Kwik Sew 3408, a wrap dress pattern that I shortened into a top. The fabric is some poly jersey I had in my stash. I used a collar from a vintage Simplicity wrap dress pattern.
I am positively through with sewing knits. Finito. This DVF-inspired wrap knit top I just finished reminded me for the last time that I am never really thrilled with the knit tops I make. Sure, it turned out just fine and on me it does resemble this real DVF top (photo courtesy of Nordstrom.com), but I feel so-so about it. And that's the way I feel about 80 percent of the knits I've sewn—just so-so.At the sewing class I recently took one of my classmates asked teachers Susan Khalje and Kenneth King if they had any tips for sewing with silk jersey. Both of them turned up their noses and said they never sewed knits, that they vastly preferred working with wovens. Me too! It can be fast and easy to whip up a little knit top but for me, getting my knits to look less Becky Home Ecky and more RTW is very hard. Stitches (and imperfections) show more on knits. I'd rather pay a few extra dollars and buy a RTW knit top that I like than waste time churning out another blah top.
I do have some lovely red sweater-knit fabric I bought at Mood before I swore off knits, so I still plan on making that up this fall. And Annie is happy with the knit dresses I sew for her—I'm sure there will be more of those in the future. But for now I'm content to leave knits to all you readers who do a much better job with them than I do. Remind me I said that, okay?
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Well, it's been a week of stupid mistakes here in Lake Wobegon. Remember how I was going to get crackin' on the BurdaStyle jacket made out of coppery fabric I bought at Fabric.com? Oops, not enough fabric to lay the whole thing out. Bought 45"-wide fabric thinking it was 60"-wide. D'oh. Fortunately Fabric.com had more so I'm waiting for that to arrive.In the meantime, I thought I'd start on a muslin for this Butterick jacket. Carefully transferred all the markings to the muslin, marked one-inch seamlines, cut it all out, was just about to sew…. D'oh #2: I had used Butterick's cutting line as the stitching line instead of first marking the 5/8" seamlines and then measuring the one-inch seams from there. An easy fix, but still, you'd think I would have learned by now!
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Where you'll find me on weekends: at the football field! Annie is a captain of her high school's cheerleading squad and we enjoy watching her and her teammates perform at the games. (I admit I got a little verklempt at the first game of this season when I realized the days of watching her cheer in high school are coming to an end; she does not want to cheer in college.) The school's football team is off to a fantastic start and is predicted to go far this season, so my fall sewing output may be on the pathetic side as long as the team keeps winning.
Thanks so much for the compliments on my brown paisley vest. I can definitely see another vest in my future—they're so easy to make. And I appreciate your compliments on my blogging efforts–no plans to hang up my hat just yet. Have a great weekend everyone!
44 comments:
I love your DVF inspired knit top. I too struggle with knits = serger. Both misbehave when they play together. It is either the serger eating the fabric or the jersey is stubborn.
I have changed needles,eliminated/tweaked every problem variable and it is still a hit/miss. It is a shame,some knits are truly lovely nowadays.....so I continue to sew knits for my girls and cuss at the machine the entire time!!!!!
Your top looks wonderful, Lindsay. I think with knits it just takes lots of practice, but I think each of us have a comfort level to certain things. For myself, the wonderful Chanel inspired jackets you make would be way out of my comfort level.
Enjoy all of Annie's games, isn't amazing how quickly they grow up?
I often agree, and yet I get tempted by the pretty knits. I do like wool jersey and double knit though.
Wow . . . I'm so relieved to know that I'm not the only one who prefers sewing woven fabrics over knits! The problem I run into is that I like to wear dresses to work, and it seems like 95% of the current dress patterns are designed for knit fabrics only! What's a girl to do??!!
By the way, I think your knit garments look great on you!
I just started playing with knits recently and every time feels like a struggle. I haven't tried patterns that are very fitted yet, though, so usually I can fudge things a little. I'm quite envious of people that can just "whip up" something knit.
