Video: How (and Where) To Pattern Test

Want to get into test knitting or crocheting? Today's video is all about the site I found devoted to just that and my projects I have tested so far. Click below to watch now!

FO: Sorrel Dress

I'm a little late for release day, but yay for the Sorrel Dress! I can finally share this dress that has been a few months in the making :) I was thrilled to be chosen as a tester for the new Sorrel Dress pattern by Jennifer Lauren Handmade. The pattern is a vintage style shirt dress with kimono sleeves, a fold back lapel, release darts at the waist for the bodice and the skirt, and a more straight silhouette. This was a little out of my style comfort zone, to be honest. I'm more of a fit and flare girl by nature, so I was hoping for that shape when I signed on, but the pattern sent only had a straight style skirt. I also have been skeptical of kimono sleeves for years. I'm very picky about sleeve styles as I just feel like some make my arms look bigger - I always thought kimono sleeves would be one of those unfortunate styles because they always seem like cap sleeves in line drawings. This dress has proved my suspicions unfounded!

When it came time to make up my final version, I was a little at a loss as to what fabric to use. This design is very open ended with the suggestions on fabric, and I knew I wanted to stay in my stash. In the end I chose a fabric that I had actually tried to sell a little while ago. I had this up on my Instagram destash, but I went with the inspiration and took it down :) The fabric is a mystery woven I got at a thrift store a while back. The overall fabric is navy blue with a subtle textured stripe in the weave as well as single strands of white thread woven in to create very light flecks in stripes throughout. I did a burn test and I know it's a natural fiber because it ignites and keeps on burning with no beading (just ash), but that's as far as I know. It seems to have some rayon content just judging by how shifty and difficult it was to cut. Whatever it is, I really like it. I'm glad I found a use for it at last.

For my initial muslin, I made it up as drafted except that I added 1.5" to the waist length since that is a standard adjustment for me with Jennifer Lauren patterns. My muslin seemed a bit too long in the waist, so I shortened it by 1/2" for my final version. I also made a 1" forward shoulder adjustment and let out the waist a little by sewing at a 3/8" allowance instead of 5/8". I think the weight of my fabric affected the fit on my final version and now even with shortening a little I think it's still a bit long. The waist does sit at my natural waist, but it just looks a bit too long to my eye - maybe this style would look better on me just above the natural waist. Anyway, I had to do some adjusting to make it look more fitted like it's supposed to. I had to take in my addition to the waist just a bit at each side seam, then I extended my darts on the bodice and the skirt by 1" each to take up some of the excess fabric and smooth things on my stomach. In the end I decided to add a sash at the waist to help snug things up and help the excess fabric blouse up a bit to look more intentional. All these things are based on my own "going rogue" with this pattern - the pattern itself was great! I always love Jen's instructions and drafting, and I have yet to have any type of issue with her designs. (and I'm totally not required to say anything like that, that is just my opinion - her patterns are always a pleasure.)

As with all of Jen's designs, this one includes pockets :) And I always add pockets when possible. This fabric is a bit heavy and drapey for them and they possibly add a bit of girth to my hip area, but I don't care because pockets. Incidentally I think the dress looks very flattering with my hands IN the pockets, lol. My waist tie is just the full width of the fabric and 3 inches wide - I angled the edges down just for a bit of style. It's a little bi short, so I can only tie it once, but I like the effect.

Here you can see the stripes of flecks (flecks of stripes?) in the fabric. I actually accidentally cut the lapel facings upside down, and in my sewing room the back from the front of this fabric was quite obvious, but I did not want to cut new pieces and I figured no one will notice but me. Can you even tell that the strips on the collar are slightly more pronounced than the rest of the dress? I figured not. Keeping with my stash, I used some plain navy buttons that I have a whole bucket of from a Sewing Studio deal. At first I was less than thrilled by them, but now I really like that they blend in so well.

The actual "collar" is non-existent on this dress - it's just a lapel that folds back to give the illusion of a collar. This made the construction so much easier than a true collar would be, but I still get the look of having one - a win win :)

Here's how short my tie turned out, lol. I don't hate the look without the belt, it just doesn't help accentuate my waist, which is my preferred look, so I like to snug things up with the belt. This fabric was quite fray-proned, so I used my serger on all of the seams inside (yay serger, lol).

