call me a cabarita
Some of my titles are better than others. Moving on…
After I made my Tiramisu, I was halfway through cutting out another one when I got a request from Steph to test the Hummingbird skirt, which was quickly followed by the Cabarita. (As I mentioned in my last post, while I did receive advance copies of these two patterns for testing, that was weeks after I had actually purchased them in the pre-sale. No compensation was involved — except being able to get my grubby hands on the designs a few days early!)
That dress is still half cut, and I haven’t forgotten about it nor the other versions I want to create. In the meantime though, I have been adding some great new basics to my closet, including this latest. Pardon the sunburn.
I have been dreaming in navy and mint for a while. I’ve even sketched up a few garments with this color combo, but they haven’t made it to the cutting table. Then Girl Charlee started the presale for this fabric. I was initially thinking I would make a striped Tira with it, but I went this way instead. (The brighter mint in these pictures is more accurate than the one on their website, at least on my monitor.) GC calls this fabric a “cotton jersey blend,” but I’m not sure what it’s blended with. I doubt there’s lycra because it doesn’t feel that way in the stretch, and there’s next to no stretch on the straight grain, which lycra blends typically have. I did a burn test. I’m a bit of a pyro so I like doing those, but I don’t have much experience with deciphering them. It smelled like paper, did not self-extinguish, and left a brittle, crushable black ash. I’ve got a bunch of fabric burn charts but this didn’t perfectly fit any of the descriptions, maybe because it’s a blend. Anyone know? Anyway, I’ve already worn the top and did not find it too warm, which I typically do if there is much non-breathable (synthetic) content.
The fabric was great for this pattern, in most regards. It’s stable, a good light-medium weight, decent cross-grain stretch, and very easy to control and match stripes. The only caveat I have is regarding the bindings at the back neck V and sleeves — if you use fabric like this one without straight-grain stretch, they may need to be a little longer, so use your judgement.
This top came together so quickly! You choose the outlines for the pattern pieces based on your full bust, hip, and desired front length. You can also provide shaping at the waist, if you want. I made the 50 based on my full bust measurement of 51″. My desired length (28″) and actual hip measurement (54″) were a bit outside of the scope provided, but drawing the lines to fit me was still super easy; really, it was no more difficult than if those dimensions had been provided. The “connect-the-dots” method takes all the mystery out of fitting. It takes a couple of minutes to draw your lines based on your body, and tada — custom fit.
This is my best knit hem ever. I used all the tips included in my twin needle tutorial, plus two more that I tried for the first time: 1) wooly nylon in the bobbin, and 2) “nesting” the side seam allowances. Huh? Yes! This is another pearl from my wonderful friend Miss Lulu, who has given me more tips than Pinterest and the rest of the interwebs combined. Here’s what you do…
After you’ve pressed the hem up, clip the side seam allowance to just shy of the seamline. Leaving the main seam allowance pressed towards the back of the garment as usual, push that little part that’s contained in the hem allowance toward the front of the garment, like this:
Then, just press the hem up again, adding your fusible webbing if desired (which it was for me). This little snip makes a huge difference — not only is the hem more even, but the reduced bulk makes stitching over that part much smoother. Regarding the wooly nylon, it does seem to have provided even more stretch to the hem, but it’s hard to tell without doing a side-by-side comparison with the same fabric. Which I haven’t.
My next planned Cabarita is… wait for it… a solid. Whaaaa? I know! I went to the stash closet, thinking I would make a solid one with contrasting print details, and ended up choosing to make it entirely one color. I’ve never made such a decision before. I only possess solids in my stash for coordinating purposes! The only thing I can figure is that I love the details already baked into this design, and I just wanted to let them speak for themselves. Who am I and what have I done with Susan.
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In other news, I’m really behind with documenting and posting about MMM! Catch-up coming soon. Well, at least in May.
