Missing pedal, I need help!

My dear friends, the jeans projects is the victim of a house drama...

A few month ago, I did a seasonal round of tidying up. The pedal of my overlock has taken advantage of the situation to leave me forever. I had not mistreated the pedal, I was always kind to her. But I guess that the nature called and I can easily picture my late pedal enjoying the view from the top of a Pyramid, or watching a sunset in Greek islands...

This leaves me with a big problem. It is apparently very hard to purchase a serger pedal as a spare part. I need your help. Would you know of a European (let's minimize shipping costs) source for a pedal that works on a Toyota SL3314 SL1?

I will come back to the jeans as soon as I can serge the side seam bits. But no worries, I will post directly about more lovely projects in between!

The holy grail of +size jeans patterns?

Hi everyone!

How are you doing? Here, we are enjoying the climate. In my part of Europe, we had almost no winter this year (which is quite wrong) and the roses are starting to bloom in my garden! I had to work in it to clean up the dead branches etc. That means less time for sewing and for blogging! But, I still found some time to work on the Burda jeans muslin!

My first impression is very good. They feel very comfortable on and they look as I was expecting. The choice of size 50 was a good one. Please forget my cranky face and messy hair, the photos were taken way too early on a Sunday morning...

I decided however to make a couple of adjustments to make it even better. If all goes well, I would use them as a TNT pattern. I followed instructions from the wonderful "Fitting and Pattern Alteration" bible.

-          Back darts: the back waist is gaping a little bit so I widened the dart of 1cm and adjusted the waist band piece accordingly

-          Back waist band: it is a curved one, but not curved enough. I removed 1.5 cm on each side.

-          X knees (that’s how I can them J ): I pivoted the leg to compensate for it

-          Length: I removed 5 cm at the knee because they were a little bit too long

 

-          Lower stomach: I adjusted for the kangaroo pouch at the crotch. We’ll see how it works, I have never done it before

-          Calve adjustment: my calves look like they belong to a bicyclist, so I widened the back

Here is the result!

It looks like a lot of adjustments but they were all minor in dimension. I decided that I should go ahead with the fashion fabric.

This is the point I am at now: The pieces are cut and traced. I have also cleaned up my serger to serge the outside seams and other bits (pockets, zipper areas, etc) but I cannot find the foot pedal anymore :S I still need to purchase a zipper!

I have also been looking for information about jeans and sewing. I have never done any and, for some reason, I do not feel at ease starting this without pointers. So far, the sewalong from Peter has helped me a lot! I would also like to take the Craftsy Jeans course  but Mister Husband thinks the cost is too high for what it is. I guess he’s right, but the videos would help a lot.

That’s it for now and I am really looking forward to the result!

Do you have any recommendation or useful links?

The One with the Pants

Hi lovely ladies and gents!

A lot is happening on and around my sewing table. I am finishing off two Duffle Coats. I am sure you can all guess which ones.

But I would also like to start planning my next project: the trousers!

*tududuuuuuuuuh*

It is always an interesting topic for me as I have never found a pattern that works for me. Trousers are even hard to find in stores and this is due to my body proportions. I tend to accumulate volume in the lower stomach area. It makes it very hard to find flattering pants. So far, the only thing that works is jeans. This works especially if they are pretty snug.

If you google: "body shape fit trousers", you end up with the same things over and over again: what shape are you? I have never figured out which shape I was.

Am I a hourglass? With bust and hips larger than the waist? Yes, but no, the stomach area is not proportional…

Am I a pear? With hips measurements proportionally larger than the rest? Yes, but no, the width is not due to the hips and my shoulders are quite large…

Am I an apple? With a stomach proportionally larger? Yes, but no, I do have a waist and a generous bust.

Of course, it is not necessary to be classified in one of the categories, but without classification, it is quite hard to find a recommendation... When I was smaller, I was a clear hourglass. But I just tend to store the fatty cells below the navel. And this is not fun to fit on pants patterns!

