Burda Style dress 125, 03/2002Burda Style dress 125, 03/2002

 I have decided to eliminate as much stashed fabric as I can, so instead of my usual tactic, which is find a nice pattern and then find something from the stash to use to make it, I am now pulling out season-suitable fabrics and using all of it. This does mean lots of co-ordinating items in identical fabrics which is good and bad depending on your view.

Since I probably have enough stashed fabric to get me through the rest of my life without buying anything this seems the way to go. It gets rid of huge amounts in a few weeks. I started with the glitter grey sweatshirting a while ago and cut several items and I still have two other items to sew up after this dress.

The downside: well its very unlikely I will come accross this kind of fabric at a bargain basement price again. I actually bought 12m of this so its been going for a while. Its the second lot of grey glitter sweatshirting I bought. I used the paler fabric a few years ago and because I enjoyed the tracksuits I made so much I bought this bolt of 12m. I then made a couple of tracksuits but the rest has been sitting there ever since. I had at least 6m of this in the piece of fabric I pulled out of my stash, but its now cut and being sewn.

 I will be making another pair of track pants - slightly different to my previous versions but still using the same pattern as a base in the next couple of weeks and also another dress. Thats a lot of warm winter clothes though and will keep me happy I expect for this winter. That frees me up to make some more glamourous and also practical stuff - like finally finish the hand sewing on the coat I started last year. I am also altering that slightly but more once thats done and I can finally wear the thing. Its not too cold as yet which is lucky for me because I will need that coat once it is.

In the meantime I have made this dress. Its model Burda Style dress 125, 03/2002. I made it before but in a far thinner fabric. That one has always seemed too thin but it actually worked better in many ways.

Neck version one -needed alterations

When making this I cut as I said several items and because of this I made the tube neck much shorter. The burda directions give a very long tube neck. I was sure when sewing this up that the front neck line was just a bit too high. I cannot find the old version to compare if i just traced it wrong. I started to pack to move house 3 years ago and the first dress is somewhere in a  box. I do not want to be unpacking stuff so its going to move with us and I will decide after I unpack if I still want it. Anyway its not around to have a look at so I need to go by the magazine not what I did previously. 

Neck version two- cannot see the inside seam!

I had some issues with the fit of the neck here as I will explain:

 

So the tube neck on this is shorter than my black faux suede dress. Its probably best like that because the sweatshirting is far more bulky than the black faux suede. 

I think it may not be comfortable if the huge tube neck was doubled and so long a tube as the pattern dictates. Either way I do not have enough offcuts of sweatshirting for such a massive tube neck so this is smaller. 

But as you can see from the photos this neck ( as above photo of neck version 1) is really very high at the front and you can see the inside seam which I did not like.

The neck just kind of hangs down.

Yes I was very much not happy with the neck hence the face!

 So I re-did the neck - at front only so a bit of a bodge really but only I will see the inside of this and it also meant I was less likely to reck it if I only altered it slightly because this was difficult to sew. 

And at this point I will say, I began sewing this with my Janome 9300dx overlocker.

I love that machine but I relatively recently bought a new one which is the Brother 4234D. Now the Brother is supposed to be easier to thread. For me its an absolute pig and I never so far managed to thread the thing. I always get someone else to do this for me. And really thats so far from ideal its just awful. I just cannot get it to chain when I do it and  have no idea why. The Janome is fiddly but I always manage to successfully thread that so I have previously slagged off the Brother machine but when faced with 6 layers of sweatshirting my Janome could not do it and I nearly recked the garment. The six layers are at the shoulders where the tube neck joins.  I swapped to the Brother and it made such easy work of it, its definitely worth having. I still prefer my Janome even though its old and the cutters continually go out of line meaning I have to fix it - thanks YouTube for being so helpful!

Anyway, the Brother finally came into its own for this dress.

And end result?

Fixed the neck.

Well its very 60s really with the weird sleeve seams (which I have to say I do not like) so sleeves are in two parts like a jacket rather than a dress. 

