Pleather and knit top

We are going to have to do something about the lemon tree!

The inspiration for this top came from this top pinned that I pinned 2 years ago from Lafayette 148 New York and have been meaning to make it for ever.

Kerryn's Fabric World sent me some swatches back in 2012 and they had this Polyester Spandex that has a leather look to it that just had to be added to my stash.

It has a knit backing but has no stretch to it at all.

Then when I made my Drapey cardigan back in January, I realised that the merino wool looked pretty good next to the Pleather.  So with some very careful cutting out I managed to get the cardigan as well as the back and sleeves for this top using KS 3740.

As the Pleather is essentially a woven fabric, I used Vogue 8572 my TNT woven blouse for the front, but wanted to add princess seams to it as well.

This was the 2nd item that I packed to work on during the Sewing Weekend in Brisbane and after I finished my cardigan I then started work on this top.

First up I traced off the front of V8572 and then proceeded to add armhole princes seams + 6mm seam allowance (so I wouldn't get confused between the two patterns).

Original front pattern

Armhole Princess Seams added

I cut out the front and then basted the front and back together to check the fit.

There was quite a bit of excess fabric above the apex curve and as I could see this myself I didn't take any measurements to put back on the pattern so I am not sure how much we ended taking out or how much we smoothed out the curve :(

The back was a different matter,

So I took out a 1,5cm dart at the neckline down 8cm and then took a 2mm seam all the way down the centre back so from the right side it looks like I have a centre back seam

The rest of the top went together very well, I added a knit neckband to the neckline and then used my Coverstitch to finish of the neck edge.

As well as all the hems

Of course I have finished this right as the weather is starting to warm up but the top had its first outing to the ASG Industry Day at Simplicity Patterns yesterday which is in a big tin shed and this top kept me very comfortable.


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2016 Stash Out: 13.7 m
2016 Stash In: 18 m

#OWOP - Kwik.Sew 3740

It is on again this year and is being hosted by Hannah from Cinderellis Sews from Saturday 10 September to Friday 16 September 2016,

and it shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who knows me that I have chosen Kwik.Sew 3740 as my pattern.

This is my go to TNT knit top, and I have made numerous versions, some of which have worn out completely.

Here is the week's worth, not necessarily in the right date order.

Coffee/grey/cream
This is as per the pattern, no changes made.

Orange Swirls
This is as per the pattern, no changes made.

Lemon T-Shirt and Cardigan
The lemon t-shirt has had the neckline raised by 2cm.
The cardigan is my t-shirt pattern with the front pattern not cut on the fold and the edges turned under 1cm.

Chartreuse, grey and ink navy
This top has had the neckline raised by 2cm.

Blue and Gold Swirls
This top has had the neckline raised by 3cm.

Orange arrow
This top has had the neckline raised by 4cm.

Red, Coffee, cream cowl top
This is as per the pattern, no changes made.

I have got a few more versions that I want to play with for summer so expect to see a lot more of this pattern.

Hannah also organised some fantastic prizes for this week and I found out on the 2nd day that I had won a Colette pattern, now to make a decision.

#SewingDares - Cardigan

It must be the weather, but when I read Gillian's post  on #SewingDares - Its' back! I thought why not and it might just be what I need to get my sewing mojo back.

I did wonder what Gillian would come up with for me and I must say I was very happy with the dare that Gillian has given me:

You mentioned needing more layering pieces in your wardrobe, so I dare you to sew a drapey cardigan and/or long-sleeved tee!

The best part of the dare is that there is no time frame but I did want some winter layers/tops so that did make me focus on it a lot quicker.

I do have a drapey cardigan that I sewed back in January and at this stage I don't need another one, but after seeing all the long cardigans about this year, I thought this would be an excellent alternative.
 
I purchased this fabric back in 2004 at Martin and Savage Textiles during an ASG Industry Day and it has been quietly maturing in my stash.

What I wanted was:

• Cardigan to be open e.g. no closures
• Length to fingertips

I then figured out that my TNT t-shirt pattern KS 3740 would be perfect with some length added.

Pattern changes:

• added 18cm in length
• full bicep adjustment on sleeves of 1.5cm (eventually)

The rib in this fabric is quite distinctive so I cut it in single layers to make sure they were straight.

I did wonder how I was going to finish the edges as I didn't want a band as the fabric was too thick for that option.

This fabric looks brown, but when I auditioned various bias tapes, it looked a lot happier with olive.

Now this cardigan was started back in May and was up to the binding, but the sleeves were too tight, as I hadn't done the Full Bicep Adjustment then :( and they were 4 thread overlocked in place, and it has been sitting in the too hard corner since then.

Thankfully I had enough fabric to re-cut the sleeves so that was a relief.

Then last weekend a group of us from Pattern Review got together in Brisbane for a weekend of sewing and this cardigan was one of the items I worked on.

Luckily for me, my sister has much better eyesight and very generously unpicked the 4 thread overlock so I could add my new sleeves.

Then I started to scratch my head about the bindings when Skye, who was sitting next to me, suggested I just turn the edges under and Coverstitch!  Why do I over think things!  

To finish the edges for the Coverstitch I added some interfacing:

• Neck edge - Formband  colour charcoal
• Front edges - Edge Tape colour charcoal which I cut into 1cm strips.

I am very happy with the result as this cardigan tends to float about as I walk and the bound edge would have been a lot more noticeable.

I did add some bias for the sleeve hems.

Here is how I wore it to work last Friday.

I think it will be a great layering piece until the weather warms up.

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2016 Stash Out: 10.2 m
2016 Stash In: 18 m