Mini-Wardrobe is Finished!!!

Here's the finished products of my Pattern Review Mini-Wardrobe Contest entry. Two tops and two bottoms that will work great at work! Being a high school math teacher means I need to be comfortable on my feet, moving around the room, and I do a lot of kneeling at students' desks. I needed to use fabrics that were easy to clean, as I use white board markers in the classroom and also have 2 small kids at home that inevitably have something dirty or sticky to touch me with. My other wish for this wardrobe was to make great wardrobe staples, things that were basic enough to work with lots of other pieces, but not too boring either!

Above are the original pictures of the outfits that I created. I'm still new at manipulating and creating jpegs (hence, my crappy storyboard and the first picture in this blog entry), so pardon me. I'll have to have some online friends give me some tutorials!

Here at the left is my final piece, Butterick 4230. It's out of print, so if you love it, too bad for you!

I used a creamy ivory cotton jersey from Joann's (actually, all my fabrics came from Joanns except the black cotton sateen from Gorgeous Fabrics) which is really soft and comfy.

I made a few pattern alterations. The reviews all said the pattern was very close-fitting, so I cut the XL, but after attaching the sleeves, realized it was too big. So, I sewed another line of stitching 1/2" in from the sleeve hem to the shirt hem, right around the armpit, and it's much better.

I attached the collar differently, so that the seam allowance would be hidden under the collar, and I left off the ribbon tie. I thought it screamed "HOMEMADE" or "Happy Hands at Home" as Michael Kors says, so I went shopping and found the perfect gold and pearl brooch to use instead.

In conclusion, I'm really happy with all of the pieces, and will continue to sew with a similar minded plan in the future!

BWOF 07-2008-115B

Here is a skirt from the July issue of Burda World of Fashion. It's a wrap skirt with side box pleats that open to a slit. I did it up a a blue batik print as a muslin. The second version will be birthday gift for my mother in law.

It's got a nice fit, and doesn't open too much when you walk or sit, so I'm happy with it.