BurdaStyle 11/2018 - 119 Blazer

I loved this blazer from the November 2018 issue and since there is no collar and only fake pockets it is a lot easier to make than you might think.  The buttonhole is in the waist seam so that is easy too.

11/2018 - 119 Blazer

For this version I did things slightly differently and made it from a ponte knit (really only because I have lots and it takes up lots of space in my stash!) and left it unlined.  I also lengthened it as I plan to wear it with jeans or pants and prefer my butt to be covered, with a skirt or dress I think the original pattern length would be better for me.

All the seams were finished together on my serger and then I topstitched to flatten and define the seemliness and edges.

The instructions are to interface the whole front of the jacket, but I decided this was not necessary in my fabric.  I only interfaced the back neck facing, 1 pair of pocket flaps, front peplum facing and the inner front band.  In a lighter suiting material I would use more.

I'm really happy with how this turned out, and dare I say this might be my new TNT blazer pattern.  As I mentioned it is pretty easy to make for a jacket and the clean collarless front mean it can work with lots of different options underneath.

Update since drafting this post.....I've already cut another one in a teal crepe, very similar to the magazine original!

BurdaStyle 01/2018 - 118 Dress

Thank you for the comments on my wrap coat, I got very frustrated with trying to find a pattern to work with the fabric, but a bit of space from the process always helps.  It will be the perfect thing to wear this weekend for Chinese New Year I think.

Back to the Burda 2018 Challenge, those of you who follow my sewing instagram account (@allisoncsewing) will already have seen a preview of this dress.  This was the pattern that really jumped out at me from the January issue although I will not be wearing mine over a sweater like they did in the magazine.  I'm always a bit suspicious when they do things like that - did it not fit right; is there a big gaping hole at the knot part?

The pattern is also available as a pdf at the link below.  There are also a few more photos here (without the sweater!) which is helpful.

BurdaStyle 01/2018 - 118

It's clearer from the photo that the waistline sits just below the natural waist, something I didn't notice until I took photos of the finished dress on my dressform.  

Recommended fabrics for the dress are "dress fabrics" which is not particularly helpful!  The Burda sample used a stretch viscose crepe and it certainly looked like a dress where some stretch would be a good thing.  I used a ponte fabric in a very dark purple colour that honestly looks almost black and is just as impossible to photograph.  The reverse side is actually black so I was originally planning on using the fabric for something colour blocked, but wanted to get on and make this dress instead so here we are.

The pattern is rated 3 dots which means "intermediate, for advanced learners".  The instructions are a bit scarily long and the front bodice pieces are unusual looking, but it goes together quite easily - the little pattern piece diagrams are marked with seam numbers which is really helpful to refer to as you go through the instructions.

I did make a couple of minor changes - since I made this out of ponte I was able to leave the zipper off and I also did not line the dress which cuts the instructions in half!  A few people have commented that there could/should be pockets in those front skirt seams and I think that would be quite easy to do although personally I don't need any extra bulk around the tummy in a form fitting skirt.

The only part of construction that gave me difficulty was stitching the pleats in place on the inside, it wasn't really obvious to me what to sew to what in a way that was both invisible and secure.  I just experimented with pins until I got something I was happy with, but it's not quite right and does pull a little bit now I've stitched it securely (probably too securely!).

The other bit of important information I missed is tucked away under the section marked Paper Pattern Pieces where it advises that the pleat arrows on piece 21 are marked for size 36 and should be lengthened for other sizes.  I made a 38 in the bodice grading out to a 40 at the hip so it isn't much of a difference, but I think that those pleats should have been a bit longer - no one is going to know though and I am definitely not opening up that bodice again to fix it!

Anyway, in conclusion I love this dress as much as I hoped I would from when I first saw the line drawing, it was interesting to put together and hopefully I will get plenty of wear out of it before it gets too hot.

Style Arc Halle Stretch Pencil Skirt

Firstly thank you for commenting on the knit waistcoat on my previous post - it turns out that the pattern is designed for "wools or blends, boucle" which says woven to me and may explain why I had so many issues making it in a very stretchy knit!  Onwards, and paying better attention to suggested fabrics....

I picked up this pattern in the recent Thanksgiving sale, to be honest it probably would be quite easy to draft it from a knit pencil skirt pattern, but I do really like Style Arc's designs and I am 100% sure they are better at drafting patterns than I am!

