Finished Object: Butterick 5526 and Updates

I posted HERE when I planned out this project and HERE with info on adjustments and construction. I  have to admit, I did not like it when I first finished it. I called it a "Post Office" shirt! LOL!!! I finally wore it after washing it a couple of times (I dislike when it's super crisp).

Wearing it has shown that removing all of the cap ease DOES impact the fit a little - I think it limits my mobility a bit when I bring my arms forward. But it isn't straining or pulling, so there's that. Luckily, I had a tracing and adjusted that; the original sleeve is intact.

I wore it with my aqua? mint? jeans...it also pairs well with camel, red, navy, and black. I didn't like it as much with a pair of mid-toned blue pants (post office!!). 

And after looking at the pics in the black skirt I was like, geez, I look so blocky! And yep...this skirt is too big. I can pinch like 3" out of the waist. 

I really like the sleeve more and more! I added a center seam and topstitched that seam. It looks really good. This pattern has no dart control at all...if I made it again I'd either make it a bit looser overall or do a cheater FBA. The side view shows it's flattening my chest a bit. 

Good thing this turned out well because EVERYTHING ELSE I've been working on is MEHHHHHHHHH!

I put the yellow dress  in timeout and while the Burda shorts turned out well (I'm tempted to make another pair but feel like full-on fall will immediately arrive if I do)... 

...the double gauze wasn't fun to sew and I realized I messed up the collar on the shirt. I feel mildly over it.

I understitched the facings but they are still super floppy and I have no confidence in sewing buttonholes in this fabric. You can see in this pic where I messed up attaching the collar.

I was so close to recutting the shorts but luckily, I posted about the fabric growing and someone told me it would be fine once washed. WHEW!! Apparently it grows while sewing but once I washed them, they were perfect. 

I went to insert a sleeve on the yellow dress and sewed the entire thing only to realize there was NEVER any thread in the bobbin. OY VEY! The next night, I tried again and sewed the sleeve inside out. Totally in the naughty bin now. Hmmph!

Sewing Plan: Style Arc Monty Shirt and Burda 7/2017 Shorts

That's a mouthful of a title! But using the full pattern name makes things more searchable in the google :)

If you've been following my sewing adventures of the NL6692 dress (Plan here) on IG, you'll know that I officially HATE sewing this pattern! There are some annoying aspects of the pattern, combined with the shifty rayon challis, and it just hasn't been an enjoyable experience. However, it looks cute on, so I persevere!

I got a stash influx from a knitting friend (almost all natural fibers) and I immediately pulled out a few pieces of fabric to sew. 

A silky cotton woven, a linen (enough for shorts), and a cotton and/or linen(?) double gauze (?)

We had a high of like 65 on Saturday, so fall is on the way! But, I also know it will for sure warm up again, so I decided to go for it and make another summer addition to the wardrobe. 

I wanted to make a 2-piece set and settled on this short pattern from the Burda 7/2017 issue right away. I will probably exclude the trim that's sewn to the side seams and serve as a sort of tab. I definitely plan to include the cording with beads though! Very cute!!

In my very humble opinion, the Russian site is the best organized for viewing magazine issues and line drawings. 

This is a direct link to search by year and month, and view the full photos for each issue: Russian site by year

But THIS link...far more helpful!! Tech Drawings by year

This links to all of the at-a-glance sheets of the tech drawings from 2022 with links to each year back to 2014. I stopped subscribing after 2022 so I don't have the link for 2023, but I'm sure it's there. 

It took me awhile to decide on a shirt but I knew I wanted a loose fitting, somewhat boxy, button-front top and :lightbulb:! I remembered I had the Style Arc Monty.

Style Arc, like Burda is one of those pattern companies that just works for me. From their site, "Style Arc patterns are drafted for a B bust cup size and a height of 167cm (5'6")."

Personally, I think they draft for a slightly narrower shoulder too. Now, I get fussy about their instructions (I've found a mistake or two), but the draft works and their designs are always fresh.

I'll be using Fashion Sewing Supply's Tricot knit interfacing in white, and buttons I bought from M&J (who is going out of business!!!) on my 2018 trip to NYC. I also have beads in my stash from a Fabric Mart order some time ago. 

