Sewing Plans: Hot Patterns 1226

For quite some time I have been enamoured with the designs featured by Hot Patterns.  To quote their about section, "HotPatterns is an independent sewing pattern company, started in 2005, and run by two Londoners who have somehow found themselves living & working in the steamy south-west of Florida".  I was first introduced to the company's work through some free patterns but then began to look more deeply to find a very stylish line.

I recently purchased Hot Patterns 1226, described as a T-shirt/blouse hybrid, the "perfect mix of comfy T and dressy blouse".

Here is the fabric I have selected to make this top from:

The fabric is drapey and relaxed.  It will be gorgeous made up as this blouse.  Unfortunately, it was stored in a bit of a ball, so I spent a whole evening pressing out creases so that I can cut it, hopefully, this weekend.  I could also see doing this again in a plain color to maximize the number of bottoms with which it can be worn.

I'm excited to get back to sewing.  Thank you for being my accountability partners!  Now that I've let you in on my plans, I have to follow through, right?

p.s. This is NOT a sponsored post.  I have no affiliation with Hot Patterns and have not been compensated in any way for promoting this pattern.

Pattern Review: Alice Tunic from the Magic Pattern Book

The Magic Pattern Book by Amy Barickman (Workman Press, 2014, list price $22.95) is one of those great sewing books with endless possibilities for your creativity.  I've had the book for some time, but have not had the time to try any of the patterns.  The premise behind this book is that from variations on six basic patterns, one could make an entire wardrobe.

I decided to first try the Alice Tank Top or tunic.  The pattern is very cute and fits with my current Lagenlook style.  It is pictured in the book styled with leggings, cowboy boots (not my thing, but ok if you like them) and a long thin infinity loop and dangle earrings.  Cute!

Patterns are included on an accompanying CD.  The same issue exists here as with any PDF pattern which prints in tiles and must be taped together.  Care must be taken to align the papers precisely so as not to create and then propagate problems with sewing and fitting the pattern.  The pattern went together "ok".  There were a few spots where it did not match up perfectly and had to be muscled a little bit.  Not the end of the world.

After some initial fiddling with the pattern, all troubles ceased.  The pattern went together like a dream, and was not at all difficult to sew.  I opted to have the neck and armhole facings appear on the outside of the garment as a trim, and I used a solid fabric for the bodice potion of the top.  I carefully saved the pattern pieces, so I can duplicate this top again.

I really love the way the top came out, and I'm sure I'll wear it frequently.  The black linen bodice was cut from fabric I had leftover in my stash from another project.  The floral print on the bottom, and used for the facings as well, came from Fabric.com and was on sale.  Here is Betsy, wearing my new Alice Tank Top.  Oh, by the way, this is a pull on top, as people have asked about closures in the past, wondering if those were just not shown.  No closures here!

Stay tuned for more on the Downton Dress, and my Home Dec project, as well as more random sewing shenanigans when I need a break from the serious stuff!

Free Pattern Review: The Port Elizabeth Top

The Port Elizabeth Top is a cute boxy cap sleeved summer top available as a free pattern download on BurdaStyle.  It is certainly more work to find the free patterns on the BurdaStyle site these days, so it helps to either know the name of the project you are looking for and search it, or have the direct url of that project.  This link will take you to the page for downloading this pattern if you are interested.  The top was drafted by Sarah Magill, a UK designer who sells more of her designs on Etsy, and has an interesting blog, Goldfinch and Eagle.  Here is the line drawing of the top:

A nice thing about this top is that it is so simple and versatile you can do virtually anything with it in terms of personalization and variation.  I know!  You're sold already, right?

The first step, of course, is to download, print out and put together your pattern.  This can be daunting if you have not put together pdf patterns before, but this would be a great pattern to start with, as it lines up easily.  With this, or any other pdf pattern, it is crucial to line up the pattern lines very carefully when you are taping your pattern together.  Small errors at this phase can affect the whole outcome of the garment.

Once you have your pattern taped together, cut it as you would any other pattern.  The directions included with this pattern are succinct and complete.  The printout says "very basic, because it's free!"  I chose to make several variations, or upgrades to the pattern to suit my needs and purposes.

First, I drafted neck facings to finish the neckline instead of using the recommended bias tape finish. I did use self bias to finish the armholes.

 I have boatloads of trims I've acquired at yard and estate sales over the years and this lace just seemed perfect to accent this fabric, so instead of joining the front seam as instructed, I added lace.

