First Skirt of Fall // Les Fleurs

When new things start hitting the sewing scene, I usually don’t get swept up into the hype. You’d be hard pressed to find an indie pattern that I’ve sewn up in the same year it was released, and am totally cool with leaving newly acquired fabric in the stash piles for months on end. I have too many things in the queue before I can move on, so new releases and fabric tend not to be much on my radar. But when Rifle Paper Co. comes out with fabric…things change.

At first I was actually pretty chill about the collection from Cotton + Steel. I saw the announcement and a few posts and thought it was gorgeous, but since I don’t often sew with floaty rayons and want to move on from quilting cottons, I didn’t think I would actually get anything. Then I saw a post on Colette highlighting the different C+S substrates and saw a full-bodied skirt using the linen canvas fabric. The wheels started spinning. Then more people started sharing their sneak peeks, and pre-orders, and shops posted that they were already selling out in pre-order. It sort of looked like this: Day 1: So pretty, maybe I’ll get some later. Day 2: PANIC! I NEED THIS FABRIC NOW FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS TEXTILE.

Ahem.

I settled on 2m of the beautiful floral on natural linen (and a yard of the flamingo lawn for a yet to be determined project – it was just too cute). The weight and structure of the fabric was perfect for what I wanted. It fit right into my autumn silhouette, just in time to kick off the first weekend of fall. In the summer I tend to wear longer dresses and skirts, in softer fabrics. But when the temperature dips, ironically my hemlines rise in more structured garments (and plenty of woolly tights). I knew this skirt would beautifully play into this plan.

From the pattern depths I dug out my trusty B5285 pattern (seen here) and cut out the box-pleated view B. I had toyed with the idea of making the Hollyburn skirt instead, but I really wanted the extra body that pleats would give. I still preferred the open pocket shape of the Hollyburn (as opposed to the in-seam pocked of the B5285) so I simply traced & cut along the pocket curve onto my front pattern piece and used the Hollyburn pocket bag pieces. I ended up having to shift over my front pleats toward the centre by 1 cm so it would all fit in, but the front pocket method is super easy to do and I think adds a nice extra touch of dimension.

To avoid skirt-to-tight stickage, I lined the skirt with a rayon lining I had lying around the back of my stash. The deep green was a perfect match to the print (don’t you love it when that happens?). To reduce waistline bulk and avoid pleating more than I needed to, I folded the pleats in on the pattern pieces before cutting out the lining. I then sewed it up separately and attached it to the skirt after the zipper, but before the waistband. Once everything was in, I hand stitched it down to the zipper for a cleaner finish (I mean, as clean as one can be when using contrasting thread).

Once again, even though I matched the pattern measurements perfectly, the skirt could have been about 1-2 cm tighter along the waistband. Constantly in the struggle of having skirts sit snugly on your waist where it’s supposed to vs too tight you can’t breathe. I suppose I could take off the waistband, take the skirt in at the side seams and reattach a shorter waistband but nobody got time for that. I just pulled the top closure over a little further than intended, and luckily the pleating hides the bit of bunching. I might sew in a second row of eyes to allow for multiple skirt tightness for say, in the situation I wear it to Thanksgiving dinner…

It may seem silly to put a label other than your own on your makes, but the selvage of this fabric was just too pretty to let go into the scrap bin. I saved and fray-stopped this piece to prove that my skirt is authentic Rifle Paper Co. 😉 .

With the leftovers of this precious fabric I had juuust enough to eek out a cover for some of my couch pillows. Thankfully the print happened to match totally with the other pillows (and even if it didn’t, I totally would have done it anyway), so now I have an extra fashionable couch, too.

Taking the photos of this project was so much fun, because I really enjoy wearing this skirt. You know some garments you make and you just feel so sassy and awesome in it? This is one of those. It was also my first time shooting photos at Golden Hour (right before sunset) and oh my goodness, what a difference it made.  The lighting was so interesting and flattering, plus bouncing off the warm colours of the neighbourhood, it was an autumn dream. It’s moody, warm and cozy and everything I know my favourite season to be.

Have a lovely fall weekend; enjoy those pumpkin spice lattes  ☕.

The Flyaway Anna Dress

It’s time for the fall frenzy! Thick linen skirts, cozy knitwear, LONG SLEEVES! Well…not quite yet. Snuggly, warm-hued clothes-to-be are being cut as we speak but there are still summer makes left to share. It feels awful rushing these end-of-season projects along. I mean, had they been made just a few short weeks earlier they would have had more than a few seconds in the spotlight. I guess it happens to all end-of-season makes, but it’s extra tragic when our victims are pretty summer dresses. I hope they will forgive me when I wear them all the time when spring rolls around.

After our little week in Banff, Rory and I took our real vacation south to Waterton and Nelson, BC. It was our first time venturing to that part of the mountains and we were so glad we opted to visit. The mountain views and hikes in Waterton were so stunning and unique, plus there’s nothing like sitting lakeside eating a hot dog after a day exploring waterfalls and trails. Nelson was a charming little town filled with heritage buildings, beautifully designed and unique parks and not a chain store in sight. We ate delicious local food, took a vintage streetcar to the beach and danced at a night market that appeared to have the entire town present. It really reminded me that some of the best travelling doesn’t need to be that far from home.

Anyhow, back to the dress. This is my second Anna dress and it has been sitting in my to-sew pile for a good long while, and only after planning the trip did it shoot to the top of the pile to actually get finished.

The fabric is from my Paris visit to Anna Ka Bazaar (it only took a year to get to that stash, but I am working my way through it now and it’s very exciting). It’s a buttery soft rayon fabric and has a gentle stretch that makes it super comfy to wear. I love the subtle abstract print that many people think looks like a flock of birds. When we were taking the photos we were secretly hoping a bunch of birds would fly up from behind me to match, but it was far too windy for any feathered friends to fly.

