Denim Basics Dress

During the last few lazy days of summer, when no new sewing is likely to happen over here, I'm bringing a few past sewing projects back to SweetKM that I posted on other sites. I love this Basics Dress from Cali Faye Collection and it's time I post it here. I made this dress as part of Simple Summer Sewing I hosted with Petit a Petit and Family a few years ago. I made this dress at our summer cottage in the middle of the night. It's a quick sew and easy fit perfect for days when the kids would rather be at the pool than at home watching you sew. A tank dress is a summer wardrobe staple that can stand up to the most persistent heat wave. I like this design for its easy wearing drawstring waist, narrow shoulder straps, and scoop back. 

The simple lines of a basic dress make for easy customization and modification. One pattern can become many different garments with the right alterations. I have sewn this pattern before exactly as written, so I was already familiar with the fit and construction. For this version I planned ahead and made a few modifications to fit my own personal style. I added pockets, straightened the shirt tail hem, and used a bias finish on the neck and arm openings rather than the full lining. 

The fabic is Art Gallery Denim, light weight denim in indigo. It’s a classic color, and light weight enough to gather nicely, but heavy enough that it is completely opaque. It’s great for skirts, tops and dresses. 

This pattern calls for a full lining, resulting in an exceptionally clean construction. I didn’t need a lining with this fabric, but I tried to make an equally nice interior even without one. Simple projects are a great place to focus on truly polished seam finishes. I used bias binding at the neck and arm openings, and French seams at the side and shoulder seams. The edges of the added pockets are bound with a few scraps of Liberty London from my stash. The channel for the drawstring is a strip of fabric sewn in with the waist seam, then folded over and stitched to the bodice completely encapsulating any raw edges at the waist. The drawstring is a piece of grosgrain ribbon. I cut the ribbon in half and sewed 4" of elastic into the middle so the waist tie wasn't rigid.

Fast sewing projects, unlike fast fashion, don’t have to be disposable. I’ve been wearing this silhouette for years. With the extra care taken in finishing this dress, I’m confident it is a piece that will survive many wearings, and be a core part of my summer wardrobe. 

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Pattern: Basics Dress by Cali Faye Collection 
Fabric: Art Gallery Fabrics Smooth Denim in Indigo 

Featherweight Cardigan and Wide Leg Pants

There's a lot of chatter on the internet lately about knitters who sew, and sewers who knit. Makers everywhere are dusting off a forgotten hobby, or learning a new skill. I'm encouraged that the lines between the two are quickly blurring. I've always incorporated a little sewing into my knits, and this is not the first mixed media outfit I have made. Not sure if I was ahead of my time, or just didn't know any better. Either way, I have persevered to the point of completing my very own interdisciplinary outfit, which has been on my mind for a long time. First, a hand knit sweater in a color I adore. Second, a sewn tank top from one of my very favorite patterns. Third, linen trousers that are self-drafted. 

Let's start at the top with this snug little cardi. This is the Featherweight Cardigan from Hannah Fettig. I bought Hannah's book Home & Away last fall, and I've been meaning to make a Georgetown Cardigan. The Georgetown is a fairly substantial cardigan, and spring is coming, so I thought I'd make a Featherweight Cardigan as a warm up. I was beginning to feel like the last knitter on the planet not to have made one of these, and now I see why. It's so versatile. The top down construction allows you to customize the fit as you go. I used a ready to wear sweater as a guide for the widths and lengths. More details of the sweater alterations are in my Ravelry notes. I kept track of weekly progress on instagram (#sweetkmWIP) to keep myself motivated in the midst of all that stockinette. 

The yarn is Quince & Co. Finch in Gingerbread. I love the color, and thought it would go well with all the chambray in my closet. But based on these photos it goes with a whole lot more. I think this yarn is a little squishy in the gauge specified. I'd like to make a black one with the same yarn, and will probably tinker with the pattern for a tighter knit. 

The top is the Basics Tank from Cali Faye Collection. I love the elliptical neckline, and the curve of the hem on this design. It is the most flattering tank I've come across, so I'm just gonna keep on making it. I raised the neckline 1" and added an 1/8" to the sides for I could french the seams. 

The fabric is Nani Iro from Miss Matatabi. If you've been following along on instagram you already know that I thought this was double gauze when I bought it, and it turned out to be brushed cotton. I was so busy falling in love with the gorgeous forrest and blush colorway that I didn't read the description! Believe me, the fabric type was clearly stated in the description but it was telling me things I didn't want to hear. After my initial disappointment the fabric is growing on me. It's a bit stiff for this design, but a beautiful texture and quality. I would have bought it anyway for the flawless color palette and watercolor print. 

The pants are self-drafted (a previous version). This is a little labor of love I've been working on for a few months off and on. I really want to sew pants, but I don't feel like fussing with the fit of a pattern that doesn't like my hip to waist ratio. I thought I might as well fuss with my own design from the start. I followed the instructions in the textbook from my pattern making class, then nipped and tucked my way to what you see here. These pants are high waist, pull on, wide leg trousers with a faux fly, and the always indispensable pockets. I'm hoping they will evolve into a more structured zip fly and waistband trouser.

With this rather large swath scratched out of my to-do list, here I am wondering what to do next...

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Sweater Pattern: Featherweight Cardigan by Hannah Fettig
Yarn: Finch in Gingerbread from Quince & Co.

