OAL2016: Eyelet Collar Parisian Top

Since I finished my sweater for the Outfit Along with 2 weeks to spare, I decided to go ahead with a project I had planned a while ago that would work perfectly to combine the cardigan and skirt: a white shirt. I know what you're thinking: A white t-shirt. How boring. But this is not a plain white tee :) I have the same type of thoughts with making something as boring as a plain white shirt, yet white shirts are absolutely the workhorse of my wardrobe and are one of the only things I actually wear out. I wear mostly separates day to day, but I'm not a fan of pattern on pattern and some of my skirts are odd colors that are very hard to match in a solid fabric. White shirts are the answer for me. They go with everything! But it still bores me to tears just thinking about making a completely plain white shirt (you know - scoop neck with short sleeves). So I had the thought months ago to make one with an eyelet collar. I actually had ordered an eyelet white jersey material from Fabric.com last year, but they ran out so they couldn't fulfill my order. At that time I wanted to make a Sorrel top with an eyelet collar. When that plan was dashed (the Sorrel has to use a knit and I couldn't find any more eyelet jersey), I shelved the idea hoping to find the right fabric to no avail. Fast forward to this year and I had the idea to use the Parisian Top pattern and make the collar in woven eyelet. Done! It just had to be.

When I first made this pattern years ago (here and here - wow, I can't believe it's been that long), I thought that all the fabrics you used had to be a knit (body and collar). I thought it might work though, so after researching the versions other bloggers have made I knew it would work with a woven collar and a knit body. Huzzah! I had a 2 yard cut of white Robert Kaufman Laguna Jersey in my stash that I could use for the body, but finding an eyelet I liked for the collar was a bigger challenge than I anticipated. All I had in my stash (inherited from others' stashes) as well as most of what I could find for sale was eyelet border print, which wouldn't work with the curved shape of my collar, and the few all over eyelets I found were crazy expensive (Some were as much as $45 a yard!). I only needed about a fat quarter worth of fabric! Ugh. I found one at Joann's that I was getting ready to buy, but online they now have a minimum of 3 yards to order (what's with that?) and I haven't had the justification to drive 1 hour to get to the nearest store. Happily (actually, it's sadly) I swung int o my local Hancock Fabric's going out of business sale and they had one that was an all over floral embroidered eyelet. I had to buy a minimum of 2 yards, but since it was 80% off, it was cheaper than just the 1/2 yard would've been at Joann's. Also I technically got 1/2 yard free because there was a big snag in the middle of the yardage and the lady cutting it for me just threw that in on top of my 2.5 yards I asked for. I was easily able to cut my collar around the snag, making this collar technically free :) So now I have plenty of eyelet and I still had enough for this project, lol. Long story, sorry.

The Parisian Top was actually the first knit project I ever made. What attracted me to it then are still the things I love about it now - what's not to love about a t-shirt with a peter pan collar and puffed sleeves?! I did make some fit changes to this shirt though just like I did to my Classy Parisian long ago. I like a tighter fit than the pattern suggests for my size so it accentuates my waist, and while I fall in the range of the size Large, I kind of end up with a size Medium from the bust down. To do this I cut the pieces in the size Large, constructed the shoulder seams and sleeves, then laid my Classy Parisian top on top of it to see where to contour the side seams more and sewed from sleeve hem to main hem with a much larger seam allowance. After trying it on, I thought I might like a smidge more ease, so I tried to unpick my side seam - holy cow what a nightmare that was for my eyes! My thread was the exact color of my fabric and I used a lightning bolt stitch so it was near impossible to unpick. I made a small hole in my efforts about mid waist and just said the old fit was fine and resewed the seam (adding knit stay tape to the hole and making sure it was in the seam allowance.

So the shirt is slightly more snug than I would like, but I can live with it. The part that kind of annoys me now is how sheer the laguna jersey is. I understand it's white and white is sheer, but I feel like I am constantly on the hunt for a slightly thicker but still nice and not polyester knit in white. When I find it, Watch Out! Anyway, it's a little sheer, but that's normal in white even in ready to wear, so I'm not that worried about it. I did make another change to the pattern by leaving the hem bands off at the sleeves and body - this is just my personal preference. I love a good twin needle hem and it's so much less fiddly to wear than a hem band. I just lengthened the body to account for the hem band being gone. I made the sleeves shorter anyway, so I just turned them where I liked the length and stitched (the pattern comes with 3/4 length sleeves). I wanted the sleeves to be short so i could wear them under a cardigan easily (which I totally can!).

