I love me a Twirly Skirt.

Saturday Night Dance Outfit Action Pics
-Jalie 2794, sweetheart top, one of my favorites. black with red trim
-Jalie 2681, twirly skirt, awesome for dancing. red with black trim

Hot Patterns Almost Success

So I made the Hot Patterns Kimono dress to wear for The Husband's birthday....and he didn't like it! So I ended up wearing something else to the big dance. He very diplomatically said that it was a pretty dress, but maybe didn't show off my fabulousness quite as much as other things I have in my closet. I tend to agree. He also said it looks like a bathrobe, which I think is not the case.

Plus after I made it, I realized it is not a practical dress to wear swing dancing. I would be fiddling with that belt all night and it doesn't wrap quite enough for it to not expose all my goodies when I spin on the floor.

It is a pretty dress and I like the idea of it. But on me it doesn't quite work. Some of that is the fit--I should have done a FBA--, but some of that is also that there are very few things that I think are flattering to my current figure.

Fortunately, my current figure is changing for the better. Down 8 pounds (only 40 more to go, ha!) so far on the new workout/food plans, so yay! Maybe I will make this one again once I reach the goal weight. Or alter this one to fit, since I love the fabric combo.



Pattern Review

Pattern Description: An exotic twist on the classic wrap dress, this deliciously flattering style is designed for drapey, fluid knits like silk(y) jersey, rayon or lightweight cotton knits. Fitted wrap Dress has a shoulder-princess seamed bodice with V-neck front wrap and an optional button fastening, neatly hidden by the waist ties. Dress has 3/4 length sleeves and a below-knee length quarter-circle wrap skirt, and features contrast neckband and wide, extra-long waist ties. This great Dress is sure to become a staple of your HotPatterns wardrobe-it’s your go-to style for dressy daywear, or a low-key evening outfit. Try it with knee-high boots, a slouchy bag and a pashmina for a daytime diva look, or add your favorite heels and an exotic clutch for an easy after-5 ensemble.

Fabric Used: Scraps from the Jalie dress, originally from Gorgeous Fabrics.

How were the instructions? Fine. Like most Hot Patterns, they are skimpy if you are used to the Big Four, but more than enough for a somewhat experienced seamstress.

Construction Notes: When I did the ties, I thought they were ridiculously long. But once everything was put together, I liked being able to double wrap it. I did do the optional buttons, but it felt pretty secure for a wrap dress even without them. If I wasn't so full in the bust (and thus paranoid about wardrobe malfunctions) I doubt I would have bothered.

The dress was just the right length on me, so if you are even beginning to approach normal height, you would probably want to add a bit to be on the safe side.

Likes/Dislikes: I like the style. I didn't like the way it looked on my teapot body. This is an ongoing theme for me, so I am beginning to blame my self-image issues WAY more than the patterns.

Would you do it again? Would you recommend it? I would recommend it as it is a wrap dress that is different enough from the million other wrap dresses to stand out a bit. Plus it is a pretty easy sew and came together pretty quickly.

Conclusion: This is the closest I have come to a success with Hot Patterns. That said, it will probably languish in my closet for a while unworn until I alter it to fit a slimmer me or I give up on it and give it away.


ETA: Yes, my hair has blue streaks in it. And yes, it is intentional.

My affair with Jalie

Oh Jalie knit top patterns
How do I love thee?
Let me count the ways.

I love your twist top pattern,
Which shows off my chest without showing my chest

I love your sweetheart pattern,
Which fits me so nice right out of the package,

And now, I love your Empire Waist Tunic.



Sorry I only have pics of this top "in action" so to speak. I made this top straight out of the envelope, using yet ANOTHER fabric from Gorgeous Fabrics. This fabrics was a little wild and very pink for me, so I choose this pattern with the big black bands to calm it down a little

It fits nicely standing still, but when I am dancing, the black band under the bust does ride up a bit. So when I make it again (and I WILL!!) I will probably lengthen the bodice pieces a bit so the band fits right against my underbust area. I like the tie in the back which makes it ever so slightly adjustable. It would be so easy to lengthen this one into a dress as well.

Four stars!!

p.s. My apologies to Elizabeth Barrett Browning and all her fans

Jalie and Fred--Disaster times Two!

We interrupt your regularly scheduled wedding dress sewing posts for this Jalie Top.

Several weeks ago was my office summer bowling party. The name of my team was The Frame Throwers. We all decided that LOOKING good while bowling was much better than BEING good at bowling. We got together and coordinated various "flame" outfits as a play on our team name. I made the Jalie 2806 with the gathered foldover. I used a flame-y fabric from Gorgeous Fabrics. Here is the result.



This top, I am sad to say, was a disappointment. Or maybe disappointment is too strong a word, as the end result was really cute I think. I struggled to get to this point though. After being MORE than pleased with all the other Jalie tops I have done and thrilled with how easily and quickly they went together, this one made me cranky.

