Jalie Rachel Top in Black and White

This is another black and white top for my Fall Neutrals collection ;) I used the Rachel pattern by Jalie, which I've had for a while and been planning on making for all that time. Other reviews of this pattern are right; it's so quick and easy to sew up, and has a neat construction process. 

I used a heavier knit from my stash which has been there a long time, as I don't usually buy poly fabric anymore. And I had a bit less than 1.5 m., don't know why I had this small bit but it was perfect for the Rachel. 

I cut my usual Jalie size W/X. This works well in the short top but if I was making the dress version, I'd want to add more width to the bottom so would probably cut W/Y for anything going over my hips. I think if I used a lighter weight fabric the fit over the belly area would be too tight for my own comfort as well, so definitely look at the measurements of the hemline width before you cut. 

The hardest part of this project was laying it out. My table isn't wide enough to accommodate a full piece of fabric laid out flat, so it took some finagling to get the large front piece of the pattern pinned down smoothly. After that it was clear sailing. I chose the sleeveless, short tie top view (fabric constraints necessitated it). The front piece has an odd shape, with the tie attachment seam resulting in a strange angle and big cutouts. It goes together ingeniously and the ties can just be looped over one another at the end to give a nice visual finish. 

Because my fabric was heavier and pretty stable, I just followed the turn under and stitch instructions for neckline, armhole and hem. I'd either use knit stabilizer for a lighter fabric, or use one of the other options included in the pattern, a knit neckband or a turtleneck collar. 

With 3 variations on the tie band and two sleeve options, plus the neckline variations, you could make a number of these without repeating yourself. It's a very quick and easy sew, with a great result. It's one of the only Jalie patterns only available in PDF because of the large and unusual shape of the front piece, but it's worth it. Definitely recommend!

Weekend Review: The Threads of the Heart

 

The Threads of the Heart / Carole Martinez
trans. from the French by Howard Curtis
NY: Europa, 2012, c2007.
399 p.

I read this book last month as part of the annual celebration of Women in Translation that happens every August. I was drawn to it by the description -- some magical embroidery in there is just what I needed to put this on my TBR, and then my husband found a copy at a thrift store. It was meant to be! 

It was written in French, but is set in a remote hill town in Spain. There are elements of magical realism; the previously mentioned embroidery, for example. It is basically the story of a family, told by Soledad, the youngest surviving child, in her own adult years. 

Frasquita is the mother, the woman who has inherited a gift that is passed on from mother to daughter in her family. There is a blindfolded ritual in the night once a young girl comes of age, and the daughter must then wait to open a box in which her gift resides. Frasquita's gift was sewing, and her gowns can make someone beautiful for the first time in their lives, or hide a pregnancy, or stitch life back into someone on death's door. Her skill attracts the attention of a local aristocrat, however, and he becomes locked into a cycle of rooster fighting and bets with Frasquita's husband José, with his ultimate aim being to gain Frasquita. 

This is a middle aged woman with four children by this time, and an unusual patience for her lumpish husband. But José's greed gets the best of him and he gambles away Frasquita. This is the final straw for Frasquita; she spends the required night with the aristocrat but is done with José. This moment sets her on her own road, and she takes her children and a cart, and sets off walking all across southern Spain and into Africa, dragging her children behind her for years. They encounter civil war, revolutionaries, a kindly Arabic woman who rescues them, and much more. The stories are larger than life, political, romantic, dreadful, fantastical, until finally Soledad decides to end this legacy of the family curse herself. 

Sewing is not only a plot element, it's also a strong metaphor for a lot of what goes on in this book. When Soledad is still young, Frasquita is dying. And this is what Soledad says:

I found this an engrossing read, definitely in the tradition of magical realism, but with a starker setting. It's Martinez's first novel, and it's a strong debut. Apparently it is also going to be made into a film, and it would be interesting to see if that ever shows up in the English world as well. 

If you are also drawn to this kind of storytelling, and the idea of stitching the world in place appeals to you, give this one a try yourself. There is a fair amount of description of her stitch work and its effects both early on and near the end of the book, so anyone who stitches will find this compelling. Just allow yourself some time to get into the rhythm of the book, and you may find that this lengthy book flies by. 

