Taking a Short Break

So, I am really sorry for those of you who are sewing along with me this month and are convinced that I am a full 0n slacker. The truth is that I am moving TODAY and I just committed to too much this month. I am so close to finishing the dress, but won't have the time until next week.

So, go out and enjoy the sun and we will reconvene next week. Hopefully we can finish up the dress during the first week of August and then do the Jenny skirt (which I have already finished and it's fabulous) for the last three weeks of August.

Thanks for your patience in advance and see you next week!

Cynthia Rowley Knit Dress : Steps 12-19

Today we are going to tackle the other pocket and also attach the skirt to the top. By the end of the day it should really look like a dress.





12 - Change your stitch length to a smaller one. (I changed my usual 2.5 to a 1.5) Then make a 1 inch stitch 5/8" in from the edge over each dot on the left front side of your skirt panel fabric.


13 - Change stitch length back to normal. Pin one pocket piece to left front side of skirt panel - right sides together - matching notches and dots and edges.
Stitch between dots backstitching at both ends.


14 - Press seam allowance towards the wrong side of fabric, which pressing the pocket piece out and away from the skirt panel.


15 - Pin other pocket piece, right sides together, to sewn pocket piece.

Stitch pocket by starting at top large dot, backstitch, stitch all the way around pocket, and end at other dot, backstitch.


Finish off and trim seam if desired.


16 - On front skirt panel, clip seam allowance to large dots. Get as close to the seam as possible without snipping it.

17 - Fold pocket to the inside of the panel - press. (your seam allowance for your pocket should now be extended out while your skirt seam allowance is folded towards the back of the skirt.

18 - On the front side of your skirt panel, slip your seam allowance that is above and below your pocket (above your top clip and below your bottom clip) to the front of the skirt. The seam allowance of your skirt should now line up with the seam allowance from your pocket.


Baste stitch over where the pocket meets the skirt seam allowance to connect the seam allowance into one continuous line.

19 - Pin the right side of your skirt to the right side of your bodice waistband. Pull threads until the skirt is the correct gathered size of your waistband. Stitch at 5/8".




Finish off seam if desired ( I did my mock overlock stitch on it).
Trim seam allowance.

Press seam allowance down towards skirt.

Here is what your dress should look like now. I am pretty excited about how it is looking so far.

Next Month's Pattern : The Jenny Skirt

A very popular pattern of late has been the Jenny skirt by Burda. I have never sewn a Burda pattern before, so I have been dying to try this one out. It seems to be the perfect pencil skirt, with so many possibilities for personal touches.

Not only am I making this skirt, but I am also helping a few friends make it as well. I think it will be fun to see all of the different skirts all coming from one pattern.

So, if you want to sew along you can purchase/download the pattern here.

Until then here a few favorite versions of the Jenny skirt that I have seen around the blogisphere:

cluttershop
greenapples
nikishell

Cynthia Rowley Knit Dress : Steps 7-11

OK, let's get going on these darn pockets. Now, just as a sidenote, one of the most common suggestions I have received on this dress is to omit the pockets. Some say that the fabric is just too heavy and it makes the dress hang funny, others say that it makes the zipper impossible to put in. I have to agree with those comments, but then also say I LOVE POCKETS - so I am going to try them anyway with the option of always sewing right over them and cutting them out at a later date if they don't work. Am I just a glutten for punishment guys?

So with that said, let's get going with the right pocket.

7 - First we need to prepare the skirt panel pieces for the pockets. To do this simply baste stitch (the longest stitch on your machine and don't back stitch either end) 1/4" from the top edge and 5/8" from the top edge on both the front and skirt panels. Start and stop 5/8" in from right and left sides to allow room for your side seams.


8 - Take the front and back pieces of the right pocket and the front and back panels of your skirt. Pin one pocket piece, right sides together, to the right side of the front skirt panel matching dots. Do the same with the other pocket piece and the back skirt panel.

Stitch at a 3/8" seam from top to bottom of the pocket pieces on both front and back skirt panels.


9 - Fold the pockets away from the skirt panels and press so that the seam allowance is pointed towards the pocket piece.

10 - Pin the front and back skirt panels and pocket pieces together along right edge with right sides together.

Stitch at 5/8" starting at the top, down to the first dot, pivot 90 degrees, stitch around the pocket to the second dot, pivot 90 degrees, and stitch all the way to the bottom of the skirt panel.


11 - Clip the seam allowance on the back panel right above and below the pocket so that it can easily stay towards the front. Press the pocket towards the front skirt panel.

checking in

Just wanted to jump in and say sorry for the delay of posts. I am moving next week and so my life has been a bit out of control. I have worked on the dress, and do have things to post, just need to find the time to actually do it. I will be back soon!

Cynthia Rowley Knit Dress : adjustments and steps 5-6

This is the last point that you can really make adjustments to the fit of the bodice so try it on and see see what you think. You can see from this pic that I had way too much width on mine so I decided to take it in about and inch on each side. Once I knew it was the right fit I finished the edges off with an overlock type stitch on my bernina and trimmed the seam.



As a result I had to take the same amount off of the waistband pieces and also reapply the interfacing to the left side of the bodice. Hopefully yours will fit just fine and you won't have to do these extra steps.

5- Pin interfaced waistband to bodice right sides together. Baste (long stitch) at 5/8".


6 - Pin noninterfaced waistband's right side to the wrong side of the bodice. (the bodice is now sandwiched inbetween the two waistbands) Stitch at 5/8" over basting and thru all 3 layers of fabric.


Trim seam allowance and press waistbands down.


Baste the bottom edges of waistband together.


Your dress should now look something like this:

front


back

Cynthia Rowley Knit Dress : Steps 1 - 4

OK time to get started on this dress. I must say I can already tell this is going to be a challenge. Luckily I keep getting comments from those who have already made this pattern so hopefully we can dodge some bullets.




1 - Staystitch - Staystitching is permanent stitching that helps to stabilize curved edges.

Staystitch the front and back pieces 1/4" in from the seamline (or keep the edge along your presserfoot). Start in the middle of each piece and then stitch to the outside edges. I used a regular straight stitch for this (not a stretch stitch). Backstitch at both ends.




2 - Cut 2 pieces of lightweight interfacing that are 3/4" wide and about 7 inches long. Apply to the wrong side of your fabric on the seam allowance of the left side of your front and back pieces. (where the zipper will go)



3 - Pin front and back sections together at right side seam and stitch with a 5/8" seam allowance using a stretch stitch.


Stretch Stitch - my machine has a stitch that is a slight zigzag that allows the seam to stretch slightly after stitching. Number 9 on my machine. Check your manual to see if you have one. If not, a very wide (almost straight) zigzag will give a similar effect. (test on scraps first)


4 - Apply fusible interfacing to 1- front midriff and 1- back midriff. Put right sides together and stitch the front and back midriff on the right side seam with a stretch stitch.