Hack-tastic Flora - BHL.

So.. I made another BHL flora dress. For another wedding.. Yes, tragic! I have done it before, but I do love this dress!

I made a few alterations this time, which took a bit of mucking about. The first was to lengthen the skirt. The skirt is a fabric eater and huge! It's 150cm wide minimum. The fabric I chose was a faux silk I picked up from spotlight. I saw it and the print seemed very Gorman-esque to me, so purhcase! To lengthen the skirt, I added a side panel when cutting. I used a french seam to widen the fabric. You can tell I have done this on the back skirt panels, but as it is a full swishy skirt, it doesn't show to much unless I am pointing it out to you. As I often do! Does anyone else find the need to point out their sewing flaws before someone else see's them? I constantly find myself doing it. When really I am sure nobody else cares!

 

The second alteration was making it backless. I love the contrast of a high neck with a low back, and when I made my first Flora I found myself dreaming about a backless number. Having no drafting experience, and not being sure how I wanted it to look, I just traced my back bodice piece, hacked away at where I wanted it to sit and then folded out the back dart length. I then made the straps super long (about 35cm) and got a friend to fit them for me (13.5cm from the centre zip on each side to be exact). I made the whole thing up in the fashion fabric first, and then just played around with the fit. It was a bit tricky fitting on the sides (I always have trouble fitting BHL patterns to me here, turns out I don't have enough side boob), let alone without the back pieces to absorb any fit changes... so I kind of just played around with the darts until I was happy with them (it was VERY untechnical, more just sewing and trying on and pining and doing it all again).

 

But I was quite happy with the back of the dress in the end. I probably could have pinched a little more out of the centre front which would have assisted with the lack of side boob issue, and made the whole fitting process a tonne easier.. So next time I will probably try that first!

I then just made a full lining (using bemsilk from spotlight) which matched the purple ferns on my main fabric! I just used a gathered skirt instead of the flora skirt for the lining as the bemsilk wasn't wide enough. The lining was attached by machine and then handstitched down at the waist. Because I was then all enamoured by pretty purple matchy matchy-ness, I used a large purple satin bias tape to finish the circular hem. PRETTY! It made it feel a bit more special, and gave the hem a nice swishy-ness.

 

Excuse these wrinkly shots: taken post wedding just for the classic 'guts' shots.

I popped in an invisible zipper and she was done! Pro's are that I am getting more confident with pattern hacking as I go, even if my methods are more cowboy than traditional. Con's are the fabric was a poly (faux silk as per the label - you can't fool me spotlight, I know that means poly!!) and a bit shit to work with, not holding a press, scared I was going to melt it etc. I did melt a test peice when trying to determine how much heat it would handle under the iron, so I was very gentle when pressing it in the end. Things I have learnt: Poly is shit.

 

Anyway.. THE RUN DOWN:

Pattern: BHL - Flora (backless hack!) - free: used before!

Fabric: 2.5m Faux silk satin (Spotlight), 2m lining (bemsilk). ($50, $14)

Notions: invisible zip, satin bias binding. ($3, $4)

Total Cost: $71-

 

Other bits: Heels - Wittner.

See also: Pauline Alice - maxi Hack, Kelli.

Some less bloggy photo's from the wedding: read 'post several champagne/s'.

  Congratulations to the beautiful Annie & Ciaran! A wonderful evening for a wonderful couple.. Xx

TwoPieceSetacular - Spring Racing Carnival

"(two piece) Setacular, (two piece) Setacular 

No words in the vernacular 

Can't describe this great event 

You'll be dumb with wonderment 

Returns are fixed at ten percent 

You must agree, that's excellent 

And on top of your fee" - Mouline Rouge. 

I feel this song is definitely about Ada Spragg (Sophie) two piece setacular challenge!

