Spring Isla Dress With Jade Sleeves

I have made the Made by Rae Isla Dress so many times I have lost count but they have all been in prints. I decided to use this grey heather cotton Lycra knit from my stash to make a slightly longer grey version with long sleeves borrowed from the Jade Top pattern for cooler spring days. I cut this out ages ago and finally sewed it up in a couple of hours on a Saturday afternoon.

I didn’t even hem it.

I know it will be worn a zillion times dressed up and dressed down.

Now to buy some new necklaces to go with it. It is the perfect backdrop. For the many other Islas and some tips on sewing knits with a regular sewing machine, check out Sewing with Knits 101, Sewing with Knits102 and my Me Made May wrap-up posts here, here and here.

Yay spring! The bees are back-seen in my flowers today!

Made By Rae Patterns, Sewing

Me Made May 2018 Makes part 2

Me Made May 2018 is coming to a close and I am running out of steam but it was a very productive month. You can read my first #mmmay18 blog post here. I will be wrapping up the month with this post.

As of May 28th, I have completed 14 projects, one every other day. This is not a sustainable pace, clearly, but I had been out of my sewing groove for a while and the energy of the sewing community during this month is contagious. It has been great to try some new patterns and I love everything I made. They will all be things I wear and enjoy. I have one more work in process that I will probably complete by the end of the month (a York Pinafore in a linen blend) but today I am putting away the piles of fabric and pattern pieces that are scattered about the house and getting ready to go on vacation. Here is the final tally:

1 Made By Rae Jade knit shirt (the first of many). I was a pattern tester for this shirt. It fits beautifully and I love the striped fabric, an organic cotton knit by Cloud 9 Fabrics, that I was given to use in the testing. I went out and bought more to make a Blackwood cardigan (seen below) and also bought some of the same fabric in navy and black with a thin white stripe which will become Jades. The Jade pattern was just released. You can see more versions on Rae’s blog here. img_0088-1

6 Isla Dresses: a tried and true pattern, also by Made By Rae, now with sleeve options using the Jade pattern. I made 3 using the traditional sleeveless pattern and added sleeves to three including a maxi-dress version. This is the dress I most often turn to in the morning. Comfortable and cute. img_1902-1

I bought this fabric planning to make a Jade top to go with the striped Blackwood cardigan but it just called out to become a Maxi Dress. What could I do but listen? img_1903-1

I love this version of the Isla in Mystery Food cotton knit by Sarah Watts. It makes me smile. Worn with my second most made pattern this month, the Blackwood cardigan. img_0445-1

I made 4 Blackwood cardigans this month and I wore one of them pretty much every day. This is a pattern I had been meaning to make for a long time and it was worth the wait! I experimented with the length and decided that 3 inches shorter than the long version of the pattern as drafted was best for me. The mustard and grey sweater knit versions are that length. The black and grey version is the length as drafted. I didn’t add pockets but I plan to add them to the striped versions.I finished sewing a boho blouse using the Made By Rae Josephine pattern and Loominous fabric by Anna Maria Horner-I love how this turned out! I am thinking a white double gauze version will be up next-I think it would be great with the York pinafore. img_0773-1

Here is it as worn. img_0786-1

I also finished a tunic length Gemma Tank using beautiful wax print fabric given to me by a friend. I am going to wear this all summer. img_1787-1

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My mustard cotton Blackwood works perfectly with it.

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You can see the sweater length I ended up liking best on this back view below.

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Last but not least, I made a Grainline Tamarack Jacket start to finish this month. I had been wanting a spring weight jacket and didn’t want to buy one. In previous years, I would layer a jeans jacket over a cardigan but I really wanted a nice jacket to bridge the seasons from winter to sweltering and I am so pleased with this jacket!

I am definitely going to be wearing this so much. I love the soft chambray I ended up using from one of my favorite fabric stores. It just gets softer with washing. I know this is just going to get better with age. And the lining makes me smile.

Finally, here is a picture with all 12 of the versions of the Isla that I have worn so far this month (I actually have made more than these-closer to 20.) All the versions I have made are still in frequent rotation. I can’t recommend this pattern more highly on its own and especially now with the addition of the Jade pattern sleeves.

If you have questions about any of the patterns or fabrics, feel free to comment. More pictures and details on my instagram: @nursebean82.