Sleeves could accommodate shoulder pads!

 Or maybe even 80s because you could easily accommodate shoulder pads here and I took the sleeve seam in as far as I dared without risking recking the dress. Perhaps the oversized shoulders will wear in?

I also added cuffs to lengthen the sleeves - possibly slightly too much. Perhaps I should have also added thumb holes? Hmm not sure. I do not like short sleeves ( unless they are actually meant to be short). I prefer a longer sleeve but maybe this is slightly too long? Its ok when the cuffs are turned back though.

And despite the sleeves, I like the end result. It does have a very 60s feel and the neck ended up more as a collared boat neck but thats actually something I very much love so thats ok. If I make this again I will alter the sleeves but otherwise I will be wearing this a lot over this winter I expect and its so cosy.

Have a great week and hope to see you soon,

Bracken

Emergency Halloween trick or treat bags

Apologies if you read this a few days ago when I posted it. For some reason the photo corrupted. It was ok to view on a mobile but was not there on a PC. I am not at all technical so no idea what I did or did not do but its hopefully now fixed.

 

These were very fast Halloween bags for trick or treat.

The costumes were all sorted and only then was the realisation that we had no trick or treat bags.

So what to do?

Years ago I made a top which had skulls all over it. I realised if I hacked off the sleeves, sewed them across the bottom and added a ribbon strap then we have two small bags.

The edge of the sleeves was decorated with ribbon as a casing and elastic which I decided to leave alone because small children can easily put their hands in and hopefully it will mean they are less likely to tip the bags up and lose the contents. 

So this was really an emergency fix but it's worked out to be two very good little bags. Or so we all thought anyway and the Halloween outfits are all sorted after all.

Have a great Halloween

Bracken 

Black mesh multi media top

 

I have had this piece of mesh fabric fo years. I bought it from a seller in China and to be honest I got ripped off. It was off Ebay. Generally I do ok with Ebay but this was one of the not so good times. I would have cost too much to send back so I just kept the piece of fabric. I was ripped off cos it was meant to be 2m. I got 2 seperate pieces that were each about half a metre. So anyway - into the fabric stash they went. 

But then I found them and realised they would work well as a top layer over my thin black jersey that I used for my  high low nighties (which incidentally the back seam has now worn in and is flat and looks nice. I will have to remember to get a new photo and update that post.)

So this is a TNT pattern - so very fast to make. Its easy and I simply cut extra long sleeves because thats how I like them and cut the body front and back twice. Once in mesh and once in very thin stretch black jersey. The sleeves are also the same jersey.

I overlocked the black lining layer and left it at that though I did make sure it is slightly shorter than the top mesh layer.  I overlocked the edge of the mesh layer too and then sewed the body up at the shoulders. The hems were slightly tricky in that you need to measure and remeasure before seewing up the side seams because they have seperate hems and they need to line up to eachother to look ok but otherwise this was a very easy to make top.

The end result is a very lightweight and surprisingly warm winter top that will go with lots in my wardrobe. Its actually very cosy maybe because of that old fashioned string vest effect. They were supposed to be warm. 

I overlocked and twin needle hemmed the sleeves and round the neck. You can see the neck though its not shown to best effect due to me wearing over a base layer but I will have to get a better picture of this I think. You can see the neck anyway.

I think this will be a nice basic and slightly fancy top for my autumn winter look and being black is easy to wear with just about anything.

The pattern is Butterick 5562. Its the view with the huge fancy top collar but I just leave that off and you have a nice boatneck basic top. I have made most of the different views on this particular pattern and its a very nice basic tops pattern which I would recommend if you were after such a thing. 

The trousers are my most recent Camo version of the Lekala Sports trousers. 

Thanks for popping by,

Take care

Bracken

Halloween doormat

 

For some reason my original photo of this somehow corrupted so I have updated and hopefully this photo will work.

 

This is not a post about making anything but I just wanted to show you my new doormat. 

