Mother-daughter outfits - you know you love'em

I'm officially not a fan of mother-daughter outfits, but I make them all the time anyway - my excuse is to get good use of all the fabric - but secretly, I think it's cute too. Surely I'll never admit this to your face.

This is a frankenpattern - a pattern made from hacking several patterns together and then add a little selfdrafted feature as well. And the fabric - oh the fabric - this is a Robert Kaufman chambray with tiny dots. This is the best chambray (and the most pricy) I've come across. It's lightweigt, so soft and has a very tight weave. Pure luxury and still quite practical with small sticky fingers nearby.

I bought the Mortmain Dress by Gather and was hoping for a go to classic dress and it sure is - it just doesn't fit me. I made a muslin of the bodice and sleeves and couldn't fit my arms into the sleeves - wtf? The back of the dress featured a fabric hunch back and this was just not any good.

What to do? I used the sleeves from Pattern Runways Coffee date dress and redrafted the armscye. I pinched all the weird extra fabric out of the bodice. Then I looked at the skirt part and decided I actually liked the skirt from the Coffee date dress better... To recap - the only thing I acutally used form the Mortmain Dress was a heavily modified bodice!

To add a Little personal touch, I drafted a tiny peter pan collar. I used a neat tutorial I found online but now I can't find it again. Essentially you use the bodice neckline but you make it 2 cm smaller on the outer shoulderline. This makes the collar stay nice and flat. I think it worked quite well.

My daughter was in a very good mood when we took these Photos - she couldn't stop trying to make us laugh. She is wearing a really cute skirt made from the remnants from my dress. The pattern is the Ayshe Skirt from Figgy's. The skirt was a real pleasure to make. It has small beltloops, buttondown front, pockets and a real practical hidden elastic in the back waistband.

The photoshoot has to end now - she is cracking me up!

I guess it's easier to see the details of the dress here:

I used a scrap of Liberty on the inside waistband - just to make it extra pretty.

Dresspattern: The Mortmain Dress mixed with the Coffee Date Dress by Pattern Rundway and a selfdrafted peter pan collar
Skirtpattern: Ayshe Skirt from Figgy's

Fabric: Robert Kaufmann from M is for Make


How do you feel about mother-daughter outfits? Do you wear it at the same time - cause I know you make them;)


Happy sewing

Mette

Sewing for boys

It seems so hard to get decent pictures of the clothes I make for myself so instead I present to you: Grumpy boy in a homemade vest (is this the right word?). He likes the vest, but not to have his picure taken. I had to bribe him with candy to get a so so shot, so I guess he will expect the same bribery next time I make him something.

The vest was a real pleasure to make. It came together easily and the edges are finished with biastape. It provides that little extra you need in the scandinavian winter.

I should have made a closeup picture on the little leather pocket detail. It's a small triangle - i put one on the back yoke as well, but you'll have to take my word for it since I didn't document it.

I have made the Hudson Pants by True Bias two times for myself (unblogged). They are both weekend favorites. True Bias has now released the Mini Hudsonpants and my kids need them! Both my daughter and son have asked for comfypants - so I thought it would be in their own interest to help out a bit. Putting pdf patterns together is not my favorite job - so why not introduce this as the next big thing in child labour after emptying the dishwashing machine? You want pants? - then cut this out and put them together!:)

I have quite a big backlog from the last two month I havent showed to you. This includes a Moneta, Simplicity 1366 blouse, Cloverdress, a coat and other tidbits.. I will get it photographed soon. Promise.

How do you keep up with the pictures this time of year? I find it so hard to get decent photos inside the house and outside it's always dark or rainy. Have you any advice? I only have an Iphone to take pictures - will it improve if I get a better camera?


Pattern and fabric: Stof og Stil

Sewing good carma - surprisingly selfless sewing..

I should have written a post reflecting about my first year (almost) writing a sewingblog. Since I haven't written any posts since october it seemed a bit pointless, so instead I will show you a bit of unusual selfless end of the year sewing. After this post I will move on to my usual selfish sewing again:)

First I will show you a cute dress I made my daughter. She's just turned four and is all about cats, pink and ruffles. Being a good mum I made her this:

Cann you tell how pleased she is?

I drafted the dress myself on the basis of the bodice from my beloved skaterdress pattern. I just lenghened the bodice and cut a curved hemline. The fabric is from Stofdepotet.

