June Burda Magazine, skirt #112 – finished!

The latest edition of Burda Magazine arrived on Sunday morning and I decided that this month, instead of deliberating, I would just plunge right in on my favourite. Pattern 112 called to me, I happened to have a metre of linen in my stash, so here it is


I liked this pattern because, although it isn’t difficult, there’s quite a lot of interesting things going on with it. It has inseam pockets, pleats on one side of the front, a pleated patch pocket with a flap and a hem band. I really enjoyed making this one. Here’s the line drawing

I have to confess that Burda’s instructions for the inseam pockets had me slightly puzzled at first. When sewing this kind of pocket in the past I have sewn the pocket pieces onto the back and front skirt pieces then sewn the side seams and round the pocket all in one. Burda have you sew the side seams first (but not across the pocket openings) then you attach the pocket pieces to the seam allowances, then you sew the pocket pieces together. I like to try new things, so I did it their way and, what do you know, it worked out fine!

I did, however, depart from Burda’s instructions when it came to the hem band. The pattern tells you to cut the band with a 4cm hem which you are supposed to sew in place by hand. I decided it would be neater and give the bottom of the skirt more body if I cut the hem band so that it was double the finished depth plus seam allowances. I attached it right sides together to the skirt, folded it over to the inside and stitched it to the joining seam. Inside the skirt looks like this.

I should also mention that I added an inch or so to the length – I can’t quite carry off a very short skirt anymore!

My other pick from the June Burda magazine is this tunic pattern

I like the neckline and the neat little pleats at the front. But I won’t be making this one just yet because next on my list is a dress from Vogue 8555…………….. more on that soon!

Vintage Simplicity, Liberty print dress - finished!

I have completed my first vintage dress project, made in a Liberty print silk and I’m pleased that it has turned out pretty much how I wanted it to look.

I think this is just the kind of dress I need to wear when taking ‘afternoon tea and cakes’ (that’s an English thing!!) on sunny days (they’re not so much an English thing!!). Here’s a reminder of the pattern I used, it’s dated 1968.


Simplicity describes it as a ‘Simple-to-Sew’ Jiffy pattern – 3 main pieces (front, back, sleeve) plus the bow and facings. Of course I ‘un-Jiffied’ it by adding a full lining. Being a double silk the fabric isn’t very flimsy but I still felt that this dress needed a lining. I used a Bemberg rayon in a pretty colour called Geranium. I cut the lining using the main pattern pieces, then assembled them with the back and front neckline facings to make one lining/facing unit. I sewed this right sides together to the neckline of the dress, flipped it over and hand stitched the lining to the hem of sleeves and to the zipper. To be honest I have no idea if this is the ‘right’ way to line this kind of dress but it seemed to work out fine. It looks like this.


I loved the pattern. As it comes in one size only, both the cutting and sewing lines are printed which means you can see exactly how it’s going to come together. The instructions were super-clear and easy to follow and the vintage half sizing saved me having to do my usual petite adjustments.

So what’s next? I have no idea – I have so many patterns and fabrics in my pile of ‘things to make this summer’ that I am in a frenzy of indecision. However, right now, as today does happen to be a sunny day, I’m off to take tea ……..

I'm venturing into vintage!

As if I haven’t got enough current patterns in my stash, I have recently acquired some very nice vintage dress patterns. I thought that I would make a start with this ‘swinging sixties’ little shift dress, complete with neck bow.

I have pictured the pattern with the fabric that I am using – a Liberty print, double silk, called ‘Broadwick Flutterby’. This 2 metre piece of fabric was a super-lucky find at the bottom of the remnants bin in the Liberty store during one of their sales, at a cost of £19.98 (about 30 US Dollars), which is an excellent bargain. I am thinking that the overall effect should be very similar to View 2 (the one on the right on the pattern envelope above).

As it turns out, the sizing of this pattern is (almost) just right for me. It’s a Half Size – which my vintage Simplicity Sewing Book (dated 1958) tells me is “designed for a fully developed figure, shorter than the Miss-Woman, with larger waist, narrower shoulders”. Does that mean short and fat? Well, whatever, it fits my figure type rather well.

My flat pattern measurements told me I still needed to do an FBA and, after making a muslin, I raised the armholes to give me a bit more arm movement but then I was good to go. So, wish me luck, my first vintage dress is now under construction and I’m hoping to show you a picture very soon ………..

Cynthia Rowley top - finished!

Rummaging through my pattern stash last week I came across this Cynthia Rowley pattern (Simplicity 2584) that I meant to make last year but somehow never did.

On a whim I pulled it out and got started on it straight away. Here’s the result -

To be honest, I think that I made a bit of an error in choosing such a busy print because the lovely shaped yoke, which is the main feature of this pattern, is a little lost. I should have used a plain fabric, or used a contrasting fabric for the yoke, or piped the edges to make it stand out more. However, I did use some heavy topstitching to help define it and, close-up, you can just about see the yoke shaping -

Apart from that, I do really like this top and I definitely recommend the pattern. Although it has a designer label it was very quick and simple to sew and I liked the way that the yoke is lined which makes it easy to construct accurately. I think that the cut is just right in that it’s not tightly fitted but it does have some shaping. Another thing I should mention is that I left off the zipper (I seem to be going through a phase of doing this because I did the same on the last top I made). I actually have nothing against zippers and am quite happy putting them in anywhere that needs one. However, with this pattern the zipper is supposed to be decorative, so you need a novelty zipper but I didn’t have one and couldn’t wait to get one. So, as the top goes on over the head quite easily, I just sewed up the centre back seam.

