... further adventures with New Look 2373

Round of applause please I have a dress that I made all by myself.  I was able to give over a whole weekend to making this and I am really please with the result, which is a bit of a boost following on from the disappointment of the camisole top,

The familiarity of having already made the pattern gave me quite a bit of confidence and I was much quicker this time round.  I did not spend so much time hanging round in my bedroom looking into the mirror with bits pinned on which probably helped to speed up the process.

I was worried that there is still a bit of gapping at the side and I think I should have made the straps slightly shorter but having worn it these are minor problems that only I was aware of. I am thrilled with the way it has turned out, it is exactly what I envisioned.

The fabric was nice to work with although it was quite difficult to tell which was the right side ( it had a little sticker on it when it came from Abakhan fabrics) but I figured if I had got it wrong anywhere and couldn't tell then no one else is going to notice either.  It washes and irons really nicely and I just need some nice weather so that I can get some wear again now I am back from my holidays. The photos are courtesy of lovely husband taken in Lanzarote.

A quick update on the beleaguered camisole top, I used the colour run rescue pack and it did get rid of the loose dye, however, it also faded the ric-rac colour and the fabric has shrunk slightly making the fit a little snug.  I will wear it around the house and garden  but it just seems that this garment was not fated to be successful.

Are you sewing anything for your holidays?

...finishing New Look 2373 camisole top

 I finished the camisole top I started at the end of my dressmaking course, the idea for this was that it was a practice for making the dress from this pattern and hopefully a wearable garment as well.  I trimmed it with some vintage royal blue ric-rac that I brought from e-bay and I was very pleased with the vintage feel this gave to the top.  Sadly when I washed it the colour ran out of the ric-rac and ruined the top, I now know to look for colour fast on any vintage trims that I buy in the future and also to give them a little wash test before I sew them on.

I am glad that I made this as a practice as I made a number of errors.  Firstly I cut out a size 20 as my bust size fell between an 18 and a 20 so I went for the larger size, when I make the dress I will cut it at size 18,   I took at least a couple of inches out of the bodice while making it up but there are fitting issues and I had to bodge a little dart under the arm to try and bring in the top band and stop it gaping at the side.  I didn't follow the pattern at the beginning as I left my instructions at home and should have paid more attention as I feel the ill-fit could be due to me not having picked up on something early on.

On a more positive note I was pleased with the way the zip went in but I was a bit mean with the seam allowance so it was very slightly exposed when it was on and I am happy to report that I did not suffer with zip fear, I did have this page of my blog open to refer to and that was a great help.  It was my first go at making straps and I was happy with the way the came together, it was certainly a wearable garment.

I was lucky to get plenty of time to sew in the last couple of weeks but I don't feel that I put it to best use, I spent far too much time pinning on the next pieces and standing in front of my bedroom mirror to see how it looked.  I need to stop second guessing and just follow the instructions given and to just get on with it.

My next sewing project is going to be the same pattern but as a dress, this time I am going to take heed of all the markings on the pattern to avoid any underarm bodges, there will be less time spent  in front of the mirror and more time in front of my sewing machine!


What are you sewing at the moment? are you making anything for your holidays? Have you got any horrors stories of trims that have ruined your finished garments?

...a fabric bargin

Ooops I got a little bit carried away this morning, I have been on the look out for some fabric to make a sundress for my holidays using the pattern  New Look 2373

I was browsing around http://www.abakhan.co.uk, they offer a wide range of very reasonably priced fabric especially when they are offering a 20% discount for today (2nd May) only!  in addition to this if you sign up for their newsletter you are given a one use code for a further 15% discount.  Now you can see why I got a bit carried away!

This was my final choice, it is a cerise pink and looks lovely and fresh, it is 100% cotton making it ideal for this  pattern.

And here are some of the other fabrics I have ordered.

I adore this 50's inspired fabric and ordered 3 meters to ensure I would have enough to make a dress with a nice full skirt.  We are off to the  Goodwood Revival in September and it is my intention to wear at least one homemade outfit over the weekend.

I thought this seersucker would work really well as the camisole top using the New Look 2373 pattern above.  I haven't worked with seersucker before but this fabric is under £3.00 per meter with the discounts applied so I don't feel like I will have wasted loads of money if things don't go well.


So if you have some spare pocket money and are feeling in the mood to treat your sewing self pop over to their website and have a look, the discounts are also applies to interfacing etc so it is a good opportunity to stock up on some of the basics.



*** DISCLAIMER***  This is not a sponsored post and these are just my opinions.

Can you recommend any patterns for my 50's inspired fabric choice?  Have you already made some thing in this fabulous fabric?  Do you have any top tips on working with seersucker?