The Roberts Collection Dungarees - In Vintage Olive floral

Hi lovely folks,

Today I am back with a bit of garment sewing, if you keep up to date with my Instagram @hannahjanefellows its pretty much all been about the home decor over there recently.

That was until the lovely Marilla Walker got in touch and asked if I would like to try out one of her new patterns from her new collection, and I jumped at the chance. Marilla makes fabulous patterns, if you don't already know of them you can see them here and here.

I decided to start with the dungaree pattern, because I have been wanting some loose legged turn up dungarees for a while now, and I loved the detailing on these!

My dungarees are made in a Vintage wool mix olive green floral fabric.

I made these in a straight size 7 and I know that there have been some mods to the pattern since then, but I love them so much! I haven't made any mods to the pattern, I like to make it true to pattern when I am testing. 

They are so comfortable to wear, I cant wait to make a million other versions! I chose the wool mix for my first version so they would have some drape, in case I had got the sizing a little large, but next time I am hoping to make these up in a lovely denim or linen.

There are so many lovely details within this pattern, like the fine straps, or the neat waist tucks, which make it just that extra bit feminine.  

( please excuse the twisted straps, I was sure they were lying flat) 

There are several other patterns included in The Roberts Collection that are all equally beautiful, the Pinafore has my name written all over it, as does the blouse, and the jumpsuit would make a great seasonal outfit. 

Head on over to Marilla's blog to read more about it and to go buy the pattern for yourself. If you only buy one pattern this autumn, I can highly recommend this one!

Thanks for stopping by again guys! 

Have any of you purchased this pattern yet?

Are you hoping to make something from The Roberts collection?  

I would love to hear about it, drop me a message in the comments below!

Up-cycled vintage foot stool - My first Upholstery

Hello lovely folks,

So I am back today with some rather exciting news, after months and months of waiting we finally.... got the keys to our new (old) house this week! We could not be happier, but the beaming happy faces soon turned into determined, hard working faces as we set to, and started to tear the inside of the house apart from top to bottom. I am not going to go into details, but it needs work, I thought however you might be more interested in seeing what I have been sewing to go inside the house...it's far more exciting than the piles of rubble that currently reside within the house ;)

So, a couple of years ago we started to pick up the odd bit of furniture we liked, in the hope that one day we would have our own home to put it in (yay! we made it) and on one of our Sunday trips to the car boot we spotted a vintage footstool. 

It was in a right mess to be honest, the sponge had started to disintegrate, the fabric was a delightful deep olive green velvet with a fringing around the edge, that even the most eager of vintage lovers would have turned their nose up at. I took one look at it and said, we will have it, it has potential!

I am so glad we did, because it cost me £2!! And today I am so happy with the end result.

I have never done any re-upholstering before so it was all new to me. It was a really simple process and the only thing we needed other than my sewing machine was a screwdriver to remove the legs and a staple gun ( we used an electric one) 

I found the fabric online through Ebay of all places, I fell in love with the fractured triangles pattern and couldn't resist it. I bought two meters of it, and it is excellent quality, it is really heavy weight and it also has the Fire Retardant coating on it as well which is really important to think about when upholstering something. I hope to use the rest of the fabric for other things in the living room.

We decided to spray the legs gold to bring it up to date a bit, they were originally black plastic, so our options were limited. 

I am kind of kicking myself for not taking a before picture.... I will try and remember for the next project!!

I had so much fun transforming this foot stool and seeing it come back to life after looking so shabby. I feel that even after buying the new sponge and the fabric, it still remains a good value piece of furniture, but not only that it is unique. I am now looking forward to finishing up my next re-upholstery project which is slightly larger in in scale to put in mildly.... stay tuned!

Thanks for stopping by!!

~HJF~

Boat neck swishy holiday dress

Hello....

Yes, that is what I am naming this post, because well, today I am writing to tell you about just that,  the boat neck swishy dress I made for my recent holiday to Wales.

