A pretty in pink pencil skirt

Despite not having blogged about it, I have made this pencil skirt three times now and wear them regularly to work. They're a bit of a staple in my wardrobe. I traced the pattern from The Great British Sewing Bee: Sew Your Own Wardrobe. The instructions are clear but not extensive. I definitely did a little bit of google searching the first time I made it!

I made the skirt in a wool from Walthamstow Market. I'm not sure what kind of wool it is but it has an almost felted quality and feels gorgeous to the touch.

The fabric was very thick, which I didn't really account for. Luckily, the previous skirts were slightly too large so it does fit. If I hadn't had this ease though it definitely would not have fit! Because the fabric was so thick I used a scrap of Liberty lawn for the facings (it's actually a scrap left over from the top I'm wearing!)

The thick fabric supports the vent nicely at the back of the skirt but my darts could be better! I need to either invest or get sewing a tailors ham so that I can press out my darts neater. Has anyone made one before?

I decided to make a bow for the front of the skirt which runs from one dart to the other. I absolutely love the bow! Although it means that I will have to tuck tops into the skirt I think that it's worth it. This pencil skirt will definitely become another wardrobe staple like the others!

I've been dreaming of sewing all week so I'm happily off to sew a Liberty Print Emery dress. What are your sewing plans for the weekend?

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Simplicity cape 8017

This week I have been busy making my first piece of outerwear and I am in love! I'd go as far as to say that it's my favourite item of clothing I have ever made.

I made the cape using a wool merino mix fabric from the man outside Sainsbury's at Walthamstow Market. I made no alterations to the fit or construction and found that it all went together beautifully. The pattern has pockets on the front but I decided not to include these.

I decided to make a velvet bow to put onto the front of the cape, it is stitched one side then fastens using poppers on the other side. I have to admit this is not an original idea and was inspired by a Kate Spade cape I've had my eye on! The cape is fully lined which means no overlocking! Hooray! I originally decided to line it in a silk mix fabric but I just couldn't get it to behave itself so I decided to use the rest of a rather gorgeous piece of Liberty Tana Lawn I bought from Abakan.

This will definitely get lots of wear in the coming months!

Some very unseasonal sewing...

I bought the Merchant and Mills Workbook after visiting the Merchant and Mills stall at The Knit and Stitch show and falling in love with the simplicity of the Bantam top. I bought a metre of their tea rose wool which is beautifully drapey but also very sheer! Because it had such a loose weave the fabric was very difficult to work with and near on impossible to unpick.

The Bantam is a racer back vest with a dipped hem. You make your own bias binding, which was very tricky with such a loose weave. Merchant and Mills patterns are known for being generous on their sizing and I had to take the top in a lot at the bust but I definitely took it in slightly too much, which I feel has detracted from its drape.

I always use bias binding for any curved hems but sadly I didn't have enough fabric left to make any using the tea rose wool and I was concerned that shop bought binding would stop the drape of the top. I found it really difficult to do the curved hem neatly without bias binding and the result looks untidy. Any tips for curved hems without binding?

All in all, I like top but my struggles with the fabric have made it sloppy around the edges. I will definitely be making it again though and learning from my mistakes.

A little bit of sofa chic?

This was one of my UFOs I blogged about just after Christmas. I have been steadily trying to work my way through them!

I think that one of the reasons I took so long to finish it was because I have reservations about the fabric. It kind of reminds me of a sofa I had as a child...

Whilst I love the style of the skirt the fabric still hasn't necessarily grown on me...I'm just so undecided about this one!

I made the skirt using the Sew Over It Betty dress pattern and drafted a waist band to go with it. The skirt took just over a metre and a half of fabric which I bought from a local market. It's quite drapey yet is also of a medium weight which works nicely as a wintery full circle skirt.

Full circle skirts have to be my ultimate favourite style. I love how the fabric moves...

Perhaps if I wear it a few times the fabric will grow on me.

Happy sewing!

