by hand london Archives

Lucinda September 3, 2014

Finished Project: Lonsdale Dress [Sewaholic Patterns]

Pattern: bodice – Lonsdale by Sewaholic
skirt – By Hand London Charlotte Skirt
Fabric: stretch cotton sateen from Metro Textile
Size: bodice – 4; skirt – 8

Earrings: Charming Charlie
Sandals: Nine West
Sunnies: Tommy Hilfiger

That Sarai, she’s got some great ideas – did you see her white Lonsdale dress a few weeks ago? Pure fabulousness, especially in all white for summer. Sue gave me this pattern last year during the spring sewing swap and I’ve been saving it for just the right fabric; I thought my paisley rayon in my stash would be perfect, but realized just before cutting into it that the paisleys were directional. Darn it! But what I loved about Sarai’s version is how she changed the dress from a flowy skirted number to a form-fitting silhouette. When I considered that design change, I discovered I already had the perfect fabric all along.

I make a point of going into Metro Textile with a focused shopping list of what I need to find, but always walk out with something unexpected that I’m not sure what I’ll end up using it for…such is the case with this fabric from my last shopping trip. “Buy three yards, make a dress,” Kashi said. Those three yards were exactly what I needed to make this dress, what luck! I love the body and weight of this cotton sateen, and with the little bit of stretch, it doesn’t wrinkle at all and makes the skirt easy to sit and move in.

So how did I go about making this pattern hack? Well, I didn’t have the confidence or pattern drafting abilities that Sarai has to alter the original skirt pattern for the Lonsdale dress – it was on the bias, a-line…didn’t want to touch that puppy and risk screwing up. Instead, I turned to my trusty and beloved Charlotte skirt pattern. The waist of the Charlotte skirt measured the same as the Lonsdale bodice in my size, so it was a no-brainer to go that route instead of drafting my own pencil skirt. What I did end up drafting was the curved pocket, to emulate the pockets on the original Lonsdale skirt…I do love me some pockets in my skirts and dresses.

The pocket drafting was pretty simple: I copied the curve of the original Lonsdale pocket onto my Charlotte skirt pattern (traced, of course) to get a general shape, and tweaked it a little to fit the shape of the sides of the skirt. I also took the original pocket pattern piece of the Lonsdale dress, altered the curve, and shrank it down slightly since I was worried that the original pockets would be too big for a tight fitting skirt. Easy-peasy change, and now I can make my future Charlotte skirts with pockets!

With the fabric being a bit stiff, it’s easier just to knot the ties instead of tie them into a bow. I think the straps are my favorite detail, they make the dress so different than other patterns out there and RTW dresses. This is why sewing is awesome!!

Ok, I had to include this shot – Chris took pictures, unbeknownst to me, of me peeking through a crack in the fence at the horses next door and I couldn’t stop laughing!

Well, that’s my last garment of the summer. I finished this a few week’s ago to wear to a party with Chris and his family, and now I’m tucking it away until our winter vacation somewhere warm in January (I hope!!). So far for 2014, this dress just may be my favorite garment of the year…but I have a long list of garments to make for the balance of the year, so who knows!!

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Lucinda March 12, 2014

Pattern Review: Elisa-lotte Dress [By Hand London]

Pattern: Elisalex Dress and Charlotte Skirt combo from By Hand London
Fabric: stretch cotton from Metro Textiles
Size: Bodice – US 6; Skirt – US 8

Originally, I planned on making the new Georgia Dress by the BHL ladies for vacation, but I got a bad cold one week and it completely fouled up my vacation sewing plans. I knew the Georgia Dress was going to require a bit of time to fit, and time wasn’t on my side, so instead I turned to a dress pattern I’ve been clinging to for awhile: the Elisalex Dress. I knew the simple princess seam bodice would be easy to fit, and it was!