Literary Sewing Circle: The Sun Down Motel

 

Our Fall session of the Literary Sewing Circle is starting today! It's a perfect read for the spooky season, and has some serious themes as well as being a gripping ghostly thriller. It's one I read and loved when it was first released, and I hope you'll enjoy it too.

I'm pleased to announce that our group read for this round is:

The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James

Summary:

The secrets lurking in a rundown roadside motel ensnare a young woman, just as they did her aunt thirty-five years before, in this atmospheric suspense novel.

Upstate NY, 1982. Every small town like Fell, New York, has a place like the Sun Down Motel. Some customers are from out of town, passing through on their way to someplace better. Some are locals, trying to hide their secrets. Viv Delaney works as the night clerk to pay for her move to New York City. But something isn't right at the Sun Down, and before long she's determined to uncover all of the secrets hidden there…

(via publisher) 

Photo credit: Lauren Perry

About the Author:

Simone St. James is the USA Today and New York Times bestselling author of The Sun Down Motel, The Broken Girls and The Haunting of Maddy Clare, which won two RITA awards from Romance Writers of America and an Arthur Ellis Award from Crime Writers of Canada. She wrote her first ghost story, about a haunted library, when she was in high school, and spent twenty years behind the scenes in the television business before leaving to write full-time. She lives outside Toronto, Canada with her husband and a spoiled cat.

(via publisher)

This book is available for purchase in both hard copy and ebook formats.

You can find many formats at all of these locations:

IndieBound

Amazon.ca

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.com.au

Book Depository

Chapters Indigo

Powell's

Barnes and Noble

ABE Books

Biblio.com

Or, of course, check your local library!

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How does the Literary Sewing Circle work? We read a book together, discuss it, and then make something inspired by our reading. As long as you can point out what inspired you from your reading, even if just a sentence, you can share your makes in our final roundup!

Anyone can join, and you can sew, knit, quilt or embroider - any textile art that you like doing - to participate. This is a reading/sewing circle, very low-key; no competitions here, just reading and sewing for fun. 

There is no official sign-up to worry about; just start reading along if you wish, and leave your thoughts on the book or your project on any of the Literary Sewing Circle posts. We do have a dedicated book discussion post halfway through and again at the end, but leave your thoughts anytime. And you can follow along on Instagram too if you like: look for #LiterarySewingCircle and you'll find us.

And when the final post goes up, so does the project linkup -- you can leave a link to your finished project there, whether it is on your blog, a pattern site, or even Instagram. It's easy :)

So, join in, and share!

Literary Sewing Circle Schedule

Sept 24 - Announcement & Introduction
Oct  1- Inspiration post 
Oct 8- Preliminary book talk
Oct 15  - Inspiration post
Oct 22 - Author feature
Oct 29 - Final Post: book discussion wrap up & posting of project linkup

(you will then have 3 weeks to finish your project and post it; we'll close the link-up on Nov 19)

80s Inspired Shirtdress in Floral Explosion

I finally finished my floral dress, the last of the summer projects. I was nearly done it a couple of weeks ago, I was just waiting on the buttons -- I found some in the stash but wasn't really 100% sold on them, and then I finally found the little red buttons of my imagination at the fabric store, so was able to complete this project! 

It's based on a pattern (late 80s/early 90s?)I picked up a couple of years ago and have wanted to make since, New Look 6537.

I thought I'd test it out in some quilting cotton in my stash, since I'd have to make alterations to remove the large raglan shoulder pad allowances and wasn't sure if I'd get it right the first time. But it worked, and I absolutely love this dress! 

I made quite a few fitting alterations -- the bodice was long, and since the defining feature of the dress is the waist ties, I wanted to be sure to get them in the right place. I ended up cutting the shoulder line at 14 (with a gradual slope down to 12 at the outer edge to remove that shoulder pad excess. Then the rest of the bodice was cut at 16, grading out to 18 at the waist, and the skirt was cut at 18 as well. I thought that since there are darts in the back and double pleats in the front, I had fabric to play with if I needed some more room. But as it turns out I didn't. 

