Me-Made June, Day 16
The river is like glass today. A seriously beautiful day. I started out wearing some of my hand-knitted socks but got too warm, so they didn’t last long.
Probably they will go on again this evening…
Details:
Top; the twist top from Pattern Magic by Tomoko Nakamichi, charcoal jersey, details here
Skirt; Vogue 7303, orange silk hessian, lined, details here
Socks; handknit by me, details here
Tights; Spencer Lacy
Shoes; Francesco Morichetti, from Zomp shoes
… I know. I am lucky, huh? Working from home is such a freeing experience, dress-code wise. And everything-else wise.
I used to be an analytical chemist, and sometimes I really miss the camaraderie of the laboratory and wish I was back there with my instruments. I enjoyed the rigidity of the procedures, the precision that was required and the controlled environment. But on days like today when I can rush out to the clothesline to rescue a load of dry washing just as the first fat raindrops fall, when I can nip out with the doggie while the sun is shining and save my office work for when the clouds roll in, the fact that I can choose; I’m content with the autonomy of my schedule.
I love the sound of the rain on the roof, and keep popping over the the window to check it out. Watching those rain drops soaking into the soil, imagining our garden as a little community of plants, alive and drinking and growing and rejoicing together at the rain just like we are.
Possibly I won’t be so enamoured of the rain in a few months, but for now, it’s wonderful!
Details:
Top; top “a” from Unique Clothes Any Way You Like by Natsuno Hiraiwa, white cotton, details here
Jeans; Burda 7863 with modifications, purple stretch denim, details here
Cardigan; my own design (basically started knitting and winged it…) Jo Sharp Silk Road DK Tweed in Brindle, details here
Shoes; Francesco Morichetti from Zomp shoes
Me-Made June; Day 14
Another wild windy day. And lots of lovely dam-filling, garden-watering rain overnight. The evidence was there in lots of large puddles dotted about. 🙂
The river had burst its banks. Don’t see that everyday… :O
I’m taking Sam out to lunch today. 🙂
And I plan to buy a new umbrella since mine flew inside out as soon as I left the house this morning… and several of the little spokes have bent irretrievably out of whack. 🙁
I often wish the frames of umbrellas were so super sturdy that they lasted for years and years, and that one could seasonally recover the frame with the fabric of a colour and design of one’s choice. How nice would that be? 😀
And am planning and sewing another birthday surprise 😉
Details:
Dress; Burdastyle 08/2009; 128, ivory/beige raw silk, details and my review of this pattern here
Jacket; Vogue 2894, red silk hessian, details and my review of this pattern here
Tights; chocolate brown, Kolotex
Boots; Sempre di, from Zomp shoes
Gloves; chocolate leather ones from David Jones
Me-Made June; Day 13:
It actually feels like winter is in the air. The wind had a definite nip to it this morning, and rain has been forecast for tomorrow. This is is awesomely good news.
Details:
Shirt; my own design from a mix of patterns, made of black cotton with skull buttons bought in Japan, details here
Skirt; Burdastyle magazine 10/2010, 136 (the Karl Lagerfeld skirt), with modifications, made of black suiting, details here
Tights; self-drafted, made of denim-look jersey, details (and a tute on how to make your own custom fit tights) here
Knotted scarf; made from an old tank top, details here
Coat; McCalls 5525 view B, made of grey wool, details and my review of this pattern here
Shoes; Django & Juliette, from Zomp shoes
So I finished off the pockets on Sam’s birthday shirt/jacket last night, and did take those few snaps of the pockets to show here because I was so happy at how they turned out, but the light was not great for taking a photo of Sam modelling the whole thing. So now it is, and I have.
It is made out of thin navy blue non-stretchy corduroy, using the old favourite Burda 7767 with a few modifications… the addition of two breast pockets with arrow head flaps, and the double welt/patch pockets I showed you yesterday. And a curved hemline. And I used brown snaps instead of buttons. The collar facing, yoke facing, flap facings and welt pocket lining are all in a contrasting cotton, woven in a tiny plaid design of beige and black.
So here’s the thing… I don’t know if it qualifies as a shirt or a jacket, or both.
It is made using a shirt pattern, and can be happily worn buttoned (snapped?) up and on its own… thus earning itself a “shirt” label.
But also; being made of sturdy corduroy fabric, and also wearable unbuttoned and open over other shirts with his hands shoved in the pockets, it comes off as kinda jacket-style… thus attaining “jacket” status.
A hybrid.
There must be a name to properly describe garments like this without having to resort to the hyphenated.
I’ve just put these pockets on a shirt/jacket I’ve made for Sam for his birthday, and I’m super pleased with how they turned out. So wanted to share them.
I kind of got the idea from similar pocket I saw on a young mens’ leather jacket in the surf shop. Seriously, the surf shop is a gold mine for wonderful ideas! They somehow take hideous fabrics and unpromising shapes, and manage to make cool stuff that teenagers just love…
I’m pretty thrilled with these pockets, because they are a double pocket, like two pockets in one. One is a welt pocket, and the other is a patch pocket, but both are part of the same pocket!
