Inadvertent Jungle January make

Firstly some sad news - our beloved crazy dog Oscar has sadly gone to the great dog park in the sky. It seems a bit strange to share such a personal thing on a sewing blog, but since he always got comments whenever he photobombed a blog photo I thought I would share the event. He was 14 which is a very long life for a big dog like a dalmatian, and he spent each day of those years running around like crazy, wagging his tail so enthusiastically his whole body would wiggle and generally just acting like a puppy right up until the day his old body finally gave up on him. It sure is going to be quiet around here without him.

Switching gears back to my normal blog content.....

Until last year when I made this leopard print skirt I didn't own a single piece of animal print, so I've always just watched Jungle January hosted by Pretty Grievances each year with some amusement but no intention of joining in. But I've just made a few pairs of shorts for Toby using some fun cotton prints that were in the stash, two of which just happen to be lion prints. What can be more jungle themed than the king of the jungle?!

I used a pattern from a Polka Drops Japanese sewing pattern book which I think is called Easy Children's Clothing (ISBN 978-4-529-04837-8):

I quite like the aesthetic of the Japanese kids clothes, but I find the patterns are a little too simplistic - there are no zippers and very few buttons, everything is pretty much elastic waist and loose fitting styles.  Which is fine for some clothes but sometimes jeans and pants need a little bit more tailoring. That said though, I do like this pattern because it has a slim leg and a much better fit than I can usually get from the commercial patterns. And now that Toby is out of nappies he doesn't need the big baggy legs and low crotch that the kids patterns usually produce but he does need an elastic waist to be able to get his clothes on and off by himself, so this pattern suited me needs right now.

The only problem is that the waistband sits rather low - it is designed to have two layers of waistband but I can't quite decipher from the pattern book how the inner waistband is supposed to be higher because both are cut from the same pattern piece. Note to future self - increase the rise of the pattern by at least 5cm!

The first pair I made from a blue lion print with pockets on the sides of the shorts using the waistband piece from the pattern - it's quite narrow and too low so I'll need to replace it eventually.

The second pair I made from a red lion print that I didn't bother with any pockets, but made the waistband much wider and used wider elastic too. These are the same size as the blue pair but look more baggy because the waistband is tighter.

The third pair is my favourite pair, made from a blue elephant print cotton that has been in the stash a long time. I used ribbing for the waistband and patch pockets on the back. Too cute!

Party season

I don't think my social life has ever been this busy - I have a party to attend every weekend this month and next, and in fact this weekend I went to a party both on Saturday and Sunday. Sadly I'm not talking about swish cocktail soirees or black tie events for which I need to sew some beautiful party dresses, but rather six year old birthday parties! We are well into the birthday party season around here, and every child in Anna's class seems to be invited to each of these parties, which is very nice and inclusive but it means that these parties are huge and very loud, energetic and tiring. The kids aren't at an age yet where you can do the drop off and run thing, especially since none of these parties are in people's homes but rather at indoor play centres or other party venues so at the end of the three hour or so parties there are a lot of parents gripping their coffee cups with tired looks on their faces!

Anna and I have had many discussions (aka arguments) about appropriate clothing to wear to these parties - it has turned quite cold here in Sydney lately and yet all she wants to wear her summer dresses which are now way too short thanks to a growth spurt that seems to have occurred unnoticed by us all. So after Saturday's discussion about what to wear which involved threats of not going to the party if something more appropriate wasn't worn, I promised to make her a new dress that night if she promised to wear it to Sunday's party. Deal.

I let her pick the fabric, a purple and grey knit 4 way stretch knit from The Fabric Store which is a lovely soft knit with great recovery although it was one of those knits that curls at the edges when cut which was very annoying to press flat and sew. I chose the pattern - a simple and sensible dress from the Japanese sewing pattern book from the "Fashionable Dress for Girls" book (ISBN 978-4-529-04816-3), which I've used before for these very cute puffy pocket shorts when she was just a little (but still highly spirited) toddler.

This post has details about where to buy Japanese sewing books and a mini review if you're interested.

The dress has sleeves and is knee length, which when worn with stocking or leggings is perfect for Sydney's version of winter (cold, but not really when compared with other places!). And the stretch factor is perfect for meeting all the needs of a bendy and wiggly 5 year old. It took less than two hours to make, including tracing the pattern out, so it's quite a simple project if you know what you're doing - those instructions in Japanese are as helpful as those in Burda (although there are little diagrams so they are still easier to understand than Burda!).

