Scrapbusting! Handmade Cami Top

I try not to have too large a fabric stash, a goal which is fairly easy for me to achieve given that I rarely buy fabric online and am only able to visit fabric shops a few times a year. There are of course exceptions to this, I do sometimes visit my local Fabricland with a specific fabric in mind and I'm lucky to receive fabric from companies in exchange for blog posts. In general though, my fabric purchases are made infrequently but in bulk - my most recent fabric buying trip being in Tokyo last summer. I like to do this to be able to really make the most of visiting fabric shops in other countries (I always plan my holiday around fabric shops, much to my family's irritation!).
However, my fabric stash is very much present nonetheless and what annoys me the most about it is that many of the fabrics are offcuts from previous projects. You know those pieces that are too small to do anything with but too big to throw away? The bane of my sewing life!

I know that there are lots of ways to scrapbust, quilting being the most obvious, but because my sewing mainly consists of dressmaking most of these scraps are jersey which are pretty much impossible to make anything out of as they can't be sewn together to create a patchwork. I love upcycling (this top was made of old pairs of jeans) so I'm always trying to find ways of using those last scraps of fabric.  Recently, I've drafted myself a strappy top pattern for making out of the smallest pieces of leftover fabric.

I'm super pleased with this top, it's made from literally nothing! The pattern is a really simple cami design with a v-neck. I finished the entire thing with bias binding which gives a lovely neat finish and doesn't use as much fabric as a facing. Because I had so little fabric I added in trapezium side panels (much like the ones I added in to my Minttu Swing Top) which make the top wide enough. They were perfect for this project as my leftover fabric was in bits a pieces rather than one continuous piece. I love how the side panels make the top swing too.

You might have recognised the fabric that this top is made from. It's the beautiful viscose fabric that my friend bought for me in India, initially used to make a pair of Marigold Trousers. Although I'm glad to have made the trousers I kind of wish I'd saved the fabric, I'd really like to try and make a midi skirt at some point and it would have been perfect for that. I don't often buy viscose fabrics, they're something I'm on the lookout for at the moment. 

Like I said there was hardly any of this fabric leftover so I'm really pleased I managed to make a top out of it! It's definitely not warm enough for me to wear it at the moment but I'm hoping it will be lovely in the summer. I like that the simplicity of the top shows off the fabric too. If you look closely you might notice the centre back seam. This wasn't intentional but I found it was necessary from the absolute lack of fabric. I think it looks quite nice though, it's neatly stitched down and doesn't break up the pattern too much.

I used to really hate bias binding, I found it was never quite neat enough, but I've come to really love it now. It was certainly the perfect finish for this project, I even added it round the bottom hem to keep every last bit of length! The fabric was well and truly used up and I feel suitably satisfied.

Zip-Neck Tilly and the Buttons Freya Top

There is something so wonderful when a make turns out exactly as planned and I'm thrilled with my new top. I've had this planned for a really long time but wanted to wait for the right moment to make it. The main downside to planning something for so long is the self-imposed pressure to get it right, so I took my time with the sewing. I wanted it to look shop bought and I think it really does but with all the bonuses of being handmade - being able to decide the fit, colour, fabric etc. I just love it!

This was a special project for me because it was made with one of my beloved Tomato fabrics from Tokyo. I've been trying to use the fabrics on things that I will wear a lot and really love, they're just all so gorgeous and I can't buy anymore of them. Those goals have certainly been achieved with my checked Anima Pants and grey Linden Jumper which I wear literally all the time. The thing is, even though I waited a while before using this fabric my plan for it hasn't changed since I bought it. As soon as I saw the circle zip-pull zips I knew I wanted to make a top like this and of course the shop also had the perfect fabric. The fabric in question is a fairly heavy weight rib in this stunning orange/red colour. It's quite a bright but I love it and it goes so well with the grey and white zip. I didn't need to interface the fabric as it was heavy enough to sew the zip straight in. The zip did go in fairly seamlessly but I took my time over it and definitely woudn't like to sew a zip into a light weight jersey. The scariest bit is having to cut down the centre front seam - I was so worried I'd cut too far!

