Sep 2023 – My Stash Reduction Quest

You could be forgiven for thinking you can start to expect a regular blog post from me, but fear not, the planned ones end now!

Screen-printing Mr Mouse’s t-shirts, combined with a lack of plain t-shirts in my wardrobe gave me the idea of making myself some tees to embellish. This blog is about two crafty ways in which I achieved this.

I used the free Stellan Tee, which is my go-to t-shirt pattern, as a base. I already had three colour-blocked t-shirts that I made with a jersey bundle from Lamazi – I mainly wear these in bed, though they occasionally make it out into the world. The bundles are a great idea and I can easily make a t-shirt with each length of fabric. The complimentary colours mean that they’re perfect for colour-blocking too.

Embroidering an Orca

Whilst coming out of a Lemsip haze and recovering from Covid in the Spring, I tentatively started to pick up crafting again. I knew that anything I did would have to use a small amount of brain power and be achievable from the sofa.

I had spotted the Whale embroidery pack from Twig and Tale and immediately wanted to incorporate them into my life. The patterns come in a few different sizes and the smallest Orca felt like a perfect way to get back into crafting post-illness. I dug out one of my t-shirts and started preparing.

It’s a testament to how foggy by brain was that I used a heat-sensitive Frixion pen to trace the design, stuck it to the t-shirt, then pressed it with my iron to get a few wrinkles out. Cue the penned whale vanishing in front of my eyes and me genuinely wondering why. Once I remembered that the heat-sensitive pen was designed to disappear under heat, I re-traced the Orca and turned the iron off.

After that blip, the embroidering was a smooth process and the perfect gentle project to ease me back into reality. I definitely want to use the other whale designs somehow…maybe on a rucksack?

Screen-printing

I had a fun day off screen-printing three t-shirts with the aid of my Bobbinhood kit, which is sadly no longer available.

I wanted to create some more complicated designs having tackled single colour ones before. The book has a section about colour theory and gives clear instructions on how to print layered motifs.

I used the same technique as previously, screen-printing onto the pattern pieces before sewing the t-shirts together.

I chose an abstract design for the maroon top, layering pinks and blues on top of each other. The flower at the end bled slightly because the screen wasn’t completely dry. Despite being an innate perfectionist, I am learning to accept imperfections with screen printing and quite like the blurry edged flower.

One thing I learned from my husband’s t-shirts was that some colour combinations need more than one coat…a bit like when painting a wall! I went over the pink pentagon and blue circle a few times to get a solid colour – both of which seem to be laundering well.

For the other two t-shirts, I chose designs with just two shapes each. I love the wonky Aloe leaves because they’re so true to life. Our Aloe plant always has at least one wonky leaf.

One thing I will take into account with any future screen-printing is to mark the placement on the pattern piece as all of these are slightly too close to my armpit!

I’m so pleased with these experiments. It was fun to take simple t-shirts and jazz them up using other crafts.

Thanks for reading :o)

Returning from holiday can be truly miserable! Thankfully, I have a few blogs lined up, and some crafty ideas to spark joy as we start Autumn in the UK. First up is a co-ord trio set that uses three patterns that go really well as a mix-and-match set, as well as pairing with other things in my wardrobe.

Co-ords seem to have had a resurgence of late but it wasn’t really a trend I was keen to embrace. That was until the Saguaro Set arrived on the sewing scene.

I knew the midriff-baring top wouldn’t be something that I would be comfortable wearing, even with high-waisted trousers, but then I saw a hack that lengthened the bodice. I knew from the fitting guide that the plunging neckline could be adjusted to be more modest and began to wonder whether I could combine both adjustments.

Adjusting the Saguaro top

I’m proudly on “Team Toile” with a pattern that I think might need some fitting, and anything with a wrap top immediately goes into that category. It’s worth the effort to make something that feels nice to wear and ‘secure’ in that I’m confident I’m not going to flash!

For toile 1, I traced my size and lengthened by about 2″, based on holding the pattern piece against myself. I was prepared for it to be quite immodest because I knew that, in lengthening the bodice I had lengthened the ‘plunge’. However, like fixing databases and maths problems, work on one problem at a time! This first toile gave me an idea of fit and what to do next.

For my second toile, I decided it needed even more length, and estimated how much it needed crossing over to remove some of the plunge. Please enjoy my incredibly technical illustration of how I did this…eye-balling and using coasters to mark the extension line!

Toile 2 was much closer to what I wanted, but the sleeves were very voluminous. As the bodice pieces have grown-on sleeves, the sleeves had been widened with the bodice length. I rectified this on my final pattern pieces by tracing the original sleeve width and blending into the side seam.

My second toile also convinced me that a concealed press stud would make the bodice sit better than it did with the ties. I think the ties are designed to help the two pieces meet, but having created an overlap, the ties don’t sit correctly.

Completing the set

I thought that the trousers would be a breeze after all the top adjustments, but alas no. The Saguaro trousers that I made look fine when I’m standing up, but there isn’t enough room in the seat to move or sit. I was also a bit concerned that I had made a toile of some fancy hospital scrubs…essentially my fear about co-ords came true.

My enthusiasm for toiling the trousers was limited so I looked at my existing patterns. I wear my Ninni culottes so much that I thought they would make a great pairing whilst removing the hassle of fitting.

Bonus make

I also managed to squeeze a pair of Emerson shorts out of the fabric – 3.3m of this Confetti viscose linen from Minerva went a long way. My Emersons have seen me through two summers but I had identified a slight fitting adjustment that would make them more comfortable – the “IBS adjustment” (aka full tummy adjustment). Adding an inch or so to the tummy area has made them sit much better on bloated days. As there is elastic in the back, they still fit well on less-bloated days too.

What is disappointing is the fabric has already bobbled at the pressure point of the inner thigh. The shorts are still wearable but I fear they may wear thin if worn too much.

Final thoughts

Having three coordinating items has made for an array of options. The Saguaro top goes well with plain bottoms, and plain tops are great with both pairs of bottoms. All in all, a successful set!

Thanks for reading :o)

Month: Sep 2023

Embellished t-shirts