Botanical Leggings

October 24, 2021October 24, 2021 SewtropolisLeave a comment

I love leggings, even before the pandemic I was living in leggings outside of work. I have lounge leggings, leggings that I wear outside the house (other than working out), and of course workout leggings.

I’m pretty proficient at making them, in fact the hardest part for me is finding the right fabric. I’m pretty picky when it comes to workout leggings, the fabric has to have wicking, without being suffocating… and have the right amount of ‘grab’.

After I finished the first round of the Whole 30 Fabric Challenge one of my first purchase was this Arete fabric from GreenStyle Creations which is a new fabric that I was curious to try. The pattern is “Botanical Bliss” which is so pretty and feels so nice! The blend is Polyester/spandex, it has a nice hand to it and is ‘squat proof’… very important these days!

Left side

Back side

Right side

The best thing about this fabric is it matches my Seattle Kracken sweatshirt (Go Kracken!!) which was a happy surprise! And, can I toss out there that aqua is my favorite color and for that alone I love our new hockey team!

The pattern I used for these leggings is the Simpatico Leggings also from GreenStyle Creations. The pattern comes in three lengths which is nice as it saved me from having to add length like I typically have do. The other modification I usually make is a ‘full butt adjustment’ (otherwise they tend to ride low in the back)… but since this was the first time I made these leggings I wanted to see how they fit before I made the modification – and so I would know how much I needed to add. To my great surprise these leggings fit great in that area – no FBA needed.

I also like how the pattern allowed more room in the calf area which most leggings I’ve made don’t account for. I noticed by having that extra allowance in the calf I don’t have bagging between my calfs and ankles.

I have more fabric on the way so more to come – soon!

My Bedroom Makeover

November 10, 2020 SewtropolisLeave a comment

So I did this thing, I wasn’t planning on doing it, but once I started I found myself on a roll and unable to stop.

What did I do? Welllll, it started with ripping the carpet out of my bedroom. It was this icky lavender color that I had to clean every 6 months because the dogs were constantly tracking in stuff on their paws. It was gross and it had to go, so I tore it up! And I felt much better.

My intention after I got all the carpet out was to maybe throw some rugs down until I figure out what kind of permanent flooring I wanted…. and then I though, maybe I should paint the floor because it was bare wood and already I was getting little slivers in my hands and feet from crawling around on it while tearing up the carpet. But then I thought – if I’m going to paint it I should do something fun … like that time I painted a mandala on my deck.

But then I thought – why don’t I try painting a mural – I’ve always wanted to do a big mural on my walls, but have been too chicken to do it. On the floor though I thought ‘what’s the worse thing that could happen?? I don’t like it and I cover it up with rugs (my original idea) until I decide on longterm flooring?” and just like that I decided to paint a mural on my floor!

I started by finding an inspiration image on Pinterest, then picked out my colors, and painting supplies from Home Depot. When I got home I prepped the floor with two coats of primer. Once that dried I marked where the flowers should be and began with painting the background (aqua) first.

I then added white for the flowers, and one at a time, I added the different layers (detail) of the flowers. I usually had to wait a few hours for the paint to dry between adding layers, so all told it took me about 3 days to paint the floor and another 2 days to apply the 3 coats of polyurethane.

But I couldn’t stop there…. now that I had this beautiful floor I wanted the rest of my room to be just as beautiful. So I took EVERYTHING out, got more paint and started painting the walls, baseboard, and trim. I used the same color palette that I used in the mural … creating an accent wall with the crazy mustard color used in the center of the flowers. I’m glad I took that plunge… I really love it. My closet wasn’t very efficient, so I tore out the bar and shelf, and installed a new closet system with 3 bars and a shelving system. I was going to paint the closet doors, but decided to install mirrored doors instead to save wall space from a hanging mirror.

The walls turned out a little darker than I had hoped so I decided to make white curtains to ‘brighten’ the room up a little bit. I lined them with blackout fabric because in the summer the afternoon sun beats through the window and heats the room up like nobody’s business.

Finally, I switched out the ceiling light, painted my side tables, and signed my artwork.

artist signature in the corner — Kostas Kitty

I’m really happy with my bedroom makeover! I’m glad I took the risk and painted a mural on the floor – its definitely the prettiest DIY home improvement project I’ve ever done.

Projects · sewing

High-Lo Sheath Dress

March 8, 2020 SewtropolisLeave a comment

It’s been a weird weekend here in the Seattle area- otherwise known as the U.S.’s Ground Zero for the Corvid-19. People raided the Costco, Target and Fred Meyer’s last week, stocking up on toilet paper, bread, and water..?? Now everyone is holed up in their homes and events with 10+ people are canceled. The streets here are pretty empty – which means I bought gas, washed my car, and met a friend without waiting in line or getting stuck in traffic!

I also spent a LOT of time sewing, starting with this sheath dress from Butterick.

I used this knit fabric that I purchased last weekend, I believe it’s a poly-blend and a little on the heavy side. I thought that if the dress was too heavy I could shorten the length to take off some of the weight.

Turns out – it’s not too heavy. I made the view with the tie …

But the tie felt like it was too large/thick, and I knew it would bug me, so I took it off.

I can’t decide if I like it better or not… I’m not much of a tie person to begin with, AND, I can reach the pockets better without the tie….