Your top looks great. Your jackets are awe-inspiring, so why not stick with what you love? (It's a comfort to know that other sewistas also make head slapping mistakes)
When I first started sewing knits I had a lot of wadders, but I like sewing them now. Not as much as wovens though. Those are much more fun to sew. I do buy some knit tops and definitely sweaters. Wool jersey and double knits are easy to sew and end up looking good. I never ever sew polyester knits. I really hate them. I don't sew cheap knits ever, they are a waste of time as they never sew up nicely. They are never really a bargain.
I would LOVE to have a MOOD around here! As for the knits, I do alot with them, but you're right. The results are usually ho-hum and look homemade. I've been told I need to use a special washable stablizer but I haven't been able to find it yet.
And your daughter is beautiful!
I hate how my stitches look when I sew on knits. I have sewn on sweater knit before and you will find it very different than sewing on other knits. I really liked sewing on it and the end product turned out really nice.
I haven't gotten into sewing with knits yet, and I have to admit that I'm really nervous about it. I think if I'm going to give it a try I need to see if the local sewing instructor is proficient with sewing with knits and sit in on a few classes before I give it a try.
But you need to enjoy the sewing process; so I agree with sewing what you love and sticking with your comfort level. Why drive yourself crazy?
By the way, I am still thinking about your vest and how nice you look in it. It makes me want to whip on up.
I also prefer wovens. Knits are fine, but I'm generally annoyed that so many lately need lining. Which is just double the work.
But, I don't know that I would say be 'done' :)
Hey I feel your pain! Learning to work with a new fabric or a new technique can be frustrating. It may be a good thing to walk away from the fabric for now and then revisit it later. Personally, I think you can do this...it may take a few more wadders but when you have your first success for a garment for you, you will be sold!
Enjoy the football games and cheering!
* I think the top looks really cute. I just started sewing and am currently playing with knits. I know they are a pain, but I realized that so many of the dresses I gravitate towards are knits, so if I want to make the clothes I like wearing, I better get comfortable with them... and fast. Ha! It's still a work in progress, but so far, so good.
* Love that your daughter cheers. I was captain of my HS pep squad (cheer and dance combined) and have such fond memories of the games. I think my mom was probably like you, a bit sad when it was all over and done. I hope it's a fabulous football season - for your daughter and for you. :)
I don't sew with knits very often either. The top looks good, though.
Your daughter is so pretty. I know how you feel about her being a senior and getting ready to go off to college. I had to go through that with 3 daughters. They're all married with their own children now, though, and live far from me.
I'm totally in the minority here, but I LOVE sewing with knits. I have made most of the knit tops in my closet and much prefer those to anything I find in RTW. I love your top and hope you end up enjoying wearing it.
And I thought it was only me! Apparently not. I used to wonder at all the sewing people who would only sew with knits and wonder why I was so different. I just love a beautiful woven fabric. Thanks for letting me know we are not alone! I miss having my cheerleading daughter close by. She cheers 6 hours away now, so I only get to see her in action sporatically. Good luck to your daughter and the teams associated!
This is the post I never wrote :)) Thank you for saying it so well! My closet holds only one kind of knit; the store-bought, T shirt kind. I don't mind sewing it, but I do mind how it looks on me. Apart from tees (and rowdy ones at that) I need structure as opposed to fluidity, so woven is my friend.
Your daughter is beautiful.
And about the Butterick jacket; another reason to love BWOF :)
I think your DVF-inspired top is fab! I love to sew with knits but you should definitely sew what you enjoy, especially since there are so many great RTW knit garments available.
I can see where most sewers prefer wovens. You can mold them and they behave (most of the time!) But I've actually had the reverse happen...I'm wearing a store bought knit and have friends ask it I made it. Maybe the simplistic nature of most knit things lends itself to that. Then again look at the Christine Johnson stuff. They seem pretty stylish. Is it that the fabric needs to be beefier?
Oh I laughed out loud, Becky Home Ecky! Perfect description of my less than stelar results sometimes. I had an immediate image of poplin dirndle skirts and sleeveless shell with facings in a awful orange and green print. Thank you for the laugh, I needed it today.
