Friday 22 March 2013

A red blouse


I've made (another) blouse! Using my self-drafted blouse pattern and leftover fabric from my red rayon dress, so... hmm... not much new. But it does mean I have another blouse! =) And one that's appropriate for winter, which I really needed.

Maybe I need to start on another blouse pattern now? Three of the same pattern might be eunough... =)

Usually, I see theese thin and airy, often floral, fabrics and think "yes, perfect blouse material!" And they are, but then I never use them during winter as they just feel too summery. This one, though thin, has a quite heavy drape, and a colour that goes beautifully with most of my winter skirts.


Yay! =D

Oh, and something is new! I've finally mastered the rolled-hem foot! All this time I've been wondering (well, not activly wondering, just not using the foot because I didn't like the result) how to start and finish the hem in a neat way, and how to pass the rolled hem-foot over a seam neatly, when I ought to just have looked it up on youtube. So easy, once you know the trick!

Someone else finding the rolled-hem foot fiddly? Here's a tutorial I found helpful... Not the shortest, but good information.

I still opted for my favorite handsewed rolled hem for the sleeves, as the handsewn hem stretches and moves with the fabric better than the machine-stitched one. Eh... so you don't actually see the machinestitched one in the pictures...

This was a really fun, fast little project. So much easier when there's nothing to tweak with the pattern and I've even worked with the fabric for another project. I didn't even have to buy thread! Only thing for me to watch out with is so these projects don't end up in an UFO-pile, as the very simplicity of them doesn't tickle my imagination and inspiration. So I'm quite pleased - I sewed something with minimum fuss, and it turned out good and very wearable. Not terribly exciting, but... pleasant. Horay for finished projects! =)

Love, Erika

11 comments:

Joanna said...

Lovely, I can see why you've made more than one from the same pattern. I'd do the same:))

http://dividingmoments.blogspot.com/

Mariela Santillan said...

That looks great. Such a lovely color too.

joelle st-laurent said...

Den ser fantastiskt ut! Tack för tipset om rolled hem (rullade fåll!? förlåt, jag syr på engelska!). Jag har en sån fot, men den är till en av mina trampmaskiner, så jag är lite skraj...

Suzanne said...

This post really illustrates for me how important it is to see a garment on a real person. I see the blouses on the hangers, and I'm, "Meh," but on you it looks so perfect. It's all in the proportions (which you nailed perfectly, so why wouldn't you make a dozen? )

Zoe said...

Oh it's beautiful! It's amazing how different the outcome of using the same pattern can be when you use different fabric. That deep red is a real stunner and the blouse shape suits you so well xx

Eva said...

Ah - very pretty!

Erika said...

Johanna: thank you! I really love this pattern, simple and comfortable, but still with a feeling of a little bit dressed up =)

Mariela; thank you! I adore this shade of red, it's my favorite!

Joelle; tack så mycket! Haha, jag har också svårt med att översätta de engelska sömnadstermerna till svenska. Eller så kan jag både den svenska och den engelska, men just när jag sitter där så kommer jag bara på den på fel språk =) Jag skulle testa pressarfoten på en överbliven tygbit, det är verkligen ett bra sätt att fålla när man fått kläm på det.

Suzanne; Thank you for your comment! It's weird, but I often find that my me-made garments has very little "hanger's appeal". On a dressmakers dummy they look ok, on me they can look (hopefully and if I've done good) great, but on a hanger they just look wrong. I read in the comments on an old post of Peter from Malepatternboldness that companies knowingly make garments that looks better on hangers than on people, as they actually sell better.

In the end, it's of course a question of fit. Oh how I struggled to get this pattern right... But it's worth it! =)

Zoe; Thank you so much! Oh, I just love how a pattern can transform into something totally different with just a different fabric or a couple of small alterations.

Eva; Thank you so much!

Kitten von Kat said...

Blusen blev jättefin, härlig färg som passar bra för vintern!

Erika said...

Tackar så mycket, Kitten! Känns bra att ha åtminstonde en blus i garderoben som är anpassad till vinter, även om just den här äntligen börjar lida mot sitt slut :)

sequingirl said...

This blouse is great. I think your sewinbg skills are excellent. I have been searching for a blouse that would suit me, this might be it. Can you give me any details about the pattern, so that I can track it down. Than you

Erika said...

Sequingirl; Thank you so much! I've made the pattern myself, so unfortunatly I can't direct you to it. Maybe the Sencha blouse by Colette patterns, or the blouse in Gerties book could work? Otherwise I'd search Etsy for vintage 50s sewing patterns! Good luck =)