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OWOP: Day one

March 24, 2012 in burda, owop, patterns, sewing

I don’ t think I’ve mentioned that I’m taking part in the One Week, One Pattern challenge.

A bunch of sewers are wearing garments that are different versions of the same pattern for one whole week. I have chosen a pencil skirt pattern from BurdaStyle Magazine, pattern number 107 from the 2011 February issue, to be exact.

On day one we took a trip to IKEA, and I made sure to take a pic in front of this Swedish icon.

one day down, six to go!

Tags: owop
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Markal/Shiva Paint Stiks are awesome!

March 6, 2012 in burda, color, crafts, fabric, knitting, prints, sewing

All the way back in November I announced that I had played around with some fabric print using a type of oil paint sticks. For some reason, they go by two different names. They are called Shiva in the US and Markal in the UK and here in Sweden.

They are a little bit like giant crayons, you know, like the one designed for the littlest of kids, only they are filled with permanent oil based gorgeous color.

I used them with a rose stencil that I made, and tested it out on both silk and denim. Just to see how the color responded to different kinds of fabric.

This is how it looks on a very dark blue denim. The colors I have chosen are iridescent, which you probably can tell from the picture.

The skirt by the way, is another version of BurdaStyle Magazine 02-2011-107, my new favorite skirt pattern, seen here and here as well.

On the silk fabric, the colors turned out like this:

It might not look the same in every monitor, but I am amazed by how the color behaves more or less the same way on the denim and the silk. It was equally easy to work with on both types of material, and the great part is, you set the color by ironing, and then you can wash it like you normally would! Fantastic. I really love the vibrant colors you get from this, and how you can use the PaintStiks in so many different ways. To get some inspiration, have a look here.

I will most certainly make more use of these magical coloring devices, and try them on other types of fabric as well.

I printed a little rose on the back of the skirt as well, just for the fun of it!

At last, another view up close, this time teamed with my new knitted best friend. The cardigan (ravelry link) is knitted in alpaca, and it feels like wearing a blanket. Sooo comfy!

Tags: fabric paint, markal paintstiks, sewing, shiva paintstiks
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Fun! – The Header Dress – Pattern Review: BurdaStyle 01-2010-130

January 9, 2012 in burda, fabric, fun!, pattern review, retro style, sewing

Thanks for all the great feedback on my new layout, I have made the post text font bolder, and hopefully that´s made it easier for you to read.

Today I present to you the first installment in my new segment Fun!. If you are interested in joining in on the fun, you are more than welcome, just grab the code below, paste it in one of your sidebars, leave a comment about it here, and off you go. I´d love it if you´d tell me if you are joining me, the more the merrier!

This dress was made on a whim last autumn, but I haven´t actually begun to wear it much until now.

The inspiration for this dress is a combination of two things. I really wanted to make a navy dress with lace inspired by this incredible dress that Zoe made, and I thrifted the lace for this dress (it´s really a table cloth) ages ago. My second reason for making this was a longing for clothing with no waist definition. Now, don´t get me wrong, I love high- waistedness, thoroughly documented here, here, here and here, but after a summer of wearing mostly waist-clinching garments, I longed for something that was a bit more relaxed.

Personally, I believe that the main reason for the fashion change from the fifties to the sixties, was women who wanted more breathing space!

Well, here you have it, my review of this pattern, it is yet another BurdaStyle pattern, the only obvious change I made was to skip the sleeves.

BurdaStyle Magazine 01-2010-130 Shift Dress

Pattern size: European 36-44

Avaliability: BurdaStyle Magazine and BurdaStyle.com

Pattern Description: Cap Sleeve Shift Dress

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Apart from the fact that I omitted the sleeves, yes.

Were the instructions easy to follow? I didn´t follow the instructions much (although I probably should have), but what I used was quite clear.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I really like the simplicity of the pattern. A really classic style, that can be used for lots of different styles.

Fabric Used: I used a heavy cotton sateen with quite an amount of stretch, not entirely suitable for this style. I wouldn´t recommend this fabric for this type of dress – try either something really stiff and heavy for a boxy effect, or something with a better drape for a softer shape.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: I omitted the sleeves, as I didn´t want it for my version, I made an FBA on the bust darts, and because my fabric is stretchy, I omitted the back zipper.