Sewaholic Hollyburn Skirt

Sewaholic Hollyburn skirt

Greetings! Can you believe how many times I've post in the past week or so? It might be due to my new weekly checklist system, but we will see if I can keep it up! Also, welcome to the parking lot of my store/apartment complex. A great, private, and very bland place to take photos but thats ok. I finailly tried out my new tripod and camera, so hopefully pics will continue to improve. 

So casual!

In an effort to keep wearing nothing but navy, white, and black, allow me to present the Sewaholic Hollyburn skirt! I have heard great things about this skirt for ages, but honestly wasn't totally sold on the middle center seam. I just don't usually like font seams on skirts, but I guess I'm just odd like that. This yellow version, by Lauren, finally sold me! It looks so cute in a solid, and she raves about it, so I thought I'd give it a whirl.

This is me giving it a whirl

I used a nice Japanese indigo cotton that I have at the shop (and online! here) that is a bit stiffer and a tiny bit heavier than quilting cotton, but not much. I thought the pattern was subtle enough to keep the middle seam from bugging me. And I was right! It's actually not even noticeable, really.  I made version 3, which is short without button tabs or belt loops, but I may add loops net time. I have some stretch cotton twill in bright reddish-coral that might be perfect for this! (Otherwise I'll just copy Lauren's yellow version!)

Up close and personal!

I made the size 6 with no adjustments, which was fun! I usually have to grade out because my hips are always a bigger size than my waist, but I have heard that Sewaholic patterns are made for us hippier ladies, so that was nice. And I must say that it fits really well! (Except after a big lunch!) I like that it has body, but isn't gathered at the waist, so that it lays a little bit flatter and doesnt add volume to the lower-stomach problem zone!

Tripod selfie !

I am quite happy with the skirt, and it was definitely easy since there was no gathers. I also really like the pockets since they show up and arent just hidden in the side seam. I think side seam pockets add bulk to hips as well, another no-no! (but I still love them because pockets are great). Im glad to have a pattern fit me out of the package, and one that doest take long to make either. A flattering length, good for flats or heels. Way to go, Sewaholic!

Check back soon, I have some quilts I'm finishing up, and I'm also getting my hair done Monday which means that soon enough my bangs will no longer be a different color than my ponytail. Fancy!!

McCalls6696 Shirtdress!

McCalls 6696 View B

I recently (yesterday) finally sewed the buttons and buttonholes on this dress to complete it, and it only took 2 months! I actually think that's a pretty good speed for me because i loved this pattern but thought it would be too hard for me. 

Greetings from my shirt dress!

When Mary from Idle Fancy  first announced this kind of "group sew" for this dress, I was intrigued. It wouldn't be a bunch of very detailed posts on how to make this dress, just a lot of helpful links and tips, and plus I work best under deadlines, so I thought I'd give it a shot and push myself a bit, knowing there'd be some support around!

Extremely washed out in the Nashville sun (no complaints)

Side note: I used to think my ipad took good pictures but I've recently become obsessed with a camera I cant afford, so now I no longer like them :( But stick around and hopefully someday soon I'll have that camera! 

Awkward close up

I really like that this dress can be made up in lots of different fabrics, but looks really classic and good in something a bit stiffer, which makes it easy to work with, cut, and iron. I got this light blue and white striped cotton for a super low price at a jeans store here. Twice a year they have a yard sale and sell awesome fabric and denim for cray prices. It's great! I think I got 5 yards for $15. Which made it very easy to cut into and attempt this dress. 

The bodice. 

I did, however, make a muslin of the bodice first. This pattern goes by cup size, not bust measurements, so I was slightly confused at first, but I ended up cutting the size 8, which I believe is the smallest, with the small bust bodice (A-B cup). Once I tried the muslin on I ended up adding 1" to the bodice pattern pieces because I have a longish torso, and then it ended right at my natural waist.

More January sunshine

Other than that adjustment the only thing I changed was to take an extra 2" off the hemline. This pattern has lots of fun things (fun to me since it was my first time doing them), like hemming before you add the button placket. I also love making pleats, I had fun making little belt loops and pockets, and I also sewed a collar for the first time (with mom's guidance while home for Christmas). I like patterns that teach me things but aren't overwhelmingly hard, and this one did that for sure! 

Laughing at Katie, my stylist/photographer

I think the sleeves and bodice are really flattering on this, and the skirt is a little poofy in this somewhat stiff fabric, but not overly so, which I was a bit worried about at first. 

The back

The back bodice is also gathered at the top and bottom, and while I think it's cute it kinda puffs out a bit too much so I think I will try removing that for the next one I make (have some eyelet already cut out for a sleeveless second version).

