it’s still a jungle in here

January 22, 2014 ~ Tia Dia ~ 30 Comments

A construction jungle, that is. STILL. And since I’m being slowly eroded with the endlessness of this project, I sewed up a little bit of animal print to help me feel at home in the mess. This lovely little ensemble accomplishes three things:

let’s me in for a play date at the Jungle January playground;
brings me one step closer to completing my Burda Challenge 2013; and
checks off two of a 3PAC for the Stitcher’s Guild Algebra SWAP 2014.

My ensemble is the designer pattern from Jo No Fui (Burda 11/2013 #130). I made it up in a black stretch wool suiting for the skirt and an animal print silk charmeuse with an all-over fleur-de-lis burnout pattern for the blouse. Let’s talk about the skirt first.

I was a bit skeptical about the extra yardage that drapes at the CF, but I like it. It doesn’t add bulk to the silhouette – it’s very clearly a pretty drape. The wool I chose is perfect for this – it’s about the weight of a heavy silk crepe – and sewed up like a dream. There is a small hip yoke piece instead of darts in the front. The CF seam is sewn wrong sides together with the drape finished beforehand.

The back of the skirt is simple. It’s short – only about 19 inches in length – and cut straight. I added a waistband instead of the facing, pegged the bottom by a total of 4 inches and added a full lining. I likey this skirt.

And now the blouse. Of course the star feature is the sleeves with the deep 4 inch pleat to keep the excess fabric at a decent length. As it was, I decided to shorten the sleeves by 3 inches in total just to avoid the potential of dragging through dinner or what have you.I added small squares of organza on either side of the pleat for stability and strength. I don’t want those tacking stitches tearing a hole in the middle of my sleeve, thank you very much. The bottom of the sleeves are gathered into a narrow binding that just barely fits over my hands. I’m not complaining – I actually like the smallness of the opening. I think it will help keep the sleeves at my wrists.The instructions for binding the CF and CB slits were just asking for punishment, as far as I was concerned. The binding strips were cut on the bias, and I should have known better and just cut them on the straight grain like one would finish a placket. But what the hey! I finished the neckline entirely by hand because of the finicky quality of the bias, but mostly because the charmeuse handled differently than the burnout chiffon sections in the fabric and it was just simpler to do it by hand instead of swearing at my machine.The back binding extends into a loop for a button while the top of the CF slit is completely bound by the bias. It’s a low opening, too, despite the high crew neck. I had initially thought I’d make up a Ruby camisole in the same fabric for modesty (chiffon sections of the silk) and to prevent wardrobe malfunctions with that CF slit but the crossover of the cami doesn’t quite do the trick at this point. Some adjustments are required before I actually wear this ensemble out in public, and I will probably also sew the bottom inch of the slit closed. As you all know I was a little sewn out after (almost) completing the Burda Challenge 2013, and although I want to finish it (yes, I’m that stubborn), I have a long queue that I’d like to catch up on from the last couple of years that has been pushed aside to make way for other projects. And a lot of fabric that I would love to wear. These are the more immediate items that come to mind:

Pavlova skirt & top
Marfy 2922 jacket in a lurex wool/silk tweed
Harris Tweed coat (originally part of my SWAP 2012)
finish the Burda Challenge
do something for Jungle January
participate in PR’s Little White Dress event
SEW A RED DRESS

So after sifting through all these nebulous ideas wafting around my sewing room, and reading through Ruth’s post on the SG’s Algebra SWAP 2014 rules, I realized I could fit everything in my year(s)-old queue into a lovely little plan. The more I thought about this little SWAP, the more it gave me the impetus to start sewing after the December rush and holidays.And this little ensemble has started me off beautifully. But more on the SWAP in my next post.

The Verdict: Burda Challenge 2013

December 31, 2013December 31, 2013 ~ Tia Dia ~ 15 Comments

This is my take on The Top 5, since it was honestly my focus for the last year. However, not meeting goals is an unhappy occurrence in my typically driven mind, and I have had to temper my desire to throw tantrums whenever thwarted in pursuit of this 2013 goal. Mostly because growing emotionally healthy and responsible citizens for the next generation means that modelling desired behaviour is priority. 🙂 I’m just being selfishly honest!

