I walked by a local fabric store one day and stopped in my tracks. There was this fabric in the window that called my name. It was modern yet somehow different, double-sided and so cool. It was black and white with many faces looking back at me.
Prolazila sam ispred lokalnog dućana s tkaninama jedan dan i zaustavila se na mjestu. U izlogu je bila tkanina koja me zvala. Bila je moderna, a opet nekako drugačija s duplom stranom i tako kul. Bila je crno-bijela i s puno lica koja su me gledala.
I knew I wanted to make it into a cardigan with the black side on the outside and white peeking out in the front. I instantly had a pattern in mind and after a bit of an internal assessment (read: hours of not being able to get it out of my head), I went for it. It is a Burdastyle pattern I already used before so I had it already traced out, which was great. It is the 117 B from 8/2011 magazine.
Znala sam da ju želim pretvoriti u nekakvu vestu s crnom stranom s vanjske strane, a da bijela strana na mjestima viri. Odmah sam imala kroj u glavi koji sam htjela koristiti i nakon malo mozganja (čitaj: satima nisam nikako mogla izbaciti sliku iz glave), za njega sam se i odlučila. Koristila sam kroj 117 B iz Burda Style časopisa 8/2011. Već sam ga ranije koristila tako da sam ga već imala iscrtanog i spremnog što je uvijek super vijest.
The construction was fast and straightforward. Usually, I keep away from Burda patterns because of their sizing and ease built into them, but this cardigan is supposed to be loose and roomy so it was a perfect choice. The cardigan is constructed with a zig-zag stitch and all hems are first zig-zagged and then turned inside and finished with a straight stitch.
Izrada je bila brza i jednostavna. Inače se držim podalje od Burdinih krojeva zbog njihovih veličina i toga što im krojevi uvijek imaju dodatnog lufta, ali obzirom da je ova vesta ionako velika i široka to mi nije smetalo. Sašila sam ju sa cik-cak šavom, a sve rubove sam uz cik-cak šav dovršila presavijenim i ravnim šavom.
The fabric is a real mistery. It is a sort of a knit and has a bit of stretch but it was unraveling at the raw edges which does not happen with a true knit. That is why I had to finish all edges with a zig-zag stitch before it was all gone 🙂
But the print makes up for it so I did not mind.
Tkanina je pravi misterij. To je nekakav džersej i sitno je rastezljiv ali se rasplitao na rubovima što nije tipično za džersej tkanine. Zbog toga sam trebala sve rubove završiti cik-cak šavom prije nego se sve rasplelo 🙂 Ali s ovim printom sam sve to zanemarila.
This is a short post with not much to report but the fact I love this cardigan crazy amount! With this single garment, a basic outfit becomes so much better and I feel great wearing it. I think this is one of the fastest turnarounds form buying the fabric to making the final garment. And that does not happen a lot.
Ovo je kratki ali slatki post u kojem nemam što puno za pisati osim toga koliko sam ludo zadovoljna s ovom vestom. S njom i najobičnija kombinacija postaje zanimljivija. Ovo je svakako bila jedna od najbržih izrada od kupljene tkanine do finalnog komada. A to se ne događa često.
I made a dream outfit which makes me smile like a dork. Persephone pants, Burda style magazine shirt and Gaia coat. I already blogged about the coat here, so I will not write much about it now, accept that I love it more than I love chocolate.
__________
Napravila sam outfit iz snova zbog kojeg se cerim kao bedak. Persephone hlače, Burda košulja i Gaia kaput. O kaputu sam već pisala ovdje, pa sada neću pisati o njemu osim što ću napomenuti da ga volim više od čokolade.
The perfect outfit/ savršeni outfit
I was eyeing the Persephone pants pattern by Anna Allen for a long time now but kept away from purchasing it. I have few other pants patterns similar to it in my stash already, so didn’t think I really needed this one. But I had terrible luck with all these other patterns and could not fit any of them. I was already close to crying. So I thought this one might be my light at the end of the tunnel since everyone was praising about it over on Instagram. So I did, I bought it and I am never going back. The fit is spot on and I am finally releasing all the frustration from other failed attempts of fitting pants. I made two muslins and decided the fit is perfect with size 2 at the waist graded to size 4 at hips. I also took the back seam in by 0.5 cm in because there was a bit of access fabric. I made the real thing out of 8oz denim from Minerva crafts. The denim tends to give with wear so maybe for my next denim pair I will size down to size 2 in hips and see how that woks. They fit fine but are a bit baggy after few wears. Nothing that would stop me from wearing them, just something that will help me make the second version better.
