Easy robe. Not so easy fabric.

Ever since our trip to Japan four years ago, I've been meaning to make a Yukata-type robe for my husband. A Yukata is a thin, cotton robe for summer or travel. I finally made him one as a Christmas gift this year.

 

I used an old pattern, Stretch & Sew 2000 "Classic Robes". I made view "B" with the banded collar.

 

The fabric is a lightweight cotton that I got from a get together of my sewing friends (thanks Neefer!). I knew I was taking on the challenge of working with a plaid, but unfortunately I had an additional challenge because I didn't realize the fabric had quite a few flaws in it. I spent way too long matching plaid, creatively arranging pattern pieces, and fixing a hole. Some of the flaws were minor and ok to leave since this is a robe, and it doesn't have to be perfect. Otherwise, the fabric was perfect for this project since it was very soft. I only wish I had a few more yards so I could have made sleep pants to go with the robe.

Here's my review:

Pattern Description: Shawl collar and banded unisex robes with dropped shoulder, 3/4 length sleeves, chest pocket and two lower patch pockets, belt and belt loops. Three lengths to choose from: mid-thigh, mid-calf, and full length.

Pattern Sizing: Small (chest/bust size 30-34 inches) Medium (chest/bust size 36-40 inches) Large (chest/bust size 42-46 inches) I traced off a size between the medium and large since I felt large would be too big but medium might be too small, and I couldn't measure him without ruining the surprise.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes, although I made the sleeves longer.

Were the instructions easy to follow? Fairly easy instructions. The steps are numbered and very clear. They do reuse steps that are the same for both styles so you need to make sure you're on the right one. I sewed the seams on the sewing machine and then used my serger to finish the seam allowances. For the pockets I serged the raw edges first before stitching them to the front pieces.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? It's a basic robe with sizes to fit men and women. I liked the banded version since that is like the Yukata robes. I will use the shawl collar version for myself in the future.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: I made the sleeves longer. I used the sleeve length for the shawl collar version and hemmed them with smaller cuffs than called for in the instructions. I cut out the band on the diagonal and since it was on the bias I interfaced it to make sure it wouldn't stretch out of shape. I was going to put the pockets on the diagonal too but decided that may make the robe look too busy. I looked online at pictures of robes and didn't see any plaid ones with pockets on the diagonal, so that confirmed that decision. I didn't see many banded plaid robes and most of those didn't do the band on the diagonal, but I'd already cut out the band on the diagonal so I was committed. Now I sort of regret doing the band on the diagonal. Because the plaid wasn't balanced I think it looks a bit wonky. Live and learn!

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? I'm definitely going to sew it again. I already have plans to make the shawl collar version out of fleece for myself. This is a great basic robe pattern.

Conclusion: The pattern itself is good, and it's very easy to sew. I made it more difficult by using plaid, but that made it a great project for practicing my plaid matching skills. I'm not quite there yet, so better to practice on a plaid robe than a plaid suit jacket! I realize now that I didn't pay attention to matching the shoulders when I cut it out, and I still have trouble getting the plaid on the sleeves to line up with the body. I'm not to happy with the final look of the diagonal plaid band but had I cut it out on the straight of grain that would have been another area of matching during the cutting process. I did get the plaid to match across the front and sides, and the pockets are almost invisible since I did a good job matching those. All in all I am happy with the robe, and I think my husband is too since he's been wearing it.

I am a bit obsessed.

I can be a bit obsessive about things, but apparently not about blogging. I realize my last post was over a month ago. A lot has happened since then but I haven't made time to post anything. Here's the last month in a nutshell:

• Thanksgiving trip to Athens
• Sick for a week
• Visited Christmas market in town
• Did some shopping
• Worked on a sewing gift (can't say more until it's done)
• Sewed a robe for my husband
• Did some knitting here and there but didn't finish anything
• Made a Christmas tree skirt
• Made a Christmas wreath
• Christmas trip to Istanbul
• Sick...again

So what am I a bit obsessive about? This:

Hole

No hole

This was fabric I used for my husband's robe. It's a very soft cotton that unfortunately had a lot of flaws in it. I thought I had successfully cut out all the pieces to avoid the worst areas but I didn't catch the hole. It was on one of the front pieces and I didn't have enough fabric to recut the piece. Fortunately it wasn't a complete hole - there were some threads remaining, in this case these are the weft threads, so I rewove the area with a needle and black thread. It isn't perfect but at least it's not a hole that will grow when the robe is washed. There is some fuzziness around it from the remaining warp threads, however it is a robe and not something worn out in public. It's the first time I'd ever made a repair like this, and I wanted to see if I could do it. It took a long time and I actually redid it twice, hence the obsession! It would have been easier with a super magnifying glass.

