I think you enjoyed my last year’s summarize: we’re doing it again this year?

Let’s sum up the rules ? In general, I publish my sewings as soon as they are finished. I don’t really have the perspective of their portability. This summarize over a year allows me to see the worn sewings, those that were less, failures, success … and prove to you that:

• yes, I have room to stock all my dresses, because they are not all winners
• yes, even with experience, we can still fail … and it doesn’t matter!

~~~DECEMBER 2016~~~

Long sleeved Zephyr : Half-fail. I don’t like this dress: first, its composition 100% polyester makes that I sweat a lot. And then, I find this milano too soft: it sticks my shapes and makes the dress much less flattering than desired. But now, we don’t fight against knit comfort: I wear it all the same, “secret pajama” vibes ! 😀

Nettie & Zéphyr, the new besties : Let’s take the pieces here separately.

Nettie: 100% WIN! It’s one of my basics. Even if I wear it too little for my taste: I love skirts, but definitely, I have the reflex to wear a dress in the morning. And it’s even worse in winter.
The Zéphyr skirt: Half-fail. Never worn since this post. And I realize it’s a shame. (That’s why I categorize it in half-fail: I’ve never worn it but I intend to do it one day! Conversely of fails that have not been worn and will never be.)

The Christmas Skirt : Half-Fail. Let’s call it the syndrome of the cursed skirt: you like the style, you like to sew it, you like to wear it for the pictures … but you don’t think about it afterwards. (Resolution 2018: stop putting pressure on me + wear my skirts in winter!)

~~~ JANUARY  2017~~~

Cathy dress, winter Aubépine : 100% WIN ! I wear this dress a lot, it’s a real cuddly toy. And each time I say the same thing: make a new one !

New Darling Ranges : 100% WIN ! I love this dress too, I love to wear it in spring and autumn. Naked legs and camel derbies: it’s my easy dress.

~~~MARCH  2017~~~

(No publication in February – thank you sprain)

When Wanted meets Moneta : 100% WIN ! Even if in terms of sewing it has defects, I wear it all the same. I love its color, the femininity of the bodice. And then, the comfort of the knit fabric … (Must have a hashtag right ? Like #secretpajama ? #theknitforce ? 😀 )

Luzerne : 100% WIN ! Didn’t leave me all spring, and a good part of this fall. So much so that I intend to sew a more autumnal version in 2018, because the beige doesn’t stick to my autumn-winter wardrobe.

Goji : 100% WIN ! And I write it to you with a lot of surprise, because I didn’t think I would wear it that much, and indeed, yes ! It’s super comfy: associated with a small red raspberry polo and white sneakers, I get a sportswear look but always feminine. (God, I’m talking like a women’s magazine. 😀 )

~~~APRIL 2017 ~~~

The Carrie Dress : Fail ! It’s with this dress that I understood the interest of the colorimetry. And definitely, the pastel colors don’t suit me at all. When I see it in my wardrobe, I feel like meeting a nightgown. I had to wear it 2 times following this article.

The Nissa Dress : 100% WIN ! See, coming out this picture, a huge smile appeared on my face. That’s exactly what gives me this dress: an immense joy! I love this dress, its color, its comfort, the memories associated with it. This is the dress that I have worn the most this year I think. She looks like “me”.

~~~MAY  2017~~~

The Lio Dress : Half-fail. In fact, if we see it in a “everyday use” point of view, it’s a Win because I have worn it a lot. I’m crazy about this pattern and this bright red. But if we take a “comfort” point of view, it’s a Fail, because the bodice is too short, the elasticated belt always goes up. I’m still trying to replace it, which ruins the pleasure of wearing it. Half-Fail so.

~~~JUNE 2017~~~

The Amal dress : 100% WIN ! Even if I admit that I choose the days I want to wear it. The small cap sleeves give a very distinct style to the dress, it’s a detail that must be assumed.

