lower your presser foot

Apologies for the blog silence around here lately, but I've just come back from an amazing few weeks in Japan so actually I'm not really sorry at all! It's my ten year wedding anniversary and my parents kindly offered to watch the kids while we went on holidays without them - so the holiday was doubly fantastic.

Japan was just amazing and overwhelming with inspiration - the architecture was a real highlight for us, not only the ultramodern skyscrapers that dominate the cities but also the beautiful and serene lines of the residential dwellings. The food was outstanding, the culture very interesting and I loved people watching for Japanese fashion, from the crazy and colourful young girls in Harajuku, to the head to toe designer labels in Ginza and the simple chic in Kyoto.

And of course I did a fair amount of fabric shopping!

I hadn't planned to buy much fabric given that my stash is already overloaded and the fabric prices in Japan are comparable to Australia, but the huge range and variety of beautiful fabrics in Japan that are not easily found here soon persuaded me to buy more that just one piece per city! I came to Japan travelling very lightly, with one small suitcase that was carry on size:

But left Japan with another bag filled with fabric (but still well under my luggage allowance so I should have bought more):

Fabric shopping in Tokyo

Of course I went to the Nippori Fabric Town in Tokyo, which is as exactly as everyone describes it: one really long street with so many shops it's impossible to go into each on one day only. We came here the first day we arrived but it turned out to be a public holiday, so we made a second trip at the end of our holiday the day before we left for home. In hindsight that turned out for the best, because by the end of the trip I had given up my commitment to only buying one piece per city and I ended up buying a lot more fabric than I intended!

There was an overwhelming number of stores to choose from, and in the end I only shopped at 3 stores, plus the fantastic 5 storey Tomato store. I was there on a Saturday morning and the ground floor where the beautiful Japanese linens, cute cottons and infamous 100 yen shelves was so packed with people that I couldn't get near the fabrics at all. But I purchased quite a few knit fabrics on the second floor, plus a few pieces and some cool zips from two other stores as well:

Fabric shopping in Kyoto and shibori dyeing

The hotel we stayed in Kyoto happened to be directly across the street from the main Nomura Tailor store, so I had to walk past this shop multiple times over 5 days and restrain myself! This is a three storey shop crammed with the most beautiful fabrics and notions, but I managed to restrict myself to only four pieces of Japanese linen, cotton and seersucker because at this point I was still committed to just buying a few pieces in each city. I am now sorry I didn't buy more!

Also in Kyoto I visited the tiny, hidden away courtyard shop of the Misuyabari needle shop, which I found really easily thanks to the numerous other bloggers who have visited there and posted very helpful directions (such as this and this). They had ultra cute decorative pins all handmade, and a huge range of needles too, but since I'm rather practical I bought a mini sewing box which contained a tiny pincushion, some thread, small snips and some needles in a timber box:

We also visited the Kyoto Shibori Museum, thanks to the recommendation of a friend from my ASG group. We were able to learn all about the art of shibori, which is a very labour intensive method of wrapping minute portions of silk with threads to do a very elegant form of tie dye. We did a class where we folded some pure white silk concertina style, clamped with blocks and then dyed multiple times in different coloured dyes. This is how my scarf turned out:

Fabric shopping in Hiroshima

I hadn't planned on doing any fabric shopping in Hiroshima because we were only there for a few days, but we arrived on a rainy afternoon and ended up doing a bit of window shopping in their department stores marvelling at the crazy and cute stuff for sale. I accidentally stumbled on the craft area of the Sogo Department store, which up on the 9th level had quite a large range of fabrics, both by the metre and pre cut lengths, as well as patterns, notions and other crafty items.

I only bought one piece of fabric and a pattern from here, because I was still restraining myself at this point:

Fabric shopping in Osaka

In Osaka I made a bee-line for the Nano Iro store, which again I found quite easily thanks to those helpful bloggers who post very detailed directions (such as this post). The showroom was quite sparse, with not a huge range of fabrics available for purchase but they were all very beautiful. The lovely sales assistants were quite interested and amused as to why I had travelled so far just to come to their shop! I bought one piece of fabric and a beautiful watercolour calendar which I then had to carry in my hands through 4 more cities because it didn't fit in my suitcase!

Overall I can highly recommend Japan as a travel destination. There's just so much for everyone - technology freaks, architecture buffs, foodies, culture vultures, shopaholics - you name it you can do it in Japan!

Luckily our return home has coincided with the arrival of hot weather here in Sydney, so I am very keen to start sewing at least a few of these fabrics (some of those knits will have to wait until next winter).

My latest Burda of the month project is slightly late, but I'm excusing myself since I had a good excuse what with being out of the country. And since my October issue still hasn't arrived, technically I'm still sewing from my current issue.

Anyway, enough justifying myself to no one in particular, here is my latest project:

Burda 9/2015 #122 referee shirt www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

In the magazine Burda calls this the referee shirt, pattern #122 from 9/2015, although on their website they specifically say to make it from a luxe fabric such as silk jersey and to wear with stilettos to avoid the referee look.

images via Burda Style

I've made mine from a pinstriped soft cotton shirting fabric that has been in the stash for quite a long time, so mine has more of a casual business vibe than a sporty look. But a lightweight summer shirt with sleeves and a collar is exactly what I need in summer for sun protection which is why I picked this pattern over the several lovely dress patterns in this issue.

Because my fabric isn't as drapey as the silk jersey used in the magazine and I don't particularly like the tunic look, I shortened this pattern quite a lot - about 12cm off the length of view A so that it doesn't look like I'm wearing a nightie. I did keep the curved hem, which is slightly shorter at the front than the back, which gives it a sporty vibe:

You can see that this shirt is a loose fitting style - there are no darts in the back at all but it was quite nice not to be obsessed with fitting my swayback for a change. I don't think it looks too bad from the back view:

I didn't have a white zipper in the stash which is why I've left it off, but I did discover that the top is too low cut not to have the bottom section at least closed up. So I just put a button and a loop part-way up to keep things decent looking.

I think my collar has turned out looking more like a sailor's uniform than a referee shirt though I think my past projects have shown that I'm not adverse to an oversized and sometimes ridiculous looking collar!

I also found the sleeves quite long, but instead of just chopping them off at the elbow I decided to turn it up and sew it into a cuff instead - I think it goes well with the casual vibe:

Overall this is a pretty easy pattern. I took a few shortcuts though - leaving off the zipper was one, but I also just turned the hem under and top-stitched instead of using fiddly binding strips. Confusingly, the pattern includes the seam allowance for the side seam and hem of the back pattern piece but not any others and then the instructions also say to include 1.5cm seam allowance at the slit edges of the back pieces! I can't explain why this is, but as usual with Burda it is usually best just to ignore the instructions and get on the best you can!

I don't know why it is, but with the beginning of each new season I feel like I have nothing to wear (which judging by my bulging wardrobe is obviously not true). Now that the weather has warmed up around here, I suddenly feel like all my dresses and skirts from last season are just dull and boring. So I decided on a quick fix by making a simple, pleated skirt:

vintage Vogue 7508 pleated skirt in navy blue print www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

This style of skirt hardly needs a pattern because it so simple, but since I have such a huge pattern stash I thought I should use it! So I pulled out Vogue 7508, which is from 1989 and is long OOP. It has that 1980s big is better attitude so I shortened it significantly to knee length. Midi-length skirts seem to be all the fashion at the moment, I just feel frumpy and swamped by fabric in them and I like to do my own thing anyway.