Show tunes aside. I am ridiculously happy with this make. Pause for a moment to appreciate that I am over a year late to the party, but to be fair I have been planning this two piece set since March this year. But as I didn't have a real reason to sew it, the pretty fabric just sat there waiting for it's time to shine. Enter Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival 2015. I am not going to touch on the debate here about horse racing. But I definitely understand why it is a big no no for some people. I thoroughly enjoy the fashions, and watching what others are wearing on the day - also a special mention to the cup day fashions on the field winner in her home made dress. Her fabric was a Tessuti purchase!

The set was ridiculously easy to sew, and CHEAP. It was actually one of those sews that turned out EXACTLY AS I PLANNED IN MY HEAD. That shit never happens. I am appreciating the marvel of this sew. I knew I wanted some kind of boxy crop with a more fitted skirt. initially I had been thinking of cropping the scout and having little sleeves, potentially a ruffled hem... but then I remembered the lovely cropped version on Workroom Socials page and knew that was what I wanted. I missed out on nabbing a copy of the Charlotte Skirt before production of BHL paper patterns stopped, luckily she is available in PDF. I wasn't sure if this pattern was going to be one that would work for me, so my lovely friend allowed me to try hers and I traced it quickly a few months back.

The Charlotte skirt is a beautiful pattern, very easy to sew and very easy to fit! It has 8 darts around the top of the skirt to create shaping, and then is pegged in towards the knee's. This pattern is drafted for those ladies like me who are sporting a badoonkadoonk. Yep. Junk in the trunk. Hello hippy heaven! Previously I have avoided pencil skirts like the plague, BHL ladies you have opened up a new world for me. Am planning a leather look version right now!

Back to the set. After completing the darts, I popped in an invisible zipper (with my new invisible zipper foot. LIFE CHANGED). This happened twice. The first time my brain malfunctioned and I put the zipper in at the legs end... this was naturally the most perfectly inserted beautiful invisible zipper of my life. Seam ripper action, swearing, zip inserted into correct end, then it was fitting time. I put the skirt on inside out, and then had some lovely friends to assist me by pinning the excess down the side seams of the skirt, playing with the amount of peg at the knee's until we were all happy with the effect. I roughly transfered these markings to my traced paper pattern, but I feel with a pencil skirt, it will always take some fitting to get the right fit for each type of fabric I use. I made a little kick pleat at the back of the skirt and am cursing myself for not getting a photo of the pretty topstitching I did there. After that it was simply sewing down my new seam line, finishing my seams and popping on the waistband. I hand sewed down the waistband for a clean and professional finish and closed the skirt waist band with a bar closure. I really like the overlapped tab drafted for the charlotte. It meant I didn't have to be as pedantic about fitting the waistband.

The top was a cropped version of the Workroom Social Tate Top. I have made this number before - see. This time I went for the cropped version. I also added a little detail of a back cut out instead of using a zipper. It wasn't a particularly professional process. I decided I wanted a cut out. So I cut one out, and then I used bias tape to close it up. The inside of the top looks very clean as I used the bias tape on the cutout, arm holes, neck line and hemline keeping the insides streamlined and uniform. The bias tape is a vintage liberty bias tape I found on etsy a few months ago. I only have a little left of this navy, but I also have a yellow and white gingham vintage one sitting there I am planning on using on my Adler dress I cut out yesterday.

The fabric is a pretty little find I stumbled across at Eliza's fabric warehouse in Sunshine. This shop was located around the corner from my old work, so half my stash is made up with fabric I have stumbled across in my lunch break. It is a cotton sateen with enough stretch to work with the charlotte pattern. I didn't line the skirt, due to time.

The important bits:

Patterns: BHL Charlotte Skirt, Workroom Social's Tate Top (borrowed and free pattern = $0-)

Fabric: Eliza's Fabric Warehouse - floral cotton sateen $7pm. $14-. (It is ridiculously wide this fabric)

Notions: Zip & Bar closure ($1.50) Also from Eliza's. Thread from stash.

Total Cost: $15.50

Other bits: Shoes - wittner. Fascinator: target. 

And some more candid shots from race day. 

..xx..

gettin' skirty - BHL inspired pleated skirt.

This little number was a simple sew - done in about 1.5hours, from cutting to completion.. buttons and all.

