Made by a Fabricista: Sue Makes a Workout Outfit

Every year I vow to get in shape and stay in shape. Typically, I do really well with this promise to myself up until about October. Then it seems like busyness, apathy, and life just gets in the way and I backslide into old habits...including not working out! So to start 2015 out right, I decided the best and most appropriate thing to do is make some workout clothes I will look forward to wearing and why not? They go together quickly and with this AMAZING fabric I choose from Fabric Mart to complete the job, I'll make more!

This is a poly/lycra blend and I wish you were able to touch it, it is SO soft! I wish I could wear something like this to work as I think I'd smile all day long! I'd certainly look and feel comfortable.

For the jacket I used Jalie 2679, or the women's sport jacket. The details are awesome, the directions are good although a little sparse, and the drafting is perfect. I LOVE this pattern and I am so pleased with my final result!

It was fun playing with the layout of the pattern pieces to determine where I would use the contrasting white.

For the pants, I used a Kwik Sew pattern that has been in my stash for quite a while. Kwik Sew 3988 has two versions of Yoga/workout pants with a long version with a waist inset, perfect for color blocking, or a shorter version that's knee length that you can make color blocked at the waist seam and outer legs at the knees. Both views have a gusset at the crotch area--which makes you able to move in multiple ways--even ways you didn't know your body was capable of doing!

I LOVE this fabric. It is so soft and I am very happy with the patterns I choose to make this outfit. If Fabric Mart has any of this fabric left, don't hesitate to purchase is for any knit garment. It is lovely stuff! Check out their activewear selection here. It is a little sparse at the moment, but you can also check out the swimwear section for 4-way stretch knits that could be good for this project as well.

~ Sue

Made By A Fabricista: Liberty Snow Day

Hi everyone! While we’ve been blanketed with snow out here in Southeastern PA, I decided to conquer my fear of button holes and make NewLook pattern N6749. I was able to snag a few yards of the Jess + Jean print Liberty of London Tana Lawn for it. It’s always exciting when Fabric Mart is able to get Liberty fabrics in! I always make sure to grab some. Cutting into a beautiful piece of tana lawn is scary every time. The fabric is such good quality, I’m afraid to mess it up! I had to be extra careful as this is also the first directional pattern I’ve worked with. But one of my assistants made sure all of my pieces were laid correctly. Something I wanted to try out with this dress was finishing the inside seams using the overlock stitch on my domestic machine. Normally I would french seam, but it was nice to not have to worry about cutting seam allowance in half, sewing, trimming, flipping, and sewing again. Next time I would cut the seam allowance back before overlocking, but I thin...

Made By A Fabricista: Embracing Winter in Wool Boucle

As winter drags on, the cold weather is such a bummer to me and feeling uncomfortable and cold so often is rough. Meanwhile, I listened to a podcast all about how people in very northern countries deal better with the onset of dark, freezing winter with a radically different mindset of embracing the inevitable season by reframing the chill as refreshing and the opportunity to spend most time indoors as cozy. I can do that! I found a gorgeous, quintessential wool boucle suiting in black and white to make myself a luxurious outer layer while I’m outside attempting to embrace the sting of dry winter air… It’s kind of working. So classic, so chic! Wearing boucle is always an uptown move and I certainly do feel sophisticated in it. This black and white houndstooth combination feels especially Old Hollywood, and what a treat to make something with this! I sewed the Daphne Jacket from Vivian Shao Chen. There are no closures, and the shape is boxy and very easy to wear over multipl...

Made By A Fabricista: Sewing + Running

It’s not every day that I get to mix two of my favorite hobbies. Especially when one hobby is sewing and the other is running. You can’t sew and run at the same time, but, you can go running in something that you sewed! With this realization, I embarked on my first hobby-merging adventure. We’ve had some frigid temperatures in Pennsylvania this winter. Since I’m an outside, stroller-pushing runner, I bundle up my son and myself before I hit the road. The temperature feels 20 degrees warmer for outside runners than the outside air. For the children being pushed in the stroller though, it feels about 20 degrees colder. With these differences in temperature for each of us, layering is the only thing that ensures that we both stay perfectly warm. My running wardrobe has been lacking a warm top layer. My son’s wardrobe would also benefit from having another warm layer, so I knew pullovers were what I should make. Inspired by a name-brand ¼ button-down fleece pullover I saw,...

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