Month: October 2009

Small Grey Trousers.

Grey trousers

I’ve spent all day working on a pair of trousers.
Unfortunately I have managed to make them a size too small for me.

According to the finished measurements on the pattern, they should be an absolutely perfect fit. Unfortunately this fabric doesn’t have any stretch in it, and whilst I can get the trousers on, I can’t sit down.

Or breathe.

Bother.

The pattern is Vogue 2812, view B, although I left out the horizontal seam half way down the leg, and didn’t bother with the non-functional pockets. Or the belt loops.

They’re made from grey polyester/wool blend suiting (not itchy, machine washable), they have a nice deep waistband, bootcut legs, and no pockets.

The waist sits about an inch below your bellybutton, so they’re not ridiculously low rise, but they’re definitely not bellywarmers either.

I loathe making trousers (well, I hate making the fly front – so fiddly!), but I’m really pleased with these. They’re possibly the nicest trousers that I’ve made so far.

It’s just that they don’t fit.

Damn.

Yellow Submarine Jacket

Beatles Jacket

Ta-Daa!

The pattern is Butterick 5254, view C.
I had been planning to make view B which is much longer, but there turned out to be a printing flaw in the fabric, and I couldn’t quite maneouvre the pattern pieces around it. So I made the shorter version instead.

The jacket is lined with polar fleece, so it should be nice and warm. The three giant buttons are vintage ones that I inherited from a friend’s grandmother’s button stash.

And just in case you think this jacket’s a little bit boring…

…have a look at the inside.

Beatles Jacket

The facings and belt are made from a matching psychedelic “rainbows” fabric.

I’m fairly certain that “hilarious” shouldn’t be one of the criteria for making clothes, but I think this is one of the funniest things I’ve ever done. I can’t wait to wear it!

I’ve got a hole in me pocket…

Diane's Beatles Tunic

This is another tunic for Diane – a short hip-length one this time.

Diane’s online name is “Bloomeenee”, so you can imagine that she was very keen to have something made from this fabulous Beatles Yellow Submarine fabric!

Here’s a YouTube clip of the “Sea of Holes” part of the film.

While I was sending off to America for the fabric, I took the opportunity to order a couple of extra metres for myself. I’m thinking of making a psychedelic coat, lined with fleece. Watch this space…

My grumpy little friend.

Grey squirrel

Look who I met today. Isn’t he adorable?

This little grey squirrel spent all morning running about in the rain, digging holes in my back garden and burying his stash of winter goodies.

When he’d finished, he decided that it would be a good idea to sit on my fence and bark/honk/screech at me for a good five minutes. Thanks, Mr Squirrel.

It wasn’t until fairly recently that I knew what noise a squirrel made. I’d heard the sound before, plenty of times, but because it was coming from up a tree I always assumed it was made by a bird. Here’s a short video (not mine) where you can hear it for yourself. Doesn’t he sound cross?!

You can see from the picture that it’s pretty dark and wet here today. It was properly dark when I got up this morning, for the first time this year, and I guess the squirrels have decided that it’s going to be winter soon.

I don’t mind seeing this little fellow around the garden – but I’d like him to be a little quieter next time! It’s difficult to concentrate on sewing when you’re being yelled at by a squirrel…

Duplicated trousers?

I was browsing through the Vogue website today, looking for a jacket pattern. I rather like Vogue 8604 – I have a fondness for both cropped jackets and kimono sleeves. The trouser pattern is included, so I popped the pattern on my shopping list. (I only ever buy Vogue pattern when they’re on sale – they’re so expensive otherwise!)

Then I looked at the drawing, and realised that the trousers looked suspiciously similar to a pair I made earlier this year. They’re Vogue 8367, and the more I look at these illustrations the more certain I am that these are the same trousers!

I really like that little jacket… but I don’t really want to pay for a pattern for a pair of trousers that I’ve already made. Perhaps I’ll see whether I can find a similar looking jacket elsewhere.

Half a petticoat

Simplicity 3737 petticoat

I’ve been trying to make this petticoat since March, but it was causing me to swear so terribly that it’s been shoved in a carrier bag underneath my sewing table for seven months. This is in fact only half a petticoat. There’s supposed to be a second layer on the bottom two tiers, but I absolutely couldn’t face doing all the gathering again, so I left it out.

As it happens it’s pretty much as full as I’d want it to be underneath a circle skirt (I’m going for “fullness” not “panto”), and several people on the Pattern Review site confessed that they’d either left out or chopped off the second layer.

I’m not completely convinced that I  actually like it. I’ll have to wait, and decide after I’ve worn it a few times.

Mind you, it doesn’t really matter whether I like it or not – I’m absolutely not going to make another one, so I’m sticking with this!

Cherry Skirt

Cherry circle skirt

I’m a little bit poorly this week, and the medication I’m taking is leaving me unable to concentrate, so I spent the day yesterday making a very simple skirt.

It’s made in the same way as my Elasticated Skirt but instead of being an a-line shape, this one’s a full circle. What looks like the waistband is actually a matching sash belt – the waist is made from my usual frilly elastic. There are nice deep pockets hidden away in the side seams, and that’s five metres of lacy trim sewn on at the hem.

I’m also still making Simplicity 3737, a petticoat that I started working on in March. Unfortunately it hasn’t spent the past eight months in storage magically sewing itself together, so I’m going to have to get on and finish it. If you hear swearing, it’s just me. Drowning under fourteen metres of net. Ugh.