As you can see the wind made this shoot kind of tricky, but I was determined to utilize that beautiful view. I guess I am stubborn that way, but it also made for a creative challenge which is something I enjoy. I always want to think of different ways to present my makes on the blog that is visually interesting but still useful for people looking for inspiration and information about the garment.

With my first Anna dress, I find that the waist is very close fitted, and actually a smidge too tight after a wash. I decided to cut this one a little generously around the pattern pieces, which naturally meant I was totally swimming in it. After taking it all back in, I found a fit I was happy with, but the fabric was shifty and hard to press, so my seamlines no longer match up. C’est la vie.

Since I made this dress on relatively short notice, I didn’t have time to head to the fabric store. Luckily I had a cream zipper from my stash. It’s a vintage metal one from a random bag of zippers my grandma gave me. It’s a little worn down and if I simply pull the two back pieces apart it will just slide open. After wearing it twice I haven’t noticed it open much with movement which I am happy for, but it’s still not an ideal situation.

I find that stocking up on notions to be a challenge for me. When I am at the fabric store I only grab the zippers I need for projects I have immediately in mind. I don’t know how to properly anticipate which ones I might need later on. I don’t drive and there are no shops nearby, so trips to the fabric store only happen once every few months. Sometimes I want to make something spontaneously but get stuck by the fact that I don’t have a zipper in the right length or colour or style. Any tips for stocking up on notions in advance? Do you just buy one of every type and colour and stash them like a squirrel preparing for winter?

About making this dress, there’s not too much else to say. Anna is a beautiful pattern and I love that I don’t have anything else quite like it. It’s perfect for making in soft, floaty fabrics and has a dressier vibe while still being totally wearable any day. I hope I can transition this dress a little further down the calendar with some layers, but it can sometimes be hard to blend in light, wispy (unlined) garments. Many times the skirt fabric just sticks to my tights! Nothing like walking to work and having to tug at your skirt every few steps.

A Bright and Bold Gabriola Skirt

Last month I was lucky enough to steal away for a week in the mountains while Rory attended a conference. This happened because of this exact exchange;

“I told my mom I was going on this trip next week and she asked why you weren’t coming.”… “Wait… why aren’t I coming?”

I knew there would be some beautiful views available to me (as, hello, it’s the mountains) and in good sewing blogger fashion I spent the precious few days I had before leaving to sew up at least one new thing to shoot while I was there. When you have the opportunity for something new in the background you do not squander that chance!

The garment in question was this beautifully swishy and fun Gabriola skirt. It was a delightfully fast make. Though it did feel like time stood still finishing all those long seams, they were all straight lines so it wasn’t a huge risk to take if I happened to zone out and think of other things partway through.

I bought this fabric last summer in Paris from Anna Ka Bazaar knowing I wanted to make this exact pattern with it from the very beginning (quite rare for me these days). I knew the shape of the triangle print would play nicely with the unique hip panels on the skirt, and that the cotton would be so soft and breezy for the last few weeks of summer sun.

This is my second Gabriola, but last time I was working with limited yardage. THIS time I had enough and was able to go full-out volume. Growing up, I loved pretending that I was wearing long dresses everywhere, holding an invisible skirt as I walked up stairs and everything, and let me tell you, this skirt gives me full out princess vibes and it is very fun. You’ve never had a gust of wind blowing your skirt in beautiful wisps and waves feel so satisfying until you’ve made and worn a voluminous maxi skirt.

I had a touch of trouble with the waistband once again. Last time I had to take in about 1 cm from each side seam (I just pinched in the sewn in band because I was lazy) and was mindful of making sure it fit right. Measurement wise it totally should fit snug, but when I wear it I find it sits slightly loose. It doesn’t look like it’s too big but I can feel it and it’s very annoying. Sometimes I noticed the skirt even twisted around me a little. I like my high waisted garments to feel quite snug.  I don’t want to take it in, however because I worry when I sit (or eat a large meal) it will be too tight. I think the solution for me is to only make high-waisted garments in stretch fabrics instead of wovens, or consider adding in a bit of elastic or something to the waistband.

Speaking of waistbands, how picky are you when laying out fusible interfacing? I know since it is supposed to provide support, you should use one solid piece, but I couldn’t bear letting these odd bits go to waste. Seeing as it is fused to the fabric I figure that puzzle-piecing the scraps into things like waistbands should be fine. Since it is enclosed, if one of the scraps peel away it won’t go anywhere. I have done this before and haven’t experienced any problems, but are there any horror stories I should know about before I keep doing this? What else are you supposed to do with the off cut bits?

I also opted to add some inseam pockets, as that was one thing I really noticed was missing every time I wore my other skirt (#pockets4ever!). The hip detailing made an opportune placement to slide them in. I am pretty happy to have them, but I do notice it changes the silhouette of the skirt, as it doesn’t glide over the hips as smoothly as if they weren’t there, and they do gape open when I sit down. It doesn’t bother me much right now, but if it ever does, it’s the easiest fix ever to take them out.

Other notes; I cut a size 2 at the waistband and graded to a 4 at the hips and added about 5 cm of length to the hem to make sure it could actually hit the ground. Fabric is a lightweight cotton that pressed really well to play up the crisp lines of the print.

I am noticing a pattern of me making these skirts just as summer ends (I think they just sink to the bottom of the summer to-sew list) but I think a really lightweight rayon or something in a solid colour would be beautiful for the beginning of summer. Ah well, next year. Onwards to fall sewing plans!

Scattered Creativity

I am constantly in amazement of the talent in the online sewing community. Actually, I am in awe of the whole creative community. You follow along on blogs and Instagram and you see people pumping out projects like clockwork. Seamstresses have a new garment (or two, or three!) each week, knitters who complete socks in an afternoon, painters, photographers, weavers constantly making beautiful things come to life every day. You can’t NOT marvel at their impeccable skills, patience and creativity.

