Me Made May, week 2

Well hello again.
This week of Me-Made-May included the following, a lot of which is unblogged!  Posts of those unblogged items will follow once I have gotten some suitable pictures.

Thurlow Jeans
Many of the same things from last week
New Mabel miniskirt x 2 (I wore both of them, a lot)
Ondee top
Persephone pants
Briar in yellow (unblogged and likely to remain that way.  I have nothing new to say about this top)
Cocoon cardigan
silk Penny top
mystery swimsuit no. 2

I am happily at work in my pants-binge.  I have to say that the amazing new pants patterns coming out are overwhelming me with the quality of their instructions, the quality of my results, and I'm really excited to see the final 2 pairs (of 4 planned) as they become real,wearable things!  I've avoided making pants for awhile because I have so many awesome pants from op-shops/consignment shops that I don't really NEED to make pants.  But a girl can only make so many tshirts before she has to expand the me-made wardrobe a bit...

Me Made May 2018 - week 1

I decided sort of lackadaisically to participate in Me Made May.  I'm working nights, living in limbo and it means I commit to anything these days rather hesitantly.  Even wearing things I make.  Which I do anyway.

Because I don't change clothes on a normal schedule (nights! and surfing!) I'm not bothering to take photos of me in the clothes.  I have put in a modicum of effort to make sure I'm wearing something me made almost all the time, though - I think I didn't sleep in me-mades this week but sure, I can fix that for the next few weeks.  Conveniently enough I'm about to make even more loungepants!

This also forced me to finally learn how to make photo collages.  I'm so behind on the concept that there is an app for everything.

Week one included the following items:

Many tshirts: Briar and 2 Renfrews - the red one is upcycled
Mission maxi upcycled tank.
Mystery swimsuit, pattern tester.
Hampshire pants
Calyer pants.
New Jalie cardigan, soon-to-be blogged

I'm perfectly aware that my wardrobe in New Zealand ends up always falling back on comfortable, easy wearing but not necessarily flattering basics.  I am repeatedly surprised how much wear these Hampshire pants have gotten but they are the perfect post-surf pants for fall and winter, which means I wear them regularly once the weather is too cold for capri length pants.  

Megan Nielsen Briar tee x 2

I'm pretty sure the Briar is my overall favourite tshirt.  The Renfrew and the Briar are in a tie, at least.

These Briars are both a size XS using my modified pattern.  It is lengthened 3" from the short length and I generally spontaneously smooth out the front curve, and then try it on and shorten the back curve so it's not as dramatic as the original pattern.

The first, stripes, is a pretty stable tshirt knit from Spotlight.  I made no efforts to pattern match.  Well, ok, I made about 15 seconds of effort, trying to line up the navy stripes at the shoulders and top of the sleeve, and you can see these minimal efforts means my stripes are only a little bit off.  I didn't even try for the pocket (which may be stupid since it doesn't take much effort to match up a pocket, but anyway.  Sweatshop was happening.  Now it bothers me when I look at it so I suppose I will at least match pocket stripes in future.)

The second is a tissue knit from The Fabric Store in Auckland.  It is the absolute last of my tshirt haul and it was the worst to sew because of being a tissue knit.  This stuff rolls up the minute you cut it and it found lots of ways to roll or wrinkle or fold itself up into a little ball right when I wasn't paying attention.  I left the hems bare, and I did the special Briar neck band.  I think I was planning to reverse and do the special binding on the stripes, but I mixed up my pattern pieces and so it ended up like this.

I love the special neckband but it's five layers of knit in one place and that means it dries really slowly.  For some people this might not be a problem but at times I've been irritated to have all of my laundry dry except the necks of my Briars.

These tops have already been into the rotation with my Renfrews, duking it out for first place in my tshirt sweatshop competition...

Megan Nielsen Briar & Thread Theory Strathcona Tee

I realised during my first Briar: I'm over Briar.  Unfortunately I had more planned!  Sewing week was entering full swing...

The first, for me, was an amazing heathered black cotton blend from The Sweet Mercerie.  I really can't recommend this shop enough.  I found it only a week prior to my sewing holiday and I fell in love with the knits.  The photos are true to reality and the prices are super low.  Shipping was fast and cheap to Germany.  I got the last piece of this black stuff, and so I didn't do the usual Briar hem - I just cut it as long as I had fabric for and then evened it out a bit.

Yup, playing on jungle gyms makes you dirty.

The one for my friend had some additional requests - she wanted a higher neck and a bit more modesty at the belly.  I also cut one for her in green interlock knit but I ran out of time and didn't get to sew it.  Next time!  Overall I just eyed these changes.  My pattern was modified thus: I traced the short Briar line + 9 cm length, in a size S, with 1cm removed from the front shoulder.  Unfortunately it took me quite awhile to realise why I didn't love the results - I looked at my blog and saw that I had cut an XS, not a S to fit.  So this cm removed was irrelevant and the fit was too loose for my liking.

 Anyway, in the XS I get pooling in the front shoulder - see my Briar 2, and removing 1cm seems to fix it. The fabric is from the market in Delft, it's a very drapey rayon.  I have more and I'm still trying to figure out exactly what it should be.

