Wire Trace Results

~ Michelle ~ 9 Comments

A New Drafting Method

Something I’ve wanted to do for the past year is learn Porcelynne‘s method of drafting bras. It looks quite different from the BMS method I’ve learned and I was intrigued. 

Watching a few of Jennifer’s classes in the Great Bra Sewing Bee helped give me the push I needed to try this.

First things first, as I mentioned my last post, I needed to do a root trace to determine my wire size. Well, I actually didn’t think I really needed to do a root trace because I have all the wire sizes from BMS – they came with the Drafting course I took.  Still, I wanted the experience of doing a root trace with copper wire. And I’m very glad I did.

My Results

This is my copper wire root trace on laid over a 38 Extra Long wire from BMS. And in case you’re wondering, the copper wire is much longer than my root trace.This is pretty close. I’d say it would be an exact fit – except for the upper part of the wire. This would explain why I felt the 38 wires were pinching me.

Here’s the same copper wire trace over a 40 Long wire from BMS.My trace is smaller at the bottom, but it matches the width at the top of the wire.

So, it seems I am in-between wire sizes.

After asking for some help in the Support for Bare Essentials group, it was suggested I watch this video.

After realizing I could bend my wires, I tried gently bending one of my 38 wires. I really didn’t want it to snap while doing this, so gentle was the way to go.And I have my perfect wire! And I have a whole bunch of 38 Extra Long wires, so this will be very handy to do so I can still use them.

I was also given another great tip in the Support group: Emerald Erin carries wires that are a little wider at the top.

I printed out her wire chart for her Orange wires, and perfection! And without me bending anything.The next part of the course is to make a fitting band.

Happy creating!

The Great Bra Sewing Bee Experience

~ Michelle ~ 4 Comments

This past weekend was The Great Bra Sewing Bee. And I have to say, it was great. I was so impressed with how well it was organized, the quality of instructors, and the great content. There was something for everyone – from beginner to experienced bra-makers.

I think my favorite classes were the Fit Clinics. There were 3 of them, and each had 3 or 4 women who had signed up to sew a bra, and then have the fit evaluated.. Suggestions were then given in the clinic to correct the fit. Not surprisingly, it seemed most of the women had issues with small band/large cups.

I don’t know if I learned anything in those, but much of what I had learned in Jeanette’s Fitting class was re-enforced and affirmed. Jeanette presented a class in the Bee too.

However, I did learn a couple of things.

I didn’t know some bra patterns splay the wire, and some don’t. Hmm. This got me thinking about wires again. I’m still not 100% happy with how my wires are fitting. So, out came my wires for me to look at. And I dragged my hubby along too.

First we did a root trace. This is something I’d been planning to do for a long time. You can read about how to do this in Porcelynne’s blog post here.

What did I find out? Well, if I splay the wire, a 38 works perfectly for me. If I don’t, the 38 wire pinches and I need a 40 wire. So I’ve realized I need to know if a pattern splays the wire or not before I will know which wire size to use.

After watching Jennifer’s (Porcelynne) bra sloper class, I decided to sign up for her drafting class. This is completely different from what I’ve learned so far, and I love learning new things.Yes, This is new territory for me, but I’ve heard such great reviews of this method. It’s time for me to try it. I’ll let you know all about it. You can see more for yourself here.

 Something else I really enjoyed about the Bee was hearing from bra-makers all over the world. There were presenters from New Zealand, Sweden, the USA, Canada, and I’m sure many more. Really, all over the world. I loved that. Normally going to a conference means more local speakers, but this being online there were no travel restrictions to hinder anyone.

That no travel restriction allowed me to watch Bodil of B’Wear sew up her Jessica’s Twin pattern. I’ve want to learn some things from Bodil too.

I enjoyed Monica’s Fit Clinic too. You many know Monica from Bravo Bella. My experiences in bra-making have been primarily from using Bra-Makers Supply patterns, and learning Beverly Johnson’s methods. It was very interesting to hear a different method, and I found it very refreshing.

That was something else I appreciated about the Bee – the presenters weren’t all of one mind. There were different approaches, and all were respected. I loved that!

Let me give you one small example of the presenters not all being of one mind on a matter. Monica uses Flexi-Wires, and Porcelynne has had her own wires made, which are not flexible. And both were referenced by other presenters. Neither is wrong. Both are supportive. I really loved that approach!

Lily of Lilypa Designs was there too. One of the things Lily said that I really appreciated was there is more than one way to make a bra – just as there’s more than one route to take to drive home. In the end, we make a bra. There is much wisdom in that statement.

