Ottobre 02-2013-13 Tunic

Ever since I saw a preview of this Ottobre issue on their website, the idea of implementing this tunic didn’t leave my mind. In fact I had the same color bamboo jersey in my stash! (Bought from naturesfabrics.com – unfortunately, the piece I bought was only 1 yard long and it was not enough, but the salmon color bamboo was just right.)

I was intrigued by how it will fit and whether the design any flattering. I patiently waited for anybody to try it and share the experience on the web before I cut it, but so far I didn’t see any. So I had to try it myself... The pattern piece for from and back look weird and I felt skeptical that the pattern combines two sizes (i.e. 38/40). Except for the neck opening, the front and back pieces look the same – my concern was the armhole.

But my curiosity took over common sense!

After tracing the pattern, I had even more concerns. I looked like I was sewing a little tent :)

Photo from the magazine:

Description from the magazine:

The lemon-yellow bamboo jersey tunic has an asymmetrical hemline. The front and back are cut as a single piece, placing the lower part of the left side-seam edge on the fabric fold. On the finished garment, the longer left side falls beautifully on the hip, creating a draped effect. The neckline is gathered with clear elastic tape and finished with jersey binding.

I have to say, it comes together exceptionally fast – you don’t need to match the back and front – after cutting it, just pin the sides and shoulders and sew right away!

The neckline could’ve been done better – I applied clear elastic tape as per instructions, but decided to sew it all around the neckline (without really stretching it), but it ended up being tighter than in the magazine.

Left side:

I love the result! It is so comfortable and breathable - perfect for summer. It looks great with skinny jeans/jeggings.

Another shot of the left side in the mirror:

Thank you, my curiosity and Ottobre, it's a winner :)

BurdaStyle 10-2011-145 and Michael Miller dissapointment

I wanted to make this dress for DD1 for the longest time! So finally I did. In fact I made her 2 of them and one more is half way done.
This is a very cute pattern for the little girl and comes together fast. The first dress is made from cotton jersey from girlcharlee.com. I made a regular neckline not boat-neck and fancied it up a bit with a piece of bamboo ribbing under the binding.

The second dress is made from Michael Miller interlock knit which I love. It is super soft and great quality. BUT it shrinks sooooo much!!! I made a mistake of not washing it prior to sewing (and I always wash my fabric), but it shrank even more after additional washes. Oh, man. The neckline on this dress is finished with fold-over elastic (FOE). 

Here's a little perspective of how much this fabric shrinks - the shirts below are made for DD2 using the SAME pattern:

Another Diana Moden 08-2010-27

This is the fourth dress I made using the pattern from Diana Moden (two versions shown here). My mom is really happy with the fit, but this time around she requested adding short sleeves. I also made centre back seam so the dress is more fitted.

The fabric used is rayon jersey from local Fabricland store.

Knipmode dress 06-2011-22a - nursing dress!

Knit dresses are one of my favourite things to wear especially when the weather is nice outside - no need to think about matching top and bottom, just add accessories and done. Since I am nursing my second daughter right now, to wear any kind of dress and go out seemed close to impossible. The solution - make a dress that allows to nurse without taking it off!

Empire waist line is perfect for nursing modifications. I used a pattern from Dutch pattern magazine Knipmode 06-2011 22a. Here's what I did with regular pattern to fit the purpose: instead of one bodice piece, you need to cut two - one (outer) should be approximately 1 inch longer than the original piece. Take this outer bodice and fold 1/2 inch at the bottom and topstitch. Cut a piece of narrow elastic that is 1 1/2-2 inches shorter that the width of the bottom bodice edge and insert it in the casting. Secure the elastic at the sides. Take the inner piece and make two cuts where the breasts are going to be and overlock the edges. Put the inner bodice on a table right side facing up, place outer piece on top of it right side facing up, pin and baste at the neck and sleeve edges. Attach the sleeves treating bodice as one piece. Attach upper back to the sleeves. Finish the neck opening with the band. Attach lower front to the upper inner front piece. Finish sleeves, stitch the side seams and hem the dress. Done!

Here's the finished result:

Note: this technique works best for prints as solid colors might shew through the opening.

Now I can wear a dress that doesn't stop me from nursing my baby!

