Sequined Vest Simplicity 1943

 I've never sewn with sequined fabric before- probably because I have no where to wear it to!  But when Fabricmartfabrics.com had this black sequined fabric on their Deal of the Day, I thought, "Let's get a yard, and see what it's like."  I was surprised!  It was really quite easy to sew with.  This particular one was a knit, and the sequins were sewn on.  I had read that you should remove the sequins from the seam line so that you don't break a needle, so I decided I better have as few seams as possible.

Simplicity 1943 had a knit vest pattern that only had side and shoulder seams, and said that it would fit on 1 yard of fabric!  A perfect match!

Before I went through the arduous task of removing the sequins from the seamline, I did a test with my machine on a swatch that did not have the sequins removed.  Luckily, the machine handled it beautifully- no broken needles, no sequins flying.  I did wear glasses just in case!

I did line the vest with a black ITY knit.  The back side of the fabric was a little scratchy, and I didn't want to risk not wearing it because of that.  I sewed all of the seams with the sequins still intact, and they even pressed beautifully.  I was afraid that they might melt, but they were perfectly fine for short presses.

They do however snag anything that they come in contact with.  This is just annoying!  I can see why most sequin fashions don't have sleeves, because the snagging problem would be multiplied with sleeves.  But for a night out, special occasion, I think that I can live with that.

Happy Sewing!

Ann

An Easy Burda Magazine Blouse

November's Burda Magazine issue was a hit for me.  There are several things that I'm planning to make from it, but I haven't sewn from Burda for a while and decided to ease myself back into it with something relatively simple.   Burda has great designs, but no illustrations in the instructions, which can sometimes be a little daunting on the more detailed designs.  They can be a challenge, but I like that!

 This blouse-#131 had no collar, no cuffs, no buttons, so I decided it would be perfect.  I love the flounce detail in the center front, so even though it looked easy, it also looked interesting! The flounce isn't a separate piece.  The pattern has just three pieces- front, back and sleeve.  To get the flounce effect, you just put the fronts wrong sides together, and sew down the center front line.  Nothing to it!