Little Red Hood

I have been eyeing up the Papercut Patterns for a wee while and the other day I gave in.  I was looking for a cardie or similar to wear with my new hummingbird.

I headed off to The Fabric Store to their 40% sale, looking for some merino!  But what would you know the only fabric that wasn't on sale was the one I liked!  So what the hell, I got it anyway along with the Circle Top pattern.

The red is as rich in real life as it looks in the photos. 

It is such a simple concept ... it is literally a full circle, which is cut on the fold.  A hole is cut for the sleeves which are inset and sit on the top of my shoulder - I was so surprised at how the sleeves don't fall off my shoulders.

It is a real mission, or maybe just takes some getting use to, working out how to wear the top of the circle.  It is easy to wear caped over my head.  I've tried rolling it into a collar or draping it back like a big collar.

I made a size XS. The only alteration I made was to the cuffs - bringing the width in by 5/8" on both sides to make them fitted.  I like a long sleeve but I hate it when cuffs are loose and baggy!  The depth of the cuffs are awesome at 6".

The band around the entire edge of the circle is applied with the bias tape principle and is real easy to apply.  It is most definitely one of the garments that isn't meant to have the perfect placement.  It is easy to snug into it!  I particularly love the hood and is easy to wear over a dress or throw on for extra warmth.

This is my first Papercut Pattern but it most definitely won't be the last - I've got my eye on a few others but I need to get through my current 'to do' first!

April Pant in July

After my success with the Jalie Jean I was super keen to get onto another pant - in comes the April Pant (legging) from Style Arc.

I made a wearable muslin from cotton lycra.  The fabric was in my stash - I had purchased metres of it to make some basic long sleeve Renfrew for winter undergarments, umm still getting to those!   The cotton lycra is okay but has a relaxed feel about them.  The weight means they will probably be okay for spring or autumn.

all black - nothing much to see!

The pattern recommends a Ponte, but I didn't have any in my stash.  However, I can imagine with a Ponte it will give a snugger fit.  I did make an adjustment to my pattern and took out some of the ease at the waist, hip and upper thigh before continuing on with my next pair.

The fabric for my 'real' version is a propylene merino blend and I would say is the same weight as a ponte.  The fabric is reversible, so I went with the black for the main colour and the reverse side is a dark grey which is used for the inner leg and side panel.

over exposed so the contrast panels are visible

The fit on the other hand is almost perfect.  I have 'zero butt' syndrome and there is still just a little more ease around the bottom of my butt than needs to be.  I think when I make my next pair I might shave a further 1/4" off the side seam.

While they look like a simple legging they feel A-maz-ing!  I believe this is because they have a horizontal seam just above the knee and at the back of the knee, an inner leg insert and a side panel.  All those seams = sturdy warm feeling.

These are really hard to photograph because they are black!  So not many photos of these.

This is my first Style Arc pattern because the postage is really high - to compensate each month they give away a free pattern with every order.

I am super impressed with the pattern and fit.  The package is nothing special, but included is a swatch of the recommended fabric for the garment.  The instructions were pretty easy to follow, however no visual images to help.  It kinda reminded me of sewing from the Burda Magazine, but the language was easy to follow and understand.  The pattern only comes in the size that you order, not the multi-size patterns we are use to these days.  On these pants there were lots of notches which made construction really easy.  Overall, I would definitely buy more from Style Arc and looking forward to sewing up my second pattern.

PJ's Sewaholic Style

More sewing for my 'mini me' (don't tell her but I really wanted any excuse to make this pattern ... sssh).  It is winter here in NZ and there is nothing better than a warm pair of PJ's to hang around the house in.

I really love the piping feature of this pattern - I just think it adds a touch of class to the simple PJ.  Hey and who doesn't want to look their best when they go to bed!

I made the piping myself (using my new piping foot for my machine).  The only thing doing this is there is quite a bit of unused fabric.

This was really, really easy to do - in my opinion it was far easier to make piping than bias tape! I used a lemon yellow poplin from Spotlight.  The flannelette I also got from Spotlight, who by the way have a huge selection.

These PJs are really easy to make, with lots of straight line stitching.  The only fiddly bit is threading the elastic and tie through the waist band casing.

The legs have a decent amount of length on them.  I had to cut a good 2" off the bottom before hemming - these are a size 12.

Excuse the night photos, but I wanted to get some photos before she worn them to bed!

Messy BUT Cuddly Faux Fur

When I agreed to sew a fur vest for a friend, I really didn't know what I was getting into!  Shopping for the faux fur from Global Fabrics (oops The Fabric Store) was fun - given that this type of fabric hasn't ever attracted me before.  I didn't realise how much of a choice there is. 

But man is it messy!  I had fur absolutely everywhere!  

After an internet search on faux fur vest patterns I found a Kwik & Sew PDF pattern 3731.  I really like this pattern because there is a choice of neckline - either a round neckline or V neckline.   For this version the owner chose a V neck.

Oh but wait, I didn't agree to make just one .... NOOO ... two requests were placed and I couldn't resist the challenge.  Version two is the round neck.

Apart from having fur all over me, the floor, my sewing table (oh that's right it's meant to be my dining room table!) I love it because it has no closures and both options are fully lined.  I used a stretch satin as a lining - that worked out perfect with just enough give to ease onto the faux fur.  The slippery nature of the satin means that it will wear well over any garment. 

 

From start to finish it took me three hours per vest (not including taping the PDF pattern together).  The faux fur was actually easier to sew than I anticipated, despite the mess.  I had to use a 14/90 needle and slightly release the pressure on the feed dogs to '4' on my machine.    

The V-neck version is a long raccoon faux fur and the round-neck version a soft 'teddy bear' short faux fur.  I can't say that one was easier or better to sew than the other - the length of the further didn't seem to matter.  

So a few pics ... new owner super happy with her teddy bear fur.

Winter sewing - gotta love it!