Progress on a Christmas project

 Hello, everyone.

This is a progress post of a new project.

This will be a tank top Christmas shirt. (Because here in deep South Texas we frequently have short sleeves weather for Christmas!) 

The design is a "vintage" style Christmas tree with birds in various colors. As y'all can see, the topper is still between the stitches; I decided to wait until the top is completed before soaking it off. I used the Sulky Stick n Stitch to float the interfaced knit in the hoop and the Sulky Solvy for the topper. Both Sulky products will soak off, leaving behind the ProSheer Elegance Fusible interfacing from Fashion Sewing Supply. The bobbin thread here was not the usual "crystal" 60 weight bobbin thread. I had noticed that letters look a lot better if I use the Aurifil 80 weight thread left over from the Lion Purse project when testing a design for Thanksgiving decorations. It's so much clearer and nicer on thin lines that I loaded a bobbin on purpose with that 80 weight cotton thread. There just isn't any occasional frost of bobbin thread showing at the base of the stitches on thin lines with it. 😊 

The pattern is from Burda Style 2006 November issue number 111...back then the magazine was still called Burda World of Fashion. It's an easy, wearable tank top that works well with bra straps. Somewhat form-fitting in shape, more so than the similar Kwik Sew tank top is, but unlike the Kwik Sew version it doesn't have a scoop back neck. 

A note on the Aurifil thread: it comes on wooden spools, not plastic ones, so there is no handy built-in thread clip to hold the end. And one of my spools had a snag at one end of the spool. The others seem to all be okay, but I have learned to feel around the edge to see if it will grab the (very thin!) thread while sewing.

On the colors: I ran "auto levels" in my Photoshop Elements and the colors of everything popped up a bit. The blue of the shirt is a little bit dustier in color. The fabric is the same Telio knit that was used for the night shirt a while back...there was quite a bit left over from that!

A new finish

 Hello, everyone.

Today's post is a new finish, but it's also a stash item. And a rough-draft of a future garment.

This is a cardigan from a prior year's Burda Style (July 2019, number 103) with a shorter length--the design original length looked a lot like "commune clothes" when tried out--and with the sleeve enlarged to accommodate my non-stick-figure arms. 

I guess the way to keep a long, long cardigan from looking like that is to use the shown metallic knit in the magazine photos. Or to be 5'10 or over, weigh 107 pounds and combine it with skinny pants and high heels. The cardigan's more usable at this length because like most people I go places in cars while wearing sweaters or jackets. 😉 And at this length a person isn't constrained to wear spike heels and leggings with it.

Detail of the new sleeve. I tried to keep the wider lower sleeve from the design as much as possible, while opening up the upper arm. I kept the armhole seam length from changing by following the directions in one of my fitting/alterations books to open a cross shaped cut inside the seam line and pull it apart until the needed width was achieved. This was a first time for me!

The fabric is an ice-blue poly or rayon with spandex knit that has been lying around the place for a while. I am thrilled to have used up some of it.

For the seams I used the canned "stretch" slanted-zigzag on my sewing machine. It's a useful stitch, but it works a LOT better if it's sewn on a more stabilized knit--I interfaced the sewn bits all over the place with a knit type interfacing.

This was a test drive for using the beautiful piece of gray knit I got from EmmaOneSock to make a cardigan with. 

Thanks to DD2 for making phone photos for me!

The tee shirt is my spiffy Montana merino one from Duckworth. 

Sewing: using a mundane shirt pattern for a hiking shirt

Hello, everyone.

I strolled through the posts of the Camino Portugues from 2015 and discovered that, while I have a picture of this blouse in action, it didn't make the blog.

This blouse was from a Burda magazine pattern. It has short sleeves, a keyhole front neck, and is otherwise a straightforward blouse.

The solid was a lightweight poplin, sadly with  DWR coating, easy to cut but did like to fray a bit. The mesh, seen in this photo being fitted with some stabilizing fabric before being attached to the bottom part of the back, was a stretch mesh. Like the poplin it was from Fabric.com.

