Black and White and all things right: M7099

Hey Y'all

First before we get into the review can I tell y'all how much I love this one here? I mean I really love it like for real for real love. I love this one so much that I have another one cut out waiting to be sewn up.
I wore this to a Conference that I was so blessed to be able to attend this weekend in Houston. The conference was Mimi Gs' Passion to Profit tour. The conference was informative, she was personable and informative and had an awesome friend/contributor Tieko Nejon who spoke on branding and marketing. I am not at a stage where I am ready nor interested in monetizing, branding or marketing but when I am I think I will be ready with the info they shared.
Funny Story.. Someone complimented me on my outfit, and of course I had to say "Thanks I made it!" Then she asked me what pattern? For the life of me I could not remember.. *insert funny here* another lady whom I had not met yet at this point speaks up and says "Oh its McCalls 7099. I turn and ask her "how do you know that? Does it look homemade?" (which would not have been a compliment) she explains no but she knew the pattern right away because she had made it recently. She takes out her phone and begins to share her pics and before you know it we are standing there looking at pics of our handmade garments from our phones oohing and awwwing like we are sharing pics of our beloved children.  Oh those memories still crack me up. *end of funny*


On to the review:
The pattern is M7099 View C. A misses jumper/romper with tapered legs.

Pattern Sizing: I cut the 14. I Could have easily gotten away with a 12 but the 14 was the smallest in my pattern envelope.

Were the instructions easy to follow? Instructions were simple enough. Nothing very difficult if I recall correctly. I made this back in May but just had the opportunity to wear it now.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? Love that it was simple to assemble. There were only 6 pattern pieces

Fabric Used: I used a black/white/Grey knit I purchased from JoAnns back in January.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: 
- The bodice was very roomy and I ended up taking in an additional inch on each side seam.
- I used 3/8 elastic at the waist instead of the 1/2 suggested.
- The underarm is very low and will show bra strap if a narrow hem is done. I chose to finish the raw edge and only turned under once.  Next time I make it I will raise armhole probably 1/2 inch or so.
-I made an almost fatal rookie mistake near the end of completing. I was trimming my pants seams. I was not going to finish the seams because its knit and wouldn't ravel. I don't yet have a serger and didn't want to take the extra step of finishing on my machine like I normally do (being lazy) I cut a about a 2 inch gash in one pants leg. I was horrified, like almost near tears horrified. I decided to just narrow the pant as much as I could to hide the tear..so I took both pants legs in the same amount,  and honestly you cant really tell the difference in my opinion.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? Yes. I already have it cut out. 

Conclusion: Well you know by now. I love it.
I didn't get the chance to take many pictures of this one, but you'll be seeing it again I'm sure.

The only picture I got with Mimi G. and my eyes were partially closed and my turkey neck was showing. Oh well!

Talk with y'all soon.
NaTisha

Simple black blouse: Simplicity 1364

Hey Y'all

This is such a simple plain black top that its almost not worthy of its own blog post. Wait a minute... Anything I start, complete and wear is worthy of an individual blog post because if I was going to be completely honest recently its been far and between (is that how the saying goes?) since I could post something wearable.

Anyway, I needed a simple black top that I could pair with a skirt to wear to a midday wedding. This was a purchased skirt from F21 a couple years back that I never wore because 1. I bought it for church without trying it on then realized the under slip was too short and sheer and 2. I just didn't have a simple shirt to pair it with.

My first fix was the skirt. I had to cut out the sheer, thin, short slip that was attached to the skirt. The attached slip barely covered my bum, and although probably really sexy on someone else Im not about that life. So I took a black slip I had on hand ( I buy slips anytime I am at a thrift store and they are cheap) and stitched it to the underside of the skirt waistband. PROBLEM SOLVED

Second, was the top Simplicity 1364
  I made the size 16 in a black Peachskin. This fabric was originally $9.99 but was on sale for 30% off and I used an additional 20% of coupon so this top cost me a little over $6.

Initially, I wasn't sure about the neckline but after it was complete I really liked it. Like the pattern envelope suggested this top sews up in a "Jiffy". There are only 4 pattern pieces the front, back, and 2 facings.
The waist/bottom of the top was tight and narrow, I couldn't pull it all the way over my hips but where it stopped was fine for me. I cut the back on the fold and had a back center seem choosing to omit the lapped back zipper. The underarm was a bit too tight for my liking and I knew it would get irritating after wearing for awhile so I snipped out 1/2 inch from the underarm from the notch to edge.  This gave me the perfect amount of ease I needed.

