Made by Me Files: The Perfect Pant (McCalls 6930/6711) and a Leftover Jacket (Vogue 8910).

It's been a long while since I wrote up any of my sewing projects!  I have quite a few projects I have sewn up, I just lost my steam to write over the last month, and both of these got left behind. 

First up I will write about my "perfect pant" pattern, which is a mash-up of McCall's 6930 and 6711.  I will then finish up this post with a very *brief* review of a bias cut jacket I made, Vogue 8910.

Evidence of country--horse.

I made these pants up before I left for Mississippi, as I spied this fabric at Joann's, and knew that its color and pattern would work well with this sweater jacket I made specifically for the trip.  I also knew that having a good pair of well-fitting pants in a stretchy cotton sateen is a wonderful idea for any trip (especially ones that involve sitting in cars for hours driving to get to places--Mr. Dina is from the country, you all).
 

Since I had made up some pretty decent fitting pants back when I was in the Fashion Challenge for Fabric Mart using McCall's 6711, and I had read that the block that McCall's uses for all of its pants patterns stay the same, I knew I would probably be okay picking out another McCall's pattern for pants and having it work for my lower half.  (I also had lost some weight from the challenge and the plaid pants I had originally made fit me even better so I figured a new pair would probably be the same.)

I loved the back zip and pockets from McCall's 6711, so I knew I wanted my new pair to have the same thing, but I also knew I wanted a traditional waistband.  Well, the only pattern I saw that had those three things were McCall's 6930, but that pattern is for capris and shorts.  Sigh.

But then, ding!, I realized I could mash-up the top portion of McCall's 6930 with the longer, slimmer leg of McCall's 6711, and have a perfect pair of pants for me.  Yes!

I did check to make sure that the McCall's 6930 crotch curve matched the McCall's 6711, and without fail, it was a near match, barring a slight style difference to accommodate a waistband and lower rise.  So I proceeded to get my shears out and get to cutting.

Like all cotton sateen I have worked with in the past, this fabric was no exception to the "easy to cut, easy to sew" rule.  I love cotton sateen so much.  And provided the sateen is in a print with some stretch, the fabric shows very few wrinkles making it perfect for anyone who travels or moves about a lot.

It isn't especially thick, but for my purposes it is a good all-weather pant.  I felt fine in these in the 75 degree weather we had the day I wore them in Mississippi (December 1, thankyouverymuch), but I also felt warm enough when I wore them recently in more *typical* winter weather (last photo of this review).

Side view shows that the crotch curve works for my particular lower half well.  I love that it both fits my longer and larger bottom, but also works with my flatter front yet slight front thigh bump.  Woo.  I thought only Burda allowed for us to have proper curves.  LOL.

I cut the size 14, btw, the same size I cut for 6711.  My measurements fit the 16 better, but in my experience McCall's runs about one size big across the board (I should wear a 12 up top but always cut a 10).

I wish I had a darker colored grey invisible zip laying around, but I seem to only buy the REALLY long zippers from G Street, and forget to buy the shorter ones, too.  (I like to have zippers laying around, I cannot tell you how many times I have needed one and was very glad I didn't have to trudge out to the store in the middle of a project to get one.)  G Street, btw, has the *best* notions department, at least the one at Seven Corners here in Northern Virginia.  I feel very lucky to have all the YKK zippers in every color, size, and function at the ready and only a few miles from my house.  The same can be said of their elastics, ribbons, buttons, shoulder pads, snaps, etc.  So much choice!

Anyhow, I never seem to have troubles unzipping from the back, but I guess I probably am alone in this.  I really just don't like front zips, except in jeans.  I always feel like the zip on the front feels weird and it bothers me.  Obviously I get over it as most pants are constructed that way, but for me, as a sewer, I will always prefer to put my zips somewhere else than in the front.

Okay so above is how I wore the pants recently here in Virginia.  The weather wasn't stupid cold, but it was only in the 50s that day, so I knew I would have to wear it with the sweater jacket that I had originally planned to wear with it in Mississippi.  (For all that talk about wearing the jacket on my trip, I only had the chance to wear it once--it was just that warm...THE WHOLE TIME.)

Above is Vogue 8910.  I actually wrote up two reviews of this jacket, one at the Fabric Mart blog (has a ton of photos, too), and the review at Pattern Review. 