And, my last variation was to add a faced hem, instead of a turned one.  I wanted a little extra weight at the hemline.

And there you have it!  The Port Elizabeth Top, free on BurdaStyle!

Do you have favorite free sewing patterns you've used?  I'm planning to do several more reviews of free patterns.  Especially if you're sewing to be frugal, free patterns can be a terrific headstart!

Franken-Tunic, Part II

When last we met, the tunic was looking pretty much just like what it is: two men's shirts sewn together.  So I decided to alter the sleeves and the neckline.

I added some pretty button covers, but you could just as easily change the buttons altogether.

Then I added a beaded applique medallion I had in my stores.

Here's the full effect:

It could have been altered or cropped more to be more fitted for those with that hourglass figure. Personally, I'm kinda shaped like a box, so I opted to leave that part alone.  I plan to wear it with jeans!

Thanks for coming by to see the end result.  Let me know what you think, and what you might have done differently!

Franken-Tunic, Part I

Today I began an upcycled tunic. It is made from two men's shirts obtained at a thrift shop. Her's shirt 1.

And here's shirt 2.

Together they make tunic 1!

But, not yet. The neck and sleeves need to be restyled.

I hope to finish this restyle tomorrow or the next day.  I'm not sure yet how I plan to finish the neckline and sleeves.  And embellishment is open right now as well.  Please tune in later this week to see what I do.  And if you have ideas you'd like to share about how you'd do it, please feel free to share that in the comments!

Completed Project: Butterick 4228

Well, it's done!  This was a fun pattern to sew and I'm quite pleased with the result.  If you've been following along, you know that I did a wearable muslin of the top of this pattern last month.  I wanted to be sure that the top would fit.  Here it is.

I made the entire dress from lavender linen.  I love linen!  The hand, the drape, the fact that it's a natural fiber, the ease of sewing!  Well, everything about it!  Here's the result.

The skirt will go with either top nicely.  Here's a dtetail pic of the little front vent on the linen top.

I would definitely consider making this ensemble again.  It was a very easy pattern and I love the way it came out.  I'm sure I'll be wearing it a lot this summer.  Thanks, as always for peeking, and your comments are always welcomed.

Refashioned Top: Frankenstyle

I was reading a thread on A Fashionable Stitch about refashioning.  Sunni was asking her readers' opinion about refashioning.  One commenter described the results as generally looking like a girl scout project gone horribly wrong.  I agree that sometimes it does seem that way.  I've seen many an item in Altered Couture, for example, that I would not be caught dead in.  However, that being said, I really enjoy refashioning, and I try to keep my stuff wearable by the average Josephine.  Here's my latest.  You be the judge, please.

I had a leftover Mom Jumper top portion.  You may recall that I made a sixties top wearable muslin from the fabric I harvested from the skirt of the jumper.

I ripped off the remnants of the skirt that were still attached.

I also had an old T.  Love the color (brings out my red hair), but it shrunk in the wash and was too short.  I don't like to be suddenly showing my tummy when I'm loading groceries into the car.

So I married the two together to make a new Frankentop.  The top now hits at my hips, so there's no danger of scaring small children and animals with a view of my tum.

Now, this is nicer looking than my usual hockey tournament T shirts for everyday wear.  Once it warms up I could wear this out and about.  I can even put a sweater over it.

Economically it works out well, too.  The jumper was $9.99, but I used most of it for the other top...I'd say $3.00 toward this top.  The other T was free, as I already had it and had stopped wearing it due to the shrinkage.  Thread, negligible... so, new Frankentop for about $3.00 plus labor!

Thoughts?  Girl Scout project gone horribly wrong, or CPR for unwanted clothing?  Let me know what you think (and I promise not to be sensitive!)!

Completed Project: Butterick 4228

I completed the wearable muslin top portion of Butterick 4228.  This is a pattern from the sixties, an era I seem to have suddenly become enamored with. 

As touted on the pattern envelope, this top was easy!  And it has a very flattering drape.  Here is a picture of the completed top.

I thought it would look nice styled with this cardigan.

My plan is to do the complete suit in this lilac linen.  Then the skirt will have two interchangeable tops.

I need to prewash the linen, so I think I'll jump into a couple of other projects first, but I'll be back to this one pretty quick because I can't wait to wear it as an outfit!