Day: 11 July 2012

adult's clothing, sewing

Renfrews and a tube skirt

Taking daily photos has made me take a long,hard look at my wardrobe.  As much as I admire them on other sewing blogs, I don’t wear tailored garments much at all.  I don’t wear vintage style sundresses or shirtdresses, skirts with defined waists, or shirts that button down the front.

But I do wear t-shirts – a lot.  They are such great pieces for layering – just add a cardigan, vest or jacket, plus a scarf – and long-sleved t-shirts keep me warm and comfortable.  So last week I made another Renfrew.

Renfrew top

When I first looked at the Renfrew pattern I was dubious about the bands, especially the hem band. I had visions of 80’s style garments, oversized elsewhere but gathered into a band that emphasised the waist and stomach. However, I think that the bands on the Renfrew work just fine – mostly because they are pretty much the same width as the top, so are a finishing treatment rather than altering the fit.

Renfrew top - back view

This is basically a size 12 again, graded down to an 8/10 in the hips and with the waist curve almost eliminated. The fabric is cotton/lycra and quite stable – lovely to work with. The cowl neckline for the Renfrew is beautifully drafted; it’s not just a big rectangle folded in half, but is nicely shaped to fit beautifully in the neckline and to frame the face. And those sleeve and hem bands make this a quick and simple sew, all assembled on the overlocker. I didn’t need to crack out the machine at all! The sleeves are a little long, despite shortening the sleeve pattern piece around an inch. I decided to make another Renfrew a few days later, but to cut it a bit smaller through the shoulders and to shorten the sleeves.

Renfrew top

This version has the sleeves shortened around 2 inches, but they are still quite long! I cut the armholes and sleeves at around size 8, but kept the size 12 width through the bust and the same grading to 8/10 through the hips. BUT – this fabric is super stretchy, and the end result looks a little large around the body. Although if it were any smaller it might have a sausage casing appearance.

Renfrew top

This is a better fit through the shoulders and armhole, and I’m going to continue to cut out this size. But it is amazing just how much difference the fabric type makes – and you really don’t know exactly what that will be until it is all sewn up. I am regarding this as an interesting experiment in trial and error. The scoop neckline – the same as for the cowl neck – is a nice depth and the band went on well. And looking at this photo it is clear that this fabric shows every single bulge and bra strap, and that I am definitely not wearing the right undies for those jeans….

patternless tube skirt

Since I had red thread in the overlocker when making the striped Renfrew (see how I matched the stripes, by the way? Yay me) I decided to cobble together the scraps from my Vogue dress into a simple tube skirt. I sewed four straight strips into a tube somewhere between the diameter of my waist and hips, curved the top edges in slightly to mimic a waistline, and added waist elastic and a hem. SO quick and easy! But despite it being nicely finished, I won’t EVER be wearing anything tucked into it.

Renfrew top and patternless tube skirt

I just used the reverse side to my dress, and voila, no scraps left over. I like it when there is no waste and I make a teensy bit more room on the fabric shelves. Since making these I have cut out another Renfrew and a couple of other items, so enough blogging for today and more sewing!

Renfrew top and patternless tube skirt

And thanks to all those who wished my daughters a speedy recovery – today they actually ate breakfast and lunch and are arguing with one another, so they are clearly on the mend now. Hooray!

musings, what I wore

what I wore – week 27

When I look at the photos from the last week – and when I look in the mirror or stand on the scales – I notice the extra roll around my middle again.  My eye is always drawn straight to my midsection.  I’ve put on weight, as I often do.  I added this roll while we were in Bali, but we’ve been back for over three weeks now and it’s still there.

what I wore - week 27

Like many people, I “struggle” with my weight, but only in that it goes up and down every few months and that makes it more difficult to decide what size clothes to sew. I’m basically within a healthy weight range (albeit right at the upper end of it) and because health and not vanity is my main motivator for weight loss, I’m finding it hard to motivate myself to lose some kilos. Yes, subjectively I do think I look a bit better when I’m three to five kilos lighter than I am at the moment, and I definitely do feel better when clothing isn’t tight and restrictive around my middle, but the difference isn’t significant enough to prompt me to eat less calories. My diet is basically a healthy and balanced one, but with the added calories of wine, chocolate and caramel slice. And they are part of the pleasures of life for me – in moderation.

I’ve got a few garments on the cutting table, and have decided to stick to stretch fabrics and to make them so they are a fraction snug at the moment but still wearable. Then as winter slowly fades away, and some of my waist/stomach roll decreases, they should fit well. Although they’re winter garments, so that could defeat the purpose. And I’ll do some more sewing for the kids, who are much easier to fit. Does your weight fluctuate? How do you accommodate this in your sewing?