LLADYBIRD

completed: mccall’s 5936; the leopard jacket

this was one of those “i am going to make this but i don’t actually want to start it” projects – i dragged it out into FOREVER. i bought this fabric in… july? took my sweet time making a muslin, cutting the pieces out, making bound button holes. part of the reason why i dragged my feet so hardcore with this pattern is that i couldn’t decide how i was going to attempt construction. i wanted to fully tailor the whole thing – even bought matching silk thread & drafted a back stay – until i realized that linen doesn’t exactly lend itself well to tailoring. and my muslin was giving me the side eye so i wasn’t feel too confident about the overall fit.

those high-waisted jeans i made last week are basically what pushed me into completing this. and you know what? i ended up not doing a damn bit of tailoring on this jacket (minus the bound button holes). i basically had the whole thing pieced together & ready for slip-stitching in an afternoon. fastest jacket ever. and it feels good. it feels real good.

this is what i used – mccall’s 5936, which is sadly out of print (sorry!). my leopard fabric is a nice sturdy linen. and check out that lining! the woman at the fabric store talked me into it – i started to pick up the red, and she told me i wasn’t boring enough for that. that woman is totally onto me. anyway, i am in LOVE LOVE LOVE with this teal bemberg lining & when said fabric store has it’s biannual 50% everything sale next month (u jealous?), i may end up just buying the entire bolt & wrapping myself in it for the rest of my life. it is that fabulous.

in retrospect, this jacket could have benefited from some light tailoring – the lapels don’t quite lay right, i may need to steam them more. my button holes are not in the right place, sadly, and i can’t do anything about it sooo i decided that i don’t care. also, i need to redo the lining slip-stitching at the waistline, because i definitely pulled it too tight so there are some odd wrinkles on the outside fabric. but i finished it! and it is a jacket and it is leopard and it has a peplum and i am about to eat the lining, seriously.

recognize my jeans? 🙂
as a sidenote – they have stretched quite nicely (thanks to that pure denim – i forgot what jeans were like before the introduction of stretch!) and fit beautifully. i want to wear them forever!

and closer:

this is an unflattering picture, but i love the way the peplum looks from the side

lining! 😀

other than the lining, my favorite part is the tag 🙂 i embroidered this last year for my lady grey but decided to use something else. it is satin stitch with a back stitch outline. lovely!

buttons – vintage!

bound button holes

and just for fun – here’s how i wore it today:

excuse the extra christmas tree in the background lol

so fun! i think everyone needs a leopard print jacket 🙂

also, i think i’m gonna need some red clovers next 😉

Tags: completed, jacket, leopard jacket

Comments 40 Comments
Categories completed projects - new

completed: denim trousers

9 Dec

ahhh i’ve been looking for a pair of trousers like this – high-waisted, wide-legged denim trousers. you’d think this would be an easy thing to source at the thrift store – i recall many years of pushing past racks of high-waisted jeans – but i guess they’re back in style now, so they are getting snatched up at a rapid pace. meh.

anyway, i mentioned that i won a giveaway on molly‘s blog a couple of weeks ago… i got vogue 2925 and a really sweet vintage slip pattern. seriously, i made out like a bandit here. i mostly just wanted to make up that fabulous coat, but i didn’t realize until i received the pattern that there was also a pants pattern involved here. just the kind of pants i want, too!

i did have to make a few alterations to get the pattern to work for me – i folded out about 1″ of the crotch length (i am okay with my short crotch, and you should be too! huh, that came out all wrong) and eliminated the cuffs. the waist was a little too big, so i pulled that in on the sides (although, in retrospect, i may have pulled it in a little too much. they are kind of tight up there!). i ended up cutting quite a bit of the leg flare off the sides – something like 2″. they were dwarfing my poor little legs & making me look like a stump in 2 leg skirts.

i can’t really call these “jeans” because there’s not much about them that is like a traditional pair of jeans. there is minimal topstitching – and i went with denim colored thread because i wanted these to still be sleek – and no pockets. the seams are mock-flat felled. i did use a ~real~ jeans button & fly zipper (see my fly zipper tutorial if you’re like me & need hand-holding with this process!). the denim is… interesting. i picked it up at a yardsale over the summer… something insane like 4 yards for $2. and this is serious workman denim – it is very heavy and has no stretch. honestly, it’s probably as old as the pattern i used lol. this pants would probably benefit from a slight amount of stretch, especially considering how tight i made them. ah, live and learn!

obviously, i still need to work on my pattern fitting. there are smile lines & a little bit of bagginess at the bottom of the crotch.

