Summer Capsule Wardrobe 2013/14

Last year (still getting used to that) I drew up some plans for a Summer Capsule Wardrobe.  A bundle of garments that all work together as well as being seasonally appropriate.  The wardrobe evolved a little as it all came together but the bones of it have stayed true to my original plan.  

A sleeveless chambray shirt.  This was one of the first garments I made for this project.  It very quickly became a wardrobe staple.  The pattern is BurdaStyle 10/2009 105 without the sleeves.  I used silver coloured buttons to fancy it up and they work beautifully with the chambray fabric. It fits just right, looks great tucked in and untucked, buttoned to the top or left open at the neck, I love it.

Navy high waisted shorts. These were a difficult make.  The fabric frays like mad and drove me crazy, I got the feeling these shorts didn't really want to be made.  I persevered though and they turned out quite cute.  Then the invisible zip busted.  So I replaced it with an exposed, indestructible metal zip.  The pattern is the same as for the November shorts, BurdaStyle 0/2011 111.

Wiksten tank dress.  This lightweight cotton fabric was in the bottom of a box at my local op shop.  I loved the massive bright floral print the moment I saw it.  It really needed a simple shape and the Wiksten tank dress is perfect.  I added an elastic casing at the waist, and lengthened the hem by 5cm.

Red Wiksten tank.  I made this tank for Red October.  The fabric is so light. It's perfect for hot weather.  Unfortunately it wasn't colourfast so it has faded a little, but it's still very red!  

Printed denim shorts.  The bottom of November's outfit, these have seen quite a bit of action so far this summer.  I was worried that the high lycra content would make them a bit saggy with wear but they're holding up very nicely.  They are comfy too, very successful!

White tee.  This plain white Elise Tee from December's outfit was another to quickly become a wardrobe staple.  It is casual, comfy, and goes with everything!

Navy button up tank.  Another from November's outfit.  This one has fitted in with so many of my outfits too.  I love wearing it with jeans, it's casual without being sloppy.  Comfortable and cool for summer!

Teal skirt.  This one was not originally part of the the plan.  Just like it was not originally part of December's outfit.  I'm thrilled with it though!  It fitted right in with the whole wardrobe.  This is one I can see transitioning well through all seasons.  It will be so cute with tights and cardigans when the weather cools down.

Coral tee.  This scoop necked, low backed tee was rescued from being an unsuccessful attempt at a bodysuit.  In hindsight, I really should have known it was a poor fabric choice, but the colour was so perfect!  No where near enough stretch for a bodysuit but just right for a tee!  

Coral elephant wrap skirt.  It took me a very long time to find the right fabric for this skirt.  The pattern is a 1970s Simplicity with a couple of different waistband and length options.  This shot doesn't show it off as well as it could, but it it lightweight and flows beautifully, and the wee elephants are so sweet!

There were a couple more garments that haven't made the final cut.  The bottom of my swimsuit turned out quite well, the top not so much, I can't really show off the bit that worked though because this is not that kind of blog!  I also have a wrap maxi dress that I don't consider to be up to standard, I'll get around to tweaking it at some stage to make it what I want.  I held out on posting in the hopes they would be sorted, but sometimes you have to know when to walk away.

These photos were taken in the surrounds of our camp site on a family camping trip during the summer school holidays.  I assure you, platforms and hair and frocks are not my usual camping attire and were packed back away for the rest of the holiday!

Outfit Eleven: December

Wow!  I can't believe I only have one outfit left to make and I will have finished 12 outfits in 12 months!

This outfit was a bit of a trouble maker!  I had decided on a particular skirt in a particular fabric right at the very beginning of this adventure, only to have it turn out unwearable because the stripes strobe and give me a blaring headache.  As luck would have it, the search for a replacement skirt that would also fit into my summer capsule wardrobe brought me to a pattern I had traced last year and forgotten about.  So here it is:

The skirt is stretch drill I bought several years ago.  I had about a million metres of it and recently used some for a little 'off plan' sewing so it was sitting out and I noticed that it was the right colour for my summer wardrobe.  It was that fabric decision that brought me to the pattern, Burda 05/2012 118.  

