I'll sew you

Whooheee!! It took a lot of tweaking but it was worth e-ve-ry minute! As you can see I decided on plan b: a band to finish the neckline. First I tried plan a: deepening the pleats, and that seemed to work. But after I stitched the neckline to secure the pleats in place, it had become widen again. Whaat?! So plan b it was. I pinned the pleats in the patternpaper so that I could use that as a guideline to draft the patternpieces for the band, which is 3 cm wide. And that did the trick. This fits and looks so much better on me. Now it's not gonna drop of my shoulder or show any bra-straps. Nor do the pleats end in an awkward and rather abrupt way next to my skin. Yes, I am very pleased with the outcome. I sewed the pleats in the back as darts. That eliminated just enough of the excess fabric to create a smooth line. There is no bulkiness above the waistband any more. When I basted the hem, I saw that the back was high...

After all that harsh blue I was in the mood for something a bit more cheery. The fabric I'm using for my next project has been attracting my attention for a long time. It's a lovely vibrant lilac colour with embroidery. I had no idea what to do with it, until I found this pattern: I love all the pleats, the round neckline, the short sleeves. I just love the whole silhouette of this blouse. Especially the way how the pleats are sewn down from the waist to the hem. This gives a nice fulness in the upper part of the blouse, but creates at the same time a more fitted lower part. Very much to my liking. There are however some issues. Things that need changing. The (lower) pleats Unfortunately, the pleats that work so well in the front, are misbehaving in the back just above the waistline. What I will do is sew the pleats up from the waist and treat them like darts. This should take away some of the excess fabric. The neckline The neckline is also very wide...

Though the plan was to NOT make a sleeveless summertop, I realised there wasn't enough fabric left to make anything else. So I went on with it. I drafted the pattern myself about a year ago, using a store-bought shirt as an example, and this is the third time I'm using it. So I guess it qualifies as a TNT. Anyway, here's the picture: Like the Swedish popgroup Abba sings in 'The winner takes it all':  "It's simple and it's plain, why should I complain?" Yes it's simple but I can use this top a lot this summer. I was able to make two pieces out of this lovely fabric. So yeah, I'm content and not complaining. (The Blue Lady, who has been in my life for more than 20 years and has served as a model numerous times, has begun to show some signs of aging. Like most ladies start to wrinkle when they get older, she is no exception. (Poor thing!) After three fairly simple pieces, I think it's time to make something with a little bit m...