Jennifer Lauren Handmade

Pippi is no school girl now…

Winter. It’s the end of July here at Plum Towers & feels like Spring is a looong way off. However seeing the images of those poor people in Greece & California struggling with wild fires it would be rather churlish to complain about a bit (or a lot) of rain. It might make my deck look pretty terrible, but it isn’t going to hurt me or mine.

Instead, I shall embrace some winter dressing! When Jennifer Lauren asked for reviewers for her Pippi Pinafore I was tempted, but torn. Tempted because I’ve made her patterns before, and know her fit for me is spot on , and her instructions are clear & through. Torn because I’m a woman in her *cough cough* early (ish) forties, is a pinafore really the go? Or will it bring back terrible memories of my high school uniform, a pinafore symphony of green & gold plaid. Australian Olympians can get away with green & gold, spotty gangly 14 year olds not so much…

Also it’s cold right now. While a linen version with a cute Breton style stripe top underneath is very appealing, I’m a soft Aucklander, in my world anything below 10 C is actually freezing. So I spent a few minutes* on Pintrest & was intrigued. Could I take what I think of as quite a summery look, and make it drizzle & cold appropriate? Im happy to say I took the plunge , spending a pleasant half an hour cutting and taping the PDF together . I know many people loath this task (I actually find it quite relaxing to do with UKTV on & a glass of wine to hand), but I’m happy to say the notches match up & it all comes together very easily.

20180729_165444 — Eyes on me not the deck thanks!!!

First stop, fabric. I had a lovely wool crepe in my stash, brought yonks ago at Drapers Fabric . Even after making the worlds crappiest pants, I still enough left for a dress, yay! Light enough to sew with a lining, and still wear a jersey underneath, yet with more weight & warmth than a linen or cotton, perfect. I also though the navy colour would make the dress look a little more grown up & season appropriate. It would work a treat with my pink Uniqlo jersey.

20180729_165621 — I like this silhouette

The pattern is reasonably simple, there are quite few pieces once you have your lining & interfacing cut out, but the pattern directions are really clear, a competent beginner could make this with time & attention.

20180729_165751 — I did my best getting all the cat hair off okay…

The pockets are lined, and plenty big enough for cold hands (or car keys & a hanky?). I was concerned the pocket size and placement may not be a great look for me, but they are actually a nice design feature.

20180729_165810 — Crazy cat lady lives here…

The patterns comes in multiple cup sizes A-D and sizes 6-24. I cut a straight size 20, with no alterations. The skirt part of the dress is really nice, the pleats at the front & darts at the back give a nice skim of tum & butt, without acres of fabric adding bulk. If I want bulk I’ll eat it thanks! I couldn’t find buckles that worked so I used the button option instead on the straps. So much potential for fabric/button combinations. Please don’t look too closely at my buttonholes however…

20180729_170555 — I do love pretty lining!

The lining keeps everything look pretty on the inside, I use a sweet Japanese Lawn , I love the idea of this somber navy, with such a pop of colour & print inside. The pockets are also lined.

You may notice the lack of buttons on the side of the pocket. My machine absolutely refused to deal with so many layers of fabric, and asserted her authority in no uncertain terms. After the fifth attempt sanity prevailed & my frock is still quite lovely thank you very much. Please also forgive the overlocked hem. I was running out of daylight & my photographer was very firm “I’ll take the pics during halftime”. Well, he is very patient, so I like to be flexible.

Would I make this again? Absolutely. I really want a gorgeous linen version for spring, to wear with a stripey top (of course!) and sneakers. I also intend to make a skirt from this pattern. I’ve struggled to find great skirt patterns, a pencil skirt is too slim for my hips, and as I usually wear flats, can just look frumpy. But I don’t want the loads of fabric around my hips & butt a gathered style can bring. This is a great combination, ease from the darts at the back, interest from the pockets , a couple of cheeky pleats around my tum for less cling & jobs a goodin!

Thoughts on pinafores? If, like me, you were on the fence , I’d give this pattern a go, you wont have high school flashbacks, I promise!

Have a fab week, I hope where ever you are the temperature, as Goldilocks so famously put it, is just right!

Kristina x

*Has anyone ever spent “a few minutes” on Pintrest? Yeah, right!