The Katy dress : 100% WIN, and believe me, this too is a surprise! I really thought that I wouldn’t wear this faded yellow, and in fact, this dress became my 2017 vitamin dress. As soon as I felt sad, a little grumpy: PAF, I took it out of the closet, and HOP, like magic, I found myself so much better. Do you think that wearing pineapples has therapeutic value? 😀

~~~JULY 2017~~~

Straps Zéphyr : Half-fail. Retrospectively, I find that the horizontal stripes of the skirt weigh down my figure. So I wore it, but without much enthusiasm. I carefully keep the pattern, and search for the perfect knit to reproduce it this summer. 😉

The Juliette Dress : 100% WIN ! I liked to wear it so much … it remind me of our Italian holidays … (here we come officially at the time of the summarize where I’m going to cry all 3 sentences, based on “winter stinks ” or other “I miss my summer wardrobe so much” and the famous “anyway spring is in 70 days “)

The Donna Dress : (I just shouted “MY BEAUTY !!!”) (True story ! 😀 ) 100% WIN, of course. ❤ How I love this dress! ❤ Without doubt my favorite of this year. ❤

~~~AUGUST 2017~~~

The Catherine Dress : 100% WIN ! I have worn it a lot too, it’s so thin that it’s ideal in our scorching countries. (And that’s when I realize that really, I’m more inspired in the summer, I have more ideas, more inspiration, more desire.) (Maybe I’m a bear and I have to hibernate ???)

The Sandrine Dress : 100% WIN ! Oh yes, but no, my favorite dresses for 2017 are the Donna dress AND this one. This one, I’ll be honest with you: I still have not recovered from its comfort. Sometimes I passed it by saying to myself: “Oh yes, but poplin shirt dress with a cinched waist, zero elasticity, arf, I will feel maybe a little squeezed”. BUT NO ! I think of all my creations this year, this dress has the best fit.

~~~SEPTEMBER 2017~~~

The Diana dress : 100% WIN ! Such a Win that by the time I write to you, I’m sewing the little wintery sister. ❤

~~~OCTOBER 2017~~~

The Eve Dress : Half-fail. I have not worn it much since its realization, which is a shame. I will probably wear it more in the spring, because the crepe is thin.

The Clémence Dress : Half-fail. Difficult to evaluate this one because it is a short-sleeved dress sewn just before the fall of the temperatures. It has necessarily been little worn for now, but I think it will be in the future. I notice that I prefer small dresses to large ones. I like to feel “contained” in my clothes: in a previous life I was sure wearing corsets. 😀

~~~NOVEMBER 2017~~~

Witches Duo : 100% WIN ! Right now it’s my dress “I don’t want to think”. Not motivated? Hop, lace tights, my Miette cardi in black, beautiful jewels, a red lipstick and presto! Ready to run the world. 😉

~~~

Let’s sum this up ? 15 WIN / 7 Half-Fail / 1 FAIL. Last year, I had listed 32 sewings (14 WIN / 11 Half-Fail / 7 FAIL). This year 23. The difference is explained by the fact that a good part of the sewings of 2017 are self-drafted : it’s obviously more time consuming than using a pattern. This also explains the predominance of WIN: a dress designed for my taste and my measures will be more likely to end in WIN than FAIL, even if in the end, the record shows that no one is safe from a bad choice of fabric.

So what to retain from this summarize ? Certainly not those numbers that mean nothing. Some will say that I have great productivity: believe me, if you compare to other bloggers it’s not much. No. What must be remembered is that everyone, I say everyone, fails. For a long time, I said that sewing was easy. It’s wrong. To succeed to associate a style, a morphology, a pattern, and a fabric, it’s hard. Very difficult. But that can be learned. By dint of manipulating fabrics, by sewing them, to wear them, you will gain experience. Made summarizes : this will allow you to see the parts you wear a lot, the ones you wear little. This will allow you to target your style. Test pattern designers : they each have a style and especially a basic block. Be faithful to those who sublimate you, to those who fit you well. And don’t be afraid to fail, oh no : they are not failures, but lessons. 😉

Kind regards, and take care of you. ❤

For 5 years now, I have written many posts here. But today’s one is particularly important: for the sewing obviously, but also its symbolic. A post that will mention both my greatest failure and my greatest success … yes yes, all this in the same post.

Everything started a year ago: a piece was badly needed in my wardrobe, and this piece was a coat. A beautiful coat. It’s been 8 years since I wore a RTW coat, bought pregnant with Tom. Quite cool, but that began to grow old. I had stitched Pavot, but the combination of wool and cotton lining didn’t offer the most efficient thermal regulation. No, I needed a warm coat, and drafted by me. So it was the big project of last winter’s drafting classes.

Everything started from this coat, spotted on The Quirky Peach Instagram. Big crush for its flattering cutouts, the studied details, the general look. So I was inspired to make this sketch.