To top the whole Bee off, I won a prize. I won a pattern from Studio Costura. What a treat for me!  I chose the Eva panty.

Aren’t they darling?

  If you missed the Bee, and are still interested, you can still sign up for extended access here. It gives you all the same resources and videos. The only thing you’ll miss is being able to ask questions live. However, many of the presenters did to feel free to contact them after the Bee if you had questions.

Happy creating!

Merckwaerdigh Mini Course

~ Michelle ~ 2 Comments

Merckwaerdigh has just released another mini course. This time it’s Design Your Own Slip Dress.

I do love all of Margreet’s courses. I’ve got them all, and I’ve ordered many of her bra kits over the years.

  This looks perfect for more than just a slip dress. You could make a slip, or something I’m always looking for is a summer night gown. RTW Canadian nightwear leaves a lot to be desired. It seems most of what is offered are over-sized T-shirt styles. I think this would be much better.

Happy creating!

The Great Bra Sewing Bee

~ Michelle

I’m not posting a blog post this weekend. However, I do want to say, I’m keeping busy watching the Great Bra Sewing Bee. It’s not too late to join in.

 Happy creating! 

Matching Sigrid Panties

~ Michelle ~ 4 Comments

I gave my blog an bit of a makeover. Well, just a small one. I decided I’ve sewn a lot of things since I’d originally posted those photos, so I chose something newer. What do you think?Above is the one I’ve been using.And I chose this Watson for my new header. Do you have a preference?

Sigrid 

I wanted some matching panties for my new Jessica’s Twin bra. So I decided to make another pair of the new Sigrid panties.

For these, I only had a little bit of the burn-out mesh left over, and not even enough for the front of the panties. So, if you look closely, you’ll see a fairly well-matched seam down the front.

Here’s my new set:    Oh, this mesh!

I’m a little sad I don’t have any left. Well, one tiny little square that I can’t throw out. I’ll find something to do with it.

The sheer part looks white on my display, but I think it’ll look more like the bra when worn.    This is also the last of my lovely Café au lait beige. It’s a little darker than a lot of the beige cotton Lycras I’ve seen, and I like it too. The lace trim matches the cotton Lycra perfectly, and both are the same Café au lait as in the burn-out mesh.

Here’s the side view:

And lastly, the view from the back.

Such a pretty Angie and Sigrid set.

There are more fun things on my cutting table at the moment, and I look forward to sharing them with you as well.

Happy creating!

Angie’s Twin Two

~ Michelle ~ 4 Comments

I made another Angie’s Twin. And I also broke into one of my very pretty bra kits.Oh, I like this. I also like the Angie’s Twin pattern. Other than a few adjustments for an Omega shape – smaller wires & frame, and a larger cup – I didn’t have to change anything on this pattern.

I have to say, I love this lace! There was very little left over. Not enough to do any other projects. This is so pretty, I’d love to have some more. Sadly, I only bought one kit, and I haven’t seen anymore in B,Wear‘s store.

The original kit came with sheer cup lining, white elastics, and the lace. And I’m sure it would have been lovely, but I wanted to play with all the colors in the lace.

I had a little bit of pink duoplex and power net left over from another bra. It was just enough for the straps and frame. As well, to continue pulling colors out of the lace, I went with some red elastics rather than the white. I love it.

Here’s the side view. There was just a tiny bit of lace left over to add to the sides. Just to add a bit more detail.

And the back.      All that red really pops here.

Lastly, a closer look at the side and front.  Oh, such pretty lace!I tried a couple of different bows on the front to see what color I liked the best. I decided, even though the pink blends in, it was the only one that didn’t seem to pull the attention away from the lace. I love it too.

I already have my next bra kit out and ready to sew another bra. And I’m testing a few more patterns, so will have more fun things to show you soon.

Happy creating!

Jessica’s Twin

~ Michelle

Here’s a little of the back story to my Jessica’s Twin I shared last week. 

I was asked to test Jessica’s Twin. I like the Angie pattern so much, I was happy to test this pattern. 

I’ve made a few Angie bras in the past, and I had bought Angie’s Twin. I’d even bought the Jessica pattern, but I hadn’t sewn it up yet.One of the reasons I hadn’t tried the Jessica pattern is I have to make adjustments to my bra cups so they’ll fit in a smaller frame. Omega: larger cups, with a smaller frame and wires.