So I’m going to vent here, where probably – most likely – almost 100% – no one will be adversely affected by my pouting because I didn’t meet my ONE BIG GOAL for 2013: sew at least one garment from each issue of BurdaStyle. I missed the mark by two issues: May and November. In my mind this equals a failure (and DH has already raked me over the coals for calling it a failure considering how many other projects I finished). But to jog everyone’s memory, back in March, I wrote this:

Maria over at La Inglesita posted back in December about her goal to sew at least one garment from each issue of Burda for 2013 since those issues often sit on our shelves and don’t get traced and sewn up into wearable 3D items. I don’t know about you, but often I’ll read and re-read a Burda issue, earmark one or several things and mentally sew them up in that particular fabric from my stash. Heck, I’ll even mentally wear them, but it gets left behind in ISL (Imaginary Sewing Land) for some weird reason. Melissa at Fehr Trade set herself a similar challenge last year. It’s a nice idea and perhaps the impetus that I need to sew up the things that catch my eye in my Burda subscription, so I thought I’d casually join along.

Re-reading this, I was surprised at the last sentence, because, quite frankly, finishing this challenge has turned into an obsession over the last 6 weeks. But let’s see how close I came, OK? You can click on the images to take you to the original blog post, if one exists.

January: Polka-dot Top and a Leia costume for DD2 (unblogged) and the Sequin UFO

February: Op Art Tee and DD2’s Christmas dress and Miss V’s upcycled sari jacket

March: This was the most-used issue this year by far: six garments in total, and two of my most-worn and favourite garments came from this issue. Two are unblogged (one was a wadder due to a bad fabric choice (trousers #127) and the other is finished, but not yet dyed. Yup. I made a shirt (#124) as a fitting and dyeing experiment. But the dyeing hasn’t happened yet).

Two garments for others came from the March issue, too: a dress for DD1 and Miss V’s lace shirt.

April: DD1’s pretty sundress and my Burda trousers block test.

May: Well, I’ve traced off a couple of dresses, but that’s as far as I got on those. Hopefully in the spring, if nothing new and exciting comes along before I get around to making them.

June: A pair of shorts.

July: A top. I actually made this top twice. The first version was a recycled version of this dress but I didn’t like it, so I sent it to the garbage. So much for recycling. But DD1’s turquoise top is very pretty.

August: Nada. Well, nothing that I kept. This is a wadder. I love the idea of the integrated wrap scarf, but my fabric choice of lightweight rayon jersey was not good. I wore it for the day I took this picture, and haven’t worn it since. If I ever find a T-shirt type of jersey, I may make this up again. There was also a skirt and a jacket from this issue that I wanted to make, but I just ran out of time!

September: One skirt, unblogged. It’s model #130, designed by John Richmond. And I must say that I love it. It’s pegged and perfect. My version is made of a heavy washed 100% ramie fabric that caught my eye back in the spring. The pattern is like a Vogue designer pattern, with instructions for lining and facing and finishing it perfectly. The back (below) is princess seamed with small kick pleats at the bottom of each princess seam. It’s a gorgeous pattern.

October: Three garments from this issue: DD1’s camo dress and her NYE sequin skirt; and a pair of trousers for moi (not quite finished at point of writing, but will be, because I have to wear them tonight!).

November: Nothing – Fail! I would love to make up a skirt and two dresses from this issue, but guess what? I ran out of time!!

December: One garment, unblogged: a long-sleeved metallic jersey top. And I would love to replace my old Lagerfeld black wool trousers with the wide-legged pair from this issue. There were a couple of dresses that I would love to have in my closet from this issue, too.

