Burda dress

Hope you all had a lovely Christmas if you celebrate it. If not hope you had a lovely weekend.

I finished my dress before Christmas and wore it to the Christmas dinner with my family. It was a rather quick project. A friend mentioned a Downton Abbey vibe to it and though I can see it I think (hope) it’s a bit more modern.

 

The pattern is from BurdaStyle January 2016, nr 117. Mine looks pretty much like the photo for once, as I made it from a dark navy fabric. Don’t remember where I bought it and think it’s a cotton/linen blend with perhaps some silk in it, as it has a lovely shine. A bit cool for a winter dress (I wore it with a shawl for dinner), but I found out that most fabrics in my fabric collection are not dress length, certainly not when the dress has a flared skirt and sleeves. And one of my goals for the next few months is also to use more of the fabrics I have. Not committing to anything, just thinking that as I have some really nice pieces it might be good to use them.

The sleeves are cut on the bias and are comfortable in wearing. I do remember reading somewhere that there might be a problem with sleeves cut on the bias, but for this fabric/pattern it was no problem. 

The pleats are a separate pattern piece that is cut off-grain. This helps the pleats to curve around the body.

All I changed to the pattern was adding 7-8 centimeters to the center front and adding 3 cm to the length of the bodice, which is what I usually do with Burda patterns. I checked the pattern pieces to my sloper and it was quite close to that.

Two pictures of me wearing the dress. These were intended as trial ones but the camera battery went down and I don’t feel like doing it again later.

 

A few dressform pictures of details.

Have a lovely new year’s evening all and a joyful start in the new year. Till next year!

Burda challenge - organizing

Planning to do the one Burda pattern a month challenge has already resulted in a garment and some organizing. I made a dress from the January 2016 issue for which only the hemming still needs to be done. Should manage that before Christmas, don't you think? 

During the two house moves my magazines had gotten a bit disorganized and I wanted to have them by month together. I took out all that I could find and made a little pile per month. 

Then I counted and while I thought there would be about 50, there are 92! that's only Burda, not Knip mode, Ottobre or Patrones. I have quite a few of those as well. Some issues are well used but it is certainly a good idea to use them more. 

A challenge without rules and a pattern tracing tip

On Pattern Review there’s a thread with a challenge to use your (Burda) magazines more. In 2017 this challenge is held for the 3rd time and this time I will try it too. Especially as there are no fixed rules. Some want to make a garment from each issue that will be published next year, some want to make 6 garments, some using older issues as well. It’s your own challenge. I’m in the last group. I have so many issues of pattern magazines, not only Burda. Many patterns marked to make some day, but you all know what happens.

Even though I make more of my own patterns now, it’s still nice to have a pattern as a starting point sometimes, or even just use a pattern. Therefor I will try to make at least 12 garments next year using Burda patterns, either from 2017 issues or older issues I have. I made a good start by tracing and cutting a dress today. Whether it’s finished before Christmas remains to be seen.

Have you ever tried Burda magazine patterns? Here’s a tip for those of you who find the pattern sheets intimidating and have difficulty to find the pieces in all the lines.

First you start with the sheet (A, B, C etc) you need and find out what color lines you have to trace. This information you can find with the pattern instructions in the center of the magazine.

The numbers are not only printed next to a line of the pattern piece, but also in the margin of the sheet. The easiest way to find a pattern piece that isn’t too obvious is locate the number in the margin, in the color you need, and trace a (mental) line perpendicular to that number over the sheet. Somewhere along that line will be the pattern piece number you are looking for. Sometimes it’s close to the number in the margin, sometimes on the other side of the sheet, but always in a straight line from the number in the margin.

Taking forever

That’s how it felt like, it’s not that difficult a jacket and making it much less structured than I would normally do even makes it an relatively easy project. But having our bathroom done meant more than just having no bathroom (yeah for not having to go to the gym for a shower anymore!). I really wanted to finish the coat and accepted the tools of the builders being in my sewing room too. After the coat I was just not in the mood to sew a lot in a limited, messy (especially as it was not my mess) space. Started the jacket and then just knitted more instead of sewing.

