Little Black Dress in Rag & Bone Black Polyester Crepe - Vogue 9239 View F

OMG!  It's been such a long time since I last blogged.  I've been struggling with projects and time to write it all down to share it with you.  Finally, today I was able to get a few pictures, some not the best quality, but good enough to show you my latest dress.

Months ago, I came up with the notion of making some solid color dresses.  As I look through my wardrobe, I decided that I didn't have any "new" solid black dresses.  So I search the Mood online fabric store and found this beautiful Rag and Bone black polyester blended crepe.  The crepey texture has a dry hand, but not overly crepe like some you found in local stores.  This one is smoother, drapes beautifully, and sews like a dream.   It's a perfect fabrication for flounces, full skirts and floaty palazzo pants.

The contrasting fabric came from a local store.  I didn't have enough to make the flounce.  So I thought it would be great to use a contrasting fabric and add a few accent about the neckline and waistline.  I think it worked out just fine.

I paired it with Vogue 9239, View F.  This is the second time I've used this pattern.  My first review is here.  For this dress, I made a few more tweaks to make the neckline smaller (I could have bought it in a little more, though.  I lengthen the sleeve by 1 inch and the skirt by 2 inches. The pattern only suggests that the bodice is to be lined.  I lined the entire dress.  

I like the fullness of the skirt and the way it moves as I walk.  The fabric feels great against my body.  There are a few areas that I noticed were as "close" to perfect as I would like.  But overall, it turned out pretty good.

If you planning to wear something black and floaty during the holiday season, this is a great fabric to make it with.  I thinking of getting another yardage to make a nice pair of palazzo pants.

Stay tune, more projects to come!  (I have some catching up to do. ;-) )


Parting Shot:  I always take one or two silly pictures just for fun.  Here I pretending to push the tanker.  ;-)

Happy Sewing!

Cennetta

Rhonda's Draped Cowl Sleeve - A Few Notes and Pictures

All summer it's when a challenge to schedule photo shoots with my daughter photographer due to work schedules and other activities. But slowly and surely I'm trying to catch up with posting pictures of the garments that I've made this year.

Today I want to show Rhonda's draped cowl sleeve dress and top as I would wear them. For my dress, I used Vogue 1314. My fabric is from a shop that was going out of business in New York. I bought all that was left. This is a polyester crushed velvet knit. When I bought it home, immediately I flew it in the washer and the dryer. It washing beautifully. This was an excellent purchase. So here I'm wearing it in the park near my home. My earlier post of making the draped cowl sleeve is here.

Next, I'm wearing my paisley draped cowl sleeve top (McCall 6963) with Simplicity pants (Simplicity 8389). The fabric is a crepy two tone chocolate knit from Vogue Fabrics in Evanston. It's very stretchy. So instead on making the waistband using the same fabric, it's a smooth lycra black knit. I omitted the belt.

This is the end of my current showcase of my Rhonda Draped Cowl sleeve projects. More on the other sleeves later.

 Thanks for stopping by!
C

McCall 7445 - In the Orange

McCall 7445

These pants were made early spring, but I didn't get decent pictures of me wearing them until now. I first talked about them here and here.

This fabric is another winner!  It's a beefy polyester stretch woven suiting that is perfect for these pants.  I love the drape and how it slightly falls away from the body.

Trending now are pj's like suits.  Many celebrities are wearing them.  It's funny how "trashy" fashion becomes Haute Couture fashion in a matter of a few years.

Rihanna wannabees wore pj pants to the grocery store in a regular basis.  This year many designers are making fashion statement across the globe with their pajama like suits.

Anyway the top I'm wearing is ready to wear from JC Penny's.  It's light, airy, and floats with the slightest movement.  It has that "pj appeal", without looking like your headed for a good night's slumber.  So this is one way I will wear my orange pants this season.

Happy Sewing!
C

Tomato Red Bold - Vogue 9239 In Review

Red and Orange are two of my favorite colors.  Both are bold and vibrant. I love wearing these colors and hope to add more red and orange to my wardrobe during the fall and winter seasons.  So today, I'm happy to share my newest dress made with tomato red (red-orange color) ponte knit.  Here's my pattern review.

Pattern:  Vogue 9239

Pattern Description:  Fitted bodice dresses have front and back princess seams, full or slim skirt, and sleeve variations.  Separate pattern pieces are included for cup sizes A, B, C, D.

Pattern Sizing:  sizes 6 - 22; I used 14 neck/shoulder, 16 through bust area, and 14 skirt.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?  Yes, the design lines are like the drawing and the photographed dress.

Were the instructions easy to follow?  The instructions were typical; nothing confusing about them.  Some of the construction processes I did not do.  Later on those details.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?   I love the sleeve and skirt variations.  Having the multiple cup size option and the princess seams are great too.  It's easier to make fit adjustments.

