Botanical Garden: Stripe Trousers

Next I am making olive stripe trousers from this OOP McCall's pattern - M4718. It must have been out of print for a while, but it still has quite nice lines IMHO as you can see from the line drawings. (Click each pic to make it bigger).
There are no reviews for this pattern on Pattern Review and its not on the live McCall's site, though I found it in an archive with a Google search, so can share it here rather than photographing the pattern envelope.
results will be shown later in the week, I am not sewing as fast now, especially with new patterns where I have to think a bit more.

Lined olive wool trousers completed.

Lined olive wool trousers completed. These are the first item in the 'Botanical Gardens' SWAP 2010 collection.
I've used a back invisible zip and they are lined from the bottom of the facing in grey green striped polycotton. I will see how that feels to wear. hopefully a bit more of a comfy version of wearing PJ pants under trousers when its cold LOL.

The lining fabric was originally pale blue. I bought it to make PJs for DH. He said 'Yuk stripes' and I thought 'yuk pale blue' and dyed the fabric with green dye hoping to get a teal or aqua colour. Sadly I actually got an uneven murky greyed green. But that's fine for lining and although these trousers are heavy I hope they will be comfortable to wear

Book: Does this Make Me Look Fat?

I recently ordered a used copy of Leah Feldon's 'Does this Make Me Look Fat?' after someone mentioned it on one of the sewing boards.
I have a large number of these style type books and have been thinking quite hard about what is flattering and fits my personal style for a while now, so I don't suppose there were any massive revelations for me in this book.

One idea I did very much like was that each person's wardrobe should have 'a common stylistic thread'. And I am definitely working towards that. Of course it helps to know what your style is, so you can apply all the other stuff to it, but I am sure it helps explains a few wardrobe oddities.

I am struggling a bit though with reconciling some conflicting advice.
So for instance generally you should choose the same colour head to toe as this gives a long line and is more slimming. However I need to wear contrasting colours (darks with brights usually), and in particular dark colours around the face are very unflattering for me (what's the point of looking slim if I also look ill?). I am also heavier on my lower half and she and others have advised I have darker/plainer/simpler bottoms and have all the interest on my upper body with colour/prints/texture/layering etc

A lot of her advice makes complete sense and rings true for me. In fact a few areas I had forgotten about were good reminders and recent wardrobe mistakes are now more obvious.

She of course includes the wardrobe clear out, and I think mine is probably overdue for another one. I have to admit that I keep stuff becuase I made it and it took a long time, or I bought it and paid more than discount prices I am reluctant to free the garments. But some weeks I just seem to live out of the basket of clean clothes rather than getting things out of the wardrobe.

In particualr my recent year of wardrobe sewing has produced a lot of clothing (most of which I really like) but my cupboard was already stuffed and overflowing.

I have been re-evaluating this year what RuthieK style is, so I think with a firm grip on that concept I need to have a wardrobe clearout. It can be painful or cathartic depending on how ready I am to let things go.
Its a bit too cold here at the moment for trying everything on though so I think it will have to wait until spring is a bit closer.

Olive trousers partially done

The olive wool trousers are basically constructed but need hems and lining.
I am quite pleased with them. The wool fabric is beautiful to work with.
These trousers are part of my 'Botanical Garden' SWAP 2010 Plan #2.
I have also cut out an olive knit top with elbow length sleeves. I plan to trim the neckline with lime and ivory shell buttons as an embellishment.

Orange Camisole Top

Here's the ornage knit camisole top completed. Its lovely and soft to wear and was cut from all the scraps left from the other tops. I now have only one piece left which is larger than 6 inches square, so feel I have really made good use of this fabric.

 I have had to add a front waist seam as well in order to cut all the pieces out. This is a good pattern for using scraps as its in so many pieces.

I have also done all the hemming on the other tops which needed it. And added cuffs to the one with the embeliished neckline.

Interestingly, the best thread colour match I could find for this fabric was actually a really bright red, all the orange thread was too yellow. I suppose that makes this really an orange-tinted-red rather than orange. Anyway its a wonderful colour for me, which is good becuase I realised that out of 2 x 3 metre pieces I bought of this on different occasions I have managed to cut and sew the following which I thought was astonishing.

• Crossover front top (later resized)
  
• Knot front top
  
• Cardi-wrap
• Scoop neck top (with embellishment)
  
• Cowl neck top
• Camisole top

Sweater refashion

Well OK just the neckline. The original was a poloneck, also known as a rollneck or turtleneck. Its was uncomfortable and unflattering, so I performed surgery as follows:

I put the orange sweater inside a green one with the desired neckline. I drew the neckline in with felt tip pen and cut out with sharp scissors.

Then I cut a strip off the old collar and stretched it to fit the new neckline. Sewed it on, serged it and pressed it.
(Excuse the dark mark, its leftover water from the water spray I use when pressing).

This is a much more flattering and wearable neckline for me, so a good rework I think.