I have been in a bit of a wardrobe awkward phase at the moment, largely in part to changes in figure, and half of my clothes being in storage. I felt that summer has just passed me by and I have just kept on wearing my winter clothes. This just would not do, you see the thing was, we were going on holiday... to Wales, probably one of my favourite places to holiday in. I couldn't go away without a new summer frock, the situation needed to be rectified. 

So, in usual Hannah style, the day before we go on holiday, I decide to open the fabric stash cupboard doors, find a suitable candidate and locate my favourite easy to sew pattern.

I had recently bought a large piece of Viscose/Rayon from Abakhan fabrics in Bolton and decided that this would be the perfect choice for my summer dress. It is a lovely black and cream wobbly striped print that I hoped could be dressy or casual.

Next was my pattern of choice, this is a self drafted pattern. It has transformed and morphed over the years. It started life as a princess seamed sundress and gradually morphed into several different patterns, one being a boat neck bodice. The thing about this bodice is that it only has one bust dart, which is really unusual for me, I usually need more than one bust dart to achieve the shaping I need. I think the key to its success is that the darts are shaped, the dart legs are not straight lines, helping give the extra shaping needed.

The skirt for this pattern varies, I have several ranging from full circle to gathered circle and quarter circle, but in this case I was rushed on time, couldn't locate my gathered skirt pattern pieces and just gathered two rectangles and hoped for the best..... bad sewing... I know! I was rushing!!!

So here it is, my Boat neck swishy holiday dress.... 

I always use bias binding as a facing to finish the neck and armholes on these self drafted dresses. This Viscose/Rayon was so soft the only thing I had in my stash that was a good match for the softness of the fabric was a hot pink, so there is a nice surprise flash of colour on the inside of this dress! 

The Viscose/Rayon worked perfectly for this dress and I was so happy with the amount of drape that it had in the skirt, and it also gave nice soft lines to the bodice. I got a large piece from Abakhan and still have enough left to make something else.

I have made so made versions of this dress now, but I still keep coming back to it, I think that it has become so invaluable to have a self drafted pattern that can be adapted easily, but that also sews up quickly. I also find with this pattern that it is very versatile, I have made several casual versions, but  I also made a version last year to get legally married in, but that's a whole other story. :)

Also, here is a nice extra photo......It got really windy when I was taking the photographs, and so the trees were hitting me in the face.... as you can see from the picture below it doesn't make for a good photo shoot!....ha!!

Thanks for stopping by today guys, it has been a bit of a sewing whirlwind since the International Anna Party, and I still feel so much excitement over that! I haven't had much time to sew, but I am slowly sneaking moments here and there when I can. I was lucky enough to be gifted some wonderful patterns from By Hand London through the International Anna Party, so I am really looking forward to sewing those!!

Do you have a sewing pattern that is your all time favourite?

Is drafting patterns something you do or are commercial patterns your favourite?

I would love to know, drop me a message in the comments below!

~HJF~

Vintage Blue Ikat Ultimate Shift Dress

Hi Guys,

Today I am back with a little bit of me sewing, a simple Sew Over It London, Ultimate Shift Dress. I have been sewing a lot for others over the last few months, and not really had a lot of time to sew anything for myself. The last last dress I made, the Liberty Alpine dress, I made to go to a Craft Party in and I made to a deadline, so ultimately I was rushing up until the last moment to finish it in time. Cue hand sewing til midnight... totally worth it though :)

And the same goes for this dress really, just finished in time for a deadline.  Last week I was sewing some gifts up and it got to Thursday and I checked the weather report for my trip out on Saturday.

Now, if you haven't already realized I live in England...  and as most will well know, it is pretty much essential to check the weather report if you want to go anywhere. I was travelling to another part of the UK and I was informed we would have sunshine!  oh hello!Well, I was not prepared for that!

 So after checking my wardrobe and finding that I didn't have a single thing suitable I decided I would have to whip something up. Truth is I have just not had time to update my summer wardrobe, I have been so busy with other projects and because summer just doesn't seemed to have arrived here yet, there hasn't exactly been a rush on the sleeveless vests and sundresses! The summer wardrobe is now edging closer to the top of my list.

