House Morrighan Abbie Chemise

October 28, 2018November 21, 2018 ~ Michelle ~ 2 Comments

I’ve been testing another pattern for House Morrighan. I had no idea when Yvonne, the designer asked for testers, that there would be more than the one pattern. But I’m having so much fun and I’m loving these patterns! This one might be my favorite, but it’s hard to pick just one.

Abbie

Here’s the latest pattern being released: the Abbie Chemise. And really good news is both the larger sizes and smaller sizes are both being released at the same time. For previous patterns, it’s been the larger sizes first. The cups on this might look familiar. This pattern uses the same cups as the Poppy Bralette. I imagine you could use the Dahlia cups in this too, which might be fun.

The Abbie Chemise has three different length options – a camisole length, a mid-thigh length, and a knee-length. I’m making the knee-length.

I’ve had a lovely cotton Lycra in my stash I’m using for this. I’m thinking it will be a lovely summer nightie.Oh, this is lovely! It flows over the curves perfectly. It’s just skimming over those curves. It’s very comfortable.

I’ve lined the cups with black power mesh as well, just to give a little more support than just the cotton Lycra.

I don’t know if anyone else has ever had a hard time buying anything like this in RTW. But I could never find anything that fit. If I found something that fit in the bust, the rest of it would float around me! I’m thrilled with this pattern. Abbie is going to get a lot of use!

Here it is from the side.Yvonne has some lovely tips in the pattern to make this more supportive as well. You can choose if you want to add those tips or not.

Here’s the back view:I love this. It’s no longer summer, (we’ve even had snow already) but I’m thinking forget the long night gowns for warmth! This is just so pretty, and fits so well.

Abbie’s instructions are to hem her, but seeing as I really wanted this for a nightie, I decided to do a lettuce edge on mine. I’ll do a normal hem for Em’s though. I really love this pattern. I’m sure I’ll be making more of this! It’s so versatile and very flattering on.

A Smaller Abbie

I offered to test Abbie in the smaller sizes too. This is for Em.

I knew from last time, the size I made her was too small, so I went up two sizes in band and one size in the cups.

Here’s Em’s Abbie Chemise. This is a cotton Lycra as well, with mesh lined cups. I used the same pretty mesh I used last time for Em’s Poppy bralette. This is from Libelle Sewing.It makes the inside just as pretty as the outside.

I made a mistake when cutting the pattern out though. Did you notice? I accidentally cut out the wrong cups for Em’s Abbie. I cut out the Dahlia cups! And it does work quite well still. So, I showed you the Dahlia cups without even meaning to do that. They do look very nice with the Abbie Chemise too.

Here’s the side view: And the back view:You can also see the hem on this. I gave it a normal hem, but I didn’t have time to press it for photos. Em was here to claim her new Abbie, so a quick photo was all I could manage.

The Abbie Chemise was released today. You can find the pattern in House Morrighan’s Etsy shop.

Happy creating!

Another Knob

October 20, 2018October 19, 2018 ~ Michelle

Do you know what a knob is? I use one in my bra-making all the time.

A Knob

I’ve been using a knob for a few years now – almost since I started sewing bras. It’s a wooden ball, elevated, and on a base. It’s a great, very specialized, pressing tool for bra-making. I got this one from Bra-Makers Supply. You can find them here.

I love mine, but do have one little problem with it. It’s little. Well, it’s littler than me. I find when I’m using it, I’m only ironing about a two-inch part of the seam at a time, and my seams are all a fair amount longer than two-inches.

I’ve wanted a larger one for a long time. I knew they were available at one time. Here’s an old photo, from Bra-Makers Supply’s site. I had kept it for inspiration.This was from the old store location, and it showed one of the walls. Do you see down there on the left?

Here. Let me show you what I’m looking at.Knobs! And they came in different sizes! Larger sizes! Unfortunately, Beverly said she was no longer able to get the other sizes. So, I have been looking for a wooden finial to make a larger knob since I saw this photo.

Options

I’ve searched all the home building stores for something that would work. And I’ve searched online as well. I did find a few options, but they were just too expensive when the shipping was added.

Here. Let me share with you a few of the options I found.I found this on eBay. It’s a wooden ball with a flat bottom. I’m sure it would have been great, but the $65 shipping was way too much for me.

I kept looking.

Next I found this finial.I found this on Mr. Spindle. I called their 1-800 number thinking a knob the right size was finally going to be within a reasonable amount, and then I was told the shipping. The shipping wasn’t much less than what the eBay shop was charging. I started to think of giving up the search again.

I have to say, I shared my whole story with the receptionist at Mr. Spindle. What I was going to use it for, how I’d been searching for a few years now and not finding anything, or finding something and the shipping being too expensive. Then the receptionist said to just wait a minute. She came back on the line and had the shipping down to $20. She did warn me there might be customs on it when it arrived. I bought it.

More good news – there were no extra charges when my order arrived.

My New Knob

Lastly, let me show you the difference between the two knobs and just why I’m so excited about this.My first thought is, ‘That looks huge!’ However, when sewing the cup seams together, they’re still relatively flat. A larger pressing surface is going to be great!

To give a better perspective, here’s the smaller knob with the first too-small Angie cup over it.The cup dwarfs the knob.

And here’s that same Angie cup on the new knob. The knob fills a lot more of the cup. What a difference this will make!

