Bloody Angel

This is the inspiration drawing for the Halloween costume of a Bloody Angel. So good! I was hoping to do it justice and not let the artist down.

I decided to go with the dress pattern from Simplicity K1699. The double seam in the sleeve would make it easy to increase them to the bell shape. Based on her measurements, I cut a size 12, which is the same size as I used for my Scuba Dress. It came up pretty small though, I wouldn't make this size again. 

Fabric was just an old sheet, and the blood is fake blood from a Halloween store. All in all, materials for this dress were very cheap! I got fancy and added a panel of Broderie Anglaise fabric to the front bodice. I wanted to make it more angelic and less sheet-like. I got this fabric as a scrap from my mother-in-law.

I decided on a bias binding facing for the neckline. This pattern has a real problem with how high the neckline is. I lowered it after a fitting and it is still very high. 

Fastening is by buttons. Nine buttonholes!! I added a facing for support and modesty. I also reinforced the base of the opening with a little triangle of fabric. I was getting fancy! But I didn't do any seam finishes, and I had to press the life out of the hem to get that curved edge to sit flat.

To finish off the costume, kiddo added wings, a halo and a bloody knife.

Happy Halloween!

🎃 👻 ✞ ☠️ 🧹 🕸 🕷 ⚰️ 👽 🤡 

Sorbet Stripe Maxi Dress

I snapped up this striped knit from Fabricana in July. I remember admiring it a 2-3 years ago, so I was  delighted when I saw it on the markdown table for 30% off. At just over £5 per meter, I got 2m.

I had my wish list to make a cardigan with this pink stripe, but when I got it home, I decided that a maxi dress would be just the thing. It must be all that hot weather we were having, Londoners wearing their holiday wardrobes. It's not always pretty, but it's fun!

Being the wrong side of 40 (or 30 for that matter), I didn't want my maxi dress to be figure hugging. I used an existing dress I have for the width, and the Karen Drape Dress for the shoulders and high bust. I laid out the Karen Dress pattern flat, and laid my maxi dress over the top. I didn't worry too much about exact cutting, or seam allowances because my overlocker seams are pretty small.

I kept the neckline of the Karen Dress, it could have gone lower by a stripe or two, but this creates height and I didn't want to fiddle about with drafting a new curve. I finished the neckline and armholes with bands of self fabric.

My RTW maxi dress has side splits to above the knee, which I really like, and is also not floor length, so I copied these features in my dress. I hand stitched the edges of the splits and the hem, giving them a tiny hem in whip stitch. I didn't need to bother with a stretch stitch because the hem does not need to stretch.

I'm really happy with the fit. It honestly seems to skim and not hug, which is exactly what I wanted. The fabric is a little on the sheer side but, whatever, I'm on holiday. Unfortunately, the weight of the dress has pulled the hem down in the first washing. I'll have to figure out a fix for this. Maybe some clear elastic through the armholes.

Costs: 
 Fabric: 2m, Fabricana, £10.20 
 Pattern: Maria Denmark, used previously, £0 
 Notions: 
   Thread, started one new spool: £1.89
Total: £12.09

Floral Scuba Dress

Blegh! It looks nice, but remind me never to wear scuba. I'm afraid that it is the worst fabric! It is pure plastic and it behaves as though you are wearing a plastic bag. It makes you feel cold if the weather is cold and sweaty if the weather is hot. Also sweaty if the weather is cold. Sweaty no matter what the weather.

Sorry scuba. I wanted to love you. You print such beautiful pictures onto yourself. You sew nicely, don't fray and don't need pressing as you go. All wonderful qualities, but I can't buy a knitted plastic fibre again. There is lots coming out in the fabric stores and the blogosphere is producing a lot of test garments.

Shall I talk a little bit about the dress? I wanted a pattern with a cap sleeve and a full-ish skirt, so I decided on Simplicity K1699. It is a pretty good outfit-maker pattern, with a dress, a top, a jacket and trousers in one. I got it with a sewing magazine a few years ago. The top and dress have raglan sleeves and princess seams. The skirt has a centre front seam, but I cut mine on the fold to remove this. 1.5m of fabric would have been plenty for this dress.

