Tape Measures Cambie-Hack

This is one of the projects I finished during my "blog-goes-dark" months.

As soon as I saw this fabric I just HAD to have it.

Full Price? Not a problem.
Weird Heavy Drill Fabric? Don't Care.
Probably not the best colours on me? Still don't care.
IT.
HAS.
TAPE.
MEASURES.

Seriously!!! TAPE MEASURES!!

I'm slowly learning that I in fact have a love of kitchy, novelty prints. I'm also slowly learning that I am in fact a hipster and really what is more hipster than a self-employed artisan dressmaker in a tape measure dress made from an independent pattern company design...

I should also point out that I f*cking love this dress. Literally so much love it has to come with swearing because this is awesome! Also there is a LOT of goober face in these pics as they were taken on timer after a long night out but sorrynotsorry I'm not taking more so this is the best you get.

The bodice is the Sewaholic Cambie Dress in a size 6. I add about 1.5cm to this size in the side/back seams since the Cambie is really designed for pear shapes and I'm definitely not one of those! I could probably do a Full Bust Adjustment but I'm lazy and on me this simple add makes all the difference I need so why get fancy if I don't need to?

Goober Face but Pockets = :)

I changed out the gathered Cambie skirt for the semi-circular one from Vogue 8615 including pockets! Now all my ready-to-wear dresses feel like they lack pockets cos I just love having them in everything I wear sooooo much.

The fabric is from Spotlight of all places and seems to be some kind of novelty cotton drill. It's quite heavy and has a lot of body so I thought the sleeker circle skirt would be more flattering than all those gathers in the original Cambie. Bonus side effect? The heavier fabric means the interfaced waistband holds its shape beautifully, whereas past versions in cotton lawn have tended to roll in at the waist even with interfacing. The downside is there isn't a heap of stretch in the fabric so no big meals in this dress. Plus I've already had to repair the sleeves after ripping them bowling at my work christmas do. But how could I not wear this dress bowling? Such a cute 50's vibe right?

Doing the "Dior New Look" Pose lol

The bodice is lined in pale pink cotton lawn and the skirt portion is unlined to save on weight since this fabric is quite heavy. Construction wise there isn't much more to add - I just love how fun and ridiculous this dress is! 

Bought even more fabric today - I seriously have a problem, maybe someone runs a fabric rehab somewhere I can go to? Will just have to get sewing again I guess... Good thing the sewing room has aircon in this heat!

Happy Sewing!

Stacey

OXOX

New TNT - The Burda Bat Wing Top returns

In the spirit of my bright new organised sewing room I have resolved to start finishing off some of my half done projects or UFOs (Un-Finished Objects).

 These two have been languishing half finished since July! It only took about 2 hours to finish them both off!!

First on the list - something easy (we'll work up to that coat that is half done...). After such success with my first try at this Burda pattern I immediately rushed out to buy fabric to make some more! 

Fabric Close Ups - This one is a bit sheer so a neutral tank works well underneath

Texture, Texture, Texture - The red top is super warm since this texture comes from a double layer of fabric

I went back to my fave haunt - Ferriers Fashion Fabrics since I had seen these fabrics on my first visit but didn't want to spend on luxe fabrics if I wasn't sure the pattern would work. Now I know it works and looks good I am quite happy to spend a little more to get quality in my end garment. 

This is a pretty stable ethos for me - New Pattern? Start off with a 'wearable muslin' in a cheap fabric so if it is a disaster at least I haven't destroyed beautiful and expensive fabric making it! Then, when all the kinks are ironed out, move on to fabrics I love to wear. I think this is also how I discover if a design is worthy of the TNT tag - and why I made 3 versions of my wrap dress in the previous post before finally making it up in luxurious Italian Jersey (just fabric for this make was around $70!!)

But back to these girls - there isn't much to add to what I wrote last time. Construction and sizing didn't really change although I did leave the interfacing off for the purple version as you could clearly see it at the neckline through the lacey fabric.

These aren't the most exciting things to post about but they are real sewing "cake": good basics that fill a hole in my wardrobe. I am trying to be much more thoughtful and aware of what I sew for myself since my wardrobe has some gaps that need filling with more "cake" rather than just sewing pretty pieces of "frosting". 

But Summer is Coming!! And that means lots of chances to sew and wear some pretty dresses - definitely my favourite type of frosting :-D

So I promise some pretty sweet treats next time I post!

