2014 - A Year in Sewing

Happy New Year! I'm rather pleased with my sewing output for 2014, there were a few stumbling blocks along the way (more on that later…), but by and large it was a great sewing year. My favourite make of the year has got to be my Dotted Chambray Bow Blouse.

You all know I love bow blouses, I love Mrs Slocombe, I love polka dots and I love chambray, so the amalgamation of all these things almost finished me off. It's not just my favourite make of the year, it's my favourite make OF ALL TIME! I always receive compliments when I wear it too, the bow seems to be particularly impressive for some reason! Coming in at a close equal second are two dresses I made in the summer: my Kate Spade-inspired Lemon dress….

and my Anna 6696.

They were both inspired by pictures I found on Pinterest (see here and here) and I feel ridiculously pleased that I was able to use the original inspiration pictures to make dresses that were very individual to me. They both fit really well, and although they're quite different in design, I feel they're a good indicator of my style. Plus the lemon dress is yellow - one of the few rogue pieces to step out of line from my strict red, white and blue colour dictatorship this year! 

The most useful item I sewed this year was my raincoat. I won't lie, it did give me grief during the making of it, but that was all forgotten as soon as I donned my vision in navy blue waterproof loveliness! This year I also discovered the joy of sewing my own basic items of clothing (mostly Bronte T shirts and Mabel skirts). As wonderful and useful as they are, I find them deeply boring to blog about, so if any further versions pop up, I'll just mention them in passing!

As mentioned earlier, I did have a couple of misses this year: despite my best intentions, the Cressida skirt I pattern tested for Jennifer Lauren Vintage just didn't work. My first Afternoon blouse has also been shown the door, purely down to the fact that it doesn't fit. It's a real shame as I love the red shirting fabric I made it from, but there's no getting away from the fact that I cut a size too small. That'll teach me eh! And finally, the darts on my vintage red dress defeated me in the end and it's now languishing, dart-less with side seams ripped open in frustration. Maybe I'll come back to it, if I can ever be arsed. 

I think this year was the year I finally learnt to say no to every single sewing challenge I heard about. It's still a bit of a struggle as my natural inclination is to immediately scream "me too, ME TOO" but life's just too short. I did participate in the Vintage Sewing Pattern Pledge run by Marie at A Stitching Odyssey but deliberately set myself a low target (to sew up three vintage patterns in 2014). The other reason I didn't commit to everything under the sun was because I found myself hosting a sewing challenge of my own - the return of One Week, One Pattern 2014!

Although it was a lot of work, I really did enjoy organising and participating in OWOP and was overwhelmed by how many people joined in and embraced the challenge themselves - thank you so much everyone! I loved giving my beloved 1950's Simplicity pattern its place in the spotlight for a week, if anything, it's made me even fonder of the pattern than I was before!

As for my sewing plans for 2015, I'm really keen to use the skills I learnt during my pattern cutting weekend to create a well fitting bodice. This kind of thing doesn't come naturally to me, but I would like to get my dart positioning right and conquer the bloody things once and for all. With this in mind, I've got plans to make a simple, collarless coat in the early part of the year. I do have a pattern in mind but I may have a go at self drafting (ahem!) I think it will probably end up as a combination of the two. Other than that I'm going to just sew where the mood takes me,  Exciting!

My favourite picture of the year: with Rachel and Winnie at Goldhawk Road

I've had so much pleasure from sewing this year and met up with some amazingly talented and generous people (both old and new). All I want for next year is more of the same! Thank you again for your support and friendship this year and Happy Sewing, wherever you are! x 

Finished raincoat….at last!

Well, it's been a long time coming but I'm pleased to announce that my vintage raincoat is now finished.  THANK GOD! This coat has been a true test of my powers of perseverance and let me tell you, they were well and truly tested.