Fabric Used:  I purchased this lovely tomato red ponte knit from Fabric Mart during the summer.  They may not have it anymore as I bought the last four yards of it.  The pattern recommends lighter fabrics.  I understand why.  The upper body has additional pieces for the front/back shoulder area which adds some bulk along the seam lines.  Also, the bodice is underlined and lined.  This became a dislike as I sewed the dress.  But at the same time, I felt the underlining helps stabilize along the neck and shoulder areas, especially when you use a fabric with some stretch.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:  Yes, I made a few.  They are:

•  With my available cup size, I made minimum tweaks to the front bodice.

• Swayback - I made a small one, but think I needed to go a little deeper to remove the winkles across my back.
• No prominent should blade adjustment.  The many pieces to the back allowed me more adjustment options along the seams.
• I added about one inch to the length of the bodice, which I could have skipped; maybe not.  But it looks like too much fabric in the bodice.
• Skirt - Added an inch or two the length; rise the center back up by 1/2 inch.  My swayback causes the center back to rest lower than the rest of the back waist seam; and I didn't line the skirt.  This ponte knit is opaque.  

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?  I'm going to make this dress again, view C.  I have a very nice black crepe polyester from Mood Fabrics.  The dress was a piece of cake to sew. 

Conclusion:  I wanted to make this dress all summer long and finally I made it Monday before last.  It's a good make and I'm pleased with the results. But I do hope that with a lighter fabric it will be easier to press along those triple layers of the bodice.  I want make view C early November in time for the holiday season.

Happy Sewing!
C

And The Eloflex Thread Winner Is??

As promised.., Today I'm announcing the winner of the Eloflex Thread drawing.

And the winner is..,

Everyone, thank you for participating.  The pleasure was all mine.  Imo Gene I hope you enjoy the thread.   Please send me an email indicating your address information.  Thank you again.   If you like, you are welcomed to share a picture of what you make with it.

Happy Sewing!

C

White After Labor Day

When I was growing up, wearing white after Labor day was one of the biggest fashion faux pas.  These days people are wearing whatever anytime of year.    Fashion is anything at anytime of year!  Believe it or not, I'm still a little jaded when it comes to certain fashion faux pas.

Today's post is about two white fabrics that I purchased this summer from Mood Fabrics:  Helmut Lang Optic White Tissue Weight Cotton Poplin  and Soft White Stretch Blended Cotton Jacquard.  Both textile were great to work with.  There is something special about working with natural fibers.  Cottons are easy to sew, press and super comfortable to wear.

My shirt is part of a "Shirt Project" that I completed this summer for a Haute Couture Club presentation. I used Simplicity 8416 to make, and the contrasting fabric was gifted to me by one of our generous club members, Andrea Birken.   I made no fit adjustments for this shirt.  But I wanted to add a little color to it.  Threads magazine, published an article on customizing your shirt.  This is where I got the idea to add the contracting fabric details.   Check out the details.

The pants are Burda 6879.  This is my third pair of pants made with it.  My reviews are here.  All of them have been made with Mood Fabrics.   For this pair, I made the pants wider for a more relaxed fit.  

So what are your feeling about wearing white?  

Happy Sewing!

C

My Latest Projects Sewn with Coats Eloflex Stretchable Threads

I was so happy to be selected to try out Coats new Eloflex stretchable thread. Initially, I thought of all sorts of "knit" things to sew. Once the initial excitement wore off, I decided to test the thread on something quick and easy.  But first, I wanted to closely examine the fiber of the thread to take note of the look, stretch and feel of it between my fingers. It reminded me of embroidery thread. Then I tried pulling it while holding it between two fingers.

This might sound a little crazy, but I wanted to see if it actually had stretch and if it would break easily.  Yes, it stretch and it did not break when I pulled on it.    I wanted to assess the usability before I tried it in the sewing machine.  I inserted a new Schwetz stretch needle, size 75/11; threaded a bobbin and the machine. I was able to use the thread like other thread without experiencing breakage or skipped stitches. I tested the stitching by holding the fabric taut and stretching it a little as the fabric passed through the needle plate area of the sewing machine.  It sews beautifully.  The stitches were the best when the fabric was slightly stretched though.

I really want you to try it out for yourself.  Please leave a comment indicating that you would like to enter a drawing for a packet of ten spools of thread in a variety of colors.  Just like the packet below.  I will send it to the person who's name is drawn.  If you would like to purchase the thread, you can find it at your location JoAnn's Fabric and Craft stores.

Also, go to the "Make It Coats" website to enter a contest for a grand prize.  The link is here.  Take a tour of the Make It Coats website for other products and project ideas.

Don't forget to let me know if you want to be included in to drawing for the packet of thread.

Thank you and Happy Sewing!
C

PS - DRAWING ON SEPTEMBER 30, 2017