Halle pdf pattern / paper pattern

I made this 3 times in a week so it turned out to be quite good value and clearly a fast and easy pattern.  It's designed for ponte & stable knit fabrics.  The crossover is quite generous so even when you sit down there is still decent leg coverage.

There's not a lot to say about the construction, the front skirt pieces are shaped so that the mitred corners are really easy to do, you just need to pay attention to the seam allowances which are marked on the pattern.  I added a bit extra at the side seams so I could fit on the way and I figured I might need more than the 3/8ths/8mm allowance to play with - I did this on each version as I find all fabrics behave a bit differently.

Here are my 3 skirts :

Version 1 Navy/Black
This is from a heavy black ponte with a navy, slightly sparkly, almost snakeskin print on it.  Really hard to photograph, but I love this fabric.

Version 2 Colourblocked
A contrast blocked version from remnants which is always very satisfying.  The left front and whole back are plain black.

Version 3 Panel Print
I thought the print would look odd with the asymmetric front so I just used the plain back pattern piece for both front and back.  I found it to be a bit clingy from static so I lined it with a stretch mesh lining before attaching the waistband elastic.

This simple skirt is so quick and easy to make that I can see it becoming a bit of a staple in my wardrobe and the plain version will probably be my TNT stretch skirt pattern now.  My versions are all for cool weather and quite formal, I'd definitely like to try it in a more casual look like the illustration too.

BurdaStyle 09/2016 - 118 Long Waistcoat & 110 Stretch Trousers

Two pieces from the 9/2016 Burda worn together!

I first made this long knit waistcoat as a gift for my sister and planned to make one for myself. (previously blogged here).  It only took me a year to get around to it!

09/2016 - 118 Long Waistcoat

I actually made the trousers at the beginning of the year, but they proved so impossible to photograph that they didn't justify their own blog post.  I do want to highlight the pattern though because it is a good one.  Designed for stretch fabrics and with front and back seams, a back yoke and a centre back seam in the waistband, you can really easily tweak these and get a great fit.

Mine are in a black ponte and I left off the ankle zips.

09/2016 - 110 Stretch Trousers

Back to the waistcoat....the version I originally made for my sister was in a knit boucle, a much better fabric choice than this one in a very soft sweater knit which stretched like crazy!  I had put the pockets in, but they ended up somewhere near my knees and were quite bulky so I removed them.  I also had to trim the collar down considerably and you can see that the hem is wavy also.  I might fold it up again and see if that helps.

This really should have been a quick and easy project, but ended up being incredibly frustrating to make.  It is great for our current in between weather though so I am trying to forget all the annoyances!

BurdaStyle 3/2016 - 121 Dress

I'm very behind on my blogging and this post is not terribly exciting as it is a dress I've made before here and it's also another purple thing, what can I say, I have a bit of a problem!

03/2016 - 121

I made this version in a ponte knit which is nothing like the stretch crepe per the magazine, but a similar weight to the fabric I used in my previous version so I knew it would work.  My original post has more construction detail that I won't repeat here.  Once again I left off the zip and swapped the facings for bindings.

Changes I made this time were to sew up the slit and I scooped the front neckline a bit lower.  I also swapped out the sleeves.  The original is a one piece cap sleeve, the pattern piece is sort of rugby ball shaped and it does tend to stick out, which is OK, but I wanted something different this time around.  I just searched for cap sleeve on the BurdaStyle website and picked 01/2012 - 113, a 2 piece self lined cap sleeve.

The original sticky-out cap sleeve

My replacement sleeve

These dress form photos show the colour quite accurately, one that keeps popping up here!

As usual I had real problems getting the lighting right when it came to taking photos on me and I couldn't figure out why they came out so differently to the dress form ones.  

I came to the conclusion that as I'm using a self timer and have the camera on an automatic setting,  the settings are determined by my empty frame and then don't apply once I've dashed into position (so far I've looked in vain for a compatible remote which would fix things I think).  I've no idea if this is true, but I tried again with a manual setting and despite a couple of shots like the ones below I did sort of get somewhere in that the lighting is better although the focus is off a bit.

I really blame my photography for slowing up my blogging, but I'm getting a better idea of what to look for when it's time to get a new camera.  If anyone has any recommendations or tips though please do share them.  I know people really like to see the clothes on a real life body and I have to admit that it is really useful for me to to see things a bit more objectively.