I envy them, I truly do, because that level of productivity and skill eludes me. No matter how much time available, how many stacks of fabric and patterns and ideas at the ready (trust me, there are loads), I will likely only get a garment or two done a month. Now here’s where, when I observe others, I am tempted to call myself lazy, chastise myself for watching too much Netflix, but when I really look at it, that isn’t the problem at all.

I just want to make ALL the things.

In the past year I’ve taken up knitting and weaving, while still dabbling in hand lettering, photography, scrapbooking, graphic design and any other crafty thing that happens to catch my eye. It brings to mind that old saying; Jack of all trades, master of none.

When you make things, and try new things, the easier it becomes to make and try NEW things. You learn to observe and reverse engineer, you build transferable skills that make it easier to understand what is happening. In short, it’s really easy to fall into that “Wow, [insert fancy craft here] is pretty easy and fun! It only took a few hours”.

But soon, as with all things in life, in order to level up from that excited beginner, you need to invest more time to get to level two. And here’s where I usually weigh my options. Spend 30 hours learning intermediate and advanced skills in craft A OR spend 3 hours messing around with the basics of craft B?

Time goes on and I hop hop hop around. I see an inspiring weaving online and decide to sketch it out, buy some neon yarn and enjoy a few peaceful hours with my warp and weft. I take a break from that to look at Instagram to see that Justine is hosting a watercolour lettering class, so sign me up! On my way to the class I’m texting a friend and we decide to marble some fabric, so I’ll stop and go pick up the paints. (Okay, so I am dramatizing the pace a bit here, but you catch my drift).

In many ways, I feel like this has enriched my creativity, allowing me to pull from many influences and gives me the ability to do so many different things. I can play and adapt, solve problems and copy things I see on Pinterest, in my own little way.

But sometimes I feel frustrated. Why have I not mastered invisible zippers? Why do I still mostly shoot my camera in Auto mode? Why have I not finished my design for Spoonflower? I feel stuck and plateau-ed in many of my favorite things, just leapfrogging between the plateaus, like stones on the water.

I grow a sense of longing as I observe others perfecting their test garments before moving onto their good fabric ( I don’t often sew voiles because I am worried my limited sewing quota will be spent by the time it’s done), or see someone make 3 t-shirts in one day. I feel left behind. Then I remember all that I HAVE accomplished, in all different ways.

I don’t really have any answers for which way is best, or if a way IS even best. Depending on what your goals are, focusing on one thing could be what you need, or it could be the opposite. Right now, personally, I don’t need to have really deep skills in any given craft. I can play shallow in anything that interests me because this is my free time, my creative space, and there are no rules or limits.

One day I could change my focus and this all will change too. Right now I will try to ward off those feelings of inadequacy and revel in the joy of dabbling. And if, one day I fall down the rabbit hole and want live in one craft only, that will be okay too, and I will fight off the feelings to go run to something new.

They say comparison is the thief of joy and I wonder if that is the moral of the story. For all those skilled craftsmen I feel inadequate against, perhaps some of them envy my freedom to try everything. We all have our own strengths, our own goals and our own time, so maybe it’s not worth it to try and play apples to apples at all.

Do you ever feel like you could level up your skills in one area or do you wish you could try more things? At any given time do you tend to focus on one craft, or many?

 

In the breeze, Sway with ease

The dog days of summer are in full swing. Sunshine! Humidity! Thunderstorms! The intense desire to avoid wearing pants!

No? Is that just me?

As we settle into the heat of August there is nothing more unpleasant than putting on anything tight when the air around you already feels like a thick, woolen hug. It’s at precisely this point every year when I realize I have exactly two casual free flowing dresses on hand for at least a week of sweltering weather. Luckily THIS year, I also happened to have the Sway dress pattern plus some brightly-coloured floaty viscose unassigned to any other project.

I have been wanting to make a Sway dress for some time now, loving the versatility of the pattern. I had a few fabrics on hand that were sort of earmarked for this dress but there was just something about the combo that wasn’t exciting and I avoided the project for months. As I felt the heat and pondered my Sway, I glanced at my pile of newly acquired pretties from San Francisco and this floral popped right out at me.

When I was fabric shopping, I really liked this fabric but didn’t have any projects in mind for it, so I decided just to get my standard 1.5 m that I get for any I-love-this-but-unsure-of-what-to-make-with-it fabrics. I found that with amount I can make a sizable number of patterns without having tons leftover. As I locked into making a Sway dress however, things were tight. It didn’t look like it was even going to happen.

According to the sizing, I am an XS, but since the pattern is anything but fitted, I traced the XS sizing for the bodice/bust area, and then graded down to the XXS on the sides to squeeze both pieces onto my fabric. I am also quite thankful the print is didn’t have an obvious direction so I could invert the front and back pieces. I also saved 3 cm by eliminating the seam at centre ‘front’, which I opted for the round neckline. The design of the sway dress allows so you can wear it forwards, or backwards, depending on what neckline you want.

For some reason, v-necks and I don’t get along well so I knew I’d almost always wear it at the back, leaving the seamline there, and cutting the ‘front’ on the fold. After I sewed the dress up I realized there is now another reason I probably won’t wear it the other way around. There is some…unfortunate…flower placement in the bodice region.

As has been mentioned by many before, Papercut Patterns are quite short. I didn’t have the luxury of adding any length as I usually would have, but just enough to cut true to the midi length version of the pattern. It actually works out to be the perfect length for a hot summer dress, just landing above my knees. I am fairly sure the mini version of the dress would be more like a shirt. (Actually…a Sway shirt would be super cute…writing that idea down now).

