Monthly Archives: February 2017

My Moneta

26th February 2017Completed sewingprojects, sewing communityColette Patterns, Moneta dress, Moneta party, wgsewing17Wis

M-m-m-my Moneta

At this moment the Moneta party* is in full swing and it really fantastic to see all the beautiful Moneta dresses everybody is showing.

* The Moneta party is an Instagram party hosted by The Triple Stitchers and you can only go to the party dressed in your self-made Moneta dress. Here you can read more about it.

Me too, I engaged myself to sew a Moneta. I already had the pattern from Colette Patterns a few years but I never managed to get started on sewing one. So this party was a great spur into action!

Going through my fabric collection I thought that this Orange Red Faux Snakeskin spandex knit from Girl Charlee would be suitable and it was.

Moneta Dress Colette Patterns

I’m over the moon that I picked it. It has a good stretch and is easy to sew. More, it has a funky design that reminded me constantly of Nicolas Cage in ‘Wild at heart’!

I don’t want to elaborate much on the pattern because so many others did that before me. Here are some thoughts about sewing the Moneta dress.

I went for version 2 with the 3/4 sleeves.
Being a #sewingtall girl I lengthened the bodice with 6cm and the skirt with 4 cm.
I also graded the bodice from L at the bust to XL at the waist. In the future, I would give even more ease at the waist because it is kind of small.
It was an easy sew and the instructions from Colette patterns are very clear.
For the gathering, I used clear elastic and it went rather easy—I have some experience with this technique due to the fact I sewed some Wren dresses.
Also Abigail—one of The Triple Stitchers—wrote a very helpful tutorial about it.

Conclusion

I am extremely happy with my Moneta dress. The pattern has a very neat design and if you experiment with the fabric you can really get a stunning result. Check it out on Instagram! Will I sew more Moneta’s? I’m positive I will.

Moneta Dress Colette Patterns

Eye-catchers #3

25th February 2017sewing community, Sewing keeps me saneeye-catcher, sewing, sewing inspirationWis

An eye-catcher is a person or thing that attracts the attention

The online sewing community is very visual. A lot of images are published on social media and on blogs. So, every day I see a lot of sewing related images and some of them are eye-catchers for me. Why? Because they make me think, they give me inspiration. That is why I want to share these eye-catchers with you.

Follow below what caught my eye this week:

Split sleeves in a blouse

On Craftsy Beth Galvin wrote a very do-able tutorial to transform almost any sleeve in a split-sleeve. I really think it is worth a try to spice up an ordinary top.
The wide leg crop pants, McCall’s 7445

Wow! Look at these pants Lori made. I really love a pinstripe and I love cropped pants. That makes this combination very inspiring.
McCall’s 7153

The mcCall’s 7153 is a reissued pattern from 1933—from the Archive Collection— and I think the design of it is striking. Also, I adore that Annie used stripes, that really gives it an original touch.
Riga Coat from Orageuse

Thanks to @sewinglovelythings I caught this amazing coat this week. The Riga coat is a rather new pattern from Orageuse. I just fell for the clean lines and that it closes solely with a belt.
The Ellsworth Coat

Trudi proves again what difference fabric can make to an already great pattern. This is simply gorgeous. No more words needed!

And, did anything caught your eye this week?

How I made my #2017sve

22nd February 2017Completed sewingprojects, sewing community2017sve, handmade gift, tote bagWis

My 2017 Secret Valentine, a reversible tote bag.

Now that my Secret Valentine has received the gift I made for her I can tell you something about how I made it.

secret valentine reversible tote bag — The reversible tote bag

What to make?

I wrote before how exciting it is to participate in the Secret Valentine Exchange. The first thing you do after you receive your valentine is a search of what to make.
I have a board of suitable handmade gifts on Pinterest and there I found a pin of a tote bag and one of a coin purse. My mind was immediately made up as my valentine likes useful things. Also, because I really wanted to make both things for a long time. Win-win!

The very popular pin of the tote bag on Pinterest—with the measurements

In my stash, I found some leftovers of upholstery fabric reflecting the favourite colours of my valentine: raspberry and rose gold. So I was all set!

How to make the tote bag?

