Katty Kowl

Finally finished after being UFO for several years. Just added a couple of rows of crochets jto be done with it. Don't love the fit and probably won't wear it.

I tried to improve the fit for my body type, but couldn't get it the way I wanted. If I still have the printed pattern with my notes, I'll add the details to this blog post later.

Patroon/ Pattern:
Katty Kowl - Crochet Couture CC
Maat/ Size:
Garen/ Yarn:
Elly - Rico Design (colour 717, xx bollen/skeins)
Haaknaald/ Hook: 12mm

Studio to Street Crop Top

Muslin to check the fit and sizing of the pattern. The fabric not really suitable, but works well enough for this purpose. Based on this test version, decided to size down 1 size and lengthen the front and back a little.

Patroon/ Pattern: Studio to Street Top - Greenstyle Creations
Maat/ Size: S
Stof/ Fabric: sweatshirt fabric (medium weight)

Burda Kids 9393

It seemed so easy to make a pair of joggers for little nephew, but it took much more time than anticipated. Especially the pockets: both the back pockets and the side-seam pockets. To be honest: I am not used to sewing side-seam pockets at all and all seams and top-stitching have to line up perfectly before I am satisfied. But in the end they look great.




 


Instead of button holes I used metal eyelets to guide the cording, as I am not proficient in creating button holes. Especially when on a (tight) schedule. Most of the seams where done using a serger and top-stitched using 4-mm twin needles.


Patroon/ Pattern: Burda Kids 9393
Maat/ Size: 128
Stof/ Fabric: sweatshirt fabric

Jalie Kate

Since the pattern was released I loved it: Jalie 3901 (Kate), and so did little niece when her mom showed it to her. Needless to say that I picked this pattern to make her a birthday present. As I needed a break from all the pink, I decided on a blue/green mystique for colour and hope she likes it as well.

The leotard came together like a charm and looks gorgeous. Shorts 3247 and scrunchies 2792 complement the set.

 







Unfortunately the leotard turned out too small (width wise) and she couldn't get her arms is as the neckline was too small. So I took the leotard apart and added a 2cm-wide black band to both sides and removed the neck band. Instead I added elastic to the wrong side of the fabric, turned it inside and top-stitched the elastic down. It doesn't look as professional as the original, but it's better than having to start all over again.




Patroon/ Pattern: Jalie 3901 (Kate)
Maat/ Size: J/K
Stof/ Fabric: Wetlook/Mystique (black & green) - TT-Gymnastics

Patroon/ Pattern: Jalie 3247 (shorts with waistband)
Maat/ Size:
Stof/ Fabric: Wetlook/Mystique (green) - TT-Gymnastics

Jalie Pika/ Isabelle

Finally, J's birthday present (from 3 years ago) is finished! This summer she selected the patterns and picked the fabrics. I am happy I made a test set first, as the shorts turned out to be a little too small.

The top is a size T, with V-length straps and length of the part on the back where the straps attach. To accommodate removable cups I added an extra layer of lining (combining both front pieces to create a single piece front). Also added 1cm of length to the mesh overlay.

The only change made to the leggings are the addition of 2cm to the length.

Patroon/ Pattern: Jalie 3674 (Isabelle) 
Maat/ Size: V (+2cm in length)
Stof/ Fabric: lycra (hot pink, ??pink, & black) - Glitterstof

Patroon/ Pattern: Jalie 3679 (Pika)
Maat/ Size: T/V
Stof/ Fabric: Metallic stretch mesh, lycra (hot pink, black) & lining - Glitterstof

Halla Juniper Dress

Patroon/ Pattern:
Juniper Dress - Halla
Maat/ Size: 4/6 - 12/14
Stof/ Fabric: tricot/ jersey

Jalie Clara

 


Patroon/ Pattern: Jalie 3887 (Clara) 
Maat/ Size: V
Stof/ Fabric: tie-dye tricot

Grime Guard

To prevent cross-stitch fabric of a larger project to become dusty/dirty, I made a simple grime guard. It is just a rectangle that can be made into a tube using safety pins. It is meant for the one large project I'll be stitching in hand.

At the time I made this, it seemed very useful, but now, after a few months, I hardly use it at all. We'll see if it gets more use in the future....

