::Sewing::FO:: Kimo-No Sorbetto Cobalt Rayon Top

I don't know what is happening with my face here.
Please excuse the 'bitchy face'

This blue rayon has been calling to me since I bought in September last year. I've been a little afraid to play with it because it felt slippery and slinky and I thought I would be a bugger to sew.
Last week I was playing with my fabric (please tell me I'm not the only one who takes fabric out of my stash; pets it; admires it and folds it all back into the stash) and inspiration struck. I think this fabric would work fabulously in a kimono tee. I looked to Miss P's amazing pashmina refashions for inspiration.

Took out my Colette Sorbetto pattern and traced out the size 18, added 2 inches in length, raised the back neckline by 2 inches and drafted on some kimono sleeves. I took photos of my process because I was going to share how I added my kimono sleeves with you, but I won't because I stuffed that up a bit.

A little trick I thought up as I was added length was to trace the pattern, mark the added length at the bottom then slide the pattern down to the marking and trace the new hem. This trip probably wouldn't work in all cases (like adding length to a circle skirt) but it worked fine here.

I cut out the fabric using a rotary cutter and cutting mat which I thought would be safer than scissors with this slinky slippery fabric. A few hours later I had a 'ding' moment and thought I may have drafted kimono too narrow. My suspicions were confirmed when I basted the top together. The sleeves where far too snug and distorted the neckline.

I unpicked the side seams. I resigned to the fact that this wasn't going to be a kimono tee and made it a cap sleeve top by cutting from the outer edge of the shoulder seam to the underarm (just above the bust dart on the front) removing the lower portion of the sleeve. Thinking about it now I should have cut the sleeves with a curve so the cap sleeve was less pointy at the shoulder seam.

Construction wise this top had a bit of back and forth about it.
The first bit of sewing I did was to stay stich the neckline.
I sewed the bust darts and then sewed and overlocked (serged) the shoulder seams.
After baste fitting the side seams; ripping them out and removing the lower portion of the kimono sleeves I overlocked  all along the side and sleeve edges.
The side seams where then sewn.
I did a double turn hem for the sleeves.
I overlocked the hem, then unpicked it because I didn't want bulk in the hem.
The neckline and hem where faced with bias tape.

I've avoided rayon because it's a bit slippery and I thought it was synthetic. But as it turns out it’s a natural fibre that has very intense processing (which I learnt from Steph C). In the end it wasn't that hard to tame the rayon.

I'm surprised with how much I like the sleeves on this top. It's a happy accident. I like the fit although I could probably be a bit snugger. The neckline is wider than what I'm used to and find myself fussing with it to make sure I keep my modesty and my bra straps covered. Thinking about it now, maybe bra strap carriers are the answer.

~Pattern~
Colette Patterns Sorbetto - Hacked

~Changes I made this time~

• Back neckline raised
• Added length
• Added kimono sleeves, which I then had to adjust into a cap sleeve

~What I Like~

• The fabric colour and drape
• I like the length
• The cap sleeves turned out better than I thought they would

~What I Don't Like~

• The neckline is a bit wide and the front neckline sometimes droops a little too low for comfort
• The sleeve hems are a bit bulky and alter the drape
• The top has a lot of ease

~Changes for Next Time~

• Try tracing a size 14 next time and from under the grading out to a size 18 from the waist to hip
• Make the neckline narrower (although if I trace a size 14 at the top it might not need it)
• Finish all openings with bias tape as facing
• If I'm going to have another go at making a kimono top I must remember to shift the lower part of the sleeve down a 2 inches and rotate the bust dart into a French dart so it doesn't get messed up in the kimono sleeve.

STATS

Pattern	Colette Patterns - Sorbetto (FREE)	$0.00
Fabric	1.5m cobalt blue rayon (spotlight) $6.29/m	$9.45
Notions	Thread Bias Tape	$2.00 $1.50
Time	6 hours (* $16-ish Australian minimum wage)	$96.00
Total		$108.95

Kind of expensive for a basic top, however, the materials were cheap, considering the lessons I learnt and the fact there was a lot of unpicking I'm totally cool with that.

~Final Comment~
I really like this top and I can see myself wearing it a lot. Like, A LOT.

Have you been able to 'save' a project that was going a bit wrong? What was it?
I'd live to hear about it, leave me a comment. :)

Until next time,

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::Sewing::FO:: Navy Paisley Sorbetto

"You're a pretty hedge......"

"Oh hey!"

"No, I wasn't just talking to the hedge. I'm just standing..."

"Well, this is awkward"

"Hey, let's dance!"

"You're not dancing..."

"Alright, I'll make you dance with my kung fu moves!"

"Why am I wearing a hat? I'll give you a clue.
It starts with B and ends with ad-hair-day"

I've worn my tawny Sorbetto (mentioned in this post) nearly to death. So it's about time that I make another Sorbetto to put into my wardrobe rotation (I never wear this one).

I cut the fabric for this out in front of the TV as a break when I was making my Navy S2444 dress. I've had the fabric in my stash for over 12 months (I know because I showed to you here). It's a cotton Japanese Tana Lawn.

I sewed this over the past week in 3 x 2 hour-ish sessions. The part that took the longest was binding the armholes and neckline.

As this top is a navy bluey colour I'm going to count it as a Sewcialists Blue February make. Oh Yeah!

