Friday link-love

Tweet

Phew! Thank goodness it's Friday. What a tumultuous week it's been.

Here's some link-love for to brighten up your day.

KNIT from your brain: That's right, turn your brainwaves into scarves and cardigans.

LISTEN to fifty shades of feminism: What does being a woman mean today?

WATCH the hero's journey - Teacher Ben showed me this one, a basic understanding of the monomyth theory.

And the weeks takeaway quote?

"Inspired people through positive messages. Martin Luther King never said 'I have a nightmare'. (listen to the podcast above for more)

The Elisalex curtain dress

Tweet

Everybody's doing it.......

...making the Elisalex dress that is.

This one was popping up all over my blog feed but it was seeing Dixie's version and Heather's version that I finally decided to jump on the bandwagon. Earlier this year I found some old Liberty of London curtains at the local op-shop. Just $12 for both pieces! It had just the right amount of stiffness that I knew it had to be a dress with a bit of structure.

I made a muslin of just the top but didn't end up making any adjustments.Although after finishing I wish I had taken in the back a bit more, it gapes just a tiny bit and the shoulders seem to want to fall off. As it is, I haven't actually worn it out yet, I'm worried of being at work and having the shoulders continually slip off. I might try undo the lining and add some small darts at the back neckline. For adjusting the pattern I presume I need to remove width from the back shoulder area and front neckline. Has anyone done/seen something similar?

 

The only change I made to the pattern was at the hips. The pattern's designed for women with larger hips, which just isn't me (I tend to be straight up and down). I took about 1.5 inches off each hip side which means it doesn't stick out as much but it's also more likely to be worn this way. I also took off some of the length to have it sit just on the knees.

The back of this pattern is my favourite, I love the way it just scoops down. I might try fix up the bodice a bit and team it with a different skirt pattern, perhaps Colette Macaron as that skirt is pretty much perfect for my shape. I'm also keen to make a sleeveless one when summer finally rolls back around!

The shift of seasons

Tweet

Gosh'o'golly is it cold here at the moment. Winter's really set in and my fingers are slightly numb as I type this from the non-heated room.

The start of winter's a great time to reflect back on your wardrobe and figure out the summer clothes that could possibly translate to winter - and if you actually have any winter clothes still around!

I've actually completed a fair few garments lately but the change in seasons has meant I haven't actually worn many of them. It took a bit of time to realise I should probably start sewing for winter!

A few months back I bought this gorgeous flowery black fabric from the Fabric Cave. There wasn't heaps, about 1.3 metres I think, and I wanted to make something that kept the pattern so settled on this Burdastyle Shift dress. 

I extended the darts slightly and then removed some of the width at the back neck when inserting the zipper. I also have a bit of a confession to make - I was in such a rush to wear this dress that I didn't really finish the seams properly. Naughty, naughty and I ended up paying for it later on when the fabric started badly fraying, so the other day I went back and overlocked all the edges. A lesson for all - finish your seams!

I took these pics in the backyard with a tripod and ran in and out of the house in various new dresses to photograph! Our neighbours have quite a clear view of the yard so here's an outtake of me trying to avoid being seen. Quick, duck!

Not so Drape Drape

Tweet

Found my camera charger! So you can now finally see these pics of the Drape Drape dress. I had seen the Drape Drap books around the interwebs but hadn't thought much of it, the styles just seemed a bit out there for me. That is until I saw Dixie's version of this dress.

Pic from Dixie's blog, click the pic to go there.

SUPER CUTE. So I decided to give it a go. 

Might as well mow the lawn while I'm at it.

I ordered the book and then decided to order a bunch of knit fabrics from Fabric.com, for some other knit patterns I have around. Not wanting to wait until the book arrived to order fabric, I emailed Dixie to ask about sizing and how much fabric would be needed. Thanks so much Dixie!

I ordered some cheap brown double ponte knit. I'm still coming to terms with all the knit fabric names out there, but knowing this was an unusual pattern I thought I'd start with some cheap fabric, get the fit right then order something nicer if I liked the pattern.

The dress turned out really nicely. I added about 3 inches to the length (tall gal) and it still turned out pretty short! and not really dropped waist. There are just two things that have turned me off this dress:

1. Armholes. As I've mentioned before I've discovered I have giant shoulders (by pattern standards) and given the wackiness of this pattern I need to figure out how to add some space in there. I ended up cutting the armholes down too as they literally came up to my armholes. Like right up and under. Despite this I still have a bit of difficulty lifting my arms, without the whole dress lifting up like it's about to rocket launch off me. 
2. Fabric. Polyester stinks. Given the above armhole position it stinks even more. I've since made a top out of this pattern and added a bit more space in the sleeve caps which fixed the rocket launching issue, now I just to adjust the back space and stinky fabric.

All in all I actually really dig this pattern. It's funky, super easy ( like 2 hours max to make) and comfortable. I hope to order some nicer fabric, adjust the back, sleeves and drop waist and have another go at this. 

Frutti Tutti Lonsdale

Tweet

This little number was actually finished up in time for Christmas but I'd since lost the photos and just managed to find them again!

This is the Sewaholic Lonsdale I was working on in the lead up to Christmas. I took the time to make a muslin, which I'm glad I did, as I ended up taking off a bit of room at the bust and centre.

In fact, it was actually very similar adjustments to what Sunni, at The Fashionable Stitch made to her muslin. On another note, I think Sunni and I might be body twins! I discovered this great post on upper should back adjustments and have finally adjusted dresses so I can lift my arms! Hooray!

The fabric was on sale at Spotlight in Nowra a while back, I just couldn't resist the retro fruit vibe. I know so many sewers out there have tried the Lonsdale, but it really is a great pattern. Relatively quick, looks stylish and oh those pockets.Only change I'd like to make next time is to add padding to the bust, I'm not one to often go without a bra. 

And of course I sing this every time I put this dress on!

 

Bloglovin'

Tweet

For all those switching to BlogLovin, just claiming my blog here:

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Also, just a public service announcement -  Procatinator is addictive. 

A new crafty meetup-Make It Collective

Tweet

If you're in Sydney this coming Wednesday night, come along to the inaugural Make It Collective meetup!

A new craft group for anyone who loves to craft, wants to learn or just wants to sit around and meet some new people.