I definitely want to make another one of these quite soon but I shall choose a fabric that will showcase the yoke a bit better. In the meantime, however, I have acquired a few vintage dress patterns recently and I’ve decided that one of these is definitely going to be next on my list. So, more soon …

Burda Style May issue and some new fabrics!

I love it when the latest issue of Burda Style magazine arrives. Never mind that I have enough patterns in my stash or, indeed, enough back issues of Burda to keep me sewing for A Very Long Time! No, the excitement of having new patterns never seems to diminish.

This month just two styles jumped out as being realistic propositions that I might actually get around to sewing some time.

Firstly this cute looking blouse, pattern 128, (which, by the way, was my DH’s pick of the month)
I especially like it because I think it could also work, in the right fabric, being worn as a light weight little jacket over summer clothing.

Secondly, these shorts, pattern 136, also caught my eye.
These are part of the Take 1 Make 4 designs but this style attracted me because it has an invisible side zipper (rather than a fly front) which I thought would look quite neat. Burda suggests that I wear these “showing off beautifully sun-tanned legs while shopping or partying!” That’s a laugh – my legs are the colour of milk bottles and, at my age, if I wore something that short out shopping, or even partying, I’d probably get arrested. However if I add a little to the length I think I would get away with these on the beach or poolside.

Talking of things arriving, my latest order from Gorgeous Fabrics was delivered yesterday. I’m just going to say that this order was placed in the recent one day sale and I limited myself to two fabrics, no more excuses or justifications! Here’s a picture


The one on the left is a cotton fabric, in a beautiful print, which I had planned to use for a shirt but when my DH saw it he thought it would make a really nice skirt and, as it has quite a lot of body, I think that he’s right.

The one on the right is a “Luxe Stretch Silk/Cotton Floral Twill” and I’m completely in love with it. It has the most fabulous drape and texture. This has to be a dress. I have one or two options in mind but I need to be sure - this is such a lovely fabric that I don’t want to risk a disaster!

In the meantime my home is still a bit of a building site – our kitchen renovations are continuing (but progressing nicely) and we now have a carpenter working on new shelving in the bedroom. However, amongst all this, some sewing is still going on so I’ll be posting about that very soon ……

Burda Magazine, April #105, ruffle top - finished!

As I was making this one it was definitely coming under the heading of Never Again!

Burda give this top a two dot “Easy to Sew but More Time Consuming” rating and I have to say that, although it was reasonably easy in the sense that it wasn’t too difficult to figure out what you had to do, it was a bit of a pain to put together. There’s all that curved ruffle hemming, which is a little bit tricky to get perfect, and then getting the bodice with the slit neck, the two ruffles, the facing and the collar all layered and sewn together accurately wasn’t very easy for me. But, hey, don’t they say no pain, no gain?

And there was some gain because, once I had completed it, I have to say that all my frustration and irritation with it was (almost) forgotten and now I really like it. There’s something about the frivolity of ruffles that I love! Here’s a picture


And here’s a close up of the ruffles (sorry that it’s not very easy to see the detail because of the colourful print)


The neckline is quite low but I did actually raise the slit by an inch. To alter the bodice front I just redrew the marking for the start of the slit a bit higher and traced the facing piece to match. After that however it was necessary to alter the ruffle piece where the ruffles are attached to the neckline slit. To do this I pinched out an inch at the inner curved edge of the ruffle pattern where it joins the bodice front, then folded it so that on the other side (the part of the ruffle that is free) the curved edges met up – this creates a wedge shape that is taken out of the ruffle. Here’s a picture of the altered pattern piece so you can, hopefully, see what I mean


The other change I made (which I mentioned in my last post) is that when making a muslin for this top, I discovered that I didn’t need a zip. I guess, however, if you want to make it to be more closely fitting then you might need one but mine comes on and off very easily without. The fabric, in case you are interested, is a cotton and silk voile: it’s sheer but not see-through, very lightweight and very nice to wear.

So, that’s done, what’s next? The weather here in London is quite remarkably sunny (and no evidence of Icelandic volcanic dust to be seen!) so I am thinking that another summery garment will be in order.

Burda magazine quick and easy A-line skirt

Way back at the beginning of March I mentioned that I was making this skirt, pattern 104 from the February issue of Burda Style magazine

So, you might be wondering, where is it? Well, with all the distractions of my Miami vacation, an eagerness to complete my skirt with the bow and my kitchen remodelling project, I now realise that I have been holding out on you! I did indeed complete not one but two! of these skirts in a mad frenzy of sewing in the days prior to my vacation. Here is the first one

It’s made in a classic white cotton stretch sateen and I have lined it with a light weight nude coloured bemberg rayon (which is an excellent stash stand-by). The pattern doesn’t call for a lining but with a white fabric to be worn in the sunlight it’s usually a good idea. Here’s a picture of the lining

Because I liked the first one so much I was inspired to throw together another one made from some printed cotton I had left over from a dress. This one I didn’t line, so it was even quicker to make.


There’s nothing particularly exciting about this skirt pattern but it does make a great summer basic – it has handy cut-in pockets, a curved waistband and an A-line shape that’s very comfortable to wear. If you’re looking for a casual skirt and want it fast, I would definitely recommend giving this one a try.

Moving swiftly on to what’s happening right now. Most of my kitchen units have now been installed so I have been able to move enough boxes out of the living room to make some sewing space. In between talking to the electrician, plasterer, tiler, window blind installer, carpenter and floor layer I have been making a muslin for this blouse, pattern 105 from this month’s issue of Burda magazine.
The fit is looking good so I am hoping to complete it soon. In the meantime, if you are thinking of making this one, I do have a tip – check that you actually need to insert the side zip. With my muslin I discovered that I don’t – I can easily get it on (and off!) without one.

More soon