I resisted sewing any Closet Core patterns (previously Closet Case) for a long time because I took exception to a facetious remark that company founder Heather-Lou made about pattern cutting in an interview I listened to a few years back on the now-defunct Stitchers Brew podcast.
Obviously this approach harms no one except me and eventually I stopped sulking and relented because they had produced some really nice-looking patterns in the intervening years (and drafted by a professional pattern cutter…)!
I bought the Sienna Maker jacket because I was attracted to the variety of options it had including different lengths, quirky sleeve pockets and a button-up back vent on the short version plus the elements were all largely ‘mix-and-match’. This is something that’s always been quite normal with paper patterns from the traditional Big 4 (they aren’t 4 any more but you know what I mean) Indie patterns seem to often have a tendency for fewer versions in a single pattern and then you’re left to put your own spin on them, or they create add-on packs when they notice what others have been doing for themselves.
Anyhoo, in the autumn of 2022 I was going on a sewing retreat hosted by Sew Me Something in Stratford upon Avon so, using some printed needlecord from Barry’s in Birmingham, I cut out the short version of the Sienna Maker as one of my projects to sew while I was there.
The Sienna Maker is intended to be slightly oversized so I based my size choice on my bust measurement (39”) and went with a US14. I’m more than happy with the fit and there’s room for a layer or two in cooler weather (it isn’t lined though so this does make it a little trickier to get sweaters down the sleeves)
I found the instructions and diagrams really thorough, it’s rated as an advanced garment and I would agree with this because you’re dealing with some unusual or more tricky techniques, plus the fabric will probably be stiffer or thicker than most dressmaking fabrics. A good degree of accuracy is needed to create a sharp collar and lapel for example but I thought the diagrams and instructions for this area in particular were very good. It’s helpful to be clear which is your right and left because the two longer coat styles don’t have symmetrical details on the fronts so if you’re in any doubt (especially if the fabric is the same on both sides) put sticky labels onto the pieces until they are sewn together.
There is a lot of encouragement to create the garment you want by including various suggestions for seam finishes for example. I used a mixture of bias binding (Hong Kong finish) and simple overlocking but you could use flat fell seams for some of them if you wish. I’ve had a look and the Closet Core website has loads of tutorials for different techniques and methods so you might find something helpful there if you’re a bit stuck.
I made my own bias binding for both jackets, and for the short version I topstitched and made buttonholes in a contrast bright pink. I bought some fabulous metal buttons from the amazing selection at Textile Garden you’ll be spoilt for choice! You could also use heavy duty poppers instead.
I’ve had so much use from this short version since I finished it last October, I just find it really comfortable to wear, the pockets are really handy and surprisingly the unusual print seems to go with everything.
Fast forward to April 2023 and I was heading to a different retreat with my Sew Over 50 photo shoot pals to a wonderful place we’ve found in Derbyshire.
When I bought the pattern I had always intended to make a longer version too, I just hadn’t found the right fabric. Eventually I settled on the 12oz organic sanded twill cotton from Merchant and Mills in the Stanley Tan shade after seeing it made up as a jacket by a friend. I decided (and I hope I don’t live to regret this…) not to prewash it, my rationale being that there was quite a lot of fabric so it could end up streaky from the washing machine. Also, because it’s a coat, it won’t get laundered very often anyway and I could get it professionally cleaned when necessary.
I opted to make the longest version with the belt and D-rings so there are no fastenings this time, it has a deep front overlap which personally I feel crosses over to the wrong side, I would normally cross right over left so it feels a bit alien. As before, the instructions are excellent, there are a couple of areas where you really need to concentrate like making the opening on the front for the belt to pass through. My top tip would be to make sure you have transferred all the pattern markings carefully before you do any sewing because the two fronts each have different features, I used lots of tailor’s tacks!
Inside finish of the belt carrier
In spite of the distractions of sewing with my friends I took each part of the process slowly to make sure I had everything in order and a really nice quality finish. Once again I made bias binding from a blouse I no longer wore but liked the fabric, it has a new life inside the coat where I can see and enjoy it for far longer than as an unloved blouse.
The coat has an attached belt which slots through D-rings on a tab to fasten (which I already had due to a major cock-up when ordering trims for a ruck sack pattern, but that’s a story for another day…) There are some very thick layers in few places but my Pfaff handled them superbly, I used a chunky jeans needle throughout.
The suggested finish is to topstitch all the facings and collar but I decided against this and I spent a quiet evening herringbone stitching them all in place. If you are going to machine topstitch I strongly suggest tacking (basting) the stitching line so that you have an accurate line to follow on the right side, this should hopefully reduce the need to redo areas where you may have wobbled off course.
I hope I will get as much use from the new longer Sienna Maker as I’ve had already from the short version, it will be too warm on sunny days but for our unreliable weather I’m sure it will be great. I didn’t want a heavy full-length coat and so just-above-the-knee suits me fine. Incidentally, there’s a large interior breast pocket and I didn’t include the back hem split. The fabric is beautifully soft but weighty, it has a suede-like finish, pricey but superb quality.
Delighted as I am with my new coat I can’t help feeling that there’s more than a hint of four candles and Arkwright’s stores about it but no matter, in my head perhaps I should rename it the Ronnie! [one for my British readers there…]
I’ve got a couple more Closet Core patterns in the pipeline over the summer, I made a Mile End sweatshirt last autumn and I’ve also bought the Nicks dress which I’ve got fabric lined up for already plus I’ve just invested in the Kalle shirt so I must be impressed with the quality of the patterns!
Well, here we are at the end of another year which has not been without its challenges again. We’ve been learning to live with Covid 19 as a fact of life but 2022 has been tumultuous in terms of other world events, including the beginning of the war in Ukraine, multiple Prime Ministers here in the UK, the Platinum Jubilee and then the death of Queen Elizabeth, and a worsening cost-of-living crisis, to name but a few.
You haven’t come here to read my personal thoughts on any of these though, there are many who have or will continue to comment more eloquently, passionately or noisily, than me and my blog is for me to detail my sewing.
I began the year with sewing a few garments for the book written by Juliet Uzor to accompany the spring series of the Great British Sewing Bee. The series didn’t air until the late Spring so I wasn’t able to share these photos at the time. In total I sewed five garments which featured, some of which were Juliet’s original designs and others were pattern challenges from the new or previous series of GBSB. Obviously when I’m making these samples I’m sworn to secrecy and I’m rarely told anything more about them anyway until the book comes out. I really enjoy sewing for this though and whilst there are time pressures and it has to be my best possible sewing that’s a challenge I’ve enjoyed rising to. [I’ve sewn for a few books now so I know what’s expected] I have to say that I have no idea how the Bees manage to complete the pattern challenges in the time allowed because they took me a jolly sight longer than a couple of hours!!
a silk organza blouse with shirred detailsOne of Juliet’s original designsthe patchwork jacket which featured as a pattern challenge. Juliet modelling the patchwork jacket
Immediately I finished these garments I became a Backstitch Ambassador and sewed up my first Merchant and Mills Ellsworth shirt. You can read my review of it here, it’s proven to be the most popular post of the year.
The Ellsworth shirt for Backstitch, plus I’m wearing the Eve trousers also by Merchant and Mills. I’ve sewn 5 iterations of them in 2022, it’s such an adaptable pattern.
Next I sewed a Paper Theory LB Pullover from a herringbone tweed wrap which I made a few years ago and then never wore, this became the first of 4 LB Pullovers this year. It’s occurred to me that I haven’t blogged this top yet so I need to put that right in 2023. The trousers are another pair of Eves in soft corduroy and they featured in a Sew Over 50 post I wrote early in the year with many of your favourite trouser patterns in.
An upcycled LB pullover with cord Eve trousers.I sewed this Named Talvikki sweater in a really thick sweatshirting I bought at 1st for Fabrics. I wrote a review of it over on the Fold Line website if you’re interested.
I also hosted a couple more of my Herts Sewcials before the lawn bowls season started again and we had to stop until early October. They have been such a source of fun and sewing camaraderie and I hope to announce some other sewing days later this year. It all takes time to find a suitable venue, make bookings, advertise etc etc though
I was (finally) struck down by the first of two bouts of covid in late February which meant I had to miss out on the The Stitch Festival show in London and being in the first ever Sew Over 50 lounge. This was particularly gutting because I had organised the whole rota of people who had generously volunteered to ‘woman’ the space over the four days and I couldn’t share all the fun and chat, and the fashion show which I could only watch unfolding on social media from home.
I sewed a Tilly and the Buttons Nora cardigan using another of the fabrics I bought from 1st for Fabrics and it’s been in regular use on chilly days (I’m wearing it again right now)
I diversified a little after that when I made a fabric roll to keep our ‘good’ cutlery in. It’s only ever lived in a box with bits of tissue and an elastic band around the items so I finally got around to making something more suitable. I used a couple of fat quarters and some Liberty off-cuts in the stash, plus some wadding to go inside. The embroidery function on my machine was very handy for making the labels for each pocket too, all in all a very satisfying make.
Dhurata Davies had very generously gifted me a copy of her Overlap pattern in 2021 and I bought this silk habutai fabric from Hasan, the Man Outside Sainsbury’s in Walthamstow specifically to make it. However, it took me until March 2022 to actually do so! I’m so glad I finally did because it’s been absolutely lovely in warm weather and on holidays, it’s so light and folds up very small. The construction of the collar and facings on it are things of beauty too.