The pattern is interesting, with the neckline being formed by the front pieces. Sewing the front facing on was a bit of a fussy step, due to the neckline extension but slowly and surely did it. The pockets are a nice feature -- they are slant pockets but have a bit more fabric on the outer bits and are intended to be rounded and full, not sit completely flush. Wasn't sure I'd like this on my hip but I actually love them. 

And those waist ties are cute! They aren't exactly ties, though. The sash pieces are attached into the back darts and then brought around to the front, where they are tucked through a tab that's attached to the right side of the front closure. The size of the tab and the sashes are just right to keep them in place when tucked through and pulled tight (not too tightly -- you don't want the back too distorted or the darts to give way!) It gives a really nice bow effect without the awkward positioning needed in a regular tie sash. This detail is one of my favourite things about this dress. 

I also really like the colours and print in this dress. It feels cheerful, and the red buttons set it off perfectly. I don't have any other dresses in this style. It feels like a robe/wrap but it's completely secure with a line of buttons down the front. I could see making this again in fancy fabric for a totally different effect. This was a fun challenge and I'm very happy with the final result. 

I enjoyed taking photos at The Bridge to Nowhere, one of my favourite places in town. It's been given a colourful makeover this year by the Art Gallery & now it's even more photogenic 🙂

Weekend Review: Gertie Sews Vintage Casual

 

Gertie Sews Vintage Casual / Gretchen Hirsch
NY: Abrams, c2014.
224 p.

This is another entry into the sewing series by Gretchen Hirsch, blogger, designer and owner of Charm Patterns. I picked this older book up on sale to add to my sewing book collection, and it's a cute book. Lots of mid-century charm here, and unusually for Gertie, it even includes pants -- not that I will be likely to make them, since I don't usually make pants ;)

This book follows the same structure as her others. It's even bound the same, with coil binding inside a hard cover and lots of bright colours, photos, and vintage sketches too. It opens with a section on sewing casual clothes, particularly instruction on sewing knits, and guidance on pants sewing and general fitting. You'd think casual clothes/sportswear would be simpler to sew than fancy dresses, but really it's not. Lots more techniques to learn and practice here. There's even a section on patternmaking -- adding collars, cuffs, pockets, pleats etc. and changing up necklines and hems, for example. 

(photos via Gertie's blog)

The second part of the book is the patterns. There is a super wide variety in this book. There are 3 tops and a sweater, 2 skirts, 3 dresses, and one basic pant with many variations. Each of these patterns has variations that change them significantly so in all there are about 24 separate looks to make. They are chic and cute designs that fit in with Gertie's retro aesthetic, and the models are varied too, it's not just Gertie this time. 

The sizing runs from 2--16 (or B32/W24/H36 to B46/W38/H50) and seam allowances are included on the patterns. The patterns are all on folded sheets in the back of the book to be traced off. I like how the basic pattern for each is traceable, and then the variations within each chapter show you how to alter and redraw style lines to create new looks. I think that this might make sewists more comfortable with doing this kind of pattern manipulation on other patterns they may own. 

This collection is more everyday wear friendly than her other books, at least for most people. I like the casual dresses since those are often my go-to for everyday. There is a simple knit pencil skirt that I may test out for my first project from this book, since I'm really into the skirt suit look this year. This was enjoyable to look through, and there is also some historical info (and movie recs) in the first half which is really interesting too. I liked this!

Black & White Remnant Blouse

I've started making pieces for my Fall wardrobe -- bright jewel tones are my theme, and black and white prints are my neutrals :) I made a Jalie Florence last fall with some great black and white cotton from Fabricville, and on looking into my stash I realized I had enough left over to make a blouse to go under jackets and sweaters. I tried out a few patterns, and found that this Burda 128-09-2011 fit perfectly.

I have had this pattern bookmarked for a while, and was happy that I could finally use it. The cotton holds the distinctive shoulder line pleats nicely and the cap sleeve means both that I could fit this onto my remnant and that the blouse sits nicely under a blazer. 

