Pretty in Pinks Panties and The Bra-A-Week Challenge

July 26, 2015December 27, 2017 ~ Michelle ~ 4 Comments

A pretty new bra deserves some matching panties. I went back to my TNT panty pattern, Kwik Sew 2286, and made a few modifications to the original pattern to make my panties.

Making these panties with the horizontal lace is really easy. Here’s what I do.

1. Re-draw the front pattern piece because you’re going to cut it up.

2. Lay your lace over the new front pattern piece. My pink lace was packed away, so I used the lace I had out for this photo. Your laces may be different heights, 5″ or 6″ or less even.

3. Because they can be different heights, do this step for each lace you use. Draw a line where the lace ends. Cut your lace the width of the front pattern.

4. Re-draw the lower front piece now – adding 1/4″ seam allowance.

Here it is. This is now your new front pattern.

I fold the lace to find the center front, and fold the bottom front material as well. Mark them both with a pin and match them up overlapping by that 1/4″. You can see at the top of my pattern in the photo above, I use a Zigzag stitch to attach them together. It’s not hard at all to hack your favorite panties and made new styles and still get your favorite fit.

I put these new pattern pieces in a new envelope just for themselves, so I can pull them out and re-use them when I want to make that style again, being careful to make sure the lace is the same height.

One last bit from me before we move onto the Bra-A-Week Challenge. Remember my bridge from last week, and how I felt it needed some bling?

I added a few crystals with my Hotfix tool. They may not cover up that little pucker, but they do make the bridge look much prettier. I didn’t stop there though.

I added a crystal to each strap. Can there ever be too much bling or lace?

Now onto the challenge. We’re on week 28 of the Bra-A-Week Challenge.

Our first submission comes from Andie.

Andie made a beautiful bra she’s called her Sailor Mercury bra.

Isn’t that lovely? It’s made from teal duoplex, white findings kit, white power net, and white power mesh lining the lace from Bra-Maker’s Supply. The white lace is re-purposed from a nightgown Andie had used for a cosplay project last year.

I love re-purposing things. It’s so creative and it’s also so very pretty.

Andie also embroidered Sailor Mercury’s symbol on the right back strap to really make it her Sailor Mercury bra.

I love that! I hadn’t thought of using embroidery stitches on my bra to make it even more unique. What a great idea, Andie!

You can read more about Andie Sailor Mercury bra on her blog: Sew Pretty In Pink.

Our next submission comes from Erin.

This is a full band bra, full coverage with extra long wires. It has horizontal seaming, with a split lower cup. Erin made it using a lightweight stable knit, power net for the back band and 15 denier to line the bridge for stability.

Erin, that looks like such a fabulous fit and it looks so soft and comfortable.

I love the bow. You can read more about Erin’s bra on her blog: The Sewing and Life Adventures of Emerald Erin.

Our next submission is from David. Here David made a foam cup bra.

Wow. That is really beautiful. It definitely has the Va-Va-Voom factor.

It’s so beautiful. David is a freelance lingerie designer.

What wonderful submissions this week! If you haven’t looked at the Pinterest board for the Bra-A-Week Challenge, you can see many of the past weeks’ submissions all at once and get lots of inspiration.

Happy creating!

Favorite Summer Recipes

July 22, 2015October 29, 2016 ~ Michelle ~ 4 Comments

One of my favorite summer recipes is Bruschetta. My DH can make a meal out if it on its own even, and often does. I’ll get a phone call saying ‘I’m bring home tomatoes. What else do we need?’ and I know. He wants me to make Bruschetta.

Just the other day I bought the most beautiful dark red Roma tomatoes and I made a big jar of Bruschetta.

bruschetta

I thought I’d better get a photo while there was still something left in the jar!

And I thought I’d share my recipe with you. DH says it’s the best he’s ever had. I don’t know about that, but I do like it too.

Bruschetta Recipe

4 Roma tomatoes

3 cloves of garlic, chopped

3 tbsp. olive oil

2 tbsp. Balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup fresh Basil, chopped

1 tsp Salt & Pepper

1/4 cup chopped onion

Pulse in a food processor. I don’t have an electric food processor, but a manual one. So, it’s at this stage I hand it over to DH and make him work for his dinner.

Another favorite recipe of mine, that I enjoy all year round is homemade ‘chocolate’. It’s not really chocolate. I use carob powder in mine.

carob

Here are my ‘chocolates’ all ready to go in the fridge and firm up. Other than the chilling time, they only take minutes to make.

The original recipe comes from the unrefined kitchen.