On a side note, I really need to stop this last minute sewing, I don't enjoy it very much, and I don't want to start putting pressure onto a skill that I really love... sewing. I need to plan more, and put time aside to sew the things I really need to fill those gaps in my wardrobe, not just last minute sew things when I have been too busy to plan ahead... not good.

Anyway... Me, a trip out, sunshine, nothing to wear. I decided I didn't have time to go too fancy, and if I wanted to make something I had just Friday to do it. So, I opted for the lovely Sew Over It London Ultimate Shift Dress pattern. I guess you could say this has become a bit of a well loved pattern for me. I think I have made four altogether and I find it a really quick garment to put together with really pleasing results.

Next up was choosing the fabric, I had a quick look in my fabric stash and pulled out some rather lovely Vintage Ikat blue cotton. This fabric was a rather lucky find from a local Vintage Fair. They don't usually do textiles there but there was a lady selling home furnishing fabrics and she had two pieces of this wonderful stuff! I think in total it cost me £6 for the lot, and I only used one of the pieces, so I am now wondering what to make with the second piece?! Suggestions would be very welcome!!

So am I going to stop chatting about the weather like a typical Brit and show you the dress...

The print had a bit of a crazy pattern to it and if  wanted to follow grain and keep those diamonds running parallel down my body it meant that the diamonds seemed to go on a bit of a wander across by body. I think that is just the pattern though and it was the best possible placement without loosing those strain grain parallel diamonds. Hey, I am happy and sometimes with vintage fabrics you just have to go with it, I have had countless pieces that the prints are all kinds of crazy off grain, but I think I just about get away with this one... 

I was a little worried about this colour on me. I loved the colour, but I was worried it would make me look larger, but I think keeping the silhouette clean with a simple shift dress has help to minimize that.

This is the first Ultimate Shift Dress i have made with short sleeves and I really love them! I was a little skeptical at first as I usually go for a three quarter length as I find that a flattering for me, but this could be my new summer sleeve length!!!

And if any of you are wondering if  got my dose of sunshine.... I totally did not...it rained and poured all day, so much so I put on my tights and brogues instead of my sandals. You win some you lose some.

 Here I am on my way down to see my friend, we were stuck in traffic, in the rain, but I was just too excited to be seeing my friend and wearing my new dress. (I wasn't the driver by the way) ;)

That's all for now, I am back to sewing for others for the moment, and I am eagerly awaiting the next gap so I can get sewing my summer wardrobe!!

Do you have any favourite patterns that you return to when you are in need of a quick make?

I am always interested to hear!

I am also open to suggestion to what I can use my left over Ikat fabric for? I have just over a meter left and feel a bit clueless about what to use it for. If you have any suggestions please drop me a message in the comments below. :)

Thanks for stopping by...

~HJF~

Linden Sweatshirt Dress - Paisley Vintage Jersey

Hi all,

It feels like an age since I have written a blog post! I have been so busy with birthdays and the like that posting has been put on the back burner. Well I am back today with a super quick sewing fix!

I have been doing a lot of sewing recently some of which I hope to be sharing with you guys in the coming weeks, but I kind of overloaded my self and needed a bit of a break. So I have had a week without sewing pretty much, which for me felt kind of crazy! But this week I gave in and decided I needed a quick simple project to get me back at the sewing table. 

Firstly let me explain, I have a 'to sew' list which changes on occasion but mostly I work my way through it and am pretty happy, but the weather has kind of made that a challenge recently. I had planned my next batch of sewing to be vests, summer tops, dresses, things for my holiday. In fact I had a whole post based around it ( but lets not talk about that shall we) but when the weather decided to stay wet, grey windy and well, very cold I decided, all this summer sewing just won't do! 

I got out my Linden Sweatshirt pattern from the ever faithful Grainline Studio and decided, I NEED more sweatshirts. So that was that, I cut out a lovely grey knit sweatshirt from my newly modded pattern and thought this will be my sewing fix. For some reason I wasn't quite content with that, so I went back to the fabric cupboard and sought out my Vintage paisley cotton jersey. 

