Cut to the Quick…or to the Slow

SWAP cutting, with a parsimonious theme.  Three items for SWAP so far, nothing sewn yet.

First I laid out my stash raided heap of grey fabrics, and eyed the Style Arc Lani tunic pattern, [which I got free after the problems with the Ziggi jacket.]  It’s a woven pattern, but I wanted to dodge the need for an FBA as the front has a dart on one side and a princess seam on the other.  Too much trouble for this lazy Fairy.  So I decided to make the top front in jersey, giving room for the norgs, and make the rest in woven.

I very much wanted to use the pintucked shot taffeta in something that will be wearable for everyday, not too dressy, so I chose that and the fragment of silvergrey taffeta from the funky trousers I made for Dawn for DD’s wedding [FIVE years ago, where does the time go?]  I teamed them with two shades of grey marl jersey.  All except the pintucked pieces are odd shaped remnants of course…

Anyhew, it was a right palaver, as I wanted [obviously] for it to look designed, not too ragbaggy, but the sizes of the pieces put me under some pressure!  There were a few very serendipitous moments,  as when the point on a pattern piece EXACTLY matched the point on a fabric piece [be still my mathematical heart] and some little subtleties with the two jersey shades for the upper bodice which [I hope] make it worthwhile.  Tiny scraps left of the silver taffeta and jersey, very satisfying on a thrifty scale!

I can’t find a single pic of Dawn wearing these, but she still want to be able to, so I’m under orders to find a way.  Wish me luck-they were VERY well-fitted!

To be honest, that was enough for one day, so I just prepared the black taffeta skirt by removing the steampunk chains and all the fastenings, and opening it all up.  Next day, I returned to the fray [see what I did there] and tried to get the Brenne skirt out of it.  Blimey.  Only one pattern piece, but it WOULD NOT FIT.  So I introduced new seams CF and CB, and eventually prevailed.  Again, very efficient fabric use, little waste [large waist of course ahem]

Lunch of turkey stew and dumplings [the absolute best stew of the year always comes form the turkey carcass] and then the final treat of the day- V1415 Tom & Linda Platt tunic from a remnant of red stretch velvet.  this was a bargain from the rag market a year or 2 back, for a cosy nightshirt for Doc-D.  Again, oddly shaped, as are the asymmetrical pattern pieces.  It’s supposed to be bias cut, but that’s pointless in stretch fabric, so I went down a size, folded out 1.5″ of length[no choice, there simply wasn’t much fabric] and with much repinning again got a very simple item cut from not much fabric.  Almost zero waste again, can you see my halo?

 

All of this took AGES!

Plan for today is to use some actual yardage to cut out one or two pairs of trousers, and some simple jersey tops.  Off I go!