McCalls 6844......

Another great pattern from McCalls, this lovely pattern has been excellently reviewed by many sewist, so I might not have much to say than to show you my fabulous finished project.

Fabric: Beautiful Black Ponte Knit from Fabricland.

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made:  
1. I lengthened the bodice by 0.5"
2. Lengthened the sleeve by 1.5",
3. Interfaced and added twill tape in the seam allowance between the bodice and the peplum.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?  Great pattern and  nice wardrobe builder.  Overall an excellent pattern!!!

Have a lovely week!!!!

Jacket...........Simplicity 3628 View B

I have been sewing but not blogging..... I actually made 4 pants in the past week and half  but will get to reviewing them shortly. In the meantime, here is a  jacket I completed last Friday, I cut and sewed the jacket in about 6 hours. There is nothing much to the pattern as have made it before here.
The only thing I did differently was added a real pocket instead of flap and lined with a contrasting gorgeous cotton silk, oh mine silk is such a lovely material to sew and wear, I love its feel to the body. The jacket fabric has been in my stash forever some kind of suiting fabric I think wool-polyester
I have completed the button-hole but I am  not sure of the button colour to use, your  suggestions will be appreciated as I am so confused right now.
I love this jacket so much and it wears so well. The color is so great for fall/winter as I don't want to limit myself to just black and brown jackets....
So fellas what do you think of my color-blocking???

 

 

 

Fearless Jacket - Newlook 6188 - Done

I finished this jacket about two weeks ago but couldn't find the right buttons to use, you know this little thing can make or break a project. I was able to get one but not the best I wanted, though will suffice for now.
My sewing mojo went  hiatus due to recent flu that's been going on in my little corner of the world, and being the mom  (aka caregiver) to the kids and hubby,  I eventually broke down too with fever, cough and body aches, it's been so terrible, have been off work since Tuesday afternoon, but thank God things are getting better, my peeps are back to work and school, I just need sometime for me.
While all that was going on, I was able to complete two new office shirts as well. Full reviews will follow later;  please enjoy these for now..

Parting shots, my 7 year old made me a matching purse........ wink

Fearless Jacket - Newlook 6188 - Progress

Hi all, thanks so much for all your comments on my  Newlook 6188 jacket. The whole process really got me thinking  about my main goal of joining the fearless sewalong, aftersome thought I came into a conclusion, I re-cut the back and front bodice and exercised as much patience as possible to join them perfectly, afterall "what is fearless if I am fearful". Few hours later I got an excellent matching plaids and am so proud of myself.
I even did a bit of couture sewing (if that's what's called) I used tie neck interfacing to gather the armhole for sleeve placement, this method worked perfectly without any puckering. Got a bag full of ties for $2 at the thrift shop which I will also be using to make some bias strip for future use.
 I added a real pocket instead of ordinary welt by combining view A welt and view B pocket, I also removed the chest welt because I don't really like any detail in this area.
So far here are what have got, I am working on the lining, hopefully I will have it done in few days
What do you think fellas?

Fearless Jacket - Newlook 6188 - Pls Help

OK ladies and gents in the house, I am starting with the first project on the list, Newlook 6188 jacket something just drew me to this pattern immediately I saw it, maybe the style or the perfect fabric in my stash, or combination of the two....
Have had the fabrics (Lining and Shell) since 2010 and you won't believe where I got the two from WALMART, when it used to be walmart..... (selling fabric).
The initial thought I had for the fabric was to make the popular vogue Chanel jacket, but  I don't have to deceive myself, I don't have neither the patience nor time for hand sewing anything, so this style fits my life-style better, who knows the time, need and patience might come one day....

I have spent more than 2 hours prepping the fabric and the pattern. I made some alterations based on my measurement, these were;

1. 1/2" FBA
2. 2" sway-back adjustment
3. Steamed the fabric and interfaced
4. Cut the fabric and lining
5. Shell sewing in - progress

Because of my impatience, I didn't single cut the fabric to match the plaid, I used a method thought by Ron Collins, where you fold the fabric into two and pin about 4" apart to match the front and back plaid.(which I have used in the past and worked so well), but due to the unevenness of the plaid , I spent way too much time doing this, and if you look closely you will notice that the left back&front patterns didn't match well with the center back and front, I have tried and used every method I know but couldn't make the match, I will say the issue is due mostly to the plaid and a bit of impatience. I should have been more patient ...mmmm,  it's a virtue I am constantly praying for.
I will like to go ahead and not sweat this but I am just not sure because I want this to look professionally fearlessly made.....when I asked my husband he couldn't see anything wrong with it, but I don't think he's the best candidate for this job. So fellas what do you think to go ahead or try another fabric? Please advise.

