BurdaStyle 7184 waterfall cardi...

Well, there's nothing like just jumping in and sewing a muslin with corded velvet knit!

But it was only $1.80/yard - which makes this a $2.50 project :-)

I got the fabric from Fabric Mart two years ago, thinking of a midi-length sweater coat, something kind of boho. But I just couldn't settle on a patten. It has just been decorating my stash ever since. Rather nicely, I must say, since it doesn't wrinkle. It's been rolled, tossed, pulled out and thrown back in, and not a wrinkle in sight.

Finally, I took it out and gave it a real appraisal. I was going sew it or donate it - it was kind of bugging me that I would buy fabric and not use it.

Then I realized that it would make a great waterfall cardi - it's drapey, the color is really pretty, and it's light enough that I'll actually wear it in our winter months.



On to patterns. I made a cascade cardi from the Grainline Lark tee earlier this year, and it has a nice little funky vibe. But I wanted something with raglan sleeves, a higher start to the cascade, and very little else. Picky.

A search on the web turned up a gazillion variations on this style. It's a good thing I like to research patterns...

Finally - BurdaStyle 7184. It has clean lines:

Nice sleeves and cascade:

A clean-finish neckline and front edge:

And bonus pockets for those who can't live without them. It's also designed for knits!

I got the PDF version from SewingPatterns.com, which meant printing it from the sometimes finicky PrintSew site. But I today I found it on BurdaStyle as pattern 08/2011 #117D. Printing from the BurdaStyle site is so easy - wish I'd seen it there first!

Some sewing notes:

• I sewed size 12, View B, but only after some prodigious flat-measuring on the pattern. I could not find finished garment measurements anywhere, and I was torn between size 10 and size 12. Since I did all that work, I'll share. For reference, I'm 5'7", 36"-31"-42", and have an 11" upper arm.
  
  Finished garment measurements, in inches:                        10                       12

Width at bustline, waist, and hip from CF to CF                35 1/4                 37 1/4
Cascade width at bustline and waist, each side                 9 1/2                   9 1/2
Upper arm width                                                                13 7/8                 14 3/8
Sleeve width at hem                                                           8 1/2                    8 7/8
Back length from top of neckline with 5/8" hem                 32 3/4                  33

• I used a piece of cotton calico, cut on the bias, for the back neck facing. It adds a lot more stability than a piece of the knit fabric would have done. Also, I lowered it by 3/8" at center back, to remove a slight roll below the neckline.

• No pockets, because my fabric is just too stretchy for them. Maybe in another version...

• I used 5/8" seam allowances everywhere. This is one advantage of the PDF I used - it included seam allowances. The version available on BurdaStyle does not.

• I also used a 5/8" hem, which matches the front edges. The cardi would be a lot shorter with the suggested 1 3/8" hem allowance.

• One caution: the sleeves might be short on some people. My arms a not long, and I used a scant 1" hem. However - and this is amazing, not often seen - the sleeve has lengthen/shorten lines for both the upper/armscye area and the area below the armscye. 

My flash went off on the next pic - it's not really this shiny or this purply color! But it's the only back view I have. I love the way this lies in the back and across my shoulders, and I think a lot of credit goes to the two-piece sleeve. 

Great cardi, and worn with a new pair of Love Notions Sabrina Slims.

Ciao! Coco

Morris and Sabrina...

Or what to do with 5 yards of ponte de roma! I picked it up at a very good price at Fabric Mart earlier this year, thinking I would make a long cardigan for the change of seasons. But I've been on the fence about it. A long cardigan would be an almost zero-use item for me, wearable on maybe a few days in January or February. So it's been sitting in my stash, while I've been sewing down the fabrics around it. (I've been on a bit of a fabric fast for most of the year - my stash was getting out of hand. I will totally break out during the Black Friday - Cyber Monday sales!)

So, I decided to go with a second Boyfriend Cardigan as a compromise. Only one pic, because I just don't love it. I do have other plans for it - hopefully I won't re-cut and sew it down to nothing. 

A note here about my hair: it came up blonde in this and two more pics because I took them with the settings I had been using to photograph the moon. Clearly my camera still has the upper hand. I've become very vain about my gray hair - I love it!

