Pattern Review Simplicity 2508 and More Pics

More photos of the coat with me in it this time. There are some things I would have done better but not enough to make me not wear it.  I wore it once and thought the buttons needed to be repositioned but turns out, they are ok.

cut my head off a lot - need to adjust tripod- sorry

And no shoulders, oops

I did a pattern review here.   Moving on to next project.  One more dress for winter.

Pencil Skirt- Burda 8155- Pattern Review

So, I've finally figured out how to take photos of me in my creations.  I do think they look more realistic on me instead of skinny little faker size 10 (really 4) dress form.

The pattern is not centered on the front of my body in this photo- ok all the following

Side seam

I had fun wearing this all day at work.  I felt great in it and let's face it, isn't that what it's all about?  Making great clothes that no one else has that make you feel awesome.

Of course I work at an apparel company so people notice things more than maybe at other places.  One of my co workers was walking behind me and said "I can't stop looking at your butt- that pattern is memorizing!"  And then she wanted to touch it.

Back View

You know I strut around working just dying for someone to ask me where I got my skirt so I can say- I made it!  Yeah, I'm that girl.  Ok, see my review at Pattern Review DOT com.

Have a good weekend.  I'm off to yoga- as you can see from this back shot, I need it!

Little Black Dress- Guy Laroche V2899

I've been completely absorbed in my new job.  So much so that I cannot sleep at night and I'm exhausted when I get home.   But, I've just completed week three and am calming down and settling in.  I made it to the gym a few times and even the company gym (BONUS!!!).  Getting into a routine is so helpful.

After my last day of my old job I went nuts at the fabric store locally and bought fabric for dresses that I can wear to work.  I wanted to step it up for my new job. With 5 people reporting to me the ripped jeans and sloppy sweaters with UGGs just doesn't instill confidence in leadership.

But before I made work dresses I needed to bang out a dress for my brother-in-law's wedding.  I purchased this pattern at the last pattern sale and then wasn't sure it wouldn't be too over the top for a wedding.  Then Erica B's pattern review popped up and it was settled.  I can do this- no prob!

I purchased black matte jersey from the Mill End Store.  I looked through the matte jersey and the only non weird color is black.  I remembered a time in 90's when matte jersey was very prevalent but had forgotten the huge benefit- you can ball it up and throw it in the corner, then pick it up, put it on and it's like you just bought it- Perfect.

This pattern is beautifully drafted and not very challenging to sew.  Erica's pattern review is perfectly correct (and thorough)- it's easy but not fast.  There are many parts that need to be hand basted or finished and there's a bunch of gathering and it all takes a lot of time. But really for such a stunning dress it went together well.  My pattern review is here.

There is one thing about matte jersey and that is that the front and back look the same.  So, if you get the pieces turned around you might get in trouble.  I did this one time while sewing the little side gathered panels.  I attached the gathered part to the wrong side of one of the panels and so I ended up with two left sides.  So I had to take out the basting but it wasn't a tragic error or difficult to redo.  There are a lot of pieces and the whole thing is self lined and the cool thing about the matte jersey double layer stretchiness is that it acts like a total body girdle. yay- who doesn't love that?

I love the lines of the dress and the longer length.  There is something kind of demure but sexy about a slim skirt that goes over the knees.  Kinda keeping the imagination alive I guess.

Here's me in the dress at the reception with my two handsome escorts: Henry 4, Gray 6.

I did feel a bit like I needed to pull the whole thing down all night.  You can see it's riding up under my arms.  I think it's a tad snug and so slipped up.  My undergarments for a backless bra situation need to be revised as they contributed to the situation.  I have a too big merry-widow thing that is long and has a foamy layer that didn't do me favors in the stomach.  Made it look like I might be concealing a baby bulge.  I'd happily flaunt a baby bulge but, alas, do not have one.  Note to self- buy new undergarment situation.

Vogue 8645: Failure of Figure Not Pattern

I like to see the things that don't work out that other people sew, it makes me feel like I'm not lame when my stuff doesn't turn out.  I think the projects that are the most successful have thoughtful fabric choices, creative well edited trims and carefully planned out patterns and construction.

