November Burda Challenge - Birthday Dress!

My November Burda Challenge is completed. And before the end of the month too! I scored the current issue of the magazine at Stone Mountain and Daughter in Berkeley while on a birthday junket with my friend, Lisa. This is Sheath Dress #114.

According to Burdastyle, "The fitted dress follows the figure due to the perfectly placed darts diagonally toward the breastline as well as along the length to envelope the silhouette - especially accented by using fabric with a stretch. The closure zipper is tucked into the left side seam. A zipper at the shoulder seam allows the cut-on collar to lay beautifully."

Line drawing from Burdastyle

The darts are what we used to call "french darts," back when I was a youngster. I always thought they sounded a little risqué; just the kind of darts that would envelope the silhouette. Sadly, the finished dress is a bit too loose to qualify as an envelope. I took the side seams in an inch at the bust and the fit is still what I'd call "comfy."

I'm always a little nervous about installing zippers, even though they usually don't go bad on me. It felt even more dangerous in a knit. So why double my stress by installing two?  I decided to use just one zip and to move it to the center back seam. As it turned out, it went in easy peasy lemon squeezy. No rippling at all.

I used a teal blue ponte that I'd bought at Stone Mountain & Daughter some years ago. Still stash busting those knits!

Back view - there's some nice shaping going on with that center back seam

While this isn't my favorite of the Burda dresses I've sewn, I like it pretty well. The fabric and the long sleeves make it nice and cozy for chill winter evenings, and the color makes me feel festive.

I wore it with boots and a velvet scarf to the theater and dinner last night and it felt like just the ticket.  The Man treated me to Riverdance and a steak with fried shallots for my birthday. He's a doll!

My pattern review is on PatternReview.com here.

A Stash Busting Coat

The September theme for the Stashbusting Sewalong was Outerwear/Seasonal Change. I actually started this coat more or less on schedule. Finishing was another story. Partly I blame the weather. We had an unusually long and hot fall. The kind of fall where I spent much of my day flopped on the couch in front of the fan, sapped of the will to live.

Burdastyle January, 2012, jacket #107

Partly the fault lay with my sewing skills. My friend, Lucy, recommended this pattern as a good prospect for my first coat. She made one herself, which is utterly adorable. Lucy made her version out of a boucle fabric, and, wouldn't you know it, I had a boucle-ish fabric in stash that would be just enough to cut this bad boy out. Well, it's not really boucle. It's more like cream colored fuzzy worms squiggling on top of a black mesh that frays madly. It looks nicer than that sounds though.

back view with seam

I really like the style of the pattern; it's shaped to the figure at the side and center back seams. It has a two piece sleeve for a nice fit at shoulder and arm, and it's lined.

That two piece sleeve was a first for me. I learned:

1. mark your notches carefully, because the sleeve seams do not match up with the side seams, and
2. it's really hard to mark your notches carefully on this fabric

I put a sleeve in wrong twice, once on the lining and once on the actual coat. I was worried I wouldn't be able to pick out the stitches on my coat fabric without making a huge mess, but it worked out OK.

Lime green lining

The lining was another challenge. This is the second time I've lined a garment. I'm generally what I like to think of as a thrifty sewist. If you line a garment, that means you're making it twice, meaning you have to shell out for twice the material. There was just no way to pretty up the seams on the innards with this fabric though, and I just happened to have some lime green cotton sateen sitting in stash that looked like it would do the trick (thanks, Jessica!). 

I trawled the internet to find something to supplement Burda's terse instructions on bagging the lining and ended up with a Threads tutorial that helped immensely. It was still a bit of a struggle but everything worked out in the end. I just hope my finish is neater on my next go.

Burdastyle wanted me to add big patch pockets and a ruffle at the neckline.

Line drawing from Burda site - you can buy the pattern there if you want

 Cute, right? I made up the pockets, but they just didn't look right when I pinned them on for placement, so I left them off. Even though I know I'll miss them.

Besides being kind of bulky and a pain to handle, my fabric had a definite wrong side, so I couldn't get the ruffle thing to happen either. I've decided I kind of like the clean look of the plain neckline though.

Plus, I'm a knitter with an extensive collection of scarves and cowls, so I can fluff up the neckline easy as pie.

In short, Lucy steered me straight. This is a great pattern and I highly recommend it for a first coat. I have some blue wool in stash that I think I'll earmark for the jacket-length version of this baby. Definitely with pockets next time.

My pattern review is on PatternReview.com here.

October Burda Challenge Just in Time

Just under the wire, here is my October garment for the Burda Challenge.

It's top #103 from the October, 2014 issue of Burdastyle. I should have hoiked it down a bit before The Man snapped my front view here. I used a not especially drapey 100% cotton jersey for this top, so the cowl neck needs some supervision to lay nicely.

The line drawing is actually top #104, which is identical to top #103, except all sliced up for color blocking. They also show this pattern lengthened to make a very cute dress, perfect as a LBD for cocktails.

