Recently I’ve been doing more batch tracing rather than tracing one pattern, sewing it up, then tracing the next. I find my sewing bottleneck is often in the tracing step (even though it doesn’t take much time), so by doing a bunch at once I can always have something on the go to work on in the mornings and evenings.
I’ve been mentally matching up my patterns to fabrics in my stash and tracing an awful lot the last few nights. Here’s what I’ve got coming up in the next few weeks, though you can see my plans have had to change somewhat to focus more on comfortable knits…
- BWOF 10/08 #102 fur jacket for the fabric.com faux chinchilla fur
- KwikSew 3300 plunge bra to use my free toile kit and finally make my first bra!
- BWOF 01/09 #110 surplice gathered top for the print lycra knit from Goldhawk Road
- BWOF 12/08 #113 pleated neck tee in grey jersey for more knit pyjamas/casual tops
KnipMode 10/08 #1ab skirt with zipper details for fabric.com green wool flannelToo structured for my sick, non-running body right now. 🙁(also BWOF 12/08 #121 dress if I get nice tartan at Goldhawk Road later in the month?)ditto.- Burda 8127 scoodie for excess microfleece interlining and wool sweater knit
- (also BWOF 01/09 #109 peacoat for later towards spring?)
One pattern I really must single out is KwikSew 3300. I’ve only ever sewn one other Kwik Sew pattern before and was not impressed with the fit whatsoever and really didn’t see myself sewing any more of their patterns, especially since I find their designs so unappealing overall. But they do seem to make the most extensive range of lingerie patterns so I bought this one reluctantly and not expecting terribly much.
So I was pleasantly surprised to find that the pattern sheet for this – with a huge array of sizes and tiny, fiddly pattern pieces – was an absolute joy! They’ve clearly sectioned off each band size into its own compartment on the sheet, with the cup sizes as the different coloured lines therein.
The sheet itself is also a manageable size – more like a BWOF sheet (after it’s been cut down the middle) than a Vogue or Simplicity tissue monstrosity. All in all, they’ve turned what could’ve been a really confusing process into a lesson in simplicity. Design-wise, I applaud them, and I hope the construction process is just as good!