CAbi Spring 2009 - My Favorites

Another season, another CAbi party put on my a friend. I never buy anything at these gathering but it's fun to get together with friends, eat food, and look at details.

There were several skirts like this in the collection. You could easily use BWOF 10/2008 #103 to make your own.

There were a couple of vests in the collection too. I liked the cropped look of this one.

I liked this casual seersucker jacket. I found BWOF 08/2006 #119 which is pretty similar.

I really liked this jacket. It was topstitched in really chunky sable brown. The back had a cute topstitched tab with button (see drawing).

I liked this brown jacket too. It's not really my color but it's cute. It had a lot of zippers, pockets, and other details. It would take forever to make but it would be a great basic piece. The inside is not lined but all the seams are finished with contrasting bias tape.

This is your basic wrap dress with a t-shirt and skinny belt. I really liked the dress when she ditched the t-shirt and put the big chunky belt on it (as you can see from my notes).

This is the big belt I liked.

I really liked this trenchy-jackety top. I don't really like this color. It's horrid on my with my olive-y complexion.

This top was really cute too. It's sheer and open in the front. It has ties that keep it closed. I didn't notice until after the presentation that the ties start out skinny (next to the body) but get wider. The end of the ties is about 6" wide with cute little gathered details. The entire garment is finished with a three-thread serger stitch. That's the hem, the ties, the bodice, everything.

I knew you guys would appreciate seeing the details on this jacket. It's a bit too fru-fru for me but it's cute and fit well.

I liked this lime green tank. It was gathered on the bust and then had a raw edged overlay. IT was a great knit.

They had this dress in black too. The black one was shorter. You could totally make this using the BWOF 05/2008 #117 dress. The pattern is for a woven but you could change that.

I really liked this cropped sweater. I thought for a couple of minutes about actually purchasing it. But beige is another bad color on me. And, well, I'm cheapfrugal. The flower detail on the shoulder was very cute.

The Jalie patterns finally came. I have the jeans traced out but haven't had time to cut them with Easter and all. I hope to cut them out tomorrow but we'll see. I made cute (but poorly made) little Easter Bunny stuffies for my kids. I'll take pictures tomorrow.

Burda 04-2009 #118 Bell Bottom Jeans

So I told you guys I was itchin' to make jeans right? These aren't jean-jeans. They are more of the trouser jean variety. I really like them. I used BWOF 04-2009 #118, a slim bell-bottom pant with patch pockets on the front instead of the back. Here's the line drawing.


The model photo. This woman has no butt. None.

Here's my version. I only put one patch pocket on the front but added two slightly larger ones to the back. I figured this woman did have a butt and there was a lot of blank real estate back there with no pockets.

I used my new embroidery machine to add tone on tone decorative embroidery to the pockets. I really wanted them to be mirror image but my embroidery machine said they were too big to edit on the machine. I'll have to get some embroidery software so I can do that on the computer. I assume you can do that right? Change it on the computer, put the new file on the thumbdrive, and stick it in your machine? The embroidery doesn't show up this much, it's the flash that makes it stand out.

Front detail shot. I topstitched with Coats and Clark Heavy Duty thread in a warm copper tone. I added a jeans-style button and topstitched the waistband. I did modify these slightly so they were below the waist. The original pattern stops at the waist but I like my pants an inch or so lower. This is a good height for me.

Here's the back view. Sorry for the oddly angles shot. I was doing this myself. You can see the pockets are about 1/8" off. I waited until I had already put the pants together before placing the pockets. I wanted to make sure they were in the right spot. Oh, and the embroidery is from UrbanThreads.com. It's called Delicate.

I've got some sort of front thigh thing going on here. You can see how it looks snug in this picture. Must run more and lift weights less.

Here's a more accurate shot of the fabric. It's from Gorgeous Fabrics and it has an almost teal cast to it. It's a lightweight material and has no stretch.

I took this shot so you could see how wide these are at the hem. I added a deep hem to the bottom.

Here they are in their bell bottom glory. In this picture you can barely see the embroidery. That's the look I was going for.

I played with my other "new" machine too. I set the Necchi up as a buttonholer and topstitching machine. Doesn't it make pretty keyhole buttons??!?!?

Here it is in action.

I'm still waiting on the Jalie patterns. Harumph . . . . maybe tomorrow.

Who Wrote the 600th Jalie Review?

It was me! A few days ago, I posted my Jalie undergarment review and then checked Bloglines to see what was up in the sewing world. Unbeknownst to me, Emilie had written a little ditty about the 600th Jalie review. Jalie's prize for the 600th review is a free pattern! Now I just have to decide which one I want. Here are my top picks:


I would make the top longer but I like the lines of it. I love the stretchy exercise pants. This is what I run in.




I've always really liked this coat. Especially the green one with the hood.


I've liked this one since it came out too. I can see a whole family batch of these (with little embroidered patches like the gray one).




The new faux-wrap top. You can't have too many faux-wrap tops can you?

What do you guys think? Is there one that I missed? I have several of their patterns already.

Burda 12-2008 #118 Skirt

This has been cut out and sewn for quite a while. All I had to do was hem it. I started the other night and finished today, outside, while I was watching my girls play in the cul-de-sac. By the time I was done my hands were cooooold. It's still pretty chilly up here. I think the high temperature for today was about 37F. My deck still has snow all over it. I came close to death when my cute little shoes almost killed me.

I traced this pattern off in December but decided I had to have it after I saw Karen's review. I love her skirt. I stole borrowed her idea about getting rid of the front fly opening. Like Karen, I used a side zip instead.


The side shaping is almost obscene. It's not tight when it's on but I would surely say this is fitted.



I lined the inside with a mystery Grandma Rinnie silky blue fabric. It acts like polyester.


