Summer shift: New Look 6145

Hello Friends. Summer is in full swing, lots of hot days, often too hot to want to wear very much. So, a new breezy summer dress was required.

Disappointingly, when I first made this dress I was underwhelmed and felt it was a little "meh". I didn't even instagram it for that very reason! How very unlike me. However, I have since worn it lots and it has risen considerably in my estimations. It's easy to wear, and easy to wash. It's perfectly loose and breezy on super hot days, and best of all I have had lots of real-life compliments on this. I can say now that I put it on and love it. Do you ever have makes you have grown to love?

A bit crumpled, but I have been wearing it all day.

I bought some lovely Koi carp linen from Ditto fabrics at one of their splendid open days. The Ditto warehouse is an Aladdin's cave, full of fabric gems.  I went not wanting to buy very much and typically came out with bagfuls!  But, in my defence, I have used most of it, or at least cut it up ready to sew.

I only bought a metre, which in hindsight was foolish as it restricted what I could make. I think originally I was thinking skirt, but I am glad I went for a shift as there is nothing tight around the middle in the heat.

For the pattern I went with New Look 6145 used before here. It has diamond darts on the back for subtle shaping and long side darts at the front that look rather elegant.

No pattern matching here!

Having made the pattern previously I was happy with the loose shape, though I did make it an inch longer for modesty's sake.  I also omitted the kick pleat, as it is not necessary due to the loose nature of it.

This version has a little gaping at the front neckline, which I did not get in my previous dress.  Could the weight of the sleeves have pulled the dress down better? It's not too bad, though, and it won't stop me wearing it.  Annoying, though, because I cut out another sleeveless dress alongside this, and now I know that the neckline won't be as great on that other one either; this would-be-dress is currently at the bottom of my ready-to-sew pile for that very reason.

Do you cut out projects en masse? It is currently my preferred method of working.  If I have an urge to sew I pick up a project folder and I am ready to go. I think this will be particularly useful when I start uni! It's the cutting out that I find takes the most time and organisation. How about you?

New Look 6145 - Mark 2

Greetings all! It's been three weeks since my last sew, but I'm feeling okay about it. A week ago, I was strangled by this lack of creativity, but I know now this hiatus will pass. I do have something to share, though: a blouse that somehow escaped the blog previously.

 

The pattern is the one I got free from the simplicity blogger challenge: Newlook 6145. It is perfect for my style, easy to wear, loose and not constricting.

I used the modified pattern from previously (I had raised the waist by an inch and a half and redrawn the darts back and front accordingly) then cropped it to blouse length. As this fabric didn't contain any stretch, I reduced the seam allowances to 1cm, to give me a little more wiggle room. My previous version made with stretch cotton can be seen here.

The fabric is called "sunflowers" in coral, 100% cotton. It's from fabricland and comes in loads of colourways. I only bought a metre, but it was more than enough for this - it's always good to have a pattern you can make with a metre! There is just enough in the tiny scraps for the bodice of a little girl's dress too!

I think this is a year-round make. Perfect for this hot sun we are currently having, but it will layer beautifully in colder weather too.

 

Again, I made this without adding a zip; frankly, I wonder why the pattern needs one. There is so much ease that it slips over my head effortlessly.

I have worn this lots and lots, and I love it. I'm sure I will make more of these blouses when I next find some fabulous fabric.

 
Goes well with my jeans too!   Happy sewing folks; it won't be long before I am joining you again too.

Simplicity Star Sewist - New Look 6145

Hello everyone. Have you heard that Simplicity are searching for a "star sewist"?  To do this, they are running a competition with a choice of free pattern. I chose to make Newlook 6145. According to twitter, they have had over 300 entries. Wow! And today I am adding my entry into the mix.

New Look 6145

Originally, I wasn't overly inspired by this pattern - it didn't jump out at me. But then I started looking at Boden online and found my inspiration: a simple shift with a 60s vibe.

Boden Inspiration

I am loving the 60s-look at the moment, and I had the perfect fabric. A stretch cotton sateen with bold flower pattern. This fabric was gifted to me by a friend. I would never have chosen it myself  (I steer clear of mainly white clothes with small children!) but I love it. I did wonder if I could carry off wearing such a bold dress, but I decided to just go for it!

I did a couple of flat pattern adjustments before I started sewing. I am substantially shorter than whoever these patterns are designed for, so I had to take out over an inch and a half in length, both below and above the waist. By taking out that length, though, I had to redraw the darts, which did take a little head-scratching and googling to check I was doing it right.

I made a quick muslin out of a very old and threadbare poly-cotton sheet, and it fitted perfectly.  More than that, because it is such a loose fitting shape, I realised that when I used my stretch fabric I would be able to do away with the zip! And it fits perfectly without it.

Gosh, I'm standing awkwardly in the above shot! Anyway, there is a little pleat at the bottom. I don't really feel the dress needs it, and I likely won't include it in my next version. Yes, there definitely will be another, maybe another two or three.

I love the silhouette of this pattern, semi-fitted but still loose enough not to be constricting. I feel stylish in it, but without trying too hard.

 

This fabric was a dream to sew. I had been nervous about stitching stretch wovens, as I had heard that they can stretch out of shape and seams can pucker easily. But I was careful, slow and I staystitched. All went well.  Hope this was not beginners' luck, as I have just bought some more!
  



Version number 2 is halfway there (this time as a blouse) and the fabric for number 3 has been bought and pre-washed. I am really thrilled with this pattern and am looking forward to having a few of these hanging in my closet.

Also, I think it is kinda close to my Boden inspiration, so I am very pleased. Thank you Mags for the lovely fabric, and to opening my eyes to the new world of stretch cotton.