A sunny day, so I did some modeling

The sun finally came out so I took advantage of the light and modeled my print-blocked dress for you:

 

 

Here's my review:

 

 

Pattern Description: I made this from Sabrina Woman issue 3/2013 (actually the 3rd issue of the year that came out in August, not March). This magazine is the same as Modellina (Italy) issue #152, Elena Couture (France) 62, Fashion Trends (Netherlands) 11, and Tendencias de Moda (Spain) 11

Pattern Sizing: European sizes 36-46. I made a size 42 in the bust/shoulders and graded out to a 46 in the waist/hips but I should have only gone to a size 44.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes, I think it did.

Were the instructions easy to follow? I didn't use the directions since they're in German and this dress is easy to assemble without them. I was forewarned that the Sabrina magazine sizing can be "off" and to measure everything. I did do this and found the pattern dimensions to be adequate for my size and the amount of ease I wanted to have. But then after trying the dress on, I had too much ease in the waist and hips - better too much than too little. I ended up taking it in at the waist and hips by at least one size. I stabilized the shoulder seams with fusible stay-tape. After sewing the shoulder seams with a 4-thread overlock, I finished the neckline with a coverstitch. I sewed the sleeves in next (flat method) with a 4-thread overlock. The picture of the dress showed top stitching next to the seams at the shoulder, the horizontal seam across the chest (and back) and the two vertical seams on front and back, so I copied that using a 3.5 mm straight stitch on my sewing machine. These topstitched seams are not under tension, so I think using a straight stitch on a knit is ok here. I used a coverstitch to sew the hems.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I was looking for a color-blocked dress that I could make out of knit fabric. The pattern was pretty close to what I was looking for. It was drafted pretty well too, I think. I did not like tracing this pattern! The patterns are all on one sheet of paper that is smaller than the Burda sheets, therefore dresses and pants all have extension pieces. One of the extension pieces was printed mirror image (though the printing on it was not), and it took me a while to figure it out.

Fabric Used: A poly-viscose blend, stable knit purchased from my local fabric store: Esro-Jersey in Stuttgart, Germany. One side is houndstooth print and the other is solid black. I used this fabric throughout, using the "wrong side" for the black. I checked that I couldn't see the print through to the wrong side - but I didn't consider flash photography! Look what happened

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:

• I omitted the pockets, which were to be sewn into the side seams, because I was afraid the pockets would gape.
• I omitted the neck facings and instead just turned over the raw edge and coverstitched.
• I graded out from a 42 to a 46 but ended up taking in the side seams over the hips so in hindsight I should have only graded to a size 44.
• I couldn't decide between using the black or the houndstooth for the sleeves and then since the sleeves were too long anyway, I decided I liked the look of the bottom sleeve edge turned up, like a cuff.
• I did not change the length, although I originally was going to make it longer. I played with the pattern pieces and ultimately decided that the original length was well-proportioned and if I added a few more inches it might look odd. I'm glad I left it at the original length. I always plan to wear this with tights, which is a good thing because no one wants to see my bare, chubby thighs!

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?I would sew it again, but perhaps the similar style #14 that uses most of the same pattern pieces but has a different neckline.

Conclusion: Making this dress is one of the main reasons I sew. Although I could probably find a similar dress off the rack, if it fit in the bust, it would most likely pull across my hips, and if it fit in the hips, it would be too big on top! This magazine has fairly straight forward patterns with some nice design elements. Some issues have better styling than others so you need to look at the line drawings.

A bit of knitting

Last month we took a quick weekend trip to Dublin, Ireland where I bought some yarn (of course). I haven't gone through my photos yet, and a first glance doesn't show any really great shots, so I don't know if I'll post any. But here's a picture of the yarn!

