Frederique deux fois

Posted in Uncategorized by ninjajnin

Spring, we`re ready. The first kind of sunny and warm days arrived around here. There is no better time to start sewing my little girls spring wardrobe. We already spotted the first snowdrop flowers in our garden. I await them eagerly every year. It means the cold days gonna pass by soon. Spring will arrive and that makes me happy. Flowerprints are not so much for me. But for the Frederique Dress at this time of the year, it just felt right. Compagnie M just released THE dress, I felt like sewing in my ihaveenoughfromwintermood mood.

Colorful, sweet and fresh it had to be. With cute little details like the bow in the back, piped pockets and of course the easy cuffs. To calm down the busy print I decided to use white fabric with a touch of mint in it, for all the details. And it worked out so well.

I made two small pattern hacks. I added a gathered skirt. This is a very easy adjustment. Just add some wide to the patternpieces and gather it back to the original waist size. Keep in mind you don`t want gathers over the pockets. Second, I sewed on the cuffs differently than suggested in the instructions. As i like them folded up i sewed them on right-side of the cuff, facing wrong-side of the sleeve. Then i folded up the cuff, hiding the SA between the Cuff and the Sleeve. Understitch from the inside of the sleeve. If you want your cuffs to stay up, this gives a very nice finish. Add a button or some stitches to secure everything in place.

Fabric is from Petit Pan. I bought it together with Marte while visiting Antwerp. Such a beautiful city by the way.

When I have a pattern with many options it`s sometimes really difficult for me to make a choice. I`m not to good in making decisions anyway. Yes, i ended up sewing two Frederiques. Could be worser. My girl is more than happy that she got two dresses instead of the one i promised her.

This dress has a totally different vibe, even if it`s from the very same pattern. This one actually was the first I sewed. It`s a size 4Y. She needs the length, not the wide (lazy me). For the second dress i made the very fast adjustment and sewed her a size 3Y with the length of a size 4. Perfect fit.

The fabric was bought in Paris 3 years ago, in one of the fabricshops around Montmartre. A borderprint shirting cotton. It was cheap but a very reasonable quality. It behaved very well. I love that I managed to line up everything. And that i didn`t had to cut up the print. I joined the pocket piece to the sidepanel, this way you`re able to sew a continuous piping all the way down. Too nice! Congrats Marte, this Pattern will be so loved. It`s all we love about your brand. A versatile pattern with beautiful seamlines and lot`s of options to play with.

Pattern: Frederique Dress by Compagnie M

Fabric: Dress Nr. 1 Petit Pan, Dress Nr 2 bought locally

3Dec2016

Ready for the Rain

Posted in Uncategorized by ninjajnin

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Have you heard about the big Compagnie M sewing contest? It`s all about the Louisa and Lewis Coat. Of course, I couldn`t leave out such a friendly contest. Here is my entry. After making a simple Louisa Coat version for the blogtour, I felt like pattern-hacking could be fun. And i went all the way from a wool coat to a functional rain jacket. I never ever thought i could make something like that, when i first started to sew. I`m not a sewer who fears a lot. But this seemed to be a big deal. Now it`s clear, there is no reason to become scared of such a project. It behaves like a woven fabric and doesn`t shift. And the best of all, you don`t have to iron. Because you would destroy the fabric. You just understitch or topstitch the seams and get a nice and crisp finish.

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My tips for sewing Goretex

Use a microtex needle
Understitch or topstitch seams
Don`t use your iron
Use a seam sealer (I used seamtape) to make seams waterproof
Don`t make mistakes, your needle will leave holes in the fabric and weaken it.
No pins for the same reason

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I made a whole bunch of changes to the pattern. Let`s start on top. I added a little cape to the hood to protect her face from the rain. Then, I drew a standing collar, that she can close her jacket over her neck. Because I didn`t want the zipper to scratch her chin i needed a zipper guard. I provided a drawstring on the waist and an elastic for the hood. I drew deep gusseted pockets in the form of the typical Louisa Pocket. There is a little inside pocket for small treasure and last but not least a size-adjustable velcro for the sleeve.

All you need for a nice weatherproof rain jacket.

Have a look at the details.

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As it is not so easy, to find good quality outdoor fabrics (Your recommendations are very welcome!) I reused a good but not often worn Jacket from her grandmother. I decided to ask around for an unloved rain jacket, I could use to make a new one out of it. I was sure someone had one waiting in a cupboard. But I was so delighted when she arrived with this purple jacket. It`s probably exactly the color my little girl wished for. It was a heavy task to take the whole jacket apart and place the new pattern pieces on it. There isn`t much left of the original jacket. I reused everything. Main fabric, lining, elastic, velcro and even the shortened zipper. So satisfying! Time consuming yes, but lots of fun. And i boast when i look at the finished project!

