September Projects

ctmidd
Oct 1, 2018
6 min read

There are 10 days left of the month and I have not done much sewing other than my special project.

An update on netprinter, I still haven't had a refund, or a reply to any of my emails, it's a good job I didn't spend the whole £50, I could not afford to be that much out of pocket. I haven't put any of the patterns together yet either.

I had to go to the next town over to get something for the hens so I went for a look in the Loros shop, there were loads of bagged up pieces of fabric, I pulled out a couple I liked and opened the packs so I could feel the material. I chose a navy cotton with a green check and another check with white, purple and brown in it, that one was beautifully soft. Both pieces were £2, the navy is 2m long and the other is 1.5m long, I love charity shops, I wouldn't be able to half my craft activities without them, I got an uncut jacket pattern for 25p the other day.

My friend and I attended a sewing get together in Leicester, lots of sewers gathered at a coffee shop to swap patterns, chat and then go round the local fabric shops. It was a nice idea but I think there were too many people, I spoke to a few people but it was so busy and stressful I didn't chat too much. I took 2 unwanted patterns and came away with one for a 1940's style dress. The food that was pre ordered arrived in dribs and drabs and I cancelled mine before it arrived after 45 minutes of waiting. We went in small groups around the few fabric shops in the town centre, I go to all of them when I'm in town except for a pop up shop next to the market that was selling jersey fabric cheap. My friend did hear from one of the other attendees about a sari fabric shop that sells unfinished saris. We went back to the shop that was hosting the event where I inhaled a cake as I was starving, we stayed a while, I bought a remnant of purple cord, and looked at a pinafore dress pattern that was too expensive for me. We left early, I don't think it was really our thing us not being real joiners, if there had been less people I think we might have found it easier, and we didn't go anywhere different so it wasn't useful in that respect. We went for a bit of a mooch around town then got the bus home.

I liked the pinafore dress idea for the fabric I bought, I had a go at creating my own pattern but I couldn't get it to hang well, I really need a dress form, it's so hard to see where things need taking in or out when you have to twist to look in the mirror. I had a really good look online and found a free pattern from the http://www.sewnowmag.co.uk/82/download-issue-3-templates-here/ website and printed it off. There are no instructions but it's not a complicated shape, I'll toile it first anyway to see how it fits, there are no darts or anything so I might have to add some.

I graded the pattern up a bit for me and made a toile of the pinafore. It was tight on the hips but otherwise it fitted fine, I decided to make it 5 inches shorter and cut that off the pattern, I cut out the good fabric adding extra on the side seams. I started by edging the pockets with my machine and turning the edges under and placing them on the front panel of the dress. I stitched those in place and then stitched the front and back panels together. I went through my fabrics looking for something to use for lining, I considered one of the checks I got the other week but in the end chose a purple cotton with white spots that I've had for ages, it matched the purple of the cord almost exactly. I stitched the lining fabric and top fabric of the straps together, turned them the right way out, pressed then top stitched them. I stitched the lining front and backs together and then edged all the seams on the lining and top fabric sections. I stitched the straps in place then pinned the lining in place and stitched it. I then clipped the seam allowance around the curves and edge stitched all around. I turned the lining to the inside and pressed the edges before top stitching all around. I turned up the hems of the lining and top fabric and stitched those by hand. I can see myself wearing this dress a lot, I'm really pleased with how it came out, I might have to get/make some more tops that will work well underneath it.

I am going to stick together another one of my free patterns, I've washed the navy/green check I got the other week ready to make something.

Netprinter finally refunded my money just shy of a month after my order. Apparently 6 of my emails went astray including the one made on the website contact form, I finally emailed one of the CC'd people from the original email I was sent, he sorted it out in a matter of hours. I don't think it's a service I'd use again.

I used another free pattern to make a sleeveless shirt with my navy check. I stuck the sheets together and measured them, as they were not far from my measurements I traced them as they were and cut out pieces with a seam allowance added. I made a toile, the back shoulder was more than an inch wider than the front, the neck overlapped 2 inches and the armholes were tight. I trimmed the armholes, the top of the two front sections and the neck, I also thought the front bottom hem was way too high (obviously designed for someone with a way smaller chest). I redrew the pattern adding and subtracting where I needed to and made the shoulder widths equal. I cut my good fabric and stitched the main shirt together easily. I tried it on and pinned it where I needed a bust dart then carefully marked that on both sides before stitching it on the machine. I needed to add packets on the front pieces, there was no pattern piece for this and as I had shaped my front pieces I used that as a template to draw a placket piece. I added the plackets and top stitched each side of each one. The collar pieces were way too short so I cut them again adding 3 inches in the middle, I have made collars before so I just put it together as I did previously, If you haven't made a collar, I wouldn't try it without instructions of some kind. It took me a while to fit the collar to the shirt, I stitched it firstly on the machine and finished it off by hand. I made some bias binding from my remaining fabric, pressed it in half and stitched it around the armhole firstly on machine then folded it and stitched the inside in place. I then put the shirt on and marked where I wanted the press studs, making sure I put one at the spot where shirts always gape. I stitched the press studs in place and hemmed the bottom by hand. The girl in the picture on the page where I got the pattern has the shirt collar up at the back, I thought this was just for the look, it's actually because the collar doesn't sit right, it's either too deep or not curved enough, I'm not sure but it looks fine with the back up a bit, I'm not making it again. The pattern was not particularly well drafted but I was able to alter it easily and I really like the finished shirt.

I might not make too much next month as I really need to make some more progress with my other project but I am planning to have a go at making leggings, I will head back to that jersey shop by the market and get some cheap fabric to try with. I am not very experienced with stretch fabrics but my new machine has a few different stitches to try so I shall see how I do. I will have a look for a free pattern for leggings, if I don't find one I'll draft one from a well fitting pair.