Yarn on left is genuine Irish wool. Yarn on right is a Louisa Harding yarn that was on sale.

My husband picked out the yarn, with the intention that I knit him a hat and scarf. The yarn is very "wooly" and will be perfect for the cold Stuttgart winter. I finished the hat and am currently working on the scarf.

My husband's Irish hat

Close-up of the cable stitch

The color isn't very accurate I the pictures - it's actually a sort of greenish brown. It's been so cloudy here so the natural light is really flat.

The hat is from the Antler Hat pattern, a free pattern on Ravelry.com. Here is a link to my project page: click here

I'm making the scarf using the same cable pattern and adding some stitches on either side. I'll show a picture when it's finished.

A sewing project is on the horizon. The pieces are all cut out and just waiting for me to make the time to sit down at my machine.

STASH!

I flew back to the US for 2 weeks to take care of some things like doctor and dentist appointments and to go through my stash. I sold the 6x10 cargo trailer where I was storing it (and other stuff - it wasn't full of fabric!). So this was an opportunity to go through the fabric, give some away, select some to take with me, and repack the rest. It turned out to be just about all I did this week in between my appointments and a few lunches and dinners with friends.

I had a wonderful time yesterday with my BABES sewers - go see JillyBeJoyful's blog to see what a great time we had! I was so relieved to re-home most of the fabric I brought. By the way I found a big bag of fabric I had set aside a while ago to bring to BABES so there's more. I hope to make a trip to California again in April, so we'll have to meet up then.

I think I underestimated the amount of fabric I have. If you have a tendency to stash, then DO NOT buy a cargo trailer. It became my black hole of fabric stashing. I don't have any pictures of the state of my family room when I was going through the fabric, but just picture a gigantic mound of fabric, stacks and stacks of empty plastic bins, and one space left on the couch where I would eat dinner. Yes. I became a hoarder. But just for a week. The family room is cleared out and the bins are stacked in the garage. I had to clean out and organize the garage today too - whoo boy am I pooped!



27 bins of fabric

All the fabric is swatched, and the box number is written on the swatch card. I'm so organized. There are 29 bins total - 2 are in the sewing room. And then there's the fabric I'm bringing with me. Hopefully I can get it all in my suitcase.

I'm trendy!

Print block dress, a photo by jezzybelly on Flickr.

I finished the dress and only have time to throw up this quick picture of it. I will post a review later, hopefully with a picture of me wearing it. The pattern is the dress version of the top I showed in my last blog post. The fabric is a knit from a local fabric store here in Stuttgart.

Gotta go!

Sewing progress at last

I decided to make a (wearable) muslin after all, but it's of the shirt version of the pattern and not the whole dress. But before I get to that, I will tell you that I have decided not to use the Paris fabric for the print-blocked dress. Here's what happened to make me decide this:

I needed serger thread to better match the muslin fabric so I visited my local fabric stores. I am incredibly fortunate to have not one, but two fabric stores right around the corner. I swear I didn't know about them when we were apartment hunting so that's not why we rented this apartment! At the first store, I was surprised to find almost the exact same fabric that I'd bought in Paris. They had a different colorway than I'd bought and it was a couple euros cheaper per meter. I like the color I bought so I don't feel bad in the least that I paid more, and we're only talking 4 euros total. They have gorgeous fabrics there, but not the serger thread I wanted so I walked over to store #2.

Store #2 didn't have the serger thread either (or the Paris fabric for that matter) but they did have lots of other beautiful fabrics and one in a particular that I think I may use for this dress instead of the Paris fabric. The Paris fabric has a little bit of shine on the print side that doesn't exist on the backside. Since I was planning on using the black, reverse side as an element, I'm not sure I like the mixture of textures. Better to think of this now before I start cutting! I have another idea for the Paris dress though. But I'm intent on making the print-blocked dress, so I think I may have to go back to Store #2 for some fabric.

While I was in Store #2, I did a double take. Another customer had the same Sabrina Woman magazine opened to the same print-blocked dress I'm making! I guess it's a popular style. If I spoke and understood German better I would have said something like "I'm making the same dress". Hmmm, that would be something like:  Ich nähe das gleiche Kleide. But then she would have replied something in German and I'd be lost and have to admit that I (still) don't know much German. Anyways...back to sewing.

