Day Two

Deco tankdress by me

Grey cardigan - TJ Maxx

Woven leather belt - Stein Mart

I started off day two of Me-Made-May by waking up slowly with homemade bread, a full french press of coffee, and the New York Times.  After finishing my coffee and flipping through some old Burdas, I donned my favorite hot-weather dress (it was predicted to reach 90 F in D.C. today), and headed out to GStreet fabrics.  During the time it took me to metro and walk to the store, I somehow rationalized spending all of my clothing budget this month on fabric and notions.  It should come as no surprise that I came out of the store with 8 spools of thread, 3 zippers, one piece of madras shirting and countless other notions.  

Newly inspired by freshly cut fabric, I returned to my sewing studio-cum-apartment, ready to put my rotary cutter to fabric and my foot to the pedal.  While I can't say that I completed a new project, I have nearly completed a dress and a skirt that had been been neglected for the past year or so.  Hopefully in a couple days I will have finished projects to show you!  

Layered Ensemble

It's a drizzly evening, and I'm curled up on the sofa with a big mug of hot cocoa.  I'm about to put the finishing touches on my Destroyed Cowl, and then hopefully sneak in some work on the two trouser muslins I cut out this weekend: a pair of high waisted pedal pushers and carrot pants from Burda 11/2009.  Before I launch into projecting, though, I wanted to take a moment and share photos of the layered cardigan I finished last week:

The bottom layer is a top I purchased some time ago that was a bit misshapen for my tastes.  Enter the jersey ties-- you can't tell from the pictures, but they are stitched on to the sides of the yellow top.  The top layer is a little dolman sleeved cardi that I cut out and stitched together before I realized that it was a tad bit too small.  Then one day I spied both pieces at the bottom of my sewing pile, and realized they belonged together.  

[ Back View. ]

[ Close Up. ] 

The chartreuse & teal color combination is so cheerful.  And the teal cardigan is made of bamboo knit that is both soft and resilient.  Such a happy accident that these two pieces ended up together!  I might just have to make more tops like this-- maybe even some Norma Kamali inspired ones.  And now back to my regularly scheduled scheming...

Flutter Sleeve Cardi

Another beautiful weekend in DC! Thanks to the fact that it did not rain (or hail) yesterday as predicted, I was able to make time for a photo shoot. I have been meaning to take some photos of this cardi for a long time. Not only is it cute, but it’s super easy to make. I made the pattern by expanding upon a basic raglan-sleeved top, enlarging the sleeves and adding a front placket, pockets, and wide band at the hem. The pockets are no trouble at all, as they are integrated into the side and placket seams. The garment is finished with a final pressing rather than topstitching, to neaten the seams.

This is a very versatile cardi, and I have worn it more frequently than I originally expected. I really like the way it looks belted, though it can also be worn open--next time I will finish the inside seams better so that this is an option! My plan is to post the pattern on Burda Style soon, although I’m tempted to just sketch up some instructions. The best part? It’s not nearly as complicated as it might look. I even left the sleeves un-hemmed.

See below for more details:

I am still working on muslins for the 1930s blouses, never fear. More about that project later...