Even though it's a simple pattern, there are few clever features that made using it worthwhile. The skirt panels are a-line as well as gathered, and the pleats at the waist are slightly angled which gives the skirt a nice flare without being too puffy.

The side seams of the skirt have been moved around the front and are hidden beneath a pleat - so it you didn't pattern match very well no-one would be able to tell.

The pockets are also in the side seam (that is actually at the front), which means the pocket bags sit at the front under the pleats rather than disrupting the line down the side of the body:

The only thing I don't like is that the waistband is a straight band which on my body means it gapes open a bit (hence the belt). Unfortunately I didn't have enough fabric to cut a curved waistband though - despite having a 2m length of this fabric because this skirt sure uses up a lot of length! I think I will add some belt loops though, to help keep the belt in place.

The lack of fabric also means that I couldn't pattern match the centre back seam either, which is really bugging me now that I see these photos:

I might undo that centre back seam and lose a little bit of width to reposition the seam so I can avoid that annoying doubling up of the circle print down the centre back.

And since I seem to be in a nitpicking mood, I have to mention the annoying fabric. I bought this cotton sateen from Spotlight some time ago, probably during a sale so it's not cost I'm annoyed about. I've had this fabric in my stash for ages, just waiting for the right use because I really like the print. This fabric had a beautiful sheen and was a dark navy blue but after just one wash it faded terribly so I don't hold much hope for it having a long life in my wardrobe. But for now I really like it, and my wardrobe crisis is slightly alleviated!

DIY Addams Family halloween costume www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

Being relatively new to the world of celebrating Halloween, when it came to all us of needing a dress up costume this year for a party we were invited to I went down a tried and tested path and picked probably the most overdone Halloween costume ever - the Addams Family! Luckily it was quite a quick and easy costume to DIY.

For myself as Morticia Addams, I made a long, tight fitting dress from some black wool crepe I picked up in a garage sale a long time ago that had some mothball damage which I thought was quite appropriate. I made it from a 1989 Butterick pattern - once again my stash of 80s sewing patterns has come in handy!

The dress has a sweetheart neckline and I just made it extra long so I could cut the bottom of the dress below the knee into long trailing bits. I didn't have enough fabric to do similar sleeves, so I had to make do with some sheer sleeves instead. I accessorised with a long black wig, some false red fingernails, and loads of white face paint and black eye makeup.

My husband's Gomez Addams costume was super easy - he already had a pinstripe suit and black bow-tie, all we had to get was a stick on moustache and plastic cigar.

The kid's costumes were also pretty easy to do. I made Anna a simple a-line dress in plain black with a white collar, both from fabric in the stash. I put her hair in plaits, a bit of white face paint and black eyeshadow under the eyes and she was dressed too.

For Toby's costume I made a simple black and white stripe t-shirt using a Kwik Sew pattern from some ponte I had in the stash - funnily enough this is probably the best quality t-shirt in his wardrobe now! He just wore some RTW black cotton shorts, and a bit of hair gel to make his hair stick up and he was all dressed too.

And sadly I discovered that the real horror of Halloween happens the morning after if you drink a few too many cups of punch after a few too many champagnes! Waking up with a hangover, with false eyelashes hanging off your eyes, your face in a mess of white and black makeup and a splitting headache is a truly scary look......

Vogue 9625 pleated polka dot dress www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

A few weeks ago I received an email from Julia who runs Yulki's Home Decor asking if she could give me some beautiful Scandinavian fabric to use in any way I choose in return for mentioning her on-line store here on my blog. Would I? Of course! I love Scandinavian fabric as much as I love Japanese fabric - such vibrant colours and playful prints. It's not very often I do anything of a commercial nature on my blog since this is a hobby blog and not a business, but I think you'll all understand why I couldn't refuse the offer of some beautiful fabric.

Yulki's Home Decor is an on-line store based in Hobart in beautiful Tasmania, selling fabrics, tablecloths, cushions and offering curtain making services. Julia stocks a beautiful range of fabrics, which though on the pricier side are definitely very high quality and they are 150cm wide so you do get a lot of fabric per metre. Also, Julia does offer free postage with Australia which is a huge selling point for me when I'm doing on-line shopping. And my Swedish friends tell me that Marimekko and Spira fabrics are expensive in Sweden too, so I think Julia's prices are very competitive.

The hardest part of this offer was picking a fabric, because there were so many beautiful prints to choose from:

L to R: Marimekko, Spira, Marimekko& Spira

In the end I picked Mustard Vilma by Swedish Spira fabrics which is a 100% cotton with a weight similar to a heavy drill or canvas. I pre-washed in cold water and line dried, and there was only a small amount of shrinkage but thankfully no loss of colour at all unlike my recent disappointment with the navy blue cotton sateen. After washing the fabric softened quite a lot so it's the perfect weight for garment making.

The next hardest bit was picking a project - I think curtains from this fabric would look fabulous in my living room with it's white walls and dark timber floor. But I decided to go with a dress because I hate sewing curtains and because it's summer and a colourful dress is exactly what I need right now.

I chose to make a simple sun dress with a full skirt to show off the print to it's fullest advantage because it's a pretty large scale print. I used Vogue 9625 which is from 1998 and is now of course OOP. I've made this pattern once before in my pre-blogging days as well as making a few skirts so I knew it would fit without doing a muslin (or risk ruining this beautiful fabric). Luckily I had written on the pattern envelope that I needed to shorten the bodice by 2.5cm. I made view B, the red version, without sleeves:

The pattern has a side zip which normally I hate in a dress because I find the top of the zipper tape sticks into my underarm flesh in an irritating way but was perfect for this fabric because it saved me having to pattern match in the centre back. I left off the hook and eye at the top of the zipper though, because I can never seem to be able to do it up myself. The bodice is fully lined so the neckline and armhole seams are neatly finished:

The pattern has an inset waistband, which I cut on the waistband grain to make a feature of it and again to avoid having to pattern match (are you sensing a theme here?). It was only after I had finished the dress that I realised that I should have put some white piping in the waistband seams to make it stand out more, but I think it looks good enough not to worry about undoing it now!

The pattern is a simple box pleat skirt with a flat centre front and back, so it's not too puffy but still has a nice full skirt. The design of the pleats isn't as clever as the previous Vogue pleated skirt I made recently but this one certainly used up a lot less fabric than that skirt:

And after all my aversion to pattern matching, I think I did a pretty good job on the sides of the skirt even though the skirt pieces are cut in an a-line shape and the hem is dipped a bit - it sort of still lines up in a way although the ovals aren't exactly matched:

And you'll note I had to venture outside to take these photos despite my neighbours all having a good sticky beak because this dress just blended in too well with the wallpaper in my sewing room where I normally take my photos!

So overall, I love this dress and I particularly love this fabric. If you're in the market for some Scandinavian fabrics definitely check out Yulki's Home Decor and support an Australian business while you're filling your stash with lovely fabrics.

Ahhh, UFOs. As hard as I have tried in the last few years not to create any new ones, the sad reality is that sometimes I get frustrated by a project and then distracted by a new project. I started this jacket about two years ago, got a bit frustrated with some fit issues and put it down for a while. And then it got lost in the mess that was my sewing room, only to be rediscovered recently during a clean up. But now it's done, I'm relieved to have finished it but I'm a bit meh about it sadly.....