I made the pattern for 120cm height and the fit is perfect - I find these Japanese sewing patterns and others that do patterns based on height like Ottobre and Burda are perfect fit for Anna's tall and slim frame, much better than the commercial sewing patterns that base their sizes on chest measurements. The only changes I made were to add a narrow elastic band around the waistline instead of sewing a trim around the dropped waist level to give the dress a bit of shape. Check out that stripes matching at the side seam - you can barely see the seam line (but don't look too closely at that not so straight hem though!):

The pattern has a bound neckline with a keyhole opening at the back, but I left this off purely because I was too lazy to fiddle about with that in a knit fabric, plus I figured (hoped) that a neckline made of 4 way stretch knit would be ok without it. It is a bit of tight stretch over her head but it works.

You might also be thinking that I left off those gathers at the front neckline? Well, they are there - I just didn't notice until I was taking these photos that Anna had the dress on backwards. She might have kept her part of our deal to wear the dress, but she still did it her own way!

And now I've probably set myself up for more last minute sewing sessions, because with another 5 birthday parties in the next 5 weeks she'll probably now want a new dress each time!

Breaking up with cotton sateen

I'm officially declaring my love affair with cotton sateen over. Well, solid coloured cotton sateen at least, because I still have a few beautiful printed cotton sateen pieces in the stash that I still want to use but no longer will I be drawn in by the lustrous sheen, the smooth and firm fabric and the strong colours because I know that whatever it is made into will just become a wrinkly mess and that sheen will be lost after the first wash. It's possibly why I'm dragging my feet on finishing a white blazer I started last November even though I really want a white blazer in my wardrobe - it's made from cotton sateen that even though I've block interfaced I fear that it's going to look terrible when finished!

So why am I being so emphatic about it this time? Well when I made New Look 6144, the pleated neckline dress in a glorious Kelly green cotton sateen that wrinkled the moment I lifted it off the ironing board, it was from some lesser priced cotton sateen bought from Spotlight (about $9.99/m I think). But I've just used some more expensive (and presumably better quality) cotton sateen in a deep red colour that I bought from the remnant table at Tessuti's last year, and sadly it wrinkles the same. So my highly unscientific deduction is that all cotton sateens probably wrinkle badly, no matter the price or quality. The printed cotton sateens wrinkle just as much of course, it's just that the prints usually hide the fact a little better.

Just before Christmas I made another a-line skirt from Burda 11/2012 #124, my fourth version now - it's well and truly become my TNT a-line skirt pattern and I can make one now in about 3 hours start to finish. Despite it's wrinkliness, I wore this skirt a lot when we were in Queensland recently for our holidays:

It's only a casual skirt so I can live with those wrinkles, plus it was so hot and humid up there in Queensland that practically everything looked wilted and less than fresh the moment you stepped outside!

With the leftover fabric I made a pair of shorts for Anna who unusually was requesting a pair of shorts instead of a skirt for a change. I used a pattern from the Japanese sewing book "Kids pants and skirts" - ISBN 978-4-529-052229-0" my husband bought for my birthday last year (just so I could say that I've used it!):

One thing I've noticed about the Japanese sewing books that I own is that none of the patterns require a zipper - all the shorts and pants are elastic waists and the dresses are either slip on or have button up backs. So these shorts were super simple to make, and I used a cute spotted fabric from the stash for the waist band tie and gathered back pockets. Anna also didn't want the cuffs folded up, so the shorts are a little longer than the pattern photograph:

 

And what better shoes to co-ordinate with some red shorts than a pair of mum's red high heels?

And apart from a little bit more of that red cotton sateen leftover from these two fabrics, there is no more and there shalt be no more of this fabric to enter my stash....

Happily I have managed to finish my December Burda project, thus successfully completing my Burda challenge of sewing at least one pattern from each magazine each month.  I just have to photograph it , which I will do once I get the paint out of my hair and eyebrows - the good husband and I have been busy painting the outside of our house (eaves, gutters, window frames and weatherboards) as well as doing some landscaping and general tidying up. It's amazing how much can get done when the two kids are off at daycare!

Thanks to all those who commented on my end of year wrap up post - I'm glad you all agreed with my fabourite choices, and a special thanks to those who even thought my least faves were still ok. And Mary from Thailand thank you in particular for your interesting suggestion on how to deal with the wrinkled green cotton sateen dress (by doodling on it with permament marker so it becomes a print instead) - what an amazing idea!

The cute and the not so cute: Japanese sewing pattern vs Burda 6-2011 #111

After doing that last post on the Japanese sewing pattern books that I own but have not sewn from I felt a pang of guilt not experienced since before I started actually sewing from my Burda magazines! So I traced out a few patterns and decided to make a new dress for Anna. This would be the cute part of the title of this post:

From the Fashionable Clothes for Girls book (ISBN978-4-529-04526-1) I made the tunic dress "a":



image from Tanoshii-Schneidern.blogspot.com

I used size 110 since Anna is 114cm tall now, and the fit is superb although I doubled the length of the bottom part of the dress (almost an extra 15cm long) because this dress was really really short. I think it may be a tunic meant to be worn over tights as shown in the pattern book, but since I wanted Anna to be able to wear this dress during summer I lengthened it so it could be worn as a dress. Of course Anna insisted on wearing tights with the dress for these photos so she could be just like the pictures in the book!