It's from Ikea so there will be millions of them but it's affordable and will at least in my house long outlast Halloween.

I just think this is so cool!

Have a lovely week,

Bracken

Short camo skirt Burda Style magazine Model 121 Burda Style 02/2011

I bought this Burda download in 2013 and never used it. I printed the pattern out the day I bought it so November 2013, I sorted the fabric for it about 3 years ago and put the pattern together 5 years ago. Buts it has just never been the right time to make this. Really like everyone I am getting older and I decided if I am ever ever going to wear this I really must get round to making it so here is a short scuba camoflage skirt with side pockets. Its quite on trend despite its an old pattern. And right this minute I feel ok wearing this.Maybe in 2 years I will feel too old. Who knows?

In fact my first attempt at this skirt as you can see in the first few photos was not quite right. I skipped over a zip because my fabric is stretchy and I really did not need one. I just added the facing. Thats a mistake. And thats after I spent a couple of days going through my huge pile of zips for the right one to use. Still its something I can use on a different item so will not be wasted. It would have been a waste using it for this skirt because it just does not need it.

However!!! it falls down! I kept hitching it up for these photos and after wards took it off because it was annoying me. It hangs wrong due to not sitting quite right due to being constantly hitched back to where it should be so I will be adding some wide hidden elastic inside the facing in the near future and we will see how that works. So there will be some later photos of this once I get this fixed.

I love the front pleat though partner says it looks like shorts.

Here again you can see the skirt is falling down.

Well as a sewist I will fix it but I thought I would show you this before I do because its always inspiring to know you are not alone when this type of thing happens and you are a sewist. It happens to everyone but it can be fixed.
I actually think this is going to be a really nice garment once I sort it out.

And I love the huge pockets which were so easy to sew. Though they are not expanding. It would be so easy to add expanding pockets though so maybe on a different version.

So thanks for popping over to visit and I wish you a happy week,

Take care

Bracken

 

Finally completed - grey green mohair jumper

 I started this jumper ages ago. Well February 2023 to be precise. Its taken me absolutely ages to finish this. Or even to get into knitting this.

It was started as a summery beach jumper but its evolved into a winter one instead.

I got a bit bored towards the end so finished the sleeves just in a grey band at the top. That was after I added stripes to the baby bunny jumper and I liked it so much, so this time I just kind of did it in reverse on this green one.

I did not actually try this on until we took the photos so I never knew if it was going to fit.

I decided on a roll neck which is so easy I must do this one again. I think it will be nice and soft and comfy to wear as well.

Its a lovely jumper, though as I often do, I made the sleeves a bit long. Not really a bad thing but they do tend towards not looking as smart as they might and I do like to double my clothing for both work and play to get as much wear as I can from things. Thats new actually. I used to keep the two worlds separate. Maybe its an old age thing to just become who you truly are all the time? 

Still its a lovely comfy jumper now I finally finished this.

The issue with this one was its just so boring to knit. I just could not get interested in it. I actually prefer this kind of plainer knit to arans etc but doubt I will even attempt another for a long while. 

I find arans so interesting - absorbing- is probably the right word. And so they are easy to knit ( for me). This kind of supposedly easy knit is a real bore. As such I just took an absolute age to finish it.

But now it is actually finished and I love it. When my parter took the photos he even commented on how its nothing like I usually make. Its just not. But it is what I would buy in a shop should I choose to pay for a hand knit. I do like arans and lace but this is just an easy to wear top and so its perfect for my current mix of clothing. It will go with most things. But will I start another? Not I think for 20 to 30 years. Its just too boring. So the next jumper will definitely be another aran. My own design I expect and this time I want to sort out the pattern properly so it makes sense to other knitters and maybe then I can even consider adding it to Ravelry. 

In the meantime I will very much enjoy this new plain jumper, savouring its plainness and loving it for its low key colours. But onwards I think to something more inspiring and bright. I have a storage chest full of interestingly bright mohairs/ fluffy yarns so thats what I will be knitting. 

