Brown + Hot Pink Double-Breasted Jacket

The only thing good about cold weather is cute outerwear.

I say this every year because I really don't like winter but I really do like coats. They make it bearable, and I have a number of them. You can never have too much outerwear IMO. Yes I live in south Texas. Having a nice wardrobe means being prepared for any occasion and that includes weather.

McCalls 7248 - Silver & red silk blouse

It's time for another silk blouse addition! I haven't made one since last July and I'm going through withdrawal lol.

I wanted something simple without a lot of seams for this large scale print, and chose McCalls 7248. I like both of the necklines and the high/low hemline. This fabric is a stretch silk charmeuse that's been a longtime stash resident. I think I got it online somewhere, maybe Denver fabrics? Are they even around anymore? The contrast solid gray is also silk charmeuse that was in my stash but I can't remember anything about it. It isn't a stretchy fabric like the other.

I cut a straight size 10 (am typically a 12) since my fabric had some give and the blouse was oversized as drafted. It went together quickly without any fit issues.

The sleeves have a nice amount blousy-ness - not too voluminous or too constricting.

I interfaced the top and bottom neckline binding and cuffs with knit interfacing to give it a little stability but not make it too stiff.

I found these buttons in my stash bought for some forgotten project. There were four on the card so I just went ahead and used two per cuff.

Dressform pictures:

The yoke was stitched burrito style to encase the raw edges and I used french seams on the sleeves and armholes. The side seams were finished with small double folded hems since I couldn't do a french seam with the side slits.

It's a nice addition to my collection of silk blouses. This big shirt over leggings silhouette is so great for my lifestyle. I'm tempted to make it my daily uniform!

McCall's 3830 - Silver sequin straight skirt

Just in time for year end festivities I have made something sparkly! A sequin skirt has been on my list for a few years now. This fabric was purchased months ago but has just been sitting there staring at me because I was procrastinating. Sewing with sequins is always extremely messy and time consuming. I finally decided it would be handy to have for New Year’s Eve so I stitched it up. Surprise! Because I chose a fabric with super tiny sequins, they didn’t need to be removed for the seams or darts, and I had no messy piles of them to clean up. I used Mood fabric’s baby sequins on mesh, which they carry in several different colors. I ordered a yard for this straight skirt and have plenty left over.

The pattern is my TNT (Tried ‘N True) straight skirt pattern, McCall’s 3830, which I have made a thousand times. I wanted to keep the sequins from catching on my blouses so I opted for a grosgrain ribbon waistband. I also fully lined my skirt with some silver china silk.

The back invisible zipper has to be gently pulled up to not get hung up on any sequins. It didn’t give me any problems to insert.

I’m on auto pilot when I make this pattern. If only all my sewing could be such a reliably good fit!

I had to add a band of fabric to the bottom of the lining since I cut it a little short. I always like my lining long enough to cover the top edge of the turned up hem. Then I do a sit-down test to make sure it doesn’t peek out.

The waistband is made using a 1 3/8″ wide petersham grosgrain ribbon that I stashed for this project. This is the 3rd time I've used this type of waistband finish and I love to do it. Next time I'll snap some pictures and post a little how-to here for anyone interested. I also sewed a 1″ wide ribbon in the same color to the bottom of the skirt and turned it to the inside for the hem. It was whip-stitched in place by hand. I didn’t want any scratchy sequins touching my skin or chewing up my hosiery.

Finding ways to use fancy fabrics in my non-fancy lifestyle is fun to me. I have it styled here for a casual date night or New Year’s house party with friends but it could easily be paired with a silver silk charmeuse blouse and heals to be cocktail party appropriate.

Note: Both fabrics were purchased with my Mood Fabrics monthly allowance, as part of my participation in the Mood Sewing Network.

Butterick 6185 - Black whimsical print sleeveless silk blouse w/ double collar

I always enjoy watching Anna Sui’s fashion shows. Her designs are playful and fun but not toddler like and twee. The fabrics she uses are usually prints and are often mixed together in interesting ways. When I saw this “Famous Designer Conversational Satin Faced Silk Chiffon” on Moodfabrics.com, I was pretty sure it was hers even though it wasn’t titled as such. I just adored the cats sitting on chairs, the red apples, the little scrolled frames and the texture, and snapped some up a few months back thinking it would certainly sell out quickly. (There is only a little left as of this writing. If you like it I would purchase some quickly.) When it arrived in the mail, the selvages were printed with her name, so I had been right about it’s origins.

I knew I wanted a blouse of some sort and I knew it had to be a simple design as to not cut up the print too much. Long sleeve printed blouses have a way of looking like something my grandma would wear, so I opted for a sleeveless version. I wanted it to be playful and fun to honor Anna’s aesthetic and chose Butterick 6185. This is kind of a sleeper of a pattern IMO. The envelope has all the garments rendered in fun colors and prints, but they’re just elastic-waisted separates and an unlined jacket, which I am not into. (No offense if you are.) However, the simple V-neck blouse or dress with the double collar I found super cute. I briefly thought about doing the under collar of my blouse in white but dismissed it for possibly looking too young.