Sewing WIP - Style Arc Alexi

I wanted a fitted, zip-front turtleneck and spent a long time thinking about how to do it. I was super over-complicating it. Finally, it dawned on me that a 1/4 zip fleece is basically the same concept, and I found a pictorial which was exactly what I was thinking. Doh.

I had to search high and low for my printed copy of this pattern. I KNEW I'd printed it, but could not find it anywhere.  I'd given up and went into the spare room I'm using as an office, intending to print another copy. Ah! There's another bin in this closet! It was right on top - YAY! 

I haven't sewn a Style Arc pattern in a long time and was a little disappointed when I saw that the size 14 was printed. I've always used a size 12 on top with them and thought I'd have to reprint it (spoiler alert - the 14 is the right size!). It took FOREVER to assemble it - an entire Dateline episode! - and I was really annoyed that the front and back were full pattern pieces - aka a waste of paper. 

I traced everything off, made a 1" bicep adjustment on the sleeve, and called it a night. And then I couldn't find the traced collar piece! BLEH!

This morning, I got started on cutting everything out. I knew the collar as drafted was too tall for what I wanted. In a softer jersey, it would double fold or puddle around the neck nicely, but I was using this firm ribbed knit and inserting a zipper. I decided on a 3" height and then, for some unknown reason, changed it to 4". Sigh. You know where this is going, right? 3 inches would have been perfect. 

I have a lovely, full stash of zippers and this 11" brass zipper with cream tape was perfect. I only wish I'd double-checked the collar height once I had it cut out because I could have shifted it down an inch, easily. 

I marked the center line on the pattern front and fused a 1 1/8" wide strip of tricot interfacing to the wrong side. Cut it down the center and angled to the corners (like with welt pockets), and used Wonder tape to hold it all in place. The zipper insertion went FLAWLESSLY!

The collar scrunches down because 4" is a tad too tall :( but it's still cute!! I need to topstitch the zipper and then I'll be ready to get the rest sewn up. 

I recently finished a dress from the same fabric and I adore it. This fabric was a Fabric Mart find this spring at $3.99 a yard (I snagged 4 yards). There's easily another top worth - ha! Hopefully I can model them, soon.

Here is my recently finished knit sweater :-D

I've also been knitting some gifts and can't wait to share them. Here is a pair of fingerless mitts I snuck in for myself, using the same yarn from my State Fair socks :-D

I knew it would be a close call and yet I was determined to make foldover cuffs. I knitted the first one completely and started the second one. I got to row 72 (of 104) and ran out of yarn. So I frogged them, counted up the total number of rows knitted (because I needed thumbs, too!) and adjusted my pattern. I would have had *just* enough of the patterned yarn to do them in full, but I like the contrast ribbing too :)

Speaking of those socks...I bought a shadow box to frame the socks and my ribbons. Right now, I'm just checking the layout, but I love it! Can't wait to get this mounted. 

I want to sew my blue pants, but also pants with zippers are a real no-no right now. I'm not sure if it's worth spending my energy there, if I can't fit them properly. Maybe I'll give it a bit longer. I wore real pants today to run a few errands and my incisions were very angry with me. oy!

There are a couple of skirts I'd like to sew and a couple of tops, too. I go back to work on the 19th and those first two weeks back will be 3-day weeks (WHEW!) so, I may be able to eek out a couple more garments before the year ends.

OH MY GOSH I CANNOT BELIEVE IT IS ALMOST 2023!!!!

Style Arc Clare Pant Muslin

This wasn't intentionally a muslin...at some point I decided maybe it'd be a wearable muslin...but nah. And I'm not 100% sure I'd remake the pattern. Mayyyyyybe.

I like Style Arc's design and drafting. They are on my $hit-list for their crap instructions now. I'm not sure I'll be in a hurry to buy more patterns from them and certainly nothing too complex. 

1. - The illustration shows a pleat that's just folded out and basted but the instructions say to stitch the pleat.

2. - The way the front is constructed is really bulky and this fabric was *just* barely opaque and had a lot of drape. If I decide to sew this pattern again, I may eliminate the pockets. I could reduce the height so they are caught in the foldover band but not also folded over. However, they are VERY narrow - deep but narrow so I'm not sure how useful they'd be. 