I think I mentioned in my post about my zip-neck jumper that I was planning another top with a zip and this one has been in the plans long before I bought the fabric for the pink jumper. Out of all the styles of zip tops I've seen on the highstreet, the fitted turtleneck with a zip that goes partly down is my absolute favourite. I was initially worried about recreating it because an open zip is just so difficult to get lying flat but decided to risk it anyway. The risk really paid off and I'm thrilled with the insertion of the zip, it's hardly bumpy at all at the end and lies completely flat unlike the other jumper. It's great to have been able to build on that skill and means that I can make many more of these tops (because of course I want to make more!). It helps that this zip from Tomato is just gorgeous, I wish I had bought more as I'm not sure they sell the same thing here.

Like I said there are quite a few variations of the same thing avaliable but I've always liked fitted long sleeved tops (I love wearing this one) and as a bonus I thought it would be perfect for hacking the Tilly and the Buttons Freya top. I often use the Freya top pattern as a base for simple t-shirts but usually leave off the neckband. However, for this hack I stayed much closer to the original pattern. In order to add in the zip, I cut the front bodice at a slight angle on the fabric so that the 'place on fold' edge wasn't lying up with the fold at the top of the pattern. This left a tiny triangle of extra fabric going from about 1cm extra at the top end of the centre front to nothing by the hem. I'm not sure if that's really very clear (sorry if not!) but it essentially gave me more fabric at the top for the seam allowance of the zip without making the front bodice wider at the bottom. I also added about 1cm to the neckband but that wasn't really necessary considering how stretchy the rib fabric is.

The zip insertion obviously changed my construction of the neckband and luckily it all went really smoothly, although there were a couple of moments where I held my breath! I was initially going to topstitch around the zip and also topstitch the neckband down but decided against it as it would have forced the fabric to sit in a particular way. I'm glad I didn't, it looks less strict without the topstitching.

When it came to hemming the top I simply cut along the bottom with my rotary cutter. It gave it a nice smooth edge and as the rib shouldn't fray it worked perfefctly. In general I don't like leaving things unhemmed as the thought of fraying always nags at me, but I tested a few scraps and it seemed to be fine. I tend to finish jersey makes with a lettuce hem but didn't want to take the attention away for the zip on this top. Turning up the fabric and hemming also wouldn't have worked as the rib is too heavy weight and there would have been an uncomfortable-looking bulge where the hem was. With a loud colour and fairly loud design feature, the simple clean finish means there isn't too much going on.

Ah isn't it so lovely to have a new make! I feel like this ticks all the boxes: new skill, a design I love and a special fabric.

Sewing through COVID-19: Handmade Scrubs!

In this completely bizarre period of time, it's nice to hang on to constants and for me one constant is sewing. Having to stay at home is certainly much more bearable with a hobby, and it's even better when that hobby can be put to good use. My mum asked me to make her a couple of scrub tops to wear to work (she usually wears normal clothes) and I have to admit to being slightly reluctant at first (sometimes you just want to sew something for yourself!) but I'm really glad to have made them, especially as she's been wearing them everyday since. 

I should start by saying that this top was actually my second attempt. My mum and I tried to make a patten for the first top together, using a large t-shirt as a base. While the attempt wasn't bad, I made it with ongrown arms rather than having a separate pattern piece for the sleeves so shoulder movement is restricted. The first top also lacks the classic overlapping v-neckband of scrubs and instead has just a v-shaped neckhole with the fabric turned under and topstitched. The next day I used a borrowed pair of actual scrubs to create a pattern which I then used to make this top, a much better outcome. The first one isn't wasted though as she needs two and it's still wearable.

The problem with the request to make two scrub tops was that they require quite a lot of cotton fabric and obviously I wasn't able to pop out and buy some. We managed to find a large piece of this waxed cotton print in my fabric stash which ended up being just enough fabric. My mum was given this as a present a couple of years ago by a friend from Malawi and whilst it felt slightly too far out of my comfort zone to make into an everyday item of clothing, it was perfect for a scrub top. She's bought some navy scrub trousers to go with the top and the overall look is pretty cool! It's fun to have something a bit different to the classic plain scrubs too.