Burda 7286 white tailored jacket www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

The pattern is Burda 7286, which I bought two years ago and is already out of print. I think it's a lovely pattern, but there are no reviews on Pattern Review and I could only find one other finished jacket from this pattern so I guess it wasn't too popular.

Since it was a Burda pattern and I've sewn so many of them I felt pretty confident that it would work without the need for a muslin. I assume the envelope patterns are drafted the same as the magazine patterns because they are from the same company, but this jacket was very big around the shoulders and bust which was a bit annoying.

Looking at the pattern is looks like it is drafted with very square shoulders for shoulder pads which I despise, so I narrowed and re-sewed the shoulder seams to match my sloping shoulders. I put in a sleeve header and interfaced the sleeve head and shoulder area, but it still seems to collapse terribly and cause those awful wrinkles on the sleeves:

I quite like the front though - it has an inset collar which is probably my favourite style and I do like the curved fronts. I left off the patch pockets because and made faux welt pockets instead because I think that looks a bit more formal. However, those pockets are just the welts because I thought the pocket bag might show through too much - the fabric is a stretch cotton sateen that I have block interfaced with whisper weft interfacing but it still shows the seam lines through a little bit.

It is a very shaped jacket though, and looks far better done up than worn open:

The back is princess seam which gives a lot of opportunity for fitting. I thought it looked ok in the mirror, but I guess taking photos is more accurate than twisting your head around to look in the mirror! I can see from this photo that I have a bit of excess fabric at the waist:

Funnily enough it's a very similar style to another white jacket I made earlier this year from a vintage Vogue pattern, even down to the same button (it was a packet of two!). Since that version is made from a wool blend it's more a winter jacket so I think they can both stay in my wardrobe - I highly doubt anyone pays that much attention in real life to what I wear anyway!

So it probably seems I'm being a bit negative about this pattern but I like the jacket enough to wear it. The pattern came together very easily because these style of collars are far easier than a traditional notched collar style and as usual Burda's drafting is spot on - all the pieces and notches matched up exactly as they should. And being one of their envelope patterns there were actually some diagrams to help decipher their vague instructions which is a bonus!

So will I make it again? Yes probably, especially in a winter weight fabric because wool is so much easier to steam and mould into a well fitting jacket. Plus I found this gorgeous version on the Tessuti blog which has totally inspired me to do a better version next time.

I'm running a little behind on my Burda of the month project, but better late than never. The last few issues of the Burda magazine have been great and I've found it hard to pick a project because of too much choice, but I do love a cowl neck and so I couldn't go past this lovely cowl neck top with an interesting v-neck for this month's project. This is Burda 10/2015 #110:

Burda 10/2015 #110 sleeveless high neck blouse www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

image via Burda Style

Burda calls this their sleeveless high neck blouse, which is a good description because that cowl neck certainly sits quite high and doesn't drape low like most cowl necks. This is because it is actually cut like a funnel neck so that even though it drapes it does stick up:

I've made my version in a lightweight poly-linen in a glorious kelly green colour that I picked up for a few dollars at the Fabric Cave a few months ago - it came in a 4.5m length so expect to see some more things in this colour soon. The fabric had enough drape to make the neckline work, but it doesn't have any stretch at all. I found this pattern to be rather tight through the body even though I made my usual 34 at the bust grading out to 38 at the hip line, so I had to let out all the two vertical darts on the front and back to have enough wearing ease. Since they are released darts they really need to be deeper to form that pleat at the top but actually fitting into it was also necessary!

Speaking of fitting into to it, I tried out the tips that a few of you left in the comments recently about sewing in zips in the side seam by sewing down the first inch or so of the seam and then installing the zip so that the zipper doesn't finish under the arm. But doing this I found that I just couldn't get my arms into the top at all - I think this one is a bit too fitted around the bust to use this method. Now I need to decide how to close that top bit because I may have been a bit too lazy to undo the zip completely and move it up to the top of the seam!

I really like the back neckline of this pattern - the v-neck bands are extended from the front neckline. Thankfully this pattern has the illustrated instructions to help figure it out because it is a bit tricky figuring it out. Essentially the shoulder seam of the back needs to be sewn to the front at the shoulder seam, then you need to clip into the fabric and pivot to sew along the rest of the back band. It does make a neat finish on the shoulder seam:

Although I found getting the point at the back neckline a bit tricky to get it to sit flat - mine has a small bump but it's not too noticeable:

This back view really shows how odd fitting this top is on me - a bit too tight at the waist and a bit too loose above that causing that blousing out effect. I'll live with it on this version, but if I make this again I would change the fit to closed darts and add some more room around the waist so that it sits flat against my body. There is a centre back seam so it should make it easy to do a sway back adjustment too. Oh and ignore that annoying skirt waistband - the hook and eyes always pop open and I need to replace it with something more secure.

Lengthwise I found this top a little long and veering into frumpy territory:

But since this version is too tight to wear untucked anyway I left as is without cutting it any shorter, but it is something to keep in mind if you are planning to make this pattern.

And in case you're interested, I made this skirt way back in 2008 from a vintage Vogue pattern. It was actually the third blog post I ever wrote - back when my photos were terrible and my writing wasn't so great either! I recently found this skirt packed away in my refashion box, so I refreshed it by taking off the white band that I had sewn around the hem.

So overall I really like this pattern - the neckline is interesting and a nice feature. I found the instructions ok for a change, but I did have to read them through a few times to figure out that shoulder and centre back seams. If I make this top again, especially if I make the dress version (which is the same pattern just longer) I would make it a little wider through the waist and hips and change those released darts into normal darts to get a better fit.

Check out Two On Two Off and Sew Crafty Chemist for this pattern made up in knit fabrics, including the optional snood thingy that can be worn over the top.

I was recently invited by Two Blue Birdies, a Melbourne based fabric and haberdashery online store to try out their Stash Box. I was very happy to discover their haberdashery range - they sell Aurifil thread and Tulip Hiroshima fine sewing needles, which in a recent workshop I did on fine sewing techniques the instructor highly recommended using Aurifil thread and good quality needles. Plus they also sell uber cool Merchant & Mills sewing patterns and tools.

The Stash Box is an interesting concept. Each month you will receive a box of sewing and craft related goodies in the mail - you don't know what is in until it arrives which only adds to the excitement, and it sure beats only getting boring bills! It was pretty exciting opening the box to reveal this:

It's essentially a subscription service and you can choose between the Big Stash Box for $49.95/month; The Stash or the Felt Stash both for $34.95/m. You can cancel the subscription at any time which is useful if you find yourself getting behind on your creating and your Stash Boxes piling up unused. You can also buy single boxes of previous months directly from their online store if there are any left over which is a great way to try this out without any commitment.

The contents are pretty cute and useful:

There are 4 fat quarters, some cute flower buttons and pom pom trim, a sewing pattern for a stuffed toy, two pieces of felt, a fabric marker and two spools of Aurifill thread.

I must admit, as a garment sewer I'm a little perplexed about what to make with a fat quarter! Since I'm not into quilting at all, the pieces seem a little small to make anything useful although I am determined to do something with them because the fabrics have such lovely prints and vibrant colours. The fabric marker, threads, pom pom trim and buttons will definitely get used in the very near future though - those sorts of things are always handy to have, and my daughter has already been planning a dress for herself using those buttons and pom pom trim.

