Sarah's Half Circle Skirt

It's only fair that after sewing my sister Elysia a skirt, I sew one for Sarah as well. Sarah wanted a black a-line skirt appropriate for work. I thought about buying a pattern to make this, but then I decided that a half circle skirt fit her description. I used the tutorial here and made it over the course of an evening while she was visiting so she could try it on periodically. I'm happy with how it turned out, and she tells me she wears it regularly, so she must like it as well.

The fabric was from the discount area at the back of Fabricville. The outside of the skirt is actually the backside of the fabric, so if Sarah's skirt ever blows up people will get even more of a surprise than they expected, because the other side is black and blue. It's a knit fabric with a bit of stretch, and was super easy to sew with. To be honest, when I picked up the fabric I didn't realize that I was looking at the back side of the fabric, but once I figured it out I had already decided it was the best choice. I have some left over to make something for myself now :)

I really like the amount of fullness of a half circle skirt, so if I ever start wearing skirts more regularly I will definitely make one for myself.

Details

Pattern: None! Tutorial from It's Always Autumn
Material: A black and blue knit from Fabricville, used the back for the outside
Modifications: None!
Learning: Not much new, I've made a circle skirt before.

Cobalt Blazer

I was listening to the Maker Style Podcast a while ago, when Rachel was interviewing Heather from Closet Case Files, and Heather mentioned that you shouldn't be afraid of projects, just do them. I put that advice into practise when Christina posted a tester call for the Blixen Blazer. One of the complaints I have when shopping is that my shoulders are too broad for many structured clothing items. If I can find something that fit my shoulders and arms, it's too boxy. If I find something that is flattering, the shoulders and arms are suffocating. The obvious solution: Sew my own!

This was my first pass at the pattern, so I made it knowing that it might not be perfect. The pattern itself is amazing - following the instructions was straight-forward, everything fits together really nicely, the darts are in the right places, everything gets finished nicely. I'm actually impressed with how well I did with the welt pockets and the lining and everything. I'm not very happy with the fit - the shoulders are the right size for me without shoulders pads, but the chest is very clearly too big. The sleeves are the right length but could be a bit snugger, although adding shoulder pads will likely help them fall nicer on my arms. the waist hits are the right point and is approximately the right size, and I like the length of the blazer itself, although I might add less length for my next one.

My modifications for this pattern were adding 2 inches in length to the sleeves (and then removing 1 because the sleeves were too long), adding 2.5 inches to the length of the body and grading out the 2 back pieces at the hips for obvious reasons. I cut a straight size 10 this time around.

I definitely intend to sew this pattern again. Next time I will cut a size 8 in the peplum version, then add 3/4inch to the width of the shoulders and add in shoulder pads. I would also only add 1 inch to the sleeves and 1.5 inches to the bodice. This would mean that I don't need to grade out any at the hips, the chest should fit and my shoulders should fit with shoulder pads in.

Quick confession time: I am not one of those people that care that the inside of a garment looks good. I am much happier to slack on finishing the seams so I can start wearing the garment sooner. That being said, having the blazer fully lined was the best of both worlds: It looks good on the inside, but didn't take extra work. The instructions say to hand sew the lining shut, but I just folded and machine sewed it. I hate hand sewing, and I'm not very good at it.

Details

Pattern: Blixen Blazer by Wardrobe by Me (tester)
Material: A cobalt blue knit with a bit of stretch from the discount section of Fabricville about 2 years ago, probably for under $5/m. Lining is a jersey for $3/m, and for the first time I bought stretch interfacing
Modifications: I added 2 inches to the sleeves (then removed 1), added 2.5inches to the bodice and graded out at the waist to accommodate my rear.
Learning: I've done welt pockets before, but totally forgot how so re-learned that. Learned how to apply a lining, and most importantly learned that sewing a blazer is not that difficult (most excited about this learning. It's just very time consuming).