Bras and Step-Ins

Last month a friend and I took a bra making class that reset my sewing agenda! I was absolutely amazed that I could produce such a great fitting bra. Filled with courage, I decided to attempt a pair of panties. Kwik Sew's Beautiful Lingerie (the book) includes a pattern for a high-cut panty. My (former) favorite underwear was Jockey's cotton hi-cuts. 

According to Kwik Sew's sizing chart, I wear an XL. This is how my Jockey's compared with that first cut out.

Jockey sz 8 / Kwik Sew sz XL

So...the sizing chart got tossed! I folded the Jockey's in half and laid it along side the multi-sized pattern. Despite my skepticism, I cut out the medium based on that comparison. But, I used an old t-shirt this time instead of fashion knit!

Kwik Sew's sewing instructions are very clear, although I flipped between the elastic description and the sewing steps. 

At this point, you tuck crotch piece #2 under panty back while crunching panty pieces together until the crotch piece comes up over the top of panty front. Then add the edge of crotch piece #2 to the pinned area.

I placed a blue dot on crotch piece #2 at this point because I wanted to figure out whether it became the outer crotch or the crotch liner. 

completed crotch 

The blue dot shows that crotch piece #2 is the crotch liner.

This is important to know when sewing panties with a fashion knit but cotton crotch.

The finished muslin ended up being too big in front.

panty front

I wasn't very surprised because I have to adjust the front waist of pants patterns. Using my fashion curve ruler, I easily decreased the center front by about 1 inch, tapering to nothing on the side. 

The nice thing about this first pair is that I can wear them! And what a pleasant surprise it was to learn a new use for old t-shirts. Very comfy!

As soon as I adjusted the panty front pattern piece, I gambled and cut out a second pair from a fashion knit (90% poly 10% spandex). These went together quickly and were finished in about 90 minutes. The fit is right on, so I now have a TNT (tried and true) hi-cut panty pattern. Yay for me!

Seriously, if you've ever flirted with the idea of making your own panties, give it a try. The comfort of having just the right amount of elasticity in the waist is reason enough to swear off RTW panties forever!

The Cutest Diaper Bag...EVER!

Lola Bea Diaper Bag from Sew Much Ado

The instructions for this bag are excellent with one exception. In the step-by-step photos/instructions, the designer refers to the pieces by name (for example, side gusset) instead of piece number. My solution (for future reference) was to write the piece numbers on each of the instruction photos. If you make this gorgeous bag, do yourself a favor and write those numbers in BEFORE you begin sewing. I didn't photograph every phase of construction, but do want to share a few pics so you can see how cute the fabric choices turned out. My daughter Meg gets all the credit for this!

Isn't this the cutest fabric combo?
Cotton duck (chevron) and cotton print, both from Hobby Lobby

strap is long enough for cross-body
(check the length before cutting if you are taller than 5'3")

Tons of room inside with 5 elastic pockets and 1 zippered pocket

I guess you can tell that I am a VERY proud grandma!