Cycling bloomers
I found this free pattern for cycling bloomers by Bikes & Bloomers and decided to give it a try.
Drafting and sewing a sports outfit
I designed this sports outfit for my 7-year-old daughter who is into circus and break dancing. My daughter chose the pink fabric with the flame pattern and I added some black jersey to make the outfit less restless. I am super happy with this unique outfit that I drafted from the scratch!
From wide trousers to narrow stretch ones – pattern modification
Now that I have the trouser sloper I will turn it into a narrow pair of stretch cotton trousers. I show how to modify the width and how to remove the extra fullness of fabric at the back of the thighs.
The quest for the well-fitting trousers – what I have learned
Sewing trousers isn't really hard, getting a trouser pattern that fits is more difficult. I will show you how to create a sloper just for you by replicating and old pair of trousers and adjusting the fit.
Finally a pair of trousers that fits!
This black pair is the first actual pair of trousers that I am happy with. I started from an old pair of wide linen trousers that fitted me quite well and I traced the pattern from them. I made a toile and after some small adjustments I got a good fit. To get to know this pattern I decided to make a very simple pair with no waistband and a side zipper.
The quest for the Ultimate pants (part 1)
I vividly remember the first pair of trousers I made. They were shorts we had to sew at school and made of horrendous bright blue patterned quilting cotton. We had to use pattern that was too big for at least for me (I was about 12 years old and super skinny) and the teacher never suggested doing any fitting. A few years later I tried again and made a pair of sporty cargo pants. I chose the smallest size and ended up handing the finished pair to my mom since they were way too big. If the jeans I posted before don’t count I don’t have many good experiences with sewing trousers.…
Stretch cotton fabric from Tallinn and what became of it (part 1)
S wanted me to buy her some white and pink stretch cotton fabric when we visited Tallinn last spring. The fabric did not at first speak to me at all and it remained in my stash until S needed some trousers. When I saw Mini Sun trousers in Ottobre Design 1/2016 I knew that I had just the fabric. I loved this pattern. I like how the trousers have stretchy waist and the pleats but still have a slim silhouette. I did not change a thing and the trousers fit S like a glove. I had so much fun pattern matching! I don’t know why but it always gives me…
Red and black sport outfit
It’s been a while since I made something for my son. Yesterday K mentioned needing some nice shorts for his PE class. I immediately saw my chance and dug up all my stretchy fabrics for him to choose the best fabrics and colours. Ottobre 3/2010 had nice patterns for both Marley shorts and Riff t-shirt. I liked the little dash of colour at the pocket edges and the length of the shorts that would protect my son’s knees. The original t-shirt pattern had a cool guitar applique design but I wanted just a basic pattern with nothing extra. I had about the same amount of red and black jersey, so…
I made jeans!
Making my own jeans has been in my plans for a long while. There is always the terrible moment when you realize you have to get a new pair of jeans and go to the store only finding out that nothing fits well. I decided to try the custom-fit sewing pattern I found on Bootstrapfashion.com. I logged in my measurements and got a print-at-home pattern. The first pattern had a bug in it and the pattern was huge. Luckily the guys at Bootstrapfashion quicly fixed the issue and sent me a replacement. There was also a small mistake on my part which made the inseam length too small, but that was…
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…
