First time in autumn colours

Do you remember my statement of intent regarding colours for this autumn/winter? Well, even though I've been a bit slow at sewing this past week, my mind has been working overtime. I want to create a sort of capsule-wardrobe from these fabrics. With pieces which can work together or with other thing which I already have (which are mostly black and grey, so that shouldn't be too hard). So far, I've dreamt up two trouser suits, two cardigans, two sleeveless woven tops, one or two sleeveless or short-sleeved knit tops, one or two skirts, two long-sleeved tops (although I would have to buy fabric for one of those) and a refashioned jumper. And that's just with the fabrics which fit in the colour palet.

This is the first piece to make it into reality. I bought this fabric at the market when it crazily cheap on sale (50 cents a meter). My reasoning was that if it turned out to be nasty, I could at least use it to make muslins. But it's something like cotton fannel (I did a burn test, it's definately a plant fibre) and ridiculously soft. I'm just a bit concerned about its durability.

In my opinion, cheap fabric is ideal for experiments. I like the vintage style trousers with side closures which I see on other blogs. However, I haven't worn any trousers without a front fly for at least 12 years. And I was considering buttons for this one as well.

To make a long story short, I drafted these from my trouser block. They're quite simple: wide straight legs, a straight waistband at the natural waist and buttons at the left side.

I'm happy. They fit just like I wanted them too, don't gape between the buttons and are very comfortable. I'm wearing them here with silk shirt nr. 2, which I didn't alter.

I just remembered something quite ironic: one of my very first serious attempts at making clothes (when I was about 14 years of age) was a pair of trousers in a very similar colour. It was in the early 90's and the pattern came from Knipmode: waist-high, tight and tapered trousers (probably meant to be a bit like leggings) with a side (!) zipper and zippers at the ankles. I made them in polyesther gabardine with brass zippers. With a matching tunic. I've only worn them a few times. The fit wasn't right and the side zipper was unfaced and its teeth bit in my hip at every twist and turn.

It seems my sewing has almost come full-circle. Now with more knowledge and skill.

Into my sewing history - part 3

After sifting through all my clothes when installing my new wardrobe, I promised you a whole series of blasts from my sewing past.

I've shown you two.

The old achievements were quickly pushed aside by new projects and newer plan... much like... No, let's not get philosophical about that. It's not so bad, after all, those old achievements were the building blocks of all mycurrent crafty endevours... much like.....

Joking aside, I thought it would be nice to do one more post with my old skirts. Completely apart from their looks, they represent an important step in my 'development' as a seamstress. They are the result of my very first tentative steps into pattern making.

I made these before taking lessons in pattern making, using a (unfortunately Dutch-only) book called 'Rok en co' (skirt and co'), with the subtitle 'for the lazy seamstress.

I would recommend this book to all beginners who like the notion of making patterns but lack the time or the love of math/technique to go all the way. It has loads of fun illustration and tutorials for several simple skirt patterns. And the sort of can-do attitude that encourages you to use it as a starting point for your own experiments.

I made these skirts based on the book's pencil skirt. The first one is long, has a little flare from just above the knee and a curved-up hemline. The second one is plain at the front but has a lace-up center back with three rows of circular ruffles underneath.

This skirt was based on the book's gored skirt tutorial. I made a long, plain 6 gore skirt before. This one is treated as a 6 gore skirt at the front and as a 8 gore skirt at the back. Instead of widening the gores themselves, I inserted the red satin godets. The skirt also is quite a bit longer at the back.

The pattern worked out fine, but this was the item which really showed me I needed some extra sewing skills. I had no idea how to make a good hem on such flared bits and the zigzagged seam allowances at the back were on show all the time.

The last skirt was a quick high-summer option. I used the pencil skirt pattern as a base for the yoke and the circle skirt tutorial to calculate the hole I had to cut in the rest of the fabric.