I found this article quite fun and interesting. I am more related to the third shape below.

In the past, I have tried a few basic patterns but I was never happy about the overall look. The only pattern that works for me is the Juniper from Colette, but still, this is a lesser evil. The profile view is very flattering. I love the way that the waistline stays put. The hips also look very nice. The front view is ok but you can see the trouble area. It kind of looks like I have pouch with baby kangaroos. But this pattern minimises the effect. I am not sure how I feel about the legs width. I sometimes love it because it is very comfortable and feels ladylike. I sometimes hate it because I feel like I am mounted on two pipes.

On another note, I quite like this version of the Juniper. I used an old fabric from my Grandma’s stash. And of course, I had to use pink buttons!

Now! I decided that if this pattern almost works, there must be some other ones! This is also the reason why I want to experiment! To me, the safest way to go is to try a jeans pattern because I know that it usually works for me. I had been looking for one for a while and I was never satisfied until I saw the plus size version from the February edition of Burda. It is quite simple and has a nice and subtle bootleg.

I am going to draw out the pattern a size smaller than mine to make sure it is snug enough. I guess that it will pass or fail the muslin test! I will of course let you know how it went. I am very curious.

Does anyone of you have the same issue?

Do you have a “go to” pattern to recommend?

Plantain Shirt from Deer&Doe

Hi everyone !

I am still amazed by the comments I have received for my latest post on body image and + sewing. It was hard to write but that was worth the trouble ! I will get back to the subject soon but today, I will stay on a safer ground : not one but 2 finished projects and a contest entry !

Let's rewind back.

In some of the blogs I follow, the pattern company « Deer & Doe » has been mentioned a few times but I never really clicked through the link. Last month, Jamie mentioned their new and FREE pattern, the Plantain. Of course, I had to download it ! After the download, I clicked around their website and I fell in love with all their designs. They create beautiful and feminine dresses, tops etc. My husband was making fun of me because I would keep on whistling every time I checked another one of their patterns, singing aloud that I wanted it ! I was also so happy because it is actually the first time I came across a French speaking website (I am a native French speaker). And they opened up so many doors to other beautiful blogs !

As some of you may know, they are also hosting a contest on their Plantain pattern. I have used it for two projects, therefore I have no choice, I must apply ! The Plantain is a really cool Top pattern made for Jersey fabrics. It has cute details like elbow caps and also flares below the waistline. It also has a nice and rounded lower neckline. I find it very flattering and incredibly easy to assemble.

The pattern comes with very clear instructions. To be honest, this is the first time I actually sew something in jersey, meant to be in jersey. Of course, I improvised in the past on other projects, but it kinda sorta does not count, ya know. With this project, for the first time, I adjusted my stitches (my PFAFF offers « stretch » stitches). I did a first project with a nice light blue Cotton Knit, using leftover lace from other projects for the elbow caps details. It makes it feel SO precious and girly ! The knit was slightly less stretchy compared to what was advised in the instructions but it still worked great !

I am very happy with the result and I have already worn the Plantain twice ! It works great with jeans. I already know that I am going to sew a white skirt for spring to wear with it :).

Now, let's not forget that the pattern comes in smaller sizes and I had to upgrade it. But it worked out great, so, ladies in doubt : go for it ! It is super straightforward.

I was planning to only make this version of the pattern for now. But something happened on Monday evening ! I was between two projects and I wanted a « quick fix » and I thought that I could maybe make another Plantain... So why not search through my stash for another knit... And POW ! The idea came over me ! I had 3 meters of a beautiful and dark yellow « waffly » knit purchased a few years ago. I also had navy blue knit leftovers. Mmmh, but 3 meters was surely too much for a top... Why not try a Maxi Dress ! And that was it. The idea was there ! From that point on, it went extremely quick ! I just prolonged the pattern from the bottom of the top down to my legs' length and cut the fabric. It was ready within a couple of hours !