Tank Pattern: Basics Tank by Cali Faye Collection
Tank Fabric: Nani Iro Brushed Cotton from Miss Matatabi

Pants Pattern: Self-drafted
Pants Fabric: Slub Linen in Tobacco Potting from Joann Fabric

FOLLOW ALONG!

    

Liberty Basics Tank

It's the little things that can make the simplest handmade garment feel special: a special fabric, or a particularly thoughtful finish. When I was planning this tank I had my little heart set on french seams. It seems crazy to spring for Liberty of London fabric, then skimp out on the finishes. I got wrapped up in the excitement of having this pretty fabric wrapped around me, and forgot to check the specified seam allowance. It’s a paltry 3/8”, possibly enough for others to squeeze out a french seam, but I know my machine and it can do nothing with less than 1/2 an inch. I also already knew the fit was perfection, and didn’t want to risk it being too tight if I tried to squeeze anything out of the body. The seams ended up sewn and serged. Sigh. There is so much right about this top, I’m trying not to hold a grudge against it. The little bit of pink inside the neckline makes up for most of my disappointment.

FABRIC: Liberty of London Tana Lawn Deborah D from Fancy Tiger Crafts. Reminds me of blueberries. My last Liberty experience left me wanting more (more, MORE!). The Vintage May dress was the first thing I made with Liberty for myself. How is that possible?! I’ve used it before for my son (here and here) but now that I have tasted its lusciousness for myself, I’m not sure I can go back to regular fabric (except for chambray, of course). I fear I am in the process of cultivating an expensive little habit. I bought ¾ yard, and that is about the minimum for this tank (in any size). As you can see, I didn’t use matching bias binding, because I wanted the scraps for later, and I’m a sucker for a little secret something on the inside, just for me. The chambray is from the Long Summer Sundress, and the pink is linen from these capris. So many lesser pink fabrics came into my hands before I found the last little scrap of this one. So glad I kept looking. It’s just right.

PATTERN: Basics Tank from Cali Faye Collection. I love the cut of my previous Basics Tank but I don’t love the color. I wore it a ton in the spring with a cardigan, but the pasty white fabric against my pasty white skin makes me feel half dressed if I wear it alone. Another was in order. This print is so lightweight I might still feel half dressed, but the darker color won’t make me look that way. 

ALTERATIONS: Same as before.

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Pertinent Info:
Pattern: Basics Tank by Cali Faye Collection
Fabric: Liberty of London Deborah D from Fancy Tiger Crafts

Cali Faye Basics

Let's pretend for a minute that it's summer. I just cranked up the A/C to prevent the sweat from beading, and it's hot as hell outside. Let's forget about the winter that just won't end, and the snow we've recently been shoveling. Imagine we're so far into summer that you've got tan lines, and have already lost one pair of sunglasses. Okay, now this outfit makes a little more sense. This little number is part of the Cali Faye Collection that I pattern tested the last week in February. This is exactly the sort of thing I like to wear, so I jumped at the chance to test, even though I couldn't actually imagine putting on a tank top (unless it was way under something else) at the time.

PATTERN: Basic Pocket Skirt and Basic Tank from the Cali Faye Collection. The Tank is a very basic A-line sleeveless top without darts and a scooped hemline. It is very similar to other tanks I've made, but I think I'm going to go ahead and say this one is my favorite. The narrow shoulder and swoopy neck makes me feel thin and pretty. The Pocket Skirt is a basic gathered skirt with generous patch pockets,  an elastic waist back, and a hidden side zipper that keeps the bunchiness to a minimum.

FABRIC: For the tank I used a light weight cotton voile from my stash. The drape is pretty perfect for this tank, but it is kind of see through (next time I'll do better!). The skirt fabric is linen from Joann. Joann can be a tricky place to come up a winner, but I like the linen selection (granted in mid-February it can lack diversity).  This is the Sew Classic Slub Linen in Black Papyrus.

SIZE/FIT: Fit was true to measurements, and that's all I'm going to say until I sew the final version of the pattern.

I'm not going to do the full pattern review because this garment was sewn from the test pattern. But I will say, this is one of the most impressively formatted pattern layouts I've seen lately. There is a 1" grid over the whole print out, giving you plenty of points to align the pieces with certainty. The hierarchy of line weights makes the cut lines for various sizes very clear, while secondary information is clearly marked but of a secondary size and weight. All of the pertinent information for cutting (i.e. size chart, fabric layout, symbol key) is printed right on the pattern pieces so you don't have to do any cross checking with information in a different computer file. The whole pattern fit nicely on my kitchen table when completely assembled. These may seem like odd criteria to judge a pattern against, but we all know there are plenty of beautiful designs in less than user friendly formats. A thoughtful layout makes cutting, and tracing convenient and fast.

I guess the whole point of separates is that they go with more than one thing, and these babies certainly do. The barest summer look is a long way off for me, but I suspect far-right will be seasonally appropriate in a few short weeks.

I was going to ask you all to weigh in but I've already vetoed these shoes. Ten years ago I would have loved them to the point of proposing marriage. Now, I'm just wishing they were navy.

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Pertinent Info:
Top Pattern: Basic Tank from Cali Faye Collection
Skirt Pattern: Basic Pocket Skirt from Cali Faye Collection
Top Fabric: Cotton Voile from India Beautiful Art
Skirt Fabric: Sew Classic Slub Linen in Black Papyrus from Joann

Psst...there's a discount code, go find Cali Faye on your social media of choice for more info.