I didn't make the skirt quite as short as the pattern, and I left off the back welt pockets.

I love the a-line shape from the back and pleated fullness at the front.  Since making Darron's trousers  I've become far more comfortable sewing a zip fly.  It's lovely to be able to ignore the exceptionally vague Burda instructions and just do it.  The pattern has buttons on the inside of the wide waistband, but I prefer the buttons on the outside, so I used a pair of jeans buttons instead.

The plain white tee is the Elise Tee from Fine Motor Skills.  A great freebie pattern with relaxed versatile style.

With a wide scoop neckline and capped shoulders it sits just right for me, it shows enough skin without having to be hauled back onto my shoulders every five minutes.

I like how it works tucked or untucked.  The scooped he line is a great finishing touch and one of my favourite design features for tops at the moment.  I think I'll make a few more of these in different colours.  I'd love one in a stretchy sequinned fabric too, because sparkles!

So that's my December!  The skirt has become my Green December project too.  I had planned to make a green swimsuit but my injury set all my December projects back a couple of weeks so there will be a couple of swimmers coming up in January!

Summer Colours and a Capsule Wardrobe

Because I clearly don't think I'm sewing enough!  Following Gillian from Crafting a Rainbow as she created an autumn capsule wardrobe using her wonderful colour palette method made me look a little differently at my summer wardrobe sewing plans.  So when I found my coloured pencils while spring cleaning the studio I spent an afternoon assessing what I want and need, what I actually want to make and what colours I'm loving for summer to bring it all together.

I started with my November and December outfits, navy blue and some bright floral fabric I really want to use for summer.  Then I gathered all the patterns I had been setting aside for summer.  Finding a balance between what I want to make and what I want to and am likely to wear was tricky.  I want to make them all!  That's why I collect all these patterns, every single one of them.  I took the floral fabric as a starting point for colours.  All the colours go well with navy, so that's a base colour confirmed.  Then there is red, pink/coral, yellow, teal and turquoise.   At this point I decided that the floral print gets to be a Wiksten tank dress.

Using the Fashionary printable technical templates, I got to planning.  I love my big fashionary journal and I have a little neon light in my bag at all times, I think I'll get the tech template sticky memo pads too, they're wonderful.  And here's what I've come up with: 

Shorts: Navy, and stretch geometric patterned denim, both from Burdastyle Magazine.  The denim shorts are the bottom of December's outfit.

Dresses: Floral Wiksten Tank dress with elastic casing at the waist, 1980s Vogue wrap dress - I'm hunting for another bright patterned fabric for this one.

Shirts: Chambray sleeveless shirt - this one came from the shirt originally planned for September's outfit and already cut, white sailboat sleeveless shirt from Burdastyle mag 06/2012 - there will be enough left over from Darron's November shirt (aw yeah matching his and hers).

Tops, tees, and tanks:  A Wiksten tank - this one in red voile, a white jersey Elise tee (November's top).  

Scoop neck bodysuit in coral jersey, navy jersey scoop necked button front tank (December's top).

Skirts: Yellow (possibly eyelet lace, maybe a print, it looks like I may have to dye to get the golden yellow I'm after) wrap skirt from a late 1970s Simplicity pattern.

Blue and white seersucker Button front skirt, this one is November's bottom.

Swim suit: Turquoise 1970s halter neck.

So in theory all these colours work together and any top and bottom from the collection should look good.  It seems like a lot to tackle, but most of the garments are quite simple.  The chambray shirt is already done and awaiting buttons and the Wiksten tank is cut and ready to sew.  So by knocking over a garment every now and then between other projects I should have a well stocked wardrobe in time for summer! 

Outfit Eight - September

Now that I've shown off Darron's September outfit, here is mine!