I used a ‘vintage’ 80’s blouse pattern in my collection to sew a shirt dress for our delayed holiday to Antigua in March. We should have gone in March 2021 to celebrate Mr Y’s 60th birthday but world events scuppered that. In spite of my having Covid just two weeks before we were due to go I was cleared to fly at the last minute and thankfully we all made it there-and back-without further problems.
I sewed the first of two Elbe Textiles Serpentine hats, the first from Ellsworth leftovers. Because I hadn’t been able to leave the house in the lead-up to our trip I had to make do with the interfacing I already had so the brim wasn’t really stiff enough. It was shady and kept the sun out of my eyes though. Mask-wearing was still strictly enforced in Antigua.
As soon as I got back from holiday I chatted on Instagram live with Gabby of Gabberdashery on her Quick Unpick feature. It was nerve-racking to start with but I quickly forgot that people were watching and just enjoyed nattering with Gabby. It wasn’t as bad as all that!
I had been wanting some kind of vest or tank top for a while and then Charlotte Emma patterns released the Clove Vest which was exactly what I wanted! I bought, printed, stuck together and sewed one in double-quick time and I have been using it ever since. In fact I’ve just made another using small leftovers of another project so it’s a good way to use remnants up.
The Clove Vest in action on a walking trip to the Yorkshire Dales, Swaledale to be exact.
From Yorkshire we continued north to Scotland where we had the huge pleasure of staying with Sew Over 50 Supremo Judith Staley. The OHs went off to play on trains while Judith I went first to the V&A in Dundee and the following day we visited the Great Tapestry of Scotland which we would both highly recommend.
In April I organised a quick, low key, visit to Walthamstow market where I caught up with friends old and new. Not too many purchases on my part, I’m more of an enabler…
I delved into the remnants box and found enough of this linen to make a short-sleeved Fantail Top by The Sewing Revival, I love the gathered elastic hem detail on this pattern. Using fabric I bought at Walthamstow I sewed this shorter, wider pair of Eve trousers.
I returned soon after to Walthamstow and the William Morris gallery to catch the small-but-perfectly-formed exhibition of Althia McNish’s work. Until I listened to the very first Haptic and Hue podcast nearly 3 years ago I had never heard of this wonderful textile designer. I’m very glad I know about her now because her designs are so full of life, colour and vibrancy.
I hadn’t sewn anything for Lamazi as a blogger for a while but I was able to make this McCalls 8090 using their beautiful own design Tencel Lyocell ‘Garden of Dreams’. It has the most gorgeous handle and drape, and I love the vibrant colours of the print. It worked beautifully for this pattern and I’ve worn it loads, plus I’ve layered long-sleeved tops under it this autumn/winter, and with tights and a cardigan over the top too. I really must write this pattern up as a proper blog post in 2023!
In late April myself and my fellow Love Sewing modelsfinally FINALLY got to Thirkelow in Derbyshire for our sewing retreat. I can’t tell you how many times this got pushed back and pushed back because of the pandemic and we were all just so thankful to be together as planned and have a wonderful time chatting, sewing, walking, laughing, eating and drinking at last. We booked for 2023 before we even left, and 2024 is in the diary too!
I made my second LB Pullover while I was in Derbyshire (yes I actually got some sewing done…)These are the Trend Utility trousers from a couple of years ago.
Another departure was a waistcoat for Mr Y, everything except the buttons (ironic when you see how many buttons I have) came from the stash. I first used the pattern over 20 years ago for some wedding ushers.
I don’t think these Marcy Tilton trousers have been my biggest success…I’ve met someone since who was wearing them and they looked great so if I size down by at least 3 sizes (or more) they won’t look so voluminous, I hope.
I made my second Serpentine hat which worked better than the first, I wore it loadsClaire and I went to both Africa Fashion and Fashioning Masculinities at the V&A on the same day and unexpectedly bumped into Barbara so we all had a lovely outing together
Farie from GBSB Series 7 was a work colleague of my friend Jane who kindly hosted a lovely lunch so we could all meet Farie and have a good old chat about all things Bee and sewing!
I spend a good deal of time sewing this jacket for my dear friend Sue for her son’s wedding in July, we bought the stunning fabric from Misan in the Goldhawk Road. It all got rather more complicated after she broke her wrist on holiday and I had to make the whole outfit because she couldn’t get to the shops!
The ridiculous steaming heat of July meant I moved everything indoors where it was only marginally cooler. Sue’s top was the Maker’s Atelier gathered top from their spring/summer magazine sewn in crepe-back satin.
I was asked by a friend if I could replicate a dress she had seen last year online so eventually I was able to create this dress partly utilising an existing 1980s pattern and partly by pattern cutting other elements myself. Our measurements are very similar so I dug this cotton fabric out of the stash and made a version for myself first which Lynn then tried on as a toile. Astonishingly it was all perfect so I made her own dress without any need for further fittings!
I’ve made a second version for myself using some very inexpensive fabric from Walthamstow. This time I made a new cropped bell-shaped sleeve and altered the front to add a shirt collar.
After my second bout of Covid (thank you MR Y) June saw us able to travel on a long-planned trip to Tuscany in Italy. We had a wonderful stay in Florence which included a visit to Bacci Tessuti which was chock-full of beautiful fabrics. I bought myself a lovely piece of fine linen and Mr Y treated me to two pieces of Liberty Tana lawn. I also bought a remnant of Pucci silk/cotton which was just enough to make a short version of my own Dexter pattern.
I added a button backThis was the first version of a short Dexter in fabric that had sat in the stash for a while.
And then in August I turned 60…
Afternoon tea at Cliveden was one of my treats over a wonderful weekendAt the end of August we had the opportunity to get up close and personal with several hives full of honey beesThe exhibition celebrating 150 years of the Royal School of Needlework at the Fashion and Textiles museum was well worth a visit with many beautiful exhibits including this stunning Red Dress
At the end of September was the event many of us had been waiting months for, it was the very first Sew Over 50 Frocktails event held in Edinburgh and hosted by both Judith and Sandy! I suggest you pop over to the blog post I compiled afterwards to get the full rundown with loads more pictures.
The beginning of October saw my Herts Sewcials recommence again. I didn’t have a project to sew until the day before, there was lots to organise and I became so indecisive! At the last minute I settled on the Portobello Trousers by Nina Lee in a bright pink crepe and what a good choice they were, I’ve really enjoyed wearing them!
Next up I headed to London and the autumn Knitting and Stitching show, not once but twice!
Catching up with Maria from the Sew Organised Style podcast and Sewing Bee alumnus Mercedes Another Bee, Jen Hogg on her own Jenerates stand this time along with Sew Over 50 stalwart Sue Stoney, also visiting from AustraliaI was the only non-Australian here at the Tessuti stand!Trying out a Simplicity PDF for the first time
In October I treated myself to a Sew Me Something retreat in Stratford upon Avon which was so enjoyable and I met some lovely people while we all sewed together.
Day 1 hotel mirror selfie, the Olya shirt by Paper Theory and those pink Portobellos again.On day one I completed this Tessuti Lily Linen dress in red check bought at the K&S show a few weeks earlier. I love this dress but sadly I’ve got to do some fixing because somehow a pen I was using sprang a leak and blobbed ink down the front skirt! I’m very upset about it and I think I’m going to have to cover it with a patch of fabric if I can match it successfully.Fun times with CL @thriftystitcher and my chum Elizabeth came to visit on day twoThird LB pullover of the year, a sleeveless one this time and completely influenced by Sandy @sunnydayz and her holiday wardrobeI popped pockets into the side seams
I also started a Closet Core Sienna Maker jacket while I was in Stratford but I didn’t finish it until after I got home. I’ll blog this one in the new year, I’m really pleased with it though and, weather permitting, it’s had a good number of wears so far. After this I also compiled a Sew Over 50 blog post rounding up lots of your favourite casual jacket patterns
In November I had a massive tidy up and sort out in Threadquarters and as a result I made this Fehrtrade Tessalate Tee for yoga from various jersey scraps.
This gorgeous lawn was one of my purchases from the K&S show, as soon as I saw it I knew it would be perfect for another M&M Ellsworth.
Sue treated me to afternoon tea at the Lanesborough Hotel in London and we both proudly wore our me-mades for the occasion.
My next Backstitch blog came at the end of the year when I sewed this cheerful saffron Ingrid by Homer and Howells.
Nearly there, honestly….I constructed another ‘tree’ for the local Christmas Tree festival at the beginning of December, she was called ‘Etoile de Noel’ this year because almost everything came from recycled toiles
We had loads of snow in late December (unusual for this part of the UK) and I took the opportunity to take pictures of this full circle skirt sewn using a vintage Vogue Claude Montana pattern from the early 80s.
A bit more crafting before Christmas with these Festive oven gloves, I found a tutorial on’t t’internet which helped with fabric requirements and measurements but actually you could copy a pair if you have them.
And so to the final two makes of 2022, first was another LB Pullover, this time in ruby red velour-so comfy!
And the absolute final make was another Charlotte Emma Clove vest in stash remnants (from a sweatshirt for Mr Y in 2020)
This wasn’t absolutely everything I sewed in 2022 but most items are there, not all of it was for me by any means. It looks like I need to write up a few more reviews though, they have definitely not been happening so much in the previous twelve months. In November and December I did some teaching for Backstitch which was very enjoyable, I’ll be doing some more in 2023 too. There will be new exhibitions to look forward to in London including one featuring the work of Gabrielle Chanel in the autumn.
