Wraparound Tee 3/2004

I only had about an hour and 30 minutes to sew tonight, so I decided to attack the wraparound tee from the Ottobre Autumn 2004 issue.  I made this tee once almost exactly a year ago, and I really did not like the way it turned out.  It was my fault.  The instructions said to pull slightly on the ribbing/binding, and obviously I pulled too much.  So where the binding meets the tee, it pulled all the time.  

So I made sure that I did not make this mistake again.  The other problem I had was with the length.  So I lengthened this tee, and I decided to flare it out as well.  I made a size 74 and used my favorite colors pink and orange combined.  I needed something else to match to the orange velour pants (Vilka pants). 

The tee was easy to assemble, and I got it done in an hour (not including the cutting, because I did that last weekend).  Now I just need to make sure that it fits Miss O.   If it does, then I have a few variations of this tee that I am going to try, like short sleeves, and a gathered skirt.

Future projects

I expected to get up this morning, and put both kids in school, so I could enjoy the morning sewing.  I even had a park playdate planned, but my poor little ds woke up with a fever and a horrible cold.  We spent much of the morning in bed watching cartoons, and when the weather warmed up, we went outside to play.  So, although I did not get my wish, I grabbed my cutting table and cut out a few more patterns and watched the children have some fun.  Hopefully things will be better tomorrow.

I decided to cut out alot of patterns, and make myself a “Design Planner” so that I can keep track of all those “crazy” things going on in my head.  Sometimes I buy fabric and forget a few weeks later what my intentions were.  It is extremely frustrating.   Way too much going on in that head of mine.

So here it goes.  With the help of Photoshop, I cut and pasted a few things together to give you an idea of what my plans are.  It ended up looking really cool, and I printed out the ideas, so I knew what my plans were for the next two weeks.

 This is going to be a test pair of jeans to check width and length.  If they are too short, then I will add a white piece of swiss edging to the bottom pant.  The topstitching will be white.This is just something I always wanted to make from the Ottobre magazines, so I will try it.  I added 2 inches to the length, and I will use snaps down the front.  The print is a euro poplin.  Very bright and so springy.

I am making a simple A line dress out of the apples, but because I do not have a line drawing for my dresses, I just took one from the Ottobre pdf files.   The round neck dress is perfect for this big print, but again I am not using the Ottobre pattern.  I want to make a dress, and I want alot more fullness, so I am using another pattern.  

I love the red and white print.  So summery.  I am going to make either a matching belt for the jeans, or ruffles around the pockets.  I cannot decide yet which one I want.  I love this Simplicity pattern.  It has ties in the back to bring in the width.  

 

This is a wonderful simple white cotton with tiny blue and green flowers.  I love it, and I may even make a dress out of it too.

Another Ottobre beauty!

Finally finished the pants for the Pinafore Dress that I made Olivia last weekend.  This is not the first time I used this pants pattern (Ottobre 3/2003 #9), so I knew how well they fit this time.  I did take in about 1/2″ in width to taper the pants.  I made these pants using a wide wale corduroy, and because I wanted them to be worn with several different tops, I decided to keep them plain.  However, when I finished the pants, they looked just a bit too plain, so I added the embroidery patch and the red binding.  Just felt they needed to be spiced up a bit.   Now I am in love with them.

Ottobre #28 – 6/2008 Issue

 

Ottobre #28 - 6/2008

A late Christmas gift that never got finished due to the stomach bug invading our home right before Christmas.

Let me first preface this entry with saying that I knew I would not make this pattern exactly as Ottobre had written it.  I found a beautiful piece of green fleece, and combined it with a light blue.  I wanted to cut up this pattern in blocks, however I decided to stick to the look in the magazine, and not include the lining.  My son does not like heavy sweaters.  Why?  Most likely because in Florida you rarely need anything that heavy.  I wanted him to have something he can wear when the temperatures are around 60 degrees.  Here is my patternreview.

Pattern Description:  Outdoor sweater made out of boucle in the magazine.  

Pattern Sizing:  98-104-110-116-122-128

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?  Yes, with minor changes.

 Were the instructions easy to follow?  Not really.  I thought the zipper and collar instructions were a bit vague and very confusing, and of course I figured it out once I finished sewing the collar and zipper into the sweater.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I love the look, and the pattern details.  It was alot of work, but the end product always looks very expensive.  The pockets were much too small.  My advice would be to add at least an inch to the opening.  The length was perfect once I added the binding to the bottom of the sweater.  