 

Patroon/ Pattern: zelf getekend/ self-drafted
Maat/ Size: 15x58cm (finished sizes)
Stof/ Fabric: katoen/ cotton

1787

This month an important historical event will be celebrated in our village and I have been asked if I will participate at the crafts fair/ farmers market. Of course, I will, but preferably not in my 21st century clothes. As the original event took place late 18th century I decided to do a little research on fashion during that time period, with the focus on the poor and middle class woman. (All those 18th century gowns look amazing, but the people who could afford them wouldn't be selling vegetables on a farmers market.)

In the end I decided not to make a historically correct outfit, for various reasons:
-1 time only event
-time restrictions (research, pattern making and putting the items together would have taken a lot of time)
-costs (meters and meters of fabric needed)

Some colleagues came up with the idea to make something simple for the four of us: a simple skirt (made from curtains) and a scarf, to wear with a rtw white blouse or shirt. In addition I decided to make an apron to go over the skirt, as was common in those days, and a cap (inspiration and tutorials are linked below).

For the apron I used some cotton fabric that I was gifted years ago and the cap is made from an old cotton bed sheet.




Tutorials/ Inspiration:
algemeen/ general:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUmO7rBMdoU

mutsje/ cap:
http://www.couturemayah.info/eng18th%20century%20caps.html
http://www.marquise.de/en/1700/howto/frauen/18hauben.shtml
http://artbeautyandwell-orderedchaos.blogspot.com/2009/05/how-to-make-18th-century-cap.html
http://www.mutsenmaker.nl/ontwikkeling%20en%20groei.htm (in Dutch)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wS9EaXU2AI

schort/ apron:
http://colonialwilliamsburg.photoshelter.com/gallery-image/Under-the-Redcoat/G0000_W6aBiVlKIU/I0000eiQNkMYl2XE
http://villagegreenclothier.com/showroom/othergarments.html

Jalie Pika/ Isabelle - test

Het is er deze zomer eindelijk van gekomen: J heeft haar verjaardagscadeautje van 2 jaar geleden uitgezocht. Het wordt een sportieve set met een sport-bh/top en een capri legging. Wat betreft de patronen is Jalie weer favoriet: de top wordt de Pika en de legging de Isabelle.

J's verjaardagscadeautje van dit jaar was een test setje om te kijken of de maten goed zijn. Deze set heb ik gemaakt van stoffen die ik al in huis had, waarvan een ook gebruikt is voor deze leggings.

Achteraf ben ik erg blij dat ik deze proefset gemaakt heb, want het broekje bleek toch wat aan de kleine kant.

Patroon/ Pattern: Jalie 3679 - Pika & Jalie 3674 - Isabelle
Maat/ Size:
Stof/ Fabric: travel stof, matte lycra, lycra

XStitch - Love

Patroon/ Pattern: 
XStitch Magazine - Love Issue
Maat/ Size: 10,5x10,5cm
Stof/ Fabric: Evenweave - 25ct
Garen/ Thread: DMC

kipjes / chickens

Patroon/ Pattern: CrossStitcher
Maat/ Size: 8x3,5cm
Stof/ Fabric: evenweave (25ct?) - 1 over 1
Garen/ Thread: DMC - eigen kleuren

Kirsten Kimono Tee - Maria Denmark

Patroon/ Pattern:
Kirsten Kimono Tee - Maria Denmark
(gratis patroon/ free pattern)
Maat/ Size: M 
Stof/ Fabric: Tricot

Dolman in blue

Patroon/ Pattern: 
Dolman sleeve top - Cation Designs
Maat/ Size: M + 2cm extra lengte
Stof/ Fabric: Tricot

kamperen / camping - boxkleedhoes

Het was leuk om weer een boxkleedhoes te maken als kraamcadeautje voor een vriendin. Deze keer weer een met applicaties, geinspireerd op de Nijntje-boxkleedhoes dat ik jaren geleden samen met andere vriendinnen gemaakt heb. Voor dit boxkleed heb ik gekozen voor een kampeer/ vakantie thema, aangezien dit zowel goed bij ons (de betreffende vriendin en mij) past als bij de ouders van de kleine.

Eerst heb ik een aantal (digitale) schetsen gemaakt en uit de variaties de leukste gekozen. Voor de bomen, bloemen en de tent heb ik kleurplaten als basis gebruikt.