Homemade Dark Chocolate Chips

2 tbsp. coconut oil

1/4 cup cocoa powder (I use 1/8 cup carob powder)

2 tbsp. honey

1 tbsp. arrowroot

1/2 tsp vanilla

Over a double-boiler that is simmering, melt oil, honey, cocoa/carob and arrowroot. Cook for 2 minutes after it is melted. Remove from heat.

Add in vanilla. Stir.

Lift pan off double-boiler and make sure no water gets into your chocolate. Pour into a pan lined with parchment paper. I used a confectioner tray for mine.

Put in fridge for 2 hours or more. Cut into small pieces to enjoy!

You can read the original recipe here.

Happy creating and enjoy!

Pretty In Pinks and The Bra-A-Week Challenge

July 19, 2015December 27, 2017 ~ Michelle ~ 10 Comments

This week, I’ve made another lovely Shelley bra – in pink.

Front

For this bra, I used my custom Shelley pattern, but I did make a couple of little changes.

I added some lace to the power bars, which is really only a change to the look.

power BAr

A few changes I made to the pattern itself is I made a Gothic Arch on the bridge. I didn’t get it perfect, but close. I also now know what to do for the next one. I think I missed a couple of stitches on the first pass of the elastic on the one side. When I turned it, because I missed those stitches, I got a tiny pucker. That bridge is looking so unadorned… I need to get my Hotfix crystals out and put some bling on it!

Gothic Arch

Oh, I have to show you how lovely and neat the inside is when sewing a Gothic Arch.

Inside

Do you see how the ends of the elastic are tucked nice and neatly under the channeling? Ooooh, I love that! I’m all for the inside of my bras or garments looking as nice as the outside. I lined the cups using the Sewy Rebecca method, so all my inside seams look as nice and neat as that Gothic Arch.

One other change I made was in how I put on the straps. I usually use some of the band elastic to attach the strap – making a loop at the top of the band where I put the slider.

gap

However, a few weeks ago, I showed you how that really hadn’t worked well on my beige Shelley. When I was looking at the elastics for this bra, they didn’t seem as firm as some others I’ve used, so I decided to use the strap elastic on the band. I don’t like it as much. It always seems to pucker where it meets the band when the bra is on me. It’s even puckering a little bit here on Catherine (my dress form).

One last comment on my own make. I tried the little tutorial I’d posted on making your own bows with a fork. Hmm. Well, I tried a number of times, and it did not work. I used the cardboard method again, and made little bows for my straps. I’m going to take that link out. I don’t want to recommend something that doesn’t work.

pink bow

It’s so fun to make my own bows, I wanted to find a way to do the bows with all ribbon that actually worked and I found one. I even made a couple before I shared the site with you. You can find the tutorial here.

Now onto the Bra-A-Week Challenge! We’re on week 27!

Our first submission is from Sofia.

Sofia made a Partial-Band bra this week.

Dotted-bra

That is so pretty! Sofa made this bra from her full-band pattern and modified it. She also added an inside pocket for cookies. Sofia said this was the slipperiest Lycra she’d ever sewn. I understand about slippery Lycra. You did a beautiful job!

As well as modifying her bra pattern, Sofia made knickers from a pattern she drafted herself. They’re a high-waisted brief with princess seams.

Dotted-Bra-Knickers-set

What a beautiful set! You can read more about Sofia’s set and her alterations on her blog: Silver Lining.

Our next submission comes from David.

David made a stunning ‘open’ bra.

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David explained with a triangle breast shape the pink lace will still cover – over the apex of the breast.

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Here we can see from the side.

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And the back of the bra.

David is a freelance lingerie designer, his label is Bonnet Bleu.

Happy creating!

Matching Panties for A Modern Floral Shelley and The Bra-A-Week Challenge

July 12, 2015December 27, 2017 ~ Michelle ~ 16 Comments

This week I have a couple of pair of panties I made to co-ordinate with my Modern Floral Shelley.

I love cotton, and this Indigo cotton spandex is from Bra-Makers Supply. The lace is from the Merckwaerdigh kit I used for the bra, and the elastics are from Frog Feathers on Etsy.

2 panties

On the first pair I made I used a bit of the lace I used from the bra and then some Ivory lace elastics – Ivory also being a color also in the Lycra. I’d wondered if maybe there was too much lace, but then decided there can never be too much lace. I love them. They’re so comfortable.

Too much lace

The second pair, which is my favorite style to make, uses the same lace from the kit for the whole front panel. On this pair I used Navy lace elastics.