My verdict: I think it's a great concept, receiving a mystery box in the mail each month that will be filled with great crafty things is exciting and might give you inspiration to create at least one project a month. But as a garment sewer I'm not sure it's entirely my thing given it's focus on craft patterns and small pieces of fabric - I would prefer to buy the specific haberdashery items I need from them directly. However, if your sewing is mainly focused on crafty things and quilts then I think this box might suit you to a tee. It would also make a great present for a crafty friend - the gift that keeps on giving (for the life of the subscription anyway)!

I've always been rather jealous of those bloggers who can think up witty titles for their posts or give their latest project a cute/twee/funny/appropriate name. Sadly I lack that skill, and my posts are generally a literal description of the pattern name - this one is no different! It's a Burda pattern, made from fabric with what looks like a bird of paradise flower print on it.

This dress is made from Burda 3/2013 #110, which was my Burda of the month project way back in March 2013:

Burda 3/2013 #110 floral dress www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

Burda 3/2013 #110 blue dress with ribbons www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

My previous version above was very much copied from the Burda version, right down to the colour of the fabric and the ribbon embellishments! This time I opted to keep it simple because the fabric itself is pretty vibrant and I only added some navy blue ribbon around the waist seam. Because I've made this pattern before and the blue dress still fits, I was able to whip this version out mostly in one evening, finishing the hem in the morning just before going to work so I could wear it that day to my team Christmas lunch. Of course I could have worn something I already owned, but there's nothing like a new dress to make me feel suitably celebratory.

With such a busy print I didn't bother trying to pattern match at any of the seams, so you can see the back and the sides do not match up at all. Normally this would really bother me, especially since at the centre back there is a duplicate of the print, but as you all repeatedly point out whenever I am critical of my projects - no one notices these things at all. So I'm not worrying about it at all.

If I do make this again, which I probably will since it's a simple and classic shape I will raise the neckline a little. It's not scandalously low as it is, but it does sit a little too wide on my shoulders and my bra strap tends to poke out. But otherwise this pattern is great - it's very simple to make, the skirt has a gentle a-line shape to it so it doesn't need a walking vent at the back and I quite like those angled darts (although the front bodice darts probably finish a little high on my bust point which I should change for the next version).

If you're wondering about the fabric, it's a stretch cotton that I bought from a new to me on-line store based in Melbourne - Janie's Fabric - which I discovered thanks to the ladies who post in the sewing down under thread over at Pattern Review. The fabrics are quite cheap (this one is $6.99/m and it's 148cm wide) so I was pretty sceptical about the quality of the fabrics.

I was pleasantly surprised when my parcel arrived - in addition to this floral stretch cotton I also bought a vibrant voile, a cotton jersey, a rayon jersey and a poly satin and all are really high quality with only the poly satin feeling a bit plasticky (which is to be expected really!). Postage is free if you spend $100 and my purchase arrived really quickly so all around it was a good shopping experience. If you're on a fabric stash diet I'd suggest not looking at this site at all - you'll be tempted I'm sure.

So, only 9 days to Christmas now - once again this year has just flown by. We are staying home this year so I'm feeling remarkably calm about it all, although I still have a few things I want to sew before Christmas day so no doubt I'll end up running around like crazy anyway!

Hi everyone, hope you've all had a relaxing holiday period. I'm happily still on holidays from work, and for the first time in many many years we have stayed home this year instead of leaving at the crack of dawn on Boxing Day for 2 weeks in Queensland visiting the in-laws. It's quite nice actually to have time at home with no particular plans each day. I have been sewing too - finishing up two Burda of the month projects and taking stock of UFOs that I'm planning to finish next year.

But first to blog about the few Christmas presents I made for the kids this year. I didn't want to put any pressure on myself this year so I chose to only make a few things which turned out to be surprisingly easy and quick to make. I had these made and wrapped a few days before Christmas eve - no last minute finishing and midnight wrapping for me this year!

Since Anna has had a huge growth spurt this year, a new skirt of decent length was desperately needed. I made her a skirt from an old Burda magazine - 1/2008 #135, in a bright blue ikat print cotton from the stash purchased a few too many years ago to remember exactly where from:

burda 1/2008 #135 girls pleated skirt www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

I changed it slightly by using two ribbons around the waist instead of one wide one, mainly because I didn't have any wide ribbon in the stash but also because I thought it looked kind of cute. The ribbon is supposed to go under the pleats through button holes (i.e. between the skirt and the waistband facing), but somehow I did the spacing wrong and the two centre ones are hidden under the bow. Still works though, so I'm leaving it this way:

Her dad is very pleased to see her wearing a skirt of appropriate length and Anna seems to like it as well, so a win all around.

I also made two singlet style dresses for Anna, self drafted by tracing around one of her RTW singlets that fit quite well. One is made maxi length and one is knee length, and since both are made in knit fabrics sewn on the overlocker except for topstitching the hems it took a little over an hour to make both. The purple gingham knit is from The Fabric Store and I used a plain white cotton knit for contrasting bands, and the stripe knit is part of my recent purchase from Janie's Fabrics.

stripe girl singlet dress www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

girls singlet maxi dress www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

purple gingham girl singlet dress www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

I didn't forget Toby either, although this shirt is a few months late. You see I bought this very cute robot print cotton poplin from Spotlight back in March to make Toby a birthday shirt but then never got around to it (second child syndrome....). I have no excuses for not making this earlier, it seriously took me two hours but better late than never!

Simplicity 2907 boy shirt in robot print www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

I used snaps down the centre front instead of buttons, mainly because I didn't have any orange buttons but also to help Toby dress himself since he's decided to do everything himself these days.

I made it from Simplicity 2907, which is a pattern I've used before and so have loads of other bloggers - it's a simple but cute pattern which includes a shirt, vest and cargo shorts for boys and a shirt dress for girls. I made a size 3, expecting the usual excessive ease from Simplicity but this actually turned out to be a snug fit. Lucky it's his birthday in a few months and I'll have a reason to make another one!

Happy new year everyone - thanks for reading along with my sewing adventures this year. Here's to another happy, productive and creative sewing year next year!

Apologies for the blog silence - we've been away on a holiday and then had house guests which left me little time to sew or blog. I managed to finish my December Burda project just after Christmas day and then managed to ruin my November Burda project on the morning of the 31st so I guess that counts in last year's tally, right?

I really liked the patterns in both the November and December issues, but since they are all winter clothes and it's so hot here at the moment I always struggle to make something - I just can't bring myself to handle wintery wool fabrics when I'm feeling hot and sweaty. I definitely plan to resist these issues when the weather cools down around here though, because there are some lovely tops in there.

Let's start with the good project first. I made this lightweight summery shirt dress style from Burda 12/2015 #121:

Burda 12/2015 #121 gingham shirt dress www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

In the magazine this dress is made from a silk, with long sleeves but I made mine with with shorter sleeves finished with elastic so I could scrunch them up higher when need be. The fabric I used is a lightweight polished cotton in a check pattern (it's not actually gingham) which is very badly off grain. I tried all I could to straighten it which didn't work, but I figured that using a contrast band meant that the patterns didn't need to match, and the loose style cinched in with a belt would disguise it somewhat.