the butt is a little tight, could have benefited from a small full butt adjustment.
(if you are wondering why my wall color keeps changing, blame the photo editing program i used :B)

they look good from the side, though!

the original pattern called for a folded over waistband… i felt like that was too much bulk with this denim, so i shaved an inch off the width & faced it with a bit of interfaced cotton. much more comfortable!

so, i feel pretty good about my trousers. there are definitely some fitting issues, but i approached these as a “wearable muslin” (hence the mock flat-felled seams), and i think i can get a better fit with the next pair. they are definitely wearable – and definitely perfect for those little boy’s sweaters i keep picking up that are too short to wear with regular-rise pants.

they would also probably look fabulous with a leopard print jacket. DAMMIT. i need to get cracking on that beast!

Tags: denim, pants, vintage, vogue

Comments 28 Comments
Categories completed projects - new

a christmas wishlist

8 Dec

i love making christmas wishlists – not in a “hey someone buy me this already” way (although, if you want my mailing address ::cough:: i’d be happy to accept gifts ::cough:: lol), but more of a pictorial list of things i would like to eventually buy as my funds free up. don’t pretend like you don’t do it too!

in the spirit of this blog, though, i’ll keep it sewing-related! especially since most everything i ever want is sewing-related anyway 😉 oh, and i’m including links for everything so you can buy yourself a prezzie if you find something you fancy – i won’t tell anyone 😉

let’s start with patterns. i need more colette patterns!

colette pattern’s cinnamon slip
have we discussed the cinnamon on this blog yet? DARLING. i recently decided that i have a sudden need for pretty loungewear – silk & flannel slips, matching flannel pajamas, cozy wool socks. no more yoga pants & ratty tshirts. the cinnamon is pretty perfect for this – it even includes how to make a cami instead of a slip.

colette pattern’s chantilly dress
i love the chantilly, but the amount of fabric has always felt a little off-putting to me – i am definitely a lover of fine/expensive fabrics, but yeeesh that’s a lot to buy at once! anyway, i found this gorgeous piece of silk at the thrift store last weekend, and i think it would be perfect for this dress.

colette pattern’s jasmine blouse
i keep seeing everyone else’s versions of these popping up – i want one too!

colette pattern’s oolong dress
as with the jasmine, more and more of these have been appearing on my blog feed & i’m getting more and more jealous that i don’t already have one. hee.

fabric:

turquiose wool coating from mood – 2.5 yards
i recently won a giveaway on molly‘s blog, and won a wonderful coat/pants pattern (vogue 2925, if you’re curious). I WANT TO MAKE THIS COAT SO BAD. coating fabric is throwing me off, though – not even the expense, just the selection! i thought i wanted a camel-colored wool, but after looking at a bunch of camels & beiges, i’ve decided that tan is boring & i require something more like turquiose. isn’t this turquiose lovely?

dark grey bemberg rayon lining from mood – 3 yards
with coats come lining! i love this dark grey, although a brighter turquoise or teal would be equally swell.

turquiose silk shantung from mood – 3 yards
wrapping up my mood mini-shopping spree, here’s some turquoise silk shantung! this would be perfect for my bombshell dress (that i haven’t started yet because i stalled on fabric choices). gawd, i love turquoise.

books:

pants for real people
i already have the sister book, fit for real people, but they don’t cover pants-fitting at all 😦 pants are my new favorite thing to torture myself with sewing, need to fine-tine my fit!

burdastyle sewing book
i actually almost bought this right after it released. then i remembered that it’s christmas and i’m supposed to be spending my money on other people 😉 still want it, though! i can’t get enough of these “sewing how-to” books & i love when they include patterns.

misc:

clover 1/2″ bias tape maker
well, this is pretty boring. i want a bias tape maker. i already have a 1″ but i want to make baby bias tape, because it sounds totally presh.

gingher 5″ snips
these would be a great addition to my gingher shears collection. 5″ snips for cutting notches & threads.

what are some things you’re hoping to get this holiday season? anything i missed here? indulge with me!

