My Blog

I have finally found a place to put my mirror to take pics of my new cardigan. I haven't done the buttons yet.

I DO wish that there was better integration between Picasa and Blogger. I find the BlogThis feature in Picasa takes ages to upload pics, especially if there are several, and then I have problems with the text not going where I want it. So I end up uploading all the pics to my Picasa Web Albums and writing in Blogger In Draft (nicer than the old version), then insert every pic by copying the link in the web album and pasting it into the web URL box that comes up when you click Insert Image. It should be much more streamlined! I want to be able to click a button in Blogger, select one of my albums from a list, and then see thumbnails of all the pics in that album and select one by clicking it. No waiting, copying or pasting! I hope someone from Google reads this post!

OK, after that little diatribe, back to my cardigan. Not really what I would call a cardigan - more a front-buttoning long-sleeved t-shirt. I have been wearing it with my matching strappy top for the last two weeks and it is the perfect set for the changeable weather we have here.

I am very happy with the result. This was my first try of the ideas given by Marcy Tilton to adjust a t-shirt pattern to your own body, and it was done before I had the CD. The fabric is a very stretchy, soft poly-lycra-viscose. I adjusted the pattern by adding 1" (2.5 cm) to the front above the bust and pinning a dart to get rid of the extra fullness. I shaped the seams to fit my body, not worrying about the so-called sizes on the pattern. The purple marker lines are my stitching lines.


I want to work on this pattern some more to refine the fit. I think the shoulders are too wide for me, at least in this stretchy fabric. I also think the shoulder seam sits too far back on my shoulder and the back neck could be scooped out a bit more. The sleeves on this version grew (the fabric has 100% stretch along the grain!), and I had already added an extra inch to the length. But I am a convert to Marcy's way of doing the fitting. It isn't such a big deal the way she explains it. It is also very important to fit as you sew, as knit fabrics vary so much. It is nice to have something that fits smoothly over my boobs!

Some construction details:

I made a lot of samples of techniques before trying them out on the garment.

I interfaced the whole width of the band up to the V so I could make stable buttonholes. I sewed all the seam with a straight stitch on my sewing machine, then overlocked them AFTER checking the fit. I did the sleeves the way burda suggested - set-in - but won't do that next time! The sleeve hems were difficult to do becasue the sleeves are very narrow - I'll do them before sewing the seams next time.

I used my Bernina lightning stitch (#9) to sew the darts, using paper as a stabiliser and sewing along a strip of masking tape. And pressed on a pressing ham to make them really smooth.


I used stretch iron-on interfacing along the hem edges and then sewed them with a twin needle with woolly nylon in the bobbin. I didn't have tricot so used a non-woven type and I think it is a little too firm. I prefer the hems on my strappy tops, which were done in the same way but without interfacing - they are softer and more stretchy. Next time I might try another method from Marcy Tilton's book called a Jean Muir hem. You just need to add 2" (5 cm) extra when cutting out.