Britex silk chiffon = conquered!

Back in 2012 (I think?) I sewed with silk chiffon for the first time and it was a total disaster (not trying to quote Donald Trump here, but it was). I didn't realize then how big of a disaster, but now that I have learned more about sewing I felt ready to try again. Round two was a success.


The fabric in this post was generously given to me by Britex Fabrics in San Francisco, California. It's so cherry, isn't it? Initially I was terrified of this silk chiffon, but after deciding that I badly wanted an orange silk Named Asaka Kimono in my life I knew I had to step out of my comfort zone and make this combo happen. And I'm so glad I did. Worth the extra effort for sure.

Sewing with a slippery fabric can be tricky, so I did a lot of research and felt much more confident about silk. If you'd like to read my tips, tricks, and revelations please head over to the Britex blog where I wrote a blog post allllll about it. Of course, it didn't hurt that I was using a high quality fabric that was perfectly on grain, but in conclusion: it's not as bad as I thought it was going to be once I was prepared with the proper supplies and knowledge.


Let's discuss the pattern. But, let's first start out with a list of things that I talk shit about:

1. Cutting and taping pdf patterns.
2. Not having AC during the summer.
3. People who torture animals.
4. Neegan from the Walking Dead (such a psycho jerk!!!!!!).
5. The neighbor who would climb onto our trash cans to pick avocados from our tree.

Well, take number one on my list (cutting and taping pdf patterns) and times that by ten. That is how I feel about putting in all that work and THEN having to trace the pattern pieces because they are tiled on top of one another. Yeah, I know that I could have taken the pdf to the copy shop and had them print it out, but it was going to be $$$$$$$ and that made me annoyed too. THEN I realized after taping, cutting, and tracing that I needed to add 1/4 inch seam allowance to the pattern pieces if I wanted to use French seams.... @&*#^@!(#^$)!@^$. Alright, now that I've got that complaining out of my system. I'll work on my PMA for the rest of the post, promise.


Sewing the fabric went really really smoothly. Like, "too good to be true" smoothly, so shout out to my extra prep work and this silk. The directions for Asaka were great too. I think the pattern would have came together really fast if it wasn't for the French seams, but they were necessary, as the fabric is super sheer. The only minor changes I made, other than the French seams, were to add some extra top stitching around the collar and to make the belt loops bigger. Not sure if that last change was a good one, but oh well! This garment is going to get a lot of wear when the weather is hot, it breathes beautifully and feels amazing on my skin.


Underneath the kimono is a True Bias Ogden Cami made in cotton voile. I didn't get any solo shots of it, which is my bad, but it is the same fabric that I used for the collar and belt of the kimono. The pattern was a super straight forward sew, a great day project. I don't have much to say about it other than I like it and will probably make a few more as layering pieces. It's so nice to have a pattern for a wardrobe basic. Sometimes it seems like the simple pieces are the ones people buy from fast fashion stores, so it is awesome to have the option to make this instead of purchase.


It's such a good feeling to face fears and then beat them. And it's so freeing to know that I don't need to shy away from silk in the future. In fact, I'm planning a black silk dress right now :p

Mauiiiiiiiii!

Once upon a time I had a blog and I actually updated it! Life was freaking crazy lol. It's been a while since my last post, so I decided to shock people and actually update this thing! I even remembered my password!


I went to Maui recently with my family and of course I had to make some Hawaiian themed clothes (yeah, I was THAT tourist) and I want to share them with you guys over the next couple of posts. The scenery there is stunning, but you prob saw that if you follow me on Instagram, and I took full advantage of the natural backdrop.


First off, my fabric choices were completely inspired by Tom Selleck of Magnum PI fame. He was my mom's number one celebrity crush until she discovered Chris Isaak, so I am very familiar with ol' Tommy. This Hawaiian quilting cotton was purchased online from Hawaii Fabric Mart. At the time there was a five yard minimum order for their fabrics, so I bought five yards at $4.99 each, but now the website is saying they can do one yard cuts for some of their stuff. Not much to say about it, but it's pretty nice fabric and was a good choice for the patterns I paired it with. And I'm actually stoked that I ordered five yards because the print is beautiful and I want to make something for my niece if I ever decide to stop being selfish with my time.

Let's talk about the SBCC Paloma Blouse. Actually, why aren't you guys talking about it?!?! It's a great pattern from a great company. It is geared toward petites, and I now realize that I fall into that category, so I rarely have to make any adjustments to the patterns, which makes me happy! This shirt was sewn without any major changes (other than spacing the buttons a little wider apart) and I am really really happy with the fit. The style is awesome and will be perfect for showcasing some of the quilting cottons I have stashed away and will also look good with silk or rayon, two of my newfound loves. Well, View B (the view I made) will be great for the quilting cottons and View A will be good for the other fabrics. My only complaint, and I feel so petty and dumb for saying this, is that I wish that the instructions told you which seam allowance to use while sewing. It's listed at the beginning, but I like being reminded during the actual step because there is a 76% chance that I will forget and sew the wrong one.


The shorts are the Seamwork Weston pattern, a high waisted retro style short. I didn't make a muslin for it and didn't make any changes, but I feel like I ended up with a decent wearable muslin! Yeah, I for sure need to adjust the fit for my next pair, but I am still stoked on these. I prefer a higher rise to a lower one, so once I make some changes this is going to be my dream pattern for summer. Of course, I sewed these at the end of summer, so the next pair will have to be my Future Summer Dream Shorts of 2017. The actual sewing of it went well, however, I did get confused when it came to doing the fly front. I've only sewn one a couple of times and I needed more help than the directions provided. I think I referenced the directions for the Ginger Jeans since that is the only pattern I have successfully done a fly front for.


Shout out to my sister for taking these photos at our Airbnb. I have to give her a shout out or she'll probably hit me with a lawsuit soooo fast. jkjkjk


Any Tom Selleck fans out there? Mahalo.