Finished Project: Stripey Concert Tee

I bought a bunch of jersey from Girl Charlee and fully intended to get in on the sewing blog zeitgiest and make some Netties.

But then we had one hot day in NYC and I remembered: I hate tight things in New York in the summer, when a bodysuit is likely to be soaked in sweat at the crotch within a few minutes of waiting on a stifling subway platform. Gross.

Maybe if we lived in San Francisco I'd be making Netties right now, but live in New York we do. So, instead I used Dixie DIY's Concert Tee pattern to make a floaty tee that's just right for sticky, stinky NYC summer days:

I love the dropped shoulders and the cropped-in-the-front, long-in-the-back hemline. The flare is perfect and the top hangs so nicely, especially in this vintage blue cotton-blend jersey.

I lowered the neckline about 1.5 inches because the original higher scoop made me look (there's no way to put this delicately) like my boobs hung low. There was just something about the combination of the swingy tent-like hem and the high scoop — I looked like a mom trying to wear her daughter's Forever 21 top. Luckily, lowering a neckline is about the easiest alteration you can do. Ten seconds with a French curve and a piece of chalk and all was right with this top.

My concert tee kept catching little gusts of wind on our photo shoot in the park (luckily I had a tank on underneath):

And let's just say it: this top hides your butt without being all tunic-y:

I really hate wearing shorts, but when I do this summer it will probably be with this top.

What's your go-to summer outfit when it's trapped-in-an-unairconditioned-subway-car hot?

Remnant-busting Salme Cami

Does anyone hate remnants as much as I do? Not big enough to make anything worthwhile but also not so small you can feel fine about tossing them in the trash — they take up space in your sewing room/tiny New York apartment, but you spent your hard-earned fabric funds on acquiring them in the first place....a sewer's conundrum.

Hopefully you have a few patterns that let you put your remnants to good use. My new fave is Salme's Double-Layer Cami, which I previously made from an upcycled dress in cotton voile. Because you know what? Though the pattern calls for you to make both layers from the same fabric, you totally don't have to. You could bust through two scraps to create a single, wearable top. And by adding a ponte band on the bottom you can turn it from cami into slightly sportier tank. Boom. Stash, busted:

Looking at the photos above, you might notice the neckline lays much flatter in my second, striped iteration of this tank pattern. I took out a little excess in the neckline by rotating it into the bust dart. My pattern modification worked perfectly:

I used up the annoying piece of fabric that remained after making Pattern Runway's Short Sleeve Kimono Dress. My one other small modification was the black ponte band at the hem. Not only does it add some visual interest (and length), it also saved me from hemming two layers of this poly (I serged the band onto the two layers even though for some strange reason my poor serger just hated it). Boom. Annoying task, averted.

I like this top, with its darts, neckline and spaghetti straps (though I am not in love with actually making spaghetti straps).

You know what else I am not wild about? Taking photos in my building's hallway when my neighbors are coming up the stairs:

That's the face I make when I want to alert my husband to the fact that this photo shoot is over. Like, Boom. Over.

So what's your favorite pattern for using up remnants? Do you make toddler tees until your scraps are in tatters? Headbands? Coffee cup holders?

Pattern Review: Salme Patterns' Double-layer Camisole

Don't you hate how your favorite TV characters never repeat their outfits? (I'm not talking about the Sex and the City ladies; the most unrealistic thing on that show was the fact that New Yorkers would walk four abreast down a busy sidewalk. Everyone knows only tourists and middleschoolers do that).

Displaying my daily me-made wardrobe this May has me actually caring about week-over-week repeats. I could just wear what I had on yesterday (oh look! It's still here on the floor where I left it!) but I won't because it seems gauche to re-gram the same selfie. Looking at my grid of pics on Instagram is a good push to dig through the far reaches of my closet for those items I've sewn and then never worn.

