The Other Navy Outfit

Well hello there everyone, guess who's been working a lot. Nope it's not Froggie. In fact he suddenly disappeared yesterday when I needed to hand sew two sets of shoulder pads in two dresses.  I don't keep you around just for your looks Frog!  You'd better get to covering a 3rd pair of pads while I finally write a blog post.  On a related note working on 3 garments simultaneously can be fun....except for that part where you have to cover and sew in 3 sets of shoulder pads in two days.  *And no, shoulder pads are not optional in my sewing room. No Saggy Shoulders!

I'd planned on getting my last summer garment posted in September, but pesky things like feeding my family, cleaning their clothing and sleeping took my available free time.  Desmond might have licked a few classmates and brought some germs home as well. (Confession - he probably didn't lick anyone. I'm sure the germs were spread in an equally gross manner.) However Fall weather didn't show up in PA until yesterday, so I'm not feeling too bad about a semi late Summery make.

This summer I managed two navy outfits to complement the growing collection of navy hats. After finishing up the Hollywood shirtdress it was time to get working on some separates. It was pretty egregious that the only solid colored skirts in my closet were black. (The devil on my shoulder screams "But Black Goes With Everything! So does red and pitchforks. Just go with me on that last one." OK, Ok dude, chill out. You don't have to sell me on pitchforks. They're awesome.) But sewing plain skirts is boring so I decided to make it a matching set with a bolero.  Mostly because I had Hollywood 1326 in my stash already and wanted to sew it More Than Anything!

AHHHHHH! It's so cute! I even want the outfits in the color combos/patterns on the envelope.  Shouldn't a pink and black polka dot silk be something you can go anywhere and buy? Why is it not? Who am I kidding, the jade/pink floral is the one I really want. Stupid past Heather for sewing up the stashed jade green cotton into a Beignet. To be honest I did like that Beignet a lot but it will never be worn now. Oh well, you must sew for the body and style you enjoy now or your child will throw all your fabric in a dumpster after you kick the bucket.  This has been your stashbusting message for the year.

So yeah I bought some navy linen to make this happen. (Stashbusting, what?) And got to work musling this one up.  Turns out that cute pointy waistband is not a waistband. It is a seperate belt that buttons on the side. It also turns out that it's not so cute if your bust line is so low that the points are poking you in the underboob.  One does not need their own waistband harassing them so that had to go.

It was nice to sew a slightly different skirt style than the plain 4 gore style that has been my go to. It's just as easy to put together and paired well with the medium weight linen I'd closen.  The linen also sewed up great in the bolero.  The little fold back collar just makes me squeal with delight! It would have been an easy sew as well if I hadn't complicated it by adding a lining.  However I've never said after the fact, "Oh God, why did I put this luxurious silk lining in my garment? I wish I was starting at bare cover stitched seams instead!"

This large scale ikat print had been sitting in my stash since Desmond was an adorable toddler. I've been a little concerned that it's too bold for any garment. But you know what I'm not concerned about being bold?  A lining.  What's that? Oh you're saying, "Umm Heather, you appear to be wearing a top out of this fabric?"  Yes, Yes I am.  Well after you finish you lining and have 1.5 yards left and have recently watched all of Ms. Masel then a matching bold top seems like a fine idea.  Due to yardage constraints I turned to an old pattern friend, Simplicity 1155 of the darted neckline.  Past Heather had even traced the short sleeve pattern back in 2017.

Once again you can barely see the the decorative neckline darts. One day I'll feel like torturing myself by sewing it in a solid. Until then you'll just have to enjoy the glorious button back.

One final thing, the sleeves on this are kind of odd, but odd in a way that I enjoy. The first thing that popped in my head is that they are vaguely Romulan. A google search tells me that I'm incorrect, but I think we both understand the importance of a strong shoulder.

Pssss Taris, what kind of sleeve heads/pads/scaffolding you have in that thing? I need to know.

Pattern
Hollywood 1326 - Bolero and Skirt. (Pictured Above)
Simplicity 1155 - Button back blouse.