I did make a couple of other garments from other years of Burda, but this challenge was about using the patterns that come each month with my subscription. I made up a total of 23 garments, including the wadders. It was a good challenge, and I am happy that I mulled over each Burda issue, trying to find things that looked interesting to make and that would suit my lifestyle.

I don’t think I’ll be doing a Burda Challenge 2014, however. I set aside several Vogue patterns, my Little French Jacket and a winter coat in order to keep on top of this challenge, and I would like to go back through the stash and marry the patterns with fabulous fabric for these projects. Y’know, bring them up to the front burner. And I would like to do SWAP again. I am so happy with all the garments from my first SWAP in 2012 that I’d like to repeat the challenge again. But that’s thought for next week, at the earliest!

And that’s the end of my 2013 posts! A very happy happy New Year to each and every one of you. May the year be full of excellent fabric, good fitting, and endless hours to create to your heart’s content!

More Camo à la Burda

December 30, 2013December 28, 2013 ~ Tia Dia ~ 7 Comments

Another project completed in my Burda Challenge for 2013. And another dose of camouflage à la Burda’s October issue this year. No weirdness here except the very commodious 80’s style batwings.

When DD1 first put this on her comment was, “It looks like a nightgown”. Yup. It hangs like a sack without the help of a belt. But that’s a good thing, right? Because a belt means you can make the skirt as short as you wish (since I wisely added a good 4 inches to the pattern). HA!

The pattern is simple enough. I made it up in a ponte knit so it’s warm for fall and winter. The neck has a bias strip as a facing, which is turned to the inside and topstitched in place. The placket was a bit fussy, but I stitched in the ditch and it’s as clean and neat a finish as one could wish for. I was a bit concerned about the buttonholes, but they worked quite well on the interfaced ponte. I must say I’ve never attempted buttonholes on a ponte knit before.She’s happy and has worn it several times although she keeps stealing my shoes. But hey! It suits her style and she’s pleased as punch, as is her seamstress.

And that’s my October 2013 Burda Challenge. Wish me luck to finish the challenge before December 31st!

Burda Challenges

November 5, 2013January 28, 2016 ~ Tia Dia ~ 6 Comments

When Miss V brought me her collection of fabrics, she was not crazy about this black polyester crepe with the tiny pink roses. But a dress needed to be made up from it, since it was a special gift from a shop owner “back home”. I originally thought, since she had no intention of wearing the garment, of making up Vogue 1351 by DKNY. I’ve been wanting to make the dress for myself, but that would have required an FBA to the lining and I was too lazy over the summer to try, and Miss V doesn’t require any FBA. Perfect opportunity to make the dress, thought I.

But as I was working on the various pieces of Miss V’s wardrobe, fabric spread out everywhere, DD3 saw the black with pink and immediately latched onto it. She loved it. So, with permission, I changed direction and made up this number that caught my eye back in Burda’s March 2013 issue (model #113).DD3 thought it would be perfect, so I started sewing. The dress is completely unlined. I wasn’t motivated to put in a lot of work for this garment. What can I say? Some fabrics kill all motivation for excellence just by existing. All the seams are straight-stitched with a serged finish, and I actually did a rolled hem with my overlocker. It’s about as RTW a garment as I’ve ever made.I shorted the bodice – “petited” it, if you will – by folding out 2cm of length at the high bust and waist levels. And I raised the CF slit by about 3 inches because it was ridiculously low – like let’s-show-everything low. The bodice front is almost cut on the true bias – not quite – which is great for skimming over the body, and wasn’t too much of a pain to sew in this poly crepe. The CF gathers pull the CF into an inverted V, which poufs a bit over the lower abdomen, as seen above. But in this dark fabric, it’s not noticeable while being worn. The skirt is cut almost like a full circle skirt. Took me a bit of looking at the pattern pieces to figure that out because of the odd way Burda suggests cutting them: on the folded bias. When tracing the pieces the grain lines run parallel to the side seams, which is confusing until you see the layout diagram. *lightbulb*The skirt has been shortened by about 4 inches to keep it looking youthful and modern on DD3. She wore it yesterday and loved it. It’s a pretty pattern, and I hope to give it another incarnation soon.

