sewing – Page 2 – Christina Hopgood

Sewn Sorbetto Top

May 13, 2018May 10, 2018 christinahopgood

So recently I realised that I haven’t got any tops in my wardrobe – I have loads of t-shirts and lots of shirts and a couple of short-sleeved button-up blouses but no tops. I had this pattern already printed out, so I stuck it together and sewed it over a couple of afternoons!

This is the Sorbetto top by Colette patterns, which is a free pattern you can get here! I got a copy years ago but never sewed it up. I always thought it looked a little shapeless, which is true, but I quite like how this turned out.

I bought this fabric as a remnant years ago at a craft and quilt fair (I think – maybe?). There was only a little bit and I only just squeaked this top out of it. I thought it was a polyester because it’s drapey and a tiny bit shiny, but after a burn test I found that it’s natural fibres, likely cotton! But so drape!

The neckline and armholes are finished with bias binding. The pattern calls for binding made of the fabric, and the binding is shown on the outside. I didn’t have much fabric to play with and couldn’t make self-binding, so I used other binding and made it so it doesn’t show on the outside. fullsizeoutput_5e37

I found that it was tight across my upper bust and it was uncomfortable. There’s an inverted box pleat that’s sewn in all the way down the front, so I unpicked some of the pleat at the bustline and instead made two lines of stitching on either side of the opening. I re-pressed the pleat which got a little mucked up and now it looks just the same as before. I’ve tried to show it here but it’s hard on such busy fabric! The modification worked well and now I have some movement in the bust to allow for, you know, breathing. fullsizeoutput_5e3b

The only issue is that the armholes are a little tight and sometimes show my bra strap at the top. Not a big deal, just need to be careful which one I wear! I’m planning to make another one of these soon out of another precious little bit of fabric! Stay tuned!

pants, sewing, Uncategorized

Sewn Guise shorts

May 10, 2018 christinahopgood

These shorts were made as a toile but they turned out to be very wearable so I’m calling that a win!

These are the Guise Pants from Papercut Patterns. They have a fly front and also some elastic in the back for comfort and a snug fit. The fabric I used is just a remnant I got from Stoff & Stil, I suspect it’s a poly/cotton blend. It’s actually got a little bit of sparkle to it!

I put these on and my husband remarked that they look like I should be ready for my first day of grade 7. They DO look a bit like school pants but they’re comfy so I’m not concerned!

These fit fine so I went ahead and made myself a pair of trousers from this pattern! I’ll follow up with another post. fullsizeoutput_5e3d

As you can see, the button sits a bit weird and the back band seems to pop up a bit. I’ll wear these with a shirt over the top so it won’t show!

Overall this was a really nice easy pattern. Flys are always a bit weird and hard to make but this pattern makes it quite easy. Do recommend!

sewing, Uncategorized

Red silk Archer shirt!

March 25, 2018March 4, 2018 christinahopgood

After making my first red Archer shirt, why not make another one!

Again, this is the Archer shirt by Grainline Studio. I’ve had this red silk in my stash for almost a year, since I bought it when I got my new teaching job here in Oslo. I was planning to make myself a nice silk shirt to wear to work… it only took me about 9 months to get around to it!

Silk is… difficult to sew with. I don’t have a cutting mat and rotary cutter, so I have to use scissors. I was so sure that the silk was lined up perfectly straight and smooth, but of course some of my pieces ended up a little warped. This meant that the collar was a bit of a pain in the bum. It had to be redone a couple of times, and the under-collar is still a bit bumpy (maybe a lot bumpy). It’s not too visible when worn though!

One thing I don’t understand about this pattern, is that the upper collar and under collar are two different pattern pieces, and the under collar has a seam in the middle. Why not make them the same pattern piece? It would mean my pieces are slightly more likely to be the same once cut! This problem didn’t surface with my other shirt, I guess because the fabric was more obedient!

The buttons are little gold metal shank buttons. Very cute!

I used the fabric as interfacing as I didn’t want anything stiff or visible. It worked ok! My only other note is that I did french seams throughout in order to minimise fraying and help the garment last as long as possible.

So far, it’s standing up to wear. On one of its first outings we went out for ramen and I got a splash of soup on the front, which washed out fine! Phew! The fabric is a little thicker than chiffon and is quite bouncy. Hopefully it won’t wear out too quickly! While sewing with this shirt was really hard and frustrating because of the fabric, I really love the finished garment and am thinking of what to make from silk next. I’ve gone mad! Stop me!

sewing

Red cotton Archer shirt

March 4, 2018March 4, 2018 christinahopgood

My latest sewing project is one I’m very happy with – my red cotton Archer shirt. This is a pattern by Grainline Studio and is available as a paper pattern or a PDF. I have the PDF version, which has been marinating on my hard drive for some time now!