This is the topstitching I added to the back. I used a cream colored embroidery thread.

Here's the bottom of the left front side. The seam travels in a cork screw. It starts at the fly front, goes off to the right, goes under the butt, and travels back around to the front and ends at the bottom of the left hem.

Front.

Back.

Here's an inside shot. I don't like to serge the inside of wool crepe because it adds enough bulk that it shows through with ironing. When you do something like this with a lot of curves you have to make sure you clip all the curves so you can get the front nice and flat.

This is a wool crepe that was an ugly brown/gray color. I dyed it to this fun grape color when I made this dress. It used to match my carpet.

In the Mood for Jeans

Well, I'm in the mood to make jeans. I started that Sew Along over at Pattern Review and there are lots of people motivated to sew jeans. I still haven't gotten my Jalie patterns. I hope I get them this week. While I wait, I had the itch to sew jeans anyway. This is the back pocket for a trouser-type jean I am currently working on. I used my embroidery machine to stitch the design. It's really tone on tone. The only reason you can actually see the design detail is because of the flash. The embroidered part just adds texture basically. I used a copper colored thread for topstitching. I'll show you all the details once I get them done. All I have to do is the waistband, final fitting tweaks, and hemming. Hopefully I'll have two reviews for tomorrow.

This is the Midweight Denim from Gorgeous Fabrics. You can see in the picture it has sort of a tealish cast. I was surprised when I received it in the mail because the online photo just looks like regular ol' indigo denim. I really like it.

Jalie 2568 - Underwear

Well, here's Jalie 2568. I'm showing you the tamer version. This is the hipster version. Some of you will be shocked I'm showing my underwear online but it's less flashy than this swimsuit picture and less risqué than this coat photo.



This shows how the bikini version is cut. That one I am not putting online. It's a bit racier.



I didn't use elastic on the leg openings. That's where I get VPL if I'm going to get it. Instead, I bartacked all the seams so that it doesn't come apart. I did a test pair first. This pair has been worn twice and washed twice. The edges are not fraying and they look fine. Here I'm highlighting the bar tacks I used to keep the crotch lining in place. To do the bar tacks on this thin knit I used mt three-step zigzag stitch and set the width at 5.0 and the length at 0mm. That way, I'm just sewing a little line. It's easier to do than a "real" bar tack where you use your zigzag stitch.

The inside. The stretch elastic is from Seams Like Home.

Another bar tack.

Here's the full review from PatternReview.com:

Pattern Description:

Camisole with lace-trimmed rounded square front neckline. The scoop back neckline and armholes are finished with picot edge elastic. Hipster (A) with lace-trimmed waistband and hemmed leg openings (no elastic). Leg openings can be finished with picot edge elastic for better support. Bikini (B) with lace-trimmed waistband and picot elastic at leg openings. Both panties are offered with a choice of high or low waistline. Brazilian hipster (C) designed for wide stretch lace and available in adult sizes only.

I made both views B and C. I made the low-waisted underwear and added no elastic to the leg openings.

Pattern Sizing:

2T to Women's 22. I made the size R.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?

Yes, these look just like the model photos and the line drawings. I used really wide elastic on the hipster pair.

Were the instructions easy to follow?

The instructions were fine. They are underwear and I have made a few pairs before so it was easy to do without the instructions.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?

I love the fit of these underwear. In the gallery photo, I am wearing the hipster version with the wide (3") lace. The bikini version is a bit more flashy. I drew lines on the original version to show you. The only thing that bothers me is that the seam were the front and back meet seems to be a little far back. Next time, I'll move that seam forward about 3/4" of an inch.

Fabric Used:

This is a very think cotton/lycra knit with a lot of four-way stretch. It's a gray-green color which doesn't photograh very well.

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made:

I decided not to use elastic in the leg openings. If I'm going to have VPL, it's because of the elastic in the leg openings. I made a pair yesterday and wore them to see if it would be okay. I washed them to make sure the fabric would not fray. They are the most comfortable underwear I've ever worn. I'll be making lots more of these. On all the seams, I used my three-step zigzag set at zero length to make the bartacks. I didn't want any of those serger seams to come undone. I made sure that the serger tail was folded up in the seam when I bartacked it. I added 1 1/4" stretch lace to two pairs and 3" lace on the hipster pair.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?

I will sew this again. I love it!

Conclusion:

I was motivated by the Panty/Underwear Sew Along on this thread.

Jalie 2788 Twist Top

Let me tell you about the twist top. When I first started sewing (almost exactly two years ago) the Simplicity 4076 Twist Top was a hot pattern. I mean Hott. It has 134 reviews on PatternReview.com and was a Best Pattern of 2008. This was one of (maybe the first?) pattern I bought to use knits. I never reviewed the pattern because I could never get it to fit. That was before I realized that the Big 4 had a ridiculous amount of ease in their patterns. I tried their twist top pattern but it was gape-y, loose, and unattractive. I gave up on the twist top. I figure my bust was too small for a bust emphasizing pattern like this one. Well, my local boutique just started carrying Jalie patterns and I just had to support a local business; especially one that has been hearing me suggest Jalie for a year. Most of the patterns they had I already had in my pattern stash *blush* but I found two that I didn't have. One of them was this twist top. I bought it because I always liked the twist top pattern and had seen women on PatternReview.com that had small busts and still looked wonderful. I'm glad I decided to give it another go because I love this top. I used 1/4" elastic to stabilize the front. You can tell this elastic is bit too much for this drapey viscose/lycra because it pulls at the neck. I need to either use clear elastic next time or not stretch it so much when I sew it. I stabilized a bit too much.


I love this tie back. I may even make it lower for a sexy evening top. I went up a size in the hips and probably didn't need to. See the excess at the lower back and hips?

I'll post a proper review soon.

Oh, and I got a haircut.