Style Arc Trio (Fay, Nina & Ann)

I bought this gorgeous printed jersey recently at Spotlight. The colours are so vibrant, and I had the Style Arc Fay Skirt in mind, as it is such a simple pattern...perfect to let the fabric shine. The skirt is self lined, which makes it much less clingy or revealing than a single layer would be and it has an elastic waist. This is my third version of the Fay Skirt. You can see the first one here and the second here.

I agonised over the print placement in this skirt. In fact, the fabric lay spread on my cutting table for several days while I dithered over the best area of the print to feature on the skirt.

I think it turned out alright in the end. I am wearing it here with my latest Style Arc Nina Cardigan in a black merino knit from The Fabric Store Online. This is my fourth Nina Cardigan and so it goes without saying that I love this pattern. 

The white top is another Style Arc pattern... the Ann T-Top which I previously blogged here. I am a little disappointed with this outfit after seeing these photos. The top is far too baggy and long. A shorter, more fitted top would have looked so much better with this skirt. Does anyone else find that photos reveal far more than just looking in the mirror?

Happy Sewing

Jean

Style Arc Salma Wrap (or is it the Shirley Shrug?)

The Style Arc Salma Wrap was sent to me by Style Arc, a few years ago, as a gift, for sending on an order that I received in error. I really can't complain about their customer service as I have only had positive experiences, even when things have gone wrong.

I can't find the Salma Wrap on their website now, but there is the Shirley Shrug which appears to be identical to the Salma Wrap. They must have given it an update.

I was trawling through my patterns looking for something suitable for this lovely blue/black textured silk/cotton knit I bought from Knitwit last year when I was in Perth. It is the same fabric I used in my Adeline Dress only in a different colour. When I came across this pattern, I thought it would be ideal. The knit is low stretch, but has a lovely drape and it has worked out well for this pattern.

The Salma Wrap (Shirley Shrug) has quite generous proportions and will work well as an extra layer over many outfits. Here I am wearing it over my Style Arc Wallis Pants, and a Black Merino Deer and Doe Plantain Tee (tunic length), but it would work just as well over a dress.

It is a very simple pattern...only one pattern piece, of which you cut one pair. The two pieces are joined with a long seam horizontally across the back. I pressed this seam open and top stitched the seam allowances down to create a nice neat finish. The side seams were sewn the same way. All the hems were turned twice, using Bond a Web to stabilise them before top stitching.

This was a very quick and satisfying project, and I'm glad to have this fabric out of my stash and into my wardrobe.

Happy sewing

Jean.

A Modified Coco Dress for July's MAGAM

July's theme for MAGAM (make a garment a month) is Seasonal Stashbuster. I outlined my plans on IG earlier in the month: 

"I am planning to sew this lovely tartan double knit from my stash into a winter dress, loosely based on the Tilly and the Buttons Coco Dress. I will reduce the flare of the skirt, add vertical darts at the back, add a bias cut split lapped collar and bias cut patch pockets. Hope it turns out as good as it looks in my head." Well, here is the completed dress:

It has turned out just as I imagined, apart from the lack of plaid matching of the sleeves to the body of the dress...woops. I somehow forgot this detail at the cutting out stage. At least the sleeves match each other. I did all the cutting out in a single layer so I could line up the stripes. The tartan double knit (from Spotlight) had only been in my stash for a few weeks and I was originally planning to make a casual winter top, but after washing it I felt it was more suited to a dress, and this is the eighth time I have made up the Coco dress/top pattern so I have certainly got my money's worth.

I did match the plaid at the side seams, but failed to get a good photo showing this. The bias cut pockets are exact mirror images of each other and I was very happy with this detail.

The vertical darts created a nice fit through the back. I completely fluked the position of the plaid at the centre back of the collar, but love how it is nicely balanced. All the hems were hand stitched so they remained invisible.

Bias cut split lapped collar

I just love the bias cut split lapped collar. It gives the dress a bit of a retro vibe. I wish I had added some interfacing to the collar because it has turned out a little floppy in this double knit, so I will have to remember that for next time.

This will be a nice comfy work dress and I think it will get loads of wear.

Happy Sewing

Jean

A Self Drafted Poncho

Self Drafted Poncho

I have been wanting to make a poncho for ages, so I did some research on Google and came up with this. I'm really pleased with my first attempt, but already have a few ideas for poncho's I may make in the future.