Fav style of panties

Both pairs of panties are from my TNT panty pattern – Kwik Sew 2286, which I have fun with by changing the lines or style, but using the pattern as a base or starting point.

I also picked up a couple of pair of panties in some coordinating colors, not so much because I wanted or needed the panties, but to clone them for patterns. I really like the top pair – how the back part of the panty wraps right around the front in a little V across the hip, and the lace elastic in the design. Very pretty. The bottom pair is simply a high cut style, but still fun.

RTW

Now our Bra-A-Week Challenge. We’re on week 26 of the Challenge! It is so very inspiring to see everyone’s submissions.

This week we have a beautiful bikini from Diana.

WK26Diana

That is so lovely. Diana wrote about this on her blog poetsie.blogspot.nl. If you don’t read Dutch, it helps to open it in Google Translate. You can read it that way in your own language. Check it out here for English.

This is so colorful and fun. It’s really lovely, Diana.

Our next submission comes from Maddy.

Maddy made the Marlborough bra. This is her second time making the Marlborough; she made a few modification to the pattern and got an almost perfect fit. That perfect fit (or almost perfect) feels so good!

Maddy also mad a matching pair of Ohhh Lulu Grace panties.

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This was Maddy’s first time making the Grace panties, and she really loves the style and fit! That is so good to know because the Grace panties are on my to-buy list. Thanks for recommending them, Maddy!

You can read all about Maddy’s Marlborough and Grace panties, with more pictures and details about the alterations on her blog: https://missmaddysews.wordpress.com/2015/07/09/something-wicked-this-way-comes/

Our next submission comes from Monserratt. Monserratt is a Pin-Up Girl like me, and made her bra from the Classic pattern.

stardust front

I love these colors! So gorgeous! You really need to see take a look at Monserratt’s blog: https://monserrattlopez.wordpress.com/2015/07/11/we-are-stardust-bra/ – she has a lot of information on there as to what she’s done in the way of alterations, but also a lot of photos. You can see her lovely makes, and her great photos!

Love that blue and gold! So very pretty.

Our next submission comes from David.

David’s bra features black lace across the front overlaid with the straps. This is something like a short corset, bandeau, sport bra and strappy.

But there are two different laces used here. You can see the second lace on the back.

Isn’t that stunning? Just gorgeous. David is a freelance lingerie designer, his label is: Bonnet Bleu

Our last submission is from Erin!

Erin made this is a bikini for her sister’s birthday.

Erin’s sister picked out this fabric and wanted a cute itsy-bitsy bikini, but with a little more structure (underwires & foam). It’s a vertical seam cup, low cut with short wires. (Erin thinks she’s the equivalent of a 34C although she drafted this pattern off her measurements).

The details are a cute tie in the front and on the sides of the bottoms and nice double stitching on the outer fabric for the cups, gold rings and G-hooks. Erin said it was lots of fun to make – and hopes it fits her sister perfectly!!

What a nice birthday gift! You can read more on Erin’s blog: http://emeralderin.blogspot.ca.

I’m loving summer hosting the challenge – it is so exciting and fun to see all the makes coming in!

Happy creating!

A Lacy Maxi

July 8, 2015July 17, 2016 ~ Michelle

I really do live in skirts all summer long. I love how comfortable they are, and if you knew me, you’d know I’m not a jeans girl. I like to be a little more dressed up than that. A few years ago I could even say I didn’t even own a pair of jeans, but I had to buy a pair for a job. Those jeans have been in my closet for a couple of years now and I haven’t worn them. That just makes me think, what are they still doing in my closet?

Back to skirts. I wanted a Maxi skirt, and knew the exact look I wanted. For this skirt, I modified my Flirt Skirt pattern to use for both the skirt and the slip.

I’d picked up some black cotton lace-like material.

Material

It’s lovely, but it’s also not the perfect material for a skirt on its own. It would show just a bit too much. So, to use this, I made a lining for it with a light-weight cotton, also in black. Both materials are so light, making this a great summer skirt.

Skirt

Oh, I love it! It doesn’t show here on Catherine (my dress form), but I didn’t want the slip to go the full length of the skirt. I wanted some of that open work to show that it was open. So, the slip only goes part way below the knee. Originally, I’d thought of making the slip shorter, but I’m really loving this skirt just the way it is.

Here I am out with my pup. You can see where the slip ends and the light shines through the bottom of the skirt.

