Another Version of McCall's 5556

This weekend I finished a second version of the McCall's tunic. To review the necessary alterations:

1. Cut 16, even though my measurements are larger.
   
2. Lowered the bust darts by two inches
   
3. Shortened the sleeves to 3/4 length

In this version I used a contrast for the collar and hem bands:


The main fabric was an eyelet with black embroidery that I got off the sale table at Jackman's fabric. Jackman's is an independent fabric store here in town that is mainly a quilting and upholstery fabric store. They have a really small apparel fabric section that is mainly focused on bridal and special occasion, but every now and then you can find some real gems...which always seem to appear only on the sale table. Every time I go in I find something great, like this eyelet, non-flimsy stretch denim, khaki tencel twill, and printed chiffon.


The little fiddly bits on the trim are much easier if you starch the heck out of it and press the edges under. Doing that makes it a lot simpler to do all the edgestitching, and keep it neat. I still have to work on making better loops. I think I made them a touch big...and wish I could have made the tubes smaller. I think if I cut them on the bias, once I get them turned I could stretch them out and make them narrower.

Finally, here is the tunic "on the hoof."


I think for my next project I will make a pair of white linen pants for summer using the Hot Patterns Marrakesh Drawstring pants pattern:


I feel like the tunics call for a slouchy pant, and I have a 3 yard length of white linen in my stash...now I just need to find some white lining fabric for the pockets.

I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend, and as always, more later....

A Little Bit of Sewing...A Little Bit of Procrastinating

I took a little break from working on my trenchcoat (because all I have left to do is line it, and I hate making linings) to fill a hole in my wardrobe...spring tops. At this rate, I will have the spring trench done in time for NEXT spring, but sometimes you just don't "feel" a project, you know? And as for the trench, I'm just not "feeling it" right now. So, I started another project...a tunic.

I had been seeing a lot of tunics online, and wanted to make something other than a button-down woven shirt, or a pull on knit shirt...which seems to be the only kind of shirts I make. I also had some batiste in the stash that was far too flimsy for a button-down, but would do well for a tunic.

I had McCall's 5556 in my stash, an OOP tunic pattern.


I'm actually quite surprised to see this out of print given the similarity to, for example, current hot Tory Burch tunics:


Anyway, I decided to make the view with 3/4 sleeves, and the standing collar:


I used a lime-green batiste in my stash, and I also had some green shell buttons lurking about:


In my attempts to photograph this, I gained huge sympathy for online fabric vendors...no matter what I did, I couldn't get the camera to "read" the color correctly. In all my photos it looks far more chartreuse than the soft green than it is in real life.


I ended up cutting a 16 regardless of the fact that my measurements fall in the range of a 20...there is plenty of ease in this garment. I also found that I needed to lower the bust darts, and shorten the sleeves. On me, they are not the nice 3/4 length in the pattern image, but somewhere between 3/4 length and bracelet length.

The bands on the collar and hems are all attached in ways that hide the seams, which is a nice touch. I only used the serger on the armscyes and the side seams.

I didn't have any trouble assembling the tunic but I will say markings are IMPERATIVE. It is pretty much impossible to assemble without every single marking transferred correctly. Also, make sure you follow the instructions to the letter...snip everywhere they tell you to, and reinforce where they say, otherwise those bands will make you want to curse and throw things. If you mark properly, and assemble in the order they instruct, it falls right together. I also used a lot of starch while I pressing under seam allowances and such, which is really helpful and comes right out with the first wash.

I also have a second version in the works using a white eyelet with black embroidery and black trim...I then decided that a tunic like that will require a pair of slouchy white linen pants...so I have ready my pattern for the HotPatterns Marrakesh pant ready to go.

Once I have this out of my system, I'll go back to my trench.

Although I did buy the white linen for the pants, everything except for the black batiste for the trim on the second shirt, all the fabrics (trench, lining, green batisted, embroidery/eyelet) came from stash and were all parts of the coordinated sets I made for summer planning/sewing.

Once I have a few more things together, I'll make sure I get more photos.

If you celebrate, have a Happy Easter. I do not, but will happily partake of a ham at my mother's house later today and will probably have an unholy tantrum if there is not at least a chocolate bunny for me when I get there (apparently, my mother decided that 35 was the age at which one should have outgrown easter baskets. Who makes up these rules, anyway??). I am also officially the "lame aunt," since I got books for each of my nieces and nephews. No candy, no toys, just books. Yes, I am "that aunt," the one that gives educational gifts. Hopefully, far cooler relatives than I will buy them all toys and candy.

An Update, But Not Much Sewing

Well, I had high hopes for last week, but didn't manage to make anything happen...although perhaps I have a bit of an excuse.

On Tuesday, I took my car in to have it looked at, because the engine was knocking at high rpms. For a little background, my car is a 2007 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (the 4-door, not the little one) and has only 35k miles on it. I have the driving habits of an 80-year-old woman.

At about 10am on Tuesday, I got a call from the dealership and they told me that what I had was a "dead knock," that the engine was mere moments away from "throwing a rod" and that the vehicle needed a complete engine replacement.

What was even better....it was 3 months out of the warranty that covered the engine and drive train and it was going to cost me $6300.00 to replace the engine.

After I returned to consciousness, I told the folks in the shop to not do anything at all with it, but put me on the phone with whoever they liked in sales. They passed me to a salesman and I told him "I have a vehicle in your shop that is going to cost $6300.00 to replace the engine, but I know as well as you do that you guys can do that in house for less than 1/3 of that cost. If you give me what I owe on the vehicle, I will buy a car from you tonight."

3 hours later, I was signing paperwork on a new car, a Jeep Compass. It's a big change going from a giant SUV to what is essentially a glorified station wagon, but with the price of gas skyrocketing going from a big 6-cylinder to a tiny 4 has its advantages.

I have spent the week dealing with getting the old car cleaned out (it was a disaster, I wasn't exactly planning on never picking it up when I dropped it off for repair), the sale, taxes, license plates, and all the rest of the stuff involved in buying a new car.

I am incredibly relieved that the dealership was willing to take the old car off my hands, and while the new car is not necessarily what I would have chosen, it does have an advantage on the old car in that it has an engine...that is functional. Plus, they gave me satellite radio, that has provided me no end of amusement. Today I spent the drive to the fabric store for the sale on Burda patterns listening to a station entirely devoted to rap of the 80's.

The funniest thing that was said to me in the entire episode...one of my coworkers proclaimed "Well, if my car's engine died at 35,000 miles, I can't imagine buying another car from the same dealership!" (imagine very preachy tone here). My response was "Yeah, it's not like I was driving it to the Ford dealership down the street...you know, with the whole lacking an engine thing."

I have been working on a few things though. I did finish the "wrap front pant" from the last post and all I have to say is....

BWWWWHHHHAAAAAA HA HA HA HA HA

OMG, they are truly horrible.

As soon as I have a moment, I will take a photo or 20, so you can laugh with me....or at me, whatever the case may be.

I also have continued my weekend sewing with friends, and the friend with the vintage dress that I completed the bodice for? Everything is done. She promises me photos next weekend. The dress turned out great.

And finally, I am done with all but the lining on a spring trench coat, made with a black and white rayon twill with red and white lining:


The style reminds me a bit of this Tory Burch trench-style dress ($395):


Although patterned trenches seem to be pretty big right now, here's an example from Alice + Olivia ($495):


Moschino, $1495:


Tibi, $600:

Hopefully next post I'll have some photos for you, in the meantime I hope everyone has a fantastic week and....check your oil, get a tune-up!