Mini Wardrobe to SWAP?

 I placed 3rd in the PR Mini wardrobe contest.

I love the colours, so thought I'd look through other pieces I made in 2024 and see how close I am to a whole SWAP.

If I add in the fleece jacket I just made, the trio of turquoise tees from June and the Butterfly sweatshirt from May it looks like this.

I've just laid out some teal jersey on the table, so plan a couple of tops from that which would add a bit of the deeper teal in tops.

Teal Fleece Jacket

Here's my latest make, a teal fleece jacket. 

The fabric was a 2m precut from Pound Fabrics. This colourway (Petrol) is now out of stock, but they do have others still.

The pattern is adapted from Ottobre Woman 5/2014 model 17.

Since I made the first version I made a lot of small changes, reducing the bust and shoulder width, adding at the hips and upper back. I may have overdone the extra at the hips though. so I'll wear it a bit before I dive into the next version!

I've not quite got to TNT zipped jacket status yet, though a little elastic in the hems fixed this version enough for me to be happy.

I sourced a damaged gilet from a local charity shop which I unpicked for the zips which I used on this project.

Pipa Pouches for gifts

I have made 4 new tall Pipa Pouches for gifts. I have a lot of fun matching up the fabric remnants, and zips for these so that I use what I have.

Left is Peter Rabbit fabric, it has a pale yellow lining, cream zip and blue ribbon on the zipper which matches Peter's little jacket.

Second left is pale purple with purple and green print. I've echoed this with a purple zip and green ribbon pull. The lining is pale purple.

The second right is another purple print, this time with a dark purple invisible zip, pale purple lining (no ribbon as the zipper tab doesn't have a hole).

On the right is a turquoise sewing themed print with plain turquoise lining, white zip and turquoise ribbon.

The first 2 zips are metal, so I carefully hand would at any point where I need to stitch across the zipper teeth. No needles were broken!

Free PDF Bag Sewing Pattern, Pouch PDF Sewing Pattern, Bag Sewing Pattern, DIY Purse Sewing Pattern — Sewing Patterns by Masin

Here are some pouches I've made previously from this pattern

Teal dress for C

 

Here's another dress for C, from a plain fabric out of my stash.

It is adapted from Simplicity 9122 with the rather wide neckline brought in by an inch on each side. I've added side pockets and moved the position of the front tucks down a little to suit C's full bust.

I have a metre + some scraps left over, and wonder if I could make some sort of garment for myself. I had been thinking of a top of some sort, but maybe shorts would make more sense....

Christmas Dress for C

 We had a tiny bit of Christmas print fabric which I've used for the neckband, bottom of the sleeves and as a panel in the skirt. 

The navy is a medium weight Ponte knit, the print is a stretchy viscose (rayon) knit, so there was a slight mismatch in weights, but I've made it work as best I could.

I've used Simplicity 9473 again which we've fitted to C. It is for wovens but I've used it quite a few times now for knits, just have to watch out for any vertical stretch as it affects where the waistline hits.

Instead of lining the body I've added a narrow neckband to finish the neckline.

I folded a section out when cutting the skirt front to make it less full, then cut up and inserted my panel to make it back to the correct size. There are side pockets too. I cut the sleeves shorter, then cut the lower section from the contrast, sewed the two sections together then made the dress up in the usual way.

I think this is quite a classy take on a Christmas dress and hope C enjoys it.

Paisley Mini-Wardrobe

If you are already a member on Pattern Review and you'd like to vote for my capsule wardrobe entry in their contest, here's the link

https://sewing.patternreview.com/cgi-bin/ContestGallery.pl?ContestID=442
There are 23 entries and you get 5 votes.

Here's my Composite Review on PR

Contest 2024 Mini-Wardrobe Contest 2024 Mini-WardrobeContest pattern review by RuthieSews

2024 Mini-Wardrobe Contest Composite Review

This is my composite review for the 2024 Mini-Wardrobe Contest. It is based around wanting to use this gorgeous (but large scale print) which was used in the Vera Bradley Java Blue range. I bought the fabric more than 15 years ago from a roll end shop in Warrington, Cheshire, England. I've loved it all that time, but finally got brave enough to sew it up.

The blouse and skirt can be worn together to give the appearance of a shirtdress. The blouse and skirt can also be worn separately with other pieces. I've used the colours in the print as inspiration for the palette.
The knit top is slightly shorter than the woven blouse, which is slightly shorter than the jacket, so they can be layered in a visually pleasing way.
For each item in this capsule I've tried to add something extra either in technique or embellishment.

Paisley Blouse
Link to review for Paisley blouse
TnT shirt but with pattern matched front and front pockets.

Paisley Skirt
Link to Paisley Skirt
New pattern but with added pockets and comfort waist.

Brown Jeans
Link to review for Brown Stretch Jeans
TnT jeans pattern with embroidered back pockets which echo the print.

Turquoise Turtleneck
Link to the review for the Turquoise Turtleneck
TnT top pattern with self drafted neckline and embellished detail inspired by the print.

Teal Cord Jacket
Link to review for Teal jacket
New pattern with my first welt pockets and changing their half lining to a full lining.

I've been planning this capsule in my head for several years so its so exciting to finally get the pieces sewn up.

Once all the pieces were complete I had a go at showing all the different combinations I could think of and came up with

1. Jeans + Top
2. Jeans + Top + Jacket

3. Jeans + Blouse
4. Jeans + Blouse + Jacket
5. Jeans + Top + Blouse
6. Jeans + Top + Blouse + Jacket

7. Skirt + Top
8. Skirt + Top + Jacket

9. Skirt worn as strapless dress with Jacket

10. Skirt + Blouse
11. Skirt + Blouse + Jacket
12. Skirt + Top + Blouse

not shown
13. Skirt + Top + Blouse + Jacket

Turquoise embellished top

 

This is my TNT turtleneck top pattern which I've made any times. I thought it would be ideal for the Mini Wardrobe, but wanted to add a twist to the version I normally make. Instead of the usual scoop front neckline I altered it to a V neckline and redrafted the collar to cross over.

I also applied interfacing in a V shape and did some freeform tonal hand embellishment with yarn, thread, ribbon, beads and buttons.

I really enjoyed the freedom of the thread and bead work as a contrast to the precision needed for pattern matching and welt pockets 

Burda 6898 Teal Corduroy Jacket

 

This is my latest project, a lined corduroy jacket with welt pockets and sleeve vents. Its been a lot of work.

I made View B, shortened to the length of View A. The pattern only has a half lining which I changed to be a full lining. I also made the sleeves wider in the bicep to accommodate my chunky arms.

The instructions for View B were not particularly good, and as I had made a full lining that changed the construction too.

Unlike Burda magazine, in this pattern the seam and hem allowances are included 1.5 cm (5/8") and 4cm (1 1/2")