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Sunday, February 26, 2012

Lonsdale Progress

Finishing the Beignet really improved my outlook on sewing and provided a much-needed kick in the pants to dive into the Lonsdale project. As you might have noticed, I've been somewhat dishonestly displaying that sewalong badge on the right panel over there for about six months now. Oops.


croquis_lonsdale


I'm happy to report that things are going swimmingly. Today I traced off the bodice front pattern piece in order to complete the FBA. I did it pretty much as Tasia described in her sewalong post except that, rather than shave off the excess waist width on either the centre or the side seams, I opted to create a vertical waist dart in addition to the horizontal bust dart (which I believe is how Sarai handled it when she made her gorgeous floral version). Also, like Sarai, I had to shorten the bodice by a whopping 1.5"!

After all this, I did a brief tissue fit and then cut into my fabric. After sewing it up and trying it on, lo and behold, it fits perfectly. Major relief for this non-muslining girl.

I've got all the other pieces cut out and ready to go, so hopefully it won't be too long. Unless, that is, I let the hemming drive me to throwing it into the back of a cupbard. (Does anyone else despise hemming?)

18 comments:

  1. I'm the same with the Lonsdale sew along badge - I also have the Minoru one which I haven't started yet. Actually it's a good time to start the Lonsdale - by the time you've finished there may be some warmer weather for you to start wearint it!

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  2. I really want to sew something today after reading your progress! I'm still putting everything away in my new apt. and this includes overthinking as to how I want to organize my sewing nook. I'm going to try an FBA with my next Lonsdale since I think the neck tie will sit a little higher than my first version. Oh, and I don't like making muslins either, especially multiples! And as for the sew along badge just think of it as free advertisement for Tasia, which is always a good thing :) So neat you live in the same city as Ms. Sewaholic!

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    1. I hadn't thought of it that way, but of course you're absolutely right! Ah, non-participation guilt has disappeared!

      Working in small spaces can be tricky. I don't have a nook even - I have one cupboard for my supplies and I work on my kitchen table. I so wish I had a space I could just leave stuff out in! Ah well, one day :)

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  3. I find Tasia's patterns are incredibly long in the waist - even by standards of other patterns (from which I generally have to cut 1.5 inches of length). I love her designs and her instructions are excellent, but I don't think her patterns are drafted for even an average length waist. Of course, long waisted, pear-shaped lovelies deserve their own excellent patterns. I don't know that many other companies cater to that shape.

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    1. Yes, this is a good point. I don't have enough experience to compare to the big 4. So far I've remove 1.5", we'll see once I attach the waistband if I have to remove any more. (I try not to let myself get jealous of other body types, but seeing versions of this dress on smaller-busted, longer-waisted women than myself makes me a little envious for sure. Have you seen the version over on Cloth Habit? It's lovely.)

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    2. I'll check it out and I totally know what you mean. Sometimes a change would be good. But keep in mind a lot of those women have challenges fitting pants and skirts because they have their curves below the waist. It would be so fun to have a tall, super lithe body on occasion, to wear man-tailored clothing without a bra.

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  4. I'm so glad you're sewing again! I absolutely love watching your progress and it always inspires me to sew. I also always learn something from reading your sewing posts. Always!

    I've been looking forward to hearing about your experience (for months! LOL!) with this pattern. So glad you're back to it! =)

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    1. Oh, yay! And likewise! I'm excited to see what you come up with in that new sewing room of yours :)

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  5. Does anyone else despise hemming?

    yep! It's my 2nd least favourite sewing chore behind hooks and eyes (the big thick ones for pants and skirts). I'll often have pieces languishing for a while - all finished except the hem. In fact, I have some pants next to me... all done except the hooks/eyes and the hem!

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    1. So glad I'm not the only one! It's simple enough to sew but I think it's all the pressing and pinning that gets to me. (I get annoyed with bias binding as well.)

      I was hoping to underline the skirt rather than line it, but realized that wouldn't really work. I'm sad, it seems unfair to have to do two hems on one garment, lol.

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    2. lol unfair! if you have a serger you could maybe serge the lining hem? i did that on the last dress i made. yeah, it's not as fancy, but it's also not a pita!

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    3. Actually, that's not a bad idea. At least, even if I do decide to fold it up, I wouldn't have to fold it under. (It's that double ironing that really makes me crazy.)

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  6. Ooh yay, so glad you had good luck with fitting it! This will be super cute in yellow! I hate hemming, too! It's so tedious! Ironing hems has to be the most boring task in all of sewing. :(

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  7. Ha, we should hold a survey and find out what tasks really make people crazy. And then a survey to find out what people love. (I'm a weirdo in the knitting world because I like seaming up knits. I suppose because I love hand sewing! Most knitters I know hate the sewing aspect of it.)

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  8. As you already saw, I got nominated for a Liebster Blog Award, and I wanted to pass it along to you. If you enjoy those types of things, feel free to play along. Otherwise, just know I enjoy reading your blog.

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