My First NORMAL Tiramisu

It's the last day of May, if you're a Stashbuster get over to the link party and show us what you've been up to and maybe win a prize!

I finally, finally, made up my first normal tiramisu with fabric I bought last November specifically for it when Steph first started talking about Cake Patterns and Tira.

It went together so smoothly all my fears and worries were unfounded. Thanks to the previous Tira fittings I was able to cut this out and get it right the first go. I did make a few changes.

• I cut the back on the center fold removing the seam allowance.
• I cut the pockets from a woven fabric per Steph's suggestion

• I cut the neckband 2 inches wide instead of 1 1/2 like the pattern. I did this for two reasons. One it's less fiddly for me to work with and two it brings the V neck up just a tiny bit more to where I'm comfortable.

Confession time. I admit to having some confusion with the stripe/stretch lines and the different cutting layout. (it didn't help that one of my knits does actually have the lines running vertically) All other knit patterns have you cut the neckband going with the stretch while Tira's neckband is cut lengthwise going with the least amount of stretch. That's why it was the exact length of the neckband and that's why my burgundy Tira gathered. I only wish I had had this epiphany before I got the dress sewn together... but I understand the Why now so I won't be making that mistake again.

Moving on, I wore it all day to let the hem settle while I watched my 3 not-nieces and 1 not-nephew. We swung on the swings, pushed the wheelchair down the gravel road, saw a muskrat, played with toys on the floor, took naps and went potty. The dress performed fabulously.

All you get though is a no gape photo of me with the kitty.

There is a wind warning out on that skirt though. Make sure you keep a firm hand on it so you don't end up flashing the mailman...

Swirly twirly, beautiful.

Since this was a very lightweight knit I decided to try the fusible or sticky tape to hold the hem in place while I sewed it. Unfortunately I was in a hurry at wallyworld and picked up some heavy stuff with a big, "DO NOT SEW" warning on the back.

But I had it, so I decided to go ahead and use it. Turns out the paper backing is heavier than the sticky and it didn't effect the drape of my hem. I'm skeptical of it's permanent stick claims but I'm willing to give it a try and see how it comes out after the first wash. I can always sew it later if I need to.

This concludes my review on Tiramisu. 

I made five garments out of stashbusted knits this month which makes me pretty happy. How much stashbusting did you accomplish?

STASHBUSTERS ALERT!!!

Are you feeling worn out or lacking energy to fulfill your stashbusting goals? Don't give up and go check out this post: Fabric Stashes A Cautionary Tale

Don't worry, together we can beat those fabric imps!

PS. Cation's link party is open for May's Knit Challenge. Go post your creations for a chance to win!

Me-Made-May Week 4 Roundup

Oooh it's almost over... but I'm not going to talk about lessons I've learned just yet. Time to see what I wore last week.

May 19th, Vintage top pattern for the bodice and my own experiment with
pickups/tucks/bubble skirt thing...

May 20th, beautiful rain so I stayed inside to craft. My shirt and trousers are both me made.

May 21st, more rain, and three me mades. My shirt, which you can't see my knitted sweater and a very pilly knit skirt. 

May 22nd, My second knitted sweater which is perfect for the change of seasons. Still more rain so I'm working on a long sleeve tunic.

May 23rd, New TOP!! and sunshine. My memade cords as well.

May 24th, my favorite unphotographable 50s dress.

May 25th, Crazy top again. It was one of my first knit tops and I need to go back and fix the neckline. 

So there's a bit of my fabulousness. You can tell I've gotten less creative with my photos. But it's been either busy or dreary this past week so I haven't been able to take any photos worth playing with...

Belated Bustier Top Stashbust

Hiya Stashbusters! Are you enjoying your long weekend? Mine started early when my family whisked me away to town to watch the latest Star Trek movie instead of blogging on Friday. So today I have something special I couldn't wait any longer to show you!

The only sailing I've done is through books.

My Mother picked up this red and white stripe rib knit remnant at the thrift shop haul she made for me last fall. I loved it from the beginning but it was so short I knew I'd have to add something to it so it would be long enough for me to wear. After searching all over the blogosphere for the "sweetheart neckline tutorial" I knew I'd seen somewhere I finally rediscovered it on Pinterest under the "Bustier tutorial" I knew it was on So Zoe's blog!!
I don't know why I procrastinate on the "drafting" pattern hacks. Every time I do one I think, "Whoa! That was easier to figure out than I thought!" I held my TNT knit top pattern up to me to get the curve placement in the correct spot then traced over those lines to make the top part of the pattern.

I don't know about you but a lot of my projects evolve as I work on them. Cake Pattern's stripe inspiration soaked through with the contrasting neck and sleeve bands which lay much better in real life than they do on the dress form.

I had fun with the topstitching as well. But the pieces de resistance was when I remembered I had these buttons in the stash! Just in case you weren't sure of its nautical roots yet...

I forgot to take a picture of the V in the back. Needless to say it is fabulous too! I can't wait for summer and the fun I'm going to have with all my new tops.