Also, if you are reading this and are inspired to sew for yourself, my friend Natalie is hosting a series of monthlong dress sewalongs in June and July. She has chosen two beginner-friendly, beautiful summer dress patterns. Natalie’s enthusiasm and creativity are contagious and she is a wonderful teacher. Check out her blog http://www.hungryhippiesews.com to learn more.

Happy summer everyone!

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Sewing with Knits for Little Ones

I went back to school in my 40’s to become a nurse practitioner. It was a long journey that included many detours, the most significant of which was taking a job as an inpatient oncology nurse. I started working as an RN when I needed to support my family while still in school in my Masters’ program and have worked at the same hospital first part-time, then full-time, then part time for over ten and a half years.

There is much I could say and write about and may some day but one of the best things about working as a nurse in the inpatient setting was the opportunity to work so closely with and become friends with so many amazing women (and men, but mostly women) who do this incredibly hard work with so much love. I have had a lot of jobs but none with this level of camaraderie. The work is so intense and you rely on each other to such a great extent that you become family.

Emily and I started our nursing careers together. When I found out that she was having her first child, I got busy sewing.

I have made baby quilts as gifts but this little one already had several so I decided to try sewing a knit outfit. I was inspired by this one by Erin. The pattern, by Rachel of Stitched Together is a free download. It is a straightforward pattern with clear instructions. I made a hat to go with it from the Green Bee Patterns Modern Baby Set. I want to sew the rest of the Green Bee layette garments when I have more time. They are so cute! But I thought the sleep sack would be great for easy diaper changes in those first few months when it feels as though that is all you are doing. I also hoped it would fit this little guy for a while. The fabric is from the Blake collection by Carolyn Friedlander. It is nice and soft and easy to work with. This was such a fun little sew. I am not yet a grandmother but plan to be ready when the time comes. This was entirely sewn on my regular sewing machine. One of my sewing resolutions is to spend some time getting acquainted and actually using my serger. I took a great class last year at The Cloth Pocket which I highly recommend but haven’t had the time to practice what I learned. This will be the year.

Some pictures of the project in process.

I love the knot at the top of the Green Bee hat.

And now for the baby pictures. I mean seriously can you stand how cute this little guy is? Hat close-up.Working on baby planks here. I am not yet a grandmother, but I plan to be ready when the day comes. Happy baby! One yard of fabric. One afternoon. Go make some baby clothes friends. Instant happiness!

Made By Rae Patterns, Sewing

Summer Islas

A little more than two years ago, I started sewing my own clothes and last fall, I took the plunge into knits. I lived all winter long in my Isla Capsule Wardrobe and this summer, I decided to sew some more versions in some floral fabrics in a slightly longer length in light of bare legs vs leggings. I had picked out a beautiful purple floral by Pat Bravo, the beautiful green floral from Rae Hoekstra’s Sidewalk Fabric line and the blue-green colorway of Amy Butler’s Glow knit which I scooped up when it was on sale, having been really happy with the fabric when I sewed the grey colorway as one of my first Isla tops. img_4549-1 And as worn here: This would seem to be plenty: 3 summer dresses. And then, April Rhodes’ amazing new fabric line was released and I was inspired to make one more. I alternate my sewing methods. Sometimes I sew my clothes in batches of the same pattern in different versions. This was one of those times, especially since I switch not only the needle and thread type when sewing knits but also the sewing machine foot (I always use a walking foot). Other than adding an inch to the length of the skirt (which I neglected to do for the Glow version, I am not sure why) I followed exactly the same methods I used for my first batch of Isla’s which was to use all the tricks that my Instagram friends shared with me and which can be found in this post, This is the first time I have sewn contrasting neck and arm binding and I am really happy with this combination. And as worn: Next up I made the Sidewalk fabric version. I knew it would be good because I had seen Rae’s version which inspired me. This fabric is really nice to work with and I am so happy with how this version turned out.And as worn:Next I sewed the Indie Boheme version. This fabric feels very summery to me. I almost bought it in voile to make Rae’s Josephine blouse with gathers. That pattern has been on my To-Be-Sewn list for quite some time and I love her new Loominous II version. And as worn:The Amy Butler version is a bit shorter which came in handy when we recently had a heatwave. I didn’t think I cut it differently but I must have. This fabric is a bit heavier than the others. It is really easy to sew with and would be great for someone new to knits.And that would have been it, except that Erin made two beautiful maxi versions of the Isla and I saw another version of a knit maxi dress on Instagram that was not the Isla but which used a blue and white shibori-inspired print. That is when it clicked for me and I decided to take the plunge. I found this bamboo-rayon knit and ordered it on a Monday. It arrived on a Friday. I literally got home from work, washed the fabric, cut the fabric, sewed the fabric. I added about 20 inches to the length of the skirt. I added about 6 inches to the width of the back skirt and none to the front. The fabric was a bit slippery and a bit tricky to cut. I was in a bit of a panic for a minute because I had some trouble lining it up correctly to cut the skirt pieces out after having cut out the bodice but it all worked out in the end. I wore it to a family wedding that next day and I plan to wear it until I wear it out. It is amazingly comfortable, flattering and doesn’t wrinkle.Perfect for a trip to someplace amazing. Now all I need are airplane tickets. Mr. NB, take note! And it is even better with my mustard cardigan, as most of my dresses are.One of my favorite winter Islas did get some wear time this summer on one of our cooler days. Here it is with leggings and sneakers. I can’t recommend this pattern more highly!

