Behind the Scenes at Love Sewing - M7661 Reader Review

finished project
Back in November, I had the pleasure of going 'behind the scenes' at Love Sewing Magazine HQ for a 'Reader Review' photoshoot and I can finally show you what I made for it, as well as give you a little peek into the process! I didn't hesitate when asked as the pattern in question is one of my favourites of last year, the M7661 trousers (here's some I made earlier)! Issue 62, featuring my review and a free copy of the M7661 pattern is on sale now so go and grab a copy!

M7661 Trousers for Love Sewing issue 62

Pre-photoshoot
Amy kindly asked me if I'd like to be involved a month before the photoshoot, so this has been quite some time in the works. I'd already planed to make another pair with a contrast side panel, so it slotted in well with my sewing plans at the time. I had plenty of freedom to select the version and fabric I wanted to use, which Amy helped me source - thanks to Minerva Crafts for providing both of these. It was quite a tight turnaround to get the trousers made and ready for the shoot, but me being me, I obviously had to give myself extra work by making a Reeta Shirt to match (see previous versions here) from the contrast panel #sewingleftovers.

On set!
On the day
After a bit of home posing, I travelled to the Stockport-based studio with my garment bag in hand. I had my make up and hair done by Nina and Amy helped to prep my outfit for camera - amongst her many skills, she's also a talented top tucker and bow tier, who knew! Amy had offered to source tops/shoes for the shoot too and I had my pick from the accessory wall, but I chose to go with my own. Once I was ready, I got to go on set where Renata took many, many pictures! It's quite a different experience to my usual DIY picture taking set up - though similarly embarrassing at first - but it was fun once I got into it!
With Amy for the editors welcome!
After getting some review shots and pictures with Amy for her editor's welcome (hey guys I made it to page 3...!) I got the chance to get some extra snaps of the details and a headshot just for featuring on the blog.
Professionally avoiding fringe separation since 2005
Post-shoot, just checking what my make up looked like
Post production
And then there's the wait... The issue came out on December 27th (though I think subscribers received their copies a little earlier), so I had to keep quiet about the shoot until then! After the Christmas break, I got chance to go through the contact sheet and pick some of my own favourite images from the shoot, so you'll see some of these below spliced into my review.
Love Sewing issue 62

The review (and pictures!)
If it isn't the 'year of the trouser' for everyone else, then it certainly has been for me. The McCall's 7661 might just be my favourite trouser pattern of the ones I've sewn up this year - this is my third pair and I'd say they're the best yet!


The high-waisted trousers are really easy to both put together and wear, with the different views offering a few variations for the legs - either a more voluminous culotte and full length style, or the slimmer, but still fairly loose fitting leg with the option of contrast side panels. I opted for the latter and a tie waist for this pair with View A.


With winter in mind, I picked a soft, textured charcoal flannel suiting from Minerva Crafts priced at £7.99 per metre. I wanted a side panel that popped, so I had lots of colours to choose from with the luxurious Atelier Brunette Viscose Crepe. I eventually picked the 'Tangerine' colourway, priced at £15.99 per metre and also from Minerva Crafts. The crepe was a little lighter than I anticipated, so I got around this by doubling up my fabric for the side panel. (Eagle-eyed readers might also notice that I managed to squeeze a matching Reeta Shirt out of my leftovers too)!



The pattern has a lot of included ease, so I picked my size based on the finished garment measurements for the waist: a size 12, despite my measurements aligning more closely to the size 14. The fit through the hip is nice and relaxed, especially as the trousers are quite heavily gethered into the front waistband, so it's really only the waist that needs to fit snugly. A little tip for finding the finished waist measurement: check the waistband pattern pieces closely as you won't find it on the pattern envelope!


I made the pattern straight from the envelope with no adjustments. The trousers fasten with a centred lapped zipper at the back, but I swapped mine out for an invisible zip as I prefer the method and finish. From wearing my other pairs, I've also found that using a 10" zipper makes them much easier to wiggle on and off than the recommended length of 9".


This pattern is definitely a good introduction for anyone feeling a little tentative about trouser making, but with plenty of options for the bolder wearer to get creative with. The loose fit around the hips makes them both flattering and easy to fit. I love the contrast side panel and I can see myself playing with this again for version four, five and maybe more!


I hope you enjoyed a little peek into how things went - and a change from my regular red brick backdrop! Do you have your copy yet? Does the pattern tempt you? 


Stay in touch!