3. - Why would you stitch through the elastic?? If I decided to sew it again, I'd just make a casing and keep the gathering to the side front and back.  Oh, and my pattern says to use elastic that is 1 1/5" :sideeye: I don't know if they intended 1 1/4" or 1 1/2" but the fold-down waistband is just under 2" so I went with 1.5" elastic. 

I've been going back on forth on sloper drafting. I am lazy and not super interested in drafting, but I NEED a sloper for my upper body and of course it would be super helpful for the lower. 

Oh, this fabric? atrocious. That's what moved it from garment to wearable muslin. It's a poly suiting from Fabric Mart. I'm not anti-polyester entirely but this stuff just SHRED the moment I cut it. 

Anyway, I then decided to go for it by matching the crotch curve of the pattern to my "fishbowl" exactly. (I talked about that here).  So I matched the curve of my body to the stitch line of the back pant piece.

(poorly) annotated below so you can see the changes

I lined up my crotch point with the patterns and I would have needed to go SO deep into the pattern and knowing I need more crotch extension and room through the inner thigh, I split the difference and extended the crotch point 1" and scooped/reshaped the crotch curve. As you can see, this takes away a lot of width so I've added back at the side seam. 

BUT otherwise... IT WORKED!!!!!! Woohoo! 

My addition at the side seam isn't quite right. It's too curvy too soon -- which is obvious now! On my body, the side seam pulls just a bit at the fullest part of my butt (look at the wavy butt lines!). and there's excess fabric up top. 

I hadn't pressed my seams because - full muslin at this point

The difference between left and right here is that I have the front rolled over the full width of the elastic. I need to shorten the front rise considerably if I make them again! :-p This is totally my natural stance, unfortunately! LOL!! But the good thing is...no weird fabric collapsing at the back thigh.

I cut out the back pattern piece even though it looked "weird". Remember all that L vs J crotch curve stuff from back in the day?

Well...all that and I went right and cut the front out! Without adjusting it to my fishbowl. DOH!. So the front is way, way too long. 

Red - my body vs. black - the pattern crotch curve

What I hadn't noticed is how similar this pattern was to Burda 2/2017. I swear pretty much everything exists as a Burda!!! 

Oh well...I got the pattern during a sale and paid about $6 so...maybe I should give them another go since I know what to do. And maybe this time I'll use linen ;-)

Don't forget we're going to be starting our Tops That Pop! challenge as of June 1. See this post for more information! Also, I realized after the fact that I labeled it a summer challenge - really, it's a challenge to make new tops so friends down under, please feel free to sew along and make some new tops for the upcoming winter months!

Currently, there is a Style Arc sale of 20% off (yes, I know, I don't take back my ragging on their instructions but the patterns tend to work out!). Mimi G has pdf patterns on sale for $3. Style Sew Me has select patterns available for $5. I am also in contact with some other Indie pattern brands to see if they're willing to sponsor the challenge and offer discounts on top patterns. More soon! 

April Wrap-Up and May Plans

How are you holding up out there? So far, I'm doing well. We are all staying healthy, I'm still working full-time, and sewing & crafting up a storm.  I am grateful for the opportunity to work from home in that, I am still collecting a paycheck and my employer understands that health & safety comes first.  But I am so not a work from home full-time person. I would never choose this full time! I could see working from home a day or so per week but not full time! gah!!

I DO like having a few minutes here and there throughout the day for sewing or crafting or exercising or food prep. Makes a huge difference in what I can accomplish each day. NOT that I am one of those people yelling about how productive we need to be during quarantine. I'm just a natural busy body. I've spent the odd day here or there in the bed (like the Saturday I literally stayed in bed til 2:30 p.m.!)

This month, I sewed 6 items for a total of 11.5 yards.