With the cardigan behind me, I decided to make another Grainline Morris Blazer, but with a concession - I sewed it to the original drafting, with none of the little changes I made previously to the bottom edge. And I cut it with long sleeves, a simple change. I thought I might like it better than my two previous versions. It's such a cute jacket, and I've seen so many terrific makes of the pattern - the Grainline Flickr group is a lurkers heaven...

 Actually, this one's pretty nice. The fabric works really well, and the fit is spot on. On Emile, pending sleeves:

To keep the facings - neckline, front edges, and hem - nice and fluid, I used tricot knit lining for all my interfacing. The pattern suggests fusible tricot interfacing, but I did not want to risk 'freezing' the fabric, as fusibles often do. 

I hand-basted the interfacing/facing just outside the seam line and removed the basting once the facings were in place. I enjoy hand-sewing, so basting is right up my alley. I baste all the time!

I'm really happy with the result. By the way, as before, I top-stitched along the edge of the front facing. This seems to prevent the fabric drag, between the shoulder and bottom point, that haunts so many Morris blazers.

Added top-stitching, red lines

I could not believe I still had enough fabric to make one more thing. An easy choice - the Love Notions Sabrina Slims are one of my favorite pants. Absolutely like wearing PJs.

And the ponte is all used up, gone, done!

Ciao! Coco

Love Notions Boyfriend Cardigan...

It's fall, and I need a cardigan. Wait - I want to make a cardigan. I have so many and wear them all the time over sleeveless tops and dresses. And like bed jackets around the house when I don't want a full robe. So. A new cardigan.

I settled on the Love Notions Boyfriend Cardigan, after much searching on Pinterest, Kollabora, Jalie, Style Arc (not right now, thanks), BurdaStyle, and the Big 4 sites.

It's a PDF download file, which is becoming a preference with me. I like to flat-measure, draw, and write all over the assembled pattern. Plus, the designer, Tami Meyer, use a great trim-less technique for the tape-it-together exercise. It's easily and quickly done.

However...once I had it printed and taped, I just sat in amazement and kept pushing down the leg (mine) that was trying to kick me. Even though I read reviews and looked at several dozen versions of the cardigan, I had no idea that it has such close-fitting lines.

Beginning below the neckline and continuing to the high hip, the center back has a concave curve that is about 3/4" off vertical at its deepest point, in the area of the waistline. The side seam has an even more pronounced curve starting below the armhole, through the waist, and out to the hip.

Suddenly I had a picture of myself wearing this thing propped on my bum. If I had paid more attention to the examples I visited, I might have caught this - lots of fantail definition going on. But maybe that's popular - I know that not everyone wants to wear loose clothing.

So, I redrafted the main pieces.

 and my cardigan flows.

Sleeve caution flag - there's no angle on the hem allowance. I can't imagine how one would turn and hem this sleeve as drafted.

I like to start the angle about 3" above the bottom edge, which is usually more than I need, but lets me fit the length without fussing at myself...

A few more sewing notes:

• I sewed the size Large, the best match to my measurements.

• And did all the seams on my serger. 

• No side vents - just not my thing.

• I didn't use any of the neckband options offered by the pattern. I think the hood is cute, but I didn't have enough fabric for this version. The shawl collar - well, it's very shallow, and I doubt it would really fold back nicely.
  
  So I drafted a plain neckband, 76" long (a generous length, just in case...) and 3.5" wide. I also cut it lengthwise on the grainline so it wouldn't sag or flop. Finished, it's 1 3/8" wide, and it works great!

Inside view of the band finishing.

Outside view of the band and hem finishing.

• Squeezed for fabric, I used a plain patch pocket, instead of the draped one from the pattern.
  
  

  

  Not remarkable - I just think the letters are fun! Cotton /poly jersey from Girl Charlee.

  
  
• Good stuff -  the length of the cardigan and the sleeves were perfect for me. 

• This is the top of the armscye, at the shoulder seam. It puts my teeth on edge.

Before...

And after a trim.

• One last thing that had me so perplexed that I had a discussion with Tami about it. The sleeve cap is 3/8" shorter than the armscye at each side. And she said it is intentional, that the armscye should be longer than the sleeve cap on knits.
  
  I have no way to respond to that - it's her pattern. But I never imagined this would happen, and I didn't measure the two pieces when I was drafting my tissue. Out of fabric, I had no choice but to lose some of the side seam at the armhole. 