Fabrics used
Linen from Sawyer Brook for the main part of the bolero and skirt.  Stashed Silk crepe de chine for the bolero lining and blouse.

Pattern changes/alterations
1. Standard 1/2" forward shoulder adjustment to the shoulder and sleeve cap
2. Added 1/2" extra ease to the hip of skirt. - This style seemed a bit narrow in that location.

Confessions/Advice
I don't remember much of anything because this was finished about 3 months ago. That means I didn't do anything real stupid or stab myself.

Husband Comment
"Ooooo, I like that the lining is the same as the shirt. What is that paisley? Seems Eastery."

Bonus Son comment - "In case you don't know, that brooch is a pear."

My Final Thoughts
This is the button back blouse that launched a bevy of button back blouses in my sewing room so brace yourselves for that.  I'm also pro bolero now. Next summer I'll probably revert back to type and sew a black one cause Black Goes With Everything!  *Cue devilish cackle.*

*I've been in 40's clothing land so long that double shoulder pads is starting to look good.

40's Casual Style

This summer my Sister-in-law gave us the option to join her family on a cabin camping trip up in Rickett's Glen. They usually do some sort of camping trip during summer vacation and had plenty of extra room in their cabin for the three of us. Steve and I though Des would enjoy running around the woods and cooking with fire so we accepted.  Which meant it was time for every seamstress's favorite activity.... planning some trip sewing!

Seriously though, as someone who is a "lifetime fancy dresser" the amount of casual clothing I own is 3 pairs of yoga pants and some ratty old Renfrews.  My suitcase was in desperate need of a few items of clothing that could handle a slog through the woods.  Guess I just "had" to buy some new patterns to fill this hole in my wardrobe.  (Let's pretend I wouldn't have bought a new pattern for any type of vacation.)  What I ended up purchasing was the recently mentioned Simplicity 3885.  The bottom half of the pattern worked out a lot better than blouse portion of the pattern.

View 1 is the button up skirt with some nice little patch pockets.  Pockets which happen to be big enough to stow your sunglasses when the hiking trail turns out to be deeply shaded.

Then maybe it gets hot or you want to go play tennis with the girls....assuming you are far more coordinated than I. Unbutton the skirt layer to reveal.....

View 2 Flirty Shorts! Here I am doing "Vanna hands" to show off the pocket welts of the nonexistent pockets.

The plan was to have pockets, but the residual post baby fat shelf caused some major gapping issues. In a perfect world I should have muslined with pockets and figured out how to adjust for that. Instead this was deadline sewing and some corners were cut.

Pocket issue aside, these were very easy to fit to my lower body.  Mostly thanks to 40's styles being really loose around the lower derriere area.  Not having to worry about under butt wrinkles is a giant relief.

Pattern
Simplicity 3885, Shorts and Skirt.

Fabrics used
Light weight stretch denim from Emmaonesock.com

Pattern changes/alterations
1.  Graded up the bottom pieces one size.

2. Raised CB of shorts 3/8".

3. Removed side seam pockets from the shorts.

4. Took in CB of skirt 1/2".

6. Let out side seams of skirt 3/8".

Confessions/Advice
- I didn't muslin the skirt portion figuring how much fitting does a button up A-line skirt need?  Ummmm plenty if your me. Ended up having to take in or let out most of the seams and I'm still not happy with the waistband fit. You'd think I'd learn by now that muslins are not optional for me.

Husband Comment
"Hey pretty lady, I like your grandma shorts."

My Final Thoughts
Both garments served me well on the camping trip. I ended up wearing yoga pants for the long hike and used these garments for short walks and trips to the lake.  It got me thinking that adding a few more causal garment projects to the sewing list would be a good idea.   Occasionally....only occasionally a dress isn't appropriate for having fun with your kid.

Speaking of him, let's just say he had a blast.

Vintage Pledge #1 - Hollywood 1032

After much blathering on about this pattern for many posts, I'm pleased to unveil my finished Hollywood 1032.  Not in red, as previously discussed, but PLAID! A lady has the prerogative to change her mind after all.