Simplicity 1872 is one such project. Sewn at the behest of Kollabora.com when it first launched, I was never really thrilled with this dress. The flare on the skirt was unevenly distributed, creating too much fullness right at the sides (I have drafted many skirts so I could tell by how it hung that the flare wasn't evenly distributed). I have enough fullness on my hips, thankyouverymuch. I do like the bodice but that sleeve gathered with elastic is just two precious for me:

So in an effort to avoid wearing yet another Scout Tee or Tiny Pocket Tank, I turned this dress into two tops this week. Numero Uno, an easy peplum top, which retained the bodice and an underneath piece that had been attached to one layer of the skirt:

And Salme Patterns' Double-layer Camisole:

This is the first Salme Pattern that I have worked with though I've been lurking her shop for some time. I completely adore how it turned out and was high-fiving myself for the fact that I was able to squeeze this tank out of the remaining yardage from my pillaged skirt. Her guidelines suggest you only need 5/8 yard for this top, and she's right. I used even less, I think, because I raised the waistline by two inches (I had no choice due to fabric limitations — and also, I am quite short-waisted). 

This top comes together so easily: you sew the outer layer to the inner layer with the straps sandwiched between, which finishes the neckline all around. The little spaghetti straps are easy to make (though in this lightweight voile they feel pretty skimpy, which worries me that they will not last). The darts are nicely placed. The only change I think I would make is to pinch out some excess along the front neckline. It gapes a little, but that excess can be rotated into the dart the same way that I did it with Burda's Cap Sleeve Dress (another dress I never wear but that's another story!) 

 

One thing about Salme Patterns: you have to add your own seam allowances, which I am fine with. In fact, I think it's a good idea; depending on how you plan on finishing your seams, you may want a different size seam allowance. (Also, it makes it easier to edit a pattern when you are not also mucking around in seam allowances.)

But for a beginning sewer, I think that would be a deal-breaker. I can just imagine the blank stares I'd get if I told my sewing students that they had to add seam allowances.....(crickets).

So there it is: one unworn dress transformed into two wearable tops — and two more days of no-repeat Me Made May! How have you turned a dud DIY into something you can actually wear? And can you think of a TV character (other than Wonder Woman) who wore the same thing more than once?

How to: Sew a Scout Tee from a Men's Shirt

What better time to take on a reconstruction project than in the Spring, when nature is overtaking the stinking heaps of winter trash and last Fall's unraked leaves to create new life ... much like (segway!) we can stitch another season into tired castoffs from the men in our lives, like this Scout Tee I made from one of my husband's old button-ups:

We go together like... Simplicity 1887 and Salme's Loose-fitting Pleated T-shirt!

Perhaps it's Me Made May that has me thinking about sewing patterns that go together. After all, as a participant (watch my Instagram feed for daily posts), I'll be wearing handmade every day for the next 31. And as a wannabe overachiever, I want to wear more than one thing whenever possible. But how many outfits can I put together with more than one handmade item from my closet? So far, not many, which is why I'm considering these combos for my May sewing plans:

The Gabriola Skirt by Sewaholic...

...with the new Nettie bodysuit by Closet Case Files (medium back and short sleeves, please):

(Seriously, what could possibly go together better than those two patterns? You would be feminine and sexy and comfortable...)

I also like Simplicity 1887, the pant version with elasticized cuffs...

...with Salme Patterns' Loose Fitting Pleated T (cropping it would be cute, non?):

I've been working on a new pattern of my own this week. It's a short-sleeved sweatshirt with perforated pleather raglan sleeves and "Sew York City" stenciled on the front (I'll be making some changes around here in the coming months, with my blog name being one of them). 

And I think it would look great with True Bias' yet-to-be-released Hudson Pant pattern (no link to buy yet; Kelli has so far only previewed her pants on Instagram):

How cute would they be together? Cool urban mom at the playground kicking balls like a boss? (Ahem, cool urban mom who sews, at the playground kicking balls like a boss!)

