Patricia Rose in Dissonant Disposition

I just love the name of this fabric from Mood – a little dissonance is good for the soul.

Stretch cotton sateen in Dissonant Disposition, Mood Fabrics Exclusives

Style Arc’s Patricia Rose has become my favorite dress for woven fabric variations this year. A look at the line drawing:

Drafting notes, my basics for this pattern:

• I drafted the back to be two pieces, matching it to the front bodice.
• I’ve never used the front pleat. Instead I drafted a gathered skirt for both the front and the back.
• I love the bust dart from the armscye. It’s amazing for a small-busted person. The base of the bodice is wide enough to work for a full bust, but I brought it in a bit for my own frame.
• I’ve sewn all of my Patricia Rose dresses without sleeves. During my first fitting, I trimmed the armscye to be higher on my shoulder and deeper at the base. And I drafted armhole facings.

So – this dress. I decided to do a midi length, mostly because I have lots and lots of maxi’s.

I kept the fold at the bodice, and as seen in other versions I’ve done, I continued the fold across the back of the bodice.

More pics (I finally got off my lazy bum and took photos, the dress was finished a couple weeks ago)!

This dress is lovely to wear. Since I often need a cardi for my cold old bones, I made a Helen’s Closet Blackwood Cardigan, short version, in mustard Fabric Merchants cotton stretch jersey from Fabric.com. It is 100% cotton, love love, and has 15% mechanical stretch. BTW, I’ve moved to size XL in my Blackwoods – it is a narrow silhouette, and I like the additional fullness.

Parting shot: I was up super early, sleepy pics on the porch:

Next up, a boyfriend jacket in khaki cotton sateen. So lush, I’m in love with this fabric collection:

Ciao! Coco

A lot of lizards…

Such a story…I bought 4 yards of this cute lizard cotton jersey at my local JoAnn store, and I just loved it. No spandex, nice weight, easy to sew. So I went online and found it in another color way, kind of a mocha. Incredible – they sent me 4 yards of the same green color way! Of course they issued a refund, but I did have to figure out what to do with all those green lizards!

BTW, the fabric is from the JoAnn Pops! Juvenile fabric collection. Ha!

(1) a full-length Helen’s Closet Blackwood cardigan. Such a great pattern, I’ve probably made close to a dozen over the years.

(2) A self-drafted shark bite tunic. This pattern is a staple in my summer wardrobe, it is so much fun to wear.

(3) Pajamas! the pants are McCall 7634 yoga pants (as are the green ones above), and the top is the Wiksten tank. The latter is designed for woven fabrics, but all of mine are jersey knit. I looked for a link to the McCall pattern, but I think shopping Etsy, etc., is the best bet. These are my favorite ever yoga pants.

And I’m wearing them now, so comfy. And I still have well over a yard of fabric remaining.

OK, here it comes…leapin’ lizards! Ciao! Coco

A weekend ramble…

I’m feeling very mellow today – the weather is cool and drizzly, and I’m watching good films on Netflix with a crochet scarf project on my lap. So a chat, fresh coffee in hand..

I recently finished (another) Simplicity 8640 handkerchief hem dress, this one in rayon challis from Fabric.com. It’s called Telio Dali Rayon Poplin Print Botanical Floral in navy, but I’m not sure that’s correct. In the pic below, the fabric on the left is from the listing, and the one on the right is what arrived at my door. This is the second time I’ve had a ‘close but no bananas’ delivery from them. Weird.

Perhaps it was just fate, as my new very sunflower yellow Helen’s Closet Blackwood cardigan works perfectly with the dress.

I realized recently that I have an abandoned project in the Loft – I think I stopped working on it because I got distracted by Christmas projects. It’s a sleeveless blouse with a ‘statement’ collar, drafted using the Kathryn Brenne jacket, Vogue 9217. It will be finished soon, it’s cute.

I could not even remember which pattern and fabric I used, until I checked my Evernote files. I keep everything sewing on Evernote!

About that crocheting – I finally learned how to do a double crochet foundation row. It was a ‘duh’ moment for me when I learned that I did not have to do a basic chain stitch foundation. Tutorial: https://hearthookhome.com/foundation-double-crochet-tutorial/

To close, I must share an epic fail – the bodice in progress, my last post, did not work.

The collar was simply too heavy despite my efforts to support it. No tears shed. I had 5 yards in hand, and the remainder is currently being cut for a Tessuti Lisa dress!

I hope your weekend is peaceful, bye for now – Coco

Sinclair Pattern Bianca shrug

Well, horrible photos while I wait for my new camera but you’ll get the picture 🙂
I actually read that Canon Powershot cameras tend to get dust under the lens cover, well, I think that’s what happened to mine.

Moving on! After my success with the Sinclair Cachet Tee, posted here, I did go back and cruise their patterns. This shrug caught my eye – a shrug is that rescue-me-with-a-little-coverage garment for lots of occasions, evenings out, church, well, you get it. Of course I’m wearing mine with jeans.