Though I have also started a top down kids jumper which I hope will get finished. Its my first attempt at a top down so we will see how that one pans out.

Have a great week

Bracken

Blue brocade flares

I cut these out last Spring but never sewed them up. 

Does that make them a UFO?

Maybe! They have sat around for ages really. How long do you need to store a cut out half finished item for it to become a UFO? After all it is still an unfinished object!

The fabric is actually bengaline so it has stretch and so these ought to be comfortable.

I added a yoke to the waistband because these are made using a yoga pants pattern and they are low waisted if made in a woven. They come out with a higher waist if using jersey.

I did similar with my grey (bengaline?) trousers I made a few months ago and they have turned out to be very comfortable and I have enjoyed wearing them.

 These will be good for Autumn on nicer days and add a small bit of glamour to my otherwise pretty boring winter wardrobe so far. And of course they are also ok for work which is a bonus.

 

The grey trousers are trimmed with the selvedge fabric from this brocade so they are quite similar though look very different to each other.

I am hoping this pair is as much as a success as the grey ones. They will update my Autumn wardrobe a bit anyway and this blue almost looks like denim so should be easy to carry off while the fact they are brocade adds a bit of luxury and style.

Thanks for visiting my blog and hope to see you again soon. Have a great week,

Bracken

Armlets free pattern

 

These are really a pattern trial. I have owned a (free) download of this pattern for several years and never got round to using it. It's from Feyr Trade and is still free. Anyway I decided rather than just make tube style armlets for this winter I would try out a pattern for them. I have successfully made these previously with no pattern, but it does mean fiddling around more to get them to fit. If you have a proper pattern it's much faster and far less faffle to make this kind of thing - as I have now found out!

These armlets are going to keep me warm when out and about in winter and I have short sleeves on.

They really do work!

You can see them here with my green dress, and they will, I think make it much more wearable and easier to layer this autumn and winter. 

The fabric was a pair of ill-fitting leggings I bought off the local market about 10 years ago and because I only wore them a couple of times due to the truly terrible fit the fabric is as new. These leggings really were an example of bad clothing found in the worst markets. The sort of thing people think represents market clothing, though in my own experience there are lots of really nice decently made clothes found on market stalls, but anyway these leggings are a perfect example of the bad stuff you find in such places. So why keep them so long I hear you say?

Well the fabric is really nice and it's a nice fabric for my armlets so finally those leggings were worth keeping.

 

I have actually overlocked the edge off one of these since the photos were taken when I realised one mitt was slightly longer than the other. They are now the same length but you will have to take my word for that. I doubt I will get round to more photos of these very soon.

Have a great week, and thanks for popping by. Hope to see you again soon, 

Take care

Bracken

Hand knit socks for aged 2-3 years using the Winwick Mum pattern for childs socks.

 

These are my latest version of socks from the Winwick Mum sock patterns. This is a free pattern for childrens socks and its really good. When I finished these I was convinced they would be huge on our small person but actually they are only slightly too big, so as the Winwick Mum says in this pattern -  children often have bigger feet than you think they do!

These were really knitted so small child can go out on a toddler trundle to a local country park and keep warm this winter. He tried them for the first time this week and they seemed to be good. Its not yet very cold but will be over the next few months and his Mum wants him to do outsidey stuff not just to go to indoor play groups. He seems to enjoy outdooŕs stuff as well, and is currently obsessed with going out in the garden every day, even when it rains. 

Because these are a little big ( and so are his wellies!) he has worn them over normal socks so far but they make the wellies a better fit so he falls over much less too, so thats an added bonus.

I am afraid there are no photos of said small person because he is not going on any social media until he decides to himself, but you can see the size difference with my own socks here:

The yarn is "Silent Night"4ply from West Yorkshire Spinners and is left over from my own socks. It has glitter but is otherwise shades of blue and a very nice yarn.

