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Sunday, November 10, 2013

Long Time Coming

Today I present to you Hemlock the second.  This one was made with a very thin and stretchy jersey marked only as "spandex knit" with 60% stretch (from Girl Charlee, no longer available).  I started it well over a month ago and had the dickens of a time getting it cut out.  Then when I went to my coverstitch machine to do my hemming (before seaming) everything went to hell in a handbasket.  I'd do a sample, which would look great.  Then I'd try out the hem and it would bunch and pucker into a horrible mess.  I'd pick it all out and try again - I went through this process three times before giving up and throwing the top aside in disgust.

But when Lisa posted her recent Hemlock the other day, I got inspired to dig it back out and finish it.  I'd realized in the intervening time period that my coverstitch problem was due to having one needle on a double thickness and one needle on a single thickness of fabric.  I'd already pressed my seam allowances back 3/8" with fusible web, so I decided to do the hems closer to the edge so that both needles were going through 2 layers of fabric.  It took me until the fourth and final hem to get something that looked good, but I just wanted to finish the top and get on with things, so I didn't undo.

sleeve hem - too close to the edge

front hem - better

For this Hemlock, I narrowed the sleeve at the cuff.  Since it's been so long since I cut out this top, I don't remember exactly how much I narrowed it, but I think I took off about 5/8" on each side and tapered the side seam up to where it starts to curve out for the underarm.  Now the sleeves will stay up if I push them up.


The fabric is a taupe background printed with a black lace pattern:

with a funky necklace I ended up not wearing

I like the fake flocked lace edges in the print

Hubby really liked this one, and I wore it yesterday for a day of visiting a guitar shop and then dinner at a friend's house.  I took the above pictures in the morning, thinking I'd get pictures of me wearing it later in the day.  By the time I remembered, it was after dinner and a couple drinks; Hubby was totally cracking me up as he snapped a couple shots:


But at least you can see how the narrower sleeve fits!  And don't ask me how I did it, but somehow the stripes on the sleeves match those on the body when my arms are down!  A fluke!

Our friend has two beautiful Siamese cats who I thoroughly enjoyed playing with.  Here's LC:

She's very shy and reserved.

And here's Oliver, who decided he really liked my Infinity Scarf:


Awwww!  Snuggle kitty!

That's going to be it for sewing for me for a bit.  I'm going to go visit my mom for a week (Yay!) so I'll just be taking some knitting along.  And chances are she and I will be having so much fun together, I won't even be doing much of that!

30 comments:

  1. Adorable photos - and did that fabric come with the lace on it?? It's very cool - and looks very complicated...

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    1. Yes, the lace is actually printed on! Isn't it cool? I fell in love with it when I saw it and thought it would be just right for the Hemlock.

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  2. Ooh I remember that print from Girl Charlee. Shame that it's out of stock, 'cause I really want it now! Your Hemlock looks great on you and lucky you with the stripes matching coincidentally!

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    1. It's great isn't it? I felt a little bad posting about it because it's not there anymore. But I liked my new shirt too much not to share!

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  3. What a smart cat. Your top is vintage modern. Live it especially with that awesome necklace.

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    1. Thanks, Stef! The necklace looks so great with it laying on my bed, but when I put it on it looked kind of stupid so I took it off. Probably a good thing - the cats would have had a field day with that!

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  4. love that fabric! glad you finished it, it's super cute. i can't believe the sleeve and body pattern matching was accidental, it's too perfect!

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    1. Thank you! I honestly didn't even notice about the sleeves matching until Hubby took the pix! I spent a lot of time matching the stripes at the sides and making sure the two sleeves matched each other, but I really got lucky that they match the body too!

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  5. All's well that ends well: this Hemlock looks great.

    Oliver is adorable. He needs a scarf/blankie of his own.
    -- stashdragon

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    1. Thanks, Gretchen! LOL - I think Oliver is pretty spoiled already, so I won't be knitting him a present!

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  6. Ahhhh. Beautifully done. The necklace is a nice pairing!

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  7. That is the perfect fabric for a Hemlock! It's wonderful! I love that the sleeves match the body too. It's perfect!

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    1. Thanks, Kelly! It's also very soft - I felt so luxurious in it all day!

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  8. Great pics! Love the tee AND the kitties!I think I would have gone mad with those hem problems lol. I hope you enjoy your time with your mum and have loads of fun. :D

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    1. Kittens! I wish I could have one!

      This top definitely benefited from a time out! I really like this pattern - I'm sure there will be more in my future!

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  9. Your husband was quite right to love it - it fits you perfectly! Very cute Hemlock!

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    1. Thanks, Carmela! I love it when he has an opinion about my makes!

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  10. Wow, this is lovely! It's chic and cozy at the same time! I like it with the necklace you picked out (even if you didn't end up wearing it)!

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    1. Thanks, Sonja! I'm thinking next time I'm going to do a curved hem . . .

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  11. You look like you are having so much fun in these photos! Have a great time with your mom.

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    1. Well, this was after a Vieux Carre (cocktail) and a glass of white wine (but before the Eiswein), so things were getting pretty silly, LOL!

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  12. Oh yes, and your new t-shirt is pretty cool!

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  13. Hemlock looks v cool and snuggly kitty looks v comfy! Have a whole load of fun with your mum ��

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  14. Your hemlooks looks chic, very pretty! I really like this tee and oh I wish I had more time to sew!

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    1. Thank you! This one is so quick and easy, you should go for it!

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  15. Gorgeous top!- I love the lace print :) And those kitties are beautiful!! Have fun with your mum!

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    1. Thanks, Ami! This is "lace lite" - so much easier (probably) than the gorgeous tops you did!

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