After "discovering" that Hollywood 1032 was drafted to be a blouse and skirt instead of a suit, I still wanted a jacket like feel to the blouse. Exactly how to do this didn't cross my mind until stumbling across this plaid cotton shirting. "Perfect!" I thought, "This totally reads as jackety blouse to me."

Perfect except for two things
1. The back peplum was impossible to plaid match along the side seams. If I'd started cutting with that pattern piece it probably could have been managed. Of course I started with the front like I always do because that's the area you really don't want to mess up.

2. Elbow darts and plaid are not the best mix. This honestly didn't even cross my mind until the blouse was done and I hung it on a hanger.  Ooops, weird biased plaid at the bottom of the sleeves, too late to fix that now.

But whatever, I'd probably do it again because plaid is awesome and I really like this outfit.

This was my first time sewing an unprinted pattern and it went pretty well.  Transferring pattern pieces to new paper is a bit tricky because they are hard to see through the paper. Then I got some good advice off of Instagram to put dark paper behind the patterns. What a difference this makes! You still need to do some "pattern braille" for the darts/other punch outs but it works wonders for everything else.

The pattern illustration compared to the actual drafting was mostly accurate. The only glaring difference was that the peplum length was drafted to be much shorter than drawn.  I added an 1" of length to make it match up to the illustration and because that's more flattering for my figure.  Sewing wise this one was easy to whip up after all that waffling over fabric.  I'd definitely buy more Hollywood patterns in the future. :)

Pattern
Hollywood 1032

Fabrics used
Stashed Plaid cotton shirting - Originally from Fabrics and Trimmings on Etsy
Stretch wool suiting maybe from EOS.

Pattern changes/alterations
1. Graded the size 32" bust up to a 36" bust.  I used the same 4" grade described here. This worked for all the pieces other than extending the collar that becomes the back facing. Here I lucked out and was able to properly guess how much to add thanks to some notches.

BTW - It's interesting how extending the front facing and collar up to finish the back of the neck in this manner was a pretty standard drafting technique in the past.  Now it's something we only do for if there's a wrap around collar.

2. Added standard 1/2" forward shoulder adjustment to the shoulder and sleeve head.

3. Dropped the bust dart 1".

4. Added a scant 1/4" to the bottom part of the princess line seam. The placement didn't look proportionally correct on my body without it.

5. Shortened the waist length 1/2" above peplum.

6. Added 1" additional length to the peplum.

Confessions/Advice
1. Don't forget about your elbow darts when you pull out a plaid. Derp.

2. Confession - I might be addicted to hug a snug and need an intervention.  It's something I'd never ever bought until the Veronica coat and now I can't stop putting it on hems. But see, so pretty.

3. I also covered shoulder pads with self fabric for the first time. All the pretty insides!

Husband Comment
"Are you going to a fancy business meeting?"  Why yes, I like to meet my donuts at the boardroom before eating them.

My Final Thoughts
Great start to my Vintage Pledge year.  I like the silhouette of both of the pieces and love that I can mix the skirt with various other tops. This should be the last "winterish" project for awhile. Look forward to lots of flora patterns in the future.

Thanksgiving Outfit - Butterick 6285

This year the sewing fairy must have had a slow night, because she paid me a little visit to specifically dictate a Thanksgiving outfit. Usually my dressing concerns for America's favorite eating holiday are, A. Does it have an expandable waist and B. Will the sleeves accidentally fall into the gravy boat? Bonus points if fabric that doesn't readily show grease stains. Using these rules I usually put together an outfit without much fuss or pre-planning. The sewing fairy was having none of that and whispered in my ear that I "needed" to have a leaf print skirt for Thanksgiving.  It's Fall and leaves are festive....or something like that.  She probably knew I'd outright laugh at her if she suggested festooning myself with turkeys.