I cut a size 12 and did not make my usual short waist, sway back or small shoulder adjustments. It should be higher at the sides of the waist, but I didn't adjust it. You can see the puckers at the side of the bodice when I move:

I sewed almost the whole dress in March, and then put it aside for almost two months. There were two reasons for this:

Firstly, trying it on, it looked incredibly dressy. Like, wedding guest dressy. Since I am not invited to any weddings, nor Chelsea Flower Show, I felt like I was wasting my time on something I would probably never wear.

Secondly, the scuba fabric wasn't handing a facing well, so I was going to have to work out different neckline finishes. I thought I might have to experiment with a binding, or just a hem. Neither of which were making me feel the love for the dress. In the end, I just turned it under and top stitched it down. It looks fine as a finish and the spongy fabric creates quite an attractive rolled edge. I should have done this for the sleeves and the hem. These edges don't look that good, puffing out as they do.

The neckline on this pattern is extremely high. Way too high. It is because of the collar on the top, the bottom of the collar is about the right level for the dress neckline. I didn't lower it because I was going to experiment with the aforementioned different neckline finishes. But in this instance, I didn't change it - again, because this is not a dress that is going to be worn.

I broke one of my Sacred Rules of Sewing - I put it aside and worked on something else. I have never done this before! I was terrified of getting on a slippery slope of starting new projects and leaving them aside every time I get into a little bit of difficulty. I would never finish anything! I always make myself keep going until the bitter end. But this dress was truly a waste of time, and I needed something new to wear while Me Made May was still in full swing.

In the end, it was Me Made May that made me finish this at all. Since I pledged to wear something different each day, I have been a bit stuck on some of the days. I decided to finish this to wear while I was watching the royal wedding on TV so that I would have something to photograph that day. Then I could change back into my leggings afterwards. I finished it remarkably quickly, helped along by the fact that I was finishing it to wear in front of the TV, rather than out and about.

Cheating a bit on the whole Me Made May concept, but hey-ho, it's my challenge. And the pictures do look very nice.

Costs: 
 Fabric: £10.99 
 Pattern: £5.99 
 Notions: 
  Zip: £0.60
Total: £17.58

B&W Stripe Jersey Molly Dress

This fabric is an interesting knit. It is a thin, black jersey with stripes of thicker white and grey jersey laid over the top. The stripes make actual tunnels because they are secured at the top and bottom of each stripe, but not in the middle. It gives a nice texture to the fabric, and makes it much weightier than the lightweight jersey underneath.

I bought 1.5m of it, with a Walkely Dress in mind. This pattern was attached to one of my Simply Sewing magazines, and is a simple knit shift, which they have belted for shaping. I am still interested in making this dress, but I need a stable knit, probably with a random geometric pattern, in a neutral colour scheme. 

All this being a long way of saying that I didn't make the intended pattern with this fabric. I have a RTW stripe dress with short sleeves, so I didn't really need two. I turned to the Molly Dress pattern from Sew Over It, but the fabric requirements are over two meters. 

I am so confused about fabric requirements. My 1.5m x 1.5m piece was plenty for the Molly, with leftovers to spare. I lie my pattern pieces upside down from one another and the pattern pieces fit in nicely, with the sleeve pieces fitting in underneath. Even with moving things about to be careful about stripe matching. 

I have cut the Molly pattern down to a size 8 to account for me not using the seam allowance with my overlocker. I like to keep the fabric running at the very edge, so the knife does almost no cutting. I find this gives me a lot better control than trying to hit a 1.5cm seam allowance with a knit fabric floating in the air. I found my previous Molly tops to be very spacious and I didn't think a stripe with some body would be the right sort of fabric with which to make a spacious dress.

After I put the dress together and tried it on, it still came up very large. I am, by no means, teeny tiny but even a size 8 seemed huge to me. I don't want negative ease, but this style should skim the body. I put the dress on inside out and pinned away the side seam ease. Almost an inch on either side, that's 4 inches of ease removed. I also took some ease out of the top of the shoulder. 

I struggled to match the stripes properly. The shoulder seams were the worst. I think parts of the fabric had stretched out so the front shoulder seams needed to be gathered into the back shoulder seams to get the stripes to match up. This means that my neckline is much wider than I wanted. I had to choose between having the seams match up, with the stripes not matching, or have the stripes touching and the front end almost an inch before the edge. I chose the stripes because that top of the shoulder seam is so big and so prominent that it would have been very jarring to have them not match.