There’s one thing I miss about RTW clothing when I’m wearing clothing I’ve made myself – the garment’s tag. I don’t miss it for any of the reasons it’s likely there – like the brand, or the fabric content, or the care instructions. I miss it because it’s a really quick and handy indicator of the front or back of the garment. With the Flirt Skirts I’ve made, I’m always checking the seams to see where the front or back is before putting it on. I came up with a quick little tag that is uniquely me.

tag

I cut a flower out of some scrap lace that was heading for the garbage and gave it a quick zigzag onto the back seam. Now when I pick up my skirt, I’ll know really quickly where the back is. I didn’t match the thread to the flower thinking I didn’t want pink to show on the skirt. I was tired and not really thinking there. I could have easily used two colors of thread – I’ve done it before. However, I let it be; I chose function over form for this one. Maybe I’ll be my normal more finicky self for the next one and pull out some matching thread.

Happy creating!

A Modern Floral Shelley and The Bra-A-Week Challenge

July 5, 2015December 27, 2017 ~ Michelle ~ 16 Comments

My most recent Shelley is a bit of an experiment for me. My experiment was in the materials I used. I usually use Duoplex for my bra cups. On this bra, I used the Lycra that came in the Merckwaerdigh kit and then lined it with Sheer Cup Lining. Seeing as there’s no stretch in the lining, I thought it would work.

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Isn’t that pretty? I loved it the moment I saw it. And I’ve learned, when I see something in Margreet’s Etsy store that I love, I buy it right away. I’ve found if I wait, it’s gone. My challenge with using kits from Merckwaerdigh is I need the support of Duoplex or something non-stretch. If I use Duoplex underneath the Lycra, it’s getting to be the cost of two bras. I wanted to try something different.

I had a little more trouble sewing Lycra than I do Duoplex. I’m not used to sewing stretch when sewing my cups. Here you can see where I made a little mistake in my sewing.

Mod Blue Shelley

Look at that wrinkle. I decided it was a small cosmetic error, I’m going to give it a cosmetic treatment – cover it up.

I love this material, but there was one big downside to it – all the shades of blue in it. I planned on using a Navy findings kit from Bra-Makers Supply, as well as Navy Power Net from them. So, I needed Navy thread. Fine. I got Navy thread. When I sewed the elastic on the back of the lace though, the Navy looked terrible. So, off to the store to match some thread to the lace. The thread that matches the lace, doesn’t look great on the Lycra. Sigh. I wasn’t going to buy a third spool of thread for the bra, so the Navy thread is now a design element on this bra.

front

Here’s the bra from the front. I love those three little bows at the front. And those little bows … they’re all me-made. The Merckwaerdigh kits don’t come with bows. The only bows I had really didn’t go with the colors of the bra, so I looked at my ribbon stash. This golden ribbon was the only one that went well. It’s really fun to make ribbons, and easy. I shared how in this post. I used the cardboard method, but the fork method looks like it produces a lovely bow as well.

three bows

Here are the bows all finished and sewn on with a blue bead in the center. It hides that little wrinkle pretty well.

back

Here’s the back of the bra. I did over-calculate how much I had to add to the band using the new, stronger elastics from Bra-Makers Supply. You can read about those elastics here. I had to cut a bit off both sides to make it perfect for me, and next I’ll adjust my band pattern.

So, how did my experiment go? The bra fits a touch looser than when I make it from Duoplex. The only place I noticed any wrinkles at all were under the arm where I already have to make an adjustment. Now, if I could only sew Lycra more neatly and without wrinkles!

Now onto the Bra-a Week Challenge submissions!

This is week 25 of the Bra-A-Week Challenge, and this week we have some very beautiful submissions along with my own.

The first bra is from Sofia. It is such a delicate work of art inspired by a one of her favorite lingerie brands.

Little-Black-Bra

Here’s Sofia’s Little Black Bra. Isn’t that gorgeous? Sofia used Eyelash lace backed with nude Power Net to achieve the look on the front of the bra. As well, she took careful attention to match the lace on the cups. All that extra attention does show. She finished her bra with black Power Net for the band and a 3 Hook and Eye set. Stunning!

You can read more about Sofia’s inspiration and Black Lace Bra on her blog Silver Lining. So very lovely!

Our second bra this week is from France and it’s actually a set of bras, not just one.

I can’t even imagine how wonderful it would be to have someone make custom-fitting bras for me. France is making them for her Mom. What a wonderful thing!

Look at all these beautiful bras! This is what you can do once you have that perfect pattern.

This photo shows the back of the bra. Look at how perfectly the whole bra fits! And it looks really comfortable too with that full back. That’s just so great!

Our next submission is from David of Bonnet Bleu. It’s another lovely delicate looking bra. David made this bra using Black tulle and white lace for his triangle lace cup bra with nude bra cup foams.

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