It looks pretty simple, but oh my, that collar construction! The shoulder seam is dropped to the front at an angle. There are two pleats that overlap to form the inner neck edge. And then you have what looks like a stand-up half mandarin collar. But how to attach it? Well, not the way I first tried. 

Left side: correct -- Right Side: Wrong!

I finally checked PatternReview and was relieved to find many reviews of this blouse, and one of them explains the collar construction very clearly. Once I read that I understood, but I don't know how long it would have taken me to figure it out otherwise! The collar isn't attached above the front neckline, but flush with it. The pleats are sewn onto the front edge of the collar, leaving the seam allowance at the top, and then the second collar piece is attached along the top and turned in, which covers up all the raw edges. Sheesh, how hard was that to figure out! When it's done, it hugs the back of your neck and sits flat against the body.

Other than that particular struggle, this one wasn't too hard. I cut my usual Burda size, 42 and grading to 44 at the hip. I measured the pattern, which looked very long, and took up an inch between shoulder and bust (just below the pleat markings) which shortened the deep armhole and moved the bust point up to where it should be -- I didn't want that first button to fall below the bust point! Now it sits exactly where it should be.

I also finished the armholes with some premade bias tape as I'd have had to piece quite a few tiny pieces from my scraps to make enough self bias. If I make it again and have a touch more fabric, I'd use self-bias - it just always sits more nicely, I think. The only other change I made was to topstitch down the pleat edges for about 1.25" from the shoulder line so that they didn't puff out weirdly. I like the way they lie now. 

And luckily, I had the absolute perfect buttons in my stash. Love the match. This is the first item to be finished in my fall sewing queue, but I still have one summer dress to share soon which is just waiting for its buttons. I'm starting my fall wardrobe with some of the lighter and easier pieces that I can wear now with my late summer outfits as well as with the planned fall clothes.

 I think this blouse will be handy with everything. Although I didn't get a picture, I realized that undoing the bottom 3 buttons allows the blouse to be tied at the waist in cute 60s style as well. Very versatile :) Another black and white top is on the sewing table, hopefully to be finished quickly!

Acid Green Summer Frock from McCalls

Today's project is a dress I'd cut out in July and finally finished a couple of weeks ago. Had to finally get around to taking some photos to share here -- not every project is a win, and this one just doesn't really do it for me. I love the pretty rayon fabric but overall I just find the fit fussy despite all my attempts to fix it up. 

I chose McCalls 7712, View B (the simplest one with no added frills). It's a loose summer dress, almost cocoony in a way. As drafted, there are pockets in the middle seam, so that the pockets hang right across your front belly. Not my favourite look! So the first change I made was to move the pockets to the side seams, where I prefer them. I was just careful to transfer the pocket placement lines to the outer edges at the same levels. 

I also raised the point of the neckline by an inch, and did the same to the facing, so I'd be a little more comfortable wearing it. That worked out fine, but I think I slightly stretched the right neckline while attaching the facing despite stay stitching, and it bothers me! If I decide that I like this after all, I may unpick the shoulder facing and shorten the right side by 1/2" at that shoulder seam to get it to lay flatter. I often shorten the right side by a fraction anyhow, as my right shoulder is lower than the left. 

I finished and tried it on, and despite the beautiful fabric and the intent to make a loose caftany dress, I just didn't like the fit. It looked too oversized and shapeless. I considered taking in the side seams in the bodice but then thought about putting a tie in the back. However, I'm not a fan of back ties in general, so then it occurred to me to copy one of my favourite RTW dresses and put some shirring in the centre back panel. I used that RTW dress to figure out the optimal placement for the gathering and then drew my stitching lines with a Frixion pen and got out the elastic thread for some quick shirring.

I followed the instructions by Closet Core Patterns, with the only difference being that I couldn't tuck the ends into the seams as my piece was already constructed. So I carefully pulled the threads to the bottom and tied them off together to secure them. It seems to have worked but I'm still not 100% in love with this one. 