Matching the stripes through the straight sides was much easier, especially the sleeves. But I still got one side wrong. I think my overlocker presser foot pressure was set too high and it was feeding the two layers unevenly.

I added about 2 inches to the length of the dress, but I took it all away, plus a bit extra. I think it is better to wear this on the short side, with tights, and give the eye a break from all the stripes.

I cut the neckband on the horizontal stripe. I find the vertical stripes too jarring, especially with the two-directional stripe on the sleeve. Conservative is my middle name here! I attached it with as much fabric as I could, in an effort to make the neckline fit tighter. But it is doing the funny, sitting-up-at-the-sides thing, and those sides are very wide indeed.

Having a pattern go badly is always the reason I lose my sewjo. I often feel like not finishing, or just stopping sewing all together. Lucily, this was quick to finish, and even quicker to get a pencil skirt out of the leftovers!

I am not really very happy with this dress. It seems like a tent on me, and I don't really have the figure to wear a body-con / stripe dress. Perhaps I should shorten it into a top? It would be a stunning dress on a skinny teenager. I can't see myself reaching for this of a morning. #fail

Costs: 
 Fabric: Fabricana, £12.76 
 Pattern: Sew Over It, used previously £0
 Notions: none
Total: £12.76 + a new skirt

The Refashioners: Suit to Dress

The Refashioners is an annual challenge to take an old garment (or garments) and refashion something new. This is the first year I have taken part. While I love the Refashioners Challenge, and am full of admiration for the people who participate, I didn't think I would actually ever do it. But M told me he was going to go through his old suits and have a clearout. This was too good an opportunity to pass up, his suits are top quality, and I need a new grey work dress. 

The suit is Armani, the fabric is pure wool and is actually a navy, not charcoal. It has a fine grey pinstripe through it, which makes the final look appear charcoal. Isn't suit fabric fascinating?

I spent a great deal of time unpicking. Days and days, the thread all over the carpet was such a mess! I didn't want to cut the seams and then find out that I didn't have enough fabric to make up my dress.

I didn't keep any of the suit details such as pockets, lapels, or waistband in the finished garment. These were all cut around and not used. But I did keep the sleeve cuffs, and used them in my dress sleeves. I also kept and used the lining for the dress lining. And I saved the horsehair canvas from the front of the jacket as well as the shoulder pads and sleeve caps.

 

I went through my pattern stash, looking for a dress pattern with as many small pieces as possible. This one, Dress 109 from BurdaStyle 11/2013, has 16 separate pieces. I had to do some extra piecing and ended up with 24 pieces in total. I had to draw myself a diagram so I could keep track of where I was when I was cutting out all the pieces.

M's suits all wear out in the same place: the seat. The jackets are in pristine condition, but the trousers are completely worn through. Trousers have more large fabric pieces in them than jackets, so I planned on using the trousers, despite the wear. I got all the main pieces from the trousers, except the top of the back bodice. These were cut from the centre back of the top of the jacket. I kept the sleeves for the sleeves, and the flounce was pieced from the seat of the trousers and the rest of the centre back jacket.

The pattern is actually a hidden gem. The line drawing was very unappealing, just a grid of seam lines, and the photography, while beautifully done, isn't really showing the dress very well, particularly in a black fabric. But while I was tracing this pattern, I realised how interesting and well put together it really is. Funny how sometimes you have to really get to know something before you like it better. All the shaping is achieved from the seam lines. No darts, tucks or pleats. When made up in a dark fabric, the seam lines don't really show anyway. (I had to photograph the finished dress in full sun.) The shoulder seams are slanted to the back, there is a lovely neckline curve, and it has two piece sleeves. The hemline is pegged and the flounce makes it a proper wiggle dress.

I didn't make any fitting adjustments to the paper pattern. I traced a size 36, grading out to a 38 at the waist. I added 1.5mm seam allowances, which I am not finding as much of a pain as I used to.

You can see how shaped all the pieces are. And how small. This is the back of the dress. I cut little numbers and pinned them to the left bottom on the right side of each piece. Everything looked the same! But the tiny pieces meant I could use the suit trousers, and cutting out was so easy because every piece fitted on my cutting mat without me having to move the mat around - something I am quite sure makes my sewing inaccurate.