I added a back yoke to the blouse by cutting the back bodice piece in two, then added seam allowance to the bottom part where the cut was, and to the top part, and then tracing a longer piece with a hem allowance. The top part, which was underneath, was cut from the mesh for breathability. The longer piece, which was over the mesh, was of the main blouse fabric. It was sewn at the shoulders and sleeve and of course at the neck. The hemmed top piece was tacked in the middle of the back so it wouldn't fly all over. (I did mention that the fabric was lightweight!)

Overall, the works well. The fabric is semi-sheer so works better with a light colored bra underneath. It doesn't breathe other than the mesh panel in back, because of the DWR coating mentioned above. Also the little keyhole in front wasn't easy for me to get just right on the button loop size. (Button loop was made from a piece of the blouse fabric, just a simple bias tube.)  But I found a button that worked with the loop I had.

Other times I have tried this trick haven't worked as well. It's important to consider what kinds of stabilizer you're using in seams. This goes double if you're adding in extra pockets! It's also, I think, better to use a blouse pattern than a tank pattern--well, if you have one of the Saf-T-Pockets tank patterns you're good to go. Those pockets are worked out already. Just use a lightweight fabric, preferable breathable.

It's fun to make gear for the Camino. It uses up stash if you already had some mesh or ripstop around the place, and it lets you think about the next Camino you're going to walk.

The completed blue top

Hello, everyone.

I found the mislaid photo of the (nearly completed) top: the camera had decided it was taking pictures in 2011!

But here it is...

I think this was taken before I added a long triangular gusset in the back. The main features are in view here--the buttons don't really need to open. But using up stash buttons is good, too, along with the stash fabric and the stash zippers.

A new stash project has been started--and I had to go to the store and buy fabric to finish cutting it out. (Ran out of poly organza for the underlining! Also picked up a beige zipper.)

Working on pattern layout on the beige boucle

The intention for this is to be a beige skirt for the cooler months, with godets at the seams instead of a kick pleat in back. The basic skirt form is a pencil skirt--the same pattern that was once made up in the blue of that top above--from Burda of January, 2008. It will have pockets in front, not wide pockets, but still able to hold a pen or a card.

A programming note, I will be away from my computer for a few days and posting may be deferred until I get back.

Pink blouse progress

Hello, everyone

Today there is a small update on the "Don't-Run-Me-Over Pink" blouse.

Progress to-date

The pocket in this photo, the lower pocket that is, had snap closures. I wanted to try putting a zip closure there instead, and turned to the Stash of Zippers.

They have their own drawer in the little plastic cabinet!

Sadly, no hot pink invisible zips are there. After crawling the internet and deciding not to order one--really, it would have been the only thing I needed and would cost a small fraction of the shipping costs--I conferred with DH and he suggested seeing if there is a zip that goes with the pocket stripes.

As happens, while there is no invisible zip in Ecru, there is one in Natural which is only a tad lighter than the pocket trims.

So, in addition to installing snap closures down the front and hemming the bottom, I will try adding a zip on the pocket opening.

The hot pink blouse has cousins, so to speak

Hello, everyone.

The blouse under construction, from the February, 2007, issue of Burda, is close to being a TNT for me. Or it was! I'm out of practice on collars, so there is no picture of the hot pink blouse today. It's a day of frustration!

Here are two of its "cousins."

In batiste, without a collar, and the gathered sleeves

In flowered shirting, with black collar and the gathered sleeves

Maybe tomorrow there will be a progress report on the hot pink blouse.

It was meant to be blogged on last year but didn't happen: orange top

Hello, everyone.

The orange top of the title has been mentioned in passing more than once. It was made to use up stash and to have a shirt to wear on the Camino Portugues.

The fabric is a nylon Taslan crinkle type, very light weight, and there is a mesh panel in the upper back for breathability. (Is that a word?)

attaching the mesh inner yoke

the mesh needed an edge, so a strip of the Taslan was added as reinforcement

"Feeding" the bronze chickens. Love the Portuguese street sculptures! 

