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!

My adventures with cigarette pants

So, there you have it. My first big sewing project for 2015 is ON!
After some dithering about which pattern I could use, I finally settled on B5895, which I had already made before.
As I wanted to start afresh and correct whatever fit issues I might have had with my first version, I did a first muslin using the untouched pattern. And here it is!

I'd say it looks OK, both back (sorry, no picture of the back - I'm not equipped to take good pictures of my backside on my own!) and front, from the waist down to mid-thighs.
As evidenced on pic nr.2, the side seam is slightly pulled forwards when I get to the pocket area, so maybe I should taper the seam allowance to 1/2 in when I reach the top of the pocket on the side seam, and then gradually go back to 5/8 in.
I also think I should taper to a size 10 from mid-thighs down to the hem, to really get that "cigarette pants" look.
Also, I lengthened the legs a bit too much - I'll have to hack off a few inches as I want them to hit just above my ankles.

Sew For Victory : in progress!

Hi everybody, here's a little update on my Sew For Victory project! It wasn't easy to start (not due to the pattern itself but rather to my tight schedule...), but it looks like we'll finally get there on time!

Come on. Go ahead. HAVE A GOOD LAUGH at this awesome fabric I'm using for a muslin! I guess is was originally intended to make bed sheets or duvet covers for kids, but it also happened to be close enough in terms of drape/body, to my fashion fabric. And it was cheap.

Self-drafted patch pockets with flaps. I know, my pocket flaps are half disapearing under my waistband and in the side seam, and I could hardly put three fingers in my pockets. But don't worry, I made new pattern pieces and the final pockets should allow me to use them for realz.

And here's my first attempt at a lapped zipper! A bit wonky but I think I got the gist of it. Anyway, I'll probably end up making a hand-picked lapped zipper, as I always trust my hand-sewing more than my sewing machine when it comes to being precise. And hand-sewing is all the more vintage, don't you think?

I actually completed this muslin this weekend, and I'm pretty happy to say it seems to fit without any alterations apart from those I had already made - lengthening the skirt and slashing-and-spreading to make it more flared. I did'nt get much sewing done over this Easter weekend, between eating chocolate and attending a B-movie festival taking place in my city, but I still managed to trace my pattern and cut my fashion fabric...and as the Ginger skirt is a quick make, I hope I'll finish it before April 30th! Fingers crossed!

Last nigth a bobby pin saved my life...

No shit. True story. Here’s how it goes.

In this picture, there is a thing which can save a knitter's life. Can you find it?

Last night I was knitting on the train that took me back home from work. (That’s the great thing about knitting : you can do it in public transports, whereas you can’t sew. Needles (circular are even better !) your current ball of yarn, and you’re set !) Anyway, back to the story.

I was doing my stuff and everything was fine, when suddenly I dropped a stitch. I was all « ohmygodIdroppedastitchIdon’thaveacrochethowthehellamIgoingtofixthat ? » but then I told my self, « stop panicking bitch, breathe deep and look in your bag if there’s something you could make do with ! » And there it was – a bobby pin !

I managed to grab my dropped stitch with it and fix it as I would have done with a crochet, and went on with my knitting.

Moral of the story : bobby pins can help you out of the worst situations. Even a possible shuttle crash.  

(Excerpt from Airplane 2 - interesting bobby pin-related action actually starts at 1:30)

(For those who are interested : my pink-hearse-print pencil case was made by the lovely Coffin Rock, whose block and online shop you can check here! And the pattern I'm currently knitting is Andi Satterlund's Cable brim beret, which you can find on Tuts+!)

Fall Essentials Sewalong 2013 : a muslin

Sorry for the phone pic in my small wavy mirror...but I couldn't just go and take a picture in front of the mirror of my buildings hall wearing an unfinished garment, amirite?

First thoughts :

• The pattern is said to run small at the hips, but apparently it should be fine for me ;
• As with my 2 versions of the Smooth Sailing pants, I'll have to make a flat seat adjustment and remove some length from the front crotch seam;
• I'm a bit astonished to see that the legs are just the right length (in fact, they might even be a bit short if I want to wear it with the hems rolled up), considering I had to remove something like almost 4 inches (about 10 cm) from both my Smooth Sailing pants to make them the length I wanted;
• I'm not sure about the waist : is it OK, or should I make it a bit smaller (FYI : it's slightly too big in the 2 aforementioned pants)? Hard to decide, as everything here is held with safety pins!
• The front bodice should be OK, however the back bodice looked a bit too small, but maybe just because of a bad placement of the shoulder straps;
• I was a little bit perplexed by the waistband : it's too small for me, even though I'm a 28.5-29 across the waist and it's supposed to be 30 inches long, and it's smaller than the waistlines of the pants and bodice. What the f...udge is going on there? Maybe I'll just cut it very long and shorten it to suit my needs.

That's all for now, see ya!