It was the instructions for the gathered foldover part. I may just be being a blockhead, but I still don't know how I was supposed to do that according to the pattern instructions. After reading them multiple times, walking away, coming back and reading them again, I still didn't get it. I ended up just futzing around with the fabric until it approximated something that looked purposeful. I really liked the tulip sleeves though, so I will probably adapt them into other patterns.

Like I said, I liked the final result, but I don't think I will be making this one again. I make knit tops in between my Big Scary Projects because they as close as instant gratification as you get with sewing. And this one was far from instant--I don't want to be stressed out when making my stress busters!!


In other news, sewing plans were CANCELLED last night when I came home and found Fred's cast laying on the floor with no Fred in it! I took him (and the empty cast) to the vet and they don't think he did himself any harm and rebandaged him. They said they had never seen a cat wiggle out of its cast before. The new bandage is more secure and hopefully he will not houdini himself out of that one.

He and his brother are named after the Weasley brothers in the Harry Potter books.....perhaps I should have named him after a Muggle so he couldn't magic himself into so much trouble!!

Jalie Obsessed

I love Jalie knit top patterns. This is my first attempt at the twist top pattern, made from a lovely fabric from Fashionista Fabrics. It has just a little bit of sparkle--not to much for daytime wear, enough to spice it up for nighttime wear.



I was not so smart and only cut out one sleeve. and by the time I realized my mistake, there was not enough fabric left for another. So it became sleeveless. It probably would have looked a little better if it had been intended to be sleeveless from the beginning, but I still like it.

I really like the modesty panel option they included. So many patterns out there are just WAY too low cut on me. I don't know if it is because I am busty or if I am just a prude. But including an attractive looking modesty options means I didn't have to modify the neckline. Yay!

Go Jalie!! I just ordered three more of their patterns and can't wait for them to get here. I have a bajillion lovely yards of knit just waiting to be cut.

Sweethearts and Lasers

I loved the Jalie sweetheart top I made before so much that I made another.



Fabric from Gorgeous Fabrics. The comparison of this pic to myself in this shirt a few months ago makes me realize that all those workouts I have been doing are not completely in vain. Or that I am just better at fitting myself in a flattering way. Either one, I'll take it!

The look on my face is because just as The Boy was about to take the picture the Orange Menace (aka Fred the Cat) was just putting his paws up to scratch a chair. So I had to give him my Don't Make Me Come Over There laser beam eyes.

Seeing Spots, in a good way

I was going to blog about the outfit I made for the office X-mas party, but I made this shirt last week and love it so much that I bumped it up in line.

This is Jalie's 2794, the new sweetheart knit top pattern. I LOVE IT!!!! If I thought The Boy and the cats would tolerate it, I would make it up for all of them and make them wear it too.




Fabric: Two knit fabrics from Gorgeous Fabrics. I bought the dotty fabric and ordered a swatch of the pink solid based on one of Ann's Perfect Pairing recommendations. And then the swatch was almost big enough for me to use for the binding.....so I did. Shame on me. Don't look at the back neckline too closely, because it is sadly pieced together there. :-)

Alterations or Changes?: None!! For the first time ever I think, I made a pattern straight out of the envelope. I have a bunch of other Jalie patterns that have now moved to the top of my To Do list. They fit me nicely and are well drafted with good instructions.

Conclusion: As I said, this is now one of my favorite patterns. As an added bonus, when I wore it for the first time The Boy said "Wow, did you make that? It looks awesome!" This is a ringing endorsement since 1) he almost never notices what I wear 2)when forced to give his opinion, it is generally of the "that's nice" variety. I had so many complements on it the night I wore it out, that I think I am going to be making and/or teaching at least two of my friends to make one as well!

You can't always get what you want.

So when I first planned and cut this pattern (Vogue 8386), I had planned it to be all one color. I just enough of a beautiful deep chocolatey brown knit from Gorgeous Fabrics.

Very stupidly I didn't bother to muslin, or raise the neckline, or do a FBA, or any of the other things a smart careful seamstress might do. I basted it together and tried it on.....DANGER!!!! EXTREME INAPPROPRIATE CLEAVAGE SHOWING!!!! I can't even show a picture of how bad it was unless I want to launch a new career in seamstress porn. Let's just say if I happened to be nursing a child (or two), very little adjustment would have been necessary.

After pouting for a few hours, I went back to see what I could salvage.

The bodice was a total loss, but the skirt was great. I poked around the stash and VOILA!!!!!! Yet another knit from Gorgeous Fabrics. So the browns didn't completely match, but with the pattern on the fabric you couldn't really tell and it still looked good.

I made a better bodice with the new knit and then did a serged rolled hem with teal thread on the brown sash edges to tie it in to the top a little better (no pun intended).

For a dress that was nearly a wadder, it turned out pretty good! I'll write a real review of the pattern soon. But I loved loved loved working with both of these fabrics. Hopefully I have enough of the teal and brown fabric to make a top later as well.




ETA: I had to post this second picture because my fiance said "You look like a total tool in that picture. We need one of you smiling." He then told fart jokes until I started laughing and took the picture. Thus the second picture which shows little of the dress but makes the boy happy.