Cotton Butterfly Shirt: OOP Butterick 5891

With the arrival of the official first day of summer, out-of-print (OOP) Butterick 5891 makes another appearance.  

This kAtheRine Tilton design is a favourite summer-time top pattern.  It has long sleeves to protect from those nasty mosquito bites--they're fierce this year.  And pockets!  Ah, gotta love a garment with pockets.  

There was one small change made to this version.  The center back was cut on the fold and fanned out two inches at the bottom hemline to provide more ease in the back.  

The fabric inspired this project.  When I stumbled across it in the quilting cottons, I was smitten with the print.  It was listed as a craft cotton but this 100% cotton fabric worked out just fine for garment sewing.  Although I wouldn't use it if you're sewing something that needs the fabric to drape.  The fabric was pretreated with a tumble through the wash cycle and dryer before hitting the ironing board for a steam pressing.  

Project details

Seams:  2.8--3.0 straight stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  3 metres

Buttons:  4--1" recycled buttons

Sewing label:  1--"I sewed this!" label

Pattern:  OOP Butterick 5891

Additional Tools and Supplies:  Cutting table, fabric scissors, pins, pin cushions, measuring tapes, measuring gauge, tailor's chalk, cotton thread, silk thread, hand sewing needle, thread clippers, tailor's wax, Janome sewing machine, Janome serger, iron, ironing board, screwdriver, buttonhole foot, walking foot and tea.  

Happy Sewing! 

Cotton Caftan or Summer-time Pajamas: McCall's 8516

The latest project off the sewing machine is McCall's 8516, a cotton caftan.  

I'm not sure how I feel about it or how much I'll wear it.  It's huge.  Even the opening for the arms is deep.  I will certainly have to wear a camisole underneath if I were going out in public.  This is more of a beachwear cover-up rather than a tunic / dress garment.    

This was sewn in a size medium.  There weren't any finished measurements on the pattern pieces.  

Yup, that's approximately sixty-two inches around the waistline.  Sure, I was looking for something loose-fitting that I could wear over the scoliosis brace but this still shows the top of the back of the brace sticking out from my actual back.  Sigh.  If I were a summer-time outdoors / beach person I might get more use from this garment.  But I'm not.  I'm counting down the days until the first frost and snowfall.  Which makes one wonder why would I even sew a caftan?  Hmmm, perhaps this could be my summer-time pajamas.   

It was an easy sewing project.  I didn't make too many changes to the pattern, only shortening the length (view B) six inches.  And I did sew the buttonholes earlier in the process.  

It's a great pattern for colour-blocking or working with different prints.  You can have a lot of fun with fabric choices.  The fabric used here was a light-weight embroidered cotton found in the stash.  It was pre-washed and pressed before hitting the cutting table.  

  

Project details

Seams:  2.8 straight stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  3.7 metres 

Interfacing:  2.3 metres

Buttons:  5--1/2 inch 

Sewing label:  1--KATM label

Pattern:  McCall's 8516, circa 2024

Additional Tools & Supplies:  Cutting table, measuring tape, pins, pin cushion, fabric scissors, paper scissors, thread clippers, tailor's chalk, tailor's wax, hand sewing needle, thimble, Janome sewing machine, walking foot, button hole foot, screwdriver, measuring gauge, seam rippers, Janome serger, threads, cutting board, hammer, buttonhole cutter, iron, ironing board and tea.  

Happy Sewing!

A White Dress Shirt: OOP and Vintage Simplicity 7840

Filling a request for a little boy's long sleeved white dress shirt.  

The Pattern

This vintage pattern is from 1968, back-in-the-day, when patterns envelopes were stuffed with pattern pieces for a whole outfit, not just one simple garment.  Shrinkflation is real and it has hit the pattern drawers as well as the grocery aisles.  But I digress.  Out-of-print (OOP) Simplicity 7840 comes with patterns for long and short sleeve shirts, a lined front zippered jacket and pants.  The sewing instructions are rich in details including a "dictionary" of sewing terms and guidance.  Ah, the golden age of sewing patterns.  There is something special about sewing a vintage pattern now-a-days.  

OOP Simplicity 7840 is a keeper, although, I don't know if I will have another chance to sew another shirt in this size.  This project was sewn in a size ten.  Currently, I do believe it will be a wee bit bigger than needed but with kids' clothing, they are sure to grown into it in no time.  It is a well-drafted pattern.  

