Author Archives: Najah

Moving the Needle, Vol. 03

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Muslin mockup of asymmetrical pleated skirt

This week

My husband does all the laundry and is pretty strict about what gets done first. The bolt of muslin I put in the queue did not get VIP priority. So, with less than a yard to work with, I cut out only the front and basted in the pleats of the self-drafted skirt pattern I shared earlier. The process revealed that I’d forgotten to fold and true the pleats in paper, leaving no room for turn of cloth. The laundry delay was either serendipity or clairvoyance, because I’ve got another patterning playdate before I’m ready to lay down my iron upon a mile of clean muslin.

Speaking of playdates, I just registered my three-year old for preschool. All of the feelings and paperwork involved remind me of sewing.

Sew Inspired

I was glad to rediscover Christine’s thorough instructions for drafting and sewing a knit peter pan collar. Portia’s jeans refashioning challenge has me mapping out thrift stores to stalk. The hilarious review of Fendi’s 2017 resort collection on the Pretty Grievances blog features a pair of wider than wide culottes that I should’ve laughed at but actually enjoyed. My neighborhood pool closes in a week, so I missed my chance to make a new swimsuit —but next year…Amanda’s legendary Wonder Woman bathing suit (with drafting instructions) will be my guide.

Quotes to Sew By

Do you have the patience to wait until your mud settles and the water is clear? Can you remain unmoving until the right action arises by itself? ~ Lao Tzu

A garment may begin with design or fabric, but its ultimate success depends upon the compatibility of the two. ~ Susan Khalje, Linen and Cotton

P.S.

I recently updated my about page. If you’re a new follower, the short recap of the key turning points in my sewing life should be a nice Wanna Be Sewing Something primer.

Pattern Play: Asymmetrical Darts

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I drafted a pattern during my lunch break. No food. No phone. Just my supplies and the sketch of a mini skirt that my mind wouldn’t shetup about until my hands got to work.

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The skirt I wanna-be-sewing has four, topstitched darts that radiate from the waist toward the side seam. To get there, a little slashing, a little spreading, and maybe later….a muslin mockup of the final pattern to play with dart length and spacing.

I started with with my skirt block. This version is only 3 months old and already full of pin holes.

A custom drafted skirt block used to draft a sewing pattern. In the article, "Pattern Play: Asymmetrical Darts,” on the Wanna Be Sewing Something blog, Najah shares the slash and spread pattern drafting techniques she used to create a custom skirt design from her skirt block.

I traced a full copy of the front and drew in the new hemline. I got cold feet about the mid-thigh length and found myself hesitating to cut off the excess right away.

The back will have a dirndl look with elastic inserted into the back waistband to make it a pull-on skirt. To create this, I evenly spaced and cut four vertical lines, numbering the remaining pieces to keep track of them before spreading them apart to 1.5 times the width of the original hemline.

A custom drafted sewing pattern for a mini sirt with asymmetrical, topstitched darts. In the article, "Pattern Play: Asymmetrical Darts” on the Wanna Be Sewing Something blog, Najah shares the slash and spread pattern drafting techniques she used to create a custom skirt design from her skirt block.

Using a bendable ruler and french curve, I plotted four, parallel curves across the skirt front. Then, I held my breath…and slashed through each line.

Washi tape holds the closed darts together.

A custom drafted sewing pattern for a mini sirt with asymmetrical, topstitched darts. In the article, "Pattern Play: Asymmetrical Darts” on the Wanna Be Sewing Something blog, Najah shares the slash and spread pattern drafting techniques she used to create a custom skirt design from her skirt block.

After drawing in the curves for the darts, I realized they could easily be sewn as pleats. Which means I could have TWO styles for this pattern if I squared off the dart legs. I did this and they became match points for four asymmetrical pleats.

A custom drafted sewing pattern for a mini sirt with asymmetrical, topstitched darts. In the article, "Pattern Play: Asymmetrical Darts” on the Wanna Be Sewing Something blog, Najah shares the slash and spread pattern drafting techniques she used to create a custom skirt design from her skirt block.

During my next pattern playdate, I will finish labeling all of the pattern pieces. Then, I’ll trace a copy of the pleat-ready front pattern, draw in the stitchlines of the four darts I originally planned, and cut out the dart intake.

In my Skirt Skills class (aka couture for beginners), I learned to sew from stitchlines vs. cutlines. So my pattern will remain seam allowance-free, allowing me to mark the stitchlines directly onto the fabric.

A custom drafted sewing pattern for a mini sirt with asymmetrical, topstitched darts. In the article, "Pattern Play: Asymmetrical Darts” on the Wanna Be Sewing Something blog, Najah shares the slash and spread pattern drafting techniques she used to create a custom skirt design from her skirt block.

A straight front waistband (that will double as a separate facing) was drafted to accompany the elasticated back waistband.

Before I test out the pleated and darted versions of this pattern in fabric, let me know what you think. Have you ever sewn or designed a garment with asymmetric seams? This will be my first!

 

Moving the Needle, Vol. 02

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This week

There’s a new ritual in my sewing life. I make a date with my skirt block every time my favorite sewing teacher opens up registration for her Skirt Skills e-course. Sometimes I even re-take the course (alumni get a discount) to inject some organized sewing motivation around a new custom skirt project. Sharing with other students in the forum and the chance for one-on-one support from a couturier is almost irresistible every time.

When Brooks Ann announced another course starts on September 5th, I got ready to sew-along by pulling out my skirt inspiration sketches (like this one), poster board skirt block (which gave birth to my bifurcated trouser block), and self-drafted denim pencil skirt pattern (with original construction samples) to help me plan and design a second denim skirt (the first one I made is the highlight of my wardrobe right now). This one will have plenty of features to warm me up for jeansmaking.

Sew Inspired

Skirting the issue further, there’s Ebi’s purple animal print pencil skirt released into the wild just before her birthday (too damn cute). 1 out of the 18 sewing meet-up activities Kate shared on her blog includes draping and drafting a bodice using cling wrap! The difference between flounces and ruffles, as explained by The Cutting Class, has unruffled the subject in my mind. That time Eliza rotated the back darts of a pencil skirt to the side seams, I vowed to do the same one day. On her blog, Brooks Ann explains how she learned to sew without ever using commercial sewing patterns (its how I knew she was the right teacher for me). The 5-minute video interview with a Levi’s Master Tailor about making bespoke jeans that re-fueled my fire for the process.

Quotes to Sew By

The quest to create something from nothing is a wholly irrational act, do it anyway. ~Jonathan Fields

I am building a fire, and every day I train, I add more fuel. At just the right moment, I light the match. ~ Mia Hamm, double Olympic soccer champion

P.S.

I shared a simple hack on Instagram for assembling a set of 1 lb. pattern weights with hardware store washers and plain white glue. Let me know if you try it!