I barely managed to get the waist tie and pockets cut out of the fabric, and had to resort to an ivory cotton I had on hand to cut the facings, but I got everything out!

While on the topic of facings; usually you will find me firmly on team bias binding, but I forgot about all in one facings for sleeveless garments. I had only ever done this once before and OMG I LOVE how it turned out. It’s so crisp and has such a neat finish. So if anyone now asks, I am on team bias binding* (*unless I can use an all-in-one facing.)

What I was most impressed with in making this dress was how quickly it came together. It is very rare for me nowadays to have the attention span to complete a garment in one go. Not counting the fabric tetris to get it cut out, I think it took me 2 hours from start to finish in one sitting. It was SO satisfying to go from pieces to a garment in a single stretch.

I have happily worn this dress so many times this summer! It’s become my new go-to on those days where it’s just too warm. It’s the perfect blend of breezy, cool and still a lil’ fancy. Because the fabric is so light and flowy, I love the look of it worn with the belt, but I think as the weather cools down it would be super cute with some tights and full trapeze shape.

Here’s to those projects that just seem to be a success; easy to make, uses up all the fabric, fits a need in your wardrobe and gets lots of wear time. Have a sunny week, friends!

Adventures in San Francisco

I really don’t want to be that person but…where the popsicles is summer going?! It gets hard to keep track of the time and take it in when everything is just go go go for months on end. Example; we went to San Francisco two months ago and it feels like it was only a few weeks ago. To be fair, I have been doing lots of sewing and soaking up the sun outdoors, so I felt no immediate rush to post about our trip, but now as July winds down I need to step it up.

And what, she made a video!? How’s that for being worth the wait. It’s been a number of trips now that I set out with the best intentions and took lots of video clips in hopes of making little montage videos when I got home. But most (read: all but this one) still sit in a folder full of micro-glimpses into our adventures. This time though, I told myself I wouldn’t let that happen…and I didn’t. So for that alone I am very proud, but I do hope you enjoy. (There are many of Rory’s antics to enjoy in there too. For those just wanting to see cats, they start at the 2 min mark😉 )

 

As with our last trip to California, we began by attending the Bay Area Maker Faire. Because I wanted to attend my friend’s wedding, I arrived late and only had one day to take in the expo. I knew what I wanted to see and what I knew I could skip, so one day turned out to be plenty. As always with this type of event, you are completely surrounded by creativity and really cool things. It’s hard to know where to focus!

I was pretty impressed that I spotted a fair number of textile artists and engineers hiding in the nooks and crannies. I also caught the MakeFashion show and spent some downtime in the fiber booth. I first learned crochet in that booth 2 years ago, and was stoked to see weaving now included. Using a mini loom I took some time to chill and made myself a little piece to take home.

After the faire, we made our way into San Francisco proper. We had the pleasure of once again spending lots of time with our friend Dat, who knows more than anyone about the cool and interesting things to do in the city (last time, he brought us to roller disco). This time though, we spent more of our time relaxing in our Airbnb, particularly designing and shooting a video for his latest art project. The piece consisted of translucent origami cubes filled with LED lights where the hues and intensity were controlled by the movement of your hands. It’s so mesmerizing, you could stare at it all day long.

Of course, when you spend hours playing with light sculptures, you get quite hungry. Dat taught us the method of sous vide cooking, which is essentially cooking your food (in sealed bags) at a consistent temperature in water for a set amount of time for the perfect outcome every single time. We quickly mastered the art of the ‘poached’ egg (hence the random, but perfectly-gooey egg in the video) and later set out to cook the tenderest, most delicious steak and chicken (which then of course went on top of home made pizza. Hungry yet?)

When we weren’t cooking and filming, we tried to cram in as many new sights into our four short days as possible. We started with the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park (which was steps from our Airbnb). I had my sights set on the Oscar de la Renta retrospective exhibit since we were planning this trip and was so intrigued to go see it.

De la Renta’s work was so globally influenced, they actually had most of the exhibit divided by his inspirations, rather than by era. From lacy flamenco dresses, to fur lined Russian-inspired coats, his attention to detail (and the work of his atelier) was incredible. Rory even noted that even though his work spanned decades, you couldn’t place the era for an individual piece. A dress from the 70s would be positioned next to a dress from the late 90s and you wouldn’t be able to tell which was which. He had such a talent for creating elegant, classic pieces and it was really cool to see them all up close.

When I was studying fashion history, I found myself intrigued and obsessed with watteau pleats in 18th century dresses (I even wanted to include them in one of my designs for intro to pattern drafting, but couldn’t wrap my head around where to start haha). So naturally, these Marie Antionette-inspired gowns were my absolute favourite. The green striped off-the-shoulder dress was my favourite of the entire exhibition. It was in a funny place and hard to get a photo of, but I just love the swaths of fabric in a that beautiful green hue. Delightful.

Most of our transportation was by walking, since we were approximately 30 minutes from most of we wanted to do. Of course, it feels like no time at all, because the architecture is such an exhibit in itself and you really can’t get tired of it (maybe if you live there, but I still find it fascinating). As we walked the streets, we would point out places with cool features and play “would you live in that one?” choosing to ignore how much money we would probably need to do so.

Wrapping up our first full day, we headed to Workshop SF for a block printing class. Social and creative classes are few and far between here so I wanted to be sure we got to do something crafty in such an abundant community. Workshop is a really cool studio that offers a myriad of classes from floral arranging, to makeup, screen printing and more. We only had a limited selection due to the dates we were there, but textile printing just seemed like a wonderful fit.

We were tasked with coming up with designs, carving our blocks and printing our fabric within two hours, but we learned lots and our group was really fun. Rory mastered the carving tool and different tips to meticulously create his bumblebee, and our instructor Danielle taught us a simple-now-that-I-know-it-but-mind-blowing-at-the-time technique of not totally blending your inks to create a gradient effect.