It would have been a quick sew, if not for those little yoke pieces formed by the back shoulders wrapping over to the front. Cute, yes? But Burdastyle instructions sank to a new low when describing the construction of the shoulder seams. I'm not kidding; I pined those suckers together six ways to Sunday and could not get the product to look like it should.

back view

Thank God for the internet! This top has been reviewed 6 times on PatternReview.com. Actually, more than that if you count the reviews for the color blocked and dress versions. Everyone likes the product, but most everyone had a heck of a time with the shoulder yoke. Luckily for me, PR comrade runaroo linked to a blog post from SMF Designs and Friends. In that post an angel named Roz will walk you through constructing this top, with pictures. Roz, if you are out there, I owe you a dozen roses.

side view

Once you get the shoulder construction, you can bang one of these tops out in an hour. Something I intend to do once I find that piece of slinky brown and blue knit that's hiding someplace in the stash closet.

My pattern review is on PatternReview.com here.

September Burda Challenge - Better Late Than Never

I've fallen sadly behind on my sewing challenges this fall. I think it's a combination of hot weather and being out of town. This is my offering for the September Burda Challenge, and also for the (August) Scary Fabric Theme for the Stashbusting Challenge.

Meet blouse #111 from the 09-2011 issue of Burdastyle. They describe it as a sophisticated blouse boasting intriguing sleeve section seams. Those seams are pretty well disguised by my fabric choice, so here's the line drawing:

My result looks more like something I might have worn to Woodstock than the "splendid couture style" Burda described. But I'm OK with that.

Burda recommends you use polyester georgette, which would be delightfully light and whispy. I actually had a couple of pieces of what I think is georgette in stash, but neither was big enough for this top. Those sleeves are enormous and the bottom section is self-lined, so this top burned up more than two yards of fabric.

I used a polyester silky thing that I got at the flea market here in Santa Cruz. I'd forked over my 6 bucks before I realized I'd been looking at the reverse side of the print. What looked like subtle all-over polka dots from the back were really bling-y gold polka dots that were kind of like little blobs of puff paint. But what's stashbuster to do? The overall color scheme was much nicer from the front, so I decided to embrace the bling and work with what I had.

You can see from the line drawing that I'm supposed to be sporting a slit neck with a drawstring. I omitted that because I did not relish the notion of applying a continuous bias binding to a neck slit in this fabric. Instead, I used a piece of linen yarn to gather things up to my liking and then tied it in what I hope is a permanent knot. Then I tucked the ends into the casing and closed 'er on up.

Back view

The sleeves are fun to wear, but they're not terribly practical. The opening for your had is a bit off kilter, which makes the sleeve swoosh around stylishly when you walk, but they also scoop up bits of things from the kitchen counter. I'm pretty sure there's still some dog kibble rattling around in there from this morning.

The pattern is very well drafted. All the pieces matched up perfectly, with no finicky easing. In fact, since I'd nixed the slit neck there were no fiddly bits at all.

If you fancy taking a whack at some of that 70's boho chic that's floating around out there, this is a fun pattern. I might make myself a pair of high waisted denim flares and totally relive my youth. Or I could try this again in a more sophisticated fabric and pair the top with a narrow black skirt for an evening in the city.

My pattern review is on PatternReview.com here.

Ingenue

I've been lagging on the sewing front since we got back from vacation. Maybe because it's been unseasonably hot and my fabric cutting area is the floor in the spare bedroom, up under the eaves. After a few minutes crawling around up there the sweat is blinding my eyes and I have to stagger down to the kitchen for a cooling beverage.

What's a crafter to do in such circumstances? Haul out the multitude of half-finished sweaters and try to figure out what the heck I was doing with my knitting. Wool may not sound like the best creative response to hot weather, but I can knit in the shade with that refreshing beverage at my elbow.

This is Ingenue, a pattern from Custom Knits by Wendy Bernard. 

It's a mite wrinkled because it lived balled up in my knitting bag in the upstairs closet for 18 months. I'd done the body and most of one sleeve, then set it aside.

Why? With most of my kitting projects I lose steam when I reach a point where I need to make a decision. Is it time to start the shaping for the hips? Are the sleeves long enough, or should I do a few more rows? And, most often, Will I have enough yarn to finish this thing? I have a habit of buying just barely enough yarn for a project and then panicking as I come down to the wire. The Yarn Harlot calls this "playing chicken with your knitting." It's kind of stressful, really.

'Barely enough yarn' is the reason my version of this pattern is a bit skimpier than Wendy Bernard's.

This is one of those nifty top-down, raglan sleeve sweater patterns. I mostly knit these patterns because:

1. you can try the garment on as you go to see if you're in the right fit ballpark, and
2. no finishing, except for weaving in your ends

The thing I'm not wild about in a top-down raglan design is the fit in the shoulder.