Made By Rae Patterns, Sewing

Pearl Necklace Isla Top

I have just completed a month of sewing knits and I am feeling much more confident in my ability to sew a knit garment successfully. I love the Isla Pattern from Made By Rae as evidenced by all the Isla dresses I have sewn. I was not as happy about the fit with the tops because of my long torso or as my Dad used to say, it just didn’t seem to suit my style of beauty, at least when I made it with the same adjustments I made to my Isla dresses. But after giving it some thought, I felt I owed it to the pattern to give it another chance adjusting the bodice to have it hit at my natural waist and see if I liked that version better.

I am 5’9″ and all my height is in my torso. I wear inseam 31-32 for my jeans. I took a picture with a measuring tape for anyone out there with this body type planning to make this pattern (wearing another Isla dress I recently sewed). From the bottom of my neck to my natural waist is 16 inches. I had previously had my daughter take pictures of me wearing my Isla dresses with my hands at my waist and using that as a guide, I added 4 inches in length to the Medium bodice which I had already added an inch to so 5 inches in total.I also added a bit of width and smoothed out the curve on the side to see if it would help with the riding up of the top that I had with the others I have made. Here is the front.Here is the bodice as sewn.I cut the ruffle using the regular medium cutting line because I had added so much to the length of the bodice that I didn’t want it to end up as a tunic but I wasn’t sure if I would like the top with such a disparity between the bodice and the ruffle. I think it is cutest when they are more in balance size-wise but I figured the only way to find out was to try it. Luckily, this fabric was easy to work with, gathered easily and the whole project took only a couple of hours start to finish. I took pictures of the finished bodice prior to attaching the ruffle with the measuring tape to show the length.And a second picture to remind me that I took a picture of the back not the front of the bodice. I use these pictures as a reference when I make a pattern a second time. It is easier for me to remember adjustments I made than writing them down.And here are the photos of the finished garment. as worn. Somewhat forced smile because my daughter is saying: Smile, Stand up Straight, Shoulders back, Belly in. I thought I had lined up my pearl necklaces when I cut the ruffle but as you can see, I have a bit of a diagonal thing going on here which was not intentional. It is a little more tricky to line up the circles with the knit than the woven which I used to make a Washi dress that I love and wear all the time in Spring and Summer.I also had an issue with the hem rolling up which I don’t seem to have with the dress version-thinking maybe it is the lighter weight of the fabric piece. Side view.BackSo overall I would say that for my body, I am happier with the Isla as a dress. In fact I may end up cutting off the ruffle and adding the dress length skirt to this and make it into a dress for myself or my daughter at some point. The top is so cute on many people but I don’t think that it works for me well enough to continue to make it. I love the dresses and will wear them all the time I am sure. As for tops, I have so many to choose from after my summer of Gemma Madness. In fact, today, I wore this beauty in Macrame fabric which you can learn more about here.Now it is back to woven fabric and on to the Cleo skirt pattern which was released today. Can you believe how beautiful this one is?

