The Lane Raglan Zaaberry Style

A few weeks back, Adrianna of Crafterhours released her first pattern for women, The Lane Raglan.  I've been a huge Crafterhours fan for years and even got the opportunity to pattern test when The Greenpoint Cardigan pattern was in the making.  

So, when on the day of the pattern release Adrianna said that 100% of the proceeds that day would go to charity, I absolutely couldn't say no.  

This yellow version was the first one I made, and in typical fashion, I put my own twist on the pattern.

 I wanted a shirt that was a little more tunic-like and made an asymmetrical hem.  The fabric is a heavyish weight knit. It's super comfortable, but the fabric isn't my favorite.  You can't see it so well in the picture, but the face of the fabric is kind of fuzzy and not so great looking.

 I do like the way it looks from the back.  Guess I'll just have to walk around backwards.

My next Lane Raglan I did a pattern mix-up and used the Lane for the top of a Lady Skater.  If you're a frequent Zaaberry reader, you know how much I LOVE the Lady Skater Dress Pattern.

This version is nice, comfy, and very wearable.  I think I shortened the bodice a bit, and didn't use the elastic at the bottom.  The fabric is heavy enough that it didn't need it.  And though it does help stabilize the seam, I found that it's kind of pokey on the my other dresses.  So I was glad I didn't need it this time around.

I'm going to need to learn about a swayback adjustment.  The back puckers on all my dresses...

Any good tips?

Sweater Knit Lady Skater

I'm finally getting around to sharing another dress made with my favorite pattern, the Lady Skater Dress.  This is my, wow, fifth dress from this pattern.  My others are here and here and here.

I wanted a comfy, sweatery (I made up a new word), warm, dress to wear in the winter.  This dress really fit the bill.  The fabric is a sweater knit from Joanns.  I made the skirt even less full than in my previous versions  and I'm happy with the result.  I had a little trouble in the back this time around.  It's a little looser than I intended, though I'm not sure why.  I still love it and wear it a lot. 

It's been a bit warmer here than is typical and is making me think about Spring.  So I started working on a new dress that's a little outside the box for me.  It's a commercial pattern and it's a woven!

 

 Hopefully I'll have dress to share soon!

Boatneck Lady Skater and French Cuff TUTORIAL

Well, I couldn't restrain myself.  I had to make another Lady Skater Dress.  I've worn my previous, ahem, 3 dresses quite a bit.  I've had my eye on this dress, but the fit isn't the most flattering on me.

I happened to find almost the exact same color ponte knit at Joanns, so why not another Lady Skater?

This time I made a boatneck.  In a nutshell, here's what I did for the neck.   

 I brought the scoop neck up and widened it, making it dip a little bit lower in the front.  Before sewing the shoulder seams, I applied some Steam-A-Seam Lite to neck.  I turned the neck to wrong side, sewed the shoulder seams, then top-stitched all the way around.

Okay, now for the fun French Cuff. Measure the circumference of the sleeve you want to add the cuff to.  Cut a shape like below using the circumference and your desired cuff length being sure to add your seam allowance (SA).  My cuff length was about 4 inches.

Apply a lightweight interfacing to the wrong side of half the cuff.  With right sides together, fold the cuff in half and sew the sides.

 Turn the cuff to the right side and press.

 This step is really important, so follow along carefully.  Turn your dress sleeve inside out.  Fold your cuff in half, matching the angled side. Align the fold of the cuff to the seam of the sleeve.

Pin the cuff to the wrong side of the sleeve, all the way around, so the angled sides end up directly opposite of the sleeve seam.

 Sew the cuff to the sleeve.

 Turn your sleeve to the right side.

 Fold the cuff back, press and add a cute button.

 Hope this tutorial makes sense.  It's really pretty simple once you sit down and actually do it.  And, it's adds a really nice touch to a simple dress.

My Lady Skater Dress

I'm finally getting around to posting my Lady Skater dresses.  Before I talk about how much I love this pattern by Kitschy Coo, a few disclaimers. 

1.  I'm having trouble with my camera, so my photos are grainy.  I'm trying to balance taking large photos so I can edit and space on my computer.  So far, it's a loosing battle.

2.  on this particular day, my son has had a stomach bug for 1 week+, we've been to the pediatrician for what they thought might be appendicitis, and my 7 year old daughter has thrown up all over my car

 So, my photos are grainy, my dresses are wrinkled, and I'm feeling kind of grumpy.  Now that I've set the tone, on to the dresses.

 I love, love, love this pattern.  It's super easy to sew, and though I was skeptical, it really does flatter most body types.  I perused the Flickr group before I made mine to see what other had done and was really impressed.

 I was also really inspired by the dresses Delia and Sophie made.

 The orange dress above is a medium weight, cotton Lycra blend that has a really nice weight and drape (similar fabric).  The contrast band at the bottom is a charcoal ponte knit.

 For my second Lady Skater I wanted something more neutral that I could pair with a colorful scarf and boots.

 So I used the same charcoal ponte knit from the band on the orange dress.  The problem is, the ponte has much less stretch. 

 It looks okay on, but it's a bit tough getting on and off.  I still love it and will definitely wear it. Next time I'll be a little more aware of the stretch.  The pattern has great guidelines for choosing fabric and how to test the stretch.  So I definitely I don't have a good excuse

 Lastly, here's my super ugly muslin.  I was really glad I did a muslin because for my body, I definitely needed to make some adjustments.

I cut a size 4 initially, but ended up blending the upper body to more of a size 1 or 2.  I also cut the armscye in a bit based on my own t-shirt pattern and made the neck a little wider.

I think I've got at least one or two more of these in me.  

How many dresses is too many?  

My closet is becoming dangerously full.

Polka Dot Peplum

I've been seeing cute peplum tops everywhere lately. After seeing this post at Kitschy Coo, I thought it would be fun to try and make my own.

I used my own shirt pattern and followed her instructions to make the peplum.  I really like the result.  I paired it with a navy maxi skirt I made and a belt.  You may have noticed I've been having fun playing with my photos in picmonkey as well. 

I really like the side silhouette, though this photo makes me look much more curvy than I actually am.

The back isn't perfect, but that's okay.  I'm sure I'll be making more.

 My next adventure is trying Kitschy Coo's Lady Skater pattern.

So far I've got the pattern pieced together and cut out.  I had it printed at a local copy shop, which was really worth it.  For $3, they printed it all on a heavier weight paper.  As I was putting it all together my son was all excited that I was "doing a puzzle".  All put together, the pattern is larger than a tall 5 year old!  Definitely requires some space!

I'm excited to show you my Lady Skaters.  I have a feeling I'm going to love this pattern.