Butterick 5602 - the shapely shift!

As my last two makes were useful wardrobe basics I gave myself permission to indulge myself with another dress – I just love to make dresses! Since finishing my Chanel inspired dress (blogged about here) I have been eager to make another version of the pattern. Here’s what I came up with


Butterick 5602 shift dress


This is the pattern

Butterick 5602 pattern envelope

Last time I made the one with sleeves, this time I made the version pictured on the right (but without the bow at the neck – it’s not that I don’t like bows, I do, but I just didn’t want a bow on this).

The fabric is a wool challis, called ‘Stingray Frieze’ purchased from Vogue Fabrics. I love the print and it has a beautiful (in the words of Vogue Fabrics) “featherweight weave” and “alluring drape” - it certainly is lovely and light to wear. I used a plain black wool challis for the neck and hem bands and I lined it with my favourite bemberg rayon lining.

There’s not a lot else to say about this pattern – it’s a simple shift dress, nicely shaped and fairly fast and easy to make. So, moving on, I’m going to reveal what I’m working on right now, which is this skirt from the October issue of Burda Style.


Burda Style October 2011 #119

Despite liking lots of patterns in Burda Style magazine I haven’t actually made one for a while. I think that what has been putting me off is that since they have been printing twice as many patterns on each of their pattern sheets it is a REAL PAIN to trace them. (Hello, people who run Burda Style – did you hear that?) But I bit the bullet and got on with it. However, I do have a tip to make it a little easier. Before you lay the tracing paper on the pattern sheets, take a brightly coloured highlighter pen and go over the lines for each of the pattern pieces in the size that you want to trace.
 

The pattern pieces I want are highlighted in yellow

If you do this, it is much easier to identify through the tracing paper the lines that you should be following. It’s still a pain, but not quite so bad! Now the worst bit is over, the skirt is coming along nicely. So, more about that soon …

My Chanel inspired dress - Butterick 5602!

Last week I was in a frenzy of indecision - so many fabric and pattern possibilities were whirring around my brain that I just didn’t know what to make next. At times like this I think that you can’t go too far wrong if you turn to the classics. And you can’t get much more classic than a Coco Chanel inspired little black dress trimmed with white.
 

The LBD inspired by Coco Chanel

"I said that black has it all. White too. Their beauty is absolute. It is the perfect harmony.” Coco Chanel.

The pattern I used was Butterick 5602

Butterick 5602

I made the version drawn in pink but without the bow. I was aiming for a comfortable shift dress, as Coco also said: “Luxury must be comfortable, otherwise it is not luxury”.

However, I didn’t want it to be totally shapeless. This dress has both horizontal and vertical darts at the front and vertical darts at the back – so there is plenty of scope for getting a good fit at the bust and some curving in at the waistline.

The fabric I used is 100% wool crepe purchased from Linton Tweeds who are based in Carlisle but also have an online store. If you are going to make a ‘Chanel’ dress there is nowhere better to turn to than Linton.


Linton Tweeds showroom in Carlisle

They have been supplying fabric to Chanel since Coco herself was in residence at her Paris Salon in the Rue Cambon. To this day Linton still count the house of Chanel as one of their most prestigious clients – along with Oscar de la Renta, Balenciaga, Michael Kors, Lanvin and Caroline Herrera. Oh, and little old me, Eugenia! They supply a wonderful range of tweeds and fancy fabrics as well as a top quality wool crepe in a variety of colours.

So, with a sewing machine, a few hours work and some wool crepe anyone can have a made to measure ‘Chanel’ dress!

Cape Fear or Cape of Good Hope?

Throughout the last winter I harboured a hankering for a cape but I never got around to making one. This year I decided to jump right in and make one before those nagging suspicions that a cape would look silly and be totally impractical stopped me.


Maybe a bit silly and only a little impractical!


Right now there seem to be quite a few patterns for capes in the current collections but, as it happens, I used a vintage pattern

What especially attracted me to this pattern is that it's reversible - two capes for the effort of one!


If this wind blows me away, will this cape help me fly?

Although a cape doesn't really have to fit very closely anywhere I did go to the trouble of making a muslin to get some idea of how this was going to look on me. I'm glad that I did because it made me realise that a long version was going to swamp me and that to look more modern it needed to be quite a bit shorter than the shortest version of this pattern. I also discovered that if the arm slits were longer it would allow a bit more arm movement. I should, perhaps, also mention that at this point my husband looked pretty dubious about the whole cape prospect, muttering that he didn't want to put me off something that I was clearly hell bent on making but he didn't have high hopes for the finished garment.

I used 100% wool in a dark grey for one side and pale grey for the other. Because I felt it needed a little glamour and cosiness I decided to experiment and make the collar in a white faux fur.


Nothing like a bit of faux fur for glamour!