___________
Gledala sam kroj za Persephone hlače od Anna Allen dugo vremena, ali sam se suzdržavala od kupovine. Imam već nekoliko sličnih krojeva, pa nisam mislila da ne trebam i ovaj kroj. Ali sam s drugim krojevima imala loše iskustvo s podešavanjem tako da niti jedan kroj nije zaživio u formi hlača. Već sam bila na rubu suza. I onda sam pomislila da bi možda ovaj kroj mogao biti svijetlost na kraju tunela, obzirom da ga svi hvale na Instagramu. I jesam, kupila sam ga i više se neću vraćati nazad. Pristaju mi kao salivene i napokon otpuštam frustraciju koju sam nakupila iz svih promašaja s drugim krojevima. Napravila sam dvije testne verzije i vidjela da mi paše veličina 2 u struku prošireno na veličinu 4 u kukovima. Dodatno sam unjela stražnji šav za 0.5 cm da se riješim viška tkanine u tom području. Hlače sam napravila u 8oz traperu iz Minerva crafts dućana. Traper se širi s nošenjem pa možda za idući par ostanem u veličini 2 i u kukovima. I ovako dobro pristaju samo se s nošenjem malo razvuku. Ništa što bi me spriječilo da ih nosim, ali nešto što će mi pomoći kod izrade idućeg para da budu još bolje.
I also used a memade clay button / iskoristila sam i svoj keramički gumb
The reason I am pointing at the button above is because it is memade out of clay and I blogged about that process here.
___________
Razlog zašto pokazujem na gumb je taj što sam i njega napravila od keramike, a o tome sam ranije pisala ovdje.
2nd muslin
To be open and not talk about successes only, I did make a mistake while sewing. I was so thrilled on finishing them and when I had one last button to go at the waist I went in and sewed the buttonhole only to realise I did in on the wrong side of the waist (part of waist where the button goes). Thankfully, this mistake did not mean I had too many reparations to do, or better yet, any at all (good thing is I did not cut into the buttonhole yet!). I only put the button over it and sewed a new buttonhole on the top side of the waistband. This means that now if you look closely, like in the picture bellow, you can see part of that useless buttonhole, but as it would be weird for anyone to look that closely there, I think I am fine.
___________
Da budem skroz iskrena i ne pišem samo o uspjesima, na hlačama sam napravila jednu vidljivu grešku. Bila sam toliko uzbuđena da ih dovršim i kada sam bila na zadnjem gumbu sašila sam rupu za gumb i shvatila da sam ju uspjela našiti na krivoj strani pojasa (donji dio pojasa na koji ide gumb). Srećom nisam već zarezala u rupu pa nisam trebala ništa prepravljati, već sam samo našila gumb preko toga. Rupu za gumb sam našila na drugu stranu pojasa i ta da. Kad se bolje pogleda vidi se beskorisna rupa za gumbe s donje strane pojasa (na slici dolje), ali kako nitko normalan neće s pretjeranom pozornošću gledati u taj predio hlača mislim da sam ok.
or maybe you cannot see it in this picture after all 🙂 / ili ipak ne možete vidjeti tu grešku ni na ovoj slici 🙂
The Burda style shirt is from magazine issue 4/2018. The pattern is actually a jumpsuit, but I hacked it into a shirt. The jumpsuit looks perfect though, so I might do that one as well at one point. The pattern has many lovely details and when I saw Vesna of @kelerabeus make the jumpsuit I was determined to make it as well. Fabric restrictions made me stick to the shirt only, but I love it. The pattern has double sleeve action which caught my eye straight away. I scratched my head a lot with this one (as I always do with Burda), so Vesna was so great to help and send me her version of Serbian instructions, because the German ones were not cutting it. Thank you Vesna!
