Search Results for: leggings that actually fit

A white StyleArc Issy top

Thank you for all the lovely birthday messages! As I mentioned in that post, I actually made a version of the Style Arc’s “Issy Knit Top” before I sewed before my birthday top in the abstract floral jersey. I don’t often sew two of the same pattern in quick succession like this, but I knew I wanted this pattern to be my Birthday Make so I didn’t want to wait around!

For this top, I used a 1.2m remnant of MeetMILK tencel jersey from Lamazi Fabrics in the “shell” colourway (this colour is sold out but there are others!), which is a very pale off-white colour, with great stretch, drape, and recovery.

Happy 2023! (Year in Review)

For the past 15(!) years I’ve posted my year in review on 1 January, but not this year. I lost my sewjo around the end of September so I didn’t really have much to blog about. I waited for it to reappear (as I learned a long time ago there’s no point in trying to force it) and prepped a few projects, tidied a bit, planned a bit, and then fell into a massive “Interview with the Vampire” fandom hole (more on that later), and generally was happier in October and November than I’ve been in a long time (completely unrelated to the sewing) but that’s not the reason this post is late.

This post is late because, despite my best efforts (cycling to/from, FFP3 masking indoors with my CO2 monitor and otherwise staying outdoors) I caught a virus of some sort at the office christmas party which left me practically bed-bound with post viral fatigue for 4+ full weeks (no, not Covid, not flu, not RSV, not anything they swabbed for at haematology, but thankfully not EBV either). Like, 21+ hours a day in bed, and if I sat up for more than 15min to eat or drink, I’d have to lie flat for another hour. So sitting up to type was impossible, and I wrote this in pieces on my phone when I could, not being able to put it all together until I started improving a little bit in the past few days.

So apologies that it’s late, and for the blog silence for the past few months, but hey, 2023 can only get better from this dismal start, right?? Without further ado, let’s have a look back at 2022…

A repurposed bamboo tank & rose shorts

For my birthday this year, I made myself a Named Rauha tee, but I mentioned in that post that I had also made the dress version, but found out the hard way that the style really doesn’t work in a flowing fabric. Okay, that’s being kind – it looked like an enormous muumuu on me, and there wasn’t much to be done besides throw it on the Hook of Shame and repurpose the fabric for something else.

Green pocketed Versatili-Top (with tutorial!)

Today I wanted to show off a new Versatili-Tee I made myself since the launch of our Versatili-Tops pattern (which includes both tank and tee versions), since I took my own suggestion from the Variations section at the end of the pattern instructions and added a back pocket! This is a really easy addition that only adds a few minutes on to the construction but makes it even more useful, especially for low-impact activities like hiking or cycling.

For this Tee I used some forest green aerated polyester activewear fabric that’s been in my stash a few years. I believe it was an ex-Tracksmith deadstock fabric I bought from FabricMart (US), and it’s nice and cooling with the micro-holes, plus it’s got a lot of good stretch and recovery, too. However, those holes were created REALLY off-grain, which made cutting out a bit more challenging than usual since I needed to fold and cut based on the orientation of the holes instead of the selvedges. But perhaps this is why it wasn’t used in RTW and was sold as yardage?

My Monochrome Birthday Rauha Tee

Today is my 43rd birthday!! (And THIRD pandemic birthday…)

I originally thought that this tee would be a practice garment for the dress version of the Named Rauha tee/dress, but after a bit of a fail in terms of both fabric/pattern and body/pattern suitability on the dress, I have upgraded this stash fabric tee to be my birthday make for this year, because I love it! And seriously, is anything more 2022 than making the best of a disappointment and pivoting to something better??

Turquoise Audrey cigarette trousers

Even though we’ve been friends for years and I’ve followed her progress ever since she won that Threads magazine contest WAY back in the day, up until this point I’d never actually sewn one of Gertie’s patterns before, even though I own her vintage casual book. I mean, how is that even possible?!! It’s probably because I’m not really into wearing 1950s-era vintage styles, but I absolutely love her current 1960s beatnik speakeasy theme for her Patreon patterns! So I joined her Patreon to get this pattern and her Joan wiggle dress (also a knit and in my aesthetic), though it was a nice surprise to find out that you get access to all the previous patterns when you join, so even though you missed these, if you join now you can grab them.

When these slim-legged ponte trousers were released I immediately went and bought some kingfisher blue ponte from Like Sew Amazing specifically for them. I love sewing with ponte but I didn’t really have any in my stash, and I figured this shade of blue would coordinate nicely with lots of tops in my wardrobe.

A snake-print Tessellate Hoodie

What better way to kickstart January than with activewear, amirite?? Especially if it’s a pattern you’ve sewn a thousand times before, in a fabric you love, and made entirely with stash fabrics. Bonus points if it’s also essentially a clone of a garment you already own so you’re pretty much guaranteed of success!

In the years since launching our Tessellate Tee pattern, I found myself wearing the turquoise, yellow, and claret hoodie sample (featured on the pattern cover) for nearly all of my coldest runs – I can’t even tell you how many early morning run commutes this came along on! The key here was that I made it in Funkifabrics’ “thermo” fabric which is essentially fleece-lined lycra. It’s stretchy with great recovery, and has a smooth exterior, but the interior is fluffy and fleecy like the inside of a sweatshirt, which makes it really warm. I often paired this hoodie with a pair of Steeplechase Leggings I’d also made in black thermo, and the combo is one I’d wear on my coldest and wettest runs or cycle commutes.

Happy 2022! (Year in review)

Happy 2022! As is traditional, I like to take the chance on the first day of a brand-spanking new year to have a look back at the year before, step back, and reflect on the good (and not-so-good) things that happened. 2021 was always going to be a strange struggle of a transition year, but I kinda feel like we had a bit of practice going into it, so my outlook was a little better than in 2020. But as this is a sewing blog, let’s first take a look at this year’s output…