A Birthday Suki Robe! or two...

 My mom had her birthday over the summer and I wanted to make her something nice! So I looked through my patterns and decided on a summer robe. Everyone needs a nice robe J and I know that my mom has a winter robe and thought it would be lovely to have a nice summer robe to relax in on a lazy Summer Sunday morning.

 

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!

I have been wanting to make the Suki Robe for a long time. In fact, I was so excited about this pattern that I mistakenly purchased it twice! Oops! When I went through my fabric collection to pick out a fabric to make for her I settled on the 2 combinations that you see here. The floral print and the tiger print. Both lovely fabrics with very different feels to the fabric and very different, but fun, vibes. Decision paralysis hit! For the life of me I could not decide which one to make for my mom. So, I did what any good sewist would do and made them BOTH!! I figured that I really wanted one and liked both combinations equally so one for me and one for mom! The decision could be made later as to who got which one. Luckily I could make the same size for both since there is not a huge amount of difference between us and it is after all just a robe, very forgiving in the fit department.

As I was making them I literally would go back and forth with which one would be for mom. In the end I waited until they were both completed and then had a video chat with my sister and asked her opinion. I REALLY just needed someone to make a decision! She said floral for mom!! After seeing mom in the floral robe it is a perfect fit for her.

Pattern: Suki Robe by Helen’s Closet- View B knee length. Description of pattern from website: The Suki Robe is a luxurious and comfortable robe, perfect for everyday use. It wraps around the body for a flattering waist fit and flares out over the hips. The sleeves offer a classic look while still being a practical shape and length for getting ready in the morning. Inner and outer ties keep this robe closed so you can move around freely. The outer ties are anchored to the back of the robe so you will never lose them and inseam pockets ensure your phone is always at hand. Two lengths are provided and you have the option of contrasting front bands, sleeve bands, and ties. The Suki Robe will surely be your new favorite lounge-wear!

This is a PDF only pattern. I really do NOT enjoy printing out sheets of paper and taping them together so I use an online printing service called PDFPlotting.com They do a nice job and have fairly quick turnaround and very reasonable prices.

Fit Changes: No fit changes except to grade between sizes for larger hip.

Design Changes: Almost None! For a change I made these almost exactly as designed by Helen from Helen’s closet. The only thing I did was to make the main ties longer. I added 6 inches to each tie. I also added a label and hanging ribbon.

Fabric: Robe 1: My Mom’s robe- Digital floral print lightweight linen with solid linen accents. Digital print linen from Marcy Tilton and solid accents from Blackbird fabrics.

            Robe 2: My robe- Tiger print rayon challis with solid linen accents. Tiger print rayon challis from WorkroomSocial and solid accents from Blackbird fabrics.

Interfacing: scraps for the corner insertion on the front band.

Notions/Buttons/Zippers: none!

Seam construction and seam finishes: All seams done on a regular sewing machine with a 3 thread overlock serger finishing. The construction directions are quite nice and I had them accessible on my iPad. For both the sleeve bands and the front bands she includes 2 construction methods, a beginner method – exposed seams and a more advanced method- all seams enclosed. I thought this was a very nice touch and would certainly enable new sewists to expand on their techniques.

For all of the edge stitching and topstitching I used an edge stitching foot on my machine to keep things lined up perfectly!

Robe 1 notes- I did have some fun with all of the topstitching on Robe 1. I used a Sulky 12wt Blendables Long staple cotton thread for a nice effect and for the inner ties I used the serger belt loop binder to create the ties.

For the main ties I added an interior back portion to stabilize them better. The main fabric is quite lightweight and I was afraid that over time they would rip at the back where they are attached. Certainly not a design flaw- just a consideration to take into account with the lightweight fabric.

On the inside I added a piece of the straps and edge stitched it down for re-enforcement.On the outside all you see is the rectangle of stitching that matches up to the  straps.

Robe 2 notes- Matching topstitching as I didn’t have anything special on hand to use! The inner ties were made the old fashioned way of sewing and turning the tubes. The rayon was way too soft for feeding through the belt loop maker on the serger and I didn’t want to futz with starching the pieces.

Hem Finishes: Sleeves are finished with a band and the lower hem is a simple double turned and topstitched.

Additional Notes: This was a fun project! I will totally make more of these Suki robes. They are very comfortable and feel quite lovely when worn. I like having the inner tie as I can sit out on the balcony and have coffee in the nice weather and not worry about any wardrobe malfunctions.

If I didn’t already have 2 winter robes I would be making myself another one! I know of some people on my Christmas list that would enjoy a robe as a gift. We shall see if I can make that happen.

Happy Sewing!!