Thank you for following my activities this year, it’s been great to meet more of you in real life and I hope we’ll get the chance for more meet-ups again in 2023. I don’t have any sewing resolutions for next year, we’ll just have to see how it all unfolds I reckon.
Until next time, happy sewing
Sue
PS as I was writing this the news about the death of fashion great Vivienne Westwood came through, I wrote a post reviewing her autobiography which I would highly recommend if you want to learn more about her.
First a bit of preamble, because the origins of the fabric I used for this top were important. In June 2022 me and Mr Y were finally able to return to mainland Europe again for a four day stay in Florence, one of my favourite cities. We knew it would probably be very busy with visitors during the summer but frankly I didn’t care about this, I was just so happy to be able to see all those magnificent buildings and beautiful art again.
In between looking at the art and strolling the ancient streets I indulged in a little window shopping at the stores where I can afford literally nothing, including Alexander McQueen, Missoni and Gucci.
I could get a closer look at the details in the Gucci store that is based in the Gucci exhibition (worth a visit)Missoni….obviously, look at that extraordinary panelled dressAlexander McQueen…be still my beating heart
Amongst all these shops though I *may* have come across a fabric emporium….In truth, there are quite a number of fabric shops in Florence, what with this being Italy and home of fabulous quality textiles.
I failed to make a note of the name of this particular shop but it was very close to the Duomo and the Baptistry. I didn’t go in (thankfully it was shut at the time!) but they clearly specialised in very high-end alta moda fabrics which were nowhere near my budget!Stunning beaded silk cloth
I had, however, been given the name of another more accessible shop by a kind Instagram follower so we set off to find it with only the vaguest idea where it was. Bacci Tessuti is quite close to the Medici Chapel and San Lorenzo and, with a little help from Google Maps, we found it eventually.
The air-conditioned shop was a very welcome haven from the extreme heat Florence was experiencing during our visit and I was not disappointed by what I found, there is a wonderful selection of lovely cloth to browse.
The choices in a beautiful store like this can be quite overwhelming so I had a sort-of plan to buy something which felt ‘Italian’ to me. I set out looking at their fine linen, personally I would call it handkerchief linen and it’s much lighter and softer than most of the heavier and more durable linens I’ve seen on sale in the UK. I homed in on one with a large design in blue, red and pink flowers (I love a floral fabric but I don’t often wear it) but this one ’spoke’ to me. So that was great but then the helpful shop manager, who spoke excellent English, pointed out the Liberty Tana lawn he had at a very good price! I would have resisted but my husband wanted to buy some for me so who am I to turn him down!
These were going to be my total purchases but when I went over to the counter the manager told me that the linen cloth was by the textile designer for well-known Italian brand, Pucci. At this point he produced from under the counter several short length pieces of some beautiful Italian designer fabrics including Dolce and Gabbana! They were all very lovely (and still expensive) but I wouldn’t have a use for them. The one I did fall for though was a small piece of silk/cotton cloth from Pucci with their trademark psychedelic design in delicate ice cream shades. It still wasn’t cheap but it was just a bit different and there was enough to make a top of some kind. So of course it came home with me…
it’s a bit crumpled from the wash after I got it homeThe linen is on the left, plus the two pieces of Tana lawn bought by my husband, and that was my view from the hotel in the background, straight over the Arno with the Ponte Vecchio just to the left.
With my purchases safely stowed away we got on with enjoying the rest of our holiday (although I spent a fair bit of time planning in my head what I was going to make when we got home!)
Initially I was going to use this ‘vintage’ Style pattern as is (I bought it new in 1988 so it’s a little upsetting to think of it as vintage!) I used it several times back in the day, and I’ve sewn it again a couple of times in the last few years. The back buttons are the feature I like, the rest is basically a woven T-shirt.
As I said earlier, I had no more than 1m30 of fabric to play with and I still wanted to do a decent job of matching the print as best I could. The basic pattern fitted on the fabric, it’s only a front, back, sleeves and facings, but I thought it might look a bit meh, and there would still be some wastage. After a bit of a rethink, by shortening the body and making two deep ruffles across the width of the fabric I knew I would get a much more interesting design and have very little wastage in the end.
Basically it was a case of working out how long I could afford to make the top section and still get ruffles that were a balanced length [I had the Merchant and Mills Florence top in my head as inspiration] I took a line horizontally straight across to the centre front/back from the side seam approximately 15cms down from the bottom of the arm scye of both the front and back. What I should have done if I had stopped to think about it was make the centre front longer, I didn’t though and as a result the front hem lifts up because of my bust. The back is fine though.
The first dashed line is roughly where I folded out the pattern to make the horizontal seam, the curved dashed line on the front is how I should have shaped it.
I was able to cut the front and back pieces side by side on the folded cloth which meant the design ran smoothly around the garment. From the remaining fabric I calculated how deep two full widths of the fabric could be (approximately 28cms each strip) and still have enough to get two sleeves and the neck facings out too.
Once I had all the pieces it was just a case of assembling. First I did my usual scavenge through my button boxes to find enough suitable colours in matching sizes. After joining the shoulder seams and attaching the neck and back facings I sewed all the buttonholes at this stage, by doing this first it meant I wasn’t fighting the bulky seam of the gathered ‘skirt’ later.
My usual mash-up of various buttons down the backBy sewing the buttonholes at an early stage meant I didn’t have to struggle getting the bottom one under the buttonhole foot with the gathering in the way.All finished. I know I’m just being fussy but you can probably see what I mean about the top rising up at the front slightly. There is no bust dart on the pattern which would have made a difference.I’m pleased with how the top uses almost all the fabric and shows off the print to good effect, I didn’t want to chop it up unnecessarily and there weren’t many options with the small quantity I had anyway. I had to use a very narrow pin hem on the ruffle to maximise the length, the sleeves had their normal hem allowance on them. If you want a few more ideas for finishing hems I wrote this blog a couple of years ago which you might find useful. I opted to have the ruffle run straight across the back rather than have an opening (this was because I was being lazy and didn’t want to make a facing and sew more buttonholes!!)The top is shorter than I’ve worn in the recent past but I like the look, especially with the flat-fronted Eve pants by Merchant and MillsOut in the wild at Africa Fashion which is on at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London until 16/4/23
As for the other Italian fabrics, I have plans to make a shirt dress with the beautiful linen, I have a design I’ve drafted and sewn a couple of versions of but there’s probably still a few tweaks I want to make to it before making it in the ‘real thing’. The Liberty lawn is waiting for the right project to present itself too, no need to rush these things. I’m all for sewing the good stuff but it’s really upsetting if you sew a dud with it!
I’ve had this Marcy Tilton trouser pattern Vogue 8499 for an absolute age, several years at least, and I took it out for consideration at regular intervals but for some reason it just kept going back into the box. Maybe the leg shape felt a little too radical for me on those occasions? But then the Style Arc Bob pants kept cropping up everywhere, especially in the Sew Over 50 community, so I returned to this pattern because of its similarities to the Bobs. Now I know I’m not six feet tall or a size 8 but the photo on the packet isn’t very helpful because I think it gives the distinct impression that the legs are fairly slim with a slight bulbous shape to the hem. The front is flat with deep pockets inserted into the side front panels while the back waist is elasticated, the curved leg shape is created though the addition of darts at knee level. They come in two size brackets UK 6-12 and UK 14-20.
I opted to sew the shorter length version (on the left) and although the pattern gives you body measurements to choose from, unlike many patterns, there are no finished garment measurements for guidance. I found this lack of information meant I really struggled to know which size to cut, my current waist measurement suggested that I should go with a size 20 which I found a bit hard to believe given that the back waist is elasticated. [I should add a caveat here that the pattern has been in print since 2008 and I’ve noticed it has since been re-numbered as V1731 so it’s possible that the information has been updated, maybe you can let me know if you have this version of the pattern?]
You might think that visually the width of the front and back leg pieces would give some indication to the sizing but they are cut in two parts so the individual sections are slightly deceptive. I’m very familiar with the style of instruction sheets which ‘Big 4’ pattern companies (or is it 6 now?) use because they are what I learned with from the age of 11 and, in my opinion, the sewing instructions and diagrams are very clear. Because of the quantity of topstitching there’s a certain order to follow but it’s very methodical, I used a triple straight stitch rather than actual topstitching thread. I had a couple of try-ons whilst I was sewing them but I did have Covid at the time so maybe my brain was just not functioning clearly and I simply didn’t think they were going to be as huge as they have turned out to be.
Ta-dah!?I really wanted to disguise the bagginess over my hip and bum area so I started by teaming it with my Merchant and Mills Ellsworth shirt I don’t think this looks too bad.The deep pockets are greatI’m happy with the length, I am 5’5” tall and I didn’t alter it from the pattern, the shape and the width at this point are fine.I’m okay with the amount of fabric at the front
I start to have a problem once I get round to the back…there’s way too much fabric over the seat and hip area, it gathers in at the elastic casing but there’s just too much of it so it’s bulky and it isn’t a good look. I didn’t take a photo of the back, I will add one here when I get around to it.closing my eyes to the problem…I do think the dart details on the knees and the topstitching certainly elevate the style from more run-of-the-mill trouser designs though.As you can see there is loads of fabric in the back, the pattern description merely says “very loose-fitting through the hipline”. With hindsight, and with the absence of ‘finished’ measurements, I should have pinned the paper pattern pieces together to check first but that’s rather blaming myself for the error when in fact I’ve done nothing wrong! Side view
So there we are, judging by some of the comments on my Instagram post about these trousers, a number of you have the pattern but haven’t sewn it up yet or, like me, you have had similar size choice issues with it. If you have an older copy like mine then I strongly suggest you pin the pattern fronts and backs together first and measure them before going anywhere near your fabric, or lay the pieces on top of a pair of me-made or RTW trousers which are similar and a satisfactory fit. This pair cost me very little because the fabric [some sort of linen/cotton/viscose type] was very cheap at Walthamstow market and I bought it for exactly this type of garment. As with any home sewn garment which doesn’t quite work out it’s feeling that the time spent on something I don’t love has been wasted which is annoying. That said, it’s been a learning process and I know I will make another darker coloured pair, possibly in a drill or denim-type cloth, but I will cut down the front by two sizes and the back possibly by as much as three sizes. I haven’t helped myself because I’m feeling really bloaty and despondent at present so I think these just emphasise this. I tried wearing them with a T-shirt tucked in but that just made me feel worse so it’s back to the drawing board for now. If, however, you love a very oversized trouser then these could be the ones for you.
