jersey Archives - Sew Wrong

Lucinda June 12, 2013

Finished Project: Floral Tiramisu

Pattern: Tiramisu by Cake Patterns
Fabric: Jersey from Metro Textiles in NYC
Size: this round, a 30D for the bodice

Finally, a finished garment! Seriously, it’s been a month since I posted something? Yuck! I blame a) my schedule and Chris’ not matching up well and b) the weather being crappy when there’s an opportunity for him to photograph my garments. I have at least two other projects that have been waiting for a month+ to be photographed, too! According to the poll all of you lovely readers were kind enough to take, you like pattern reviews and finished projects on this lil’ blog, so let’s not mess with a good thing, hmm?

After heeding everyone’s advice (thank you!), I cut out a 30D for the bodice on Tiramisu Deux. It made total sense to cut that size out; it looked like it equated the amount of fabric I removed from under the bust on my first Tira.

I think it worked out much better this time, although it seems to me that the waistband piece should come up higher underneath my bust a la an empire waist style (dude, I look like I have virtually no chest in all of these pics). The funniest thing is that when I went to do the gathers and tried to match the notches of the bodice pieces to the waistband piece, it was apparent that the gathers weren’t necessary since it was making the bodice a smaller size than the waistband. Hah! One less step for me, which was good, since I was having a “stupid sewing” day and had to resew literally every seam at least twice – I kept making stupid mistakes. Also, since I didn’t shorten the bodice pieces like I did the last go-round (aka hack the extra length of the bodice/neckband off), I needed to shorten the neckband by a significant amount – roughly an inch or so – to get the neckband piece to lie flat around the back of the neck. There was some crazy floppage back there beforehand.

On the positive side, this dress got me out of my sewing funk. I think for the past three weeks or so, everything I picked up to start sewing hasn’t really been jiving with me. I didn’t really want to force the issue, so this past weekend I uncovered some fabric I totally forgot I bought last spring in New York, and it clicked in my head that this fabric would make a perfect Tira dress. Problem solved! Now I’ve got my “sewjo” back (pun definitely intended) and can’t wait to tackle some projects that I started but haven’t finished yet.

I’ll probably make this at least one more time…maybe even cut a different bodice size. Possible a B or C instead? For a knit, this pattern is designed with way too much ease and I think the fit could be even better.

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Lucinda January 18, 2013

Pattern Review: Coppelia Cardigan [Papercut Patterns]

Doing my best ballerina pose

Pattern: Coppelia Cardigan from Papercut Patterns
Fabric: Rayon jersey from Metro Textile in NYC
Size: XS with modifications

Tank: Old Navy
Skirt: Tommy Hilfiger

Leggings: Guess
Boots: Sporto
Lipstick: NARS Funny Face

Lauren beat me to it, but here’s my rendition of the fabulous Coppelia Cardi by Papercut Patterns. For those of you not familiar with Papercut Patterns, it’s an indie sewing pattern line based out of New Zealand. The designs are fresh and modern without being too trendy – a lot of the patterns remind me of pieces I covet in the upscale boutiques on Newbury Street in Boston. I can see these patterns getting a lot of rotation in my closet since they’re great wardrobe staples and beyond.

As a side note, when I asked my boyfriend to take pictures of my new cardi, he was confused because he thought I bought this. Yesss, mission accomplished!

Explained in a post earlier this week, I needed to make some size modifications after I finished the cardigan and tried it on for fit. It didn’t fit anywhere as closely as I wanted it to, even though I was making an XS, and I ended up shaving off about two inches from the raglan length and tapered in the sleeve and side seams quite a bit. I could have shortened the sleeves as well since they’re on the long side, but I don’t mind the pushed-up sleeve look. Plus, they keep my hands warm! Lauren mentioned that she took out an inch in the width of the back piece of her cardigan, and I definitely think I could have benefited from doing that alteration as well since I have a small back. For future cardis, since I have a nice white jersey that would be perfect for this pattern, I’ll cut out the XXS and go from there with any pattern alterations.

My favorite way to tie this cardigan shut is by wrapping the ties around the back, like how the model is wearing it on the Papercut Patterns website. I don’t know why it’s so hard for me to understand how to tie wrap tops/dresses/anything, but this was the only way I could get the cardigan to look ok. I don’t really notice the knot in the back when I sit down either, which is a plus.

The pattern was easy to sew together even though the fabric I worked with was fluid and didn’t have a lot of body. I stumbled at the hem facing section of the instructions because a) I was tired and b) logic was not on my side at the time, so if it wasn’t for those two factors, I could have finished this project in an afternoon.

All in all, get this pattern! It’s definitely a “cake” piece and will get lots of wear in your closet with dresses, skirts, and jeans.

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Lucinda March 12, 2012

Vogue 8138 – Three Hour Dress

Pattern: Vogue 8138 (OOP), View C
Fabric: Matte jersey from Gorgeous Fabrics
Size: 10 graded to a 12, with fit modifications

Cardigan: INC
Lipstick: NARS Manhunt

This dress sprung from an idea one night on a train ride home from work. I work in retail, and on that particular day I was in my dress department for most of the day – organizing racks, putting out new merchandise, etc. So while I was sitting on the train, listening to my iPod, I kept thinking about all of the cute spring dresses I was playing with all day and how I really wanted a new dress to wear. As in, to wear to work. Tomorrow. Hmmm….