My fingers are at my natural waist in this picture. The seam sits fine, but not that I've worn it I can tell that I only needed that extra length in the front, not the back, which may be causing my issues. Anyway, these are small things. I've already worn the dress and aside from it being a little too short to sit on the floor for me, it felt great.

Here's a close-up to show the weave in the fabric. Isn't it cool? The fabric is also a little heavier than I typically wear in Florida, but I think it will be a nice "winter" dress (at least as winter as it ever gets here). It's still breathable, so I think it will work well for all seasons.

And here's a direct sunlight photo just because. This one is also without the waist tie. I'm on the fence. Do you think I should wear it with the tie? Should I make a new tie? A belt? Let me know your thoughts!

I'm really glad I had this project to get me sewing a little. It's been hard to carve out time for sewing, but it's so nice to have a finished piece to wear around that I like so much :) Thanks, Jen, for letting me test this pattern, and if you're interested there is a whole Kickstarter campaign going right now to help fund paper patterns from Jennifer Lauren Handmade! Isn't that exciting?! At the moment, you can only get the Sorrel through that campaign, but it will be available next year. The project is more than fully funded now, so she is starting to sell preorders of other patterns in paper as well. So fun. Head over here to see the campaign and grab a pattern for yourself!

Summary:
Fabric: 2.5 yards of mystery woven fabric - $1.00 (thrifted)
Pattern: Sorrel Dress by Jennifer Lauren Handmade
Notions: 1 yard Pellon SF101 interfacing - $1.00, navy thread - $1.00, 10 plain navy buttons - $ 0.20
Time: 12 hours (with testing and muslin making included)
Total Cost: $ 3.20

* I received this pattern free of charge in exchange for testing it pre-release. All opinions are 100% my own and uninfluenced.

*Testing*: Otari Hoodie by Scroop Patterns

A little over a month ago there was a call for testers on a new Scroop Pattern. I submitted and was very lucky to be chosen :) I made this several weeks ago, working on it in secret from the sewing community (and man that was a much faster release than I would've thought possible - Leimomi was on it!), and now that the pattern was released I can officially show it here. So everyone - meet my Otari Hoodie!

The Otari Hoodie is a classic zip front sweater with pockets and a hood, but with some quirky options. The pattern has two hood choices - traditional rounded (like mine has) or a fun pointed back - as well as two pocket choices - traditional scoop opening pockets or Art Deco inspired cloud pockets (like mine has). The options are easy to mix and match, so technically I made View A but with the pockets from View B. I went with the rounded hood since my fabric has circles all over it, but I would love to make the pointed version as well some time.

Going by the size chart, I made a size 44 bust and 46 waist to hip since the pattern advised that there was a tighter fit across the stomach area and I usually have to make this type of adjustment on every pattern I make. My resulting fit is pretty good - a little loose, but I think that makes it more possible to have additional layers underneath. Part of my loose fit could be my fabric choice. Since I live in Florida and we have just finished our mild cool time of year, I knew a sweatshirt style hoodie would sit unused except for maybe 2 times a year. I wanted a "Florida appropriate" sweater, so I dug this neat cotton interlock out of my stash. The gray fabric with the circles is Amy Butler Gray Quarter Moon and I grabbed 2 yards from Fabric Mart in a sale a while back not having any project in mind. The fabric is a medium weight interlock and very soft. The melon colored contrast fabric is just a poly spandex lightweight jersey I picked up in clearance at Hobby Lobby a few years ago. Originally I was going to use this for the lining only and I tried dying some cotton ribbing in an acid green/yellow to match the circles on the main fabric, but after 2 bottles of fabric paint and over a week of soaking and drying and soaking again, I threw in the towel and just decided to go with the melon since it was already a good color.

I even had all of the rather random components in my stash for this project - I used a separating handbag zipper that I shortened to the necessary length, a few grommets for the hood, and cord I bought for knitting bags. The only thing I had to purchase was melon colored thread :) Can we all just stop to appreciate that the hood is the perfect size?! I was thrilled when I sewed up the hood pieces and tried it on. It's loose enough not to mess up your hair but tight enough to stay up. This is no small feat even in rtw hoodies, so I was particularly happy it turned out this was on mine.