What are your favorite pattern combos, indie or otherwise? 

Sew Sexy? Or Sew Hard to Wear?

Things are heating up in the Sew Sexy Sewalong challenge with Sown Brooklyn's ab-baring two-piece outfit in houndstooth. (Have you seen it? I love it). I don't actually have any clue when this sewalong wraps, so I'm posting my entry immediately lest I miss the deadline. So, I present to you a sheer striped Scout tee, made from pieced organza and cotton with a back in solid black shirting. Yes, that is a one-inch section of my midriff showing. Feast your eyes: 

That face I am making is in response to my photographer/husband, who is saying to me: "Why are you standing like that with your toes together?"

"This is how sexy women stand these days!"

"Pigeon toed? You look like you're hunching."

If looks could kill:

Here, again, is the inspiration for my top, in a much more demure white-on-white stripe:



I used the Scout Tee pattern because it has good bones: I've made it before so I know the neckline (which I dropped) is flattering; the side seams are positioned properly; the hemline is perfect; and the ease is enough to create the casual shape that I hoped would contrast the sheer fabric I was using.

I created the striped piecing by cutting wide strips of both fabrics, and then sewing them together. I then pressed and topstitched:

I then cut the front pattern piece out, taking care to place a non-see-through stripe across the bust:

I modified the back piece of the Scout Tee pattern to create an overlapped open back. Unfortunately, in this stiffish shirting it looks a little like a goth hospital gown:

Though I feel like this was a pretty successful experiment, I'm not sure the sexy factor is high enough. It is see-through in places...but the overall shape is pretty boxy. (That was purposeful; I thought it would be kind of mod/sexy.) I don't exactly look thrilled, do I?

Though sheer fabrics aren't likely to make their way to the top of my sewing pile again soon, I will definitely attempt making my own stripes once more. I really loved how easy it was to create a bold, graphic look with just a few scraps of fabric. It's definitely a fun way to make a tried-and-true pattern all-new again.

Have you sewed with sheer fabric before? How do you (pigeon) toe the line between sexy and trashy?

Patternhacking a Bomber of My Own

Lucky me, living in NYC, I get to fabric shop every now and then with some of my fave ladies from blogland. And last week I made the trek to midtown for a little coffee (tea for me; I'm on the wagon!) and giddy shopping with oonabaloona, Susan from Moonthirty, and Angela, a recent transplant to NYC. Just before I had to head back to the Bronx for kindergarten pickup we were joined by Clio and Devra, though my wallet was sewn shut by then. 

My best find of the day was this black silk printed with pins from Chic Fabrics (don't bother looking for it; Susan ran back and bought the rest of the bolt!):

How appropos for a sewist, right? I thought hard about what to make with this silk, which cost $15/yard (ouch!). Obviously at that price I don't want to waste this lovely find on something I will rarely wear, so I'm thinking....silk bomber jacket.

Of course, Papercut Patterns' Rigel Bomber is the obvious choice for this. But after dropping $45 on the fabric I don't have $30 to spend on a pattern (no matter how well it is presented).  And, I realized, I have a perfect hoodie pattern I drafted myself a few months back. Can I use it as a base to make a raglan-sleeve bomber pattern? Here's the hoodie I made:



I love it and wear this hoodie every other day. Surely I can achieve a likewise good fit by turning this into a raglan sleeve pattern, adding some ease to account for the fact I'll be using a woven not a knit? Here's how I started, by lining up the shoulder seams and tracing all three pieces:

There's more to drafting a raglan sleeve than you might think, as evidenced by the tortured underarm on my first muslin:

It hurts just to look at it

Looking at that was enough to make me search all my pockets for a spare $30. But no, still broke. So no Rigel for me. I clearly have a few changes to make on my pattern, though it's not all terrible:

Blergh. 