It is loosely inspired by the back panels of the BHL - flora dress. I have made her before, see here.

I used the back panel piece to make the skirt, slimming the original pleats to fit into my 145cm wide fabric. I have said it before, but this skirt is huge. And I lengthened it by 5cm.

I can't say I am full happy with this hacked effort. I like the skirt, and will wear it, I think i need to nip it in at the waist a little bit. But I regret slimming down the pleat size, as in my mind I was imagining huge box pleats.... Ahhhh... sewing regrets.

Wide skirt shot -  I love a wide swishy skirt.

The wide skirt makes it a great for twirling. This is obviously an every day MUST for skirts.

And... SWISHY....

The fabric is a really nice cotton sateen I picked up on a recent trip to Tasmania, however I have seen whispers on instgram that it is also available at the Cloth Shop, in Ivanhoe Melbourne.

 Because I wanted to keep this as a fast 'n' dirty sew up, I just ran the edges through the overlocker and used my previously drafted waistband with overlap for button holes, then easing the skirt into the waistband piece.

The SPECS:

Pattern: Flora franken-pattern-hack with self drafted waist band.

Fabric: Cotton Sateen, sourced in Tasmania.

Size: 14

Time: 1.5 hours.

Satisfaction: Meh.

Shoes: Lotta from Stockholm, Glasses - Oscar Wylee, Cropped Tee - Zoe Mac.

The BHL obsession continues with these ladies calling my name in the night... Who else has met Anna, Kim and Sophia? Are you guys BFF's as well.!?

Floral Flora - BHL.

Yah! Wedding Season... So many weddings, so little time for new frocks!

I made the By Hand London - Flora for a lovely couples wedding back in December. However, I have since worn it as my christmas dress and to another wedding this weekend. 

The pattern is a really simply sew up, and really rewarding as it looks so clean! The genius behind the lined bodice and closing it all up to be nice and tidy on the inside - is all done on the machine!.. I love machine sewn garments. 

The Fabric is from Tessuti - purchased in about November, and is a nice and heavy cotton sateen. Not still in stock, but you can find some of similar weight and drape here. It was an exxy purchase, but a leftover voucher from last christmas, and the fanciness of sewing a dress for a wedding made it worth it!

The dress is a flattering style, and I have fallen in love with the tank top with the pleated skirt... I am imagining tank crops and solo skirts! I added a lapped zipper to the dress - my go to finishing now! No fiddly invisible zips giving me grief at the waist join! Zooooooom - straight up!

Excuse the wrinkles! This was following the wedding.... So it had already been worn for the entire day! 

It took a little bit of fiddling to get the bodice to fit.. (including some cowboy sewing darts placed in at the last minute!) But I am happy I took the trouble.. Me and the BHL definitely have a different top size, but I am loving their patterns so much, I will commit to the many toiles...

Speaking of cowboy sewing... THIS SKIRT IS HUGE! The pleated action means it eats fabric like no tomorrow... and it needs super wide fabric! 150cm, no less! I thought I may be able to get away with 145cm (which I purchased, from tessuti.. rebel), but alas! No dice... It involved some cheeky cowboy sewing to add some inserts into the corner of the skirt panels. Not the text book solution, but it worked and it hasn't effected the drape of the skirt at all! And with the busy print, you can't tell!

I have plans to make another soon but as a seperates, a two piece set in a gorgeous print, extending for midi length, with a scuba knit top. If you don't see it come across the blog. Shut up. It failed.

Also... Meow glasses. Japan. Awesome. 

The Specs:

Pattern: BHL Flora

Farbic: Cotton Sateen from Tessuti and lined with cotton Voile

Notions: Zip.. It was super long. Now it's not. Thanks scissors.

Size: graded between 12, 14, 16.

Alterations: Cowboy darts under the arms. These have been transferred onto the flat pattern ready for the next version.

See also: Rosin's wedding dress!, Heather , Marie, Anna..

And wishing Sue and Seb and Stacey and Mat a long and happy married life together!

xx