I love how the sleeves fit me on this shirt though - they ended up not as tight as the body, so they are able to keep their nice little poof at the top. And the length is good for me :) One advantage to the jersey being a bit thin is that the puff on the sleeves easily lays flat under a cardigan - yay!

Now for the real star here: the collar. I can't lie - I did settle for this eyelet fabric, but now that it's all finished I really love it and think it's a better choice than one with more holes. There is a rose pattern embroidered on it in a shinier thread so it stands out from the white background better. I wanted the pattern to match as well as possible, so I cut the collar top in two pieces with added seam allowance at the back instead of on the fold like the pattern calls for. This was I was able to lay the first cut piece on top of the fabric to make sure they matched. I deliberately made is so that the larger rose motif was on the main part of the collar with the eyelets ending up above them and I think it worked pretty well :)

Here's a close up of the collar front and pattern matching - not bad. Not perfect, but not bad. The eyelet fabric was very sheer, so I opted to use fusible interfacing to the eyelet pieces of the collar instead of the bottom to help hide the seam allowances inside. I didn't want the under collar to be bulky with another layer of eyelet, so I used a plain white mystery fabric from my stash (it seemed like a cheap poly cotton) and this worked great. I followed the pattern and trimmed 1/8" off the outer edge of the collar before sewing the top to the bottom to keep the seam line securely under and it worked like a charm! This is the first time I've done it correctly since it's the first time it actually worked, lol. I also really love how neat the binding inside the neck turns out on this pattern. It's undoubtedly the most fiddly neck binding of any of the knit patterns I've used, but very much worth it since everything is encased and smooth when you're finished. I stitched the neckband binding on with a zig zag stitch. The final shot is of the seam at the back of the collar - since it worked out so well it deserves a photo :)

Let's look at that collar one more time :) I really love that this idea worked out and the fact that it's white on white makes it seem like a shirt you could buy somewhere (hopefully that makes sense). I guess I mean that it feels like a good design choice. With this collar and the puffed sleeves I think Anne Shirley herself would be envious :)

And there you have it - my final piece for the Outfit Along that really makes the whole outfit come together and I can't imagine this project without it. I adore this shirt, and I might be tempted to do the eyelet collar again in other colors - how cute would yellow or teal be?!

I've said it for all of my Outfit Along pieces, but this will get so much wear with other things in my closet! I'm excited to have each separate item to wear together or apart. While I do love my crazy print dresses, there's something to be said about easy to wear basic items that you know will be worn much more often, which all of these items are :) So I'm really happy that I was able to complete my goal of the Outfit Along and end up with such practical items in the process!

Did you join in the Outfit Along? I'd love to see your projects!

Shirt Summary:
Fabric: 1.25 yards Laguna Jersey in White - $7.50, 0.5 yards of embroidered cotton eyelet - Free, 0.25 yards white broadcloth (?) - Free (stash)
Pattern: Parisian Top by Go To Patterns
Notions: Interfacing - $0.50, knit stay tape - $0.25, thread - $0.50
Time: 4 hours
Total Cost: $8.75

OAL2016: Deep Purple Hollyburn Skirt

This project was a bit of a splurge for me (definitely guilty of retail therapy). I was going through a hard time in my personal life (I was still living split between two places and things were breaking at both locations plus a bunch of personal life junk), and I had a 15% off code to Fabric.com (affiliate link) that my mom and I planned to use together. I was already making my Hetty cardigan out of my stashed coral colored yarn, and when I went to pick a fabric for my Hollyburn skirt I kept coming up with nothing but less than thrilling options in my stash. This is ridiculous since my stash is ridiculous and I still can't believe I didn't have anything. Maybe it was my mood, maybe it was the planetary alignment - I don't know, I just knew nothing that somewhat worked seemed like anything I wanted hanging in my closet and I didn't want to waste time and resources sewing something I wouldn't wear just to fulfill an online challenge. It was about to be my birthday, and I had a coupon ... so in spite of my strict budget I splurged on some Robert Kaufman Brussels Washer Linen in a lovely deep purple color :) I adore linen skirts and wear them quite a lot, and this fabric is a 55% linen and 45% rayon so it had a lovely drape that would be great for this pattern. Elegant drape plus cool and breezy linen? Sign me up, friend. So, it may not be quite as eye catching and exciting as the dress I made last year for the Outfit Along, but this is a great wardrobe staple that will mix and match with a zillion things I've already made or thrifted so I find it very exciting :)