I feel I must explain, this is stuff of legends, it is 100% cotton and so thick it could keep you warm in winter like a blanket, it is wonderfully stable, sews like a dream and.....is over two meters wide!

Where did I find such a magnificent piece of cloth, well like most of my snazzy prints it was handed down to me from my Aunty. Back in the day when there were multiple fabric shops on the high street, my Aunty would go and buy amazing fabric so cheaply it now makes me feel a little queezy just thinking about it. She would not only buy for herself but for me when I was a kid, so she has amassed a rather large stash of pretty rad 70's, 80's and 90's prints that she very generously donates to me when I am looking to make something super snazzy.  

Okay, sorry, getting back to the point, I got a little off track there with the whole 80's fabric shopping nostalgia. I  have saved this particular piece of fabric for about eight years, yes, that's right, eight years, I love it that much. I decided it was time to cut that 80's fabric up and have myself a new dress by the end of the day. I wanted a dress that would see me through the pretty poor weather we have been having, something I could wear with tights and a shirt underneath, but equally just on its own in the summer. I wanted to make myself a t-shirt smock dress and decided that the Linden Sweatshirt pattern was the perfect place to start.

I wanted a smock t-shirt style dress, so I set to shortening the the Linden bodice, adding some shaping and then cutting two rectangles to give the gathered skirt I wanted.

Here we have it, I think it fits the purpose I made it for, it is perfect for layering, but also great for when the weather gets a little warmer. I purposely made it just long enough so I could go bare legs if it ever gets warm enough here and the wind drops.... this is not a dress for a windy day...

I have to say I finally had some success with the neckband on this Linden, I feel super happy with the finish on it. ( I was getting a little jealous over here of everyone's wonderful Linden necklines)  I have had a little trouble with this in the past and thought it was perhaps just me being a sloppy sewer.... but as it turns out it was my fabric. My previous two Lindens were out of crazy unstable knitted fabrics that laddered when stretched so adding the neckline had been a challenge. I feel it looks neater this time around, yay for stable jersey!

Here I am laying up my dress because as predicted by the time I had finished my dress it was still mighty cold and I needed my shirt and tights to keep me warm. 

And here is how I hope to wear it if the weather gets a little warmer, however by that point I hope that my legs won't quite blend in to the magnolia colour on the walls quite like they do now.... lets just say I need some sunshine......

I am pretty happy with my quick sewing project, I think I will be making a few more, possibly in a woven next time just to make things a bit cooler for the summer.

I would love to know if you have tried any hacks out with the Linden Sweatshirt pattern. If so please let me know in the comments below!

~HJF~

Tartan Linden sweatshirt view B - and a tale of badly printed knit fabric woes....

Hi all,

Today I am back with my second Linden sweatshirt by Grainline Studio. I received this pattern for christmas and was pretty quick to whip up a first edition that you can see here. When I made my first Linden I was so eager to make it I just decided I would make the biggest size as that seemed right according to my measurements I did not however account for the HUGE amount of stretch my knit fabric had, and I mean huge. My first Linden could keep me and seven other people warm all at the same time!! So second time around I decided to be a little bit more cautious, and plan a little better. I do try and plan my my makes really well, but I think I always let myself down when it comes to stretch and knit garments, I tend to forget there are equal if not more fit issues with a stretch garment than with a woven.  

I worked out that my new tartan knit fabric had no where near the amount of stretch my last fabric had but I still felt that I needed to come down a couple of sizes. I was making view B sweatshirt with the intention of it being layer over a shirt so I didn't want it to be too baggy or too long. I opted for a size 14 and kept the original view B length. 

One thing I also noted on my first linden was that the neckline came out huge on me (think over the shoulder, audition for FAME, do you need some leg warmers with that, wide), so I decided to grade the neckline down from a 14 to a 10. I know this might seem like a huge jump but I wanted a much closer fit around the neck than last time. (I am under no illusions I am a size 10 here folks, have no fear!) 