Then I made my host a shirt to thank him for letting me turn his flat into a third-world sweatshop for a week.  I used the Strathcona Henley pattern and cut a size S according to his chest measurement.  I think the pattern runs a bit small because it was really fitted, and he was in the lower part of the size range for a small.  The instructions are really vague and kind of weird.  I think they are mainly for making the Henley - if you are making a plain shirt it's assumed that you know what you're doing.  (There is a sewalong if you need help.) Also, the neck binding is shown cut along the grain instead of against it, which I didn't like.  I forgot to lengthen the sleeves, so I added some cuffs, per the pattern.

I planned a second shirt (sounds like deja vu right?) with normal sleeves and a neck binding cut with across the grain...but I cut it out and didn't have time to finish it.  Anyway my friend was super pleased with the one he got. 

Overall a solid, simple men's tshirt pattern.

Another Briar!

Sorry!  It is the last one.  I am girding myself for a most terrible project and the result is this need to do all the easy things I can first...and I am addicted to making Briars.  I am totally now a proponent of making the same pattern multiple times in a row!  I am sooo good at Briars!  not like Watson bras.

I decided on a long sleeved version of the size S, same as before: 2" lengthened, then about 1.5 tapered off the back.  I had to shorten the sleeves.  They are very long.  The viscose here is very thin and light so this is quite an airy tshirt.  I wanted to put the pocket on it but I lost the rounded pocket somewhere!!  I looked everywhere for it!  No luck tonight, no pocket.

That's the end of my Copenhagen viscose supply so for now I can promise no more Briars - lots of dresses coming up! 

Briar Briar Briar by Megan Nielsen

I realised that I was absolutely craving a loose cool feeling tshirt.  This culminated in buying the pattern on Thursday literally as I was running out the door for the bus that was taking me away towards Copenhagen.  Naturally I spent my birthday weekend in Copenhagen buying amazing viscose knits for Briars!  

Briar 1.
Green viscose from Stoff 2000 in Copenhagen.
Added 2" to the bottom all the way around. I cleverly decided on my size by reading that Lauren of Lladybird cut a size XS. So I cut a small.  The size chart would have told me otherwise! The looseness makes it kind of ok that my belly shows, but I will definitely lengthen. This was totally a great start and I love the neck binding, however was surprised how heavy and dense it is.  This is serious binding!  I ended up shaving about 1.5" off the center back bottom, tapering to nothing at the sides.

My friend Meike took these nice pictures in Zurich, that's why there are so many.

Note on the label: So my friend Martin gave me some of his grandmother's sewing supplies when she recently passed away. I got her button collection and a bag of dusty thread...and this one label from Martin's grandfather was among the thread.  I adore it and I am trying to track down more!  I have been wishing for cool labels but none magically appeared until now : )

Briar 2.
Grey-purple viscose from Skipper Stoffer in Copenhagen. By Marni.
Size XS. I added now 3" to the front. I shortened the back by the amount I had shaved off version 1.  I forgot to add those 3" to the side back and got this cool feature...

So I made a creative hem. I am not too happy with it but cutting it straight across would involve yet more work.  Also, the neck binding seemed too short.  I got all those wrinkles along the neck.  This is all because I was sewing this in a rush while I had a guest and I wasn't paying close attention - the snips don't go at the side seam, they match up snips along the neckline - so my back neck is too loose and my front neck is too tight.  I was very disappointed by this version.  Felt like I made a bunch of changes that obviously, in retrospect, wouldn't work.  Then I wore it to show off at work and everyone loved it.  Really??  I admit I love the fabric.  But I am also irritated by the fit at the shoulder.  I revisited my changes.  And wished I had bought more of this fabric.

Briar 3.
Dark teal shiny viscose, also from Skipper Stoffer in Copenhagen.  By Prada.  This is the stuff that doesn't have that cottony feel but is cool and heavy against the skin.

I corrected the sides on my XS pattern pieces but I really didn't want to mess this up so I traced another version, just lengthened the entire pattern, this time 4 inches, figuring it is easier to cut off when it's on me, than to have cut too much too early.  I also shortened the front of the armhole, what would be raising the shoulder on a dress - but only the front, by 1cm.  The back, in purple, sits fine but the front has pooling fabric at the armhole. Similar, actually, to the effect I get in *all wovens*. Ugh, armscye problems, I will never conquer you.

This fabric was not too fun to work with - very slippery, and my machine and the IDT are absolutely not wonderful with knits.  The theme of my Briar obsession has been Ohhhh if I had a thingy-machine with those four needles I would be getting such better results...if only I could pick a country and live there so I could justify more machines for my obsessive hobby.  Instead, I am gearing up to sell my Pfaff prior to my departure.  It would otherwise live in someone's attic for over a year and I don't have enough friends with attics.

But I paid so much detailed attention to this shirt and it absolutely shows.  This is the platonic ideal of a Briar!  It took three tries, and I have arrived.  I am happy.  I cut about 2" off the back tapering toward the front (I tapered through the side seam a bit).  I even pulled out some labels that I bought in Paris.  Adding a label to something makes it seem downright professional!  I wish I had more cool labels.

Taking a (short) break from Briars now : )