Guess who's back?!

Hello?

...

*cough cough*

...

Anybody there?

Mind you, I wouldn't blame you. 7 months without a post! But I'm back now, and although I've spent some very intense seven months (training to become a webdeveloper, and now I've found a job in the same place where I've done my internship, woohoo!), that doesn't mean I have been without making!
What have I been making, you might ask?
Well...here it goes.
I've knit socks. A fair few pairs. Some for me, some not. And I'm not done with socks yet, so you can expect MOAR sock pictures on this blog!

Tardis Socks for my boyfriend...

Hermione's Everyday Socks for me...

...and the same for my sister...

Broken Seed Stitch socks...

Plus 3 other pairs I haven't photographed yet!




I've knit mittens.

I've knit a snood for my Gran...but unfortunately she didn't even have the time to wear it :,(

I've knit a Chuck sweater. And an Aiken dress.

I've sewn a Negroni for my boyfriend. That took me a looong time, mainly due to poor fabric choice I think. This sort of double cotton gauze/voile is sure to be lovely to wear in hot weather, but it was a real pain in the ass to sew!

I've also made myself a Moneta (this is my third, btw).

And I'm currently making a Kim dress and a Vianne cardi for the Outfit Along 2016.

Soooo...I guess you could say I'm back in the saddle, making-wise!

Fall/Winter (and FESA) sewing and knitting plans

Hi all!

A Negroni in the making...

I'm currently working on my boyfriend's Negroni, but already thinking about my next selfish makes for this Fall/Winter and for FESA (go check Sarah's blog if you want to know more about FESA!)!

- I've started making a knit dress based on A. Satterlund's Aiken pattern. I'd like it to have a slit in the back (maybe I'll have to reinforce it with grosgrain) and I still don't know how I'm going to finish  the border. I don't want to make ribbing because I don't want it to look like a giant sweater... Well, I'll see what I can make!

- I'd like to make a Ceylon dress. This was one of the first ever Colette Patterns I bought back in 2012 and I've never made it yet because I was a bit afraid of so many pattern pieces. I have a rather heavy viscose, with a nice drape, which I think would pair well with this pattern. The only thing is, it has a directional print which runs diagonally to the grain, so I think I'll have to cut some of my pieces (such as the midriffs and yokes) on the bias if I want to maintain some symetry and sort of break the pattern at the same time. Also, some of the pieces would have to be cut twice instead of once and on the fold...Well, that sounds like a fun project, doesn't it?

Planning for my future Ceylon...You can't see it from there but the fabric is actually a dark navy blue, and there are small, dark red triangles next to these little arrow thingies.

 - I'm not sure I'll have the time to make them before the end of the year, but I also have my eyes set on this blouse from Tonje Thoresen's Couture Vintage book, which I'd really like to turn into a dress, and on Gertie's shirtdress from her first book. What? You think I'm obsessed with shirt dresses? Noooo...no I'm not. *cough cough*

-I'd also like to make a BHL Anna dress, probably in a wool plaid, and with longer sleeves (alteration explained here).

-I've seen some thick knit poly grey and black houndstooth fabric at Toto which I think would make a nice wintery Moneta;

-Finally, as far as knitting is concerned, I haven't decided yet what I'm going to make once I'm done with my Aiken dress. Maybe knit a Mary Mead cardi, and/or a pair of socks?

Well, that's more than enough to keep me busy till the end of the year, don't you think? Some of these projects might get made, others...well, I'll see. I'd like to make stashbusting projects a priority, but I'm not sure it's going to happen!

What's been on my sewing table...

I haven't been posting a lot here lately, but believe me (and you would know if you follow me on Instagram ;) ), that was not for lack of sewing!
It's not always fun to be unemployed, but I must say that having more spare time is a change for the best...all the more so when it allows me to be more productive in terms of sewing! However, what I've sewn lately is more suitable for cooler weather and I haven't had the opportunity to take photos of me wearing those garments, so proper posts about these will come later.
So here's what I've been up to lately : 
I've made this Sencha blouse ...

Embroidered neckline...

And fun vintage square buttons!

 And this Chataigne skirt, which I think will be a great match for the above top...

Admittedly, the right side may look a bit plain...

But look at this wrong side! Sacred hearts, polkadot bias, lace-trimmed lining, oh my!

I've also ordered fabric for a Bombshell Swimsuit, which I may (or may not) start this week or next week...

And I'm also planning to make a Negroni shirt for my man.

And also, in other words, this is post #100! Woohoo!

Outfit Along : all done!

You've already seen my dress...now here's my (almost) finished cardi!