But… the collar is done and I do plan to finish it this week, unless I decide to sew me a dress before Christmas, which is sort of in my head but still undecided.

An unstructured jacket (more or less)

On my sewing list is a jacket inspired by one I saw a few months ago. It was in a shop and I have no pictures of it, nor do I remember the brand. It was unlined, didn't have a lot of structure and was from a knit fabric. 

My fabric is a knit too and I'm using minimal structure/interfacing. It's an experiment, I am inclined to add more but want to see whether it will work to create a jacket that will feel more like a cardigan, without being the famous Chanel style. 

This is what I have done:

stay tape in shoulder and neckline

Fusible interfacing for the front facing. 

Lapel and roll line

The under collar. I fused the interfacing over the piece of hair canvas to ger a roll line. 

I did not interface the front or make a shoulder stay. While working on it I'll decide where to add more (probably the hem at least). 

Cut longer than usual, might shorten it. 

Thank you all for the nice comments on my coat. Loved to read them all. 

The coat revealed

Without further ado, here is my coat. Awefully difficult to photograph. I made most of the photos lighter to show some details, but still hard to see.

   

I’m quite impressed by the fit of this coat. The only thing I changed was to take in a little at the center back seam at waist level, I made no other changes. I indicated that I wanted my sleeves longer and they are the perfect length.

As the instructions are not helpful I would not recommend this pattern if you don’t have a lot of experience in jacket or coat making, but if you have it’s a great pattern. Remember to check the pocket position if you’re not tall (as I said in a previous post they were much too low for my friend’s coat originally).

The extra layer for warmth is wonderful, it started freezing here and I’ve worn it already. Very, very comfortable.

My next project will be a bit less complicated (I think).

Pocket with flap in seam

Don’t know how to call it but that’s what it is: a pocket with flap in a seam:

I wanted to topstitch it, preferably in one continuous line. This means that the pocket must not be completed fully, otherwise you would close the pocket while topstitching. Below how I did this.

• Sew the pocket flap and attach the pocket lining to it. This is the side of the pocket that will be to the wrong side of the front coat when finished. I used one layer of fabric and one layer of lining for my flap, as the fabric was thick. I topstitched with special thread in a long straight stitch. I used length 4, a lot of the length disappears in the fabric layers.
• Mark the stitching line on the right side of the pattern piece. I used tailors chalk for this (I did not cut exact seam allowances thereofr the line is not at the same distance from the edge, I marked all seamlines on the inside).

 

• Sew the flap to the front, right sides together, from the exact edge of the flap to the other edge, the pocket pointing outwards.

• On the side panel I sewed the other pocket piece, within the seam allowance, which is indicated by the chalk line.

• Then stitch the front and side panel together, stopping where the pocket flap starts and continuing below it.

• Press the seam open and make sure the pocket pieces are out of the way. The front panel can now be topstitched without sewing in the pocket pieces.

• Fold the pocket pieces together and sew them together. Because you sew the pocket part that’s sewn to the side panel not exactly on the seam line the two pockets will not align exactly. For me that’s never a problem, I just make sure the two pieces are nicely flat, pin together and sew the pocket.

The result is a nice pocket with continuous topstitching lines.

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My coat is finished and worn already, it started freezing here, so it is just in time.Very comfortable and warm! I will make proper photos of it (hopefully tomorrow).

Coat progress

At the start of the week I had high hopes of finishing my coat before Friday but it didn’t work out that way. Half of my sewing room was taken over by the stuff builders brought in to work on our new bathroom. My goodness, what a lot of stuff (and space) they need. There is a small corner left for me, and I did sew a bit now and then, but it’s more difficult with such a large project as a coat. The good news is that the lining is finished and waiting to be sewn into the coat (and we will have a nice new bathroom soon).

Again a very wild print for the lining. In this coat I chose to quilt the lining to add an extra layer of warmth. I used flannel for it.