Seasonal Stitching

finished project
I've been so absorbed in the self-drafted sewing that it feels like I haven't finished anything in forever! So having come to the end of my 10 week pattern drafting course, my pattern is just about ready to make, well, at least in wearable muslin form before I commit to cutting into the good stuff - some glorious teal green crepe I picked up from the new Sew Over It shop in Islington. I thought it would be nice to have a bit of a breather before I launch into the final thing, so mull all the wine and get the tinsel out - I whizzed up a dress for December!



I used the Simple Sew skater dress pattern that came free with issue 8 of Love Sewing magazine (my mum picks me up a copy if she likes the free pattern ha, thanks mum!) I really liked the Lottie blouse pattern that came free with a past issue and made a few versions of it. , They are, by definition, simple patterns, so I thought I'd give it a go.





I bought a medium-weight (Santa) red viscose jersey from my favourite B&M Fabrics in Leeds Kirkgate Market. I've worked in lightweight fabrics with a tiny bit of stretch before, but this was my first big leap into the world of proper stretch fabric, and I loved it! It took me a bit of faffing with my sewing machine manual and some needle changes, but it was otherwise completely pain free. Plus the fabric is so easy to work with - the seams barely needed finishing *cough* lazy sewist *cough*.



Now I don't know if it's just me, but my completed dress isn't quite what I was expecting from the magazine cover image and the illustration on the pattern. I realised pretty early on - but too late to do anything about it - that the dress might be a bit on the short side of knee length, but oh, it's short. I also found that the pattern could do with a bit more length in the bodice too - at least for me. I ended up using a smaller seam allowance at the waist and doing the narrowest hem possible, just to lengthen it in any way I could.



So I was a bit disappointed as I was really looking forward to a voluminous, flowing, knee-length, jersey skirt. The felt blanket-stitched holly brooch was actually my dramatic last ditch attempt to 'salvage' what I had originally branded a 'festive fail' ha. Anyway, I wore the dress in the house and swished the skirt around for a little while and came round to it in the end. 



Despite a few gripes here, there are actually things I really like about this dress and I'll probably make it again with a few adjustments.

The fab bits:
  • I love the V-back! I've never considered ermm getting my back out, but it sort of works!
  • I think it would look fab as a day or evening dress depending on the fabric used (but I'm now a jersey convert so sticking to that)
  • It has offers plenty of room to get creative - pockets, trims, a fancy lining maybe?
Changes for next time:
  • Add at least 1 inch to the bodice and taper the pattern down from a size 12 to a 10 at the waist.
  • Add a good 4 inches (maybe more!) to the hem - I'm such a prude!
  • Finish the neckline better. My mind was in simple sew mode and I completely forgot to interface my facings, massive oops!


Here's a selfie of me, full of Christmas joy and ready to eat my advent calendar Santa.
Is #SeasonalSew already a hashtag or sewist initiative? If it is, then GREAT. If not... then lets get the ball rolling, it's nearly Christmas!

I'm hoping to use the next couple of weeks to make my self-drafted dress and catch up on a bit of knitting in between the Christmas shopping and parties - hopefully a bit of blogging in there somewhere too.

Merry festive season!

Desperately seeking...

By Hand London
... sewing inspiration! I had last week off work with the intention of getting a load of sewing done, but after finishing my third Simple Sew Lottie blouse, I thought I needed a bit of a creative kick up the arse.



Don't get me wrong, I love the pattern and finished blouse is so easy to wear. I did add sleeves this time to bust some scraps from this earlier version I made for a friend. They actually turned out much better than I expected! I thought I was going to have to add cuffs but the almost billowing sleeves work pretty well with the paisley - 70s vibes, and nice and breezy, think its my favourite version yet!


So in other non-Lottie related sewing news, I went to London and got to pay a visit to The Cornershop, a newsagents brimming with hand sewn goods! The whole effort has been lovingly crafted by artist Lucy Sparrow, who was also acting store manager for the duration of The Cornershop's opening in August. Here I am outside (wearing my collared Megan dress!).



I asked Lucy the question that most people probably asked: 'how long did it take you to make everything?' And she replied with SEVEN MONTHS! Now that is dedication, and she was even  making up orders at the (sewn felt) till point - that's right, you can actually buy everything in the shop! 



So here are some shots of the shelves. If you squint, or like me, don't bother wearing the glasses that you're meant to wear, then the products look like they belong in a genuine corner shop.







So feeling suitably inspired by sheer commitment to the sewing lifestyle, I left, craving a bag of cheese and onion crisps - not sure if it was the felt or potato version though. You can find out more about the project and visit the online Cornershop here.

Next up I found myself visiting Raystitch in Angel/Islington where I was absolutely IN MY ELEMENT! It's the stuff that my sewing dreams are made of - so many beautiful Japanese printed fabrics, sewing books, patterns and general sewing paraphernalia. I had a lovely chat about indie sewing patterns and sewing blogs with the assistant, and walked away with two beauties...