I’d been told the best way to make these adjustments was in the seams of the bra’s cups. And the more seams a cup has the better. Take a little dart out here and there and hide them all in the seams. It’s a great solution.

But Jessica only has one cup seam. I needed to think of other places I could remove a little without changing the shape of the cup or removing too much volume, because I still need that volume.This is what I tried, and I have to say, I was pretty close. I still need to take in the underarm a little, but other than that, I got a great fit.

Here is the side view. You can see where I need to adjust the side cup. I have it pinned.Well, maybe it’s not so clear. Here’s a close up.You can see I just have a little bit folded under there. Probably 1/4″ x 2 removed from the underarm there and it will fit absolutely perfectly. Not bad for a first time testing the pattern. And isn’t that purple elastic so pretty with the navy?

To make the underarm smaller, I used this adjustment from Cloth Habit’s blog: This is a great adjustment when you don’t want the cup size to be smaller, but just the amount of fabric in the underarm area. This works perfectly!

And just to share one more time, here is my Jessica’s Twin.I really am happy with this. I didn’t think I could make a cup with only one seam work for me.

Happy creating!

Jessica’s Twin Two

~ Michelle

This is my second Jessica’s Twin by B,Wear. I’ll share more about my first one in my next post. I’ll also share the alterations I had to make.

Here’s my (altered for Omega) Jessica’s Twin. I love this! It’s a burn-out mesh over duoplex. And it’s so fun. I have a little bit left. Matching panties perhaps?

You’ve seen this material before. I used it for one of my submissions to the Bra-Makers Challenge. We needed something sheer, and this has some sheer areas.  On the bra for the BMS challenge, I used the burn-out mesh on it’s own. On this one, I’ve used it over power net. I wasn’t looking for sheer on this bra.It’s so fun! When I first started sewing bras, I experimented a little and I tried using Lycra and mesh over power net. It gives a wonderfully supportive feel. It adds support, but it isn’t too much like two layers of power net would feel. This isn’t too much. It feels a little more supportive.

And lastly, here’s the bra from the side.When I tried this on to see how the adjustments I’d made were, it fit so perfectly and was so comfortable, I didn’t want to take it off for photos. I did, but there was no way I was going to put on my old bra. I need to sew a few more too. I was down to a RTW stretch-cup bra when my size changed.

One more little note, I love the shape that both Angie and Jessica give. They both are so nice and rounded. For me, I feel like I look like I’m wearing a foam cup, but I’m not. They are so nice.

Jessica’s Twin was released this week, and will be featured in The Great Bra Sewing Bee where Bodil will teach a class on making Jessica’s Twin. 

Happy creating!

Testing New Patterns

~ Michelle

I’m starting to get my sewjo back! Oh, I can’t tell you how happy that makes me. Honestly, it’s been such a hard year for me. And losing my love for sewing only added to how hard it was.

But. I’m getting my desire to sew back and have had such fun testing a few new patterns.

You read about my testing Sigrid, B,Wear’s new panty pattern. I really do like the pattern! I’m going to make another pair because they are so comfortable.

And I think that’s the proof of a pattern to me – if I go back to it.

My favorite panty patterns of all time are:

Kwik Sew 2286 

You can only find this used now. It’s been discontinued. Although the description on Etsy calls this a bikini, it fits like a hipster on me. And this has been my TNT pattern.

My Self-Drafted PatternI used Beverly Johnson’s Craftsy class to draft these, and they’re similar to my Kwik Sew favorite.

House Morrighan’s Clover BoyBrief 

These have been the patterns I’ve gone back to again and again.

However, I do love to test a new pattern because I never know when I’ll find a new favorite – like Sigrid.

One of my recent tests was from House Morrighan. When House Morrighan sends me a new pattern to test, I get excited. Something I look for in patterns is how well the pieces fit together. That should be a given, but sadly it’s not. With so many patterns being PDF now, it seems not all seams line up. House Morrighan’s do! And I like that!

Something else I love about House Morrighan’s patterns is she understands we have curves. And she builds curves into her patterns. 

So when HM asks me to test a pattern, I get excited. I’ll have more to show you soon, but now I’ll show you the gorgeous fabric I used. Oh, I love this too! I might have to get some more of this material. It’s a cotton Lycra from Smoogie Fabics. It is SO pretty!

I haven’t been only testing House Morrighan patterns though. I have a lovely make to show you this coming week. That’s all I’m going to say for now. But you won’t have to wait very long. 

Happy creating!