Drawing the pattern

First, I copied the measurements of the design to tracing paper and as I was staying at our holiday home at that time—where I don’t have garment rulers— I used a plate to form the circle line.
The dimensions of the bag are good so I didn’t make any alterations.
Cutting the pattern pieces

I have cut four pieces—two out of both fabrics. Unfortunately, the board on the board fabric did not have the same position on both sides so that is why it is rather low. 1 cm of seam allowance is included.
Stitching the bag

The bag comes easily together. To do so I followed the directions of the scheme I found on Pinterest.
1) stitch all the side seams
2) stitch the bottom seam minus one opening for turning the bag to the right side
3) stitch the curves of the handles minus 5 cm on each side
4) measure 8 cm for the boxed corners, stitch and trim

5) turn the bag inside out through the opening on the bottom
6) stitch the inside bottom seam

7) pin and stitch the handles in both layers—work very strict here

8) Voilà, tote bag is finished

9) Take pictures

I also made a matching coin purse but here I had some difficulties with gluing the frame to the fabric. So there are some imperfections but isn’t that the charm of hand made gifts?

Eye-catchers #2

18th February 2017sewing community, Sewing keeps me saneeye-catcher, indie patterns, sewing, sewing inspiration, vogueWis

An eye-catcher is a person or thing that attracts the attention

Follow below what caught my eye this week:

V9075 Jumpsuit made by Rachel from Sew South London

Ever since Beth from SewDIY made a linen version of this jumpsuit, I am dreaming of making one myself. This gorgeous version of Rachel really puts me on board.
More, at this moment— until 11 March there is a 50% discount on all the Vogue Patterns at naaipatronen.nl so I already bought my pattern.
*** Update: naaipatronen.nl is a Dutch site but the sold Vogue patterns have English/French instructions! ***
The Wanted-T-shirt from Vanessa Pouzet

This version that Annika made really caught my eye this week. The red-white stripes and the neat neckline are a match made in heaven. I have some striped knits in my stash just waiting to use for this pattern.

The raglan top for men

Buster from Mensew sewed several raglan tops for men and I absolutely love this striped one he made. Again, I have some striped knits in my stash to make some for my husband and sons.

A piped tab for a coat

Vesna decided to add a piped tab with buttons on the beautiful coat she is making. I think it is a very good addition. The pattern is coat #4333 from Lekala Sewing Patterns. I didn’t know this pattern company. Apparently, you can give in your measurements and you receive a personalized pattern. Do you have experience with it? Does it work?
At least the coat Vesna is making looks great.
The Watson bikini

Sienna from ‘Not a primary color’ proved again how you can make some very funky underpants from your left-overs. I also did it before but didn’t use the Watson pattern for it. I have this pattern— and a lot of leftovers— so I will sure give it a try.

Did anything catch your eye this week?

Eye-catchers #1

9th February 2017sewing community, Sewing keeps me saneeye-catcher, indie patterns, sewing, sewing inspirationWis

Eye-catcher….

An eye-catcher is a person or thing that attracts the attention, according to WordReference. Additionally, the Merriam-Webster says: an eye-catcher is something that arrests the eye and also mentions the first use of the word was in 1787. Now I wonder what it was that arrested someone’s eye.

The online sewing community is very visual. Every day a lot of images are published on social media and on blogs. So, every day I see a lot of sewing related images and some of them are eye-catchers for me. Why? Because they make me think, they give me inspiration. That is why I want to share these eye-catchers with you.

Follow below what caught my eye this week:

The Wear Lemonade jumpsuit

India, the Wear Lemonade jumpsuit

Emma from Dressmakers Social posted this jumpsuit on Instagram. This is an unknown pattern for me and I really like the crossover design of the front. I have a long desire to make a jumpsuit and this one could be the one.
The Geodesic sweater from Blueprints for Sewing

Sara from The Sara Project made a fabulous version of this intriguing pattern. It really makes me want to make one for myself.

