Me-sewing again

A post with some me-sewing again. I do regularly make something for myself, but most things are not very noteworthy. This jacket definitely stands out, the pattern is the Momiji jacket from Waffle patterns.  It's been on my to-sew list for a very long time. To be honest, I was intimidated by the pattern: so many pattern pieces, so many details, special fabric that I haven't used before....

And in the end, it wasn't so bad at all. It took me some time though to get all materials sorted. 

The fabric is named a "light softshell" and different from the softshell I know, which has more of a fleece on the inside and is thicker. I ordered a few samples before deciding and bought this one. If you're in the EU, I can recommend the (German) company for outdoor fabrics or wool. 

    

For the main closure I used a waterproof zipper, other zippers are zippers by the yard that I cut to the length needed. Extra zipper pullers gave the jacket a nice rtw touch. 

Because I want to wear this jacket in winter too, I lined it with a lining with wadding. It's super comfy.

And don't you like this label? I found it in Copenhagen a few years ago and it waited for a project to sew it in. This is definitely the right project for it!

 

The pattern instructions are in general well written and clear. Mostly I don't need instructions but with this jacket I definitely needed them, especially for the pockets. The instructions for the hood-version could have been better. A few extra illustrations would have helped and with all the illustrations already there, it wouldn't have made much of a difference in the length of the instructions. 

The sleeves are a bit tight, especially when I'm cycling. I don't need another jacket like this any time soon, but a next time I would widen the upper arm area. But it's very wearable, I've already used this quite a bit in the past two weeks. 

A time consuming project, but very worth it. 

Knock off a jacket

 This jacket was made for my daughter. I don't have photos of her wearing it yet. 

She saw a rtw jacket at a very high price and it was unlined as well. She knows I like a challenge and asked me (very kindly) whether it was possible to make one like it. It had no rush and I took my time. Think the question arose in January, and I only made this in August. 

My version

The base for my version was a Burda pattern from the September 2023 issue. I didn't use cuffs and made the side seams a bit wider at the hem. 

A few months later

 Summer happened (and how hot it was where I live) and now we are in September. Perfect time to post a summer dress?

Well, to follow up on my previous post, photos of the dress I made for my daughter. Unfortunately I don’t have photos of her wearing it, but she was quite happy with it. 

I used the StyleArc Esther dress as a base. Split the pattern pieces at the waistline to be able to create the more open back. The sleeves of the Esther dress have a cuff but I added a short sleeve without gathers on the inside to create the look of the inspiration dress. 

Loving a puzzle

 A couple of weeks ago my daughter and I were discussing summer wardrobes. Both hers and mine. It helped me decide what to make for myself and it led to a few requests from my daughter. I’ll try to share the more interesting items here.

This dress is high on my daughter’s wish list. A lovely summer dress but of course, no pattern for it. She knows I like a puzzle😃 Then there was a strange coincidence: one of my students (I teach sewing since a couple of years) was looking at the Esther dress from StyleArc.  It has the basic lines that I could use for the dress.

So this pattern is the starting point. 

I traced the pattern, adapted it and made a quick mockup of the top part. For the sleeve I used a shorter sleeve without gathers on the inside to attach the original sleeve of the pattern to. This to make it look like the inspiration dress. 

I’ll have to wait until I see my daughter before cutting it from the intended fabric. The back tie will probably need to be attached a bit higher and I would like to know how the fit is. 

An elevated tee

A quick and easy sewing project and tnt for me. I've made this pattern (Ottobre 2/2020, Sage top) once before as it is shown in the magazine and twice with an adapted neckline. 

The original has a plain neckline that is just turned back and topstitched. When I made this in a streped version I drafted a line 5 cm (2 inch) wide from the edge of the neckline in and used a different direction for the stripes.

This photo is from a top I made about 3 years ago and is still in rotation in spring/summer. Yesterday I took this pattern out and made it again in the green version of the collage in the first photo. 

An extra detail in this plain version is the thread, that changes in colour. Originally I used it for an accent when topstitching a pair of gym leggings and thought it suited the green fabric perfectly.

This and that

Almost two months between posts again. I guess you will have to get used to my irregular posting. My intention was to post more or less regularly, but it just doesn't happen. I've been sewing mostly quite uneventful garments: basic blouses and trousers. Which I needed but are not very original to show here. 

Through a thread on PatternReview I was inspired to sew a Knip Mode top from the April 2023 issue. Love the design, hate the instructions. 

On the photo below the top is mostly pinned so that I could make it clear for myself how the parts go together. 

I read the instructions because it was not immediately clear to me how the neckline should go together with the pieces I had cut out. Based on the drawing of the cutting layout I had 3 pieces that needed gathering and I couldn't get my head round how all three were used. After studying it for a long while I concluded that one piece was not needed. In the layout they show one piece that is cut from a double layer of fabric, but you really need it only once. This wasn't mentioned anywhere! There were other issues I have with the instructions but won't bother you with it. Another main issue is Knip's drafting again: too big and I started with a smaller size.  The armhole area is the main problem. 

To make a long story short: it still needs some work to get it right for me. I do like the style, so will persevere!

And though my blog is mainly about garment sewing, I’d like to show you another project I’ve been busy with. Since a little over a year I publish bag and pouch patterns under the name AbsolutelySigrid. 

In the past weeks I have been working on 3 patterns that will together be The Creative Kit. A project bag, a pouch for knitting needles or crochet hooks and a small pouch for a small pair of scissors, a few hand sewing needles and stitch markers or other small notions.  

    

If you like to see my patterns, have a look at my Payhip or Etsy page. In The Netherlands there are two shops that sell paper copies. 

It's quite time consuming to make a new pattern and I made it more complex for myself by making three to be published at the same time. It's only me who says that they had to be published together but without firm idea or deadline I keep postponing. 

Next week is a week with little sewing due to a very busy agenda, but I hope to keep you posted on my top.

Ivy top finished (knitting)

This was a quick and easy knit. I finished it in about two weeks time (holiday season). Irony has it that it was finished on one of the coldest days we had this winter. So this top will remain in my closet for a while to wait for warmer days but I’m very happy with the result. 

The armholes are finished with a very narrow i-cord and the hem is double. Both are not as described in the pattern, but in knitting I do the same as in sewing: changing things to my preference or figure. 

I like it so much that a second one, not striped, is on the needles already.

Yarn used: the white and blue is Knitting for Olive silk, held double. The green is colourway "Dusty artichoke", 1 strand of silk and one strand of cotton merino. Earlier last year I made the Sylvan tee with this greenish colour. When I bought the yarn I had another project in mind that needed more yarn, so I ended up with quite a bit of that colour. Most of this used up now.

As this photo on mee is a bit too yellow (artificial light) below another photo on my dressform.