The process of drafting and testing your own patterns is enough to make you appreciate a well-drafted commercial pattern. In fact, weighing it out value-wise, I would probably be better off buying the Papercut Patterns' bomber pattern; if I only spent five hours perfecting this pattern, I would have to value my time at $6/hour in order to justify taking on this task. (In fact, I will probably devote much more time than that to this). Alas, I have more expertise (and spare time) than I do money, so I will press on with this project. Patience, little grasshopper. 

Here's my second draft in paper pattern form (I've yet to cut a muslin). I dropped the armhole a lot and added length to the underarm seam. I also reshaped the raglan seaming:

Anyone have raglan-drafting wisdom to share? Please do in the comments below!

A Sheer Surprise

I quit coffee a few weeks back and other than the 36-hour headache the hardest thing has been losing that one thing I used to reward myself. Coffee was my carrot, encouraging me to make a deadline or finish a task so I could have a few minutes of enjoyment before moving onto the next thing.

Now what do I have for a moment of self-rewarding downtime? I give myself a couple minutes on Pinterest for some mindless scrolling through all the mason jar DIYs and nail art closeups. It's not invigorating like coffee, but it also doesn't give me anxiety like caffeine did so there's that.

The other day I was scrolling I saw this top pinned to a friend's fashion board:

I was still looking for some project inspiration for Clio, Sown Brooklyn and Lisette's Sew Sexy Sewalong challenge, and this seemed like a good way to push myself and try something new — and maybe add something sexy to my wardrobe.

So I rifled through my stash and found some silk organza and polka dot cotton I thought would be cool to combine in a pieced stripe:

I made my stripes wider and tried to place the opaque polka dot cotton over the bust area:

To make it easy on myself, I am using Grainline's Scout T-shirt pattern, which I have sewn multiple times. It has an easy, loose fit, so I shouldn't shred through the organza pulling it on and off. 

My next task is to figure out what to use on the back of this T-shirt. I don't want to have to match stripes on the side (plus the inspiration T features a solid back). I may have to cut something apart to find a good match. I'm not really willing to shop for this top, since it's kind of an experiment and might be an unwearable disaster anyway. 

What would you choose for the back of a sheer, striped T-shirt?

Closer Look at Anouk

As a Canadian, I've got a lot of pride that some of the best indie pattern companies out there right now are from my Home and Native Land (proud, but not like,  jumping around with red and white body paint or anything —  that is not how we roll in Canada).

There's Sewaholic in Vancouver, Thread Theory in Victoria, B.C. (where I lived for five years while I went to university...yes, I took five years to do a bachelor's degree; if you lived in Victoria, you wouldn't want to leave either. It's the most beautiful little city in the country), and Toronto-based Victory Patterns. 

What I love about Victory Patterns in particular are a few things:

1) Many of designer Kristiann Boos' patterns feature a couple variations — which can be uncommon in the indie pattern world. (Having two different hemlines does not a variation make in my opinion, ahem). So when you have the option of adding sleeves or a different collar for example, you have more room to play when it comes to sewing several versions of one of her patterns.
 

2) Her designs are distinctive: in her current collection of 10 available patterns you would have a hard time finding similar options elsewhere. She's not just turning out yet another pencil skirt or peter pan collared T-shirt. The Anouk, for one, is unique with its pieced placket, yoke, pintucks and cleavage opening (I know that's not the technical term, but c'mon: it's like, sneakily sexy):

  

3) And finally, what I love about Victory Patterns' designs is that they all seem to have been created with fabric fiends in mind: the majority feature many pieces and unique design details, giving the maker room to create something unique by blending fabrics, prints and textures. Or, of course, you could keep it simple and let the design details stand out on their own. 

Now, for a closer look at Anouk, which I first made as a sleeveless dress, using yellow ponte (gifted to me by the lovely blog reader Nurse Bennett), some scraps of white stretch denim and the remaining Marimekko printed cotton from my Mommy Poppins bag. 

