved myself the effort of making loops and will be just sewing some buttons down the front seam instead.

I haven't done anything with Ann's Cardigan except cut it out.

This version will not have the waistline seam of the last one, and the front band will be narrower. Both are limitations of the fabric--2 yards of a mystery knit I bought some time ago at Walmart. I would say Missoni-esque but I wouldn't want to insult them. It's a lacy pattern in a psychedelic combination of acid green, purple, navy and white. It'll go together quickly and will be perfect to wear in too-cold air conditioning. At least that's the plan.

December Wrap Up

Yes, I'm still here and finally coming up for some air now that the holidays are almost over. I've been crazy busy at work since a lot of people took time off between Christmas and New Year's. Reminder to self: be one of those people in 2012!!

I haven't been a total drone, oh no. DH and I escaped to Las Vegas last weekend for dining and a show, specifically "Jersey Boys" at the Palazzo. It's a fun musical biography of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. Do go see it if you can, especially if you like 1960s rock and roll. Amazingly enough, the trip was less expensive than a trip to Santa Fe--yes, including air fare. The hotels have crazy deals at Christmas--we stayed at the Mirage and the room cost $65 Friday night, and $85 Saturday. Plus resort fee of course, but that's still quite a deal!

My big splurge over the weekend was a new iPhone, purchased at the Fashion Show Mall, which has every major department store from Dillard's and Macy's to Saks, Nieman's, and Nordstrom. Amazing place. We even saw a Christmas floor show pageant, complete with Santa and his very svelte showgirl elves. Anyway, I'm all set up with the new 4S. Siri and I are trying to reach an accommodation; the girl has attitude.

And of course, I managed some sewing between the last post and this one.

Like many others, I made Shams' famous TableCloth skirt. However, I ended up making some alterations to it after its first wearing. I have hips about 3-4" below my waist and carry most of my (excess) weight there as well. So for me, the original pattern just had too much fabric in that area, and I felt very wide. I ended up taking off the waistband and making darts at each corner of the original square to eliminate some of the volume. I think it helps but I have to confess that I've had the revised version on around the house but haven't actually "worn" it yet. I hope it works out in a real wearing, as I really like the fabric and the asymmetrical hem. If I like the revised skirt and want to make another one, I'll convert the square into 4 trapezoid-like pieces rather than making darts. It's worth playing around with, and a warm-weather version would be nice to have.

I also made yet another Loes Hinse Cowl Top, finishing it up last night. I love this pattern--it goes together so quickly and is comfortable and flattering to wear in both the short and tunic lengths. This version is an acrylic blend sweater knit that I ran across at Hancock's Fabrics last fall. This is a revival of the same fabric as the vintage cardigan that I made from stashed sweater knit. It's very soft and feels very much like real wool. I think I'll wear it a lot this winter, with jeans and more dressed up clothes. I have another piece of it in the Sewing Cave, so I may make another version soon.

I'm not big on year end wrap ups for myself nor lots of resolutions. I've tried both in past years and I'm just kind of "meh" about doing it again. 2011 was a mixed year for me, but I'm hoping (as always) that 2012 will be better.

As far as sewing goes, I want to continue to make it a priority, but I think I'll lay off the sewalongs in 2012. I did garment-a-month and jacket-a-month this year and was relatively successful. I made at least one garment every month in 2011 and ended up with 8 jackets. I think challenges and sewalongs can be helpful in kickstarting sewing mojo, but they can also become production for production's sake.  I'm planning to continue to sew down my stash  in 2012, but with a few well chosen fabric acquisitions too. I want to keep sewing fun. For me, new fabric is part of my sewing enjoyment so I don't see myself stopping the acquisitions altogether.

Have a joyous and safe New Year!!  See you in 2012!

JAM 7: Simplicity 2154 is Done!

I finished up the retro cardi yesterday with minimal drama.