Unselfish sewing: Simplicity 1544

At Christmas time I decided to brave unselfish sewing. I love making clothes but they always have their quirks; a sleeve slightly too short or a button hole too tight. I wasn't sure if it was possible to love these 'quirks' if you hadn't spent hours slaving over it!

I decided to make a shirt for my boyfriend. After lots of consideration I used Simplicity 1544. I debated with using Colette Negroni but I wasn't too sure about the collar. Does anyone have any experience of Negroni? I made the shirt using brushed cotton which I bought from Ebay. After beginning cutting out I probably would have chosen a plain fabric rather than checks for my first shirt as it was hard to match these up. Although I have to say I am pretty proud of how well it matches up across the front.

There were lots of new skills to master when making this shirt which made it a really enjoyable project. It also gave me plenty of opportunities to practise the dreaded top stitching! I'm pretty proud of the straight seems which are top stitched but the curved ones are a bit more wobbly so it's definitely a skill I need to continue to practise!

The fit of the shirt is nice and runs true to size for the most part. The cuffs however seem to be huge! I should have compared them to one he already wears to check but I didn't think of this. If I made it again I would definitely reduce these by a couple of centimetres.

The shirt was very well received which has made me feel much more confident in making clothes for other people. How do you feel about sewing for others?

Cape crusader!

I blogged last week about The Emery dress I made for my brothers wedding. As this was a winter wedding and was going to be rather chilly I decided that I wanted to make a cape to wear on top.

I made it in wool fabric which I bought from the man outside Sainbury's. It is an old Hugo Boss wool and is a wool/poly/merino mix. The merino makes it feel really luxurious to touch and gives it a nice drape. I lined it in a light weight cotton which was also from the same place.

The pattern is from Lisa Confort's book Sew Over It Vintage. Her book doesn't contain any patterns but instead walks you through pattern self drafting. I absolutely love self drafting, any items I have made using it have always fit beautifully and I'm yet to have a failure (touch wood!) using this method. I would recommend a dress makers ruler though to make sure that any curves you create are accurate.

I'm really pleased with the combination of fabrics. The lining picks up the brown from the cape whilst the blue background seems to lift it.

Lisa completes her cape with leather buckles. I decided that I wanted a softer look so I made a bow which attaches to the other side using a popper.

The cape has plenty of volume which makes it beautifully easy to wear and gives it a floaty feel.

Whilst the cape is beautiful and kept me warm for a special occasion I definitely need to wait for the weather to warm up a bit before it becomes a well worn item. Roll on Spring!

An Emery...made just in time...

My brother recently decided to get married (with a few weeks notice) so I quickly began dreaming up dresses to make. I wanted to make a tulle dress similar to the one Carrie wore in the final episode in Sex and the City. Alas it just wasn't meant to be. I'll blog that failure when I've worked up the courage.

After messing around trying to make the 'Carrie dress' I had five days to make a dress and cape. That doesn't sound too bad until you factor in that three of these were taken up with Christmas eve, Christmas day and boxing day. This meant that the dress I settled upon needed to be a pattern I had and fabric from the stash. I settled on Christine Haynes's Emery dress and some gorgeous silk my mum bought my from Dubai.

All in all I'm actually rather glad that the previous dress failed. I felt so comfortable in this dress and in the end it felt more 'me'. The pattern was easy to make and I have to say that hands down her instructions are the most comprehension that I have ever sewn with. I sewed a size 2 grading to a size 3 on the hips. I didn't need to make any alterations to the pattern and I like the fit.

The silk worked beautifully with the pattern and provided a nice shape for the skirt.

The skirt has pockets which I always love having in skirts and dresses. The bodice is also fully lined which made the dress feel just that bit more special. I lined it using some Liberty Tana Lawn I had in my stash. I think that the muddy print worked perfectly with the silk.

The dress comes with two options; either a collar or a bow. I decided to go for the bow, which I'm pleased about. I used interfacing on the box to give it more body but it hasn't meshed well with the silk and you can see some bubbling. I definitely need to research which interfacings should be used with which fabrics. Any tips?