I’ve asked my hubby to help me make the base. We’ve found a post cap that worked. I’m not sure exactly how he attached it, but it works perfectly!

Here’s my completed knob. I have to tell you, it works wonderfully! I was using it on my most recent bra – Ruby II. I love this!

Happy creating!

Poppy’s Sister, Dahlia

October 18, 2018November 21, 2018 ~ Michelle

I was testing another pattern from House Morrighan. This time it was Poppy’s sister bralette, Dahlia.

Dahlia is a cross-over front bralette. If you know your size with Poppy, you can just change the cups and use the Dahlia cups. That’s just what I did here. Although, Dahlia has her own great-looking Racer back.

Dahlia

The photo above shows the racer back feature. I simply chose to use the same bands as I used for Poppy.

Here’s my Dahlia.I used a gorgeous 4-way stretch material and lined the cups with black mesh. The bands are lined with the same floral material – just to make it really pretty on the inside too. This fabric was from Fabricland.

I can see this being a great sleep bra. I’ve heard Poppy is being used that way. Oh, just think in a nice soft cotton Lycra. Another very comfortable, yet supportive bralette.

Here’s the side view.I do one alteration on my Poppy, and I did it on Dahlia too – I put a dart in the underarm. I need to do that on almost every bra or bralette pattern I make.

And the back. I think this is my favorite make yet. I love this material. I was a bit reluctant to use the racer back because of some neck sensitivity, but I think it looks wonderful! The really nice thing with these patterns is you can mix and match. Just wait until you see the next pattern. I love it!

The Dahlia pattern was released today. You can find it here.

One last little detail I love about this is the elastic I used for the upper band and cups.OH! That’s such a pretty detail. This elastic is from Libelle, and I adore it!

I’m testing another pattern for House Morrighan right away, and have an Angie all cut out. This is such a fun sewing season. I’m having a hard time fitting in the gifts I’ve planned for Christmas.

Happy creating!

Ruby II

October 13, 2018October 12, 2018 ~ Michelle

I was pretty confident my second attempt with the Pin-up Girls Ruby pattern would work, and I was right. Is that as much of a relief to read as it is for me to write? What a feeling!

Ruby II

My first Ruby was really close in the fit. The only reason it didn’t fit was because I hadn’t read all the instructions – when making Ruby in fabric you need to go up one size.

My first Ruby.This Ruby fit everywhere, but was a little small in the cups.

Here’s my newest Ruby hot off the sewing machine. Do you see how the upper cup is shorter? It’s a lovely modern-looking pattern, and I really like it. It gives great lift. After wearing it for a full day, I can tell you it’s comfortable.For this Ruby, I’ve used some gorgeous lace I bought from Merckwaerdigh, duoplex and power net from Bra-Makers Supply, and some amazing strap elastic I bought in a destash group.

Here’s the lace close up.It’s so pretty! I think I’m going to save the rest of this lace for another bra rather than use it up on panties. It’s just too pretty.

Here’s the bra from the side:One of the things I like about the Ruby pattern is the underarm is nice and short. I don’t have to take it in.

Here’s Ruby from the back: Ooh, I love that strap elastic. It’s very firm, and I like the detail on it.

For my Ruby, I’ve used gold-toned rings and sliders. And I had a little fun using them for detail on the front of the bra.This is also a nice close-up of that lovely strap elastic.

I’m trying to decide how I want to embellish the finished bra. Do I want bows? Or a modern take on a bow? Or just one of the roses cut out.

Here are a few of those ideas just to see how they look. Hmm. I’ll keep thinking.

Here’s Ruby one last time with embellishments. I wasn’t completely happy with any of the ones above, so went through my stash of bows. I found the perfect bows for my Ruby. A small black bow with a pearl for the center front, and two small black bows without pearls for the straps.

Ruby is a beautiful pattern, and I look forward to making another one soon.

Happy creating!

A Hallå Agnes for Em

October 6, 2018October 5, 2018 ~ Michelle ~ 2 Comments

Em asked me if I would make her a dress. How could I say no?

It Starts with Materials

I got this gorgeous black and white Liverpool knit from Libelle Sewing. It’s so lovely! I really love black and white. I love black and white photos, and pretty much any and all clothing that’s black and white. So when I saw this material, I loved it right away.

As soon as I got it, I knew what I wanted to make with it. It has a lovely drape. I knew the Hallå Agnes would be perfect. I sent Em a photo and asked if she’d like that. Yes. She loved it.

Pattern Adjustments

I have Em’s measurements from ever so long ago when I made her first Watson bra. But Em’s lost some weight, so I got her new measurements and saw she doesn’t fit into just one size either. She does for her hips and waist, but to make the pattern fit her bust, I needed to do a Full Bust Adjustment.

Check out this video for the Craftsy Full Bust Adjustment for Any Pattern class. At 1:09 she shows just what I did for Em’s FBA.

Once I’d made this one small adjustment to the pattern for Em, I was ready to cut out the material and sew it up. The Agnes pattern is a quick sew too, which is another plus.

Em’s agnes

Here’s Em’s Agnes on my dress form.Oh, this is lovely.

Here is the side view. You can see, even though I did a FBA on the pattern just under the arm, it hangs perfectly straight – and I added over an inch to the bust.And the back.You can see here I also did a lettuce edge for the hem instead of a regular hem. I really like this. When I’ve made the Agnes in the past, I was using cotton Lycra, so this was the perfect material for this hem.