Saturday!

 I used to love-love-love Saturdays!  For the 40something years of raising a family and working full time I loved it that for one day I didn't have to leap out of bed, drag other butts out too, get kids off to wherever or get in my car and head for rush hour traffic.

But Saturday was sewing day.  A whole day of no job-related work, especially after the kids grew up and left the house.

So now that I'm retired from all of my paying jobs, it's just another 'not Sunday' day... kind of a bummer!  I wake up when I'm done sleeping (usually around 7 a.m.) and sometimes I stay in bed and read for a while.  Sometimes I get up and get dressed right away, and make the bed and toss a load into the washing machine and come downstairs to make a cup of tea.

Since March of 2020 I've spent a lot of time in my sewing room.  I've organized the bins and shelves, books and magazines.  There were a couple of quilts that I finished, two of which are at the long armer right now.  Two more are waiting for me to find backs for them so they also can be long-arm quilted.  One is in pieces in a project bin, and several are waiting for me to cut the pieces of fabric.

THEN I got into a garment sewing kick... well, after handling all of the non-quilting fabric I own, it seemed almost criminal not to sew something useful with the yardage.

In the stash are a number of well designed patterns for tops.  One is Vogue 1733, and while I did find many fabrics that were appropriate, none of the cuts I would have chosen were large enough for the asymmetrical hem unless they were pieced.  It's a Marcy Tilton design.  Wow, I'd forgotten I had actually met some of the Vogue designers when I was a member of American Sewing Guild!  It's like going home.

Sooooo -- fabric shopping happened.  I've always been attracted to stripes, and stripe with flowers strewn on them are a bonus.  So top number one happened.

Here's me in the closet mirror trying to capture the whole top!  Actually at my height I could have trimmed off a few inches at the hem.  I guess that's why they put those 'lengthen-shorten' lines on the pattern.  😉😉  This one turned out so well, I made a second one with a red cotton knit, but the hem is a rounded shirt tail style.  I also made two with woven fabrics, and found that I had to size up on those because when I sit down, the midriff area feels a little snug.  

Next I tried a Sewing Workshop pattern.  They're designed by Linda Lee.  She names all of her patterns, as a lot of independent designers do... after friends maybe?  Some a puns.  There are a few with numbers.  I digress.

I tried the Eureka top.  It says 'loose fitting'.  That does not go anywhere near describing this top accurately.  It should say 'swimmingly huge' or something.

I had some rayon batik in a color that I love - turquoise with splashes of blue.  I made it in an XL because those were the body measurements in their sizing on other patterns I've used.  Big mistake!  And when I say big, I mean BIG!  

First, it's too big.  OK I can fix that.  Secondly, those bands on the sleeves are double layered, so they stood out like cardboard.  Thirdly, the fabric got stiff as I ironed it, so it had very little drape.  I made it smaller, and hopefully it will soften up when I re-wash it this week.  I didn't take a picture of me in it.  Disappointing...  but I had already cut out a second top with a different fabric.

This time I used a blue floral print, a denim-colored background with navy flowers, what they're now calling 'painterly'.  The fabric has lots of drape and a krinkly texture.  I had some navy solid that I used for the sleeves and to bind the neck edge.  That one turned out better, but I don't like the way the wide sleeve bands cut across my arms.  Maybe if I were taller?  So when I wore this one, I folded the bands up so they're only an inch wide.  I like that better.  I'll have to trim them down, though, because folded they're four layers thick.  Sorry, again, no picture.  I had cut this one in a size L.  For a woven, it's OK but it could have probably been a bit smaller.

I tried a third time in a knit.  Again I cut a size L.  I used a contrast trim on the neck edge using a variation on a bias binding.  I think it's called French trim.  This is from the web site Sewing Review:

•  "You apply the binding to the wrong side. Then fold over to the right side. (I recommend pressing at that point.) Then topstitch down on the front. Now why can't they just say that!"

• You sew the binding into a circle... divide the binding and neckline into quarters, pin or wonder tape in place, then apply, as explained above.

• The length of the binding should be about 2/3 to 3/4 the neckline circumference, plus seam allowances.  

• I first read about French Binding in High Fashion Sewing Secrets from the World's Best Designers by Claire Schaeffer, p 45 - 48.  But CS has you apply the binding to the RIGHT side first, wrap around to the back, then topstitch on the right side.  

That worked out fine, I also used Claire Schaeffer's method of sewing it on the right side and rolling it to the back.   Since I was using a knit, I used a single layer instead of folding in half.  I like the look, but I have decided that this neckline needs to be a bit deeper for me.  It's almost crew-neck style, and for my face shape it's a bit high.

No picture.  It's too big again, I don't know what size I cut, but it's drowning big.  It's back on the table for alteration.

<Sigh>  So instead of spending today (Saturday) making something new, I'll be re-doing two tops I've already made.  

Some people say this is why they quilt!

Hmmm...

Sew on!