I love working with wool. It cuts beautifully, presses well and sews so nicely. I even washed all these pieces before I cut them out. The wool and the linings seemed to make it through the wash fine (I didn't wash the interfaced parts of the jacket), and I believe I might have a machine washable dress here. 

I pieced together the dress in quarters (right front, left front, right back, left back), then joined the shoulder seams. I then basted the centre front, side seams and centre back (as far as the zip) to check the fit and make any fitting adjustments to the seams before I finished the seams and sewed it together properly.

Alterations:

• side seams (hips and waist), release each seam by 5mm from below bust through to hem;
• shoulder seams: increase seam allowance by 1cm at neckline, taper to normal at armscye;
• horizontal bust seam: increase seam allowance by 5mm through all seams, front and back;
• sway back adjustment: back waist seam, increase seam allowance by 1cm, taper to 0 by centre of section (half way between centre back and side seam);
• sleeves: release lower part by another 5mm on both seams;
• flounce: shorten (by 2 inches, I think)

I overlocked all the raw edges. Everywhere. They are very prone to fraying, so it was necessary. (This project used a lot of thread!)

I kept the cuffs and the button detail on the sleeves, but I shortened the sleeve length and made them 3/4 length. I had to unpick the jacket sleeves, down to the vent. The curve of the sleeve wasn't quite right for this length. This is an example of unpicking something, altering it, and then sewing it up to (hopefully) look exactly the same. The bottom of the sleeves came out too narrow, so I had to let the seam allowances out a bit more. I kept the horsehair canvas band around the cuff, and tacked the outer fabric to the inside, ready to hand sew the lining in to the cuff. The original suit buttons were not fastened with buttonholes. Not couture, but very helpful to me here. I need to leave them unfastened for the extra ease I need in the elbow.

I did a lapped zip because that is what I had to hand. I stabilised the back seam allowances of the whole dress. I wanted to use the waist stay ribbon from the Armani trousers, but decided it was too thick so I used adhesive stabilising tape instead. I can use the Armani ribbon as a zip guard, an exposed zip is very uncomfortable. I'll do that and add a new photo.

I am not usually a fan of a flounce, and considered leaving it off. But the dress is indecently short without it, and I hadn't added extra fabric to the bottom pieces. It also makes quite a severe dress more playful. Of course, I didn't have any fabric pieces wide enough to cut it in one, it uses a lot of fabric, and is cut on the fold. I pieced it from eight pieces in the end. All are cut on grain and sewed together, including overlocked seams. I used the very worn sections through the seat of the pants, because I wanted a lightweight fabric here. I cut quite a bit of length off the pattern, and was definitely not going to add the suggested 3cm hem allowance to a curved hem such as this. I overlocked and turned up once. Bad me, I machine hemmed it, but I was quite pleased with myself for switching to a zig zag stitch for the hem - it made less of a hard line through the fabric.

I used the suit lining for some of the dress lining. Curiously, the suit had a different lining for the jacket and the trousers. The jacket has a nice navy lining, while the front upper part of the trousers has a much thinner black lining. I had used up all the navy on the child's waistcoat, so I only had the sleeves left - for the sleeves - and used the black for the upper bodice lining. At the moment, the rest of the dress is unlined, as the pattern instructs, but I think I will go back and add a new lining as far as the flounce. I am just mulling over using a different pattern so that I don't have a pieced lining. Maybe I can draft one from the finished dress...

I found the v-neck very difficult to get right. I trimmed and turned and pressed, and pressed, and hammered, and eventually it sits flat-ish. I should have read the pattern instructions. By this point, I was just sewing things together. It has a slight gape at one side too. I only stay stitched very late in the make. 

But that is about the only niggle. I am so delighted with my dress, I want to make exactly the same refashion again! I have my eye on one of M's other suits, a gorgeous combed wool with a waffle check pattern. Too bad he just bought it this year!

Costs:

 Fabric: refashioned suit, £0.00

 Lining fabric: refashioned suit, £0.00

 Pattern: BurdaStyle, used previously, £0.00

 Notions: 

  Thread: local fabric store, £4.00

  Overlocker thread: used previously, £0.00

  Zip: thrifted gift, £0.00

  Seam tape: 2m, £1.50

  Buttons: refashioned suit, £0.00

Total: £5.50

Dalmatian Dress

As I did my Disney research, I read about Disney Bounding. My first thought was, “How fun!” (My second thought was, “That is terrible grammar!”) Disney Bounding is the practice of dressing for your favourite Disney character, without being in costume, which adult visitors are not permitted to do at Disney.