Given the fit issues I had with my first Hollyburn earlier in June, I added to the waist of the pattern. I made the waistband finish out at 40" so I would have a little bit of ease (I'm actually around 39" at the waist) and I added 1/2" to the sides of each panel piece before cutting. After sewing up the whole thing and inserting a beautiful lapped zipper, I tried it on to discover it was too big :/ It just sagged and really looked dumpy. *Sigh* such is my old bad habit - thinking I'm bigger than I am when it comes to sewing. Because of the order of construction, I was able to fix this issue by just taking out the lapped zipper (sob) and pulling the excess in at the center back seam. This worked out better for my body anyway as my front is longer than my back as far as my waist goes, so this made the side seams actually sit where they should on me. I took out 3/4" on each side and re-did the lapped zipper and it was great :)

I went with a lighter purple zipper because it was all I had in my stash. It turns out that purple is the color that I am lacking, so the choices were slim to none and I was lucky to have this lavender one in the right length (you can see it a bit at the top of the waistband - oops). As far as the finished skirt - I absolutely love it. This fabric is kind of magical and I'm so glad I decided to take the plunge with it. It drapes beautifully! Don't believe me? Check this out:

Look at how fluid it is! Ah, lovely. Interestingly enough, the drape seems to make this skirt fall a bit more like a circle skirt would when I wear it. Also the dark color completely hides the center front seam, so you know I'm happy about that :) The pockets are great too - as ever. Man I love these pockets...

Details! There's a close up of the lapped zipper - seriously my new favorite technique. It just feels like magic. And you can see the lavender zipper when it's open. I think it's kind of a cool touch, like it's close enough to the color family but not the same because it's cooler than you. I had to show off the pockets because they are just wonderful. The last pic above is of the hem that I HAND STITCHED. Good golly that took forever, folks. I also hand stitched the waistband closed, so you know I was really dedicated to this project. The invisible hem adds just a touch of classy to the skirt and makes it borderline fancy for my wardrobe :) All my inside seams are just pressed open and overcast (you can kind of see one there).

And let's look at that drape one more time ... Love it. I'm really happy with this skirt in case you can't tell, lol.

And here's me showing how it swishes. I feel down right girly in this skirt even though it's just a basic solid color and doesn't seem like much to write home about.

So there is Part 2 of my outfit :) Check back for the final installation very soon!

Skirt Summary:
Fabric: 2.5 yards of Brussels Washer Linen in Dark Purple - $16.50
Pattern: Hollyburn Skirt from Sewaholic Patterns
Notions: light purple zipper - $0.10, thread - $1.50, knit stay tape - $0.25,
Time: 6 hours
Total Cost: $ 18.35

Outfit Along 2016, Etc - Progress Thus Far

Many projects have been going on behind the scenes here lately, but my biggest projects are still in the works so I don't have a fun finished item to share yet. I do, however, have a few in progress shots since I feel like posting today, lol.

First, the Outfit Along. This project has consumed all of my knitting time this month and I've deliberated long and hard about what fabric to use for the skirt. I entertained about 8 different choices from my ridiculous stash, but none of them thrilled me. Turns out bright coral with sparkles is not that easy to color match :/ As there's no point in sewing something for a challenge if you're not going to wear it in real like, and since I had a coupon for Fabric.com (affiliate link), I decided to just bite the bullet and get something that did thrill me for this project. I ordered 2.5 yards of Brussels Washer Linen in the Dark Purple colorway. I figured coral and purple will look nice together, plus the purple skirt will go with tons of things already in my closet. Also since I'm using this immediately, I'm not counting it as stashed fabric, lol. The fabric is a linen/rayon blend, so it has the texture that I love plus a wonderful drape. I can't wait to sew it up!