Scrubs are a very easy design and the two tops were really quick to sew. The hardest part was definitely the neckband, to me it's part of the iconic scrub look (if that's really a thing?!) and so I was determined to make the v-neck as precise as possible. I think it turned out rather well! I had to make up the technique as I went along as I didn't have any instructions but I'm very happy with how it looks.

A final detail to make the top look a bit more professional was to add a small slit in the side, this was something that the top that I copied had. The only thing I didn't do was add pockets as Mum thought they wouldn't be necessary, although I think she has since mentioned that they'd be useful so I might go back and add a large pocket to the front.

This was a really satisfying make. It was fun to learn a new skill and make something quite different to what I've ever made before, and it's nice to know that this really useful and will be worn a lot in the immediate future. I couldn't resist adding the stethoscope to the photos on my Adjustoform - it just completes the look!

Megan Nielsen Dawn Jeans in Grey Corduroy

I've made another pair of jeans! This was one of the main sewing goals that I had in mind at the start of this year. The ginger jeans that I made a couple of years ago are sadly now too small. I don't mind too much as I got a lot of wear and joy out of them and it also gave me the excuse to make a new pair of jeans. I particualarly wanted to make the Megan Nielsen Dawn Jeans which I have loved ever since the pattern came out. I recieved both the pattern and this fabric for Christmas, leaving no excuses for not getting on and making them.

Although I was able to enjoy wearing my ginger jeans for some time, I made the unforgivable mistake of using rigid denim for a stretch denim pattern. My experience with sewing has increased a lot since and this time I wanted to get the fabric and pattern right. I could have made the Ginger Jeans again using the right kind of fabric, but my style has also evolved over the past couple of years. Now, I much prefer wearing 'Mom Jeans' to skinny jeans so I cannot emphasize enough just how perfect the Dawn Jeans sewing pattern was for what I wanted. Ready to wear jeans are always a nightmare size wise, and I wanted to have a jeans pattern that I had tried and tested so that it fit perfectly. Also, the Dawn Jeans come with four variations - how amazing is that?! I made view A with a tapered leg for this pair but can't wait to make the wide-legged version too. 

Because they're designed to be a classric high-waisted rigid jeans pattern, the Dawn Jeans have a button fly. I don't mind the button fly detail and particularly like the visible button fly version, but like I mentioned in my post about my Lander Pants I find adding buttons unecesary unless they're adding to a design feature. This isn't just about having to sew the buttonholes, I find it much more practical to have a zip fly over a button fly when it comes to wearing the jeans too. Luckily, there is a sewalong avaliable which covers inserting a zip fly. Like most zip fly techniques it isn't as good as the Closet Case Patterns fly insertion tutorial, but works well all the same.

I love adding secret details that only I can see and pocket bags are perfect for that. I had this cotton fabric in my stash (left from when I enjoyed making tote bags!) and it matched my fabric perfectly. 

Now onto the complications... I had two main fitting issues when it came to making these jeans. The first was fairly straight forward to solve as it's something I have to do with all trouser patterns - taking a triangular wedge of about 1" either side out of the centre back seam. This is pretty easy to do and makes a big difference to the fit due to my sway back. It does mean that the back yokes don't quite line up but it's an almost perfect alteration other than that.

The second issue was much harder to solve and I was pretty tempted to give up on these jeans because of it! I spent quite a long time trying to decide which size to cut. My waist put me in a size 4 but my hips were in a size 8. I considered grading between sizes 8 and 4 but decided that the change between the sizes would be too much. In hindsight, I probably should have done this anyway. In the end I decided to cut a size 6, thinking that I could take in the waist (which I did do at the centre back) and that the fabric at the hips would stretch with wear. The sizing at the hips actually ended up being pretty much spot on, but when I tried the trousers on for the first time the legs were way too tight. This isn't something that has ever happened to me before and I was quite surprised that it happened. At this point I'd been sewing for a few hours and to try the jeans on and find that they were too small was incredibly frustrating! I put them down for about a week (giving them the occasional death stare) until I felt ready to undergo the incredibly boring task of unpicking the side seams and inner leg seam. The side seams were fine to unpick as they were just basted in place but the inner leg seam had been finished with two rows of topstitching! Having to unpick that was honestly slightly heartbraking. I re-sewed the entire thing using the tiniest seam allowance possible, about 1/4" instead of the 1.5cm initially used. But hey, at least it was worth it in the end!