As I said in my IG post, they will be great in warmer weather (which isn’t that often here) I’ll probably style them with my heavy black books, white Trend pleated shirt and denim Simple Sew cocoon coat in the winter hoping I’ll be rocking a little European-style continental chic, or I will simply put them on but not check in the mirror before I leave the house!
As one of the new team of Backstitch Ambassadors I relished the chance to go along to the gorgeous shop at Burwash Manor to browse their fabrics and patterns. It’s about 40 minutes from where I live and I love to go there whenever I get an opportunity, I’ve previously included it in this round-up of Hertfordshire based fabric shops. To be completely honest, I already had an idea that I would like to make the newish Merchant and Mills Ellsworth shirt but I had an open mind about fabric choice. In my head I was looking for a lightweight linen-type but as soon as my eyes alighted on the checked double gauze I was all in for that! It was folded on the bolt with the large check visible on the outside but when I discovered the reverse was small checks my mind was blown and I knew I could mix the two sides to create a unique garment. There are currently 4 colours available but I settled on the pretty shell pink variation. I took 2 metres as per the pattern instructions but after cutting it out (and as I’ve found before with M&M patterns) I had almost 50cms left over, even allowing for pattern matching. It’s very annoying when this happens and I’ve made a note for next time. I cut a straight UK 12 with no mods.
I loved the elliptical pearly buttons but there were only two of the pink shade left so I made do with two pink and four ivory. Backstitch have quite a wide selection of buttons, trims, and ribbons plus lots of other haberdashery and sewing equipment including Brother sewing machines.
The Ellsworth is quite typical of M&M’s aesthetic, it is a very wide and loose fit shirt with a stepped hem, a collar and button placket and cropped, cuffed sleeves. It will lend itself towards fabrics which have an element of fluidity and drape such as soft linen or cotton-types, light woollens, crepe, chambray or babycord. Some light- or medium-weight jerseys would probably be okay but I wouldn’t recommend ones with a lot of stretch.
Another reason for choosing this shirt (apart from the fact I liked it anyway) is because I had seen a few makers on Instagram were having trouble interpreting the instructions for the placket. I hope what follows will give you a bit more information and guidance.
Away we go…
Definitely give your fabric a wash first, its light loose weave will shrink a little (it will be very crinkly when it comes out of the machine but don’t panic, it will press flat again. You may ultimately prefer the crinkles but they will be hard to work with during the making process so press as you go for now)
If you are a person with no patience when it comes to laying up your fabric, or time is tight, then this may not be the fabric choice for you because it does need some careful laying up and folding to get the checks straight and matching [or you could cut every piece on the flat to save on the head scratching] There were a couple of places where, in spite of my best efforts I was bit off but I won’t tell you where they were and you might not notice anyway! It does have the advantage of the large check being 3cms square and the reverse is 1cm squares so a 1cm or 1.5cm seam allowance shouldn’t be a problem to follow.
The problematic placket is made first so here’s my interpretation of the instructions for you. Begin by interfacing all pieces as instructed (although I interfaced the whole placket rather than half as the fabric is quite fine and a bit unstable)
Mark the bottom of where the placket will be sewn on with tailor’s tacks or a soluble marker pen then stay stitch just within the seam allowance, at 1.4cm (14mm) to reinforce the area. For visual reference, the large squares are my right side, the small squares are the wrong side of the fabric.Cut down the centre front line and carefully snip diagonally into the corners. Fold and press each of the two placket pieces down the centre and then press in the seam allowance on one edge only. Trim this by halfNext, pin each unpressed edge onto either side of the slit, right sides together.Stitch each side in position down as far as the tailor’s tacks, you should stop a little bit short of the bottom edge.Trim down the seams by half.Now flip the work over so that you have the wrong side uppermost. Press the seams in towards the placket piece on the left as you look at it then fold over like this, pin and tack in place. Now turn the work back over again.Working with the right side uppermost, edgestitch the placket you have prepared.Keeping the right unfinished placket out of the way, you need to position the left placket (the one you have just sewn) layered like so with the triangle at the base of the slit. Carefully stitch just below the original staystitching. This is with the inside of the work uppermost, neaten the edge and press downwards.Now work on the right placket (it is on the left as you look at it though) Fold up the lower edge as demonstrated here, pin and tack in place. Edgestitch on the right side of the placket only as far as the bottom, do not sew across the bottom yet. Now work your buttonholes while the placket is still separate.After working the buttonholes, lap the placket over the underneath one and stitch it in position like this.You should now have a placket which looks something like this.
Next I moved on to the sleeve opening which is neatened with a very narrow bias strip.
I found the bias strip included to be incredibly narrow, especially for a fabric which is loose weave and a bit prone to fraying so you may want to cut your strips a little bit wider. I made the strips work but they were very fiddly. Instead of edgestitching as per the instructions I sewed them with a tiny zigzag which I hope will hold them firmly in place. Or you could slipstitch them by hand if you prefer. Next, fold the bias evenly in half and stitch across the top at a 45 degree angle, I’m not sure if the diagram intends you to sew through the sleeve too, I didn’t. The way I’ve sewn it, once it’s finished, the sleeve opening and cuff looks like this.
The hem facings are sewn on next, then join the shoulders using French seams. This is a useful technique if your fabric is very fine, sheer, or frays badly, or if you don’t own an overlocker. Obviously you can sew a flat seam and overlock/zigzag if you prefer. You could also topstitch these seams if you want a bit of interest on them. My personal preference is to press shoulder seams to the front, this is so that the seam is slightly less visible when looking at it.
I found the collar instructions straightforward so I won’t go into them as well, I opted to catch the lower edge down by hand so that I had control over it and a really neat finish. I also added a label from Little Rosy Cheeks.
Inside the finished collar
The sides are then French seamed, be careful with the step at the lower edge and make sure you don’t take too much seam allowance on the seams because this could throw out the overlap at the top of the opening. I used the bartack stitch on my Pfaff to secure it as this could be a point of weakness further down the line.
I opted to sew two rows of edgestitching along the top of the hem facings, just to add a bit of interest. Finally, the cuffs are sewn on and the buttons added.
all finished
I’m all in Merchant and Mills today, these are their Eve trousers in cream drill which I bought at their Rye store back in September 2021.
I cut a straight UK 12 with no modifications and I’m 5’5” tall but if you’re taller you might want to lengthen the shirt as it’s quite cropped at the front.
I’m very pleased with how the Ellsworth has come out, I’ve worn it with flat-front Eve trousers but it will look good with a skirt or even a dress under it for layering. I’m going to have a look through the stash to see what other fabrics I can make it in now!
I’m delighted to have the opportunity to write for Backstitch because it’s a lovely little shop which I’ve been visiting for a few years now. It’s in a beautiful rural location and sells a really nice, well-considered range of quality fabrics and indie patterns and sewing books. As Ambassadors we are provided with gift vouchers to shop in the store, it’s entirely up to us what we make and how much of those vouchers we spend, the balance can be kept to spend on another occasion if we choose to. If you don’t live anywhere near enough to pay a visit yourself then Backstitch has a recently revamped website to shop through too, their range of yarn, knitting and crochet patterns are all on there too.
I hope you have found my review useful, that’s always my intention, do write in the comments if there’s something which still isn’t clear and I’ll try to help.
Well that was another weird year wasn’t it!? I’m not gonna lie but I’ll be glad to see the back of 2021. For every good event there seemed to be two or three stinkers which I found made it really hard to see positives anywhere. I know that there were some good things though and I’m incredibly grateful to have the life that I do so I don’t want to dwell on the downside, let’s move into 2022 with an air of cautious optimism!
I entitled my round up for 2020 as ‘sewing in a time of pandemic’ and I’m so glad I didn’t know then that 2021 was going to be ‘part two!’ Anyway, I’ve collected a few photos to round up my sewing and other events I was able to get up to during 2021 although I’m not sure if they are particularly chronological…the length and colour of my hair at any given time will give you a bit of a clue!
I’ve decided that the Trend Utility pants are definitely my favourite trouser pattern of the year-I had made two pairs by the end of 2020 and finished a third, in orange linen, in spring 2021 and I’ve worn them all fairly constantly. I find them interesting to make, they aren’t a completely straightforward sew and need a bit of concentration but they are all the better for that. The leg flaps are their USP and they are a design feature that make me very happy! I was wearing them in the late summer when we finally escaped with one of our daughters on a week’s holiday, along with another favourite, the Maker’s Atelier Holiday Shirt.The orange linen pair were perfectly autumnal at Kew Gardens in November, and the colours were absolutely stunning.This hacked Sewing Revival Heron dress was one I finished in 2020 but wore a lot in 2021, and will do in 2022 as well.I’m still not convinced about the ribbon bow but I haven’t actually done anything about changing it.