I ordered a swirly matte jersey from Gorgeous Fabrics a few weeks prior and couldn’t remember what I bought it for – it was probably one of those “ooo I want to put that in my shopping cart!” kind of purchases. One thing I’ve learned about sewing with knits is that simplicity is key: a busy print like this doesn’t demand a complicated garment design. It seemed like a simple pull-over dress would be the right choice, and lucky enough, I had a basic pattern in my collection.

For some reason, I felt it necessary to post on Facebook, ” I’m crazy…sewing a dress tonight to wear to work tomorrow. ” And of course, the follow-up comments were “can’t wait to see!” and “pics plz.” So it was on! People knew and there was no turning back!

Honestly, I can’t remember a time I made something this quickly, and I really think I am the world’s slowest stitcher. The dress is only a two piece tank dress with four seams total: the side seams and shoulder seams. I think the most time consuming part was fitting the dress since my typical cutting mods (10 graded out to a 12 from waist to hip) ended up fitting too loosely, or at least, not how I wanted this dress to fit. I pulled it on, pinned it how I wanted it to fit, and marked stitching lines to take it in. I probably ended up making the top a size 8 and the skirt a size 10 based on how much I took the dress in, but I’m not certain.

So yes, I pulled it off and wore this to work the following day! It was slightly not in dress code (I’m supposed to wear mostly black), but I think I sneaked by because when asked about what I was wearing, I told everyone that I whipped the dress up the previous evening – that was enough to distract from the fact that really, I was out of dress code. A little. Maybe.

This pattern has been hanging out in my stash since 2008 when I first sewed the failed convertible cardigan, a very popular cardigan at the time. It’s nice to go back and resurrect a pattern that didn’t work the first time, kind of like what I did for my Vogue 1020 pattern. Sometimes patterns are worth a second shot, especially if it’s a wardrobe pattern with multiple basic garment options. I can definitely see making this dress again in the summer with a bright floral fabric, or maybe altering the neckline and coming up with an entirely new design. This dud is now a keeper.

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Lucinda October 26, 2011

McCalls 6200 Green Swirl Dress

Pattern: McCall’s 6200

Size: 8/10

Fabric: Rayon jersey from Gorgeous Fabrics

Boots: Nine West

Earrings: M Style Lab

I really wasn’t sure how this pattern was going to turn out. I’m so apprehensive about dresses that are “shaped” with a tie-belt: they can be hit or miss in the fit department. I’ll either love how it drapes and feel super cute and chic in it, or it could be a giant sack and feel like I’m wearing a muumuu. I’m also not a huge fan of line drawings on a pattern envelope since it’s an ideal representation of the pattern and not a realistic interpretation of how it will truly fit. But I thought heck, I’ll give this pattern a shot. At the least, I could make it into a swingy top if I don’t like the dress.

1) Sizing

This pattern was a breeze to sew and went together in a matter of hours. I chose to do View A with the swingy sleeves to bring out the 70’s vibe of my fabric. I did my usual adjustments from bodice to waist, but went down a size in each of these areas: instead of cutting my usual 10/12, I cut out an 8/10. These dresses always seem to have so much ease and I didn’t need this being any larger than necessary. I would strongly advise going down a size in this pattern, I still had room to spare.

2) The Sleeves and Side Seams

I also ignored setting the sleeve in and sewed the sleeve cap in flat using staystitch plus, and then sewed the sleeve seam down through the side seam in one fell swoop.

3) The Neckband

The neckband was a little fussy and I wasn’t crazy about hand sewing the facing to the inside by hand, but it went together ok. I’m really glad there was interfacing for the neckband since it’s so wide to begin with and it really prevents it from stretching out even further. The only thing to be aware of is that if the neckline doesn’t lay across correctly, it will buckle and gape in the back. I also had to adjust my bra straps during the day since they kept showing due to the wideness of the neckband. Maybe lingerie straps wouldn’t be such a bad idea.

4) The Hem

I shortened the hem more than what the pattern called for so that it would look proportionally correct with my boots. The drawing shows the hem hitting at the knee, which didn’t look right on me, so I took the dress up about two inches to get the correct effect.

This is a really easy, basic pattern that would be an excellent pick for a jersey with a large print. I could definitely see making this dress with different sleeve options, maybe incorporating the tie in to the side seams and having it tie in a bow at the back, or using contrasting fabrics for the neck and tie-belt. This pattern is definitely a staple to have in your pattern arsenal.

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Lucinda July 25, 2011

Vogue 1224 Tracy Reese Dress – Encore!

Pattern: Vogue 1224 Tracy Reese

Fabric: Rayon Jersey from Metro Textile, also available at gorgeousfabrics.com

Sandals: Tahari

Earrings: M Style Lab

I loved this pattern so much that I decided to make it again! On my trip last month to New York and my stop at Metro Textile, I bought this amazing knit jersey that Kashi showed me in his studio. At first I thought it was a bit, well…wild and bright for my personal tastes. But being that I am required to wear black for my job five days a week, a pop of color and a splashy print is a welcome addition to my usually neutral wardrobe.

Not really much to elaborate on other than the fact that I love this print and wanted to share it with everyone. For a fabric like this, a simple silhouette is really key: if there was more to the design of the construction, it would be lost due to the nature of the print. Pattern selection to fit the nature of the fabric is just as important as fabric selection to fit the requirements of the pattern.

I used the same mods as before: no drawstring at the neck, just elastic; graded the skirt from a 10 to a 12; added 2″ to the length so that it wasn’t hitting at my thigh. You can read more details about the first dress here: Vogue 1224 Tracy Reese Dress