Kwik Sew K3877

This is the first pattern I ever used. I learnt zips, waistbands and how to fail at pattern matching.

I've made at least seven of these skirts in all kinds of fabrics.  This skirt looks terrible on the pattern packet but is very flattering in real life.

I have never made it with the button at the waistband - I just substituted a press stud.  I've always made the length somewhere between the short and long version to get a skirt that suits me.

This version was made using a canvas weight fabric from Cloud9.

I crocheted the giant flower pin out of a Panda Magnum acrylic yarn from a few years ago.

New Look K6217

This is my freebie pattern from Sew Magazine. My new measuring stick for pattern greatness is apparently the speed at which you can make it.

And this is super fast - 90 minutes all up - and that included me faffing about making my own binding.  The sleeves are just an extension of the body and not separate, so that made it super quick to finish. 

I had a small bit of rayon left over from a skirt I made, but not enough for a whole top.  I cunningly bought 90cm of a plain black knit fabric and made this!

I was a bit worried that the two different fabrics would pull weirdly but the black knit is not very stretchy and quite thick so it is holding its shape well.  I did side seams first then hemmed the sleeves and the bottom edge with a top stitch.  I think the pattern says to use bought bias binding but I decided to just use the rayon fabric - I didn't even make proper binding - I just cut a diagonal strip, ironed a crease in it and the sewed it on around the neck line with the final stitch line as visible top stitch.  The rayon binding is only visible on the inside of the top and it looks fancy on the back piece of black knit!


The only problem was the sewing machine needle - I used a stretch twin needle for the sleeves which pulled a bit on the rayon as it punched downwards but you need to look very closely to notice it.

I will definitely make more of these - it is instant gratification and only needs a tiny amount of fabric.

Burda 6910 - knit top - version 3

I was so optimistic that I would finally nail the neckline of the this top.  But it was crap. Again.

After I cut it all out, the side seams are the first to be done on the overlocker.  Then sew up the underneath seam of the sleeves, do the hem and pin them in place before sewing them in.  When I got to this step it seem very easy and I realised that I had sewed the sleeves on the wrong way around on version 2 of this top.  Luckily it is not immediately obvious.

Next is the terrible neckline.  I've had a look at some other sewers blog posts and almost everyone has had issues with it.  Apparently most people have had to cut the neckline deeper so the neckline binding isn't long enough.

I think my problem is that I can't figure out exactly what I am meant to be doing.  I also can't tell if my mad sewing is stretching the neckline out or if the pattern is weird (maybe a bit of both).  I basically overlocked the strip onto the neckline (trimming as necessary) and then folded it over, steamed it and top stitched it with the double needle.  I might try a different technique next time.

So I added a dart over each shoulder and a pleat with a button at the front.

I made this one slightly wider across the back and the front so it doesn't pull across the bust.  Again I left out the gathering elastic at the sides and cut the fabric shorter than the pattern (but longer than the previous version) and made the hems slightly wider using the double needle.

The cheery knit fabric was from Spotlight.

I really like the style and it is sooo quick to make (only 5 cut pieces) on the overlocker.  It's easy to wear as well - a nice t-shirt that works as a top with dress pants.

I like it.  I wish I could get it right though.

Burda 6910 - knit top - version 2

This the second version I've made of this pattern.  The first version I made has a lovely, unintentional, drapey neck because I stretched the neckline out so badly!  I can't post the first one because I used a terrible black stretch fabric and you can't see anything in photos of it.  You'll have to take my word for it.

But I just can't the fecking neckline right - the neck is definitely better but I still couldn't get it to sit flat.  I really like the raglan sleeve but neck is killer.  In the end I put two weird pleats at the neck near my collar bones and another pleat at the front in the middle of the neck and added a covered button to hide it.

I used a knit fabric from Spotlight but it isn't as stretchy as the pattern calls for so it's a bit more fitted than it could be.

This was a good project though for learning new skills.  I used the overlocker for all my seams and a twin needle for all the hems.  I made the shirt a bit short so the bottom hem is quite narrow and rolls up a bit but it's quite wearable.

Simplicity 1609 Jiffy dress - version 2

This is the second Jiffy dress that I've made.

I chose a light red cotton with white polka dots.  The pattern has the front of the dress in two pieces with a seam down the front but I just made it in one piece.  The facings are fiddly and a pain in the bum to iron down flat but do sit nicely in the end.

The dress was quite plain though and I wanted to make it a bit fancier.  I found this crochet cotton at the dollar shop (although it cost $3) and I love a crochet collar.  I'm not a huge fan of a Peter Pan Collar though, so I hunted around until I found a simple pattern I could adjust for my dress.

I measured the neckline edge of the dress and then crocheted a foundation chain about 5cm shorter - I tried to get an odd number of scallops so I could centre it on the dress easily.  Once I'd gotten the collar about the size I wanted, I blocked it to fit perfectly.

I gently washed the completed collar and then pinned it to shape on a foam mat and left it to dry.  This was the most time consuming part - so many pins!

Once it was dry, I hand stitched it to the dress - I wanted it to be removable if necessary and I wasn't sure how it would wash.  It actually is fine, I just iron the dress then steam the collar into shape.

Simplicity 1609 Jiffy Dress - version 1

This is my first version of the Jiffy dress.  It's also the first dress I ever made so I love it out of all proportion for it's quality!

I used a Cloud9 fabric I bought from Spotlight - it's from their Wildwood Collection and is called Midnight Flora in Navy.  It's a quilters weight cotton so it is nice and cool for summer but not sheer.

The front of the dress is meant to be two panels but I adjusted the pattern and cut it as one so my busy print didn't look crappy.  I also foolishly put the zip in before I did the neck facings so I could pull them through as the pattern said. In the end,  I handstitched the shoulder seams to solve this.  I think I made it a little bit big though, so I might need to take the side seams in a wee bit.

Once I'd finished the dress, I was really disappointed it - it was so boring and plain so it hung over the back of my chair for a week.  I though that maybe a collar would make it look more finished.  The only fancy cotton I had was some Cascade Pima in Silver which actually matched perfectly.

I did the collar in two pieces but next time I'd do it in one piece to avoid having a wonky bit at the front.  I measured the neckline and then used a foundation chain a few centermetres shorted so that I could block it to the right size.  I based it on the Chain Loop Ruffle trim from 200 Crochet Flowers, Embellishments and Trims by Claire Crompton.

I handwashed the trim, rolled it in a towel to get out all the extra moisture then pinned it out to the right size to dry.  Then I hand stitched it on the dress.

New coat for Izzy the Greyhound

This is our Greyhound, Izzy.  And this is her new coat. I didn't have a pattern for this but I used her old coat as a template.

I chose this cute fleecy fabric and lined it with some plain blue flannelette.  I just cut out the fabric, overlocked the edges together then used my bias binding foot to put some binding around the edges.

Next time I won't bother with the binding - I'll just top stitch the fleece and it should hold it's shape ok in the wash.

I stitched the front together at her chest and added a piece of wide elastic to one side, joining with a small press stud on the on the other side.

She is actually very pleased with it.