Pieces 6, 7, and 8 of What Has Inexplicably Become 17

This weekend I completed pieces 6 and 7...a pair of grey flannel pants and a twinset made from a double-faced knit fabric. I decided to replace the purple/ivory shirting with this one since the shirting had not washed up well. For the twinset I used the McCall's 5978 twinset pattern. This is another instance when you find a pattern with "good bones," but might overlook it because McCall's sewed a bunch of crafty nonsense on it:


Strip away the lace, the beads, the trim, the floppy flowers, and what you have is a very nice cardigan with a nice shape. What is less awesome, is the tank underneath. The exact same pattern piece is used for the front as for the back. What?? Hello!!! BOOBS! So, I replaced it with the tee from New Look 6735:


This is pretty much my "go-to" tee. It took a while for me to warm up to it, because when I first started sewing I was of the mind that "Tee shirts don't have center back seams!!!" But as I learned more about fitting my body, with all it's lumps and bumps, I learned that a center back seam is a must. Also, at bust level, the front of the shirt is longer than the back, so you ease that extra length in when you sew it to accommodate the bust. Simple, but and excellent draft.


The fabric that I used for this is a knit snagged from the bargain table at Hancock's. It is actually double-faced, with a solid black with a texture/pattern inside and fine black and grey stripes on the outside:


Here is the final product:


I did not do any alterations, the size "L" fit just fine right out of the envelope, and of course no alterations to the tee since it is a TNT for me. One thing that some folks might not like about this pattern is the facing. Some prefer bindings to facing in knits, but I have no issues. I did handstitch the facing down on the inside, and because the fabric was double-faced, it was super-easy to stitch it to only the inside layer, and no stitches showed through to the outside.

Since I had the TNT shirt pattern out, I figured I would cut a second one out of the leftovers from piece 4, the 3 Graces Tee. So, call this piece 4.5...and it is guaranteed to coordinate, since I just used the leftover fabric. Yes, you can see the dress form's underwear because of the flash. The only way I can make her even approximate my shape is if she wears one of my bras.


Next, I finished a pair of pants from a pattern I have used before, Burda 07-2009-102 (yes, I know! The first "bottom" in this collection!):


I don't really have much to say about this, as it is one I have used before. In the gray flannel, the pants will be really comfy for winter:


Finally, how the collection has inexplicably become 17 as opposed to 16....

Earlier, Ruthie (whose choices in these collections served as an inspiration for this) commented that it seemed like a lot of grey, and on one hand, I wear a lot of grey, mainly because I hate trying to match things. If everything I own is the same color, then everything matches, right? On the other hand, isn't the whole idea of making a coordinate collection to create a set of clothes that you can mix and match?

So, I pulled out my piles of fabrics and decided to look for a way to incorporate more color into this collection. So, how does ORANGE strike you? I decided to use some remnants of rayon that I had to make the Hot Patterns Deco Vibe Delicious Dress:


I decided to make the dress with the bottom band and the raised hem. Based on flat pattern measurements and the two reviews on PR I decided to cut and sew a size 14 as opposed to the 18 that my measurements indicated. In the process of sewing I made a second change...I did not double the bottom band, but hemmed it instead. The reason for this is because I did not take into account that if I doubled it it would place my chubby, dimply knees front and center. I SHOULD have lengthened the dress overall, but did not think of it. Here is the final product:


The contrasts are both an orange and also a snake print with purple, orange and black. The purple coordinates with the purple knit that I used for the 3 Graces Tee. In fact, the shirt that I made with the leftovers from that tee is what I am wearing underneath this dress.


The back pattern piece is contoured, but I also added a significantly greater curve at the lower back to account for large bottom/sway back and keep the fabric from puddling at the waist level.

And here is the final progress report on the collection:

1. Dark heather gray wool jersey (dress)
   
2. Wool blend flannel-Burda pants
   
3. Periwinkle charmeuse (shirt)
   
4. Grey/black print charmeuse (blouse with bow)
   
5. Black and grey herringbone suiting (lined pants)
   
6. White jersey knit-3 Graces Tee
   
7. Purple jersey knit with diamond pattern-Butterick 5525
   
8. Purple/ivory cotton shirting eliminated, replace with black and grey knit for McCall's 5978 twinset cardigan and New Look 6735 tee from leftovers
   
9. Heather gray knit (shirt)
   
10. Silk Tweed suiting (skirt)
    
11. Plum jersey knit-3 Graces Tee, also New Look 6735 Tee from leftovers
    
12. Black jersey knit (shirt)
    
13. Black boiled wool knit-Cardigan/Jacket
14. Orchid stretch shirting-Butterick 5526
    
15. Plum and orchid striped jersey (shirt)
    
16. Gray cashmere wool suiting (pants)
17. Black rayon challis with purple/orange trim-Hot Patterns Deco Vibe Delicious Dress
    

Next up...a periwinkle charmeuse shirt with pearl snaps a la western wear. Also there are still 3 knit jerseys in the collection for shirts, but I am not sure if I want to return to the Hot Patterns well and make another 3 Graces tee or go for something completely different. I probably shouldn't think about it too much, or else this will be a collection of 18...or 19....or more!