Look closely to the left

 Look closely to the left

PS;

If you are interested in the thread magazine giveaway, please don't forget to leave a comment on the post here, the draw is this Friday February 8th



Plaid Jacket done.... but need your suggestion please

I am so so happy....It's finally done, it took longer than expected but I enjoyed every bit of it

The review will be very short because I didn't use a new pattern, I used one of my already fitted patterns simplicity 3628  because I didn't want to do two complicated things at the same time (fitting pattern and cutting plaid fabric).

 However, I went a bit out of my comfort zone; I did a little bit of tailoring.

Here are what I did differently

I did  FBA which I didn't do with the first version

I interfaced the back and the upper sleeve using a biased cut interface

I used neck tie interface for the armhole

I cut a separate back neck facing....

I bagged the lining

Also instead of using a rat tail I used in the previous jacket, I used thin black elastic for the loop .

Finished project pictures.

My question 

The problem I have is with the closure to use. I used a temporary black button for now.

Do you think this is nice enough or I should use another color of button,  a hook, or I should just leave it open? This will be mostly office wear , I want something both office appropriate and that can be worn outside office . I will really appreciate  your suggestion(s) ...

 Enjoy the rest of the week

Aminat

Yes...I did it my first plaid (Part 1)

My first ever plaid fabric to celebrate my one year of blogging and three years of sewing.... I was so nervous at first then I thought let me just give it a try and see how it goes...boy it went really well. Thanks Faye for all the information you gave me.

Yes, I actually folded the fabric before cutting because I am not really a patient person....lol. I used the technique I learned from my two great teachers (Ron Collins and Alice Mulrain) to do this. I folded the fabric into two and pinned every about 6" so that the fabric won't shift. It was a neck breaking experience but I did it anyway.. So far here is my result, not only did the front and back match, the sleeve and the colar did match as well..... Yeepy, I am so good....lol.


Check my pictures below

Folded fabric

Front ( Couldn't get my camera to do justice to this)

Close-up

My Camera couldn't do enough justice to these pixs, but I am so proud of the outcome.. I can see more plaid in 2010....lol.  I will be posting the final review after I am completely done. I still have to do the lining and all other stuffs. What do you think fellows.....lol

Have a lovely week everyone.

/Aminat

Spring Jean Jacket (S3628 View B)

Yes, I have been sewing, I actually finished this jacket and another top last week, but didn't have my camera to take the pictures. Here is a review of my lovely jean jacket, I used the one and only Simplicity 3628 pattern, and cut out view B.
This time I used Denim fabric and cut size 16 with some modifications.
I did my usual FBA alteration. For a review of FBA on princess cut pattern , I used Debbie's lesson on her blog.
Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made: I lengthened the sleeve by 2" and did sway back alteration. I did not put lining but I finished the inside with a double bias tape and 1" length serging.
I set the lenght of my serger to 1" and I used Embroidery thread to serge the raw edges to create Hong-Kong finish impression, then, I used Bias tape with the same color as the embroidery thread to finish front facing, the neck and the hem, just to add fun to it and make it look unique. I finished the hem by hand stitching (Slip stitch).
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? My finished jacket looks very much like the photo on the envelop.
Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes very easy instruction to follow.
What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I like everything about the pattern and is for sure my TNT pattern.
Conclusion: This is an easy and lovely pattern for all skill level. I real love it and enjoyed making it.

Jacket inside out

Inside- out Close-up

Jacket on form

Have fun sewing everyone :) Aminat

Simplicity 3628 Review

Isn't blogging addictive? Once you start you might find it difficult to stop. Though I have read on different blogs that some days the "Blogging Mojo" will just be totally off...... Hopefully it doesn't go off so soon for me lol.

Okay, I made this simplicty threads pattern (3628) View C. Honestly I love this pattern, as a beginner, I found it very interesting and easy to make. Here goes the review.

Complete Jacket.

Jacket-Inside -Out Showing Lining.

Back -Neck -Facing with my name Embroidered.

Rat-tail button hole loop .

Fabric Used: I used Galazy Twill and Bemberg rayon lining.

Pattern Sizing: I cut out Size 14.

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made: I lengthen the sleeve by 2" to accomodate for my long arm, I made a back-neck -facing from the back and shoulder pieces for a more professional look using a method I read on thread website. I used rat- tail to make the button hole instead of fabric loop and I used the popular bagging method for lining.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? My finished jacket looks very much like the photo on the envelop.

Were the instructions easy to follow? The instructions were very easy to follow. But I used the Ron Collins/ Sandra Betzina method of bagging lining.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I like everything about the pattern and I am planning on making View B in a denim fabric.

Conclusion: This pattern tested my skills , I was able to use different skills on this project and I am so happy with the outcome. I recommend this pattern to sewist (beginners and experts).