Tips on hemming knits, a Chardon Skirt and a Plantain top.

These were sewn a few weeks ago now, I feel I am playing a little catch up with clothes and blogging.   After enjoying the warmth of my brushed cotton Chardon maxi, I found some lovely fine needle cord at this Etsy shop, paired it with a little Liberty lawn and made another along with a Plantain variation top.  I have covered the skirt process a few times so I will mention a few knit tips for the top.

I saw this variation on Flickr and found instructions and a PDF on her blog followed her PDF to adapt the neck of the top.  I used a 30cm rectangle for my neck piece.  I cut a size 36 and sewed ⅜" seams.  The result is pretty relaxed and slouchy.  I am not totally smitten; it's a little the wrong side of the Cagney and Lacey look, but it is soft and comfortable- the fabric is a cotton jersey knit.   Next time I make a Plantain I will make a straight size 36 with ⅝" seams and raise the scoop neck. For the hemming and the shoulders I used this great product- knit stay tape.   It is lightweight and has a fusible adhesive on one side. I use a strip in the hem of the back shoulders to stop the shoulders stretching out over time, and use it all round the edge of the sleeves and the top hem as it makes it stable and provides and easy way to fold the turn up when the hem is stitched.  It is not essential for creating a good hem and you could cut and use strips of knit interfacing- this is interfacing with a little stretch built in rather than fixed woven interfacing.  The knit tape is pressed all round the hem edge with a hot iron.  It is about ½" wide so provides a great guide for folding the hem.

I have made a few knit jersey tops now and each time my technique improves and I learn a little more.  These are my current tips and machine settings:

1.  Woolly nylon hand wound on the bobbin to provide elasticity to the back of the stitch.  I have one reel of this in light silver grey and use it for all my knit hems and neck lines.

2.  Size 75 4.0mm twin stretch needle

3.  Reduced the sewing foot pressure to 2

4.  Set my tension to 9 on my Janome Horizon to get a true zig zag on the reverse.

5.  Sew slowly, the twin needle places a little strain on the machine and the threads are more likely to snap.  Besides, you need to sew slow as you are guiding the hem and feeling the fold so that you can sew as close to the raw edge of the hem as possible.

6.  Leave long tails of thread at the beginning and end- you need to hand sew the ends in to secure.  Sewing forwards and backwards on the machine is not enough, the wooly nylon always works its way loose.  It is a faff but it is worth it as these edges get a lot of strain and stretching so need to be secure.

7.  Press the hem at the end.  Jersey knit benefits from pressing just like any other dressmaking.

It started to rain on our little garden photo shoot but you get the idea of the top and skirt!

And this does give a good view of the neck.  Not totally enamoured but worth trying out.

The skirt is squeezed out of 2 yards of fabric.  It is quite snug, the pile of the needle cord just adds a little bulk to the waist making it sit higher than I would like so I may change the waist inner facing for something a little finer.  

Pockets and hem are in Liberty tana lawn.

I grade my seams in al the bulky areas, one of my favourite dress making techniques.  

The patterns can be found here.  Plantain is a free download.  Deer and Doe have just released a new skirt pattern, Anemone.  It is a more formal style so I am still at the thinking stage on whether it will work for me- my life is rather informal, meanwhile I have more clothing on the go.

January clothes and plans

I made this outfit over Christmas, after much internal debate with myself over whether a maxi length Chardon skirt would make me look frumpy I took the risk and was rewarded with a skirt I have worn many times since.

The top was a quick slash neck make based on the Meg McElwee long sleeved Tee from Craftsy  Online Sewing Class  Sewing with knits  and is my basic go-to long sleeved Tee pattern (there are 5 patterns included with the class) and a batwing top from December Burda magazine

I lengthened the skirt by 30 cm from the hem, otherwise it is as the pattern, size 38.  The fabric is a lightly brushed cotton, Nani Iro Pocho in charcoal from Eternal Maker. It reminds me of Little Women and The Railway Children, with their flannel dresses and underskirts.  It is warm and soft and doesn't need lining- all good factors for a winter skirt.

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This was back on Christmas day morning, Lula took the pics. A beautiful day followed by the beach the next day and then followed by a whole lot of rain.

Deer and Doe usually recommend a facing or bias binding finish with all their hems and I like the effect.  I used a fat eighth of some Oakshott impressions (Auvers).  It is lightweight and takes an iron well to make binding.  I did have to join a lot of strips to make it all round the hem but it was worth it for such a neat edge.

For the pockets, I used a little Liberty from Jo's shop.  I made my husband a scarf from this print and some twill flannel and it has been a big hit- more on that another time

Life is quiet here at the moment.  This time of year is always a bit of a struggle to be honest.  I am working on my mindfulness and I've kept the meditation and practices going for 4 weeks now.  I've noticed that mindfulness can be a little dull, but then there are moments when I reach a state of stillness that I haven't found before and it is encouraging and I want to see where it will go next.  My arms are sore and the nerves are irritated so I can't do much sewing so I am planning and plotting for lighter times when my hands are back to full power. I like some bulbs on the window in January to remind me that spring is on its way.

Double Gauze Chardon

This summer has been perfect for dressmakers.  Summer dresses and skirts that would barely get an outing in the last couple of years have been promoted to wardrobe essentials.  I used some Nani Iro Pon Pocho double gauze from Eternal Maker to make a Deer and Doe Chardon skirt.  

Lula took the snaps and they were very much on the move as we were en route to meet a friend and her children.  The print comes with an irregular border pattern on the selvedges which are perfect for the back bow belt and pocket detail.

As with all Deer and Doe patterns, I found the cut and the fit were spot on.   Their pattern pieces fit together beautifully every time.   This is a straightforward skirt, you only need to measure your waist- and I am talk about your proper waist where you bend either side, and with the style, no practice run was needed.  The side pockets are generous and placed quite low, just where they need to be for walking with your hands in your pockets.  

The bag was made a few years back, pattern from Pochee magazine vol 7 spring 2009 (you can find this magazine on Etsy/ebay from time to time).

I have worn the skirt a lot.  It is great to travel in, floaty and light but not sheer and a pretty feminine style.  Double gauze worked well as it hangs nicely and doesn't create bulk at the waist box pleats. 

I added cotton tape at each box pleat to add support (pics 1 and 2 right to left below) and I also added a light woven interfacing when I inserted the back zipper (not shown) and prettied up the waistband facing edge and the hem with Liberty lawn from a thrifted shirt (pic 3 below.

Details

Fabric: Nani Iro Pon Pocho in blue.  I used 1.75m

Size: 10

Length: cut to the longest length of largest size and added 1/2"

Box pleat: reinforced with 3/8" cotton tape and top stitched 1/8" either side

Waist Facing: graded (layered) the seam allowance and under stitched (where the facing is stitched to the seam.  And top stitched on outside front edge only. Secured facing to zip and side seams.

Hem: used bias strip as facing