International Wear a Dress Day
Erin over at http://www.dressaday.com/ has proposed Oct. 29 as this year’s IWaDD. Visit her blog for more information. I plan on making a warm dress for the date and I hope to post a picture of my participation in IWaDD. I hope you’ll join me!
Amazing Fit: as advertised!
Simplicity has a relatively new line of skirt and trouser patterns called “Amazing Fit”. Each pattern comes with different pattern pieces for slim, average and curvy fit. So far, I have tried 2 different trouser patterns and they fit very well out of the envelope with very few fitting tweaks needed. I now feel pretty confident that the other Amazinf Fit patterns will fit as well. These trousers are Simplicity 2860, the straight leg trouser. This pattern has two major detractors that should be pointed out. I tried making the fly as drafted several times but never figured it out. I ended up adding a faux fly, based on a different pattern. The other detractor is that there are no pockets. However, now that I have the fit perfected, adding a slash pocket shouldn’t be too difficult to add. I highly recommend Simplicity 2860 to anyone new to trouser making or has trouble getting trousers to fit.
KwikSew 3494
This post is mainly about the skirt because I think I’ve talked about the top before. I know I made it at the end of last spring but haven’t worn it because I had nothing that went with it. Now I have the right skirt! This skirt seems to be the Holy Grail of skirts, at least for me. On The Fedora Lounge, there have been discussions about age, skirts, and winter wardrobes. The conclusion is that women need to move toward a slimmer skirt as we age so we don’t look like “mutton dressed as lamb”. I’m not sure I agree with this, but I have mentioned that I think a full skirted dress tends to look frumpy when you add a long sleeve. So, my quandry was this: how do I maintain an elegant, age-appropriate vintage look when I don’t really live a suit/wiggle dress lifestyle? Living in wool pencil skirts and suits all winter is easy to do when you work in an office or shop but not so practicle if your home is your workplace. It’s not very easy to sit on the floor to play with small children or scrub bathtubs in a pencil skirt. This skirt might be just the thing for a glamorous stay-at-home mom. It reminds of the mullet: business in front, party in the back. This skirt is a pencil skirt in front, flared skirt in back. I was even able to walk the dogs in comfortable, normal strides. I think this may be my “it” skirt for the winter. Now, I just need to find/make some vintage or vintage influenced tops.
A Couple Winter pieces
The skirt is New Look 6569, which is now a TnT pattern for me. I love that the pleats are only in the center, to give fullness without adding bulk to the hips. This one is my fourth skirt from the pattern and works just as well in a cotton corduroy as a light weight calico. The top is KwikSew 3263 in a cotton interlock. The finished measurements had several inches of negative ease, so I added an inch to the side seams. I ended up trimming that off and it still could use some trimming under the arm. I really like this pattern for a basic tee with a twist. The only thing I don’t like about this pattern is that the neckline is not as wide as the pattern illustration. I will probably make this again, though.
How cute is this little bow?!?! My favorite thing about this pattern!
A lot of Sewing, With Nothing to Show for It
I was hoping I’d have something to share with y’all this week. I’ve been doing a TON of muslins, mainly trousers.
I started off with Burda 7669. This trouser has the cut of leg that I’m looking for, snug through the hip, straight from knee down. The main problem with it is the VERY low rise. The pattern called for a 4in zip. They don’t even sell 4in zips. I know that lower rise trousers are the current style, but I can’t stand them. I prefer the waist to hit my waist or above. Higher rise trousers are more flattering, if you have some extra weight because it helps keep the belly flatter, while a low rise lets the flab hang out and you get the dreaded muffin top. I raised the waist about 2in. They looked great from the front, but I really struggled with getting the center back seam to follow the curve of my lower back. After 2 muslins, I moved on to a dark stretch denim. I spent a lot of time on these, top stitched everything, flat felled seam on inseam and outer seam. They came out at least a size too big. Yeah, you need to make them smaller when you a stretch fabric. I took in the muslin then made them up in a black twill, no stretch. Yup, those were too small. I gave up on the Burda and moved on to the new Amazing Fit wide leg trousers from Simplicity. These fit perfectly right out of the envelope. However, the leg wasn’t just wide, it was HUGE. They also have a straight leg in the Amazing Fit line. I would like to try those.
Then, I worked on dress muslins. Two vintage patterns, one modern. Here’s what I learned: 1950’s dresses look frumpy and matronly as soon as you add a long sleeve. It makes sense, I guess. Fifties dresses have a long, full skirt and a higher neckline than most modern dresses. What saves them from being frumpy is a short cap sleeve or no sleeve. You’re not totally covered up. The minute you add a sleeve, Polygamy Ranch! I spent some time looking through the modern pattern websites to see what they have and the only long sleeved dresses I found all have straight skirts. Yes, they are pretty but not practical for a stay-at-home mom. Same with suits. I just don’t live a suit lifestyle. I have found a couple patterns that might work. A dress/jacket combo like Vogue 8472 would give the warmth of a jacket with a fuller skirt. As long as the jacket was washable, it would fit my lifestyle.