The fabrics: the mesh was bought along with a red mesh, to patch a pocket in DH's pack that had been slightly torn on the return in 2014. A little snip of the red took care of that handily--and there was a yard of this salmon mesh just lying around, blending into the mass of stash. The orange nylon was bought at the same time--both from Fabric.com--and a Burda blouse pattern was used. (Link goes to a Pin of the pattern.)

The yoke seams have reflective piping, which is light gray, and there is an AB finish button at the front neck: a blue fish.

The light crinkle Taslan ravels quite a bit. It has a DWR coating, so moisture basically doesn't pass out of the top. Thus the mesh yoke!

Bearing in mind that the technical fabrics were all bought in late 2014, for the pack repair, and then the various 1 yard pieces were just sitting there, I call the entire project a stash buster.

It works OK for evenings but doesn't let out heat well enough to hike in during a hot day. 2015 had a lot of hot days. This top came out in the evenings.

A few notes about gear and sewing

Hello, everyone.

There has been sewing going on around here, and thinking about what to sew...paging through the mountains of accumulated Burda Style (formerly World of Fashion) issues and wondering which of the patterns would work with the stash fabric on hand.

There is a new top done now. It's cotton cambric, a smooth-finish fabric that is a bit like batiste. I still have over a yard left of this red fabric, plus there is also a chunk of blue that is like it. (Really need to learn to either make a decision or don't get anything!)

The pattern has been made before, in a linen-rayon blend with pictures of houses.

 The linen-rayon blend was comfortable to wear while traveling, and if folded right away isn't a mass of wrinkles. (The shorts were bought at Bass Pro Shop: nylon-lycra blend fabric, extremely comfortable, though I had to add a piece of elastic at the back waist and take it in a smidge so they wouldn't fall down! They still need a belt if the phone is in the pocket.)

 Some more stash used! Though now I remember that the cut-on cap sleeves are a little bit odd when I reach forward.

 Next stash usage project: a blouse, to use up the microfiber poplin in the collection. This has a peached surface on one side, and DWR coating on the other. With only one yard, there isn't enough to make an outer garment out of it, so it will be a blouse.

The pattern, except that the gathering on the sleeves may not happen. The fabrics they had in mind for it are lightweight stuff like the cambric, and this poplin is more of a regular shirting weight. Possibly the sleeve will get a small pleat instead. The possibility of a mesh pocket in the front darts is being explored. It would be a place to stick thin things, like maybe a passport or a keycard. It would also be a way to vent heat, as the pocket material is going to be mesh.

Y'all may remember the orange blouse with the reflective piping from last year's gear sewing. There was a mesh yoke in the back, under the fashion fabric layer, since the fabric (a crinkle nylon with DWR) was incapable of breathing. It worked out okay, but I mostly wore it in the evenings. It wouldn't be suitable to wear in 100 degree heat (afternoon hiking last year) as the heat had only the one mesh panel and the neckline to vent out through. (The odd remnants of the orange stuff, though, would make a usable pouch for various things.)

As far as purchased gear lately, besides the wonderful beige shorts pictured above, there is a merino knit wool dress from Icebreaker. (I peeked at their site yesterday, and while the gray I got is gone, they still have pink and also a lovely light aqua.) It is a tank style dress, and it's very comfortable. Works with regular bra straps, but not so well with the thin-strap racer back ones. (Bra straps creep into the neckline area.) I styled it with a bright long scarf and wore it to church and to official functions. It's wonderful!

Another stash project finished

Hello, everyone.

The striped top is done. And I may end up tossing the pattern tracing altogether.

front

 Except for needing to lower the front of the neck by quite a bit, and take in a couple tiny tucks at the neck, the front wasn't too bad.

back

The back, however, was just way, way too big. I ended up taking it in a lot, except at the bottom where the rear hits. And if the top were shorter, the rear wouldn't enter into it, so to speak. Or if the top were traced a lot smaller to start with, a peplum could be put on at the back.

Which kind of takes the thing out of casual top and into fussy top. Maybe it's just that the linen is a fabric with too much "body" for the design. I think I'll look at the magazine and see if they had in mind something lighter and clingier, and if that doesn't clarify it, I'll just toss the tracing and write that one off as too much bother to do again.