Tags: christmas, wishlist

Comments 20 Comments
Categories here are some things i would like to have

recon: taffeta christmas skirt

5 Dec

my favorite kind of recon – easy easy!

i’ve been pining for a plaid taffeta party something for a couple of weeks now – didn’t care if it was a skirt or a dress. i actually wanted to make a taffeta peony, so i started lurking plaid taffetas online. well, i scrapped that idea to the back burner when i realized how expensive that stuff is – and i wanted silk!

so imagine my delight when i found a little girl’s plaid taffeta party dress during my saturday shopping trip with lauren. it’s polyester, but whatever – PLAID. and $2.50!

here’s what i started with. it’s pretty small, but that empire waist is exactly my waist measurement. and before anyone gets sad about the death of a little girl’s plaid taffeta party dress, i will point out that it’s a walmart brand. pretty cheap stuff to begin with.

anyway, i removed the skirt from the bodice (and discarded the bodice – not enough fabric to do anything with!) and cut the hem off the bottom to form a waistband. since the hem is on the bias, i stabilized it with horsehair interfacing to give it some structure. i shortened the zipper & stuck it back in there with the skirt lining. the hem is just a simple rolled hem. easy!

this whole project probably took about 2 hours, and now i have a new skirt to wear for christmas parties 🙂 i already wore it this morning to put up the office christmas tree.

i even had enough taffeta left over to make a matching headband.

i look like a damn christmas present.

i’m okay with that 🙂

Tags: completed, holidaze, plaid, reconstructions, skirt

Comments 22 Comments
Categories completed projects - reconstructed

bound buttonholes and… knitting.

30 Nov

look, guys, i’m a featured member on pattern review!

i don’t actually know what that means, but it’s kinda cool nonetheless! my picture! on the front page! wheee!!

remember when i said i was going to make a leopard print jacket?

i decided to practice my bound buttonholes last night. here is my first attempt:

i figured that was good enough & forged ahead with putting them on the jacket front:

they are actually fairly camouflaged (hurr durr because of the print, get it?), so it wouldn’t even matter if they were imperfect. actually, i think they turned out pretty good!

ok ok, that’s enough bound buttonholes for one day!

unfortunately, my progress with the jacket comes to a stop now because i can’t decide if i want to fully tailor the thing & interface the whole front, or if i just want to do some “light tailoring” and only padstitch the back collar & put in a back stay. what would you do?
either way, i’m out of hair canvas so i have to order more. BOO!

in other news…

i finished my first knitting swatch! bound off and everything! this will be a… dish cloth.

i started my first real knitting project – it’s a scrunchable scarf! the yarn is some soft alpaca i frogged from a scarf i (very poorly!)crocheted a couple of years ago. aha knitting is so thrifty! anyway, i’m really excited! my first knitted scarf!

also, i celebrated black friday by staying home and painting my living room blue.

with special thanks to my patient boyfriend (who did the rolling) and all the hit songs of the 90s – i couldn’t have done it without y’all.

Tags: knitting, leopard jacket, tailoring

Comments 24 Comments
Categories misc, work in progress

completed: the colette meringue

23 Nov

my first pattern from the colette sewing book! i’ve been itching to try this one, especially after sarai posted a tutorial on how to draft a waistband (which, in case you were wondering – easy easy!). also, SCALLOPS. i think i just jumped on the scallop bandwagon with this. they are a pain to mark, sew & press, but oooh they are so happy!

i used a piece of wool houndstooth that i got from lauren winter, during that awesome yardsale where i bought half of her fabric stash. this piece of fabric cost me a whopping 75 cents. everything else was already in the stash – the lining (a remnant left over from a dress i made 4 years ago – yeesh, do i throw anything away? well, it’s gone now. gone inside my skirt, i mean.), the bias tape, even the zipper & thread. 75 cent skirt, yo!

cutting this pattern out was… interesting. it calls for a lot of yardage, but i only had 3/4 yard of the houndstooth. it was 60″ wide, though, so with some careful folding, i was able to get my skirt cut out with practically nothing to spare. cutting off the top to make a seperate wasistband really helped, as it shortened the length of the skirt so that the skirt & the facing fit exactly at the 3/4 yard length. i suppose one could use a different fabric for the facings (on both the scallops & the waistband) if you were really running short. i had exactly enough, though!

i cut a size 2 in this, no flat pattern alterations. yay! i made a lot of “style” alterations, though – added the waistband, piped the waistband seam, finished the top of the waistband over the zipper with a tab (that was accidental… for some reason, my waistband was too long? bwuh?), added a short lining for comfort. i also finished the inside of the waistband & the top of the scallop facing with black bias tape, so it looks real pretty inside :3

if you want my honest opinion on this skirt, it alone is worth the $18 that the book currently costs on amazon. go get it!

you can see my waistband tab over the zipper here

piping!
i really only added piping because i wanted to test out my new piping foot 🙂 verdict: omg how did i live without a piping foot???

the lining makes me so happy!

my only problem now is that i don’t know what to wear to thanksgiving dinner tomorrow! the floral peony was supposed to be my ~thanksgiving dress~, but now i’ve got plaid & pants & scallops and man, i just can’t decide. i love having these kinds of problems, lol

one more thing…

i learned how to knit (and purl!) last night! my new friend & fellow nashville bike rider, sarah, taught me over coffee. so pumped about my future cowl 😀

