Remakes!

Now that school is out, I've managed to do a bit of sewing. Yay! I started with a few re-makes.

I started with another rendition of Kwik Sew 3513:

Here I've got the top tucked in so you can see the foldover waistband.

I loved this the first time I sewed it up, and my love remains constant. It is a simple, straightforward, and effective design! I again made a size Medium. My only change was to add 5" to the length in order to make it into more of a maxi-skirt. The fabric is a Maggy London ITY knit from Fabric Mart.

The aqua top that I'm wearing with the skirt is another remake of the Maria Denmark Kirsten Kimono Tee. This is the third one I've made (version one | version two). This time I used a poly/lycra jersey knit in a pretty Caribbean blue from Fabric Mart. This is the Large with a 1" dartless FBA (Maria Denmark offers a friendly tutorial for no-dark fronts). Such a fabulous design made even more so because Maria Denmark offers it as a FREE pattern when you sign up for her newsletter.

And here is another Kirsten Kimono Tee:

So the only remarkable thing about this rendition is that I somehow managed to cut two of the same piece... I put back in the photo above, but looking at it now in comparison to the aqua one, I think maybe I cut two fronts? (It was really hard to tell because I also messed up in cutting the neckline a bit... sigh.) Anyway, I didn't have enough fabric to cut a new back. While it definitely doesn't fit quite right, it actually is in fact wearable. Phew! The fabric is another ITY knit from Fabric Mart.

All of these pieces are now in regular rotation in my wardrobe. Tried and true!

Another Kimono Tee

The first one turned out so well, I immediately went on the lookout for fabric for another Kimono T-Shirt from Maria Denmark.

I found the perfect fabric at Fabric Mart-- a happy Maggy London ITY print.

Making it the second time was even faster than the first time (and I felt like that was pretty darn quick!). No changes at all.

I am definitely feeling the love for this design and fully intend to make more at some point. But I've got some other projects lined up, including plans for using these:

Activewear knits! Woo!

Striped Kimono Tee

While there is definitely sewing going on here, and even finishes(!), I seem to be having problems actually taking pictures of my stuff. I even made a Halloween costume for me, but failed to get decent pictures. So there is a bit of a backlog at this point. Hopefully, I'll start catching up soon! Anyway...

At the beginning of October (as a sort of Halloween costume sewing warm-up), I sewed up a couple of tops. This was the first:

The fabric is a Misty Stretch Slub Jersey Stripe Pink/Multi, 96% Poly/4% Lycra ITY knit I picked up from Fabric.com last year. I was initially thinking it for a skirt, but it is a pretty thin, drape-y knit that seemed better-suited to a t-shirt (i.e., I didn't want to have to do a lining). Enter the MariaDenmark Kimono T-Shirt pattern (which is currently a free download when you sign up for her newsletter). Note that there are no seam allowances included in this pattern. I arbitrarily decided to add 3/8" seam allowances.

I made a quick and dirty muslin of the size Large a few months ago (no pictures of that) and determined I wanted/needed to do an FBA. Conveniently enough, MariaDenmark even has instructions for doing a dartless FBA.

I think it worked pretty well! I really like the way this fits on me. And, while not perfect, I am definitely pleased with the stripe matching I managed. I made sure to stabilize the shoulder seams with some nylon stay tape and also used a knit fusible stay tape along the neckline. I used my coverstitch machine for the hems.

Love it!!! I have been wearing this top every week since I completed it. I definitely want to make more and have my eyes peeled for potential fabric candidates.