The belt hack for the Saunio Cardigan

As one of the mods of SewMyStyle, Jessica Lorraine showed how she sewed a beautiful version of the Saunio Cardigan. More, she made a belt hack for it. I have to confess that the Saunio Cardigan is way out of my comfort zone but I committed to the Project SewMyStyle so I’m going to sew it in February. The way Jessica did it really gives me some ideas how to do it.
Cloth Habit Watson Bra by Helen

Look at this amazing sew Helen posted on her blog: Helen’s closet. Not only did she sew a superb bra but also she took some awesome pictures wearing it.
The Watson Bra has been on my sewing list for more than a year. After seeing these pictures I really want to dig in and go for it.
Fabric shopping in Berlin

Stefanie of Sea Of Teal wrote a very informative post about fabric shops in Berlin. This really got my interest because I went to Berlin recently and did some fabric shopping as well. It was very interesting that she mentioned 3 fabric stores I didn’t know of and I went to another place: Neuköllner Stoff. As I am planning to go to Berlin again this Spring I sure will visit the places she mentions.

Did anything catch your eye this week?

What I sewed in January – What I want to sew in February

6th February 2017Completed sewingprojectsHudson Pant, sewing overview, sewing plans, Toastersweater#2, wgsewing17Wis

Wow, I blinked a couple of times and January has passed. Even February is already flying away. Still, I wanted to share what I sewed in January and look ahead for my sewing plans for February.

January sewing

The sewing theme for this month seems to be gifts: for my husband, my family and my godson. You will find a roundup below.

Men’s Hudson Pant from True Bias

Men’s Hudson Pant for my man
Finally, I sewed my beloved pants for my husband. It was already my fifth one so I had no trouble with the sewing. I made it in a real soft light-weight jersey I found at the Neuköllner Stoff in Berlin. I used some leftovers from my Wren dress for the pockets. The fit is spot on but my husband is not really in favour of smaller legs and the ankle cuffs, so he made his demands for the next one! But he sleeps in it.
The Seamwork Paxson
The Seamwork Paxson was on my #2016MakeNine list. Last December, I cut one out for my son but accidently sewed the back with the wrong side of the fabric to the good side of the fabric. That’s why it is still a WIP today. Luckily, I could use the same size of the pattern for my husband, so that was a win.
Because the plan was to use this sweater together with the Hudson pant from above, I cut it in the same jersey. The sewing went easy—like all Seamwork patterns. Alas, the arms and the bodice were too short. Luckily it fits me. So now I have a new sweater and my husband has half a pyjama.
Pyjamas for my godson

He got them as a new year’s present but I only managed to finish the pants. So he received a PIP—Present in Progress. I made them in this funky skeleton cotton that I also found at the Neuköllner Stoff in Berlin.
7 Hudson Pants

To celebrate New Year I made matching Hudson pants for my family and myself. How I did that I will tell in a future blog post.

Hudson Pant sewing line

Toaster Sweater#2

January was also the first month of the SewMyStyle project. I finished the Toaster Sweater with ease last Thursday of January and I love it. You can read all about here.

Did I finish any WIP’s? No! Did I create new WIP’s? Yes, the pyjamas for my godson. So now the score is 6 WIP’s.

February Planning

What are my sewing plans for this very short month? And it seems the theme is secrecy.

First, of course, the 2017 Secret Valentine Exchange.
I’ve selected my fabric and at the moment I’m totally absorbed in the making of my gift.
Second, I’m going to test a pattern for a dress. It’s the Daphne Day Dress from Sew This Pattern.
Third, the second project of Sew My Style: the Saunio Cardigan of Named Clothing. This pattern is a little out of my comfort zone but Jessica—one of the SewMyStyle leaders—made already a very inspiring make.
Fourth, making a muslin of my first self-drafted pattern of a straight skirt—assignment for my pattern drafting class.
Fifth, the Moneta Party! I’m going to sew my first Moneta.
And last, I really would like to finish at least one of my WIP’s.

What are your sewing plans for February?

When your selfmade clothes make you dance

2nd February 2017Completed sewingprojectssewing, sewing photosWis

Do you also make a lot of photos when you try to make a photo of your makes for your blog or Instagram? Well, I do and that results in loads of photos on my phone, tablet and computer.
That is why I had to make a backup and I used Google Photos for it. So far I can’t tell if it is a good app because I only installed it yesterday. Nevertheless, one feature immediately caught my eye and made me smile: the assistant automatically makes animations when there are two or more photos taken in a small time frame. Below are some of my favorites, they are all of my sewing projects of earlier years