May I stop here for a moment and contribute that I really really dislike the ‘new’ block editor on WordPress. OK.

Squint so you can see where this shrug falls on me, please.

Sewing notes:

• I sewed the size 8-tall based on my bust measurement, and I’m pretty happy with it. No changes to the drafting!
• This fabric is totally new to me, it’s a bullet-textured Liverpool knit. It’s very stable, has a bit of heft, reminds me of double-knit without the horizontal texture. Interesting.

From Fabric.com

• I chose this fabric in lieu of ponte de Roma, out of curiosity. I think the very wide bands in the front would sag in a lighter knit. This is 94% poly, 6% lycra, it’s shiny on the backside but the front texture mutes this on the front.
• I found that sewing this fabric was easy. It serges beautifully, and stitches without stretching out when a long stitch is used. On my machine, the latter was 4.0.
• It also presses nicely on a low setting, ‘silk’ on my iron. Because of the rayon content, I did not use steam while pressing.

Above, styled with the Ready to Sew Justine Skirt (it’s a free pattern). Very cute pockets are the differentiating factor on this pattern. Sorry, invisible in the photo!

And on Emile, my loft buddy:

The weekend – I hope it finds you well and loved, bye for now, Coco

Nautical Blackwood Cardigan

Such a great print! And perfect for a long Blackwood Cardigan.

After three weeks of workmen in the house, finally they’re done. I slept for 11 hours last night, with not a thing on my mind.

This super soft poly/lycra French terry is from Fabric Mart (and just sold out, they’re having a huge sale on knits). This is my second garment in poly/lycra French terry, and I am so impressed with it. Much nicer than cotton or rayon terry.

Just a few sewing notes:

• I’ve made this wonderful cardigan about 8 times, both short and long. Yes, I love it. Thank you again, Helen!
• I sew the Size Large (and I’m pretty small, it’s close-fitting).
• As with my navy fleece version (here), I made a larger pocket and extended it onto the band and across the side seam.

Top: True Bias Nikko in modal stretch jersey, Cali Fabrics

I just took a walk in the garden, it’s such a lovely day. It’s spring and everything is blooming.

My husky cherry tomato is suddenly over 6″ tall and full of bloom and babies.

The orange jasmine trees (murraya paniculata) have been covered with flowers and even have some fruit. I had them trimmed about 6 weeks ago – they love a haircut. They’re not citrus, but, as with a citrus tree, trimming them stimulates flowering. And although they’re often mistaken for the mock orange (Philadelphus coronarius) that grows so rampantly in Hawaii, they’re not even cousins. I think the association arises from the orange-blossom fragrance that they share.

And Ms. Guava is loaded with buds and starting to bloom.

I hope everyone is enjoying a nice weekend. Ciao! Coco

Blackwood and Ogden…

Small post…I made a couple favorites with fun variations. The cardigan is the Blackwood from Helen’s Closet, and the cami is my button front version of the True Bias Ogden Cami.

Fabrics: Cardigan, Pastel Rose Tan Poly/Rayon/Lycra Distressed French Terryt, and the Cami, Ashen Gray/White 100% Cotton Tweed Shirting by Halston. Both are from Fabric Mart.

Mostly pics, but earlier posts with details are here and here.

 

I used clear buttons on the cami, something less than 1/2″, from La Mode. The ‘weight’ really suits this shirting. I also put them only 2″ apart, 8 in all.

Recent sewing aspiration, I’m making a couple ‘Tom Selleck’ shirts for my son, as a prelude to a dress shirt. He wears Robert Graham shirts and asked if I can do something similar. What a compliment. Bye for now – Coco

 

Paro Cardigan in distressed French terry

I enjoyed my tattoo Itch to Stitch Paro Cardigan so much during my Christmas visit with my son in Orlando – time to make another one.

Just to shake things up a bit, I used a ‘distressed’ poly/rayon/lycra French terry from Fabric Mart. What an adventure, this is truly a funky fabric.

Distressed – the loop side is actually the front side, and it has patches of deconstructed threads, similar to distressed jeans.

This made for some interesting sewing challenges 🙂

• Before I did any sewing, I staystiched the cut threads on the edges of the pattern pieces. Using a ‘helper’ (my double hole threader) really helped.

 

• I had to be gentle with the fabric to avoid catching the threads unintentionally. And I used a lot of basting since pins slipped out so easily.

• I decided to face the waistband with a lightweight woven fabric. Here’s a view before the facing – notice the drooping. It really bugged me.

 

• After adding the facing – much better, and I like the added weight:

 

More pics:

Update on my techno-gadgets: I took these photos with my new iPhone, first time! I haven’t conquered the subtleties of the camera, but I love the quality of the pics. It was also the first time I used my Arkon tripod phone adapter. This thing is really neat and so easy to use!!

My dear boy turned 50 on Friday. Proud mom here…

Bye for now – Coco