The WTF jacket

I can be sensible when it comes to my garments and make wearable basics such as my knit tops, sober jackets or simple shorts but I'm a crazy project lover at heart :) I love picking cheesy, garish, kitsch fabric and making impractical vintage stuff out of them, like my string of big-skirted 50's dresses or numerous novelty print tops. But I must say that today's project takes the cake:

Yes, it is a kimono jacket made with flower printed silk and bordered with black fringe and no, it is not intended to be worn inside. I CHERISH this fabric, I found it in the discount corner of a local shop a few years ago, €2 a meter, pure Japanese silk with a print the Golden Girls would kill for, it was love at first sight! As for the fringe, it has always been my favourite embellishment so I just knew I would have to incorporate it into one of my creations one day. Finally I adore this kimono jacket pattern -the first version is here- and wanted to make another one.

 I haven't made a matching belt yet but I will, I swear!

Sewing for me

I had been SO neglecting myself, it was high time I sewed a little something for me^^
I still don't have a pic of my cousin's jacket but I have some of one I've just made for me using the same pattern, design F from the third Stylish Dress Book:

I made size 11 and didn't change a thing to the pattern but I must say that with my bigger arms I should have altered the sleeves for a little more ease. Construction is really simple on this one, you attach the front and back, set in the sleeves, attach the facings and finish the hems and that's it! Also there should be breast pockets but I'm not a fan of these so I didn't put them. I used some green blended linen from my stash, it's light but surprisingly warm, perfect for the ongoing winter.

 You can see my extremely kitsch hem lace, I know it is ugly but I really wanted to bust that notion stash :(

I couldn't think of a suited trim for the jacket so I handsewed sequins along the front and neckline and around the sleeves' hem, I love decorating or finishing garments by hand because it takes a little time and care and I find that very relaxing!

I made the striped top underneath a few months ago using my self-drafted baby doll pattern and medium weight cotton from a local shop, I love that fabric and I'm glad that I still have some left because I want to make cropped trousers and a bag from it -I won't be wearing them all at the same time, I swear^^:

Me-Made-May 2013 week four recap

Well after seeing last week's blue fest I did try to wear other colours which led me to a little stash-busting, so thank you MMM^^
On 22nd I wore a dress that I made using a mix of the T and Y patterns from the first Stylish Dress Book and printed cotton bought at Nomura tailors in Kyoto with plain black cotton for the front yoke and side ties:

On 23rd a new dress from a Japanese pattern with a sweet 60's flair found in an NHK book using yellow cotton with tiny white dots from my stash:

On 24th the chartreuse green Burda skirt with a blah purchased tee:

On 25th the same design as on 23rd this time using lilac polycotton from my stash:

On 26th my first sweat shirt OMG!! I found the pattern in a Female magazine and used grey jersey knit, it was so easy and quick to make and the result is so nice to wear that I immediately made another one in kelly green that I wore on 27th with my old navy Pochée shorts:

On 28th I wore the lilac dress from the 25th -I washed it before!-with a grey blended denim jacket adapted from a Burda easy pattern:

So 3 more days to go and I'm already sad that MMM is almost finished :(

Me-Made-May 2013 week three recap

OMG I think I have never worn that much blue in a row!
On 15th I wore my 70's denim skirt with a sweet Uniqlo tee:

On 16th a blue wax dress with plain black yoke adapted from a Burda mag pattern with the refashioned denim jacket:

On 17th the usual 70's dress pattern, this time in navy Japanese cotton:

On 18th a 70's skirt in cotton veil and a 70's kimono jacket in navy raw silk:

On 19th the same jacket with my cropped trousers in navy ponte from a Japanese pattern:

On 20th a brand new self-drafted blouse in light blue crepe graciously gifted to me by my bff for my birthday with a 70's skirt in fruity navy cotton fabric:

I made self-covered buttons for the back.

On 21st I wore a self-drafted shirred maxi dress in white and blue cotton lawn and the refashioned jacket:

Tiny jackets

Whenever I find a design that works for me I make several versions of it so today I'm going to tell you about the many Burda easy sewing jackets I've been obsessed with lately.
I needed a simple, short, cardigan-like piece that would look good over my loose tops and even my retro style dresses but since I also wanted some definition to look slimmer I couldn't just opt for a cropped knit cardigan and needed something with denser fabrics and seams to give me structure.
I altered the original pattern so that the hem would hit my waist and the shoulders would be narrower and I shortened the sleeves to 3/4 length because the weather's always hot where I live and I find this length more stylish anyway :) Oh and I kept the officer collar even though I'm planning on making my next one without a collar at all to give it a slight Chanel flavour.

First I used some stretch navy cotton:

 

Then I made one out of this excellent wax fabric:

I have another sober one out of grey denim:

And finally I'm making one with this incredible Bollywood fabric:

Have a nice weekend everyone, see you!

A fun dress

Hum, when you see this pic you may think: "Dots are SO funny, yeah right. And it's not even a dress, it's a skirt".

