Peasant Blouse

Happy 4th of July! (for those of you in the US) We have been enjoying of a long weekend due to the Independence Day Holiday and that meant extra crafting time for me. I love when I get to spend more time playing in the sewing room. I got to finish this peasant blouse that I started last week. The fabric for this blouse is basically recycled fabric; it came from a dress that I bought years ago and never wore because as much as I loved the print I never liked the way it fitted me. So a few weeks ago I took it out and decided to turn it into something that I would actually wear. The dress was empire waist with very thing straps and a very full skirt. Thus, the top didn't give me much useable fabric but the skirt was made of two beautiful panels of fabric. I chose a peasant blouse because the pattern is easy and very forgiving (in case of mistakes). I drew the pattern using a blouse I already had as a guide. I centered the the body of the blouse in the middle of each panel and used the sides with the seams for the sleeves. For the cuffs and the neck I made a bias tape with the lining of the dress. I had to be inventive as there was not much fabric to spare. I'm absolutely happy with the way it turned out and I think I'm going to be wearing it a lot this summer. 

I hope you have a lovely week!

XO 

Martha.

Sew The Library: Kimono Tunic

Hello and welcome to our second edition of Sew The Library. I'm very happy to have you here. For this month's project I decided to add a new piece to my wardrobe. I've only made another top before (you can see it here) and since then I've been anxious to try again, but for one reason or another I kept postponing it. But not anymore: Sew the Library is the perfect encouragement to put our beloved craft books to use. This new top is the Kimono Tunic from the Sweet Dress Book. I'm absolutely obsessed with Japanese sewing books and this one is a great one. The patterns are very relaxed and user friendly; specially for a beginner like myself. The fabric is a cut to flannel I got at my local fabric shop on clearance and I've been saving it for months looking for the perfect project. It is super soft and very cozy. I think this tunic is going to get lots of use. I love the color an the texture and so easy to wear. The fit is a bit loose but I think that is part of the charm of these designs. And it is perfect to wear with leggings or tights so it makes for a super comfy outfit. 

Now on to the link up.

What you have been up to? Please link up your projects you made from a craft book or a magazine this month and visit each other.

Thank you for stopping by,

XO

Martha

Adventures in Dressmaking: My First Finish

So here it is, I finally finished the top I have been working on.  My first addition to my handmade wardrobe. The pattern is Top A from the Stylish Dress Book Volume 2. The pattern is actually very easy to follow and extremely  user friendly; especially for beginners like me. All the instructions are put in a few easy steps and it includes pictures to illustrate the construction.

 I really like the way it turned out. However there are some things that didn't come out as planned. The fit is a bit loose but I think this gives me a good starting point for sizing when using this book. Although, I been debating whether or not I I should take a few inches from the sides. Finally the fabric, while I love the silky texture and amazing drape it has, it had its challenges working with it. It frays very easily so I had to be careful at not handling it too much before ovelocking the edges. And hand basting became my best friend since the fabric is very slippery. I wanted to make sure the pieces didn't shift while sewing them. Specially the pleats and the neck binding.

My friend Nat has the same book so we had decided to make the same top and share our adventures (I'm a bit late sharing mine, sorry Nat). You can see her top here.

 She shares her insights about working with this pattern and a mini tutorial on how to make the gathering for the sleeves. 

Overall I think  my first experience in dress making was a success. I'm really looking forward to adding  a few more handmade items to my wardrobe. 

Have a great week!

**Linking up to New To Me in 2014 over at 

Celtic Thistle Stitches

 **

XX

Martha.

New Sewing Adventures: Dressmaking

Hello everyone! I hope you enjoyed your weekend. So this is what I have been up to. At the beginning of the year I made a list of all my crafty goals for 2014 and one of them was to start  sewing my own clothes. I'm totally obsessed with Japanese sewing patterns and I finally acquired a couple of fabulous books by 

Yoshiko Tsukiori

. All the patterns are amazing so it is a bit hard to chose a favorite. However, as it turns out 

Nat

 and I have the same book and decided to sew the same pattern. We are going to show our finished project by February 15 for the February 

Le Challenge

. I'm so thrilled about this new sewing adventure. I hope I'm successful :)

Have a lovely week.

XX

Martha