OXOX

Stace

PS - What do you think of my new photo spot in the new room? Should I mix it up with some new locations? It's soooo much easier to get better light here plus I can balance my camera on my cutting table to take pics Yay!

Diane Von Furstenburg Inspired Wrap Dress

Happy Long (sewing) Weekend!

Hope you all are enjoying this Monday off work - although the day has started off a bit grey and gloomy here, I'm hoping for a little sunshine later on!

I had a whole variety of plans for this weekend until I ended up sick from Thursday to about Saturday. Ugh, how unfair does it seem when there is a glorious weekend in front of you but you just feel rotten? Fortunately I was feeling better on Saturday and Sunday and finally back to normal today :-)

So all the usual plans went out the window this weekend. Yesterday however, I did feel the sewing bug. I wasn't looking for too much of a challenge and a quick make was definitely on the cards so I went with my TNT pattern New Look 6429 (now out of print).

This pattern was originally my cousins but we have come to a pattern borrowing/holding hostage arrangement since I have now made 4 of this dress across 2 different sizes...

1..2..3..4...Short sleeves, Long sleeves, No sleeves? Yep think this qualifies as a TNT pattern

Although not a true wrap dress, I always think this design reminds me of those classic Diane Von Furstenburg wrap dresses (especially in this print!). This style flatters pretty much every shape and, just like that other classic - the shirt dress - can be worn practically anywhere! I love that it is a faux wrap since I often have trouble staying in true wrap dresses as I'm short from shoulder to bust which in turn = accidently low cut necklines. The gathering falls right over the area most women are most self conscious about and is part of what makes this such a flattering pattern to wear. Seriously, every time I wear this design I get heaps of compliments from people about how figure flattering it is!

I decided to try something new this time around and finished the neckline with a stretched on band including clear elastic (a la Nettie Dress) instead of the pattern's facings or using non-stretch tape. I was hoping that this would fix the gaping problem that still happens after wearing the dress for a few hours. I am so thrilled to report - it has! This is definitely my favourite finish for knit garments now - I will definitely continue to add this where needed.

Woo! Look No Gaping!!!

I sewed a size 8 and the only alterations apart from the neckline was to shave 1.5cm from the neckline side of the front shoulder seam as I hoped this would help raise the neckline. It did change the fit but I'm not sure if it is almost too high for me now. This change also meant I had to cut out the armholes slightly as they were raised marginally too high after this alteration. What do you think on the neckline position? Too high? I finished the neck band, sleeves and hem with a twin needle.

What do you think? Neckline too high?

How awesome is this fabric by the way??? It's Italian Jersey and is a relic of our March Melbourne Trip. I bought this at The Cloth Shop and while it wasn't cheap, it is definitely the best quality jersey I have ever worked with. And just look at that print!! I LOVE IT!

You can just spot the stretch band I added to the neckline here

The Cloth Shop is a great place to shop if you're around Melbourne, the wonderful staff there really know their stuff and are so friendly and approachable - I really enjoyed shopping there! Plus there is a delicious cafe across the road for lunches on fabric shopping days :-)

Whee!!!!

Hopefully the rest of your day feels like this!!

Happy Sewing!

Stace

OXOX

Cherry Bomb! A red hot Nettie Dress

Sewing for myself has been on the back burner for the past few weeks. With one thing and another I suddenly found myself with a pile of orders to fill for StaceyMade :-O which is no bad thing but did mean I wanted to knuckle down a bit and get stuck in.

Fortunately one of those orders was for a new pattern - a Nettie Dress from Closet Case Files. If I've never used the pattern brand or design before I like to make a trial version for me first since I know my shape better than anyone's. This way I can iron out any fit issues or strange sizing etc. before cutting into my friend's fabric. Bonus here was I have been eying the Nettie Pattern since it came out. It looked like such a good basic design and although I doubt I'll ever make the body suit up (maybe as a costume?), the dress can also be altered into a t-shirt so for only $10 or so you get a good basic dress, t-shirt and bodysuit pattern. When I had a friend after this exact design I rejoiced because now I had a reason to buy the pattern finally!

I won't lie, part of the appeal of this pattern was the very low scoop back combined with a built in bra. I adore low backs, particularly in combination with long sleeves and high necklines - I think it is the epitome of understated sexiness. Add in fire engine red fabric and I think this is one hot dress!

