The next Butterick 6075 and a case of stegosaurus butt

I hoped I might get it together and get pictures of myself actually wearing my latest Butterick 6075, but two weeks have passed since it was completed, so I give up.  I made a few minor tweaks to this version, including narrowing the front neckline a smidge and adding small darts at the back neckline, both of which improved the fit.   It's still a little on the loose side, and I think I could narrow the front an additional smidge.  I will do that on the next version, which is definitely going to happen: I ordered fabric especially for it to match a cardigan I own.  Unfortunately, with my travel plans, I don't anticipate starting on it for another two weeks.  

So, anyhow, the completed dress -- this time I at least got a good closeup of the neckline!

This wasn't the fabric I intended to use:  after I had already cut out the lining, I realized that the print I had chosen was directional, and I didn't have enough of it to get the print running the right way on both the skirt front and back.  Ditto for my runner-up choice ... so I had to hunt up something else that went with the lining color I had chosen.  I bought this quilting fabric at JoAnn's a few months back.  It's a bit busy, and maybe a little too cute as well, but I'm a sucker for cherries!

Here's a lining shot.  It's cotton batiste, and though the green color is beautiful, it is wrinkly as heck!  The main fabric resists wrinkles pretty well though.  All quilting fabric is not created the same, and I wish I knew how to identify the less wrinkle-prone ones!  Often it's impossible to tell until they've been through the washer and dryer the first time.   It doesn't seem to be tied to whether or not they're the "designer" fabrics or not, or what their weight is.   Anyhow, I did the usual and attached the facings (which are also interfaced) to the lining.

Last weekend, I started a Colette Ginger skirt.  Unfortunately, I think this one is dead in the water, mainly due to bad fabric choice.  I did version 3, the one cut on the bias, and I guess my fabric (a cotton or cotton blend from the clearance aisle at High Fashion Fabrics) wasn't heavy enough, as even with a lining, the drape is drape-y enough to be unflattering.   I also need to do some fit adjustments, ere I attempt this pattern again.   Between the fit issues and the drab color, this skirt was clearly wandering into "dowdy prison matron" territory.   And then I did this:

Look, my butt has humps!  I'm pretty sure this happened because I pulled the bias-cut fabric too taut when inserting the zipper.   I'm not too experienced with sewing fabric cut on the bias, and so I did what I do when normally, which usually ensures I don't get any puckers when I sew in the zip.  However, in this case it gave me the dreaded "stegosaurus ass": the fabric tried to tighten back up but the zipper wasn't having it.  I picked the zipper out, but I think I'm done with this one.   I'll try Ginger again later, with a heavier fabric.

The calamity dress

Finishing this dress was a battle.  Not because it's a challenging pattern -- it's actually very straightforward.   But it seemed I just could not get into my sewing groove with this one, and kept making mistakes!   Maybe it was because I was fighting a cold, maybe it was because it was the first time I'd sewed in a month.  Maybe it was just bad luck.   By the end, I was just trying to get through it, and I figured I wouldn't want to look at this thing again once it was finished.  But surprise -- I like it a lot, mistakes and all!   It's easy to wear, and very much my style.

The pattern is Butterick 6075, from 1952.  I was planning to make the sleeved version, but that didn't pan out.  I got one sleeve in but found I could not move my arm, so it had to come out.  And unfortunately, scissors were involved in that process, as I had finished my seam with a stitch on my sewing machine that refused to be picked out.   When it comes to sleeves, think I have a fit issue I don't understand yet ... possibly I need a broad back adjustment?   The problem I often encounter in RTW is, in a garment that otherwise fits, binding across the front of my bicep if I try to raise my arms.  It's not a problem with the overall width of the sleeve (though that was an issue on this dress, too).   Aside from the sleeve drama, I also sewed stuff together wrong over and over again.  I left the skirt pieces sewed together wrong since I figured it didn't matter.  There are four pieces, and I swapped the side and center edges.  So the front sides are joined at the center, and the same for the back.  

There you can see it coming and going.  Not the best photos (the light was failing, and I have a wrinkle across my chest there ...) but I hope its awesomeness shines through!   I'm realizing that I really love pockets in a dress, and I'm glad I added some despite being unsure whether things were going to come together.    The bodice only has darts on the sides and not at the bottom.  I hadn't sewn one like that before, and was surprised that it seems to fit me better.   The bodice is a little loose, but in a comfortable sort of way. There is some gaping at the back neck, so I'll add small darts there in future versions.   I should have taken a better photo of the neckline, but I'll have another chance to show you: I'm already well into my second version of this dress!   The fabric's just quilting cotton from JoAnn's, and the lining is black poly-cotton batiste.  