The Princess really enjoyed exploring some of the art done after Chicago George Floyd riots at the RC Shops close to my home. Many shops that have had to put up plywood to protect the glass at shops have taken the opportunity to invite artists to paint them. Much nicer than just plain plywood! Her favorite was this one with the beautiful floral hair!

Also... a sneak peak of what I am currently working on :) Stay tuned for more information.

 

Metallic neutral sheath dress, jacket and skirt

 This garment ensemble is long overdue to be blogged. It all started last spring during Design 2 intensive with Sarah Veblen. One of my exercises was to work on and develop what neutral means to me in fashion, design and sewing. It was a great time for me to explore this since I was also in great need of new work clothes.

The designs were all developed by me with some design considerations given to me by Sarah.

The Sheath Dress 

The sheath dress was one that I had been wanting to create for a long time and I had so much fun working on a master pattern that has since morphed into so many designs! For instance, I took my base master sheath dress pattern and modified it to create this metallic neutral.

I started with sketching some ideas for a dress and then added a jacket and then thought that a skirt addition would make a mini capsule perfect for work trips.

I modified the pattern by:

• Raising the front neckline
• Lowering the back neckline
• Adding extended shoulder for a sort of cut on cap sleeve
• Side fronts and side backs cut on the bias
• The front piece was split horizontally with a curved line to take advantage of the lines and nap of the silk dupioni
• Addition of a tab and small button to the back vent. The button matches the jacket buttons. Just a different scale.
• Addition of a welt zipper pocket in the right side front piece

The dress fabric is a lightweight metallic striped silk dupioni, underlined with silk organza and line with ambiance lining. I purchased the silk from Fabrications shop at the ASG national meeting when it was in Indianapolis a couple years ago.

The Jacket

With the dress completed, I moved onto the jacket. The fabric for the jacket was a gift from my great friend, Wendy Grossman who blogs over at The Couture Counsellor. I knew that I wanted the jacket front shape to echo the curve of the bodice on the dress front. But in a very delicate way. In my mock up i tried a couple different placements for the curved front and I had to be careful to place it in such a way that I did not accentuate my full tummy.

With the jacket front shape adjusted, the rest of the construction was fairly simple. Except that I had to match the basket weave as perfectly as possible! I also wanted to pull in the elements of the dress in a way that the set really went with each other and not just a jacket that looked good with the dress. So, in addition to the front waist curve, I also used the dress silk dupioni fabric to create pleated details on the jacket.

I added:

• pleated cuff treatment
• pleated pocket treatment 
• pleated collar/neck treatment (my favorite part) 

The main jacket pattern is made from my master princess seam jacket pattern and 3 piece sleeves with the under sleeve cut on the bias. I simply love using a 3 piece sleeve! It shapes and fits so nicely to my arms and it takes much less yardage overall when using a 3 -piece sleeve because the sleeve is in 3 pieces you can puzzle fit it into smaller areas.

For the lining used a silk remnant for the body portion, making sure to include a back pleat for ease and comfortable movement. The sleeves are lined with black ambiance lining. 

The Skirt

With the leftover basket weave fabric and ambiance lining, I made a matching skirt. Thinking that this would be a perfect skirt suit. However, I dont often wear it that way because I don't like the way the front yoke of the skirt looks when paired up with the jacket. This is a bit nit picky on my part. Instead of using darts on the skirt I choose to add in a yoke and cut it on the bias. My thought for doing it this way was that then I would not have to match the basket weave vertically between the jacket and the skirt. All I succeeded in doing was breaking up the line so that the eye is drawn right to the yoke. Not where I want peoples eyes staring at!! LOL!! From the back it looks amazing because the back yoke is covered by the jacket. 

The skirt pattern was developed from my basic a-line master skirt pattern. I transferred the darts into a yoke on the front and back.I also added in a 'secret' pocket on the inside facing. Works perfect for when I am working trade-shows and need to have a credit card/cash etc in a safe place.

A very good design learning opportunity for me. Luckily I have plenty of other tops and another jacket that goes very well with the skirt so it is not an orphan sitting in my closet! Plus I do also wear it as a skirt suit for work. It's not that bad....

 I mentioned above that I have another jacket in my closet that I made quite a few years ago that also works quite well with the sheath dress and the skirt. It is from a metallic denim/twill with a very wide stripe that worked perfectly for this garment. The pattern is one of Cynthia Guffey's - J5054. Her website is back up and running, but not sure for how long... so if you like, go buy it!

Happy Sewing!!!

Here is the princess showing off 2 new shirts and dancing in her new PJ's!! She loves coming over and picking out fabric for me to sew her new clothes :)