Sewing through the heartache

At last I have finished these trousers, I have had a trumatic time over the last couple of months and didn't feel much like sewing.....as I have mentioned before we have lost 2 of our old labradors and although they have had a wonderful life I miss them terribly. One of my favourite aunts has also died, I was very, very upset but it was a blessing because she suffered terribly and my Mum hasn't been her usual self lately....so all in all a pretty miserable couple of months.

These trousers are based on my TNT pattern, I have made the legs slimmer and put in a slant pocket instead of the usual side pockets. I had also intended to put studs in the pockets and do a welt pocket in the back, however, I have been on so long with them that I didn't do the welt pocket and I should have put the studs in the pockets before I stitched the side seams because my little gadget for putting in the studs wasn't long enough. This is the back , I am quite happy with the fit of these. I had intended to use these trousers for walking my dogs, hense the cord fabric, but I think they are too good at the moment for pushing into wellies and getting all muddy.

I am not quite sure if these sandals go with these trousers, when I measured the hem I had flat shoes on......my DH thinks they look alright but I'm not sure.

I traced my TNT pattern, I measured the bottom width of another pair of trousers I had, then tapered the bottom of the pattern to about the crotch area ( I didn't want to touch the hips and waist or the darts so I stopped at the crotch). I stitched the darts then underlined each piece, then stitched everything together as one. I also had to adapt the top of the trousers for the slant pockets and make a pattern for the new pocket.....I think I did alright with the pockets, maybe a few tweaks here and there will be needed. I sewed everything together in my usual way but I tacked the side seams for fitting.....I needed to take them in another 1/4" at the bottom tapering to the crotch once again, I will adjust the pattern accordingly.

I am not sure whether it was worth all the hastle of changing the pockets because I can't wear anything tucked into my waist....my figure won't allow it.....so my pockets won't be seen anyway.

I am delighted that I have a new TNT pattern for trousers to work with, it will be well used I can tell you, like all of my patterns.

What is up next?.....the blouse I am wearing in the picture I have made quite a few times now, I might have a go at doing something different with that. I made two of these blouses out of linen, this one and a white one, they have been washed and worn over and over again, I have certainly had my wear out of them.

I could buy a new pattern for a shirt but the shape of it would end up like the one in the picture, so I might as well save myself some money and try to do somthing with my TNT pattern.

Sewing time

I always have a problem with the amount of time dedicated to my sewing, I also think I put too much pressure on myself to finish things. I have decided that I will do approx. 10 hrs. sewing a week, which is quite enough otherwise I sicken myself of sewing altogether. I timed myself this week and this is how my sewing week has gone:
Monday.....10.15am to 11.15am........1hr
4.10pm to 4.35pm.........25mins
9.30pm to 9.45pm.........15mins 1hr 40mins
Tuesday......no sewing
Wednesday....... 10.30am to 11.45am ......1hr15mins
1.10pm to 2.00pm........50mins
3.00pm to 3.1opm.......10mins 2hrs 15mins.
Thursday............ 8.45am to 9.30am.......45mins
11.10am to 11.30am.......20mins
12.30pm to 1.00pm........30mins
2.25pm to 3.oopm.........35mins
6.20pm to 7.30pm........1hr10mins
9.00pm to 9.45pm.......45mins 4hrs 05mins
Friday .................9.00am to 9.30am........30mins
10am to 10.30am.........30mins
2.30pm to 3.20pm......50mins 1hr50mins
Saturday.........no sewing
Sunday.................12.00pm to 12.15pm.......15mins
6.00pm to 7.15pm...........1hr15mins
11pm to 11.45pm.............45mins 2hrs 15mins
Altogether, if my calculations are correct, I have sewn for 12hrs and 5mins. What have I achieved?I have lined the front of my trousers, added the darts, made the side pockets and topstitched them, inserted the zip, I also had to mark and thread trace the lining which takes at least a couple of hours. Not much I know compared to some sewers but I am happy and my sewing hasn't taken over my life this week.