Since it popped up in my feed over a year ago, I had been following Kittea on social media. Knowing there would be a cat cafe in San Francisco while we were visiting was too good to be true and I cleared a morning in my schedule for a nice cuppa and some cuddles. A lot smaller than Kopjes in Amsterdam, there was no level of ‘pretending to be here for the tea’ with the guests. It was ALL about the kitties. Many of the (adoptable) cats were quite young and very playful, so it was easy to interact with them. I did make a friend who was down to just wander into my lap for a few minutes then head back to his bed, and repeat.

I don’t think I can think of a better way to kick off a morning.

From there, we hopped an Uber to Union Square and Britex fabrics! I know I self-imposed a fabric shopping ban, but when high quality fabric stores are available to you in person, you take that chance when you get it. I went in with nothing in particular in mind, hoping to find some fabric that ‘spoke to me’. I had no idea we’d be spending the next two hours wandering the floors and failing to not get distracted by shiny things.

I loved the vibe of the place, and everyone there was so nice. Many people commented and appreciated the print of my Laurel dress and were keen to give me a hand with everything I needed. I have seriously never seen so many notions so beautifully laid out in one place before. I am seriously envious of those who have places like this to gather, relate to people, and find amazing textiles in your own city.

I made the rounds though all the floors, mentally picking out the things I’d like to circle back to. Finally on the top floor ‘sale’ section, this neon pick paisley brocade jumped into my arms, soon to be a pencil skirt for fall. On the way back down I grabbed a few interesting trims for ‘just in case’, then finally some fun prints to top it off. I made my first Liberty print purchase after much deliberation for a light summer top and grabbed some light grey striped seersucker for some high-waisted shorts. I also could not have left without this interesting and dainty border print fabric and impulsively grabbed the softest fabric ever in the abstract floral print. I should have grabbed some solids I know, but without a project in mind and a whole rainbow at my fingertips I just couldn’t choose.

We were also lucky enough to stumble into the Minted pop-up shop (it had just opened the day before). Before I saw the name on the sign, the bright and happy pillows and prints in the window sucked me in. I am a sucker for stationery so wandering in may have been a mistake for my budget. It was really cool to see the collaborative design concept brought to life and curated together in such a beautiful way. I managed to only wander out with some pens, gift tags and one roll of wrapping paper thankyouverymuch.

It was also a nice reminder of my surface pattern design motivations and was really inspired to see the creative work from so many people in one beautiful space.

The rest of the few days consisted of sitting and reading on the beach (and watching crazy people swim in the frigid water), climbing trees, eating churros at the wharf, and walking until our feet could walk no more. If I had an extra day or two I would have loved to do some vintage shopping since we were so close to all the good stuff in Haight-Ashbury, but we were so exhausted I’ll just have to save it for next time (and there will definitely be a next time).

I hope your summer isn’t flying by too quickly and I hope to share some summery frocks soon.

A Swingy Sundress // Vintage Butterick 4634

Ahhh! I am finally back in the land of the living…er blogging. After being away in California for a week, we then celebrated Rory’s 30th birthday (with a robot-themed costume party) and the wedding of one of my closest friends, all in a short window of time. It was totally exhausting, to the point that I barely wanted to move, so it took a little while to recoup.

Luckily, I sewed up this summery frock right before the madness, just in time to wear for another wedding the day before departing to Cali. The perfect kick-off to my summer sewing.

Amazingly, some of the balloons from Rory’s birthday are still floatin’ around so I thought I would take them with me for the photos. It was pretty funny, this shoot. I decided last minute to venture out and in the morning everything looked beautiful and sunny. I went and curled my hair, did my makeup and and set up my camera remote, and as soon as I got dressed to go…it was raining. AH the most frustrating feeling, no?

Luckily it was one of our usual summer rains and was gone nearly as quickly as it came…but it left the wind behind. My normally peaceful walk to the university campus was, as I am sure, wildly entertaining for any passerbys. These balloons deserve a medal for their fortitude. Whipping around, getting tangled, and getting pulled by the wind at full force. I basically had to hug them to keep things under control.

At our destination, they were mildly better behaved, though when I wanted to take shots without them my weight wasn’t weighty enough and I had to run down the sidewalk chasing them like a loon at least 3 times. But look how cute they are!

The things we do for our blogs, eh?

But I digress. About 5 years ago, I raided the sewing spaces of both my grandmothers leaving with a huge file box full of their old sewing patterns. I remember that summer, sitting on the floor rifling through, knowing I couldn’t take them all and trying hard to choose what to keep. I immediately grabbed dresses, both full skirts and shift dresses, mostly from the 60s and early 70s. It was, however, easy to leave behind a large stack of frothy garments from the 80s.

This was around the time of my sewing renaissance, near the end of high school and my skills were definitely lacking. The first pattern I made from the stash was a late 50s circle skirt and was way too heavy with the fabric I chose, and I did not know how to properly fit the waistband. I wore it once. The second was a cute 60s shift that I made in a pink plaid… quilting cotton. I wore it twice. (and years later noticed the bias binding was done laughably wrong and I managed to fix t up a bit for MMMay ’15). After that, the vintage patterns lay dormant.

When I was fabric shopping for Martha, I came upon this blush floral fabric and fell immediately smitten. It has a crepe paper-like texture that I hadn’t seen before. Though it didn’t make the cut for Martha, I asked for a humble 1m, knowing I would find something for it this summer. Around this time, summer wedding invites flowed in, and I couldn’t help think that this fabric would be so nice for a wedding. I stared at my pattern shelf and couldn’t see anything that suited the fabric or what I had in mind. I dug out the file box and this tent dress jumped out at me. A match made in heaven.