This is a very loose style without any shaping to it at all. Without the belt, it sort of looks like a nightgown:

It definitely needs a belt to give it shape:

I didn't have very high expectations from this dress given it's a style quite unlike what I usually make, but I've worn it a few times during the last two weeks and it's been great for the hot weather. I didn't make any changes to the pattern, although I left off the patch pockets at the front because it looked a little too heavy in the contrasting black fabric but too disjointed in the checked fabric. It was pretty simple to make, and I can highly recommend this pattern if you use a lightweight, drapey fabric.

I did have high hopes for my November Burda project - I wanted to make a light, floaty top to wear to a New Year's Eve party but of course when I am rushing to make a project for a specific occasion it always goes wrong somehow. I used Burda 11/2015 #108:

Burda 11/2015 #108 lace top www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

Instead of lace I used a crinkly polyester chiffon that has been in the stash for a very long time and was originally bought from an op shop so no great loss that it didn't turn out well. I started out making this properly, using French seams with was tedious with all those seams and the slippery fabric that wouldn't hold a press. It turned out that the top was too tight under my arms (not discovered until all the seams were sewn and the sleeves set in) which is not something I generally experience with Burda patterns. I couldn't bear the thought of unpicking all those seams in chiffon, so I decided just to finish the top to put it in the donation pile.

But a bit of careless overlocking while attaching the collar completely ruined it - the collar band folded up and got caught in the stitching as well as cutting it beyond repair:

So this top ended up in the bin after all. But for the record this is how it looked:

There were a few things I didn't like about this pattern anyway. The pattern is the same as pattern #109 which was sleeves with ties so it has a two piece sleeve - totally unnecessary if you aren't making the tie end version and would be much better if it had a one piece sleeve instead. I also don't like the centre front seam - lots of Burda patterns have keyhole necklines with either facings or plackets which would have been preferable.

And in case you're wondering, finishing these two projects does not mean that I finished my Burda challenge for 2015 - my May project is still in pieces after I pulled it apart to fix some fitting issues. My one and only sewing resolution for this year is to complete at least 10 UFOs this year (trust me, there are more than 10!), so I plan on finishing that one soon.

There I go again with the most literal and most boring blog post title ever!

Before I get into that I must apologise for being a bad blogger - I haven't gotten around to responding to comments I received on my last post as yet. Plus, an email I received just recently from a lovely reader named Hannah who has bought an Orange Viking 3600 Husqvarna sewing machine just like this one I blogged about back in 2013 made me realise that people are commenting on some of my older posts but I'm not getting email notifications of them via blogger and hence I had no idea. So my apologies to anyone who has posted a comment on an older post of mine and I didn't respond - if you're still reading I promise you I didn't mean to ignore you.

Ok, so on to this vintage pattern giveaway. I've been extremely busy these last few weeks and it has been super super hot so I haven't been doing much sewing at all, but I've reacted in that classic way of "if not sewing then buy sewing related stuff"! Admittedly the patterns and few pieces of fabric I bought in the last two weeks were from an op shop, but stash addition is still stash addition regardless of where it comes from.

I bought a big box of patterns of mixed vintage (1950s-1990s) for the happy price of $10, which ended up having a few patterns that I already owned. In the interest of managing my pattern collection, and sharing the love around I'm offering these patterns to any reader who would like them (happy to post internationally).

First up is Simplicity 4930, undated but probably early 1960s sundress and jacket pattern. It's for a size 14 - bust 34", waist 26" and hips 36". The envelope is a little battered but the instructions and pattern pieces are ok. I actually made a dress from this pattern back in 2010 in an aqua/white stripe cotton which I still wear quite a lot, especially in this hot weather, so I can attest to this pattern being simple to make and just lovely.

Simplicity 4930 vintage sundress www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

Next is Simplicity 2080, which even if you don't intend making it up is worth having just for the very cool cover art! It's also undated but again I think it's probably 1960s. It's described as a men's beach set - a raglan shirt pattern and swim shorts. The medium size is chest 38-40" and waist 34-36".

Simplicity 2080 vintage mens beach clothes www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

Lastly, there is Simplicity 7189, which is a 1978 skirt pattern with three variations: 1) a pleated front, 2) top stitched details and 3) a wrap skirt with waist band ties and gloriously oversized patch pockets. It's a size 12, which will fit a waist of 67cm/26.5" and hip 92cm/36". The wrap skirt version looks very much like a certain indie pattern released in recent years - why pay big $$ for the indie version when you can have the original design?

Simplicity 7189 vintage skirt www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

In case you think I'm doing this purely because I am a lovely person - I do have an ulterior motive and I will make you work for it! In the comments please tell me what iron you're using and whether it's any good. I am in the market for a steam station irons, mainly because my iron seems to need refilling with water every two minutes but also because I have weak wrists and lifting a heavy iron is just no good for me.

At the moment I'm leaning towards either the Philips PerfectCare Viva which has good reviews and is on sale at the moment, or the Tefal Effective Easy Steam Generator which also has good reviews and I've had great experiences with Tefal irons in the past. Both have large water tanks, long cords and are light which are my main criteria.

Tefal and Phillips steam station iron www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

Even if you don't want one of these patterns, feel free to leave a comment - it's a great opportunity to rant about a leaking iron ruining a beautiful nearly finished project to people who will sympathise, or to boast about your bulletproof iron that has withstood your cheeky cat knocking it to the floor to get your attention!

Please tell me in your comment which pattern you'd like - if there is more than one request per pattern I'll do a random draw next Monday.

And thank you all in advance for what I know will be your very helpful comments.

Thank you to everyone who has left a comment on the last post - I really appreciate all the good advice. Who would have thought that we'd have so much to say about irons?!

I've got my Burda challenge off to a good start this year - not only have I made a project from the January issue in the actual month of January, but I really love how it has turned out and I used a long term stash resident. All round winner in my books. I made jacket 1/2016 #120 which has turned out like this:

Burda 1/2016 #120 tailored yellow jacket www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

It looks very different from the pattern in the magazine, mainly because Burda has made their version in a fake fur:

image via Burda Style

I've made mine in a thick textured cotton that originally came from my grandmother's stash so it could be many many decades old. But it's such a cheerful colour, and the fabric has a nice thick weight to it so I just knew it would be perfect for a boxy jacket like this.

Except, I don't do boxy very well. I couldn't help myself, I had to shape this jacket by taking in the side seams a little and adding two vertical darts to the back:

There is still a little too much fabric there in the back view, especially around the armscye, which if I had made a muslin version I would have resolved but of course I didn't make one so I'm just going to live with this:

The other change I made was to draft a neck and front facing from the lining pattern. The pattern suggests using a poplin fabric as the inner fabric and lining to the edge, which probably works ok when using a thick fabric like a fake fur. But I think a tailored jacket made with a jacket weight fabric looks better with self fabric facings because it prevents the lining peeking out and it sits better as well.

I was super short on both lining fabric and the outer fabric for this project. As you can see in the photo above, the sleeve lining is only half the sleeve purely because I didn't have enough yellow lining to make a full sleeve length and nor did I have any other light coloured lining fabric on hand for the sleeves. It's a bit slip shod, but it works and I've tacked it down to the seam allowance so it will stay in place.