_______________
Košulja je iz Burda časopisa broj 4/2018. Originalno je to kroj za kombinezon, ali sam ga izradila kao košulju. Kombinezon je odličan, pa u nekom trenutku možda i njega napravim. Kroj ima odlične detalje i kada sam vidjela Vesnin (@kelerabeus) kombinezon znala sam da ga i ja želim. Kako sam bila ograničena s količinom materijala napravila sam košulju, ali sam prezadovoljna. Kroj ima dupli rukav koji me odmah privukao. Ovaj kroj me dosta izazvao s uputama (kao i svaki drugi Burdin kroj), ali je Vesna super i poslala mi je srpsku verziju uputa, pošto mi njemačke upute jednostavno nisu bile od nikakve koristi. Hvala Vesna!
The fabric I used is a viscose with small polka dots I got at a local shop. It is a great option for the double sleeve. It pairs well with jeans and it was meant to be worn with denim Persephone pants, at last in my opinion. What do you think?
_____________
Tkanina je viskoza sa sitnim točkicama, a nabavila sam ju u lokalnom dućanu. Viskoza je odlična opcija za ovaj dupli rukav. Super je u kombinaciji s trapericama i stvorena je za Persephone hlače, barem po mojem mišljenju. Što vi mislite?
I shared this dress on Instagram few weeks ago and I got a lot of comments asking what pattern I used or how I made it so I thought I would write a blog post about it for anyone who might be interested. I made the dress two years ago and do not have any in progress shots so can not share any pictures of the steps involved, but I did try to describe it with words as much as I could. Just scroll down for the ginghamization goodness.
***
Gingham is a well positioned fabric in the fashion world. I love it and think it always looks great. Somehow it is chic but casual at the same time. How is that even possible? Gingham superpowers at play. So when I saw the perfect gingham cotton fabric at a local fabric store I bought it straight away without even knowing what to make with it. I knew it would live it’s life as a dress but had not known in what form. I think I bought 2.5 or 3 meters of it, but it is hard to recall now. This is more like a guess based on the amount needed for the final dress plus I have a bit leftover.
With time some ideas started brewing in my mind and I knew what kind of a dress I wanted. I did not have a pattern for it so decided to look for a basic bodice I could use as a base and work around it. I needed a simple bodice with two front and two back darts. What I wanted would not be suitable for princess seams or bust darts as the fabric pattern would look different and possibly strange/unattractive. I went for one I already used before and knew would work. It is bodice pattern from Burda Style dress no #101 from 2/2011 magazine issue. But you can use any bodice pattern with darts that suits you.
Burda Style dress 101, 2/2017
I played around on paper first to see how the fabric placement would look. I find this as a good method when I want to play with fabric print and direction to test out the ideas.
I am not one for beautiful sketches but good enough to get the feeling if it will work (and you can see it worked from all the ticks – why are they all there I have no idea)
And now the construction of the dress.
BODICE. I had the bodice already traced so went straight for the fabric cutting. First step was to sew the darts on both bodice pieces. Then I needed to cut out the triangles. I measured the bottom of the front bodice piece on fold and side of the bodice front from bottom to bust height. That way I had measurements for two sides of a square. Then I cut out two squares of fabric and folded them diagonally to get two triangles.
I pinned the triangles to the front bodice and ‘tried it on’ to see if it lay flat or if there was some gaping or what not. What you want to check at this point is where the waist seam will be so you know how to position the triangles for them to meet in the middle, right where the skirt will be attached to the bodice. When I was happy with it I sewed the triangles to the front bodice within the seam allowance on the side and bottom of the bodice. The top of the triangles on the fold is left unsewn. You can stitch them down by machine or by hand with invisible stitch, but I did not want to have any visible stitching or do any hand sewing so left it like that. Hand sewing can easily be done when the dress is finished if you end up with any gaping, but I did not, so it is free and I can put my hands in if I want to rest them, for example. Then I attached front and back bodice pieces together. My dress has a side zip so I left one side open to insert the zip later.
