My Vintage Red Polka Dot Dress

I finally took some photos of this beautiful dress I finished over a month ago! I had plans to take photos wearing this dress whilst on holiday in Portugal (1st week of May) using my grandmothers treadle sewing machine as a prop. But then I fell ill and couldn't do it! I then had real trouble combining a time I could go out and take photos with a time of hot weather. In the end I ended up taking indoor photos.

But on to the dress! The pattern is a the vintage Advance 5756, Size 9 Bust 28 seen below. Yes, that is right Bust 28. Now I need to say something very, very important!! If you have any Advance Patterns from the 50s that are a Size 9 Bust 28 please tell me!! I will buy them off you and will pay well. This is the first vintage or non vintage pattern I have made that fits me everywhere just right without any alteration to the pattern.

I have to clarify I am not a size 28 bust, I measure 32 at the bust so there is 10cm ease on this pattern. I would say 5cm would be enough, if not less for this style.

So the fitting was perfect (wrinkles below are due to arms position) and the sewing was pretty straightforward too. Instructions were scarce but there was nothing too challenging.

There's not much more to say about this dress really so I'll leave you with a couple more pictures, a repeat of my pledge for 1950s Advance Pattern in size 9 (i really want them) and a question: Have you found your perfect match on a sewing pattern size or company? Something that will fit straight out of the envelope?

The Antoinette Dress - The Big Reveal

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Meet Antoinette I! The original design, the original idea. A lovely 3/4 sleeved fitted dress with a sexy pegged skirt and a lace bodice panel that extends high at the neckline. The version in the photos was the first sample and the very floral fabric a coincidence only. I wanted something a bit more colourful than calico. Being very honest I thought I had to do massive tweaks to pattern after first swatch but I didn't, hence this version is presented to you.

For something different...meet Antoinette II!

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Antoinette II is the same pattern as Antoinette I but what a difference! It uses the same patterns pieces but with a small alteration in the front bodice panel (which will be covered in the pattern instructions). I used a gorgeous blue gingham and some red piping and buttons. The neckline is also slightly lower in this version.

I sincerely hope you enjoy Suzy Patterns first pattern. I am starting to receive the wonderful feedback from my testers which will help me do any sizing tweaks that I need to and sure there are some. It seems the pattern grading company I used ignored my size chart and ease specifications. For example the bust has some ease but the waist measurements used are even smaller than the ones I provided. I'm now on the lookout for other pattern grading companies so if you know any that are reliable and good, please let me know.

Saying this, the pattern will still be available to you all for free, hopefully at the beginning of April. I will adjust size charts to help you cut the best size for you (planning a whole blog post on sizing).
I have already received some sneak peak photos of the versions testers are doing and oh, my, I am so excited!

I have also started a Facebook Page, where I'll keep you up to date with what is happening at Suzy Patterns. Click here or on the link at the top bar to like it!

Have a lovely weekend!

The Camo Bombshell

The construction is over! I give you my Camo Bombshell.

I am so in love with this dress! Following Gertie's instructions was fantastic, she's really a great teacher! Obviously, there were ups and downs and this dress isn't perfect but I am quite chuffed with how it turned out. I loved all the hand sewing, which is something I used to dislike. Some parts were a challenge to sew, such as the zipper guard and bottom of lining to bodice. The polycotton I used is not very forgiving on mistakes and it was a challenge to invisible stitch to one layer only. On the zipper guard I had the opposite problem. Too many layers and little access to bottom bit (that probably don't make any sense but there you go).

A huge thank you to Gertie and the team at Craftsy for making this available. I do hope there's more to come.

Today I'm heading towards the BFI in London for the highly anticipated Bombshell Meet up party. Karen from Did You Make That? will be there wearing her fantastic Bombshell. Tilly from Tilly and the Buttons and Jane from Handmade Jane will be there too. This fantastic meet up was organised by Roisin from But it can't be Dolly Clackett? whom I'm also looking forward to meet. I have my camera on me and will report back.