This dress was really simple and straightforward to make, and aside from the length the other change I made was to fully line the bodice instead of sewing on fiddly little facings at the neckline and sleeve openings. The fabric is an Alexander Henry cotton bought from the remnants table at Tessuti Fabrics earlier in the year which has a lovely soft feel to it, and the buttons, ribbon and red cotton faux pocket flaps are all from the stash.

And now to the not so cute. I'm sure you've all had those projects that turn out nothing like how you've pictured it in your head? Well, this is one of those! I saw a picture recently somewhere or other of a pair of shorts in a coral colour with a scalloped edge hem, worn with a black and white top that I thought would look perfect for a summer outfit. Unfortunately I failed to take into account that my legs are not long, toned and tanned so it doesn't look quite the way I wanted it to on me.

I wouldn't normally wear high heels with shorts, it was just for this photo trust me! I think the problem is that I made the shorts a bit longer in the leg because I'm not comfortable wearing them really short and that makes them look a bit dowdy.

 

I used Burda 6/2011 #111 mainly because it was already traced out since I've made it previously in a floral softer fabric. It's a very simple pattern with a side zip and some ridiculously long darts on the front. I left off the patch pockets on the back and instead did a single welt pocket.

For this version I used a piece of cotton drill that has been in the stash for a while so the fit is different but still not so bad.

That back view is far from flattering! How's that for truth in blogging? Anyway I think I'll cut off the scalloped edge and hem it normally and chalk this one up to experience.....

Japanese sewing books

A few posts back, KayC asked if I could recommend any Japanese sewing books which include patterns. I am far from an expert in these - I only own four books and rather shamefacedly I have only sewn one pattern so far. But the good news is that when I pulled them out to do this post I was inspired to trace off three patterns so hopefully I'll increase that tally soon.

I can suggest these blogs as the ultimate source of all things Japanese sewing:

• www.japanesesewingbooks.com - this site is a fantastic resource for translation of Japanese characters, reviews of Japanese sewing books, links to free patterns and all things Japanese sewing.
• Japan Couture Addicts - this is a French blog but it has lots of pattern reviews, finished garment photos and photo tutorials which is also extremely helpful.
• Adelaide Lemonade - this blog also has finished projects and tips for sewing with Japanese patterns.
• Bags, Crafts and Happiness - has quite a few pattern reviews of girls clothes from a number of books
• Lollipop Garden Crafts - this blog has both boys and girls patterns

The four books I own are all children's patterns because I find the Japanese aesthetic in childrenswear to be really cute, but the grown up versions are not really my style. I buy my books from the Kinokuniya store in Sydney which has a huge range of crafting and sewing books, but you can get these from Amazon and etsy sellers as well.

The pattern sheets are similar to Burda in that you fold out a large sheet of overlapping pattern pieces and have to trace out the pieces needed for your pattern, adding the required seam allowance as you go. Each pattern has a very concise line drawing of construction order, but some patterns have more detailed photo instructions as well.

The sizing is based on height like Burda and Ottobre kids, and maybe it's because Anna is half Asian but the chest, waist and hip measurement for her height are spot on and the one garment I made her fitted really well.

The patterns in the four books I have are mostly really simple - all of the pants and skirts have elastic waistbands and no zippers; the dresses have buttons but no zippers either; and the jackets seem to be made from knits which are easier to sew as well. I would recommend these books to a beginner sewist because of the simple nature of the patterns, although a basic understanding of the order of construction of garments would be helpful since you can't read the pattern instructions. Finally, an example of pattern instructions that are less helpful than Burda's!

The first book I bought is called "Let's Go Out Girls Clothes" - ISBN978-4-529-04816-3 (searching by ISBN is often the best way), from the charmingly named Heart Warming Life Series:

 

From this book I made a pair of bubble pocket shorts for Anna way back in December 2010 when she was almost two years old:

The next book I have is called "Fashionable Clothes for Girls" - ISBN978-4-529-04526-1. This one is for heights ranging from 90cm - 130cm and includes patterns for a hat, bag as well as an entire wardrobe of dresses, skirts, tops, jackets, leggings and shorts:

 

The third one is another one from the Heart Warming Life Series, called "Polka Drops" (I think!) - ISBN978-4-529-04837-8. This one includes some iron on letter transfers to embellish one of the boy shirt patterns. This one is for heights ranging 90cm-130cm:

 

 

And the newest addition, courtesy of my husband is "Kids pants and skirts" - ISBN 978-4-529-052229-0. This one is for heights 100cm - 150cm so I still have plenty of time to make things for Anna from it, plus I can use it for Toby in a few years time as well.