Other than grading between two sizes, I also lengthened mine by 1" - another standard adjustment. I loved the cloud pockets as soon as I saw the pattern and knew I would use them but I think they would've been lost on my busy print, so I decided to extend the lining pieces to peak out just a bit like piping. I love this effect and it was an extremely easy touch to add. Nicely the pockets are fully lined, giving not only a clean finish but also helping keep your hands toasty.

My one niggly fit issue is that the shoulders drop slightly on me, but keep in mind this was the tester version and this specific issue has been changed on the larger sizes to make the shoulders more narrow. This dropped shoulder caused my sleeves to be slightly long, but really in a hoodie it doesn't make a bit of difference since extra sleeve length means extra hand coverage in the cold. The overall fit is a bit loose, and I may take it in a bit, but again that is probably due to my lighter weight fabric. The pattern suggests a heavier sweatshirt fabric, which would certainly take more space and be tighter fitting.

The hood has a draw string that is held in place by a casing you sew connecting the lining to the main fabric. My tip would be to place your grommets exactly where the pattern states and then sew all your seams at 3/8" like suggested or you will run into problems. Mine were close, but maybe not exact, and it caused some grief sewing over the grommets since you have to install them early on in the hood construction. The grommet insertion order has changed since I made it, helping make this an easier process.

The hood is fully lined and there is an inner neckband to close everything up inside - it's' such a nice finish, seriously. This part was definitely the most fiddly, particularly in my light weight poly knit that loved to roll. I starched the neckband before insertion, which helped, but this is an area that takes further precision to make sure you enclose everything that is going on there. It's worth the effort though because it looks so clean and professional afterward.

I did all of my top stitching in contrasting melon thread for an added touch of fun. Here you can see how close you sew to the grommets on that hood - be aware there. Also apparently YKK handbag zippers don't come with pulls? I have yet to decide what to attach to mine as a pull, but it still functions just fine without one. You definitely want to be aware on all of the top stitched seams - I pulled out a few of the lines of stitching around my zipper because they were slightly off and it's' glaringly obvious since it runs right down your middle. This is definitely a place for precision and taking your time, even if you don't use contrasting thread.

The zipper is also enclosed with a twill tape facing inside - a lovely touch as it looks clean and adds stability for easy zipping. I've had this ruler printed twill tape for a few years now so I decided it would be a little sewing joke inside my sweater and it makes me ridiculously happy when I see it. I could actually use my hoodie to measure things in centimeters should the need pop up. How cool is that?

And here's a close up of the pocket area -my top stitching isn't perfect here, but I don't think anyone will have their head at the same level as my abdomen like this, so it's not a big deal here. The zipper looks good and the pockets line up across the zipper, so I'm happy. The pattern gives lots of words of advise on where you need to be super accurate with your stitching, which was nice. The pattern also lets you know which seams should be sewn with a stretch stitch and which with a straight stitch - sure you could technically puzzle this out on your own if you've sewn a few knit garments, but how nice it was to take the extra thinking out of it and just be able to sew by the directions. That's a sign of a good pattern in my eyes.

So that's my Otari Hoodie :) This was my first time ever testing a sewing pattern and I an super honored I got the chance. This was a very fun project that included a few new-to-me techniques, but the pattern was written in such a way as to make these new steps easy to accomplish. I would call this an intermediate pattern because of the zipper and neckband, but a confident advanced beginner could certainly make it if they were dedicated and good at following the instructions. They will get you there even if you are not super experienced. I'm really happy with my fun hoodie and now I have a great pattern on hand when the mood strikes to make another one (or if I need a unique gift!). It was so nice to test this pattern - Leimomi was very attentive with questions I had and really took our suggestions into account and made small changes to make this an even better pattern. It's so nice when your issues are taken into account by the designer and I would love to test for her again anytime. Thank you so much, Leimomi, for choosing me to test, and thank you for a terrific pattern!

