….with a lightweight Eden Jacket, made from this awesome Memory Raincoat fabric! I’ve been able to put this jacket through its paces in rain, and as long as it’s not torrential rain I’ve kept dry – torrential rain is another matter entirely, but my walking companion was wearing a purchased waterproof coat and that let more water through than my Eden jacket did!
Pattern: Eden Jacket by Tilly and the Buttons
Fabric: Memory Raincoat supplied by Minerva
Ok, I admit I’m not exactly sewing seasonal projects right now! But I have managed to get the Softshell Eden Jacket finished…. and my Mum has already claimed it for herself!
I wanted to make the topstitching quite noticeable, so I used some multicoloured Guttermann thread just to liven up the plain navy fabric. Unfortunately my sewing machine decided to skip stitches at times, so it’s not quite as evenly stitched as I’d hoped. I discovered on a later project that if I used a regular needle rather than a sharps needle, it actually sews an even stitch – just don’t ask me why!
I did purchase some poppers, but I haven’t yet tried adding them – Mum seemed quite happy with the jacket not having popped pocket flaps, and she never uses the poppers on her bought waterproof coat anyway.
I’d never sewn a “proper” coat before, and certainly hadn’t even considered bagging out a lining… but it all went surprisingly smoothly, even down to the thread chain to finish it all off.
I couldn’t resist using a rainbow zip on the front of the jacket – the front placket does cover it, but it does give a flash of colour when you go to zip it up / unzip it.
And of course a colourful lining, to make up for the very understated plain dark blue outer.
All we need now, is some suitably cold weather so Mum can test it out!
Pattern: Eden Jacket by Tilly and the Buttons
Fabric: Navy softshell from Fashion Fabrics
Other supplies: Zip from Mibs
Hop over to the Minerva Crafts Blog to see what I made from this nautical polycotton – it’s never too late to think of summer sewing!
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Patterns: McCalls 7381 and Endless Summer Shorts* by WinterWear Designs
Fabric: Nautical Polycotton supplied by Minerva Crafts
Having made a baseball cap for myself, one for my Dad and one for K, I couldn’t very well leave out making one for my Mum, could I? I spotted this woodland themed fabric at Hobbycraft, and realised it would make a great Clovelly Cap.
This is the first time I’ve tried using topstitching thread, and the first line I made was clearly the wrong stitch to use! I stuck with a regular straight stitch for the other topstitching, and that worked a lot better.
The peak is stiffened with fusible buckram and a layer of clear pvc (vinyl) above that. My hope is that the pvc will stop the rain from soaking in too much, while the buckram gives the peak better shaping.
I also bought myself a self-cover button kit, and my fussy-cut dragonfly fitted the button perfectly! I was doubtful that the kit would be worthwhile, but it did make covering the button a great deal easier.
No modelled photos unfortunately, as Mum is a little camera shy! But in the two months since I gave Mum this cap, it’s had a lot of wear, so I think we can safely say she approves!
Pattern: Clovelly Cap by From the Studio (Jamie Kemp)
Fabric: Fat quarters from Hobbycraft
I cut out this Button-Up Top* last year, then shelved it because I ran out of fabric for the sleeves. I managed to get some contrasting fabric in the autumn last year, then decided that it a summer-weight short sleeve shirt wasn’t a project I wanted to work on in the colder months, so it was shelved again.
So this week I started sewing the pieces together, and realised that my first attempt at pattern matching (albeit only the horizontal lines) actually worked surprisingly well!
Both front pieces line up really well, give or take a few millimetres, and I tried to line up the back yoke with one of the lines, so it gives a nice border to that piece. Unfortunately I wasn’t as careful in cutting out the back – I was more eager to use as much of the fabric as possible, than trying to match the lines.
I’m trying to ignore the back not being anywhere near lined up… after all, when I’m wearing it I won’t be able to see the back anyway! All I need to do now, is work on the sleeves and collar, then find some suitable buttons. Hopefully I can still get it finished during the summer!
