Stitch and bitch thread #3 Sewing is harder than it seams

[NutellaEllaElla]

And i'm very glad to have you clever sewists to selvedge what's left of my dignity .

My poundametre order arrived and was correct thank goodness. The cotton print is gorgeous in real life although I’m not sure what I’ll use it for. It can wait until the summer. The American crepe that I bought for toiles is quite nice but I’m not sure how it will gather so it’s going to stay as a toile fabric. The viscose blend on the other hand is better than I expected and a heavier weight than others I’ve used. It might work well for spring or autumn dresses so it’s gone to the pondering pile.

I really ought to buy colours or patterns I hate for toile fabric as more than one has moved into a different category. I noticed 3m of orange fabric for a pound the other day. Wish I’d bought that.

I’m going to make a start on the Ogden today. I definitely don’t have enough fabric but if I turn it round I can nearly get the front and back out of it. There is plenty of ease so I’m not worried about shaving a little from the sides. I may squeeze some short facings out of the offcuts but if I don’t I’ll make some bias strip. I figured it doesn’t matter if it doesn’t work out as it’s an off cut anyway.

I have the same problem buying toile fabric too @Jins - it feels 'wrong' somehow to buy something in colours/pattern I'd never use, but then I end up with a stash full of things that are bit too nice to risk making into rags.

Just sent back my poundametre wrong order to them.. hopefully they'll refund ok as I probably shouldn't have ordered anything really as my stash is probably beyond life expectancy anyway.

I also ordered some fabric from funkifabrics which arrived yesterday - it's a really stretchy fleece backed lycra so I'm hoping to sew some winter walking leggings out of it. A 5m lucky bag of mad patterned lycra might have fallen into my basket too. It's not cheap to buy (even out of their sale section), but the quality seems really good and I'll hopefully make a new bikini in the spring using the lucky bag lycra.

Just got some lovely jersey from Fabrics Galore - £3/metre. Thought it would serve for toiles but equally it might actually suit me! I don't normally wear orange but it's nice and summery so I might try a wrap dress or similar. I bought enough for a jumpsuit but am I brave enough??

That's lovely, @dubyalass. I don't think I know Fabrics Galore - probably best not to google! I have enough fabric (repeat to self every time I sit at the computer!)

Someone saw this and thought of me!

🤣🤣🤣

Morning everyone . It's nice to see all of your makes. I made the Close Case Carolyn PJ bottoms and I've ordered more of the same fabric to do the top now. They were a nice make and I followed a you tuber who was doing a sew along so will do the same for the top version.

I need to make some bias binding for the piping. I am also in the process of sorting out my sewing room/office so that will keep me going for the week without actually using my sewing machine. I don't have a huge stash and have got quite a number of large offcuts that aren't quite big enough to make a garment from. Not sure what to do with these but combined they take up quite a lot of room.

I struggle with my off cuts too. I find jersey easier to use than cotton as I've got a knicker pattern and I don't mind if my front doesn't match my back. There's a book on amazon called something like 'half yard makes ' and I keep being tempted by it.

Large offcuts are such a nuisance at times. I kept some jersey to make bralette tops but I’ve still not mastered FOE.

I’ve not moved on with my Ogden as I know from experience that a longer facing will work better than a bias strip. I don’t really want to cut facings out of my plain viscose as that could jeopardise a future top. So I’ve been eyeing the dress I made from the offcut fabric 😂

It was the first thing I made when I came back to sewing. It was a free vogue pattern from a magazine and it’s an a line dress with a very deep front opening. It doesn’t fit brilliantly and it needs a top underneath for modesty. I wore it a couple of times on holiday in 2020 and it didn’t make the packing list last year.

I should cut it up shouldn’t I?

One Ogden ready for the summer. I’ve shortened the straps by 2cm and made them a tad wider so it’s bra friendly. I found a scrap of navy viscose for the facings and made them 5cm longer than the pattern piece.

One offcut down.

Nice one Jins! Glad you managed to get stuck into a project.

I had a bit of a sewing/tailoring lesson on Friday so when I get a chance I must be brave and give my pencil skirt a go in the main fabric.

Well done in getting something done with your offcuts Jins, nice work.

Ooh, that sounds interesting @NutellaEllaElla. What did it cover?

No sewing or bias binding making for me. I think I'm going to see if I can get a cheap pillow case in poly cotton to do the job when I go to the supermarket. It will be cheaper than driving to a the fabric shop (where I would spend money on other goodies too!).

It was only an hour and a half but she showed me how to sew on a waistband, take in the sides of the skirt (knew that) and how to transfer the changes onto the pattern. The waistband didn't fit but she showed me that if I made it less wide, vertically, then it fit much better. She also said that due to my body shape, i need a curved waistband, or no waistband.

It wasn't a formal, structured lesson just a very accomplished and experienced seamstress I knew would be very helpful

That's a lovely fabric, @Jins! It's amazing how much you can learn from someone who really knows what they're doing, @NutellaEllaElla. Years ago when I lived abroad I had 2 friends who were a seamstress and an apprentice ladies' tailor. They were fab at helping/explaining where I was going wrong.

It’s a fairly ordinary viscose challis @Tinuviel. It was an end of roll piece from Abakhan, the print is slightly askew and there are a few blotches so it took a bit of careful placement of the pattern - both times I’ve used it!

What struck me was how much easier I found it to work with than first time round. I’ve definitely built viscose skills

First garment with my new sewing machine too. It’s incredibly fast compared to my old Toyota

I ordered an elastic presser foot ages ago and it has just turned up. First trial has gone quite well so I may dig out my FOE and see if I can reduce the stretch offcut pile.

Oooh let us know how it goes! I've considered an elastic foot, but in the end always go back to the quartering method. I think I must have bought quite wide FOE as it usually goes on ok.

Some of you may remember I was looking for a suitable dress pattern for some leopard print Viscose. I have the Cashmerette Upton dress to try. Although I am going to give it a few weeks as trying to lose a few pounds, but the pattern looks great….

@HalleLouja

Some of you may remember I was looking for a suitable dress pattern for some leopard print Viscose. I have the Cashmerette Upton dress to try. Although I am going to give it a few weeks as trying to lose a few pounds, but the pattern looks great….

Upton is a brilliant pattern. I love wearing mine and will make another for this summer.

Leopard print will be fantastically bold, i'd love to see how it turns out!

Annoyingly, work and social engagements are entirely getting in the way of any sewing for me. I have the Gioiello top cut out ready to go (though I don't much understand the instructions) and I want to transfer the adjustments from toile to pattern and cut out the main fabric for my pencil skirt.

This working for a living is a nightmare, @NutellaEllaElla! I got started on my third kimono-style jacket - option B this time but without the ties/lace trim. I'm also having a go at lining it as I'm using georgette and I thought 2 layers would look better than one. The top is all in one piece now - I just need to edge the sleeves and add the flounce. Unfortunately I'm short of fabric (using some of my stash up) so I'm going to have to cut that on the bias, which I am not looking forward to.

I know right, so inconvenient. Your January sounds really interesting, have you posted it before?

🙄 your jacket, not your January