I opted for a V opening on the back of the bodice (not pictured), this was an easy alteration to do. I cut out the original back bodice and then measured how low I would like the opening to be. I did not want it to be too low so I could securely hide the bra. When I measured it in front of a mirror I simply cut out a triangle opening. I finished the neckline with a bias binding but you can also do it with a facing or a full lining for a cleaner finish, which is my go to option these days. The armholes are also finished with bias binding.
SKIRT. The next step was the skirt and I went for the drama effect and cut out a full circle skirt. When it was ready I attached the skirt to the bodice and inserted the zip. And then all that was left was endless seam finishing on the circle skirt.
And voila, there is my gingham dress of dreams! It is not hard at all but gives a simple dress so much more character. If you go ahead and do it I would be happy to see your version, so please leave me a comment, send me a message or tag me on Instagram 😊
And one bathroom selfie for the end because we are in 2018
P.S. – I love this photo of ladies in their gingham outfits waiting in line by Nina Leen for Life Magazine. You think I would fit among them with this dress? The caption of the photo is ‘Women wearing checked outfits, waiting to place bets at racetrack’. That kind of line is not where you would find me but if it were a line to buy cinema tickets that could work. Imagine a gingham movie premiere – now that is where I would love to be!
Before I did not plan my sewing and never thought of making a capsule holiday wardrobe. To make garments that can work for every day but are practical for travelling as well. Well guess what, now I do! I find this to come with more practice and experience. And it is great to have half of your suitcase packed with your me mades! Just take a deep breath when you check luggage at the airport.
___________________
Prije nisam planirala svoje šivanje i nisam planirala kapsularnu garderobu za putovanja. Da napravim komade koji su dobri za svaki dan ali i praktični za putovanja. E, pa sad to radim! Imam dojam da to dolazi s iskustvom i praksom. I odlično je imati pola kofera ispunjenog sa komadima koje sam izradiš! Samo treba duboko udahnuti kada kofer predaješ na check in na aerodromu.
End stage of sewing a sleeveless top / Završna faza šivanja majice bez rukava
I started to sew some of the garments at the beginning of February and by the end of the month I had 4 sleeveless tops and one pair of shorts. Other garments that got to travel with me were earlier makes, all knit long sleeved tops. As I was travelling to Vietnam I was all into knits, cotton and linen. What more does a girl need?
For all of them I used fabrics from my stash I had for long time. Some of them were even given to me so all in all these are the cheapest and prettiest garments I have in my wardrobe.
____________________
Počela sam šivati početkom veljače i do kraja mjeseca sam imala 4 majice i jedan par kratkih hlača. Ostale komade koji su išli na put sam napravila ranije i svi su bili džersej majice. Kako sam putovala u Vijetnam bila sam orijentirana samo na džersej, pamuk i lan. Što drugo curi treba? Za sve sam koristila tkaninu koju sam već imala doma neko vrijeme. Neke tkanine su čak bile poklon tako da su to najjeftiniji i najljepši komadi u mom ormaru.
4 Ultimate shift tops made in February / 4 Ultimate Shift majice koje sam napravila u veljači
Let me start with the tops. I used the Sew Over It Ultimate Shift Dress pattern. It is a really easy and fast make and I was able to make them in a week time with full time job taking most of my day. I like the shape of a basic sleeveless top and this one is a great base for all sort of hacks you can think of. I did not get much of them into play this time but I am sure to do so with future makes. Just think of all the ruffles.
I did not have to do any adjustments to the pattern and made it as it is in size 8. If I would be doing a dress or sleeve version I think I would do the size 10 to make sure I have enough space for arm movement and hip/butt coverage 😊
_________________
Ajmo prvo krenuti s majicama. Za izradu četiri komada koristila sam Ultimate Shift Dress kroj od Sew Over It. To je jednostavan kroj i brz za izradu. Uspjela sam izraditi ova 4 komada u tjedan dana uz stalan posao koji mi oduzima većinu dana. Sviđa mi se izgled jednostavne majice bez rukava i ovaj kroj je odličan za sve preinake koje vam padaju napamet. Ovaj put ih nisam puno napravila ali svakako ću napraviti u budućim komadima. Samo zamislite sve nabore i resice.