*I was given the Otari Hoodie pattern to test free of charge in exchange for my critiques. I was not required to post about my results, but I am just so happy with my sweater I had to share. All opinions are 100% my own. This is just a great pattern :)

Summary:
Fabric: 2 yards Amy Butler Gray Quarter Moon print Cotton Interlock (53" wide) - $7.50, 3/4 yards tangerine poly  spandex knit - $ 0.50
Pattern: Otari Hoodie by Scroop Patterns
Notions: 2 grommets - $ 0.50, knit interfacing - $ 0.50 , acid green fabric paint - $2.55, peach thread - $2.99, gray thread - $1.00, 1.5 yards measuring print twill tape - $2.50, 28" separating zipper (cut to 25") - $2.60, 1 yard cotton cord - $0.50
Time: 8 hours
Total Cost: $ 21.14

FO: Mattock Hat by Home Row Fiber Co

I knitted another hat - and this time it's for ME! lol

This is the just released Mattock Hat by Rochelle of Home Row Fiber Co. (the sewing community also knows her as Lucky Lucille). Rochelle released the Mattock Cowl back in March and she designed this hat to match. When she put an open call for testers on her Instagram, I decided to throw my name in the ring and she picked me :) I was pretty stoked, lol.

The Mattock Hat is a slouchy style beanie with a simple repeating texture pattern all the way around. The pattern only has 2 lines that repeat over and over, making this a really simple project that is easy to memorize. I knitted a gauge swatch before starting, but once that dried and showed it was spot on I got right to work!

The pattern lines up beautifully at the top, making for a neat and orderly center. I just love hats that do this, lol, it's the simple things, folks. I knitted my hat using a 24" circular needle, but you could easily use DPNs or a shorter circular needle (Rochelle recommends a 16"). I knitted my hat with the recommended size 7 needle and I love the gauge. It's tight enough to notice the textures, but it's loose enough to give a drapey fit and still breathe a bit. Normally my head overheats quickly with hats, but this one can stay on my head for quite a while with no built up heat.

I knitted my Mattock hat in Harvest by Feza Yarns, a worsted weight 100% merino wool that is dyed organically. I used the Citrus colorway and it's a bright lemon yellow that has just the slightest variation in the color (which I love). I won this yarn in  Facebook giveaway from Stitch Diva Studios last February, so I'm glad I have such a fun project from it. The yarn is wonderfully soft and was a pleasure to knit with. One little snag was at the very beginning of this project - when I went to wind this hank of yarn into a skein, I couldn't find the end of the yarn! I twisted, I separated, I did everything I could think of, but I was finally so frustrated with searching that I just cut a spot and started to pull from there. This was a nightmare that lead to me having to wind a ball by hand for about an hour because the hank kept knotting as I pulled, so I would have to untangle it on the swift. When I finished, I discovered why I found no end - there wasn't one! It's still the craziest thing, but when I cut my own place to start winding I fully expected to come across the actual factory ends of the yarn and need to join it back, but nope! No end. At All. So crazy. I'm glad the yarn was fun to work with because I was really not happy with it at first, lol.

Since this was a pattern test, I made sure to make it up just as written. I'll confess I was slightly skeptical about it being only one size since I have a "larger than average" head. Generally I can't buy hats in a store, and I have to make the largest size of knitted hats. This had a standard finished size of 19" around and my head is 23" around, so I was worried it wouldn't give the slouchy effect. I am very pleased I was wrong! The hat has just the right amount of casual slouch and it's super comfortable. I didn't even stretch it out in blocking - I did my usual blocking on a balloon to keep the round shape and I made sure the balloon was 19" around - but Rochelle includes great blocking instructions in the pattern so even a beginner could easily get a lovely result. The garter stitch brim is naturally quite stretchy, plus the body of the hat itself is basically a fancy ribbing, so all those knits and purls make this hat have a lot of "give", making even my large noggin fit it comfortably :)

All in all I'm thrilled with my new hat :) It's a fun design that is quick to make up and is comfy to wear - it's a triple threat! I love my new yellow hat, and I'm glad I get to share it now that the pattern is released. If you'd like to make your own Mattock Hat, head over to Ravelry and snap up the pattern for yourself! This would be a great pattern for making gifts, and I can personally vouch that it is a very detailed and well written pattern :) Thanks so much, Rochelle, for letting me test your pattern! Now I just need to make myself a Mattock Cowl to match, lol.

*I was given the Mattock Hat pattern for free to test the pattern with no obligation to blog about it. All opinions are 100% my own. I just really like this pattern :)

FO Friday: Firefly Testing - Meet Ferdie!

I am seriously so remiss in posting about this project! I made this as a pattern test literally a month ago (geez!) for the lovely Chloe of Amination. She just released a cute little collection called Microcosmos and I got to test out the Firefly!