The other Burda piece in Miss V’s wardrobe was this lace shirt from the same issue (March 2013 # 116). It’s a plain basic boxy shapeless shirt, but the poly lace I found is heavy enough that it drapes nicely. And just so you know, the front is on the left, back is on the right in the photos above. Yup. Lots of shape and definition here! The purpose of this garment: a covering in cooler (freezing) air-conditioned buildings. Apparently if you’ve got A/C, then you crank it up so it feels like an Arctic experience!All the seams are bound in poly satin. The lace was lovely and soft to work with, but that poly stretch satin fabric was a a PITA for making bias strips. I don’t think I’ve sewn so much polyester anything in years as I’ve done for these two projects. If I don’t sew any again for another decade, I’ll not miss it. BTW, the March 2013 issue of Burda is winning the Burda Challenge so far this year. It’s amazing how one or two issues will be full of gems that get made and others languish for years untouched.

Still sewing like a fiend! I’ve got some Kmher batik and a sari to turn into garments before the end of the week before Miss V leaves!

Burda Challenge: Burda 3/2013 #119 – The Cape

October 16, 2013January 28, 2016 ~ Tia Dia ~ 16 Comments

I got distracted from another pair of jeans by this cape from Burda’s March 2013 issue. I just fell in love with it the first time I saw it, and Burda had the goodness to publish it in three colours: mustard yellow, red and a dark khaki – the colour in which I’ve made up my version.This was a super fun project for me. I don’t own anything remotely similar to this, and I like odd pieces that could potentially get a lot of wear. I had some 100% ramie in my stash, and I laundered it several times in hot water and in a hot dryer in order to minimize shrinkage and hopefully get that “washed linen” look. The washed linen look never occurred, and the fabric gave off a tremendous amount of lint in my dryer, but I am confident that this garment will never shrink.

See how short the sleeves are when ones arms are raised? Impractical from a warmth/protection from the elements point of view. It has a hood which, in my opinion, is completely useless. But it looks nice from the back.I enjoyed putting this garment together because it required several things with which I don’t usually work: cord, grommets, velcro, D-rings and a brass-toothed separating zipper. I learned that shortening a zipper with brass teeth does require a pair of nips in order to not wreak havoc on the zipper’s tape by pulling the teeth out one by one before plying them open. Anyways, I also learned that I’m better at handling a metal zipper than my DH, who gamely offered to help me use his pliers. 😉 Fabric used: 100% ramie shell, washed silk charmeuse lining

Pattern alterations: Well, first of all, I lined this. Burda suggests canvas for the fabric, and the ramie, although it’s a fall weight, would be a bit warmer with the silk lining and it would make the inside of the garment pretty.

I left off the mock breast pocket on the left front. It was a strip of twill tape with grommets stitched to the outer shell. Frankly, I couldn’t be bothered.I did not cut two 114 cm long strips of bias for the cord casing. The ramie frayed like crazy and it was a lot like linen to press except that it was a lot more stubborn to shape. I just used grosgrain ribbon. To my mind it would be a lot stronger without the risk of fraying or falling apart. I treated the silk as a separate lining and once the shell was constructed and the cord attached, I attached the lining to the garment along the “sleeve” seams at the front and back to keep it in place with short basting stitches through the seam allowances from the wrong side. Then I faced the hem and sleeves, and attached the hood, catching the silk inside the facings. I also double interfaced the visor. I didn’t use buckram – too stiff – but I wanted something that came close.From a practical point of view, this garment is pretty ridiculous. The sleeves – if you can call them that – fall at the wrist when you’re standing doing nothing but mostly sit at the 3/4 length and when it’s tied, you can’t raise your arms. I have to be careful about making sure my arms are not restricted when I’m driving, and the cape shape is attractive to odds and ends that grab it while I’m out shopping or whatever. It’s not particularly warm and the velcro fastening of the hood is quite annoying when it’s closed, yet the neck is too wide and low to look good with a scarf.