Skirt finished; next stash project is begun

Hello, everyone.

As you see in the title, the gray skirt is finished.

The fabric is a batiste, so it's a little bit see-through. Thus the light blue lining that went behind it.

Most recent photo of the project:

The skirt is hemmed. 

 On the skirt order of work: the hems were added to the fashion fabric and the lining before the circle of the garment was closed. Then the lining was joined to the waist and the invisible zipper was added. After that, the bottom part of the seam was closed up and the edges of the lining around the zipper were hand-stitched down. and at the end a hook and eye were added above the zipper, to keep from having too much stress on the teensy, tiny plastic teeth of the zip.

Bias tape pinned to the armhole

 As with the skirt project, I'm trying to remember to do steps that involve closed circles before the circles are closed. (The neck edge didn't happen that way. But I think it's worked out okay.)

Back neck pleats for shaping

The traced pattern on this top (Burda magazine July, 2015, number 113/114/115) was bagging out terribly all over, and the neck was very high in front. Higher than my neck has ever been! Even the tracing was uncomfortable. So I lowered the center front by possibly 3/4", and also added tiny pleats to help control the fullness of the bust. Then, the back being all over the place, too, and the armholes looking weird, added larger pleats to the back of the neck. When sewing those pleats, I decided to treat them a little bit like "action pleats" and add matching pleats to the waistline area. The space in between the sewn pleat may be pressed into shape, but it will be able to open when I reach forward. (We'll see how that works out. This particular top is in part a wearable prototype for future garments.)

The fabric is a stash piece of linen with woven-in stripes and tiny flanges at the bottom edge of each stripe. It feel thick to the hand, but it's very easy to sew.

On another subject, since the rosary hasn't gotten any new beads for a few days and the finish may be delayed, a progress photo. The center is ready to be added. The wire is 22 gauge black-coated copper wire. I'm hoping that the wraps will be a little bit more delicate and less attention-grabbing than the 20 gauge wire wraps always are.

Pendent of the aqua rosary in progress

New projects

Hello, everyone.

As y'all know, the shower-stuff bags are done. (Well in advance of any concrete plans to use them!)

Cruising through the closet, and the boxes, of stash revealed a very pretty dove-gray cotton batiste. It is, of course, a little thin to use by itself in a garment. It has been underlined on the crucial pieces with white batiste, not quite so thin, but compatible,

The gray cotton will make up into a gathered skirt with a yoke, a shorter version of the skirt in the September, 2006, issue of Burda.

There was also a piece of striped linen, with little flanges on each of the stripes. That is going to become a top. (I considered making a top from the gray as well, but there isn't enough fabric to do that. Some other item will have to consume the rest of the gray fabric.) The top is from the July, 2015 issue of Burda. It needed some adjustment, as the neck was way too high in front and there was a lot of baggy at the neck all around. I'm hoping that it works out with the changes--they work on the pattern tracing fabric but in actual use there may be unforeseen issues. There may need to be a closure added at one shoulder if the neck is too small after the changes.

And that's what's on the sewing table just now.

A Burda dress pattern

Hello, everyone.

As part of the continuing campaign to use up stash, I devoted a chunk of fabric to making a dress from the Burda pattern magazine. (It used to be World of Fashion but I don't know what its current name is.)

There were two versions in the magazine, a short one with pockets and short sleeves and an upright (not to say Mao) collar, and a longer one with inseam pockets and long sleeves and a plain neckline.

I mixed and matched a little while tracing my current size.

From the September, 2014 issue, pattern 101

(I dug out the magazine to caption the photo and learn that its current name is Burda Style.)

I styled it with a belt and a necklace that was on hand, the beaded one with the charcoal Cross of St. James and little pink accents. It works. I used the skirt length of the longer version and the sleeves of the shorter one, used the collar, and used the front pockets as well. Skipped putting a hook and eye onto the front neck opening...hate to be choked in my clothes.

Now getting ready to quilt up the Pink Explosion quilt and doing prep work to start another one: in blues this time, with a boyish theme. Boats, rockets, airplanes, something like that.