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Pattern: Button-Up Top* by Winterwear Designs*
Fabric: Camp-a-Long Critters quilting cotton from Sewing Studio
I purchased some navy softshell fabric earlier in the year, with the view of making the Kelly coat. Since then, Tilly and the Buttons released the Eden jacket pattern, which looked like it would be more forgiving on the sizing. The sleeves on the Kelly look quite fitting, whereas the Eden has a much more boxy shape.
Decision made, I set about cutting out my pieces, and also decided to use the same topstitching thread I had picked out for my denim Fashionista jacket.
Sewing softshell is pretty easy, as long as you have a ‘sharps’ needle – a regular needle won’t have the right strength or sharpness to pierce the fabric cleanly.
So far I have the pockets and pocket flaps attached – eventually these should have poppers, if I can find some in the shop!
Pattern: Eden Jacket by Tilly and the Buttons
Fabric: Navy softshell from Fashion Fabrics
When I asked my Dad what he wanted for Father’s Day, his immediate response was “a hat”. To make sure it was something he would actually wear, rather than it just hanging on the clothes hook gathering dust, I got him to pick the fabric from the local shop. He chose a plain navy polycotton, which would make a very lightweight summery cap.
I picked out some navy and white starry polycotton to liven up the inside, and was able to also use a small piece of that to cover the button for the top.
I used brown thread rather than a blue, as I wanted it to be a slight contrast without being as obvious as a white thread would be. This also meant it was a lot easier to see the stitches when I needed to unpick a mistake!
The peak has buckram fused in place, although I think I must have got a crease in there at some point, as it refuses to lie as flat as I’d hoped. It’s still usable though, and Dad didn’t seem to be fussed by it not quite lying flat when it’s being worn.
Dad wasn’t overly keen on the idea of having his photo taken, so there aren’t any modelled shots of his cap. But it’s already had some wear (he was allowed to unwrap it a day early), and that has given me an idea to make a warmer cap for his Christmas present!
Pattern: Clovelly Cap by From the Studio (Jamie Kemp)
Fabric: Plain navy polycotton from Sewing Studio
Bias Binding from Sew N Sew
I’ve seen lots of photos of women wearing rompers, and thought I’d take the plunge myself in making the Ellie and Mac South Shore romper from some scuba crepe.
I’ve got the side seams tacked at the moment, as I wasn’t too sure on the sizing – I added in a little extra fabric, but I think that’s making the top a little too baggy. My main problem at the moment, however, is that the top isn’t really possible to take off in the way you would need to for a romper!
I’m not sure if that’s down to the stretch of the fabric, or an error in my measurements (or an error in my seam allowances), but at the moment it’s looking like it’ll be a South Shore bodice, with the skirt of the Sunset Dreams dress!
But one advantage to mashing a dress pattern onto the romper bodice, will be that I don’t have to strip to go for a ‘bathroom break’! Overall, I think a dress is probably the most practical option, don’t you?
Patterns: South Shore Romper by Ellie and Mac
Sunset Dreams Dress by Ellie and Mac
Fabric: Scuba Crepe from Mibs
I’m over at the Minerva Crafts Blog again today with a product test of this super stretchy denim! Head on over to see what I made – I’ll give you a hint, this time I made two items!
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Pattern designers: WinterWear Designs* and From the Studio (Jamie Kemp)
I wasn’t too sure if the Clovelly Cap would work for a child – the pattern is designed for adults after all. But after checking the head sizing against the pattern, I realised I could just grade down to make an XS size which in theory would work for a child.
I was pleasantly surprised that I could fit the pattern onto one and a half fat quarters – I used one for the front two panels, and another for the rest of the cap. The underside of the peak is also patterned, while the inside of the cap is a plain black polycotton.
I cheated with the topstitching, using a zigzag stitch to ensure the biasbinding was caught with the stitches on the inside. I found it too fiddly to manipulate the layers to get my stitches accurate enough for a straight stitch.
Unlike the caps I made for myself, this one has buckram fused on the inside of the peak for stiffness. It actually gives a much better feel to the peak, so I think I’ll be using that for any hats I make in the future too!
Pattern: Clovelly Cap by From the Studio (Jamie Kemp) graded to a XS size
Fabric: Dinosaur fat quarters from Hobbycraft