Schoolhouse Tunic Revisited

I don’t know why I like the Schoolhouse Tunic by Sew Liberated so much. Maybe because it is so quick and easy to sew I get almost instant gratification. It could also be because it is very comfortable, and I am all about comfort over fashion these days. Or maybe it’s because the pattern is so basic, it lends itself well to modifications.

My first tunic, which I wrote about here, was made with a grey and rust polka dot fabric by Kaffe Fassett. I kept pretty true to the pattern. I like it. It was comfortable. I wore it once and felt ridiculous with all those polka dots, so I dismantled it. I kept the top and replaced the bottom with a solid black skirt. It looks much better now.

My favorite tunic was made from a really nice, med-weight, red linen. The drape of the fabric was perfect for the pattern. I made a few changes by lengthening the skirt, adding pockets, gathering instead of pleating the back skirt, and leaving the sleeves off. This one gets the most wear, as it is the most versatile. I pair it with long-sleeves, leggings, and tall boots in the fall. And I wear it over shorts and a tank in the summer. Here it is making an appearance in the brick pits at Colonial Williamsburg last summer.

I’ve been wanting to make another one for awhile now. I’ve had the pattern and fabric sitting on my sewing desk for months, but I’ve been distracted by other things. I finally decided to tackle my sewing pile last Sunday. After repairing several tops and converting worn jeans into shorts for the kids, I decided to reward myself by making a top for me.

This time I made the short version with a few other modifications and I think this is my new favorite summer top. I used a light-weight, cotton poplin print by Vera Wang. I had some left over from a dress I made a few summers ago.

With this one I left off the pleats in the skirt and gathered the front and back instead. It reduced some bulk that the pleats caused, and I just think it looks better that way (at least on me). For the front, I ran a gather stitch between the pleat marks. And for the back, I just ran a gather stitch across most of the back, leaving about 2-3 inches on either side. (I didn’t take a close-up of the back. I should have though.)

And for the sleeves, I decided to make little, gathered, cap sleeves. I finished those off with some black bias trim that I made from some fabric in my scrap bin.

If you are wondering how to make the cap-sleeves, I thought I’d write up a little tutorial to show how I made them. Unfortunately, I didn’t think to take photos while I was sewing, but hopefully you’ve sewn enough sleeves that it will all make sense. (If you click on the photo, you can view it at full resolution and it might be easier to read.)

 

Gardening Update

We put the gutter garden up a couple of weekends ago and the salad greens have sprouted. I decided to try just one gutter this year. If it works, I’ll put a couple more in next year.

There is a bunny family that sets up house under the shed every year.  They like to raid my salad greens. I wasn’t even going to bother growing any this year, but when I saw the gutters they seemed like a good solution. I’m suspecting my garden is the reason they’ve decided to take up residence under the shed. I’ve tried everything to discourage them from marigolds to human hair. Nothing works.

Not even my dog keeps the bunnies out of the yard. He caught one last year, sniffed it, and let it run free. Now they play and chase each other around the back yard. Not that I wanted the dog to murder bunnies, but I was hoping he’d at least scare them away; not make friends with them.

And we already have bunches of strawberries. I wasn’t expecting any this early, but I guess all the warm weather we’ve been having set the process in motion early this year. These are green, but I have ripe ones out there too. (Well not anymore because I ate them.)

Unfortunately, the little seedlings I planted in those fabulous, origami pots aren’t doing so well. They got a little leggy and when I started the hardening process, I got distracted and left them in the sun too long one day. They are all sunburned and sad looking now. I lost a few, but I think some of these may bounce back. They are growing new leaves, and the new leaves look healthy, so I hoping that I didn’t kill them all.

Today I’m putting in the peas, beans, fennel and radishes. Hopefully this weekend, or early next week, I can get all these seedlings into the ground. I think they might be happier in the ground.

 

Overcoming My Fear of Knits

I decided now was the time to finally overcome my fear of knits. I’ve been sewing on and off for over 20 years, but I have avoided knits like the plague. There is really no rational reason for this fear. I’ve been deconstructing t-shirts, which are technically knits, for years. But the thought of actually piecing together a garment from a stretch knit sends shivers of terror down my spine. I’d rather sew zippers. My old stand-by excuse is that I don’t have a serger. I know it’s possible to sew knits without a serger, but it sounded like a good excuse to me.

Since I’ve come to the realization that a serger is not in my near future, I decided that I just needed to confront my fear and try a new challenge. I feel incredibly foolish for not having done this sooner. I’ll admit, I would rather sew wovens, but this knit top I made a few days ago wasn’t such a bad time.

