Velvet Moto

Making muslins for fitting is not something I like to do. So whenever I can, I try to make sure that something can be done with the muslin. However, when the pattern is asymmetrical or a bit confusing, it is really necessary to bite the bullet and just do it. 

When I started making my Moto Jacket, I made muslins in two sizes, wadded them up and threw them in a corner. Turns out, of course, my Marie admired my finished jacket and expressed a desire to have me make her one too. I pulled the size 8 out and tried it on her. Except for a few inches pinned out of the chest, it fit perfectly! There's double-duty out of one muslin.

So I ransacked my stash(es), trying to think of what fabric would a pre-teen find not boring. And re-read the fabric possibilities on the pattern envelope. "Velvet", it said. Really?

Well, this was the velvet that I had, purchased to make a long skirt for Christmas, but didn't have time to. It is a panné velvet, I believe out of some kind of synthetic.

No problem, I thought. But oh my, I forgot velvet can't be pressed well. Luckily this is a kind of already distressed velvet. I agonized in my dreams about whether to fuse or not to fuse this fabric. I decided to use hair canvas in the fronts as well as the yoke to add body to the jacket. The velvet seemed a bit soft for a jacket. And lining it would help. Then I decided to go ahead and fuse interfacing to the front facings, using a towel facing the velvet side.

Hair canvas pinned to fronts and yoke

 Here are some photos showing the steps to making the zipper pocket.

The zipper pocket

inside view, with interfacing behind the zipper pocket window

clipping the zipper pocket window

pressing the zipper pocket window

pinning the zipper into the window

zipper topstitched into the window

Adding pocket bag

Layers to stitch together

Sewing around the pocket bag

The pocket bag finished, inside view

Zipper edge should be enclosed

This is how I mark the top of the sleeve cap with chalk. Easier than seeing a notch which gets lost when you gather ease.

I cut the sleeves on the straight grain, rather than on the bias which the pattern says to do, because of the obvious "stripes" on the velvet.  I am happy to see that they turned out well.

And now I'm the one who wishes she could borrow THIS jacket!!

Lining out of hammered satin feels very nice!

Blouse-back T

This is my first Blouse-back T by HotPatterns, a wearable muslin in rayon and rayon-lycra fabrics. I used a size 8, though my measurements are size 10, because I have narrow shoulders and this pattern doesn't have a close fit in the waist or hips. I compared the front pattern piece to my blouse sloper, and found that I should take some area out of the middle. (I usually do a small-bust-adjustment.) So I took 5/8" out of the middle of the front piece before I cut the fabric (which is 2x that).

 The neckline looks much higher than the pattern illustration. That is probably due to 2 things: I cut a smaller size than my measurements/my hack alteration, and the back is pulling up the front. No problem--I like the neckline where it is for this shirt, but will probably cut it 1.5 inches lower on the next version.

It looks like the side seam is also pulling to the front here. That is because the weight of the back is pulling down.  The rayon with lycra is a heavier fabric, but the front is cut out of a double layer because of the transparency of the black rayon. That could also be why that back looks very long in the next photo. I am not concerned about the side seam, as I like the effect of part of the back fabric being visible from the front.

I also doubled the yoke piece, in order to give better support to the gathers, and to enclose the gathers on the inside.

I'll be shortening the back hem by about 4 inches next time. 

Things I love about this pattern:
It is very, very comfortable.
The sleeves are nicely drafted.
The versatility of color contrast.
It is on-trend but easy and flattering.
If I gain 10 pounds I can still wear this shirt.

Expect more of these to come!

Denim Moto Jacket

I think I am developing an obsession with this HotPatterns Denim Diva Biker Babe jacket. First I made a wool tweed version and now, here is my denim version. I love that there is a yoke and a full collar on this jacket, and that it can be zipped all the way up if you needed to keep the wind from getting at your neck. I've altered my pattern so that I have a very nice comfortable fit. This jacket goes with everything from shorts to dresses. It can be either casual or a bit dressy.

Inside out, front

This version is not lined, but bound with contrast binding. A tutorial for how to apply the binding (this is where I got my inspiration for doing it to this jacket) is here given by HotPatterns, although it is a different jacket. Since I planned to topstitch most of my seams, I applied the binding to both edges of the seam allowances together. That means only half the work of binding for the seams. I used purchased seam binding because I found out it is very inexpensive through WAWAK. They call it bias tape hem facing, and I used 7/8".

Inside out, back

For the pockets, I made a window to topstitch the zipper into, then sewed a patch to the inside of the jacket behind the zipper.

Inside view of the pocket

Actually the right side of the above photo is "up".

I suppose I could have shaved more area off the top of the sleeve in order to make it ease in better. You are perhaps wondering if the tucks are supposed to be gathers. I eased it in the best I could but decided to leave the fullness in this way. I am not sure if it has to do with the bias cut. 