The fabric is a big part of what made these jeans successful. I loved this fabric as soon as I saw it in Fabric Land. It's a gorgeous dark grey/purple colour and is a really great quality corduroy. It's one of those Farbric Land scores, good quality fabric for a fairly low price. I did initially want to use denim to make my first pair of Dawn Jeans but the corduroy worked really well and now that I've established the fit I'm willing to spend a bit more money on good quality non-stretch denim for my next pair.

Looking closely at this photo, you can see that I haven't bothered to trim all the threads along the side seam - those are left over from the mamouth unpicking task I had to do! It wasn't until I put the finished jeans on for the first time that I realised how much I love them. I was initially worried about wearing the colour but actually I think it's really very wearable. I am so happy with the fit of these jeans, after spending so long getting the fit right it's nice to have a successful outcome. The pattern is such a brilliant design, I love how high-waisted these jeans are and I can't wait to make another pair.

Upcycled Grey Ruched Front Top

I've had the idea for this top for a really long time. I really love adding twists to basics (you can see this here and here) and adding a ruched front to a top seemed like a great way to make it a bit more interesting. It's a detail I've seen on quite a few ready to wear tops recently too which is often where I get inspiration from.

Here's the bonus part of this make: it's an upcycle! My dad was given a pair of pyjamas on a long distance flight with work a few months ago and he gave them to me to thinking I could use the fabric. This is the top, there is also a pair of burgundy pyjama bottoms which I might try and alter to make myself a pair of joggers at some point. 

So I started with a long-sleeved men's t-shirt which I then cut along the seams to get seperate sleeves and bodice pieces. I then placed my pattern pieces over the corresponding t-shirt pieces and cut them out. With the leftover fabric I cut lots of 1" strips to make the ties and then a neckband. I used pretty much all of the t-shirt which is always very satisfying! Also, my dad was pretty surprised to see how much the t-shirt had changed!

The ruching is actually much easier than it looks. Essentially I created two channels which then gather when the ties are added. It's not that easy to explain so I'd reccomend watching this video which shows just how easy it is. The top in the video is a bit different to mine, I was keen to add long sleeves so I kind of made up the process as I went along. Luckily, it worked! After looking at some RTW tops it seemed like most of them had v-necks which is what I went for. This was actually my first time sewing a v-neck. It could definitely be neater, but to be honest I don't think you can really tell when I'm wearing the top. 

My preference is to tie the the ties in a bow and then just leave the ends hanging. It means you can make the ruching more or less prominent, or even leave it completely flat without any ruching if you like. I tied knots at the end of each tie and then just cut it as jersey doesn't fray. I also made one tie slightly longer than the other, I like the more casual look more than if they were both the same length (even though it was done on purpose!).
One feature that I'm really pleased with is that I was able to keep the original hem of the t-shirt. Hemming jersey can be quite frustrating and the original hem has a professional coverstitched finish.

Pink Zip-Neck Jumper

I really enjoyed the process of making this jumper. It required quite a bit of thinking which is what I like when it comes to dressmaking. I find projects where I've had to think about drafting and construction much more satisfying than those where I've just followed a pattern and instructions. Having said that, I do like having a mix of both kinds of projects as bought patterns offer more mindless sewing.

