Stitch and bitch thread #9. I have pressing concerns

[NutellaEllaElla]

Welcome welcome!

I've not made anything for ages after I screwed up the same thing twice. I'm gonna have another blimmin crack at it though! I've reconnected with another hobby and work is seriously getting in the way of everything I want to do, darn it.

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I'm struggling on with zips. I've got some trousers nearly finished and hoping to start on a second version shortly.

The trouble I have is that the legs are massive. Really long and really wide. This was not indicated as the style in the pictures. No idea what I've done 🤣

Anyway, just need to finish the waist amd and put in a button. Should top stitch the fly but don't think I have a matching thread which I need.

I've been in a sewing funk for a while but have just bought Fibremood 29 and the special no 1 with it. Sewing Bee is inspiring me again. Issue 29 has some interesting skorts which I may be brave enough to try, but I'll probably go for one of the dresses first.

What's the pattern, @Hiddendoor ?

I more competently executed a zip fly a few months back but don't like the finished jeans. Zips are my nemesis.

@PickAChew it's from (I think) autumn 2023 Ottobre Woman magazine. I love their patterns but their instructions run to approx 2 small paragraphs for most of them!
I finished, bar the hem, tried them on and despite measuring myself twice, they are at least one size too big. I've managed to shift the button along the waistband by around 2 inches, possibly more, and that has helped with the waist but the legs are enormous. I've just started to tack them a bit narrower (inch on both the inside and outside leg seams) and a bit of the crotch seam too.

Gave up for the night though.

Only managed to sew the armhole bias binding tonight. Realised I don’t have the right length zip for the lower half (I have loads of zips, but none are 7” or the right colour). So that’s a trip to Hobbycraft on the way home tomorrow.

Some lovely designs and 2 styles of pants. I suspect that, like Burda and Fibre Mood, they're designed for women significantly longer than me. I made some Burda cigarette pants that turned out huge.

Hello all, I have been hit with an awful cold and couldn't bring myself to sit at my machine yesterday as my room is always freezing. I did manage to cut out all the replacement blocks I want to swap out of the baby quilt and start cutting into my second one while in front of the TV with the fire lit.
Hoping to at least get the replacement blocks sewn and ideally the entire quilt top done this weekend so I can quilt it bit by bit in the evenings. I have a lot of unpicking to do though! have saved myself some by getting it to a place I like swapping out blocks of 4 rather than individual 5" squares but still a good couple of hours unpicking.

Does anyone have a bobbin winder? Worth getting? I usually wind a few at a time when I start a project but I’d love to be able to wind a bobbin without having to re thread.

The family always want to see something sewing related on my wish list. They absolutely love seeing me getting excited over something they are bemused by

Morning all

Sorry you have been feeling ill @Allthegoodnamestakken

@Hiddendoor I have never heard of that magazine it sounds interesting

I am in Brick Lane in London today for a meeting. I won't have time to travel around so no visit to Liberties but looking online it looks like there are loads of fabric shops on Brick Lane. Has anyone ever been and do you have any recommendations?

i love gadgets and am also considering a bobbin winder. Will watch this space.

I have a bobbin winder and although I love it, especially when I have several colours to wind, I wouldn't buy another when this one breaks.
I bought it because my machine winder was being temperamental but I've since been shown the correct method on my machine so I'm using it less and less.

If you're in a county I visit then you can borrow it for the summer to see if you like it!

That's the one! It's the straight legged trousers in between the waistcoat and blazer. I love the style of Ottobre patterns but the sizing of these trousers is mad.

A few extra lines of instruction would also be useful though!

Haven't been on here for ages but I've been doing quite a bit of sewing. I've just made DSs shirts for our holiday. I used the Tropical Shirt pattern by Wardrobe for Me and found it a lot easier than I expected.

The kids bought me some fabric for mother's day which I made into a lovely dress and jacket. I used the Tara dress pattern that came with one of the issues of Simply Sewing and the Kimono Jacket pattern that I've used loads but I straightened the hem so it was a bit different.

I'm now making a maxi dress ready for my holiday and searching for a pattern to make some floaty wide-legged trousers but I can't find what I'm looking for. I want an elasticated back (so no zip), but darts at the front to take out some of the volume round the waist. Does anyone have any suggestions? Or is it possible to change front pleats to darts?

Pietra pants may fit the bill, @Tinuviel though I recommend stitching some supportive tape into the seam between the fronts and the facing to reinforce those vertical seams for a more delicate fabric.
https://closetcorepatterns.com/products/pietra-pants-shorts-pattern?variant=39419178483846

Style arc Loddon have the comfy at the back, tidy at the front look
https://www.stylearc.com/shop/pdf-sewing-patterns/loddon-woven-pant-pdf/

@Tinuviel Which kimono pattern do you use, please?

Hi everyone

I bought some navy blue linen yesterday but now I have it it feels quite stiff and not flowy. Is that likely to change when I wash it? I was going to make either the estuary skirt or dungarees but if it is holding its shape I am wondering if the zadie jumpsuit will be better?

@Karatema thanks for the bobbin winder info. I know exactly what you mean when you say you love it but wouldn’t buy another 🤣. Tempting though borrowing it sounds I can guarantee that deputy feline sewing assistant would break it. (He’s keen on pushing things off surfaces)

I’ve busted a super soft viscose jersey maxi skirt from the stash. It’s now a pair of pj shorts. I tried a different method for the elastic waistband and will definitely be doing casings in future as the gathering isn’t very even. This weekend I’m planning to toile the peppermint Brontë Bathers top.

@Frumpyunicorn chances are it will soften up when you've washed it, and then continue to soften. Highly recommend washing it before use to check that though.

also thanks @Karatema for the bobbin winder stuff, i think i'll give it a miss.

Will be sewing a gift bag today for a colleague who just got married, then heading off for a small festival. Tomorrow will be sewing a few things for an event with a group i belong to, we're having a big gathering and there are related costs. I'll be making a few shoe-bag style rucksacks and possibly bucket hats (i will make a toile of a Waves and Wild first) to either sell or auction to offset some of the costs.

And then I'm going to look at The Assembly Line new patterns. There's a drop-waist dress i may be interested in.

@RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie this one. I've made most versions of it and it's a really easy make! For a short jacket there's a front and a back piece. I cut the back piece on a fold (making sure to fold away the seam allowance!) and then you sew the shoulder seams and side seams and then you need a lot of bias binding or a rolled hem foot! And I don't put a fringe on!

I caught my premier sewing assistant having a good rummage through the stash.

Thanks @Tinuviel

Is that a British blue shorthair @Jins ?

She’s a British Shorthair @NutellaEllaElla but she’s a lilac. We have a blue male as well.

She is absolutely obsessed with anything to do with sewing

They're gorgeous! Are they cuddly lap cats? My cats also love anything sewing. I have to bar them from the room when cutting fabric as they like to jump, run and pounce on it.