So I decided to make a test garment. While attempting to trace off the pattern for the dress I realized that there was a simpler version of the pattern as a shirt. I have to pause for a moment to say that I thought Burda magazine patterns were tough to trace, but these magazines are worse, and not just because all the notation is in German. The pattern sheets are half the size so they end up having to provide extension pieces for dresses and pants. I'm pretty sure there's an error in the dress pattern too. I traced off the front pieces and added in the extension, but the back piece extension did not work out at all. After squinting for a long time at the tiny numbers and spaghetti of lines and symbols, I concluded that there must be an error, and the best thing to do would be to ignore the extension and just add the length I need. But that's when I decided that I should make a muslin first. Mixed in with the dress pattern was an option for a top. The key elements of fit were there: bust, waist, hip and sleeve, so it made sense to make the top first. Here it is:

 

Pattern used: Model #38 from Sabrina Woman (German) issue 3/13. This is the same issue as Modellina (Italian) 152, Elena Couture (France) 62, Fashion Trends (Netherlands) 11, and Tendencias de Moda (Spain) 11.

Sizes: European 36-46. I made my usual alteration of a 42 in the bust/shoulders to a 46 in the waist/hips.

Alterations: I lowered the neckline by 4 cm.

Construction: I didn't use the instructions in the magazine because this was very simple to construct. The hardest part of making this top, besides tracing the pattern, was changing my serger back and forth between overlock and coverstitch. I used fusible stay tape in the shoulder seam, and then serged the shoulders. Next I serged the sleeves - I find it much easier to put sleeves in flat on knit tops. I turned the neck edge under and used a coverstitch. Then I serged the side and sleeve seams and used the coverstitch for the sleeve hem and bottom hem. 

Fabric: I used a polyester knit fabric I brought to Germany from my stash. My stash-card says I bought it at Fabrix in San Francisco, so I probably only paid about $3 a yard. The fabric is slightly sueded on the outside, so it's nice and soft but the reverse side has a slick finish. It feels cool to the skin, and I'm not sure if that is a good thing or not.

Likes and Dislikes: I like the fit of this everywhere except the bust. The draglines you see on the dressform don't show up that way on me, instead there is some pulling at the sides of my bust. I didn't do a full bust adjustment (FBA) but those draglines tell me I need one. I am glad I graded out to the larger size in the waist and hips. The shirt floats over my fluffy parts without being too big. The key thing I was looking for in this wearable muslin was the fit over my waist and hips and it works, so I think I'm good to go. I also like the fit through the shoulders and neck.

Lessons learned:

1. If you let too much time go between sewing projects, you might forget how to use your tools! I was glad I brought my manual on how to set up the serger.
2. Test your stitch in the same manner as you will be sewing it. I always do a test serge on a scrap of fabric to make sure the stitch is correct. When I tried the coverstitch, it tunneled terribly! I re-thread the machine, double checked the settings, and even looked for advice online. In the end the problem was simple: I tested the coverstitch on a single layer of fabric...when I folded the fabric as it would be for the actual hem, the coverstitch was just fine.
3. Resist the urge to procrastinate. I had finished everything but the sleeve and bottom hems and was tempted to stop there and stick it on the dressform. But I know me - it would take great effort to get back to finish those hems, especially if I moved on to another project and re-threaded the machine. So I pushed on and now I have a completed garment.
4. I'm glad I returned to sewing. It made me happy to create a new top to wear, and I loved hearing the whir of the sewing machine again.

So I think I'm ready to go for the dress. I just need to do a small FBA and depending on the thickness of the fabric I buy I might add a little more width to the sleeves.

Using the good stuff

I'm going to do it. I'm going to cut into some "good" fabric. I admit that I'm apprehensive because my sewing skills are rusty. I think the last garment I made was almost 2 years ago. I have sewn some things for the home - Roman shades, pillows and such, but even for that stuff I felt out of practice at the sewing machine. So why on earth am I using the good stuff and not making some practice garments first? Good question.