Ok so the after all the grading and tracing I was like, yeah, awesome, the fun bit, cutting out! I had bought me some lovely drapey tartan knit from Abakhan sometime last year. At the time I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do with it but then I got the Linden pattern as part of my sweet christmas haul and I figured they were a match! So I buy quite a lot of dressmaking fabric from Abakhan, it means I can buy ends of bolts at very reasonable prices for the most part. I also like to shop there because they have a lot of imported prints and It is my ONE and only local fabric store if I don't want to venture into the depths of Manchester which right now isn't an option for me on a regular basis. 

My tartan knit is not my usual colour scheme, because well, there is colour in it, but I liked the shades and I guess the thing that swayed me was the GOLD, it has a metallic gold printed check in the tartan pattern, and I completely blame my magpie eye here, I feel metallic prints on fabrics are still emerging and It fell into my basket with few questions asked. I did not however anticipate the hassle this fabric would give me. 

I decided I was going to be a good seamstress, pattern match all my side seams, pattern match my raglan seams and step back in sheer wonderment at the gold tartan joy I had just created. Yeah, well, that really didn't happen did it, I knew as soon as I lay my fabric out on the counter top to cut it out we were not going to get along. The print was so badly off, and I mean so badly, I had to make a decision. Do I go with the vertical stripes running vertical to my body and all of the other horizontal stripes being off, or do I go with all the horizontal stripes perpendicular to my pattern centre front and the vertical stripes being off. Well I went with the first option, I decided that the bold black vertical lines that ran down the tartan would look much more obvious if they were running all crazy across my body, so this meant my horizontal tartan lines are all kinds of crazy (see bottom hem) but there was literally nothing I could do. I am not happy but I had the fabric and I wanted that Linden. If there was something I missed I would love to know, please comment below :) 

So that kind of meant pattern matching my side seams was near impossible and pattern matching my raglan seams was also going to be difficult. If I am honest here I decided it wasn't worth it, in order to get any sort of match I would have had to completely throw off the one way stretch of the knit and I just wasn't willing to do that and compromise on fit and drape. So no pattern matching for me, but you know what, I think I am ok with it, because in the end, this sweatshirt is all kinds of crazy. 

First photograph please.....

You can barely see the metallic gold here, and I feel I need to justify my fabric buying boo boo, so here is the GOLD......

I had a couple of problems with the neckline on this sweatshirt, I cut the band to a size 12 even though I had graded the neck to a 10. I hoped that the extra length would stop the fabric over stretching and making the neckband too thin, but I think next time I will go up even another size to a 14 neckband so it comes out a little thicker. I know this is mainly a problem when using the same fabric for the neckband as the body of your sweatshirt, when I did a little research other people seamed to have had similar experiences. 

Ooh look at those non pattern matched raglan sleeves ha ha... Shocker!! 

One slightly unusual choice for me on this sweatshirt was that I have decided to keep the hem raw, now I may live to regret this (or not regret it but just put it under my cover stitcher and hem it) but that is my choice for now and I kinda like it! I think that this fabric has a wonderful drape and just lends itself well to being left raw, but we will see. 

 

 

This is pretty much how I hoped to wear this sweatshirt with a shirt underneath, nothing too fancy.

 

Today however Is the hottest day yet and after snapping these pictures the weather was warm enough to warrant shorts and t-shirts.... should you so wish!

 

Thanks for stopping by guys, I will be back soon with more details of my pledge for Me Made May.

 

~HJF~

 

 

 

 

Sea Change Top - Pattern Testing for Lily Sage and Co

Hi all,

I am back today with a lovely bit of pattern testing. I started following Debbie of Lily Sage and Co over on Instagram a while ago, and was so inspired by her fashion an her sewing skills, her style is just fabulous. So, when she posted her new Sea Change top and shouted out that she needed pattern testers I thought I would try my luck.

I was aware that Lily Sage and Co are very popular so I wasn't sure I would be in with a chance but I think being at the larger end of the size spectrum meant I got a shot at testing. I have never tested a pattern for anyone before so I have to say it was quite exciting for me, and it felt really nice to be a part of someone else's creative journey instead of just my own, and hopefully I was able to give some constructive feedback too.