I was looking for new sewing challenges early in the year during the next long lockdown and Mr Y was the lucky recipient of a few items including this Carmanah sweatshirt by Thread Theory. The fabric was kindly provided for me as I’m part of the Lamazi blogger team.
This is the Thread Theory Finlayson sweatshirt I made for Mr Y at the start of the year and he’s worn it on heavy rotation. These items of menswear led to me writing an article for Love Sewing magazine about sewing for men, and by men, in the spring and I joined Maria at Sew Organised Style podcast to chat about it too.Mr Y celebrated his 60th birthday quietly at home in March, we both wore hand-mades!…and we celebrated a second wedding anniversary in lockdown too. Cabin fever had taken hold a bit as I dug out my wedding dress and flounced around the garden in it! I really hope our 33rd anniversary this year can be outside of the house!!Let joy be unconfined because mid-March saw us going for our first vaccination and I wore entirely hand sewn garments to mark the occasion, including a Holiday Shirt, a Nora sweatshirt and my self-drafted rain coat.
I was selected to contribute some articles offering sewing tips and advice for an online sewing project in the early spring but after just two such items they just stopped contacting with me or replying to my emails. Bit rude I’d say, I’ve no idea what was wrong because they never had the courtesy to tell me, and I’ve no intention of wasting more time on them frankly.
Moving on…
Lucy at Trend generously gifted me the kit for the Box Pleat shirt from her capsule shirt collection. Like all her patterns it is so well drafted, I should have gone down at least one size though (my fault for being overly-cautious) There are currently three patterns in the shirt collection but I know there are more in the pipeline. I only made two Minerva projects in 2021 and this Tabitha dress from Tilly and the Buttons book ‘Make it Simple’ was one of them. I really like the Art Gallery fabric and I’ve had plenty of wear from it.I was so happy to see my dear sewing chum Claire after far too long at the Alice in Wonderland exhibition at the V&A in the summer. It was an interesting show although I suspect we nattered all the way around it! [it seems there was a ‘wear checks’ memo sent out too!]
As you know if you read my posts I like to reuse patterns if they have lots of options so I’ve sewn several variations of a number of Sewing Revival patterns during the year, including the Fantail top below which I made in an ancient remnant in my stash which I believe somebody once paid 90p for!
The wide elastic casing in the front hem is such an interesting detail.This is another version of the Fantail featuring jersey cuffs and back hem.This Sewing Revival Kingfisher top was made using the fabric from a summer dress which I never wore. It’s been a satisfying project because I worn it often (I‘d had a haircut by this point too!)I enjoyed the challenge that this Heron adaptation presented because I used linen jersey provided for me by Lamazi fabrics. It was a learning experience and I shared lots of hints and tips in the accompanying post. It’s been such a lovely fabric to wear, it’s very comfortable and it has a beautiful sheen which is not particularly obvious in this photo.I made another pair of Simple Sew Palazzo pants in a linen remnant I bought from Lamazi, they are comfortable and very nice to swoosh about in! That’s a M&M Camber Set top with them.I sewed a third version of the Trend Bias T-shirt dress which I made specifically for an occasion at Capel Manor College in north London when the Japanese ambassador to the UK came to plant cherry trees. I’ve only had a chance to wear it once so far because the weather was getting colder but I have every intention of wearing it a lot in 2022-you know I love a floaty dress and this pattern is perfect for that! I managed to get an outing to the Fashion and Textiles in the autumn to see ‘Beautiful People’ and it was well worth it because the colours and fashions were so uplifting. One of my personal favourite posts of the year was this one where I had rediscovered lots of my college work and sketches from the 1980s. It was so much fun to find them unexpectedly and it seems it was a trip down memory lane for many of you too.
I wrote just three specific Sew Over 50 blog posts in 2021, the first was a summing up of lots of ideas and inspiration for how to sew more sustainably which the followers of the Sew Over 50 account contributed. There was a lot of it and it definitely worth a read.
Judith Staley joined Maria on the podcast to chat about it too.
I was a guest editor on the Sew Over 50 account in the autumn when we chatted about mannequins in our sewing practice. Many of you contributed some brilliant and insightful comments, I wonder how many people have gone on to buy a dress form, or use the one they have differently, or more often, as a result?
Sew Over 50 stalwart Tina generously shared with us the many resources she has gathered together over the last couple of years for sewing and adapting patterns and clothing after a breast cancer diagnosis. It has been one of my most read articles on the blog since it was published in the autumn and I know Tina is happy for followers to contact her via Instagram for any advice or support she can offer them. For me, she very much represents the positive aspects of being a part of this worldwide community.
One of my favourite ‘in person’ events in the sewing calendar, Sew Brum, quietly took place in the autumn and my lovely mate Elizabeth kindly put me up overnight and we had some quality shopping and sewing time together. Our friend Melissa even joined us for a couple of hours for a Zoom sew! Plus I ran in my first (and so far, only) Park Run too! phew, it was a busy and almost-normal 48 hours.
We got VERY wet at the Park Run but we earned extra smug points in our me-made Fehrtrade running kit! [I wrote a post about the Tesselate Tee that we’re both wearing here] I didn’t even buy any of this green fabric at Barry’s in the end…
I finally made a jumpsuit (or two) at the end of the year, it’s the Cressida by Sew Me Something Patterns.
I made this second one to wear at the first Lamazi open day in November. It was so much fun to be a part of and I really hope there will be the opportunity to hold more events during 2022 because it so good to meet up with people in person and to just chat about sewing all day.This was fun outing to the V&A that actually happened rather than being cancelled like so many others, it was an in-person talk by Oscar-winning costume designer Sandy Powell and it was absolutely fascinating. I’ve really missed these talks in the lecture theatre and it was great to be back.Being an actual grown-up at a fun event! I splashed out on this unusual quilted fabric from Merchant and Mills and sewed it up into their Fielder top plus I wrote up a blog post on how I made the too-wide elastic fit around the neckline.These Eve pants are also a Merchant and Mills pattern and they became my second-favourite trousers of the year, made in their Elinore checked linen and worn with a long-sleeved Holiday shirt in Swiss Dot. This second Hug hoodie of the year by Made It Patterns is definitely one of my favourite makes of the year. It looks tricky but is very straightforward to sew and the style lines look very effective.
For quite a while I had wanted to organise an informal sewing event and they were finally able to happen in October and November with #HertsSewcial It was such a joy to be reunited with my Sew Over 50 stalwart friends Ruth and Kate, along with meeting several other online friends like Bev and Elke in real life for the first time. We had so much fun sewing and chatting together, the time flew past far too quickly and I very much hope I can organise some more in the New Year, current situations permitting.
Can you tell that Ruth, Kate and me are happy to see each other again after far too long!?
And my final sewing treat of the year was being able to meet up with Judith Staley in her hometown of Edinburgh!! It was much too brief but absolutely better than nothing, we had so much we could have talked about but that will have to wait until our oft-rescheduled and much looked forward to sewing get together next spring…fingers tightly crossed!
My final personal make of the year was another Maven Somerset top in this celestial jersey I bought at the Lamazi open day. It’s festive without screaming CHRISTMAS!
And so ends another year of sewing and other stuff, as well as the new garments I’ve sewn for myself there were many other occasions when I wore, and re-wore, favourites which didn’t need to be photographed! I fervently hope 2022 brings better times for everyone and that we can adapt to our new or changed ways of living. Sewing will continue be a big part of my life and I hope there will be some new and exciting projects and opportunities during the year. There are so many wonderful people in this community and the support and encouragement that swirls around has been so important during another trying year-I hope I will get a chance to meet up with more of you in person during the next twelve months.
Until then, thank you for reading my wafflings, happy sewing and a very happy New Year,
I haven’t shared a museum or gallery visit with you in such a long time (for sadly obvious reasons) but, at last, I’ve been to one that is probably worthwhile to write about because you may have time to visit it for yourself if you’re within reach of London!
‘Beautiful People: the boutique in 1960’s counterculture’ is the latest exhibition to open at the Fashion and Textiles Museum in Bermondsey, London. I went a few days after it opened and there was a lovely ‘buzz’ to it because a good number of people were there (but not too crowded by any means) and a great backing track of familiar Sixties music to accompany it.
The map at the start shows the locations in and around London of all the boutiques featured in the show, some of them were remarkably short-lived whilst others opened more than one branch, at least for a time.
Boutiques were an entirely new concept at the start of the Sixties, before then young people were pretty much obliged to dress exactly like their parents and shopping for clothes, if you didn’t sew your own, was a very dull affair in traditional gents outfitters or snooty ladies dress shops. All of that began to change when Mary Quant opened Bazaar, her first London boutique and many others soon began to follow suit (pardon the pun!) Clothes shopping became a fun and sociable activity, trendy boutiques with exciting interiors, pumping music tracks and fast-changing, attractive merchandise became more commonplace.
Both young women and men started to break away from the constraints of very formal fashions prior to the early Sixties and young men in particular embraced much less starchy ‘masculine’ designs with many bright colours and shapes and new fabrics coming into their wardrobes. Women of course were already embracing miniskirts with wild enthusiasm.
Beatle George Harrison wearing a formal tailored jacket made using William Morris’ Golden Lilies fabric.
