Month: December 2017

2017 Wrap-Up

~ Michelle ~ 2 Comments

I don’t usually do a wrap-up post, but this year I started out saying I was going to finish some unfinished projects, so I thought it would be fun to look back and see how I did.

2017’s UFOs

 I started off the year mentioning a few things on an ever-continuing sewing list I just wasn’t finishing. I did finish a few of them.I don’t want to cover everything I did this year – just a few highlights.

January, February, & March

In January, I worked on my personal croquis. This is something I’d wanted to do for a while, but had put off. I don’t know why I put it off for so long. I love it! It’s come in handy so many times, especially to digitally try on clothes to see how they’ll fit. 

January also saw me work on the Raspberry Ripple bag, which I finished in February.

In March, I drafted my first bra using the Drafting information in the Bra Makers Manual Vol 2. Although it looked okay, it didn’t fit properly. I hadn’t splayed my wires enough. Lesson learned and changes applied to the next draft.

April, May, & June

May is when I discovered the hallå agnes pattern. I love this pattern! I made five of them over the next couple of months. I have plans to make a few with sleeves for winter.

July, August, & September

In July, I helped organize the Canada 150 – It’s in the Bag blog tour. I also made my first Canada bag.I ultimately made four Canada bags, three of which are now in Columbia. I used the free Miss Maggie pattern by Emmaline Bags. This is a great pattern. I have plans for more Miss Maggies.

In August, I made another bra draft, and a Cloth Habit Watson bralette.

September was a big bra month. I made two more bra drafts, and another  Watson for Em.  

October, November, & December

In October, I helped to organize another blog tour. This time it was Canada Cups – Coming Unwired blog tour. I made a lovely Pin-Up Girls Sweet Sixteen bralette for myself. This is such a great pattern for having so many sizes. It’s supportive and pretty. What more can a girl want?In November, I helped organize one more blog tour. This time it was the ChrisW Designs Global Blog tour. For this tour I made the Serendipity Hip pattern for a friend.December came and saw one more bra draft, well two actually. The first draft didn’t fit and I wasn’t really expecting it to fit. That first draft of December led to a perfectly fitting draft. I’m ready to start bra-making again in the New year. What a great way to end my bra-making year!

Unfinished Business

   I still have a couple of things on my sewing list from this year that didn’t get finished.

Here’s the list that’s been sitting on my desk:

  • bra pattern
  • test bra pattern
  • read up on bag dividers
  • make a pattern for a bag divider
  • sew Raspberry Ripple.

Out of all of that, I did the first three. I found a pattern with a bag divider so skipped the forth one. There’s still one Raspberry Ripple all cut out and interfaced just waiting for me. I think that will be one of the first things I sew in 2018.

I said starting off, that my sewing list is ever-continuing. There are projects I’ve added for my 2018 sewing list.

  • I want to work on the design or style of my drafted bra pattern and sew a bra or two or three or four…
  • I have two lap quilts to sew.
  • A friend wants a robe.
  • I want to sew another handbag or two.
  • I have material to sew two winter Agnes tops.

That’s a few things to get me started in 2018.

Happy New Year, and happy creating!

Noodlehead Range Backpack

~ Michelle

I had a request to make a backpack, and it’s a first for me. The pattern I used was great, and really helped me. It was all very clearly explained, and it didn’t take very long while making it for me to feel more confident and that I really could make a backpack.

The Range Backpack

I chose the Noodlehead Range Backpack. This is for a teen girl. I thought it looked a little more modern, and it might be preferable over a traditional-looking backpack.

    As well as making the backpack, I’m making a matching Blue Calla Clematis Wristlet, which is a free pattern. 

My Version of the Backpack

 Here’s my first backpack. I’m quite pleased with how it turned out. My son’s girlfriend, Em, gave me these materials. She’d made a bag out of the one with pink wavy stripes. Both materials are canvas, so they’re nice and sturdy for a backpack.

The backpack has an expandable zippered pocket on the front of the bag.As well as all the basics like straps and hanging hook on the back.Em may have provided the material, but all the hardware is from Emmaline Bags. And I had to add a little extra when I bought the hardware.   I used the same fabric I used for the contrasting bottom to line the bag. Seeing as the lining peeks out when the bag is folded over, I thought it might bring it together nicely.The Noodlehead Range Backpack is a great pattern. I had no trouble following it at all.

The Wristlet

 The Wristlet was another first-time pattern for me. I’ve had it in my pattern stash for a little while now, but hadn’t made it yet. I hadn’t made anything by Blue Calla. It was another pleasant surprise as there were no issues at all while sewing it up.The material I used for the inside of the wristlet was also given to me by Em. She had a small stash and said I’d probably use it before her. Thank you, Em.

The backpack and wristlet have been mailed to their new home, and I had to add a couple of little friends too. I hope they’re all loved and enjoyed.Merry Christmas, and Happy Creating!

Oh That Dress!

~ Michelle ~ 4 Comments

Recently, a friend asked me to go ‘Black Tie’ dress shopping with her. That sounded fun, so we made plans.

She had a shop in mind, so we went through all the dresses there to see what was appropriate for a black tie event.

  Gorgeous Dresses

 My friend tried on a number of dresses, but only two were lovely enough to really consider.

