This is the Dunya jacket.

I definitely noticed the Dunya jacket when it came out. Fibremood have a lot of instagram influencers and they (when feeds still worked) overloaded my instagram feed.  Curiosity followed, and I had a look at a lot of patterns.  It wasn't enough to make me bite.  It's a different feel than other pattern companies.  You don't get the instructions when you buy the pattern.  You have to do a bunch of drama getting an account in order to access the online instructions.  I guess it's true about age, I'm getting grumpy, I want to not spend time on my computer making yet another infernal account for something I'll use once.  Just in time, instagram is so crappy I've tapered my usage way down.  A funny mental shift, to realise we once didn't think about life in terms of how it would look in a photo...and to go back to living life without documenting it.  Yet again I wondered about my blog's utility.  The act of sewing and the act of blogging about it can be very disconnected from one another, and it's easy to get behind when I'm inspired to sew a lot and not particularly keen to sit in front of the computer. 

Then I posted a lackadaisical post about the Zoey tank top and got over 2000 views (rare for me, as noted, I'm too obnoxious to have so many loyal readers and I'm definitely not influencer material.)  So I suppose for now I'll keep going.  It's reassuring to see that the few remaining blogs out there are still getting some love. 

 A friend told me this would suit my sudden desire for an oversized and cozy coat that would feel like wearing a sleeping bag.  For some reason, I was Inspired.  So much so that I actually bought fabric specifically for the pattern - expensive fabric!  I got Mind the Maker Thelma thermal quilted fabric in olive.  I got it from an Australian website but I don't recall which one.  I went specifically to The Fabric Store to pick out a lining and as invariably happens I didn't like anything.  I bought some silk.  It's pretty but, hm.  I bought the pattern and printed it and then winter got too busy!  I decided to move, I had so little time left and this kept being right on top of my queue while seeming like too much work to actually make.  I even actually bought snaps in the States for the kam snap press so I would be Ready. 

Hopeless.  It took another year to finish the move and get settled and actually buy the snap press.  I found a new lining fabric.  Still not totally convinced, it's Liberty tana lawn with feathers on it.  I just couldn't settle on anything I loved and this was good enough. 

I made size XS

I could have made S by the size chart but the instructions - which are very good - I don't recall too many specific gripes - they recommend going down if you don't want it massively oversized.  I had a moment of puzzlement looking at the pattern I had printed then realised you have options to have the seam allowance printed, or not, and you can have it included, or not.  I included the SA lines and the cut lines in my printed pattern. 

 I didn't rush this project out.  The fabric is a real pain to sew because the raw edges, once cut, leak the thermal midlayer and it's very hard to tell where the green actual fabric is.  The coat gets to be quite a LOT for my small sewing machine to manage.  

 I found to my shock that each step went very smoothly and things came together in a beautiful fashion.  I did have some drama with the corners of the hem facing at the side seams, whatever the instructions said to do was impossible, or maybe my fabric was just too much to wangle.  There is some visible stitching there where I tried to avoid leaving holes and just topstitched everything in place.  The end result is totally fine.  I didn't diverge from the pattern anywhere.  My snap press was magical.

 

 

And I love this jacket!  I wore it a lot this winter, though now it's too warm for such things.  It's completely oversized and ridiculous.  I do wish that the front hem were slightly shorter and the back hem slightly longer.  I do feel a bit silly out and about in town because there is coat everywhere around me but I trust that I actually look cooler than everyone else.  

Closet Core Plateau joggers review

 I realised that I need to be more proactive in making all the loungewear, rather than saying I have enough and then buying more when I see pretty ones in the shop.  The pocket structure on these made them interesting and I don't have any larger, cozier type sweatpants pattern, so I bought the hard copy pattern when I was in Miss Maude (in person!!).  This of course makes it a bit daunting, I ended up cutting a size 4, though I was able to leave the shorts uncut as I think my friend Tessa wants to try the pattern too.  On the size chart the size 4 says waist 26-hip 35, so now I wonder why I didn't make a size 6?  I'm waist 27-hip 37.  Maybe I was thinking about Ginger jeans?  Anyway, don't size down.  These fit, but I would have preferred the baggier fit of a size 6.  

