I pinned this scarf tutorial from Make it and Love It a few weeks ago. I thought it was such a cool technique and would be a great use for this Tencel © knit we carry at the store. I finally had some time at work yesterday to give it a try and I love the result.

This was not a quick project. I did have a few times when I was trying to sew too fast with the elastic bobbin thread and the machine didn’t like it and my top thread broke. All I had to do was slow down and take it easy and it worked great.

I didn’t really modify the project from the basic directions except that I cut two WOF (60”) strips, 12” wide (total of 2/3 yd. of fabric) and sewed these together for a starting scarf that was 12” x 120”.

I wore it at work today with a big pin. I just wrapped it around my neck like an infinity scarf and pinned the ends. It was very comfortable and I love the texture it added to a plain black dress.

This is a pretty cool shirring technique and I am thinking of ways it can be used in other projects. I’m also inspired to try some traditional elastic shirring on some tops and skirts I want to make for summer. This soft knit really is the perfect fabric for this technique.

This weekend I’m going to continue working on my Jalie jeans and my Danglez swimsuit. I received my order of Milliskin Matte this week so if I like how the Danglez suit works in the cheap Joann’s fabric I can try it with the good stuff. I accidentally ordered the wrong pattern number for the Kwik Sew suit that I wanted to try too. I’ll have to wait on that one. I wanted this one: 3609 and got this one: 3608. Oops!

We have a WINNER!!!!

I have come a long way in just under a year. Last May I made my two dresses; one wrap dress and one knit dress. I’ve only worn each of them once since I finished them. The wrap dress just wasn’t right. It didn’t fit and was difficult to wear. The whole point of finding a wrap dress pattern that I liked was to find something that was easy and comfortable to wear. That one wasn’t it by a long shot. The purple knit dress was okay but I just made the bodice too big and the neckline was too big and low. It was an oxymoron of a dress. It was medium weight cotton interlock with long sleeves so it was only comfortable in cooler weather, but the neckline was so low and open that my neck was always cold. Plus it sagged at the boobs, never a good look on anyone.

But I’ve been sewing like a fiend this past year and have learned a lot about sizing and what patterns work for me. I’ve also learned to trust PatternReview.com reviews. When over 100 sewist say a pattern is good, believe them!

Now about this dress. My full review is here. The short version is that I love it. The long version is that this was intended to be my muslin. This was one of the projects in my Priorities Pile. The fabric has been marinating in the stash for quite a few months. (The red and purple knits in that post are still marinating but I think they might be ready soon!) If you remember I paid less than $10 for the fabric for this dress. Now that the dress is finished I think it is the perfect print for this pattern. I love its retro vibe. I did pre-wash it so I’m not expecting any big surprises after the first go through the laundry.

Other things I really like about this dress:

• The full skirt. Other reviewers have mentioned they didn’t like the silhouette with the fuller skirt and they changed it. For me, this skirt is just right. I think it camouflages my hips and tummy, giving me a more hourglass figure.
• The neckline. The biggest problem I keep having with wrap dresses is the neckline. They are usually too low and gap. This one sits up nice and high between my boobs and hugs my sternum just right. I think a lot of this is attributable to the pleats at the waist. They provide bust fullness without making the neck-edge too long.
• The sleeves. I like the 3/4 length and the cuffs. They look very much like the original DVF wrap dresses. I will also probably make this with the short sleeve for summer and maybe lengthen this sleeve for winter.

Things I will change next time: 

• The ties. The are both the same length and I think it would make more sense to have the one that wraps all the way around the body longer than the one that just comes out the side opening and crosses the back. That way when they come together to tie they will be closer to equal lengths. I’m going to play with this a little and see what I like best.
• I might lengthen both the bodice and the skirt. It is just okay as is but could be just a little longer to sit right on my natural waist and I wasn’t able to use a very deep hem at all and have it be the length I’m comfortable with. But the narrow rolled hem was easier to do on such a curved hem on a knit so I may just leave it well enough alone.
• Some reviewers have had problems with the facings flipping out when they are wearing this dress. I haven’t worn mine outside my sewing room yet so I can’t weigh in on this yet. If it is an issue I’ll see what solution I can come up with. Knowing that this was a complaint I did understitch the facing very carefully and I also stitched it down to the shoulder seams by stitching-in-the-ditch the width of the facing at the shoulders. If I make it without the collar I’ll probably eliminate the facings all together and just turn and coverstitch the neck edge.

Tomorrow is March 1 and marks the beginning of the PatternReview swimsuit contest that I have entered. I’m still waiting for one pattern to arrive from the Netherlands and another Kwik Sew pattern to come in at work. In the mean time I may make a suit from the Jalie pattern that arrived this week.

I also am going to sign up for the Jean-ius class at Craftsy.com. I’m going to be teaching a 4 session jeans making class at work starting in April and would love a few more professional tips to share with my students. I honestly don’t have a pair of RTW jeans that I love and want to copy,  but I’ll skip that part of the class and use the rest of the tips for fashioning another pair of jeans from either the KW3315 or the Jalie pattern (or a combination of both!)

All this sounds great until I realize that I’ve been working 5 out of 6 days a week lately (we are closed Sunday and I dedicate Sundays to my couch!) and I haven’t had the amount of personal sewing time that I’m used to recently. With only one day a week to myself, I’m falling behind on lots of other things that need to get done around here.

Theater Aprons are done. I knew they wouldn’t take long. I layered the two lengths of fabric and cut them with the rotary cutter at the same time. I also assembly line sewed them so they went pretty quick. I love this fabric, it is some Moda that I’ve had since my very first order for the store. It isn’t currently listed on my Etsy site because I’ve never had a good digital photo of it and I’ve been too lazy to do anything about that. It is ‘30s reproduction fabric so it was perfect for this project.

If you are local (and hey, even if you aren’t and want a reason to come to IL in March!) come see Cripple of Inishmaan at the Albright Theater. Even though I’m not in it (and probably because I’m not) it is a very interesting script and will definitely be a great show. I was at auditions and can tell you this is a GREAT cast and the director is very passionate about this project and I know will bring the best to the stage like always.

The Missoni Knit top is also done. (Vogue 8597) This fabric wasn’t as difficult to work with as I had feared. I serged the entire thing except for the hems. I was going to cover-stitch the hems but decided to just zig-zag them to save time. This photo was taken before I hemmed it. Like the green version, this one is really comfortable and went together super fast. Like less than 2 hours fast!  Between this pattern and KS 3658, if I needed a top to wear one morning I could sew one up between dropping the girls off at school and leaving for work if I had the right fabric in the stash. And lord knows I have the fabric in the stash!

Anyway, that’s what I did today. What about you?

Also, it looks like I might be starting a Swimsuit Blog Sew Along on PatternReview.com very soon. This of course has led to even more research and blog reading. Phwew! Watch this space for more information. If nothing else, I’ll try to compile all the links and resources I’ve come across in a future post.