The shirt/jacket is of corduroy, a thin, non-stretchy navy blue corduroy, a colour that really suits him. (yes, because I used corduroy I spent the entire process obsessively stroking all the fabric pieces to make sure they were all facing with the nap the right way at every step!!) The contrasting lining fabric is a thin beige cotton that has a subtle tiny plaid woven into it.
Firstly I took a rough measurement of my son’s handspan, and cut out two pocket pieces, and welt pieces. For the lining of the pocket cut two each of pieces of the fashion fabric and of the lining fabric, which will be joined together; the fashion fabric section to go under the welt, so that when he has his hands in his pocket the inside looks just like the rest of the jacket, but the main of the lining to be of a thin contrasting cotton so as not to add too much bulk to the pocket (this is illustrated in the next step). Also cut and construct two pocket flaps, mine have slightly curved lower edges.
Join the two pocket lining fabrics together, and iron the welt flaps in half along their long side.
Me-Made June; Day 12
Love ma uggies. I could say that slipping on my ugg boots is like slipping a pair of comfy old slippers… except that’s exactly what they are. So, of course it is, hehe.
So, in the interests of reality in footwear; these rip-toed, beaten-up old uggs really are what my feet wearing for, like, 95% of my day, with the tiny exception of walking the dog, which we are doing right here, and for which I actually had on little sandshoes. That’s the reality. But, to get “reality” I toted my ugg boots along to the park to change into just for this photo. Ha! Oh the irony…
Because the other reality is that I never ever wear these out in public. Well, really, just look at them. One has a big hole in the toe, which has been mended and re-ripped. Mum would be horrified just looking at this photo… But I can’t ever get rid of them. I suffer from this hopelessly sentimental attachment to them. But maybe I should patch up that hole again… give the old dears a bit more dignity?
Details:
T-shirt; self-drafted. leopard print jersey wool-mix, details here
Pants; Burda 7863, khaki stretch gabardine, details and my review of this pattern here
Hoodie; KwikSew 3667, pale grey marle fleece, details here
Socks; barely just seen through the rip in the toe there, but still handknit by me, details here
Uggs; had forever
I’ve made my first project from Pattern Magic 2, by Tomoko Nakamichi; the vanishing scarf top. Looking through this wonderful book I really couldn’t decide which project to make first. I’m not just saying that. I really couldn’t decide; so I got Craig to choose one for me. He chose this one. Obviously, hehe. If you’re interested, the dressmaking details are below…
The patterns in Pattern Magic 2 really are concepts, rather than lead-you-by-the-nose patterns, meaning there are no specific directions for finishing off these garments, or even how to make them so one can even wear them. These sorts of details are up to the seamstress/seamster; this is why I really feel these books are aimed at the advanced seamstress. Or seamster; whatever. You guys know that when I use the term “seamstress” I referring to all of us peops, male or female, handy with a needle, right? I just use that term because I would never apply the term “sewer” to myself; eeewwwww! and “dressmaker”, while very gender acceptable, implies that one is only making dresses. So I kind of like “seamstress”, when applied to myself. But I digress…
This shirt as presented in the book had a few clues as to how the designer intended for the garment to be finished, including a central back zip, to be opening from the lower hem, up; and for a narrow front edge band to finish off those top front edges. Both of which I incorporated, but I would do it differently next time around.
For a start, I would recommend drafting a wide front edge facing which folds around the front edge including the neckline opening and enclosing the collar seam allowances, and attaching at the shoulder seam. I think this would make for a cleaner finishing look. See in the collar close-up below how you can see the inside edge of that narrow right front edge band? I don’t really like seeing that, and wish it was wider, and therefore invisible from view. I would have done this if I had more fabric to play with… but with the scarf in place it isn’t really too obvious when you are wearing it.
Plus, if I was making this again, I wouldn’t have the central back zip, as funky a feature as this is. Instead I would have the shirt open at the front and incorporate a hidden button band for closure at the front. These are just my personal preferences for finishing off this shirt, and not a criticism of the design at all, which I love. I looove how the vanishing scarf looks; how it is part of the shirt at the front and worn tucked around one’s neck to disappear back into the shirt. LOVE it!
I used the fabric that was an unloved remnant from my friend C, that used to be pale pistachio green and which I dyed using iDye for Synthetics in Brown, here. My fabric was limited, so I used strips of bias-cut black cotton for an interfaced lower edge facing. It is understitched and invisibly slip-stitched to the garment.
Because my shirt is unlined, and because I sometimes find the bottom edges of invisible zips to be quite irritating when against the skin, I hand-sewed on a little square of lining fabric to cover up the lower (upper?) edge of the teeth.
I also added sleeves to my design; well with a scarf as part of the shirt I figured it to be more of a winter-y garment, therefore sleeves would be more the go than a sleeveless thing. My sleeves are quite plain, and for a little military/trench coat touch I added tabs with large tortoise-shell buttons. Well, tortoiseshell; they’re actually plastic, but I’m using the term “tortoise-shell” as a description of their colour. I do not advocate depriving a tortoise of its shell in order to provide me with a button, no sirreee.
So, waddya think?
oh oh oh, you may be thinking I’ve forgotten about my son’s birthday sewing, but I haven’t! It was actually finished, and wrapped up and presented to him. Then I thought of a few little improvements, which are now in the works. So when I’ve finished finished, I’ll get him to model it in its really finished state for this ol’ blog here.
