Post-Christmas sewing

 I have had a fairly productive post Christmas week, sewing wise!

I sewed a pair of sleeping shorts (yes, another pair, this one for me!) to participate in the December pop-up at Pattern Review (My preciouss).

I sewed up a pull-over for 'the Entomologist"  (I have a bad habit of gifting promisory notes for sewing projects I can't finish by Christmas; stay tuned for a funny story on that front!)

And made progress on Montreal-daughter's Mitchell pants. (Going okay, with small disappointments!).

But first the shorts! MG gifted me 6 pieces of Ghanaian waxed-cotton a couple of summers ago. I used up five of them for a variety of projects, but hung on to this last piece, which I found especially pretty, and wanted to make into a garment, for me. The cotton is a bit thick, and it was a short piece (87 cm by 112 cm wide), and I had never settled on what it could be. The pop-up theme came up, and I thought I had no 'precious' fabric in my current stash, but of course, I did. And at the same time I was sewing up the Carolyn PJ sleeping shorts, and I put those two thoughts together and decided on the same shorts for me with the preciouss! I poked round in my odds and ends and found a short piece of a suitable contrast colour (purchased to use as an underlining in a project I later abandoned). I JUST managed to cut the main pieces out from my fabric! I had to do some serious pattern tetrus to make it work. Laying out the fabric on a single layer helps, and I combined the waistband into one long (instead of two shorter) piece, and this allowed me to fit everything on! The colour is so vibrant, and this pattern is quite cute, so I am very happy with the result. Don't forget we are mid-winter here, and so I was not willing to model the shorts with bare legs!

overdue shorts!

The Jalie 2212 quarter-zip pull-over. The motivation to get this done before the New Year was provided one day when BS, after rummaging a bit in a drawer said 'DT, what's this?' And presented me with some cloth pieces. Two short fronts and two short back in a ponte knit. Hmmm. This was obviously an un-met promisory note for a pair of sleeping shorts. Why I decided to use a knit for them is not something I can recall! But seeing that incomplete project from years ago, along with last year's incomlete knitting project for him was true motivation to complete this year's promise! And so I did. (But first I made up those overdue shorts, to practise my serging!)

This is a great pattern and easy to sew up. Even if it uses stretch fabric it does not need any stretch seams (there is so much top-stitching, too.) Easy to sew, so missing a few advanced details, which I tried to add: zipper-guard (just read a couple online tutorials), binding at the neck edge. I used linen left from the Christmas sewing - and it makes a nice subtle "contrast." Ottawa daughter seemed impressed with the result! The fabric was a bamboo cotton mix from Core Fabrics and is SO SOFT! This pattern will surely be made up again, for him, or other family members.

2nd muslin

The Mitchell pants. I love this pattern, But they are giving me a hard time! She was swimming in the first muslin, so I sized down, and removed some of the rise. I also removed some of the width in the legs - they are just SO wide. I copied the Carolyn PJ pants line, and the 2nd muslin was a great fit. 

So I started on the Viscose-linen blend (another gorgeous fabric from Core Fabrics). It drapes beautifully. Which means it can be tricky to handle - as it shifts. It is also very light, and I am currently worried about how it will hold up the hardware (the waist ties). The pleat at the front pocket was not lining up as it should (I may not have adjusted all the pieces correctly when I shortened the rise.) Also, the serging is not looking so good. I thought on the light lining fabric for the pocket I should use a 3-thread instead of 4-thread stitch. Mistake. But too late to change it. And I must have been asleep at the wheel: I forgot to interface the welt pockets. They also did not turn out as cleanly as I was hoping, even though I followed the steps meticulously. I have never been great at the fiddly work 🙁 I am hoping that the final product meets my expectations. Montreal daughter can be a bit selective...

Still a few more days of intense sewing before going back to work. I have great expecations!!!