I don't know if it is the fit, the colour on me, or just that this is a summer project that has been hanging over my head and now it's not really seasonal. I may leave in the magic closet for a while and see if I like it later on. If not, I have a couple of friends my size with the perfect colouring for this fabric and one of them might end up owning it! 

Weekend Review: The Act of Sewing

 

The Act of Sewing / Sonya Philip
Boulder, CO: Roost Books, c2021
175 p.

Another new sewing book that I've been looking forward to! Sonya Philip is well known for her 100 Acts of Sewing blog and patterns (I've made Shirt No. 1, found at Creativebug, and have others still to try waiting in my queue). This book takes her DIY ethos and presents it all in one go, the perfect book for new sewists -- and with some great tips for us more practiced ones as well. 

The layout is clear and straightforward. It starts with a chapter on basic tools and techniques, then a look at the four patterns included (top, skirt, trousers, shirt, all very much like her existing pattern styles). All the patterns are on traceable sheets in the back of the book, no downloading or printing required. The sizing is inclusive, as with her existing patterns. The size range in the book runs from XS (B32/W29/H34) to 5X (B56/W53/H58).

(all images via publisher)

This is followed by a chapter on adjustments, mostly fitting ones, and then a chapter on modifications - these are more cosmetic ones that can change a pattern for you, like changing necklines, sleeves, adding tucks or gathers, or contrast bands and so on. The final section tackles combining patterns to make something new. 

Each chapter has many line drawings of all the steps. There are only a handful of photos of Sonya herself, wearing various pieces made from the patterns. But the steps are clear and it's a very beginner friendly approach. I really like her approach; she includes discussion of why sewing is so great as a means of expression and self-love. And she makes it extremely approachable. 

The progress of the projects is well done, as well. If someone is quite new to sewing, the patterns are very basic outlines, really cut and sew projects. There are no fussy elements to scare anyone off. But once you have a handle on that you can move on to altering, adapting and mixing. And I think that anyone who starts off in sewing this way won't have much fear of working with other patterns in future. It's great to give the power of personalizing patterns to a sewist from the start. 

All in all, I think this is a really solid book. No frills and fuss, just straight talk about patterns and adjusting them to your body and tastes. This is one I'd recommend to the new sewists in my life. 

Celeste at Summer's End

I've been working on a few summer dresses to finish off my summer sewing, and now I can share them with you! My favourite so far from the queue has been the Celeste dress by Itch to Stitch. It's a simple shape, with nice lines and a good fit -- and I love the pockets. I made it in a busy floral linen so you can't really see the lines of it but I love the feel of it. Definitely making this one again. 

I didn't deviate much from the pattern. I graded from one size at shoulder to the next size up at hip (8/10) while tracing the pattern, and that is about the only real change I made. Oh -- also, because of my shape, I was also able to leave out the side zip - it pulls on over my head no problem. It fits really well and I found it really easy to sew. 

I popped down to the public garden in the middle of a traffic circle near me to get these photos in the lovely evening light. What a great spot. And makes for a nice evening walk too.

I was using a linen blend from my stash, and so I finished all the seams with zigzag stitching to prevent fraying. Because the princess line seams were all pressed to one side, I finished most of the seams together. It's very tidy. 

The front yoke is supposed to be self-lined but I didn't want to use the linen in two layers. I had some black cotton broadcloth in the stash that was lightweight and smooth against the skin so I used that instead. The inner yoke is supposed to be attached via stitch in the ditch but I find that when I'm doing something this shifty, I always miss an edge somewhere and the topstitching gets messy, even with the edgestitch foot in use. With this fabric I wanted to do a nice clean finish, so I hand-stitched the yoke down on the inside. It didn't take much longer than setting it up to machine stitch, and I love the smooth and even finish. 

The pockets that are built into the side panels are perfect -- not too big or small, and in just the right spot. They are big enough and sturdy enough to hold my phone :) 

I found this a really easy sew and enjoyed the process. The pattern is clear, the linen fabric was a dream to work with, and I love the final fit. I can see making this up in a variety of colours/fabrics. 

Huge flowers or tiny person? You decide...