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Tropical leaves aka vintage pattern adventures
I love vintage patterns that have a bit different cuts than can be seen in the modern sewing patterns. However, the images don’t always tell how the final dress actually looks on me so there is some trial and error included. Simplicity 1587 has an interesting bodice and I thought it might work for me. I found this nice rayon with leaf print and got to sewing. The bodice pleating was a pain to do. I did have to rip the pleats away a few times and fit the yoke to the lower part at least twice before the bodice sat right without the fabric pulling into weird directions. Luckily…
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Princess birthday
I can’t believe my girl is already 7 years old! We went shopping last week to buy her pretty shoes for the birthday party and she found a glittery pair of shoes with little heels. Of course she wanted a dress to match the shoes and I got the task of sewing her a dress. I’ve had this very light linen in my stash for years and it was perfect for the dress. I used the pattern from the tried and tested Olabelhe Miranda although this time I decided it was due time to go up a size. The linen was so thin that it required a pink lining…
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Gertie dress with some sisu
Gertie designed a nice 40s inspired dress for Butterick (B6380) and I wanted to try it since I had a bit similar genuine vintage dress that was lovely but the fabric of which was not very good quality. The floral viscose crepe had been sitting in my stash for a long time waiting for a good project. Since I was a bit unsure of the fit I decided to use this cheap fabric. All in all the fabric fas a nightmare to sew with. The crepe shifted and stretched in weird directions and the seams looked quite wonky. Luckily some heavy work with iron straightened the most of the wonkiness.…
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Scottish wool for my mother
A year ago I visited Edinburgh and bought some 100 % Scottish wool for my mother. She hasn’t dared to sew anything of it being too afraid of ruining the lovely fabric. On my winter break I decided to offer my help. I had selected some patterns from McCall’s sales and after some consideration decided on McCall’s 7241. We were a bit concerned whether the pleated hem would look good on an older woman than the one in the envelope picture but took a risk knowing that the pleats could come off easily. There was some 2 metres of the fabric but after some serious pattern tetris I managed to…
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Retro Butterick B5813
Sun is shining and it feels like spring, today. So finally there was enough light for me to take pictures of my winter makes. The first item that I will post is Retro Butterick pattern B5813. This pattern was amazing! I made the version C with the large flared skirt and a belt. According to my measurements, I would be size 12 but after checking the actual size of the garment (which was thankfully written on the pattern sheet) I made size 10 which fitted me perfectly. My fabric was lightweight viscose with tiny red and white flowers on dark blue background. Unfortunately the pattern of the dress required some really…
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Ghostly tee and a dress
S has been asking me to sew a blue dress for her. She even drew me a picture and luckily Ottobre 4/2012 Black Denim -dress fit the description perfectly. I found some blue stretch denim that worked well for the pattern. I forgot the vertical front seam in the pattern but it did not matter. Besides, I made the dress slightly longer for S to wear it with tights. Under the dress, S wears Ottobre 1/2015 Toucan t-shirt. I made it using some remnant white viscose jersey with Pacman ghost pattern. The gatherings at the both sleeves and a curved hem add a nice detail to this basic top. I…
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Last days of summer with Liisa
Linen is the perfect material for hot summer days. Here in Finland the summer is quickly turning into fall and it’s hard to imagine that these pictures were taken only a couple of weeks ago. The Pattern is Lizzy dress (which I conveniently renamed “Liisa”) is from the British Simply Sewing magazine, issue eighteen. I was actually a bit disappointed since of the three patterns the magazine cover promised I only got one. Apparently the other two were only available within UK. This, however, was stated in tiny letters in a vertical footnote in the inner pages and impossible to read through the plastic cover. I did complain and was offered a…
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Summer dress in vintage style
I am sorry, I’ve been absent from my blog. I have been too busy sewing, crafting and repairing stuff that I’ve had no time for my poor blog. However, today I got so great pictures from my most recent creation that I couldn’t wait to post them! So here is my new dress. The vintage style pattern is from Finnish magazine Suuri Käsityö (4/2013). The dress has a nice 1940s style with a shawl collar and a side zipper. The fabric is probably 100 % viscose, if my fingers are correct. I found it in the fabric remnants section of the local fabric store, so it did not have any labels.…
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Autumn dresses and playwear
S needed comfortable playwear for her kindergarten. She has been missing a dress with many pockets that she grew out of and I decided to make her something similar. I used a pattern Elina dress from Mekkotehdas by Kirsi Etula and Sunna Valkeapää-Ikola and drew a pattern for a pocket and used different scraps of fabric to make cute set of mismatched patch pockets. S also got a pink Perri pullover from Cali Faye collection. The pullover (or a tunic) is still pretty large but luckily S will grow into it. Finally I added three set of leggings from different kinds of cotton jersey and strechy terry to her cupboard for her…
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Somber occasion dresses
I did not make any blog posts in late July and August. Our family was struck by a tragedy when my father-in-law and S and K’s grandfather died suddenly. After the initial shock and while dealing with many things that are necessary when a close relative passes away, I found that sewing brought some much needed normalcy in my life. I was not in a mood for anything bright, so instead I made funeral dresses for me and S. S got a cotton sateen dress that was a modified Olabelhe Miranda. I made the back bodice higher and added a concealed zipper. During the funeral a white blouse was worn…