There weren't many changes to the pattern.  The front pocket is a little small and after stitching it and pressing I decided to leave it off.  I would have preferred a pointed bottom instead of the curved edges but not so much that I was willing to recut another chest pocket.  My preference is for a buttoned placket for the sleeve but I did stick with the finished sleeve opening suggested on the pattern.  The shirt is not for me, so why change things and create more work if I don't have to?  I did, however, change the method for sewing the shirt yoke.  For this, I referred to page 402 in the Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Sewing and sewed the yoke using "the couture method."  That's what they called it back in nineteen seventy-six.  Today, "the couture method" is often referred to as the burrito method.  Since, we're talking about a vintage pattern, why not stick with the vintage terminology.  

The Fabric and Notions

I was lucky enough to find some white cotton fabric suitable for a dress shirt in the stash.  The fabric is leftover from a previous project and the 1.7 metres were the perfect amount required for this project.  It was pre-treated with a tumble through the washing machine and dryer before arriving on the ironing board for a steam press.  

The shirt was interfaced with a fusible interfacing and instead of placing the interfacing on the shirt front, it was inserted on the facing piece.  This is the second vintage pattern recently used that suggests placing the interfacing on the front rather than the facing.  The other pattern was re-released DVF wrap dress pattern, Vogue 2000.  

The recycled buttons were found in the stash.   The cotton thread, thankfully, was also from the stash.  It was leftover from microwave cozy sewing days.  Actually everything needed to complete this project was found or borrowed.  The pattern was borrowed for this project.  

Project details

Seams:  2.2 -- 2.8 straight stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  1.7 metres

Interfacing:  1 metre

Buttons:  seven -- half inch and two -- three-quarter inch recycled plastic buttons

Pattern:  vintage and OOP Simplicity 7840

Additional Tools and Supplies:  cutting table, measuring tape, pins, pin cushion, tailor's chalk, ruler, measuring gauge, paper scissors, fabric scissors, Janome sewing machine, walking foot, buttonhole foot, Janome serger, tweezers, threads, thread clippers, iron, ironing board, hand sewing needle, thimble, tailor's wax, good tunes (2 Cellos) and tea.  

Happy Sewing!

May in Review

Sewing, Mending and Alterations

There wasn't much new sewing this month.  A SD Patterns dress was on my wish-list since I made the first one.  Same goes for the sweatpants.  This month's makes were made using up scrap pieces of left-over fabric.  There were some new patterns to try and I did enter the stash and pattern contest over at Pattern Review but with the arrival of spring, I'm distracted with the thoughts of growing food, pruning fruit trees and yardwork.  And that didn't leave much time for sewing.  

Mending took up most of my limited sewing time this month as I tried to tackle the mending while putting away seasonal clothes.  The oddest mending project to jump queue was to re-stitch the Velcro straps on the back brace after they started to come apart post-fitting.  Along with researching how to adjust my sewing patterns for a better fit while wearing the brace.   

Me Made May

A selection of some of the me-made pieces pulled and worn over this year's Me Made May.  

Once upon a time, dresses ruled the closet selection.  This is not the case this month, pull-on pants, sweatpants or maxi length skirts, pull-over tops, t-shirts, and sweatshirts ruled Me-Made-May 2024.  Here was my pledge for the occasion:   

This year for Me Made May, I pledge to mend, care and wear my me-made items and the items that no longer fit into my life, I will refashion.  Sewing wise, I pledge to do my best to create fun and practical things with all those fabric scraps.  Hmmm, maybe another patchwork pajama set?  

Oh my!  That was an ambitious pledge.  Mending went well, thoughts of refashioning was on the ambitious side but yet not forgotten.  I did manage to sew with fabric scraps but no patchwork pajama set.  

This year was quite different than previous Me-Made-May inventories.  With the recent addition of a scoliosis back brace to layer between undergarments and my regular clothes, it proved to be a challenge in feeling comfortable in some of my old clothes.  Thank goodness I don't have to wear the brace twenty-four seven.  Thank God, all thanks to God, I do have this to wear.  It's a game changer.  So what if I will have to readjust some sewing patterns to achieve a better fit.  It's something that I'm more than willing to do.  The first pattern I would like to do alterations to would be OOP Butterick 5891, a favourite Katherine Tilton design.  We'll see how that turns out.  Fingers are crossed and Sandra Betzina's Fast Fit book is close at hand.  

Stash Busting and Additions

This month I added 2 packages of 3/4" wide elastic while sewing the sweatpants.  