Since I have clearly said a lot about it over there, I will just encourage you to check out those reviews instead of recreating the wheel here.  I just know that some of you need to see a photo of what you will be looking at to have a reason to get up and go over there.  ;-)

I know this sounds crazy, especially since it is my first jacket and it is really nice and took ME FLIPPING FOREVER to do, but I haven't even worn it out in real life yet.  I finished this jacket on December 11, took these photos and wrote the Fabric Mart blog post on the afternoon of December 12, and later that night found out that my friend, W., had died.  I feel like this jacket is just such a reminder of his death, and all the pain and confusion I felt thereafter, and I can't bring myself to wear it. 

Thing is, he was a huge fan of my sewing and even joked with me that he would wear one of my creations one day and show off his legs for me in it (I guess I was to make him either shorts or a kilt, lol?).  He supported me during the contest and considering he is a rough around the edges, burly and bearded, LUMBERJACK, the fact that he got into it so much means either he was hiding a secret fashionista side or he really just wanted to be a great friend.  I am guessing the latter.  ;-)

I know he would want me to wear it, and I guess I will, I just need to get past my mental block to do so.  I think I will figure it out, it just seems like such a shame to have this creation of mine sitting on the sidelines since I feel vulnerable wearing it.

Okay, that's all from me for today.  There will be one more creation of mine at the Fabric Mart blog tomorrow, so definitely check it out!  I really like that creation (and their is a mini one in there, too), and unlike the jacket above, I have actually worn that one for real.  

Made by Me Files: Floral Tunic Top and Shetland Wool Skirt. Kwik Sew 3463 and Simplicity 2152.

Before I begin, I wanted to give another shoutout to Katie, a blog friend of mine who is also a Stella and Dot consultant.  She wanted to let me know that the Black Friday special I mentioned in this post is extended and that there is a Cyber Monday special, where you can purchase the very chic Avalon Bracelet Clutch for $9.99 (retails for $49) when you spend $50 or more.  You can read more on that here at Katie's Stella and Dot page.  :-)

Okay, so the made by me files today you all have actually seen before, but I have not formally dissected their creation here at the blog. 

I am most excited to show off the Kwik Sew tunic because not only do I LURVE it, but it took so little time to create on my serger and my sewing machine, and I feel like I have beaten a hurdle that I wasn't so sure I was going to be able to successfully jump over.   (That hurdle being able to complete a knit project almost fully on a serger.  I was just so worried about destroying the fabric in the process.)

The skirt is great and all, but I have made skirts before, including lined skirts with a waistband, so the completion of that didn't seem like such a success to me, even if it did take longer to create (and by longer, I mean a lot longer).

Yes I did color my hair red.  It is a demi-permanent and will wash out very slowly.  Having fun wearing it, but it is very different, lol.

The way I styled the Kwik Sew tunic in the outfit I created for the Fabric Mart blog made the tunic look like a top, which I have done before with the Grainline Scout tee/top that I created for my first entry in their Fashion Challenge competition.  Clearly I have a thing for tunics that can also be worn as tops.  ;-)

This fabric is SO soft and cozy.  The colors are that vibrant in real life and though do read a bit early 90s, seem fresh enough that they don't completely seem outdated.  This fabric is from Joann's, and that surprises me as much as I am sure it does some of you all.  Joann's is really upping their fabric of late.  When I started sewing on my own a few years ago, it was very difficult to find nice, on-grain, well made fabric from them.  Now it seems every time I go in there I find another fabric to salivate over (I am even wearing some pants today made from a fabric that I randomly picked up two or three weeks ago). 

I was worried that handling the soft and thin rayon knit jersey would be a bear, but it cut easily enough, and required only a small amount of tweaking with the tensions on the serger*. 

*On my Brother 1034D, I usually have the needle tensions in the normal range but the looper tensions have to be super high on knit fabrics.  I find the average tensions on the 1034D work best with normal wovens, like cotton sateens and quilting cottons.

I chose to sew up a size small in Kwik Sew 3463, but I did grade out to a size medium at the hips.  The neckline is not super large, but I might have been able to start at an x-small.  I love how this tunic fits everywhere else.

