Category Archives: outfits

beignet corduroy skirt

Sorry for the kind of blurry photo – the rest of them are better! We were in a slight hurry to get to a birthday party, and since this picture best shows the shape of the Beignet skirt I’m running with it rather than retake the photos. The birthday party was lovely, and I got to wear my very recently finished Beignet (so recent I, ahem, didn’t finish the self-tie or the beltloops. They’re coming soon).

Fabric: Pinwale cotton corduroy from Fishman’s Fabrics in Chicago. Beautiful quality fabric, like everything from that store (though often on the expensive side by US standards). I cut the pieces out so long ago, I don’t know how much I’ve used, but I think at least 3/4 yards of a full 58″ width, possibly a little more for the odd facing piece. I still have fabric left over, though no plans for it yet! For lining I used remnants of kimono silk left over from a theater production. Beautiful stuff!
Pattern: Colette Patterns Beignet. I’ve had this pattern for a long time, so it actually has the watercolor illustrations of the first round, which I sort of prefer anyways. First, but not last time making this, for sure.
Techniques: In-seam pockets, fully lined, bound buttonholes, twill tape for stabilizing waistline.

I started this skirt over a year ago, and meant to finish it for a Sew Weekly challenge on buttons. For someone who enjoys the process of sewing very much, and in her perfectionist tendencies decided that all twelve buttonholes must be *bound*, it was a bit of a foolish endeavor to undertake in a week. So – the night before the challenge deadline I conceded I would not in fact have time to attach lining to shell, hem it all, and construct the 9 remaining buttonholes. And so it was put away.

Clearly I finished them eventually, but my goodness, there is a lot of fiddly steps to the bound buttonholes! After you’ve actually measured out and attached all the little pieces (which I decided would have the wales running in a horizontal direction and therefore needed much precision in applying) and then sliced and turned and steamed and stitched down flaps…. Then you have to make all the corresponding windows for the backsides! They did turn out lovely though, and in many ways I enjoy doing these fiddly bits – making corners for myself, as Kristen called it – but definitely best done not under time constraints.

The fit of this skirt is lovely. It curves beautifully over the lower back, and I think it’s a flattering shape. I will definitely make more of this – I’m thinking a sturdier cotton drill, unlined, with fun bias binding on all the seams for the next one. At the same time, I will probably also make some pattern changes, and also deviate from the instructions in the same way I did this time. For example, the width of the skirt front facing is absolutely killing me. I realized it when constructing the inside windows for the bound buttonholes, and then remembered that I’d seen this problem with other people’s skirts: the facing is too narrow. If you notice in the second buttonhole picture up there, the buttonholes should not be that close to the seamline attaching the lining. Not only did it make it very difficult to properly construct those little windows, but it’s not structurally very good.

I also made steps to reduce bulk over how the pattern is written. For example, all my seams are pressed open instead of to one side, including by the pocket where I just snipped in to the seamline above and under where the pocket is attached. Since the corduroy doesn’t fray super crazy, I also turned up just once for the hem. It won’t really show since the lining hem covers it. Finally, though the pattern doesn’t specify how to attach the twill tape, I chose to butt it up against the waist seamline, but only be caught in the understitching, as I thought it would get too bulky to have it sewn into the actual waist seam and folded back on itself. Oh! I changed my mind – here’s the new “finally”: Finally, I anchored the pocket seam allowance to a skirt panel seam allowance, since the pockets kept flipping back in the wrong direction while I was trying this on. I just laid the skirt flat, and pinned where the pocket could be attached to a vertical seam allowance – if that makes sense?

beignet_pocket_anchored

As mentioned, I used remnants of kimono silk from a theater production to line this skirt. I had to piece several of the panels in order to have enough fabric, but look how lovely it is! I think it was a good choice for the soft corduroy since it provides some body (the silk being a little on the sturdier side). Unfortunately it also makes the skirt just a little lumpy in a way, since the corduroy is so very soft. That’s why for the next Beignet I want to try a sturdier fabric and not line it.

Criticisms aside, I really do like the shape of this skirt, and look forward to making it again. Not to mention how happy I am to have both this fabric out of my stash, and finally – this skirt out of the UFO-pile!

Pinwale Corduroy

outfit: pile on the neutrals

One of my favorite ways to build an outfit, is to pile on as many shades neutrals as possible at the same time, and lately I’ve been favoring a brown-toned, greeney grey sort of neutral. I don’t think I noticed I have so much in this hue until putting together this outfit! On a sunny winter’s day I felt like brightening things up with this fuchsia shirt-dress for a day of running errands, and taking my new-to-me bag out for a spin.

