Letters from Wetville

I love these trousers.  I bought them as soon as they came out.  I made a test shorts version and thought they were a little snug.  That's until I realised I had sewn 1.5cm seams when I was supposed to have sewn 1.2cm seams.  Cake Patterns have a great personalised fit and I chose the 35" waist and the 45" hip.  This meant going down from my actual waist size and slightly up in the hip.  I'd made Cake Patterns' straight skirt pattern last summer and knew this was the sizing I wanted from then.  The fit is fantastic.  The photos don't do justice to the fit, as I'm on wonky ground and didn't bother to smooth the trousers before the photo.  I'm making some more as soon as I find the mid blue, heavier weight linen which I covet for the next version.  It's fabric shop sale season coming up, but most unfortunately my children need new shoes and school uniforms instead.  Ah well. The top is the Muse Patterns Gillian top, which I made last...

 After spending weeks on two shirtdresses, these were super speedy and satisfying makes by comparison.  The Myrtle is made from some not very stretchy cheap knit which I didn't know what to do with.  I'm wearing this dress now and it is very comfortable.  It's not work appropriate as much is revealed when bending down.  I could see it being more practical in a winter version with a long sleeved t-shirt underneath.  I made a FBA on this dress, and then found it was a bit more than I needed.  So for the next version I've altered the pattern to take out 1 cm at the front and back shoulder and a sway back chunk out of the back bodice.  I've straightened out the curve made at the side seam by the FBA and taken 1 centimetre off the bottom of the front bodice.  I've added 2 inches to the pattern (yes, I use whatever measurements work for me in a mixed up fashion for sewing.  My cutting board is organised into inches which makes adding length ...

This is my second version of the Sewaholic Nicola pattern and I love it.  My first version is here .  This time, there is no bra showing, and I'm really happy with the fit.  I adore the fabric.  If I was a dedicated blogger, I would have had a shower, done my hair and moved the photo shoot down to the beach.  I'm not, though there is a slew of pictures/posts coming because I did persuade my husband to photograph various recent makes.  I don't have a lot to say about this make, as the changes from the first make are documented in the first version.  I did learn a lot from making this dress, and am even feeling like I might be an intermediate sewist rather than an advanced beginner now that I can do yokes, collars and buttonholes.  I've discovered that I can put this on over my head without recourse to the buttons, which is useful in a hurry.  It does require ironing but I think it's worth it in order to wear such lovely fabric.  I don't ...

Eight months since I posted last...  I have had the sewing machine in action in that time though, especially lately. Brighid in a Kitschy Coo Mini Penny Pinafore dress.  This is really nice and easy to sew. Brighid likes it long, but I think a shorter version in a beefier knit would be great for winter, possibly sleeveless so it is a genuine pinafore. The Sewaholic Nicola.  Even though Sewaholic explicitly designs for a pear shape, I could see the potential for making the bodice work by rotating the FBA to the shoulder pleats.  At first, I didn't like the finished result, but it is so comfortable, and I'm getting kinder to myself on the imperfections, such that I'm now thinking of making a second.  I've got some beautiful fabric put aside for this. Usually I have to narrow the shoulder of everything, but this one I did not.I cut a 16 almost everywhere except the skirt, which I cut a 16 in the back and an 18 in the front.  I added a 1 1/...

So, I had a go at an FBA for this dress, and it does fit better.  I don't think it is a perfect fit, but I'm not sure that I'm up for more changes and another round at the moment.  I found the fabric at Fabric Vision in Christchurch recently for $15/metre.  Two aspects of this dress are particularly attractive from the sewist's point of view: it only uses two metres of fabric, and it sews up quite fast. When I made the fit changes, I dropped the triangle insert and because I wanted this dress to be work appropriate, I sewed up the part above it.  It has successfully ensured that it is work appropriate, but looking in the photos, it does change the style lines of the garment.  That was not so noticeable to me looking at it in the mirror.  The Muse Gillian pattern is much easier to fit on me (wrap dress, so no surprise), but it is a longer make and uses more fabric. I like the fabric, but it is all polyester and I've realised it is going to be qu...

Burda 9755.  Don't make it.  My first experience with Burda and it was appalling.  The instructions were terrible and I ended up making my own up.  The fit in the upper chest isn't fantastic but I won't be changing it and doing another version.  This is Brighid after we went to see Cinderella at the movies, where Cinderella herself wore a similar colour blue for most of the film.  She does have two feet, but is practising curtseying in this photo.  It's a win because Brighid likes it, and chose the fabric and pattern herself when we went to Blenheim last summer.  If I made another pattern with a band/ribbon around the waist for a child, I would pipe it or make it in contrast fabric so it stood out better than this.  The Natalie Dress by Muse Patterns.  I cut a 40 at the neck and shoulders, a 42 for the sleeves and a 44 everywhere else.  I like the dress, but I need to work out how to do a FBA on this and also to use my CSBCC t...

April, and the first post of 2015.   Hmmmmm. Still, I have been sewing, and hopefully this school holidays I will photograph and post the Muse Patterns Gillian dress, Natalie dress and two Jenna cardigans I have made.  I've pleased with both dresses.  The cardigans fit, but I'm not sure they are the cardigan shape I really want to wear.  Sounds like last year's McCalls 6844, a pattern that I was the only person in the online sewing world not to be successful with.  The cardigan project continues. I'm just back from a trip to Christchurch where they have fabric shops.  Real ones.  I got some fabric at Fabric Vision, and some at The Fabric Shop and some at my latest and greatest shop find - Bolt of Cloth.  Bolt of Cloth is heaven for those of us who like bold colour. I also bought Butterick 6031, so that I can make slips that fit me.  The best fitting slip ever, a blue one I found for 50 cents at the Sallies at least five years ago, gave ...