The pattern is Butterick 4634 and from what I assume is the late 60s. I scoured the envelope and instructions to find a printed copyright date, but for some reason Butterick and Simplicity patterns don’t seem to have it. It is a one-piece dress, meaning that it is cut on the fold and is seamed at the shoulders and centre back. The pattern has lots of options, such as a high collar and various sleeves. I opted for view F, sleeveless with the collar.

Now, tent dresses like this eat up a LOT of fabric, which at the moment, I did not have. I measured the width of my fabric and carefully took in volume from both sides and under the armscye until I could squeeze it onto my fabric. This left the dress with a softer, more a-line shape. I also just squeezed out the collar, leaving nothing but fluttery scrappy bits behind.

The sewing itself was a breeze, and at this point I find I can intuitively figure out most of the steps (especially now that I understand how bias binding works.) The instructions for sewing on the collar were really helpful and easy. I really like the finish. I did have to adjust the size of it though, because the collar was HUGE. It was so tall it looked like a neck brace and I shaved off about half the width. (As I look at the pattern envelope now, I realize you are probably supposed to fold over the collar. D’oy).

The pattern  called for a zip closure at the upper back neck, but since my fabric was so light, I opted to leave it open as a keyhole, and just close the collar with two buttons (and Tilly’s elastic loop trick). At the end, I noticed the dress had a slight high-low hem effect happening, which was a happy surprise and played well with the overall shape. I attribute the shift because of my pattern meddling earlier.

I am so happy I was able to eek this dress from the fabric I had. I have two more weddings this summer that I don’t need to worry about finding a dress for. Ha.

After my month-long stitching hiatus I feel like I have my sew-jo back, just completing a Papercut Patterns dress yesterday and another project cut and ready to go! I know some sewists find it hard to make things in the summer, but I really enjoy that there are usually plenty of occasions happening to wear new creations almost immediately.

This has really helped me get motivated to look back into the vintage pattern box more frequently. I was pleasantly surprised to notice that I have the pattern for the jacket Jade made for 1960s week on the Sewing Bee… I smell an autumn project on the horizon.

Me Made May 2016

Welp. We did it everyone, another Me Made May come and gone. It was a different experience for me this year, as I chose not to take the photo aspect of the challenge as seriously as I did last year. Partly because this month was quite busy and the time did not exist, but also in part because the creativity and gussying up required to take photos up to my standards takes a lot out of me, and I can STILL feel the exhaustion I was left with after last year.

On the flip side, because I wasn’t as dedicated to the daily ritual of documentation and thinking up new places for photos, the month went by quite quickly and didn’t have the same mindfulness attached to the challenge as before.

Having sewn quite a few new goodies in the past year, I knew I would have a decent time of finding things to wear. Strangely though there were a lot of mornings that I felt at a loss. I actually referenced last years photos more than once to get some outfit ideas. I also had a unique curveball of travelling to San Francisco for 7 of the days. The weather provided a strange middle-ground of warm but cold that my me-made wardrobe needed some fanagling to accommodate.

Lessons learned:

• I need more tops! I couldn’t believe how many mornings I was longing for pants but couldn’t because my selection of tops had already been depleted.
• Solids. Solids. Solids. Nearly all my me-mades are made with a delightful printed fabric, usually bold in colour or design. This mean’s they don’t play nicely with one another. I need some basic cardigans for the dresses, and skirts to go with the tops I do have and general other layerable bits.
• High-waists please. I am loving the short top trend, and have a few already, but I don’t have many bottoms to pair with them without showing skin. I have a grid print cotton that’s just begging to be a 60s crop top that needs something to go with it.
• I should take more time to discover new outfits and pair the items I have with each other in creative new ways. I found a few winning outfits this month because I took the time to play.
• I think it’s time to try to make jeans. It really it would make this whole month a lot easier😉

In case you were curious, this is what my month ultimately ended up looking like (with the limited photos I do have):

Day 1- Unblogged knit Belcarra blouse. Fabric is so comfortable but the neckline is droopy because I didn’t accommodate the pattern properly for the drapey knit. Perfect for Sunday lounging about, though.

Day 2- Vogue 1236 ‘paperbag’ dress. We were spoiled with a very warm May, so this summery dress was perfect.

Day 3- Lace-backed MC6359. Still one of my favourite casual pieces. This is one of those pieces my future tops should aspire to.

Day 4- Vintage floral print Belcarra blouse. Still a soft, comfortable favourite.

Day 5- Geometric canvas Hollyburn skirt. I made while demonstrating the pattern to some friends last May. I discovered I could pair it with a cropped swing sweater and it was probably one of my favourite ‘new discovery’ outfits this month.

Day 6- Cat Nap print Laurel dress. I like wearing this dress when I will be around people because it’s a great conversation starter.

Day 7- My new Martha dress! I had just finished sewing it and wore it to take photos for the blog, then continued to wear it out and about, until it popped a seam I didn’t reinforce properly. D’oh.

Day 8- Cat Nap Sorbetto tank. Great for layering, noticing it fits a bit small.

Day 9- Julia Cardigan. Only a matter of time before this one hit the scene. I think it was a Monday thing. I almost count this as a cheating piece because it is so comfortable and goes with everything. I wear it all the time, so it doesn’t really need the boost of love Me Made May is intended to give to our clothes. Ah well.

Day 10- Striped Plantain Tee. Another awesome basic. Should make a few more in solid fabric.

Day 11- Shiny gold Laurel dress. I needed to have a photo taken for work and it was a great opportunity to wear this dressier dress.

Day 12- Grey cotton Belcarra. Made of the same fabric as my Vogue 1236, it’s a bit stiff and needs to be broken in a bit still.

Day 13- Knit Belcarra, again. I just wanted to wear something soft again.