So KayC, I hope this was of some help! Unfortunately I can't show you any more finished garments since I've haven't made them, but these books are lovely to look at even if I haven't sewn from them. The mix of fabrics and styling is uber cute, and are a great resource for inspiration.

Pattern gorging

Wow, I'm glad you all liked my fuchsia dress as much as I do! It makes a nice change from the usual lovely but oh so serious style of work dress that I usually wear. I did wear it to work this week with stockings and a blazer but since I didn't line the skirt portion of dress it stuck to my legs and rode up a bit. I'll have to invest in a half slip (can you still buy those?) or make a full lining for it.

My Vogue patterns finally turned up in the post yesterday, I'm so glad they didn't get lost in the system. I did notice the postage cost on the envelope was only $5.44US, so Sewing Dragon they made money out of me too, or at least they certainly charged a lot for handling.....

Because it was $15 postage for 1-3 patterns and they were on sale for $3.99, of course I bought 3 patterns, which are:

Vogue 8543, the skirt suit which you've already seen. I plan to make this out of a light grey textured wool flannel. I know, I know, I'm reverting back to grey but I swear I have just the right fabric in the stash that I want to use for this suit and that's why! Plus I think a light grey colour is a good neutral base for wearing it with vivid blouses and scarves.

Vogue 1156, which is an Anne Klein dress that is quite simple but I like those radiating pleats from the neckline (sunray pleats?), and having not only a princess seamed bodice but also a waistline seam front and back should help greatly in getting a good fit. No fabric picked out for it as yet, but I would like to make it soon(ish).

Vogue 1192, another Anne Klein dress which I discovered after ordering that it had really bad reviews over on pattern review. So this might sit in the stash for a little while, until I feel up to another monumental fitting challenge!

Katherine H asked in the comments to the last post which Simplicity patterns I purchased from sewing patterns.com recently. Only happy to oblige!

Simplicity 2337, my first Project Runway pattern. I'm actually sewing a muslin for this at present and plan to sew the final version out of a charcoal grey herringbone polyester fabric.

Simplicity 2443, a Cynthia Rowley pattern that I bought mainly for the jacket because I don't have many casual, non corporate but still cute jackets to wear with jeans.


Simplicity 2253, which is a formal gown for which I have very little need for in my wardrobe but I thought that maybe I could make this knee length in a cotton for a smart casual summer dress. Possibly even contrasting colours for those diagonal strips around the torso if that didn't look too naff. But since it's a summery pattern it will have to wait a few months now.

Simplicity 2320 which is a children's Project Runway pattern that I'm planning to make a longer sleeved version in a fine wale corduroy for Anna.

Simplicity 2907, another kids pattern that I bought to make Anna a shirt dress but again will have to wait until next summer now. Helpfully the pattern ranges in size from 1/2 to 4 so I have plenty of years to get around to making it!

But the pattern gorging doesn't end there either! I recently bought two Ottobre magazines at the suggestion of several readers who assure me that the fit is better than the Big 4 catalogue. I bought these from Crafty Mamas, who are the Australian distributors, and they arrived very quickly in the mail so I can certainly recommend a purchase (or two) from them.

There are some really cool clothes for babies through toddlers to kids in these magazines, so I'm sure I'll get a lot of use out of them. In fact, I've already made a pair of jeans from one of these that just needs a snap or button inserted to be done.

And finally I happened to be in Kinokinuyas the other day when they were having a 20% off all craft books. So I purchased this lovely Japanese sewing book which I hope to start using soon:

Thank you so much to those who offered to purchase patterns in those amazing US sales and on post them to us long suffering Australians in an overpriced sewing pattern market, it is very kind of you but also very evil in an enabling kind of way! As you can see I definitely do not need, and should not buy, more patterns. For now. Maybe in the future I'll be in touch...

Summerflies (of the aptly named Sew Darn Tired) asked how Anna is sleeping - well I am happy to announce that since we made the appointment for the sleep specialist (which is next Friday) the little monkey has been sleeping great! It's like she knew we had reached our breaking point and so her work in destroying us was done. Seriously, in the last two weeks we've had several nights of her sleeping through until 6.30am, and the other nights she'll only wake once or twice but go back to sleep relatively quickly. Don't know how long this will last, and we will keep the sleep specialist appointment, but I'm enjoying it - especially as it means that during her waking hours she is such a more pleasant child to be around. Fingers crossed it lasts.