Simplicity 3673, worn as a jumper/pinafore. The problem is that this dress can look too little girlish if the right fabrics aren’t used. It would have to be in men’s suitings, pinstripes, houndstooth, glen plaid, ect.
The other project I’ve been working on is the great bra fitting excapade. I bought a new pattern, the Bravo Bra 2 from Needle Nook Fabrics. The owner of Needle Nook Fabrics is Anne St. Clair and she has been so helpful with every aspect of this process. I knew fitting the pattern would be a long and tedious process, but once it’s done, each bra will take only 1-2 hours to make.
McCall’s 3988
Ah, back to vintage sewing. I think now that we’ve settled into the back-to-school routine, I should be able to spend more time on complicated projects. McCall’s 3988 is one of my favorite patterns in my collection. The button band was quite complicated, so I ended up leaving it off. Other than that, it’s a very straight forward sew. I do plan on sewing it again. Next, I want to try the slim skirted version, then I will use a circle skirt instead of the dirndle skirt. I don’t need any extra fabric on my waist or hips! As an aside, this spring, I stopped dyeing my hair. This is the first picture that seems to show more gray than dyed hair. I’m really happy to see the progress.
Another Pattern Sale
I have come to the conclusion that my figure type isn’t suited to 1930’s and 1940’s fashions. Therefore, I’m selling off my 30s and 40s patterns. Some have already been called for, they have “on Hold” in their descriptions. They are $10 each, free shipping within the US. Ask me about international shipping. Send me a message through flickr, patternreview.com or Facebook mail if you are interested.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/12275674@N08/sets/72157617044503561/
New Tops
This week, I’ve been working on tops. The first is Vogue 8546, which I started last week. I was really attracted to the interesting keyhole neckline but it turns out to be it’s only flaw. The corners don’t lie flat against my chest and I think that makes it look homemade. However, the bodice is a great fit and I plan to try it with a different neckline. My full review is at http://sewing.patternreview.com/cgi-bin/readreview.pl?readreview=1&reviewnum=43409
The other top is Simplcity 2501. I thought the waistband and peplum would give a nice vintage-feel, but instead it cuts me off at the middle. This pattern has separate cutting lines for B,C,D cup, so it eliminates the need for a FBA. I may try the views without the waistband, since it fits so well otherwise.
Both of these patterns are current releases.
Shhhh, it’s a secret!
I’ve made some progress on my Vogue top, but have stalled out because I can’t get the odd, keyhole neckline to lay flat. Mostly, I’ve been working on my mother’s birthday present. I don’t know if she reads this or not, so I won’t go into it until I give it to her tomorrow. All I’ll say now is that it’s beautiful and I want one of my own.
Hoping for TNT
TNT stands for Tried ‘N True. Most sewers have a handful of TNT patterns that they go back to time and time again. I have a good dress pattern, that while a very unique style, fits like a dream and I’ve made a couple this summer. I have a good shorts pattern that I made a few of this summer. I have a FABULOUS skirt pattern that I need to make in some winter fabrics. What I don’t have is a solid, well fitting button-down blouse pattern and a basic knit top pattern. This week, I’ve been working on the knit top. I’ve started with Vogue 8546, which is a current release, not vintage. This pattern has some lovely basics that could be the foundation of a good wardrobe if you’re into modern fashions. However, the top is killing me! I basted the muslin and tried it on without the sleeves. It fit perfectly with just some petite alterations for my short stature. It needed no FBA. Then I added the sleeve. Whoa, Nelly! That changed the whole look. The sleeve cap is very narrow, more like what is common on a classic woven blouse. It also has an elbow dart, which is totally unnecessary in a knit sleeve. My first change was to cut a new sleeve, using a different pattern. This helped somewhat, but it still pulls the shoulder seam off the top of the shoulder. Part of me thinks I may need to start all over with a smaller size for the upperchest/shoulder/neckline area. Here’s the problem: this pattern comes in 8-14 and 16-22. I’m already using the 16 for the upperchest area. I need a larger size for the rest. I would have to buy another copy of the pattern to get the 14, then merge the 14 with the larger pattern. It might be worth it. This top has the potential to become my TNT knit top. Vogue patterns go on sale next week, so I will put it aside to think about the issues until then.
Top without sleeve
Top with sleeve
