Finished Project: Simplicity 3266 (or, Another Green/White Dotted Blouse)

Simplicity 3266

View 3 (shown in blue)

...or, Sue: An Easter Egg Personified.

Welcome to my first project from a vintage pattern! I finally finished the "simple to make" Simplicity 3266. I really enjoyed sewing this blouse, but am not sure it'll actually be a wearable muslin...I'm undecided. My main issue? I feel like an Easter egg. More on that in a bit.

This pattern was fun to sew. The directions were (mostly) easy to follow, the diagrams very helpful, and best of all there were no sleeves to set in!

There was one confusing part, though, where the pattern instructions seemed to want me to make a paper football/accordion strip of bias tape and put it on the armpit seam for reinforcement. After fiddling with the bias tape a bit, I realized I didn't really care to adhere to that step and tossed it. But what do you think, have you ever seen this before? Does this kind of kimono sleeve thing really need such reinforcing?

bias tape accordion fail.

now, magically fold up this bias tape and attach it to the armpit!

Now lets get down to the fit. I made view 3 and right off the bat, it looks like my sleeves are much flappier and less fitted than intended. They feel a bit flappy, too, and I think next time (there will be a next time!) I sew this, I'll make the sleeves narrower. I'll also probably make the waist tucks a little bigger, so the waist area will be a little more fitted.

my dream collar

Next time around, I'll also definitely be doing some adjusting in the collar area. When I showed Tom the finished product he said "it's a '70s collar!" Unfortunately,  that's not quite what I was going for. I'd secretly hoped, despite how obviously large it appears in the illustration, that the collar would somehow turn out more Pan Am uniform than floppy, winged '70s thing. Sigh.

actual collar

Another bone I have to pick with the collar is more...structural? I'd run out of fusible (or any kind) interfacing and for some reason figured, "whatevs, I'll just use muslin" instead of actual, stiff, interfacing on the facing. This makes the collar super floppy and not crisp at all, so I don't really recommend doing that on a shirt like this.

So, back to the Easter egg bit. I love this fabric, I think it's just the bee's knees, but maybe it's better off in craft land than apparel sewing.

Perhaps I'm being hyper critical (who, me?) but, for me, the colors and scale of the print combined with the fabric's quilting weight/lack of drape make this feel a little bit too Springtime craft project for me.

When I saw my finished garment on my dress form, "Easter egg" just popped into my head. When I'm wearing it, I kind of feel like a big, bright, floppy, polka-dotted BLOB (maybe it'd feel less blobby if I tucked it in? ...I'll get back to you on that).

Is it weird that I think it looks better on the dress form?

Things I like about this project? As I mentioned earlier, no setting in of sleeves! Also, I actually had success with the buttonholes (all four of 'em - though the pattern called for only three and then a hidden snap for the 4th), for once. I also had a super time adding contrasting light pink bias trim to just about every raw edge I could get my hands on - or at least the facing raw edge, the sleeve facings, and the blouse hem.

pink and green!

What do you think?

I know this is a topic of contention among many sewers, but do any of you ever use quilting cotton for apparel projects, or is that always a huge no-no?

If/when you do use it, are you usually pleased with the results?

I think the main things I like about it are: it's a breeze to sew with and there are so many cute prints available...if you can pick one appropriate for your project.

Blasphemy?

As I'm sure you've all heard by now in sewing blogland, Colette Patterns has just released their new line of spring/summer patterns this week. The collection is eye-catching, the samples are sewn up in lovely, colorful, luscious fabrics, there's the retro vibe we've come to expect and love from Colette pieces, and the three new patterns are all cute, practical, and casual enough for every day life, but...when I finally saw them, I was kind of just like..."oh."

WHAT!!?

Not only do I absolutely love this amazing, independent pattern company, but, as you all saw, they even had me as their Featured Seamstress (shameless plug) this week. Do I sound ungrateful? I'm not!!!! I think the new collection is absolutely adorable; it's just not quite me...or something? I don't know! I really like aspects of every single piece, but nothing was screaming "SEW ME NOW!"