Fabric Used: Fleece

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made: I did not include a lining.  I could have used a lightweight jersey, but our weather does not require any additional layers, so I left it out.  I love the detailing.  Very professional looking.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? As a matter of fact yes.  After cutting out all the pieces, I found a similiar sweater in one of my Ottobre magazines that did not include the zipper, so I wanted to use that pattern next.  However, the sweater turned out great, so I most likely will use the pattern again for the yellow fleece I bought, if I can find a zipper to match.

Conclusion:

Alot of work goes into this pattern.  I intend on making it again, just to make it better then the first one.  The sweater looks great except the zipper.  I accidently folded over the top edge of the outer collar before I sewed the zipper in.  This leaves the top of the zipper slightly exposed.  The binding that is used on the zipper is too short.  It needs to be extended.  I am hoping that it will not bother my ds, however it was a mistake that I regret.  Other then that, everything turned out great.  I also did not use an outerwear fabric for the binding or the stripes on the sleeve.  I used the fleece, but did not fold it into bias strips in order to avoid bulk.  I just cut off the seam allowances and used a decorative overlock stitch.  The embroidery I used is from http://www.Stickbaer.de.  I will definitely use this pattern again, now that I know how great it looks.

I ended up opening the collar and zipper and reapplying the zipper.  This time the binding folds over the top of the zipper and protects his chin from being scratched.  Much better.  Too bad the binding does not hide the entire zipper on the inside.  The zipper is applied to the binding, so I am not sure how I could avoid that issue.  I will think of something.

Christmas Jammies

I bought this Chez Ami fabric early this year because I wanted to make a pair of Christmas Pajamas for the kids.  I used the applique from Stickbaer.

KWIK SEW – SEWING FOR BABY

The pants came from this baby book which I almost forgot I had.  Melissa, a friend from our Yahoo Ottobre group, told me that the Kwik Sew patterns were great – easy to use.  I did not quite manage to get the entire outfit done in 30 minutes – like she does – but the pants were cut out, sewn, and photographed within 30 minutes.  

The pants are wider then I expected, however they look rather comfy, and since the pattern includes the rib knit cuff, they won’t be too long.  

 

OTTOBRE T-SHIRT – 3/2004 #3

I cut out a size 74, because the pattern looked rather small.  HUH?  Was that me talking? Ottobre patterns have been rather large in the past, for my little guys, so needless to say I was a bit surprised.  However, this pattern should make for a great tight fitting tee to wear under pinafores and other dresses I plan on making.   I even lengthened the shirt, because it seemed a bit short too!  

I am afaid there won’t be any modelling pictures until Christmas, so SHHHHHH!

Ottobre Winter 2004 #3 and Ottobre Winter 2008

 

I finally got around to sewing for the little one, and finished it yesterday. 

I was hoping to add some embroidery to the finished garment, but I did not get the file emailed to me until this morning.  Too Late.  
The pants were from the latest issue Winter 2008 – Size 74. 

Since she is 72cm, I was hoping that they would fit, but as usual they are a bit big. 

Ottobre just makes everything very wide, so I need to take in the width on everything I make. 

The length of the crotch and the pants fit very nice. 

So I decided to make a top that was long.  

 did not want a tight fitting tee, because she has a bloated stomach everytime she eats. 

I used the pattern from Winter 2004 #3, and altered the front. 

I love the way it turned out.  It is a nice dress. 

 I will probably make it again, and shorten the top, and take in the width. 

I will also open the neck in the back and add a button for easy access.  It is a cute outfit, and as soon as the weather warms up I will have some modelled pictures.

Here is some more inspiration from

Sewing History

Gummibearjunky wanted to know what our sewing history was, so I posted my link and here is my story.  I hope everyone joins in, because this could be fun.  Leave your links on her blog.

