Simplicity 1609

Hi, everybody!  Things have been a bit slow here since I've been away a lot this summer.  Here is a cute little dress I made a month or two ago and have worn a bunch to church.  The inspiration was this blue dress from the Lily Pulitzer for Target collection last spring.

The fabric is a textured cotton I got at Pennie Fabrics in Sarasota.  It has a bit of stretch to it, too, which is nice. 

The pattern is Simplicity 1609.  I'm surprised how well this fits with the darts.  It skims like a princess seam shift.  It looks like it's may be a little snug in back but it doesn't feel that way.  Might just be how it's hanging after several hours of wearing.

The trim on the front is three pieces of lace and some ribbon from JoAnn's, which I hand stitched to the front piece before sewing anything together.

I'm not sure when the next post will be.  No sewing happening due to vacation, but I have been knitting quite a bit! :-)

Candlelit Shawl

So this little shawl was a LONG time in the making.  I determined that my fingers don't really like knitting laceweight yarn, so after I knit the one other skein I have, I'll be sticking to fingering weight for a while.  I did get more used to it as I went on, finding I could knit for longer periods of time before my hands cramped.

The yarn is really lovely.  It's Interlacements Soya in the leaf green color, 50% silk and 50% soy.  I'm sure the silk didn't help the hands feel better either.

This is basically Helen Stewart's Candlelit Shawl with no beads and a garter stitch bottom edging for a little weight and to use up the rest of my yarn.

I knit this little shawlette as a gift for my Nana (grandmother) and gave it to her on my recent visit north.  She seemed to really like it and said later that she received many compliments at dinner.  :-)  I learned to knit mostly from online tutorials, but my Nana is the one who got me started crocheting as a kid, and she helped me early on with my knitting whenever I ran into questions.

Verdure Shawlette by Fluffy Fibers

Pretty crummy pics, but you get the idea.  :-)  This is the Verdure Shawlette by Fluffy Fibers.  The yarn is 2 balls of Berroco Folio.  I'm still trying to figure the best way to wear this.  I wore it to church with this white dress and kind of wrapped around my neck like a scarf.  This was a very fun and satisfying little knit.  :-)

McCalls 7152

This past weekend, I was in need of a quick knit project.  I've been working on my Lilly Pulitzer for Target-inspired Simplicity 1609  for a while and just needed a zipper to complete it, but I was not about to head out to JoAnn's on a weekend just for that.

Enter McCalls 7152 and various knit fabrics found in the stash.  First, I decided to make a top with some blue and white striped cotton knit I bought a local fabric store Gigi's Fabric Shop*.  Then, I thought that actually a t-shirt dress would be nice.  Then, I realized I didn't have enough fabric for that plan.  Then, I remembered this pattern that I picked up this pattern on a whim a few months ago and found some white cotton knit laying around.

 This is a very straight-forward pattern.  The instructions are SUPER-detailed and are definitely written with beginners in mind.  I'm happy to think that some newer sewers could get a great result.

 I sized down from the recommendation based on my measurements fora  more fitted dress.  I should have just started with a larger size, though, because the armholes are a bit snug.  If I make this again, or use the other view, I will fix that.  Also, the darts are maybe a smidgen high.  They add great shape, though.

 This design has a yoke inside for a clean look on the outside.  Since my upper fabric is white, I changed the shape of the inside yoke to match the straight line of the outside white part.  Otherwise, the a shadow of the shape of the yoke would have shown through on the outside.  Make sense?  This wouldn't be a problem with a darker color, though.

 I found these buttons in my button jar.  I love it when stuff works out like that!  I sewed buttonholes but didn't cut them open.  I just sewed the buttons on top.  I don't need them to be functional, and now I never have to worry about them gaping open or looking sloppy.

When I started this dress, I thought it would make a nice swimsuit cover-up.  I still think that, but I loved wearing this dress all day.  I was a little worried I would be uncomfortable with the thin, t-shirt type of knit, but I was fine.  I received several compliments, too, so I'll definitely be wearing this often this summer.  So comfortable and stylish!

