Green T-shirt

One more short-sleeve T-shirt for my husband. I had a piece of green cotton fabric with almost no stretch, which was a remnant from another project, so in this year's spirit of clearing my stash, I decided to turn it into a blouse.

I used again my true-and-tried Burda pattern, size 50, but with some tweaks. The pattern is tailored, but I made it straight and I also played a little with the neckline, widening it 1.5 cm at the front. 

As I often make t-shirts for husband, based on this pattern, you might think, that I can make these now by heart - but nothing could be farther from the truth. Every time I decide to cut a new t-shirt, I start measuring and tweaking and guessing what had I changed the previous time to get a good fit.

So, I've decided to make a cardboard copy of the pattern and to introduce all of the tweaks and mods I find necessary, based on this latest t-shirt, so that next time I wouldn't need to guess what kind of elongations and other changes I need to make, to get the perfect fit. And as I am really curious how this would work, I am very much inclined to visit my favourite fabric shop and buy a piece of knit fabric, just to try the modified pattern with all the latest alterations. Expect a new men's t-shirt here in the nearest future :)

Pattern: Burda #132 from 12 / 2020

Size: 50 with with added length

Fabric: cotton knit

Time to make: 2 days

Beige Dress for Gaby

Last year I bought a large piece of viscose and made a Rhapsody for Gaby out of it. I had a fairly big remnant - probably half of the fabric, so this year I decided to use it to make a summer dress for Gaby.

I am modeling the dress, but it is supposed to fit Gaby, who is taller and a bit more broad-shouldered than me.

The pattern is a mesh-up of three dresses and it took me quite a while finally to cut it. The skirt is a slightly widened skirt from the Roliz dress by Vikisews. I love my Roliz and my only regret is that I didn't make the skirt a bit wider, as I had plenty of its gorgeous fabric.

The bodice is again Burda #104 02/2011 dress, but only up to the armholes. The back is cut straight and flat, and the front continues into Bailen dress by Pauline Alice, with wider straps, as I was aiming at strap width that could cover the bra straps underneath. The dress closes with a zipper on the side.

Pattern: Bailѐn Top by Pauline Alice, free pattern, Roliz by  VikiSews, Burda #104 02/2011 dress

Size: 34 

Fabric: 100% viscose for the outer dress, polyester for the lining

Time to make: 3 days

 

The dress is fully lined, as all of my woven fabric dresses lately, with simple beige lining fabric for the bodice and smooth poly-acetate lining for the skirt.

Sleeveless Butterfly Dress

Last year right at the end of summer I made myself a sleeveless Burda dress out of two chiffon fabrics. The dress was a mash-up out of two patterns - Burda 104 02/2011 with corrections and Deniz skirt by Vikisews.

The summer was then over and I never had the chance to wear the dress. However, we are in the midst of the hot summer days again and I found the little chiffon dress simply priceless, so I made myself another one.

Pattern: Burda #104 02/2011 dress and Deniz skirt by Vikisews

Size: 17 Height: 154 - 160 cm

Fabric: navy chiffon, navy georgette

Time to make: 3 days

The outer fabric is a beautiful georgette and the dress is fully lined with navy chiffon. Interesting, how I loved to wear simple knit-fabric dresses in the summer, but lately I prefer lined viscoses and georgettes.

Based on my notes from the previous dress, I raised the waist 1 cm and cut the semicircle in two parts, so that the straight line would be at the front and at the back, otherwise the pattern is the same. I'm so in love with this little dress, that I plan a few more similar dresses for the summer, both for myself and for Gaby.

Calf Jeans

I am one of those people, that loves to use up materials to the maximum possible and hates waste. So, when I have big remnants of fabric, I save them for later smaller projects, to be combined with other remnants, if possible.

Last year I made a pair of flared jeans out of a dark blue denim with lycra and I had about 60 cm  left. I had also some mere scraps from the jeans I made for Gaby, which are of the same fabric type and weight, only a different shade of color - asphalt grey.

I could have made a pair of jeans shorts, but I much prefer calf length jeans for the summer, so I decided to do my best and try to squeeze a pair out of my meager remnants.

For the pattern I used again the Flared Burda jeans, but in their shorter calf-length version. This pattern features flared hems, but I preferred to add simple rectangular hems, as I wanted my jeans to be straight calf length capri type pants.

 

For most of the details of the pair I used the bigger dark-blue piece of denim and I cut the back yoke, and the hems out of the grey denim.

 

I was so short of fabric, that I had to make the inside of the waistband out of a third piece of denim - a remnant from my black jeans and the back pockets are made of small scraps of fabric.

 

Pattern: Flared Jeans Burda 7050

Size: 34, short version, with corrections

Fabric: cotton denim with lycra

Time to make: 10 days

I can totally afford to buy a new piece of fabric and make myself any number of pairs of jeans, but that is not the point - my complete satisfaction lies in the fact, that I managed to use up my remnants and I have a perfectly functional pair of jeans, which I've been wearing regularly. Is that crazy or what :)))

Buttoned Side Flared Jeans in Blue

I've got a new pair of flared jeans - these are for myself! They are part of the Make Nine pledge for 2025, piece of fabric N 3 - blue denim. I bought the denim a couple of years ago with an idea to make a pair of jeans for Gaby, but she turned my suggestion down, as she did not like the color of the fabric.

To be frank, with the years I grew cold to that color too. Still, sky blue jeans can be quite wearable in the summer, with light colored T-shirts, so I hope I'll get some decent wear out of them.

