Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Underwear for me and ma' boys

Although you can't tell from the photo, the fabric actually has a pretty paisley pattern in shades of light and dark black. It also has a ribbon at the CF. I guess this photo has obscured all the bits worth showing, but also hidden all the mistakes.

If you follow my sister's blog (Blooms Fabric Obsession), you would know that she popped up to Cairns for a visit a few weekend's ago. You would also know that we spent Saturday night having a bra sew-a-long. This is the first bra I have ever made, so Katherine sat next to me and walked me through step-by-step. She made hers using scraps of Liberty. So pretty.

Katherine created a pattern for my by cutting up an old Bendon bra that was close to a perfect fit. Apparently this has given me a very good head start. She said she has spent years trying to perfect the fit of her bra pattern and is still not quite there. She's read that cutting up a good-fitting bra is a good place to start. But if you've never owned a good fitting bra well then the road is much longer and windier. I'm pretty sure I hit the ground running with my pattern. Thanks Katherine.

I made my bra using a very slippery lingerie lycra. This was both hard to cut out and to sew. Perhaps it would be better for a beginner to start with a more friendly fabric. Despite this, I'm extremely pleased with how the bra turned out and can say with confidence that bra making is extremely easy if:
1. You have a great pattern.
2. You have Katherine sitting next to you.

I've decided to dedicate the 6 week summer break to lingerie making. I'll be holidaying on the Sunshine Coast with my family and my sewing machine for that period of time. If I stick to lingerie making than I don't have to worry about packing my overlocker, patterns, creating muslins etc. I can pack small, to create my smalls!

If you read this and live in the Cairns area, I have also learnt that there is a lady with a warehouse of lingerie making supplies in Smithfield. I'm yet to explore it, but intend to very soon. Let me know if you want me to pass on the details.

And lastly, I whipped up a few more pairs of boy trunks for my boys using Katherine's pattern. You can get a copy of it here.


6 comments:

  1. What a fabulous bra!! It looks so totally professional...

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  2. It's easy to see which is for you and which for the boys.. bra making is something I just can't get my head around - it just seems way too hard to me. Congrats on getting something that looks like the real deal!

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  3. You and sis should go into business. They look better than my too expensive breas.

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  4. What a glowing review...sounds like I should start up classes! I'm so pleased you finished it off nicely with a bow...though I can't seem to zoom into photos anymore, so I can't really see it.

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  5. You two sound like a great team - fab bra - very envious - something that I have not tackled yet! Cool trunks!

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  6. Having a sister who sews is great isn't it? I'm really impressed with your bra (hmm - can't say that to just anyone!) and the boys' undies. Do your boys prefer the ones you make?

    Thanks for letting me know about my photos - I think it's because I've been using images from my Flickr account. Next time I'll try uploading them directly and see if that makes a difference.

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