Tag blackbird fabrics

New skirts: The Elsie skirt from Anna Zoe Sewing in two views

bellecitadel 3 Comments

Sometimes a pattern comes along that leapfrogs all your current plans and this was one of those. It’s not a terribly complicated pattern and I dare say with my pattern collection I could have achieved something similar with a few adjustments to something else, but… I don’t know. Sometimes you just see something and think – yes, that’s exactly what I want. I’m also more than happy to support small designers and after I checked out a few of the Elsie skirts on Instagram – in particular the View A sample and also View B made by @rocco.sienna, I decided that this pattern had the makings of a mid-length skirt staple for me. Did it live up to my expectations? You betcha. In fact I liked it so much I made both versions within a couple of days and it’s gone straight onto my TNT list.

Continue reading “New skirts: The Elsie skirt from Anna Zoe Sewing in two views” →

New menswear: Seamwork Eugene tee fail and a couple of repeats

bellecitadel 4 Comments

I showed my husband the Seamwork Eugene Henley-style top some time ago and he was all “ooh no, I don’t wear that style…” Fast forward a year or so and he suggested I make this style with some fabric I purchased! Men are just as fickle as women when it comes to fashion it seems. This is also a bit of a follow-up on my little quest to find the ideal fabric for a man’s tee. You may remember that I have basically discounted cotton lycra blends, for my husband at least, as he finds them too clingy, and that I had success with some organic cotton I used to make the Sinclair Tao pattern in January. I used a few more of my test fabrics in this Eugene tee, as well as a repeat of the Tao and also another Liesl + Co. Metro Tee.

20190329_114240

eugene-flats-large-7069d3a895fa83bce0ea0b50e3d445a4b0f281805f02feb10fe9d89fa45ae89f (2)

First though, the Eugene. I cut out the XL for Tom and there are a few small extra pieces because of the little button placket that gives the Henley its distinctive style. I noted that the sleeve head was very high and exaggerated compared to that of the Metro tee and was interested to see how that translated into the final garment. The fabric I used this time was a thicker interlock jersey that I purchased from Organic Cotton Plus at the same time as the Tao fabric. Both myself and the hubby decided that the thickness was more suitable for a long-sleeved tee, so I lengthened the Eugene sleeve by using another full-length sleeve as a template and adjusting. Continue reading “New menswear: Seamwork Eugene tee fail and a couple of repeats” →

New skirts: Two new versions of my Everyday Skirt TNT

bellecitadel 4 Comments

Hi everyone! It’s nearly Christmas and, as you know, I’m back in the UK and enjoying every moment. Home, sweet home! I even managed to squeeze in a whirlwind London fabric tour, courtesy of the lovely @sewandrew. I contacted him earlier in December to see if he’d be up for meeting in. real. life. (gulp) and thankfully he agreed! 😀 I can tell you he’s as much of a gent in person as he is on his blog, and if you don’t follow him on IG or his blog, you should!

londontrip

Anyway, my last couple of makes of 2018 were a couple of adaptions of the Liesl + Co. Everyday Skirt. This was one of the very first skirts I made way back when I first started sewing and it was one of the first things that I made that felt “proper” – in no small part due to the typically fantastic instructions. I made another cotton version not long after the first, but really wanted to experiment with the skirt to make some other versions with different fabrics.

PIC 5

As you can see, I came up with two new looks, and both in a much more fluid, drapey fabric. The first was a maxi skirt version and it worked out beautifully. The second I made for a holiday party and I decided to add a wide sash (and therefore widened the waistband too) to give it a really festive feel. I love this fabric from Blackbird Fabrics!

PIC 10.jpg

You can read more about my makes over on the Oliver and S blog where I talk about this tried and true pattern for me. One of the great things about this skirt is that it’s so fast to sew up – I don’t think these will be the last versions somehow!

PIC 8