Nisam trebala raditi nikakve prepravke na kroju i sašila sam ga kakav je u veličini 8. Ako bi radila haljinu ili majicu s rukavima vjerojatno i ga izradila u većoj veličini da osiguram dovoljno mjesta za pokret rukama i uspješno prekrijem bokove i guzove 😊
Blue linen top / Plava lanena majica
The first one I made from blue linen fabric. I added a patch pocket on it to add more detail and hemmed the bottom hem with decorative stitch. As the fabric was plain I thought this was just the right amount of detail to make it more interesting. The pocket is not my best work but after unpicking it few times I just told myself to live with it before I kill the fabric. And I do not notice it anymore, so please pretend you don’t notice it either. 😊
The fabric was a gift from a friend (it belonged to her grandmother) and I used up all of it. It was a narrow fabric so I just about managed to fit this top.
__________________
Prva majica koju sam napravila je od plavog lana. Našila sam džep i ukrasni šav na rubu. To mi se činilo kao dovoljno detalja da top bude malo interesantniji. Džep nije moje najbolji uradak ali nakon nekoliko pokušaja odlučila sam ga prihvatiti kakav je prije nego ubijem tkaninu do kraja. A više to i ne primjećujem, pa molim vas ni vi nemojte primijetiti 😊 Tkanina je poklon od prijateljice (pripadala je njenoj baki) i upotrijebila sam sve što sam imala. Komad je bio uži od današnjeg standarda pa sam taman uspjela izraditi ovu majicu iz njega.
The second top is made from a blue floral fabric that I believe is some sort of light cotton. This fabric belonged to my grandmother and I have no idea how old it is, but older than me definitely. I previously made a skirt from it and now used up the rest of it to make this top. It will be a great full on floral outfit for summer, but can be also worn separately. I took only the top to my trip because it was lighter to pack. And it goes great with denim shorts. Or any solid shorts, really. I did not make any hacks with this one because the fabric does all the talking here so I did not want to fight.
_______________
Druga majica je izrađena iz plave cvjetne tkanine za koju mislim da je pamuk. Ova tkanina je pripadala mojoj baki i nema pojma koliko je stara ali je svakako starija od mene. Ranije sam od nje napravila suknju, a sad sam ostatak iskoristila za ovu majicu. Ljeti ću moći nositi komplet cvjetnu kombinaciju ali su oboje odlični za kombinaciju sa ostalim komadima. Na put samo ponijela samo majicu jer je nju bilo lakše spakirati. I odlično paše sa traper kratkim hlačama. Ili bilo kojim jednobojnim hlačama zapravo. Nisam radila nikakve dodatne promjene na kroju za ovu majicu jer tu tkanina ima glavnu riječ.
The third top is maybe my favourite for many reasons. I got the vespa fabric from Miss Matatabi about two or three years ago when I first started discovering online fabric shopping. As I was still new to that world and had no idea how to buy fabric online I got lost in the shop and ended with all the colourful prints in the basket. I also had no idea what fat quarters were and wondered who would buy fabric scraps online that they had the need to sell so many of them. I know, I know. So, me being careful, I decided to give them a go to see what I will get in the mail and ordered this fabric as one of 3 fat quarters. That was enough to make a top like this which was the plan from the beginning.
________________________
Treća majica je moguće i meni najdraža iz više razloga. Vespa tkaninu sam kupila iz Miss Matatabi online dućana prije otprilike dvije ili tri godine dok sam tek počela otkrivati online šoping tkanina. Kako sam tek počela otkrivati taj svijet nisam imala dovoljno znanja za kupovinu tkanina na internetu i izgubila sam se u tom dućanu. Na kraju sam završila s masom šarenih printeva u košarici. Tada nisam znala što je quilting, što kod nas niti nije popularna aktivnost pa čak mislim da za to niti ne postoji riječ na hrvatskom (ako postoji i netko ju zna neka podijeli, hvala!). Quilting je izrada pokrivača od dva sloja tkanine koji su izrađeni od više fat quartera i imaju dekorativni dizajn. Kako nisam znala što je quilting nisam znala niti što je fat quarter (prethodno izrezan manji komad tkanine koji čini dekorativni dizajn popluna kada je sašiven) niti tko bi to kupovao da bi ovaj dućan ima potrebu prodavati toliko ostataka tkanina. Pa kako sam bila oprezna u kupovini materijala odlučila sam kupiti 3 fat quartera da vidim što ću dobiti u poštanski sandučić po pitanju kvalitete tkanine.
wrinkles were a ‘in’ by the end of the trip / neispeglanost je bila ‘in’ do kraja putovanja
I only just gotten around to making it two to three years later. I did not have enough to make both front and back of the bodice so I bought black linen fabric for the back piece. And I love the result and the fact I used up the fat quarter finally. I made a high low hem. More from necessity as the fat quarter means short top, but I like the end result. It is great to wear with high waisted shorts or skirts.