*shrug* But what can I say? It’s one of those “out there” pieces that I really like. Would I sew it again? Probably. It would be fantastic in red linen. Would I recommend it to others? Not necessarily, because it’s really not a functioning cape/outerwear piece. It’s more like an oversized ridiculous poncho without the freedom of movement for arms that a poncho provides, and a whole lot of details that are rather pointless.

But I’ve worn it almost every day since I finished it, and it was super fun to make!

Cuffed Shorts

July 6, 2013December 6, 2013 ~ Tia Dia ~ 7 Comments

DD1 wanted more shorts, and chose this lovely cuffed pair from Burda’s June issue to make from this spectacular stretch cotton (Burda 06/2013 #111A). The fabric is so vibrant that I really wanted her to choose a skirt or a dress to showcase it better, but she’s “not that into skirts and dresses, really, mom”. OK. So shorts it is. Although I did manage to cut a skirt, too, that’s currently resting in my magic sewing closet. But back to these shorts.

It’s a super simple pattern with only one welt pocket on the back right. There’s a side zip, but the star of the show is the cuffs! All two inches of them. Lots of playing around room in these.

I didn’t make a muslin, and I’ve noticed that she is going to need a little length added to the back of future trousers/shorts. The apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree!

Or maybe I should say the cherries don’t fall too far from the tree. Better luck next time!

Embroidered Sundress

June 17, 2013June 17, 2013 ~ Tia Dia ~ 10 Comments

So, as part of my Burda Challenge 2013, I’ve sewn up DD1 a pretty little sundress from the April issue.It’s petite-sized (17-21), which seems to work well with DD1 as she is short-waisted. I cut a straight size, although I did change up a few things. First, I raised the CF neckline by about 2 inches. Actually, I started out with a 4 inch adjustment, but it was too high. The bodice provides perfect coverage. I was surprised, actually, because the model in the Burda issue seams to be falling out of it. I was expecting to have to do a small FBA, but the coverage is high and wide as drafted, which is great. And instead of the recommended lace, I cut bias strips 1 cm wide and gathered them for the bodice trim. Lace isn’t DD1’s thing, but the small ruffles are a nice touch.I underlined the entire dress. The skirt is underlined with a poly-cotton broadcloth, and the midriff and bodice to the shoulders are underlined and lined with a handkerchief linen and cotton voile. And I don’t know what happened with the pleats. They have moved to the side considerably once I snugged up the back. Funny, but I never noticed until looking at the picture how out of place they are! Oh, and I added bra cups at her request.

The other significant change that I made to the pattern was the back. I put in a lapped zipper instead of the invisible zip because I’ve had two invisible zips break on me recently, and I hate replacing invisible zips. So lapped it was. Besides, it’s a clean vintage-inspired way of putting in a zipper! And then I added 10 rows of 1/4 inch elastic so that it would feel snug and secure when worn.It’s a little on the “very” side of snug because I cut the elastics short, and I’ll be adding a hook and eye to the top of the zip, but the looped buttons are pretty and keep everything close. There’s not much else to say about this dress. I really like the skirt pattern. It’s one piece, cut on the fold of the bias (the CB seam is on the straight grain), and it drapes beautifully. My more detailed review of this pattern is on PatternReview.So now all we need are a few of those hot humid and hazy days of summer…

Utility Trousers aka Burda 3/2011 #132

June 10, 2013June 12, 2013 ~ Tia Dia ~ 7 Comments

l’ve made another two pairs of these trousers in a lightweight yet durable linen and an embroidered linen. DD1 loved the first version from a couple of years ago and actually wore them constantly until she grew out of them. When asked about her wardrobe needs/wants for this summer, another pair were the first item on her list for clothes. I couldn’t think she was serious, but she was! She really likes the look of these trousers, and she thinks they are the most comfortable thing to wear that’s a little ~~weird~~ different from anything else anybody around here wears. So I traced off the pattern again and set myself to making strange trousers. Personally, I think the best part of these trousers are the front pockets, which have a flap sewn into a side yoke, and a shaped opening.