This outfit was always going to involve a Dahlia Cardigan.  I bought the Colinette Jitterbug yarn for it a year and a half ago at the Bendigo Sheep and Wool Show.  The colour way is Ginger Cinnabar and it is gorgeous!  This cardi has a really interesting method of construction, everything is knitted off the centre back lace panel.  Once I wrapped my head around the construction it was pretty straightforward. The only modification I made was to shorten the sleeves to elbow length, perfect for a spring cardigan.

I have had the fabric for this skirt for a couple of years.  It is a heavy weight cotton with a floral print inspired by the work of the artist Pissarro.

I bought it from my fabulous local op shop and was waiting to come across the perfect garment for it.  When I saw how well the colour of my yarn picked up the darker tones in the fabric I was sold!

The pattern is from BurdaStyle magazine 08/2009, pattern 110.  I made it without lining because the fabric is heavy enough to not need it.  It has pleats in the front and sits just above my natural waist line. An invisible zipper and vent in the back.  It's a very simple fitted pattern that makes the fabric the feature.

I had planned on making a chambray shirt to go with this outfit, I had even cut it out.  Then I found a 1980s Calvin Klein for Vogue pattern while shopping my mum's stash.  It was perfect for this outfit, then I found this slinky crinkly rayon at my local basement fabric outlet, a one metre remnant, just enough to make it.  I took that as a sign.  

I love the shawl collar and simple lines with a little bit of texture.  The fabric, while bing quite lovely, it light and slippery, so even though I took my time sewing, there were stiLl some nervous moments.  There are some flaws, but nothing major so I'm ok with them.  With a garment so simple I went a bit fancy with the buttons.  Speaking of buttons, the top button placement on the pattern is quite low, this wouldn't be an issue in a fabric with more body, but this just slipped open too easily and exposed considerably more of my undergarments than I like.  Simple solution, I added another button. 

This outfit is a bit of a departure from my original 12 outfits mission statement.  It's not quite in line with the more casual, everyday wardrobe I was aiming to make.  A couple of months ago I applied to return to school.  I'm hoping to study a Diploma of Applied Fashion Design and Technology.  I have an interview in November and an opportunity to present my folio and three garments I've made.  I'm planning on wearing this skirt and blouse for that interview.  So with interviews and the possibility of school next year, my wardrobe focus has shifted somewhat.  If my application is successful, it will mean big changes, two years of full time study would definitely be an adventure!

Outfit Four: May

May is here and it's cooled right down.  Perfect for my May outfit!  The majority of this outfit was finished before May even started, I got a bit ahead of myself there.  This was because the big time consuming knit was finished in February.  There are more details about my Effortless Cardigan here.

I have had this pink pinwale cord in stash for a couple of years.  It was another score from my local hospital op shop.  There wasn't much, less than a metre, but plenty for a short skirt.  This one is from the same pattern as the red tartan skirt.  BurdaStyle 2/2010 pattern 104A, a-line with hip yoke pockets and an invisible zip.

The blouse is sleeveless, slightly fitted, and originally started out as a rather large mu mu.  One of the great things about mu mus is that they are essentially large pieces of fabric just stitched together, so cutting out another smaller garment like a blouse is easy to do.  I have a couple more I bought from the op shop at the same time that were made from the same pattern by, I'm assuming, the same person.

The pattern I used is a 1970's Simplicity blouse and tunic pattern (8209), I made a few minor mods, like removing pin tucks and sleeves.  Plain black buttons finished it off.

These tights used to be white.  I only ever wore them a couple of times, because really, I'm a grown woman, and they're white tights.  I still had a second pair I hadn't even taken out of the packaging.  Bundled up in some rubber bands and dunked in some grey dye for 15 minutes and they are much more wearable.  I'm now on the lookout for more white tights to tie dye some in every colour!

