Stre-e-e-e-e-tch!

Yup, I love my yoga, and I can't wait for the classes with Renate to start up again after the summer break (http://stepintoyoga.com/), but this is actually about sewing with stre-e-e-e-e-tch fabrics!

I'd always thought that sewing jersey fabrics was the ultimate challenge which I would simply never manage, but I hadn't reckoned with Tilly Walnes (tillyandthebuttons.com/)

She produced THE PERFECT PATTERN for me, Coco - a tunic / top, with / without collar and with a choice of sleeves.  Just the thing to hide bulges, stick on over leggings or jeans, and forget about!  Mind you, I looked at the pics of Tilly wearing Coco, saw her petite figure and cute look and assumed I'd be disappointed.

 

That's where sewing buddy Claire came in - why do some people have self confidence that others don't?  Who knows, but I am so grateful for it!  We agreed we'd get ourselves some stretch jersey fabric and give Coco a go.  We picked some relatively cheap jersey with not too much stretch and set off together!

It was SO EASY!  Seriously, the worst bit was getting it to lie still to be cut out, but Tilly suggested a rotary cutter which really was the right thing.  And then, her whole pattern was just so CLEAR and straightforward, from the 'Tips for sewing knits' through to the final stitch.  Every step clearly described, illustrated by a photo, and reasons and extra little tips given all through.  Brilliant!  At last, someone who writes clearly and whose enjoyment and sense of fun comes through in every word. 

It really wasn't Tilly's fault that I got my pockets more than a bit wonky.....and it gives my make character, doesn't it? Yes?!

 

I chose three little buttons to customise / cheer up my pockets (I'm always a sucker for a button!) 

The minute I put my first Coco on, I started plotting what material I wanted for my next: such confidence had been created by the first, that I got some dearer, striped, heavier jersey in my favourite blues and greens. It only fleetingly occurred to me that I might not be able to get the stripes matched enough for a good look, and the heavier weight was easier to sew and made a more substantial feeling garment. 

Again I couldn't resist the button lure....

....and at least stripes make it easier to get your pockets straighter!

 

Meanwhile, Coco really had taken off (check out Tilly and the Buttons on Facebook) and Tilly held a 'Coco day tea party', which of course Claire and I had to join in with:

Claire had by then made a beautiful brown funnel neck version too
(But why do we get funny looks from the neighbouring businesses when we do our photos?!)

And as I write, I'm planning the next version, with Autumn in mind - there's some rather tempting purple ponte di roma down the road which I reckon I could enjoy with a funnel neck!

But Tilly has already gone so much further, and produced a really lovely book which I'll say more about another time.  For now, suffice it to say that it's full of instructions and patterns which really do work!