Some serious sewing - well muslin making - is on the cards. I've never tried a By Hand London or Dear and Doe pattern before, so I'm really excited - though I could spend all day just looking at them and the beautiful packaging!

First up though, one I've been talking about making for ages. I finally made a start on the Mimi blouse from Love at First Stitch. Will post about the finished garment hopefully very soon!   


An inbetween-projects Lottie

finished project
As a brief interlude to all the Love at First Stitch sewing I've been doing (see my latest, the Megan dress here) I've had a go at something that was familiar, but also a little bit different. I've made the Simple Sew Lottie blouse before, but this time I made it as a gift for somebody else. 


I made this Paisley version for my oldest friend's birthday - by oldest I mean I've known her for longer than any other friend, she's not that old! Its quite an easy, loose fit so I thought it would be a pretty safe option, as I've never made a garment for someone else before. I picked a colourful, drapey viscose, and I think its worked pretty well.


The matching bias binding that finishes the front of a neckline was a it of a bitch to make in the viscose. There were many expletives uttered and a few burns along the way as it just WOULD NOT PRESS, but once I got over that, it was quite quick to finish. I love the finish of the matching bias binding though, so I am considering getting a bias binding maker and trying this technique out a bit more.


This time, I changed the way that I attached the neck tie. If you follow the instructions, you end up with the raw edges that constantly try to escape from their place - tucked under the neck tie - when the top is worn. I attached the neck tie as if it was a waistband, sewing it to the blouse with right sides together and pressing the inside seam allowance under, before folding it over and carefully slip stitching in place. This worked like magic and gave a much neater and more professional finish.


I did buy enough fabric to make myself a second Lottie - of course - so I will definitely repeating this trick with the neck tie.

Anyway, here it is all wrapped up (with another present too). I hope she likes it!




So SEW Simple

finished project
I've clearly caught the bug for wearing red since sewing up my little red Lilou. I used a lazy Sunday afternoon to make a bright red version of the Lottie blouse by Simple Sew. 


The pattern came free with the second issue of Love Sewing magazine, which is a pretty good read. You should a still be able to pick up copies of it, and if not, then there are plenty of other patterns available to buy from Simple Sew here. 

I chose to  the sleeveless version, just for the sake of making something speedy to jazz up my work wardrobe. I was also really feeling the need for that sense of 'finished garment achievement', so it was a good quick fix. The front and back pieces are both cut on the fold, and there are no fastenings to faff around with. Just 4 pattern pieces altogether, and one of these is just to make a bit of matching bias binding. There are very few pattern markings either, just bust darts and a few notches - I was really pleased by this because I hate transferring markings. 


I used a lightweight cotton-mix fabric (not sure what mix, but it's quite drapey and was easy to handle) in a bright red poppy print. I was  worried that the print was a bit Per Una/granny chic, but I bought it anyway - I guess I'll just have to go with it now. Also there is a lot of dressmakers dummy spam in this post. Sorry I'm just still so excited to own one and put it to use! Here is a lovely Instagram shot of my cut out fabric draped over it...


I've never made my own bias binding before, but it's a bit of a revelation. Look at the nifty things that I learnt to do with the neckline!


The matching binding gives such a lovely finish. I'll have to remember this technique. I might even invest in a bias binding maker - I could totally bust a load of scraps and spruce up the hems on all my clothes at the same time. It's a bit of a shame that the nice neckline finish is mostly covered by the pussy bow tie of the blouse in the end. 


That's probably the trickiest thing about the blouse. Attaching the neck tie is really simple if you follow the instructions, though I think I'd choose to do it a little differently next time. The raw edges of the neckline are hidden by the neck tie, but not concealed to the inside the garment. I pressed the raw edges upwards and tacked to the neck tie so they don't go escaping.

Next time, I'll probably leave an opening in the neck tie and sew the raw edges inside of it. It looks like Daisy Jones of Lazy Daisy Jones chose to do it this way too with her lovely version.


The pattern didn't have an indication of finished garment measurements, so when my bust measurement fell in between a size 12 and a 14, I decided to go for the bigger size. I did want it to be a bit oversized as I'll be wearing it tucked in high waisted skirts and trousers, but it is pretty roomy. I would consider making it a size smaller in future, and possibly take in the shoulders a little.


I'll definitely be making the Lottie blouse again though. It could easily be finished in an evening and looks so professional. This might finally be the one that I'll agree to make when a friend asks if I'll sew them something - and 2 of them have already expressed interest in it! Looks like I'm going to be busy!

Thanks for visiting!

Thanks for visiting!