Project 1 of 50

First project is done. Well, it's a bit of a cheat, seeing as though I started it ages ago. But I figured UFOs are going to count as I need to get them done and out of this sewing room, too.

My niece's birthday coat

The details:
Garment: Colourful Coat for my niece's birthday present (aged 6)
Pattern: Ottobre 06-2008-17
Size: 116
Fabric: Bright corduroy purchased from Spotlight in 2011

The only alteration to pattern was the buttons. My daughter picked out these massive buttons which meant I could only fit 3 on the front, rather than the 6 that the pattern called for.

I like the shape of the hood and the body of the jacket.

It is fully interlined with cream flannel and lined with hot pink Sunsilky.

I'll pop a review up at Pattern Review when I have pictures of it on the birthday girl.

Showing the back with the hood

Showing the unusual shape of the hood - very 'pixie'

Lined with a cute little label added for her

I'm starting another one in a green and blue floral corduroy for my daughter tomorrow.

This time, though, I'm taking it to sewing lessons so that I can learn the 'right' way to sew a coat like this. For my niece's coat, I just muddled my way through. I'm happy with it, though, so I guess it doesn't matter.

Edited to add a picture of my niece wearing her coat. Thankfully it fits with a bit of room to spare so she'll at least get a whole season out of it!

That's It!

OK. Enough is enough. I've reached a point in my stash acquisition where something has to give.

I think I've been getting too bogged down in the fitting process and have been shopping to make up for it. Things have to change. I'm setting some limits and goals. I'm going to sew 50 items/garments before I can even begin to look at fabric/patterns again. I've started back at sewing lessons, so that should help. I plan to keep track of those projects here. I may not blog them all in detail, but I will at least mention them.

I've started a master list of all the projects which are currently waiting for me in stash. I haven't finished listing all the projects, but it's already over 100 so I figure that's enough to get me started. I'm fairly certain I have Crafter's ADD. If I don't keep a list of what I want to sew, I forget about it. I get sidetracked easily. I get great ideas for projects, I purchase for projects, I start projects, but I'm not so great at finishing them off. UFOs have been listed as well.

I've got more than enough fabric and more than enough patterns. In fact, I have a huge sewing room which is bursting at the seams (ha ha). I have to buckle down and sew some of these projects which have been planned and imagined for so long.

The items in green are currently in progress. I intend to finish those this weekend.

Fairly high on the agenda are some more winter pyjamas for my DD and a cuddly dressing gown for me. The weather has suddenly become a tad chilly in the mornings. Yay! I LOVE (Queensland's) winter!

Sunshine Top and Burda Plus Skirt

Finally, I've managed to sew something other than ill-fitting pants muslins. Unfortunately, it's not very exciting. Fortunately, it's 2 items that will get a ton of wear in my wardrobe.
First up: Hot Patterns Sunshine Top (Rendition #8 - in my defence, they're not all in my current rotation, AND 3 of them are dresses)

The only thing different about this version is I lengthened the sleeves by 2". Previous alterations included raising the neckline by about 1", a large bicep alteration and adding more to the side seams around the tummy/hip area.

This time around, I noticed that the back neckline is sitting out slightly from my neck. I think I may need to make a little alteration for that next time around (Oh, and there WILL be a next time. I LOVE this top).



Secondly: The skirt is a very basic, slightly pegged elastic waist skirt from Burda Plus E704 (Spring/Summer 2003) #430, shortened considerably. Fabric is a winter white ponte purchased some time ago from Spotlight, I think.
I originally cut a size 52, but ended up taking it in 1/2" down each side, thanks to a new eating plan! I think I'll have to look at size 50's for a while, now.

I took a 2" hem, interfaced with a 2 1/2" strip of knit interfacing, and used my coverstitch to sew it.



So, there you go, nothing exciting, but it represents a break from the dreaded pants fitting that's been bogging me down lately.

I've got a million ideas for garments to sew next, but I really need to finish up my niece's coat for her birthday present. It's just waiting for buttonholes and a bit of hand-sewing. I've got 10 days.

Some Sewing Evidence

Well, it seems as though a lunch with gorgeous sewing friends is just the thing to bring back the UFO mojo. On Thursday of this week, I met up with some sewing friends from the Pattern Review website, Sue from quiltsewsewsue, Steph from 3 Hours Past the Edge of the World and a new friend, Emma. We had a lovely time checking out The Fabric Store and chatting over a glass of wine and lunch.

Sewing, for me, had been placed on hold for a little while as I recovered from the best birthday present in the world - a set of Expedit shelves and my husband's time, muscles and (best of all) patience. He not only bought the exact shelves I wanted, he assembled them and helped me rearrange the furniture in my sewing room. I must admit, I think I may have pushed every button he owns when, midway through the move, he realised I hadn't really thought through my plan, nor had I measured anything to see if it would fit! LOL. He should know me by now! Not to worry, it all fit and I've moved most of my stuff back in.

What I've realised now is that I have NO need to buy new fabric OR patterns, AND that I have a huge number of half-finished projects. Yesterday I headed into the sewing room, determined that I would finish at least one UFO. My DD is growing like a weed, so her pyjamas went to the top of the list.

I've been sewing this McCall's 5744 pattern for her for a couple of years now. She really loves it.

The first version I sewed for her, I used a woven fabric as recommended by the pattern. Now we use a knit.