Now, this isn't all about girly dresses. My son loves his homemade clothes too. I made him a sweatshirt with matching pants. Very soft and perfect for lazy days playing with lego on the floor.

I used my go-to sweatshirt pattern for kids Onion 20047 and added a pocket as a design feature. I made one for each of his two cousins too, but you will have to believe me on that, since I have no pictures of those. All fabric is from Stofdepotet.

For the sweatpants I used another go-to pattern from Ottobre. If you have never bought any of their kids clothes magazines I will encourage you to do so. The patterns are well drafted and you really get value for money. You can buy the magazine in english, finnish or swedish from their website. Here you can see a detail from the pocket.

And now for a blog premiere! So exiting - I made something for my hubby! It's just a basic longsleeved t-shirt, but he is so pleased about it - this is actually a bit embarrassing. It took me about two hours to make from the first cut to finishing the neckline. Maybe I should make him two this year..? I used the henley t-shirt pattern from Thread Theory. Thread Theory makes other modern style mens patterns too, if the urge to selfless sewing should emerge.

I hope you all had an enjoyable christmas and a happy newyear.

Happy sewing to everybody

Faux wrap skirt with zipper

For a long time I have avoided using patterns from the traditional pattern companies. The frontpage of the patterns always putted me off - usually the fabric choice and colours were ugly. I don´t know if its due to my older age or because I'm getting more confident in my sewing, but I find myself buying a lot more patterns from traditional pattern companies now a days instead of pdf patterns from indie designers. I still love the more modern design from the indie designers - and some of them are very good - but the fit is not always as worked through as the traditional pattern companies. Well, my solution when buying patterns from the traditional pattern designers is to look strictly on the line drawings - this way I don't get distracted by the horrible fabric choice..

Jeg har i lang tid undgået at købe mønstre fra de traditionelle mønsterfirmaer. Jeg synes oftest, de havde kiksede forsider, hvor modellerne var syet op i virkelig grimt stof. Min manglende fantasi gjorde, at jeg ikke kunne se, at designet kunne være rigtig fint i andre typer stof. På det seneste har jeg dog købt flere mønstre fra især Simplicity og New Look, som jeg er virkelig glad for. Tit er mønstrene mere gennemarbejdede og jeg synes at rygtet om de dårlige syvejledninger er lidt overdrevne. Syvejledningerne fra Onion og Stof2000 er oftest værre end Simplicitys. Man skal dog være indstillet på at syvejledningerne er på engelsk eller spansk. Jeg elsker stadig pdf mønstrene fra indiedesignerne. Pga. den hurtigere produktionshastighed kan man ofte her finde de mere "trendy" mønstre - og mange er virkelig gode, men jeg er også stødt på en del, hvor tilpasninger kunne være bedre. For at gøre en lang historie kort, vil jeg bare opfordre til ikke at afvise et godt mønster pga. en kedelig forside - det kan være her guldet er gemt.

This skirt is made using Simplicity 1322. The pattern let you choose between 4 varieties of faux wrapskirts. Each featuring diffenrent skirtlength and details. I chose view B but with the length of view C. Maybe I should have made it a bit longer.. The pattern pieces come together easily - especially if you remember to mark all the notches.. The skirt has a zipper on the front, but you use the lapped zipper in the back to get in and out of the skirt. The pattern has an illustrated guide to make the lapped zipper. I don't know if it was luck or the good guide, but this lapped zipper is best I've made so far. You'll have to trust me on this one since I forgot to take pictures of the back.

Jeg har brugt Simplicity 1322 til denne nederdel og jeg kan ikke skjule min begejstring (jo måske nok på billederne, hvor jeg ser lidt sur ud..). Jeg synes modellen er superfin og ser ud af meget, selvom den ikke var svær at sy. Mønstret har 4 forskellige modeller at vælge imellem - alle med slå-om-effekt. Jeg valgte view B med en synlig lynlås som pynt, men valgte at bruge længden fra view C. Nu er nederdelen måske blevet en smule for kort, men det går nok. Nederdelen var nem og rimelig hurtig at sy. Den har en "lapped zipper" bagpå - er der nogen, der ved hvad det hedder på dansk? Mønstret har en tegning, der viser hvordan man gør og min blev faktisk overraskende god. Det ser ret professionelt ud, når man ikke kan se lynlåsen synes jeg.