I cut out the lining first and used it for a test fit to see if I would need to make any fit adjustments. At first, I thought the 6 would be fine since the bodice would hit above my waist. When I pinned the bodice shut in the back, (do you know how hard that is to do on yourself??) I could tell I needed some more room and graded out the last two inches of the bodice to a size 8, which corresponded with the skirt that would attach.

The skirt attached perfectly to the bodice. I didn’t bother moving the darts to align with the princess seams because of the busy print, but I would consider it if I used a solid fabric or smaller print. What I found to be interesting about making the skirt this time, and I’ve made quite a few already, is that I had to take the sides in quite a bit! I’m not sure if it had to do with the fact that the fabric I used had some stretch in it, but when I tried the dress on once it was sewn to the bodice, it wasn’t nearly as fitted as I wanted. To get it to fit, I took off roughly the equivalent of the seam allowances. Weird, huh?

Also reflecting back on the skirt, I think I should redraft the darts on subsequent garments – maybe take them in a little more. The skirt is designed for a gal with more hips than me, so there’s a good amount of room in the pelvis that I should try to get rid of. However, it is helpful for eating big meals, like the dinner I had wearing this dress at the Hard Rock Cafe!

The back is my favorite part! The scoop adds a little bit of “back interest” to this somewhat demure sheath dress. I made sure to understitch the neckline and underarm of the bodice to keep the lining from rolling out, instead of topstitching as the pattern suggests.

Obligatory high fashion pose! You know how those models hunch and round their backs for those designer photo shoots, hahahaha. Anyway, I feel so chic in this dress, and can’t wait to wear it more this spring and summer.

By Hand London gals, a big kiss from me to you! Keep those fantastic patterns coming.

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Lucinda February 27, 2014

Packing For Vacation

If you’re wondering why it’s been a little quiet over here in the last week, it’s because I’ve been busy cranking out new stuff for vacation! If you follow me on Instagram, you’ve seen that I finished two bikinis, a coverup, and an Elisa-lotte dress in the last two weeks. Sewing for warm weather has definitely helped me beat the winter-blahs lately, and I think when we get back from sunny Florida, I’m going to start to sew my spring wardrobe. I’m SO over this cold and snow, enough already! Hand me a margarita already and I’ll be good to go.

See you next week!
(PS: I’ll be posting pool-side pics on Insta this weekend fo’ sho’)

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Lucinda September 21, 2013

Pattern Review: Victoria Blazer [By Hand London]

Pattern: Victoria Blazer from By Hand London
Fabric: Shell – cotton sateen from Grey’s Fabric Lining – poly charmeuse from Joann’s
Size: 4

Shirt: Lucky Brand
Jeans: Mek Denim
Flats: Michael Kors
Shades: Tommy Hilfiger

Green is my favorite color, so it was a no-brainer to make this blazer out of a green cotton sateen I spotted at Grey’s when I went fabric shopping with my friends (Ana bought the same fabric but in a gold color to make her own version).

I don’t have a whole lot to say about this blazer since I’m not crazy about it. I love the colors and it was easy to put together, but I’m not too sure if it’s “me” or not.

I totally lucked out on the lining, I found it in the remnant bin at Joann Fabrics for $5. I decided to fully line the jacket so it would be easy to take on and off.

Even though the pattern didn’t call for interfacing, I wish it had. I kept obsessing over pressing and pressing the collar and lapels, trying to get them to stay crisp and flat. Do BHL patterns just not call for interfacing? I only made the Charlotte skirt so far, and was also surprised that there was no requirement for interfacing in the waistband. I also kicked myself for not understitching after I attached the lining to the jacket. Again, not called for in the instructions, and it bothers me that the lining rolls out from time to time and can be seen along the blazer lapels and bottom hem. I was surprised that that wasn’t a construction step, but I’m also mad that I didn’t think to do it myself. Again, something else that I’m not happy about with this blazer.

If I was to make another one, I’d probably omit the pockets – they’re not the type of pockets that you can put your hands in and walk around, they’re set back a little too far.

