Rule change - Ivy made me do it, honest

What a week. I've been out of action for most of it due to a bad back - I've never had back problems before, and I never ever want them again, the pain was terrible. I have absolutely no idea what caused it, but am extremely pleased that it's on its way out - its still a bit achey, like when you've been doing a load of gardening or something, but nothing like what it was so that's good enough for me. Unfortunately it's kept me away from my sewing machine - I intended to blog about my Ivys before now, but I've literally only just finished the second one so its had to wait.

Anyway, before the Ivys let me fill you in on my rule change. Rewind back to when I started my stash busting challenge at the beginning of the month. The main rule is obviously do not buy any fabric until all the fabric in my stash has been used up, this is the main objective of the challenge. I also said that I wouldn't buy any patterns and would only use what I already have or free downloads. Literally as soon as I said that, the Ivy Pinafore pattern was released. 

I love pinafore dresses, but hadn't found a pattern that I really wanted to sew. When this pattern was released, I knew I had at least 2 fabrics in my stash that would make perfect Ivys. So, I deliberated over it for a couple of seconds and decided (a) to drop the rule around not buying patterns - if I have fabric in my stash that is perfect for a pattern then I would be stupid not to get it, if I didn't buy it and used a pattern that wasn't as suited to the fabric then what is the point in that? The fabric needs to be made into the best it possibly can, right?, (b) not entirely sure anyone is actually reading my blog anyway, and if they are chances are they probably agree with me, and (c) I make the rules!

So, Ivy #1

This Ivy is made from some burgundy cotton drill I have had in my stash for yonks. I don't even know what I bought it for to be honest, and its been on my list of "aaaarrrgh! WTF am I going to make from this?!!" fabrics. Also lurking in my stash I found some white fabric with a paisley print (I KNOW, WHAT WAS I THINKING!!). I don't even know what this fabric is but its very similar to traditional satin lining fabric, so lining for my Ivy it became.

I absolutely love this dress. You know when you're sewing a project and you get that "this is gonna be a good one" feeling? Every time I worked on this, I knew it was going to turn out well. Its such a great pattern. I have made a Jennifer Lauren pattern before (I have the Bronte top pattern in my stash), so I knew the instructions were going to be nice and clear and that the fit was going to be good. 

I'm so pleased how well these fabrics work together, it's like they were made for each other. Such a bonus, as in the beginning I had no idea what I was going to do with them. Check out my pockets! I love the buttons too.

Once I'd stopped dancing around celebrating my pinafore sewing success, I decided to go for it again and make a second Ivy. The first version will be for wearing to work, so the second one needed to be more casual. I had 2m of denim in my stash so would be rude not to, right?

OMG I LOVE THIS DRESS!! I've wanted a denim pinafore for yonks. I bought one from Top Shop last year but have always been a bit meh about it and never actually worn it. This one however will be getting lots of wear. I bought the denim last year when I decided I was going to make jeans. Then I got all scared about making jeans and so the denim was banished to the stash until I decided what was to become of it.

I had some brown floral print cotton in my stash which I thought worked well with the dark blue denim, so decided to use this for the lining. I also decided to attempt top stitching in a contrasting thread. I knew this would be a challenge as my top stitching skills aren't brilliant but I'm so glad I decided to do it, I think it looks great (there may be a few slight wobbles here and there, but you probably wouldn't notice unless I pointed it out). I also did buttonholes on this version - no buttonholes on Ivy#1, its an over your head job.

No idea why I look like I've had a few vodkas in this photo!

So yes, I have changed the rules slightly but what the heck - I've already used the pattern twice and have some navy blue cotton drill in my stash which could possibly become Ivy #3. And, out of the two pattern options I have only used one so far, so you may even see Ivy #4. Its quite possible you might have to read about more Ivys in the future - sorry not sorry about this.

Turtle Power!

After a disappointing start to my challenge, I am very pleased to report that I have not one, but two successfully completed makes.

 

Included in my fabric total are several jersey offcuts from the rag market, all averaging around 1.5m each so a decent enough size to make a top from. Some are cut into rather strange shapes though, so clever pinning out skills are required. This time around I chose a white ribbed jersey with black stripes, and a bottle green with black stripes. The jersey isn’t too thick, just warm enough to keep the autumn chills out so perfect for this time of year, and ideal for me for the winter months too – it’s like a sauna in our office during winter, so good layering pieces are always welcome.

 

Papercut patterns Rise and Fall Turtlenecks were my patterns of choice. I purchased these patterns last year and made a lovely grey Fall turtleneck which saw me nicely through the colder months (and I knew that the fit was good so wouldn’t be disappointed, unlike my first project!)

 

 

 

I tackled Fall first, using the white and black fabric.

 

 

 

I love this! I only finished it last week but it’s been worn to work already. The fit is perfect for me, so comfy and easy to wear. It’s such a quick and easy sew too – I am probably the slowest sewer in the world, but easily got this done in an evening.