Also, I used a metallic silver thread for the topstitching around the front, the hem and the pocket slits. The whole thing was super-easy to make. It only needed two buttonholes at the top, one on either side. These are fastened together by sewing two buttons together with a thread link so it can be buttoned up whichever way round I am wearing it -

I went through the construction process with mixed feelings - Fear and Hope. So, what's my final verdict on the cape? Well, I do like the way it turned out. I can also tell you that when my husband saw it finished he looked quite startled and told me that it looked a million times better than he had feared: in fact he really likes it. Since making it I have worn it twice and it is perfect for just throwing on when going out for dinner or to visit friends. I wouldn't, however, choose to wear it for a day of shopping because you can't carry a bag over your shoulder: you have to clasp it in your hand, which is a little restricting. I doubt if I will make another cape but I'm really happy that I have this one and have, finally, got the cape craving out of my system!

What about you - is a cape a garment that you would ever consider wearing, do you like the look, hate it, or does the sheer impracticality of a cape rule it out for you? I’d love to know ……

2010 - what worked and what didn't!

So, 2010 is over and it’s time to take a look at how my sewing year has gone. I completed the following:
13 Dresses
10 tops
6 skirts
1 jacket

That’s a total of 30 garments. When I looked back at what I had made during 2009 I was very interested to see that I had made a total of 29 garments. So this year I have succeeded in increasing my output by, er, just one garment!

However, I can say that I feel I have made quite a lot of progress in learning to sew to a much better standard and in making clothes that I really like wearing.

So, what worked for me in 2010? My award for my best garment of the year goes to this dress

Made from Butterick 5520 (blogged about here). As it’s a very ‘dressy’ dress I have, so far, only had the opportunity of wearing it three times but each time I have received compliments and I love having it hanging in my wardrobe, ready for a special occasion.

My vote for my favourite day dress has to go to this one

Made from Vogue 8555 (blogged about here). I wore this dress numerous times during the summer and it always made me smile.

My award for my most useful garment goes to this one

A simple black pencil skirt made from Vogue 8603 (blogged about here). Since making it I have worn it a lot – it just seems to go with everything and is good for day or evening. A classic wardrobe staple.

So what didn’t work this year? I will have to say my coat. What’s that, you are saying to yourself, she didn’t make a coat. Exactly. I said I was making a coat (blogged about here). I bought fabric for a coat. But no coat has materialized. Well, all I have to say for myself is there has been a lot of research and development but not too many results. I picked out a pattern from an old Burda Magazine, I spent ages making a muslin and reworking the muslin and altering the muslin but in the end, with a little anguish and a lot of frustration, I abandoned it. Maybe you, too, know that feeling? I am going to pick another pattern and try again. Perhaps my coat will be finished by the end of next year?

I hope 2010 has been a satisfying and productive sewing year for you? I would like to take this opportunity of saying how much I appreciate you stopping by to look at what I’ve made. I love to read your comments and am very thankful indeed for your friendship, advice and encouragement.

My warmest wishes to you all for a very happy New Year

Butterick 5520 - the shiny black dress - finished!

When I received a party invitation that said ‘dress glamorous’ I immediately thought of the black crepe back satin fabric that has been sitting in my stash waiting to be transformed into a special occasion dress. The pattern I decided on was Butterick 5520. I combined the black satin with some black lace and came up with this dress.

I used the black satin (purchased at Paron Fabrics in New York) for the main body of the dress, the sleeves are made from the lace (from Gorgeous Fabrics) that I underlined with a nude coloured silk satin (from a store in the Goldhawk Road in London). Here is a close up of the bodice

I lined the bodice and skirt with black bemberg rayon and the sleeves are lined in a nude colour – here’s a picture of the inside of the bodice.

As you may have noticed, I actually took the trouble to change the colour of the thread when I was understitching around the neckline so that there wasn’t a line of black stitching around the part of the neckline where the sleeves are (a small detail but it does make it look nicer inside). Once all the different fabrics were cut and the sleeves were underlined, this dress wasn’t very complicated or difficult to make up. Basically it’s a sheath dress with raglan sleeves but you can mix and match various fabrics to give it different looks. Here’s a reminder of the pattern envelope.
I decided against the peplum (although I do like that style) because I felt that, for a short person like me, there was enough going on with the shiny black satin and lace without breaking me up in the middle. I wanted to look sleek and shiny (you see I paired it with shiny patent shoes).

When my husband and I walked into the party (which was lavishly located at Claridges Hotel) there were a lot of very glamorous dresses being worn – I whispered to my husband that I bet I was the only one there wearing a home made dress! But I think it did just fine – I passed for ‘glamorous’ and the nice thing about making your own is that it fits right and no-one else is going to be wearing the same dress, (oh, yes, and it didn’t cost hundreds of pounds!).

As I mentioned in my last post, I am currently working on making some t-shirts so that I can put my new coverstitch machine through its paces but I took a little break from sewing to spend a weekend visiting friends in Leeds, (which is in Yorkshire, in the north of England). I bought some fabric, visited a wonderful button shop and fell in love with Yorkshire but more about that soon ….

It's fast, it's easy and it's DKNY!

