The Whole Nine Yards

I found the opportunity during my Thanksgiving week holiday from work to sew patterns that I have been "meaning to sew".  

New Look 6009 (1.5 yards):

Material: mystery woven for $1.5/yd from le Wal Marche.

*I sewed the view with the keyhole and hooped front.

* I like the distinctive neckline. The front center seam is sewn from the top to a marked circle. A few inches below the top circle is another circle from which the rest of the center seam is sewn. Voila, an instant aperture is formed between the two circles and is finished with small topstitched hems at its sides.

However...

*when I sewed the neckline facing, I discovered that it was inadequate to encircle the neckline. I thought that maybe I cut the pieces incorrectly. So I gathered slightly the neckline to get the facing to fit. Later when I compared the neckline pattern piece to that of the front facing pattern piece, I noticed that it seemed to be two sizes smaller than what it should be. I am not certain if there is an error in drafting or simply I am missing something.

*Since the back and sides flared out strangely, I added the elastic at the waist and because that did not work for me, had to remove it.

* The elasticized waist just did not suit me, so I removed the elastic and replaced it with two angled front darts from bust to the hem.


*The directions asked to handstitch or slipstitch the hoop closed after inserting it through the long slit below the neckline. To secure it closed, I sewed a 1/4" hoop seam (facing inwards) and topstitched it instead.

* I am not sure whether or not I will use this pattern again.  It is an easy pattern, but I unexpectedly spent some time with the neckline and the issue and the fit at my waist and hips.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

New Look 6940 (1.5 yards):

Material: poly knit from Gorgeous Fabrics

*The top had extra ease at the waist, hips, and front. 

*The gathering below the central bust area was not flattering on me.  I should easily "expect" somebody who saw me in this to ask me "the question" that at this point I was "not expecting" to be asked at this time.

*I took in an additional 3/8" at the side seams

*The neckline came much lower than suggested on the model and illustrations.

* This top has a lot of potential especially after modifying the top to raise the neckline and eliminate the gathers below the bust. I will give this pattern another chance.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Vogue 8451, already out-of-print (1.5 yards):

Material: same fabric from New Look 6940
This is the 5th top from this pattern (two I borrowed for the puffed banded sleeves using front and back pieces from other patterns), so I did not make additional changes.  Current rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

Time to get a new cell phone that takes better pictures! 

Simplicity 2756 from the Project Runway-inspired series (1.5 yards)

Material: polyester/satin charmeuse from fabric.com

* I sewed the top with the elasticized neckline and flounced sleeves.

* I thought the flounced cuff was wide so I halved the width.

* I was disappointed that the top I had no shaping.  After taking in an additional 3/8" at the side seams, it was still a sack.  I decided that it will be a belted top.  Wait, make that a lounge-around-at-home top.

* I prefer New Look 6892's version. 

I probably will not use this pattern again.
Rating 2.5 out of 5 stars

Vogue 8194 (3 yards):

Material:
   Visible part: same poly/satin charmeuse from fabric.com
    Inner part: leopard lining fabric from GF.

* I liked that the front and back are lined.

* I should have used the back darts for more shaping.

* I wish that I had faced the collar (as recommended from a fellow PR-er in her review) to hide some awkward hems.

* I should have followed my original instinct to go for the long sleeves.  The flounced sleeves both did not hang the same way.

* I used my usual upper back and petite adjustment at the waist.

* With a few more tweaks, this blouse has a  potential to be a TNT for me.

* I hope to try this pattern again but with a more stable fabric.

I raised the neckline 1" from the center front.

Front with dart to be created by seam that closes the slit.       

Sleeve and "c"ollar pieces
















Loops, lining, and neck ruffled collar

Lining and the outer material

I don't like how the shine on the charmeuse is emphasized by the camera flash, also "bringing to light" what I am trying to hide. 

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars                                                  

Next on the agenda:

* Find "larger" buttons accommodated by the loopholes to replace the current "temporary" buttons.

* Re-align button placement to straighten the front edge.

* Gentle iron pressing to relieve the "waves".  

Have a nice day of giving thanks no matter where you are in the world, or simply "Happy Thanksgiving".

You Look So Familiar!

It was fun for Heather and me to watch Rebecca Romijn and Abby talk about the word "accessories" on a Saturday morning episode of  "Sesame Street".  By the way, Rebecca was not smoking anything.  It was some glare from the lights during the photo snap. 

The moment I saw Rebecca in this red top, Vogue 8154, one of my favorite patterns, came to my mind.

Spring 2010

Here's Mrs. Kurt Warner routing her husband on "Dancing with the Stars", when her legendary football hero of a husband was eliminated from the competition.  That fabric looked familiar!!!

Here is my top in poly knit from GF made with pattern #118 from the February 2009 issue of Burda World of Fashion (now Burda Style).  At first glance, I thought she wore the same fabric that I purchased from GF!Upon closer inspection, the spots on Mrs. Warner's dress are not as "C"-shaped as the ones on my Burda top.  I would expect for Mrs. Warner to be in more formal attire at this televised event.  Animal print seems to trending at this moment.

