Completed: BurdaStyle Pencil Skirt and Colette Sorbetto

I haven't sewn a lot lately, and what I've managed to sew I haven't had time to report... oops!

Well, better late than never so here you go. Both items are part of my spring SWAP.

The Colette Sorbetto is sewn in a plaid double cotton, bound with a (synthetic) bias strip with a slight sheen to it. I thought it may do in a job outfit, but now I'm not so sure. I think it looks a little too casual and perhaps a little too much like kitchen curtains...

The pencil skirt, on the other hand, I LOVE!! I managed to get every little bit to perfect finish, like truly invisible zip, truly invisible hem, just the right length and it fits me like a glove!
After having sewn a couple of items out of the BurdaStyle magazines I need to say that their patterns are really well made. Even though their models are super skinny, they usually fit me quite well with very small alterations (compared to many of the indie patterns that need a lot of work to fit well). I'd like to say I prefer the smaller pattern companies, and I do, but fit wise Burda rocks (and I am NOT super skinny by any means).

Here they are together:

By this, my spring SWAP is finished. The planning of my summer SWAP is on!! I think my summer plan will contain at least one remake item. Last summer I sewed up 2 Daisy dresses (during a sew along) from Eliza M's Vintage Patterns, and I didn't know about FBA att the time which made for really poor fit around the bust. Now that I do those bust alterations in my sleep I kind of want to rescue those dresses and make them fit well. I have plenty of the fabric left so I think I'll keep the (full circle) skirts and make new bodices. Or I may make one of them into a skirt and chop of the bodice.

I also want to make a cute summer dress to be worn at my friend's wedding, and I have made a wearable muslin in another BurdaStyle pattern (not hemmed yet as you can see if you really eye ball it) in a summery, crazy, vintage fabric. The dress turned out fine, but I don't think it is what I was looking for so I'm not making that again for the wedding. I might make a "little black dress" out of this pattern later, though.

Other items for the summer may include another Wardrobe Basic for work, in some nice nude suiting, maybe leggings and also, I'd love some navy Colette Iris shorts and a polka dot tie blouse in some sheer fabric. Oh, the joy of dreaming up sewing projects!

Have a nice weekend!
/Alexandra

Completed: Anise Jacket from Colette Patterns

Sorry I haven't been very active on the blog lately, but I've spent some time with my new love; Anise jacket! This is the first jacket I've made in my life and also the first lining of a jacket (obviously) and first bound buttonholes and a lot of other firsts. I am so incredibly pleased with how it turned out!!! This, my friends, is slow fashion at its best!

Pattern review: Love, love, love this pattern! It went together like a dream with really good instructions. It runs a little large though, so after making a muslin I went down one size compared to the pattern suggestions. I also added my usual FBA (full bust adjustment), and it is a little embarrassing  to admit (since I am almost the FBA expert now), I did the bust dart too high... I don't know how that happened. Oh, well.

Love the cropped sleeves! 

Since I am so pleased with the finished result, I decided to add a name tag to prevent it from getting stolen :-) I stamped letters in gold fabric paint onto a piece of cotton. Cute? Cute.

I also decided the jacket was totally worth the flair of real leather buttons as opposed to cheap plastic ones. It does add a certain level of class, I think.

Welt pockets and bound buttonholes turned out beautiful - proud!

Bright ass yellow lining

The jacket has a relaxed fit, despite the tailoring. At first I didn't like it, but now I think it's genius! I can even ride my bike in this without risk of ripping the seams.

Hey, mom - I love your jacket! 

/Alexandra

Planning the crops

We have a garden and we love to grow our own vege, fruit, berries and herbs.

Last year I was completely occupied with being pregnant and then I was stuck in the baby bubble for a while, so hubby did it all. "Your turn" he said with a grunt a couple of weeks ago, but then he got into it anyway :-)

2 weeks ago he ordered all the seeds that we didn't already have and also brought up all our 30-something geraniums from the basement winter sleep and repotted them!! Look at them all sprouting fresh baby leaves!!

Spring is in the air, finally!!!! Yay!

/Alexandra

Star challenge #2 - The ENERGY month!

Energy consumption is one of the biggest improvement areas for us all as citizens of the world. We use energy too freely these days, particularly us in the western world. What would happen if we got "depowered" for a week? Freeze to death? Starve? Panik and anxiety attacks? Take a minute and think about it!