Day 14- Yellow Lace Skirt. I was attending a bridal shower and wanted to wear something bright and girly. I had a fun discovery outfit with this one too, pairing it with the stripes worked better than expected!

Day 15- Blue Coco Top. The style is great but the fabric is not. I have an ivory one planned on the way.

Day 16- Self-drafted (copied) Batwing top. I loved this fabric and decided to try and copy a batwing sweater I had bought. I traced it out and juuuust squished the pattern onto the fabric. Then I realised this fabric has far less stretch than my original, meaning the sleeves are hella tight. Love the chevron on the sleeve though. Live and learn.

Day 17- Gabriola Skirt. Flowy, floral, fantastic.

Day 18- Julia Cardigan. Crossed the halfway point, feeling lazy.

Day 19- Senna Dress. The fabric has a coolness to it which is perfect for spring. I tossed it with a new cardigan and really liked the combo. Secret work pajamas!

Day 20- New vintage tent dress. Will be blogging soon! Made from a vintage pattern from my Grandma I sewed this up real fast (only 2 pattern pieces!) just in time for my friend’s wedding.

Day 21- Stripe Coco Top. Classic and cool for a (unexpectedly long) day of travel.

Day 22- Stripe Coco Dress. Wanted something bold to wear to Maker Faire, as well the ponte was the right amount of warm for the cool Bay Area air.

Day 23- Lace-backed MC6359. Comfy repeat.

Day 24- Saiph Tunic. Needed to play with some layering, but worked out nicely for walking through museums and parks.

Day 25- Cat Nap Print Laurel Dress. I visited a cat cafe this day. There is no way I could NOT.

Day 26- Polka Dot Linden. Comfy, warm, casual.

Day 27- Julia Cardigan. Lazy travel day.

Day 28- Knit Hollyburn Skirt. Not sure what to pair it with for a warm spring day. Tried to strike gold again with the striped shirt- had limited success compared to the yellow skirt.

Day 29- Striped Plantain Tee. Laundry day.

Day 30- Knit Peggy Dress. Felt like wearing something more outlandish nearing the end of the challenge. Almost forgot to take a photo. Was worn while enjoying cookies.

Day 31- Ice Cream Airelle Blouse then floral print Belcarra. It was a warm, summery day and I decided this make needed some love. I wore it for about an hour, but the shoulders were so tight I couldn’t focus on anything else. Changed into my trusty Belcarra and tossed it into the ‘something needs to change’ pile. C’est la vie.

I am surprised at how often I felt the need/laziness to repeat tried and true makes instead of venturing into other me made’s I have but didn’t wear at all. Luckily, my to-sew list has just grown by a LOT and I can’t wait to dive in.

Have a happy June, and enjoy some guiltless freedom wearing a few non-me-mades this week hehe.

 

Flower Power // Tilly and the Buttons Martha Dress

Blooming, bright and frolicky is exactly how you’d describe the light sunny days of May this dress.  That’s right folks, spring (aka dress sewing season) is upon us in full swing and I am thrilled to share another bold 60s-inspired frock to kick it off.

Last month the lovely team at Tilly and the Buttons reached out and asked if I would be interested in previewing a new pattern. Unlike anything I had ever seen before from an indie pattern, the Martha dress is a princess-seamed, bell sleeved, bias-skirted wonder. I instantly fell in love with the high collar and heavy late-sixties vibe. I did not hesitate to accept.

This is probably one of the most vintage looking new makes in my wardrobe (though I think Peggy comes close) and not something I’d be likely to find elsewhere, which makes me quite happy. Thankfully my friend let me take photos in her mid-century wonderland of a house to complement it. I could not imagine a more perfect setting to play and swish around in this dress.

I knew immediately I wanted to go all out California-girl with the fabric and went to the store in search of the brightest floral I could find. Luckily this neon polyester crepe had no trouble jumping out at me. I also purchased some matching yellow crochet trim to play with, but I ultimately left it off because this fabric won’t let anything else share the stage. My second design choice was a mint lace with underlay, based off a long lost sold-to-someone-else Etsy find, but I didn’t want to sew multiple layers together for a summer dress. Perhaps in version 2.0?

I also toyed with the idea of making a sleeveless version, which would probably be more comfortable on hot days, as well as more practical for cool-weather layering. After much debate (and Instagram feedback) I decided to leave them on. I really need to accept that I need more sleeves in my life. The bell sleeves also cement the vintage vibe. A sleeveless version probably would have a skater dress feel, which really opens this pattern to different styling opportunities.

If you are on a fabric budget, or have a great textile in your stash, I will say that the fabric requirements are quite generous and you can do a lot with less. The envelope suggests over 3m of fabric (to accommodate the bias cut skirt pieces, and long skirt version), but since I made the mini skirt in one of the smaller sizes, I was able to arrange and cut my pieces and was left with a solid meter of fabric leftover.

Because of the crepe texture of the fabric, it was great to sew with, sort of ‘sticking’ to itself and keeping still. However in cutting out the pieces, this was one of the few times having a cutting table would have been ideal. I do all my fabric cutting on the floor of my living room and while it works for thicker, stable fabrics, the soft flowy nature of this was not having it. I used my rotary cutter and 3 small cutting mats strategically placed underneath piece by piece to get the job done.

This haphazard cutting method left me with a few errors in my pieces. Things shifted and slid, as they do. For example,  when I went to attach the skirt to the bodice it was far too long! I could have gathered the skirt to make it fit but it would have totally ruined the dress’ silhouette. After some frustrated pondering, I opted to let out the side and princess seams to a 0.5 cm seam allowance to get them to fit (perfectly with aligned seams, I might add).