Tags: colette sewing handbook, completed, meringue, skirt

Comments 29 Comments
Categories completed projects - new

clover: let’s get real

21 Nov

i mean, let’s get real-real here.

this is my 4th pair of clovers i have completed thus far. in case you aren’t up to speed with this saga, every prior pair of clovers has been demoted to “muslin” and wadded up & stuffed in the Muslin Basket of Shame (i’ll throw that stuff away… eventually). making anything over & over again – especially if you can’t actually wear it out in public – sucks. it feels wasteful – wasteful of fabric, of precious sewing time, of misplaced giddiness (idk, i get real giddy when i am making a new piece of clothing lol).

this pattern almost broke me. it might still break me because it’s not quite perfect. i’ve made a lot of fitting changes and i actually feel kind of pants-intelligent right now. so that’s nice. i don’t want to dissuade anyone from buying or making this pattern because i don’t think it’s a flawed pattern… i’ve seen many of these made up, and they look GREAT. unfortunately, the body they were drafted for is quite obviously not my body. so i’ve had to do a lot of fitting, and muslins, and more fitting.

anyway, pants #4. i took another 3/8″ off the front crotch length and slightly narrowed the inside of the legs (like, maybe 1/4″. not much). i decided to make these a wearable muslin, so i used a stretch poly-blend suiting fabric i found in my stash ($2 yard sale score!) and a zipper i pulled out of a dress someone gave me for fabric salvage. i did serge everything on the inside in case the wearable muslin turned out awesome.

after wearing them around this afternoon, i shaved about 3/8ish” off the front crotch seam & tapered the curved side seam (on the non-zipper side, sry, don’t feel like re-inserting the zipper) to a straight line. in the future, i may let out the waistband a little because it digs in when i sit down. also, i thought the waistline didn’t look terribly flattering on me – too low – but looking at the pictures it doesn’t seem so bad. what do you think? for anyone who is curious, they hit exactly at my belly button.

i guess my question is, how fitted is too fitted? of course we want a smooth line, but i don’t want to get it so smooth that i can’t move comfortably! this is where i want y’all to be honest – critique! please! 🙂

when i stand normally, they look close to perfect.

when i stand with my legs together, though, i get a little bagginess around the crotch (ughh i’m gonna get some weird google search terms for this one). how to fix this? what is stumping me is that it is all the lower crotch/thigh area, and i can’t find fitting info for that – only the top half. it kind of makes me look like i have a FUPA right now. i don’t want to look like i have a FUPA. help!

another view, another baggy crotch.

back looks good! there are a few drag lines on the sides and the darts look like that because i couldn’t get a good press (stupid poly), but i think it’s satisfactory.

side looks good!

last crotch-shot, promise
see that bagginess? what is causing it and how can i fix it?

ALL THAT BEING SAID, i like these pants. i think the fitting issues are pretty minor & most normal non-sewing people won’t notice them. so i will continue to wear these, and continue to improve this pattern block. i think they look really cute on me, and i want several pairs!

Tags: clover, completed, dear god help me, muslin, pants

Comments 36 Comments
Categories completed projects - new

completed: peony, this time in PLAID

17 Nov

pretty sure the peony is my new favorite TNT dress, y’all. it is SO easy to make up – even with matching plaids! – and extremely versatile in all the ways you can change it up. i am already thinking about making a summertime-approps peony with a chiffon overlay & no sleeves. oooh i just inspired myself again.

anyway, before i get ahead of myself, let’s focus on the peony at hand. this is my second make up, floral being the first. in addition to the previous alterations i made to the pattern, i shaved about 1/2″ off the front neckline, as i felt it was a tiny bit too high. i omitted the facings & instead lined the bodice & sleeves. i wanted to line the entire dress, but i only had 1 yard so it was either sleeves or skirt… i went with sleeves, because i can always wear a slip with the skirt.

the plaid fabric is my new favorite! i bought it from miss lauren winter right before she moved house (and, sadly, out of my neighborhood ::sob!::), although considering she charged me $2 for the whole 2 yards it’s more like she basically gave it to me. it is a very fine/soft wool, super drapey & comfortable. the lining is a pale periwinkle blue bemberg rayon that i found in the remnant rack for super duper cheap & i’ve been hoarding for like a year.

