Emery dress x Merchant and Mills

I've had the Emery dress pattern for a while and had planned to make a plaid version inspired by the TV show Outlander which is set in 1700s Scotland, however once I received this Merchant & Mills "Jones town" linen I knew this was the right fabric. I am completely obsessed with both the TV show and the book and I am currently making a cowl also inspired by the show.
Most of the time I buy fabric and patterns together, for what I imagine in my head, but my heart skipped a beat and I had to have this fabric! It's a gorgeous soft blue linen that holds a crease so beautifully but does not seem to crease much on it's own.

The dress jumped to the front of my sewing queue, but I just could not decide on sleeves/no-sleeves. I cut the long sleeves out and then left them to one side to debate.
Halfway through sewing the lining I realised the way I was sewing it would leave the armholes raw instead of enclosed and so I had to include the sleeves too.

I had a little trouble sewing the lining, I'm not very good at envisaging things inside out/right sides together and so was sewing blind at points, not quite realising how it was going to fit together. I had a quick google and found Christine Haynes sew-a-long which made it a lot easier to understand! I lined my Lilou dress but as that one is sleeveless the method is slightly different and instead of pulling through a shoulder you just pull through the bottom of the lining. It makes for a beautiful finish around the zip as well.

 Does anyone else find setting sleeves in a bit like doing liquid eyeliner? It either goes right first attempt or you're arsing around for ages trying to get it right. A bit like zips that way. One sleeve went in and I missed the outside of the dress so the lining and the sleeve had been sewn but not the dress itself! Then I kept catching bits of the sleeve that weren't supposed to be sewn. All in all I must've sewn it 4 times... the right sleeve went in with absolutely no bother!

I sewed a straight size 4, grading to a 6 for the skirt (I wanted a fuller skirt) and left off the waist darts as I wanted it to be a looser fit. I definitely achieved that but not as much as I would've liked. I love really exaggerated silhouettes like Cabbages and Roses do.

I tend to sew in a couple of hour chunks but I felt like I was sewing this dress for an eternity! It took me a week to finish and that was whilst being off work. By the time I was sewing the sleeves I hated this dress. Having said that, after wearing it all day I am starting to like it more.

Having said that, this is the best dress I've ever made in terms of construction, all the seams are zig-zagged (hot damn I need an overlocker) and the insides are just a beautiful on the outside. The only flaw is the fact that I lined the top of the zipper tape instead of the top of the zipper tab and therefore there's a slight gap at the top of the dress. I'm going to hand sew a hook and eye to fix it. Check out that not quite invisible zip! I first tried to sew in a zip after having a drink...that ended with a wonky zip and a broken needle. Don't drink and sew people!

I have to say this is definitely not going to be my last Emery dress!

Aaaaand one more awkward photo for good luck! Me and Gary headed out for a walk, I was bribed by having some semi decent photos taken for my blog, but I kept cracking up laughing at how ridiculous I must look. I have to say they are an improvement on the rubbish photos done in our house!

A trip to Edinburgh

We decided on a last minute break and after watching many episodes of Outlander, I fancied a break to Scotland, specifically the Highlands. After a quick google and realising how far the Highlands actually are we decided on Edinburgh!

We booked the top secret hotel with Last minute and got a holiday inn near the Edinburgh zoo. We were both really disappointed and I posted a tweet about it. Last minute contacted me and offered me a refund. After much googling and research we picked another top secret hotel and this time got the Malmaison!

We drove up to Edinburgh, it took around 5 hours from Huddersfield which wasn't too bad. I managed to get a wee bit of knitting done too!

The Malmaison is in Leith which is near the port, around a ten minute bus ride from the centre. 

After a quick rest we headed into Edinburgh for something to eat at the Hard Rock Cafe and of course took a picture of the castle. 

The next day we had a wander around the city, I found Anthropologie

We also did all the touristy things like walking around the castle and along the Royal Mile. 

We had a fantastic time in Edinburgh and I fell in love with Scotland. I can't wait to go back! I'd really recommend it for a break away. 

Staple Dress class

I recently taught my first ever dressmaking class at Simply Solids and absolutely loved it!
I was asked to teach the Staple dress which is a great beginner pattern, with no zips or fastenings but with french seams it looks lovely inside and out.
I made this beauty for the shop sample:

And then made one whilst teaching the class as a demonstration in Priory Square Art Gallery fabric:

I thoroughly loved teaching the class, I've been a teacher for 4 years but I've never had a class that was as easy and enjoyable as this one!
My students all worked really hard and had chosen some gorgeous fabric for their dresses.
I was so proud of how well they did!

Planning

We see a lot of the end product in the sewing world but you don't see much of the planning stages.

Do sewists buy a pattern and shop their stash or the other way round?

I tend to only buy fabric as and when I need it, I get inspiration from everywhere, clothes shops, Instagram, other sewcialists. Usually I look for a specific pattern for the garment I have in mind and then buy the fabric (see here for a list of online resources.

Rarely do I buy fabric and then try and fit a pattern to it, although my Miette skirt fabric was originally going to be a Clemence skirt, not much of an adjustment though.

When I was younger I used to love drawing, specifically I would draw young women in Victorian clothing. I love that fairy tale feeling of long flowing locks and skirt, the romantic swish of linen and cotton. Aah I miss summer and wearing floaty, delicately patterned fabrics.