Another reason why I was so pumped to make it for this trip is because Vietnam is the country of motorcycles. There is so many of them and no photo can capture it as when you get there and try to cross the street. I tried to get a photo with them but it just looks nothing like the real thing.
__________________
Tek sam tri godine kasnije i izradila tu majicu. Nisam imala dovoljno materijala za prednju i stražnju stranu majice pa sam za stražnju stranu kupila crni lan. Sviđa mi se kako izgleda u toj kombinaciji tkanina i da sam napokon iskoristila taj fat quarter. Odličan je za kombinirati sa hlačama i šosevima visokog struka. Drugi razlog zašto sam bila toliko fokusirana napraviti ju za ovaj put je to što je Vijetnam zemlja motora. Ima ih toliko posvuda i fotografija to ne može dočarati. Ne kao kada ste tamo i pokušavate prijeći cestu. Pokušala sam sa slikanjem uz cestu ali to jednostavno ne izgleda kao prava stvar.
dav
dav
dav
dav
What did I tell you about it not looking as good in photos as in real life (I mean, where are all the motorcycles??)?
Što sam vam rekla o tome da slike nisu ni upola dobre kao prava stvar (gdje su svi motori??)?
The forth top from the first picture did not make it to the trip because I felt the print would clash with other separates and girl has to stick to her capsule wardrobe. And pack light so she has enough space left for fabric shopping. Priorities. And that one was made again from two fat quarters from Miss Matatabi fabric shop.
___________________
Četvrta majica koju možete vidjeti na prvoj slici nije išla na put. Mislila sam da se print neće uklopiti u ostatak garderobe, a cura se mora držati svojih planova o kapsularnoj garderobi. I lagano pakirati jer je trebalo ostati dovoljno prostora u torbi za šoping tkanina. Prioriteti. Ali i ta majica je izrađena iz dva komada za quilting iz Miss Matatabi online dućana.
dav
dav
dav
Other tops I brought to the trip were all knit tops. I did not get to photograph all of them in action, but they were as follows: two Molly tops by Sew Over It, Agnes top by Tilly and the Buttons and sweatshirt pattern from Burda Style magazine issue 1/2017. You can’t go wrong with knits for travelling. Comfort is everything when you go on a 6 hour flight or overnight train. These are all great patterns that are easy to make. They are also great stash busting projects and you can make some of them from as little as 1 meter of fabric.
________________________
Ostale majice koje sam spakirala za put su sve od reda od džerseja. Nisam ih uspjela sve uslikati u akciji, ali redom to su bile: dvije Molly majice od Sew Over It, Agnes majica od Tilly and the Buttons i džemper iz Burda Style časopisa broj 1/2017. Ne možete pogriješiti s džersej majicama za putovanje. Udobnost je bitna kada idete na let u trajanju 6 sati ili noćni vlak. Ovo su sve odlični krojevi koje je jako lako i brzo pretvoriti u odjevne predmete. Također su jako dobri za iskoristiti sve one ostatke materijala od ranijih projekata koji vam stoje negdje u sobi jer ih možete izraditi od svega 1 metra tkanine.
Burda Style sweatshirt from issue 1/2017 / majica iz Burde br 1/2017Molly top no 1Molly top no 2 (impossible to photograph) / (nemoguće je uspješno fotografirati crnu majicu)
In the next post I will share my bottoms that got to go to Vietnam with me so stay tuned until next week.
____________________
U idućem postu ću pisati o ostalim komadima koji su išli sa mnom na put u Vijetnam, pa svratite opet idući tjedan.
