April at Seamstar

Courtney has so many new fabrics, prints and patterns in this month at Seamstar I hardly know where to start, but the 10% discount she is giving this week on purchases of Leah Duncan's Meadow for Art Gallery fabrics does rather draw my eye- you have until 11th April (I think) to get your discount!

If you haven't seen or felt Art Gallery cottons before they are a little different to the usual quilting cottons; finer, silkier and suitable for dressmaking as well as quilting.  I have made a couple of dresses from them and they are soft and a pleasure to wear.

Another new set of fabrics are Robert Kaufman lightweight denims.  These are dressmaking weight, ideal for children and adult clothes and incredibly wearable colours.  Think chambray or poplin weight rather than jeans denim: suitable for dresses, shirts, trousers and also quilting and craft- bags, cushions,purses etc.  They are also wide width, so you do get good value especially for circle skirts and patterns which are best done with 55" rather than 44" fabric.  I like to use these for clothing and then I use the off cuts when I quilt.

It is helpful to read more about the denim and see their samples close up on the Robert Kaufman website.  This is the Railroad link, this is the Indigo chambray link and you can see clothing examples too.  I simply cannot have enough of these fabrics in my life!

Easter is nearly upon us, there are lots of bunny craft activities around - (see this beauty from Karen at Listen to the bird's Sing, and Courtney has used this theme for a very cute bunny kit for this month's Craft Club.

As well as the denims and Art Gallery fabrics, Courtney has started stocking Moda precuts this month.  There are Jelly Rolls- I like Jelly Rolls and Layer cakes when it comes to Precuts as they both contain a lot of fabric.  My favourite jelly roll is Bluebird Park- love the colours in this collection and the balance of patterns and cuteness:

And at the moment the layer cake on offer is Wren and Friends- lots of bright, small scale modern patterns.

For the dressmakers out there, there are Joel Dewberry patterns like this Vintage Flutter Dress 

which would be wonderful in either Meadow or the light denims and Courtney has other suggestions and supplies here.  Some sewing experience needed for this dress but it is relatively simple. 

And finally, perfect for Spring, the Michael Miller Birds of a Feather collection is lovely.  I think my preference is for the tessellating Birds print- it really is a good one.

I love what Courney is doing with Seamstar at the moment, the selection has really opened up, both for quilting and dressmaking and she has made great choices.  Offering all this and kits and projects is a lot of work and it really shows on the website,  Well done Courtney! 

London super quick trip

I managed to squeeze in a packed trip to London last weekend, precipitated by Chinelo Bally: Sewing Bee winner-to-be? (*Edited to add* after some rather shouty comments from people who thought I had given away some TV secret: I am very sorry if you thought I had, I would never do such a thing, it was rather badly written- this is only a guess, I have no idea or pre-knowledge that this is the case and Chinelo certainly did not say a thing about the bee other than to mention that Claudia bakes great cakes and that she had discussions with Patrick about tailoring.  I will be watching tonight with my fingers firmly crossed for her) and free cutter dress maker, running a half day free cutting course in East London.  It was the end of term and the start of a couple of weeks free from the day job, I could not resist.  More to come on the free cutting class.  It was fascinating and I had the added bonus of meeting up with Rachel again there and meeting new sewing ladies, great, great fun!

I was staying with my brother with the luxury of visiting his new flat for the first time.  He knows London well and saves up activity ideas for me each time I visit and of course, there is no shortage of stuff to do.  This fence was near Brick Lane.  There are raffia hearts woven on too as well as the crocheted granny squares.

We wandered through the tourists and bizarre mix of food, bric-a-brac/tat, bikes, and hipster clothes on Brick Lane, then onto Columbia Road where Sunday is flower market day and everyone is walking round carrying either a substantial plant or a bunch of sunflowers.   I looked round for Beyond Fabrics which is at the far end, and bought these pretties.

