Sunday, January 24, 2016

Roberts Collection Dungarees

As soon as Marilla posted a sneak peak of her new pattern on Instagram I knew I had to make them. I eagerly awaited their release but was put off by the lack of paper pattern. Then Marilla had a small run of paper patterns printed which I snapped up.


I had bought some dungarees in the Topshop sale but not only could I not get them past my hips they were also going to be miles too short. This led to me developing a serious itch to make dungarees when 40 weeks pregnant!

The fact that the Roberts dungarees are loose fitting meant that it didn't matter what measurements I would be. I measured my hips and bust and cut what I think was a size 3 based on one reviewer who said they came up quite baggy. The day before I went into labour I was ordering dungaree clips from eBay!


It wasn't until Emily arrived that I cut the fabric out. Two weeks after she was born I finally finished them! I really took my time stitching them (not much choice with a newborn!) and enjoyed the process rather than rushing to get them done. 

I made a few changes to them after obsessively searching blogs for finished dungarees. Most people seem to have made the dress which wasn't very helpful! I narrowed the legs, cut a size smaller than my measurements, widened the straps, added clips instead of poppers and changed the shape of the front bib slightly to look less like overalls and more like dungarees. 


I found the instructions really difficult to follow in places. However I don't think this is a problem with Marilla's instructions and more to do with the fact I have a newborn baby and slight sleep deprivation! I can be really stubborn though and when I set my mind to something it will get done.

I was so desperate to start making these that I checked my stash for suitable fabric but only had chambray which Marilla said might not take the strain of the crotch seam. I ordered some 5oz denim from Merchant and Mills which is quite lightweight and not much heavier than chambray so I'm hoping it holds up! The clips and poppers were from eBay. 


They fit perfectly except around my mum tum but I'm losing inches very quickly (thanks to breastfeeding) and I'm hoping they will fit nicely soon. I'm really happy with how they have come out and am already planning a second pair! 


T shirt is from Boden is actually yellow and not green as its showing up! Shoes are Lotta from Stockholm. 


Monday, January 4, 2016

2016 "re-sew-lutions"

Whilst waiting for baby to arrive my creative brain has been in overdrive. I can't make clothes for myself at the moment with my bust and waist changing all the time (funnily enough my hips haven't) and so I've been doing a lot of brainstorming.

As a rule I've never made New Years Resolutions, even as a kid I always thought that if you wanted to change you needn't wait until a new year to do it - I was a wise child!

Timehop threw up a picture from a year ago saying that my 2015 resolution was one thing and one thing only - to learn how to knit. I managed to do this and knit a baby hat, baby cardigan and I've nearly finished the body on a cardigan for me! 

I don't have any resolutions this year but this is what is like to make:


Watson Bra - I love learning new skills and bra making seems like it really takes it up a notch!


Ginger jeans - ditto above, plus I have expensive jeans taste so it would be great to be able to recreate these! The only thing that puts me off is finding good quality denim. Any thoughts?


Roberts dungarees - I recently bought some dungarees from Topshop in the sale and although they might have fit my pre pregnancy thighs I had no chance at 9 months pregnant! Having said that they were too short anyway. Ever since I've been obsessed with making my own!



McCalls M6885 - chambray shirt dress. Laura made one and I fell in love! I'm going to shamelessly copy her and make one in a dark chambray. 



Tilly Clemence skirt - I've wanted to make this skirt for YEARS and just never gotten round to it. Now I've got some Lark tees to go with it and my brand new Lotta From Stockholm red clogs (ALL the heart eyes) I might finally get around to it. I'm pretty sure my stash will cover this make too. 



McCalls M6696 - this dress has been doing the rounds around the blogosphere and the many variations I've seen have been gorgeous. I really want to make an anchor chambray version (in Robert Kaufman) which is already in my stash waiting for me to return to normal ish figure. I also fancy a polka dot chambray version. 



Cabbages and Roses skirt - I love this skirt and it's a simple design (at £200 in the sale I don't think so!) I don't have a pattern or the fabric but I'd love to make one one day. This is probably the most unlikely item to get made as I don't have any of "ingredients" and can't afford to add to the stash whilst on maternity leave. 



What are your re-sew-lutions?