I made the vertical buttonholes with Babylock Audrey's automatic buttonhole function--just straight onto the fabric, no stabilizer required. I think the grosgrain ribbon facing really helped in that respect. I made the top buttonhole manually with zigzag stitching. It's not perfect by any means, but it's functional and the the stitches blend into the animal print so it looks ok at a glance. I couldn't use the buttonhole function because of the neckband seam. I made a bunch of samples and couldn't come up with a way to make it work. I'm going to experiment with this technique some more so I can use it on other garments--this happens a lot with machine buttonholes, so it would be worth having another option. I wouldn't want to manually make a whole set, sometimes you need another way for the occasional buttonhole near an edge or a seam.

The sweater came out pretty well for a prototype; I'm happy with the style and fit. I wear a lot of gray so I'll have plenty of opportunities to wear it. I also feel comfortable using this pattern for the expensive wool and rayon sweater knit. Mission accomplished!

The fabric is an acrylic and rayon blend sweater knit that I've had in the stash for several years. I think it came from Jo-Ann's. I was in Hancock's Friday, and it turns out they had some so it's back in production again. Since this project was working out so well, I bought a couple of pieces for future knit projects in green and purple prints.

BTW, my camera's battery was running very low, so bear with me on using this quick snapshot of the corner of the Sewing Cave. I think I owe you all a couple of "styled" photos of recent garments, and hopefully can do something about that soon.

Puerto Rico Wardrobe, Part 4

This is the part where I go fabric shopping.

I had hoped to get through this project with stash and existing RTW, with the exception of shoes of course.

After yesterday's post, I decided that I needed something like a lightweight batiste for a lining, so I added JoAnn's to my list of stops on yesterday's expedition. It's been incredibly cold here but by afternoon, it was sunny with temperatures in the 20's. What could go wrong?

Well, I drove to JoAnn's and it was closed. Handwritten signs on all the doors stating they were shut down for at least two days. Condensation on the windows--oh, oh. Looks like somebody had a roof leak or burst pipe. Fortunately, there's a Hancock's down the street!

No batiste to be had, but they did have plain rayon challis. Unfortunately only 2 1/4 yards of white, so I couldn't stock up for spring and summer on this trip. Oh well, maybe I can find more at the other Hancocks if I can get over there soon.

Anyway, I got to thinking about the rayon print I posted. While it's beautiful, maybe it's more suitable for something else like a flowy skirt or a top. I could underline the pieces, but it's better not to force the fabric to behave too much against its nature. Over to the linen section, where I found this fuschia embellished linen-like rayon poly blend (how's that for a description?).

It's opaque and has more body, but still nice and soft. And there was plain rayon challis to match for a lining!

Problem solved, even though I ended up buying more fabric because there's always That Other Piece. In this case, it was this rayon/linen with purple, orange, and charcoal swirls. It doesn't go with the vacation stuff at all but I like it and will use it for something.

All in all I ended up with fabric for a dress, a back up lining fabric for summer (the white challis), and the piece bought on spec. Not too bad, considering.

Hot Patterns Bossa Nova Skirt

This is the first Hot Patterns garment I've made. Although I've purchased several patterns of this brand, I haven't gotten around to sewing any of them yet. This one was a free download at Fabric.com.

Basically, it's an 8-panel gored skirt, so one pattern piece. I wanted to make it in black and white, since I have a few black items in my closet with white accents. They're harder to match than you'd think! So off to Hancock's, where I found the perfect fabric, a large scale floral. Yes, it's polyester, but I really liked the print, so I'll deal with it. I also bought lining to go with, also poly, because you know how white fabric is. It always shows through.

I proceeded to cut and sew the panels when I realized that they were just a wee bit too short. I had already added some length to the pattern when cutting it out but not enough. The original pattern just has you turn down the sewn panels at the top to create the casing. That wouldn't work in this case because I needed all the length I could spare. Fortunately, I had bought more fabric than I needed (as usual), so I made a separate waistband casing. It also solved the problem of dealing with 2 layers, the face and the lining.

Love love love how the skirt looks! It is also comfortable to wear through the day. I will be making more from this pattern! BTW, I took the photo above after getting home from work and a dentist appointment, and the skirt still looks fine. (I expect my skills with timer and tripod will improve, but not bad for a first effort.)

Wedding dress update: yes, still working on that one. I've mocked up the bodice a couple of times and pre-washed sample pieces of each fabric. Hopefully, I'll have a sample version of the dress soon, then I can move on to the good stuff.