I did laugh at the thought of Thanksgiving specfic sewing anyway.  My desk already has a Christmas sewing list a mile long, like hell another item is going on there. The sewing fairy just looked at me and smiled slyly. "Of course my dear, do whatever you want.  You should probably stay away from that Etsy website after all. You know how you like to spend money on there." Say what now?! Wild horses could not keep me away from the Etsy site now.  I'll show you sewing fairy!!! And that's how I ended up purchasing 4 yards of vintage cotton with red/black leaves.

Once that yardage entered my house I felt contractually obligated to sew it up. Man that sewing fairy is a wily one! It's like she knows all my sewing weakness....or paid someone for information.  I'm looking at you froggie!  Well at least I could put that impulse buy of Butterick 6285 to good use.

Having been burnt by Big 4 ease in circle skirts before, I measured the waist area before tracing. Hooray for sometimes learning lessons from past projects. My ruler told me that Butterick had drafted this pattern with more ease than I'd like.  Two inches of ease has been added to the waist measurement for each size, so the size 16 with a 30" waist will have a 32" finished waistband.  My waist is exactly 30" so I dropped down to the size 14 and muslined up the skirt as is. That muslin did "zip up," but felt like it might grow uncomfortable as the day wore on.  Figuring it was a smart thing to do, I added 1" of ease around the side seam area......which made my final garment about 1" too big in the waist.  HAA HAAA HAAA, sob.   The waistband was left that way for Thanksgiving for obvious reasons.....specifically pie.  However I will HAVE to go back and take in the waistband because the skirt kept falling forward off my waist all day. It drove me crazy having to constantly adjust it.

One other thing to note about this pattern is that the CB seam and side seams are drafted with a 1" seam allowance and I'm not sure why. The directions do show you how to recess the pocket bags, sewing them at a 3/4" seam allowance so they disappear into the seam a bit better.  I do think this is a nice feature, but you don't need a whole 1" of seam allowance to do so. Dare I say that a standard home sewing 5/8" seam allowance is more than enough to accomplish the same thing. OK, my college prejudices of 5/8" SA being way too big might be showing. Let's just say that if you need to save some fabric you can always cut those areas down. Forewarned is forearmed or something like that.

 Pattern
Butterick 6285 - Skirt portion only.

Fabrics used
Vintage cotton, closer to dress weight than quilting weight.

Pattern changes/alterations
1. I went down one size and added an 1" of ease to the waistband.

2. Added 3" of length for a finished length of 27".

Confessions/Advice
- You will want to stay stitch the skirt waist on this pattern immediately. I found it grew with even the lightest amount of handling.

- I'd meant to give you some photos of the skirt with a petticoat underneath and forgot to pack it for our trip to the in-laws. Anyway it's a nice look for the design if you want more fullness.

- The top in these pictures is a Nettie hack that is in no way ready for prime time. There's not enough ease for a faux wrap style and it's trying to gape open at every opportunity. In fact I'm going to rip it apart and turn it into a regular V-neck.

Husband Comment
"Oh did you make that too?  What's happening here with the extra fabric? Oh pleats? That's cool."

My Final Thoughts
I bought Butterick 6285 more for the kimono top than for the skirt, but really enjoyed sewing up the bottom portion.  I like the double pleats and the fact that the pattern comes with pockets.  Since only the waist area needs to be fitted, it's a quick pattern to bang out.  It took merely a week to sew both the muslin and the real garment. Guess the fabric fairy was right about me needing a new skirt after all. So if you'd like to add another cute circle skirt/kimono top to your pattern collection, then pick this one up during the next Butterick sale.

Last Bit of Fall Sewing

There are 2 more sewing weeks left before the Fall Essentials Sew-a-long is over, but boy is my schedule packed. This week is going to be all tutorial writing, pattern testing, blogging already finished makes and maybe a little Christmas sewing. The following week is going to be spent baking and then visiting relatives far away from the mini sweat shop. How's a girl supposed to plaid match a shirt dress with all that going on?   Gotta get myself a gaggle of sewing elves to continue garment production in my absence.

Before we get into reviewing my FES report card, I do have one more item to show you. One gray pleated "school girlish" skirt.