I started thinking about making a raincoat back in October in this post, and was lucky enough to find a pattern that was exactly what I was looking for (vintage Simplicity 5928). On this occasion it was Amy of Sylkotwist who came to my rescue, very generously gifting me the pattern. Thanks Amy, you're a doll!  The pattern is from 1973 and although the instructions are clear, there is a presumption that the user has a good deal of dressmaking knowledge and experience (which was probably standard in those days to be fair). They're also pretty sparse, so it's lucky I decided to embark on this project a few years into my sewing life - if I'd tried to decipher them as a newbie I'd have given up within the hour.

I don't want to bore you to death with a catalogue of disasters but there were two bits of the coat construction that just didn't work. The coat originally came with two piece sleeves which gave it a lovely elegant, tailored look. Sadly, they weren't to be - despite six (six!!) tries, and me mercilessly slicing off quite a bit of ease, I just couldn't get the sleeves to fit in the armholes. I still can't work out why this was, but I'm not going to dwell on it. I ended up ordering extra fabric and drafting one piece sleeves. They set in like a dream and although they don't have the tailored look of the original sleeves, they're absolutely fine.  The other part of the construction that I had to totally improvise was the lining. The lining itself sewed together perfectly, there just wasn't enough ease in it when it was joined to the coat. In fact the bottom of the coat looked just like a puffball skirt, which wasn't really the look I was going for.

My only solution at this late stage was to let the lining hang free at the hem like a skirt lining (it's attached to the facings and neckline in the usual way.)

This seems to work fine and it actually makes the coat a bit less restrictive to wear. I covered the raw edge of the coat hem with bias binding as this would ordinarily have been concealed inside the lining.

Right, that's my whingeing over, let's be positive folks, everything else about this coat is PERFECT. It's exactly what I wanted in a raincoat and I love the look of it, I think it's very me! There are lots of details about the pattern that I really love: the collar shape, the princess seams, the slight flared, flouncy bits around the bottom of the coat and the concealed seam pockets. The pockets are positioned just a bit too far down for my stumpy arms (ahem), but I can reach them which is the main thing! 

I can just reach those pesky pockets!

I used a waterproof coated micro fibre fabric which I haven't had the chance to test in any real rain yet, but this is the UK, so I won't have to wait long. The lining is a gorgeous red floral fabric that I found stuffed at the bottom of a box on a stall on Portobello market. There wasn't enough to cut sleeve pieces from it so the sleeves are cut from a plain red lining fabric which turned out really well. I like knowing that beneath my functional navy raincoat, I can thrill passers by with a subtle flash of red floral fabulousness! 

Ta-da 

And here's another one with an even madder face….

I utilised Scruffy Badger's excellent tips for working with this fabric (you don't need a teflon needle to work with this fabric, use weights when cutting it out and use a longer stitch length). The only tip I blatantly disregarded was the one about pins. Her advice was to use hair grips to hold seams together and not to use pins. Well, I heeded this advice for about five seconds and then lost the will to live - soz Winnie! I discovered that pins don't leave a mark on the fabric, even unpicking actual stitching from six sleeve attempts didn't cause a problem. Yes, there were stitch marks on the inside of the fabric, but absolutely nothing was visible on the right side of the coat and any rogue unpicking marks are all hidden by the lining anyway. Once I'd finished the coat I sent it to the dry cleaners for a professional press, which gave all the seams and hems a nice, crisp look.

I'm pleased with myself for gritting my teeth and finishing this coat, as it's one of the few items of clothing I've made that I actually need! Next up is a dress pattern I've fallen for hard - I bet you can guess which one it is! x

  

The world of denim

Do you sometimes feel like a sewing project is bewitched? My vintage raincoat started out so well but has gone rapidly downhill over the last few days. This morning, I attempted to attach the sleeves SIX TIMES before finally admitting defeat. Luckily, I took a deep breath, stepped away from the offending raincoat and ordered more fabric to redraft the sleeves. The alternative was to slash the entire thing with scissors, which would have made me feel better - but maybe not for long.