** Jen offered this pattern for free in exchange for a fair & honest review, the only kind worth reading obviously

Meet my new man Auden…

I do love a good cardie. More comfortable than a jacket, loads of colours to choose from, and best of all, no potential for me to be cold. I hate being cold. While several members of my family were definitely born in tents (or yurts, for the hipper among us?), I’m the one shutting doors & cranking up the heat pump , like the Nana I essentially am…

So when Jen at Jennifer Lauren Handmade put out a call for reviews of her Auden men’s cardigan I was intrigued. Could I drag Mr D away from his beloved sweaters & hoodies, and convert him to the joys of a nice cardie?

20171112_175043 — Just hangin’ in the garden…as you do

The Auden is designed to be made with a low stretch sweatshirt knit ( as opposed to wool, in which case you’d need to wait about five years for this post …..slowwww knitter!). That, and the retro style, was what caught my eye. Like his wonderful (?) wife, Mr D is wedded to weekend comfort. Suited and booted daily (with a magnificent cuff link collection I must remember to share actually), he loves to relax on downtime in comfort, while not “looking like an old fart”.

Flatulence aside, the relaxed, yet still slim line shape was really appealing. Also the contrast band & elbow patches. In fact when I showed him the pics & said “would you wear this”, his first response? “Yep, I really like the tartan detail at the front”. Ok then Douglas.

20171112_175104 — Apparently this is a Western , he’s ready to draw…!

The pattern sizing covers S-XXL, I made M , which is a 39 1/4 chest, and a 36 waist. Mr D is 6 ft 3″ so I added 1 ” to the sleeve. Next time I would also add about 2 ” to the torso, as he like his tops a bit longer. For his reason, I did a very short hem on this version, which doesn’t look great!

The pattern came as a PDF, I know a lot of people loath PDFs, but I actually find the cutting & taping quite relaxing. I do it with a glass of wine & something good on the TV. The PDF came together easily, and both views , with and without contrast bands , came as separate pieces, so you only had to cut & tape what is required. After 70 years of sewing , my 82 year old Mum has recently discovered PDF patterns, seriously anyone can do it!

The main fabric is a sweatshirt knit from Centrepoint Fabrics, with a lovely trim of the most delicious Irish Linen from Miss Maude. Who wouldn’t want to wear Dandy linen, seriously?

The raglan sleeves attach to the body of the cardie with a cool curved seam . I used plenty of pins and took my time, it was actually quite simple to do, and I love the retro effect the give.

20171112_175125 — Tommy posing on the pizza oven…

As you can see the front neckline is gaping slightly, I managed to stretch it out and only realized when I had already done my buttonholes & attached my buttons I was a wee bit off…bit late then!

This is a relatively easy sew. I say that because I didn’t find anything particularly challenging….but I did make a few mistakes. So basically, at a first run, you will still end up with something entirely wearable, and depending on the shape of your model, and your own skill level, possibly pretty darn fabulous. I should have factored in Glenn’s long torso (doh!), and not managed to put my twin needle in a very safe place (i.e lost), so I had to stitch the (too skinny) hem twice .

Next time I would also do the Narrow Arm Adjustment Jen details on her blog ,the arms just feel a wee bit wide around the cuff area.

Will I be making more cardies for Mr D? Yep, I’ve already cut out a purple version , not my colour choice, but with black denim elbow patches, and a band going around the hem, as per my models request. It’s a lot of fun to make clothing for others, and I enjoy Glenn being involved in the process. If you were thinking about some sewing for a bloke in your life, this would be an excellent place to start!

Open Kimono. Jennifer put a call out for reviews & Mr D really liked the pattern. I received it in exchange for an honest review. Believe me, if the man of the house had complaints you’d be hearing them. Whether you wanted to or not…

Hope you’ve had a lovely weekend!

Kristina xxx

Afternoon tea with Mrs D

In our house Mr Douglas is the one with the sweet tooth, and I mean sweet. If it has sugar, he likes it. If it has more sugar, perhaps with a side of carbs and possibly a fried involvement, he REALLY likes it. As you can imagine , Afternoon Tea is pretty much his favorite meal (after dessert of course).

I’m much more of a savory girl. Afternoon tea generally leaves me wanting. The texture of sandwich bread has always grossed me out, so dinky club sarnies don’t get me excited. I’ve been accused of jumping on the gluten free bandwagon, but given I embrace pastry in all its forms, and ate my last plastic sandwich in Room 7 at primary school (it was corned beef on white, ewwww!) , I think that’s rather unfair. Or was I the only hipster in Manurewa in 1980 and just didn’t realize it?

