Up-Cycled Shirt

I bought this windowpane check shirt from a charity shop in Highgate last summer. It has been on weekly rotation in my work wardrobe but has recently started to show signs of wear and tear. The viscose fabric has begun to shred at the collar as you can see below.

I un-picked the collar and used it as a guide to make a new one. I used the Deer and Doe Melilot collar stand pattern piece using a piece of black and white spotty cotton from the stash.

I sewed the collar first and then attached the collar stand to the main shirt body by the inside collar. I then ironed the seam upwards into the collar, folded the seam allowance of the outer collar stand and top-stitched in place. Finally, I top-stitched the whole collar stand and collar to finish. I always use a pin in the corner of the collar to pivot with so you have something to hold onto and avoid the point of the collar dipping into the throat plate hole.

What do you think? I am really happy with my up-cycle to extend the life of one of my favourite shirts and using some stash fabric too #makeyourstash.

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Leopard Print Zoe Dress

This is my second Sew Over It Zoe Dress. It is a relaxed princess-seamed shift dress with French darts and deep pockets in the front seams. The Zoe dress is super comfy and I can see a few more in my me-made wardrobe.

Construction for the main dress was the same as my previous version with a change to the 3/4 sleeves (as per pattern) and I added an extra 8cm to the length. The only slight hiccup when making the dress was when I accidentally slightly melted the zip when ironing the teeth open which made the zip tape twist. It's not hugely noticeable but the back seam is a bit wonky.  

The leopard print cotton was free from a Craft Swish in Chiswick last month. I was very restrained and entered the Swish with a big bag of craft and sewing stuff and left with 1.5 metres of this leopard print cotton and a 0.25 metre of a fun stylised tree print.

Tropical Deer and Doe Melilot Shirt

The Deer and Doe Melilot shirt has been on my radar for a while and when I bought the fabric I knew it would a perfect match. The fabric is actually a tablecloth I bought from a 3 for 2 H&M homeware sale last summer. I bought three cotton table cloths resulting in over 6 metres of fabric for £10!

This was a slow and steady make. I made it in small bursts of sewing sessions ranging between 30 minutes to two hours at a time so it is hard to say how long it took in total. The hidden placket and sleeve plackets were the most difficult part of the construction as the minimal instructions left me confused. I had to re-do the hidden placket three times and I know that it is not right as the collar does not sit centrally.

I decided to get my button holes done at DM Buttons in Soho partly due to the fact that last Wednesday I didn't need to be at work until 9am compared to the usual 7.45am which meant I could squeeze in a trip to DM Buttons as soon as they opened at 7.30am. I was the first in the door and the very friendly David sewed my button holes in ten minutes for only £4.00! The finished button holes look very professional and my concerns about sewing through the thicker collar stand was not a concern with DM Buttons amazing machines!

The only thing left to do was stitch on the sage green buttons which I bought from Ray Stitch in Islington.

Now onto a whole bunch of photos of the process of making the Melilot. Be warned!

I cut out three sets of collars to figure out what section of the tropical pattern would work best

Sleeve stand hand-tacked in place ready for turning the right way around and finishing

Finished sleeve stand

Almost finished shirt before sleeve cuffs and button holes

I trimmed down the side seams (I did my usual pattern grading from 8 to 10 on the paper pattern which in hindsight I didn't need to do) as the hips allowance is designed for a curvier lady than me

Considering I have used some fabric from my stash that has been there for over six months I am tagging Kate from @timetosew and @pillar_bear with #makeyourstash!

Check out other crafty blogs at Sum of Their Stories