The pictures above show a skirt with a lot of wrinkles, since I wore it to work before the pictures were taken. The fabric feels great to touch - the brushed cotton twill has a really soft surface. In retrospect I should have hunted down a cotton twill a bit more sturdy since this is a bit to thin to my liking. I know I will wear this skirt tons anyway since it goes with everything in my monochrome wardrobe. By the way - look at that t-shirt. I think it's so cool! It says "Do the robot!". The t-shirt is from the danish environmentally friendly designers from The Baand. Please go check them out - you can't sew prints like that anyway.

How is your fall sewing coming along? Have you planned anything exciting?

Jeg tog billederne efter jeg kom hjem fra arbejde, så nederdelen er lidt (meget) krøllet efter at have siddet ned en hel dag. Jeg har brugt børstet twill, som jeg har købt i Stoff og Stil til nederdelen. Stoffet har en rigtig blød overflade, men jeg kunne godt have ønsket, at det var i en lidt kraftigere kvalitet. Når jeg syer en ny udgave, vil jeg vælge en kraftigere kvalitet og måske prøve med en linning af læder - eller måske faux læder, så den kan gå i vaskemaskinen. Jeg vil også lige benytte lejligheden til at gøre lidt (usponsoreret) reklame for min T-shirt. Den er fra The Baand - den er lavet af miljøvenligt materiale og af mennesker, der får en ordentlig løn. Det kan jeg lide - og jeg kan heldigvis også lide designet.

Hvordan går det med din efterårssyning? Har du noget spændende planlagt?


Fabric: Brushed cotton twill from StoffogStil
Pattern: Simplicity 1322

Happy sewing

Mette

Cardigan and boring - but necessary tools

I finished this snuggly cardigan in the weekend. It had been hanging in my livingroom aka my sewingroom for weeks - just needing two buttonholes. Why oh why does some simple things take so long? The cardigan was really straight forward and finished in an hour.

Jeg syede denne hyggelige cardigan færdig i weekenden. Den har hængt i stuen aka mit syrum i flere uger og afventet, at jeg fik taget mig sammen til at sy to knaphuller. Det tog så 10 minutter, da jeg først kom igang. Hvorfor tager nogle meget simple ting så lang tid at få gjort? Selve cardiganen var meget hurtig at sy. Den består af to forstykker, rygstykke og to ærmer. Forstykkerne er kantet med en gennemgående ribkant.

The only thing that makes this cardi stand out a bit is the cool print and the unusual pockets. The fabric is from Stofdepotet (of cause:)) and the fabric is a sweater knit remnant from Little Marc Jacobs. The fabric is so soft and seems to be a very good quality. My girl loves her new cardi and wore it again today - third day en a row..

Det eneste som gør denne cardigan lidt anderledes er det fine print og de usædvanlige lommer. Lommerne er huller kantet med en ribkant syet i en cirkel. Stoffet er den blødeste isoli fra Stofdepotet og er en rest fra Little Marc Jacobs. Stoffet er superblødt og virker til at være en rigtig god kvalitet. Min datter elsker allerede den nye cardigan og tog den på igen idag - for 3. dag i træk. Det er vist ikke kun for at være høflig:)

And now for another make - a bit boring, but I'm so proud of my self that I finally got around to make it. When I'm sewing clothes for myself it often involves darts, sleeves and a lot of pressing to get a good result. Everytime I have cursed myself for not having the proper tools to make this a bit easier. But I do now - drumroll please! - pressing roll and taylors ham! The advantage of renovating an old house is that it's easy to find the sawdust you need for the filling. I didn't have a pattern for these, but just winged it.

Og nu til noget lidt andet. Ret kedeligt, men meget nødvendigt. Jeg er så glad for, at jeg endelig fik taget mig sammen til at få lavet disse.. presseskinker? Gad vide hvad de hedder på dansk? De er fantastiske, når man skal presse et indlæg eller en kurvet søm med strygejernet. De er meget simple at lave - jeg klippede dem frihånds, syede sammen men efterlod en lille åbning til fyldet. Fordelen ved at bo i byggerod er, at man aldrig skal lede længe efter savsmuld. Disse skinker og pølser skal nemlig fyldes med savsmuld for at gøre dem så faste som muligt, så det er muligt at presse rigtig hårdt med strygejernet. Når de ikke anvendes ved strygejernet er især pølsen også rigtig god til at jagte sine søskende rundt i huset med og slå dem i bagdelen.. Det er ren ikea med den slags multifunktionsværktøj:)

Pattern for the cardigan: Ottobre 4/2011
Fabric for the cardigan: Stofdepotet

Pattern for the pressing tools: selfdrafted
Fabric for the pressing tools: From stash

Skirt with multiple zippers

En ny favorit er syet - comfy nederdel i jersey og en overflod af lynlåse. Denne nye favorit fik virkelig trænet min lynlåsteknik, da der skulle indsættes hele 4 lynlåse. Det er min hidtidige rekord i ét stykke tøj!