Who knows

I'm so glad that I pushed myself and took my time and really tried to figure this pattern out. It felt good that it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be! There are lots of other dresses entered in this sewalong,  you can check them out on the Flickr page, here. Or you can search Instagram with #1000shirtdresses.

Parking lot modeling

Thanks for checking out my dress! Making something that fits and looks good is such a great motivator. I have a large wish-list of items to make for a trip down under that is only 46 days away so wish me fast sewing!!

Sewviver Entry for The Fabric Studio

This is a quilt I've been meaning to blog about for ages but never got around to it! I thought it would be perfect to use it as my entry for the "Sewviver" quilt competition!  It seems like a really fun contest with different challenges each month, so we'll see! 

First, some background on the quilt: when I lived in Indianapolis in 2011 I went through a long phase of listening to the same Dr Dog cd every single day. (I do that a lot with bands... Dr. Dog finally broke the 2-year Paul Simon loop I had previously been stuck in. Happily stuck of course!). There is a line from a song, "what you thought was a hurricane was just the rustling of the wind," and it really resonated with me at the time. Then, I took it to mean that although things always seem big and important in the moment, they usually turn out to not really matter that much. It was a reminder to just calm down and not worry. So I knew I wanted to make something to go in my house with the quote. For the longest time (probably a good 6 months), I didnt know what to make. I thought about a poster, or cross stitch, but didnt seem quite right. Then I think when I was driving to IL to move back to Chicago from Indy it hit me: make a quilt!!

I started working on it while living at home in the fall and winter of 2012. I didnt use any type of pattern, and I made each letter one at a time, in order of how they are written, just improve cutting and hoping for the best, and filling in the rows with the different creams, whites, and golds I had picked out for background fabrics.  Below is a picture of the early stages hanging on the design wall in my parents basement. 

When I moved to Nashville I packed it up and put it on my new design wall. I really went slowly with this quilt because I had no plan ahead of time other than the quote. I just kinda waited until I had an idea that felt right, and then I went with it. I have always loved stars, so I knew they needed to be involved, and then the last side I made, the scattered triangles, I wanted to look like they were blowing in the wind. 

I had the top done for a long time before I started quilting it because I had no idea what to do! The quilt is huge! (For me anyway, and my little Singer). So, I made the back with more stars and some great coral solids that I dont remember what brand or color they are :( Sad! Im bad at keeping track of that kind of stuff. 

At some point I had coffee with a quilting friend and we were looking at examples of text quilts online, and how they were quilted. Like a crazy person, I decided I wanted to do straightline quilting, about 1/2" apart. I would never attempt this again, because it took sooooo long, but I do love how it looks. On the text section, the lines are randomly spaced but no more than an inch (mostly much closer), and they run up and down. On the star section the lines go cross-wise. Then on the part with the triangles I extended the line made by the angled side of the trianlge, and just quilted along that edge. I love that part the best and how it looks random but I actually comes from the shapes in the quilt. 

The pictures below sort of show the quilting lines, but I dont really have any great shots. It took about a year and a half from conception to completion, but so worth it!

And one more, quilt in the sunshine photo.

Thanks for taking a look! I love cuddling with this blanket, love the mix of white, gold, coral, and pink fabrics, and love that I am done and dont have to work on it anymore!

Zinnia Skirt Finally Complete!

[caption id="attachment_209" align="aligncenter" width="560"] Zinnia Skirt![/caption]

Hey look! I successfully completed a clothes sewing project! Yes, I did sew 2 Briars last month as well, but this pattern (the wonderful Colette patterns Zinnia) had a zipper, and pleats, and I used slippery rayon, so it feels like more of an accomplishment. I went on my normal schedule of sewing just one items from the directions each day (except the last day I went nuts and sewed the waistband AND the hem.) So this project took me about 12 days. Obviously not of continuous sewing! I also made some napkins and ran the shop in between.

[caption id="attachment_210" align="aligncenter" width="560"] Zinnia with striped Betsy Johnson rayon[/caption]

I am really happy with how this skirt turned out! I mostly followed the pattern as it was written. Last time I sewed this skirt with quilting cotton and I did a gathered waist instead of pleats because the pattern download didnt print out exactly right. And it was a little too poofy and costume-y  for me in that particular fabric.

However, with the rayon and the pleats, I love it! It drapes so nicely, it is really soft and swishy, and I think flattering! (also be sure to check out my awesome Free People shoes! I splurged a bit  but I LOVE them and they are really comfy.)