FWIW, I like your knit top. None of the B H E comes through the picture. Your Annie is beautiful. I too had a HS and college cheerleader. Fun times.
I personally love working with knits. I find them easy and fun. However, they're definitely very different from wovens!
That being said, sew what you enjoy and don't worry about the rest.
I have terrible luck with knits. I'm glad Susan Khalje and Kenneth King don't like them either. I'm in good company.
Well..I think your top looks lovely!
I work with wovens almost exclusively for my shirt clients, and sewing with a knit fabrics is a pleasant break for me.
Maybe it's because I started to work with knits at my family's Fabric store during the 70's (we specialized in knit fabric)..that I find them so easy to work with..and unlike JoAnneM, without a serger I'd never get good results. I find a serger makes the difference (for me) between a struggle and a satisfying knit sewing session.
To each her/his own, but whatever you sew, you always seems to be able to "make it work"..and look terrific !"
My nightmare fabric? Silk charmeuse...slides around like crazy, seams pucker...I hate to sew with it, LOL!
I'm with you on the knits- they do not flatter me. Good thing I asked santa for a dressform instead of a serger!
Thanks for the words about autism. I really do feel like I'm in another world now, and it's nice to see some friendly faces here :)
I'm just started to play around with knit and it scares the dickens out of me...my mom though is awesome with knits...makes me wonder if having a coverstitch machine is what makes the difference.
I'd love to see posts from some of the commenters who love knits on the techniques they use to get a nice finished product!
I stopped sewing knits as soon as I began! There are some lovely knit garments out there but honestly I rather buy them than make them! I can always count on finding knits while shopping which have a good fit and are usully affordable.It is the woven garments like Chanel jackets which I can't afford and blouses and dresses which I can't fit right that I need to sew!
Your daughter is adorable. I would have choked up too--I tear up all the time with my kids. I will need to carry a kleenex box around for their senior years!
I started to enjoy my knits when I stopped sewing them up with the overlocker. If I sew them on my machine with a stretch stitch and press the seams open I get a much better garment than using the overlocker. I'd like a coverstitch for the hems eventually, but I've experimented with several different width of twin needles and get a really nice result now. The great thing about sewing for pleasure is that you can choose to do what you want, so if you don't like sewing with knits, you don't have to!
Who knew I was in such good company? I extremely rarely sew knits. They just don't give me the tingle a natural woven does. Give me a hank of linen any day!
Attending those games as a family makes such great memories. Enjoy that crisp fall air and watching your beautiful daughter.
I always love the idea, and am pleased with my progress, until... it's time for a hem. Then I get so mad with the icky result, I swear them off, too. For a month or so, and then I'm a glutton for punishment and eternally optimistic ("This time it will be better!").
I am very please to let you know that you've been awarded the Kreativ Blogger Award on my blog
http://lamachinacoudre.blogspot.com/2009/09/kreativ-blogger-award-merci-trudy.html
Marie-Noëlle
I"m with Melissa, I love and wear to death most of the knit things I've made. I'm super careful though and practiced a TON on knit patterns before I started liking them. I do wish I had a coverstitch machine because the only part that really bugs me is the twin needle from the wrong side...it DOES look homemade. But no one sees that part but me.
That said...I think it's smart (and chic) of you to say you're done with them because you don't enjoy sewing them! You shouldn't waste precious sewing time! (That's how I feel about lined, tailored garments.)
Aww, I actually really like your top! I think it's just a different skill set, but I'd hate to see you deprive yourself of a wonderful wool double knit or silk jersey garment.
Hmm, well, knits are not my favorites, either. I prefer to work with wovens. That said, I am learning to work with them and not fight them. Having the right machines, needles and tools helps, but it takes practice.
At any rate, there are so many gorgeous wovens in the world that I think you could be quite happy without the knits! No reason to waste time sewing stuff you hate.
Oh my gosh! I love knits and thought most sewers did too. I think that is what surprised me when I read your post and the comments. Occasionally, however, I'll get a knit from you-know-where, but that is mostly the exception rather than the norm. The only knits I tend to shy away from are the all cotton ones because the fabric tends to stretch out over time and lose its shape. My favorite recent knits are the lovely ITY prints from Spandex World. They wear great and sew up like a dream. Overall, I do like knits and wovens equally. There are definitely pros and cons to both.
