I've been sewing for myself!

It is that time of year when client shirt orders have been stitched and sent...and I have time to indulge by sewing some new things for myself.  After a significant weight loss over the past several months, I still have some pattern-tweaking to do, but I am so happy that I've managed to sew several very wearable casual tops for myself, including this one!

Most are quite simple and not "blog-worthy", but I thought you might like to see this one. I started with a basic jewel neck pull-over, and added a self-drafted "Split Cowl Collar".  The fabric is an ancient piece from my stash...a soft stretchy knit with a suede-like nap.  I am not quite down to my normal (goal) weight, so the drag-lines you see come from my attempts to make a larger top look a little better on a smaller form.

Here is a close-up of the Collar. If you would like me to write a Tutorial and show how to make and apply a Split Cowl Collar to any basic pull-over knit top, let me know in "comments"...because I plan to make at least one more of this style and can take photos along the way if there is enough interest.

She claims to be a Tailor?

 ...and Yes, really and truly I am :)   While it's true that the focus of my apprenticeship was Shirt-Making, I was instructed quite intensively in both Classic and "Simple" tailoring.

Although my lifestyle now is quite casual, there are times that I take a break from Shirt-making for my clients to draft, tailor, and sew jackets and coats for myself.

Here is an example of  the kind of "casual" tailoring I do for myself these days. I made this coat a few weeks ago, from lovely cashmere coating that a Tailor friend sent to me. I drafted the pattern myself...a simple wrap style with side panels, and slightly dropped sleeves.  Please pardon the quality of the photo. I just snatched the coat straight out of out of the closet, put it on my form, and snapped the pic. A little steaming to smooth the nap near the hem would have a good idea, but...oh well, next time :)

The fabric was completely underlined with Pro-Weft Supreme Medium (exclusive to Fashion Sewing Supply), with 2 layers of it used in the turn-back collar/revers areas, all facings, and the back vent.  It gives the perfect amount of support without affecting the luscious fluidity of the cashmere.  Of course, the coat is fully lined.

Next up in my tailoring plans is a notched-collar blazer jacket, made with this lovely wool tweed and a pattern I drafted myself. 

 Or maybe I'll make it from another wool fabric I have made "ready for the needle" by using my *Dryer Pre-treament Method*. Here's the link in case you missed the tutorial when I first posted it way back in 2009 ;)

I often change my mind about the fabric  right before the scissors snip the cloth. But at least I am committed to the pattern!
The muslin has been stitched and fitted and I am very happy with the draft.  

Hopefully I will be able to sneak away from all the action going on at my online store, Fashion Sewing Supply, and at least get the jacket cut-out and interfaced!  And I'll try to remember to snap some photos along the way, so you can see my progress.

Tutorial--The "Knotted" Cowl (with added Instructions)

A funny thing happened on the way to making my newest "hide the neck scars" Cowl tunic....I scooped the neckline way too low!  Uh-oh!  I had to think of a way to "fill it up" with the collar, because I didn't have enough fabric to cut another front. In fact, by the time I discovered that the neckline was too low, almost the entire garment was sewn...sigh :( 
Luckily,  I remembered a cowl variation that I used to teach years ago, when my family owned a fabric store...The "Knotted" Cowl.

Here is a close-up of the collar--

What looks like a "knot" at Center Front is actually a manipulated pleat, and here is how it's done....

(click on any photo to enlarge it)

From the wrong side of the garment, I located the CF of the cowl collar by folding the tunic in half. Then as shown below, I stitched a 2-inch deep pleat from the top edge of the collar (through all thicknesses) , stopping about 2" from the neckline seam. Leaving that last 2" of the pleat unsewn will mean something later on in the process--

Next, I made a quick trip to my ironing surface and gently pressed the pleat flat...yes, making a simple box pleat :)  And that is just about all there is to it!  

Except for some very simple folding. Below is the tunic on my form, right sides out (photo lightened for clarity). 

