On Turning Lemons into Liberty

Is there anything so tragic as having the perfect fabric, but not quite enough of it? If there were a scant 1/4 yard more of this mustard yellow twill, I would be able to finagle another 2215 out of it.

It was going to be great, friends. Yellow with dark blue buttons down the front. Sigh. You have never seen a more dejected sewist than me, when trying out cutting layouts last night. Except for, perhaps, me an hour later, while trying to track down comparable fabric somewhere online. Where are all the mustard twills and poplins? It's fall! All traditional fall colors should be everywhere, but alas...

Cut to this afternoon, when I unearthed my small, but beloved stash of Liberty lawns to pull a fabric for my upcoming tutorial (my first!) on the pussy bow Sorbetto. For unlike that lovely Lisette twill, I had more of one cut than expected. What was supposed to be a yard-and-a-half ended up being well over two yards, in fact. Just enough for a 2215! I am trying to get away from prints a bit, but this is Liberty, after all. Plus, its main colors are: chocolate, emerald, ruby, and citrine. Why, hello, perfect print for my fall palette!

What do you think, friends? Dark yellow or red buttons?

Pattern Musings: Colette Chantilly

This past weekend, I was hit with a mild case of the plague. Consequently, I've been more inclined to look pitiful while watching Veronica Mars than return to my sewing table. Now that I'm starting to feel like a normal person again, it's time to get back on track. Instead of sewing my final planned garment of the Colette Spring Palette Challenge, I'm opting for one of my bonus projects - the Colette Chantilly dress.

For the fabric, I've chosen a lovely blue & white floral cotton from Gorgeous Fabrics. It's actually the same fabric I used for the Sencha blouse, only in a different palette. I have a bit of a thing for small floral prints and this fabric has the added bonus of a lovely drape. It should work really well with all the flowing gathers of this pattern.

Because Colette patterns are standard RTW sizing, I don't have any fitting alterations planned. My measurements line up exactly with Colette's size chart and they are drafted for bigger bust cups. It's such a refreshing change! Now if only Sarai & Co. would release more of their lovely designs soon...

Have you sewn up a Colette Chantilly dress yet? Do you have any suggestions for someone about to dive into the pattern for the first time?

Pattern Musings: Simplicity 2215

Next up on the roster: Simplicity 2215, the newest Cynthia Rowley pattern. I love every part of this pattern - the dress, shirt, and skirt. However, for my first 2215 project I'm going to be practical and make up something that's missing from my wardrobe. Namely, a denim skirt. I go through denim skirts like the cast of Psych goes through pineapples. My current go-to incarnation is a pencil skirt I bought from GAP in 2008. What used to be indigo is now a blah blue. It's time for a change.

The inspiration for this came from the Champs-Élysées skirt currently on sale at Talbots. It's a full-skirted denim skirt that makes me feel all swoony inside. Is there anything more romantic and summery than a full skirt? Making it up in a denim is a wonderful modern twist on a Grace Kelly classic. I am so, so excited about making this skirt. If it works out, you can expect a lot more of these. I'm thinking a whole slew of them in cheery sherbet-colored poplins.

Edit: Want to see the finished skirt? Check out my finished project post!

Musings: Simplicity 2209

Well, friends, it looks like this is going to be the weekend of two dresses. My Simplicity Lisette patterns finally came in the mail (and lo-and-behold are now magically in stock at Hancock's) and 2209 is already cut out and partially sewn up. Let's blame my early morning dance class - I came home and had a manic burst of energy.

The fabric I'm using is a white pique for the bodice and a navy rose print pique for the skirt. I've been in love with this rose print dress from Kate Spade for months now. It's too, too cute. Also? Too, too expensive. So, I'm using 2209 to try out my own take on the concept.

As far as changes go, this is another pattern that's a little difficult to do an FBA on. Or, perhaps, I'm just a chicken. So, I'm grading down at the armscye and waist, but going with my straight pattern size. From how the bodice came together, there's a chance I may end up going back and shortening the darts a little, as well. However it works, one thing is for certain: a lot of sewing is happening this weekend.

Edit: View the finished dress here!

Musings: Colette Crepe

Later this afternoon, I'm diving in to my second Colette Patterns adventure - the Crepe dress. This was one of those revisions to my spring palette, added in because my Simplicity patterns haven't arrived yet, so I needed something else pretty to sew. With all the Crepes that have shown up on blogs and forums, after Gertie's Crepe sew-a-long, ideas for this dress have been spinning around in my brain for weeks.

