A Downloadable Pattern ...Kwik Sew 3717

I don't have much to show you this week because I've been working on my yearly project of providing sets of hats, mittens and scarves made out of fleece to our local Resource Center for those in need at this time. I have one more set to finish to make an even dozen. I'll be very glad to be finished!

Last week I  was looking for ideas for an easy project for  my Sewing Group and I decided to try Kwik Sew 3717.

 

Instead of ordering the pattern  to be delivered, I decided to try out the downloadable version.I put it in my cart , submitted my order and it came via E-mail immediately.
You can only use one computer to print it from and you can print it three times in total.

I can't say it was  a quick process because in order to print it out I had to download Firefox (that was easy) because Google Chrome wouldn't work and there was another  download for something called  File Opener Installer , but if I were more computer savvy, I'm sure I would have had no problems. But where there's a will....

I was excited to finally have all the sheets and to put it all together.


The pattern came in pages marked as Rows 1,2,3,4,5  Columns A,B, C, D and E and each row had   .The pages were numbered , Row 1 Column A, etc.

Here is the assembled pattern.

Each page matched up to the next by aligning little black squares. It was simple really.

The sizes include X Small to X large. I copied Size Medium for myself. 

Here is my pattern which must be layed out on the fold.

Have you used downloadables? What do you think of them?

I've made three samples because I wanted to try different fabrics. All the fabrics I used were from my stash.

 The first one is made of a medium weight knit fabric. I decided to line the collar and add armhole facings with a plaid ponte knit.The result was Ok but I thought the fabric should be a little weightier and this trial garment showed me the armscye was way too roomy for  my taste . I added some fabric to it to see how much was needed. Not bad but I can't really wear it because of the patched armholes.

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Next I tried a quilted denim.I bound the edges with a faux suede fold over tape, Cute ,huh?

But this time the fabric was too stiff! I actually took out some of the width at the bottom by adding a back seam as well as side seams. I cut off some of the collar too. I added toggle buttons and pockets .

Then I found  a printed faux suede and I self lined this vest*. The result was not bad. I like the waterfall look, but have found for this and other garments that to have this look , it's  necessary to tack down the folds so they stay in place. For this version, I also added a casing to the back and inserted elastic to draw in the waist.

* Doubling the vest is a real challenge. I've put some construction pointers here on Diana's Sewing Lessons if you are interested.

I think this pattern is a really fun and versatile style. You can play around and change it up, add buttons, pockets, darts, or seams to change the shape,shorten the collar area, and.....there are probably other things you can do. This could be a quick to make gift idea for someone you know who likes to  wear vests too


I don't think I've found the ideal fabric for it yet though. I'm thinking of trying it out in a Fleece.

These vests are all samples to show to motivate my Sewing Group .Once a teacher, always a teacher, I guess. I can't wait to present this idea to  the ladies this week. I think it will be a popular choice.


I love to sew!!! Can you tell?.

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A SnippetFact.com Award ?!?!?!

 Have any of you heard about SnippetFact.com? I got an E-mail saying that

Dianassewinglessons.blogspot. is the latest website to be awarded with the SnippetFact.com 'Sewing' award:



and that

SnippetFact.com is a community built 'facts only' website, created to improve factual content on the web, and make a more trustworthy and fun resource to discover information, and improve intelligence

I don't really know if I should ne flatterred or what????

What do you think?

A Chunky ,Warm, Soft and Cozy Topper

I bought this chunky knit fabric at Fabricland in Ottawa. The colours include cream, tan and a yummy caramel.It's a wool blend and I love it.

To decide what to make with it, I sat and stared at it for a while with a pad of paper and  a pencil in my hand. (That's my new way of planning a garment and it works really well.).

After a while I could see a draped neck and that vision would not go away. That meant a pullover and of course it had to be loose and I wanted to use big wooden buttons somewhere on it.. And Vogue 8605 came to my mind. But why? It's not a pullover! But where there's a will there's a way!

Enough ramblings. Here's what I came up with. I used the back piece of the pattern as is but eliminated the collar and cut the front by adding a 5/8 inch seam allowance to the center front line. I top stitched CF and CB seams.

For how I achieved the draped collar (with the help of the illustration of the collar of Burda Style, Oct. 2011,#135 ) look here.

  

I added patch pockets on the slant which added a little bit of style to this simple design. They were a bit slouchy so I shirred them with the help of clear elastic on the inside.I added the big wooden buttons I had my heart set on.

                The sleeves are about 3/4 length which I like.                             The back is unadorned.

I've worn my new topper a couple of times and it has been a hit. Adding shoulder pads made it fall nicely from the shoulders.The collar hangs just right and acts as a scarf really.This is just the way I like to dress for a casual occasion. And it's warm too.

More pics here!

I hope you found time to sew this weekend! 

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