Little Black Dress with A Little Textured Novelty Knit - Christine Jonson Funnel Neck Top and Mc7386 Skirt

I think I want a few more yards of Mood's Black Stretch Viscose Nylon Novelty knit.  I love this fabric.  It is a beefy textured knit that falls away from the body, creating a stiff drape.  The hand is not as smooth as a rayon knit, but it's not hard or scratchy either.  It wears like a comfortable sweatshirt knit.  I can also see it used to make a fall/spring knit coat.

When the box arrived at my door, I immediately started working on this dress project. I spliced Christine Jonson's funnel neck knit top, travel trio 1204 with Mc7386 skirt.  CJ's funnel neck top is quickly becoming one of my favorite tops.  It's easy,stylish, and comfortable.

This year I decided to give myself a little challenge to see how many different looks I could come up with using a few patterns.  This month, I'm using CJ's Travel Trio.

To create this dress, I simply overlaid the skirt pattern where the waistline is indicated and marked my desired length.  That's it!  Of course, I had to do some tweaking on the curve of the skirt.  But that wasn't difficult and only took a few cycles of trying the dress on, pinning, and making the adjustments.  I was finished in just a few hours.

I really like how this dress turned out.  A simple little black dress with a few interesting details.  Perfect for me!

Using the beefier textured knit for the top and the skirt does change the intended drape.  First the funnel:  It stands up!  But, when made in a jersey knit, it fall about the neck creating folds.  The same affect for the hem of the skirt.  It stands out instead of falling close to the body.  I love it!  Something different!

So far so good with this segment of my little challenge.  The fabric and style are a perfect match.  One that I will certainly use again.

Happy Sewing!
C

PS - My complete review on the funnel neck top is my blog here.

Christine Jonson - Travel Trio 1204

This is the very first time I've tried a Christine Jonson pattern. I picked up a few at the PR pattern swap last year, but hadn't thought about trying them until the Haute Couture Club challenge. I think I'm so use to the big 4 pattern companies; it's hard to break out of the routine.  

Back in October 2011, the Christine Jonson Travel Trio challenge was announced. We could mix and match the pieces from the three travel trio patterns (1204, 226 and 331). I chose to make all three pieces from 1204.   The deadline for the challenge was the April HCC meeting.  This was the same meeting to Christine was the program guest speaker. In her talk she gave some helpful tips on how to sew knits. She also gave us her back story along with information about her company.

It wasn't until after the meeting that I decided to go ahead with completing a travel outfit in time for the fashion show.  CJ1204 sews up very quickly which is a plus. I decided to test this pattern without making all of my standard adjustments.  Time was short, the outfit was semi-fitted, and using knit fabrics gave me an extra level of forgiveness in the fitting area. Granted I had to do a little tweaking as I sewed, my first outfit turned out pretty good.  Next time, I'll make a few more adjustments before cutting the fabric.

That being said let me start the formal review.  

Christine Jonson Travel Trio 1204

Pattern Description: 
Banded Neck Tee - Long sleeved, semi-fitted tee with self-banded neckline.
Center Seam Pants - Semi-fitted, front and back seamed pants with waistline yoke.
Drape Front Jacket - Asymmetrical, semi-fitted jacket with slight bell sleeves.  Jacket ties at the left side, forming soft folds.

In each pattern a helpful perfect sizing worksheet is included with the contraction guide sheet. (I didn't look at it until I noticed the tee was too large.)

Pattern Sizing:  Sizing for the Tee and jacket are XS to XL.  The pants are sizes 4 - 22.  For the tee and jacket I cut slightly larger than M from the bust down to the hem; pants 14.



Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?  Yes, the finished garments look like the "technical drawing" on the back of the envelope.  I wanted the jacket and pants to look more like the drawing on the front.

Were the instructions easy to follow? Very easy to follow.  No problems.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?

Likes -
The drape of the jacket.
Simplicity of the tee.
The center seams of the pant leg.

Dislikes -
The inside tie of the jacket is too wide.  I prefer a narrower tie. (easy fix)
Loose fit of the tee.  I prefer a little more shaping (easy fix)

Fabric Used:  Pant weight rpl British tan stretch woven from Gorgeous Fabrics; ITY Feather Print; and Black Ponte knit from JoAnn's.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: 

Tee -
It was too large for my arms and from under my bust area through the hip area.  To resolve that issue I sewed larger seam allowances.  For the type of knit (60% crosswise) I could have gone down a half size and made FBA, which I will do the next time.  Also, I think it would fit better if I made a center back seam to address the sway back issue. Added some length to the sleeves and body of the top.

Jacket -
Here again it was too large from under the bust to the hem.  The description says semi-fitted, but it was closer to loose fitting pass the bust area.  That could be due to my narrow hips.  So I increase the seam allowance from the base of the bust area down.  The rest of the jacket was okay.  Added some length to the sleeves.


Pants -
I decided to use a stretch woven for the pants.  I wanted them to look more like slacks.  So instead of  an elasticized yoke, I adopted the yoke for a waistband, trimming off an inch (width, from the top).  There was quite a bit of ease in the pants.  I trimmed about 3/4" from the side and center (front and back) seams for a close fit. Installed a zipper on the left side.

To stabilize the zipper area, I added interfacing to the seam allowance.  I also interfaced and added twill tape to stay the top of the now "contour waistband". I shorten the crotch and added length to the pant leg.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?  Yes and I do recommend it to others.  But before sewing, read all of the construction information and determine how you want to use the pattern before you cut into your fashion fabric.


Conclusion:  The is a great travel trio.  It's easy to make and to wear.  You can easily adopt the pattern to your style preference.