 

 

Originally I only intended to make the Fall turtleneck, but after it turned out so well I thought it would be rude not to make a second one. This time I opted for the Rise version.

 

 

This pattern is more fitted than the Fall version, and I think it's probably my favourite. Its fitted but still nice and comfy to wear.

 

 

So, I am now the proud owner of two lovely turtles! Both perfectly fitting, super quick and easy make. I actually didn’t start sewing the Rise until around 10pm on Friday evening, but still got it done before bed AND had time to read my book, BOOM!

 

 

 

First project completed - not the best of starts though :(

For the first project in my little challenge, I picked out some red and white viscose that's been hanging around in my stash for a couple of years. I had a rummage through the pattern box and found this Keyhole Blouse pattern by Simple Sew. Thought it might end up being a top for work? Hmmmm...

I started by sewing the pleats in the front bodice section. I struggled with this a little bit to be fair - I couldn't work out from the instructions which way the pleats were supposed to go, as the diagrams weren't exactly clear, with one showing a totally different way to the other. So, I did what I thought looked best and plodded on. Once I'd finished sewing the pleats it looked ok, all was well.

As I worked my way through the pattern I did think that the instructions were a bit minimal. I'm sure that a beginner would have struggled with the lack of direction. The worst was when I got to the neckline.

I was quite surprised that there was no facing for the V neckline, so went ahead and added one in anyway. I didn't think the neckline would sit very nice without it, especially as the fabric I was using was pretty drapey. I was also a tad worried that the V would show a little more cleavage than I would like, and a quick try on confirmed my suspicions. I had a feeling this may have been the case when I was pinning the pattern out, as the V looked huge!

In an effort to try and salvage the top, I sewed the point of the V up a couple of centimetres. Then it was onto the bias binding to be attached to the entire neckline. I hoped this would hold the V together a little more too.

The instructions for the bias binding neckline were terrible! Basically it just said to sew to the neckline making sure you enclose all raw edges - no mention of trimming the seam allowance or clipping the curves at all! As mentioned I had hoped that this final stage might pull the V together a little but alas, the top still has a "porn neckline" (my Gary's words!) hence the finished article being modelled by Dolly and not me.

So, first project completed but unfortunately unwearable. It's going in the charity bag (along with the other couple of Simple Sew patterns I found in my stash) in the hope that it will fit someone else without their boobs trying to escape through the keyhole. It's a proper shame that my first pattern wasn't successful, but at least its finished so not a total disaster. And its taken 2m off my fabric stash total! Next project is cut out ready to go - onwards and upwards eh!

Project Stashbust is a GO GO

I haven't sewn anything properly for ages. It's been a really busy summer, feels like I've hardly been at home. We seemed to have lots of visitors in August too, and as my sewing room doubles up as the guest bedroom, everything got packed away for a month and I got a crack on with my knitting instead. Proper lost my sewing mojo I did, and at one stage I felt like it was gone for good.

We got back from holiday last week and after the joy of unpacking and sorting out the holiday washing, I had a few hours to myself. So, I put my sewing room back together and had a nosey through the stash. I really have got loads of fabric, far too much. Some of it I've had for yonks. I've spent this week going through it all and doing a stocktake. And not just of the fabric - I've done a mini stocktake of the patterns too. Turns out as well as buying fabric that I never use, I do the same with patterns. Surprise surprise!

The results are in - 69.5m of fabric, a selection of pdf patterns (a list of these is on the blog, will add the links soon), a box of printed patterns (can't be arsed to list all these, you'll have to made do with a photo), several sewing books, a pile of sewing magazines complete with free patterns and several Burda magazines. I should be able to put all this to good use without having to actually buy more fabric or patterns, right? That's the challenge I've set myself.

There are a couple of exceptions to these rules:

• Buying stuff - although I won't be buying fabric or patterns, I will be allowed to buy thread, zips, buttons, interfacing etc.
• Patterns - free downloads are allowed to be added to the stash!

How long is it going to take to use up all the stash? I have absolutely no idea. I'm not putting a deadline on it, because if I do its bound to go to ratshit. Plus, stuff just gets in the way and takes priority some times - my job often means I have to work late, family commitments (my Mom is in a nursing home and my Dad lives alone so I like to spend as much time as I can with them), general day to day life schizz, and to be honest sometimes I just want to sit in front of the TV with my knitting. Ooh and I have a husband and friends too, I quite like spending time with them So when its finished, its finished. Until its all gone though, absolutely no fabric shopping.

I think I'm pretty much ready to start now, everything has been counted and documented (worra geek). I have come across some proper "WTF did I buy that for??!" fabric whilst getting ready for this, some of it I have absolutely no idea what I'm going to do with it, so that's going to make things interesting. I may need some help with pattern suggestions!