I started sewing right after I finished Highschool.  I fell in love with the Burda magazines.  As usual I spent more time dreaming about all the things I would sew, rather than actually sewing anything.  I really started sewing my own clothing when I bought a video showing me how to Tailor a Ladies Jacket.  The rest is history.  I absolutely loved to sew my own clothes, especially pants.  Then my son was born.  I bought all of his clothing in Germany, where the colors were bright and vibrant.  I found nothing like that here in the United States.  So I began sewing boys clothes.   In the beginning I made alot of heirloom clothing, then went on to Ottobre patterns.  I love the Ottobre magazines because their patterns had a european flair to them, and I love the fabrics they use.  Then my daughter was born 4 years later.  Here are several pictures of the first things I sewed for my kids.

Blah, Blah, Blah………………….

It’s been a week, and all I have done is sew for clients.  That is the part that really is getting somewhat hard to bare.  A job is a job, no matter what you do.  I just always remind myself that the purring of the machine is the best music I have ever heard, and I would rather listen to that then a computer or filing cabinet.  Of course it is also great to see “the creation” and how beautiful it is, no matter who you sew for.   I was just hoping to finally get to a few things in the new Ottobre issue.  I cut out the patterns, got my fabric together and then before I can turn around another client order.  So my pile of fabrics and patterns will just have to wait!

I have one more outfit to sew by Wednesday, and then I am closing the shop for awhile.  My mom is coming next week, and staying for a short while.  I don’t want to spend my free time sewing while she is here.  Hurricane Ike will be here too, so that should keep us very busy.  Then I have to plan my ds birthday, which is the following week.  Whew!  Being mom is a tough job!

Ottobre Blumenhose and New Look 6576 Update

I could not wait to put the outfit on Olivia to test the fit of both the top and the pants.   The pants were way too big.  I added the waistband as a seperate piece to extend the crotch length, however that was a mistake.  The crotch length is too long. 

By not adding the seam allowances, I changed the curve of the crotch, which probably caused the pants to look so big.  Next time I will make a size 62 and extend the length of the crotch and the leg.    This should make the pants narrower. 

Conclusion:  I love the Ottobre patterns, but I must say that I am a bit tired of making all these changes.  Whenever I use a Big4 pattern, I just go down one size and it fits perfectly.  The only problem is the style they offer.  It is always the same.  I love the European flair you see with Ottobre patterns.  I wish Vogue would make children’s patterns.  I never had these problems with Nicolas because he was a chubby little child.  If I had to go down one size it fit him perfectly.  Olivia is skinny and small.  I am always guessing what size to put her in.

New Look 6576

I have had this dress finished for over 6 weeks now.  I just have not found the time to make the matching pants.  This is a cute A-line jumper/tunic/romper that I had collected before Olivia was born.  I cut out a size Small for weight 13-18 pounds, and probably should have cut out a size Medium.  It fits, but not for long.  Easy to sew, and I really like the fit.  Instead of sewing the romper with facings, I decided to double the front and back pattern pieces, and sew them together like I learned from Martha Pullen.  I added the front pocket.

Max is 4!

My nephew Max turned 4 today.  So now both of our boys are Boys!  No longer can we call them our little babies.  Both of them start PreK this year.  Nicolas stayed behind one year because of his birthday in late September.  At first I was a bit upset at this ridiculous rule, however I have grown quite fond of the fact that my son will be bigger(he is quite small), more mature and older then alot of his classmates.  Well, I do hope the maturity will come at one point or another – just not yet.  He has never really showed any interest in wanting to learn until this year.  All of sudden he wanted to know what those letters on the side of a Police car meant.  His interest had peaked, and we took full advantage of this one question, and taught him in several weeks to learn his alphabet.  Funny how you try so hard to teach them through games, and can’t come up with any ideas, and then all of a sudden it just hits you.  What were those letters on the side of the Pizza Hut car.  Taxi? Ambulance?  Of course, I have to admit that I think TV helped alot.

I know what the professionals say, and I usually agree, but not anymore.  I think the Kids TV Channels like Noggin, and Sprout and of course our local PBS programs have such wonderful eduacational programs.  I can never remember watching anything like SuperWhy, or Word.  We watched Sesame Street, Bugs Bunny, and the Flintstones.  Nicolas has always had a speech problem and has been going to an elementary school twice a week for about a year to have private lessons with Mrs. Hartfelder.  She is very nice, and Nicolas enjoys being with her.  His speech has gotten so much better, but also his vocabulary.  I owe the speech to his teacher, and the vocab to these TV Shows.

So enough rambling.  Just wanted to show a picture of Max in his new PJ’s.