Originally that was all I had planned for May's outfit.  But as you can see in the photos I'm wearing a hat.  I decided that I needed something more to just top off the outfit, so a slouchy hat in an angora blend was knitted.  The pattern is Knitted and Scrunched Beanie, made from some Moda Vera angora blend I've had for ages, but could never come up with a project for it before.

So this is May.  In the past, the majority of the garments I've sewn have been light weight summery clothes, so it's nice to actually have some clothes I've sewn myself that I can wear in the colder months. As it's Me Made May at the moment, all of these garments have been getting worn, together and with other pieces from the me-made collection, so I'm well pleased with them and how quickly they've settled into my wardrobe!

Note:  I wrote this post a couple of weeks ago and scheduled it to break up the MMM'13 outfit posts.  I feel lucky that I did because depression is a bitch of an illness and ignoring your warning signs can land you in a deep dark hole.  So, while I climb out of this hole, with the help of my loves and my doctors I can still share something.  Something that also helps to remind me that I have valuable and worthwhile skills, and that at the end of the day I make stuff, and for my whole life, making stuff has made me happy.

The Tale of Two Skirts

I very rarely make the same pattern twice.  I like variety and find production line sewing incredibly boring.  However this week I bucked the trend and made two skirts from the one pattern.  

I had chosen this A line skirt with hip yoke pockets for my May outfit in pink pinwale cord, then I happened upon 80cm of wool tartan that really wanted to be a simple skirt with pockets as well.  I figured that in two different fabrics, one with lining, there would be enough difference between the two.

I made the tartan first and took great care to match the plaid.  I'm particularly pleased with the back.

This is the lined skirt, I used the same lining as I did for my critter blazer.  I was going to just put in an invisible zipper but when I was rummaging through my zips I found a nice old metal zip and decided to use that instead.

The cord skirt is not lined an has an invisible zip.  There will be more pics of this one once it's with the rest if May's outfit, which looks like it will be finished before May even begins!

Outfit Two: March

Here's outfit number two!  I must say I really enjoy the moment when an outfit graduates from the studio to the wardrobe.

This outfit was the first to jump off the table when I pulled all my stashes out earlier in the year.  The yellow yarn grabbed the floral voile and some black jersey and wouldn't let go.   That yarn already became the golden waves cowl.

The Pattern for the skirt is from 1978.  I have an awful lot of skirt patterns from that decade, there were some really great skirts in the '70s.  This one has a really interesting wide wraparound waist band that narrows to tie in the front, and best of all it has pockets.  I love skirts with pockets.

The floral voile is quite sheer so I used a slightly heavier plain black voile to line it, it also gives the skirt a bit of body.  I'd love to make this pattern again in the maxi length, I just need to find the right fabric.

I have had the pattern for this top marked since I bought the Burda magazine in 2010.  I was really glad to have found the right outfit for it. 

I absolutely love the neckline and the fit is great.  Except for the length.  I should know by now that Burda Style knit tops are too short for my torso, but it's been a while since I made any so I forgot, and as a result, this one is a little shorter than I would like.  It doesn't matter at all when it gets tucked in, but I will be a little limited in which of my jeans I will be able to wear it with.  

Skirt
Pattern: McCalls 6389 View B
Fabric: Floral cotton voile & black cotton voile, both from Spotlight.
Modifications: Lined and shortened.

Top
Pattern: Burda Style 2/2010 Pattern 122A
Fabric: Cotton jersey with lycra
Modifications: Clear elastic reinforced neckline.

SSS Ends in a Fizzle

My Self Stitched September didn't end with the bang I had imagined. It fizzled out in the midst of illness and grief. Here are the last few outfits I managed before I had to pull the pin:




The last couple of weeks have been difficult. I fell ill, my grandfather passed away quite suddenly, and we discovered that my son has asthma. This week things are getting back to normal, and I am looking forward to waking this little blog back up.

Coming soon: The biggest, most important sewing project I have ever attempted! My best girl Em and I have started work on her wedding dress!