But look again:

Hey it is a fun dress! I know it's very similar to the panel dress from the August issue of Burda but I actually used my own basic bodice -the sleeveless version- and altered it after seeing a girl wear a mesh and black velvet top with this panel detail when I was on holiday. So I used navy bedsheet for the centre/upper part at the front and the upper back part and the dots fabric is super soft and thin stretch satined cotton from a local shop. The navy jacket is stretch cotton bought on sale, I sligthly altered a Burda Easy sewing design and the facings are navy and cream yukata cotton. Even though I wear a lot of my basic kimono style tops and tunics I love indulging in a little retro/glamour outfit sometimes and I really enjoyed spending the day in this one!

Me-Made-May 2012: week 1 recap

Hey there! Here are the garments I wore for the first week of MMM:
- on 01st, 06th and 08th I stayed at home in my old coral linen Burda shorts. I love this pattern (from the May 2010 mag) because you need very little fabric to make them and it's a great way of busting remnants!

- on 02nd I wore my new Burda shorts made using the wrong side of some light weight denim, it's a great pattern, easy to make and comfortable yet quite classy with the front pleats. The tunic is from Pochée, I used some repro fabric of a civil war wallpaper for it -I'm always amazed at what cool origins this top has :)

- on 03rd I wore the same shorts with a Burda top made from strange synthetic fabric whose red and blue ume flowers print I love!

- on 04th the weather turned super cold and rainy so I could wear my favourite jacket frankesteined from a Pochée pattern and made of mustard linen and polyester blend. I added a simple V-neck, kimono sleeved black and white top from Female and navy cotton shorts adapted from a Pochée pattern again.

- on 05th I wore a pull-over dress made from a 70's Simplicity pattern, I love the pintuck pleats on the bodice and butterfly sleeves and the fabric has cute tiny orangey flowers so this dress is really a favourite!

- on 07th I finally decided to wear an oversized shirt made from a Female pattern, you can tie the front (which I did) or let it loose. I love this garment because the design is quite original IMO and I used striped cotton that my boyfriend gave me for my birthday last year and pretty red buttons bought in a small haberdashery in Asakusa so it's really dear to me. The denim shorts are a bit small but I wear them a lot anyway, they're from the French crafts magazine Fait Main.

Now for my mum's outfits:
- on 02nd she wore a low waist dress adapted from a Japanese pattern and made with Ikea fabric.

- and on 07th she wore an A-line skirt, another Japanese pattern with polycotton bought in a local shop.

See you soon with more me-made garments :)

My boyfriend's jacket

Hello! YEAAAAH I DID IT^^ I managed to finish the lined wool perfecto jacket for my boyfriend before his leaving tomorrow. He's going to spend the next 9 months in France so I wanted to make something warm for him, hence the wool and lining :) It was my first time lining a jacket -and drafting said lining since there wasn't any in the original pattern- of course I forgot a small piece at the shoulders and I had to add 2 patches but it really doesn't show much, I'm so happy! Well, that's relative since I'm awfully sad that my baby is going away, I think I also made the jacket to have something pleasant to think of as his departure was coming nearer. Anyway, here are the pics:

Unzipped front, the red lining is peeking :)

Zipped, and a white piece of thread somehow landed on it, tsssk

The back and the open wrists with the lining showing again.

In the meantime I made a little something for me, Rae's free buttercup bag, the upholstery fabric is Ikea and the lining is white gabardine, I love it! It was easy to make and I can already picture some nice variations for it!


See you and thanks again to all of you who read this blog and/or comment :)

Completed shacket

SO! It's finished! I tell you it was so long to make that it's going to take a little time before I want to see it again (and thus wear it^^).



I'm happy because it was good practice for my sewing skills: I made a correct peplum, I managed to sew slippery silk for the lining and the snap placket is well done and hidden. But there's still the fit issue at the back even though I altered the pattern and checked regularly how it was going.

Work in extremely slow progress

It's weird how much bad luck I've had since last weekend! I'm not going to dwell on that but believe me when I say that it was a damn sh***y week. As a result I didn't have much stamina and couldn't sew a lot. Still I wanted to show you my current project even though it feels as if I've been working on it FOREVER :(
I'm trying to make a shirt/jacket (a shacket!) from this dress's bodice and detachable peplum. Really I shouldn't complain because it's going quite well, it looks exactly like my initial idea but I can't believe how slow I am to finish it!


Also, the amount of buttons I'm stashing is ridiculous -not to mention my current dire lack of money^^- so I'm parting with my good vintage ones. I've put some in my Etsy shop and I still have a lot more to sell so if you're interested have a look!

Checks!

While going through my fabric stash I noticed that I have quite a lot of check, plaid and gingham fabrics piling up. I love them so I buy them but then I'm afraid of sewing them because of the pattern matching! I couldn't stand it anymore, I had to overcome my fears^^ and sew my checks. I made a basic shirt from a Japanese magazine: easy, cute, blabla I've already spoken about my love for these patterns.
I was careful with matching checks and everything went well!




I've copied a diagram that explains how to make a quick and neat collar with stand:


As for the wrist slit, here's a link to a very efficient video.


I also made a cardigan from plaid wool that I had kept for 2 years, the pattern comes from the same magazine as the shirt. As I didn't use knit I had to sew hems (by hand!) along the collar, at the bottom of course and for the sleeves. I think this design has a little retro vibe, like the box jackets from the 50's.