Sunday, May 24, 2015

Results and Moving On

I am thrilled to share with you that I came third in the Artisan's Square SWAP this year. Wow! I know that my collection was a slightly unconventional one, and there really was some great stiff competition. Woot! I really must drop a line to Tina Givens and let her know! Thanks to all who voted for me, and those who set me on this track to try out these patterns. One last pic . . . . . !


So, what next? Well, one of the garments that would enhance this collection is a cardigan/jacket and I spent an inordinate amount of time auditioning patterns, and not really getting anywhere. And then I saw a sew-a-long on Artisan's Square for a 6PAC (6 pieces of clothing). The guidelines
- One lightweight jacket or sweater in a neutral
- Another lightweight jacket, sweater or shirt in a colour or lighter neutral or a print
- A pair of shorts, trousers, or capris in a neutral
- A skirt in a neutral or colour
- A shortsleeve shirt, blouse, or t-shirt in a neutral
- Another shirtsleeve shirt, blouse, or t-shirt in a neutral.

Hmmm. Interesting! Well, here are the fabrics that I am going to use:


All linen/cotton fabrics, off white, pale blue, navy and dusky rose (I know that it looks like baby pink, but it isn't.  Honest!) So here is what I have made so far . . . . apologies for using my body double - but there are times when it is too much effort to get all dressed up, sort out the camera, tripod and timer, organise the houndies so they don't photobomb the pics, get all showered and sort hair etc.,etc.,etc.,

So this is what I have made so far:


I started up with a pair of trousers in the off white fabric. Same as before, I used the Jaqueline pattern from Tina Givens.  And these are the changes that I made:  Lifted the crotch to a regular height (I used my regular pants pattern and therefore created front and rear crotch curves), created side seams (the pattern has you cut both legs on the fold), add seam allowances and cut out pockets using the Phoebe pattern.  The first time I made these took some time due to the pattern changes, but now I can make them up pretty quickly and they fit me well!

I then used the Phoebe pattern to make a casual jacket.  I moved the front pattern piece (that is usually cut on the fold) about 1.25" away from the edge of the fabric, and cut out two pieces.  I only use the inner pattern pieces, although I suspect this would look pretty cool with two layers.  For this version I used a rolled hem for the bottom of the jacket and lengthened the sleeves to 'bracelet' length.  I used bias binding for the neck edge - (self fabric, using a Clover bias binding maker). I cut my BB at 1.25", the extra .25" seems to make a better binding to my mind.  For the facings where the buttons/buttonbands are, I attach a piece of ribbon to the right side near the edge, then press it to the wrong side and sew it down.  This gives a smart, non-bulky finish.


And I sewed a couple of patches on the back. Just because! It is shown here with my white linen Jaqueline slip from my SWAP (the one with a lace patch on the front) and a necklace that I made (more on the necklace in a future post).

Then I made another Jaqueline slip.  For this version, instead of having an asymmetrical hem (which is a pain to cut out) I cut both the front and back pieces in half, and cut them out using the longer dropped hem edge.  A bit like a Zelda really, but without the frill. This time, for the arm and neck openings, as as well as the hem, I attached bias-binding, just folded in half. I used a three step zigzag stitch and it seems pretty sturdy. Here are my three off white pieces together:




And some more patches!


This is the reason that I was happy to use a raw edged binding. I had washed my white linen slip (that had a raw edge neck and arm opening) and the finished result is a soft and fluffy binding:


That is three pieces all finished - I have another two two pieces completed - using the dusky rose fabric - and will share those in a couple of days!  Here is a sneak peak of the off white jacket and pants, with the rose top:


What are you working on? Wardrobe building or having fun with individual pieces?

20 comments :

  1. Wow, Wow, Wow. Three new pieces already. They look great. Also, congrats on the swap third place.

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    1. Thank-you! I found that the SWAP really kicked my sewing into high gear, and I haven't been able to stop!

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  2. Congratulations again on your SWAP. You're obviously pleased with it as you're making more! Great

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    1. Thank-you Ruth - it was a great experience and I thought really hard about making garments that I would want to wear. And now I can't stop!

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  3. Congratulations! You deserve it! All your pieces work so well together. I love the colours you have chosen for your new garments (it does look rose pink on my iPad). Subtle and great for the time of year x

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    1. Thank-you, they were fun to make and have been even more fun to wear!

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  4. Congratulations on your wonderful collection.

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  5. The entire collection is beautiful!!! I love the patches!

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    1. Thank-you, I felt a little self conscious about them at first, but they are pretty subtle and they are growing on me!

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  6. Congrats again and good for you for casting us Lagenlookers in such a gorgeous light by proxy :)

    What a smart idea you've hit upon for compatible cardi-jacket for your Tina Givens pieces! Works wonderfully with your wardrobe. One of those ideas which is completely obvious - after the one brilliant person has hit on it ;)

    How do you like the Clover bias maker? I do quite a bit of bias, these days i end up using bias on pretty much every garment i make, but have yet to try a bias maker. And using a raw edge on the bias seems a great choice for you, as raw edged bias is a much neater look than on the straight of grain. Well done!

    Pet those hounds for us!

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    1. Thank-you, glad to help out!! I plan to turn the Jaqueline Slip into a jacket as well - I think that the asymmetrical hem would look quite funky as a jacket.

      I love the Clover bias maker - I never use shop bought bias binding, so this is my'go to' piece of kit! When I cut the bias strips I usually make then 1.25" wide rather than the suggested 1" widths. I find that this gives me a better depth to the fold. I've actually changed nearly all my hems to the raw edged bias binding - I love the look and it is very quick to add :) So far the laundering has worked well and the edging is holding up!

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  7. Congrats on the SWAP.. So happy for you.
    love the new pieces you are working on.. Happy sewing.

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    1. Thank-you Judy. I am on such a roll with these garments - I just can't stop!

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  8. oh my goodness throwing yourself right into another sew along lol! loving the nutrals!

    Helen

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    1. Yep! And it is all finished - just need to take the photos!

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  9. I'm so inspired by your fantastic taste and fabulous sewing skills.
    I'm about to try to re-create your Phoebe jacket. But I'm looking at the sizes now and I'm wondering: did you make a size closer to your actual size than she suggests? Because I'm looking at you, and it seems more fitted.

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  10. Hi Robin, thank you! For the Phoebe 'jacket' I had a basic jacket that fit me well around the shoulders, upper back and arms. I have sloping shoulders and a rounded upper back so the pattern I used had been altered to fit these issues. I then laid each pattern piece (of my altered piece) on top of the Phoebe pattern, and prophet them together. The Phoebe mostly shaped from the underarms down to the hem. For the centre front I made some bias loops and attached them to one of the fronts about 4" apart. I finished the neck and the bottom of the jacket with some 1 1/2" bias biding folded in half once, and applied so that the raw edges were shown. To finish off I attached some ribbon to the right side of both front pieces and then turned it to the inside and top stitched it down. Another thing that I have started doing when attaching buttons, is to also sew a small bottom on the inside of the button band at the same time as the outside button. I find that re-inforces the outer button and puts less stress on the fabric.

    I hope that helps you out - and I also hope you will let me know how you get on!

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