New dress

This is the design of a new dress that I have wanted to make. Its a very simple design and I thought that it would look good and be cool on hot days as well as be quick to make. I have chosen an Orange printed polyester fabric that I got from the Remnant Warehouse.

It wasn't a hard design to draft but I had to think about how the back was drafted and also getting rid of the darts in the front skirt. I don't know if the draft is technically correct but it worked and thats all I care about. The plan below shows what I did to the draft much better than I could describe it.

I lined this dress with a stretch knit lining and centred a zipper in the back. I think the dress turned out rather nice and its comfortable and cool. This fabric does crease easily but that doesn't matter too much.

This dress has also been made in a Polyester georgette and lined with sunsilky polyester lining. I used an invisible zipper in the back of this one. For now I wont make this pattern again but I have kept it for possible future use. The brown dress is still to be hemmed but is otherwise finished.

Sewing for the Family

I went into Spotlight last week specifically to purchase a pattern for me as they were on special for $5.99 and I wanted to test and fit myself with a Burda. I went shopping with one of my daughters, Madeleine. I never found anything I liked but she did so I bought Burda 8042 for her.


My friend Janine gave her a nice piece of teal fleecy which will make her 2 of these Jackets. My eldest daughter Constanze has also requested one of these jackets in black. The 3 of us have very similar measurements so I will start with the size 36 pattern for us all just altering for sleeve length and body width in the waist and hips where appropriate.

For one of my sons, Connor, at a previous pattern sale I had purchased Burda 9860.

I will make this pattern in a denim for the pants and a very dark purple for the jacket. This pattern goes up to a size 14 so I might be able to use it for another son Aaron as well.

As for the my pattern contest of Patternreview.com I didn't get my coat finished on time and I am still working on it. The design took me a while to decide on and I'm currently working on drafting the pattern. The back and front drafts are completed and I still have to draft the sleeves, Collar, pockets, lining and interfacing pieces.

Just stuff

Its been a very busy week with my sewing. I altered sleeve hems and pant hems on a suit this week as well as made 2 sheets and a mattress protector for a campervan. I made another toile for Annes shirt draft incorporating the alterations from the first toile. I am beading on another job which will be finished later tonight. For relaxation I finished of an embroidered and crocheted an edge on a bookmark for my youngest son Connor. I purchased the printed bookmark from the Stitches and Craft Show last year. About a month ago I entered the "My Pattern" contest on Patternreview.com so I took my 5mtrs of wool melton and the 5mtrs of silk habatai to the dry cleaners to get ready for cutting.
Hopefully next week will see my coat well underway and some time in the garden catching up.

Simplicity 3640

Its been so cold lately that I needed to make myself some warm clothes. Since I lost all the weight I feel the cold terribly. So I purchased simplicity 3640.

I started with a size 10 pattern in the jacket for the chest and tapered out to a 12 on the waist and hips. I shortened the sleeves a little as well. On the pants I started with the 12 at the waist and drew out on the hip to where a size 14 would be down to the hem. In most patterns there is a lot of ease and a 12 is a good fit but this pattern is a very close fit so I had to add the extra. I also had to shorten the legs by about 4cm. When cutting the jacket I cut the hood lining in some leftover lining fabric I had kept. I have made the jacket in a navy blue fleecy that was left over from school clothes made for the children and I have started to make this pattern in brown fleecy that my sister gave me. Out of the brown fleecy I was able to cut 1 jacket and 2 of the pants. I also embroidered a design on the brown jacket.
Shows the stabilized shoulder (stay tape) and the back of the embroidery. Also the stretch tape I used to cover the stitching on the neck joining the hood. The lining is leftover from another project and its sunsilky. On the second pair of pants I also embroidered some of the designs on the lower half of the right leg.





I am happy with the completed outfit and I plan to make it again but with a collar on the jacket instead of the hood. I think this pattern is now a TNT and will be used many more times.

Burda 9829

I've just finished making a jacket for my grandaughter. Its made from white paisley pinwale corduory and red fleecy fabrics. The jacket is pretty and will be nice and warm. I have also made 2 pairs of red fleecy pants to go with the jacket.

I have also cut out the pinafore thats in the pattern in the red cordoury. Its a nice pattern with lots of garment options for little girls from 9mths to 3yrs.

Black Wool/polyester skirt

As I'm trying to use up my stash of fabrics I found myself brousing the internet for design ideas for an 80cm by 150cm piece of Wool/polyester that I had in my stash. I came across this skirt idea which is cut on the princess seams and it has a flared piece in the back but it still retains a straight slim look.

I started the draft by drafting a basic skirt draft with no ease at the waist and 4cm ease included in the hip measurement. I made the draft to a length of 60cm which is at the bottom of my knee (I'm only short, about 159cm) and made the side seams straight. On the centre back of the draft 22cm above the hem I made a mark and on the princess seam 19cm above the hem I made another mark which I joined to the 22cm mark with a slight curve. This piece I then cut away and I slashed and flared it as in the diagram.

As my thighs are a little on the heavy side (read this as I am pear shaped, my fat sacks are on my bottom and my thighs) I added 0.5cm from the hip line down to the hem line. I also did a sway back adjustment on the back waistline.

This skirt wasn't that hard to draft as can be seen from my drafting plan.

The sewing sequence:

• centre back seam of flare
• stay stitch and then attach flare to centre back piece
• attach side back pieces to centre back piece
• attach side front pieces to centre front piece
• left side seam from zipper mark down
• zipper application
• right side seam
• gather each side front waist and side back waist pieces and take out .5cm . and attach stay tape

For the lining I followed the same sequence untill I got to the waist which I attached to the waist of the skirt after I gathered the side pieces. Turned in the lining, sewed down the lining to the zipper tape and hemmed my new skirt.

I am pleased with my new skirt as it makes its debut in my wardrobe and leaves my stash forever.

New summer dress

Just before christmas I made a summer dress pattern for myself. I made the dress up in an apricot/khaki coloured Yorfu Italian cotton that I purchased on Ebay.











The fabric made up nice and I have since made the dress in a blue floral fabric.

I am trying to improve my sketches so I started a journal. I couldn't draw very well when I first started and have improved quite a lot and I am hoping to continue to improve with a lot more practice.

I would like to be able to draw the designs as I see them. I still can't always put down on paper what I see.

I would like to make this dress once more in a black fabric with appliqued flowers around the hem. The apricot/khaki dress had to be completely lined in cotton voile as it was a little sheer and when I made the blue floral dress I added 4cm flare to each quarter of the skirt and I moved the princess dart towards the armhole by 1.5cm so it would cover the bra strap.