De wereldkaart op de achterkant van de hoes kwam ik op de stoffenmarkt tegen en vond ik erg passend. De meeste andere stoffen had ik nog liggen van andere projectjes en heb ik er op kleur/ toepasselijkheid bijgezocht.

Patroon/ Pattern: eigen ontwerp/ own design
Maat/ Size:  99x81cm
Stof/ Fabric: katoen/ cotton

Musici / Musicians

While searching for inspiration for a personalised birthday/wedding gift, I came across the music-related cross stitch patterns from Climbing Goat Designs and instantly liked the style. Unfortunately, of the instruments I needed for the project to work, only the saxophonist was listed. So I contacted Clare, the designer behind the Climbing Goat Designs, and she was very helpful and offered to give a clarinet design a try. She did an amazing job! The musicians complement each other beautifully. 

The stitching was finished within 2 weeks. It was really fun to work on this piece. It has a great balance between the single colour silhouettes and the colour changes within the instruments.

This is also the first project I laced and framed myself, after several hours of watching Youtube videos and reading tutorials. It turned out great! I feel so proud every time I look at the piece that, due to circumstances, got to stay a little longer than expected.

Patroon/ Pattern:
Saxophonist & Clarinetist - Climbing Goat Designs
Maat/ Size: 96x81st & 103x87st
Stof/ Fabric: white aida (7,2st/cm; 18ct)
Garen/ Threads: DMC (2 threads)
Lijst/ Frame: 20x30cm

Vogels / Birds

Patroon/ Pattern: Angry Birds - Nadezhda Gavrilenkova
Maat/ Size: ~50x100st
Stof/ Fabric: white aida (5,4st/cm; 14ct)
Garen/ Treads: merk onbekend / brand unknown

Blackwork Challenge 1

My own version of Blackwork Challenge 1 by Tams Creations as I discovered a discrepancy between the 2 pages I had printed out. Luckily I was able to add the missing band later on in the project.

Patroon/ Pattern:
Blackwork Challenge 1 - Tams Creations
Maat/ Size:
130x130 steken/ stitches
Stof/ Fabric:
linnen servet/ linen napkin
Garen/ Thread:
Anchor 273, 392 & 830

Rode sport-BH / Red sports bra

In addition to the Valentine pole set, I made another sports bra to go with the shorts. This time using the racer-back option from Jalie 2563.

Patroon/ Pattern: Jalie 2563
Maat/ Size: U
Stof/ Fabric: lycra/ spandex

Kraamcadeautjes / Baby gifts

Een klein kraamcadeautje voor 2 babies en hun ouders: 2 speenkoorden en een tasje dat groot genoeg is om een speen in te doen.

A small 'Welcome to the world' present for 2 newborns and their parents: 2 pacifier clips and a little pouch, large enough for a pacifier.

Patroon/ Pattern: 
speenkoord/ pacifier clips

gevoerd tasje/ drawstring pouch:
verschillende tutorials, die ik op het moment niet terug kan vinden. / 
Some tutorials I will have to find again 

Stof/ Fabric: katoen / cotton

borduurraam accessoires / x-stitch frame accessories

When I found a cross stitch lap stand with a frame, I realized it would be easy to make a cover and grime guards for it. So I measured the frame and went through my fabric stash to find suiting pieces of fabric.

The fabric I used for the cover is a thick cotton, of which I love the colours. They make me so happy. The kam snaps are left-overs from another project and match the fabric perfectly.
 




For the grime guards I used some small pieces of cotton that had the right size and that I probably couldn't use for something else.

Pattern: just measuring and drawing rectangles
Fabric: cotton

Valentine pole set

 "Please wear something red during the pole fitness class on Valentines Day", a request I was not (yet) prepared for. Luckily I bought some beautiful black-red-pink spandex recently and also had a piece of black performance fabric in the stash. Although the Clara shorts (Jalie 3887) are my go-to pattern, I decided to go with the shorts from Jalie 2563 this time as they have a nice little insert on the leg. 
For the bra I wasn't sure: Jalie 3247 with criss-cross straps or Greenstyle Creations power sports bra with strappy U back. After finishing the bottoms, the power sports bra seemed to complement the style/ fabric best.