Isn't he just adorable?! This was a very quick little guy - I made him in just 2 hours - and he takes very little yarn.

For my first foray with this pattern, I used all the recommended colors. I used Premier Everyday Soft Worsted yarn for the red, white and brown. The yellow is Red Heart With Love and the tan is Patons Canadiana in Flax. I used a size H hook, but I do crochet tightly so most could probably use a G hook. 

The color changes make this a bit of an intermediate project, but it's really not hard at all. I used 12 mm safety eyes for mine. I love that you can lift up his wings and wiggle his legs :)

I am super happy with how this came out! The pattern is really well written and everything is explained well so even a beginner could tackle it. I'm so excited to try him out in different colors! (I'm seeing a green and yellow one in the future). I would definitely recommend the pattern as well as the rest of the Microcosmos gang. Just look at that lady bug! Thanks so much for letting me test your fantastic pattern, Chloe! I really love it :)

*I received the pattern Microcosmos: Firefly by Amination for free to test it for any errors. I was not obligated to review the pattern on my blog, so all opinions are 100% my own. It's just so cute I had to share!

FO Friday: Springy Animals!

First on my finished pile this week is my new pal, Hazel :)

I used the Well-Dressed Bunny pattern by Fuzzy Mitten and absolutely love how he came out :) 

The bunny is made using Patons Canadiana yarn in Flax, the jacket using Lion Brand Microspun in Turquoise, and the waistcoat Red Heart Designer Sport in Mint. I picked the Canadiana because it was the color I want, and it was really nice to work with except one thing ... his ears! The yarn is actually a little too soft for this pattern it seems, because the ears just don't want to stand up. I can position them and then with the slightest movement they fall down. I'm still contemplating starching them :) Also, I think the yarns I used for the clothes were too large because his clothes came out a bit big. I doubt anyone really sees it but me though - it's just a small thing.

Hazel graced our table at Easter dinner and he was definitely a big hit :) Even my nephew likes to hold him by the ears and make him hop (this is a big deal because he usually couldn't care less about my animals, lol). He made a great center piece.

Here's a full frontal nudity pic, lol. Isn't it funny - all my other animals I would never think of as 'naked' even though I've never made clothes for them, but since this one has clothes I just look at this pic and think he's incomplete. By the way I named him Hazel after the main character in Watership Down :)

And here's his little accoutrements :) I never would have thought making what are basically doll clothes would be fun, but I really like it. I'm sure there will be many more articles of clothing in my future.

I also finished my pattern test for Adrialys Designs :) I'm not sure how much she wants me to divulge about it since the pattern hasn't been released yet, so you just get the one pic for now. I'll post about it fully once she releases it! It was lots of fun to make.

So that's what I've finished this week :) Head over to Tami's Amis' Blog to see what others have finished (and this week she did actually post an FO Friday, lol, so there are things to see!)

WIP Wednesday: Testing ... Testing ...

Going on a mini vacation this past weekend really put a damper on my WIPs this week. I managed to finish my Easter animals, but then I picked up a special project. I'm testing out a pattern for Adrialys Designs :) I was kind of ridiculously excited to be asked to test, especially because I've never gotten to do it before!

Here's just a little sneak peak for you - I have to say I love the way you do the shaping and I think it's a super cute design. I can't wait to finish it!

I've also been listening to the audio book of The Devil In The White City by Erik Larson. It's about one of America's first documented urban serial killers who preyed on visitors to the Columbia World Exhibition in 1892/1893. I was excited to read this book when I learned about it, but I'm currently almost halfway through and it's ... kind of boring me to be honest. I never would have thought that since I have a weird interest in serial killers in general. It's more the writing style - it's like every paragraph is designed to be read by a newscaster off a teleprompter. I understand it's hard to create a 1st person narrative more than 100 years after the occurrence, but you can totally tell that all of the info in the book was gained from old letters. The things you would want to learn more about are mostly speculative, and the things you wouldn't really care much for are described in crazy detail. I swear if I have to hear how someone's "striking blue eyes stood out from the drab Chicago background" one more time, I may just not finish the book, lol. As bad as it sounds, I hope that once the killing begin the story picks up. We shall see.

That's all I've had going on this week :) Head over to Tami's Amis' Blog to see what others are making too!