From a Clairol hair commercial that I saw earlier this year (January):

Lower left, the ruffled one:

Have any of you seen something that looked familiar? Feel free to share!

Circles du Sew-leil

My favorite designs from the October 2010 issue of Burda Style are patterns #118 (A/B) and #119.  I also like the jacket on the cover. 

Pattern #118, versions A and B:

Pattern #119, leather top.

Here are some blouses with certain style elements from style 118 A/B: front ties, scarf collars, short sleeves, pull-over style:

Zac Posen's striped silk blouse for $295 at Saks Fifth Avenue.  I like the double bow detail.

Neiman Marcus' cashmere top for $125

Marc Jacob's sketched plaid top for $298

I have not sewn with a Burda Style (formerly Burda Mode or Burda World of Fashion or BWOF) pattern for 7 months after working with any of the Big 4 due to their better directions and not having to trace amongst the more confusing network of lines on the Burda pattern "maps".  I also have not been inspired by recent issues of Burda.  Since the name change from BWOF to Burda Style, it seems that the styles have not been cutting edge or innovative.  Or maybe it is just me? Current Vogues, Simplicities, and even Buttericks have more interesting designs. I am also still hooked on vintage patterns. 

 
My description for 118, versions A and B:

Short-sleeved top with a scarf collar and a bow-tied front above a center slit at the neckline.

Burda's description:

"This short-sleeved plaid blouse may look demure... but it's irresistable with a saucy neck-slit peeping out below the bow-tied scarf collar!"

Pattern Sizing:

Misses' 36-44. I traced and cut a "38" at the shoulders and a "40" everywhere else.

After a day's wear, the fabric is holding up very well!



Pattern Pieces

*Main pattern pieces: front (cut on fold), back (cut on a fold), and sleeve.

* Things to measure (length and width of rectangular pieces) and cut on your own were the front slit facing, bias strip for neck edge, and the tie collar.

118, view B with the larger bow:

Fabric Used:
For my muslin or first version, I used a cotton woven from Fabrics.com called "Deer Valley Meadow Lace Persimmon" that I purchased 8 months ago on sale for $3.99/yard before applying a 30% discount code.  If you look closely at every pair of circles, there is a figure "8" or the infinity symbol.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?Somewhat.


What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?


Likes

*Not difficult to put together. I think I spent more time deciphering the directions than actually sewing the top.


* I like that the top can be sewn with or without the bow tie front.  Pattern #119 ("leather top") actually uses the same main pattern pieces (front, back, sleeve).

*The gathered neckline with its center front keyhole/slit and its bias finished edge.

*The retro style

Dislikes

* Now that Burda's patterns are in one instead of two inserts, I experienced some challenges in delineating the pattern pieces on the more convoluted Burda "map". I confess that I traced a back piece from another style because it was more conspicuous to me!

*The directions were either not well written (or not translated well to English).

*The top turned out like a sack sewn exactly as traced. I took in the seams an additional 3/8" with more shaping at the waist. It still looks like a sack, but a slightly different one.

*Some bunching at the bust which I attribute to the gathering at the neckline.  Maybe bust darts or another adjustment would do the trick to add more shaping.  With 118A's model "covering" her front with a record sleeve and 118B's model sitting in a slump with the leather top (the bust front is quite wrinkled), it's really hard to see the actual details. Maybe Burda intentionally does this to "mask" some imperfections of their garments!

Were the instructions easy to follow?

Honestly, not very much that I strayed somewhere and had to re-do the scarf collar portion because of my silly errors. Sometimes I have a tendency to make something that is easy by common sense, difficult that I laugh at myself later about it.

For a dot and a half level in difficulty or what seemed to be one of the easiest projects in this magazine, I found the instructions to be muddled and cryptic or simply poorly written or translated. I re-read them a few times in order to comprehend the essential steps. Maybe re-reading them added more to my confusion!


Satisfactory Sections

I thought the directions for the center front slit with facing and attaching the bias strip to be satisfactory. If you have sewn garments with these details, then rely on your experience and treat the steps as guidelines.

Collar, are you there?
As for attaching the scarf collar for view "A" which is applicable for the "wide plaid wool crepe", here are Burda's directions: "Fold tie collar in half and mark centre back. Pin shorter lengthwise edge of collar to back neck edge matching centre backs-collar points up and edge of collar lies over seam of neck edge. Stitch edge of collar in place, from shoulder seam to shoulder seam, stitching 5mm from edge."   My first response was "huh"?  Then there seemed to be something missing for the rest of view "A".  Then I looked again at the schematic for view "A" and noted that the tie ends were "unfinished".  So I proceeded to do things "my way."  It did not occur to look at the directions for View B, inflexible person that I am at times...


What a Difference a Day Makes...

I agree with you Dinah Washington!

24 hours later, I figured out how the tie fronts relate to the neckline (what a difference a day makes!). This is not the first time that solutions randomly arrive in my thoughts when I was not at the task at hand. I wonder if it was the subconscious dominating the conscious at the time. After work, I read the collar directions for View B and although they were awkwardly worded, I had a better concept of what to do to rectify my errors when attaching the scarf collar with the ties.

