May round-up: what I sewed (and didn’t sew)

My makes in May

May always starts off with me intending to wear more of my makes as part of Me Made May, and to be fair I did wear quite a few this year. But I never remember to take photos. I really need to improve my selfies. Maybe I should take a course and set up a corner to act as a location for shots of my makes. Anything’s better than this late night phone pic in the hall mirror:

Cutting Lines’ Pure and Simple top

The start of May is also the start of the Summer 6PAC sewalong over on the Stitcher’s Guild forum. I posted about that here. I didn’t make much progress beyond cutting out the keyhole top in an oatmeal jersey. Still trying to shed a few pounds, to be honest.

Completed projects

I actually managed three complete garments this month.

We had a wedding at the end of May, and Alice requested a broderie anglaise dress. She found a picture of a style she liked:

 

Gingham sundress

I bought some broderie anglaise from a really helpful eBay seller, and we dyed it lilac. Note: the all-in-one machine dye from Dylon was NOT a complete success. Even though we fllowed the instructions exactly, the fabric ended up blotchy and spotty in places. Fortunately it was worst on the lawn lining, but there were a couple of patchy areas on the main fabric too. Next time I’ll use the standard washing machine dye, which I’ve never had a problem with.

Lilac Broderie Anglaise summer dress

She’s a dream to sew for. Tall and slender. Sigh.

It was hot in that marquee, but you know how the English summer is, so the new Aviator Jacket went along as a cover-up for when it got chilly:

Casual

This has been in the pending pile for ages, at least 12 months. I finally took the plunge. Projects you put off are never as daunting as you anticipate. Plus this one was a chance to try out the new Janone 6700p for real, and it was a big hit. I love it.

The final completed garment was a dress for me, also for the wedding. I used an old favourite sheath dress, sleeveless, in a stretch blue and white cotton sateen. No photo yet!

In progress

I’ve cut out a pair of Closet Case files Ginger Jeans and a Keyhole top from Christine Johnson. More in another post.

I’m a bit sad that I’ve neglected my embroidery this month. But I did design some applique for the back pocket of the Gingers, and I’ll post more about that soon.

And in the header image, you can see the start of a big project: a tweed French cardigan jacket embellished with embroidery. This one could take a while!