I also just managed to eek out the sleeves of the outer fabric by placing the sleeve end on the selvedge of the fabric with no fabric to turn up for the hem. Originally I thought I would just make this a bracelet length sleeve, but it finishes as just the right spot on me so I've left it unhemmed. For the seam allowances of the sleeve I turned the raw edges under and slipstitched them down, so it's quite a neat finish. Again, it's a bit of a dodgy solution but it works!

The pattern calls for a snap to be placed there at the centre front of the jacket. This fabric was too thick to make a covered snap, and nor did I have any big enough in my stash but I did have a hook and bar salvaged from a RTW garment some time ago. This is one of those that instead of sewing on you just push the ends through the fabric and use some pliers to squeeze the ends closed. Except I squeezed a little too hard with my pliers and the bar got a little bent as you can see below! (Ignore the colour of this photo, the yellow turned out all shades wrong in this picture for some reason).

I do like the discreet look of the hook and bar though - it's hardly visible at all when the jacket is worn open, and it looks very polished not having any visible stitches.

As you can see in the photos above, I used some canvas interfacing across the back and part fronts, as well as a lightweight whisper weft iron on interfacing at the top of the sleeve. The thickness of the fabric along with the interfacing has made a beautiful shoulder cap, with no collapsing at all which is a look that I absolutely hate. So happy with how this one turned out:

I've seen lots of collarless jackets with pointed front lapels in the stores recently, including the one below left in Trenery which originally retailed for $299, so I was very happy to see that Burda had included one in the January issue. The yellow colour came from an inspiration image I recently pinned from Table Eight - I'm quite glad that I finally used Pinterest for a real, actual use!

left: Trenery Jacket, right: Table Eight jacket

So overall, I love this jacket immensely. It's very simple to make and doesn't use a great deal of fabric - I eked it out of 1.2m fabric but I did have to cut a few corners to make it work. For the next version (and yes, there defintely will be one) I will work on that excess fabric at the back, possibly by putting in a centre back seam instead of the darts and reshaping the armscye. I would also narrow the sleeves somewhat as you can see in the photo above that they are quite wide. But apart from these minor fitting changes it is a great pattern that I can recommend if you're after something simple.

Good luck to all of you doing a Burda challenge this year or those thinking about doing one - there were quite a few good patterns in this issue that should make it easier to choose, including this gorgeous vintage dress, this cute draped jersey skirt and this interesting double layer top.

Check out the evil stare that the illustrated lady is giving the real life lady on that pattern envelope! Nothing to do with anything, but I thought it was quite funny and worth sharing.

So the winner of the pattern give-away is.....well, the winner is actually me and anyone else who ever thought about irons - so much good advice! Thanks to everyone that pitched in with their experience, it is all very useful. I haven't actually made a decision yet, because I plan to go into the store and actually handle the irons as Jessica Malcolm suggested, instead of just relying on technical data and reviews. I'm still tossing up between the Philips or Tefal though, because the Laurastar irons are a bit out of my budget and I don't think the Rowenta irons or Maytag are sold in Australia. I am leaning towards the Tefal though, because like a few of you I have dropped my current one several times and it is still working.

Also, I love how Sofie M and Heber were having a running conversation in the comments about the iron Heber received from her boyfriend - too funny! And thanks to Melissa Lee for answering the question about which pattern I was referring to when I said there was a modern copy of the 70s wrap skirt pattern - I was trying to be diplomatic and not name any names!

Ok, so on to the pattern giveaway. I separated all the commenters into three groups depending on which (if any pattern) they nominated, and then did a random number generator to pick the winners. The names that came up are:

Simplicity 4930 Sundress Pattern - Tina Briggs
Simplicity 2080 mens swimwear pattern - Jessica Malcolm
Simplicity 7189 skirt pattern - jjuzzy

If you could all email me at KristyLChan@outlook.com with your postal addresses, I'll get them out to you shortly.

A big thanks too to Melissa Zillman who not only very kindly emailed me with advice on the Philips iron but even attached photos of the spluttering marks left on her jeans after ironing - I so hate it when that happen.

And a special mention goes to Mike Dunlap - I think you are my first male commentator ever!

Vogue 2783 panelled dress www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

After having Vogue 2783 in my pattern collection for many years unused, I've now made this pattern three times in last few years. I don't know why I left it so long before I used it in the first place, because it really is a great looking dress. It's now OOP, but it is available through some Etsy and Ebay sellers.

ogue 2783 DKNY panelled dress pattern www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

The first version I made in 2013 (posted here) is made from a floral cotton sateen with dark blue piping. The second version I made in 2014 (posted here) is from a cotton/linen in a graphic print with white piping, and little cap sleeves. For the third version I chose to keep the cap sleeves but not to use any piping, and instead use contrasting fabrics. All three dresses look quite different don't they?

How funny that since 2013 my hair has gotten shorter and my hemlines have gotten longer!

The fabric I've used in this version is a printed cotton drill I bought late last year from Tessuti, and cotton sateen in black and white bought from The Remnant Warehouse recently (and specifically for this project). I bought two metres of the print cotton drill planning to make an entire dress from it, but I think it looks more striking mixed up in this way. Plus now I have some fabric left over to make something else since this didn't use much - bonus!

After suffering quite a bit of disappointment lately with cotton sateen (wrinkly, sagging out or losing it's dye easily), I have to say that the quality of the cotton sateen from the Remnant Warehouse is great. It's about the same price as that from Spotlight but it's much thicker, hardly wrinkled after a day of wear and didn't lose it's sheen after a wash. I don't know if it will stretch out because this isn't a fitted dress, but I bought several metres of the black intending to make some pants, so I guess I'll find out soon enough!

Construction wise there isn't too much to say - the pattern runs terribly large, but I had already made changes to the pattern from the previous two versions so I was able to sew this up quickly. Instead of piping around the neckline I used bias tape to finish the neckline and armholes, and as you can see in the photo above I used white thread on the white portion and black thread on the black portion for the topstitching - how is that for attention to detail?

The back is pretty much the same as the front in terms of fabric placement. I didn't even attempt to pattern match along the centre back seam, because I figured this print is small and busy enough that it wouldn't be noticeable:

I do like the fit on this dress, but if you are planning to make this pattern just beware you'll have to take it in a lot to get a close fit. Despite my measurements indicating I should make a size 12, I use a size 6 pattern and still have shaved a few centimetres off each pattern piece above the waist.

I also chose not to make the matching belt, because without a waist seam I don't think it really needs to be worn with a belt. I also left off the bottom band because I would need to significantly shorten the dress and I thought it would interfere with the strong vertical lines of the dress. Keeping it simple I think is more effective with this pattern mixing instead.

So overall, I really like this dress and if you have this pattern I can highly recommend making it. But after three versions, and with so many other dress patterns in my collection I think this one may be the last.

Today's post is brought to you by heat wave conditions here in Sydney, a winter-ish issue of Burda and scratchy polyester fabric - in other words I have suffered for the sake of this post. However it was worth it to record the fact that I've made my February Burda of the month project in the month of February - that's 2 out of 2 this year so far, yay for me!