Then on to the The Geffyre Museum of the home which is a lovely Sunday afternoon place to visit, packed full of middle class urban period drawing rooms/parlours and living rooms from the 17th century through to the 20th century- much of these can be seen on their website.  It had free entry with donation boxes to add your support to, and is charming museum full of period details.  The garden is a treat, recently reopened for the spring/summer season and replanted in many areas, it is just starting to burst with spring blooms and there is an imaginative choice of flowers and herbs, all beautifully displayed in a mix of styles.  I was very taken with the Auriculas and the eighteenth century style Auricula theatre, a traditional ornamental way of displaying flower in pots:

On our way outwards, this took my eye…

We headed off in the late afternoon for the Design Museum to see the Paul Smith exhibition.  This was fascinating, much more interesting than I thought it would be and said more about design and creativity than I imagined it would.  Hugely stimulating and a great visual treat.  There were two large walls facing each other, covered in images that inspire him, a mock up to what he has in his studio.

Two walls of exquisite menswear and women's wear.  With Paul Smith, the devil is the detail: tiny twists and turns to cuffs, buttonholes, linings and the highest quality fabrics throughout. 

Wonderful sculptural sleeve pleats in this women's military coat.

I also loved the subtly of the Shadow Lapel men's jacket- the shadows under the lapel and pocket flaps are actually very dark navy fabric- brilliant!

 A mock up of the working studio with textile samples and threads everywhere.

This method of creating stripes makes perfect sense.

What I came with most of all was from listening to the audio that was part of the exhibition.  Paul Smith described how he likes to travel, often spending only 24 hours in one place but going away with many sights and experiences.  He constantly takes photos of new colour combinations and recommends that to be creative we stick to what we like and not pay too much attention to what others are doing, even actively avoid looking.  This belief is very close to my heart.  Sadly, I find that Pinterest, although useful as a pinboard for specific tutorials and ideas, is also a sucker of originality and a rather bland similar aesthetic can result from the same pins recirculating and been reinterpreted and remade.  Its a difficult and potentially thorny topic, but I am sure you understand and maybe share my stance.

Thankyou to my lovely brother for his generous hosting as per usual x It was a great trip, packed into less than 48 hours.

Gabriola in Chambray

I love a maxi skirt.  They go in and out of fashion but they are a permanent fixture in my wardrobe.   I have more maxi skirts than any other style.  I hate wearing tights and stockings and I love the length and romanticism of a long skirt, it brings out my inner Edwardian and Prairie girl. I l bought the Garbiola pattern as soon as I could and I already had 3 metres of chambray.  I love chambray too, by the end of the summer, I think I will have a wardrobe of chambray.  When I like something I tend to hit the repeat button...

I went through some ups and downs with this skirt.  I found the fit a bit weird- the hips are very generous, especially the upper bit of the hip.  I am a small pear shape- my top half is usually 8-10 and bottom half 10-12 depending on the pattern company and this skirt felt like my waist was one size and hips another.  I did make a quick test of the yoke and came out at a size 6 for the hips however, the quilting cotton I used to practice with was a different beast than the drapier chambray and I ended up altering as I want along on the real version, cutting pattern pieces down and taking the side seams in again, and again, and again; especially over the hips.

The shaped front is flattering.  I may be slim but I have a curved belly rather than flat tummy and this skirt works with that and seems to flow and curve over the body.  I wanted the waistband to sit a little lower than my natural waistband as I find that more comfortable and more flattering so my waist area is a larger size than my hip and I have graded a little between the two.  I used flat fell seams on the diagonal yoke pieces and the panel seams as a feature, to add stability to the diagonals and to make a smooth skirt inside and out- no serger threads to run- I have very sensitive skin.  I posted a tutorial on Instagram for this ( I am @verykerryberry)  but I'll post here soon too.  Flat fell seams are usually found on men's shirts and on the side seams of jeans as they are strong and durable.  They are not hard, they just need careful top stitching, let's just say the seam ripper is kept busy getting these nice and neat.

I felt proud of all my seam alignment, the seam style would emphasis anything that was out of whack so I was extra careful to line up, even through my additional seam alterations, taking in and fitting stages.  The waistband was rather upright and gaped a bit so I ended up opening the waistband our and  making a small shaped dart on either side of the waistband to reduce the fabric at the top edge by approx ½" on each side.  It does still gape a bit and drafting a shaped waistband piece would probably be a better solution.