At the very beginning, I wanted it pink. I was convinced that my coupon of a pink wool bought at a Agnes B sale would be enough … but my pattern pieces, once finalized, didn’t fit. A toile of the outer coat validated my drafting job, and I didn’t want to modify it. I then began to look for a pink wool elsewhere … without success. The ones I found were often stuffed with polyester, which didn’t suit me. And it was by chance at Mr. Albert that I came across a beautiful woolen camel.

100% wool with a touch of cashmere: the price was expensive, it’s true, but I wanted this coat to be the warmest and most qualitative possible. On the advice of my teacher, I invested in a beige silk, bought at Coupons Saint Pierre. And it was with my sprain that I started the sewing, gritting my teeth on the technical details, ignoring all the signs of Fate that meant to me that I was going straight into the wall.

Many mistakes are hidden in this coat. The choice of fabric already: I wanted so much a warm coat, that I chose a woolen too thick for my pattern, which requires a fabric with more drape. In the hurry, I made a mistake in drafting my lining: result, the hem pulls and is not harmonious. And above all, especially … this camel, which I wanted to persuade me that he would offer me a chic and timeless Parisian style … and that on me makes me look sick. Failure lived up to all the energy, time and money spent on this project: huge.

It took me months to recover from this failure, which also reminded me a sad period of my life. I packed this coat in a bag, hid it for months and in september, I finally felt ready to do it again.

But this time, out of the question to repeat the same mistakes: I carefully selected several woollen fabrics, ordered samples, and brought all this wisely to my teacher, who was able to advise me on the best choice: and it’s this 100% woollen fabric from Tissus Actifs that was elected. Its composition, as well as its weave, suited my pattern. I didn’t think more than 10 seconds about the color: my last coat was red, Pavot is red, I love this color that suits me well…it will be flamboyant or will not be. And as often, when something must happen, miraculously the planets line up: I found this flowery silk at Bennytex, which combines wonderfully with my wool. It was no longer time to back down.

Believe me, I was terrified of getting myself wrong again. The pieces stayed for a while on my desk. And then, by posting my failure on Instagram,  la Jolie Girafe comments with these few words: “tell you it’s time for revenge”. They gave me the effect of an electroshock: but of course, don’t be afraid, run! Face this challenge with bravery.

I remember, for the previous opus, I wished so much for a perfect work, that the sewing was long and laborious. I was never satisfied, stitching and tirelessly undo every step. I ended up bringing to this coat an incredible negative wave charge. For this one, I wanted to privilege the pleasure of the sewing to the perfection of a detail. Too bad if my piped buttonholes are not exactly the same: I didn’t want to hate this coat without having ever worn it. And God, I did well!

It is therefore mid-long, has princess cutouts, and has several panels, which flare slightly to the hips. The fit is cinched enough on the waist, but with sufficient ease to wear thicknesses underneath.

I was convinced that to have a warm coat, you had to choose a thick woollen fabric, triple the thing with fleece … basically sew a huge thing. My teacher told me that, on the contrary, the thermal quality of a sewing lies in the choice of materials. A 100% woollen fabric will be a good insulation. The choice of the lining is also important: silk being an excellent thermal regulator, it will keep you warm in winter. And for having tested my coat on a Parisian stay last week, I confirm it!

You can see on this photo the drape of my fabric, which suits my pattern.

And because we had to put flowers somewhere …

Beyond the beauty of the pattern, silk is delicious to wear. I don’t know if a combination of fabric can look more like me!

I opted for a stand up collar, which keeps me warm in windy days …

… added buttoned tabs to the sleeves …

… and sewed a belt.

Regarding the buttonholes, I opted for bound ones, following the Deer and Doe tutorial.

The buttons, as well as the belt buckle, come from la Droguerie : I had a crush on them for my first opus, and thank God they totally adapted to my red woollen fabric.

The pockets are slash ones.

Collar, cuffs, hem values, piping and pocket flaps are stabilized with facing. The collar and the hem of the sleeves and coat are glazed (the lining and outside of the coat are held by a loose stitch, sewn by hand).