I have made a new favorit skirt for fall. The skirt is made in comfy jersey and A LOT of zippers. This skirt really made me practice my skills in zippers. The skirt required 4 zippers - my new record in one piece of clothing!

Nederdelen er består af 4 dele til forstykket og 4 dele til bagstykket. Denne konstruktion gør det unødvendigt med indsnit. I sammensyningerne på forstykket er der indsat to lommelynlåse og en midterlynlås, som ikke er funktionel, der der også er foer i nederdelen. For at komme i nederdelen, er der derfor også syet en usynlig lynlås bagpå. En sand lynlåsfest!

Constructionwise the skirt is made of 4 patternpieces for the front AND the back. This Little trick makes darts unnecessary. If you are afraid of darts this skirt is a good choice. The front has to small zippers for the pockets and one in the center purely for decoration. To actually wear the skirt you use the invisible zipper in the back. It´s truly a zipper galore!

Nederdelen er en enkel hverdagsnederdel syet i quiltet jersey og med stræksatinfoer. Den er behagelig at have på og den neutrale farve passer til det meste.

The skirt is a simple wearable style made in quiltet jersey and has a stretchsatin lining. It´s really comfy and I like a neutral colour.

Har du en plan for din efterårssyning? Jeg tænker på at sy jakke og frakke - og måske en colourblocked kjole.. Planer er der nok af - så må jeg se hvor meget, der bliver tid til.

What are your sewing plans for fall? I'm still thinking about coats and jackets - and maybe a colourblocked dress..


Fabric: purchased locally at Citystoffer
Pattern: Burda 8/2014 # 139

Happy sewing

Mette

Skirts - with ladybirds

God mandag - jeg tænkte, jeg lige ville kigge forbi og sige hej. Her sker ikke så meget på bloggen - fordi jeg er for dårlig til at få fotograferet.. Hele vores have er fyldt op med byggerod og det er øjensynligt for grænseoverskridende for mig, at stille mig op - sådan helt offentligt et andet sted - og lade mig skamfotografere til almindelig fornøjelse for forbipasserende..

At der ikke har været mange indlæg på bloggen i august betyder dog ikke, at der ikke bliver syet - der bliver syet så meget, at maskinerne sjældent når at køle helt af og jeg glæder mig til at vise det hele frem. Jeg har fået syet en del efterårstøj (og overtøj!) og har endnu mere på to-do listen - men altså ikke de fotografiske beviser endnu..

I mellemtiden kan I fornøje Jer med et par nederdele syet til min yngste datter og søde niece - og ja, de er hængt op i en hæk, da det var eneste sted, hvor et stillads/gravmaskiner/mørtelblander/etc ikke ville komme med på billedet. Jeg fandt en lille rest mariehønestof i den lokale genbrugs - lige præcis nok til en stribe på hver nederdel - og supplerede med poplin fra stof og stil. Mariehøneprint er ikke lige min kop te, men jeg vidste, at de ville være populære hos den 3-årige..

Good afternoon my ladies. I thought I might just pop by to see if anybody was still here. Nothing much is happening on the blog these days - not due to lack of sewing, but lack of ability to take photos of the finished makes. Our garden is covered with scaffholding and random building stuff (sorry, my english is lacking names for all the building machines..)and therefor it's difficult to get decent shots. I promise I'll try to come up with a bit of courage and go outside the fence (!) and make a public photoshoot (oh the horror!). I have so many things to show you - including a jacket and a coat!

In the meantime you can enjoy this little piece of favorite wear for my 3 year old and my niece. I found a small piece of fabric with ladybugs in the local charity shop and bought a meter of coordinating fabric - this is the way of the world - you find something incredibly cheap and then you go and by something more, to make you able to actually use the incredibly cheap fabric..:)

Pattern: selfdrafted
Fabric: thrifted and purchased locally

Happy sewing folks

Mette