Burda 2/2016 #118 short sleeve raglan top in neon yellow and pink fabric www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

I found this to be another great, with several patterns I liked. I ended up choosing to make 2/2016 #118, a raglan sleeve top with a stand up collar although unfortunately I did not have fabric nearly as cool as the perforated metallic high tech fabric used by Burda:

Burda 2/2016 #118 short sleeve raglan top www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

Image via Burda Style

My fabric is pretty cool in terms of colour though - neon yellow and pink, with sprinkles of blue and orange for good measure. It has a tweed like texture, although it's only a print and not a woven. I recall this fabric popping up on a few Australian bloggers in recent years, including this dress by Top Notch from 2014, so when I spied it on the clearance table at Spotlight recently for the princely sum of $4/m I snapped up a few metres for myself.

The colour may be great, however the feel and texture is not so great. It's polyester/spandex, and it feels a bit like plastic bags woven together - a bit coarse and stiff but with four way stretch. However the stiffness was perfect for this style, as fabric with some body is required to make the collar stand up properly and not collapse. The collar is a straight piece cut on the bias and folded in half. I couldn't add any interfacing because some stretch is needed to ease the collar to the neckline, but luckily this fabric was stiff enough to work without interfacing.

It is quite a boxy shape, and I was tempted to shape it more which would have be easy with all those vertical seam lines but I left it as is instead. I generally make forward shoulder adjustments in all my tops and jackets but I wasn't exactly sure how to do that in a raglan sleeve with a collar like this, and you can see in the photo below that the top pushes to the back a bit and the hem at the front rises:

Because the collar is so wide it doesn't feel like it is pushing against my neck and is comfortable enough to wear. Overall I quite like how this top has turned out. The hem finishes at my high hip and the sleeves just above my elbow, which is perfect for a casual look with skinny pants:

Overall, another great pattern from Burda. It was very quick and easy to make because it's just a simple raglan top, but I think those seam lines and the stand up collar make it a little bit different. Now if only I could find a fabric like the one used by Burda, I would make another version of this top in a jiffy!

At the start of spring last year I pulled out a few fabrics that had been sitting in the stash for a while that I really wanted to use and left them on my cutting table, in the hopes that looking at them all the time would prompt me to make something. Well that didn't work because I ended up using any fabrics other than those I had picked out especially to use, and all it meant was that my cutting table was cluttered! But finally I've used one of the fabrics to make this dress:

vintage Butterick 6473 red white graphic print wiggle dress www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

The fabric is a printed cotton sateen bought from Spotlight a few years ago when their sateen was still quite thick and stretchy. I had originally planned to make a simple sheath dress from New Look 6968 because I've made it several times successfully (here, here and here) but also because this exact fabric appears on the pattern envelope - yes I am way too influenced by the pattern...

But instead I decided to use a vintage that I've had in the stash for a while now. I can't remember quite where it came from but most likely picked up from an op shop. The pattern is undated, but the vintage pattern Wiki places it at 1953:

I have been wanting to make this pattern for a long time but could never quite decide on the right fabric. I don't think I've used the right fabric in this version though, because even though the cotton sateen has the right amount of body and stretch to make it fit really well the busy print hides those special details. I think I will make this again in a solid colour, perhaps with a contrast collar and pocket to make those details stand out.

You can see below that the pocket flap is hardly visible:

butterick 6473 vintage wing collar wiggle dress in red and white www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

But, oh that collar! I do love an oversized, dramatic collar:

I also left off those buttons down the side. It is a key feature of this dress and I think it would look amazing in a solid colour, but the buttons would be completely lost on this dress so I just put in an invisible zip instead:

This dress wasn't that easy to make and it took longer than I expected. While there wasn't any particularly tricky sewing involved, just figuring out the pattern took a lot of concentration. It's one of those very old patterns that have no printed instructions, but rather perforated dots of various sizes that you need to connect and figure out the connections. And for all my complaints about the brevity of Burda instructions, this pattern is just as bad. One page of instructions, and one page of fabric cutting layouts and then you're on your own to muddle your way through.

The pattern incorporates an extension to the left side of the bodice and the skirt that gets folded under to form a facing for the buttons which I didn't need since I just used an invisible zip. Which meant I had to cut a few inches from the side seams and sew the side seams a few times to get a close fit, but got there in the end. No swayback puddle of fabric and only a few wrinkles emanating from the armpit which is to be expected with cut on sleeves like these.

The skirt isn't as slim fitting as the pattern illustration suggests, in fact it is rather an a-line shape as you can see in the photo below. However that is a good thing, because there is enough room to walk comfortably in this dress without having to leave a split open along a side seam:

Overall I'm really pleased with this project. Not only did I use a fabric and a pattern that I've been meaning to use for a long time now, but I also got a very cool dress that is perfect for the still very hot summer weather we're having. And in a great coincidence there happens to be a red dress contest running over at Pattern Review that I will enter, if any of you would like to vote for me!

A few of my work colleagues know that I sew my own clothes, so I often get comments from them like: "did you make that? Looks great". But it's not often that random strangers ever ask or compliment me on something I'm wearing - I am told by my friends that I posses an excellent resting bitch face, so I guess I don't encourage interaction! But I've worn this outfit twice in the last two weeks and both times some has complimented me on the skirt. I guess I stand out in a sea of sensible clothes maybe?

Burda 8/2016 #120 black drape top green plaid skirt www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

The skirt fabric is a lightweight wool fabric bought from the Fabric Cave late last year when I was dropping off a donation of fabric. There was almost 3 metres of it for the bargain price of $8, so I have plenty left to make something else. Maybe a matching jacket so I'll have the perfect outfit for next St Patrick's Day.....

The skirt is nothing special, just a simple lined pencil skirt with a kick pleat at the back which I made from an old Vogue Michael Kors wardrobe pattern that is now OOP (1826), from which I've made the shell top pattern many many times. The skirt has no waistband, but I've used cotton tape around the waistband in between the fashion fabric and the lining fabric which is stretched slightly to make the waistband hug my body. I don't find this overly comfortable because I'm used to wearing clothes slung low around the hips, but this method certainly stops a pencil skirt swivelling around whilst walking in it. I have to thank my sewing friend Sharon (this post at her blog Petite and Sewing) for this tip - until she explained it to me I had only used the tape to stop the waistband from stretching out, not for shrinking it slightly.

I don't have anything to report on about the skirt - for an excellent run down on how to make a perfect lined skirt have a look at this three part series by Kyle over at Vacuuming the Lawn. She covers everything you need to know. But I do need to proudly show my superb pattern matching at the sides and back:

The top is Burda 8/2015 #120, which was my Burda of the month project in September last year (posted here). At that time I made in a horrible fabric that wrinkled and puckered terribly but despite that I really liked the pattern. This time it's made from a long term stash resident - a drapey fabric of mysterious composition, most likely 100% polyester with a textured surface finish similar to crepe.

This fabric didn't press very well, but it does drape beautifully. I finished the edge of the fabric fold on the front with a rolled edge on my overlocker instead of a narrow edge, which helps it fold nicely. Of course being black you can barely see anything, so you'll have to take my word that it looks just the like pattern above.

I also remembered to make the opening at the back neckline slightly longer than the pattern allows for - it just makes it easier to get it over my head which I'm beginning to think must be bigger than the standard Burda model sized head since this frequently occurs with my Burda projects!

So overall, two simple projects but together they make quite an impact thanks to the fabric. Reviewing my projects so far this year it seems I've had quite a colourful start to this year, must be the crazy heat we're having affecting my fabric choices!