Verdict: I had a dream, it was to discover the Dior exhibition dressed in my coat. Until the night before, I was really not sure I could wear it. Nor that he would be successful. And it was in the middle of the night, cutting the last thread, ironing the hem one last time, that’s it, I knew that the revenge was taken. My coat was finished, it was handsome, it was ready, it was falling to me as I hoped. What a joy and what a relief! See: we can make a complete mess, but REALLY a complete one, and get up. Can’t we see how a seamstress is strong when she can turn the machine on again after a failure ?

I wish you a nice weekend, and take care of yourself. ❤

Change of season, new bag! And I must say that I’m particularly proud of this one.

Did you notice how we see flower embroidered bags everywhere? As a good floral addict, I wanted to have one too, and everything started with this bag.

(Crédit Photo : Amétys Cuir).

It’s an embroidered leather bag, sold by Amétys Cuir. Huge crush for this bag, but alas, I didn’t have the money to buy it. But the idea of making something inspired by this bag interested me, so I took the challenge.

But how to embroider leather without an embroidery machine? I tried to contact a local embroiderer, but he didn’t have any pattern that suited me, and creating a pattern especially for me would blow up my budget. There was no question of embroidering leather by hand (Ouch fingers!). And it was by falling on a bag with a floral patch that the idea came up: what if you did the same thing?

While digging a little on Etsy, I came across the shop Malicieuse, and this patch of cherry blossoms. I found the perfect patch! I had to spend HOURS thinking about the positioning of the patch on the flap: in whole, reduced by half? On the whole flap? To make it go from below, from above? Left, right? I made the whole family vote, took tons of photos … to finally decide on this positioning: reduced patch, and sewn from the right corner.

By buying my black leather at Varjan (28 bd des Dames, 13002 Marseille), I asked the saleswoman for advice to keep the patch on the flap. According to her, sticking it would not be enough, and would not hold in the long run. It was best to sew it. So I took my courage, and began to topstitch the entire patch.

Believe me, it was long and exhausting. Cutting my last thread, I thought to photograph the reverse side of the flap: the picture is very telling.

In general, I always choose flowery linings for my bags. For this one, I chose the sobriety of a red poplin: scraps that I had left from Juliette’s marquise costume. And I also innovated for interior finishes.

At the beginning of the year, a student asked me how to make a zipped compartment in a bag. I found myself very annoyed, not knowing how to answer her. This bag was therefore the perfect exercise to train.

And in fact, it’s very easy! Simply create a zipped case, split the bottom piece in two parts (not forgetting to add seam allowances to sew them later), and slide the “zipped case” between the two bottom pieces . This tutorial will explain all this to you much better than me. 😉

For the closing system, I chose golden magnets …

… and used a black handle that I had been given years ago.

But Heidi, my Bernina 350, as brave as she can be on the thicknesses, gave up on the very last seam: the topstitching of the top of the bag. If she was able to sew the front and back, she was blocking desperately on the sides: it must be said that the handle straps created a very large thickness, and that my lining was faced with Decovil Light. Can’t sew them by hand. And it was by asking my drafting teacher that she suggested me a great track: ask a cobbler to stitch it for me !

And it worked ! I asked the cobbler of my neighborhood (the Artisan Confiance, 30 Rue des Électriciens, 13012 Marseille): he sewed the missing points, and the recovery is undetectable! All for 5 € and with a smile: honestly I’m really happy, and from now on I won’t fight anymore with Heidi. 😉 (Thank you again Chantal if you read me! ❤)

Verdict: I love all my bags, but I admit that this one holds a special place in my heart. I find it really beautiful, and I’m super happy with the rendering of the patch on the flap. The flowers are bright, the leather is beautiful, and the zipped compartment super convenient. I am rarely fully satisfied with my sewings, but this is the case for this one. I feel like shouting to everyone in the street “HAVE YOU SEEN MY BAG ?! I MADE IT BY MYSELF !”  😀

A good weekend to all, take care of yourself! ❤

We love to celebrate Halloween: we decorate the house, prepare a large buffet, we dress up ourselves and at night, we go to the hunt for sweets. It’s a ritual I never depart from, and the children are eagerly awaiting this holiday. And this year … Juliet and I had a very special costume. 😉

I don’t know how the idea sprang up, but one day, the sudden desire: and if we dress up Juliet and I, in witches? I submit the idea to the baby girl, which is obviously ok. It was time for me to put the idea down on paper.