I've seen so many variations of zip-neck jumpers recently. They seem to be everywhere and I really like them. I'm hoping to make a top with an exposed zip in the front soon but this jumper seemed like an easier place to start. It has a seam at the bottom of the zip which is so much easier to sew than to try and get a neat finish at the bottom of an exposed zip. Having looked at jumpers like this one online I saw that the zips tended to have extended covered ends reaching down to the seam. The zip that I bought ended up being shorter than I would have liked so I had to extend the fabric covering the end a bit more than most of those that I saw but I don't think that matters too much.

I really like the sleeve of this jumper, it matches the boxy feel nicely. It's a two piece sleeve which makes a nice feature of the seams. I gathered it at the end before adding the cuff, something that I'd like to try on another top with a slightly drapier fabric for a larger effect.

The fabric I used was a scuba type knit with a lovely soft inside. I decided to leave the hem raw, partly becuase I couldn't decide whether or not it should have a hem band.

I really like the style of this jumper but I'm not over the moon about it. The scuba was really hard to topstitch neatly on which is something that I'm quite picky about. The main issue is that at the bottom of the zip the fabric doesn't quite lie flat; it's a small thing but again something that really bothers me. This jumper isn't perfect but I'm pleased to have made it, especially as I wanted to test out this design. It's given me a few ideas about what to do next time I attempt a zip-up neck jumper.

Handmade Sherpa Jacket

This jacket has straight away been put onto my 'all time favourite makes' list. It's a list which changes fairly frequently as new makes come along, but I think that this is on it to stay. It also earns a 'doesn't look handmade' badge and an 'I just LOVE it!' trophy. Basically, I think it's pretty awesome!

A sherpa jacket has been on my mind for such a long time. I kept on seeing more and more in shops and really liking them, but I was determined to make one instead of buy one. Part of the delay in making one was the hunt for the right fabric. It was definitely worth the wait because this sherpa fabric from Visage Textiles is just perfect! I've seen a lot of different colour variations of sherpa, the most common one being shades of white and I really love the cream colour of this one. I'm not so much a fan of the more browny/beigey colours, and while grey or pink sherpa fabric looks really cool I wanted a white jacket for it to go with lots of items of clothing.

The best thing about this jacket is the fact that it is fully lined! It adds more work but it is definitely worth it, there's something so much nicer about a lining. I usually wear jackets unzipped and what sometimes annoys me is that the lining shows. The way to solve this was to add a facing along the inside edge which worked so well. It has the added effect of looking so much more professional too, especially with an added row of topstitching along the seam joining the sherpa to the lining. 

I also added an orange hanging loop. I love secret details like this, it's a reminder that actually you can't buy a jacket quite like this one!

A reccuring detail that I've noticed on ready to wear jackets at moment is a circle zip pull. It was something that I really wanted to add on my jacket and was so pleased to be able to find one online. The zip pull took a bit of plier manipulation to get it on, but we (it was a group effort!) managed to attatch it. I spent a long time choosing the zip and went for a silver YKK zip which is really good quality brand. I was slightly worried about choosing the white colourway as it doesn't quite match the cream colour of the sherpa, but it was actually completely fine because you can only see the teeth.

Another brilliant feature is the pockets! I copied the style of these from the high street and they are really perfect for this jacket. They are so simple, just 7" squares sewn onto the jacket but I think that the shape is actually perfect for the style of the jacket. I always find myself putting my hands into my coat pockets so I'm really pleased to have these. Interestingly, I've seen quite a few ready to wear ones where the opening is at the top, but I left the opening in the sides which seemed much more comfortable and practical for actually using the pockets.

Both the sleeves and hem are finished with elastic. It's a look that I really like, even though sewing an elastic channel in thicker fabrics is a bit of a nightmare! Luckily, the sherpa is very forgiving so any odd-looking stitches are hidden by the fabric.  

One of the main  features of the jacket is the collar. There are so many variations of sherpa jackets but my favourites are always those with a collar, so that was the feature that I wanted to add to mine. It also has the added benefit of keeping your neck really warm!

Overall, I just love this jacket. Features like the circle zip pull make it feel so professional, but I love that the addition of the hanging loop makes it one of a kind. I'm so pleased to have spent time planning this project and finding the perfect fabric for it as I think it's something that I'm going to wear for years to come.