What the heck is my problem?

Well, upon further inspection and introspection, I've realized that I think the necklines on the dresses were what seemed to be bugging me (they're kind of...horizontal?), and, though the shorts are super cute, I'm too scared to sew anything with a crotch just yet -- yeah, I know they're "Beginner."

However!

The more I look at the new patterns, the more I'm actually drawn to the two dresses, Hazel in particular. Check out the seams on the bodice. They look even cooler when you throw striped fabric into the mix.  I think I'm coming around, here...

Sure, maybe the neckline isn't the most exciting, fancy, super-duper thing I've ever seen, but these dresses are classics! Timeless! Wearable! Stop being ridiculous, Sue!

Ok! I'm sold.

What do you all think?
Did you instantly fall in love with the new Colette Patterns line, or did they take a little time to grow on you?
Which one's your favorite?

Ok, now that you've figured out your favorite, click on over to Ginger Makes and enter her awesome giveaway to win one of the new Colette Patterns!!!!


Also, since I'm being honest here, I might as well also confess that I've not made much progress on my green & white polka-dotted vintage Simplicity 3266 blouse. One of the main things that attracted me to it (other than it's cuteness!) was that it seemed quick and simple to make up. For some reason, I'm just dragging my feet. I'm hoping to make some serious progress this weekend...promise!

April fools!

But, not really!
No joke: I'm participating in the Seamless Pledge. Wish me luck!

Starting April 1st, for 6 months (a random time frame I came up with), I'm not going to buy any new, mass produced, RTW clothing for myself. If I need to make additions to my wardrobe for whatever reason, I've got to either buy used/vintage or make it myself! (with the exception of underthings - those I might try my hand at making, but will absolutely not be buying used, so I've given myself leeway to purchase new ones if necessary)

As an added bonus(?) my boyfriend has agreed to participate, too. Yay! He doesn't sew, as you may have guessed, though, so I guess that means I'll be carrying the "make it myself" part of the challenge for both of us. :)

I'm hoping this will mean more thrifting and visiting vintage shops, and more sewing! I'm going to focus on the current gaps in my wardrobe and try to anticipate future needs, too. Hopefully I can acquire or create more wardrobe staples for myself, and also weed out what I've currently got that isn't working for me, so I can avoid that "I have NOTHING to wear" feeling I get when staring at my overflowing closet each morning.

Up next? Planning my warmer weather wardrobe (www!). I've determined that at the very least, this will need to include a couple of tops. I'm currently working on Simplicity 3266 (version 3) in a green/white polka-dotted fabric from my stash. This will be my first time working from a vintage pattern, so that's exciting.

More details to come!

Copycat

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery...or something like that, right?

Well, I totally copied Zoe, of 'So, Zo...' fame, after reading her recent post about blouse patterns. I feverishly scoured the internets for this adorable little 1950's kimono sleeve blouse and managed to snatch it up on Ebay - thank goodness!

Simplicity 3266 (image via Vintage Patterns Wiki)

I selfishly waited to share until I'd won it, for fear someone else would out-bid me in the meantime - I know, slightly obsessed.

This blouse hits several marks for me. I find the pattern illustration adorable, I really love the cute collar,  and I especially love the fact that there's no setting-in of sleeves to do! After struggling with the sleeves on my Joan dress (which I'll share more on once I've emotionally recovered) I'm ready for a break from traditional(?) set-in sleeves.

Versions 2 and 3 look just perfect for spring. Yay! What am I talking about, Version 1 is 3/4 sleeves - perfect for spring, as well. Now I just need to figure out what fabric(s) to use...

What do you think? Would it be weird to have the collar in a contrasting/coordinating print or color? Maybe I could add some piping or other trim to it, too? What about contrasting cuffs on version 2? Am I just getting crazy here?