WIPs Wednesday

Here are my current Works In Progress!

First up, and what is currently on my ironing board (my ironing board that is constantly so covered that it only has about a foot of workable ironing space) is this McCalls 8149 pencil skirt. I’m making it out of a corduroy I bought from Stylemaker’s remnant bin that I hilariously thought would be enough for pants. So far I’m really proud of how it’s turning out. We’ll see if I can get the waistband to look half as good as the rest of the skirt and we’ll be in business.

I recently made this Cielo Top out of some old Atelier Brunette. I was thinking I’d pair it with the pencil skirt (my wardrobe doesn’t include a lot of browns) but once this was made, I found a different fabric I think I’d prefer to pair with the skirt. I like this top a good amount but I don’t have anything I really love wearing with it. Something to sit on I suppose (maybe I need a pink pair of pants…?).

The floral is the one that seems to go better with the copper colored skirt and I think I will turn it into another Cielo top. While I digging through my stash I also saw this lovely dusty purple fabric that I’m thinking will also be turned into a Cielo. Too many Cielos?? I might regret it but I think it’d be nice to have a solid version of that top. I bet it’d get the most wear.

I’ve also been thinking a lot about tee shirts because that’s what I wear most often. I stumbled onto the Tarifa Tee pattern from French Navy and bought it right away. This was my first version and it’s okay but I’m going to tweak things including sizing up for a looser fit and not altering the length and hopefully that makes it a bit more wearable for me.

I’m always surprised at how much fabric plays into the success of a t-shirt. The Tarifa seems like it needs a fabric that has more structure and so I picked up these striped knits from Harmony. You can’t see it in the above photo but the Tarifa has some great lines and seaming details so hopefully using two colors will emphasize the awesome design. And hopefully this fabric is a match for the pattern!

Along the line of tees (and specifically boxier cut tees), I recently discovered the new Jesse Tee pattern from True Bias which is free if you subscribe to their newsletter. The cut is something I’ve been looking for. I think I want to give it a try and I might use this speckled knit. It has a lower stretch so there are fewer patterns it’ll work with but I think the Jesse would be a good match. The pattern suggests a rib knit for the neckband so I’m debating between this blue or a mustard-y yellow.

If you remember my girls’ Easter dresses, this might seem a little familiar. I wanted to make myself something to match and so I made one of the views of the Ibi dress. But when I tried it on back in April at this point, I completely hated it. It looked so matronly! I stuffed it into a corner of the closet (hence the wrinkles). I was halfway ready to chop the dress in the center front, make plackets and have it be buttoned the whole way down (and possibly turn it into a knee length dress). But, surprisingly, when I tried it on to take a picture for this post I didn’t hate it nearly as much. It might be worth finishing (which would only include hemming) and wearing it a few times to see how I really feel about it.

I bought the Mindy Dress pattern from Fibremood, knowing I’d have to do some tweaking around the neckline. It’s given me a run for my money, though! I’ve made 3 muslins and still don’t have a workable pattern. It’s been on the shelf for a couple months but I’d like to get it made this summer, I think. Once I have a pattern that fits, I’m hoping to make it out of this jacquard cotton from Hobby Lobby.

I bought a couple lengths of Liberty London Tana Lawn in the Duckadilly remnant sale (thanks for the tip, Mindy!!! The sale was anxiety inducing 😂 but I have no regrets!). I’ve been determined to use it and not just sit on it for years and years, but I also don’t want to turn it into something blasé. I’ve been toying with the idea of using this Vogue 1934 pattern which I think is just lovely and also timeless but I’m not 100% sure yet. I need to do a muslin first and that might help me decide. I’m not committed to anything just yet!

And finally, I’ve been working on my English paper piecing (EPP) once again! I haven’t worked on this project for months (maybe even a year!), but I’ve been picking it up and doing some hand sewing at night once the kids are in bed. I like sewing in those quiet hours but sitting at my machine requires too much brain power for that time of night ha! This is a good way to wind down without expending too much energy and focus. I’ve been really enjoying it!

So that’s the list of projects I’ve been working out in my brain. I don’t always have so many projects on the docket, but they’ve been piling up of late! I seem to have an abundance of ideas, as well as fabrics I want to get out of my stash and into my closet.

What are your WIPs or things on your sewing To Do lists?