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The only difficulties I faced where sewing on gusseted pockets without using pins and to apply the sealtape. That was kind of frustrating. This tape caused all those pucker you can see, for example, under the pockets. So annoying for a little perfectionist like me. But I had to live with it. Just couldn`t do better. I`ll try an other brand next time. It`s a great coat, though. At least my little girl is more than happy about it.

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Pattern: Hacked Louisa Coat by Compagnie M

Fabric: Upcycled old outdoor jacket, and some Aime come Marie Diamants for the hood lining.

27Oct2016

Flowers for the girls

Posted in Uncategorized by ninjajnin

martekleid__005

I allready gave you a sneak peek of this dress in my last post. Now i felt like I`ll have to dedicate it a proper post on his own. The Maradress was the first pattern released by Compagnie M and also the first Compagnie M pattern I sewed. I was even one of the Mara-contest winner (see more here). It was about time to show that dress some love again.

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I sewed a lullaby layette romper for my baby girl a few months ago, out of this gorgeous Liberty fabric. (That`s my baby girl when she was about 1 month old.)

liberty

Shortly after, my big girl requested a dress as well! There was just enough left. You don`t waste even a little piece of such a fabric, right? By the way, I received this fabric back in 2014 as part of the Parissewsocial sponsorship. It was generously given by Cousette. It`s probably one of the most perfect cotton fabrics I ever sewed with! This is quality that makes a difference!

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With that opulent flower print, it just had to be a bit princess like. I hacked the sleeve to a balloon sleeve, which makes it extra cute in my eyes. For those of you who like to give it a try. I made a graphics which should make it easy for you to do it yourself.

ballona%cc%88rmel

Draw lines on the sleeve pattern as illustrated.
Cut it as illustrated and spread it open. The more you give, the more Volumen you`ll get.
Take the new outlines as your new pattern-shape. Make sure you transfer notches.
Gather the sleeve, so the new pattern fits to the armscye.
Add an elastic to the hem. (Don`t forget to add Seamallowance for that!)

That`s it, you just made a balloon-sleeve.

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Add some pockets and snaps to the yoke and that`s everything you need for the perfect summer dress. She still wear it of course, just with a few more layers. But that fabric really goes with everything and makes every outfit a tad special.

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Pattern: Maradress by Compagnie M and Lullaby Layette by Oliver and S

Fabric: Liberty Mitsi nougat

24Oct2016

Louisa Coat

Posted in Uncategorized by ninjajnin

I always fall in Love with the style lines of a Compagnie M Pattern! Those nicely curved seamlines, which allow you to get creative and make it your own. I can remember Marte telling me once, that she use to draw her curved seams free hand, I guess that`s the secret behind. Her patterns have in common that they carries Martes very own thumbprint. The lines play with the shape, split up and meet again in a very unique way.

Her latest pattern, the Louisa Coat, was such a pleasure to sew! I must say, that I love sewing Coats. It`s a project you can put your heart and soul in. But your little one will wear it for a whole season. Every single day. It will always be the most visible garment. So yes, it`s totally worth to spent the time and make it unique. The Louisa Coat comes with very clear instructions how to sew a Coat. And that includes some handsewing!

Last year I drafted a Coat myself. That was a lot of work and I`m really glad Marte came up with the perfect pattern this year. Without all the drafting, it was kind of fast sewing this year. Kind of. I never cut corners or just rush through projects, i like to do it as good as i can. A wool coat without fabric bound buttonholes? For me, no way. It`s such a nice finish and i enjoy doing them, though.

I bought the wool 3 weeks ago in Italy. In a local fabric shop. When I entered the store i was surrounded by fabricbolts. They piled up left and right. Just leaving a small path to the cash desk. All the beautiful old wooden shelfs that went up until the ceiling where empty. In front of the desk there was an old men sitting. He looked quite surprised, like he wasn`t expecting costumers. I guess he was not able to get up to the shelves anymore and so he just started to pile his bolts where he could reach them. He had the most beautiful wools and linens and… oh it was kind of sad. I`m a bit a messy person myself, but i really felt the urge to clear up that mess. The wool is gorgeous it`s soft and has a nice drape a beautiful color. i knew my girl would love it right away. She does, even if she declared (a week ago) that pink isn`t her favorite color anymore. It`s violet now (can it get any worser?).

