Friday, June 21, 2013

Hideous 70s Dress






I got this 1979 pattern in a bulk lot that I purchased on Ebay. It's been languishing in my pattern drawer for a while, waiting for the right fabric. If you are confused when you look at the size on the pattern, that is no mistake- apparently I  have the same measurements as an 11-12 year old girl. The only good thing about this fact is that I can sew up old patterns like this without the need to make alterations for my lack of bust and hips.


 


I bought this fabric from Lifeline a few months ago. I got 3 metres for the princely sum of $3. It's very floaty and soft and I think it may also be from the 70s (it sure smells like it). I decided to make a wintery dress out of it because the background colour is an exact match to my 'new' genuine 1970s brown leather boots ($20 on Ebay, thank you very much!).


 

I wanted to make long sleeves but was short on fabric by about 10cm so I made do with the shorter sleeves. I had planned on making View 3 (with no elasticised  waist), but when I tried it on I looked like this:


 https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKylZS3yZBUPXzyCGcbtrsQfGdKpvCHos2cCJkNHIT_Uc8l7DsTGdE3yEXUa7UXKpAMvQuMyc80iJfsYPcYTyY8KfqsQ2kMnblSU_IefygcXuuaAmfodpGreUXzQpF1iGM6A-w_gnrSP1v/s1600/muumuu3.jpg


There was just soooo much fabric! It was HIDEOUS! So I had to go and add the casing line for the elastic after I'd sewn up 90% of the dress, which was about as enjoyable as being stuck in an elevator with a modern railway enthusiast. 

Everything came together pretty easily, except for the collar, which was too big for the neck by a massive 2 inches. I had to adapt the collar pattern and re-cut it. Oh, and I couldn't put a button at the neck because it won't do up. No idea how that happened but I think it looks fine with the neck open.



I don't think I'll ever make this again because it took me about 6 or 7 hours, and let's face it, it's damn ugly and does nothing for my 11-year-old figure. But it looks super cool with my 70s boots and 70s jacket.


Sunday, June 9, 2013

Ottobre knit tunic


I started this tunic two years ago, not long after I first started sewing, thinking "How hard can knits really be?" 

Very bloody hard, it turns out. I have not touched a knit fabric since I started this project and threw it into my UFO box in disgust, having completed 90% of it.

Winter is here, and with it, my need to dress down on my days off with tunics, leggings and boots. I've looked around in the shops for some cheap tunics and there are none to be found- I guess they are out of fashion this season. So I dug out my UFO and decided to finish it once and for all.

 

The pattern is from Ottobre magazine. If you've never heard of it, it's from Finland and comes in Kids' and Women's issues. I subscribed for a year back in 2010, receiving 4 kids' issues and 2 women's. I haven't made too many projects from the mags- maybe 6 or 7- because I hate adding seam allowances. I'm such a lazy cow, aren't I?

This was actually the second one of these I'd made. The first one is here. I dutifully sewed the pin tucks on the front for the first one but couldn't be bothered with the second one. 

Sorry about the crappy photo.

 I bought this fabric about 3 years ago, before I became a super tight-arse fabric shopper. It was $24 per metre so I only bought one metre. I cannot imagine spending so much on fabric now- even though our family income has doubled in the past few years!

The instructions say to turn and topstitch the neck, but I thought it looked too flimsy (especially since this knit is so slinky) so when I picked it up to finish it, I decided to finish the neck with a band. It looks so much better.

All I had to do was finish the neckline and sew the hem, and I was done! Now I have a super cute tunic and I can't believe I let it wallow in my UFO box for so long.





Friday, June 7, 2013

Butterick B5032


This is the dress I made for my friend's wedding. I can't believe how easy it was! The only alterations I made were to remove 1 inch of width from the neckline and 1 inch of length from the bodice. I am definitely going to make this again.

The fabric is quilter's cotton (surprise surprise) and it was a measly $4 per metre.

I lined the bodice instead of facing it because I hate facings. I wish I'd lined the skirt because it sticks to my tights but I will find a little slip to wear under it.




Split at the back.




Little pleats at the waist. I love this detail!

 


 Off to the wedding I go!