Friday, June 20, 2014

A Mini Wardrobe Plan (And Finished McCalls 6654)

Last year I was SO excited (SO!) to sew a mini wardrobe for the competition on Pattern Review. And then disaster struck.

Mystery illness hit in September and I did not sew a single stitch, nor did I purchase any fabric or patterns or notions and I only had TWO blog posts that month!!!! The horror! I did not feel up to participating in the contest for October but I did sew my own little capsule wardrobe. Sadly it mostly ended in tragedy.

Pants #1: Made out of mystery growing fabric; no longer wearable.
Pants #2: I sliced the leg open and my repair did not work.
Blazer: It's just too big in the shoulder to be comfortable.
Top: I did not check the waist placement and the elastic sat way too high to be comfy

The other two items are staples; the black ponte cardigan and white lace kimono tee.

This year's contest involves the sewing of 5 items in order to make 6 outfits. The 5th item can be an accessory as long as it's wearable (think hat, scarf, belt, etc).

I plan to sew 5 garments from these lovelies and yes...most are from my recent acquisition! :)

 Kelly green ponte
white slubbed jersey
navy cotton poplin, 
lime green stretch twill
black/white ikat sateen

My pattern choices:
Butterick 5926 blazer in kelly ponte
McCall 6841 top in white jersey
McCall 6702 in navy poplin
Simplicity 1696 in lime twill
Simplicity 1373 in ikat sateen

  • The blazer is the same as the aforementioned "failed" pattern. But I know what to do now to make it fit...I will probably pull the old one out and make some adjustments to it to ensure I'm on the right track.
  • The M6841 top hasn't been made but everyone swears it's relative easy with one tricky bit.
  • M6702 will be made in a r/w/b voile for wearing on Independence Day! So I'll get to work out any kinks then.
  • S1696 is new to me BUT since my now TNT pants and shorts are both Simplicity patterns and this is an Amazing Fit pattern, I feel confident about comparing them to the others and sewing them up.
  • S1373 is also new to me. I will work up a quick muslin (since I love that sateen!) to ensure they fit. I wanted an uncomplicated pattern to showcase the sateen and limit pattern matching. Initially I thought skirt but I will be more likely to wear shorts so...
Now, I cannot win this contest. I am ineligible because I won the Fitted Blouse contest. But that's okay! This little capsule makes me happy so I will take on the challenge!


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I made a skirt. A simple pull-on knit skirt out of the yellow ponte I got from FabricMart. There is not a whole lot to say about a knit straight skirt, now is there?

The only thing is...WHY ON EARTH DID I HAVE THE SMALLER SIZE RANGE?!

The largest size in my envelope was a 14...with a 39.5" finished hip. Oh. Boy. No worries! Instead of complicating matters I just added it on the fold line...about 3/4" on front and back for a total of 3 inches...and then I sewed 3/8" side seams. 1" elastic at the waist and hemmed...DONE.


I did finally use Kathy's suggestion of fusible tape in the hemline and a twin needle. PERFECT! I love the results and what's not to love about an insanely bright, easy to wear skirt??