Happy Sewing!  

French Terry Sweatpants: Vogue 8909

Ever since I made a pair of sweatpants using Vogue 8909, I wanted to sew another pair.  

The only thing that stalled this project was searching the stash for appropriate fabric.  There is some fabric that will work but the colours (light purple and yellow) are not ones I prefer for pants.  And then I found a navy coloured fabric scrap left over from this cardigan and these pants.  The sweet thing is that there was enough left-over fabric to sew myself another pair of sweatpants.  And it felt good to use up this last piece of French terry fabric.   

The fabric was previously pre-washed and ready to cut.  This French Terry, from Marshall Fabrics, was a joy to sew.  This fabric has more body than the bamboo terry used for the first version.  Both were wonderful fabrics for this project but they do have a distinctive look and drape.   Navy coloured thread was scarce around the workspace, but I made do with what leftover spools I could scrounge up.  Actually, with all the time spent threading the machines and filling bobbins I am surprised there was enough navy thread to complete the project.  Add that to the blessing list.  It was a struggle stretching the cuffs far enough to fit into the pant legs.  Instead, the pant legs were gathered to fit the cuffs.  Marshall Fabrics sells matching ribbing to go with their selection of sports knits.  I just didn't pick any up since the initial thoughts for this fabric was to use it for a Marcy Tilton dress and jacket, OOP Vogue 9358.  Maybe I will use the yellow French terry for OOP Vogue 9358?   

Vogue 8909 is a keeper.  The waistline on the first version was raised but that wasn't necessary.  I cut the pattern with this change and then removed all of the addition except for a quarter inch during the sewing process.  Love the fit, on me it does not sit below the waist line as described on the pattern envelope.  Add this to the blessing list as well.  The other change I made on the previous version was shortening one leg length.  Since I now have lifts for my footwear I won't need to make this length adjustment moving forward.  That leaves the question, what to do with all those hem adjustments on all those previous made pants?  But that is a for another time.  Moving on.  There's so much to appreciate with this design from the extended front seams, pockets and the fit.  It's a well-drafted pattern.  

Hmmm, I don't know what else to say about this project other than I know I will get a lot of use out of this pair of sweatpants.  

Project details

Seams:  Knit (lightening bolt) stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  1.6 metres

Elastic:  2.85 metres

Pattern:  Vogue 8909

Additional Tools & Supplies:  Cutting table, fabric scissors, pins, pin cushion, tailor's chalk, measuring tape, Janome sewing machine, walking foot, thread clippers, measuring gauge, Janome serger, safety pins, iron and ironing board.  

Happy Sewing!

Me Made May 2024

 

This year for Me Made May, I pledge to mend, care and wear my me-made items and the items that no longer fit into my life I will refashion.  Sewing wise, I pledge to do my best to create fun and practical things with all those fabric scraps.  Hmmm, maybe another patchwork pajama set?  

Happy Sewing!

Long Sleeve Cotton Knit Dress: SD Patterns

 

This is the second time I'm revisiting this asymmetrical maxi dress by SD Patterns.  Sadly, this pattern doesn't appear to be available anymore on their Etsy shop.  I will admit that I'm not a fan of taping together PDF patterns but I'm glad I still have this one.  It is one comfortable dress.  

My favourite detail on this dress pattern is the small section of gathering in the front right side curve seam.  The original design was for a turtleneck style.  I omitted this design feature and lowered the neckline one inch at the center front grading to the original shape at the shoulder seam.  

The neckline was folded over 5/8" and cover stitched.  

The pattern is designed for someone much taller than I am, so the sleeves were shortened by two inches and have a one inch hem.  The hem length was shortened, a lot.  More than five and a half inches for sure.  

The navy fabric was found in the stash and the anchor print fabric was left over from this project.  Both pieces are cotton knits and were pre-treated with a tumble in the washing machine and dryer before landing on the cutting table.  

Project details

Seams:  Knit (Lightening Bolt) stitch

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  2.5 metres

Knit 'N Stable tape:  0.2 metres

Pattern:  SD Patterns

Additional Tools and Supplies:  Cutting table, extra set of table legs, folding table top, measuring tape, tailor's chalk, clapper and assorted heavy objects used as pattern weights, pins, pin cushion, measuring gauge, fabric scissor, Janome sewing machine, walking foot, Janome Cover Pro machine, thread clippers, threads, Janome serger, iron, ironing board and tea.  

Happy Sewing!