Anyway, back to the planning stages, I originated planning garments by writing lists. I'm a really visual person and I like to be able to imagine how the dress will look so I bought a moleskine and drew out my outfits. I liked this for a short time but I used it to write lists for crochet and knitting and the book got messy.

I originally saw the fashionary sketchbook on Lauren's blog and immediately lusted after it. It has the faint dot outlines of a woman in a walking pose which you then draw over and fill in the outfits.

I managed to get the last one in Paperchase and immediately drew 3 Marianne dresses. Told you I loved that pattern! 

Now I have some work outfits planned and even the beginnings of A/W 2015 all drawn up! I love this sketchbook because it allows you to be fairly neat and it looks professional. I would like to use more colour in future but I really do not need another time consuming hobby!

How do you plan what you're going to sew/make?

P.S. I keep seeing the use of the word "sewjo" and it's probably the worst word ever invented. I cringe irrationally every time I see it!

How to sew with knit fabric

Knit/jersey fabric has a really tough reputation in the sewing world and for any newbie sewist can be a bit off-putting and scary.
However with a few tips sewing with knits can be just as easy, if not easier than sewing a woven fabric. Especially as knits don't fray so there's no need to finish seam allowances.

1. Start with ponte/interlock/thick jersey fabric.
Online this can be really tough to figure out but the fabrics above are really stable and don't flop about much. They are still stretchy but don't have as much movement.
I have had great success with eBay for knits and also Minerva Craft. Make sure you prewash your fabric first before using as it tends to shrink more than wovens.

2. Use wonder tape
If there's one product that has really earned it's name, it's wonder tape! This fab little tape washes away but you use to to keep hems in place whilst sewing so that you don't have to pull or move the fabric much.

3. When sewing the fabric don't stretch it!
By this I mean do not move it at all, let the machine move the fabric through the dogs otherwise you'll end up with wavy hems.

4.  Use a ballpoint needle
I was really surprised how much difference the type of needle you use affects your sewing, I especially found this when quilting and used a quilting needle which made a massive difference with no skipped stitches! Refer to your machine guide for needle size but for a ponte/thick jersey I used 90/10 ballpoint (not stretch) needles.

5. Use decent quality thread
I bought a box of thread from Aldi yonks ago and it's great for colour matching. I've never had any problems with sewing with it until recently, halfway through my grey Marianne dress the lower bobbin starting scrunching all the thread together. Once I switched to Gutemann I had no problems! Also Minerva will match your thread to your fabric in their online checkout. What a service!

Try a beginner pattern, some cheap fabric and have fun! Sewing with jersey fabric can be so easy and rewarding.

February half term

I spent the first half of the week being a billy no-mates because all my friends were either working or busy. However I used the time wisely to spend sewing! 

I'd planned to start my Archer button up shirt and even ordered all the materials to make sure I had everything. I was really put off by finishing my Miette skirt at the start of the week. I found it, well not difficult, but definitely not the easy first time beginner pattern it was supposed to be.

Over the course of the week I finished my Miette skirt, made a marianne dress shortened to a top with collar, cut out the pieces for another stripe marianne, started sewing a grey marianne and cut out the pattern pieces for the Archer. 

Not bad for a week off!

We also managed to have a couple of adventures along the way. Gary took the Friday off work and we had a little adventure in Whitby, it was a gorgeous day.

I do love going to the seaside, especially Whitby, it's so scenic.

Of course we ate fish and chips, whilst fending the seagulls off, and walked the 199 steps up to Whitby abbey.

Then on the Saturday we took a trip to 5 Guys, who had been highly recommended by my sister, ate delicious burgers and then had a wander around Ikea. I ummed and aahed over more storage for my crafty bits (especially books, I need to stop buying craft books!) and have wanted a Raskog trolley for aaaages, but £50 is a bit steep. In the end I bought a colander and some tea towels! Exciting.

I had a lovely half term off work and feel refreshed but not quite ready to get back into it yet! It won't be long before exams are here and I have a lovely summer of sewing in front of me.

Amy 

Marianne and Miette

This is the first time I've made separates rather than dresses and it makes me feel more 'me made' than just wearing a dress. 

I absolutely love wearing dresses, they're effortless and easy to style. Sometimes you need a change though. 

Hear enters the Miette skirt from Tilly and the Buttons. 

I made this skirt over a couple of hour sessions. Whilst sewing this I felt almost blind, I simply could not visualise how this skirt was going to come together, especially the waistband. As a result I sewed the waistband on the wrong way round.

I have to say for a beginner-never-made-anything-before pattern it's quite confusing and I wouldn't recommend it to total beginners. 

Having said that I'm pleased with my Miette skirt, it's made from a gorgeous lightweight denim from Merchant and Mills and I can see it getting a lot of wear. 

The Marianne top is a copy of a Cabbages and Roses dress I have. I love the collar and it's gorgeous to wear under dresses but the C&R version is far too warm to be layering. So I made my own! The fabric is interlock knit from eBay and is lovely and thick. 

I don't have many pictures of the top during construction as it was sewn up so quick! I think it only took around 2 hours to make. It's not perfectly constructed but I'm really happy with it as a basic piece and to layer under dresses. 

I can see myself becoming more of a perfectionist the more garments I make! It's frustrating because I miss that OMG-I-made-a-dress!! excitement however developing my sewing skills is definitely not a bad thing!

I'm currently in the middle of making a grey jersey Marianne (pictured above) and then onto the Archer shirt which I am more than apprehensive about.

What are you making at the moment?