~Changes I made this time~

• I raised the back neckline. I found the shoulders on the tawny one I made slip and slide all over the place so I thought raising the back neckline would fix that.

~What I Like~

• I really like the colour and print of this fabric. The main navy colour is part of my colour palette.
• I like that its a light and airy fabric. Something really important for warm Brisbane weather.
• I like the raised back neckline, as it does stop the shoulders slipping around.

~What I Don't Like~

• The armholes gape a bit so my bra peaks out sometimes.
• The front neckline gapes a bit too, but that's probably got something to do with the quick and dirty neckline binding I did - Progress not perfection ;)
• It's a bit shorter than the tops I tend to be wearing these days, but looking at the pics it looks ok.
• I prefer sleeves to cover up my "cuddly" and pastey white upper arms.

~Changes for Next Time~

• I think some of the armhole and neckline gaping is because the top halve of the garment is too big. To overcome this I should make it in a smaller size and do a Full Bust Adjustment.
• Maybe add an inch or 2 in length.

STATS
After my last post I thought it would be interesting to track the "value" of a garment. Although I should mention that a lot of these numbers and amounts a very rough. So expect a lot of "ish"es :).

Fabric	1.5ish metres (but there a some scraps)	$18.60
Notions	bias binding - a metre and a half-ish = $1.05ish Thread - a third-ish of a 100m spool = $0.90ish	$1.95
Time	6-ish hours (* $16-ish Australian minimum wage)	$96.00
Total		$116.55

Wowzers! When I see those numbers it blows my mind. It hits home about the 'true' cost of making something. It makes me wonder too about how shops make their clothes so cheap.
The time cost is interesting. I really enjoy making things so I don't really consider time as a dollar value when I'm making something.

~Final Comment~

Overall I am pretty pleased with my second (wearable) Sorbetto.

What do you need to add to your wardrobe rotation?
What do you think about the cost of clothes at the shops?

Leave a comment below by clicking on 'Comments'
I'd love to hear from you :)

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Until next time,

::Show and Tell:: Catch-up Time!

Hello there!

Where have you been? Oh wait! It's not you it's me that's been away for aaages. Well, I've been a bit busy DIY-ing, going on holiday and other such nonsensical things. Here's a quick run-down :)

Moving House
We moved into our house and instantly had to fix a blocked sink drain and leaky toilet. Grrr. Note to home buyers out there. If you're buying a house that is 10 years old or more, check things like drains, taps and toilets. There's other stuff too, but when you get a building and pest done, they don't usually check these things unless you especially request a plumber to come out and inspect too.

Holiday Pale Blue Cotton Seersucker shorts
I went on holiday to Vanuatu to visit my mum and dad recently and I really wanted some simple shorts for the trip.
I had some pale blue cotton seersucker and I thought it would be the ideal fabric to use for shorts. Especially if I was going to be doing some frolicking in the water. Mostly because it would dry quickly. Awesome!
I wanted to them to be super simple so I decided to make them using the pattern I'd used in the past to make the house pants I made earlier this year and my pyjama pants from the Pyjama Party Sewalong this year.

Gardening
When we came back from our trip we went to the shops and bought some seedlings. We kept them in their store pots for a week and they were starting to dry out so I transplanted them into some pots. Here they are about a fortnight ago and they've grown a whole heap since.

Sorbetto
I had planned to have made this before we went on holiday, but after having taken soooo long to complete it I'm kinda glad I didn't push myself to finish it before we left. It would have been a disaster!

Granny Square Throw
I've been working on this a little bit. A granny square throw intended for the Mr's soon to be 3year old nephew.

Craftsy Classes
I've been on a bit of a Craftsy class kick lately. I took the free short rows class and made this.

I've also signed up to "Beginner Serging" and "The Couture Dress".

And that's about it really. That brings you up to date.
Do something that makes you smile :)
Vanessa xoxo

::Show & Tell:: Finished Objects - Sorbetto and Granny Throw

Last weekend was a nice change from the usual and I had some time on my hands. So I thought I'd better put it to good use. I've had a couple of UFO's (unfinished objects) sitting around for awhile waiting for a couple of finishing touches so I thought I'd better tackle them and gain a sense of accomplishment rather than start on any new projects-which is what I usually do.

It's something that I always do. Start a project; not finish it; start another project; not finish it; start another project.... See a pattern here? Anyway moving along...

First off the rank was my Sorbetto top, I belatedly posted here, that needed the binding resewn.

Close up of my hand stitching-you probably
can't see it, but that's how I like it  :)

Now my Sorbetto can be worn
(Ignore the dotty shower cap in
the background - I said Ignore :P)

I tried sewing in my craft room, but because I was sewing black on black I couldn't see what I was doing. So I moved out to our little sunny balconet and had the job done in 20 minutes. 20 MINUTES-WHY HADN'T I FINISHED THIS OFF EARLIER? Silly!

Anywho, with that project done and under my belt my eyes scanned over to my Tri-Colour Granny Square Throw. Now I've been working on this puppy for years. YEARS. Granted it was an on-again-off-again love affair. I had decided not so long ago that I wanted to do a couple more rounds before I finished off. But Then I thought, Naaah :). So I just wove in what loose ends were there and it was ready to go. 5 minutes max. I've ravelled this my blanket here.

Where the Granny Square Throw shall reside

And that my dears is the tale of how putting things off is silly.

Until next time, I hope you have many projects to keep you occupied unfinished AND finished,
Vanessa xo