So, instead of working myself into a frenzy about a pair of crappy sleeves, I've decided to immerse myself in my next project, which will be sewing my denim shirt dress. Hoorah, even just typing that sentence has brightened up my day. I know for a fact that this dress will be a well worn staple in my wardrobe - and that's before I've even made it. How do I know this? Well, everything I've ever made from denim (my Ginger skirt, Kelly skirt and stretch capri trousers) has been worn and worn to death. Perhaps it's because denim is quite forgiving in fit (especially stretch denim) and tends to mostly flatter the wearer. It's hard wearing, long lasting and doesn't show the dirt, so you can wear your denim items until they're virtually standing up on their own with grime.  I love sewing with denim and am in the process of putting together a 'Tips for sewing with denim' post, which I'm hoping will be useful to some of you. In the meantime, let's feast our eyes on a few highs and lows of this wonder fabric.

Historically, denim's durability and strength made it a popular fabric with manual workers such as cowboys and miners. It was also perfect for workwear in the form of overalls or dungarees as it protected the clothes worn underneath.

It started to become more popular in the 1950's and was even advertised as a dressmaking fabric. I had to look up the word "sanforized' from the ad below, but apparently it means, "to preshrink a fabric using a patented process."

Adorable denim playsuit

A super-chic denim ensemble from 1950

Most of us are perfectly content to wear one item of denim clothing at a time and this look, in my opinion, is effortlessly stylish.

Marilyn Monroe

Joe Orton: king of the turn-up

Jane Birkin looking fab

For some however,  this isn't sufficient. and they feel the need to wear it on both their top and bottom halves. Otherwise known as 'double denim', this is a dangerous fashion territory in which to wander, and there are only a fabled few who can artfully pull off this difficult look. 

The double denim winners…

The king (naturally)

Steve McQueen 

and the losers….

Gotta love Shakin' Stevens

?????

The highs by far outweigh the lows though, as there's very little denim can do wrong in my book. This little round-up has definitely put me in a positive frame of mind for starting work on my denim shirt dress. What's your take on denim? Love it? Hate it? Or are you a proud double denim aficionado? I leave you with a clip for Denim aftershave, the favoured scent of rugged He-Men throughout the 1970's. Interesting fact…. my husband's one and only party trick is to do an exact rendition of the voice over in this ad. Oh yes, he's one talented man! x

Sew Scrumptious winner

Thank you so much to everybody who entered the Sew Scrumptious Fabric giveaway. There was an amazing response (which is hardly surprising with such beautiful fabrics up for grabs), but sadly, there can only be one winner, and that person is ….

Manju from sewmanju!!!!

Congratulations, you win the gorgeous Blend Fabrics FQ bundle and a metre of your chosen fabric - Enchant Birds in aqua (oooh lovely!) Please email me your address Manju and I'll forward your details to Sew Scrumptious.

In other news, I've now finished all my christmas craft fairs, which is quite a relief as I can now concentrate on juggling the three sewing projects I have on the go at the moment. My raincoat (you'll be glad to hear that slow and steady progress is being made), a party dress to wear next Saturday (not even cut out yet…) and my one and only handmade christmas gift - a quilt for my son.

Don't worry, the quilt's quite a bit further along than this!

Hopefully I'll have something to show you soon.  Happy Monday! x

Raincoat progress

Thank you all for your helpful comments and advice on my last raincoat post. There were some fab suggestions, but in the end it was a toss up between vintage McCall's 8006 and Simplicity 5928. The Simplicity pattern won, for the simple reason that Amy of Sylkotwist had a copy of the pattern and very generously let me borrow it - thank you! I did love McCall's 8006 but just couldn't track it down. Simplicity 5928 is a princess seamed pattern from the Look Slimmer range (hoorah!) and has some lovely details such as top stitching and concealed side pockets.