At first, I was wondering how it would fit around the waist and hips area, but it magically worked superbly ! It is fitted where it should be and flares where it should flare. I also love the contrasting navy blue. I loved it so much I also used it as binding for the neckline and the sleeves.

Here you go pretty ladies (and gentlemen). I can see a bright future filled with cute and quirky Plantains, Happily Ever After. What about you ?

Plus Size Sewing and Body Image

My sewing machine has to be repaired, my latest muslin is built and I am not happy about the photos we took for the project I want to post about. This leaves me with time to think about things that are hard to explain. I have been happily ignoring the subject of Body Image in my blog so far but I think it is an important one. It is very easy to be very positive, advocate upgrading and embrace my curves but sometimes, things are more complicated.

Sewing has completely changed me. The way I dress, the way I see my body, the way I feel about my body. Have you ever taken a body image test ? Or given it a thought ? You can have a few type of issues. My 2 issues are as follow : I am unsatisfied with my body and I sometimes feel subjectively bigger than what I am. What's awesome about sewing is that it helped me enormously on both spectrums. Look at the drawing below :

Exercise 1 : evaluate which shape corresponds to yours : #8

Exercise 2 : evaluate which shape you would like to have : #6

Exercise 3 : ask a friend to evaluate which shape you are : #8

The difference between 1 and 2 can indicate your body dissatisfaction. This changed slightly in the last few months as I have been losing weight. Before starting sewing, I would have wanted to be a #4... Sewing taught me I could look good even if I am rounder. Of course, I am still not satisfied ! I would like to be a little bit smaller to be able to sew more fitted garments and more different shapes that simply do not suit me at the moment.

The difference between 1 and 3 indicates if you have a biased body image. Before I started sewing, I would have guessed that my shape was bigger than the #9. Making my own clothing and using accurate measurements made me understand better how my body is. Knowing my body better actually helped me accepting it for the time being.

Now, I know it may feel wrong when I say that accepting my body helped me losing weight. Oddly it did ! Shall we go through the body changes and influences of sewing and acceptation ?

I have always been rounder, already as a child. I was very aware of it. At that time, my grandma was sewing my clothing. She made beautiful things and they made me feel nice and special but I always felt too big. And I grew up that way. Adding kilos steadily. Food was my safe heaven.

During my studies, I took a leap year and I lost 30 kilos. The adventures and the stressfree life being an aupair abroad made me grow wings.

Of course, after I came back and a break up, I gained all the weight back on. I also met my husband and discovered the sewing world. I tried my first projects. At that point, I was going for ideas that were more special and quirky, bringing the attention to the details of my outfits and less to my size. Upgrading was simply a mean to an end, it never was a restriction to me.

Little by little, I learned new techniques and started to like my body more. I figured out what looked good on me. Of course, I would always keep some cookiness. But at that point, I pinpointed what worked better. Most of the time things went great but I still have the odd “fail” project. Upgrading is still a huge part of my sewing habits.

At this point, I knew my body. I objectively knew that I was (still am) obese. Some projects made me feel like I had to change something. This came gradually. For exemple, I made a dress for a “pre-wedding” event. I hate all of the pictures because you can see my arms. Later in the year, I could not hike as well as others when we were on vacation. Little details adding up month after month.

After a while, I just wanted to do something and started a diet last July. I lost 13 kilos in the first 4 month and I am still plateau-ing. Christmas did not help, neither did a miscarriage. But I am still very happy with the results and I am looking forward to the coming months and how my body will change. I am very active and I am sure that I will keep on getting healthier. In my last projects, my sewing has reinforced the happy feelings. I started working on more fitted garments. And they make me feel great!

In conclusion, I feel so grateful! Sewing was a plaster when I had body image issues and became a motivation booster after I changed for the better.

Does sewing do that for you?

Please share!