But the one thing that trumps all that is when the style is not flattering on you.  Sometimes I look at the pattern envelope and think- "oh that's darling!"  Never mind that it is drawn on an elongated stylized fashion figure that doesn't exist in nature (sort of like Barbie).  And certainly it's not what my figure looks like.   Thus, we come to my very first project back in the saddle.  The one I've been hiding in a drawer and thinking about cutting apart for muslin usage. I didn't even press it for the photos. 

I made the garment out of a beautiful yarn dyed cotton lawn from The Mill End Store. I chose the pattern size based on my measurements: 16 (ACK!  All that working out and weight loss to go from a rtw 12 to a 6, shattered.) Not knowing or remembering that there is 75 miles of ease in all their patterns, and not having discovered the helpful Pattern Review website that could have helped me make a better choice in size, I proceeded with the 16.


I added a white batiste lining to this garment as the fabric was pretty sheer. I also carefully chevroned all the seams of the skirt and bodice, meticulously matching the stripes.   I even turned down a few dates with the then BF to finish my project and I was so excited to put it on and then when I did, it made me look like a puffy mess.  Perhaps gobs of fabric gathered at my waist and over my bosoms could be the problem.  I know for a fact I look terrible in things that gather over the chest- duh!  

Can you say perfect matching?  Gosh I'm good.  Maybe not on the sash- don't look at that.

Was this why I put the sewing machine away?  Well, besides that my friends all wanted me to peg their jeans for them (for free at a moment's notice on Friday night) in college, or was it that total disappointment that I chose the wrong style?   I used to struggle with the whole "how will the style look on me if I can't try it on till it's done?" problem.   But, don't I know myself by now?  Sheesh.

The garment looks exactly like what was on the envelope, and would have probably looked "darling" on me had it been the right size.  It was easy to construct and the instructions were great to follow.  I would recommend this to anyone, but would say make sure you know what your true size is.  Pattern review can be found here when I get to writing it.

I'll admit I have not been sewing lately but I started a new project for some cute kids birthdays.  More on that later.  I'm also drafting a dress for my sister for her birthday- based on a child's dress, should be interesting.  I flocked (by myself) to the JoAnne's Vogue pattern sale this weekend to pick up a few items to sew for fall.  And really, I think the def. of a few is three and I bought more than three + all the poly fill in the place. 

I need to start getting some things sewn for fall as it has hit just lst Tuesday in the form of a rainy day and instantly leaves are changing colors.  Guess the flip flops are finished.  My assistant says it's not cool to wear them with my down shell (that's what I wore to the office on Tuesday).  She's wrong, I'm sure of it.

Maiden Voyage- Burda pattern 7493 view B

My first Burda!  From the 2010 collection:

I have not made anything from the magazine yet, but that's next. Have tracing paper, will trace. Stay tuned.

Fabric is 100% cotton Ikat woven stripe. Ikat is super hot right now. Mine is very light shirting weight, so I lined it with a 100% cotton lawn in olive color. Both fabrics purchased from the wonderful Josephine's Dry Goods in Portland, OR.

Since this was my first time making a Burda pattern, and the first fitted woven in many moons, I made a muslin.  Also, there was no pattern review yet for this style so I didn't want to risk it. Now there is!

Made the muslin out of, what else?  Muslin. Then put it on the dress form and marked the pieces with their pattern piece numbers. I wanted the side panel pieces to be on the bias, and then the side seams to chevron.  See below the interesting intersection of side seam and armband under arm. Next, I drew the direction of the grain that I wanted on each piece to guide me and marked the tissue pieces, so when I cut the fashion fabric I wouldn't get confused.  I also drew a sketch before hand- several actually.


I constructed the front and back bodice and skirt and then connected them at the waist, as the instructions. Then I also constructed all the same pieces out of the lining material, sewing them right sides together with the body fabric at the armhole and then turning the lining to the inside creating a clean finished armhole. This way I eliminated the facing (hate facings). 