Diana Moden 08-2010-27

My Mom wanted me to make a knit summer dress for her to wear around the house that is simple and comfortable. After browsing through magazines a decision was made towards Diana Moden 08-2010 model 27. This magazine was sent to me by my friend from Russia to make another knit dress for myself, which I did. In fact, the magazine features it as a top, but I lengthened it and made it a dress.
Here's the technical drawing of my Mom's dress:

There are just two pattern pieces to cut. I thought it was a perfect design to showcase nice fabric, so after making a wearable mouslin (not pictures), I made two more dresses. I skipped the back darts and added 3 inches to length.

The teal/brown/green dress is probably my favourite - lovely colours and the fabric is so nice to touch. I bought 3 yards of it couple of years ago from Fabric Mart - which was enough to make a dress for my Mom and myself (not blogged yet).

The one below is made from rayon jersey from Fabric.com. It ended up looking more like an evening dress, but I still like it.

Ottobre 01-2012 mod 17 - Tunic

My daughter is very much into pocket lately of any kind, so this tunic seemed like a good idea. Here's the technical drawing from the magazine

I made size 104, but should've probably opted for 98... It fits her more like a dress rather than tunic. Oh, well, I guess it means longer life of the item? After she tried it on, I was slightly disappointed with my fabric choice - it is great quality fabric, don't take me wrong, but it looks like a night gown on her...

I am very proud of myself how the binding details turned out - thanks to the walking foot! I love it. It doesn't stretch the fabric a bit, so worth the price.

Young Image Shorts

Although I have all three Young Image magazines, this is the first pattern I've tried and let me tell you - it is very nice! The pattern is Y1202 - Shorts, but I would call it a wrap skirt with underlying shorts.

I made size 104 for my 29 month-old daughter, but she is tall. In fact, there was a trial pair of just shorts I made. I skipped the ruffle part and just serged the edges of the skirt.

The fabric is from kidsfabrics.com - Island patch cotton interlock I bought not too long ago.
It's a very summerly and girly design and I am sure I will be making more of those.

New sewing magazine subscribtion

I've been subscribed to BurdaStyle magazine for years. In the past year, I find myseft more and more often refering to the old issues, while 2011 folder stays almost untouched. I say 'almost' because I did trace few patterns from 2011 issues and even made one. That's about it.

So after browsing around, I asked my Mom to send me few issues of Russian sewing magazine Shick (abbreviation from Russian `Sewing And Style`). They have licences to reprint selected issues of Italian La Mia Boutique magazine, Argentinian Look and most recent addition - Spanish Patrones! I love all La Mia Boutique styles and even more exited to see the Patrones based issue. The best part is the sewing instructions are in Russian! Since I didn't want to bother my Mom every time I want the magazine, I decided to subscribe to it through German company that deals with Russian media subscribtions and delivers them around the globe www.nasha-pressa.de - 6 months to try it out.

Here`s what I got last week in my mailbox:

August issue is based on March issue of La Mia Boutique. Here're the technical drawings:

Dress style #6 has very unusual sleeves that I might use for a different style. Pants #15 look quite comfortable and top #14 features cowl neckline that I want to try. I also like the sleeves finish on dress #12 and most likely will be making a hooded jacket #30.

My Image magazine Dress M1106 Summer 2011

The moment I saw this magazine, I knew I wanted to make this dress. And I knew I have a perfect fabric for it.
One look at the model photo tells you that unless you increase the length, it is going to end up extremely short! So that's what I did. I cut the pattern pieces couple of inches above the waste line and inserted 3 inches. I also added 4 inches at the bottom of the pattern. That looked like the right length to me.
I also omitted the zipper at the back. Instead I cut back collar pieces with a bit overlap and left the bodice back pieces about 5 in unstiched at the top. I put a snap on the coller. It worked well and no hassle with putting zipper in knit dress.
I love the result. The dress is super comfortable and comes together very quickly.

More pictures of Ottobre's skirt with attached leggings

The red one was made for Canada day. The fabric I used for the skirt is not the best quality - it stained a lot.

This version is made from scraps left from one of the tops I made for my Mom couple of years ago.

Ottobre 03-2011 mod 20 Skirt with attached leggings

This is one of my favourite patterns from Ottobre so far. I've made 7 versions of it and love them all. They look very cute and come together so quickly! My daughter is 20 months now, not sure what height she is, but size 92 fits her nicely. The hem is finished with rolled hem on my serger. I'll probably increase the length of leggings a little bit to make winter versions as we get closer to cold weather. These three versions match my own dresses that I'll show soon.