i was concerned that this dress wasn’t totally appropriate for plaid, but i think i did an ok job at matching. this pattern really doesn’t use a lot of fabric – even with matching up the plaids, i used less than 2 yards. the side seams match perfectly (if i do say so myself) and surprisingly the darts match up. well, kind of. the bottoms don’t, but that’s just the way they are positioned. furthermore, the waistline doesn’t exactly match up & again, that’s because of how the pattern was drafted. i can’t decide if it bothers me or not. in the meantime, i’ll just wear a belt and pretend otherwise.

i actually cut out the pieces for the cummerbund (in navy taffeta), but decided to go thrifting last night instead of sewing it up. it’s all good, though – look at the belt i got for $3!

the dark vertical line is actually part of the plaid, and not my invisible zipper, fyi.

here it is without the belt
ooh the mismatched plaid at the darts actually is really bothering me

sorry ’bout the rogue white thread lurking back there

really pleased with myself here – i figured out how to attach the lining without having to slipstitch it to the zipper tape. so clean!

tiniest hem ever – this dress is SHORT!

and some bonus shots…

with my lady grey

a result of gertie’s sew-along last year, my first venture into tailoring. this baby is lined, interlined, padstitched… and it is nice & heavy, just like a coat should be 😉

LOVEEEE THIS COAT

and, in case you were curious:

my shoes 🙂

i have the whole week off next week, and i think i’ve already overwhelmed myself with all the sewing projects i want to tackle. we’ll see how many actually get accomplished, though 😉 hehe

Tags: completed, dress, lady grey, peony, plaid

Comments 24 Comments
Categories completed projects - new

happy day!

16 Nov

just picked up my fully serviced, fully functioning pfaff 7570 from the sewing machine repair shop!

i also picked up a piping foot – i felt like i deserved it, after dealing with the Back-up Beast (appropriate nickname brought to my attention by prttynpnk!) for the past week-plus. and a pack of bobbins. i am bobbin-rich today!

if you need me, i’ll be spending some ~quality bonding time~ with my machine this evening.

plaid peony to come soon! i haven’t forgotten!

Tags: hot damn this is my jam, my sewing machine is my best friend

Comments 4 Comments
Categories misc

pattern testing: the minoru jacket

15 Nov

time to talk about the minoru! finally! for those of you who don’t follow (the… three of you? ever?), tasia of sewaholic patterns recently dropped her 4th pattern, a darling sporty jacket called the minoru. i was chosen to be a pattern tester (out of 600!! geez louise!), which was awesome, except for the part about dropping all my sewing fun-times for 2 weeks :). this was also during the dark month that my truck had died & i hadn’t replaced it yet… so i actually rode the bus to the fabric store. it took an hour (for maaaaybe a 14 mile drive?). that is some dedication, y’all!

anyway, a few of the pattern testers have already posted theirs, so i will follow suit and post mine.

i’d actually been toying with the idea of making a cycling jacket – something brightly colored, to increase visibility now that the sun is setting earlier & earlier. when i saw that the pattern we were testing was going to be a sporty jacket, it was like god himself had sent the pattern down to me from the heavens. i initially wanted to make my jacket in a bright yellow corduroy, but the fabric store was lacking (and i didn’t have the means to shop around), so i stuck with white. in retrospect, this was not the best idea i have ever had – it gets dirty faster (duh!), my patterned lining shows through, and it is hard as shit to photograph. btw, i think i took over 150 pictures of this jacket. it was that hard to photograph.

anyway, the pattern itself was a total breeze to work through! tasia has it labeled as intermediate, but i think an advanced beginner could easily tackle this. the instructions are great & the pieces lined up nicely! i did have to make a few changes to get the pattern to work for me – the big one was a full bust adjustment. since these patterns are for the pear-inclined, there is not a lot of room up there! i had a bit of trouble since this jacket doesn’t actually have any darts in the front, so i had to add my own dart & then slash and spread from there. i also shortened the jacket, as the original length overwhelmed my short frame.
one thing i wish i had done was interfaced the collar – it doesn’t call for it in the instructions, but it is also assumed that you are using a heavier fabric. my corduroy was very fine & lightweight (hence the see-thru), and my collar just flops. i considered interfacing it while i was making the thing up, but i wanted to stay as true to the pattern/directions as possible so i could offer better feedback. so there’s my feedback – use a sturdy fabric, or use interfacing!

anyway, i love my jacket and i love all the fun details that make it so special – the topstitching (btw – buy 2 spools of thread. you will need them!), the fine gathering, THAT ELASTIC WAISTBAND THAT IS BEAUTIFUL AND GENIUS (sorry, i got excited for a second there), the inside pockets, the collar. i will definitely make this again – in my preferred yellow, with an interfaced collar 🙂 and a hood. i think i missed out by not doing the hood.

anyway, pictures!