Patroon/ Pattern:
top: Power Sports Bra - Greenstyle Creations
shorts: Jalie 2563
Maat/ Size: 
top: 32C
shorts: V
Stof/ Fabric: 
zwart/ black: "perform" - FunkiFabrics
gekleurd/ colourful: lycra/ spandex - TT-Gymnastics

Sport shirts

De eerste versie bevalt goed, dus nog een paar gemaakt.

Great pattern and great fit, so I made more...

Patroon/ Pattern: Solo Tank - Greenstyle Creations
Maat/ Size: XS
Stof/ Fabric:
katoen lycra & sport stof / cotton lycra & active wear fabric

Boeketje / Little Bouquet

Helaas geen foto van het project als het af is, aangezien ik het meteen weggegeven heb.

Unfortunately no picture of the finished project as I gave it away right after finishing.

Patroon/ Pattern: Pansies - Stitched Modern
Maat/ Size: fits in 10cm hoop
Stof/ Fabric: 18ct Aida
Garen/ Thread: DMC & Anchor

BB8

A second pillow case for my little nephew, as he got over his 'cars' period pretty soon after receiving the cars-themed pillow. He now has a Star Wars-themed room, so I loved giving him a matching pillow case to put on the couch. 

Unfortunately I wasn't able to finish stitching in time for his birthday, but I showed him what I was working on and he liked it. So, needless to say, he was very happy when he finally received his finished pillow case.

The pattern was really fun to stitch. It is easy to read and I love working on colourful designs. It is stitched with 2 threads of DMC. The store bought pillow case had different counts horizontally and vertically, so I stitched over 2 threads horizontally and over 3 vertically to keep the stitches relatively squared.

Patroon/ Pattern:
Star Wars BB8 (oval) - Awesome Pattern Studio
Maat/ Size: 148x198st
Stof/ Fabric:  kussensloop/ pillowcase (50x50cm)
Garen/ Threads: DMC

Power Sports Bra & Clara Shorts

Patroon/ Pattern:
top: Power Sports Bra - Greenstyle Creations
shorts: Clara - Jalie 3887
Maat/ Size:
top: 32C
shorts: U/V
Stof/ Fabric:
lycra & traveller stof / spandex & traveller fabric

Jalie Clara - lila / Jalie Clara - lilac

Patroon/ Pattern: Clara - Jalie 3887
Maat/ Size: U (V)
Stof/ Fabric: lycra/ spandex

Solo Tank

Eerste versie, gemaakt van een stof die geschikt is voor sportkleding.

First time using this pattern.

Patroon/ Pattern: Solo Tank - Greenstyle Creations
Maat/ Size: XS
Stof/ Fabric: sport stof / active wear fabric

Pretty in Pink

Little niece started with gymnastics and asked me if I would make her a leotard. How could I resist... 
So I gave her the choice of a couple of Jalie leotards (2792, 3241 and 3464) and shorts. It wasn't a hard decision: it had to be the X-back leotard with the 3247E shorts. 
After showing her some fabrics from my stash to give her an idea of the type of fabrics and some colours, she preferred stretch velours. After looking at some webshops with her mum, she choose 2 or 3 fabrics from a shop that is also an actual store at driving distance. Therefore I decided to go there myself and have a look at the actual colours. White, bright pink and silver it would be!

As little niece is tall and skinny, I lengthened the leotard pattern to a size L (including the arm and leg openings). A size K length would probably given her enough room for growth as well. 
For the shorts I cut a size J, based on her hip measurements. One size up would have given a better fit in the back and in the future I will probably add elastic to the the waistband (or just adding elastic to the waist, pattern option D).

When I gave her new gymnastics set, she loved it! She didn't take it off for the rest of the day and her mum told me that niece would sleep in it if she was allowed to. For me, there is no bigger compliment...

ETA (apr '19): turns out that what I thought was room for growth (wrinkled shoulderbands) isn't that. Mum has already asked if I could make the same leotard in a larger size. It might be that the elastic is too tight and in that case it might be worth unpicking the elastic (although I used a triple zigzag stitch...). Otherwise I'll make little niece a new leotard and probably also some larger shorts (with elastic in the waistband)

Patronen/ Patterns:
turnpakje/ leotard: Jalie 3241B 
shorts: Jalie 3247E
haarfrutsel/ scrunchie: Jalie 2792
tasje/ little bag: no pattern
Maat/ Size: J/K/L
Stof/ Fabric: Stretch Velours (TT-Gymnastics)