Jimi Hendrix lived in London for 9 months 1968-69 and fully embraced the vibrant lifestyle, including clothes like this ruffled crepe-de-chine shirt. (I can recommend a visit to the Handel Hendrix Museum in Mayfair if you have half a day to spare in London)
The use of floral designs on men’s clothing from the mid sixties onwards demonstrates how gender-fluid fashions were becoming over this period. The shirts were often reminiscent in style of Eighteenth century shirts worn by men with ruffles and frills but such exuberant prints were a new departure.
In 1966 a young Mick Jagger bought an authentic late nineteenth century Grenadier Guardsman’s jacket for approximately £4 from a King’s Road boutique to wear on TV music show Ready Steady Go. After his appearance, the shop promptly sold out of everything they had in stock! The club UFO was a favourite amongst the hip young ‘set’ and their artwork shows a mixture of Art Nouveau influences and psychedelia.The print on this shirt is typical of the new designs gaining popularity, this features a montage of images taken from Nineteenth century fairground and circus posters.
Moving on through to the main part of the exhibition, it is set out with examples of garments from a number of the boutiques which were most notable during the Sixties. Often they are in high-cost areas of London such as Chelsea or Knightsbridge, and were owned and run (with varying degrees of financial competence and success) by the wealthy offspring of British landed gentry. The information notes made me laugh because they describe how dark, noisy and shambolic a lot of these shops were, with stock all over the place, inconsistent supply and poor quality of the stock, they weren’t intended to be welcoming if you were the ‘wrong sort’ of shopper! Some were barely shops at all, just a space to hang out with your friends that had a few clothes draped around it (like a teenager’s bedroom…) If Daddy was underwriting the venture it didn’t much matter how successful it was!!
Granny Takes a Trip was one of the best known of these boutiques and traded for a good length of time compared to most. Eventually, during the Seventies, Malcolm McClaren and Vivienne Westwood took over the premises and it went through a number of incarnations before becoming her flagship World’s End store.Hung on You, dapper suits for menAndrogynous men’s wear at Mr FishThe Beatles even got involved with their Apple boutique.Of course Biba is the name most synonymous with Sixties boutiques, I overheard several show visitors reminiscing about shopping there and it sounds like a chaotic experience…I can’t stand shopping in Primark because of all the mess, Biba sounds like a Stygian nightmare! Quorum was another popular hangoutMany of the clothes were not especially well constructed or made using good quality fabrics. They were experimental with new textile developments embracing the likes of Nylon, Lurex, Crimplene and the now-derided Polyester. Of course, at the time, these were terrifically exciting new innovations so it’s easy for us to be sniffy about them now but it released millions from the drudgery of labour-intensive laundry or buying expensive-but-dull clothes which had to last. Biba and Quorum displays
Moving upstairs there are even more examples of the fashions from the decade, it was interesting to see the more fluid shapes here with possibly 1930s and 40s influences, certainly different from Mary Quant’s simple colour-blocked shapes at the same time.
Men’s tailoring, including green panne velvet.There’s more than a hint of Glam Rock creeping into these outfits with Lurex and lame a-plenty.The zigzag design on this dress pre-dated Bowie using it as a part of his Ziggy Stardust persona.From the late Sixties into the early 1970s many Boho, patchwork, ‘ethnic’ and ‘gypsy’ styles enjoyed huge popularity. They were often pieced together scraps of Indian cottons and silks, this in an era when sustainability had little to do with everyday life and protection of the planet was seen by many as the preserve of slightly cranky individuals…The Fashion and Textiles Museum was originally the brainchild of legendary British designer Zandra Rhodes so it is only fitting that there are few examples of her own work upstairs to finish. There are also dresses by other iconic designers of the era including Bill Gibb, and Ossie Clark and his wife, textile designer Celia Birtwell. These designer outfits are much higher quality than many in the show, they are beautifully made using gorgeous fabrics with exquisite details and my photos can’t do them justice.
To sum up, this is a show that any generation can enjoy because there are so many great clothes on show. I’m not old enough to remember much of the Sixties but that didn’t matter-I enjoyed overhearing some of the women chatting who clearly were there though! The show is on now until March 13th, booking is recommended although I didn’t and took a chance on the day. FTM is a small independent museum and I always enjoy a visit there, White Cube art gallery is a few minutes walk further down the road plus there is a glass blowing studio nearby which is open to watch the artisans at work so there’s much to enjoy in the area. It’s so close to the river too which is a bonus.
How’s this for an iconic view of London? You’re welcome!
It’s wonderful that museums and galleries are now reopening and they need our support if we can offer it as we emerge from the pandemic. The ones I’ve visited so far have felt safe and not too crowded, numbers are limited and booking is definitely advisable if you’re making a special trip, and the opening days may be more limited too so check their websites.
I’ve been an absolute fraud when it’s come to writing any Sew Over 50 blogs for ages and ages which I feel very guilty about. I’ll hold my hands up and say that the community has been an absolute lifeline during the last awful 18 months that we’ve all been going through-the support, friendship, inspiration, encouragement and camaraderie that I’ve found through the account has been personally so important but my writing and blogging has really tailed off along with my mood in general. Judith and Sandy do an absolutely awe-inspiring job of running the account for us, along with fantastic guest editors to keep us all coming back time after time-thank you thank you THANK YOU!!! The sheer variety of topics covered has been incredible but I thought I’d dip my toe back into the @SewOver50 blogging waters by writing a round-up of the August 2021 challenge #So50SustainableSewing
If you follow Judith’s personal account @judithrosalind you’ll already know she has been increasingly sewing in a more mindful and sustainable way for some time now and has wanted to launch a challenge on the account so that we can all join in with this in some way.
We all know that ’the most sustainable garment is the one already in our wardrobe’ and that is true but it doesn’t allow for the important creative outlets that our sewing and garment making gives us. So, if we are to continue sewing for ourselves or others, how can we approach it?
Judith’s idea for the challenge is a simple one-we use only fabric which is already ‘in the system’, especially if it’s already sitting on our shelves. In other words, we source it in a variety of inventive ways and these fabrics could include…
remnants or scraps
charity or thrift shop finds-fabrics or garments
vintage textiles
textile manufacturing waste
fabric swaps in person or online
de-stashes
discarded garments, table cloths, bed linen, curtains etc
This isn’t a definitive list of course and over the whole month of August several guest editors shared their brilliant insights to inspire us.
The month kicked off with Judith making a guest appearance on the Sew Organised Style podcast chatting with Maria Theoharous about her idea and lots of ways for us to get involved. Maria always has Sew Over 50 Thursdays too which feature guests from our community who share their sewing stories, techniques and inspiration so it is definitely worth having a listen while you’re sewing, or walking the dog!.
Throughout August there was a great line-up of guest editors including Jen Hogg @jenerates who is so overflowing with ideas that she had 4 separate posts! Her first post encouraged us to ‘shop our stash’ if you have one…I know I do! Like her, some of my fabrics are relatively recent purchases, occasionally on impulse although not always by any means, whilst others are fabrics I’ve acquired over a long period of time and from various different sources. Jen sees it as part of her creative process, to have the choice amongst her stash, to inspire her ideas for making. Jen is a multi-talented woman who not only sews but knits, embroiders, makes jewellery, works leather….in the UK you are probably familiar with her from being a contestant on the Great British Sewing Bee, plus you can also listen to her chatting on Sew Organised Style too!
Some of the guest editors including Jen Hogg, Sue Stoney, Irene Lundell and Tricia Morris
Next was Sue Stoney @suestoney in Australia who shared her love of collecting all sorts of vintage items for later use including beautiful table linen and haberdashery. Many of us probably have buttons, zips, hooks and eyes, threads, elastic (doesn’t last indefinitely though so check it hasn’t perished before you sew it into something you don’t want to fall down around your ankles!) which came to us via our mothers, grandmothers, aunts, neighbours etc etc. I know I love to rummage amongst the hundreds of buttons I have to something special and individual, and I can’t recall the last time I actually bought hooks and eyes or press studs!
just a few of Sue Stoney’s treasured vintage haberdashery finds
Whilst the challenge is intended to encourage us to get creative and inventive for the pleasure of it alone there were also prizes to be awarded so the post on August 8th shared the generous sponsors for these. They included @criswoodsews whose zero-waste Parasol dress pattern has proved extremely popular especially during this challenge. @lizhaywood3754 is also an advocate for zero-waste sewing and has published two books on the topic. @thatwendyward has a recently published book on sewing more sustainably (she chats with Maria about it on the podcast too!) Wendy has long been mindful on the topic after years of working in the RTW industry, as well as producing her own patterns, teaching and writing several other sewing books all of which feature older models! There were also prizes from small businesses @greyfriarsandgrace who create paper patterns which guide the user to sew clothes using recycled textiles, and @craftandthrift who sell thrifted fabrics and kits.
Jen returned with her second post sharing her use of ‘found’ fabrics, including a beautiful blouse made from a sheer vintage embroidered table cloth. Found fabrics can make you a lot more creative because you feel less constrained by what to make with them, do you find the cost of brand new fabric can stifle your creative instincts because of the fear of making costly errors?
this blouse using a sheer vintage embroidered table cloth is so pretty
One garment that offered massive chances to use up multiple fabrics was the ubiquitous tiered and ruffled dress-a buffet dress in current parlance! Followers have certainly embraced this style and the account shared just a small selection of them on August 11th.
Robyn @robbynu42 was one of many to create some fabulous tiered and ruffled dresses using repurposed fabrics.
