Ottobre 05-2014 #3 Asymmetric Knit Jacket - This is why you should read directions . . .

I've been wanting to make this jacket for a long time. Four years, in fact. I don't know why it took me so long to finally do it. I think it was all the inside bias tape that slowed me down. I was scared of so much of it. In the end, it turned out that all the bias tape was not all that horrible. Here's the line drawing from Ottobre. What almost killed me was the knit welt pockets. I am used to the Jalie Charlie bomber jacket welt pockets and those are SO EASY compared to these Ottobre ones.

I like that you can unzip it for several different looks. I managed to find a zipper that was the same yellow-orange as the double-fold bias tape at JoAnn's. 

I love the pops of yellow on this jacket. I made it out of a medium-weight orange, wicking knit. It has some stretch across the width, but almost none in the length. 

And, directions, let's talk about that for a minute. Usually, on a knit, I take the cuff and fold it wrong sides together and then serge it to the sleeve. This time, people, this time, I read the directions and they blew my freaking mind. I never could make a good looking topstitch stitch when there was a lumpy, uneven seam on the back. There would be three layers on the backside of one side and only one layer on the other side.  You understand what I'm saying, right? You can't topstitch that shit. When you read the directions, they tell you to do this instead. 

Sew the cuff to the sleeve with a straight stitch and press open. 

Fold the cuff over the open seam.

Flip to the right side and do your fancy stitches (on EVEN seams!!!!).

It ends up looking like this. You end up with a nice topstitched seam and something that looks nice underneath.

See??? A whole new way to add decorative stitching to seams with thick and uneven seam allowances! I'm going to start doing this for cuffs and sleeves. I'm going to use this for the rest of my sewing days.

Also, there has been less on the blog these days because quick things, like t-shirts, I've just been posting on Instagram. Come and find me @two_on_two_off!!!!! I have a private account so you just have to ask to follow me. I have it set that way because, well, I'm a teacher, and I don't always want my students to see my sewing things. But if you sew, come and look me up over there!

Jalie 3881 - Rose - Sleeveless Button-Up Top

Okay, you guys know I'm all Jalie Fangirl, but I love this pattern, It's hot right now and I'm dying. Remember that I'm an Alaskan girl, so when I'm dying of heat, it's like 65 degrees. Anyway, DYING of heat lately. This is a loose, button-down (button-up??) woven top. It's a very simple design but with small details I love and a perfect Jalie fit. I made my standard size S. I love the regular, non-ruffle version for myself and the ruffle and bow version for my girls. I think it would be a great work shirt too to wear under a cardigan or sweater with the shirt tails peeking out.

I made my version out of a mystery poly (rayon?) woven. There is a ReMade store close to me which is basically a really cool Goodwill. It is local people donating local goods, and then local artists re-make them into awesome things. You can find lots of "need a little love" items to fully created art pieces. I love to go in there and look around. I've found a lot of great fabric there. This fabric seems to have birds (I like to think of them as bats) on a blue, green, and pink background. The drape is perfect for this pattern. 

I added my standard 1" above the bust (without disrupting the armholes) and the fit is perfect. I love the pleat in the back, the shirt tail hem, and the ever-so-slight hi-low hem. On this pattern, there are no darts for shaping. The only shaping comes from the side seams. 

I used small, pink 11mm buttons. Although, on these pictures, they look white. I never put a button on the collar stand because I never button my shirts up that high. See? Bats, totally bats. 

And, of course, when my kids are helping me take pictures, they pose me in all sorts of ridiculous ways. 

B: Mom! Take the cat! The cat wants to be famous. 

C: Mom, why are your arms all veiny and weird and stuff?

Me: It's SO HOT. 

C: What?? It's not hot. You're weird. 

B: Mom, why is your mouth open in every photo you take? 

Me: Touche, B, touche. 

(I'm wearing this top with my new Jalie linen shorts. I really love them and they go with everything!)

Here is the kid version I made for my little twinny. It's SO CUTE in this floral cotton voile. Although, it does mean I'll have to iron it, but maybe that's okay for a shirt this cute. 

Don't you love the fabric? And the ruffle bow tie? Although, I had the hardest time making a good bow. I finally had to watch a YouTube video on how to do it. 

Cute, eh??

Swimsuit: Julia Bottoms and Jalie 2446 Top

I recently made a Gigi swimsuit which I have, unfortunately, misplaced. How does one misplace a swimsuit, you ask? I have no earthly idea. I traveled to California recently to help out a friend and went to the World's Coldest Pool, so I know I had it there. Since I've been home, I cannot find it. I cannot verify that it ever made it home OR that it ever made it out of the dressing room of the room.  This is a long explanation for why I am making another swimsuit. Sigh. This time I wanted to use the new Jalie Julia pattern to make the bottoms because they are so cute and also so comfortable. I used Jalie 2446 for the top. I have used this pattern many times before but I've never made this view. I usually make the top from View A. This time, I used View B because I wanted to use some contrast FOE to match the bottoms.

For this suit, I used a swimwear Lycra/Nylon fabric and a nude swimsuit lining. The only modification I did was to not quite follow the Jalie directions using fabric binding and instead used FOE for the black border and the straps that ties in the back. 

Because FOE is a little wimpy, in my opinion, I sandwiched clear elastic in the straps while I was sewing them. This makes the FOE perfect for stand-alone straps. I will probably do this when I make my next Julia camisole too. It just gives it a little more structure. 

I really love it!!! Let's see, other details . . . I made a smaller size for the top because I knew I would not be using the seam allowances so if I made my regular size, it would be too large because of those unused seam allowances. I could have just cut off the seam allowances, but meh, this works too. 

I bought the fabric in Yardage Town last summer. I really love the colors and the print. And look! No rain!!!

New Jalie Lisette Skirt

I was able to test some of these patterns before they were released. One of my favorites was the Lisette skirt. It's comfortable, easy to sew, and classy once you are done. I made the version with the shaping seams along the side. I used a floral neoprene for the flashy panel on the front. And yes, I'm  wearing a super classy, shredded leopard t-shirt with it.

I really love that there are so many options with this pattern too. Not only can you change the length, but you can change the design lines too. It's a great way to highlight a small piece of knit fabric for the front.