The Good, The Bad, and The Unblogged

Throughout Me-Made-May I counted 6 things I'd sewn but had not yet blogged, many of which were in good rotation in my me-made wardrobe that month, so you've seen a quick peek at them. I figured it was about time I shared the rest of the story for these pieces.

FBA'd Emery

If I recall correctly, I made this Emery dress during Me-Made-May, and I definitely wore it that month. I used a quilting cotton from G-Street fabrics I'd added to my stash way back when I went to the Northern VA sewing blogger meet-up. I used the FBA tutorial on Christine's blog for my first ever full bust pattern adjustment, and it worked pretty well! For this Emery, I also ended the collar at the shoulder seams because I ran out of fabric, and then lined the skirt with some satiny purple silk I found at the thrift store.

Leopard Laurel

I made this Laurel dress a looong time ago, like several months. I bought this leopard print ponte from Fabric.com and knew right away that I wanted it to be a dress. If only Tilly's Coco pattern was around then, it would have been perfect. The Laurel gets a good amount of wear, but is intended for a woven and the darts just seem blobby and lame when it's sewn up in a ponte. Most comfortable dress I own, though.

Breezy Belcarra

I made this Belcarra blouse during Me-Made-May, using the PDF version of the pattern (near-instant gratification) and some very lightweight cotton I'd found at JoAnn's. I ended up narrowing the lower part of the blouse in the hip area, but cropped off too much so now it fits oddly. I also seem to have cuffed the sleeve cuffs an extra time, so they're double folded - something I constantly fiddle with when I wear it.

Collared Sencha

This Sencha is definitely tricky to photograph. The fabric is such pretty colors, though! It's a rayon I stumbled upon at JoAnn's and I really love it. When sewing this up, I'd thought I was selecting contrasting buttons with the vintage orange ones I picked from my stash, but they kind of blend in with the orange in the fabric. I drafted a peter pan collar, using the tutorial in Gertie's book, and kind of made up my own finishing for the kimono sleeve holes with 100% machine sewing. When I read the pattern's instructions for hand-sewing the sleeves, I literally said aloud "You want me to WHAT?!" so I promptly tossed it aside and improvised my own finish, just turning things under a few times and stitching. It looks a little floppy and odd in these photos, but that's because I haven't ironed the thing since washing it after wearing, promise.

Spotted Coco

This Coco is made from a peachy pink ponte fabric (from the Finch or GirlCharlee -- they both had it, I just can't quite remember where I finally bought it from) with black 'foil' spots. The spots are slightly shiny, as you can see. I'd had such high hopes for this Coco, and it still turned out a comfortable, wearable dress, but every time I do wear it I touch the collar CONSTANTLY because I just can't get it to sit right. The collar also seems to always come slightly less folded down, so the stitching shows. Suppose I should have used a matching peachy thread. Next time.

 

Fails:

Yes, you counted correctly. I said I had 6 unblogged pieces back during Me-Made-May, but above I've only shown 5. That's probably because I was originally counting one of these fails, which have since been thrown into the abandoned pile in my closet.

This is the Lisette jacket I'd drooled over ever since I first saw the pattern. Then I sewed it up in this meh fabric and hated it. Maybe I'll try again later with something different (lighter weight and more muted color).

Shortly after the Lisette jacket, just before I left for my vacation at the very end of May, I was working on this vintage dress pattern, using an adorable king-sized pillow case I'd thrifted. I was SO hyped and kept patting myself on the back for making something so cute. Then I had to sew the button placket and everything fell apart. I. just. could. not. It was promptly abandoned.

I also tried my hand at sewing with sheets after I returned from my vacation in Europe and had yet ANOTHER fail with this fabric. A BHL Anna bodice lives half-finished, crumpled up in the closet, too.

Now that I've gotten all of this off my chest, hopefully I'll be able to move forward with some new projects! As I mentioned before, I do have a new dress project (very gradually) underway. It's a busy time of year in these parts, so it may be a little while before I have details to share. I do still have some new listings to add to the shop, so I'll be announcing those soon, too. For now, I hope everyone is having a great weekend!