The Cowl Collar has been folded down one time, all the way around. You can clearly see the box pleat that was made. The pin that you see is only there so I could photograph this first fold....  

...because, without the pin holding the first fold of the collar up, the weight of the pleat almost "automagically" makes the Cowl Collar fold itself again at CF...giving the illusion of a "knot" as shown below--

Now, with just a little bit of tucking-under of the CF  into the "dimple" (made when the bottom part of the pleat was left unsewn), there it is...a "knot" that's not a knot !

What follow is a series of photos to make the folding/tucking part of this design more clear--    All of the photos below can be Clicked to enlarge them.

First of all, remember that the pin is ONLY here to hold up the first fold-down of the cowl collar, so that I can show what comes next...it has NO other purpose.  When you make yours, you will not need that pin at all...it serves No construction purpose...I ONLY needed to put it there to show you what comes next.

OK...the red circle in the photo above shows the "Hollow"  or "Deep Dimple-like Hole"  that was made by leaving the last 2" of the pleat NOT sewn (as demonstrated  in the series of photos of the original tutorial).  When you look closely at the photo above, you can "little fold edges" that show where the "Hollow/Dimple/Hole" is located.


 Now....to form the "False Knot", One Last Fold or it could be called a "Tuck and Roll-Under" needs to be made.... --click photo below to enlarge--   (Notice that the pin is NOT there now).

As shown ABOVE by my crudely drawn arrows (sorry..best I could do).....So, as shown by those arrows, the LAST steps are to TURN and ROLL the edge of the collar UNDER ITSELF all the way arround, and THEN use the "DIMPLE/HOLLOW/HOLE" to hold the "Roll" in place, by "tucking-in/pushing" it  INTO that 2-inch  "DIMPLE/HOLLOW/HOLE" (shown above by the 2 double curved arrows at the center front).   
After the collar is "folded/tuck-rolled" under itself, and pushed into that "hole" at CF shown by the double curved arrows....it will look like this--

You can play with and arrange the folds of the collar that surround the Rolled-Under "Pleat That Now Looks Like a Knot" that has been tucked into the CF "Hole/Hollow/Dimple"...anyway you want to.   Just make sure that the (pleated) Center Front of the COLLAR has been ROLLED UNDER ITSELF and Tucked-into the CF "hollow-dimple"


I hope that helps those who did not understand my first set of Tutorial instructions...I cannot think of any other ways to make this more clear than these extra instructions.   Thanks so much for visiting my Blog.



SEWING NOTES--  Fabric is a poly/lycra knit from Gorgeous Fabrics (purchased quite a while ago). Shoulder Seams and Hems are stabilized with poly/lycra Pro-Tricot Fusible Interfacing from Fashion Sewing Supply.

Sewing for ME! ...and a simple Pattern "Up-Sizing" Method.

I already told you about the dreadful state of my wardrobe...it feels so good to be doing something about it!   Last week I made a few pairs of new pants, and this morning I finished this draped cowl Tunic...shown here with a "vintage" necklace that totally hides one of my neck scars :) 

The pattern I used for this top is my absolute favorite cowl pattern, Ottobre Design (Woman) issue 02/09, #5. However,  I have "up-sized" since I last made one of these, so I needed to "up-size" the pattern.  I didn't need to change much in the back, but I needed to add more room in the front. So, since this is a simple pattern for knit fabrics with a cut-on facing...my options for accomplishing this could be much less 'textbook' than if I was making changes to a pattern designed for woven fabrics.

So, here is what I did..to the Front of the tunic only--

I just moved the Center Front about 1" away from the fold of the fabric, and cut straight across at the top edge, and at the hem edge.  That's it!  

Now I had a front garment piece that gave me the 2" of extra room I needed for the "extra" that exists on my front at the moment ;)   Adding that extra width also made the cowl a little deeper...a side-effect I happen to like. 

Doing a "quickie" pattern alteration  like this worked for me because this is a simple knit silhouette.  Standard pattern alteration methods are best when you need to Up-Size a more complicated style, especially when designed for woven fabrics.