Made By Rae Patterns, Sewing

Sewing with Knits 101: The Isla Dress by MadebyRae

I attempted to sew some knit garments last year. My results were mixed. This Lady Skater dress was a reasonable success and is currently being worn by my step-daughter (fabric purchased at Girl Charlee). img_3846-1 But I wasn’t thrilled with the results I got using my regular sewing machine. When Rae launched the Isla Pattern, I decided to give knits another try but first I did research. And I got some great tips from Instagram friends and from Rae herself (check the comments on Rae’s instagram posts on this pattern-a wealth of info!) So this weekend when I had a bit of time, I decided to try making an Isla dress using some of these tips. I started this project after lunch and had the dress version finished before dinner. Based on my measurements I cut a Medium and added an inch both to the the bodice length and to the skirt. I am 5’9″ and I generally wear a Medium in Rae’s patterns and add 2 inches to most dresses so I thought I would try that and see how the fit was. The fabric is a jersey knit blend from Girl Charlee purchased on sale last year. I bought 3 yards for $6.60 each. This dress takes 2 yards. I will likely also make the top with this fabric-only takes 1 yard- and may try lengthening the bodice further to see which fit I prefer. I have found that it is worth it to make a wearable muslin and then actually wear it for a day to be sure you have the right fit. This fabric, while inexpensive, is actually something I will wear and it feels amazing to have a new dress and top for less than $20.

I didn’t iron the fabric before cutting it out, I just lay it as flat as I could straight out of the dryer. img_4058-1 I tried a stretch stitch on my machine based on this post by Susan. It took a minute for me to get used to the stitch because the stitching process is much slower. The machine goes back over certain areas so I am not able to zip the fabric through the machine as I would with a straight stitch but once I got used to it, it worked really well. I used hand-wound stretch thread in the bobbin only, a stretch needle and polyester thread in the needle. And since I had issues with the fabric feeding in an uneven way with my regular foot, I took the plunge and bought a walking foot for my sewing machine. I found a simple tutorial online that showed me how to change the foot to the walking foot. There are many on You Tube. I cut my notches as triangles to make them easier to see. This is what the test sample of the stretch stitch looked like on a scrap.These are the settings I used for the stretch stitch which I used for all my seams. And here are the settings I used for the zig zag stitch that I used around the arms and neck to tack down the seam allowances after attaching the binding.Here is a close up of the arm binding with the zig zag sewn about 1/8th inch from the seam. The walking foot worked really well feeding the fabric in evenly and helped the machine handle the bulk where seams were joined.I used the same tension I always use for all of the stitching, even the gathering stitch with elastic thread, and it worked fine. The gathering technique is magical. Using elastic thread in the bobbin and a zig zag stitch, the skirt was gathered exactly the right amount. I have learned after sewing many MBR patterns to just trust Rae. She knows. Her instructions are straightforward and work great when followed.

I ended up making a mistake and sewed both shoulder seams and then realized that you aren’t supposed to do that until you add the neck binding. Oops! Luckily, I had recently read this tutorial by Erin which saved me. I don’t think I stretched the neck binding enough while sewing because it did start to gape a bit as the day wore on as seen below:

but that may also be because I am very small busted. I will try to make the neckline binding a bit smaller next time ( I find that it usually takes me 2-3 tries to get a pattern down,) but I am overall really happy with my first version.

Although Rae doesn’t include it in the pattern, I zig-zagged a narrow ribbon to the shoulder seam allowances after sewing the seams for stability.I used a twin needle with stretch thread in the bobbin to sew the hem. I ironed the hem before sewing. I used wonder clips to hold the hem in place for sewing.Test fabric showing the twin needle hem.I used the presser foot edge as a seam guide and got really good results with the twin needle.Hem as stitched below.Hem seam as seen on the inside. It lies pretty flat but I think I will have even better results with a slightly heavier knit. This is pretty thin fabric. Twin needle settings below. (I take pictures so I remember for the next time.)Finished dress below. The bodice looks a little wonky on the hanger but it seems less so as worn. I think the next time I make this, I will sew my elastic gathering seam a bit farther away from the edge because my machine was chewing up the edge. It is actually amazing how well it ended up considering. I did not take out the stitches or redo the gathering or the seam where I joined the bodice to the skirt and it looks relatively even.And as worn. I am not sure if I want to keep the bodice this length or shorten it or lengthen it. This is with an added inch so you can see that it is pretty short as drafted. I have a really long torso and I haven’t decided which would be the most flattering.I am very happy with the fit around the arms and the neck.Back view.And with a cardigan which is how I will be wearing it this winter.This pattern is a quick sew. What I loved about it: gathering the skirt with elastic thread. Brilliant! I used a zig zag stitch, not a stretch stitch for gathering and sewing the bodice to the skirt with elastic thread in the bobbin. I highly recommend this pattern and the little knit tricks I learned above which enabled me to have a really nice result with a regular, inexpensive, sewing machine. Next time I will use the twin needle instead of the zig zag around the neck and arms, but otherwise, I am really happy with the results. This pattern is a keeper!