I am not a fan of facings on the best of days and for this project in particular I felt it was a bit superfluous. Because my fabric was so light and flowy, it added visible bulk to my neckline, so I removed it (with the exception of a small triangle bit to keep the zipper faced), and simply overlocked the collar piece to the bodice. I’ve said before that the beauty of the insides of my garments isn’t my #1 priority so this was an easy decision to make. I’m sure with a sturdier fabric the facing would add a nice finish and support the collar well.

The small tip of using a hair elastic for the button loop closure was one of those mind-blowing sewing hacks that make life so easy and make you say ‘now, why didn’t I think of that?!”. I felt a little guilty at first, cutting into a perfectly good hair tie, but since only a small portion (~5cm) is needed, I saved the remainder for future loops. It has lots of stretch and looks so good. Total win.

Size wise I cut a straight size 2 from Tilly’s size chart. It is a pretty spot on fit, though I could have graded out a little at the waist I think (my measurements sit between size 2-3) to allow extra room for pizza parties. Since the pattern has a natural waist seam I added my traditional 4 cm bodice lengthening (which as I now type this, I think also had probably something to do with my bodice/skirt alignment issues…)

What I really enjoyed about making this dress was the inclusion of new techniques that aren’t difficult, but things I simply hadn’t encountered before in a pattern. The bias cut skirt pieces and the high collar were new things to play with and learn from, without feeling scary or unattainable.

I am looking forward to picnics and patio parties and all other excuses to wear bright summery frocks. Not to mention even more summery frocks to sew sew sew. Ahhh I love this time of year.

This pattern was gifted to me as part of a request to preview the new Martha pattern. All opinions and sewing gaffes are my own.

A Shiny Shift // Colette Laurel #2

We’ve had one heck of a beautiful spring this year. The snow has been long gone for weeks and there have been numerous picnic-worthy afternoons. So my bright idea was to make something heavy and dark! Ha. I’ve had this beautiful metallic fabric staring at me since November and it needed to be dealt with.

During the holidays, I was mildly obsessed with finding shiny, sparkly, metallic fabrics to suit the season and pretty much grabbed any that I saw. I wanted to make this dress around New Years, but with the whirlwind of holiday sewing, then making my dresses for my 60s shoot, it got a little delayed. I felt bad about leaving it behind until next holiday, so I quickly made it up before diving into more flowy, flowery things.

I bought the fabric because of it’s unique texture and metallic finish, but at first wasn’t sure what to do with it. Then at a local fashion event a friend wore this amazing metallic shift dress. What are friends for, if not to copy their cutest clothes? Since I had such success with my cat print Laurel, I knew this would be a great pattern to use and let the fabric shine (har har).

The fabric has a chunky knit-like appearance, which included open spacing. To avoid any wardrobe malfunctions it needed to be fully lined, except the sleeves. Luckily View A of the pattern was meant for sheer fabric and a lining, so there was zero guesswork putting it together. Colette recommends attaching the outer and lining pieces together first, and sewing the dress as though they are one. You don’t get the separate overlay effect, but you also don’t see the darts and seams through the sheer fabric (though you’d probably not notice with this fabric anyway). It saved a lot of time (and hassle trying to attach separate layers) and I am rarely picky about what the insides of my projects look like, so it’s likely I will use this method in the future.

I didn’t want to line the dress in black because I felt like it made the dress too dark. I wanted to keep the warmer essence of the gold and hoped to line it with something in that tonal range. I didn’t have anything in my regular stash (that wasn’t super itchy or bulky) in the right colours, so instead used an old bed sheet from my muslin pile. I am trying to actively avoid buying more fabric when I already have so much, and what better way than to upcycle! The cotton was the right brown and already super soft. It was the perfect choice for this type of project.

I was lucky enough to find a gold zipper in the perfectly matching shade as the fabric, and knew a bold exposed zipper would be the perfect complement to the overall feel of this dress. I had to do a bit of mental math to make sure I accommodated for the width of the zipper since the pattern calls for an invisible zip (approx 0.3 mm on each side), but it went in super smoothly and it’s my favourite detail on this garment.

Sizewise I cut a 4 in the waist and hips but made sure to grade down to a 0 at the bust to avoid the excess fabric problem I had last time. People have talked about the armscye being a bit small in this pattern, and while I noticed it a bit in the kitty dress, I didn’t make a note of it and definitely noticed it on this one. Most likely attributing it to the thicker fabric + the lining. You can see the fabric pulling from the arms around the neckline in some of the photos. It’s not uncomfortable, but noteworthy for future projects.

I also opted to just stitch down the bias finish on the neckline instead of hand-sewing it with an invisible stitch. It was more a choice made because of time (I want to make more springy thinnngggss) but seeing the images, I like that it gives an extra bit of dimension and moves the light on the fabric. I know some people like the clean finish, (and sometimes the fabric demands it), but for something like this I didn’t feel it affected the outcome.

For these photos I was lucky enough to work with my friend Myles. After a beautiful and sunny past few weeks, our scheduled day turned out to be a chilly, gloomy, rainy day. I’d like to think it worked out in favour of the moodier, cooler weather design and fabric of the dress and that the cold weather was worth it. So yay for happenstance.

Even though mentally I felt like I grumbled through this project (like, why aren’t you a flirty warm weather garment, you silly thing?!) I am stoked on this dress. It’s gratifying to know it emerged complete from the seemingly endless queue of projects. In all likelihood, it won’t get worn much until next fall/winter when it seems to better suit the mood, but you never know when the right event might just come along.

And speaking of spring things, whose gearing up for Me Made May?! I am definitely going to partake again this year, loving how much it reconnected me with my handmade wardrobe last year. This year though, I don’t think I will have the time to properly document my outfit daily.

Taking interesting photos every single day is exhausting and totally drained me creatively last time, so though I will be wearing a Me Made everyday, I will only really post when the inspiration strikes. I’m so looking forward to following along with everyone else, that’s the best part!