When I went to my first sewing technique and pattern making lesson, I took both of the knee length skirts and the voile blouse with me, to show the teacher my starting point. She was very nice about all of them and told me all I really needed to learn were some finishing tricks. Of course, then my sewing addiction really kicked in, I learned much, much more from her and the rest, as they say, is history.

Into my sewing history - part 2

First of all: Carolyn, you are absolutely right, there was a definate gothic/romantic vibe to my early sewing efforts. Very much so. The skirts I have picked out to show you today were based, for their shape on a Vogue petticoat pattern (don't know the number, don't feel like digging for it) but for their style on the gothic goodness I found here and here. Both skirts are made in two parts and connected with two small sew-on snaps at each side seam. I meant for them to be interchangable, but have almost exclusively worn them as I'm showing them here.

First up: black lace with a ruffle at the bottom over red satin. The fact that this skirt is still in fairly good shape is a testament to the durability of plastic fabrics (polyesther, nylon etc. you know what I'm talking about) because I would have thought I had worn it to shreds. I've loved this skirt. I would wear it with a black tank top in summer and with a fitted black poloneck jumper in winter. I never made a concious decision to stop wearing it, but at some point it just slowly migrated to the back of the wardrobe. My boyfriend still loves this look.

Secondly: this black satin skirt was actually the first of this group to be made. And the first underskirt for the lace overskirt. I wanted to make a neo-victorian combo. What I did was make a straight black cotton overskirt with vertical drawstrings at the front. I sort of liked this look, but nowhere near as much as the other one. And it wasn't as comfortable (if kept a bit too long, it was a real knee-binder).

What annoys me now, of course, is all the poly-satin, plus the fact that, back than, I didn't iron and my idea of hemming was 'turn in the edge and stitch down by machine, just sort of make it fit if you have to'. That, and I just don't really wear this sort of stuff anymore.

Into my sewing history - part 1

Wow, I'm actually a bit startled by the vote of confidence two of you lovely ladies gave me yesterday... You should know that, although I learned the very basics of sewing from my mother when I was a child, I only got my first own sewing machine about 6 years ago, and didn't get really serious about using it until 2 years later. And only after I took some lessons with M, starting early 2007, I started pattern making and being actually sort of good technically.

Ok, that was the disclaimer, let's get started. These are the three first shirts I ever made. This is pre-sewing lessons. All are made from Knipmode patterns, back in 2006.

I believe this was the first one. There's nothing like jumping in at the deep end. Polyesther voile and a pintucked yoke (which is slightly easier than it seems, being sewn onto the front, not set in). I think I did alright. It even has french seams throughout. However, I had not realised that those would take up extra fabric, making the shirt slightly smaller than intended. I haven't worn it that much because it has always been too tight at the shoulders and in the bust area.

This was the second one. Another Knipmode pattern. Unfortunately, I had let the fabric salesman talk me into buying something polyesther for this one as well (I wanted cream coloured cotton, which he didn't have and believed him when he claimed this would be great for a blouse, better than the cotton even, as I wouldn't have to iron it...) Those ruffles had to be finished with a serged or zigzag-ed edge, which, without a serger, gave me no chance of reaching a neat and tidy effect. I used french seams again but, having learnt my lesson with the first shirt, cut this one a size larger to compensate. I still sort of like the stacked ruffles, but the fabric annoys me and my one big mistake on this shirt makes it even worse.

The fabric did not have a clear right or wrong side. And the ruffles at the sleeves had to be applied before setting the sleeves into the body of the shirt. Which I did with a french seam. And when I got to setting the sleeves in, they were the same. I sewn one of them inside out. Because of the shallow sleeve-head I thought I could get away with putting one sleeve in back-to-front. At first it didn't bother me in wearing, but later, when I knew better, it did.

And now number three. Same pattern as the last one, minus the ruffles. I used black cotton here, and zigzag-ed the seam allowances on the inside. When it was done, I found the overall shape to block-y and sewed eyelet tape along the back darts and threaded a piece of lace through it to give it some shape. Did I mention I quite into lace-up effects back then?