Sleeve and sleeve cap (top), sewn into the armscye (bottom).

In the end, I have a nice new cardigan. But I'm officially done with exploring indie patterns for a while. Except for Grainline Studios. I'll sew anything Jen Beeman designs and drafts.

Ciao! Coco

Summertime tote bag - a big one!

It's Memorial Day, the official flip into summer. But summertime always starts early in Florida - it has been hot hot hot and humid. And the last thing I want to do is carry a leather handbag with all its metal zippers and whatnot's. Too much!

Solution - a fabric bag. About five years ago I drafted a tote bag pattern, very much based on the Amy Butler Birdie Sling.

There are a ton of inspiration pics of the Birdie Sling on the web, and lots of tutorials as well. So drafting my version was pretty easy. I've made over 20 of these bags. They were both gifted and sold, back when Ashley and I were doing the craft fair circuit.

But I still have and use the first one I made. I love it. It's roomy, about 26 ¾” tall, including the handles, and 18” wide, and it has some incredible physics going on. Load it up, and the weight is barely felt on one's shoulder. Seriously! I'm sure it has something to do with the inside bag hanging freely from the top band. Whatever it is, I'm amazed every time I use it. I don't know if that is characteristic of the AButler bag as well, but I'd be interested to know.

BTW, this one has been through the laundry several times. Yes! machine wash and dry. 

Time to make some more. It's a great way to use remnants, since each piece - shell, inside bag, bands/handle - uses a yard or less of fabric. Calico, quilting cotton, and light canvas all work well. This cute black/grey number is the first one I've done without contrast fabric on the bands and handle. And it works perfectly with just about everything in my closet.

Keepsake Calico Cotton - Black Lines, from JoAnns

On the inside: Nothing bugs me more than a bunch of loose stuff on the bottom of a hand bag, hiding my keys and making me crazy. So the inside of this bag has a pocket on each side. One is stitched down the middle, the typical phone & glasses accommodation...

Lining Fabric, Buttercream Bicycles - Gray & Metallic - JoAnns

And the other is zipped - a catch-all for lip balm, nail file, comb, tissue, the jewelry I take off when it bugs me... I used a purple zipper because it's easier to see than a black one would be. And I'll put helper of some kind - a ribbon or charm - on the pull.

On the clothes front, my latest pair of Love Notions Sabrina Slims:

Black/White Ethnic Glyphs Cotton Spandex Knit, from Girl Charlee

Top - Butterick 6024

Parting shot: Zebra butterflies and a giant swallowtail roosting in the guava tree at sunset a couple days ago. They're in the tree almost every night now, just six feet from my porch. Beautiful.

This little guy is not so little - 5" wing span!

Ciao! Coco 

Loving the Love Notions Sabrina Slims...

Top: New Look 6323

One or two was not enough...more Sabrina Slims!

I admit that sewing has slowed down a bit in the loft. I think it's because I'm really enjoying my 'culled' closet. It has only my very favorite clothes now - and it's so easy to choose something to wear. Who would have known? Less is more?

Well, not always. I really love these Sabrina Slims. As soon as I finished my first pair(s), I ordered a couple fabrics to add some new fun to my spring and summer wardrobe. Of course I wanted white - it's seasonless down here. And I wanted a floral print, because the inspiration pics on the web were so nice when done in a print. Oh, and apparently floral pants on trending this spring. Like I need an excuse...







I used a medium weight (10 oz) cotton spandex knit from Girl Charlee for the white pair. It has 4-way stretch and is perfect for these pants. And as long as I was doing repeats, I made another McCalls 6987 tunic to go with. I don't see much of this tunic on the web, and I imagine it's not terribly popular - the envelope pic is awful. But I really like it. Done in challis, it's weightless and just floats around.

And here's is the floral print! I love it. 

This is also a cotton spandex knit from Girl Charlee - mid-weight at 8.5 oz, with 4-way stretch.

Let's see - what else... Last weekend I put down 100 lbs. of fertilizer in the garden. Not an easy task! But it's that time of year, and I need to fertilize ahead of the heavy summer rains. The palms are putting out flower spathes (pollen everywhere), and the mahogany trees have shed their leaves and are sprouting a beautiful new green canopy. The plants are hungry!

Other than that I've been just monkeying around. A monkey muslin...

Ciao! Coco