You can kind of see what I mean in this back view. There's almost a kimono sleeve thing going on. I don't mind it too much in a pullover, but some of my top-down raglan cardigans want to slide off my shoulders if they aren't buttoned up.

I've knit more sweaters from Custom Knits than I have from any other knitting book I own. I find the patterns are straightforward enough to go quickly (if you don't neglect them for months), yet there are enough little decorative bits to keep you from falling asleep over the stockinette.

My favorite part of this sweater is the funnel neck:

The yarn is a wool-cotton blend that I got at the going-out-of-business sale at Yarn Dogs in Los Gatos. Gosh, I miss that store.

The color is something I call "Goth Green." I don't remember what the spinner called it because I carelessly lost the ballband. Yes, all of them. The yarn is almost black, but with a mossy undertone. Kind of reminds me of The Creature from the Black Lagoon.

It blends pretty well with my wardrobe and I'm sure I'll enjoy wearing it, if this heat wave ever ends.

Meanwhile, I've almost finished cutting out the pieces for my first coat. Plus lining! I aim to finish that this week. Wish me luck.

Best Cardigan Ever

In my last minute sewing frenzy before leaving on our road trip, I made up Jalie 3248, the Drop Pocket Cardigan.

I'm not sure what "Drop Pocket" really means. The pockets are made by kind of folding back the bottom front of the cardigan into the side seam, like so:

Can you see the construction at all from this shot?

There is a knitting pattern that's been very popular on Ravelry, called Goodale, which has pockets made this way. I always liked that cardigan, but Wow! is it ever faster to sew a cardigan than it is to knit one!

I used a poly-cotton knit that I found at Hart's. It's a marled gray and sort of mid-weight. Once I pre-washed it it snugged up into a very skooshy, comfy sweatshirt sort of weight. I think this might be it; very reasonably priced too.

I rushed to finish this cardigan before we left on our trip, and I'm glad I did. It was the perfect light layer. I could throw it in the backseat and it didn't wrinkle. The pockets were just the right size to hold my car keys or a claim check or a chile relleno.

The cardigan is a pretty slim in fit, but the below-hip length gives it a nice, slouchy, boyfriend vibe. The sleeves are cut fairly narrow; Jalie says they expect you'll wear this over sleeveless tops or dresses. They're just long enough to drape a bit over my hands, and the cuffs are snug, so that I can pull them up and they stay put while I do dishes or brush the dog.

I never needed to wear this puppy outside while we were traveling. Temps were pretty warm, even in the evening. It sure came in handy when I was spending time in those air conditioned rooms though.

The front of the cardigan is two layers, which makes the finish is nice and clean. The instructions, which include very helpful illustrations, were good. I did have to scratch my head a few times though. There's a certain amount of inside-out and backwards fabric manipulation involved. Even so, it only took me a couple of hours to sew the thing together and I only had to unpick one seam. That's pretty much a record for me.

I like the pattern a lot, and I could see myself making a few more. There are some cute sweater knits around these days that would probably just suit!

My pattern review is on PatternReview.com here.

Home Again

We're back from our road trip through the Southwest. I packed my ginormous rolling suitcase with an extensive me-made wardrobe. We were gone for two weeks and still I didn't manage to wear everything I brought. Like this  dress, for example:

This is McCall's 6163, which has a bunch of good reviews on PatternReview.com. It looks like this pattern is out of print, which is too bad. It's a great one, and seems to look good on most everyone.

I borrowed the pattern from my sewing bud, Lucy. She had already cut it in a size 8, so size 8 is what I used. I'm glad I had her wisdom to guide me in sizing - the Big 4 do things in strange and mysterious ways. Looking at the chart on the back of the pattern, I would have cut a size 12 and then wondered why the neck gaped.

I used a light ITY knit that I bought ages ago at Fabrix in San Francisco. I really liked the colors and I thought I had enough to make a dress, but I was afraid it was too lightweight. When Lucy recommended this pattern, that magic pairing of fabric and project gelled.

I made View B, but omitted the collar and the sash. Also axed the side zipper. My knit is so stretchy there was no need.

Little did I know when I borrowed the pattern that it would come with Lucy's construction notes, which were brilliant. Lucy used a self-fabric band to finish the neck, so I did too. The finish look way nicer than the turn-and-stitch method recommended by McCall's, and the slight stretch she advised when applying the band keeps the neckline nice and flat while wearing.

Lucy also put the sleeves in flat and did up the underarm and side seams all in one go. Much easier that way!

My pattern review is on PatternReview.com here.

So, I don't have any pictures of this dress out on the road, but here are a couple of gratuitous vacation pictures....

Balanced Rock, Arches National Park. If you haven't been, go! The nearby town of Moab is very cute and has a nice fabric store.

Sun Palace, Mesa Verde National Park. This is a magical place - stay at the park lodge, if you can. They have a fabulous restaurant.

St. Francis Cathedral in Santa Fe. Great food, great art, wonderful people.