In Construction: Camo Bombshell

Almost finished with my Bombshell dress...

I am loving constructing this dress. As I probably said before Gertie is a great teacher and makes the most difficult things so easy to understand.
All I have left to do is the lining, the boning and the hem!

What about you dear readers, are you sewing a Bombshell?

Sabrina Dress in Action and Hungarian Fabric Shops

I woke up this morning with an urge to finish my RTW tailoring sew along jacket but have now given up. For some reason everything I do is not that good and I have lost count on the number of mistakes I've done. I'm also very clumsy, dropping everything to the floor, constantly stabbing myself with pins, etc.
Instead I though I would share with you a couple of photos of My Sabrina Dress in action and report on the Hungarian fabric shops I found.

I made the bolero using Butterick 3345 View A, without the ruffle. The taffeta was a dream to work with and my first time as well. I lined it with a baby blue habotai. It was straightforward to sew, with only sleeves being tricky (which they always are for me).

You might notice, the lovely green clutch bag I got on ebay (after madly falling in love) is not in the photos. Unfortunately the seller emailed me a week after I bought it to say she was going on holiday and not back until after the holiday period. I was not happy with the poor service and communication and got a refund. That meant I had to do something last minute. I am not proud of what I did, but for what it was it worked.

Obviously, part of my agenda in visiting Hungary was exploring fabric and haberdashery shops and let me tell you, it did not disappoint. I bought a considerable amount of fabric ::blushes:: and will share it with you in a different post.
In Budapest I visited a street stretch full of shops, recommended by the lovely VickiC. The shops I visited (about 7) were full of fabric, in some cases so much that browsing was difficult. The prices were slightly lower than UK or about the same. The problem I had was not being able to read what the fabric label said and majority of shops assistants not knowing the English fabric terms. I kicked myself for not having done proper research, including find out names of fabric types in Hungarian.
In Győr, where the wedding was, there were more fabric shops with cheaper prices than Budapest. I visited about 4 and again, they didn't disappoint.
One of my favourites had a dubious entrance, as it looked like we were entering someone's house. It is also the only one I managed to take photos. I know, massive failure for my part, but when you surrounded by so much fabric loveliness, who can think of photos!

My Sabrina Dress - It's finished!

And so I have inserted the zipper and hemmed the skirt and thus I have a finished Sabrina Dress:

The skirt length is not as I initially wanted but it looks ok. I will be wearing this at a friends wedding next May in Hungary and now looking to do matching accessories, including a bolero. I know pink would be a good complimentary colour but I don't like pink that much so settled for a dark green. I will share photos of the full outfit in action then. 

I know I said I would publish a post about waist and seam finishes but life got in the way and I didn't manage to get one ready. I also didn't manage a inside out shoot as this dress doesn't fit Shelly (my dressmakers dummy). Hope you're able to forgive me!

I'm really happy how it turned out and have to say working with a vintage pattern didn't seem to differ from a modern one. At least in this case! The front fits perfectly well and the back is not bad either. It gaps a tiny bit though.

I'll leave you with a twirl!

Pretty twirl was followed by falling flat in the floor. A photo of the fall was taken but I will not share it.

My Sabrina Dress #6 - Bodice construction

I have made lots of progress on My Sabrina Dress and spent much time and attention getting the bodice right. The front piece has soft pleats which were quite straightforward to sew. I just pinned them down and pressed the lower end to help when taking it to the machine.

 The back is darted and I used my favourite method to do them. Start at the raw edge and when close to tip reduce stitch length. Don't back sew to avoid puckering. When you reach the end raise the presser foot, move the fabric so the needle goes inside the dart and the back sew. You can see a proper explanation of these here. I learned this awesome method through Gertie's Blog For Better Sewing when sewing along the Crepe Wrap Dress.