It's very sweet and flattering as a dress. I love those bodice details. Each Anouk is like a snowflake....totally unique and beautiful:

Recently I attempted to make the other version of Anouk — the beltless tunic with sleeves. However, my deltoids proved to be too much for the sleeve cap and I had to rip them off, resulting in yet another sleeveless version. If I were to attempt it again, I would grade to a couple sizes up for the armscye and sleeve. Without the belt, I think the tunic version is a little maternity style, but it's still cute: 

I happened to have blue and white striped cotton to match my chambray, so I made my placket in a similar fashion to the Victory Patterns sample version.

And I'm on a covered button kick right now, so I matched my placket. COVERED BUTTONS ON EVERYTHING ALWAYS AND FOREVER:

 Have you made an Anouk? Share links in the comments below. I'd love to see more versions of this great pattern.

Me Made Meh?

I'm not participating in Me Made May though I do respect the concept (and will probably steal some style ideas from your blogs throughout the month! Muahaha!).

I have enough me-mades to get me through a month. But I reckon it would be hubris for me to assume my taste is at a level that seeing what I wear every day is in some way inspiring. After all, check out my latest pants-in-progress...they might just be the most hideous pants you have ever seen:



Barf-colored, tie-dye-print stretch denim? What was I thinking? I am too far gone now to turn back, however. So finish these I will. And, I hope, at some point these pants will cross the threshold from awful into awesome. It could happen yet. (Couldn't it?):

I was inspired by Project Runway winner Michelle, who frequently makes use of the above color palette, and has a knack for making the putrid look pretty. Michelle is my middle name (truly, it is!), so hopefully I can pull this off without making everyone sick.

I am again using the pattern I drafted using Kenneth King's Craftsy.com "Jeanius" class, which I cannot recommend enough.

Anyway, back to Me Made May: even my successes are nothing much to write home about. Last week I sewed another version of Grainline's Tiny Pocket Tank, this time with a short button placket. It turned out beautifully and I have worn it three times already. But would anybody be impressed by this simple tank?

The other big reason I can't do Me Made May: the only person who could conceivably take pics of me everyday is four years old. And she chops my head off. Every. Time.

Are you doing Me Made May? Why? And do you enjoy reading others' daily outfit posts?

His and Hers Plaid Separates!

My apologies for the cellphone photos, but I'm trying to make it easier on myself to post regularly. Plus I wanted to share this prototype version of the Tiny Pocket Tank, which I modified to add a full-length button placket. I love the cut of this simple tank, but I thought it needed some visual interest:

If you've been reading my blog for some time, than that print may look familiar. It's a remnant from a short-sleeve Western style men's shirt I made my lucky husband Ryan. He's such a sweet man. He even agreed to let me take a pic of us together in our His-and-Hers shirts:

Wow. We look equally tired. 

Of course once I sewed a couple tank tops, the temperature dropped precipitously in NYC, so those of you who live in the Big Apple can blame me for the Spring backtracking.

Adding a button placket to the Tiny Pocket Tank is pretty damn easy. You just re-trace the front pattern piece, and then use your ruler to draw two lines parallel to center front, each one inch apart. Then you fold it on the lines and use a tracing wheel to true the top curve. When you're sewing, fold and then fold over again on the lines and topstitch. Voila: insta-placket ready for buttons.

I have since added some ease to the hip (as always; I have to do the pear-shape-girl alterations), and have drafted a 4 & 1/2-inch placket for another version of this tank, which I'm sewing from the navy deer-and-dot print cotton I picked up at Mood last weekend. It's very sheer, and behaves like silk, so I'm thinking it may be a blend. It will definitely require some layering, as I'm not one for letting my bra show through. (Well, maybe for that lucky man pictured above — but not amongst the general population. I am a Lady!).

Have any of you done other variations to this simple pattern by Grainline? I'm thinking of making one with a yoke and color-blocking. What else can you think of?