This pattern is from Burda Sewing magazine - issue 11/2009, pattern number 116. I liked the cluster of side pleats and thought it might be less bulky looking than an all over pleated skirt.  Burda 116 is a "front is the same as the back" affair with an invisible zipper on the side seam. No lining, no pockets, no darts, pretty much a beginner type of skirt.

If this fabric looks familiar it's because it's the "gray denimy stuff that must have wool" fabric that was originally earmarked for a shirt dress.  I had second thoughts about wearing this next to my skin and decided it would work better in a lined skirt.

Since this design was free through out the hips, I skipped the usual muslin stage and fit it on the fly. Started with the size 44, basted down all the pleats, basted one side seam and then tried it on.  The skirt needed around 1/2" removed for each side seam. Then it was easy to cut down the waist seam allowance a bit and apply the same change to the waistband.  Excellent! Froggie was pretty sure not making that muslin was going to haunt me.

I also made a few personal design choices on this skirt.
1. Burda tells you to draft a rectangular waistband for this. No thank you, I'll pull out my trusty self drafted curved waistband instead.
2. As drafted the finished length of the skirt is 31.5", which would be around mid calf on me.  I was pretty sure this would be really dowdy looking and reduced the skirt length to 24".
3. Added a lining to the skirt by cutting the Front/Back piece in lining and shortening the length by 1.5".

If I could tell past Heather to make one change, than it would be to remove the pleats from the lining to reduce weight. Both the self and lining fabric are light weight, but it adds up to one heavy skirt. Yikes! Every time I take it off the skirt hanger I'm slightly concerned for the health of the invisible zipper. Hang in there buddy. You've got your friend hook and eye to help you out.

Overall this skirt is comfortable and kind of fun to wear when you swirl it about.  However does add more bulk to the waistline area than I'd prefer. I'm not unhappy about making the pattern, but it's not going to be one that gets a remake.

OK. Now that I've squeaked the last garment in there, let's see how well this easily distracted sewcialist stuck to the Fall sewing list.
Fashionable Foundations
1.  Black denim pencil skirt - Completed. Already a little faded due to a poor washing decision. Probably should re-dye it black.

2. Wool circle or pleated skirt - Completed. As if you didn't know. ;)

Chic Chemises
1.  Ysolda's Chickadee out of stashed yarn - Completed.  It's been worn weekly so excellent wardrobe planning there.

2. One or two long sleeve Netties - Completed.  I sewed a solid green, solid black and a leopard print Nettie. You'll just have to take my word about the unblogged ones.

3. Vogue 8747 - Completed. Though I should take in the side seams a bit because it's yet to be worn.

Fabulous Frocks
1. McCall's 6696 - Not Sewn.  When I decided that the gray denimy wool was too itchy for a dress this got put on the back burner.  I've since bought some plaid shirting that would be an excellent shirt dress......if there is enough. I got the bolt in so instead of a full 3 yards there is only 2.5 which might not work with plaid matching.

Tender toesies
1. Hand knit socks - Completed. Finished the "on the needles" sock project in plenty of time. Hooray!

Those Cozy Nights
1. Laura Lounge pants - Not Sewn. Never bought fabric to make another pair of Laura Lounge pants. With my fabric buying track record that's not the worst thing.

Baby it's cold outside
1. Ottobre coat - Not Sewn. Couldn't get around to starting this before it go really cold, which was this weekend. Right now the plan is to make this a first of the year sort of project.

2. Hand knit berets - Had to frog.  I did knit a red beret using Ysoda's rose red pattern. I'm not into swatching for hats and sometimes that does bite me in the ass. In this case the finished beret is much to too and needs to be be reknit on smaller needles. No black beret was started so I only get half points for effort.

There was also the Fall Essentials addendum list which included:
1. Snow leopard top
2. Cobalt skirt or pants
3. Magenta top or skirt
4. Anything hot pink
5. Black and white striped raglan
I sewed everything on this list with the exception of the cobalt skirt/pants. Can't bring myself into cutting into the 2 yards of cobalt sateen in the stash. Maybe in the new year.