• Simplicity 2246 dress - 2 yards
• striped double brushed poly from Fabric Mart - stash
• buttons, elastic

• McCall's 6754 dress - 2 yards
• floral double brushed poly from Fabric Mart
• elastic

• McCall's 8028 jumpsuit - 2 yards
• distressed french terry knit from Fabric Mart - stash
• elastic

• Burda Mag 4/2019 jacket - 2.5 yards
• black cotton twill from Mood
• buttons, D-rings

• Burda Mag 5/2020 top - 1.5 yards
• black cotton (voile? lawn?) - stash
• buttons

• Burda Mag 4/2019 top - 1.5 yards
• white rayon challis - stash

Today, I also worked on some baby gifts but those are all from the remnant bin so I won't count them in the out totals.

wip

Favorite: This was an excellent month. Everything I added is pure perfection (to me)!

Accomplishments: I hacked that McCall's dress into exactly what I wanted! Woot! And I turned that Burda magazine jacket into my perfect vision!

FAILS: None! woohoo! If I had to list something I'd say it was using the distressed knit as the pocket bag on the jumpsuit. It basically renders the pockets useless because my fingers get caught in the darn fabric!

My plans last month:
M7925 dress in a cotton/rayon voile
M6754 dress in a floral knit
S2246 dress (maybe) in a striped knit
Burda 10/2017 or S8843 (I need to look at the shape of the pattern pieces of both) in a black cotton twill as my Q1 outerwear project (slightly behind!)
M8028 jumpsuit in a distressed knit
B5526 shirt in white cotton shirting w/silk organza accents

So close!!! I sewed 4 out of the 6 plus a couple more!

For May, I plan to participate in Me Made May as I have! I pledge to wear something handmade every day.

If you don't follow SoZo or if it's your first time, Me Made May isn't a photo challenge - it's okay if you don't post pics on social media or if you do post, if you only post occasionally! I've also seen lots of people say they don't participate because they "don't have enough" handmade stuff. No! If you want to participate and you have ONE handmade thing, you have enough stuff!! :-D

For May, my sewing plans aren't at all focused! It's usually cooler "spring-like" temps throughout May and June with some warm spikes. Without knowing when we'll be outside again, I'm on the fence about spring vs. summer. I mean, there isn't a TON of difference for me but there are prints and patterns that are decidedly summer. We'll see.

Right now, I *want* a few things:

I saw a navy tee at LOFT that is very similar to the 'hacked' McCall's dress except it's floaty. I will make it a bit fitted.

Also at LOFT was a striped v-neck that is *very* similar to the top I made from Ottobre 2/2018 (except with short/cap sleeves) so I'll be making that.

I plan to make S8389 pants in the amazing black crepe I picked up from Mood.

And I happen to have 2 black & white fabrics that are slated for dresses - a heavy crepe for Burda 2/2017 #114 and a rayon challis for 5/2020 #107.

I like fit and flare! The first pattern has a fabric-hog of a skirt and I don't have enough fabric for that and will do a gathered skirt.

I'm waiting on a PDF Plotting order so I can sew up the Style Arc Clare pant in a navy and white drapey polyester suiting from Fabric Mart.

And I still want M7925 in the cotton/rayon blend voile from Ginny's!

That's about it for now (hahaha!) :-p

Lastly, what is up with the BMV site and lack of sales!? I want some new Buttericks but not for $16...And I won't even begin to comment on that Vogue release. Not. For. Me.

Pattern Review: Itch to Stitch Capelet

There is (yet another) discussion in the sewing community about Indie patterns and quality. I've been burned quite a few times and as such, tend to stick with Big4 and Burda, as you likely know.  But, I can be tempted and sometimes, the design or price will get me :)

I did not think this capelet was anything groundbreaking or especially novel. I'd been meaning to buy M7846 and liked that the ItS had "sleeves".

But, it was on sale and I figured, what the heck! Well, it was on sale via Itch to Stitch but I ended up paying a little more buying it through Pattern Review. I hate being asked to register on a site just to buy a pattern.

The pattern is sized XXS - XL. I have read a couple tester's blogs where the say the final pattern had 2" added to the front. I wonder if the pattern photo is pre-lengthening??

I'm not sure how tall the designer is but I found it super long on me. Fabric choice will also play a part though. Fabric with a lot of drape will hang a bit more than a more rigid fabric and this sweater knit is definitely drapey. I shortened mine 2 inches front and back tapering to nothing a few inches from the raglan seams. I then realized that only the front was changed from the original length. Oops. I should have left the back alone.