I might see how I like it for now. I’ll most likely wear this with a jean jacket or cardigan which will break-up the lines and give it some shape.

When the weather gets really warm I can always buy a belt or make another tie using lighter fabric. That’s the joy of sewing, I can always change my mind.

Projects · sewing

Let’s Talk Business Suits

July 2, 2018June 30, 2018 Sewtropolis2 Comments

I made my first business suit this year. I used Butterick 6142 for the jacket and Simplicity 8056 for the pants. I usually purchase McCall patterns and know what modifications I need to make to get those patterns to fit correctly. I made the same modifications on both the Simplicity and Butterick pattern and seemed to get the fit close – but not quite right.

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I did make a muslin of the jacket and decided to go down a size based on the fit of that muslin. But, the jacket still doesn’t fit quite right in the shoulder area. I heard on one of my sewing podcast that a lot of people have fitting issues in the shoulder area due to our bad habit of hunching over our computers and phones. Good to know for future projects!

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I didn’t make a muslin for the pants, but I did make my usual modifications and cut the size I normally wear for McCall patterns… and ended up with pants that are a size too small. I can still wear them, but at the end of the day I can’t wait to take them off! (I’m not one for tight fitting clothes).

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I purchased the fabric for the suit at JoAnn Fabric… the good thing is I didn’t spend a lot on it, so I am considering this outfit my ‘wearable muslin’. This weekend I’ll be making a trip down to Portland with plans to stop in at a fabric store known for its large selection of fabrics. I’ll be on the look out for some nice suiting fabric for a fall/winter suit. Wish me luck!

I wish everyone a happy and safe 4th of July!

Nikol

Adventures · sewing

Starting with the last thing I made…

June 25, 2018 SewtropolisLeave a comment

I tend to go in and out of this blogging thing. For years I used to keep a journal, and even with that there were times I was more consistent than others. Now that I’ve challenged myself to sew my clothes for 2018, I thought I would blog my makes as a way to remind myself of what I did and any modifications etc. End of June seems like a good time to start doing that! HA!!

So, this top isn’t the last thing I made… but it’s the thing I’ve been the most happy with and that’s saying a lot since I’ve been really happy with my makes lately. (finally!)

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I think this makes me so happy is because it reminds me of my Memorial Day weekend in Victoria, B.C. with my friend Jennifer. We had to much fun!

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While in Victoria we did our own walking tour of the downtown area, stopping in to see the Empress Hotel, Totum poles and even walking along the waters edge – before heading out for a whale watching tour.

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Whale watching was amazing! We saw 3 humpback whales, two adults and one younger. They bobbed along and once in a while we would see a tail come up out of the water – which was very exciting – but not as exciting as seeing them breach! (photo taken using my iPhone7+)

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The next day we walked around Buchart Gardens (amazingly beautiful) and visted the China town district.

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And afterwards did a little shopping at Fabric Land where I purchased this beautiful aqua and black polyester crepe fabric.

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Of course I had no idea what I would make with it, but it was just too pretty to pass up. I purchased two meters of it thinking it would be enough to make a top of some sort.

After I got back I decided to make Simplicity 8138, mainly because I already had the pattern in my stash, and I really wanted to sew something I could wear during the warmer weather we were having at the time.

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I combined view B and view C. I liked the ties, but not the slit on the sides of view B. And I liked the flare of view C. I’m really happy with the way it turned out and I didn’t have any modifications other than my standard lengthening. I’ve worn it a couple of times in the past few weeks and each time it reminds me of that weekend in Victoria. Good times, Good times.

Till next time!

Projects

Rainy Day Project: Number 1

November 6, 2015November 4, 2015 SewtropolisLeave a comment

I may have mentioned that when I left Minnesota I sold or gave away about 95% of my stuff…. including all my furniture! The only thing I decided to keep was my bed frame which is a work of art – literally. But, more on that later.

I love my apartment, the location was a huge seller for me (walkable neighborhood), next were the amenities (gym, roof top deck, lounge area both upstairs and downstairs), my balcony view of downtown is awesome and it’s a ‘green’ building which means no more $300 winter gas bills! However, the one thing I don’t really care for – is all the dark brown in my apartment! Brown bamboo floor in the kitchen, brown carpet in the living room and bedroom, dark brown cupboards – it’s too much brown.

After I moved in I searched Craig’s List and found a nice red couch – which I think adds a nice pop of color in this mist of brown. But the couch needed pillows so over this past rainy weekend I sewed up these cute pillows:

I cut up some of my blue scraps into 2.5″ squares and sewed them all together to make these 20″ pillows! I don’t have a picture of the back, but the fabric is a decor weight blue fabric that I had picked up a few years ago and never used.

Each pillow is an envelope style pillow since I didn’t have 2 zippers that were long enough…. (and I put myself on a strict “No More Stuff” diet until I use up ‘most’ of what I have). I backed the quilted size with batting and scraps from a vintage sheet (which was used in a “finish it or donate it” project)

I really like the way these pillows add more pop to my apartment. At this point I’m still trying to decide how to decorate my place, but given my love for the color aqua I know these pillows will go with whatever I decide. By the way, the photos don’t do my couch justice… it’s more orange/red – less brown/red.

Happy Sewing