Ok maybe not so understated sexy from this side...

I cut a size 6 high neck, low back dress after a LOT of deliberation given the pattern is designed with negative ease and I am not a hugely confident stretch sewer. I have been dipping my toes into stretch sewing this year and I do love how quick and easy it is to sew up but I still struggle with fitting and sizing issues simply because my brain isn't wired to think in stretch fabric terms just yet. The size 6 turned out to be a perfect fit even though the body measurements given for this size were slightly smaller than mine. I think it also depends on what sort of fabric you use so each new make will have to be individually assessed.

I used some cheap and cheerful bright red cotton interlock stretch fabric I bought in Melbourne at G & J's fabrics (I think). It only just had enough stretch to make this dress but as it is a little heavier than a jersey it did help smooth out my silhouette lines in the final dress so :-).

I included a built in bra which I've never attempted before. The process was relatively easy although I wanted to insert foam bra cups to give a little more support than just the standard elastic + fabric set up. They look ok in pictures but in real life they are a little lumpy and poor fitting. I think the main problem is that between buying these cups and making the dress I've lost weight and now the cups are too big. I'm probably going to rip them out and see how it looks without them and if needed I'll buy some smaller, lighter ones to try again with. This sounds quite tricky and there was a lot of mirror scrutiny time but the actual process of inserting the cups was quite easy - I followed the Nettie sewalong on Closet Case Files site and the instructions were excellent and easy to follow for this step :-)

Overall, this is a fantastic basic pattern that is quick and easy to sew up. I finished all the seams on my overlocker and top stitched the neckline and hems using a stretch twin needle. My only DUUUUUH! Moment came when I perfectly attached the neckband using my overlocker only to discover it was attached right side to wrong side! Cue cutting off that band and starting again. As a result of this the back neckline is quite narrow on the shoulders and has a tendency to fall off a little but I don't think this will be a problem if you sewed it normally in the first place!

This was a great run through before making my final version for my friend - she was after the scoop neck and high back version of the dress and since we are the same size (yay) I could try this version on to check fit and there will definitely be a version of this in my life soon, along with a t-shirt version with the medium back using the left over scraps from this project. I'm actually planning a lot more Netties. They are quick and easy to sew up - great instant gratification sewing, they look great on and are super comfy to wear while still looking really polished :-D wins all round!

It's so nice to whip up some quick sewing projects :-) I love beautiful detailed makes but sometimes you just want a finished project right now!

Special special thanks go to my awesome Dad (Happy Fathers Day!) for taking these great photos - so much better than the goober shots I usually take on timer at home ;-)

Happy Sewing!

OXOX

Stace

P.S - If you'd like to see the other version of this dress I made up, head on over to my Facebook page for StaceyMade Fashion at https://www.facebook.com/StaceyMadeFashion

The Cuddliest Trousers - Thurlows the Second

After such a success with my first pair of Thurlows from Sewaholic I definitely wanted to make more of this fabulous pattern.

Slight Goober Face

I also wanted to try a newly discovered fabric spot at Ferriers Fashion Fabric in Adelaide. After being exposed to so many gorgeous fabric stores in Sydney and Melbourne I really wanted to look for smaller stores here in Adelaide that retail different/better quality fabrics. Ferriers came up on this search and since it was only round the corner from work I decided to check it out. If you've read my last post you'll know this was a successful visit since I've been back 3 times since!

On my first visit I really fell in love with this soft grey herringbone pure wool flannel - I saw a brown version of this fabric at The Fabric Store in Sydney but I wear more grey than brown  so I am glad I waited and purchased the grey version instead.

Let me say first off - This Fabric ROCKS my world!! It looks very tailored but due to the soft brushed insides it feels like I'm wearing my PJ's :-D

What's that? You like my pants???

The combination of excellent pattern and beautiful fabric was an almost guaranteed success and I am certain that these are going to become a favourite pair of trousers! I top-stitched the back welt pockets this time and I love the finish so will do this again from now on.

Welt Topstitch Detail - Oooooh!

I lined these pants using the left over cotton lawn lining I cut out for my last pair of Thurlows but couldn't use due to the sheerness of the fabric I was using. Having fun linings and funky buttons always make me happy and isn't that the point of sewing for yourself?

