Thursday, March 31, 2016

Semper Sweater part two

Yesterday, I showed you two garments made with Sofilantjes'* newest pattern, the Semper Sweater*. Today, the last day of the release sale, I am showing you two more sweaters. I made this dog sweater because I was not satisfied with the pocket print blocking on the raccoon version. This one has the same fabric on the pockets as on the main front. I really like it, the combination of these two fabrics was not my idea, I just took it from her (scroll to the bottom of that post).




The sweater is intended for my son, but he was not in the mood to pose (I added two of his pictures to give you a good chuckle, so feel free to do so). I took him away from his computer game without warning, so it was my own fault of course ;). Fortunately my daughter was kind enough to pose in the sweater, she really likes the sweater, so the sweater might even move to her closet. Who do you think wears it best (and yes, that is the same pair of trousers, I just loved the color combi, it is short on her, but it does not show like this)? The dog fabric is from Stoffenelf.




I have been intentionally focussing on short sleeved items lately, but like I said yesterday, my son does not agree. He wants to me able to wear his new clothes now, and not wait for the spring that seems to take for ever to arrive. While he was ranting, he also said he was also disappointed that I had not made something from the fluffy fabric I bought last year. I had apparently promised him something for winter, because the fabric is rather warm, but I did not deliver. I realized he was right and sewed up this ensemble the next day. The robot fabric is nicki jersey from Lillestoff, so my son can not stop caressing it.



Personally, I am not a fan of using the same fabric for tops and bottoms. Even if you use your prettiest fabric it will look like a PJ or track suit. My son though, loves to wear the same fabric, he has a different fashion sense. I have been winning the battle of not-wearing the whole outfit to school though. In theory, he is allowed to wear the sweater as a standalone piece on plain trousers outside the house. It has not come to that, for days he has been switching into this clothing combination, the moment he gets home.



This is not an an official neckline for the Semper, but it is easily created. The Semper has a curved V neck which I slightly recut and added ribbing knit (about 80% of the length of the neckline). I foresaw him sporting and sleeping in this outfit, so I decided against a hood. The trousers of the outfit are the Domi*, like last time I shortened the rise a bit because my son likes to wear his trousers on his hips.



The pattern comes in sizes 12m/80 to 14/164 and is available in both Dutch* and English* pdf. The pattern is still on sale, with a more than 40% discount for only $5 (excl. tax) for a few more hourse (sale ends Thursday night European time).

I love to hear what you think of my creations. Feel free to leave a comment in the language you prefer (although Google translate might have to assist me if you choose something different than English, German, Dutch or Hungarian). If you buy anything through my affiliate links (*), I get a small commission (the price stays the same for you), I am very grateful for everything that feeds my fabric addiction.  

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Semper sweater plus free dress add-on release

I told you, Anne from Sofilantjes* is on a roll right? Pattern number three  from 2016 is released today, the Semper* sweater. It is an unisex sweater pattern with pockets that becomes a dress with the free dress add on pieces. This new sweater is the brother of the Hibernis*, the Hibernis has a skinny fit, the Semper has a loose fit (making it more suitable for boys as well), a different sleeve type, a fixed cowl and a new type of hood. Today, I am showing you both a sweater and a dress.



Let's start with the sweater. The side pieces invite to some interesting color blocking. I used another fabric piece from the sweater that I used here, and color blocked both the pocket and side piece with stripes. The idea behind it was that the pocket binding would look like another stripe, and it would make the pocket somewhat invisible. With hindsight, I like it better if the pocket has the same fabric as the front, but I get points for trying right?



There are two neckline options on the Semper, a hood and a cowl. My kids are huge hood fans, so I did not try the cowl option yet. The hood has an interesting folding detail, that I kind a forgot to make a detail picture off (palm to the face, so added a zoomed picture). If you check out the pattern in the shop you can see the overlap in the pattern drawing and listing though. The neckline of the Semper is the same as the neckline of the Omni Tempore, which means you can interchange the hoods!




The Semper has a raglan sleeve and comes in two sleeve lengths, short and long sleeves. Like I told earlier, my current sewing is sun orientated, so short sleeves have my preference. My son did not agree, more about that in my next post.



You can also make the Semper without separate side panels. No-blocking is also an official pattern option, those full pieces are supplied as well. Although my kids consider having pockets to be a basic need, you can consider the Semper to be a combination of a great basic pattern (no separate side panels) and a speciality pattern.



The free dress add-on pieces both fit the Semper and the Omni Tempore. As suggested in the pattern, I took one size smaller for my daughter for a skinnier fit (normally she has one size bigger than her brother), which meant I could reuse the shirt pieces I had cut earlier.  I used the Semper pockets at the bottom of the dress. I like the color blocking effect it gives, and because it is a minidress, she can even put her hands in them.



The raccoon fabric is from Lillestoff. As mentioned before, the stripes are from a recycled shirt. The purple fabric is from Nosh and is called "Cherry Friends" and I bought it last year from Joyfits (for a very low price). The pink ribbing is also from Joyfits and the dark pink side panel fabric, I bought on a market once.



Mental note to self, now that you can make pictures outside again, find a spot without a huge amount of weeds in the background...



The pattern comes in sizes 12m/80 to 14/164 and is available in both Dutch* and English* pdf. The pattern will be on sale for only $5 (excl. tax) for two days only (more than 40% discount), so get your copy now! The free dress add-on is automatically added to your Semper order and should already be visible in your files if you already bought the Omium Tempore. If you make a Semper and post it in the Sofilantjes Sew and Show Facebook group with  ‪#‎freesempersweater, you might win back you money. Check the group for the details.