The girls favourite Disney movie is 101 Dalmatians and Big Sis wears her Dalmatian onesie almost daily. Since I wouldn’t let her wear the onesie to Disneyland, it seemed only fair to make her a polka dot dress so that she could Disney Bound too. 

Then I looked in Little Sis’ cupboard and found a polka dot dress the same! I was really looking forward to seeing my two dalmatians in the park. We were planning to meet Cruella de Ville and I was going to say, "Cruella, darling! What do you think of my two dalmatians? Aren't their coats divine?"

But, sadly, Cruella was not in town that day, and Little Sis' dress got left at home in London, when she didn't go and fetch it for packing. oops. We had a cute meet and greet with Mickey instead.

The fabric is polycotton, and I lined the bodice with white cotton. It’s a shame to see the reverse of the polka dots in the seam allowances, but I trimmed them down a bit, and it is not too distracting. The skirt is 3 widths of fabric, so the amount of gathering means I could get away with leaving it unlined. I love the black sash. The bodice is way too short for my big girl (Cottage Mama Party Dress, again, in size 8), so I had to add a sash. This is black cotton, but has some stretch. I gathered it at the side seams, and sewed the tucks down to take the weight of the skirt. I made a black bow, but left it off, thinking it too fragile to last for long.

I couldn’t get Disney patches for the dogs faces, so we had to make do with generic Dalmatian faces. The back is fastened with some polka dot buttons that I got in Canada a few years ago and I faced the hem with white cotton. She likes dressing as an animal, so this dress is fine for normal wear too.

Wool Jersey Karen Dress

 

I am so pleased with this dress! Squeeze!

However, this is a cautionary tale about how it almost didn't get made. I queued this project in November 2015. 2015! More than a year ago. 

Fabric

I bought the fabric as an impulse purchase, when I was actually shopping for boiled wool for a cape - still not made. The colours caught my eye first. The navy, taupe and magenta are very "me" and the bold geometric pattern was interesting. I wasn't quite prepared for how large the scale of the pattern is. The chevrons are massive, as you can see. The risks of shopping on the internets. 

But the benefits of shopping on the internets is that anything can be returned for any reason (at least in the EU, of which we are a member for another two years). The boiled wool order got returned but I kept this: 1.5m of wool jersey.

I have never seen a wool jersey in a fabric piece before. It was so mysterious to me. And quite daunting. It is, without doubt, the bounciest fabric I have ever encountered. Bouncy. There is no better description for it. The fabric composition is 78% viscose, 14% wool and 8% spandex. I don't know if that is a high spandex content or not. Despite the majority viscose, the feel is unmistakably wool, so that is what I am calling it. It is lovely and soft too, and the bounciness is not apparent once it is made up into a garment. The weight of the fabric and the high stretch combined made it seem so bouncy.

I admit, the pattern is loud, and the horizontal stripes are a challenge to wear. But I was determined that this was going to be a dress.

Pattern

Due to the sheer drape (bounciness) of this fabric, the pattern was always going to have to be something with a drape element to the design. I also wanted sleeves, because having a wool dress without full length sleeves seems a little silly. I deliberated over the pattern for some time. I considered using my Burda Cowl Neck pattern, and adding sleeves, maybe with Tilly's Coco sleeve as a template. But the fabric was too precious to hack about with. Sew Over It's Cowl Neck Dress was a serious contender, but I worried it wasn't forgiving enough over the tummy. This fabric shows every single lump and bump, even with a lining.

But once I made the Karen Drape Dress from Maria Denmark, I knew that I would be able to get my winter wool jersey dress.

And yet still I dithered.

The project moved down my queue. From Autumn... through Winter... finally into Spring. My thanks go to Heather Lou of Closet Case. Her words ring in my head: "Just cut it! No fabric is too precious to cut!" She is so right! I could hang on to My Precious and never make a dress that, yes, might have gone straight in the bin; but might also go out and about with me and make me happy. Easy! Being wool particularly, I probably only have a year or two before the moths get to it. Imagine coming to find the piece and it's fallen to bits? Better to cut.

So I did.

I just went and cut it out. 

