Vogue 7997 - long-sleeved tee with a twist

No surprises with this one, it wasn't difficult to make and came out exactly as in the pattern's drawing. I might redo the top's hem slightly shorter... This turned out a bit long on my short frame.

Pattern Description: Close-fitting, pullover top has collar off the shoulders with elastic. A: cap sleeves. B: below elbow sleeves. C: long sleeves. All have elastic at sides. I made view B.

Pattern Sizing: 8-14. I cut a size 8 for the front and graded down to a 6 for the back.

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes, exactly.

Were the instructions easy to follow? Yep.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I liked the collar and the shirring.

Fabric Used: Cotton-lycra knit

Pattern Alterations or any design changes you made: None.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? Yes, I'll probably sew it again, and I recommend it.

Conclusion: I need more long-sleeved tops for fall. This one is nice for an extra touch - I won't wear it to work, but it's perfect on evenings and weekends.

The following shows the shirring at the collar and side

That's it for now. I haven't sewn anything over the weekend. Although, I did get some new patterns and fabric... and I received my lovely contest prize from Onion patterns! More on that, later this week. It's been a long day.

Wishing everyone a happy week!

New Look 6660 - Rhapsody in Black

New Look 6660, view B - black cami underneath was not handmade

This blouse was absolutely not planned. I was at Tissus Reine last June to look for trims or something, probably for the swimming suit; I happened to look at the New Look catalogue (browsing the catalogues there is always a treat, as the pictures are so much better and larger than on the pattern companies' websites). My eyes fell on this pattern, and I just had to get it. Only when the clerk handed me the envelope did I realize that it was designed for juniors. At 27, I might seem too old for a junior pattern; but my measurements still matched, and I am very small (1m54 = just over 5'), so I thought it'd be OK. The measurements are different from the women's patterns; for reference, I cut a 7/8 for the back and a 9/10 for the front. I could have got away with a size smaller, but this isn't meant as a fitted top, anyway.
Note to self: browse the junior sections in pattern catalogues more often.

At the back of Reine's ground floor (just under the stairs) is a table featuring all black fabrics, often offered at a reduced price (or perhaps it was simply because it was sales time in France back then). Going back downstairs after I'd got the pattern, I happened upon a gorgeous cotton lace priced at 6 euro a metre. Et voilà! Quite serendipitously, a whole project was born.

Here is a close-up so you can see the lace better:

The fabric had a scalloped edge; I cut the bottom ruffles along it. Unfortunately, it wasn't wide enough to be used at the sleeves, too.

This was the first time I did an elaborate project with sheer fabric. There is simply no room for mistake when you work with sheers. Everything will be see-through; every seam has to be perfect. But you know me - right? I love a challenge, as many of us sewists do.

At first I thought French seams were the way to go; but it proved too bulky for this airy lace. I ended up serging all the seams with a narrow stitch. The sleeves are hemmed with a rolled hem; the front is bound with satin bias tape.

I loved, loved making this.

Winter Vogues are up!

And their collection this season is rich and varied.

My (few) dislikes:
This reminds me of Princess Leia - not exactly in a good way:

Please tell me this is actually maternity wear? The colour is glorious, though.
And it would make a lovely maternity outfit.

Oh dear.

(not that the design is bad, mind you - that is, if you manage to tear yourself off from the disco ball trauma)

Likes - in ascending order
This is interesting and very couture - although I'd never have the guts to wear it.

This makes me wish I had a more glamorous social life.
Would you know of anyone willing to take me to cocktails?

Fantastic coat and colour

Superb outfit

Adorable little dress

This is even more adorable and I'm adding it to my wishlist
(although I own more than enough Vogue dress patterns as it is)

This took my breath away.

Must. Have. This.

What's your pick, ladies (and Paco!)?

A pictureless post (or almost) - avec version française ;)

English version: click here ->
Version française: cliquez ici (et décochez l'autre case) ->

Hi everyone!
First, thank you so much for welcoming me back so warmly into blogland. Coming back here and reading your friendly notes (and checking in on your blogs whenever possible) have been wonderfully comforting. Merci.
Welcome as well to all the new commenters! I really appreciate your taking the time to leave a note - and am always excited to be discovering fellow sewists or stitchers. :)

My new computer still hasn't arrived, and I have just been told that it would be ready later than expected - not until the end of the month. That is tough - and it is incredibly frustrating not to be able to browse blogs and answers emails easily, at the very time when I thought I'd finally catch up on all this. Ah well. Again, though, the timing could be much worse, so I'm trying to focus on the silver lining.

I have two finished projects to show you this week: NewLook 6660 (mentioned in the previous post), and Vogue 7997.

Both are black, though, and I've been coming home from work too late (well, let's say the days are just becoming too short!) to take decent pictures - artificial lighting or flash just won't show the details properly. I'll be home most of tomorrow, so hopefully shall be able to take better pictures.

Next up is Vogue 8280... The wonderful Roland Mouret Galaxy Dress knockoff. The pattern was a gift from dear Tany.

I am planning this (the long-sleeved version, view F) as the dress for my viva in early November (vivas being a pretty formal and scary affair over here)... What do you friends think?
After much searching, I finally found my perfect fabric yesterday: a midnight blue cotton broadcloth with a twill weave. Now, I thought broadcloth and twill were actually different weaves, but anyway - this was exactly the texture and body I was after. Maybe some of you may enlighten me on this mystery?

In closing, a glimpse at tonight's failed photo session (the colours are crap):

Someone was wanting a cuddle very badly.

Bonjour tout le monde !
Je voulais m'assurer que vous sachiez tou(te)s que je n'ai pas d'ordinateur en ce moment. Ca fait maintenant plus de deux semaines que mon ordinateur a claqué (à mon retour d'Angleterre), et le nouveau ne devrait pas arriver avant la fin du mois. J'ai perdu une bonne quantité de mails dans la bataille.
J'essaie de faire de mon mieux pour lire les blogs et répondre aux mails (envoyés après cette galère) mais je n'ai pas toujours accès à Internet, aussi merci de comprendre ce retard indépendant de ma volonté !

J'ai terminé deux projets cette semaine : Newlook 6660 :

(allez-y, riez, il est pour juniors ! Des fois ça sert d'être toute petite...)
Et Vogue 7997 :

mais mes hauts sont noirs tous les deux et il faut que j'attende de pouvoir prendre des photos en plein jour, car celles avec flash et/ou éclairage artificiel ne rendent pas du tout les détails des vêtements.
Mon projet suivant est le patron Vogue 8280, créé à partir de la célèbre robe Galaxy de Roland Mouret :

Je vais faire la version F (manches longues) dans une popeline à armure sergée (je croyais que c'était contradictoire moi, mais apparemment non ?!), de couleur bleu nuit.

Pour conclure, un aperçu de la séance photo ratée de ce soir (les couleurs sont affreuses) :

Quelqu'un avait besoin d'un gros câlin...
A très bientôt, j'espère !