Hey, congrats to your family "Captain"! It's such an honor to have that title. DD#1 has been wanting the tennis captain title since her Freshman year (along with the No. 1 spot). I breathed a sigh of relief that she got both or she would have been very hard to live with this Fall. It's things like this that can boost a girl's self confidence, esteem, and just make them feel good about things, so it's such a pleasure to read your daughter was chosen as the Captain of the Cheerleading squad. That is great news!
great post! I guess we've all had our knit disappointments. It can be demoralizing to screw up a t-shirt when you have successfully sewn impressive garments like a Chanel-inspired jacket.
Lately I am going on the assumption that every knit is different and I don't really understand the knit I am using until I have finished the project.
Once I understand that particular knit, then it's time to leverage the knowledge and sew more garments from the same knit.
I bought a stack of different colors from Christine Jonson, all in the same ITY knit. Hopefully, there will be many successful knit garments from that pile.
*fingers crossed*
Cuz I am not a fan of the Becky Home-Ecky look, either.
Delurking here to say that I am not yet convinced that anything could come out of your sewing room looking 'Becky Home Ecky'. The top looks gorgeous!
Judging from all these comments, I had better get researching on techniques as I am generally attracted to knit garments...
-K
I have only recently started experimenting with knits. I have gotten better and better results each time. I really wish I had a Mood around here so I could go and look at the different fabrics and truly figure out what I want. I want something similar to the ITY type fabric, but I would like for it to be a little bit thicker. It is hard ordering knits online!
I think the top looks very good. But I understand where you're coming from - it's so much nicer to sew up a well-behaved woven. Well. I'm off to sew the kids some knit shirts.
Nothing you make ever looks Becky Home Ecky, Lindsay! But I, too, have a love/hate relationship with knits. Glad to be in such good company.
Cissie
On a slightly unrelated note, I really wish the term "Becky home ecky" would just DIE. Not the best nickname I could have.
I am not a fan of sewing knits either but I am a glutton for punishment because I love them so. I thought I was the only one that had major issues with them because in blogland "everyone else" seemed to have perfect results. Whenever I sew with knits I swear them off but then I come back because I am determined to master them. I will be victorious one day!
Hi Lindsay:
I think you do wonderful things in knits. Don't let one project sour you entirely. I think it's just this particular pattern and fabric were not a happy marriage. I still want to do the double-knit jacket you did last year.
I love sewing with knits but realize it comes with its own challenges. I kept swearing at my sewing table last week as I tried to do a knit dress and really got discouraged at one point. Fit was not quite right but fixed it eventually. Where would I be without a serger? I kept having to take out seams and redo them. I also finally did the hem with interfacing and also had to give it 3 tries before I got it right.
Oh, I'm sad to hear that--I think your top looks beautiful! I have to say after spending time with knits and wovens I far prefer knits even if I'm still learning to make them behave when I sew them.
I find that 80% of the time I reach for knits in my closet--whether dresses, tops, sweaters, or skirts-- for reasons of comfort/fit, and I'm not always very impressed w/ RTW knit skirts and dresses (and they're so pricey). The only thing I consistently wear as wovens is pants (and even those are stretch wovens). And I do have love for woven skirts. But tops? Never! I don't think I've worn a button-down shirt in over a year.
Part of this is because I have a 32G bust and I like very fitted/drapey/hourglass styles and FBAs are SUCH a pain. Even the woven patterns that now come with multiple fronts generally only go up to D cup. Sigh...
I think your knit top looks good too. I am my most critic too! I always want to point out where it is not perfect. Maybe, I dout it though, I'll pass the point of wanting perfection.
I too have a Captain of the Cheer Squad in High School that is not going to be cheering in college. We have been competitive cheer as well as school for 11 years now. I am watching her last basketball games now. We do have a competition the first weekend in March in San Antonio, TX. I KNOW I WILL CRY it will be over after that. :(
Enjoy your little Lady.
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