March at Plush Addict

There have been some hot deliveries at sponsor Plush Addict and I know a lot of you are big Libs Elliot fans so I wanted to be quick to show you the full Tattooed North collection.  There are also some great new arrivals in garment patterns and Spring in the Northern hemisphere combined with The Great British Sewing Bee inspiration makes it a great time to sew clothes!

Libs Elliot Tattooed North Collection for Andover: FQ Bundle 28 Fabrics
Lib's Elliot has nailed this geometric abstract collection.  All these prints are available as yardage (as stock allows) and I'm guessing this is going to be a very popular fabric range!  I like the range in scale across the prints and my favourite is Rocks in Gold, followed by Sand in Charcoal.   There's also a free quilt pattern to download too. On a side note, I really struggle spelling "Tattooed" correctly, is that just me?!

Tilly and The Buttons Eden Coat.  
Tilly is the queen of clear, simple, well-photographed instructions and that's so reassuring when tackling a bigger project like a coat.  Although it can seem a little overwhelming, a coat in this style has quite an easy fit so sizing is often much easier than a fitted bodice, and a coat is one of those garments that will see such a lot of wear.  This pattern includes instructions for making a raincoat in an anorak style, or a warmer longer duffle style coat.  Both include a lining, hood and optional zip. I especially like the duffle coat and though this fabric: Wool blend coating in blue/white combined with this Camel antic static lining would work well.  A large check so pattern matching shouldn't be too tricky and a good value wool blend. There is a wool blend solid charcoal if pattern matching is too scary!  These wooden toggles would be my choice, find others here.

Simplicity 8529 Sew House Seven Toaster Sweater in Double Layer Jersey

It's been extra windy in the UK recently so it seemed like making a cosy sweater was a good idea and I managed to get pattern/fabric and some small windows of time in the week before storm Gareth kicked in.  This is view A of Simplicity 8529.  This is the Simplicity licenced version of Peggy's Sew House Seven Toaster Sweater; slightly different from the original - the shoulder line is more dropped on this version and the neck construction uses another method.  It's a quick and satisfying make, I wore this all through last week!

I made size S as that was closest to my 33" chest measurement, my only alteration was turning up the front and back hems by an extra 1/4".  The fabric is a double layer Italian cotton jersey which I bought from this eBay seller who offers a sample service.  I found the samples incredibly helpful when choosing and successful for the seller too as I bought another knit fabric that I hadn't noticed as well as this one.  This has two layers of 100% cotton jersey held together by stitches like double gauze.  It's soft with moderate stretch and good structure and suited this style.  It was also easy to cut and sew as it lies relatively flat. 

I decided to sew this on my Bernina 830 record using a Bernina walking foot, 80 ballpoint needle and Gutermann Sew-All thread.  My overlocker doesn't cope that well with bulk and the double layer does make for some thick seam intersections so I sewed some trial seams and ended up using a small zig-zag for the seams (1.5 width x 1.5 length), and a bigger one (4 w x 2.5 length) to encase the edges, trimming after I sewed.   it worked really well with neat stable seams and it does show how you don't need an overlocker/serger to sew knits!  I used a seam stabiliser tape on the back shoulders up to the neck curve and a double-needle for the slit hems, see here for tips, although a long straight stitch could also be used as the hems aren't put under strain. 

The funnel neck is warm without being restrictive and the clever facing method creates a neat finish.  This pattern was a great project to fit into small spaces of time: once it's cut out it comes together very quickly and the end result is satisfying.  I might try the shorter banded version with my remaining jersey fabric... 

Joni is taking up most of my free moments and I need to be very vigilant about not letting her into my sewing room unless she's sleeping to prevent her eating fabric scraps.  I've been keeping her busy with lots of socialisation opportunities and learning new tricks.  Puppy life is rather hands-on but she's a fast learner and we've been getting out and about on the lead. 

Assembly Line Apron Dress Version 2- Lined

Here's my second Assembly Line Apron Dress, (read about my first here).  This version is made with medium weight cotton twill originally bought to make a raincoat and I've lined it with cotton lawn (originally intended for the coat lining) to give a bit of extra weight and a bit more swish when walking.  Both these fabrics have been stashed for around 5 years so it felt good to use them in a garment that will see lots of wear.

Some minor changes from the first version,

• I added an extra 1" to the skirt length so I could turn up a deeper hem so the stitch lines are consistent throughout.  I also changed the topstitching a little at the bib top. 
•  The fabric is lighter weight than last time so although I made the straps the same length, they were a little loose and I'm guessing the skirt weight doesn't pull as much as the heavier brown twill, so I ended up unpicking and shortening them by a further 1/2" after these photos were taken.  As I enclosed my strap ends this was a bit fiddly, but I'm good at covering my tracks and you'd never know!
• I added interfacing to the facing this time, the fabric needed some extra oomph!  

The lining is basically a second dress cut 1" shorter. The outer and inner layers behave as one fabric when the facing is added.  It does make it feel extra good and it's always pleasing to see a blast of blue and orange together! The dress fabric is shot with a navy warp and a cornflower blue weft which has a slight shimmer effect, and as it was raincoat fabric, it's slightly water repellent which adds to the utilitarian vibe.  Thank you to Charlotte who kindly took my photos at a quilt guild meeting, that's always the tricky bit as I don't like using a timer and taking my own pics.

Find the pattern at The Draper's Daughter or go straight to the Assembly Line website.  I'm wearing the  dress with a Sew Over It Molly top in a viscose jersey.