 

Ok so here we go, the Sea Change pattern is a cropped shape top with loose kimono style sleeves. It is super easy to assemble with only minimal pattern pieces to achieve what I think is a really nice clean finish .

 

 

 

Above you can see the kimono sleeve details, there is so much scope with this pattern. It is styled to be a slightly cropped fit, and I made it this way for the pattern test and think it looks great. For me personally next time around I will be adding just a little more length to make it a bit more flattering to my larger figure.

 

 

I made this top in some navy and off white georgette that I had in my stash, it has lovely drape to the fabric so I thought it would be perfect for this (nautical stripes....again!!). This pattern states it works for jersey fabrics too and I can definitely see that being a bit hit, a bamboo jersey with just the right amount of drape would be perfect for this top.

 

 

 I am seeing potential for a really great dress hack here too, add elastic into the waistband and an A-line skirt and it would be great wardrobe staple!

 

All in all I am super happy with this make and will be making more once the official pattern comes out. If you are looking for a new top/blouse pattern for the summer (or the winter, think of the layering options!!!!!) this really is a winner. Great work Debbie!

 

That's all for now,

 

~HJF~

 

 

 

 

Shirt refashion with a Grainline Studio Alder Shirtdress

Hello there,

Today on the blog I wanted to share with you a really quick make I made this afternoon. 

I was feeling the need to get in a little bit of sewing, but nothing too mega, (I have a 'mega' sewing list full of, you know, nice projects, that take you at least a day to fully commit to starting) ,but they all require more brain power than I had today, so I opted for something a little more simple. I had the idea of a shirt refashion in my head for a while, but I wasn't quite sure where I was going with it. 

I bought a lovely Jaeger shirt a couple of years back, smart casual, white with dainty blue stripes in a deliciously soft cotton, just my sort of thing.....  I should just stop you now and say I bought it second hand... I am not the lady who can afford to shop at Jaeger for a regular old shirt, nope, not me. So I bought the shirt loved it until I realised it was a cuff links shirt, I mean I get that cuff links are cool, but I am not able to pull off that sort of style so it went in the sewing pile, destined to be refashioned. The shirt was like new when I bought it and there was no way I was going to waste the fabric right? It was only when a piece of my lovely blue cotton chambray fell on top of my shirt did I realise they were a perfect match and had to be partners in a shirt hack up crime. 

So here it is my Jaeger/ Alder shirtdress shirt refashion. 

I used my favourite and go to shirt pattern which is the Alder Shirtdress pattern by Grainline Studio. ( Which by the way is a totally awesome pattern, if you haven't already checked it out... run, don't walk!!!!!) This pattern fits me really well so I figured it was a good place to start. I altered the length and made it shirt length rather than dress length and started to make my changes to the neck. 

I am so pleased with how this has worked out and I can see me making more of these if I come across anymore abandoned shirts in mine or Mr. F's wardrobe! 

I tried my new blouse on and instantly felt summery. So I am hoping it will get plenty of use now, with a sweater and later when (fingers crossed) we get some sunshine. 

That's all from me at the moment, this shirt was a lot of fun to make, and I definitely got my quick sewing fix that I needed for the day, plus I feel good for reusing my old shirt and stash busting my chambray. 

If you would like to know anymore about the process of my refashion, don't hesitate to ask. 

~HJF~ 

Ahoy there, it's another dungaree dress!

Hi guys,

I am back this week with another dungaree dress, first I feel there is a little bit of back story needed so let me tell you...

When I was younger, say in my mid/late teens I loved anything nautical, for example I loved anchors, anything with anchors on it I had to have it. I also loved anything with sailboats, stripes and the colour scheme navy, red and white. I thought I would grow out of all things nautical, but I guess, I didn't. 

Ok, ok, so now I don't have a need to be covered in anchors but I still love me some nautical pieces in my wardrobe. 