Next up was Marcia @MarciaLoisRiddington who adores #GrannyChic and is a wonderful exponent of using vintage fabrics to great advantage and her combinations of colours and patterns is absolutely masterful (mistressful?)
Marcia is always so colourful, her combinations of vintage textiles are so original and fun.
Then @irenelundell from Sweden urged us to think about ‘circular’ sewing, buy from charity or thrift shops when you see it because not only does it support a good cause but it gives the textile or garment the chance of a new or extended life.
Irene wearing her thrifted and dyed with iron and tea denim jacket! It has rusty nail marks to add to it’s charm
Tricia @morrissews who followed is a fine exponent of refashion, remake, remodel, recycle and repair…and try as much as possible to not replace. She shared her @Elbe_textiles (another prize sponsor) Sorrento bucket hat which couldn’t be more suitable for using up lots of small fabric scraps to make something really useful and wearable.
Tricia wearing her denim scraps Sorrento bucket hat by Elbe
Jen’s third post demonstrated the times she’s used multiple garments to make a single new one, such as the three shirt shirt! Casual jackets which are made up of small pattern pieces are also ideal for a patchwork approach, there are even small businesses now making these commercially and every garment is different, some even manage to use 100% recycled components.
Jen’s 3 shirt shirt!
She talks too about the 90 minute transformation challenge on GBSB was actually a very liberating experience because there was no time to be overly precious with what they were given to use, it forced her to think outside the box very quickly and not have time for self-doubt.
There was another Jen up next, @jenlegg_teescreatives who told us how she has used textiles belonging to dear and much-missed friend and how, when she wears the jacket she’s sewn, it feels like a hug from her friend Emma. There are many other ways you can honour or remember a friend or loved one in this way too by sewing articles like soft toys, cushions, patchwork quilts or rugs for example using garments that once belonged to them.
Jen Legg wearing an absolutely beautiful jacket with a really touching story behind it.
Jen Hogg made her final return to tell us about using factory surplus in her making. She’s fortunate to live near a number of textile mills in Scotland and has been working closely with them to find inventive ways of using their ‘waste’ products. By using cashmere off-cuts, including something called ‘slitter’ which is a by-product of making cashmere scarves, so far Jen has knitted or crocheted rugs and blankets, and woven and stitched the strips together to make whole pieces of textile big enough to make into jackets, dresses or coats. Are there any textiles manufacturers or processors near you? Do they sell off any of their excess or by-products? It might be worth investigating. Another way of using up scraps which has been around for many many years is rag rugging (also known as proggy rugging) and @raggedlife has loads of ideas for this technique.
Jen’s beautiful jacket made with cashmere ‘slitter’ tape, all carefully pieced to make usable sized pieces big enough to sew into a garment.
As the month was drawing to a close Raquel in Taipei @raquel_sewing_knitting_in_asia (who is an absolute Queen of refashioning!) showed us how she takes inspiration from high-end fashion and clothing all around her but then recreated the looks using multiple end-of-line garments and thrifted clothes. Not only that, she would wear them a few times but if they aren’t quite right she isn’t afraid to take them apart again and reconfigure them into a new garment more to her liking! Sometimes more than once! I’m always too precious with things I’ve made to do that even if I don’t much like the end result, instead they tend to sit on the naughty step while I sulk about what went wrong with them, I should just tackle it head on and take up that unpicker!
Raquel in one of her remade remakes!
The final guest editor for the sewing sustainably month was Judy @judywillimentross whose speciality is refashioning mens suits into another wearable garment. She buys them in charity shops but one of her own rules is not a purchase a suit which might still be of use to someone less fortunate and not in a position to buy new. [This could also be something to be mindful of when purchasing any very inexpensive garment, should we consider whether it would be of use to another person as it is before we buy it to cut up. Or do we take the view that the money we pay for it is a donation to a charity in need of the cash, especially if it’s going to end up in landfill otherwise?] Judy carefully uses ever-smaller fabric scraps to piece together into patchwork.
Judy in one of her carefully pieced garments using men’s suit fabrics
So there you have it, loads of creativity to inspire us with our sewing projects in the future. By the time you read this the randomly-chosen winners of prizes will have been announced but the hashtag #so50SustainableSewing will continue to be used so the ideas bank will be constantly refreshed.
I’ve added links throughout so you should be able to see and read for yourselves what the guest editors had to say.
Judith and Sandy constantly add to the saved Highlights on the account too, particularly any one of the many worldwide challenges you might like to participate in, plus using some the dozens of hashtags unique to us will give you unlimited ideas for your own future projects.
I created this collage of a few of my projects made using thrifted, salvaged, reused, donated or repurposed fabrics at the start of August but I never posted it.
For this post I’ve concentrated entirely on the sustainable sewing challenge and so I’ve not added many thoughts of my own. In truth, I wasn’t in the headspace to participate while it was going on but it did cause me to think about some of the projects I’ve completed in recent years which went some way to being ‘sustainable’.There are so many ways we can all do a little, or a lot, to contribute to reducing the problem of waste and over-consumption. We should be mindful that whatever is right and possible for one person though is not necessarily going to be achievable for another. For example, many of us can practice visible mending because we like that it gives longevity to a garment and can look attractive, but others will see it as a reminder of hard times or embarrassment. Our community is nothing if not supportive so we need to be mindful of others at times.
Did you know that linen jersey was even a thing? It’s an unusual fabric which you don’t see often, we all know knits are available in most other fibre types-cotton, wool, silk or man-mades for example- but I’ve never worked with it before so when Liana invited me to sew my next Lamazi project using it, and to pass on any hints and tips for sewing it, I was up for the challenge.
This 100% linen jersey comes from Mind the Maker in a range of colours and I picked the Dry Mustard shade which is a lovely vibrant ochre. The fabric has a beautiful lustrous sheen on the right side, the reverse is duller so it makes it much easier to tell the difference between the two. It has lovely light drapey quality too and is slightly sheer.
Linen fabric is not a textile known for its inherent stretch qualities and this jersey does feel slightly different from other knits because it has only a small amount of stretch along its length and quite a lot of stretch across the width but it has very little recovery so once it’s been stretched out it will stay like that at least until it’s washed again. During construction the application of plenty of steam will encourage some of this accidental stretching to be eased back into position so, coupled with its sheerness, this means that you need to think carefully about what garment to sew with it.
Plenty of steam will help remove most unwanted bagginess like this
The properties of linen fabric itself [cool in warm weather, warm in cold weather] mean that it would be ideal for loose-fitting leisure or exercise wear, for yoga or Pilates for example. I would definitely say it’s better to avoid anything that is particularly close fitting because areas like the elbows or wrists would become stretched or baggy with little recovery. However the fabric has a lovely drape and its fine gauge allows it to be gathered up successfully so these properties could be exploited instead.
Bearing all these factors in mind I decided to make (another) Sewing Revival Heron dress which I would hack into a blouse. The pattern has a neckline which is gathered using elastic along with raglan sleeves with deep elasticated cuffs. To mix it up further I decided to pull the hemline in onto elastic rather than have a wide smock silhouette.
First things first, I washed the fabric by hand to remove any risk of excessive shrinkage or twisting in the machine. If you want to wash it in the machine then it might be an idea to overlock the cut ends together first to form a long loop and place it into a large washing bag to protect it further. Alternatively you could press it on your ironing board with plenty of steam instead. If at all possible it is better to dry the fabric flat, and certainly don’t wring or twist it. All of this might sound off-putting, and it is clearly not as straightforward as chucking a nice stable cotton into the machine but this is a luxurious fabric and deserves to be treated and handled carefully in the preparation. When it comes to cutting out your pattern pieces lay the fabric as flat as possible, handle it gently and don’t pull it about too much, especially if you decide to fold it. I made a whole back pattern piece for my top so that I could cut it flat, another appeal of the Heron pattern for me is that it has just three pieces so it’s a relatively quick sew usually.
After cutting all the pieces the first thing I did was stabilise all the raglan shoulder seams using some iron-on seam tape, I did this to prevent any unwanted stretching before I sewed the sleeves in later on. I added small squares of iron-on interfacing to reinforce the bottom of the opening on the centre front seam too. I also decided to press all the folded parts of the casings/ruffles for the neckline, sleeves and hem before sewing anything together, just so that I was handling the cut-out pieces as little as possible, again to prevent unwanted stretching before they got joined together. I also tacked these folded parts into position temporarily. All this might sound excessive but I wasn’t in a rush, and I found the slow and considered processes very soothing at quite a difficult time.
iron-on stay tape to prevent unwanted stretching of the raglan seams
the pinned raglan seams showing the slight excess to be absorbed
the finished seams inside the garment
I pressed and tacked casing/ruffles before joining the sections together later onreinforcing the bottom of the neck opening with small squares of iron-on interfacing.
Something else I did before commencing was check on fabric scraps which needle and stitch-type would give me the best results. A ballpoint needle suitable for stretch/knits/jersey is essential to prevent snagging which could lead to laddering of this delicate fabric, and I found a short straight stitch was better than a narrow zigzag but you must do what works best on your own machine. You could sew a garment together entirely on an overlocker but be aware of the lack of rebound this fabric has so if it gets stretched or misshapen while it’s being sewn then it’s probably like that permanently. I also tested the overlocker finish before diving in for the same reasons. If you don’t have an overlocker this fabric is fine enough that where possible you could probably sew self-neatening French seams, or a wide zigzag might work but just be careful it doesn’t chew up the edges. If you have an overlock stitch option on your sewing machine and/or a special foot to sew an overlock-style stitch then definitely use them. Test all options before making your choice, the time taken could save you upsets later on. I slipped some folded strips of paper underneath the seam allowances when I pressed them to minimise any chance of the seam showing through on the front
testing stitches and overlockingI popped two strips of folded paper under the centre front seam while I pressed it so that there was no show-through or unwanted shininess on the right side.
