Some of the Best of 2016, well, actually the ones with photographic evidence

I've been writing imaginary posts this year, but have now realised that I will never catch up with the past few months of sewing, with actual posts on the blog, so here are some snippets from last year before I run out of January, in the hopes that I will write more detailed posts about other projects and take photos with my camera, rather than my phone.

Burda Style 09-2014, #115
This is the hoodie tunic  that I made after my beach dress. I did indeed wear it to a lot of Junior 3 soccer games, and found it a most versatile and practical garment. I have plans for another version next winter. This one is made from a lovely shot cotton in red/blue, and has the same phone worthy pockets as my beach dress, but this time my zippered welt pockets are much improved.

Burda Style 01-2016-101

In the same uber casual vibe, this hooded garment, sort of a poncho crossed with a sweatshirt, was originally intended for myself, for lounging purposes. It's made from a thin polar fleece, and I extended the cuffs, feeling that a polar fleece overgarment should have full length sleeves rather than 3/4.

 Somehow this top leapt into the bag of a certain daughter whilst she was home one weekend, and migrated to Brisbane, where it remains to this day. It aroused such covetousness in the other daughter that a wearing rota was developed. It became known as the "cuddle top" and whoever has the nastiest assignment or exam coming up is allowed to wear it whilst studying. According to the agreement, it can also be worn for other circumstances -those that also require chocolate and a long telephone conversation with one's mother. I found this develpment very pleasing, it's clearly a much worn garment, but somehow I failed to make another version for the wearing rota before winter finished. Maybe this year I'll get around to making another version or two, so that I can keep one at my house.

This last garment is of a different ilk. My elder daughter and I collaberated on it, for her 4th year ball at University, and the sewing and planning was great fun, but unfortunately, the photographs leave a lot to be desired. This may be due to most of the construction taking place in the evening over a few weekends, but may also be due to the dress not quite being finished when she left for Brisbane on the weekend before the ball.

This is a dress in 3 (or maybe 5) sections. There is a black silk shantung bodice, pleated vertically and draped to fit, a black silk shantung cummerbund, pleated horizontally, worn over 3 skirts. The overlayer is an ombre silk chiffon wrap skirt,  grey to black, with the ombre shading vertically. Under this is a wrap skirt layer of a soft silver coloured poly chiffon, with lace motifs machine appliqued to the chiffon ( I learnt that hand appliquing lace motifs to silk chiffon is an extremely time consuming and fraught project from an earlier attempt). Under this is a long 6 gore petticoat, made from cotton batiste in a pale pink.

My daughter envisioned the dress, ironed a lot of pleats and cut out a lot of motifs. She sewed the cummerbund. She and my younger daughter also hemmed the two outerlayer skirts just before the ball. 

I also sewed two mini travel wardrobes for two work trips to Melbourne (July and October), and for a trip to Sri Lanka, which may have included some fabric shopping. I have very good intentions of posting more about these later.......