The Hetty sweater itself is coming along quite nicely :) I cast off the body a few nights ago and the fit is just like I wanted - yes! I did mess up when joining the fronts and back (I forgot a row of the lace and didn't notice until I had knit 3 inches more), so I had to rip back and fix it - not too big a deal since it's a fairly quick knit. I lengthened the pattern and spread out the waist decreases over that extra space, so now it hits my waist where I want it to (I am long waisted and Andi's patterns come out very short on me as written). Because of the longer body, I am afraid I may be playing yarn chicken with the sleeves. Because of this, I plan to knit the button bands and neckband first, then I can make sure both sleeves get an even split of the yarn. I just hope I make it to elbow length at least. We shall see. I've never worked with 50 gram balls before, so it feels like I'm always starting a new skein. Think good thoughts for me, peeps!

My other big project that was getting lots of attention until the Outfit Along started is my Alecia Beth cardigan. I managed to separate for the sleeves and join the body before I had to set it aside, which I feel pretty good about time-wise since this is knit in fingering weight. It's a really fun pattern to knit, so I'm excited to pick this back up once I finish my coral sweater.

I've also been sewing up a storm (for me, anyway), so there will be a few new projects here next week :) In the meantime, I share all my projects in real time on Instagram, so you can check me out there if you;d like to see the in progress makes (my name is showandtellmeg, bug surprise I know).

See you next week with some finished projects!

FO: Grassy Hollyburn

Dude I made something! lol. Like I said in my sweater planning post a week or so ago, I am participating in the Outfit Along again this year :) This year's sewing pattern is the Hollyburn Skirt by Sewaholic Patterns (Tasia - I miss you already!) which coincidentally has been at the top of my "to sew" pile for months now. I held off buying this pattern for years since it's such a basic silhouette and I already have a zillion patterns, but after years of bloggers singing this skirt's praises, I finally succumbed when Craftsy put their Hollyburn Skirt Kit on deep discount a few months ago (I got it with a different fabric than that link shows). While I'm still deliberating what stash fabric will go with my sparkly coral cardigan, I wanted to try out the pattern to check for fit issues and whatnot before using my kit fabric anyway - technically this would qualify as a muslin, but in all honesty I went into this project expecting a wearable item with no problems (first sign of a problem right there). Things didn't quite turn out that way, but I was able to make it wearable. First, let's look at my new skirt:

Knowing this pattern calls for drapey fabrics, I came across this thrifted grass green colored linen-look fabric in my stash and knew it was meant to be. I've waxed poetic about linen-look material before when I made my first Peggy Skirt (which was made under similar conditions with wanting a wearable muslin and grabbing some thrifted fabric). Guys, this fabric seems to have it all - nice drape, good weight for a bottom, the flowy feel and breath-ability of linen, wrinkle resistant. All great things in my book. 

So on the pattern - I think my favorite feature is the pockets - they are just a great shape and size. They're at a good angle too so they are still flattering on hippy bodies. Frankly, I think the skirt looks better across the front when my hands are in the pockets - not sure if that's a good or a bad thing, lol. 

The thing I don't really love about the front (which I suspected when the design was first released) is the center front seam. I just try to avoid them at all costs. Something about a line down your middle really messes with my head. It would be one thing if the seam would lay flat, but since the panels are cut on a bias and the fabric has so much drape there is always a congregation of fabric right there and it kind of bugs me.

See - hands in pockets flattens out that seam and makes it less obvious. I can absolutely see why this seam needs to be there, but in a perfect world I would try to get rid of it (which I think would just mean I'd be making a half or quarter circle skirt).

So what went wrong with my muslin? I got the whole thing put together and I was adding the zipper (one of the final steps) only to try it on and discover it was in no way big enough for me. Like, even the seam allowance held out all the way would hardly meet. There was nothing I could do at that point because the waistband was only so long. I made a quick decision to still use everything and make this fit - make an "exposed zipper".