The rest of the garment I made as per the instructions.  After getting hooked on reading all the blogs I was reminded by the lovely Amanda, that seam binding makes the a garment look finished and polished. She has some fantastic tutorials, and finishes everything beautifully.   My mother used to say "a garment should look as beautiful on the inside as it does on the outside."   Advice that I summarily ignored till I was in school and I was graded on it. Also, I realized that this fabric will probably fray a bit with washing as my other ikat project did when I pre-washed and lost about 1" to fraying.  So I used bias tape on the seam where I applied the zipper.

I finished the hem using 2" wide poly lace.  I didn't mean to get such a wide lace and then when I sewed it in it looked super cute, but itched the back of my legs like crazy when I sat down. So I need to take it out and do somethings else.

The fit of this garment was great in the chest and neck and bust. The mid bodice waist needed a little more fitting/shaping so it wasn't a "shapeless"shift.   I didn't go back in and adjust those seams as I didn't want to change the shape of the side bodice and skirt pieces. After seeing pics of me in it, I wish I did, but I've other Burda to conquer.

I know that with some drafting I could have adjusted the center and created more shape but ultimately I was looking for kind of a shift.  Also, it pulled a little at the hips in the muslin, so I sewed the side and cb seams with 1/2" seam allowance i/o 5/8".  I also shortened the skirt 5" so it was just above the knee.  This is a great kicking around doing errands when it's 80 degrees, or meeting friends for lunch dress.

The other advice I have on this garment is that finishing the neck band so that it's even is not easy. Mine looks a little wonky on one side but I think I might be the only one that can tell.  I would probably use a template constructed out of heavy paper to press it so that it's even all the way around. 

Edit... added photo 

Here it is: a photo of me in the dress.  I won't wear those shoes now that I see them.

Cute Naughty Librarian outfit

This turned out SOOOOOO cute! Who knew that a dress that hits mid calf would be so hot? Sometimes less is more, ya know? I would totally wear this on a coffee date or to work. The little dress month continues and the weather is starting to cooperate with my desire to bike to work in a dress.

Vogue 2019 View B:






See my pattern review of this style at Pattern Review

When I started sewing again I was interested in knits. Since, in my career I'm a knit expert, I know they are forgiving and easy to wear, but not having a serger anymore (gave to Goodwill- stupid, stupid, stupid). I went a lookin' in the blog world for help with the best way to sew knits.

Here is a little of what I found: Laura's Sewing room
She seems to be on hiatus right now (pesky kid growing inside pushes mommy far away from machine...... and blog) but I read through all her posts and she has great links to great sewing tips. I found the link the a Burda workshop on Jersey however if you follow the link now it doesn't lead anywhere.

Only a week or so after I found Burda World of Fashion did it dissolve into what it is now for the English speaking world. I was so confused! I couldn't figure out where I was looking before when I found stuff and then I started reading the rants and I understood. I found similar info on the Sewstylish Copy your Favorite Tee article.



Stay tuned for that project. Page three shows the teeny tiny zig zag used. That's my main tip, to sew with a tiny tiny zig zag. I set my machine (Brother Inno-vis 80) to 2.5.

I wore this to the office with a J. Crew cable knit cardigan in dark pink and dark pink Banana Republic croc pumps and all I have to say is.............hot! I loved it. It's comfy and pretty and looks great with a sweater over it or alone, with pumps or flip flops. I was kinda kidding about the naughty librarian thing, but not totally.

Eventually, I might add some pics of me in these garments as my dress form isn't rocking it like I do. She's too "skinny" if you know what I mean. And without shoulders it's not the same for this sweet dress.

Ciao bella

To China with much love, b rgds

I'm back from a week in China. M y trip was good work wise. I wore this dress on the plane:
Vogue 1027 made in bamboo viscose (essentially that's rayon) and spandex.

See pattern review here . It's wearable, comfortable and packable. My only concern was the twirliness. As I entered the tiny sky high airplane bathroom, I had to make sure it didn't swish itself into the commode and bring back with it germs and ickiness.


I love this dress.