Camisole cut out

I tried on the two tops that needed hemming and marked accordingly. I also managed to s-q-u-e-e-z-e a camisole top out of the teeny leftovers. Fortunately it has many pieces, but still I had to piece the front which was not ideal. I don't have any matching lingerie elastic so will also make straps (and I have some scraps for that too.
The pattern I used is Burda Magazine 12-2007-128B which is for a woven, though it was snug on me when I did make it in a woven, so have to see what it is like as a knit.
This can be worn under the cosy wrap or any of the other tops if I feel I need a bit more coverage.

Neckline embelishment

Here's my first go at embellishment. I went freestyle, in a natural-ish sort of way. All shades of browns and amber and curving lines. Its deliberately not symmetrical. I wanted a flow that was roughly balanced but had a handmade look.

 

January Burda Magazine

The magazine arrived a few days ago, and I have a few things I like in it.
I quite fancy this dress (made a bit longer to hit me at a more flattering leg point) made in dark brown knit with some embellishment on the wrap over neckline piece. Its 117A.
I'll need to make a test in some nasty fabric first to see what the petite sizing is like. Might be OK as I sometimes petite the upper half of bodices anyway and I plan to add 25cm to the length. I know this will alter the proportions but those knees and calves do need to be covered up for everyone's sake :-)

Reshaping the side seams

On the scoop neck top I reshaped the side seams using a Jalie pattern as a guide, so they looked like this.
It really improves the fit and look through the waist area.
I also lay this onto RTW tops and reshape ones which are straight up and down.

Amber Glow: Orange Scoop neck top

The scoop neck top is now complete except for hems and embellishment. The neck and facing on this was really hard work as the fabric was all over the place when sewing. Its come out OK in the end though. I just have to decide what beads to use on the neckline.

 Here's what I have sewn so far since 26th December.

And also this scoop necked top which had been cut out for the 'Inspired by the Sea' collection but was forgotten.

Amber Glow: Orange Cowl neck top

Cowl neck top in the same red-orange knit. This fabric is so lovely to wear, but can be a pain to sew as it curls on the edges, which made applying interfacing a bear.
This top still needs hemming and I will try it on to see where that needs to be tomorrow morning.

Next the scoop neck top which is on the same pattern as the cardi-wrap only with sleeves added.
This has a nice firm neckline as it is interfaced not just a knit band, so I am planning some embellishment of some sort.

top remake

This red-orange wrapover knit top was originally made for SWAP 2008, but was in 'the box' becuase it was too large since I lost weight. Today I cut it apart at the seams, recut the body and sleeves, reattached the sleeves, resewed the side seams and added soft cuffs just below the elbow. Also I noticed that I have crossed the fronts over the other way this time lol - not intentional :-)
(I am really enjoying recutting some old garments which were no longer useful)

Before

After

Amber Glow: SWAP 2010 Plan #1

I'm running with two overlapping SWAP plans this year. The 'Amber Glow' plan is inspired by a number of pieces of amber jewellery I received as gifts for Christmas/Birthday this year. The plan has a dark brown base and orange, gold and ivory accent pieces. Hopefully they will work well with the amber jewellery. I'll update the plan picture as I sew more items to go into the collection.

Happy New Year

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

This is where I should list all the projects I made this year, but you can see from the picture above a lot of what I've been sewing. I am not really into looking back too much, other than to learn some lessons from what worked and what didn't.

A few of the sewing blogs out there in cyberland are asking  'What was your favourite piece of clothing you made in 2009? '

So I suppose that should be the thing I have worn the most, or got the most satisfaction from. A year is a long time and a lot of sewing to review. Even looking through my reviews on Pattern Review does not show everything I made this year.  I do think though this year really has been the year of Wardrobe sewing.

I did the following wardrobes
Stitchers Guild SWAP
PR Mini Wardrobe which was also the first WiaW (wardrobe in a week)
June capsule Contest - where I was the winner :-)
Another WiAW
PR Wardrobe Contest (which I did in a month and came fourth) which was also the 6PAC on SG
Christmas Collection
and I have just started on two SWAP plans, though they are really for 2010.

Sewing wardrobes all the time has its pluses and minuses
The pluses are that you have clothing which works together, and once you know the colours and styles you like each new capsule or collection tends to overlap partially with a previous one.
Today's outfit is a case in point. I am wearing stripe trousers from SWAP 2009, a white and turquoise print top which was a late entry for the 'Inspired by the Sea' collection and the black and gold cardiwrap from the Christmas Collection, teamed with turquoise suede ballet flats and turquoise jewellery.

I suppose the minuses of this type of sewing are it tends to reuse the same patterns over and over, and they tend to be simple ones. So those statement one of a kind pieces are missing.

During 2009 I realised I don't always dress in a way which is true to myself, particularly for work so that's something I have been trying to adjust, and it takes quite a bit of sewing to overhaul a wardrobe.

Anyway thanks for reading, and I hope you will enjoy seeing the things I sew over the next few months as I work on SWAP Plan #1 'Amber Glow', and SWAP Plan 2 'Botanical Garden'. I am excited about both my collections and hopefully will be able to complete them by April 30th 2010.