The neckline was finished with a foldover elastic in a very pretty mid-pink shade that perfectly matches the fabric.  I sewed that on using a traditional zigzag stitch.  Next time I will cut it shorter than the neckline and slightly stretch the elastic as I sew since this neckline can gape if I am not careful.

The hem and the sleeves are finished with a process I learned watching Linda Lee's Sewing Fashion Knits at Craftsy, which is to take a fusible tricot interfacing, ironing it to the hem, folding up, and sewing the hems.  I chose not to do a twin needle finish since this fabric is so busy, instead doing a lightning bolt stitch, while slightly stretching the fabric as I sewed, to ensure a clean, stretchy finish to the tunic.  The lightning bolt stitch is not for the faint of heart, though, it takes a long time to sew, and if you make a mistake, it takes a long time to unpick. 

I laid out the fabric poorly when I started the project so I ended up having to do the back with two pieces instead of on the fold.  In the end it was a smart choice since I got to practice my serging more AND I was able to make the back pieces narrower, and on me, with my narrower back, it worked out well.

Detail shot of the neckline and floral fabric.  I really love how easy the foldover elastic was to work with and how nicely finished the project felt afterwards.  This tunic is close to ready to wear in the sense of how it is finished, all serged seams and no excessive facings, etc.  The hemlines are what give it away since I don't have a coverstitch machine to allow me to create that kind of hem.  (I imagine how fast it would be to make a project like this with access to one of those, lol.)

I did change up this neckline from the choices, which were to either have a crewneck or a very exaggerated boatneck.  I simply drew a curve in between the two on the front pattern piece and voila, a perfectly normal scoopneck.

I definitely am planning on taking this pattern and shortening it to a regular shirt length.  I had to trace the pattern since the pattern was an old school Kwik Sew type with the heavy white paper, so it should be relatively easy for me to shorten it.

This is how I wore the tunic a few days ago.  I brought it (and the pink skirt) in hopes of wearing the outfit as I presented it over at the Fabric Mart blog, but it has been quite warm down here in Mississippi, and is going to stay that way, so I am afraid that poor skirt came along for the ride and gets no action.  ;-)

I already spent quite a bit of time on this skirt at two separate places, so I am going to be brief in my description of the process of sewing this skirt up, but I do want to at least point out a few things about its completion over here.

For the best, most comprehensive review, check out the post at Fabric Mart.  I go into how I sewed it up with a fine tooth comb, focusing especially on how I managed to make this skirt from a very small remnant of Shetland wool.

For a brief, but still decent review, go to the Pattern Review post.  It speaks more about sizing, etc.

I thought I had made up the size 14 in Simplicity 2152, but I had made it up in the 12.  I chose that size because the upper hip/waist measurement most closely matched mine.  I think I will do the 14 next time, though, since my natural waist is SO high that it would benefit me to wear the skirt a bit lower, and a larger waist measurement would allow that to happen.

I love pockets, but this time I think I chose wrong.  I didn't have enough of the wool to add the pockets as they show on the pattern itself, so I added inseam pockets made from the polyester lining fabric.  They work great but gape a bit and so the poly fabric shows from the outside more than I would like.  Sigh.  I may just sew them up and deal with no pockets.

This is view D, and is a great length, not too short, and not too long.  This is a nice length for most women, so if you are thinking of this pattern, definitely try this view at least once out of a traditional, classic fabric like this.

Yes, that waistband facing material *is* the same as the tunic's fabric.  This fabric, though, is a very HEAVY stretch cotton stretch denim from Joann's that also happens to be double-sided.  I have plans to turn it into a dress and a skirt (the dress will be from the floral and the jacquard print will be for a pencil skirt). 

I felt like the exterior of the skirt took so much less time than the interior.  I can't believe how long it took me to sew up the lining, add the waistband facing, properly attach the two, hand sew the lining to the zipper, and hem the lining.  It is worth it because it does look quite nice (even if I am really bothered by a couple of things--but what sewer isn't annoyed by things in their projects?).  The lining also ensures the Shetland wool can last a long time and can go longer between drycleaning visits.

Okay, I know some of you are just dying to know more about the red hair.  LOL.  Here is another photo of it.  I had washed it one time by the time I took this photo with CW and it had already lightened a bit further to a mid-copper color.  My hope is that it fades down to a lighter copper color and stays there, but I don't know that will happen.  However, whichever shade of red I end up liking best I will try again since I quite enjoy being a redhead.  ;-) 

Alrighty, you all have a great day, and we'll talk soon.