 I decided to follow pattern instructions and use bias binding to finish facing raw edges. I went for a soft pink just because it doesn't show on the outside. I really do not like wearing a lot of pink. I started by opening the binding and pinning to the edges of the fabric...but...I didn't take in account cloth allowance so the binding didn't wrap around the seam nice and smoothly.

The end result is a bit shoddy, as you can see from photo below but I overlooked it as the front of the facing isn't as bad. (You'll see a inside shot when dress is finished).

When the time came to attach the binding to the armhole facing I took in consideration the cloth allowance and the results are much, much better. I do need to practice sewing bias binding. With my underbust corset the bias is also very poorly sewn.

And voila, the bodice is completed! The end is near and I suspect I will have a whole dress to show you by next weekend. Before that I'll post about waist seams and seam finishes!

My Sabrina Dress #5 - Cutting and Marking

That photo speaks for itself! The width of my fabric wasn't enough so I will end up with a 1950s above the knee length dress. Not ideal, I know! The other thing this meant was that it was quite difficult to match floral prints, like I had originally intended. Not the end of the world.

I cut all my fabric on the floor as I do not have a big enough table. To make up for accurate cuting I usually cut roughly around pattern pieces and end up with a pile like the one below.

 I can then take to my small work desk and accurately cut and mark.

My absolute favourite way of marking fabric is to use carbon paper and a tracing wheel. Here, however, I didn't do that as the fabric right size is on the outside.

 I usually snip all notches. As long as you do it well within your seam allowance there is no problem.

For the darts I used tailor's tacks. Great for marking fabric on both sides without risking permanent pen/ chalk marks. Saying that after I do the tacks and remove the paper pattern, I outline the dart on the wrong side of fabric. That ensures I'm sewing the dart properly.

That was basically all the marking to do on the pattern. I was happy when it was over as I could get on with the fun stuff: sewing it together! 

My Sabrina Dress #4 - Fitting alterations

It has been slow over here, for a number of reasons I won't go into right now. I managed to finish the fitting alterations I needed on My Sabrina Dress. The final bodice looks something like the below.

Much better than this, don't you think? So what did I do? I followed the advice given by Alexandra in my previous fitting post and pinch excess down the middle of the bodice. You can see it pinned on the photo above. It made all the difference, so thank you Alexandra. I ended up removing 4cm at top reducing towards the midriff. I also took some excess out of side seams, 2cm at top phasing it down. The midriff fits perfectly well at the waist so none was removed there.
This all sounds very easy and straightforward but do not be fooled, my dear readers. It was a nightmare to transfer alterations to pattern pieces and I did 4 more muslins before I was happy with it. The problem was very simple: maths! Do I need do say more? Me and numbers do not go well together and even simple, logic problems leave me stumped. A bit embarrassing, I have to say.
This weekend I will be cutting the fashion fabric and if I'm successful at matching florals in the way I intend to, I will share it in a post with you.

A very awesome prize

Do you all know the lovely Denise from The Blue Gardenia? If not, head to her blog right now (or after you finish reading this) and make sure you subscribe to it. She writes exquisitely well about her own projects, gorgeous vintage patterns available to buy at her shop and the feature I love the most, she shares the limelight by frequently featuring other amazing sewing enthusiasts in her posts by interviewing them or asking them to share their sewing spaces. Denise also organises some giveaways, which are always jaw dropping and the last one she had was no exception. And guess who came out on the lucky draw? Yes, me! I was over the moon when finding out I had won such amazing prize. So, so many thanks Denise for this lovely combo of prizes.

It will be my first time working with raw silk. In fact, I had never even touched raw silk before, so completely unaware of any special requirements for sewing, pressing, washing (I bet dry- clean only?). As you would have read in my previous post, my sewing list is vast but this will get done too because it's drop dead gorgeous and my size, and I already decided where I am going to wear it.

Like I mentioned before The Blue Gardenia also sells vintage patterns and jewellery and I strongly suggest you take a look at the options. There are so many gorgeous patterns. I myself have not resisted and ordered a 1940s dress for a party I might be going in June (more on that some other time.)