I also wanted to share my big post-Christmas sale find -- a trenchcoat with a crinoline!  I spotted it when I was returning stuff at JCrew.   It's called the Encore Trench (or the Ethel Trench -- a coat so nice they named it twice?) and I paid a good bit less than half price for it.    The crinoline is attached with buttons, so you can remove it if you want a less poufy look.  I've never had (or wanted) a trenchcoat, though I had thought about looking for a longer winter coat to wear with dresses.   However, I suspect the trench is more useful in my semi-tropical climate. 

Today's my last day off before I return to work.  I had hoped to finish more sewing projects during my time off, but isn't it always that way?  

Treasure box

A fabulous surprise arrived in the mail this week from my Aunt Dora, a fellow vintage sewing enthusiast. She's doing a bit of de-stashing, and I was the happy recipient!

Fabric, buttons, and patterns from the 50s - 70s plus a couple of modern ones.

Sewing books, and a pattern pamphlet from 1956.

What a bounty!  And all the patterns are my size!  But my favorite thing is the fabric -- it's a vintage piece, probably from the 50s.  The bird print is right up my alley.  It's 35 inches wide, and there a little more than two yards of it. There isn't enough for a dress, but it will make a fantastic skirt.

And here's a better look at the buttons, and that fabulous rick-rack.  I don't have very many vintage buttons, but I find them fascinating.  The button cards have a great vintage-y feel, and I'm sure help date the buttons too.

Happy New Year, everyone!   I didn't get my dress finished on New Year's Eve (I sew so much faster in my head ...) but hopefully today's the day.  

Adios 2011!

It's the last day of the year ... time to wrap it up!   I summarized the first half of the year back in June, and good thing since it seems a million years ago now.   This has been the year of serial sewing -- making multiple garments from the same pattern.  Butterick 6149 (four very different variations), Sew Serendipity's Claire Cami dress (four pretty similar variations), and my own mash-up of Sewaholic's Crescent skirt (four for schmeebot, nine for me) got the most love, but I also made a couple of dresses from Anne Adams 5753.  

Here are the counts for this year (sorry, no pretty infographic):

Dresses:  13 (hopefully 14 by the end of the day!)
Skirts:  11 for me, 4 for schmeebot
Other:  2 camera pouches

Thirty-ish items -- woo hoo!

I started a blouse but it ended up in Waddersville and I walked away from it.  I can't recall any other categorical failures.  I had to re-do a few dress bodices and I started American Weekly 3794 which totally did not work for me, but I was able to morph Butterick 6149 into a similar style, and it became one of my favorite dresses of the year.  It was also the first time that I had attempted pattern re-drafting, and it turned out not to be so scary.

B6149 inspired by American Weekly 3794

That's not to say I wear everything I made.  I do wear most of the skirts, but the dresses don't get as much love as they should.  Some of the vintage styles come across as a bit costume-y for everyday, but I love sewing them and don't plan to stop.   (I might sell some on Etsy though.)  The Claire Cami dresses I just kind of forget about, as I tend to reach for t-shirts and jeans on the weekend.

Here are a few more of my favorites for the year (and hm, three out of four have birds on them):

Original B6149

Claire Cami dress #3

Aviary dress (B6149 variant)

Birds of Norway skirt (Crescent variant)

But my most favorite garment of the year?  I just finished it!   Photos coming soon!

The best thing about sewing in 2011 was getting the bodice of Butterick 6149 to fit me well:  it proved to be a great starting point for fitting other patterns.   It's the reason I had so few wadders this year.   When I put my B6149 bodice pieces over another pattern, I can quickly see how darts need to change, and where I need to add or remove width.  It would be nice to get a princess-seamed bodice similarly figured out.

I took a look at my final post from last year, and while I didn't have an exact count of garments made in 2010, I think I finished a few more projects this year than last.  As for the non-sewing 2011 goals I mentioned in that post, I only did the last two:  selling some of my cameras and contributing more to the knowledge communities at work.  I should do more of both those things in 2012.   I failed to draw regularly, but I'm going to get back on that horse this year.   My house is still messy and I still eat cake for breakfast sometimes, but I did try to do battle with those particular demons even if the result was somewhat less than transformational.

I don't have any sewing goals for 2012, other than to keep on making stuff I like.   But there are lots of things I dream of doing:  get going with knit tops (a wardrobe staple for me),  make a bunch more skirts, since I wear those to work a lot nowadays, make some blouses I like (store-bought blouses rarely work for me), try a 1930s pattern, make more 1950s dresses since they always turn out to be my favorites, and finally cut into some of that Liberty fabric I got in London last year.  I'm sure I'll discover other things I want to do as the year unfolds.

Finally, a big thank you to everyone who reads my blog, and especially to those of you who provide feedback!   It gives me perspective on what I've done -- sometimes it's hard to spot fit issues, or to get past the frustration of making a particular garment, and that's where y'all come in.  I enjoy reading your blogs too -- I'm not always the best commenter, as I generally read blogs first thing in the morning or at the end of the day:  not the best times for me to string together a coherent sentence!  I will try to do a bit better this year.