Where do you then draw the line regarding what is "saving energy"? We think a life cycle perspective is in place here. So many people want to justify throwing out their old, fully working, fridge and replacing it with a new one that consumes less (and has a cooler design?). But that is it, right there! Don't throw out any working machinery, unless it is plain bad to the environment to use it**. The energy cost of producing a new fridge is far worse than any energy saved on the switch. Just think about all the material it requires, all the energy needed to refine, melt, weld, assemble etc, and all the packaging and transportation.

Another aspect to energy, other than using less of it, is where the energy comes from. The energy equations sums up way lighter if you power your household with energy from renewable sources as opposed to from some nasty coal plant or other fossils.

There is really a lot you can do to improve your own energy footprint but it is also easy to feel overwhelmed. To not do all at once we will limit the demands for what will earn you 10 points, but will also encourage you to do more.

This month's challenge is to gain awareness about where your household energy comes from as well as to use less of it.
*
Complete the following:

1. Contact your energy supplier and check what sources YOUR energy comes from. Also investigate what green/renewable options you have.
2. Vacuum behind your fridge and freezer (and on their backs) and then defrost them - it will increase their efficiency and save energy.
3. Check that your fridge and freezer temperature is not colder that what is really needed: +5C and -18C respectively (41F / 0F)
4. Leave nothing on standby overnight this month.
5. No washing dishes under running water.

If you manage this, you'll receive a star and 10 points.

Good luck!

Note! If you are a newcomer who wishes to jump on board the Sew for a change challenge, then you'll start with 68 points instead of 75. Check out all the rules here. Welcome!!!


**) Though, for fridges and freezers - if you have one older than 7 years it is actually better for the environment to buy a new IF you choose one marked A+++ and the old one can be recycled. Reference here in swedish.

Sew for a change - revealing my February Scorecard

The theme for me this month, at least the end of it, has been s h o p p i n g! You didn't see that one coming, huh?! In a week I'm going back to work and I need formal (or at least well fitting) clothes and, despite all the sewing, this is/was a gaping hole in my closet.

I have lots of good clothes waiting for me in a box, I just need to shed the baby fat first. Just to be clear; I am actually not sitting around on my ass waiting for it to happen, no no no,  I have been working out pretty intensely for over 1,5 months. In fact, I've done it nearly every day, even during the holiday! Soooo, I got back from the holiday and happily jumped on the scale.... only to find out that I had GAINED 2 pounds!!!!!!! Darn. (And how is that even possible?!?! I eat well, mind you!) So there was nothing else to do than to get out there and try to fish out a new work wardrobe.

Now, since the points are precious (hear the Gollum voice), I needed to find as much as possible secondhand. I went off on a big thrift shop crawl and scored quite a good bunch of wearable, totally new-looking, items (see the list below). I bet most of these things haven't even been worn!

This is what I found secondhand:

1 crisp white cotton shirt, Boomerang
1 black rayon top with built in silk tank top, Esprit
1 black short sleeved wool cardigan, Sitcoknit (whatever that is...)
1 grey suit vest, Monki
1 flowery tunic, Rosebud
1 pair of black jeans, Replay
1 pair of blue/almost black jeans, Denimbirds

 This is what I didn't find and had to buy new - costing me 21 points (*gulp*):

1 nude rayon tank top, Å
1 black long sleeved wool cardigan, Å
2 pairs of organic stockings, Swedish Stockings
5 pairs of black bamboo socks, Greentex

This is what I've been sewing (I've had NO time this month!):

1 Colette Sorbetto tank top in cotton (haven't shown you yet but will do soon), cost me 0p since it used fabric I already had in stash.

***

Phew!!! Thank goodness that I managed this month's de-clutter challenge!!

Apart from the stuff already mentioned here and here I have sold a bunch more clothes and given away even more baby things and clothes. I stopped counting after passing the finishing line, but I suspect I have passed this challenge almost twice. Proud!!! Especially since I've been away from home more that half of the month. I really wasn't sure I'd make it until the last few days.

Lessons learned:

• anything you don't need - give if forward straight away, it takes effort to handle big piles
• even if you don't think you have anything you don't use - you have plenty, trust me
• it is a tremendous joy to see that stuff you don't need is valued by someone else, totally worth the effort
• you can find really good things secondhand. Give it a go if you aren't already convinced!

Now, tell us how you guys did! And if you aren't on board yet, it's not too late. Tomorrow the March challenge is presented and also adjustments in points for any newcomers. Be sure to check it out!!

/Alexandra