By using the entire seam allowance plus the width of the zipper tape, the skirt just barely fit. And I do mean barely, lol. This is certainly not a skirt for a large meal - or any meal at all really. To make this work, I folded the zipper opening so the raw edges were just barely tucked under, then I used Wondertape to place the edges along the outermost edge of the zipper tape. I top stitched with a zipper foot as close to the edge as possible. Once it was done, I noticed I missed the zipper tape along the waistband area, so I had to go back and hand sew that on both sides to make sure. Then I went back just for security and top stitched as close as possible again. It's not incredibly attractive, but who's going to look that close at my lower back?

I got pretty creative with my iron to angle the bottom toward the center back seam, but it's not too bad. I'm calling this a "design feature", lol. I will say I'm pretty pleased with how level I got the top of the zipper tape at the waist edge - hand sewing was the only option there. Generally I don't love how I finish that area off simply because I don't know how, but this one is nice and even.

My jerry-rigging got the skirt to wearable status :) I totally adore the color of this skirt, plus it looks amazing with my multi colored Swedish Hasbeens AND my yellow ones. Plus it will go with my crazy Parrot Miss L Fires too. Score!

Realistically, this is how I will wear the skirt. The above shots took some sucking in of the tummy to look ok, lol. It looks alright with an untucked shirt, but it would be better if I could get it to drop a bit in the waist - which will occur when the waistband isn't so snug. If it drops a bit, you can see the pockets too which really are what makes this skirt interesting. As far as other details go, I did hand stitch the waistband closed (shocker for me, seriously), and I tried a machine blind hem but this fabric is so bouncy that it looked horrible. I just went with a top stitched hem and I think it looks fine especially given my creativity at the zipper.

So, even though this project didn't turn out exactly as I hoped, I still have a fun, wearable item to wear on occasion :) I love the fun color and that it's a solid because it makes this a blank canvas for fun accessories and sweaters (I'm wearing an enamel cuckoo clock necklace, lol). Plus it's nice and swishy! Here's to learning lessons to be fixed on the next version! And please think good thoughts for me deciding on a fabric for the outfit along, lol.

Summary:
Fabric: 3 yards of grass green linen-look fabric - $1.00
Pattern: Hollyburn Skirt by Sewaholic Patterns
Notions: 9" zipper - $0.10, thread - old stash (free)
Hours: 6
Total Cost: $1.10 - Woo hoo!

*Craftsy links are affiliate links, but I purchased this pattern with my own money and all opinions are 100% my own.

Project Planning - Outfit Along and More

Friends, ever since finishing my Ginny Cardigan, something has been missing in my knitting experience. It will sound strange to a non-knitter, but I just wasn't as enthused by my current projects and always felt like something was off. It took some time, but I realized that I miss being in the middle of making a sweater. I had a sweater shaped hole in my life! Such a hole can certainly be filled with my crazy stash of yarn and patterns, so I took to Ravelry (man, I love their organization of your library) and started checking out sweaters I had planned out when I purchased yarn as well as trying to match stashed yarn to patterns. It was quite the planning extravaganza. There were two clear winners that skooched to the top of my pile though, so I decided to swatch both of them and see how things went with each.

The first is the ever lovely Alecia Beth cardigan by Justyna Lorkowska. I fell in love with Gosik's example photo (above) a while ago and I bought enough Cascade Heritage in Navy to make it up from during one of Craftsy's sales (no joke exactly a year ago is when I bought this yarn). I love Navy blue, and I know that a navy cardi will work well in my wardrobe as is plus it will go with a ton of projects I have planned to sew. I managed to get gauge straight off, so I decided to just cast on :) I got a decent way down the back yoke before I realized that I didn't read the instructions correctly and had to pull half of it out, but it's an enjoyable pattern and I already have the little cables memorized. This project is really just what I was needing, so I'm glad I decided to start it.