The collar was cut from some black wool crepe left over from this dress and is also from Mood but has long since sold out. Ideally I would have used a lighter cotton-type fabric since this is a warm weather top, but I didn’t have enough of any on hand and those collars are fabric hogs. I find silk rather warm anyway and don’t wear it too much in the summer, so will probably wear this in spring or fall or when I plan to be mostly indoors. I pre-washed both the print fabric and the lining to make them better fit into my wash-and-wear lifestyle. As long as I don’t forget to drip dry my blouse and shrink the collars in the dryer, it should be easily laundered.

I cut a size 12 through the shoulders and a size 10 from the bust down and got a really good fit. The envelope picture looked a little strange around the front armholes and for me was drafted with too much fabric in that area. I used another sleeveless shirt pattern to guide me while carving out the front armhole and cutting the shoulders in a good 1 inch. I’ve started really examining pattern envelope pictures for possible issues I may have. It’s a good habit to get into to avoid surprises. That or make a muslin of course.

I like the slightly cropped nature of this top, but after viewing these pictures I don’t think it looks very good proportionally with pants on my body. It’s a little short. Keep that in mind if you have a long torso like I do. If I make this again to wear with pants I will lengthen it 2 inches. This one I will wear with skirts. There is a CB seam down the back and I tried to cut the fabric to look as pleasing as possible at that seam. It’s a good thing I had some extra fabric because the first backs I cut had some awful twinning.

This collar was fun and easy to do and is sandwiched in between the print and the lining. There is a facing included with the pattern that I only used to cut interfacing for the lining with. If a lining is not needed for decency, I would probably use some bias tape or a bias binding to finish off the neckline. I always like to avoid facings if at all possible. I put a dab of Fraycheck right at the center of the V to avoid any threads raveling out.

Dressform pictures:

When you look closely at this fabric you can see some textural leaf elements. Those are the sheer bits of this fabric and are really very cool. Since the collar needed a bit more support then just a thin chiffon to hold it up, I decided to line it. The lining I added is a black stretch silk georgette also from Mood. It has a lovely amount of stretch to it that I bought for another project but opted to use for this instead. It did dull a little when washed but I didn’t mind since I was using it for lining. Instead of making the 5/8″ narrow hem at the armhole (anyone else HATE the look of that?!), I finished them off with some bias bindings cut from the lining fabric.

I sewed all the seams but the neckline with French seams. Whenever I use that type of finish on lined garments, I make sure to press the seams in opposite directions to avoid bulk. The hemline was a simple double fold narrow hem that was actually really trying and took a whole evening to accomplish.

I like most of the stuff I make but I am completely smitten with this blouse. It turned out looking exactly like what I had in my mind’s eye and that’s always so rewarding. Also, I have another silk blouse to add to my collection! There’s no such thing as too many silk blouses in my closet!

Note: All of these fabrics were purchased with my Mood Fabrics monthly allowance, as part of my participation in the Mood Sewing Network.

McCall's 3830 - White lace skirt

I have wanted a white lace skirt for several years now. They were all over fashion blogger's websites awhile back and I kept pinning them to my "sewing inspiration" Pintrest board. After swatching several white laces I finally settled on this beautiful white re-embroidered lace from Mood Fabrics. It had the textural qualities I was looking for as well as the large scalloped edges. For the underlining and lining I used a soft taupe silk crepe de chine, also from Mood.

The pattern is my TNT straight skirt pattern, McCall's 3830, which I have made numerous times. In order to have an uninterrupted scalloped hemline I had to peg the skirt slightly, making it more of a pencil shape then a straight skirt. I used the exact same sewing techniques for this skirt as I did my green lace skirt, so you can visit that post if you want more information. (Also I can't get this skirt over my dressform's hips for any nice interior pictures.)

For this skirt I opted to use some white Petersham grosgrain ribbon for the waistband. This is an easy method for making a waistband that doesn't need any handstitching along the inside. I have done this once before for yet another lace skirt, and was quite pleased with the outcome.

I was careful when cutting out the lace to match the motifs along the center back seam. I tried my best to match them along the side seams as well, but because of the pegged hem there is some slight twinning there. You have to really squint to see it though, so it doesn't bother me. I'll bet you didn't even notice it until I pointed it out, right?

Other then the extra care that goes into sewing with slippery silk fabrics, this was an easy garment to stitch up. I think I have enough lace skirts in my closet now. ;)

This little girl wanted in on the photo shoot!

Note: Both fabrics were purchased with my Mood fabrics monthly allowance, as part of my participation in the Mood Sewing Network. 