Here's the deal. I bought some beautiful fabric in Paris a few weeks ago as a birthday gift. Ok, I didn't really need an excuse to buy fabric, but it actually was my birthday and our anniversary weekend, and I just couldn't be in Paris and not go to Tissus Reine. Then I saw this fabric and while I didn't need it, I felt I'd be sad if I passed it up. So I splurged (it was over €20 per meter) and bought 2 meters. Gulp.

The fabric is a knit and appears to be double faced. I didn't note the fabric content, or maybe the tag didn't say, but it feels to me like it's a rayon knit and I'd think the price would support that. The fabric has a lovely drape to it, and it's a nice medium weight with good recovery. The color may not be coming out correctly in the picture - what may show as bright red is more orange and not so bright.

It's a lot of print, so I knew right away I wanted to make a print-blocked dress. Now normally I would put this beautiful fabric into my stash where it would sit, along with my idea of making a print-blocked dress. But print-blocking is in style right now. I can't tell you how much fabric I have in my stash that I bought with the intent to make something that was in style right then...but didn't. So I really want to get off my butt and do this. I'd also like to get it done in the next two weeks so that I can wear it to a gathering I'm attending. I really don't have time for practice garments right now. Hey, it's not like I'm sewing a dress I'm going to wear to my nephew's wedding the night before we have to leave. Yeah, been there, done that.

So anyway, here's a line drawing of the pattern I want to use. Yes, that's German text. The pattern is from the German magazine Sabrina Woman. The magazine is also published in other countries under other names; in Italy it's Modellina. This will be a challenge, but it should be fairly straight forward construction, although that doesn't mean I'll breeze through it. I'm a poky, perfectionist sewer.

Here's a photo from the magazine. Don't worry, I will definitely add some length. It's been decades since I've worn dresses this short. I plan to wear it with black leggings.

The side pieces will definitely be black, but I'm not sure if I'll make the top strip and/or sleeves in black. The nice thing about using a double faced fabric is that I can test out these combinations without cutting extra pieces - just flip them around. I'm hoping the 2 meters I have will be enough - it's a 3 hour train ride (on a very fast train) to go back to Paris. The instructions call for more fabric because they figure you're using two different fabrics.

So now that I've proclaimed on this public site that I'm going to make this dress, will I do it? Well, you'll have to wait and see.

Yarn overload

I recently traveled to Helsinki, Finland and Tallinn, Estonia, two places where a knitter can definitely find wool. On top of that I made a pilgrimage to Wollmeise Mecca, otherwise known as Rhorspatz & Wollmeise. It's a small shop in a small town in Germany, and is the source of a yarn that has such a following among knitters in many countries that there are 12 groups on Ravelry devoted to acquiring and knitting with the yarn. Since I only live about 2 hours away, I knew I would eventually have to check it out.

So as a result of visiting these three knit-friendly places, my stash is overflowing even more than before.

First up: Helsinki

Helsinki is a nice city that is not too big and not too small. It's not very old as European cities go, and it has a fairly new, modern vibe to it. One of the tourist destination spots is the Market Square. The daily market that sets up there sells fruits, vegetables, and flowers but also plenty of touristy trinkets and reindeer related paraphernalia for the cruise ship and ferry crowd that come in from the nearby docks. However the market, at least on the Saturday we visited, also had a number of stalls selling handcrafted and artisan items of wood, metal and fiber. The one selling yarn attracted me like a moth to a flame. I was at first paralyzed by indecision over which beautiful yarn(s) to purchase, and then I saw the perfect solution - a kit to make some mittens! I only had to decide on the color scheme: winter, spring or autumn.


I don't know if this man knits, but he was very helpful and nice, and spoke English

I'm an "autumn" so I went with that color scheme.

A closer look at the yarns in the box:

 My husband probably was thinking, "Yay, she's found her yarn, now we are done." But then we went to Estonia the next day.