This is a Hetty. Nothing particular to say about the construction. I put loads of markers to mark the lace repeats and everything went fine. As I often do with Andi's designs, I just added one lace repeat so the length fit me better. It took some time to finish because of the heat wave - not the kind of weather that makes you want to knit!

I used these gorgeous black glass buttons which I got on A Little Mercerie. They're beautiful but quite fragile - I broke one as I was sewing it, thankfully the lovely lady who sold them to me added 2 spare buttons just in case. I'll try to be very careful, but I hope they'll stand the wash!

And may I say, I think Hetty really pairs perfectly with a dress that's meant to show off a bit of skin!

Outfit Along : Finished dress!

For the Outfit Along 2015, I chose to make a mashup between Colette Pattern's Lily (it's currently Colette's Pattern of the month, so head over to their website if you want to grab a copy for 15% off!) and Tilly and the Buttons' Picnic Blanket skirt.
As I didn't have to underline my fabric, this dress was much quicker to make than my first version!
I used the pattern I had tweaked after my first version, but it was too big...so I had to take the bodice in at the side seams by 3cm (1.5 on each side). I still think it could stand to be a little tighter, but it looks OK this way and at least my dress is not uncomfortably tight!
I used a black stretch cotton sateen for the bodice and pockets, and a watermelon print cotton for the skirt and flaps at the neckline and pockets.

I added a notch at the neckline flap and made halter straps instead of regular straps.

My zipper would be more invisible if I had bothered to give it a press...but one part of it is black on black, and the other is hidden in the skirt's gathers. Soooo can we say it's *almost* invisible?

This pic gives a better view of the pockets. I used the original pattern piece but made my pockets 5 cm shorter so they're not so deep. Even though, they're still roomy enough to contain my phone and keys! 

Here's my faux waist stay. I even made a facing of sorts to hide the zipper edge and center back seams.

And here's the hem!

I've just finished knitting my OAL cardi, but it's still waiting for its buttons and reinforced button bands. I hope I get them soon enough, and I hope the temperatures are going to drop ...it's currently far too hot to wear a cardigan, even just to take a picture of it!

Sewing musings...What to sew next?

Now that 2014 is over, it's time to think about stuff to sew in 2015...So here are my inspirations. Some of these are just musings, other relate to fabrics/patterns I arleady have and should use.

Things I'm (more or less) sure to make sooner or later :

• My first order - My sister gave me some dark green linen she'd had for some time, and asked if I could make something for her with it. We decided upon Deer and Doe's Airelle blouse. I'm really happy to get to do this for her!
• Cigarette pants - I think i'm going to follow Tasha's example and use B5895, which I've already made, and some black corduroy I bought on purpose a few months ago;
• I haven't got the pattern yet, but I'd love to make a Bronte top with the remnants from my Moneta and Dolores Dress;
• Taking another shot at Sencha, using another piece of fabric my sis gave me - robin's egg-blue linen. Even though it's not my favorite color (a bit too washed-out for my taste), I think it could look cute if I can find pretty vintage buttons in a contrasting color (would cotton-candy pink or a pale yellow look too girly? Or would it be better with black or white?) and add some matching embroidery around the neckline ;
• another Picnic blanket skirt ;
• A Lily with modified skirt (probably a gathered skirt with patch pockets) in watermelon print ;
• Maybe a Sorbetto to use the remains of dotted swiss and cotton voile from my Hawthorn.

Things I'm dreaming of, but not sure to make immediately :

• I've been drooling over any patio/southwestern/square dancing dress I see on the web, and I've been thinking about a way to reproduce the look without using a (possibly very expensive, probably hard to find and likely not in my size) vintage pattern. I finally thought, why not use the Anna dress bodice (the V-shaped neckline version seems most obvious to me, but the bateau neckline could work too!) with a tiered skirt? I'm thinking black lightweight cotton (or linen, maybe) with ricrac or pompom trims...
• Another Anna inspiration : I thought about making it in a blue and green tartan wool fabric. I guess the shorter version would make quite a sweet, office friendly dress...but the longer version could have a sort of a punk-ish edge to it depending on how you style it (I'm thinking boots + leather biker style jacket here). What would you think?
• Now that I've completed the Hawthorn, I'm less scared of tackling Colette Pattern's Ceylon...but I've yet to find the right fabric for it. How about some black broderie anglaise? or dark green silk crepe?
• Wearing History Overalls, another try? In a checked wool fabric, perhaps?

Well, that's eleven potential sewing projects, so that shoud be enough to keep me busy for the year to come.
Also, apart from the Bronte top, I'd have all the patterns I need to complete these projects in my stash. And I also already have the fabric for seven of these, so how about a stash-busting year?

Let's see if I can stick to it!