Tropical Buchanan Dressing Gown

For those regular readers of CJ Made, I suspect you may be thinking - 'What! You still have some of that tropical fabric left?'. Thankfully (for ALL of us) this is the very last of the tropical cotton tablecloth that I got in the H&M sales in the summer of 2017!

When you see the vast array of garments I have managed to make out of those dandy tablecloths it looks like something out of the Sound of Music!

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The first make was a Deer and Doe Melilot shirt:

Then the New Look jumpsuit 6446:

Next, I used it for the lining for the Nina Lee Richmond Blazer:

And finally, a Gather Buchanan Dressing Gown and matching bag for my sister-in-law!

I have made a number of Buchanan's before. One for myself (the Paul Frank version) and two other gowns as gifts (cherry blossom & panda). It is such a great pattern to sew with lovely details which creates a professional finish on a kimono-style gown.

I added a band of contrasting blue cotton on the bottom as it was a little short which I think looks pretty cool. With the very last section of tropical fabric, I made a little tote bag to present the gown for gifting. Nothing new to report in terms of construction with this make. I was pretty speedy sewing it together, although, I did cut it out in July 2018, so not so fast in the longer term!

Do you have any items that are partly finished or have abandoned for reasons you have completely forgotten about now?

Japanese inspired Buchanans!

After making my Paul Frank dressing gown using Gather's Buchanan Dressing Gown pattern I have had a few requests from friends to make them one of their very own.

First up is for a friend I am visiting in San Francisco next week. She bought me this beautiful double sided Japanese cotton from Tokyo with instructions to make something nice out of it.

The fabric is a mid-weight cotton which is printed with pretty red cherry blossoms on one side then a geometric sashiko-style print on the reverse. Mel now has a lovely dressing gown to remember her fab Tokyo trip!

Due to fabric restrictions I had to slightly shorten the length of the dressing gown but as she is a good couple of inches shorter then me I think it will be perfect for her. 

My next make is for my boyfriend's sister, Karen. She absolutely LOVES pandas and when I saw this fabric I knew it had to be a Buchanan dressing gown for her too! In 2005 Mel, Karen, Chris (my bf) and myself visited Tokyo and saw pandas in Ueno zoo. Karen was in her element!

Detail shots of both dressing gowns:

I added ribbon into the seam on the panda version so you can tie the dressing gown closed to prevent the inner front from slipping down. I only thought of this modification after completing the red cherry blossom version. It's a nice idea that I will use for future Buchanan's.

I am really happy with how these dressing gowns turned out. The construction was so much easier having made one before and I used French Seams again throughout for a neater finish. It is the perfect pattern for a gift and I already have ideas for my sister-in-law for her Christmas present. If I start now maybe it will be finished in time for December!

Do you have a go-to sewing pattern for gifts?

Paul Frank Buchanan Dressing Gown

The Buchanan dressing gown has been a long time in the making. I was gifted the Gather Buchanan pattern for Christmas 2015 by my sewing enabling friend, Sophie!

The Paul Frank fabric I bought in 2011 and it has been sat in my stash patiently waiting for me to get my act together to make PJ's and a dressing gown!

I cut the whole thing out last July and it has been in my UFO pile for almost a year. I got busy this weekend and enjoyed the process in three bursts of productivity.

This is an excellent pattern. Good quality paper and very clear illustrated instructions, it was a pleasure to make! The order of making has you sew all the fiddly bits like the pockets, belt, belt-loops and hanging-loop before the major construction.

Alterations I made to the instructions was to use French Seams throughout for a neater finish and add 6cm to the length. The only thing that boggled my mind a bit was the belt-loops - how could I add them with a French Seam?

I added the belt-loop with a 0.5cm seam allowance and then continued with the second seam on the inside using a 1cm seam. It worked out perfectly!

Hand-finishing the loose end on the hem-band.

Overall, I am really impressed with this pattern and I can see myself making some of these as presents for friends and family. Hopefully it won't take me as long to make another one!

Check out lots of other cool crafty blogs at #handmademonday organised by Julia of Sum of their Stories.