I ummed and ahhed over the back zip and in the end I chose a contrast white as I had one to hand and a small overlap on the waistband using a little of the orange and white fringed selvedge to trim the edge.  This tutorial with Janet Pray (you'll find it 17 mins 36 secs into the video) is a great zipper insert tutorial and the method I used.

You really get an idea of the quantity of fabric in this skirt.  With quite a hefty reduction on the length, I cut the Gabriola out of 3 metres of 60" wide fabric.  Because the panels are gently flared and the fabric is on the floaty side, the skirt flows as I walk and is a pleasure to wear. I am a strider and a fast walker and this skirt was made for that.

The next one will be so much easier as all the pattern pieces have been altered and tweaked and I have 3 metres of black chambray that would be perfect, even if a little similar to this!  I might use a light contrast thread for the next one.

Here are the stats:

• Sewaholic Gabriola pattern (Sewalong here)
• 3 metres 60" Robert Kaufman Chambray Union fabric
• Cut a mix of size 2 (hips), size 4 on side seams and size 6 at the waist so it would sit low
• Hem cut on size 0 and then reduced further by 3 ½".  I then took up a ¾" hem
• Woven cotton light interfacing strips on the back zip seams
• Waistband overlap closure with plastic poppers

March at Eternal Maker

My thoughts are turning to Spring and Summer so that is the theme for this month's trip to Eternal Maker.  This stack is for a Summer project that I will be working on soon and all these fabrics are from  Eternal Maker.

Top to bottom:

Lecien, pink solid yarn dyed,

Lecien, pale blue solid yarn dyed,

Lecien mint mini gingham,

Lecien yellow trellis, 

Cloud 9 Free as a Bird,

Joel Dewberry Woodgrain

The Lecien yarn dyed comes in a few colour ways and is a lovely quality.  An easy handle with all the irregularities in appearance of linen but the handle and stability of a quilting cotton.  Here are some further examples:

Lecien Yarn Dyed Pale pink tiny gingham

Lecien Yarn Dyed Denim stripe

Lecien are one of my favourite fabric manufacturers, great quality and lots of collections with a retro feel.  The Retro 30s child Smile prints in pink and green caught my eye and they have a definite Spring quality to them:

This is a lively pink floral  is also from the Retro Smile range:

And this green retro daisy from the same collection is gorgeous!

Flower Sugar is another popular Lecien collection which is always features florals.  This beauty is Roses on Pink and White Polka dots:

The same roses feature on a range of gingham style backgrounds.  This is the turquoise colour way but there is also red and pink.

For a more modern look towards spring/Summer, this sumptuous yellow shouts sunshine:

'Circling the Wagons' in Honey Bee from 'Glamping' by Mary Butters for Moda

Also with a splash of sunny yellow, 'Lamp post Bunnies' by Kate and Birdie for Moda

Cutesy blue sky from Sky by Caleb Grey for Robery Kaufman, (organic cotton)

And this is a lovely light modern floral meadow print, 'Grassy Meadow' from Birch fabrics

Enjoy!  

Sew alongs and Kickstarters

I mentioned recently that thoughts of Spring and better weather had put me in mind of garment sewing.  There are a few things going on with dressmaking around the blog world so here is what Ive seen.

I had already mentioned the Gabriola sew-along, mid way through at Sewaholic and remember these sew alongs are always there for you to dip into.  I am also planning to Slip Sew Along with Gertie as I was much taken with her new lingerie pattern for Butterick which comes in different cup sizes (hurray).  I bought my pattern here but there are other sellers on Etsy too.  Gertie is currently selling a kit which is priced just under £15 so under the Post Office £15 import limit and contains all the fabric and findings supplies to make at least a slip and knicks.  Check her shop as they do seem to move out of it rather fast.  Similar UK lingerie supplies can be found here and here.

The By Hand London girls are busy with a sew along for Flora dress coming up and also a Kickstarter plan for print on demand digital fabric printing.  Perfect for quilters, crafters, dressmakers- with a low minimum quantity of 1 metre, this could make fabric printing accessible to so many.  Watch this video for an explanation...