Holiday roundup

I hope everyone had (or is continuing to have) a good holiday break!   December was a really hectic month for me, and I feel like I am still catching up.  I took two trips -- to Las Vegas, for work, and back to my hometown in Florida, because my dad needed emergency heart surgery (which went well thankfully!)  I also had a lot going on at work, and on top of everything else, I got sick.  I did absolutely no sewing this month until Christmas Eve, when I started a dress.  And I intend to finish it or die trying.  For some definition of "finish", anyhow ... It's not particularly complex, but it seems that everything that can go wrong has!  

I want for little in the sewing room these days, but I still managed to find a few sewing-related items to put on my Christmas list:   The BurdaStyle Sewing Handbook, The Colette Sewing Handbook, and two Colette patterns: Jasmine and Ginger.  My book-loving husband was more than happy to oblige!   I also got an awesome sewn gift from my friend schmeebot:   a stuffed owl made from thrifted mens' suits.  How cool is that??   She used a pocket from a suit jacket to give the owl a little pouch for treasures (there was a gift card in there!) and a sweet little heart with mine and my husband's initials on it.   The owl was my and my husband's university's mascot, so hopefully he feels right at home with us!

I'm off from work until 2012, and life is good!  Hopefully I'll finish my uncooperative dress and move on to at least one of my Christmas patterns before I have to go back to work.  I enjoy being a bit reflective this time of year, and while I don't make resolutions, I do think about what I want in the new year.   I'm not making any sewing goals, other than to enjoy whatever sewing I do have time for.  That said, I think I'd like to learn a little more about fit and finish, the two things that bring me the most satisfaction in a finished garment.  I got better at both this year, but it may be time to study up on techniques.

Anne Adams 4753, take two (this time it's all my fault)

I tackled Anne Adams 4753 (of abundant bodice space fame) again over the Thanksgiving holidays.  The second attempt is better, though still not perfect.  This version is made from rayon challis, and the olive contrast material is some mystery blend of (I think) polyester and rayon.

I took a good bit out of the bodice area, which helped the fit, but I think I could have done even more.  Unfortunately, the way I did the modification enlarged the armhole a bit, which was not a particularly good thing.  I have no immediate plans to make this a third time, but if ever do, I'll try to redraft to fix those issues.  The neckline's also a bit wide:  the first time I sewed a narrower seam to give a little bit more coverage, but I forgot to do it this time.

It's also a little baggy in the back -- not sure how that happened, as I didn't change the back piece.  I think it's the result of using a more drape-y fabric (that also may have grown a bit while I sewed).

The round tab part could be a little better, but I don't think its flaws would be too noticeable to the non-sewer.  And I really like the buttons I found: they were on clearance at High Fashion Fabric, and remind me of contour maps.

I hung the dress for days before hemming, but still managed to achieve the most crooked-ass hem I have ever sewn.  Also, I noticed as I was finishing that there's a visible irregularity in the print that shows up in the skirt pieces.  It disappears when you're up close to the fabric.  I self-lined the bodice, but used cotton/poly lawn for the skirt.  Next time I'll line the whole thing in lawn for added stability.   I only interfaced the lining of the contrast fabric: next time I'll interface both sides.  That would fix the pucker you see in the photo above.   Nit-picks aside, the dress isn't so bad.  I like that it screams "Autumn!" ... it's the perfect Thanksgiving dress.  Too bad we're well past that and hurtling toward Christmas.

It has been two weeks since I did any sewing!    I have another vintage pattern and not-so-vintage fabric waiting for me on my sewing table -- hopefully I can spend some quality time with them today.

Pacific Moon, Christmas Edition

These two have already migrated towards the Pacific rim ... and yes, the orange one is pretty much that bright in real life!  The aqua mini-dot fabric is actually home decor fabric, and the orange is a fairly substantial bottom-weight cotton fabric with a little stretch in it.   schmeebot prefers heavier-weight fabrics for skirts, so they won't be whipped around so much on windy hikes.  

I used scraps left over from skirts I'd made myself in the past.  The fabric for the aqua mini-dot skirt came from a version of Burda 7741 that doesn't see much wear because for some reason the lining likes to creep  out and show itself while I'm walking.

The facing for the orange skirt is leftover from a drawstring-waist skirt I made in the 90s.  I did wear it some at the time, but I have no photos of myself in it and there will not be any.  :)  That skirt currently resides in my attic but I think Goodwill is probably a better place for it.

While looking for facing fabric for these skirts, I found another skirt I made earlier in the year.  I had declared it a failure and stuffed it in the scrap drawer.  However, it doesn't seem too bad to me now.   Does anyone else ever need time to forget your sewing mistakes in order to be able to accept something you've made?