Sunday, November 21, 2010

Kwik Sew 2257 - Sleep shorts revisited.

I didn't mean to be away so long! I guess I have fallen off the sewing wagon with everything else that has been going on in my life - kids, (return to) work, negotiating contracts, and of course, a pregnancy that has me more tired than any of the others, even when I was working 60-70 hours/ week, with oncall, 24 hour shifts or night shifts.

I guess I am not 25 anymore :-)

I have been sewing, albeit sporadically, and have not had much success, certainly nothing I have felt like posting pictures of, except perhaps to remind myself (?one day) of how rubbish I am at the moment at this craft.

I made a pair of boxer shorts for husband back in June, and they did not go very well.
The fly, for one thing, is on the outside instead of the inside, and it is messy, and not terribly comfortable looking.

The waistband, while it looks okay here, was also a mess. Kwik Sew instructs you to sew the waistband into a circle, and then encase it into the casing, which I struggled with, with messy results, that I was unhappy with.

Nonetheless, husband was *thrilled*, (I know, weird huh???), that I had made him a pair, and requested more, also citing reasons that by making him more, I would get to iron out the wrinkles (pun unintended).

As you can see, I put off this request for some months, and finally got around to it today. 3 more pairs to be exact.
And while they still need tweaking, they are much much better, if I do say so myself, than the original pair. I have snuck them into his drawer while he has taken the kids out for the day, to give me a break, and I hope he likes them!

Much neater waistbands, using the original method KS mentions (I had to think about this before doing it this time, and also referred to my Singer Sewing Library "Sewing with Knits" book beforehand - love that book! ), with much better results.

The fly, as you can see is also much neater, and not on the wrong side!!! I also overlocked all raw edges before I put seams together, to avoid ragged edges.

The hems could have been neater and more even, but that is another project for another day I suppose...for now I am pleased.
Next up, husband also wants me to make him more summer singlets and my first attempt was a disaster that had to be binned. The second was marginally better (he is still wearing it), but not by much, and I have again referred to the Sewing with Knits book for a better idea of how to do it, so here's hoping I'll do a better job second time around!

I must say production line sewing isn't much fun, but it IS rewarding to end up with clothes that are actually wearable, as opposed to clothes that end up in the bin. And this way, I get to practice sewing clothes that do get worn, but not scrutinised, while I improve my skillset.

Next up, these singlets, and some summer nighties/ PJs for the kids. Hopefully I won't be away as long this time!