I’m not sure if this jacket is exactly my style, especially at this length – I feel like it was one of those patterns that everyone was making so I decided to as well. I’m more of a structured, pulled-together kinda gal, and this blazer has a very casual, sloppy kind of feel to it. Perhaps if I did a shorter length with the above mods I would get a different result. Now that I’ve made one blazer, I don’t have any fear about sewing a more complicated jacket pattern down the road.

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Lucinda July 5, 2013

Pattern Review: BHL Charlotte Skirt and Simplicity 1665 [Sailboat Suit]

Patterns:
Skirt – By Hand London Charlotte; size US 8
Bolero – Simplicity 1665; size 10
Fabric: Dear Stella home dec fabric from Fabric Place Basement (also available here)

Tee: Alternative Apparel
Flats: Sperry

Maybe it was the sudden turn in the temperatures recently that had me feeling like it was finally summer, but I finished my sailboat suit! In case you haven’t been following along, the idea came to me back in April when I saw the promo pics of the BHL Victoria Blazer. I immediately coveted a cropped version of the blazer paired with the Charlotte skirt made up in a flamingo print cotton. Since “impatient” is my middle name, I couldn’t wait for the pattern to be released and ran out to find a pattern similar to the blazer as well as a funky fabric to pair with it. What could be more appropriate to wear in New England than sailboats???

The Bolero

When it came down to it, I was essentially looking for a bolero-type jacket pattern for my suit. What I love about Simplicity 1665 is the interesting two-piece neckband and hem band that makes the bolero more special than other simple cropped jackets. It was really easy to sew and I could have finished it a lot faster had I not been distracted by other sewing projects – I swear I’m a magpie when it comes to sewing; something else catches my eye and I end up jumping to another project mid-construction.

For a fun pop of color, I used green bias tape for a Hong Kong seam finish along most of the seams of the bolero since it’s unlined – when there’s a breeze, the inside of the jacket is visible. I was afraid that the bias tape would make the underarm/side seams a little bulky, so I just pinked them instead.

The Skirt

Actually, this was the second time I made the BHL Charlotte skirt; the first version I have yet to blog. From my first version, which I shortened to be a mini-skirt (it’s a little too mini for my liking), I had an idea of how much to shorten the skirt so that I could get a length that wouldn’t be too short to sit in. I have to admit: this still hikes up quite a bit when I sit. Technically, according to the pattern measurements, I should have cut out an 8 for the waist and a 6 for the hips. But what I like about the fit of the straight 8 skirt is that even though it’s fitted, it’s still roomy in the hips and quite comfortable to sit in because of the ease in the hips. There’s a little bit of pooling of fabric in the abdomen, which wouldn’t have been as present if I cut a 6 for the hips, but I don’t notice it that much.

The waistband is a simple rectangle that overlaps in the back; I used a snap to attach the waistband piece together but it probably would have been more prudent to use two large hooks and eyes instead. Eh, it’s what I had kicking around. Maybe in future renditions I’ll interface the waistband to make it stand up a little better.

Seriously, BHL ladies, how is it that you created something so simple that fits so well?! I love me a high waisted skirt, and this is now my go-to pencil skirt pattern in my closet.

The Fabric

Seriously, this has been my favorite find to date at my local fabric haunt, Fabric Place Basement. I went in looking for fabric for a Sultry Sheath dress and as I wandered through some of the home dec aisles, I came across this sailboat print by Dear Stella that was too perfect to pass up. I worked with home dec fabric in the past for garments, (skirts I have yet to post, yeesh) and what I liked about this particular weave is the soft drape that wasn’t like other stiff home dec fabrics. I threw a test swatch into the wash before I laundered the yardage and measured only minimal shrinkage. I’m thinking this isn’t going to be an outfit that gets washed a lot, at least not the jacket, but I’m not too worried about it holding up in cold water in the machine (hang dry).

All in all, if you haven’t made the Charlotte skirt, run over to byhandlondon.com and get a copy now! Those ladies are freakin’ brilliant.