If you’re in a hurry for a designer dress, Vogue 1179 is a great way to go, this must be one of the fastest dresses I’ve ever made.


Black is always tricky to photograph - the above picture gives you an idea of the general shape but not the detail so here is a close up so you can see how the pleating at the front looks.


The fabric is a double knit (purchased from Gorgeous Fabrics) which hangs very nicely but is substantial enough not to be flimsy. Here’s a reminder of the pattern envelope


This is one of the few garments I have made without first making a muslin – I just dived straight in. Halfway through cutting it out I did have some misgivings – I had a nasty suspicion that it was going to turn out to be a shapeless sack but, although it is certainly loose fitting, I do think there is something about the cut that makes it work – Donna Karan certainly knows her stuff!

A couple of the reviewers on Pattern Review have mentioned the tightness of the armholes – and I think they’re right. Usually I have to raise armholes by about an inch (I think I have freaky arms and shoulders!) but this time I didn’t and I really like the way they fit. I did as the pattern recommended and sewed clear elastic round the armholes and they don’t gape at all. But if you want to make this dress and you have regular arms you might want to lower the armholes a bit!

I followed the instructions exactly except where they tell you to sew the side seams before attaching the collar. I decided to attach the collar first because that way I would get a better idea of how the dress was going to hang and fit (because I could undo the basting for the pleats at the front) and could then adjust the side seams if needed.

When I finished this dress I thought that this was going to be one of those garments that I liked but my husband wouldn’t be so keen on but, somewhat to my surprise, he loves this dress – it’s turned out to be a real winner in his eyes!

Before I go, here’s a question, what do these fabrics have in common?


Answer – they are all being used in my current project, which is this pattern, Butterick 5520.
I am making the view on the right. The fabrics in my photo are (from left to right) lace for the sleeves, nude colour silk satin underlining for the sleeves, black silk satin for the body of the dress, nude lining for the sleeves, black lining for the body of the dress. Phew – that’s some cutting out to be done – this one isn’t going to be as fast as the DKNY dress!

More soon ……

A SUNDRESS FOR A SUNNY DAY

Believe it or not, we've been having some warm weather in the UK - which brought to the surface my longing for a sundress. This has previously been a bit of an impossible dream because ready-to-wear sundresses just don't seem to fit me: they gape in all the wrong places and cling in even wronger places! Shopping for such a garment always left me feeling frustrated and freaky. But, with my new sewing skills all that has changed. Look! I have a sundress .........

and it seems to fit in all the right places ....

I made this dress from Butterick 5351

Although it took a bit of messing around with muslin to get the fit just right it wasn't too difficult and, in the end, I think it was worth the effort. I started with a size 12 band (the bit that goes round the body at the top of the bodice) then graded out to a size larger for the bodice and skirt but tweaked it in a bit for the waist as well as raising the waist about an inch. The trickiest part of the fitting was getting the strap placement just right - I have narrow shoulders and attaching them as the pattern was drafted meant they just would not stay on my shoulders. After a bit of trial and error I attached them about an inch further in towards the centre and shortened them by couple of inches. Now they stay put.

I think one of the key things about getting this dress right is getting the bodice band to fit closely around the body. The pattern tells you to cut this piece on the bias but I noticed with my muslin that the band was stretching out -by the time I had finished with the muslin it was far too large and all pulled out of shape. So, (and this was possibly breaking the rules about these things?) when it came to cutting the real fabric I cut the band with the grain instead of on the bias. This meant the band stayed the right size but it still wasn't quite perfect - there was a little bit of gaping at the top of the band above the bust between the straps and the underarm. I considered sewing a little dart into the band but, after some thought, came up with the following solution. With the dress on me I pinned out the gaping - it needed three quarters of an inch taking out. Then I opened up the band and ran two lines of long stitches along the seam allowances where the band joins the band facing (at the very top of the dress) from the front straps to the underarm. I pulled up the lines of stitching until I had taken three quarters of an inch out and distributed this evenly so there were no actual gathers, just some puckering. I cut a piece of twill tape then sewed this down over the puckering, right up against the seamline, to keep it anchored like this ........

After repeating this on the other side I turned the band back down and sewed it down. I was really happy with the result because the band now stays close to the body and doesn't gape under the arms.

Butterick call this pattern "Fast and Easy" and, if you discount all my messing about with the straps and the band, I would agree that it is, indeed, both fast and easy to construct. I'm also interested in making up either View C or D, which have a looser, elasticated bodice - I thought that made up in a stretchy towelling material this would be a great poolside/beach dress along the lines of those made by Juicy Couture.

Those of you with sharp eyes might notice that the fabric is the same print as my wrap dress made from Vogue 8379 (see my earlier posting) but this isn't a knit, it's a cotton poplin. Rather surprisingly I didn't even buy the two different fabrics from the same supplier - I bought the knit by mail order then some months later happened to notice this cotton poplin in Peter Jones (big London department store) and felt that I just had to have it. I guess I must really like this print!

So, now I am hoping for some more sunny days ............