Crazy Fun Linings of Joy

One word of warning - I cut my usual size 4 and sewed a normal back seam allowance which actually produced a pair of pants slightly too big for me. However, I'm extreeeeeemely slack about pre-washing fabric and after the first cold-water wash I found these shrank up quite a lot so they are now the perfect fit. Just something to keep in mind since I've rarely worked with 100% wool fabric in the past but I will certainly continue to use it in the future.

I was really excited to find an actual 4" metal teeth 'trouser zip'

I once again used the Lladybird tutorial and these came together in just over a day. I think this pattern is fast moving to become my TNT pants design - they are constructed beautifully and are easy to fit and wear so wins all around!!
And yes - I do have more fabric to make another pair, this time in pin stripe velveteen once again from Ferriers so more Thurlows shall grace my future blog!

Sunshine! Lollipops! And Rainbows! Pot-of-gold Thurlows

This is one of those completely irrational projects. There were easier pant patterns available after all. And more sensible coloured fabric. But for some irrational reason I had to have golden yellow wool trousers. With welt pockets. And a fly front. It was time for my first Thurlows!

The role of fabric in Sydney that started it all!

I found this beautiful wool fabric in The Fabric Store in Sydney. It only came in this colour which I wouldn't normally wear (mustard yellow is sooooo NOT my colour, put it near my face and I look like I have jaundice). The longer I looked at it though the more I liked it! Plus this fabric feels amazing. I figured since it's not up against my face it's ok to wear and it does match back with a lot of my tops since I wear so much purple, blue and green.

This is seriously the best welt pocket I have ever constructed! 

I haven't sewed up the Thurlow pattern from Sewaholic before so a muslin was in order. I tried a size 2 but found it was a little tight across my hips so I made a size 4 up in my good fabric instead. Good thing too, since I ended up needing to open up the centre back seam by about 1cm to 1.5cm to get a good fit in the final pair. Fortunately the pattern is designed for this, and is shaped to fit in at the waist so you don't end up with pants that fit in the hip but fall down at the waist. I suspect every pair of these I make will need to be basted and fitted at the back seam each time to check the fit before the final sew. It is a small price to pay though, as these are seriously some of the nicest pants I have ever owned, let along made!

My first fly front finish - aaaww yeeeaaahh!

I used the tutorial for the Thurlow trousers from Lladybird to help me follow the pattern instructions and the extra pictures and notes definitely helped me get such a high quality finish. I think these might be the nicest finished and most complicated pants I've ever finished. And I looooove them!

Sunshiney pants for rainy days? Yes Please!

I originally meant to line them in this gorgeous printed lawn fabric which also had a yellow background but after sewing one pocket perfectly I discovered the wool was more sheer than I had thought and you could see the print completely through the fabric. So I'm saving the crazy lining for when I have a darker fabric to make these up in and I used some basic white poplin from my stash instead. 

It was great to make a pattern with so many little details that make them look "not-home-made". These are the sort of pants that people are surprised when you say "I made them" and I love that about this pattern.

Why helloooo perfectly constructed pockets :-)

I skipped adding belt loops -  I made them and they were pretty but as soon as I sewed them on they looked tacky and very home-made in the worst way. So I unpicked them and will consider adding them sewn into the waistband seam next time. This whole belt loops thing set me back about a week on hemming these babies but they are finally finished.

Excuse the VPL - I was standing in the rain for these pics so speed was of the essence! No time to adjust!!

I probably could have made a size 6 given I added another seam allowance to the back seam but I was worried they would be too baggy around the upper thigh and that would ruin the nice tailored look of this pattern. Given the design is made to be altered I'm happy with this fit and will probably use the same size again for future pairs. Oh yes there will be more Thurlow's in my life - I'm already planning a charcoal suiting pair, a grey herringbone wool pair and some cute green shorts come next Summer. Plus there is the possibility of changing the leg style to skinny and making these up in denim *gasp* could it be TIME FOR ME-MADE JEANS??.... Duh duh daaaaaa! I always swore I would never make jeans since you can buy them so cheap but having lost a little weight now none of my jeans fit and I soooo like the look and feel of these trousers. Hmmm thoughts for the future.

Finally, thanks to Dad for taking these great pics for me despite the rainy weather - I am really glad to have help with photos for this blog - photographer I am not :-D

It has been cold, wet and rainy all week here but every time I wear these pants I smile because they are so cheery and bright - Do you have any clothing reserved for rainy days just because it makes you so happy?

Stay Cheery and Warm!

Stace

OXOX