For many of the fabrics, I wish Burda would recommend using the directions for View B because the tops are identical in styling all except that View B has the longer and much wider front bow. The ties were supposed to suspend from the shoulder seams, while being detached from the rest of the neckline (the edge from the shoulder seams to the front center slit). Now it makes sense that the center slit or keyhole neckline is held together by a button and a loophole.




Learn By Un-Doing
I used my handy-dandy seam ripper to remove what I call my "over-eager overstitching" or in this case, sewing the collar portion beyond the start and stop points which were the left and right shoulder seams.

I turned in the tie ends to get them to be temporarily inside, safely tucked in, so that I can turn an adequate portion of the ties inside out and add a few inches of stitches to extend the inner seam of the front ties, stopping as close as possible to the shoulders seams, before turning the tie portions inside out. To close any gaps nearing the shoulder seams, I turned the ties inside out and topstitched (tiny handstitching or slip stitching will do) near the edge.


Now, I do recollect doing something similar to tops that I had sewn in the past such as those from the late 90's.  Next time, I will use these steps to create and attach the scarf collar with the front ties.

(1) Mark the location of the center back and shoulder seams onto the scarf collar/ties, fold the scarf collar in half, right sides together.

(2) Sew the seam of the tie ends up to the shoulder seams.

(3) After turning the tie ends right side out, pin the lower edge of the scarf (non-facing edge) at the back (right sides together) and stitch accordingly. Then I would fold under the raw edge of the upper or facing edge of the collar (up to the seam allowance) and either topstitch or handstitch very close to the neckline seams.

Pattern alternations/modfications
* Shorten the upper back 3/4". I adjusted the sleeves accordingly with a horizontal fold across the pattern.

* The length of my center slit was 5 1/2", which worked for me. There was no mention of the length of the center slit. I finished the edges of the facing, even it was not mentioned in the directions.

*Ended up taking out the extra hem allowance I added and then an additional 1". The top is still fairly long, but I left it for a "tunic" style.

*As a personal style preference, I inserted 1/4" wide elastic with circumference 2" larger than that of my upper arm through the casing formed by the sleeve hems (elasticized casing). I ended up shortening the elastic 1" after sewing its ends together before stitching the hem of the casing closed.

*I used a 2" of 1/4" elastic for the buttonhole loop for the top of the center front slit. It would have been better to use a 1/8" due to the size of my button.


Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?

Yes with more fabric that I just found in my stash. I would still recommend this pattern. It is a good idea to make a muslin.




Conclusion:

Maybe after a few more alterations, I will like the top even better!

"Tie After Tie"

Zee Braffe

Three weeks ago at my local JoAnn's, I was persuaded to purchase this pattern after seeing the nice dresses reviewed on PR. 

Pattern Description:

Misses' Dress: Close-fitting dresses A, B, C have wrap fronts, front tucks, front and back pleats, self-ties, A-line skirt and sleeve variations. View A has the short flounce sleeves. View B has the three-quarter length sleeves. View C has the long flared sleeves and border print.

Sizing:  Misses' 8-10-12-14. I sewed a "12" at the shoulders, armscyes, and a "14" at the bodice and skirt fronts and back.

Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes, I did not experience any problems. I thought the illustrations spoke for themselves.

Fabric Used:

From my local Yardage Town during a local sewing meetup, a slinky type knit. Because it is slightly slippery, it can be tricky to sew with.

Here's my zebra-giraffe printed dress, about 1.5% the price of a Madagascar wrap dress ($1,295) by Cavalli.
Favorite Features

* This is a nice alternative to the DVF wrap dress and the popular Vogue 8379 wrap dress pattern.

* Flounced sleeves

* Fairly easy to sew


Not So Favorite Features

However, coupled with slinky type knit or possibly a ITY knit and the bodice being cut on the bias, I encountered a low and unstable neckline after topstitching. Fortunately I had some 1/4" wide elastic that I stretched and stitched onto the upper edge of the neckline from the inside. Then I turned the neckline inwards, encasing the elastic and topstitched using a straight straight stitch. Result: no floppy neckline!

Even the neckline of Cavalli's "Madagscar" is low and somewhat floppy!

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
* I cut the front left and right bodices separately to match the necklines as much as possible.

*I sewed the sleeves (flat) onto the armscyes before sewing the sleeve seams and side seams of the bodice.

*Added elastic to the neckline to eliminate the dreaded gaposis.

*Shortened the skirt length 2 1/2".

* My usual upper back adjustment (shorten 3/4") to remove excess fabric below my shoulders.

*I took in the skirt by increasing the width of the pleats (two in the back, one on each of the fronts). I could have used a "12" instead of the "14" for the skirt pieces.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?

After my first experience with this pattern, I would definitely try it again. I would recommend this pattern to others. Things to watch out for are the length of the bodice, neckline depth/gaposis, and going down a size due to the potential extra ease in the waist and the skirt. Following my instinct, I did not perform my usual petite adjustment at the waistline. So if you have a long torso, be on the lookout for the length of the bodice.

Conclusion:
The smiles say it all!