A new bag may not seem like a big deal, but I’m not very in to bags, which means I don’t have many. I usually just have one in constant rotation until it more or less fall apart, and for the past few months I’ve been lugging around a faded cotton tote bag that was getting more and more pitiful by the day. So it’s such a relief to have a bag that makes me feel put together instead of embarrassed!

outfit: February fitted pullover, with a mini

Another instalment of figuring out how to wear my February fitted pullover! This is by far my favorite, with several repeats already (the first and second outfits have both been singular events). There is something about the proportions of this combination that just works for me – the 3/4-length sleeves, the mid-thigh miniskirt. The slight bulk of the sweater is balanced out by the amount of leg, I guess. Either way, this one is a keeper. And the sweater is very cozy and warm. Success!

outfit: February fitted pullover, another dress

Here is another installment of Birgitte-tries-to-find-ways-to-wear-her-February-fitted-pullover, this time with a dress! Wait, this time still with a dress, just like last time. I actually think this is more successful – at least I felt more comfortable in this combination. The strapless dress I wore with the sweater last time is a little bulky, and combined with the slightly bulky February pullover, it was just too much (but quite warm!).

Check out the lovely old wooden houses in the background! We took these pictures while we were at my parents’ house for Christmas, and the area has a lot of traditional buildings left. I love that!

The dress I’m wearing is the same jersey dress from this uniform-post, and like that time I put the attached ties to good use. The holes in the sweater were actually big enough to fit the ties through, so I just brought them around the front, and tucked the ends underneath themselves in the back.

Since we took the last pictures I’ve also been a good knitter and actually blocked the sweater, which grew a little bit in the process. I’m not always good enough with doing swatches, so ideally I should have knit this a smidge smaller, but I smooshed the sweater together instead of stretching it out, and it seems alright. Blocking also smoothed out the kind of abrupt waist-shaping that was a bit more apparent pre-blocking. If I were to knit this again (slash, my advice to others knitting this) I’d probably try to do the waist-shaping more gradually.

And then I ran back to the car, since it was in fact literally freezing.

around here

These past few weeks I’ve:
- made the 14-hour train trek back home, and then the 14 hours back. Done so happily to celebrated the season with family and friends, good food, and a whole lot of wine (yum. It’s also how I survive the winter.)
- been frustrated with the short days and the stupidly dark and blurry pictures that come of it. Not to mention the effect on my energy levels. But now, thankful that the days are getting longer!
- had a love-affair with kale, and the old trains bringing back childhood memories with their worn mirrors and old-school bathrooms. Those who’ve been on those trains will know what I mean.
- gotten cozy with magazines and new socks at the ER for hours of waiting to be seen for a ill-timed throat infection.
- gone to work dressed as a circus princess. Please tell me I’m not the only one who’s gotten dressed by putting on favorite individual objects (oo, yes I feel like pink tights today, oh and I like this belt, and I do like this dress, etc, etc.) only to find yourself surprised at what you’ve put on *together* when confronted with a mirror later that day?
- made progress on my Geithus lace knit top. Still the softest yarn in the world, and not as stripy as I was fearing thankfully.

gathered sundress in winter

Of course you make summery dresses in the dead of winter! Why wouldn’t you?

I think a core reason I’ve been knitting so much lately, is the overwhelmingness of my current pile of half-finished sewing projects – none of which have been calling my name lately. The one project I got excited about, was the Gathered sundress by Pattern Runway. And, I had some lovely cotton/silk that I always planned on making into the perfect summer dress, so it seemed like a good match.

I’ve shared some snippets of this fabric and the making of the dress in several recent posts, and I’ve really been taking my time (and now that I’m finally ready to share, I feel like I have so much to say about this dress!). I’ve come to realize that part of the reason I sew is to do it as neatly and well made as possible. That might not be the driving desire for other people who sew, and that’s ok. But it is a driving force for me, where I really enjoy the process, and adding little construction details wherever I can and want. Of course this means this dress took much longer to finish than I thought – especially when you add the part where I was careful during the cutting process so the pattern would match up, and the part where I decided to have the side front panels and the inside of the pocket cut on the bias.