I think I will not sew the hem of the lining to the coat but keep it hanging free. A nice finish for the hem of the coat was called for. I didn’t have any bias tape or fabric to make it around. Then I saw the petersham ribbon that I had used for a skirt for my daughter (she left the house before I had a chance to make a picture) and it was exactly enough to use for the hem. On the inside of the hem there’s extra interfacing, apart from the interfacing you can see in the above picture.

The steps that still have to be done are
- sew in shoulder pads
- finish the bottom part of the front facing
- sew in the lining
- attach buttons
- give it a final press

Definitely want to do that tomorrow.

Separate button placket – coat

I’m steadily working on my coat. I remembered something to be aware of for those who have ordered this pattern: check the position of the pocket markings in the front pattern pieces. For me they were fine, but my friend is shorter and the position of the pockets was very low (lower than her hands).

The button placket is sewn to the facing separately, creating an invisible button closure. As I mentioned in my post the other day the Lekala instructions are not very good, to say it mildly. This is the way I did them.

In the pattern the placket is cut from lining only. I chose to have one layer of lining, one of the coat fabric.

From the facing pattern I marked the seamline and the top button hole with tailors chalk.

Placed the placket on the facing to mark the position. Then folded the zigzagged edge under and pinned it in place.

Sewed it from the lining side to the facing and pressed towards the front.

I stitched the long edge and the space between the buttons. Writing this down now I do realise that I still have to stitch a line at the center from the right side of the coat, so that it might have been better not to do that yet. Also I had to undo a bit of the stitching between the buttons when I topstitched the edge of the coat.
For me a lesson to remember for the next time I do it like this: do the stitching between the buttonholes after the facing is inserted and the topstitching is done.

Another coat

Not having sewn a coat in years, I’m now working on my second in one season. Must have gotten a coat sewing bug. As most of you know, I like sewing jackets and coats are in the same field, just a bit bigger and heavier.

During the Canterbury get-together with my sewing buddies Vivien was working on a coat from a Lekala pattern. I instantly loved the pattern and its details and her result was stunning too. This is her coat  using this pattern.

 

Not being original (imitation is a form of flattery?) I bought the pattern. I am still to unsure how to draft the collar like this and at 2.99 euro I could hardly go wrong. It took some time to trace the pattern (getting more used to pdf patterns but still not my favorite) and the fit is good.

Seeing Vivien working on it and her photos as a “post-it note” were extremely helpful in construction, as the Lekala instructions are completely useless. She used piping at the seam lines, I’m doing topstitching.

Here’s what it looks like in my dark grey wool. I have more pictures of the construction of pocket and button placket, which I will add to separate posts.

  

Doing more inner works in this coat than in my previous coat.

Burda 6874–Shirt for my son

It’s taken longer then I intended as the coat project came in between. It’s done though and I finished my first men’s shirt. It wasn’t complicated, just a bit different on some places. I’m not completely satisfied with the collar with stand, even after I took off the first stand and re-did it. It’s not visible in the pictures but it could be better.

The pattern is wonderful, everything matches perfectly and the size (taken from neckline measurement) is quite good. It’s what I expect from Burda and they do not disappoint.

I don’t have pictures of my son wearing the shirt. In the meantime he has found a job and having photos taken with his mother’s shirt is not a priority (which I understand).
There is some work to be done on the fit in the shoulder area. Something in the line of forward shoulder adjustment. But my son is satisfied with this first one and there will be more to follow.

I highly recommend Pam Erny’s tutorial for the sleeve placket, she explains it so clearly: Shirt sleeve placket. Her way makes it easy to use another fabric for the under placket and is beautifully finished on the inside too.
For chevron stripes this one is superb.

Definitely oversized on my dressform:

 

I had to use white as accent colour. The original fabric yardage would have suited for a shirt for me, but was not enough for this shirt.

To finish this blog post: my coat sewing is continuing. I was so inspired I started another one last week. A sneak peak…