The concrete inspiration for the jeans came from a Netflix Spanish mini tv series - A Perfect Story, where the two main characters walked through Athens. I loved experiencing again the Acropolis through their eyes, but being a seamstress, I could not help but analyze their clothing and I fell in love with the jeans the girl wore. I took a few snapshots, googled flared jeans with buttons on the side and soon designed the mods to my Burda 7050 pattern, to turn it into an imitation of the inspiration garment. Hashtag Make-That-Look :)

Pattern: Flared Jeans Burda 7050

Size: 34, shortened - 6 cm, no hem allowances

Fabric: cotton denim

Time to make: 10 days

Apart from the buttoned openings of the legs, the jeans are more or less the same as the ones for Gaby, but with a few shortenings here and there, taking into account my height and stature.

Next time I make this pattern, I intend to play further with the width at the knees, to try to eliminate the wrinkling at the back. On the other hand, the pair of black jeans I made at the beginning of the year is much wider at the legs and the knees and still crinkles at the back, so maybe the width is not the problem. I wish I knew more about pants construction, but most of the videos and the booklet I have were not of much help for this particular issue.

I have enough pairs of long flared jeans for now, but I want a couple of 7/8 length pairs for the summer, so there will be more pairs of jeans here. Probably 2025 will turn to be the year of the jeans :)

Flared Jeans for Gaby

A pair of jeans I made for Gaby. Yes, it's the same pattern I've already made for myself twice and every time it's a new try with various mods, in an attempt to achieve the perfect fit one day.

As Gaby is taller than me, I made these at least 5 cm longer than mine and I also raised the waist by 2 cm. Gaby chose a red thread for the decorative seams and I am very happy with her choice, the discreet red goes really well with the graphite grey.

For this pair I opted for the widest size of the leg hems, I really like the dramatic funneling of the legs from tight at the knees to flower-power wide at the bottom.

Pattern: Flared Jeans Burda 7050

Size: 34, shortened - 4 cm, no hem allowances

Fabric: cotton denim with lycra

Time to make: 6 days

Although Gaby and I wear the same size, we are far from identical in figure, so I can only hope they will fit her better. On me, I don't like the fit at the back and I hopefully guess the excessive gathering is due to the extra length and the tight knees. I've been trying various mods on the pattern, but the gathering of the legs at the back is still an issue, which I haven't been quite able to tackle.

I have more than enough pairs of jeans already, but if I come upon a similar piece of denim, I won't hesitate to make the same pair for myself.

Green Burda 6202 Blouse

As I mentioned in a previous posting, Burda 6202 is one of my favourite T-shirt patterns. I like its fitted design, open neckline and feminine puffed short sleeves. The purple blouse, which I made at the end of February, has been one of my go-to blouses for hikes. I wanted one more of these, but out of cotton-viscose fabric, for everyday walks. 

Teal is one of my most favourite colors, so when I saw the teal viscose fabric with lycra at the shop, I had to have it. I bought enough for two blouses and I made an identical one for Gaby, as I know that she loves teal too.

Pattern: Burda 6202 from Burda Catalogue 1 / 2020

Size: 34, shortened

Fabric: cotton-viscose with lycra

Time to make: 2 days

For the new teal blouses I reverted to the 34 size and I also lowered the neckline back to the original line at the front, but lifted the neckline at the back by 2 cm. For my blouse I also graded the front and the back from the waist to the hem to 36 size, as I don't like my blouses hugging me too tight at the hip.

The fabric is divinely soft and comfortable to wear, the fit is as I wanted it and I believe this little blouse is going to be one of my favourites this spring and summer.

Three T-Shirts For The Boys

Whenever I visit my favourite fabric shop downtown, I always check the knit fabrics section for fabrics, suitable for men's t-shirts. Husband and son have plenty already, but I find it so difficult to restrain myself, when I come upon some really good quality fabric, especially when it is also at a good price.

Thus last time I bought a piece of this super soft cotton knit, extremely pleasant to the skin. The piece of fabric was supposed to be 1.8 m, perfect for two T-shirts, but when I came home I found out, that the seller had made a mistake and the piece was only 1.3 m. Well, it's human to err, so all I was left was to figure out how to make two tall men's T-shirts with half a meter of fabric missing. Spoiler alert - I managed!

First I cut the t-shirt for my son, as he wears a smaller size and then I started playing Tetris with the remaining fabric and the pattern pieces for my husband's T-shirt. The solution I came up with was to add decorative elements out of another blue piece of fabric and to cut the back out of two separate pieces.

Pattern: Burda #132 from 12 / 2020

Size: 50 with with added length

Fabric: cotton knit

Time to make: 2 days

The seam at the back is covered with a strap of the lighter blue fabric and I also added another strap for good measure.

I personally love this T-shirt the best of the three I made and I am especially happy that I was left with practically no remnants of the darker blue fabric. It gives me always such a satisfaction to use up a piece of fabric to the last centimeter :)

The lighter blue fabric is a gorgeous cotton-viscose knit with lycra, which I had bought for the lining of a hoodie I made last year for Gaby's boyfriend. After I cut the lining for the hood, I was left with plenty of fabric and I had been planning a t-shirt for him out of it ever since. I had the patterns out and the overlocker threaded, so all I was left to do was to cut the fabric and make a third t-shirt.

Pattern: Burda #132 from 12 / 2020

Size: 46

Fabric: cotton viscose knit

Time to make: 5 days

And this is the first t-shirt, which I made for my son - it is super plain and unadorned, as he prefers them, with just a tiny label added to the side of the pocket.

Pattern: Burda #132 from 12 / 2020

Size: 46 with with added length

Fabric: cotton knit

Time to make: 1 day

 The three men's t-shirts I made this week - time for something girly!