When she first saw her coat she wanted to wear it immediately. I got hugs and kisses. Needless to say, that I was melting away like ice in the sun. She`s just the sweetest, especially in her pink Louisa.

The buttons are vintage from my stash. I love the subtile contrast they add.

The dress you spot here is a Maradress, also from Compagnie M. Yes it`s Liberty. But I wan`t say more. I`ll blog about that one soon.

Speaking about, how much time I tend to spend on my handmade garments. Yes, the lining is machine-quilted to a warm fleece. That took me a whole evening. Just saying.

The fabric I used for the lining is a upcycled pillowcase and I had to add some glitter as well. The piping is self made, silver and shiny. Yes.

The piping on the outside is self-made as well, from a nice thin gingham wool I bought together with the pink one. It helps to add the little something, so the coat doesn`t look like a cupcake, though.

The doll buggy was her birthday gift from Mr. Fliegfederfrei and I this year. It`s a very old one we found at a thrift store. We restored it with lots of love. And it matches the colors of the coat perfectly.

Compagnie M has a discount code available for 2 weeks (till the 6th of November). The code LOUISACOAT10 gives a 10% reduction on the paper or PDF version of the pattern.

Compagnie M shop

Pattern: Louisa Coat by Compagnie M

Fabric: Wool, bought locally in Italy. Lining, upcycled. Buttons: Vintage

13Jun2016

Louisa + Giveaway

Posted in Uncategorized by ninjajnin

A princess seam dress isn`t something, you gonna sew for yourself while having a big baby bump, right? I really felt the urge, to sew the Louisa for Women, when it was released last fall. But don`t worry, I stayed down-to-earth and didin`t sew one for myself. Instead, it happened that my mum`s Birthday was just around that time… that`s how it came, that she has a Louisa by now. It was my Birthday present for her.

I initially planned to sew a winter version with 3/4 sleeves, but with summer just around the corner (you see how long it took me to finish this dress), I decided to skip them. The dress is fully lined in the same shade of the rosa like the flowers. Because it is a gift and should be something special, i went for all the nice (and time-consuming) finishing touches, everything is under-stitched, the hem is hand-sewn i added sideseam pockets and so on. I hope she`ll love this dress for a long time. I really loved to sew it, it`s beautifully drafted!

Mum picked the Naniiro, on the middle panel, out of my stash. The color, really suits her well, don`t you think? As you can`t patternmatch princess seams, I was worried the print will be really nervous splinted up by the seamlines. I suggested, to combine it with the beautiful Fuwari Naniiro. I love to touch this brushed cotton, it`s so soft, amazing to work with!

My mum has a small frame. I sewed a size 32 and still had to take in 1.5 cm at the sideseam around the bust. I shortened the dress about 8cm to her preferred length. No other changes were necessary. In my eyes, the fit is perfect. She seems to feel good in her new dress and i feel good every time she chooses to wear it.

To make you feel good, I`m going to Give-away one gorgeous Paperpattern of the Louisadress for women by Compagnie-M. Just leave me a nice Comment how you feel about sewing for loved ones. I`ll randomly choose a winner next Monday 20/6/16. International entries are very welcome!

Pattern: Louisadress for Women by Compagnie-M

Fabric: Naniiro brushed Cotton, purchased at Miss Matatabi.

24Oct2015

Charles dress – Compagnie M contest

Posted in Uncategorized by ninjajnin

In honor of Compagnie M, who`s celebrating 2nd Birthday with a big contest, this month. I visited my poor sewing machine who had to spend so many evenings on her own lately. I just loved to sew this little number! Sewing with jeans is just great. I nearly forgot how much I love top-stiching. Or placing buttons by hammer (the only way adding buttons is fun).

With Marte`s tutorial for the Charles dress, this is really an easy pattern hack! I sewed a size 18 months based on her measurements and it`s a perfect fit.

You could make it more an A line, but I like the straight cut of the skirt. It makes it stylish without being to cute.

The cuteness factor is added by the little girl wearing it anyway. Look at this smile she gave me in return to a Smarties. Modeling is work and has to be paid, isn`t it?

That`s my entry to the contest, check out all the other gorgeous creations made with Compagnie M Patterns!

30Jul2015

Ileana Dress by Compagnie M

Posted in Uncategorized by ninjajnin

Marte of Compagnie M just released her newest Pattern. The Ileana dress (read more here). It`s a truly unique pattern with so many options. You can go crazy to team the bodice with all those different sleeves, collars, pockets and skirt options. Your Ileana is going to look differently each time your going to sew it, without losing the twist Compagnie M patterns call her own. Let`s celebrate with a little dance.