Out of 15 planned projects, 10 were completed. This might be a personal record for this girl who thinks sewing lists are just bossy pieces of paper. :). For that I'm forever grateful to Sarah who did the hosting work for this sew-a-long this year. Thank for giving me the "push" to finally make some of those basic pieces I really needed. 

Oooooo Witchy Woman, she got the flounce in her skirt.

Happy Halloween everyone! Do you have any fun plans cooked up for tonight? We're planning on taking Desmond for his first real door to door trick or treat experience. Previous years he's been ecstatic about sitting on the door step handing candy to other kids. His brain might implode with pure joy when someone hands him candy instead. What ever happens I'm looking forward to raiding his candy stash later. We all know he's not gonna eat those Almond Joy's.

This year I was in the mood to sew a costume, but didn't feel like spending the money to buy materials for something that would hardly get any use. The extent of my Halloween celebrations are hiding in another room while my husband is on the candy distribution duty. Can't let those adorable kiddies have the chance to pass their germs on to me. I see you hiding that bubonic plague under your Iron man mask! Never trust a cad like Tony Stark.

So instead of a costumy costume I took a page from some Halloween lovers on instagram and hatched a plan to "Dress like a witch." Well not a Wizard of Oz witch, or a Hocus Pocus witch, or even a Stevie Nicks witch. No disrespect Stevie, I can't carry off a shawl like you. Instead I decided to focus on the basics, the color black and some stripes thrown in.  Everyone know witches love stripes, right? Probably cause they make your eyesight vibrate until your pupils go all crossed. Once you can see again it's too late, you're in the witch's sack. Muhhaaa! Cannibalistic Treats!

For my quasi witch outfit I chose the Kitschy Coo trifecta top and Burda 6834 for the skirt.  I've made the trifecta top a couple of times in more sweatery knits and liked the fit.  In this bamboo knit the upper sleeves and bust area seemed to be too baggy.  I went back and removed 2" total at the underarm and tapered that out to the waist and elbow area. The neckband was also reduced in width to 1/2".

Burda 6834 is basically a princess line pencil skirt with a flounce sewn to the hem. Mine is sewn in some light weight wool suiting that was laying in the stash. I'd been toying around with the idea of drafting some sort of flouncy skirt when JoAnn's had sale on Burda patterns. Natch, drafting averted! Now I can use my free time to carve intricate jack'o lanterns.

I do owe a big thank you to a lot of my lovely sewing friends on Instagram.  My first muslin of this pattern was less than stellar looking on me.  I wasn't sure what the problem was, but figured a picture on instagram couldn't hurt. Immediately you guys told me to shorten the flounce length and just like that the skirt was 100% times better. Thank you all!!!!

My final flounce length is between the two specified in the pattern.  I used view B's cut line as the hem turn line. A 5/8" hem was added on so that I could finish the skirt with a machine rolled hem. Might as well take advantage of black hiding everything and give Froggie the night off from hemming.  His paws were covered in chocolate anyway.

Pattern
Burda 6834 - Used a combo of size 16 for the waist and size 18 for the hips. People with normal sized rear ends most likely wouldn't to bump the size up in the hips.

Fabrics used
Shell - Lightweight stretch wool suiting.
Lining - Polyester lining.

Pattern changes/alterations
- Took in the back princess line seam 1.5".
- Cut down the front waist 3/8".
- Used the flounce cut line for view B as my skirt length. Added 5/8" hem allowance for a small rolled hem.

Confessions/Advice
- Instructions tell you to interface the top of every pattern piece.  I used a roll of fusible stay tape pressed into the seam allowance for this.

- I skipped hemming the lining because it is so far up into the skirt no one is ever going to see it.

- Skirts without waistbands are not my preferred construction. Would add one if I make this pattern again.

Husband Comment
"It's sexy and professional!" Now I feel like naming this look "Profession witch."