Our own small person is male but he seems to love the glitter and because he is so young he is as yet uninfluenced by nasty people telling him boys cannot wear glitter! 

So sad how our children get conditioned even when we try so hard not to do this. 

I now need a new knitting project. I knitted these at the same time as my green jumper which was started so long ago.

It's finished except for the neck and sewing up. But I finished the last sleeve just yesterday. Hopefully I will get the rest done before it gets much colder. 

Take care and have a great week,

Bracken.

Two black high low tops - copying RTW

This story begins back in 2013 when I went back to UNI to do my PhD. I had not been a student for years and felt really out of place in my officey work clothes, so what to do? 

Go shopping and buy some new stuff!

Well I as usual bought mostly black, but amongst the new clothes was a very nice high low dress. At that time the term "high-low" and the concept of it was relatively new. Although this style had been around at least since the 1970s, but that was before my time, and for me also this was new, and I loved it. So anyway, I bought this (then) very nice new dress.  

So these tops are a copy of a RTW dress I bought back in 2013 ( for £20) and that is now in holes. The original dress ended up used as a winter nighty more than a dress, but it has been much loved. And is now really rather worn out as you can see from these photos.

Its got a kind of burn out cross in the original fabric. 

This is the old dress:

 

And this is one of the new ones:

I could not find any cross or skull fabric for these so went just with plain very thin black jersey. The fabric is £1.00 /m and both pieces have a slight slubbed look. I can make more of these or maybe just plain Ts from the rest of this fabric, because there is still about 3m left ( in 2 bits) they are actually slightly different fabrics but thats fine. Both are from Pound Fabrics (UK) and in both cases there was a minimum order of 3m but at £1 a meter who cares. 

 

Its easy to sew though has puckered slightly down the back seams but that it irons flat and I think should wear in eventually once I wear them. And of course I will probably also wear these in bed so who cares.

I could have gone with a CB fold and that would have been neater and less to sew up, but you get much more out of the fabric garment wise with the CB seam and the original had a CB seam so why not?

Well, maybe cos it would hang better without a CB seam?

I actually hurt my self a few weeks ago - well I dislocated and broke a toe - so sewing has been difficult hence I made virtually nothing over the last few weeks and thats why my blogging has been so sparse lately. Really I am amazed how much a small digit can get in the way of normal life. I would not have believed the smallest toe on one foot being broken would mean I find it too painful to sew. Its my machine pedal foot though and it was shear agony so I had to just give up for a while. I find it very difficult to sew using the other foot.

Anyway it still hurts but I can do things again now so I made these two tops. They have been on my to do list for a year or so but I was looking for a pattern. In the end I ad libbed. There is no actual pattern. I simply folded my RTW top and cut round the relevant parts. The sleeves were the most difficult and I had to cut quite a bit off the sleeve head to make them fit but having sorted one I just cut the other 3 to match ( using the bit I cut off as a guide for the other sleeves) and then sewed up both garments and here they are:

I am really very pleased with these dresses. I only actually hemmed the one and it did need pressing to look right.

This one has no hems ( yet - I have not yet decided whether to hem or just leave as it is). Its just overlocked on the edges.

The other is currently just overlocked but I may yet add a hem. I am undecided. I really like plain overlocking, but it would probably last longer with an actual hem.  Both have T shirt necks with a small strip to finish them. I did the neck different widths on purpose because I am not sure which I will prefer. Depending on how they feel when worn will probably dictate future neck widths on other tops. I doubt I will bother to alter these though.

 The two new tops also have much longer sleeves so I can pull them over my hands when I want to. I tend to get arthritus in my hands so sleep recently with them covered and have really taken to wrapping up my hands in tubes such as old socks so its probably time to just make some very long sleeves. I do own mitts but I find I wake with the thumb over the hand anyway because that is warmer and the difference in how my hands work in the morning if I sleep with them covered is immense so this is for now the way to go I think.

 

Have a great week and thanks for popping by,

Bracken