Amy's copy of the pattern is a size 14.5, with a 37 bust, I would normally go for a vintage 36 bust, but as the coat has very fitted princess seams, I'm quite glad of the additional room.  So far, I've pinned the pattern pieces together and fitted them to Angie. The fit seems pretty good and I'm tempted to just steam ahead without a muslin. The only anomaly I found with the pattern is the length. Simplicity half size patterns are designed for petite women, or to be more accurate, specially sized for Misses and Women about 5'2" to 5'3". This seemed like a dream come true for me as I'm exactly that height and almost always have to shorten patterns to fit. It wasn't quite that simple though. The envelope illustration clearly shows the length of the coat skimming the knee, yet on Angie, (who's more or less my height), it's virtually ankle length.  I tried to make allowances for the fact that the pattern is from 1973, and as we know, the entire population walked round in towering platforms like this.

But the girls on the envelope are all wearing sensible court shoes, which sort of blows my Elton John massive boot theory out of the water. It's very odd, and even taking the generous 2" inch hem into account, I'll still have to shorten the pieces by about 4 inches. Harrumph.

For fabric, I'm using a waterproof coated microfibre fabric in navy from here. This is the same type of fabric that Winnie used for her Robson Trench and I'll be utilising all the sewing tips she included on her post. They were primarily to use weights to cut the fabric out (which I do anyway), use hairgrips for seams and DON'T USE PINS! This is all new to me so I'm looking forward to the challenge.

The pattern comes with lining pieces so I think I'll add a lining too. I have two in my stash that would be a good match for navy. The same teal polka dot lining I used for my Abbey Coat...

...or this lovely flash of gorgeousness. Any preferences?

I'm hoping to get started on this pretty soon as the rain continues to lash down most days. I'll keep you posted.... x

Raincoat inspiration

As lashing rain seems to be flavour of the month, I thought today was the perfect time to do a bit of research into making my own raincoat. As usual, I have an exact picture in my head of how I'd like it to look, but can I find a pattern to match it? Nope.

Here's my checklist for the perfect raincoat pattern:-

- Single breasted

- Full length sleeves

- Medium sized collar

- No hood (I'm an umbrella girl!)

- Knee length

- Reasonably fitted but not tight

- Possibly princess seams

I didn't seem to have any luck at all with modern patterns, and there don't actually seem to be many that are specifically for raincoats. The exception to this is the Sewaholic Robson pattern - a classic double breasted trench style that seems to get the thumbs up from everybody who's made it. I've seen Winnie's red version in real life and it's awesome. But sadly for me, it won't work because double breasted anything just looks hideous on me.  So I went down the vintage route. This also wasn't as straight forward as I was expecting - raincoats in the olden days were either double breasted or voluminous, or both. 

A lot of the 1950's and 1960's coat patterns I saw (not specifically raincoats) were either swing coats or A line in shape. They often fall straight down from the bust line, and although they have an elegant look, they're just too big for my frame.

I want to have a large enough coat to protect me from the rain but don't really want to be dwarfed and/or look pregnant in the process. I think the more fitted look from the late 1960's/early 1970's is a bit closer to what I'm after. Here's a shortlist of what I found:

A classic Crombie style coat, which would have to be worn with the belt to get any shape.

This Simplicity pattern isn't bad, I like the long sleeved option but the collar might be a need toning down a bit. 

I love the princess seams on this McCall's pattern, this is very close to the fitted look I'm after.

Whereas the princess lines on this one may be a bit too exaggerated, even for me?

The single breasted green version ticks a lot of boxes.

This is more or less the same pattern, but much classier looking (except for version C!) It might just be a bit too A line in shape though.

Lots of potential there, but I think I've now got to the point where I need your help. Do I start scouring eBay and Etsy trying to find one of the vintage patterns that have taken my fancy? Or do you know of a modern pattern that's very similar in style to what I've just described? It doesn't have to be a specific raincoat pattern, it could just be a regular coat pattern that I can make with waterproof fabric. If you have any ideas or suggestions for patterns, please let me know in the comments, I'd be SSOO grateful. Thank you! x