My fabric is the Mind the Maker Cashmere Woolen Fleece knit.  It is amazing, I have it in 2 colours, it has been deep stashed.  I have matching rib for the cuffs, but used the sweatshirting itself for the waistband. 

I usually like the line drawings and instructions by Closet Core well enough.  However, it ends up that I really do not like these pockets. The instructions didn't make sense, things did not line up, and I ended up kind of making the pockets look right, and then retrofit-sewing stuff together to close up holes.  You need to do a lot of sewing with a normal machine for these pants, and considering you are using sweatshirt fabric, it's a bad match.  The sewing lines look bad, the pockets gape and look bad, and seriously wtf about that butt pocket hanging out mid thigh??  

yes!  That's where the pattern says to put this pocket.

 

I think I will ask Tessa for advice on a nice, normal, baggy and unflattering sweatpants pattern.  I don't recommend these particular pants at all because of the amount of normal machine sewing and the challenge of getting the pocket bits to match up. In the end, if you have pockets in sweatpants, there is going to be bulk because of the stuff you put in those pockets, or you can just put a binding on the front pocket edge and sew the pocket onto the front to cut down on bulk -- I don't feel like losing that layer of bulk here ended up creating a nicer looking front.

I will comment that the fabric is so comfortable that these feel ok on despite my gripes with the pattern and despite making what is likely a size too small. They would probably look a bit better if they were looser!

Merchant and Mills Box box dress, a review

I decided to make this as the final make before moving house.  It meant I didn't have a lot of bandwidth for anything complicated!  I assumed...it would be easy.  Well, mostly it is as long as you choose a fabric that doesn't shift around too much.  Also of course just before moving I found the absolute best spot for taking photos.  Of course!

Started out with the size hunt.  Sadly no blog reviews of this up anywhere so I turned to Instagram where indeed lots of advice was to hand. Seems this tends to be big, and the drop shoulder made me immediately think about future sleeveless versions.  Because of the reviews suggesting it was pretty roomy, I went with size 8.  It was not a good choice.  Being snug on the shoulders "worked" in that my shoulder is within the drop shoulder, but it's not the designed fit and it felt uncomfortable.  But I'm getting ahead of myself.  I think you are fine to go with the size chart (I would have made 10) rather than sizing down, unless you are narrow through the shoulders. 

Fabric is a beautiful piece of plaid...Mind the Maker...tencel.  It has the best drape and dry cool feel.  It is shifty.  It has vertical stripes!  Did I mention above how I wanted something easy? 

Also, this has a facing.  I really hate facings.  It's a small facing, and you can attach it down in a lot of places, but it is still rife with potential for flipping out.  

So I cut out the dress with a rather lazy grain, and pleated my pleats which just would not line up, and then corralled them down, still not straight.  (I really like the z-lines that you sew, this bit is very fun and feels like wild cowboy sewing!)  The dress was a simple sew after that and I was pleased with my choice of button.  The fit is not terrible but it is too tight across the shoulders.  To salvage the pattern I would do best at this point to turn it into a tank top dress and cut out some roomy armholes.  

 

Of course with all those mismatched front lines no way could I keep this, it went to a friend who suits that colour more and isn't nearly as picky as I.  

I think it's worth making again.  The facing is not avoidable, you need the back button to get the dress on or the neckline is too tight, and a facing is the best way of dealing with the front pleats.  But it's not too substantial and I was happy enough with it staying in place.  The way the pleats open out into the skirt is really lovely.  It feels like there's a lot of volume in the skirt but it's flattering.  I will probably skip the sleeve, and then make the dress or top and cut down the armhole til I am happy with the coverage.  No immediate plans to go there, but some food for thought.