Dressform Pics:

Front

Back 

Neck

How I paired it: 

I really liked this top and can see myself making this as a simple shell to go under blazers and jackets in the cooler months. 

Talk with yall soon. 

NaTisha
      

Feeling Meh..about this one. Kwik Sew 3229.

Hey Y'all


I decided to sew up a pattern that I hadn't sewn before so I reached for OOP Kwik Sew 3229. It looked simple enough.. My plans were to narrow the legs quite a bit and maybe add elastic to make them joggers.. here's what happened.

Kwik Sew 3229 and a camouflage poly-cotton blend from Hancock's

I used the size XL. This pattern calls for a stretch fabric. I did not use a knit so I decided to use the largest size in the envelope. I narrowed each pant leg on inner and outer seam by 1 inch . That resulted in the pants still being fuller than I desired. I took off an additional 1/2 inch or so on each side but for some reason I only did this to front pant leg. So.. the back pant leg was much fuller than my front. But I think it would have been anyway minus my mix up with the adjustments cause it was like a major difference between the front and back pant legs. At this point I decided not to make them joggers and leave them as is.
I lengthened the bodice by three inches.

I swear the sun will just not cooperate with me. I squint in every single picture.

Instead of cutting the back on the fold I cut two pieces and added an exposed zipper

It looks like my right leg is off grain and the pattern is running upwards. Its not.. I had just adjusted the belt I had on and the waist was caught underneath the belt.

Per the pattern instructions the SA was to be 1/4. I used a 5/8 in the bodice area and about 1 1/2 in the seams of the pants to take away a bit more of the fullness. 

I opted not to do a fabric belt and used a 1 inch elastic instead of the 3/8 as instructed in the instructions. 

This was a $2.50 poly-cotton blend fabric and I initially was just using this as a muslin and although I don't love it, I decided to wear it out this day for lunch anyway. 

The bodice does have a front and back facing and I really liked that. So no bias binding or narrow hem at neck and arms. 

This wasn't a terrible pattern but its also not one Ill probably be running back to either. The wide legs are just too much for what I wanted in this particular jumper. 

   

This is me signing off! 

Talk to y'all later, 

 NaTisha   

My Sunday Blues

Hey Y'all

This pattern is an oldie.. McCalls 6700. If I knew how easy it was to whip up, I would have made this a long time ago. I started on Friday, completed on Saturday and wore to church on Sunday. There are only 5 pattern pieces required in order to make this dress. and y'all know me... One day I will kick the habit of going the easy route but for now it works for me. Making simple, uncomplicated pieces works for both my time and my wardrobe lifestyle.  

I used this blue/White/Teal spandex knit that I have had for probably 2 or 3 summers. I cant recall where it was purchased from.

The first thing I did was change the back up a tad bit. I wasn't fond of the the long ties in back. I widened each tie (there were originally 2) by 1/2 inch to make easier for turning once I attached them I didn't like the way they looked or hung. So I removed one all together, shortened the other and tacked to the other side of the shoulder.

I  ended up tacking both the front and back bodice down to eliminate the gaping. It was a simple fix and it worked but I still decided to wear a thin cami underneath just in case.

Other than the back straps and tacking the bodice closed I didn't make any other alterations. WHEN I make this again I will probably lengthen the bodice by an inch or so, the bodice was just a little short for my taste.

This was really a fun dress to make up. I could honestly have a ton of these in a bunch of pretty wild prints for summer. The one thing I may do differently when I make this up is to change the back bodice to a one panel cut on the fold back. Other than this I would keep everything exactly the same.

That's it for now. If you haven't made this one up yet, you should!

I'm looking at my pattern catalog and I'm thinking a one piece jumper is in my near future.
Have a Great week. Talk to y'all later!
NaTisha

My final Me-Made of 2015

Hey Y'all!
I didn't quite achieve my goal of 10 Me-Made items for for May. But, I squeaked by with 8 and for me that is a HUGE accomplishment. Granted some of these things were made previously and I just had never gotten around to wearing them. Some things I did make in May  I didn't get a chance to wear but will be able to share later.
Anyway here is a fun little skirt I wore the other day.

 
This fabric is so busy but perfect for summer. I purchased this fabric from my local Jo Ann's (ironically last May)

No pattern used. Its an easy circle skirt drafted according to my measurements

Although I didn't make all 10 items that I set out to make at the beginning of May I'm still pretty pleased with myself.

  That's it until next time.
Talk to y'all later
NaTisha