* For anyone local and interested - Gigi Fabric Shop has mostly quilting cottons, but there are a few knits and other garment fabrics.  I bought the cotton lawn for this skirt there.  They also have some independent sewing patterns and notions, and the owner is super sweet and helpful.

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Simplicity 1355

Well, I didn't get around to recording a podcast this week, but there will definitely be one next Friday, probably with another interview with the two short people in my life.

For now, though, here is Simplicity 1355, my surprisingly comfortable and practical playsuit/romper.  I've heard these shorts jumpsuits called both playsuits and rompers.  I'm not sure if it's a geography thing, and each is equally infantile, so call it what you will.

The pleated detail at the shoulder straps is what drew me to the pattern. It's very similar to this dress.

The fabric is a mid-weight cotton with a touch of stretch.  I got it at Pennie Fabrics in Sarasota.  It looks like chambray but has more body.

 I tried wearing a few different belts from my closet, but the self-fabric belt is my favorite look.  This is the first time I've ever made thread loops.  Go figure.  The process is described well in the pattern.  They aren't difficult and were less time consuming than I feared.

 I used a contrasting quilting cotton from my stash for the facings and pocket bags.  I wasn't going to tack the center back together where they cross over, but the heavier fabric billowed out unattractively, so I sewed it shut.  I still think it could be really cute in a lightweight fabric.

The fit on this is perfect, right out of the envelope.  I am slightly taller than average (5'6") and was worried I'd get the dreaded wedgie look, but most of my height is in my legs, not my torso, so the fit is fine.  Without the belt, this is not an attractive look.  The thick fabric doesn't hug the body at all around the waist, but that makes it very comfortable to wear as long as the belt isn't tight.

I actually think I might like to make another in something lighter weight.  I think this would be so fun in a rayon batik like this.  I'm not sure how often I would actually wear it, though.

Podcast 13: Almost There

SHOWNOTES

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      JennyAnne on Ravelry
      JennyAnne on Artisan's Square

Life

Goodies - O-wool
                          Shadow
                          Levenwick
                          Arlo
                          Gramps Cardigan but Tin Can Knits DOES also have one called Gramps
                          Vika
                Jane Richmond on Ravelry
                          Sedum - sorry I think I actually forgot to say the name of that first one!
                          Spate
                          Betsy

New to the Queue - Focus Dress
                                Making Waves Cardigan
                                ObLaDi
                                Montagne
                                Julissa
                                Twylem - I didn't say the name of this one either.  Must do better.                
                                Ardelise
                                Liesl

Sewing - Simplicity 1355
                   
            Simplicity 1609

                         Lily Pulitzer for Target
                Alabama Chanin dress

                 

Knitting - Mom's Hitofude

                 Verdure Shawlette

                    

Scoop-necked Cap Sleeve Lattice Top

This top is mostly the Cap Sleeve Lattice Top, offered free from Purl Soho.

I quickly realized I probably didn't have enough yarn for the whole top, though, so I added a deep scoop neck and left it a bit shorter than I would have otherwise.

 As seems to be the case often lately, this turned out a little bigger than I had planned.  I really need to size down and allow the knitted fabric to stretch with my body.  I think I was spooked by this top, which is a bit snug.

 Anyway, I like how it looks layered over a longer cami.  I wore it today with these cropped pants. I've been avoiding wearing these pants since one of the waistband hooks had come loose.  5 minutes and I fixed that.  I forgot how much I like the fit of these and the fact that they stay up.  This would have been a perfect Me-Made-May outfit.  :-)

 I really enjoy the feel of this cotton, Bio-Sesia.  It is very soft, not that crisp, straw-like feel I sometimes associate with 100% cotton yarn.  This is super comfortable to wear and really feels like a tee shirt.  I would definitely knit another top out of this.  The only downside was that it was a bit split-y, meaning that it was easy to split the yarn when making a knit stitch - not good.

 The lattice section is very easy and lovely.  I'd like to make another version of this top, more fitted and longer, with the boat neck as designed.  I just need to get more yarn next time!