I did a faux welt treatment for each pair on the back. The welts are there, but the pocket is backed with a single piece of self-fabric and it is not a functioning pocket.

She’s very pleased with these. I must say the sizing is a bit big through the waist. I stitched the CB seams and fit through the side seams (as they’re they only seams not topstitched twice). I ended up tapering out a total of 4 inches in width. DD1 is graced with a small waist!

Her shoes work with this type of look, I think. Of course, being the mom, I had to mention that should she ever need a costume that looks like a pair of vintage dungarees, all she needs to do is add suspenders to these trousers, pull the waist up to her ribcage and she’s done!And, luckily for me, she saw the humour in my comment once she googled “dungarees”. So this was educational, at any rate! 🙂

For the ivory pair, I initially planned to underline them down to the leg patch section, but when DD1 put them on, it looked too obvious that the underlining (or something) ended just above her knee. Not a good look. So after putting all the beautiful handkerchief linen (boohoo) underlining in, I cut it all out. Needless to say, there is no danger of a wardrobe malfunction without it and the look of the trousers is uniform.

She wore the ivory pair all day yesterday, and commented on how much she really loves these trousers. They are definitely not like anything I have seen in RTW, but they suit her and apparently they’re super comfortable.

The Mud Maxi Skirt

May 30, 2013June 1, 2013 ~ Tia Dia ~ 5 Comments

I’ve always like long skirts. Ball skirts in particular. I know maxi skirts and dresses have been staples of summer wear for a few years now, but not being the one to really want to jump out on a trend limb (I’d rather be odd), I’ve taken my time walking around the long-skirts-for-summer trend. But having decided to join the 2013 Burda Challenge and actually purposefully make one garment from each issue of Burda during 2013, I thought it would be fun to make up the long tiered skirt in a this embroidered mud-stained looking cotton voile.It’s pretty basic – tiers getting progressively longer, gathered into the previous tier. The only pattern piece was the shaped yoke. And I didn’t have an invisible zip in the right colour, so I cannibalized an old skirt that was on it’s way to the thrift shop because the silk linen grew in wonky ways over the years and the hem was very sorry to look at. It couldn’t be evened out unless I took of the trim and the lower band and evened out the skirt itself. Too much work for a skirt that I wasn’t wearing much anyways. Oh, and I took the lining from it, too, because I always like lined skirts.The lining looks super short, but it comes to about 2 inches above my knee. Here’s the back view. The bottom tier is 5 metres of fabric.

It’s a plain, boring old colour, but I like the “staple-ness” of it. No statement, just an interesting twist on an every-day skirt.

Op Art Tee

April 4, 2013October 17, 2015 ~ Tia Dia ~ 17 Comments

This the second of three tops that I’m working on right now. The third is in the toile stage because it must fit perfectly. When you see the fabric, you’ll understand why! Anyways, this lovely little tee with gathered raglan sleeves from Burda’s February issue – 02/2013 #126 – has been popping up all over the internet these days, and I know why! It’s the perfectly fun take on the basic tee.

I cut a size down from my usual size – typical for knits, but I could have gone another size down through the shoulders and bust. It’s a little loose, but it’s not going to fall off my shoulders or be guilty of any wardrobe malfunctions. And it’s very very long. I trimmed a good 5 inches from the bottom of this top and my bottom hem is 1.5 inches deep. And there’s still enough length to pool at my waist during wear!

The only change I made was to not follow Burda’s directions for binding the neckline. My experience with bound necklines in a knit is not fraught with pretty successes, so I thought I’d just do the standard neckline edging with a strip of self-fabric on the cross grain. And I cut my length about 2 inches shorter than Burda suggested. It’s good, but it could be a snugger fit around.

My conclusions on this one: a great little tee pattern. You can’t really see the gathers on the sleeves, but I like the shape of it and would highly recommend it anyone!