Meanwhile, I know you didn't ask, but, here are my thoughts on traveling for business. Disclaimer: I'm a grouchy, jaded traveler so take it with grain of salt.

Once upon a time when I was in my twenties and had a bunch of roommates and no pets, I begged to be sent anywhere in the country/world. As my career progressed, I did go everywhere in the country and the world, often. At least twice a year to New York and Hong Kong. The rest of the year was sprinkled with trips to one or more of the following: Peru, China, Singapore, Korea, Egypt, India, South Africa, and most of the countries in Central America at least once. I've seen many awesome things, including the biggest metal Buddha in the world and the Buddist monastery (located on Lantaou Island near Hong Kong airport.)
This is a photo that I took a few years ago. Follow above links for many more.
I love/d traveling for work for many years. Traveling allows you to see wonders in the world, eat great food/suffer bad food, meet fantastic people and generally expand your understanding of the planet. However, as the mystique fades the reality is that you are not home. WARNING: Log out here if you do not want to read my bitter burned out traveler comments.

The part that is tough about traveling is that when the work day is over, sometimes at a reasonable time and sometimes not, it's not really over. That is the time that the host whisks you off to dinner and sometimes drinking and karaoke/ktv for hours late into the night. Sometimes great food, sometimes not so great, sometimes fun, sometimes not.

So your day isn't over till you get taken back to the hotel at 10pm or sometimes WAY later. Which is good or you would go to bed early and create jet lag CHAOS. However, it makes for a long tiring day with no time to unwind and decompress and not be "on". And if you throw a hangover in there, well you can guess how fun the next day will be.

Hotel living, kids, is not my favorite. On this trip we changed cities each day so we left the office, went to the airport or train, arrived in next city/hotel went to bed and woke up the next morning, checked out, went to work, same thing. Packing and unpacking, especially toiletries, can be disastrous, if you don't put everything in the same place each time you end up searching, which isn't easy after several cocktails (enough to sing Greese Lightning at the top of your lungs) and getting home late. AND finding all the light switches to go to bed- my most hated activity.

On arrival all the lights are on and, inevitably there are what seems like 100 lights: entry way, bathroom, desk, closet, minibar, bedside, overhead, corner, nightlight, etc. All with separate switches and sometimes if you turn off most and then find a weird switch, it turns half of them back on and you don't notice till you are the rest of the way through and you can't go back and figure out which one it was. DAMIT! This is a curse, UNLESS, dear readers, you get the blessed MAIN SWITCH by the bed that will shut off all of them at once. My favorite! Thank you whoever invented that!

The oddest thing on this trip this time was: the gym factor. Now, I like to exercise in the morning usually, but will do ig anytime I can due to schedule. It makes you feel better when you are living a weird schedule and eating strange foods and battling jet lag. Granted, most hotels do not have 'nice' gyms but they will at least have a working treadmill which is all I need for a short run to energize me and keep me on track.

The first hotel I was in was familiar and the gym was open early and late. I had a short run before bed- yay!. Second hotel the gym was open at 6am but no AC was on. It was about 75 degrees with about 95% humidity and there was no water in sight. I made it about 15 minutes into my run before I gave up to shower and the oasis of AC in my room. Blah.

Next hotel, woke up early, thank you jet lag, and went to the gym to discover: not open till noon, rats!!! Next hotel, after work (two days at this hotel), went to hotel to work out before dinner because we finished early and I called the night before to ask gym hours (I learned from the last hotel). I changed my clothes and followed the signs to gym, only to discover, gym no longer exists. Thank you language barrier and the concierge that told me it was open from noon to 2am instead of: we closed it forever, no work out for you. arg!!!!

So, in summation, traveling is awesome! Traveling for work is also awesome but grouchy circus girl needs some things to be consistent for her trip to be good. What I didn't write about was my frizzy hair and the episode with the flat iron as well as the burst blood vessel in my eye. Hey, don't cross yourself like that, I'll get a complex. You were lucky this time. Next post may include the bloody eyeball story.

Someday I will post myself in an actual garment. For now, I'm out.