I`ve choosen the Raglan bodice with the short Raglan sleeve. The short faux button placket with a round peter pan collar. And of course, the full circle skirt.

It would be also possible to choose pattern pieces of the other compagnie m patterns, they match with the Ileanadress as well. What gives you even more creative space.

The bodice is nicely finished with a lining. The skirt is hemmed with a bias-binding sewn to the inside. Such a nice touch on a swinging circle skirt (and very quick btw)!

The collar as well as the sleeves are bordered with self-made piping I had to cut from an old bedsheet. Funnily, there was no white fabric in my whole stash.

Fabric is from Atelier Brunette bought here.

You can purchase the pattern in the Compagnie-m shop, use code ILEANA10 to get a 10% discount on the pdf or the paper version.

Congratulations Marte, this dress rocks!

30Jun2015

Paris Sew Social Blogtour and Giveaway

Posted in Uncategorized by ninjajnin

Sewing was always something, I did alone in my sewing room. Spending time just for myself, surrounded by beautiful and inspiring stuff, doing something that`s exciting and relaxing at the same time. I do not speak about my hobby that much. Even closer friends do maybe know that I like to sew, but do not notice the handmade clothes and I`ve probably never mentioned my blog. With the Paris sew social meeting back in April this habit changed. I found like-minded people who share my passion. And i actually love to talk about fabric, patterns, clothes, scissors, sewing machines and big dreams. I sometimes writes e-mails in the middle of the night, just to say hello to someone living miles away. Knowing the one will be still awake as well. Friends that I found through my blog. That`s amazing!

Today I`ll share two Louisa dresses by Compagnie M, I received the pattern as a sponsoring for Paris sew social. Marte, who`s the designer of this beautiful little A-line dress named Louisa (you surely all know it by heart), even hosted my family for a few days at her home. We got friends during the weekend in Paris. I never thought of things like that could happen, when I started this little blog. We had the best time!

The one with the red dots, is made from a Nani Iro, I`ve choosen at Atelier Brunette in Paris. This fabric was kindly sponsored by Bernina. The only change I made to the pattern was adding tulip sleeves instead of the regular ones.

The second one is made with a little piece of fabric I had in my stash for a long time (bought at Miss Matatabi). I was inspired by this Louisa from Marte. I added the cap-sleeves of the Lotta dress.

Today we`ll give a big thank you to all our sponsors, everybody sewed something with a Pattern or a fabric received in Paris. Check out all the other creations. There is a giveaway on every single blog!

Compagnie M

Giveaway winner will be announced 10/07/2015

26May2015

Nina Culottes Pattern Tour

Posted in Uncategorized by ninjajnin

Marte of Compagnie M just released her newest pattern for women and teens. It`s a two in one pattern with a basic A-line skirt and a culotte option. I never ever thought of wearing a pair of culottes before, I can remember that I owned a pair as a child but that doesn`t count. It`s a totally new type of garment in my closet. I really wasn`t sure about it when I started to sew. Can you imagine a pair of pants that looks like a skirt? I couldn`t. But after all, Martes pattern are always great and the culottes are called Nina (kind of named after me).

And look at them, they`re stylish, airy and functional in one. Perfect.

I sewed a muslin first and I was happy that I did so (I seem to be able to learn from my faults!). A pair of pants is something done to personal taste. The muslin fitted perfectly well. But there were a few things I didn`t like. As a girl who wears low waist skinny jeans all the time, I was not used to the high waist. I took away a few cm of the waistband.

And I added pleats to the front. That`s something you can do really easily without changing the shape of the garment.

I sewed a size XS with the length of size 12 y.

The fabric is from a local store. Tiny little dots all over. The waistband is finished with hand-stiching on the inside. So worth to take the time, the result is really neat.

Marte`s pattern comes with a lot of options and very detailed instructions. From the beginning seamstress, who`ll try her hands on the very first skirt, to the skilled sewists, who will sew a pair of culottes with welt pockets and zip fly. It`s something there for everyone.

A comfy new pair of pants for my summer-wardrobe. How great is that!

If you wanna try one`s luck enter the giveaway to win a copy of the new Compagnie M Pattern.

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for all of you who can`t wait you can get your copy straightaway here.