[caption id="attachment_211" align="aligncenter" width="560"] Invisible zipper[/caption]

One change I did make on the pattern was to get rid of the button tab closure and make the invisible zipper go all the way to the top of the skirt. I dont know how to do buttons (I know, I know, it's "easy"), and I knew that instead of forcing me to learn how to do buttons, leaving it in the pattern would just mean that I never finished the skirt. Oh and the zipper gave me plenty of trouble on its own! I had to redo it like 5 times. 5 times! once because it was twisted, the other times because the dang stripes would not match up. But when I got it right it sure was exciting!

[caption id="attachment_208" align="aligncenter" width="560"] Matching side stripes in the wind![/caption]

One thing about the matching side stripes! I was very proud of myself for even remembering to think about this when I cut out the pattern pieces. Yay! Go me. So, they were at one point aligned. Somehow, somewhere along the line, one side went weird!

[caption id="attachment_207" align="aligncenter" width="560"] Non-matching side stripes![/caption]

Somehow by the time I did the pleats and went to sew the other side together they were no longer matching. Very odd! Oh well, it really doesnt bother me, so hopefully it wont bother anyone else!

Anyway, I really like this skirt, the Zinnia by Colette patterns. The pleats were a little tricky with the rayon, but not bad, and they kinda flatten out your lower belly, which is always nice. And there are pockets! Already want to make another one of these, but my list of clothing projects is growing much too long, and I have plenty of other things that I actually need to do and am getting paid for, so I should probably do those first :)

Thanks for looking!

My First Briar!

Hello! What an exciting day-- I finished my very first article of clothing sewn from a pattern that 1. fits and 2. I like, and 3. is comfy!! When my family was in town for the opening my cousin Holly and I decided that we would both tackle a t-shirt pattern that we were told was beginner friendly...even though it was sewing with knits! We both picked out fabric (the fabric I used has since been purchased by both a 70-year old and a 6-year old, so clearly it has universal appeal... either that or my tastes are skewing older AND younger than I would have guessed).

The Briar  is a pattern that can be made with a wide variety of knit fabrics, and the pattern also has options for cropped and full length, as well as short and long sleeves. I went with the full length, short sleeve version. It also has a high-low hem, which is fun and cute!

[caption id="attachment_113" align="aligncenter" width="560"] Me and my Briar, downtown Nashville[/caption]

For my first attempt I decided to do exactly what the pattern said, and not make any changes. I cut out the XS and I think it fit really well! This is an online PDF pattern, so you print the pages and then tape them together. For this pattern it finally occured to me to trim the pages with a rotary blade and ruler, rather than scissors, so that made the time go faster. Then I used tracing paper (bought a roll of 24" paper at the art store) so that if this size didnt fit me aI could go back and trace another size, rather than reprinting, taping, and cutting. Also, the fabric I used is a very thin, very drapey knit, which was quite hard to work with, cut, and get to lay flat, but not impossible, plus now the next time I make it, with a more stable knit, it'll be way easier!

[caption id="attachment_114" align="aligncenter" width="560"] High-low hem[/caption]

For my own personal preference I thought the back hem was just a little too long. Maybe it also has to do with the thin knit, but it just doesnt lay well over jeans pockets, so next time I will probably make the back a few inches shorter, and the front just an inch or so shorter. Maybe not quite cropped, but.... maybe!

[caption id="attachment_115" align="aligncenter" width="560"] Back with middle seam[/caption]

One fun thing was that I messed up the cutting right away! Even though I was going very carefully and slowly, I just assumed the back was two pieces, since in a lot of patterns it is! The Briar, however, is not. I just sewed a small seam up the back and it was fine, in fact I kind of like that it breaks up the pattern and gives a little bit of visual interest. Or at least that's what I'm telling myself! Anyway, the neckline still went on fine, so this accident didnt cause many problems, thankfully!

[caption id="attachment_116" align="aligncenter" width="560"] Rounded pocket[/caption]

I used neckline piece #4 (there are 2 options, #4 and #5, but for was a bias-trim type of deal, so it seemed easier to me). I also added the little cute rounded pocket to the front which doesnt show up that much, and maybe I should have put it higher up, but I like it still.

[caption id="attachment_117" align="aligncenter" width="560"] Waiting for the fountains[/caption]

And there ya have it, my first successful foray into the world of apparel sewing and sewing with knits! It really wasnt so bad, and I suggest just going really slowly and not rushing it. I basically did one step of the directions per day. The shirt is super comfy too, which is great. And I am already planning my next Briar, which will involve strawberries. Stay tuned!

Megan Nielsen's pattern can be purchased and downloaded here.