OOTDs: The Rest of Mississippi.

Hey, all!  I spent today lounging around in a Johnnie b. sweatshirt and a pair of really old cords, so I didn't really have this *huge* desire to photograph the outfit, but figure I have plenty of stuff in my files to more than fill any gaps I have for quite a long time.

Today's post features two outfits I wore while in Mississippi and Louisiana.  I won't go into a ton of detail, but below each photo (as a caption), I will mention things of interest.

The outfit was exactly right for the day since I wanted to wear something comfortable and appropriate for church (I went to mass while my husband was at the Saints game). 

Still love that there are horses in Mr. Dina's childhood home's backyard.

This is a strawberry mai tai.  I don't drink at his parent's house so I very much enjoyed this while at Middendorf's, a yummy seafood restaurant smack dab in the Bayou.

Angus was thoroughly enjoying his water, too.

This is across Highway 51, that is how close Middendorf's is to the water.  Above us is the Manchac Swamp Bridge (Interstate 55) that gets us to New Orleans from where Mr. Dina's family is from in Mississippi.  It is really cool to travel this way a few times a year.  :-)

Here is Angus enjoying the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas.  This was at the penguin tank.  He ran around like a crazed sugar fiend at the aquarium.  Benefit of that is that I had a sleeping baby at church.  Woo!

I did change jackets.  This is from Three Dots and I bought it Anthropologie, which is located at Canal Place.  The cardigan is only $88 at Anthro, but is a whole lot more at Three Dots.  I wonder why?  I can't find it online at Anthropologie, but if it comes to be available, I will update this post.

I had seen this wool dress/tunic (so so short) at Anthro years ago, but never bit the bullet on it.  I then saw it on ebay a few years later and grabbed it for next to nothing.  I love it!  It is so comfortable and warm.

Love how pretty the knit detailing is...I have started taking a knitting class on Craftsy, but I will be honest with you, I am not so sure I can wrap my head around knitting.  Sewing seems so much easier to me.

Okay, that's it, I hope you all had a beautiful Thursday and will have a wonderful Friday!

OOTDs: So Far in Mississippi...

Hey, all!

It's been a long while since I have had an ootd posts, so I thought I should at least publish what I have worn so far on the trip.  Since I am here for a few more days, this is part one of this post...part two will likely be published when I get home.

Since I am short on time (lots of family get-togethering is on the schedule), I am going to only mention items or things of interest that need to be said.  For the most part, you all have seen these items before on the blog since most of them are items I have had for years.  If something is new or can still be purchased, I will briefly review them and link to them.  ;-)

Okay, onto the outfits...

It was warm that day, probably in the mid-70s.  All I did was head to Wal-Mart with my girl, CW, to pick out some presents for her brothers.

Those kicks are from the J. Crew collaboration with Nike (called the Nike Vintage Collection Waffle Racer Sneakers).  Aren't they cool?  Mr. Dina loves them.  He may just decide to kick his white tennis shoes to the curb in favor of these waffle-soled wonders.  Sadly it appears I can't get his size in these green ones (all sold out...I barely managed to grab them in a men's size 8--that's a women's size 9.5).  It looks like I might be able to grab the navy in his size.  Hmmm...

The scarf is handmade.  It is a very easy pattern to sew up, thanks to this tutorial by Simplicity.  Highly recommend it if you are a newbie to sewing and are looking for an easy first pattern OR if you have a need for a quick present to make.  I used roughly 5/8 yard of this cotton jersey to make it.  (I will do a more in-depth review of this item in my next "made by me" file.)

Here we are at the Superdome.  Mr. Dina wanted to go to the Saints store when it wasn't super crowded.

CW's dress wass in the Boden end of season sale, but it is gone.  I will update the post with its link if it comes back.  :-)  I can see why it sold out, the owl applique on this version is so cute!

Here I am standing in front of an abandoned factory really close to Mardi Gras world.  Very cool location, if a bit somber.  I have never lived in a place where factories are a normal thing (DC area has very little industrial history, so no factories there), so I have a thing for factories.  I think they are beautiful structures, especially the ones from long ago enough that they had smokestacks and detailed brickwork.