My Sewing List

I have been procrastinating lately and have done very little sewing. My latest buttonhole nightmare plus failed attempts at transfering pattern alterations on My Sabrina Dress (simple maths but I'm crap at it) have send me into a idle state. I have however, managed to buy a few more patterns and add a few more projects to my to sew list. To hopefully keep me on track and sewing, I'll share what's coming with you, more or less in the order I intend to do them.

My Sabrina Dress: I have figured out the fitting alteration I need doing, helped by Alexandra comment (thank you!) and now in process of transfering to pattern pieces. I'm hoping to get this cracked soon. I love the fabric but still unsure how it will look.

I love sew alongs! They help me keep focused and force me to stop and wait for further instructions or advice, before I go and cock up something. Sherry from Pattern~Scissors~Cloth is leading a Tailoring Sew along and I initially shied away from it, as I had to many projects on the go. But after buying some gabardine fabric for trousers and realising the fabric is too heavy for that, I decided to join in. I had to choose a pattern that asked for less than 2mtrs, and quite liked the red illustration from McCalls below (not keen on the photo version). It doesn't have many elements from a tailored jacket, but I'm sure I'll pick up good tips and advice. Need to whip up muslin and fitting issues soon.

Next on the list another vintage pattern, this time for a wrap shirt. I will be using a lovely lightweight cotton I bought months ago. In an effort to wear more skirts, I will also do a basic skirt in this fabric. I LOVE this fabric!

Summer version of my Vogue 8604 Trousers. Hopefully in this blue linen blend with some pattern alterations.

And again, another original vintage pattern, this time for night wear. I will do a first version in the cute cotton poplin on the left, which is a left over from a baby coat and all going well I will do a second version in this satin(ish) fabric with some lace inserts. Probably not followed as it would be too boring.

I need more work shirts so will have another go at shirts with another Very EasyVogue in a lovely red cotton.

Disclaimer: The information printed here is correct at time of publishing. The writer holds right to change any project fabric or pattern, or add/ remove more projects to the list. ;)

My Sabrina Dress #3 - The first muslin

I have finished construction of the muslin/ toile for my sabrina dress and surprise, surprise? It's too big on the bodice. I read many times before that vintage patterns run smaller and because this one has my exact bust measurement I was hoping it would fit. But no. Alterations will be needed, especially as I intend to use to dress snug (unlike Audrey Hepburn in the movie, who uses it with a jumper underneath).
A couple of shots from the front. There is to much space on my bust and also on shoulders.

The dress has two pleats running from midriff to bust and the idea is to increase width to make it snugger. With the shoulders and neckline I'm not sure yet. I might just pinch around (like I did for the Crepe) and see what happens. What I will do for sure, is read my copy of Fit for Real People to see what I find that can be of help.
The back has to much ease as well. Pinch excess and remove?

The midriff sits nicely and the skirt as well. It will be longer that here.

What do you think? Any tips on this fitting?

It's a Zebra Wrap!

My Colette Zebra Crepe Wrap Dress done as part of Gerties Sew Along is done. I finished it about a week ago but have been waiting for some good(ish) weather to go out and take some photos. That hasn't happen so all you get for now is some indoor photos.

I am very happy with this dress and have Gertie to thank for all the tutorials and support. The final construction steps were not hazard free. I had to do some serious fudging after some pattern pieces not matching others but at the end it all came together nicely. It was all due to changing pattern pieces during the fitting stage so need to take extra care in future to make sure everything matches everywhere.
Gertie used french seams and bias binding but I decided against it as my fabric is a medium weight cotton. With the batiste as underlining, french seams would make it too bulky. I opted by pressing seams open and overlocking (with a overlocker foot). With the waist seam I also pressed it open and hand sewn some seam binding. I'll leave you with a shot from the inside. I think it's the first inside I really like (even though I can't seam to press the batiste properly).