In Progress: Simplicity 2154

This pattern is my latest project. I'm making the cardigan, shown in orange in the large envelope photo. I selected this because I wanted a cardigan that had features similar to a lot of ready to wear that I'm seeing right now--crew neck, straight front opening, etc. This 1960's retro pattern really fit the bill. It even calls for a grosgrain ribbon facing, which I've noticed in several recent cardigans that I've bought. And I'm also old enough to remember when that's how all cardigans were done.

In addition to that, the sleeve has a fairly high cap. It's installed in the round because side seam is drafted about 2" toward the back of the cardigan. I was going to change it but I like this detail, as it reduces some of the bulk that can happen with intersecting seams.

I'm making a test version from some sweater knit that's been aging in my stash since 2002. It's a gray cheetah print that looks great, but unfortunately, it hides most of the pattern details. It's a test run of this pattern for some nicer sweater knit that I was unwilling to sacrifice to the unknown. So far it's a success, but I still need to make buttonholes for it-eek!! I spent some time this afternoon making sample front openings to experiment with but I don't want to start on buttonholes until I'm fresh. So I probably won't finish this one until next weekend, but that's ok.

After the sweater samples, I made a few seam samples for the next project after this one, a faux fur vest that I've christened The Smudge Vest. It's another test, using a remnant I acquired through ASG. It's white and resembles my cat's coat, hence the name.

I've had some questions about the booties I wore with the TSW outfit from a couple of weeks ago. I confess, I haven't really worn them in real life since winter 2010 when I was still in banking. At that time, they were surprisingly easy to wear, probably due to the extra leather and elastic fabric on the upper combined with the insoles I put in just about every pair of footwear I own.  But all that was pre-neuroma.  I'm being reasonably cautious about going back to heels especially since I don't have to wear them at my current job. I hope I can make them work eventually--they're a lovely pair of shoes, espresso croc-embossed leather from Talbot's.

JAM 6: Loes HInse Bergman Jacket (Work in Progress)

This one is still a work in progress. Instructions for how to make this "tweak" were published in Loes Hinse's newsletter last spring when Sharon of Casual Elegance, her fabric partner, acquired some chenille. Well, I was intrigued so I bought some of each color, traced off the pattern, and even made a test garment of the blouse!

...And then it got hot, and I lost all interest in making any sort of jacket whatsoever.

Fast forward to October, still warm but with an occasional nip in the air, so I'm looking about for jackets, sweaters, vests, etc. to sew for colder weather. And the Bergman Jacket worked its way back into my consciousness.

This one is a bit of a leap of faith to make because you have to make the jacket first, then throw it in the laundry where it shrinks to a more form-fitting shape.

Loes' instructions don't call for you to make the pattern a size larger or anything either. But it just made sense to me that a jacket would need to be a little larger than a blouse (which is what the original design was), so I added some "fit insurance" to the vertical edges of the pieces when cutting out.  1/4" to each princess seam and 1/2" to the side and sleeve seams. I figured I could always trim down later if necessary.

Another change I made was to lower the neckline more than the 1 1/2" specified. The photo of the finished neckline was much lower than that, so I assumed a typo and lowered mine by 10 1/2".

And I was concerned when I tried on the completed jacket after sewing it all together but before laundering. It was dowdy, folks. But I took my leap of faith and threw it in a delicate warm water wash as directed.

And this was the result as of last evening, right after retrieving it from the washing machine:

I'm really glad for the extra circumference, because this chenille really drew up a lot  when washed! I'm thinking it will go back to the original color when dry, which is more like this:

This is the fabric as it came from the bolt. Hard to tell from the photo, but it has the slightest hint of pink-ness to it.

As of this morning, it's still a bit damp, especially around the hem. The tweak has a double hem, so there are many layers of chenille in some places.

More on this one later. I still need to make buttonholes, attach buttons and put in some shoulder pads before I can call it done.

TSW Now Shirt and Quincy Pant Photos

Hot off the press, so to speak! I took these just minutes ago with the self timer and tripod, just after getting home from work. I wore the Now Shirt with jeans to the office today and switched into the Quincy Pants and killer booties after getting home.

In Search of Dark Green Pants

I've recently made two different pairs of pants from the same fabric. I've concluded that I have a lot of green tops in my wardrobe and need something to coordinate with them. Both pairs were made from Sewing Workshop Patterns; I've had decent luck with their pants in the past.

The first pair was made from the Mimosa Pants pattern.

They came out all right, but not my favorite. I think the time for this style has passed for now. I found the legs too wide for my taste.

 I'll keep them for a while though, and maybe I'll like them better next time I wear them. If not, then they'll go to the donation pile. Life is too short, you know? One good thing--I really liked the instructions for installing the invisible zipper, so I'll use them as a reference. I also had a chance to use a Bernina invisible zipper foot that I've had for over a year--such an improvement over the plastic ones!

I still had plenty of the fabric left over after completing the Mimosa Pants, so I decided to use it to try out the new Quincy Pants pattern.

Now, these I love! Although they're elastic waist pants, they have a slim fit.  The hanger shot is a little wonky, but they hang nicely when on. The drawing is fairly representative of how they hang on a person.

I cut and sewed a size smaller than my current measurements but they worked out fine. I included the loop and button feature on the side seams, but it would be pretty simple to leave them off. Just redraw the lower edge of the pants so they're perpendicular to the grain. I think I'll be making more from this pattern, as they'll be perfect with tunics and sweaters. I rarely wear a tucked in shirt anyway.

The fabric is a very dark shade of green. Even with lightening the photos, I'm not sure if you can see much detail due to the color. However,  we haven't switched from swamp cooling to heat yet and the house is cold. I'm minimizing clothing changes as much as possible since temperatures are in the low 60's in here.

The fabric is a rayon/tencel blend that I bought from the Fashion Fabrics Club in 2003. Nicely aged.

TSW Now Shirt

I've been on a TNT TSW trend lately, and this project is the latest. I've made the Now Shirt a couple of times before, but the sleeves always felt a bit floppy to me thanks to my bird-wrists.

You can even see a bit of that in the drawing. The Now Shirt is the one on the right. So this time, I tapered the lower sleeve to refine the fit. I also lengthened the body of the shirt 2". The last one was wearable but the longer length is more versatile.

I used a cotton/rayon blend that I bought from Marcy Tilton at the 2009 ASG Conference in Albuquerque. Practically new, considering the size of my stash!

It's a little rumpled, not as much as it looks in the picture but a bit.  Of course, my iron decided to spit something on the front of the shirt when I was touching it up for pictures, so I had to launder it...and I didn't want to risk pressing it before taking a picture.

JAM 5: Another TSW eShrug

I've really enjoyed wearing the black eShrug I made earlier this year. It's the perfect little cover-up when traveling and has gone on several trips with me.

Incredibly, I recently found a pretty print sweater knit in Joann's bargain section. I bought it to prototype with since the wool/rayon I bought at Santa Fe Fabrics last winter was too pricy to use with an untried pattern. Well, it didn't work out that way, because I ended up using the Joann's knit for another eShrug instead.

 I'm still getting used to seeing the reverse side due to the drapey lapels, but I have a lot of purples and greens I can wear this with now that it's cooler. I've been sitting on this one since September 11, when I made it as a respite from the unending 10th anniversary coverage but it's been too hot for it until recently.