Finally, a Sorbetto in Liberty.

I am so blown away by all your nice comments and emails about my Cordova Jacket - I honestly couldn't have made it had it not been for Tasia's amazingly clear instruction sheet :-) Let me know if you give the jacket a try, I would love to see your versions too!

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This Liberty of London 'Lodden' has been in my fabric stash for a little while now, and I couldn't quite decide what to do with it, as I had only purchased 1 meter. When I saw the illustration of the Cordova Jacket, I knew a Sorbetto would sit nicely underneath a jacket of that style. The navy's match perfectly too!

I sewed a size 4 in the top, with the only adjustment being I added three inches to the hem line. The Sorbetto's I have made in the past all sit at a nice length when worn with a skirt, but when I wear them with jeans they just feel too short. The three extra inches on my Liberty version really makes a difference! I also added self made bias binding from the left over fabric. I will post a little tip on how I made the bias binding later this week.

I have been saving all the little scrap pieces of Liberty that is left over from every project I make. My dream  is to one day make an entire Dresden Quilt using my scraps of Liberty fabric, with the plates set against a plain white cotton. Sounds amazing doesn't it...?! Slowly slowly :-)

Sam xox

Cordova jacket.

After keeping this secret for almost two months I am so excited that I can finally show you my Cordova Jacket! To be honest I was a little nervous about sewing an intermediate jacket pattern, as I have never sewn a jacket before (though I do have one half completed). When I saw the pattern and read through the instructions the nerves completely settled. Tasia really does know how to write simple, easy to understand instructions without "dumbing down" the patten or techniques. This jacket had it all; lining, zipper, interfacing, princess seams, and a peplum.

I decided on navy for the colour and fortunately found the perfect Italian wool crepe in my local fabric store. I had promised Tasia a Liberty of London lining, but it just didn't seem to suit the drape of the crepe fabric. Instead, I opted for a soft lining fabric in a pinky/latte colour. I sewed a size 8 and did not have to make any changes. The jacket went together very easily thanks to the clear instructions. I am soooo happy with how it turned out. It looks dressy and casual at the same time, know what I mean? Also, my husbands comment was "you could buy that in a store".... always a nice compliment (do other people say that to you as a form of compliment when you make something?). And I did keep my promise to Tasia in a way, I made a Sorbetto top from a Liberty of London Tana Lawn to match the jacket!

So without further ado, here is my version of the Sewaholic's latest pattern, the Cordova jacket...

If you want to try making a Cordova jacket for yourself, visit the Sewaholic pattern store.

Sam xox

Liberty Sorbetto dress.

This dress is the result of cross-inspiration. 

A Liberty fabric dress.

And Alys Fowler.

Two years ago I came across an Ilana Kohn dress made from Liberty fabric, and knew one day I would try and make one for myself. Once I set up my Pintrest account I saved the dress there too just so I wouldn't forget about it. I loved the simplicity of the dress, the bias binding and the curved hemline. I imagined it would be so perfectly comfortable to wear during our hot summer months.

This year I was also inspired by the dresses Alys Fowler wears in her BBC series The Edible Garden. Her knowledge of permaculture and indubitable love for her garden inspired me on my gardening endeavours, while her offbeat gardening attire inspired my seamstress within.

I drafted the perfect gardening dress today using Colette Pattern's Sorbetto as my starting block. I deleted the centre front pleat and lengthened the top by about 14 inches, taking into account my hip measurements and adding width to the pattern accordingly. I also lowered the front neckline about an inch. I made a wearable muslin first using the brightly coloured floral fabric I blogged about yesterday. I discovered the wearable muslin had a few mistakes. I had not removed enough of the pleat section so my darts did not reach the right position on my bust. Also, I added three pin tucks to the centre front neck line which did not look that great. The first dress will be kept for sleepwear in the summer months, because it is cute, but a little shabby and not something I would be confident to wear out in public.

For the second pattern draft I removed more from the front pleat, added half an inch to either side hips, shortened the length to sit above my knees and decided not sew the pin tucks. I sewed this draft up in the blue mock Liberty and it turned out so much nicer!

~ It was 14oC and raining for these photos - so so cold! ~

I drafted the hem line slightly curved, which I think is a nice touch. The bias binding works well with Lawn fabrics because it gives the soft fabric some structure and shape. This dress took be no more than one hour to make!

This dress is going to look so cute in a Liberty Tana Lawn! The only trouble will be deciding what fabric to sew it up in.

Any suggestions Liberty fans???

Sam xox

Sorbetto top #2.

I've been meaning to blog this Sorbetto for a few months now. I made this top back in October as a gift for Mill for her birthday. I wanted to post her a handmade item that wouldn't weight too much (postage cost in Australia is exceptionally high), and the Sorbetto fitted the bill nicely.

As this was made for the purpose of 'sleepwear', I used a soft cotton fabric with small blue and white stripes. Some cream bias binding for the neck and arm holes matched the fabric perfectly and added a soft tough. I stayed true to the pattern and had this cut out and sewn up in under an hour.

I intend on making a few more tops from this pattern this year. Thanks again Colette patterns. Click here to print yourself off a copy of this charming pattern for free.

Sam xox

Sorbetto top #1.

I am now on the Sorbetto bandwagon! I have been wanting to sew this pattern for months now, but somehow during the move we managed to lose the cord that connected the printer to the computer. During a clean out of some boxes that had fish tank equipment in it, we found the cord (go figure). Which meant that I was finally able to print out this pattern. It is available for free from Colette Patterns here.

As we are quickly heading into the warmer months here, I wanted to start sewing summer clothes. Another motivating factor is that I desperately need new clothes for work. I have a combination of 8 tops and 5 bottoms that I have been mixing and matching for work for the past year. This means they are always in the weekly washing cycle and thus have really started to wear out. I want to make as much of my work wardrobe as I can, but as my work outfits need to be more on the practical side, I have been hesitant to sew clothes that require too much in the way of complicated technique - translation - I need clothes made quickly and cheaply so that when they get ruined I won't be too heart broken (my work can sometimes get messy!).

The Sorbetto fit the bill perfectly! For this top I used some of the fabric I purchased on the weekend. It is a simple cotton fabric, that I think is an imitation of Liberty of London prints. The pattern really didn't use a lot of fabric, and was a breeze to make. Seriously. Anyone could make this top. So if you've been thinking about beginning sewing, why not give this top a try?

~ In 'real life' the left side of the hem does not stick out like it does in the photo.

Perhaps my angle was skewed? ~

I only made a few small changes to this pattern. I added almost 2" to the length of the top, as I found that my muslin hem sat a bit to high for my liking! I also enlarged the arm holes slightly to make the top more comfortable in the hotter months.

I have a funny feeling this will be the first top of many from this pattern.

Have any of you given this pattern a try yet? What did you think of it?

Sam xox