Chasing Coco

I have to admit, I was not on the “make your own underwear” bandwagon for a long time. With limited sewing time, there were just always other things I wanted to spend it on. However, I have totally changed course. One of my reasons for sewing my own clothes is definitely to have personalized fit and design options but I also have concerns about the social costs of clothing production (sweatshops) so to help meet this goal, sewing my own everything as much as possibly makes sense. What really changed my mind though, was seeing how easily I could re-purpose my knit scraps into self-made panties! There is always a little bit of fabric leftover at the end of a project and it’s always a challenge to think about what can be done with it! Especially when it’s really cute fabric. This is what turned around my view on making underwear more than anything else, it’s the perfect size project for knit scraps. It takes much less than half a yard and multiple pieces or even fabrics can be c...

Can you believe that until recently I had never made my husband a shirt? I had made him some PJs, pillowcases for his body pillow and of course hemmed an untold number of pants but I'd never made him a shirt. #selfishsewist He has an old man flannel shirt that he loves. It's vintage and made with an ultra thick flannel and he would like a replacement/second version of this shirt. So I bought some flannel, the thickest I could find but thought maybe I should try making him a simpler shirt to check how patterns fit him first. Speaking of which, if anyone knows where I can buy the world's thickest flannel, please comment! Getting back to this shirt, I had originally gotten husband design approval for Simplicity 2318 with the shoulder detail but then I couldn't find the pattern anywhere in my stash. Now that could mean I don't have it but more likely I just can't find it. I did have  Simplicity 1605A so I decided I would make it and alter it to have th...

Around Christmas Ellie & Mac was having a big pattern sale and I picked up a few of their patterns. I hadn't made any of their patterns before, but they were cute and modern so I thought I'd give them a whirl. Their patterns are very reasonably priced for an indie designer and they have regular sales so I can definitely see myself buying more in future....I bought five at Christmas so, it'll take me a bit to sew these up! Ellie & Mac has a very inclusive size range, which is a really nice feature and makes me want to support them more. I'm shocked when my hip size is the largest offered. I'm a RTW size 12! Hello? Women come in a lot of sizes and shapes! Grading between sizes is much easier when there is a big range to blend among. I started with the " Favorite Sweater " pattern, kind of a presumptuous name huh? It's an off-the-shoulder pattern with an option for a cowl neck or band and a curved hem or band. It needs a 50% 4-way stre...

McCall's 7621 would make the perfect summer dress and in the right fabric, would be great for wearing to a wedding.  I made it because I ordered some new fabric and realized that I still hadn't used...any...of the fabric I had ordered about a month prior. Whoops. I made view D with sleeve option B. I was planning to make view D out of a sparkly knit that I had but at the last minute I decided to use a floral Liverpool knit and thought the flouncy sleeve (sleeve B) would be more appropriate for this summery fabric. I might make it in the sparkle fabric as a straight view D in the future, that would make a cute party dress. Alterations Based on the size chart, I graded from size large at the bust to x-large for the hip size but then it ended up being a little big in the waist/hip when sewn and I had to take it back in a smidgeon. I would probably be ok with a straight size large. See that weird bulky area? That's basically where I graded out, and it was sticking ou...

You know how it is when you are just about to leave for a vacation and suddenly decide you absolutely need a swimsuit cover up? You start hunting you stash for suitable fabric and patterns to see what you can whip up while your husband watches your craziness and prays you don't ask for his opinion. That frantic search led me to make Simplicity 8333 to wear over my swimsuit for our recent vacation to Costa Rica! and yes, I did ask my husband's opinion, to his dismay. 😃 I decided to make view B (romper) with the shorter sleeves seen in view C.  Unfortunately, the options for fabric in my stash were somewhat limited (clearly, I need to do some shopping) but I went with the best option and chose a plumb cotton knit. I have no idea where or when I purchased this fabric but I seem to recall I had it in mind for a maxi skirt originally, which meant I had the needed yardage. I also felt I could wear this as a casual outfit also in the summer since it wasn't sheer, ...

What do you gift someone who eloped and then jetted off to Greece? A passport holder! I made the first one of these for a friend who had recently eloped but I also made one for myself because on my most recent trip I was enviously looking at everyone's cute passport holders! Now, I'm thinking about making them for everyone for Christmas. This project doesn't use much fabric, so it's a great project to use up extra pieces left from other projects. You could even use a bunch of different coordinating fabrics! Supplies List: Two pieces of fabric 9.5" x 7 for the exterior and interior back Two pieces fusible interfacing 9.5" x 7" Left side pocket fabric 4.5" x 10.5" Left side pocket interfacing 4.5" x 10.5" Three pieces fabric 4.5" x 7" for the back of the left pocket and to make both sides of the right side pocket Three pieces interfacing 4.5" x 7" Two pieces tab fabric 2"x 3" Two pieces tab...

One of my favorite things to whip up for gifts are infinity scarves in fun fabrics! Recently, I wanted to make a gift for a friend who had just had twins. I had made some adorable baby shoes and other things for the babies but I felt like momma needed something too! I thought a scarf could maybe double as a breast feeding cover but since I don't have kids, tell me if I am wrong? Maybe? If not she will look stylish as she totes the babes around. To give it a little something extra, I wanted to add a little pocket. Since she lives in a city with public transport, I thought she could put her metro card in there or a few dollars when she took the kids out for a walk, just in case. Of course, you can't put that much in a scarf but don't we all need more pockets? So how can you make a cute infinity scarf with a pocket? Supplies List: Large piece of woven fabric measuring at least 20" x 66" Additional fabric for the pocket flap, 6.5" x 4" (mine i...