Vintage Vibe

Next on the #sewingrota
A flippy, floaty Summer dress.
With this pattern,

Which I have made before

 This time we went with the mini view.

The fabric is the same as her shorts.
A flowy, soft crepe-like stuff.

I sewed two bias strips for the drawstring tie, a look I have seen popping up in trendy boutiques.
I took up quite a deep hem for better fall and even took the time to hand sew it.
The fabric was surprisingly hard to pierce, thank you Sarvi for my posh sewing needles.

I love it on her!

Elsa is small busted enough not to need a bra but that is not going to happen.
Apparently nipples are disgusting.
Visible underwear however is almost de rigueur for teens.

I don't mind one way or the other.
It has already had an airing and was complimented on in her favourite boutique.
I will take that as a success.

~Elsa's Verdict~
It makes me look like a size 4 (tiny) I think the back looks very  attractive and I am glad we finally used the fabric.

Thank you for reading!
xx Nicole

CityGym CountryGirl

My Twins lurve their PurlSoho CityGym shorts.

And there are many more that I never managed to photograph.

Such a great pattern and it is free!

I sewed this pair up in a pretty, speckled crepe-like fabric that Elsa purchased on our Melbourne fabric shopping trip.
In retrospect I should have sized up using such a delicate fabric.
They are a wee bit firm but as we are coming into Netball season they will not be for long.

The binding was a bit fiddly as the fabric did not want to hold a crease. I ended up pressing and then laying my big Atlas on top of the binding over night.

It is such a nice pattern.
Short enough to satisfy the girls criteria with enough derriere coverage to satisfy mine.

Such a neat, casual look.

~Elsa's Verdict~
I like the fabric, it works with pretty well everything in my wardrobe. I like this pattern, it is casual but I can dress it up with a more formal top.
Next time I have these made in a floaty fabric I will get Mum to size up so they are a bit more floppy.

Thanks for popping by and reading.

xx Nicole 

Sewing Lekala

I have been itching to try these patterns.

And for a first go I think I did okay.

Elsa chose this blazer but rather then a linen (as recommended) she was super keen for wool+suede.
I agreed on the proviso we left off the welt pockets. Too hard with those thick fabrics.
When you purchase your PDF pattern you enter your measurements  and the pattern is made to suit you!
I was pretty excited to try this concept out.

I won't lie, this was a challenging sew.
Elsa has a tiny waist and there was some seriously clipping, pressing and shaping going on.
The suede jacket I recycled wasn't 'proper' suede, just reversed leather and it was pretty rotten to sew and impossible to press, even with a Goddess sheet.
I ended up topstitching everything and it sat okay, not great but okay.
Then, disaster.

The lining pattern is traced from the main minus the facings and I think I may have subtracted the seam allowance instead of adding it?
Or the wool stretched?
Or I just have sleep deprivation?
What ever I did the pretty spotty georgette lining was too skimpy and the jacket wrinkled across the back.

To fix this, I dampened the wool and rolled the bottom up so the outside jacket was slightly to the inside.
I pinned it in place and steamed it and then left it for the weekend before edge stitching the whole lot in place.

It is not perfect but it is wearable.

Elsa also requested elbow patches.... which I didn't position quite right.
Le sigh.

I am wondering if I should have pinched a bit more out of the shoulders?
Or are my shoulder pads a bit big?
It looked very 'blah' without them.....

I am very happy with my first Lekala pattern.
Not a lot of hand holding, I am pleased I had sewn Lidia and Elsa's coats last year as I used all the skills I learned sewing them.
The lining is bagged and I went back to the Lisette blog to double check the method.
Next time I will leave the sleeve lining longer so I can press an ease hem at the sleeve end, or I will use a stretch satin for the lining.

I can definitely see myself sewing these patterns a lot for my girls.

Special thanks to Lara for recommending them to me.

*Elsa's Verdict*
I like the way it shows off my waist. I like that the lining is firmer then the outside fabric because it feels warm and like I am wearing two blankets. ( This surprised me as I felt this was an error but she actually likes it NMK)
Its pretty.
I like the contrast panels. 
I wish we had got the elbow patches closer to my elbows. I may get Mum to unpick them.
If I had it made again I would choose a soft linen. Not because that is what it is meant to be made with, I like my wool one but because I don't need two wool blazers.

Thanks for reading!
xx N

Bye Bye O+S

The last of the little girl sewing.

Lidia, Matilda and Beatrix's turn on the sewing rota.

Bye bye O+S.
Hello Lekala.
But one last show&tell.

An Oliver+S Croquet dress.

I have made both styles before.
I have a step-by-step tute for view A and view B.

This time as a sneaky school uniform.

Lidia's measurements put her in a 12 and that is what I sewed.
I added a cotton webbing badge holder.

And a sneaky Liberty facing.

As it is a school uniform and very hand-me-downable I added a large 6 inch hem.

I also used an elastic loop instead of a thread one, mine always break.
MoP button, of course.

I really really hope this dress makes it under the radar. It looks so nice and quite suitable for a school uniform.

~Lidia's Verdict~
I think my new uniform is beautiful. I love that the collar is decorative. The sash is cute.
I had some comments from girls (at school) that they like it but no one has told me I can't wear it (yet).
If I had another made as a uniform I would prefer the elastic at my waist rather then my hips.
I like it a lot more then my old school uniforms (Butterick basic uniform pattern)
I really like that Mum used my signature Liberty as a facing and a special button.

xx Nicole