So when Jennifer Lauren put out a call for reviewers for her Afternoon Tea blouse & shift dress pattern I was intrigued. Not only did the simple, vintage style appeal, maybe here was my chance to actually embrace afternoon tea?

20170925_182644 — Yep, cool enough for a cat button, that’s me….

The pattern is a cute blouse/dress with a kimono sleeve, elegant neckline, and two versions of an interesting cross over facing giving, best of all, the potential for awesome button placement. I love buttons! My sister Dette, a crafty minx if ever there was one, sent me a lovely stash of buttons for my birthday, one of which was a cute cat. As a fully certified crazy cat lady I knew this needed to be front & center.

20170925_183154 — Purrfect! (sorry, couldn’t help myself…)

The pattern is in a PDF version, I found it very easy to put together, particularly as you are told which pages are required depending on which view you are making, so I didn’t need to tape everything together at once.

First up I made View 2, a blouse in a pretty floral cotton poplin. I wasn’t sure if the fabric would have enough drape, but to be honest I don’t tend to wear my blouse tops tucked in, so figured the crispness wouldn’t be an issue. I actually quite like the structure, its simple but has a nice shape which works well given the bold print.

20170925_182850 — Watching my idiot cat teetering along the fence….

My sewing isn’t perfect, the bulk of the cotton meant it was a little tricky to get the facing sitting perfectly around the shoulder and neckline, (yes, I should have followed the instructions and trimmed the seams a little more carefully!)

But I’m actually really happy with the garment, I made no alterations to the pattern, cutting a straight size 20. It was super quick to put together, the only fiddly bits being sewing on the facing, and button placement. The button is fixed, so no faffing with button holes yay.I was apprehensive the sleeves wouldn’t be long enough & I’d veer into cap sleeve territory. If you can explain to me the appeal of cap sleeves on anything but a twiglet there’s possibly a Nobel prize with your name on it…or at least a glass of Chardonnay. But happily they are not only an acceptable length, they require NO BICEP ADJUSTMENT. Yes, you heard me right kids!

Naturally I couldn’t resist making the dress version. and a visit to Drapers Fabrics sealed the deal. Of course I had company.

Me: I thought I’d check out the new Drapers Fabrics on Khyber Pass on Saturday.

Mr D: Are you seriously buying more fabric??

Me: Of course not, I’m browsing…

Mr D: “side eye”

Me: Ok, yes I might be, I think they have a sale…

Mr D: I’m coming with you , you’re not safe alone in a fabric shop…

Me: Ok…we can go to Little & Friday for doughnuts after.

Mr D: Do you think a doughnut will make me forget how much fabric you are buying?

Me: Yes.

Mr D: I can’t be brought with doughnuts.

Yes dear reader, he can. In fact this is exactly how Saturday transpired. Such is a happy marriage.

So into my lap fell a gorgeous silk linen mix, in my most favorite colours , orange, brown and green. Lovely drape, but the linen gave enough structure to ensure it didn’t feel “nightwearish”.

20170925_181345 — Once again, a cavalier approach to pattern placement…and lawn care apparently?

For the dress, concerned about tightness around my waist & hips, I graded between sizes from 20 to 22. The size range is 6-24 which equates to 31/24/35 to 49/42/53

I made View 3, which has a box pleat at the back for some shape. There is a sensible amount of ease, I was bang on the measurements for the waist & hips of the 22 and the sizing is spot one, nice & comfortable but not crazy big.

One thing I would note is the cup size. While I’m a 44 bust I don’t have a big difference between my full & high bust, so generally don’t have to do FBA’s. While the sizing was fine for me, I wouldn’t have wanted the bust to be much smaller. For later patterns Jennifer has introduced multiple cup sizes.

I love this dress, so easy to wear, so easy to put together. The instructions are clear, with good line drawings. The fabric was quite different to sew than the cotton, definitely more slippery , with a bit of bounce from the linen. I found the facing wanted to flip out more than the cotton, and I was a bit nervous with my iron (I learnt the hard way maxi linen temperature doesn’t work for every fabric, despite all that satisfying steam..), so a few extra hand stitches were necessary, but worth the effort for something comfortable to wear, with swish (and pockets!), that isn’t a sack and can be whipped up in an afternoon. Indeed the Afternoon Tea frock!

Open Kimono. Jennifer put a call out for reviews & I liked the pattern. I received it in exchange for an honest review. The only kind I do actually 🙂

Now, whose for tea? And cake. Or cheese?

Kristina xxx