I extended the width of the hem bands by 5/8" from what the pattern was.

When sewing the points of the collars, I took 2 stitches diagonally before turning the corner.

Knits are Comfy and Fun

Well it surely has been a while, but that does not mean I haven't been sewing!
One of my favorite things to do is to sew something QUICK! And one way to do that is to re-vamp a T-shirt. I'm not sure if I like that word, re-vamp. I think I like "transform" better. Here is a T-shirt transformed into a halter dress. The T-shirt was a size Small, so okay, the waist is a bit snug, but I don't think it's too snug.  I wore a halter dress when I was a little girl, and I never thought I would ever wear one again. But here I am, 50 yrs old, wearing not just a halter dress, but a mini halter dress. With the cruise ship graphic, it so invokes the feel of a relaxing vacation. The bust/straps which I drafted myself are cut from navy ITY jersey, lined, with swimsuit cups so a bra is built in.

My next project to show you is a dress from HotPattern's Riviera Côte d'Azur Knit Dress pattern. I used the tunic version, just lengthened a bit. I also added an ungathered ruffle. (Not sure technically what the name for it is.) My fabric is silk jersey I bought at Paron's in NYC last year. It feels wonderful, but shows EVERY bulge and bump underneath. I actually wanted to take this picture to show you, but with the flash, go figure--it doesn't show. Anyway, I've got to make some sort of slip to wear under this now. That silk jersey is like wearing nothing. I love this pattern! I've also made a top out of navy rayon jersey from it. A comfortable T-shirt, but so stylish and flattering.

Here's another hot pattern from HotPatterns! One of their newest patterns, the Verano Dress and Top. I made this top with printed rayon jersey I've had for a long time. Wore this to my daughter's homeschool graduation party. I think it's pretty cheerful, don't you? The pattern has a twist, right in the middle at the waistline. The only problem is it seems a bit square-ish. So I finally figured out how to alter all the HotPatterns patterns for myself. SBA! Small bust adjustment, and also taking out an inch off the center back. It's pretty consistent.

I left the dress, in ITY fabric, a little long to wear to church. I cut a size 8 but after it was finished, I shaved the side seams in a bit.  I think somehow the twist gets lost in the print, and also the fabric is so fine that it hardly looks bunched up where it's supposed to be. The pattern could be adjusted to include more fabric in the bunching part, for finer fabrics. The neckline seems like it could go a little lower (listen to me!?), but for wearing to church, maybe it's just right. Oooh, these shoes are just wrong with the dress. Oh well, I don't really wear them anyway.

Aphrodite for Me!

I already had the size 6 cut out, and so to make a version of HotPatterns Mighty Aphrodite top for myself, all I had to do was to taper the waist and hip area to about an 8 while cutting. Oh, yes, and trace out the long sleeve. So this went FAST! Finished in about a day, in between driving kids to activities and cooking meals.


While cutting out the pieces, I discovered a great way to get the grainline more accurate. This fabric, a rayon knit, I think, has very wavy selvedge. I think these knits are usually knit in a tube, then the tube is cut open and the edges glued so they don't unravel. So there was no way I could use the selvedge as a grainline reference. Here's what I did, using 3 quilting rulers.


1) Line up a large quilting ruler somewhere off the pattern piece, right along a row of knit stitches. You may have to pick up the fabric and rearrange it so that it is straight.

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Lining up the stitches along the ruler

2) Use one 12" ruler to measure from the large ruler to the grainline marked on the pattern piece. It is much easier to place the piece and the rulers so that the mark is to the nearest inch. That way you won't have to remember fractions of an inch.

3) Use another 12 ruler down at the other end of the pattern piece to measure the same distance as the first 12" ruler. If the measurement doesn't match, then pivot the pattern piece without moving the other end, so that it does. In the photo I used a shorter ruler because I couldn't find my other 12-inch(these things are so handy, everybody in the family uses them.)

Other sewing details
1) While reading the instructions more closely this time, I figured out how they wanted me to sew the hem flounce on, though it still leaves out a couple of steps. There is no "slit" needed for the drawcord to pass through because you turn it up at the hem, then open the wide seam allowance out and stitch the channels. The drawcords will come out of the bottom of the channels. The flounce is supposed to be sewn on, tapered to the drawcord area. It just needs a snip to let the seam allowance free from the drawcord channel. So you bypass a triangular piece of the flounce as you sew it on.

2) In the comments section of my pattern review of this top, Nancy K provided some very helpful info on sewing the shoulder pleat. Yesss!

I traced this out and couldn't figure out the pleats either, so I emailed Trudy and got a diagram back. The notches line up as follows: the first notch which is single, lines up with the first of the next two notches. The second one lines up with the first of the next two etc.


3) I used my serger to sew a 2-thread rolled hem at the edge of the flounce and at the sleeve edges. In the ITY versions I did not finish off the flounce edge at all. (Check RTW--they do it all the time now!)