I am absolutely killing my Burda challenge this year - three projects made from the magazines in the month of their issue and I like them all (so far, I could be tempting fate by typing this though!). My blogging not so much though, I just can't seem to find the words when I sit down to do a post, but here we go.

Burda 3/2016 #125 black and white stripe dress with full skirt www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

Despite this issue being full of bridal clothes and children's holy communion outfits (neither of which I have any use for at the moment), there were a few patterns in this issue I really liked. For this project I went with 3/2016 #125 which is described as a retro cocktail dress, and is part of the bridal collection as a bridesmaids dress.

Image via Burda Style

I made it less "cocktail party" and more "day dress suitable for work" by making it in a linen/cotton blend I bought last December from the Remnant Warehouse, and I used a piece of cotton sateen for the collar for contrast. The lines are irregular, which I figured meant I could get away with minimal pattern matching!

However, because of my fabric choice those seam lines at the back and the princess seams on the front are barely visible at all. Which is a pity because I really like how the seams on the bodice line up with the pleats on the skirt - I love that sort of symmetry:

The Burda recommended materials are "thick dress material with stand" which I assume means materials with some body. Their version though looks to be made from a draped, shiny fabric with no body given the way it hangs and the collar droops. However my fabric had enough thickness for the skirt to get a fullness about it without being too costume-y:

The skirt has an inverted box pleat at the centre front, and then some deep pleats at either side on the front and the back, so there's quite a lot of material. I've sewn the pleats down for about 10cm from the waistline so it's a trim fit around the waist before flaring out.

I'm not prone to twirling myself, but if that's your thing then this is the pattern for you:

I used a cotton sateen which was interfaced for the collar so that it would stand up, in a plain black colour for a bit of contrast. The collar is literally a long narrow rectangle cut on the straight grain, so it's not designed to curve but to stand up. It does feel like it is gaping wide open (which it is), so it is taking a little bit to get used to when I'm wearing it.

As usual the Burda instructions are hugely confusing and I mostly ignored them for the sake of my sanity. The bodice is intended to be fully lined, and it seems the instructions are suggesting sewing the invisible zip on top of the fabric and lining all the way to the top edge of the collar which would mean the zipper tape is visible. I chose not to line my bodice since my fabric is quite substantial, and I sewed the zipper to the top of the dress and used a hook and eye to keep the collar together instead. The zipper and collar looks messy on the inside, but it's ok from the outside and that's all that counts. I drafted some facings for the sleeve edges which are just hand sewn down - I couldn't just use bias tape because the sleeve edge has a distinctive L shape to it.

The dress looks ok worn without a belt, I just think it looked a little blah without any colour or waist definition:

So overall I really like this pattern, but I do find the bodice to be a little big. I had to grade down from a size from a size 36 and it still feels roomy which I thought was just my dodgy grading skills (which they are) but I can see from the Burda version that even on the model it looks too big with a bit of gathering across the front. I think it's also drafted a little high waisted which suited me because I usually shorten my bodices by 1.5cm but this one sat just right without any changes. Just a few things to be aware of if you are intending to try this pattern - but otherwise I can highly recommend this pattern.

Thankfully we are having a very warm start to our Autumn, so I'm sure I'll get a few wears from this dress before it's time to get out the winter gear.

The Australian Sewing Guild is once again running a competition called 'Castaway to Couture' which requires entrants to refashion an existing garment into something new. The first prize is a Brother embroidery sewing machine, so if you are an Australian or New Zealand sewer you should definitely consider entering - you've still got until the 31st May so plenty of time. And if you're not going to enter yourself, well then - you should vote for me!!

I don't often bother with refashions since I have such a huge stash and refashions generally take much more time and effort, but the competition was enough incentive for me to finally getting around to doing something with this wool skirt I bought at a garage sale a few years ago for $5. This is what I came up with:

New Look 6968 grey fitted sheath dress skirt makeover www.loweryourpresserfoot.blogspot.com

I've wanted to do something with this skirt for a long time because the fabric is so lovely. This is an Adam Bennett number, probably from the 1980s, and is made from pure wool. It was deeply pleated , but on me was too big and too long. It was really heavy too, due to how much material was in it.

Originally I planned to keep it as a skirt and make it smaller to fit, but I couldn't just chop a bit off the bottom because it would lose the proportions of the stripes, and I couldn't just take it in at the sides either because it was just one long piece with just one side seam.

The first thing that was required to was to get rid of those pleats. What a lot of work that was! If I didn't like this fabric so much I would have given up and just used one of the many perfectly good pieces of fabric in my collection.

I washed and soaked the fabric many times, and I pressed and pressed and pressed. I used the method Claire Schaeffer describes in her book Fabric Sewing Guide of placing on the fabric some brown paper that has been soaked with a 50/50 vinegar and water mix and pressing it with a hot iron until the paper is dry. It worked wonders at getting the creases out, but that vinegar smell sure did give me a craving for some fish and chips! The vinegar smell goes away though when the fabric dries. Here is the fabric after washing and soaking but before pressing:

And here is the fabric after pressing a few times with the brown paper and vinegar method:

The fabric feels very flat and smooth, but what I hadn't counted on though is that a visible line would remain along the edge of the pleats despite all the washing. You can faintly see in the photo above the visible vertical lines - I've just decided that it is a design feature, and that the fabric has vertical self stripes in addition to the horizontal coloured stripes!

These photos don't really show the vertical lines at all, but in the daylight they are quite noticeable. The lines are evenly spaced across the front, and I managed to line them up on the bodice and the skirt, so hopefully everyone else just accepts it as a deliberate feature.

I used my favourite sheath dress pattern, New Look 6968, which I've used many times before with great success (see here, here, here, here and here!). Funnily enough one of those previous versions was a refashion too - obviously the simple lines of this pattern and the small amount of fabric needed are perfect for refashioning.

I kept the hem of the original skirt, and managed to cut the skirt and the bodice out of the width of former skirt because it really was a very full skirt. The spacing between the stripes worked out pretty well when I wear it with a belt:

Without a belt at the waistline however it looks a bit plain and the proportion is a bit off there in the centre, as the stripe on the skirt is too far below the waistline:

There were a lot of stripes to match at the side seams and the centre back invisible zip, but with a lot of pinning and careful sewing I think I managed to get a pretty good match at all stripes, even the one interrupted by the dart at the bust line:

The reason I love this New Look pattern so much is that it has a waist seam with a separate bodice and skirt which means I can get such a good fit in the small of my back thanks to the waist seam and the darts. I find that putting darts into a single back piece never gets a close fit in my swayback as this style does.

There's not much more I can say about this pattern that I haven't said before - it's a great basic pattern that is quite simple to sew. I made this one a size larger than previous versions I've made because this fabric has no stretch and those previous versions are all a little bit tight now (they must be shrinking while hanging in my wardrobe, I'm sure!). This size is really comfortable to wear, but there is a bit of looseness around the bust and below the waist, but I think a bit of ease is necessary in a form fitting dress with no stretch.

I've fully lined this dress in some lining that has been in the stash a long time, and even used an invisible zipper that was salvaged from another garment, so this really was a cheap project to make. Unfortunately this project doesn't make any dent in my huge fabric collection at all, but it's certainly a great addition to my wardrobe.

So as I said at the beginning, the competition is open until the 31st May and I really encourage fellow Australians and New Zealanders to enter - who wouldn't want a fancy embroidery sewing machine or any of the other great prizes on offer?

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