6May2015

Paris je t`aime – GIVEAWAY

Posted in Uncategorized by ninjajnin

The weekend in Paris is already over, but I still remember how nervous I`ve been the days before. Retrospective, I do not know why. I went to Paris, to meet a few strangers who all share the same passion for sewing. I arrived said hello to everyone and I started to feel like meeting friends I`ve known for a long time. You have to know, I`m shy. Really. I like it, if i can sit on a table and just listen to all the other people without having to say anything. I can do so a whole evening. That`s me. But those ladies made me feel so welcome. It was a great experience! Thanks to everyone who made this weekend so special to me!

From the left, behind: Marte from Compagnie M. Miren from Solo Sewing, Gioja from Dottasews, Annika from Näh-Connection, Marta from Do Guincho, Maartje from Huisje Boompje Boefjes, Sophie from C’est la vie, Nienke from Pienkel, Victoria from As it Seams, Laura from Craftstorming.

Front from the left: Maria from La Inglesita, me with my little bean, Laura from Behind the Hedgerow, An from Straight Grain, Olu from Needle and Ted.

Here we are (An, Annika, me, Marta, Marte, Gioja, Olu) after a few hours of fabric shopping around Montmartre. Marte was my companion during this afternoon. She really is amazing. I appreciate her a lot! We had such a blast to rummage in all those beautiful fabrics. And we found a few treasures…

You can have a closer look at my findings on Instagram.

Hem… (Me, Marte, Olu)

(Olu)

As i better sew than write i`ll just let the others tell the whole story…
If you want to see more pictures and read more about what we did, then check out those posts.

Annika, Maria, Gioja, An, Sophie, Victoria, Marta, Maartje, Nienke, Others are going to follow during this week.

We had some generous sponsors who overwhelmed us with goodies.

That`s what I took home. Like Christmas and Birthday together!!! I already started sewing! Stay tuned, the next weeks are going to be busy around here! I took home so much inspiration and motivation.. amazing!

Bernina sponsored a dinner and some fabric at Anna Ka Bazaar. We got a lot of gorgeous fabric from several fabric companies and shops (Lillestoff, Nosh, joy-fits, mon depot, Cousette, Nutta, Stoffe.de, imagine gnats), Telaria sponsored the most beautiful sewing book I ever owned (and i`m a sucker for sewing books i own quite a few ;)). I`ll write a review and sew something out of it soon!

Alles für Selbermacher packed a bag with personalized gifts, threads from Aurifil and Supercut, sewing stuff from Snaply, japanese sewing books from Tuttle, Ottobre magazines and a bunch of Indie Designers offered their PDF patterns to us.

Bernina, Lillestoff, Cousette, Nosh, FabFab, Telaria, Alles für Selbermacher, Supercut, Imagine Gnats, Nutta, Mon Depot, Tuttle, Aurifil, Snaply, Joyfits, Ottobre, Compagnie M., Do Guincho, Titchy Threads, Made It, Kid Approved, Schneidermeistern , Delia Creates, Willow&Co, Mouse House Creations, Sofilantjes, Sewpony, LBG Studio, Loubee Clothing, Straightgrain, Elegance&Elephants, Hey June, Paisley Roots, St. Christopher’s Inns & Paris Office du Tourisme

A big Thank you to all of them! But they didn`t just think about us. They also sponsored a few more goodies to Giveaway. So 3 lucky readers can win a huge prize, each packed with amazing goodies from our sponsors.

Let`s see what`s in there!

1st prize:

The first prize includes jerseys from Lillestoff (the rose print sponsored by Lillestoff, the ABC print sponsored by joy fits), a Andrea Lauren bag filled with goodies from Alles für Selbermacher, an Ottobre magazin, a 15$ voucher for Imagine Gnats Shop and a sewing magazine from Stoffe.de.

2nd prize:

The second prize includes a jersey with roses from lillestoff, a fun dinosaur fabric sponsored by mon depot, some pink ribbing from Nosh, a lace zipper from Snaply, nice spools from Aurifil, a paper pattern by Compagnie M. and a sewing magazine from Stoffe.de.

3rd prize:

The third prize includes a flowery popeline from Lillestoff, white jersey from Nosh, blue Lycra (?) with Cupcakes from mon depot, a paper pattern from Compagnie M., spools from Aurifil and a sewing magazine from stoffe.de.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

fliegfederfrei

Tag Archives: Compagnie M

Frederique deux fois

Ready for the Rain

Flowers for the girls

Louisa Coat

Louisa + Giveaway

Charles dress – Compagnie M contest

Ileana Dress by Compagnie M

Paris Sew Social Blogtour and Giveaway

Nina Culottes Pattern Tour

Paris je t`aime – GIVEAWAY