This is the first time I’ve made an Archer and I’m really happy with how simple it is. There are no darts or panels to provide bust or waist shaping, which gives it a relaxed fit. There’s a small pleat in the back for ease and a double yoke.

I didn’t bother to do a top button because I never do it up anyway, and it’s always so hard to get my machine to sew in that bulky party!

I wasn’t too happy with my plackets, but they pressed out ok. I suspected that the pattern or instructions were slightly off there – it doesn’t really tell you how to place the cuff over the plackets. As a result it’s a bit bulky there where I fudged it a little.

I didn’t have much of this fabric so I did the inner yoke in a flannelette fabric that was kicking around my stash and before that my mum’s stash. I think I have dolly clothes made from that! As you can see here, I used a bias binding to finish the hem. I find it really hard to do a double-folded hem on a curve so this helped a lot to reduce bulk and curve nicely.

And I’ve pretty much been living in this shirt in the 2 weeks since I made it!

The only thing I wish I’d done better was my button placement. Because I left out the top button, it got a bit off and the lowest button is a bit too low. As a result I don’t do up that bottom button often. It doesn’t make a huge difference though and I love the shirt!

bras, lingerie, sewing

I made bras!

December 11, 2014January 24, 2018 christinahopgood

I made a bra! In fact I’ve made TWO bras!

Bras are all the rage on the sewing blogs right now. And with every one I saw, I just thought “That’s too hard, too fiddly, and you need all these little bits!”. Also I was kind of embarrassed? But now I realise “WOMEN WEAR BRAS! STOP BEING DUMB!”

Then my wonderful Mum saw an ad in the paper for a one-day bra-making workshop.

I gathered up three friends and we applied. Materials and kits were to be provided, we just needed our machine.

And this is what I made!

On my dressform, because, you know. Unfortunately it doesn’t fit the dressform all that well, because she doesn’t actually have boobs – she has boob loaf. She’s also not squishy like a human. However, I am pleased to report that it fits ME perfectly and I’ve hardly worn anything else!

The pattern is THIS ONE, from an Australian company that is hilariously named Booby Traps. It’s a soft-cup bra, no padding or moulded cups. I know the pattern photo is pretty dreadful – why didn’t they make sure the bra was fitting the model properly? But it’s a great pattern that worked really well for me and all my friends. It looks pretty similar to the Malborough bra Lauren of Lladybird made HERE.

I made a size 10B which is my usual size in the shops. The fabrics are tricot, lace, and some thick elastic fabric I forget the name of. The lace is just decoration and was tacked onto the tricot before construction. Other materials are two rings, two sliders, underwires, a casing for the underwires, strapping, elastic for the bottom edge, hooks and eyes, and a tiny bow to sew on the centre front to hide any messy stitching there. It’s a lot of extra bits. You can get them at Lincraft or other craft stores (I guess bra making is more common than I thought). I’m planning on deconstructing some bras I don’t like so I can make some more with the notions.

Construction was a bit fiddly because it’s just so small compared to the long straight seams I usually like doing! First, sew the upper cup to lower cup. Then sew the frame together (back to side to middle to side to back). Then sew the cups into the frame. Then sew the elastic along the bottom. Then sew the underwire casing to the frame (not the cup!). Then the underarm elastic. Then the rings and straps. It’s fiddly.

Here’s a photo of the bra inside out so you can see some of the inside workings. The seam in the middle of the cups could be irritating to sensitive people but mine is fine. I just sewed the seam allowance down close to the edge. It’s not like it rubs, bras are supposed to stay put!

Here is the one I made at home from the kit:

The tricot mesh that came with this kit was much much thinner than the one we used at the workshop, which meant I had to put lace on the upper and lower bra cups (for modesty). You can see at the front the dressform’s grey skin is showing! So obviously I had to put lace on it!

The lace is tacked onto the lining pieces before seaming, which can be quite fiddly. But because this particular lace is so busy, you don’t see the seamline at all!

The lace was also quite stretchy and the lining extremely firm so I have some bumps in places. This one seems to be a bit tighter as a result of the fabric being less stretchy. But it fits and I remembered how to do it! On my own it took about 3 or 4 hours, and in the class it took 6. So I’m getting quicker!

On the Booby Traps website you can also buy kits with the fabric and notions provided. There are some really cute kits on that website! The one I bought (I got it at the workshop and can’t find it online) is a pretty soft blue but next I’m thinking of THIS one…

or THIS one… or THIS one… Booby Traps also sells a bunch of ready-to-wear lingerie… but we’re not into that right? It’s all about the DIY!

So I’m totally converted! I’m immensely proud of myself for making something so fiddly. I’m going to start making ones from stash fabric and see how that turns out!