If you aren't familiar with Kickstarter, it is a funding platform  for new creative businesses.  It is a great way to launch a new idea, state the funding you need and what you need it for and you then have a limited time period to achieve it.  If you fail to make the target in the time period, no money is taken.  Businesses offers different amounts and rewards for pledging- for example, you can pledge just £10 and in addition to supporting the project you will receive a By Hand London Tote Bag, for £50 you get to print and have sent to you 2 metres of fabric from their fabric gallery before the project goes live.  Each pledge has a delivery date so you know when this will happen.  Kickstarter is an amazing organisation.  For the cost of a coffee and a cake you can help a fledgling business get its new idea off the ground.  You can support local or international and your donation does not have to be big.   By Hand London have proved themselves to be pretty industrious in a short time- with seven sewing patterns and an app developed in a relatively short space of time, they could be just the right people to change the world of online, on demand fabric printing in the UK! 

And finally, Sewessential has Simplicity patterns at half price or less for a limited time, a great time to stock up:

I bought some that I'd had my eye on for as little as £2.80 ( 1606 and 1755) .  Some of my past favourites, Cynthia Rowley 2215 for example are available and I have had all the patterns in the picture on my pattern radar for some time.  Bargain.   Have a lovely weekend xxx

Carme Blouse

As the seasons change and I can think of a time when I won't be wearing a cashmere cardigan and boots, my creative activities always turn to dress making.  I am a sucker for anything with a yoke- skirts, trousers, shirts so when I saw this pattern had just been released by Pauline Alice- a PDF print out pattern at only 8 Euro, I bought it straightaway- the perfect fit for this Little Folks voile on sale at Patch Fabrics.

The style reminded me strongly of the Tova but with a few style and fit differences.  There are bust darts which I am guessing are cut for a B cup as I found the fit was only slightly generous ( I am an A).  If you are larger than a B cup, a full bust adjustment would probably be a good idea.  The front yoke bib panel is rounded rather than square and also has an easy pin tuck option- you would sew pin tucks in a rectangle of fabric and then cut the bib section from this.  The sleeve and cuff is slightly more complex on the Carme and includes a sleeve vent.

The yoke is attached to the body using a really straightforward technique- I know this was a tricky area for many Tova sew-along sewers!

I cut the bib section on the bias to make the most of the grid pattern and interlined this with some lightweight cotton.  I also lowered the collar a little and also lowered the placket opening- around an inch.

 Sleeve vents are a little fiddly especially with slippy voile but I did find a little Sewline glue helped hold fabric in places too small for pins.

The shaped hem is a nice touch- it dips front and back.

Stats:

• I made size 36 and took in the waist a little more on the side seams
• French seams throughout and triple stitch zig zag to neaten armhole seams
• I shortened the length by 1 ½" on the lengthen/shorten line on the front and back main sections.  I have adjusted this for next time so it will be shortened by ¾"
• I will lengthen the sleeves on the next one by ¾" so they fall a little lower at the wrist.
• I lowered the collar and placket by just under 1"- I will make this a little lower next time- the collar needs to be redrafted for this one
• I didn't make the sleeve tabs- not something I generally use
• I only made 3 buttonholes as I never wear this style buttoned up, I like it to fall open
• I used a walking foot and a Microtex 70 needle for the voile
• I used under 1.5m of 1.5m wide fabric for size 36 I cut although I used less fabric for the bib because I omitted the tucks.

I really enjoyed this pattern and after measuring the pattern pieces and comparing them with favourites like the Tova, I was confident enough to make it without a test version.  Pauline is running a Carme Sewalong on her website and each stage has its own youtube video which is so helpful if you felt tempted to make one too. Blouses (don't like that word) or shirts (prefer that word) like this are a wardrobe staple for me so I am already thinking ahead to the next couple of these.  Pauline Alice is a relatively new pattern designer but she already has four different styles available.  The Cami dress is next on my list as I prefer a fitted style and this looks really cute, at the moment though, there is a queue of patterns and dressmaking so it may have to wait…two quilts are calling, a pillow project and a bit of planning for future idea await.