My Final Thoughts
OK, so I thought, "This is gonna be a special occasion type of skirt." NOPE! Gonna wear it allllll the time. Basic black, you always do right by me. However.....if I was to make another one in a bright color which one should I go with? Just don't say orange or brown because then Froggie will have to slap you. Sorry it's a house rule. The other house rule we have is "EAT ALL THE CHOCOLATE!" Hand over the bag of assorted snicker varieties and no one gets an evil hex placed upon them.  Happy Halloween!

Once more with feeling

This is the part where I would make some further "Buffy" reference if I'd watched more than one season of that show. I tried guys but it was too much teen angst for this 35+ lady. Truth is that "Firefly" is always gonna be my go to Joss Whedon series. This girl was raised on sci-fi and cowboy movies and the marriage of those two genres fills me with glee.

Also on my personal scale of hotness Nathan Fillion is an 11, whereas David Boreanaz is too vaguely neanderthal like to be anything higher than a 2. Sorry David, at least you have that "Bones" money to keep you warm.

Anyway I thought the title of the "Famous/infamous" musical Buffy episode was perfect for today's post because I've got sewing repeats to share. Yes you've seen these garments on me before but not with leather jackets and switch blades. OK, maybe not with switch blades either. Mal told me to misbehave but that seemed to be taking it a bit too far.

First up the denim Beignet I mentioned making back in August. Look dudes, actual follow through on blog plans. I owe it all to my Frog task master who dug around the stash and found an oddly narrow piece of stretch denim. It turned out to be the perfect amount for a Beignet skirt.

Worn with Nettie, a Target Scarf and that Leather jacket I sewed back in 2012

The sewing process went a lot faster the second time around. Partly because all the pattern pieces were traced and partly cause I knew how all the parts fit together.  The only construction change was to piece the pockets together with a lighter weight fabric to cut down on bulk. The pocket was cut about 2" away from where it connects with the side seam. Seam allowance was added to both sides of the cut and, Ta Da, a two piece pocket. I used a scrap of cotton/rayon for the majority of the bag and the self fabric at the edge.

The lining used on this Beignet is also a repeat from the stash. Is it an animal print? Is it a mod leaf print? You decide. Just know that you'll be seeing it again because it seems to be regenerating back in a dark corner of the stash cave. Wonder if it will teach this trick to certain other pieces of fabric.

One other thing to discuss, turns out that when covering buttons with stretch denim the color gets lighter. Maybe I should have tried interfacing the denim to see if that limited the amount of stretch. Oh well, that smart idea just occurred to me now instead of presenting itself to Past Heather. Curse you brain with your tardy brain storms! 

Enough about my anal retentive issues with button shades which no one else will care about. How cute is this with tights and boots? It's exactly how I'd pictured it. Guess Froggie knew what he was doing by making sure I followed through on my sewing plans.

But wait there's more, on to skirt number two. Remember how I put a black denim pencil skirt on the Fall Essentials Sew-a-long?  No, yes, no? Well I went with remaking Burda 127 pencil skirt with my hacked "lips" waistband.

Worn with a Target sweater, luxulite brooch, and a RTW suede jacket.

This denim is also medium weight so the facing was switched out with, gasp, more of the polka dot remnant. What can I say, that polka dot fabric is a shameless hussy when it come to jumping to the top of the scraps box. Only thing I'd change on the waistband is to use a heavier weight interfacing to help keep the "lips" standing up. One side always seems to be flopping over when ever I peek in the mirror.

I used stretch denim again so this is nice and comfy even with the heavier weight fabric. I fear for the state of my invisible zipper every time I pull it over the waistband seam hump, but otherwise this is an easy wear item. You'll have to take my word for it that the skirt has nice top stitching on the princess seams and the waistband. I wouldn't skimp on top stitching like I would on photos.

I'm starting to make decent inroads on the Fall Essentials Sew-a-long list now that everyone's immune systems have stabilized. But we can talk about that on a later date when the males of the household aren't looking at me longingly hoping I'll magically make some food appear. The small one warns me that I'm arresting his development and that it's a serious issue. Better start dinner before he calls child services on me.