I found a simple tutorial at Hammers and High Heels for this cute poncho. The photo on the left was Carla's inspiration and the photo on the right is what she made.



After studying the tutorial, I quickly realised that the poncho made following the tutorial was not going to look like the inspiration photo. It clearly had a separate collar. So then I googled how to make a split lapped collar and found this wonderful tutorial at Off The Cuff - Sewing Style and I was off.

I used this lovely Indigo Wool Ponte from Knitwit that I had left over from my Style Arc Estelle Ponte Jacket. It's lovely and warm and perfect for this project. I cut a rectangle with the long side twice as long as the short side. The measurements I used were 160cm x 80cm. I then folded the rectangle in half to create a square and tilted diagonally so that the hem points are at centre front and centre back.

There is only one shoulder seam to sew. The other shoulder is on the foldline. I cut a small neckline at the top diagonal point (just big enough to squeeze my head through) and then I tried it on. To get a nice fit over the shoulders the seam needs to be curved over the shoulder and the other shoulder needs a dart added to follow the shoulder curve. This was all trial and error and took a bit of sewing and resewing to get it right. I also recut the neckline once the shoulders were sitting correctly.

Once I was happy with the size and shape of the neckline, I measured it and followed the collar tutorial, linked above, to add the split lapped collar.

I love how simple, yet effective this collar is. My only regret is that I didn't make it wider so it would have been a little more snug around the neck.

For a nice neat finish on the inside, I pressed the shoulder seam and dart open, and top stitched the seam allowances down. The hems were turned twice and top stitched.

This poncho has been a welcome addition to my wardrobe and can be worn over many outfits, including those with wide sleeves that are impossible to fit a cardigan over. I did find it tends to stick to my sleeves a bit, restricting movement. Nothing the addition of a slippery lining wouldn't fix. I have lots of ideas swimming around in my head for future versions.

Happy Sewing

Jean

Grainline Studio Farrow Dress

Grainline Studio Farrow Dress

I joined in the MAGAM sew along with @sarahlizsewstyle last month on Instagram, for the first time. The theme for June was 'Sew New Season'. I decided a lovely winter version of the Grainline Studio Farrow Dress would fit the bill.

My MAGAM sewing plans posted on IG

The fabric is a poly cotton jacquard that I bought at Spotlight. It was quite a heavy weight fabric and I thought it would have the ideal structure and drape that would work well for the Farrow Dress. And as it turns out, I was right. Don't you love it when your fabric choice works out? My plan was to top stitch the main seam lines to make them stand out in this busy floral design. Unfortunately, the fabric frayed like crazy when cut, and I had to handle it with a lot of extra care, not to mention the mess it made in my sewing room.

I persuaded hubby to take some photos on our front stairs this morning and I like how these shots emphasise the quite structural design lines of the Farrow.  It's not just another A-line dress, it's a little bit more than that.

The high low hemline is quite dramatic and I love it. The length is quite short in the front and sweeps down to knee length at the back.

I was initially concerned that the dress would be too voluminous and look like a tent dress, but my fears have been dismissed since viewing the photos. My measurements put me between a size 10 and a size 12 and after reading the amount of ease allowed, I decided to go with the smaller size. This may have been a mistake, as the sleeves have turned out uncomfortably tight. In fact, it was difficult to perform normal elbow bending tasks such as cleaning my teeth and applying make up. The fit through the shoulders and bodice, both front and back is spot on so next time I would allow a bit of extra width in the sleeves to make them more comfortable. I probably do have enough fabric left over to cut new sleeves and replace these tight ones. We'll see if that happens...

I don't like high choking necklines and they are not at all flattering on me, so I removed 2.5cm from the entire neckline. This meant that the facing needed redrafting to match the new neckline, so I took the easy route and finished off the neckline with some lovely black satin bias binding.

The hem line was also finished off with the black satin bias binding. All hems were hand stitched so they would be invisible from the right side. I did use the sleeve facings but I found them very fiddly to sew as the wrist openings were quite small and would not fit over the free arm on my machine.

The pockets are quite cleverly designed and are hidden in the angled seam line. The top stitching was done with a triple stitch, using normal sewing thread. I am very happy with the result. The seam lines have been highlighted very effectively. I did follow along with The Farrow Dress Sew Along and it was very helpful.

Very happy with my new Winter dress, apart from the sleeve issue, so I really should make the effort to fit new sleeves.

Happy Sewing

Jean.