The other pattern I have in the works is Ishnana, a relatively new pattern by Ysolda Teague. Isn't that cable pattern fantastic?! I just love it. Ever since I first saw this design, I wanted to make it with 3/4 sleeves. About a month ago I made a lucky find on Ravelry (seriously, I love their trade/sell function a bit too much) when a fellow knitter was selling her wool since she discovered she was allergic (knitters everywhere shed a light tear for this unfortunate soul). She had 3.3 skeins of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock (which I had just used to make my Smocked Guernsey Socks and loved) in the Kerfuffle colorway which is a neat tonal grayish purple color. How great is the name of this color?! It was just meant to be. I had a little extra money from selling some yarn on ebay, so it just all worked out and now I have a sweater worth of this lovely yarn. I swatched for this pattern and got gauge straight off :) Alecia Beth won out in the "which gets cast on first" contest, but this one will be close behind it I can assure you. Also, that example photo from Ysolda makes me realize my need for a mustard yellow cardigan - I need to get on that soonish too!

Of course right after I get going on a new sweater, the Outfit Along was announced, lol. I've participated both years in this fun challenge so I definitely want to keep it going this year. The challenge is to sew and knit a complete outfit - it can be whatever items you want, but you must sew a garment and knit a garment that coordinate and can be worn together, and you must do it all between June 1st and July 31st. I tend to have terrible things get in my way when I commit to any timed large project like this, so I know that both of the sweaters I mentioned above are out of the question (my last fingering weight cardigan took me over a year to complete since I constantly set it aside for other projects). Knowing this, I decided to make something in worsted or dk weight. The official knitting pattern is Andi's newest design, which is a linen lacy t-shirt style, but I live in Florida and no matter how light a yarn is, I still need the option to take it off - especially in the summer. I've made several of Andi's cardigan designs before, so I knew I wanted to stick with one of hers so I know all the fitting changes with no additional work - laziness for the win! I've narrowed it down to the following ... I think ...

I need to keep this a stash buster project, so I'm thinking of using some of my Muench String of Pearls yarn I grabbed for a crazy cheap price last year from Jimmy Bean's Wool. It's a cotton yarn with an iridescent stripe woven in and I think it will make a fun and slightly dressier piece. I choose this coral color (instead of the grape colorway, which I also have in my stash) after taking a look at my finished sweater color palette. Folks, I seem to only make things in blues and purples, lol. I need to branch out from my cool tones and sedate neutrals. This coral is certainly brighter, but it's still a color I wear frequently so a lot of things in my wardrobe will go with it. Now to just decide which pattern to make! I've had Andi's Hetty pattern on my list to make for years but just haven't got around to it quite yet, so that's a solid option. I think the lace will go well with the dressier yarn. I also would love to make another Miette cardigan though, and that is the pattern I originally intended this yarn for when I purchased it. Decisions, decisions ... I may have to swatch the yarn before I make my decision and see how it looks with all over lace verses in stockinette and that can be my deciding factor. I have plenty of other yarns in my stash that would suit these patters, but all of them are either acrylic (and not the soft kind) or wool (way too hot for Florida summer) or already set aside for different projects or cool colors. 

While I'll be going rogue on the sweater for the OAL, I will be sewing up the official pattern: the Hollyburn Skirt from Sewaholic patterns. This was a fortuitous choice for this challenge since it was already on my pattern pile to be made up next. Huzzah! I just need to match up a fabric that will go with my chosen yarn. I'm sure I have something, but I haven't been at my new place to shop my stash yet. If I get more sewing time then is probable, I will also try to make a shirt. It will probably just be a simple t-shirt, but that is all tentative since I don't realistically have all that much sewing time right now.

So yeah, lots of project planning is going on 'round these parts. And this is just the sweaters :) I've planned countless animals and socks and whatnot that I know will be sometime in the far distant future. I'm finally using Ravelry's Queue function like it was intended, so I now have a list of about 16 sweaters waiting around for me to make them, lol. Considering I average about 5 sweaters a year if one of them is a smaller project (like a vest or a bolero), that should take just over 3 years ... except when you factor in how many are going to be in fingering weight and then you can add another 2 years to that, lol. Yeah, my stash is ridiculous, I'll admit it. I am constantly looking for new deals though. It's a sickness I tell you. I've fallen pray to the old adage that those who can't do, plan. I can't devote much time to my creative endeavors due to my living situation, but I am a crack shot project planner! I guess I'd better stop typing and get to work :)