If you have a walking foot for your machine this is definitely a fabric worth using it for, even if you don’t it’s a good idea to use plenty of pins. I’m not a fan of mini-clips because I think they are too heavy and get in the way, this fabric is lightweight and I think mini-clips could distort it while you’re sewing but it’s up to you. Tacking seams is always an option too of course, any technique that prevents the fabric shifting while you sew basically.
If you’ve followed my blog for a while you’ll know I’ve made a few Herons before so the construction was straightforward, the only area I did differently was to create the ruffled hem with a wide elastic casing. I couldn’t decide between my planned 2cms or 1cm wide elastic initially so I tested with the two widths to see which I preferred-I chose to stay with the 2cms width as planned.
testing which elastic width I preferred for the hem, this was the narrow one (the fabric scrap is wrong side out!)and this is wider width, it’s the one I used at the hem in the end. using a bodkin to insert the narrow elastic in the neck casing.checking the gathered neckline on the standI used this quilting attachment on my machine so that I sewed an accurate parallel width for the elastic casingclose up of the elasticated hem casing
To sum up, I’m really pleased with how my first experience of sewing with linen jersey has gone, I’ll admit I was a little nervous because Liana was putting her trust in me with an expensive fabric but taking the time to plan and test, and use my existing knowledge of working with knits definitely helped. Because of the sheerness of the fabric Lamazi also provided me with a metre of Atelier Brunette crepe viscose in Ochre to make a camisole to wear underneath, I used the Simone camisole and trousers pattern by Maven which is a very quick make and a very useful garment to wear on its own or underneath other garments. The crepe viscose is a beautiful quality fabric with lovely handle and drape but be aware that there’s a disappointing amount of creasing, you might want to take that into account when planning, for example if you’re making something you’ll spend a lot of time sitting in.
all finished
As always, I hope you find my hints and tips helpful if you choose this lovely fabric, I wouldn’t recommend it to a novice sewer because some experience of sewing with other similar fabrics is definitely an advantage, plus it would be shame to end up with a costly mistake, but if you’re looking for a new challenge to add to your repertoire this could be a good start. I’ll launder the finished garment either by hand or in a wash bag on a gentle cycle in the machine. I’ll dry it flat too and store it that way, I don’t want a coat hanger to make it misshapen. If you’re a person who prefers not to worry too much about their clothes or their maintenance then this might strike you as overkill, and that’s fair enough, but I don’t think it hurts to have a few special things in our wardrobes which were worth the effort to make for ourselves.
I’m looking forward to wearing this top as autumn is fast approaching (did summer ever arrive!?) thank you to Lamazi for providing me with the fabric to review.
There’s been quite a lull in my sewing and blogging of late due to a distinct lack of motivation and generally feeling meh about everything. I don’t know about you but I’m utterly cheesed off with the persistence of the ‘Rona and, whilst I really try to find the positives as much as I can, there comes a time when I’m all out of good thoughts.
Anyhoo, I’ve finally managed to get my act together and to cut out and sew something which is worth blogging about!
You’ll know I use The Sewing Revival patterns a lot, and especially because they are SewOver50-friendly in their representation. Janine kindly offered me a copy of the new and improved Kingfisher top recently so here are my thoughts on it. The original version was one of the first in the Sewing Revival collection and it now features extra variations including 3 sleeve lengths and additional ruffles and frills to gussy it up.
Initially I’d settled on using a length of fabric I bought recently but in the end, whilst searching-sorry-shopping, my stash I came across a length of batik-printed lightweight cotton which had originally been a dress. I bought it as a remnant which was in two different-sized pieces pieces so I joined them right across the weft to make it useable. From that I turned it into a simple ‘pillowcase’ dress with a gathered drawstring top and hemmed at the bottom. Needless to say, this being England, I didn’t get a massive amount of wear from it because our climate is so unreliable. Sadly I don’t seem to have a photo of it now so you’ll just have to believe me.
The Kingfisher has raglan sleeves which are always so nice to make because they are simple and quick to construct. One of The Sewing Revival’s trademarks is to mix a stretch neck band, cuffs or hem with a woven fabric and this top features a ribbed, rounded neck band. But first I had to get all the pieces out of a length of fabric with a join across it at about 50cms in, plus a tear at right angles to the selvedge in another place AND a small hole just near that! I calculated that I could get a pair of 3/4 length sleeves but one would have to have the seam running horizontally across it. Another new feature of the Kingfisher is additional small ruffles to add so, instead of placing them vertically on the sleeves, I opted to cover the seam with horizontal ruffles, that way way both sleeves would look the same. After a bit of pattern Tetris I got everything I needed out including the ruffles. I started by making the sleeves.
Inside the sleeve with the exisiting join running horizontally
Because of the limitations of the fabric the ruffles were only 5cms wide so, in order to lose as little of their width as possible, I finished each edge with a rolled-hem finish on the overlocker. Check your instruction booklet because I’m sure many models will offer this feature, it will involve a few simple adjustments to the settings to achieve. A rolled hem is a quick and attractive way of neatening fine or lightweight fabrics when you can’t afford to lose too much off the edges.
Each ruffle was cut twice as long as the width of the sleeve because the fabric is quite fine and will gather up well. If you are limited for fabric (mine were cut on the straight grain) or if your fabric is quite stiff or thick, then 1.5x the width will be fine. I sewed a rolled hem on both edges of the sleeve ruffles and then ran two rows of a long gathering stitch along the centre line. Make sure the gathers are evenly distributed before sewing the ruffle down, I used a zigzag stitch to sew the ruffle in place.
I created a cuff to finish the sleeve ends by cutting two pieces of fabric from along the selvedge and sewing them on. My original plan was to create an elasticated cuff using a casing but then inspiration struck(!) and I sewed three rows of shirring instead.
Shirring works best on lighter-weight fabrics such as soft cotton-types [lawn, batiste, voile, Swiss Dot, pique, poplin if it isn’t too stiff] also most viscose/rayons, many silks, and fine woollens such as challis. This isn’t a definitive list by any means, basically nothing too thick, or stiff or overly ‘bouncy’. As with anything you’re unsure about I’d strongly suggest sewing a few samples first to see how it goes.
To begin (and these are very much my own thoughts on shirring, you will find many others which might vary to these-trial and error before you startis the best plan of action) you ideally need a bare minimum of 1.5x the eventual finished measurement but as a rule of thumb I would say at least 2 or 2.5x your finished measurement, especially if the fabric is very fine. I also wrote advice on shirring the back of a sundress in a previous blog post which you can still read here.
Gently windshirring elastic onto your bobbin by hand, do not stretch it as you wind, you will use regular sewing thread on the top as normal. Set your stitch length as long as possible and, sewing on the right side of the work, make sure you backstitch at the start to secure your threads then sew your first row of stitching. Do not backstitch at the end of the row, carefully remove the sewing by gently pulling the elastic out so that there’s enough to tie off the ends eventually. Repeat by sewing parallel to the first row of stitch as many times as you require, I’ve just done three for the cuff. You could draw on the lines using a marker pen or chalk if it will help, I just keep the edge of the foot in line with the previous row of stitching. The work will gradually start to pucker up as you increase the rows. The photo above shows you what it looks like on the reverse. This is the right side of the cuff, wherever possible work with the fabric flat and then joint it in a seam or to the next piece it’s connected with. It won’t be gathered up enough to start with so hover your hot iron with plenty of steam over the area and it will pucker up a lot more. When it’s gathered as much as it’s going to tie off or backstitch the threads/elastic to secure.In the photo above, the top cuff is before the steam was applied and the lower cuff is afterwards, you should be able to see that the stitching is a fair bit tighter-looking. Next I added small ruffles to the front raglan seams, also neatened with the rolled hem finish just on one edge. The rest of the Kingfisher was very straightforward, the ribbing band went on neatly and gives the neckline a nice finish. You could also use bias binding or make facings if you don’t want to deal with stretch but I like it like this. Close-up of the finished neckline, I think I bought the navy ribbing from Lamazi Fabrics a little while ago. Sleeve ruffle
I cut this top in a UK10 so it’s a closer fit than some tops I’ve generally made but I’m really happy with the fit, there’s still ample room for comfort and movement. From a fabric that was languishing in a box I’ve concocted a casual top I can wear in warmer or cooler weather.
Thank you to Janine for providing me with the pattern, I hope my review will be helpful, for a such a simple shape there are so many possibilities with it. If you haven’t tried any Sewing Revival patterns I’d definitely suggest you pop over there and take a look, and if you choose to follow any link I’ve created in this post or previous TSR ones, and you then make a purchase, I will receive a modest fee from it. You can also read my previous reviews for the Sidewinder pants, the Heron dress plus a hack, the Bellbird top and the Fantail top and it’s follow-up. If you want any more inspiration use the hashtag #KingfisherTop on Instagram or Facebook. I’ve got plans for a deep-cuff version later in the year, just so long as I don’t have another creative slump…!
Welcome back and thanks for reading this far, I’ll try not to leave it so long next time!
Susan Young Sewing 
