June MAGAM McCalls M5978

June MAGAM calls for using a fabric from your stash. I have a very small stash and it has no knit fabric in it. So I am being adventurous or stupid :) and using a woven fabric for a knit pattern M5978  - A cardigan. I will be doing view D without the embellishment, This fabric is from the clearance aisle, bought it a couple of years back. It frays badly and I am hoping that a zigzag stitch will help fraying at the seams. Am not sure how to prevent fraying at the armhole area, maybe someone more experienced can give me a tip.

I am planning to cut a size bigger and also going to compare finished garment size to figure out the knit vs woven dilemma . Wish me luck :)

Simplicity 8523 - Misses top

After the disaster with the McCalls M6844 I decided to try something simple. I also wanted to enter the beginners pattern contest and had less than a week to come up with an entry. This coupled with me working over the weekend made me choose this supposedly simple pattern for a blouse.

I choose a soft polyester from my stash, I think it was bought from Hancock fabrics. The fabric was a little thin and this was my first time sewing with polyester. The good part is that it does not unravel, the bad part is that it does not hold creases and was very hard to iron because I had to do it with low heat and lots of steam.


Now to the pattern - I choose size 14 and graded to size 16 at the hips. This was the first time I choose to measure the pattern. It has a lot of ease at the waist (11") but I did not have a lower size so 14 it had to be, knowing it was not going to look nice :(

Another first for me was to use the rotary cutter to cut my fabric. I saw this in the British sewing bee series and wanted to try. It was scary initially but I got better. I am never going back to scissors again. :)

The pattern went in smoothly in the beginning. Sew the dart - I referred to my craftsy class, sew the shoulder seam, and side seams. Then sew the facings, trim and notch.  This was too little instructions for me, so I went back to the Craftsy class Sassy librarian blouse and followed the facing instruction there.

Next came the set in sleeves. I stitched two rows of easing stitches and eased in the sleeve and stitched thinking that it was not bad. Then realized I had put the sleeves in the wrong way :(. So unpicked the stitches and put it back in again and this time it went in smoothly. I tried the blouse on it looked like a tent. It was very boxy and did not have any shape.


So I looked up some videos on waist shaping and using my curved ruler took the waist in on both sides. This is the final result. I think it is wearable.

May MAGAM McCalls M6844 completed

Mccalls M6844 was supposed to be an easy sew. There is a video tutorial on this pattern by Crafty Gemini plus this was voted top pattern in pattern review. All these prompted me to pick this one for my may MAGAM.

This was the first time sewing knits for me and I scoured the internet to find tips for knit sewing. I picked  a black ponte knit from Joann's. Ponte knit is supposed to be one of the easier knits to sew.
I started off by washing and pressing my fabric and cut out the pattern for view A.

Initially everything seemed to be going well. I was thinking to myself I am going to finish a garment in a weekend Wow!! But things never go the way you think do they ;)

I reached the collar part of the cardigan and things start going south. The pattern called for interfacing the collar. Many of the reviews advised against this but I went ahead and interfaced. Wanted to see how the pattern looks as it was built. Maybe the fault was in using regular interfacing instead of one for knits ( I did not even know there were interfacing specific to knits !!) or maybe it is my machine. I noticed that the lower side of the fabric was moved by the pressure foot different from upper so I was doing my best to stretch and sew to make then even Ughhh

Finally I somehow got the collar in, and then found that it was not staying floppy like in the picture. I tried pressing clipping notching, pressing again and it still would not behave. Off to the internet again - posted question on pattern review and  to Anne, fellow MAGAM participant who had done a beautiful version of this pattern in April. She was kind enough to respond and give some tips and so did pattern review experts.

I under stitched and top stitched the collar and pressed and steamed a lot and this is the result. I am not a happy with this pattern :( and am still scared of knits.

 

One tip which I really liked was for hemming- I followed Crafty Gemini's tip - Stitch at half your hem allowance and then fold at the stitch for the hem. Hem folding went much easier after I followed this tip.

May MAGAM McCalls M6844

For May MAGAM I am planning to sew the very popular M6844. I am using a Black Ponte knit from Joanns. Size Medium View A - M6844

This will be my first knit project. I will be following Crafty Gemini Video tutorial and suggestions from pattern review

April MAGAM Sassy Librarian blouse finished

My first MAGAM is done. I finished the blouse yesterday. I am happy with how the blouse turned out but am not sure how it suits me. I am not a fan of the bow and will probably ditch it before I wear it. A fabric with better drape might have enhanced the blouse.

 

The class is a gem. First of all you can make multiple variations of the blouse. There is a second view with sleeves and peter pan collar. Imagine the variations - I can make the pictured blouse with collar and sleeves or I can make a sleeveless version sans pin tucks. You get the idea.

I made a size 6 at the bust and size 12 at the hips. This was the first time sewing buttons and button holes for me.The instructions were so clear on how to measure for buttons and button placements. I overcame my fear and think it turned out pretty good.







Lessons learnt:
Pintucks - the class gives very clear instructions on how to draw lines and fold to create tucks.
Pivots - It is amazing what a little measurement and drawing lines can help you achieve
Buttons and button holes - again measurement and marking helped
Hem - the class explains a tip where you adjust the needle position and use the pressure foot edge as a guide

Here are some construction snaps

Front

Back

 The best lesson learnt is slow and steady wins the race. The machine speed was set on slow and this helped in construction.

I think this class is worth purchasing.

April MAGAM Pattern - Craftsy's Sassy Librarian Blouse

For April I want to sew the Sassy Librarian Blouse. I will be sewing the sleeveless version with the pin-tucks . Fabric is from my stash purchased from Joann's clearance rack.

I hope to learn the below new skills

• Pin-tucks
• Release Pleats
• Placket
• Buttons and button holes

Will post pictures of my progress