This adorable cocktail dress looked great on her, but wasn’t suitable for a black tie event. It just looked too good on her not to be included in her final list. This is the evening gown she bought for the event. It’s gorgeous and it really flattered her figure.  

Having Fun

 After helping my friend pick out so many lovely dresses, and seeing her try them on, I couldn’t resist trying on a dress or two.

This was the first gown I tried on. I loved this, but it did not love me back. I should know this styling is not flattering to my shape as I’ve been curvy all my life – even when I was a size 5. You can see on my croquis below, it isn’t flattering. It looked worse in real life.

No, that was not the right style for me. It was very easy to pass it up no matter how nice it looked on the hanger.

The next dress was a lot harder to pass up.  

While my friend was debating her dresses, I tried this one on.

I had to snap a photo of me in the dress too. When you try something on and feel pretty… it stands out.

Here’s the dress from the back:  

Ooh, it’s so lovely.

 I came home and looked for a pattern that was similar. I didn’t have to look far.

McCall’s 7684

McCall’s 7684 view C looks almost exactly the same. Same skirt, belt, zip up the back, pockets. The top is different.

I phoned the fabric store to see if patterns were on sale and they were! I was off to pick it up right away.Here are the dresses side by side:Here’s just view C:
 I’m so happy I went dress shopping with my friend. We really did have fun! I’m even happier I found this pattern.

That’s enough dreaming for me. It’s time to get back to work on all those Christmas gifts I said I’d sew.

Happy creating!

A Few Gifts

~ Michelle ~ 2 Comments

Before I can get back to sewing just for me, I had to finish a few sewing projects I promised to make for others.

Sewing Gift One

  Em, my son’s girlfriend, was over not too long ago, and she saw a small stash of material. She asked what I was doing with it, and I said I was donating it. I don’t like to keep things I’m no longer using, or don’t have plans to use.

She loved the one material and thought her mom would like it too. Would I make an Infinity scarf?

I searched around for a pattern, and found there was very little difference between all the patterns out there. Most call for 2 yards of material.

I had just over a meter of material, so I was beginning to think this wouldn’t work. Then I found a pattern that was one yard. I whipped up this scarf. 

This turned out so nicely, I wondered why I hadn’t thought of this myself. But the material was already claimed by Em, so maybe next time I’ll think of making a scarf. Here’s the side view. 

The only disadvantage to only having one meter of material is this scarf won’t double wrap. It’s thick as it is, so should still be nice and warm.

Sewing Gift Two

This next gift was some material brought back from Africa by a friend. She brought it back for another friend, but that friend doesn’t sew. Would I help?

I thought an apron would get some nice use, so that’s what we decided to do. I looked for a simple pattern that would show the material’s design, and found one. 

The material is waxed cotton, and it was a first for me to sew with it. It’s a bit more challenging than regular quilters’ cotton, but not too hard.

This is a reversible apron, so there’s no right or wrong way to wear it. 

It came together really well, and has good coverage. I heard our friend loves it.

 I have two more gifts to sew up. I’m making the Noodlehead Range backpack, and the Blue Calla Clematis wristlet.

Both bag photos are from their websites.

This will be my first time making a backpack. It’s also my first time sewing a Blue Calla pattern. I’ll share more on both of these once I sew them up.

I’ve had a few firsts this gift-sewing season. Once this is done, I’m back to bra drafting.

Happy creating!

Another Draft

~ Michelle ~ 4 Comments

I just finished another bra draft. And it’s not perfect, but it’s awfully pretty.

Draft Six?

To be honest, I’ve lost count of exactly how many drafts I’ve done. I’ve drafted a whole bunch of times to practice what I’m doing, but haven’t made them all up.  This is an ivory bra with a lace upper cup. It looks lovely, but the cup is a little bit too small.

Here’s the side view.

Despite this not fitting perfectly, I’m pretty pleased with how well it all turned out. I’m definitely learning with each draft I draw and sew up. This time around there were no oversights or mistakes like in previous attempts.I used gold-toned rings and sliders. I thought they’d look really pretty with the ivory, and they do!

The Good News

This bra not fitting perfectly isn’t all bad news. The band fits perfectly. I won’t need to make any changes to that at all. The previous bands were all a bit too big, or gaping here or there. This one is good.

 In the Bra-Makers Manual Vol. 2, Beverly Johnson says measurements should be taken while wearing a good fitting bra. This has been a big part of my problem.

Although the Conturelle bra I have fits, the cup material has stretch, so taking measurements in this bra gives me great measurements for another stretch bra, but not for a more supportive one made from duoplex.

With this sixth draft, I was able to take my measurements, and re-drafted one more time with those new measurements.

Things I Did Right

   So, how did that seventh draft work? It fits! It FITS!

I can’t even begin to express how happy I am right now. I never dreamed I’d make my own pattern from measurements, sew it up, and it fit.

  It looks a sight though. I said it looked a sight!

Number six became my tester bra frame because the frame fit but the cups didn’t. I re-drafted only the cups, and sewed them into the tester frame. It’s the tester frame that’s sticking out on the outside. To make things look even worse, well, actually, to make it easier to unpick to reuse the tester frame, I used black thread. 

If anyone is interested in how I made the tester frame, let me know and I’ll do a post on that.

Now to break into my stash and celebrate with a new bra.

Happy creating!