Vogue 9006 - Dark olive cowl-neck silk blouse

Here’s the latest installment for my silk blouse collection, this time with short sleeves. The fabric is a lovely dark olive silk charmeuse from Mood fabrics – now sold out – but they have lots of other prints and colorways available. To add interest I used the shiny side for the front and the matte side for the back, back collar and sleeves.

The pattern is Vogue 9006, view B. I made a straight size 12 and cut 2″ off the hemline of the pattern pieces before cutting out my fabric for less of a tunic look. The back and back collar were cut on the straight grain instead of bias, just because I wasn’t sure how it would hang with a bias back. Obviously the front needed bias to get a nice cowl drape.

I washed and dried this fabric before cutting into it. Silk charmeuse does look it’s best when dry cleaned, I’ve found, but this girl does not dry clean on the regular. Lined and tailored dresses and skirts, yes. Everyday blouses, no.

I found that this pattern has a lovely fitted shape for a pull on design. There are no zippers or buttons but look how nicely it contours to my dressform. I will definitely be using this pattern again.

 I starched the bias front along the top, bottom and arm holes before attempting to stitch it. This is an old trick of mine when dealing with bias garments. As long as you plan to wash your finished item, it’s a great way to make sure the seams don’t stretch out while you work with them.

I turned under the cowl facing once and stitched to give it a nice finish. Everything else was sewn with french seams, as I do all my silk blouses. The hems are machine blind-stitched.

This was a simple and fun blouse to stitch up. I have hardly any green in my closet and I thought this color perfect for fall. I also ordered a wool tweed in olive to make a matching skirt, but that will have to wait until I can muslin it to my body.

I actually finished an awesome jacket before this blouse but want to get a picture of it on me and haven't been able to find the time. Hopefully I'll post that this weekend. Currently I'm working on an unlined jacket in wool boucle that is looking promising. I seem to be having a very productive fall sewing wise, which is sure to come to a grinding halt when baby boy arrives. ;)

Vogue 1367 - Blue silk crepe de chine blouse

I'm usually the last person to switch over to fall sewing every year. August is so hot around here and I'm never ready to start thinking about making cool weather garments. However, what little enthusiasm I had for making maternity clothing has completely evaporated and I'm wanting to make some things I can wear after this baby is born in October. I always nurse my kiddos for the first year so will need my clothing somewhat unfitted on the top. A silk blouse was of course my first thought because I seriously love them and all the other ones I've made will be too snug.

The fabric is a silk crepe de chine by Thakoon from Mood Fabrics that is unfortunately now sold out. He's listed as "famous designer" on their website, and here are a few other of his crepe de chines. I love to use this type of fabric for blouses. It's the perfect weight, not too thin, and flows nicely about the body. It's also not a slippery fabric to work with, you just have to go slow and take your time. I washed and dried it prior to cutting like I usually do and didn't notice any fading. The pattern I used is Vogue 1367, a Rebecca Taylor pattern that I loved the construction lines of. It is not maternity but fits over my baby bump because it's meant to be loose-fitting. I do NOT plan to wear this until after the baby is born, though. The side view isn't too flattering.

See what I mean? The hemline turned out looking a bit different then the pattern line drawing. The front is 3 to 4 inches shorter then the back and the hems do not have the rounded-off square sides as drawn. I don't mind the differences, though. It looks just like the example photo. I wouldn't rate this pattern as particularly easy. There are plenty of fiddly bits to it - lots of gathering, a bias neckband, topstitching, sleeves with continuous lap sewn into thin cuffs, and a 5/8" double folded finish to the curved hems.

Dressform pictures:

I was nervous that the bias edges of the yokes would stretch out while I was stitching them, particularly because I wanted to use french seams. To combat this I used a trick I haven't utilized in a long time - I starched them. This made the fabric stiff and retain the shape of the pattern piece while I worked with it. After the blouse was complete I washed it to remove the starch. It worked perfectly and there's no puckering or rippling along those seams. I left off the topstitching along the tops of the sleeves since I always iron the armhole seams toward the sleeves.

Here at the inside you can see the french seams I used throughout the blouse, including the armhole seams. With this thin fabric and bias edges I didn't want to use an overlocking stitch to finish off the fraying edges. I had to be careful while topstitching from the outside so that it caught just the top edge of the french seam.

I couldn't use french seams for the sides because of the double curved hemline. After stitching the seams I pressed the edges open, folded the raw edges in again and topstitched. It's not visible because of the business of the fabric. I put a little dot of fray-check at the bottom of the sides to hopefully prevent the fabric from any strain when it's being put on or taken off.

Here's the example picture:

I like the pants a lot too and may get around to them later this fall. I'm thrilled to add this silk blouse to my collection, of which there will definitely be more. Anyone else thinking toward fall already?