Two of these pieces are newer, the cable knit pocket sweater from J. Crew (size small, fits a bit loose, but it runs short, so I erred on the size of sizing up--gigiofca did a great in-depth review of it here) and the Wool Bistro Crop in tartan from Boden.  The tartan wool bistro crop pants have been popular, but have not sold out, so you can still find them in the sale section.  They sold well enough, though, that Boden didn't feel it necessary to bring the price down on them a ton.  I find they fit a bit big, since I normally wear these in a size 10 L, and chose to buy the 8 L.  Barring a tiny bit of pinching at the waist (which I alleviated by doing the whole rubberband trick), they fit very well, especially in the hips and thighs, which is where I carry my weight.

We were heading to church on Christmas Eve, but I was told it was fairly casual, so I chose pants rather than a dress.  There were a lot of casual outfits, I was still dressier than 90% of the folks there.

The pocket of the cable pocket sweater.  I ABSOLUTELY love these pockets.

Saw Anchorman 2 with Mr. Dina yesterday.  Because I am crazy and literal, I chose to wear shoes that match my tee exactly (Dublin Green if I recall the J. Crew color correctly) and to wear shoes that would have fit right in the Anchorman movie. 

Best line from the Anchorman 2 movie?  Upon someone commenting on Christina Applegate's bottom, she turns to Will Ferrel and asks, "why don't you talk to that man who said that?"  Will Ferrel responded with, "your butt is like the north star, wise men follow it."  Hahahahaha.  Next time I feel down about my bottom, I truly hope Mr. Dina says that phrase to me.

They have even more horses in the field behind the house.  Years ago there were one or two, now there are at least four horses, plus a donkey (!!!) and a pony.  I am 100% freaked out by horses (really bad accident with one ten years ago), but I appreciate how beautiful they are.

I don't buy much from Stella & Dot, but every once in a blue moon, I will grab something from them.  I just recently acquired the Mesa necklace for a song ($35, I believe).  Both my mother-in-law and my sister-in-law are in love and will probably be getting their own Mesa necklaces, too.  (Which I now discover they can't, since they are all sold out.  Darn.  I might suggest they try the Dakota necklace instead, which sort of resembles the Mesa.)

I believe that although you shouldn't look like you have stumbled out of bed when boarding a plane, I truly believe that dressing up to the nines is a ridiculous proposition in this era of cattle car plane travel, so I always go super comfy. 

Bummer about the sweater, btw, it has TWO holes, one in the cuff hem, and one below the v in the neckline.  J. Crew, drat!

And that's it!

I hope you all have a great night!

Remember, if you have a desire to grab something from the Boden sale, you can get free shipping right now.  You can use the link below, but if you are having any issues, remember to use the code USSH.  ;-)
Our Christmas gift to you- free standard shipping from 12/25 through 12/28!

OOTDs: Mississippi Missus.

Good Sunday!  I hope everyone is well.  :)

Before I dive headfirst into the many Boden reviews I have (most positive, a handful not so), I wanted to get the ootds published from my last trip to Mississippi.  Unlike last year when we stayed there for nearly eleven days, this year was a mere eight total, so I was happy to have far less to pack and to think about.

Anyhow, since I have done this before (2009, 2010, and 2011), I don't think I need to go into much more. 

Travel Day.  I love the idea of looking fabulous while traveling, but the reality of flying with three young children means I can't go all "7FAM jeans, button-down fitted shirt, crisp wool jacket, and high-heeled boots." 

So instead, I take three lovely and comfortable pieces, wear just a touch of makeup, and fix my hair just so, and am happy when I make it through the process relatively unscathed.  (Which we did--the first travel day was wonderfully easy, for once.)

I had read the temperatures in New Orleans would be in the 70s on the first day, so I decided to pack some tees for us to wear once we landed (it was cooler in DC by twenty degrees).  The tees have a hand-printed bicycle (I used a stamp I found at AC Moore), with the words "hipster" and "mini hipster" below the bikes.

