I've decided to sew more for myself lately. It has been really fun to sew for my daughter (and a little for my son) these past 5 years. Quite recently, however, she started refusing to wear things that I stayed up all night trying to finish. She would pick the pattern and the fabric and then decide that she 'just didn't like it for some reason.' At first I was just crushed probably because it had become such a part of my 'mom' identity and I got lots of compliments from others for the things I would make for her. I think she knew that I was crushed and sort of liked that power to make me so mad/sad/disappointed/whatever. So I have set all my projects for her aside for a while and I have purchased a bunch of beautiful patterns for myself, including this Little (big) Woo from Patterns by Figgy's. I liked the pattern when I first saw it a while back, but wished it was in my size and, well, Shelly and Karen must have read my mind (and all the other requests!) because they just offered a pattern that goes up to size 14. I made the size 12 at Shelly's suggestion and it fits perfectly. I am not terribly experienced with knits and was so nervous about sewing together the woven and knit fabric, but for the most part it was so easy. I used some Kokka fabric I have been holding on to for a while with some poly/cotton ponte knit I got at Joann's. I really wanted to use a 100% cotton knit, but couldn't find one with the heavier weight I wanted. I cannot say enough about the customer service from the Patterns by Figgy's team. I mean it's like having a personal sewing coach who will email you (within 12 hours, often sooner) if you have a question or encounter a problem.
I had a little problem with it gathering a bit around the neck and I really do not know why. I think the knit may have stretched out a bit when sewing the other parts together even though I added interfacing and staystitched it. Anyway, I like how it turned out because the slight gathering is uniform around so it looks intentional. Hooray for mistakes that look good (it oh-so-seldom happens for me)!!
Next up, a Tova top to share on the blog. And I am crazy excited about this recent annoucement from Liesl. I am especially excited about the fabric possibilities at Joann's of all places. Lucky for me, there's a Joann's ever so close to my house (my car practically knows the way!).