SEWING NOTES-- Fabrics shown were purchased at www.GorgeousFabrics.com  Ottobre Patterns can be found at www.OttobreDesign.com

Empty Closet = Sewing New Tops

Prompted by the fact that I have almost nothing "nice" to wear this season, I managed to get some sewing done this week. Since I can only stand for limited amounts of time because of my injury, tracing new patterns is not an option for me for a while. So I used 2 of my tried and true patterns, HotPatterns Weekender Sunshine Top, and HotPatterns Metropolitan GoodTimes Top.
The gray Weekender Sunshine Top, shown above, is made from a luscious wool/cashmere blend sweater knit. I made the neckband a little wider and lengthened the short sleeves to full length. I am thrilled with the way it turned out..it feels so luxurious! If you have this pattern, do try it with long sleeves for the fall/winter. If you don't have this pattern, it's really worth a try. It's so flattering..makes your waist look tiny and that's always a good thing!   I made this style several times last spring, and wrote a step-by-step tutorial about how to sew it. It can be found HERE.

Earlier in the week, I made 2 versions of the Metropolitan GoodTimes Top. The olive green version is made from a wool/cashmere blend sweater knit. The blue print version is made from cotton/lycra jersey, and features shirred sleeves.  I am so happy to have some nice new tops...now I just have to muster up enough energy to sew a few more tops, some slacks, and I'll be all set for this season...maybe :)  

Sewing Notes: The band and yokes on all the tops are interfaced with Pro-Sheer Elegance Fusible Interfacing. The Sweater Knit yardage has been in my 'stash' for a long time, it was from 

Baer Fabrics, now out of business. 

The Cotton/Lycra Jersey is from Fabric.com.

The Waterfall Cowl Revisited...Changing the Pleat Position.

Here is another interpretation of Ottobre Woman Issue 2/2009, #5 ...the "Waterfall Blouse"

I always change the front shoulder gathers into a pleat when I make this style. On this newest top, I positioned the pleat near the shoulder point with the fold toward the shoulder seam. Orienting the pleat in this way results in a rounded drape...which I think suits the print of the fabric.




When I place the pleat near the neck edge , the drape folds form more of a V shape, as shown to the left (and in more detail further down the main page of the blog).


Both of these tops are welcome additions to my fall wardrobe.

Working with Diagonal Prints...The "Waterfall" Drape Cowl Top

I made this top for myself last night, and I am very pleased with the way it turned out!   It is the "Waterfall" top from Ottobre Woman, 2/2009 Style #5.  Fabric is Poly/Lycra Jersey purchased several months ago from Gorgeous Fabrics.  You can see that the print is diagonal, but after draping it on my dress form, I knew it would work well for this style.

However, a little diagonal print goes a long way. So after some thought I decided to cut the front and back on the straight grain, utilizing the diagonal "stripes" for the main body pieces.  That left the sleeves. Cutting the sleeves on the straight grain would have made for a dizzying garment...all those diagonal "stripes"...oy!  So, I cut the sleeves on the bias. That changed the orientation of the print...the "stripes" now straight, not angled. This gives the garment balance....I won't look as if I am leaning to one side, LOL!

Of course, me being me,  I couldn't just sew this pattern as directed.  The instructions have you gather the front shoulder to meet the back shoulder.  In my experience, this tends to make the front shoulder look "puffy" after it is sewn. So instead of gathers, I formed a pleat in the front shoulder seam, placing it close to the neck edge...as you can see in the photo, below.

The way you orient this pleat affects the way the cowl will drape. Placing it close to the neck edge with the pleat folded towards the neck, encourages the cowl to drape into a soft "V".   Placing the pleat in the center of the seam and folding it towards the shoulder will encourage the cowl to drape in a more rounded shape.

So, don't be afraid of diagonal prints!  Changing the grain layout can produce a stylish and flattering garment.