Before I started on this project, I did some reading up on sewing with knits. I found this big list of tips very helpful. Be sure to read the comments on this post too, because some of them are just as helpful as the article itself.

Then I chose a few patterns and decided to start with McCall’s M6356. It said it was “easy” on the pattern envelope. I also really liked the style and draping of the top.

I chose a nice jersey knit in red, because I promised my husband I would start making more colorful clothing. My go-to color is usually black. But I like red too. And red looks really good with black.

It was a pretty easy pattern. I had a few bumps along the way, but overall the top came together fairly quickly. I learned a few things though. I’m an imperfect seamstress. Or maybe the better way to look at it is that I’m a “good-enough” seamstress. I hate pins, so I rarely use them except for matching seams, and I don’t measure hems and stuff like that. I often wing it. If it looks even when I look in the mirror, and everything fits comfortably, then it’s good enough for me. It’s worked out so far because, except for the obvious t-shirt deconstruction, people rarely know that a lot of my clothing is made-by-me.  I found with knits though, you have to be a little more precise and careful than with wovens, knits are harder to unpick (they snag easier), pins are your friends, and measuring is important – you don’t want your seams stretching at wonky angles, and since knits tend to cling more to your body, one wonky seam becomes an obvious distraction.

I didn’t have any stay tape for the shoulder seams, and I couldn’t find any locally, so I just used single fold bias tape. I read somewhere that bias tape was an acceptable substitute. It seemed to work. I’ve ordered some stay tape online though for my next project.

The top is not perfect, but it’s “good-enough”. I think I’ll be giving knits another go. I have two more tops and a skirt cut out. I’m just waiting for the mailman to deliver my stay tape.

 

Sunday Brunch: Asparagus and Boiled Egg

I always look forward to this time of year for the asparagus. Yes, it is available here all year round, but the rest of the year it’s often shipped in from far, far away, which is no substitute for fresh, locally grown asparagus. So this time of year I eat as much asparagus as I can stand, because I know the bounty is short-lived.

One of my favorite ways to eat it is steamed with a boiled egg. When it’s finished off with a light, lemony, olive oil dressing, it is mouth watering and oh-so-yummy. It is a perfect dish for a spring brunch. But it makes a simple, elegant addition to any meal at any time of day. I had mine for dinner the other night.

This is for 2 servings.

Ingredients

• Fresh Asparagus
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 lemon
• splash of cider vinegar
• salt
• pepper
• thyme (fresh is best, but dried works too. I have a lemon thyme plant in my garden that is my favorite variety.)

Directions

1. Place your eggs in a pot, cover them with water and boil until they are done. About 15-20 minutes. When they are done cooking, drain the hot water and place them in a bowl of cold water to cool.
2. While the eggs are cooling…..In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, juice from the lemon, vinegar, salt, pepper and thyme. Set aside.
3. Snap the dry, woody ends off the asparagus, rinse in cold water and pat dry.
4. Cover the bottom of a saute pan with water, salt it pretty good and place the asparagus spears into the pan. Steam them for about five minutes by bringing the water to a soft boil. Then cover the pan,  turn off the heat and let them set for about 5 minutes (or until they are at the crispness you prefer).
5. Remove the asparagus from the pan and place on a plate
6. Peel the eggs, slice a few slices from the center of the egg and and chop the ends. Place the slice on top of the spears. Sprinkle the chopped pieces all around. (Each plate of asparagus should get one egg each.)
7. Drizzle some dressing over top and enjoy.

It’s great served with a slice of warm crusty bread. You can also sprinkle some fresh grated Parmigiano-Reggiano over the top if you have any.

 

DIY: Bird Nest Necklace

I’ve been collecting a mess of crafting/DIY pins over at Pinterest and decided maybe I should actually try a few of the tutorials I have pinned. With Mother’s Day quickly approaching, I decided the bird nest necklace would be a good one to start with. Then maybe I would try something new and get a few gifts made.

Source: sarahortega.com via Andrea on Pinterest

 

They were easy and fun to make (and strangely addicting). Once I got going on them, I had a hard time stopping. I ended up with a whole mess of them. Not all of them looked nice though. The first few attempts were odd, misshapen and straggly looking. Once I got the technique down they moved along pretty quick.

Here are some of the better ones I made today.

I don’t know who I am going to give them to. My daughter has already claimed the one in the middle, and I’ll probably keep one for myself.