Another positive about the pattern itself is that it was layered. I was able to print my size only - a medium - and that always makes tracing off a bit easier. I looked at the instructions to be sure the "sleeves" were created as I thought - and they were. Also, I sewed them up an additional 2 inches (despite not changing the length at the seamline). I will admit to being mildly agitated by the pattern pieces having a foldline, a grainline, and some squiggly line indicating the stretch of fabric. It's unnecessary/overkill IMO. One of my smaller gripes with Indie pattern companies. Sometimes, they seem to do something *just* to be different from the larger, commercial patterns.

Otherwise, construction is just as straightforward as you'd think. Sew the raglan seams, sew the collar seam, attach the collar, hem, stitch in the ditch to create sleeves. Done. Of course, the hemming is the time consuming bit here! I just pressed up the 1/2" hem and sewed it with my coverstitch. I do not like the stitching in the ditch on a drapey knit.

I made a high round back adjustment on my latest make and am thinking this pattern would have benefited . Otherwise, I think the fit is great.

This sweaterknit was picked up a couple (2? 3?) years back at SR Harris. I liked it in store and then every time I went to grab it, it seemed WAY too bright for me. I'm still not 100% sold on the color combo but we will see if it gets wear. I'm working on a pair of slim Burda pants from that ponte I picked up at Ginny's which I think should pair well with this. This post was written awhile ago. I don't care for the fabric and the pattern I thought I'd use for my nice ponte is OUT.

Next time, I'd definitely use something with a touch more body (but not ponte IMO) and will remove a bit of the sleeve flare (slash lines then overlap and true the hem line).

Someone asked in my last post about wearing it with a coat. I'm not certain how that would work out! LOL! This is one of the reasons that I'm not sure I would sew this again. Since I live in a cold climate, there just are few opportunities for cape/capelet type garments. Late fall and early spring which can be like a BLIP on the calendar.

Jumping in on this post with my 3rd pair of Style Arc Sandra jeans. I sewed these in a size 16 because that's what size I used previously. I ended up sewing them with side seams varying between 5/8" and 3/4" instead of the 3/8" (really 10 mm) included in the pattern.

I have no clue where the denim is from :/ but it's decent! A mid to light weight, no spandex, and a nice, deep blue.

my husband can be a prankster!!

And even though I'd previously drafted a contoured waistband, this pair gapes at center back. I had them almost completed so I did the elastic trick...measure the back between belt loops, cut the elastic 2 inches shorter (this is an individual measurement), insert it and stitch it in place through all thickness. Cover the stitching with the belt loops. Luckily, I caught this BEFORE I put the belt loops on so I didn't have to remove/redo bartacks. You can see the elastic in the back in this pic:

There's a lot I like about this pattern and some things that give me pause. I think I'm going to plan to muslin the Workplace Social Claryville jeans in the next month or so.

Style Arc / Mimi G. Maya Dress

I don't have "typical" finished project pics...so you'll just have to take my word that it fits well!  Let's just start at the beginning, shall we?

I knew I wanted to make a dress for this 50th Bday bash we were attending. I don't really have any party dresses -- I have a couple that are suitable for work events -- but nothing for fun.

I went back and forth on this one y'all! I was like, but is it too much for me? I think it's me, but is it ME?? (that has to make sense to someone beside me!)

"But it's pretty covered up aside from the cutout..."
"Okay that front is too low..."
"Well it DOES have sleeves...maybe I can make it an inch longer..."

Then I went back and forth on the size chart. Style Arc tops have worked well for me; I have been able to sew a size 12 with no FBA! And so I ended up tracing a size 14. Why? I don't know why. If I normally wear a size 12 and it's been a minute since I've sewn a SA pattern AND I've lost weight...why on earth...never mind!

I made a muslin, it was enormous, and I had to retrace the pattern in a combo 10/12 (10 for the shoulder, 12 for the rest). :face palm:

Along the way, I decided that I didn't like this pattern. I didn't like how the front seam was almost complete vertical (but it works!).

I really did not like how the back seam was also completely vertical - there's a CB seam, a zipper, but not shaping?? And interestingly, there IS shaping below the zipper to fit the bum.