Sadness

We have lost another of our oldest dogs.....she was the niece of the one we lost a couple of months ago and she had to be put to sleep because of a womb infection ( both had the same infection ) We think the disease may be in that line of breeding.
We are absolutely devasted, as you can imagine, that we have lost 2 of our girls within a couple of months of each other.
Hannah wasn't my dog as such...she was my husbands dog and only his.....she didn't even like me holding her leader, but I loved her just the same. She was a fabulous working dog, on one occasion I can recall she ran down a river bank, swam a river, up the other side of the river bank, ran across a field, jumped a fence and half way across another field for a retrieve, and I am not joking...she was fabulous to watch. She was also beautiful to look at, glossy coat and very dark sparkling eyes.....these were her good points, but she wasn't a competition dog...she was a free spirit....my husband absolutely adored her and we both miss her so much....he says every other dog he will ever have are measured by her standards.

Slant pockets

This is my pattern that I have drafted for my slant pockets.....I studied a pattern that I had for slant pockets and adapted my TNT pattern accordingly.

Here are a couple of pictures of my sample.....this is not the fabric I will be using, it is a scrap from another pair of trousers that I have made.....I dare not cut into the cord fabric that I will be using because I may not have enough for samples. I must remember to put a fusible interfacing stay on the diagonal of the pocket to stop it from stretching, it did on my sample.

These rivets are queer little things to put in.......this isn't the right fabric to try these but I wanted to practise before the real thing.

I received my moleskin fabric this morning, I only ordered it yesterday from Pennine outdoor so they have been very good at delivery. I am really happy with it....it was expensive but it is good quality fabric.....they also have really lovely quality knits for t shirts, no patterned only plain fabric.

New style

I am trying to make a new pattern from my TNT trouser pattern. I am making slant pockets in the side instead of my usual side pockets....the legs will also be narrower and I am going to try these studs at the pockets and a jeans button at the waist.

This is the fabric I will be using.....I have only ever used cord once before when I made my daughter a pinafore skirt when she was little...I can remember the bits and pieces that came from it when I sewed it gave me a terrible cough and I have never used it again. I will have to be careful how I press it because of the pile. I have prepared the 2 fabrics....I am doing a half lining and joining the cord and the lining together and treating as one.

I have made the pattern for the pocket and now I am going to make a sample to make sure I am on the right lines. I will post pictures when I have done it.

I have also ordered some moleskin (not real moleskin I hasten to add) this is very good for outdoor wear and is warm in the winter and cool in the summer.There are 2 weights so I ordered an olive green in the heavier weight and a navy in the lighter weight both together cost me £77.87 which is not cheap. I am trying this new style in the cord before I tackle them in the more expensive moleskin. I will post pictures of this as well when I receive it, I have a busy week so I will do it when I have time.

Better late than never

I have eventually finished my trousers......I have been so busy with my dogs lately that I haven't had much time for sewing. I had decided that 2hrs of sewing a day is quite enough for me and probably is all I have time for.....and I had also decided that if I couldn't manage the 2hrs one day it could be carried forward to the next day.....but I fell so far behind I gave that up as a bad idea lol lol.

I am quite pleased with these trousers, they are fully lined with white charmeuse, which feels lovely on my skin......it is like making 2 pairs of trousers when they are fully lined.

These are cotton and linen mix and they crease just looking at them, you can see the creases in the legs where they have been hanging over the hanger.

White trousers are very versatile and these go with lots of things in my wardrobe, I also invested in a new pair of white shoes.....I love these and they are very comfortable, they have a wedge heel (I am not very keen on wedges, but I love these) with a lovely big bow on the front, they were £40 from Next.

That is about it ......another pair of trousers next, for walking my dogs in......the one's I have got are really shabby. I have received samples of some lovely olive coloured moleskin which is pretty expensive but I like it a lot so I might treat myself.

Fitting

This is the answer to a question I received in my comments from Myartistry about fitting......It is not a favourite passtime of mine, I do it because it is necessary but it is very frustrating trying to fit a figure like mine. I mainly read books and other people's blogs trying to pick up fitting tips, believe me when I say it is just trial and error, I could never just make a garment up straight out of a pattern envelope, it just wouldn't fit me....I have GOT to make a muslin which could take me weeks to get the fitting right. Once I have fitted it to the best of my ability I treasure the pattern so I make it over and over trying to do something different with it everytime and using different fabrics. I am learning everytime I alter a pattern but I am far from being an expert in fact I am better at fitting the bottom half than the top. I am also very slow with my sewing, I have four dogs and most of my spare time is took up with them, walking them etc.
All I can say is I love my sewing, not so much the fitting.