I was inspired by Oona’s delightful lace insert version of this dress, where she made some of the panels contrasting. With this kind of busy, but still orderly pattern, I thought it might help to do something similar to break up the mass and create a differentiation. That was also the thought behind the deliciously colored piping I made for the belt and the pockets (my tips for making and using bias tape is right here). I’m not sure it was a roaring success – this print pattern looks much more busy from a couple of yards away than it does up close, so the fabric hides some of the details and lines until you’re quite close. I’m not super comfortable with prints to begin with, so I might be a little biased and feeling in unfamiliar territory here!

Like I mentioned, I did enjoy adding a lot of touches to the construction of the dress, and a lot of them is due to the sheer and thin nature of the cotton/silk printed fabric:
• Using iron-on stay-tape along pretty much all curved edges, both on the lining fabric and the self fabric. (seen in this post)
• Edgestitching the seamallowance to one side to add some heft and structure to the seams. I was afraid that the light fabrics might not feel substantial enough for a dress of this style, and adding more seams in form of edgestitching, top-stitching, and piping helped with support.
• Backing the bias cut side panels, the belt, and pockets with straight grain organza, so they wouldn’t be completely bent out of shape. I figured the pockets would feel more solid and sturdy (but still light!) with the organza as well.
• Binding the raw edges of the pocket with more of the same green-yellow silk dupioni I used for the piping.
• With the patterned fabric beeing lighter and more see through than I was expecting, I lined the skirt as well for a full lining in a cotton voile. This changed the construction a bit – I sewed the lining as a full separate piece, but to keep the layers together, and again, add stability and a little more heft, I sewed together the seam allowances of the top belt seams on both the lining and the patterned fabric. It’s a technique also used in lined jackets, to keep the outer and inner layers of the collar moving as one!
• As for the fit, I did shorten the bodice by a good inch or so, which seems like a common alteration for this pattern. I also added some width at the princess-seams after a bodice muslin, and pinched off a little on the back pieces for some neckline gaping. I may ~~or may not~~ have overfitted a bit. I intentionally kept the fit a little looser – I wanted an easy, effortless dress, but that doesn’t define the waist as much as this style of dress usually does.
• Finally, not a construction note, but worth mentioning: I had some weird and random problems with these fabrics. I swear I cut out the exact sane patternpieces of the voile and the cotton/silk, handled them with extreme care, and interfaced the edges to prevent stretching out. And yet, sewing the lining to the self fabric along the armholes had me looking at over an inch to ease in on a 6″ stretch! (picture above) I also had an issue with the hem not matching up in a way I can’t even explain, despite being super careful matching everything up while cutting and sewing! To a perfectionist as myself, this was most maddening.

The sheer fabric also means that the seam allowance shows up, especially having interfaced them first! I trimmed down the seam allowance on the princess seams as much as I could get away with, but a better idea might have been to underline everything instead. Hindsight is 20/20, but I really think I’m going to like and wear this dress, and I do consider that a success – even if it might not have come out as awesomely as I was picturing.

I did have some pretty high hopes for this one – I might have been expecting too much! It’s funny to see a similar sort of feeling discussed by Tasia quite recently – that even if, as a non-sewer I talked to recently put it, we can make things any way and exactly how we want it, not every project is an absolute success. Maybe I didn’t choose the optimal pattern for the fabric or vice versa, maybe I didn’t choose the best combination of fabrics, and maybe I didn’t choose the ideal construction methods at every point. I do feel some pressure to absolutely love everything I make (though I’m not sure to what degree that pressure is external or internal, or some combination of the two). I think I will try to simply accept this as a piece in my wardrobe, and that it doesn’t have to be “the perfect garment” all on its own. If it’s a garment that fits, and I’m happy to wear, that’s a lot just by itself.

outfit: February fitted pullover, winter wonderland style

Thanks for the suggestions I got for how to wear my newly finished February fitted pullover that I shared recently (and here is the ravelry link to the project)! I have a short list of ways to try wearing it (feel free to offer more suggestions if you can think of any!). I did wear it last weekend the way I mentioned in that post – with my grandma-dress.

It’s a little funny; in my mind, the blues of the sweater and the dress would match perfectly, but in certain indoor lights they were purpely blue and green blue, respectively. It looked fine though, so the lack of perfect colormatching doesn’t bother me too much. And I can tell you this much – that sweater is quite warm! It certainly kept me toasty even with just the strapless dress underneath. Score one for the sweater. I paired it with a belt to break the blue expanse up a bit (and match my boots of course).

The pictures are on the artistic (wacky?) side – taken at dusk one day with the only camera lens available that day (it’s actually broken, but works as a sort of handheld tilt-lens). I find it funny how the city behind me in this last picture kind of looks like a little model!

indigorchid

patterns, stitches, and making things