Pattern Placement

I think the bounciness helped to keep the fabric on grain when I cut out. I roughly used the horizontal stripes for grain matching. Only roughly, and they are irregular, but broadly horizontal.

I did concern myself with pattern placement. To a point. I had only 1.5m so I didn't have much scope for rearranging. I also had a really hard time figuring out how the pattern might look cut, draped and on. So I just cut. Just like that!

I knew I wanted the stripes around the hem of the skirt, and not like a sash across the body. The drape of the pattern means that the skirt is on grain (horizontal stripes), but the front bodice fans up through 45 degrees. By keeping the diamond pattern through the centre front of the bodice, I kept the patterns looking quite similar. I don't love the stripes through the lower edge of the draped section, but I didn't have a lot of alternatives. I love the pattern placement on the back. And I did stripe match through the skirt. Perfectly on the one side, and the irregular pattern means a complete stripe jog on the other side.

I also kept the sleeve stripes at the height of a cap sleeve and a wrist band. Plus nice downward pointing chevrons in the centre front. And... check out that brilliant stripe matching through the shoulder seams and upper back!!!

This is my happy face. Note the stripe matching? Good.

Making up

I was so, so careful to not handle the fabric more than I had to. I used tailors tacks to pin the pleats in place, and hand basted the seam through the pleats.  I worked as though I was sewing rose petals together. That said, I found that I got a better seam from my overlocker if I pulled slightly to create stretch on the way through, and relaxed it on the way out. My overlocker tension isn't right. I need to adjust the presser foot pressure. 

I made up the complete dress before trying to attach a lining. If it was going to be a wadder, I wanted to find out before I put any more time or resources into it.

Lining

I knew that this fabric was going to need lining. Every lump and bump is on show, plus the fabric has a slight sheerness and the winter style of dress = lining required.

I bought one meter of beige cotton jersey from Girl Charlee for the lining. I could have chosen a whiter colour but prefer that beige brings down the tone of the cream stripes while ivory or white would have made them pop more. I think it makes the dress just a little bit more neutral. Because, obviously, I am trying to blend in with this dress...

1m was enough fabric for the lining, because I used the back pattern piece for cutting both front and back of the lining, with no draping or sleeves included. I attached the lining by overlocking at the neckline and under stitched with the sewing machine. I secured the sleeves to the lining by hand with fagoting stitches.

Adjustments

I have found it to be impossible to stop the back neckline from flaring outward slightly. The pattern calls for clear elastic around the neckline and I successfully used ordinary elastic in my Black Karen. I tried attaching some along the inside of the back neckline, between the outer fabric and the lining, but the waviness just got worse. I pulled it out and trimmed lower (chilly!), but still no luck. I adjusted the shoulder seams in, but it really needs some back neck darts. If I hunch forward it's fine.  I have had to leave a slight amount of lining on show at the back. It's not terribly noticeable. I didn't get a picture of it in the end.

Finishing

Rather than be dissapointed with the sleeve edges, I made cuffs for them and attached with my overlocker. They are not as polished as I would like, but better than lettuce fluting, and I got a bit of length that I was lacking.

The skirt hem is hand stitched, again with fagoting stitch. The lining hem is machine zig zagged. The hem length is the same as the pattern. My Black one is slightly longer, but this one didn't work out nicely with the pattern placement, so the hem on the banded stripes worked best.

I've decided that the Karen not really suited to horizontal stripes, nor such a draped fabric. I don't really like the poochy look around the tummy that the draped stripes create. They draw attention to an area that the design does a good job of hiding. The fabric choice for my black version are a better match, both in style and fabric weight.

That said, I still do love the dress. It is so comfortable, warm and fun to wear. The second I finished, it went out for lunch, a meeting, a gallery and drinks. Fun times!

Costs:
  Fabric: 1.5m, £12.15
  Lining: 1m, £5.95
  Pattern: £0.00 (used previously)
  Thread: £0.00 (used previously)
  Other: none
Total: £18.10

Navy Sweatshirt Coco Dress

It takes me a very long time to get out of my post-Christmas sewing rut. Almost two months since my Hibiscus Dress, and I had not sewn anything. I eased myself back into sewing with Coco from Tilly and the Buttons, in a navy fleece fabric. Something that had been in my sewing queue since last winter, when I made my Coco Sweatshirt.