Even better, Colette just released new pictures of the Crepe -made up in plain white with a turquoise sash and also white with turquoise polka dots. Both dresses prompted a hunt for comparable fabrics. Luckily, I already had a wonderful white pique waiting around, as well as a medium-weight shirting in coral (one of my palette colors!). I could just knock off the Colette inspiration piece completely, making up a white dress with a coral sash, but I've decided to try something a little different. I'm making the bodice up in the pique, but the sash and skirt in the coral shirting. I tried to find evidence of someone else doing the same thing, but it looks like I might be the first. So, fingers crossed that it turns out well!

As far as changes go, I'm not making any. Instead, I'm treating this as a very wearable muslin. With Colette's modern sizing and accommodation toward higher cup sizes, I don't foresee any real fitting problems with this dress. If it works out, I have a pale yellow and white floral in line for this pattern next. If there are any little niggling fit issues, I'll address them for the second time around.

Have you made the Crepe dress yet? Were you part of that fantastic sew-a-long? I'd love to hear about your experiences with this pattern and any suggestions you may have!

Musings: Colette Sencha

Good news, lovelies. After a few days of zen breathing and yoga poses, the tremors from sewing my Alma Dress have finally stopped. Which means it's time to sew my next piece for the Colette Spring Palette Challenge! This time, I'm going with something easy - the Colette Patterns Sencha blouse. Not only will I not have to worry about a FBA (yay!), but the pattern is even labeled "Beginner." This bodes well for my sanity, don't you think?

In keeping with my palette colors, the fabric I've chosen is a lovely floral shirting from Gorgeous Fabrics. The mix of marigold, coral, and white fits perfectly into my Emma Woodhouse-inspired wardrobe plans. It also fits the profile of one of my clothing addictions - the delicate floral blouse. My closet is embarrassingly full of these shirts, from ruffled to minimalist and all in springy garden fabrics. What's more, the Sencha has a little extra pretty: back buttons. I've settled on jade green ones, so they stand out against the floral. Something tells me I'm going to love this blouse!

As far as Sencha alterations go, there are blessedly few pattern changes I plan to make. I love the neckline pleats of View 2, so no messing around there. The bodice-embedded sleeves also tend to be super flattering, so no sleeve fiddling to worry about either. Honestly, the only thing I'm considering changing is the length. After looking at quite a few reviews, I've noticed that the Sencha can make one look a bit short-waisted. Since I'm above average height anyway, a little extra length is no doubt a good idea.

Wish me luck, friends! If you've sewed a Sencha up before, do you have any advice for a first-timer?

Continued Musings: Simplicity 2250

Simplicity 2250 is officially happening this weekend.

I've been staring at the pattern pieces all week, trying to visualize how to do an FBA. There are a ton of darts on this thing, kittens. Like twenty. A traditional FBA is out of the question.

So, I whipped up a quick muslin to see if it could afford not to be altered. Honestly, it can, but the look of the dress significantly changes. Because the torso proportions are shortened, it looks more empire-waisted than it's meant to. Luckily, that's an easy problem to fix. I'm going to try my hand at simply adding length to the bodice. There's one pattern piece that will make this tricky, but with a few inches in length, plus some additional darts added in, I think I can get the same design look the pattern aims for.

Anyway, wish me luck! I'll be back with pictures of the pattern pieces, muslin, and the final product in the next day or two!

Musings: Simplicity 2250

If you couldn't tell from yesterday's post, I'm positively dying for Spring to arrive. Mother Nature seems to have heard my complaints, because today in Austin it's a gloriously sunny 77 degrees. Sadly, next week, we're getting another Arctic front.

I refuse to be daunted. To that end, I'm bringing out my sewing machine (it's been consigned to moving purgatory for the duration of the winter) this weekend and whipping up something fun. Namely, a pink seersucker dress. I picked up some adorable pink and white seersucker from Hancock over the weekend. For relatively inexpensive fabric, it has a lovely drape. I have sick, sick love of seersucker -there's just something so joyful about it. Seersucker stripes are especially addictive for me, a light, feminine twist on menswear.

Pattern-wise, I'm trying something new. Simplicity just released their early Spring patterns and one of them was this adorable sundress from Cynthia Rowley. The version I've chosen is View A, which has a slightly longer hem and wider straps than the modeled view.


This is the first of Rowley's patterns that I've attempted and the bodice pleats (at least, I think they're pleats) are a bit daunting. I'm more Marilyn than Twiggy, so Full Bust Adjustments are normally part of my sewing prep. Unfortunately, I have no clue how I'm supposed to adjust this bodice. A muslin is definitely in order. I'm also going to add three inches of length to the hem, since even with the longer version, it's still on the short side for my height.

Despite those little tweaks, I'm absolutely in love with this pattern. Keep your fingers crossed that it turns out as lovely in real life, as in my mind! If it comes together this weekend, I'll post all the nitty gritty details on Monday. Have a lovely (and warm!) weekend, lovelies!

[Edited to add: Simplicity 2250 is finished! Check out the finished project here.]