I finished sewing my Zero Waste Gather Dress today. I’d been waiting on the buttons to arrive. They came in the mail yesterday, and I sewed them on today!
I absolutely love wearing this dress. It was also a fun sew, as the pattern is mostly measuring and cutting rectangles with no paper pattern. I didn’t make any modifications, except to skip the side hem facing insertion. I didn’t think it was necessary with French seams. This means this dress isn’t technically no waste, but it mostly is.
Then why am I sewing so much? We could blame the weather, but I almost never leave the house.
Sewing
After yesterday’s exercise in frustration, I needed a sewing win. Enter the Tekura Tee. This pattern popped up in my inbox from I Think Sew and I was drawn to its simplicity. I had some Born to Knit fabric left over from a Melba Dress, and decided to sew a “muslin” with it. I didn’t have enough fabric for a seam allowance, but I went with it. It’s a little snug. Adding a seam allowance for the next one should rectify that. I’ve got more knitting tattoo print interlock that will be perfect for this pattern, and maybe I’ll make a navy and white polka dot one as well.
I dyed some Virginia cotton and wool blend yarn with tansy from my garden using an iron mordant this week. You can read all about it at this link.
Knitting
On the knitting front, I picked up my Hansel Hap for TV knitting. I’m almost ready to start the center square decreases. I also started the colorwork on my 2 Spooky Halloween Hat.
I finished sewing a Number One Shirt in Halloween fabric from There Will Be Cute on Spoonflower. This was supposed to be a quick and simple sew. Instead I’m calling it a “learning experience,” with points below.
Wrong fabric choice. For some reason I ordered this print on poplin instead of lawn or quilting cotton. Poplin is too stiff for this design as it is meant to be sewn.
I went with the suggested size, but it was too big. I should have cut a medium. What I ended up doing was sewing the entire shirt in size large, and then cutting it apart at the side seams. I also cut off the hems. I did pick apart the shoulder seams and took off the bias facing at the neckline.
Oh my, the bias facing. I cut my own, and basically I made it too wide. I couldn’t get it to sew on without puckering the fabric. Also, poplin. What was I thinking? I redid the neckline four times, finally going with a narrower facing. There are rows of needle holes in the fabric that I am hoping will wash out.
I still think it’s a cute top with high waisted baggy pants. I’m going to pair it with some Audrey Pants in black brushed cotton twill, when it’s early October and I want something Halloweeny to wear but it’s too hot for a wool sweater.
I watched some sewing tutorials on YouTube, and one of the things I learned was to keep my sewing straight when sewing on a curve. Meaning: move the fabric around so that the sewing line is straight. This is a different approach than what I usually do, which is to stretch the curve while sewing. Anyway, it’s a lesson well-learned and I won’t be forgetting it.
I had a blast sewing this shirt. This was my first yoke burrito, and I enjoyed learning that! I had no trouble with the buttonholes. (Interfacing is key.) I struggled a bit with the set in sleeves and the split hem. I finished the seam allowances with French seams, and that complicated things. I’m going to watch some tutorials on split hems so I can improve next time.
I managed to get out into the garden this morning to weed and noticed it’s time to harvest the tansy! Tansy is one of those dye plants with natural tannins like indigo, so it doesn’t need a mordant. I decided to test a Hapazome print on the edges of my remaining indigo printed Virginia cotton.
I’m pleased with how this came out. Now I need to decide if I want to continue to print on this fabric, or order more. I think I will order more, as I want to experiment with black walnut leaves and iron mordant.
I may also kettle dye some Virginia cotton and wool yarn with tansy this week. Since this blend of fibers doesn’t take readily to acid dyes or fiber reactive dyes for plant fibers, a natural dye pot may be just the thing it needs!
My flax is also ready to harvest. There are a few stalks that are already too far gone with ripe seed heads, but most is still ok. So that’s another fiber art project this week.
Knitting
I’m super close to finishing my Halloween Livie shawl. One more section then bind off!
Sewing
I should finish my Gather dress and Bob’s Marvel shirt this week.
Spinning
Since I came down with Covid, I didn’t spin for the last week of Tour de Fleece. I need to oil my wheel and get back to spinning.
I wasn’t able to finish knitting my Halloween Livie Shawl this week, but I’m getting close! Instead, I started some new sewing projects.
This Gather dress in printed linen is waiting for buttons and buttonholes. In the UK this is called a “Buffet Dress” because you wear it to the all-you-can-eat buffet. At least I think that’s what they mean. I’m looking forward to swanning about in it.
I’ve made a start on Bob’s Marvel shirt. We’re going with retro blue accent on the collar and pocket top, and probably blue buttons. My pattern matching skills are on point!
Did you finish anything this week? Or start anything new?
I’m recovering from Covid and haven’t been too productive. (Don’t worry. I’m fine. Just tired and snotty.) I spent all weekend on the couch binge watching Season 6 of the Great British Sewing Bee. Bob hung out with me on Sunday for a bit, and commented he wouldn’t mind having a men’s tropical shirt, which was one of the challenges for holiday week.
I’m on it! Besides, I was going to knit him a Knitter’s Dude cardigan for his birthday, but I haven’t cast on yet and his birthday is in September. Why not sew a shirt instead?
I looked around online, and found a new-to-me pattern company, Wardrobe By Me. I’m using the Tropical Shirt pattern. Bob is lanky, so I’m grading sizes between a Large in width and 2XL in length. It looks to be a pretty straightforward pattern. I have some Marvel superhero fabric on the way which he likes. I’m looking forward to practicing my buttonholes!
There is a good chance I will finish knitting my Halloween Livie shawl this week — at least if my arms stop feeling tired and rubbery from the ‘rona.
I finished sewing my Clyde Jumpsuit. I love it! I’ll be wearing this regularly the rest of the summer. Pattern by Elizabeth Suzann Studio. Fabric is mid weight indigo linen from my stash.
I brought up the shoulder seams by an inch. I’m not crazy about the low back, so I may try to sew the next one with the back neckline the same as the front. I’m not sure why my bias facings aren’t laying flat. Maybe I need to pull them tighter when sewing, although I did try to do that. These are all reference notes for the next time I sew this pattern.
I saw on Instagram that someone made this pattern with corduroy. I’m wondering if I could pull that off for a winter version. I have some teal corduroy in my stash. I was saving it for another pair of overalls, but I’m wondering if this pattern would suit better. I’ve never sewn with corduroy before, so that should be interesting. It might be better to sew facings instead of bindings with the corduroy since it’s so thick.
I finished one button band on my Pumqueen Cardi and sewed ribbon to the facing. Once I’ve blocked it, I’ll hand stitch that down to the inside. I’ll start knitting the other button band today, but I’ll need to wait until I get the buttons to finish it with the buttonholes and everything.
I also cut out a Clyde Jumpsuit in indigo midweight linen. I barely squeaked it out of my three yards. Good thing I needed the short size!
I also started spinning some farm BFL roving today. I think BFL may be my new favorite fiber.
I custom dyed this kit for a knitting pattern designer.
Completed Spinning
Tour de Fleece is going well. I spun and plied this Targhee from Allegheny Fiber Arts. I really enjoyed spinning Targhee. It’s one of my favorite fibers. I still need to set this hank with a good soak.
headknits 