This is becoming the pattern that I turn to for getting my sew-jo back after the new year. Two years in a row now. It is nice and simple, and a great middle-of-winter comfort wear too. This year I was faster to get back on the horse. Last year looks like it took me until February to get sewing, and I didn't post the completed item until 1 March. I snuck the start of this into January 2017 by checking Instagram and reading the pattern instructions. I was all like, "Wow, that is so simple! I could totally do that!" Duh.

So I got on with cutting out and putting it together with my overlocker. I made a size 4, grading to 3 from the waist to the hem. All previous alterations the same, and I had already adjusted the paper pattern, which saved me loads of time. If I made this in a ponte, rather than a fleece, I think I should probably make a size 3. There is plenty of ease.

I finished the cuffs and neckline by overlocking the edges, turning under and sewing two rows of topstitching. The finished edge feels quite stable, so I didn't add stay tape to the neckline. If it pulls, I'll have to put in elastic, or add ribbing to the neckline. 

I deliberately stayed away from ribbing because I wanted it to be dressier and less sweatshirt-y. I have to laugh at myself because I hated sweatshirts as a child! My school tracksuit was green. Urgh! What a horrible colour! This fabric is absolutely school sweatshirt fabric. They even listed it as such on eBay, where I bought it. Here I am, reliving my school years in a sweatshirt dress. But hopefully passers by are not going to be reminded of their school tracksuits, or will forgive me in my quest for warm, cosy dressing.

Anywhoo, back to the construction. I find this neckline too wide for my preference. It gives a nice balanced look to the dress and it is fine for the funnel neck, but I find it too open, and not really suitable for such a depths-of-Winter garment. If I make this version again, I would reduce the neckline opening by 1cm.

Due to the bulkiness of the fabric, I made the hem on the shorter side. I'll always be wearing tights with it. Again, I ran two rows of straight stitching for the hem. The style means I don't need a stretchy hem and I don't have much luck with twin needles. Before I hemmed, I angled the side seams in so that I didn't have to ease in the bulk.

Then it was on to the... pockets!

I really did agonise over the pockets for quite some time. They are a very bold style statement and I must confess that they are not entirely me. But they are fun and actually add a slimming element to the finished dress.

I always knew they should be mustard colour, and I would use my scraps of Interlock from a cardigan and a t-shirt. But I also knew that poor workmanship would be very obvious, and this is a tricky fabric to work with. I was so desperate to do everything I could to not pull them out of shape in the making and the attaching.

I cut really carefully, and the interlock is much more stable than a jersey, so this wasn't too much of a challenge. Then I used the small pocket pattern as a template for pressing around. The pressing wasn't doing enough of a good job on the corners, so I went for a new solution.

First, I sewed a line of stitching just outside the fold line, then I hand basted the mitres in place and pressed again. This was much better. I could get the corners properly square and not saggy. They are not perfectly square, but they are the best patch pockets I have managed to date. I attached them using my walking foot. Unusually, the pattern doesn't include markings for the pocket placement, so I just decided for myself. Which is fine too. 

The pockets probably took me as long to sew as the whole of the rest of the dress. 

Then... I took some photos and decided that the dress was all wrong.

Not just the styling, with the sheer tights - which I obviously wouldn't wear in winter, but the pockets were just too clownish.

I had a play with alternative pocket styles. Like so:

I decided that Option 3 would work best. Navy patch pockets with a mustard accent at the top. So I unpicked the pockets and cut the tops off to attach to new navy pockets. Cue the same stitching and basting the corners. The sweatshirt fabric doesn't press as closely. But this pocket style is much better for me. Breaking the visual expanse of navy skirt, but being a bit more understated in the execution. 

I also styled it better with proper winter tights, and boots. 

I am happy with this as a cosy, casual winter dress, and a great sewing re-entry. Big Sis likes it so much that she has asked me to make her one with the rest of my fleece. Square patch pockets included!

Costs:
 Fabric: 2m (eBay) £13.20 - only used about 1.25m
 Contrast Fabric: scraps, £0.00
 Pattern: Coco (Tilly and the Buttons) £0.00 - used previously
 Thread: Started 4 new spools of black overlocker thread, £15.80 - thought I had bought navy, but apparently not
              Started a new 1000m spool of navy sewing thread. £9.89 - not buying that size again
Total: £28.89