This latest version was designed to use up some scraps. The print is a really crappy cotton interlock from Spotlight. It is one of the most 'off grain' fabrics I've seen in a long time, but DD loved the print. For pyjamas, I'm prepared to sacrifice quality in favour of cuteness. The aqua is a medium weight cotton knit (kind of feels like a rugby knit, but softer). I'm fairly certain that I bought this back in the day when East Coast Fabrics still had their shop at Capalaba - so it's OLD. The pink I got from the new East Coast Fabrics at Springwood. I've still got some of the pink cotton interlock left, but everything else has left the building! Yay! The three fabrics are all different weights so shouldn't really be used together in a garment - and if this wasn't a shameless stash busting effort, I wouldn't have. But DD likes them, so I'm happy with that.

I also made these huge on purpose. DD likes her PJs super loose AND she is growing like a weed - so I'm hoping that I'll at least get the whole season out of them.

This shot is for you, Sue. DD thought it would be the best way to show off the (unpressed :-P ) lettuce hems on the sleeves and pants. I quite impressed myself with my willingness to change overlocking threads multiple times during the construction of these.

And the mojo hasn't disappeared yet. I backed this effort up today with a new Hot Patterns top for me which has been cut out for weeks. I'll blog that when I've managed to take some photos.

March Plans

I'm gearing up for some winter sewing...and making some Plans!

First up this month, I am DETERMINED to end up with a TNT pants pattern. One that I can just cut and sew. I've been working on a Burda Plus pattern that is getting closer but still has those dreaded wrinkles in the rear. I'm working on it...

I thought, in addition to the pants, this month I would aim to sew up 4 other garments. I'm mainly working on building up my wardrobe, so the majority of the sewing for the next few months will be for me.

I'm working on chocolate brown and ivory as the base neutrals for the first collection of garments. I certainly have no shortage of fabric that will fit that requirement.

I've already sewn up an ivory pair of pants

 and have several pieces of fabric that would be suitable for a chocolate brown pair.

For the rest of the month, I am looking to concentrate on blouses and tops that will go with the pants to create complete outfits. These are some ideas I'm throwing around:

First up, some woven blouses, using some of the sheers/georgettes I've been collecting:

Style Arc's Katherine Blouse

I've already got a white piece of plisse laid out on the cutting board for my test version of this top. I hope it works because I could do with a white blouse eventually. Obviously, it's not going to work with my ivory pants, but I don't have any other fabrics handy that I'm prepared to sacrifice to the Fitting Gods.

Style Arc's Lexley Blouse

Burda Plus Tunic (E004)

and, for that brown and teal print in the front, a Sorbetto tank top.

Next, I am looking to make some loose shirts or tunics.

I have several pieces of plain lightweight linen or cotton voile in a variety of colours that would work well with the ivory/chocolate brown theme - coral, green, bright purple, chocolate brown.

I've also got this print (the one on the left) that's been hanging around for a while. I think it's high time it got made up into something wearable. It's quite thin and has a bit of drape. (The print on the right is reversable and quite thick. It's destined for a jacket to go with this wardrobe, but not this month.)

Some patterns I'm considering are:

a Burda Plus shirt I've been wanting to make for a long time. I've actually made a muslin for this one, maybe that's a sign that I should do this one first...Of course, this one could be made up in some of the lighter linens I have been hoarding, too.

Apparently, I'm in the mood for non-traditional shirts, because this pattern has been on my pinboard for a while: Butterick 5218.

I've also traced off the Shapely Blouse pattern from the Perfect Plus book.


Finally, I've got a few knits (both plain and some prints incorporating brown) that need to be made up.


These are the knit patterns I've been eyeing off:

Hot Patterns Sunshine Top. These is one of my all time favourite patterns. I definitely need a plain brown, a print and an ivory one of these. They are just so easy to wear.

Style Arc's Creative Cate top. This one is new to me and I'm going to make it up in a plain fabric. I can probably see this one being worn under a jacket rather than on its own (for me).

New Look 6648. Another new to me pattern. I bought this one the other day from www.sewingpattens.com as a downloadable pattern. While I saved on shipping, after taping together the million pages and tracing off the pieces I needed, I'd happily pay shipping next time. This one was only up to size 16 so I had to size up a couple of sizes. Hopefully, that process will work.

I have a top like this Burda Plus t-shirt already. I love it and hope to emulate it in colour that will work in my wardrobe.

Finally, a selection of Ottobre t-shirts to round out the field. I love Ottobre's knit tops as a rule, so these aren't going to disappoint. I need to sew some basics to underpin the whole show, so I may start with some easy knit tops like these.

Well, as usual, I've got more plans than time, but I hope to make at least 4 garments this month. I've already sewn one, almost finished another and have the fabric laid out for a third, so I'm on target at least and it's only the 4th!

February Round Up

It seems that this year I actually have time to spend in the sewing room once again, particularly now that my daughter has gone back to school.

This month, I got a few things made:

(1) My dress for the races...review here.

(2) 4 tunics for my daughter...review here.

(3) 3 pairs of leggings for my DD: Black, Red and White.

and my cousin and I managed to fit in a brief shopping trip to The Fabric Store to take advantage of their 50% off sale. I was fairly good, considering I need NO MORE FABRIC (my husband's words as I merrily skipped out the door). I only bought 5 pieces.

December Sewing Plans

Given that December has already started, sewing plans for this month are going to have to be short and sweet...

I've already given up on sewing any gifts - too much to do, left too late. I am still handmaking some gifts, just not sewing them...

Onto the sewing list:

1) A new dress for Erin - to be worn on The Annual Girls' Day Out

Comes complete with tulle petticoat!

2) A new dress for me - to be worn to my work Christmas party, the Girls' Day Out and then to work next year. I have plans for several of these dresses. I already have all the fabric pulled. The one I need for Tuesday is cut out and just needs to be sewn up!