I wanted a costume a little glamorous, feminine: more in the mind of a Morticia Adams, than the 3 sisters of Hocus Pocus. Above all, I wanted us to reuse our dresses. And which pattern is best suited for a dress that is easily customizable, comfortable and quick to sew?

MONETAAAAAAAAAAAAAA !!!

You know me, I worship this pattern, and since the discovery of the perfect knit fabric, fabric proposed in a multitude of colors, the desire is great to sew only this pattern, in all possible colors. 😀 So I ordered 2m in black, and I took advantage of this sewing to resume my original pattern.

And yes, I must say that I use these pattern pieces for 3 years now, and that by force, these ruined parts, from a PDF taped in a not very precise way, didn’t look great. Having found a super nice printer, I took the opportunity to print my pattern in A0 format, which gives a huge sheet, where all sizes are traced (Moneta goes up to 3XL). And taking the time to trace my pieces made me realize … that I have not been sewing Moneta properly for years.

In fact, 3 years ago, when I wanted to reduce the length of my skirt, I had just cut my hem of 5cms. BIG MISTAKE ! In fact, on the pattern, a line is drawn to precisely reduce or lengthen the skirt, keeping the flare thought by the creator. By simply shortening on the hem, my skirt was less dancing than expected.

Do you see the difference ? It’s a thousand times prettier (to me) on the left: the skirt is more flared, more flattering. In fact, it’s when you think you can’t love a pattern more than Moneta sends you a new arrow of love. 😀

As usual I cut it in Small, I shortened (correctly ! 😀 ) the bodice of 1cm, and I chose the 3/4 sleeves, which in the end, are rather elbow sleeves but it suits me quite like that.

Only downside: if I compare with the sleeves of Wanted, I find them a little too large. Well, this is only a detail.

As usual too, I finished the neckline with a knit band, topstitched with a double needle. Next time I think I will try the single hem recommended by Colette : it will maybe give a less sportswear style to the dress.

Let’s skip to the baby girl dress ?

Have you noticed how difficult it is to find adjusted patterns for children? Very often, they are rather large, and for me who looked for a dress similar to Moneta, but in a kiddo version, it was quite tricky. In the end, I found something close to Peek a Boo patterns: the Gloria Party Dress.

I left on the most simple version possible, in 7 yo size. The pattern tells us to gather the skirt in a traditional way: with 2 large stitches. But personally, I like to gather my knit skirts with elastic: I find it more practical and more regular. Alas, the skirt was so wide that the elastic did not stretch enough: so I had to reduce the sides of the skirts.

You see it on this picture: the waist is far too large for my baby girl. To have a more harmonious result like on my Moneta, it would have probably been better to:

• size down on the waist
• and especially to trace a skirt: this one is a simple rectangle. A skirt shape with flared sides would give something much more successful.

The sleeves are 3/4, and the neckline is finished with a knit band, topstitched with a double needle.

Note that the baby girl doesn’t give a damn about everything I wrote just above : for her, it’s a dress, she feels good in it and that’s all that matters!

We finish with our tulle petticoats?

Note that there we are on a total hack: we found this glittering tulle, left with 2m50 under the arm … and covered ABSOLUTELY ALL THE HOUSE WITH SEQUINS FOR 15 DAYS. 😀 (My husband drove crazy. 😀 )

I simply cut 3 pieces of tulle about twice the size of our waist, on a average skirt height. (50cms for me, 35 for Juliette). I closed the 3 pieces by a simple seam, leaving open a dozen cms on the top of the skirt, to be able to put it on. I simply folded and topstitched the opening to make it cleaner.

Then I gathered the 3 rectangles together, and finished the top of the skirt with a satin belt. The skirts are closed thanks to a KAM pressure.

Being totally honest with you, these petticoats are probably the least flattering stuff I could sew. 😀 The tulle is much too stiff: the gathers are not at all flattering, and weigh down the silhouette. Well, as you can see, we don’t care! 😀

Verdict: for a one night costume, the petticoats have totally done the job, and we were really happy to be matched on this day so special for us. Juliette appreciates her dress, and thinks of a flex design to brighten it a little. And personally, while I thought hating black color, well I don’t leave mine in recent days! Some red lipstick, beautiful jewelry, beautiful lace tights, and you have a really elegant and feminine outfit. Yes, at 36, you can still discover all the possibilities of a little black dress. (Better late than never huh ! 😀 )

I wish you a beautiful weekend, and take care of yourself!