Athletic wear and T-shirts…

Last year when I did my first RTW fast, one of my goals was to make some work-out wear. Well, it never happened. I had too many other things to do and not enough time. This time around, I got it done.

The first thing I made were these capri leggings for working out.

Yes – lime green zebra print lycra work-out pants. I used Kwik Sew 3455. I absolutely LOVE them. They are so comfortable and I can’t believe I waited so long to make my own athletic wear. The pattern has a gusset in the seat, so that gives more room for stretching without tearing.

I also made the same thing in a very subdued black nylon lycra.

As for the T shirts, I used Jalie 2805 for those. I’ve had this pattern for quite a while and never got around to using it. Now I get why people love it!

This one is made from some left-over knit I had. It’s a sweater knit, so it’s a bit warm for hot days. But I was glad to be able to use up the material I had.

This one is an ITY knit that I’ve had and never used. It’s light-weight and very comfortable.

That’s all for now. Happy sewing!

McCall’s 5668 jacket

I just finished this jacket that I had intended to make last year! I had everything ready (pattern, fabric, etc.) and I just never got around to it.

As it turns out, it was not a difficult project. I worked on it over a few days. The nice thing about this pattern is that it is a Nancy Zieman “10-20-30 Minutes to Sew” themed pattern. In other words, the instructions are written with the amount of time various steps take to complete. That way, if you only have a short amount of time to sew, you basically have an idea of how involved certain steps may be in terms of time commitment. Now, I really didn’t consider that while making the jacket.

This jacket has very nice shaping. I especially like the way the back of the jacket looks. I used stretch cotton twill in a cream color for this. I think this could be made in a more “fluid” fabric as well (something less stiff). But, it still needs to have so body to the fabric in order for it to hold it’s shape.

That’s all for now!

March BurdaStyle Coat

While I was just about ready to give up on the BurdaStyle challenge (to make at least one garment a month from the magazine), I decided I couldn’t quit after just 2 months. So I made this coat which is really nice for Spring.

I used a washable linen blend fabric. I like the style and the fit. This is actually one of the older patterns. It’s 03/2012 #110.

There are in-seam pockets (a must-have) and a pretty simple design. The only problem I had is the lining. I didn’t do a great job cutting it out, so it’s a bit wonky on the inside. This is the kind of thing I can see making again, though.

Next time I’ll do a better job on cutting out the lining. But, this was actually very easy and fairly quick to make. There are no buttons or snaps for closure and the magazine has variations that can be made with the pattern.

Anyway, now I know that I need to pay more attention when cutting out the lining (like making sure the pieces don’t slide around). It’s all a learning experience!