Tasha Sews

I know it is almost March, but better late than never with my 2019 Make Nine Plans.  I thought that I should start with a recap on my 2018 Make Nine plans first. I completed 6 1/2 of my planned makes. It's currently at six and a half as I am currently midway through number 7! I am really pleased with my progress. One of my two uncompleted makes was The Papercut Coppelia pattern, I just wasn't sure if the style was for me anymore. The other pattern was a TNT miniskirt, Simplicity 1370, for which I simply ran out of time in 2018.  The reason I really liked the Make Nine challenge is that it made me focus my sewing for the year. all of these makes above are in frequent rotation in my wardrobe which is fab. Because of this, I decided to do the same for 2019! 1. Cashmerette Patterns - Webster Dress & Top I have yet to try the Cashmerette Patterns. I love that this comes with a dress and top option. My plan is to make both! And for the dress to include a...

Pattern Review: McCalls 7058 Long time no see! I started this coat back in August and have been chipping away at it for several months. I am finally finished and very pleased with the result! Initially  Butterick 6292  featured as part of my #2018MakeNine goals, but I wanted some more sleeve shaping an opted for  McCalls 7058 . I went for the short coat length as I already have a long ready to wear coat that still has some wear it in yet! This length is perfect for when it is too cold for a light jacket but not cold enough for a full winter coat.  I was drawn to a princess seam coat as I find princess seams easy to fit and grade between sizes. Speaking of, I cut a 16 on the bust and waist and graded out to an 18 on the hips. I took in an inch on the middle of the back seams to take out some of the excess roominess. I also took in the shoulder seams around one and half inches as the sleeves sat too wide for me. The wool was purchased around ...

Pattern Review: Vogue 9251 As the #makeyourstash challenge has been happening this May, I cut out a couple of long time stash fabrics to try some new patterns. The first one was Vogue 9251 . This dress ticks 2 boxes as not only is it a  #makeyourstash  dress, but also my 5th  #2018MakeNine  garment. The fabric was purchased at The Great British Sewing Bee Live, which took place in September at the Excel in London.  I was pretty restrained, and only picked up one piece of fabric - this floral polycotton priced at £5 for the whole lot. I was drawn to the floral print, but I hesitated when deciding what to make with it as the flowers are very directional. Whilst snooping my stash I thought that it would be perfect for a muslin for this woven wrap dress! Despite some niggles with the bodice (listed below), I really love the style of this garment. It is flattering for my pear shape, is easy to dress up and down and fits with so many of my other wardrob...

Pattern Review: McCall's 7084  This dress has been a slow burner and feels like it has taken me ages to finish. McCall's 7084  is my 4th #2018MakeNine garment.    One of the reasons this took so long to finish is that is that it has around 20 pieces and to top it off I decided to underline this dress. This lovely floral linen was a post-Christmas bargain from John Lewis in Oxford Street, London. It was initially priced around £18 per metre and I managed to snap up 2.5 metres reduced to £5.50 per metre. I underlined the dress with cotton lining from my stash. I didn't have enough blue lining so some patches are purple!  The linen was only 110cm wide and I didn't have enough fabric for the undercollar and placket facing. So there are some contrast blue parts on the dress. At first I wasn't convinced it would work but I had spent so long cutting out the pieces that I persevered and I quite like it now.  I knew that the princess...

Pattern Review: New Look 6346 This is my 3rd #2018MakeNine  garment! I made this New Look skirt before  and absolutely loved it. However, I feel that I'm not able to make the most of the skirt as the UK Summer is not always warm and dry. I knew that I would want a version that I could wear in colder weather.   I used this floral polyester viscose print purchased from  Fabricland . I picked it up in-store when visiting family in Bristol quite a while ago. I think it was around £3.99-£4.50 per metre. It was easy to work with and sew, but I wonder how it will hold up as it has been washed a few times and I have noticed that it is fading slightly.  The buttons were picked out by my partner in Simply Fabrics . I had been struggling to find a navy button that I liked, but Alex said why not go for a mustard colour button? They were a bargin at 5p each and blend in so well with the print. I cut a size 18 - a size up from last time as I wante...

Pattern Review: Simplicity 8216 Hello, I am back with my 2nd of my #2018MakeNine challenge! I have a ready to wear shirt in my wardrobe with a neck tie and it is one of my most worn items. I have been on the lookout for sewing patterns to replicate it and decided to try Simplicity 8216 .  For this top I chose view D, but with the neck tie and minus the pocket. I cut a size 14 and made no changes except to add an inch onto the length. As mentioned in other reviews there is a pattern drafting error in the neck facing. It is annoying, but you can work round it. It is a shame as it is could easily stump beginner sewers, which is why I wouldn't class this as an 100% easy pattern.  I bought this floral crepe fabric in the January sales in John Lewis for around £5-7 per metre (I can't remember the exact price). I snapped up a whole bunch of fabrics (12 metres in total!) that were on their 3rd price reduction.It was a dream to sew with and has a lovely drape that i...

Pattern Review: New Look 6301 Welcome to the first make from my  #2018MakeNine challenge!  I wear a wrap dress at least once per week as part of my work wardrobe and knew that I wanted another one in the rotation.  I sewed this one up exactly the same as my previous version  here . A size 14 overall, with size 18 on the top of the bodice for modesty and I took 1" out of the centre back. I took 2" off the skirt length so it hit above the knee.  The fabric is an ITY knit that I bought in NYC, Brooklyn in Belmont Avenue during my holiday laast year. The fabric was $4 per yard and I bought 2! I knew as soon as I saw this print that it would be  a perfect work dress and version of  New Look 6301.  It washed and sewed up beautifully. I really don't have anything to add that I haven't covered in my previous reviews. However I will say that the #2018MakeNine challenge has really made me more reflective about my wardrobe needs. As someone...

Sewing Plans: 2018 Make Nine Challenge I came across the  #2018MakeNine challenge  and decided that it would be a great way to plan my 2018 sewing. I mulled over the 9 questions and came up with this list! The best thing is that 8 of the patterns are already in my stash! Simplicity 8216 : This is to fit my sewing gap of smart tops to wear out with jeans. This top is very similar to a RTW top that I wear all the time. The dress version is really cute too and would be a great addition to the work wardrobe.  New Look 6301 : I know that you have you seen this dress 500 times already, but it has turned into my work uniform. I already have some fabric in my stash for another wrap dress! Vogue 9251 : Yep, that's right folks. Another wrap dress but this time in a woven! I got this dress pattern for christmas and am planning on making a sleeveless version (of course)  in time for my holiday in May. I have the fabric earmarked too :-)  Butteric...