I love to hear what you think of my creations. Feel free to leave a comment in the language you prefer (although Google translate might have to assist me if you choose something different than English, German, Dutch or Hungarian). If you buy anything through my affiliate links (*), I get a small commission (the price stays the same for you), I am very grateful for everything that feeds my fabric addiction. 

Saturday, March 26, 2016

Ugly skirt refashion challenge



A bit more than a year ago, I "officially" told you I am a fan of the blog Skirt Fixation. 13 Months have past, and I am still one of Audrey's groupies. Besides all the fun things she organizes on her blog she has taken up an organizing role in Project run and Play and in Top Stitchers! Yes, I am feel some positive jealousy about both positions. At the beginning of the year, Audrey and her daughters posted a list of goals for 2016 and one of them was continuing the "Ugly skirt challenge". For a while already, I felt the desire to participate, but I assumed that postage to Europe would be an obstacle, but it wasn't! In the last weekend of February, I received my ugly skirt challenge package and today I show you the result of the battle.


I feel I was lucky in my skirt draw. All the fabrics were 100% cotton, that is something I can work with! The best refashions use elements of the original garment, look at these refashion patterns for great examples of using original elements. Looking at the skirt, this refashion quickly came to mind. The waist drawstring became the halter, done, easy-peasy. A true no-sew refashion.



You knew I was joking, right (or just remembered the first picture of the post)? As you can see on the picture, the skirt was a huge maxi skirt with so many different fabrics that it kind of gave me a headache. The fabrics themselves were fine, more than fine (there even was an uni-color black underskirt). Black-and-white is totally trending right now. Before I could start my refashion, I first wanted to see what I had to work with. I spend a few hours seam ripping almost all of the seams, but it was totally worth it. At first glance I had not realized there were four different prints, the upper two just looked too similar. As I have four kids I decided that they all would get a fabric. I am a huge fan of black-and-white print mix as you can see in this and this post, but these prints just did not mix the right way.


After total deconstruction I started sewing pieces back together. I started with the fabric that had been on the bottom. I had a few meter fabric, but with that height I could only create skirts. I therefore sewed three stripes on each other to create a decent fabric piece and turned it into a dress for my eldest. I used a free pattern from Flosstyle, the Paradise dress to make a peasant style summer dress. I went for a bit wider dress (I put the pattern piece a few centimetre from the fold) and I added shirring elastic to the waist.



I used the original drawstring as bias tape. After I took out the seams, I simply refolded it (sandwiching the fabrics between it)  and sewed it with one seam in place. That counts as using original elements right? Of course, I also added pockets. This fabric print is simply perfect for a peasant dress, but I wanted to spice it up a little bit. I took two red beads and a red textile marker and added a splash of red to the black-and-white print. It is very subtle, but I feel it makes a difference. Although the dress has some vertical seams, they are not really visible. One became hidden in the shirring elastic, but a lower one is hiding in "plain" sight, it is visible not does not bother me.



The second fabric that quickly got a destination was the mostly black one with white paisley's on it. I felt it was a perfect print for a button up shirt for my son. I hope to make him a flower version once, but let's work up to that one. I made another Theo. An official one with buttons holes, my sewing skills have developed over the past year. I had to sew two fabric pieces together to create a wide enough piece for the back. I matched the print and the seam is hidden in the back pleat, so it really is invisible.



I used the black underskirt to cut the upper back and inside of the collar from, there was not enough "main fabric for those pieces. The outer collar had to be pieced together. I managed to create a matching front, my front overlaps less than usual, so the buttons are relatively close to the side, but it works. My son was allowed to pick his own buttons. I love the splash of blue.



For my youngest, I combined the underskirt and top fabric from the original skirt. The waistband print and upper piece were the same print, but they were separate pieces. I could not do a print match and just sewed the pieces together to make a high enough piece for a bodice. I was inspired by her, who was again inspired by her. I started with the Sally bodice, but heavily redrew the bodice.



I had planned to have such a big neckline that her head would just fit, I was not successful and ended up cutting the back bodice in two. To save width I used one of the original dress hangers (less wide than the drawstring) as bias tape. I solved the back closure the same way as with this dress. This dress also has pockets. I machine embroidered pink flowers on the original underskirt hem.




The last piece of fabric that remained was a piece that kind a hurt my eyes if I looked at it long. I really did not like it. I considered just turning it into a skirt, quick and easy, but then another quick and easy plan came to mind. This trouser refashion is still one of my favourites, and I felt that this piece would be a decent pair of trousers.  So, Domi* to the rescue. I had to make the leg pieces slightly narrower, or else I could not cut them from the fabric, but it worked.



I used the waist and wrist cuffs from an old sweater for the waist band and leg cuffs. I even used the original elastic, after a good steaming it was as good as new. The trousers have inseam pockets because having the typical Domi* pockets would have been to much for this fabric. She loves her new trousers, and I have to say that even I like them. The shirt is not the best colour match, but in my defence I managed to talk her out of the skirt she was wearing on top of her trousers.


 
So no pictures of the four of them together, but I think three at a time is a fine score. My background might even be too narrow for four kids. What do you think, who won, me or the skirt? Did you get inspired to enter the same battle, send a massage to Skirt Fixation and you might be the next lucky one to show your strength.



I love to hear what you think of my creations. Feel free to leave a comment in the language you prefer (although Google translate might have to assist me if you choose something different than English, German, Dutch or Hungarian). If you buy anything through my affiliate links (*), I get a small commission (the price stays the same for you), I am very grateful for everything that feeds my fabric addiction.