How's the May Stashbusting going for you? Did you go with the theme or are you working on your own projects? Are you enjoying our long weekend? Getting any sewing done?

If You Give A Girl A Computer...

If you give a depressed girl with high blood sugar a computer she'll start browsing the new fabric website she found.

THE WEBSITE

While she's just looking she'll discover the BEST PRINT EVER which only has two yards left before it's gone forever. She will HAVE to buy it now!

Refute me if you can!! 

As she adds it to her shopping cart she will remember she just went through her large stash, and realize she doesn't have any knit prints. She will have to search the website for all her favorite prints so she can save on shipping by buying them all now. When they finally arrive she will lovingly pet them, wash them, and set them on her shelf. When spring arrives she will bring out her amazing print and turn it into a lovely top!

Since she's part of the GLOBAL STASHBUSTING SEWALONG she'll use the rest of her yardage to make her mother a matching top as a belated mother's day gift.

Aww, aren't we cute!!

She'll be so pleased with her results she'll take pictures and want to blog about all the details.

Self drafted Peter Pan collar sewn wrong sides together and
topstitched down with zigzag stitch.

Still working on proper tension for the double needle. Thanks
to MoonThirty's tips it's getting better though.

To blog her successes to the WORLD she'll have to get on her computer...

Me-Made-May Week 3 No, you're not getting a more creative title than that..

Wow! It's over half way over!! I had so much fun seeing everyone's sewing spaces for last THEME FRIDAY so I decided to show you mine this week.

May 12th, Proportion seemed to be Sunday's lesson. If the white skirt had been a tich longer I think I could have pulled it off. I LOVE this tunic. You can see more pics and the story of its birth here.

May 13th, Me Made Polka Dot top and messy cutting table!

May 14th Me Made Patchwork skirt. Haven't worn it in eons and forgot how fun it is!

May 15th my trusty machines and new thread rack. I went to they eye Dr. and got told I looked springy in this top. Always a good day when you get compliments from random strangers!

May 16th One of my first knit tops.  Love this fabric and think it's time to repurpose this shirt. I didn't know you need deeper hems on knits so just serged the edges and topstitched down. 1/4 in. seam allowances don't stay put in knits. It also wants to bunch up above my bust. Not sure what that's about...

May 17th, THEME FRIDAY's Hat
I did a service to us all by discovering why our stashes seem to grow! We have Fabric ELVES!!

Practicing my model face, (or really bright sun) This was what I actually wore for May 17th. To read about how much I love this dress, see here. I'm so pleased with this stashbusted piece! 

May 18th, my trusty vintage dress form that I'm learning to use. MeMade Purple and green top.

That's all I've got for today! Hope everyone has a great week! 

Stashbusters, stay tuned, I've got some busted stash to show you!! Hope knits month is going well for you all!

New Dress and Photography Thoughts

When Steph mentioned you could use woven patterns for knits I knew exactly what my next project was going to be! (if you don't know what I'm talking about read her interview, part 1 and 2)
I decided to give my newly traced Lutterloh kimono sleeve tee a try in some thrifted knit my fabulous Mother picked up for me. I've got her trained well. :)
I really liked the simplicity of this knit with the stripe set on the bottom. I wasn't sure about the color on me but I wanted a comfy summer dress so that's what it was going to be!

It was a thin knit and curled like crazy and since I have yet to get spray starch to control this, I let it do it's thing and used it to my advantage. I didn't hem anything! I did bind the neckline to add some stability but let that edge roll up on the outside for a subtle design detail.
I ended up sewing the side seams twice in four short goes to get the fit I wanted instead of just making do with the first sew through. I'm pretty happy the stripes still match after hacking off about 6 inches from each bottom side.
I love it with this vintage scarf that I've had forever and never had anything to wear with. I feel like this will be a great travel dress since it is so comfortable and will be easy to accessorize for different looks. Plus this piece has now be STASHBUSTED!

Now we'll politely segue from the dress to photography...
What's the difference between clothing in real life and photographs? Why does something look good in the mirror but not so great when I take a photo for MMM? Today I discovered some reasons why my photos might not look as good when I look in the mirror. Angles, lighting, breathing.
Here's some examples from today's self photoshoot. (I set my camera on custom timer. 10 seconds then 5 photos)

Dress and body in motion, fabric is fluid and moves with us. Me striding along, is a brief second in time, yet captured on camera presents an unflattering wrinkled mess.

Suck it in, let it out, Oh look I'm a MODEL! hehe
(Self timer gives you some interesting shots to work with)

A picture can be a great evaluation tool but I don't think it should be our determining factor in garment suitability. I took 100 photos of this dress today and you can see how many actually turned out decent.  Maybe we need to hold our photos in an open hand realizing how that moment looks might not really matter and in the minutiae of life our clothing is just a covering helping us live every moment well. Maybe what really matters is the attitude we clothe ourselves in...

What do you think?