 

Estonia is a much older city than Helsinki, and the old two-part Medieval city is a huge tourist draw. Many tourists come on either cruise ships that also stop at Stockholm, Helsinki and St. Petersburg, or they just come from Helsinki for the day, as we did. However, we weren't looking for cheap beer like many Finns we encountered on the trip back. The old town seems perfectly made for tourists with picturesque views, restaurants and shops galore. Shop after shop sold mostly machine-made fair isle sweaters among other Nordic and Russian related goods. We peeked in a few, but I was hoping to spot some actual yarn for sale, not sweaters made in southeast Asia. Fortunately Estonia is tech-friendly and using free WiFi and a Bing search, I quickly discovered there was a section of the old town we missed. The blogger I found wrote that among the stalls of machine knit sweaters there were some storefronts selling yarn. With a few hours left until our return ferry, we made our way down there and lo and behold, I was in yarn heaven. The first two stores had a nice selection of yarn but I'd read that the best was at Jolleri Kasitookamber, located at Muurivahe 11 in Tallinn. And it was. I looked past the Italian imported yarn and found what I'd come for: real wool at really good prices.

 

 

The storefront

I have no idea what the words at the top say, but I recognize "yarn" and "wool" and that's all that matters!





What's in that big blue bag?



 

Something to spin: pencil roving



Something to weave with: a basic natural color wool that I can use for warp, dyed or plain

And something to knit with: maybe I'll make those Finnish mitts in the Winter colors!

 

Now, on to Wollmeise. I'd never heard of Wollmeise before moving here. When I was perusing the forums on Ravelry to find a local knitting group, I read about knitters organizing trips to go buy it. The store is only open on Friday and Saturday and not every weekend. There are only a couple online sources to buy the wool - directly from Wollmeise or from Loopy Ewe. If you're interested, this website goes into all the details, so I won't repeat them here. Suffice it to say that I bought some Wollmeise yarn.

 

 



Yes, it's a big bag, but it wasn't full of yarn.

 

What's inside the bag.

 (click on the picture to go to the set in Flickr)



 

 So this should keep me busy for a looooong while I think. And hopefully I won't be traveling to any super-knitter-friendly countries soon, because now we all see how I don't have much will power!

 



Malmö, Sweden

Malmö, Sweden, a set on Flickr.

Trying to catch up with some photos. Here are some from our trip to Sweden and Copenhagen over the July 4th holiday. I didn't take all of these, my husband took some too although I don't know which ones.

More magazine patterns!

Patterns are expensive in Germany, especially the "Big 4"patterns...if you can get them. There are no $3.99 or 75% off Vogue patterns sales. There are no $1.99 or 5/$5.00 Simplicity patterns. But there is a pattern magazine sold here that contains traceable patterns of a (limited) selection of sizes of some Simplicity and New Look patterns. The magazine is called Meine Nähmode, and as far as I know it's only published here in Germany. It comes out four times a year and costs €5.50 for about 13-15 equivalent envelope patterns. Since the envelope patterns often contain multiple pieces (skirts and tops, for example), you actually get quite a few patterns. The patterns aren't the latest ones, and some are even out of print, but I still think it's a pretty good deal.

I picked up the latest issue, which just came out, and I went through it and determined the pattern numbers for each pattern in the magazine. In case anyone else is interested, here is the list for the 3/2013 issue (fall 2013):

Simplicity 1796 Misses plus size dresses, 44/46, 48/50, 52/54

New Look 6004 Misses learn to sew skirts, 32/34, 36/38, 40/42

New Look 6099 Misses jackets, 38, 40, 42

New Look 6735 Misses separates, 38/40, 42/44, 46/48

New Look 6963 Misses tops, 34/36, 38/40, 42/44

New Look 6012 Misses separates, 34/36, 38/40, 42/44

Simplicity 1812 Misses plus size skirts and tops, 44/46, 48/50, 52/54

Simplicity 1920 Misses sportswear, 34/36, 38/40, 42/44

New Look 6001* Misses dresses, 34/36, 38/40, 42/44

Simplicity 2256* Misses jackets, 38/40, 42/44, 46/48

Simplicity 2257 Misses easy to sew skirts, 42, 44, 46

New Look 6152 Misses cape and skirt, 38/40, 42/44, 46/48

New Look 6076* Misses tops, 34/36, 38/40, 42/44

New Look 6164 Misses knit sportswear, 38, 40, 42, 44

New Look 6150 Misses knit tops, 36, 38, 40, 42

*out of print

Christmas in July!

 

I just opened a big box of books. I took advantage of the recent book sale over at Interweave Press. Some of these have been on my wish list for a while, but I think all are great additions to my fiber library.