I almost added a back waist seam but instead of doing a swayback adjustment, I added some shaping to the upper back. I also sewed up the center front seam about 2.5". I needed to wear a bra! Lastly, I did a 1" full bicep adjustment. I was still on the fence on whether this was going to work. It's so fitted! It's so...so exposed!! :-p 

I got excited about it when it got to this point:

And held my breath and said a tiny prayer before trying on the dress and THEN it was love!

Wait! Let's backtrack a tiny bit!

The fabric. I wanted my beloved Telio jockey ponte for this dress. I couldn't justify nearly $40 with shipping and then when I finally decided, what the heck, I was worried it wouldn't arrive in time. I've seen a couple people rave about the Refined Ponte at JoAnn and decided to give it a shot. 1) "My" JA sucks. I avoid going in there (why I have a Club BMV membership for 5 years running!) and 2) My JA sucks and I did not have time to end up in line behind the fleece'ers and quilters. I placed an order online for pickup in my local store.

The regular price is $24.99 (never pay this) and it was on sale for $9.99. I could do $20...Well there was an additional 20% off coupon. It did not work on the website but it worked in the app! Huzzah! So I got 2 yards for $15.98. WIN! (We don't have tax on clothing here and fabric yardage counts as clothing)

It washed well but I immediately felt the difference between it and the Telio jockey. This feels reallll borderline scuba knit to me (I cannot with the scuba knits). It has a tiny bit of a sheen. It is not bad but when it's sitting next to the Telio, you can tell. It's much heavier and spongier too. I probably won't buy it again.

*****

Okay so now I have my pattern cut out in the correct size. I AGAIN am going back and forth --I never hem and haw this much over any project-- on lining for the front. In the end, I used self fabric. Though the fabric is thick, I think it worked well for me!

Because Style Arc instructions kind of suck all the time sometimes, I thought only the CF was lined and thought it was odd that the side front wasn't but shrugged and kept going (I still am not 100% sure if it's lined or not!).

The bodice band and facing are sewn together to the bodice, facing under stitched, then the other seam burrito'd. Nice and clean.

my back facing is off because I sewed up one side and down the other. oy.

The shoulder seam is finished cleanly as well. The only place I'd known this finish was on cowl necks and that's the way I always refer to it...like you sew a cowl! :)

IDK why the back facing and front facing don't match

In true sewers fashion, I finished this dress Friday evening at about 6 p.m. We were getting up at 3:30 a.m. Saturday to hit the road. Oy vey!!!

I bought these teal suede pumps on about 5 years ago for $15 and I've gotten my money's worth 10 times over! I love them!!!

It definitely looked best with heels - didn't work IMO with boots - but, winter. I figured we'd be going car to venue; venue to car and I could survive with some cute tights.

I have to admit...I felt pretttttty snazzy that night! 

Lastly, I have to give Style Arc it's due. I have never, ever, never sewn a mitered corner. I have never understood instructions for them and had pretty much given up until I could have someone show me in person. Well, this pattern taught me. Kinda.

The pattern is drafted such that you fold at the notch and stitch along the line at the included 3/8" seam allowance.

I was AMAZED when I turned it out and got this:

AMAZED!!!!!

And it still took me a few tries to understand what was happening :-p

step 1: hem allowances marked. Short diagonal line is the fold line. Long diagonal that I'm pointing to is the stitching line.

step 2: fold and stitch

step 3: trim, clipping the corner (like you would for any point)

step 4: turn it out (I personally never poke or grab corners. I put my thumb inside, making sure the two edges fold into the space created by the clipped corner, and using my index finger, push it out. Sometimes you have to give it a wiggle!)

step 5: press...

step 6: ooooh la la! admire your fantastic corner!

So now that I can miter corners, I am pretty much a sewing ninja. Yeah so... Ha!!

I have other unreviewed stuff, just sewed a pair of pants over the past few days and will be starting on my In House Patterns mini skirt tomorrow...the Lisette Butterick jacket after that (they're from the same fabric). Then I'm going to sew the ponte blazer from Burda 1/2019.

That sounds like a lot but I have ALL THE FREE TIME! I'll be home alone Friday-Monday so there's going to be some serious sewing. :)

Until later!