I hadn't originally planned to make a tee for CW but she saw me making mine, so she asked if she could have one, too.  I actually like hers better.  :)

The second day we were there was mild enough to go without a coat, but I knew that a sweater was necessary.  The sweater was reviewed by me here, and I have to say it has held up well, and looks wonderful with a variety of different colors.  Of course, this shade is nearly sold out (as is much over there at Boden).  The Effortless suede boots were my go-to the entire time I was in Mississippi, and I was glad to have brought them.  They are also almost completely sold out, but if you like them, I reviewed them here.

The Madewell scarf I received for a song, as it was a popback sale item with an extra 25% off.  The cords are a wonderful color, and even though I usually stay away from J. Crew pants, I have lucked out this season, since the ones I have bought have fit well and are special and unique.

BTW, the whole day was very relaxing, a bit of shopping, a bit of eating, and a bit of visiting.

Two days later (didn't get a good shot of the in-between outfit) was Thanksgiving.  We do a very easy midday meal, so none of us ever really "dress" up, but we do at least make some effort.

The collection pencil skirt in windowpane was one of my favorites from the J. Crew Fall lookbook, but OMG, the original price was so expensive.  I can see why they *wanted* to charge that amount, as this skirt is made from the softest virgin wool imaginable, but what J. Crew *should have* done was to mark it at a bit above what they wanted to get for it, and I guarantee they would have sold out immediately.  Instead, the skirt sat in the sale section until it was priced where most of us could afford it.  (And at 30% extra off, at least in my case.)

The rest of the outfit is old, except for the shoes, which I mentioned in the last outfit.

No cardigan in this shot.  I cannot express to you all how much love I have for this tee.  These were from the holiday 2007 season, and I have two of them, this one in silver, and one in a gold stripe.  If I was only allowed to have two tees in my closet, I would immediately grab these two and not look back.

Funny face!  (I love my self-timer, it always catches my *best* moments.)

I wanted to wear the Carriage coat dress again this year, and since I have plans to try it like it was styled by J. Crew (see here), but knew it wouldn't be cool enough to do so down there, I came up with the idea to wear it with lightweight leggings, some black boots, a tank (not shown), and the Madewell storyteller scarf.

And a bag that holds everything a mother of a baby and two kids might need while at a nice restaurant in town.  ;)

I wore the dress here last, while pregnant, so it is nice to see that even though it fit me then, it still works on me now (although the a-line shape is much more obvious now).

I am throwing this in here because Angus turned 8 months while we were there.  :)

Just another simple outfit from another simple day.

The sweater is the dreaded dream v-neck sweater.  For those of you who are not a JCA, the dream sweaters are dreaded because the fabric pills nearly immediately, usually if you decide to look at it the wrong way.  Now I have no idea how I lucked out, but this year's version in this lovely heathered mint color has barely a pill on it.  Sure, it is a bit "lofty" but I don't need to get out my sweater shaver and I have worn it at least three times since purchasing it (mainly lazing about the house, that's why this is the first time you have seen it on me).

Two days before we left, CW, Angus, and I went to town to get some things.  I love this Liz Lange nursing dress, especially since the colors and pattern seem right for fall festivities, but I wanted to see if I could make it work as a skirt with a buttoned up cardigan.  It almost works, barring the bit of dress you see poking out of the top of the cardi.  (I wore it last here, more traditionally.)

I didn't really grab photos of the outfit the day before we left or even the day we left, but I did ask Mr. Dina to grab a photo of the food I ate at Mother's.  Now I know that this food looks kind of gross, but WOW, it certainly doesn't taste like that.  In fact, as much as I enjoy cooking Cajun myself, and have done so for years, the food at Mother's is my personal holy grail, and if one day I can manage to cook a jambalaya like Jerry's jambalaya (my fork is pointing to it), I would be exceedingly thrilled.

I also kind of dig what Angus is doing there in the back.  Any quotes?

Since I knew I wouldn't get a photo of the last day's outfit, but I really dug the sweatshirt I was wearing, I wanted you all to at least see that, so Mr. Dina grabbed this shot of me.  It is from JC Penny's and looks and feels way more expensive than it actually is.  I liked it so much that I went ahead and grabbed it in heather grey on Black Friday (it was almost half-off, so cheap went down to insanely inexpensive).  I am wearing this in a small, and I would say it fits well (I wear a size xs in J. Crew for reference).

Mississippi Missus. by dinagideon featuring columbia jackets

Above is the polyvore of my packing list.

Okay, that's all.  Will be back later tonight with more.