Onto my latest make, which I am hoping will be a well worn addition to my wardrobe. 

A navy twill dungaree dress with burgundy accent stitching and an embroidered anchor. 

(Ok, so maybe I just had to sneak a little anchor in there!)

I originally planned to just use a navy cotton for the stitching but my mum suggested some burgundy to liven things up and I am so glad she did.

I used some snazzy bronze buttons for this which I just love with the burgundy, I had bought some traditional style jean buttons but somehow they just didn't seam right for this, too heavy. What do you think?

This fabric was also a bit of a stash buster, it has been in my cupboards for a while and I am so happy I made use of it with this dungaree dress. 

This fabric is a cotton and acrylic twill mix in a traditional navy. I love it, but it does seem to however attract fluff at every move, I am hoping that with washing that will disappear. 

I used a pattern I made from a favourite RTW dungaree dress a couple of weeks ago. You can read more about it here. I love this version so much, It is so much more wearable than the floral version I made a couple of weeks ago and I can see myself making this a few more times over in more lightweight fabrics for the summer. I already have a chambray in my sights.

Do you have a favourite pattern that you make over and over? 

If so I would love to hear about it...

~HJF~ 

Dotty swing vest - #selfishsewingweek

Hey guys,

 I am back again with another selfish sewing week post....

Garment number 5! I (I actually had to check that then... I had lost count!!!) 

Today is another quick sew with my swing vest top pattern. I created this pattern using the same pattern as for my mums Tokyo Train Ride Tank Top pattern, but I did an FBA to get the fit better for me.

I do believe I did it slightly wrong..... Well, I think I did it right, I just put way too much fullness across the front. I could have fit another of me in there too! 

I wanted to salvage the vest top, so I cut out the excess down the front and added in a faux button placket. (Now I know this isn't strictly the right thing to do, and it has made the dots across the front look a little awkward but there was sooooo much fullness across the front I didn't have any other option)

I cut the fullness out of the centre front, then stitched my button placket over the top. Although it looks wonky in this shot, it is straight!! I had problems with the gale blowing outside again... I guess that's what you get for living on the top of a hill. 

Thanks for stopping by to see my selfish sewing this week, I still have two garments that I would really like to have completed by Sunday night...but I am not convinced I will manage it. 

More on those to come, and hopefully a full round up of all my makes this week.

~HJF~ 

Mr. Mustard Tilly and the Buttons Francoise!

Garment number four in selfish sewing week is my Tilly and the Buttons Francoise dress.

I recently went on a little trip to wales to the huge fabric shop Abakhan. We have a smaller branch here in Bolton, but NOTHING on the the scale of the Mostyn shop. It has everything!!

So I had a good rummage in the printed viscose section and found this lovely vintage style mustard rose print. Now, I must explain, I am not very adventurous with colours, I like black, navy, grey and in the summer if you are lucky I will thow in the occasional colourful print. I just don't do colour, it doesn't suit me, so I stick to the darker tones. 

So in a vow to add a little more colour to my summer wardrobe I chose this mustard print.... Man how it doesn't suit me!! I am altogether way too pale to pull this number off. 

Anyway, getting back to the point. I made this dress up straight from the packet, and I am pretty happy with the fit, although the neckline/shoulders are too wide on me, but this is something I hope the rectify next time around. 

Pleas excuse the slightly dodgy photograph, it was blowing a gale outside and so I had problems with my dress blowing away... See below! 

I really like this dress pattern and the fit around my bust and hips is pretty flattering, all things considered. As I mentioned before the neckline is too large for me and needs some work, but hopefully nothing I can't rectify. 

As I said this colour really isn't working for me, and I am kind of gutted about that because this fabric is soo lovely and would be wonderful in the summer. Who knows maybe with a tan it won't look as bad?!

I will definitely be making this again, with alterations. I really like how different it looks to the sample image on the packet. I have used a completely different fabric to the ones recommended and it gives a totally different shape to the 60's versions Tilly has made. 

That's all from me for tonight, more selfish sewing week updates to come!! 

~HJF~